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LymphocyteLover

(6,835 posts)
Tue Nov 12, 2024, 07:22 AM Nov 12

Important point about Biden's (misplaced) unpopularity

Emptywheel:

"But one reason Biden is so unpopular is the same reason Hillary was in 2016: Republicans had led a sustained garbage investigation designed to do nothing but raise her negatives. Republicans tried to impeach Biden for, literally, nothing, and it captured the attention of both real and fake media for two years. And the effort to smear Biden was, as these campaigns always are, about projection. Republicans in Congress spent taxpayer dollars to create the illusion that Biden was the corrupt one, not Trump. (Trump’s unprecedented corruption, which will be one of several organizing principles of his Administration, got almost no attention during the campaign.)

Which is to say, it’s not just the election. It’s broader than that. It’s that a permanent propaganda campaign has been supercharged in the last two years, in ways that weren’t even true when Fox News relentlessly tried to take down Hillary and her spouse in the 1990s. And that propaganda campaign has played a key role in leading people to distrust and eschew “reality,” including the reality that Joe Biden was better for the economy and Trump is unashamedly corrupt."

https://www.emptywheel.net/2024/11/10/two-elections-the-rules-were-that-you-guys-werent-going-to-fact-check/

They suck at almost everything in terms of governing, but Republicans are masters of propaganda.

30 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
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Important point about Biden's (misplaced) unpopularity (Original Post) LymphocyteLover Nov 12 OP
' It's that a permanent propaganda campaign has been supercharged in the last two years' elleng Nov 12 #1
Yes. Raven123 Nov 12 #2
This message was self-deleted by its author Chin music Nov 12 #3
All we heard for four years was "Crooked Joe Biden" "The Biden Crime Family" doc03 Nov 12 #4
This message was self-deleted by its author Chin music Nov 12 #8
They are not 'masters'... OldBaldy1701E Nov 12 #5
This! jfz9580m Nov 12 #6
I am tired of the suggestions that Trump and/or Republicans are just so gosh darn good at this... CBHagman Nov 12 #9
Bingo! (n/t) OldBaldy1701E Nov 12 #18
"a simple ad can make them blind to reality" -- People without critical thinking skills assume... Beartracks Nov 12 #13
Which was why I used to tell every single student at my school... OldBaldy1701E Nov 12 #19
"Don't believe everything you read on the Internet." -- Abraham Lincoln Beartracks Nov 12 #25
Add to that Bettie Nov 12 #20
I suppose... but we need to get better at this on our side LymphocyteLover Nov 12 #28
Hillary was right: A "vast rightwing conspiracy". no_hypocrisy Nov 12 #7
It's all about misinformation and propaganda oldmanlynn Nov 12 #10
Disinformation will always have a leg up. lastlib Nov 12 #12
Good point-- hadn't thought about how their trips to Russia may have been about going to propaganda school LymphocyteLover Nov 12 #29
the 1% are winning southmost Nov 12 #11
The .001% are winning Bettie Nov 12 #21
So True. The merely rich are going to find out what. . . UniqueUserName Nov 12 #23
Bingo EnergizedLib Nov 12 #14
President Biden was the very first president to take on Reaganomics gab13by13 Nov 12 #15
Keep in mind that the Russians are also masters of propaganda Wicked Blue Nov 12 #16
I agree with the premise as they did the same to Hillary and had longer to do it. But here's an interesting fact.... surfered Nov 12 #17
It is also true that, for decades Erda Nov 12 #22
The Fox News/Joe Rogan information complex is destroying our country. D23MIURG23 Nov 12 #24
All true but epreic01 Nov 12 #26
My understanding is the DNC is just a fundraising and disbursement agency and doesn't have many other powers LymphocyteLover Nov 12 #30
Fox Noise spoke nothing but shit about Biden from Day 1 GreenWave Nov 12 #27

elleng

(136,386 posts)
1. ' It's that a permanent propaganda campaign has been supercharged in the last two years'
Tue Nov 12, 2024, 07:24 AM
Nov 12

'They' lie SO EASILY, and WE don't/can't.

