The Most Confusing Comment On Gaza From An American Politician Recently
Plus: The Media Is Ignoring A Major Trump Policy; What's Happening In Springfield, Ohio; And, Apropos Of Nothing, An Encyclopedia Entry On Fascism
Since I last published a newsletter, the death toll for Israel’s military operation in Gaza has risen by 468 people, according to Palestinian officials, reaching 41,206.
We should also now tally the toll in the West Bank, where an intense Israeli escalation has taken place in recent weeks. On Sept. 11, the United Nations reported that since Oct. 7, 2023, 674 people had been killed in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem – 658 killed by Israeli forces, eleven by Israeli settlers, and seven “unknown.” An American, Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, was among those killed by Israeli forces recently.
In light of all of this, I was struck by a line from Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) – made in the “spin room” after the recent presidential debate.
“I also think what [Harris] did was lay out a vision for the Middle East, one of Israelis and Palestinians living peacefully side-by-side. I think that’s critically important,” he said of Harris’ cookie-cutter debate answer on Gaza.
Then, the real stumper: “Listen, for the Palestinians, they need to make clear that violence has no part in their relationship with Israel, that Israel has a right to exist.”
Notably, despite the massive death toll in Gaza and the West Bank, Shapiro did not say that Israel or Israelis need to “make clear that violence has no part in their relationship” with their neighbors.
But it’s even more confusing than that. Rather than refer to “Hamas,” or “Palestinian leadership” generally, Shapiro said Palestinians in general were the ones who needed to “make clear that violence has no part in their relationship with Israel.” To which I am still wondering: How?
How, amid widespread death and destruction and the threat of a polio outbreak, and despite de minimis control over their own political affairs, should average Palestinians make clear they want to live in peace alongside Israelis? I don’t ask it as a rhetorical question. I am literally wondering what Shapiro expects Palestinians, in general, to do.
Is it even possible to convey political preferences under the extreme duress of such a deadly military assault? Perhaps Israeli political scientists could canvas future Palestinian voters in al-Mawasi, one of the Israel-designated “safe zones” within the Gaza Strip. But they should be careful to avoid the 2,000-pound American bombs that are falling from the sky in that area recently.
The comment from Shapiro – and the stark contrast in which it stood to all observable reality – reminded me of a popular poem that’s been making the rounds this past year, written by the Palestinian poet Marwan Makhoul.
In order for me to write poetry that isn’t political
I must listen to the birds
and in order to hear the birds
the warplanes must be silent.
The Media Is Ignoring A Major Trump Policy
I’ve spent the past few days working on a story about a major Trump policy that I don’t think the media, or the American public generally, are taking seriously: Trump’s pledge to deport every single undocumented immigrant in the country.
I think the assumption is that “norms,” “courts,” “bureaucratic resistance,” or “democratic guardrails” will stop Trump’s team from pursuing his mass deportation agenda – which includes building massive prison camps along the border, conducting indiscriminate sweeps of every major city in the country, and using the military for crowd control and border enforcement.
And it’s possible those things will slow him down. But consider that Trump’s team now has four years of experience in the Executive Branch, and another four years of preparation to retake the government and mold it to Trump’s will. This dynamic is why I have followed “Schedule F,” the Trump initiative to purge the government of non-political civil servants, so closely.
I have a mantra for the role journalists should play when it comes to covering politics. “I take your power seriously.” This applies to advocates, political organizers, community groups, militias, crazy people – and the once and possible future president of the United States. I take Donald Trump and his movement’s power seriously.
And in that light, his mass deportation proposal is alarming. In an article published yesterday, I wrote about Trump’s plans in extensive detail, using his and his adviser’s own words, and including a brief historical dive into the model for their program – the militarized 1954 purge of immigrants executed by Dwight D. Eisenhower known as “Operation Wetback.” Please read and share.
Here’s What’s Been Going On In Springfield, Ohio Recently...
Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio), the Republican vice presidential nominee, has recently raised concerns about housing costs and the availability of social services in Springfield, Ohio. But rather than examining zoning policy, landlord price fixing or bureaucratic inefficiency, he has scape-goated Haitian immigrants, using his massive megaphone to spread false rumors that they were eating people’s pets. If only the United States addressed the real problem – Haitian immigrants – the people of Springfield might have some relief, he has essentially argued.
After Vance amplified the lies about Haitian immigrants, the Springfield community has seen a wave of bomb threats and Ku Klux Klan activity, and some Haitian migrants in the area are afraid to leave their homes.
And after Vance’s lies about Haitian immigrants were definitively disproven (including by yours truly), Vance justified spreading the lies, saying, “If I have to create stories so that the American media actually pays attention to the suffering of the American people, then that’s what I’m going to do.” (Immigrants in Springfield are, in fact, here legally under “temporary protected status” – and therefore as “American” as anyone else in their circumstance.)