Response to LymphocyteLover (Original post)

doc03

(36,769 posts)
4. All we heard for four years was "Crooked Joe Biden" "The Biden Crime Family"
Tue Nov 12, 2024, 07:36 AM
Nov 12

"Hunter Biden" and "Shifty Schiff". Trump refused to concede the election and ran a
shadow government for 4 years.

Response to doc03 (Reply #4)

OldBaldy1701E

(6,414 posts)
5. They are not 'masters'...
Tue Nov 12, 2024, 07:44 AM
Nov 12

They were just playing to an easily manipulated electorate. One that is so wishy washy that a simple ad can make them blind to reality.

It was like shooting fish in a barrel. People are more interested in 'Housewives' than they are with their own political representation.

It doesn't take a master manipulator to convince a child that Santa Claus is real.

jfz9580m

(15,506 posts)
6. This!
Tue Nov 12, 2024, 07:50 AM
Nov 12

Thanks OB1701E. You are correct. The GOP aren’t masters of anything. I am not the brightest tool in the shed. But I do pay enough attention to understand life better than the average Trump voter of any demographic (except billionaires).

No one but a billionaire could want to vote for the GOP at this point on account of it making their own lives better. Not even the fairly wealthy are insulated from the general stress, uncertainty and chaos they bring.

CBHagman

(17,142 posts)
9. I am tired of the suggestions that Trump and/or Republicans are just so gosh darn good at this...
Tue Nov 12, 2024, 08:22 AM
Nov 12

Between a for-profit media that (A) needs the horse race and (B) sustains a negative tone for almost every topic and the number of people who fall into the low-information voter category, the work of creating this tragedy was and is fairly straightforward. It doesn't help that social ties have been frayed and people are isolated in their technologically controlled bubbles.

Beartracks

(13,594 posts)
13. "a simple ad can make them blind to reality" -- People without critical thinking skills assume...
Tue Nov 12, 2024, 08:53 AM
Nov 12

... that you can't say stuff in public forums like political ads unless it's true, or that all conspiracy theories "have a grain of truth." It's these assumptions that the liars and propogandists know the public will make, which frees them to lie completely and with impunity.

================

OldBaldy1701E

(6,414 posts)
19. Which was why I used to tell every single student at my school...
Tue Nov 12, 2024, 10:28 AM
Nov 12

"Never believe anything on the internet until you can confirm it six ways to Sunday!"

They rarely believed me. See where we are now?

no_hypocrisy

(48,946 posts)
7. Hillary was right: A "vast rightwing conspiracy".
Tue Nov 12, 2024, 08:04 AM
Nov 12

I'm surprised they didn't accuse Joe Biden of killing his first wife.

However, they DID try to make Tim Walz look like he jilted a Chinese woman before he married.

No low is too low.

oldmanlynn

(451 posts)
10. It's all about misinformation and propaganda
Tue Nov 12, 2024, 08:37 AM
Nov 12

The Republicans have been learning from Russia for years as they made frequent trips over to Russia and what do they learn there. They learn how to push misinformation and propaganda. That’s all incorrect. We need to learn how to fight against misinformation we need to be able to drown out all the lies by pushing truth propaganda. We probably won’t be able to destroy Fox News because of First Amendment protections so we have to learn to drown out all that misinformation

lastlib

(24,949 posts)
12. Disinformation will always have a leg up.
Tue Nov 12, 2024, 08:50 AM
Nov 12

As the old saying goes, a lie gets halfway around the world before truth gets its pants on. And the RWers have more ways to spread disinformation than we have to counter it. It almost seems like we need to launch our own disinformation against the RW to even have a chance to be competitive. Like "Tr*mp is helping Russia buy drugs from Mexico to sell to white Americans in the US." (Actually, I'm not sure that isn't true, but.....) Until we can build a network to speak truth on a massive scale, we can expect to be behind in the misinformation battle. And that's a recipe for losing, IMHO.

Bettie

(17,169 posts)
21. The .001% are winning
Tue Nov 12, 2024, 10:39 AM
Nov 12

there are a lot of rich people who are going to be upset when they find that they don't have enough to buy in to the oligarchy.

UniqueUserName

(284 posts)
23. So True. The merely rich are going to find out what. . .
Tue Nov 12, 2024, 11:42 AM
Nov 12

. . .it's like to be screwed over by the insanely, criminally, untouchable, exponentially wealthy.

At least the masses can enjoy that schadenfreude.

I'm sort of enjoying that Trump's rambling about "the old woman and the snake" and "the scorpion and the frog" were addressed to his supporters. There are many bad things about Trump that are all probably true ---dementia, narcissism, sadism---- I think he relished in telling his supporters that he was the snake and scorpion. ----Sort of "You knew I was a snake when you voted for me."

He and his spokespeople weren't even quiet about the fact that they plan on America going through hard times. His voters thought he was talking about us going through hard times not them.

gab13by13

(25,291 posts)
15. President Biden was the very first president to take on Reaganomics
Tue Nov 12, 2024, 09:03 AM
Nov 12

He took on neoliberalism, he took on trickle down economics.

President Biden actually taxed the rich, a 15% minimum tax.

President Biden got legislation passed that helped the poor and working class.
President Biden backed unions, the first president to walk a picket line.
President Biden forgave student loan debt.

President Biden was undoing Reaganomics, he had to be attacked by the greedy right.

Wicked Blue

(6,689 posts)
16. Keep in mind that the Russians are also masters of propaganda
Tue Nov 12, 2024, 09:22 AM
Nov 12

and have tirelessly worked to smear both Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden.

surfered

(3,339 posts)
17. I agree with the premise as they did the same to Hillary and had longer to do it. But here's an interesting fact....
Tue Nov 12, 2024, 10:07 AM
Nov 12

...According to Matthew Dowd (and yes, he predicted a Harris win) a Presidential candidate is saddled with the approval rating of their party's incumbent President. This was correlated since Reagan. Each Presidential candidate received the same percentage of the popular vote as the percentage of favorability of the current President (of the same party) until Harris.. Biden's favorability prior to the election was around 40%, but Harris got 48% of the popular voter. Based upon this historical connection, she actually over performed.

It seems there are three categories of voters in our country: the sane, the insane, and the insanely stupid.

Erda

(166 posts)
22. It is also true that, for decades
Tue Nov 12, 2024, 11:36 AM
Nov 12

We have been engaged in and have allowed, the dumbing down of the American mind.

Our school systems (not all, but generally speaking), no longer recognize the importance of cursive writing, civics, music, art, critical thinking or even speaking proper English in terms of grammar. (Without language skills, how can we communicate nuance? Even professionals on television make mistakes that should have been corrected in elementary school.) Or practical skills like how to cook, how to survive without modern day conveniences or without a cellphone.

Our culture celebrates crassness, obscene wealth and how many followers someone has on social media. Video games, a form of mental programming, keep many of our young people occupied in an alternate world. A lot of them can't change a tire or cook a meal.

We have become shallow. We have become delusional.

We have a lot of work to do. We also have the opportunity and the tools to change where we are headed IF we have the tenacity and the will to start where we are and do what lies within our ability, to first value and then reclaim our power.

D23MIURG23

(3,090 posts)
24. The Fox News/Joe Rogan information complex is destroying our country.
Tue Nov 12, 2024, 11:43 AM
Nov 12

I read an article recently that made the same point. Biden did a good job governing, but the mainstream media didn't dispel the massive slander operation being propagated by right wing TV and internet content.

If we can't start challenging the right on the internet, they will bury us under an avalanche of "alternative facts".

epreic01

(262 posts)
26. All true but
Tue Nov 12, 2024, 11:56 AM
Nov 12

We also had no sales pitch to the American people. And honestly Biden did his job. He delivered time and again.
Where was the DNC??? When Howard Dean ran it he was not only doing work behind the scenes he was constantly on every media platform he could get on making the pitch and he was someone people wanted to listen to.

LymphocyteLover

(6,835 posts)
30. My understanding is the DNC is just a fundraising and disbursement agency and doesn't have many other powers
Tue Nov 12, 2024, 05:58 PM
Nov 12

We definitely need a better way to get our message out, no doubt.

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