...Anyways, Here’s What Encyclopedia Britannica Says About ‘Common Characteristics of Fascism’
Although fascism is a notoriously difficult ideology to define, many 20th-century fascist movements shared several characteristics. First, these movements sourced their political strength from populations experiencing economic woes, real or imagined. Fascists tended to capitalize on these economic anxieties by shifting the blame away from government or market forces. Jews, immigrants, leftists, and other groups became useful scapegoats. Redirecting popular anger toward these people would, in theory, rid a country of its ailments.
To unify a country, fascist movements propagated extreme nationalism that often went hand in hand with militarism and racial purity. The prosperity of a nation depended on a unified polity that put the group’s welfare above the individual’s. A strong, vigilant military was considered necessary to defend these group interests. And for some fascists “the group” was defined not by territorial boundaries but by racial identity. Nazism constituted the most insidious form of racial-purist fascist nationalism.
Fascist movements of the 20th century also frequently lambasted liberalism for its alleged role in sowing political disunity and moral degeneracy. Although many fascist movements initially organized themselves around democratic institutions for political legitimacy, they resorted to totalitarianism in practice. A component of this process became the reorganization of society around a strict moral code that often sought to reverse the “decadence” of pre-fascist culture.
Quote Of The Week
"I had always dreamed of being an arms salesman. This was, like, one of my childhood dreams. And then I got to run the State Department. You may not know this – largest arms salesman in the world."
–Mike Pompeo, Trump administration secretary of state, speaking in 2021
What I’ve Written
HuffPost, “Texas' Right-Wing Leaders Are Going To ‘Scary’ Lengths To Intimidate Political Rivals” (Sept. 5, 2024)
HuffPost, “Federal Indictment Reveals It's Remarkably Easy To Fool Right-Wing Media” (Sept. 6, 2024)
HuffPost, “JD Vance Spreads Outrageous Lie About Haitian Immigrants” (Sept. 9, 2024)
HuffPost, “Anti-Muslim Extremist Laura Loomer Flew To Debate With Trump” (Sept. 10, 2024)
HuffPost, “Trump Repeats Vile Lie About Immigrants” (Sept. 10, 2024)
HuffPost, “Trump's Confusing Debate Comment About 'Abdul' Has A Strange, Shifting Backstory” (Sept. 11, 2024)
HuffPost, “Inside Team Trump’s Plans For Mass Deportation Camps” (Sept. 14, 2024)
What I’m Reading
Texas Public Radio, “17 Guardsmen have died on Gov. Greg Abbott's controversial border mission, soldiers speak out” (Aug. 31, 2024)
Talking Points Memo, “MAGA Looks to Notorious War On Terror Lawyer For Trump II Inspiration” (Sept. 2, 2024)
Drop Site, “Israel Lays Siege to Jenin Hospitals: On-the-Ground Report From the West Bank” (Sept. 3, 2024)
HuffPost, “Georgia Election Official Who Defied Donald Trump Echoes His Voter Fraud Fearmongering” (Sept. 4, 2024)
Haaretz, “Coalition Source: Netanyahu Decided Against Hostage Deal Weeks Ago, and Found Philadelphi to Be an Effective Spin” (Sept. 4, 2024)
Zeteo, “American Woman Shot and Killed by Israeli Gunfire in West Bank” (Sept. 6, 2024)
HuffPost, “Florida's Nonpartisan Health Agency Spreads Partisan Lies About Abortion Rights Ballot Measure” (Sept. 6, 2024)
HuffPost, “RFK Jr. Made His Mark As An Environmental Lawyer. Now He’s All In On MAGA.” (Sept. 10, 2024)
Rolling Stone, “DeSantis’ Police Are Making House Calls to Grill People About Abortion Measure” (Sept. 10, 2024)
WisPolitics, “Dodge County sheriff encouraged clerks not to use drop boxes this fall” (Sept. 11, 2024)
United Nations, “Gaza: Six UNRWA staff killed in strikes on school sheltering displaced people” (Sept. 11, 2024)
HuffPost, “Republicans Are Launching Last-Minute Attempts To Keep Abortion Off The Ballot” (Sept. 12, 2024)
New Republic, “Trump’s Slow-Burn Authoritarianism” (Sept. 12, 2024)
Wall Street Journal, “A Boy Uprooted in Eisenhower’s Mass Deportation Reflects on Trump’s Plan for Another” (Sept. 13, 2024)
NBC News, “'It just exploded': Springfield woman claims she never meant to spark false rumors about Haitians” (Sept. 13, 2024)
HuffPost, “Trump's Campaign Is Doubling Down On His Racist Lie — And Things Could Get Much Worse” (Sept. 13, 2024)