What a darn week! The account has to begin with the attempted assassination and the maelstrom of messaging about it in all directions. Attempted murder on national television, bitter political strife and a variety of legal battles were all reflected in a swirl of highly amplified messages.
Our Legal section saw the first draft of this morning’s Weather Report and told us to tone it down and just report what seems to be happening in our little town on the banks of the big grey-brown river.
First, let’s get the obvious stuff out of the way. Whatever your opinions of the target might be, we are grateful he survived. The attribution of blame for the events surrounding the attempted murder represents an example of the stark collision of social views. For some, the optics were so vivid that they must have been faked. For others, the sloppy security that permitted the shooting implies a larger plot but from a different direction. We have no idea what is true, nor do we think ‘getting to the bottom of it’ will approach the bottom of anything except the messaging. And we will likely be talking about it for a long time.
That, of course, directly impacts the Big Deal in progress and has become an intrinsic part of it. Starting the week, the President was energized by his staff in the post-debate discussion of his viability to continue in office. His increased visibility produced mixed reviews. The change of pace may have exceeded his endurance. The calls by some for him to withdraw were met with stuff resistance, though the storm over the shooting may have altered that calculation. Reports of a Zoom call between the White House and members of Congress yesterday were unfavorable, after which a report of a positive exposure to Covid required a self-quarantine in Delaware for health reasons.
We no longer have any idea of the relative veracity of any reporting, so like you we will have to wait and see what is next. We do know that the prospect of losing control of the House, Senate and White House seem to be at risk, which no longer reflects the nature of our government, The Administrative apparatus that allegedly works for the Executive has assumed its own power base, and that is reflected in a media establishment with an interest in who controls the now-four branches of government.
So, there is that major struggle that suggests with so much at stake, we can expect the volume of reporting to increase without an increase in veracity, and there is the possibility of Black Swan flights both domestic and overseas regarding political, public health or military issues.
So, apart from the International events displayed in the NATO conference on the other side of the big River last week, there are downstream domestic messaging issues now percolating from the Supreme Court’s Decision Season. Most recent was the dismissal of the Florida proceedings run by Special Counsel Jack Smith, whose appointment and funding were judged to be unconstitutional exercises of Executive Branch Authority. The matter is, of course, being appealed, but seems to be off the table as a matter directly affecting the November election.
We hope this can be determined by a rational national election, but that matter is yet another in the chaotic messaging stream.
The one that affects us directly here in Your Nation’s Capital? The downstream implications of the Chevron decision by the Supreme Court, in addition to Presidential immunity and documents are starting to percolate to Congress. The Court overturned the 1984 decision Chevron U.S.A., Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc. That case pitted the interests of a major energy producer against a non-profit organization that harnesses “science, policy, law, and people power” to confront the crises confronting the climate, public health, and nature.
Which brings us to why Legal told us not to delve too deeply into any of this. Their justification is that at least part of the controversy is an upstream social war about biology. That used to be based on “Science,” a term for which we had a common definition. It once stood for a description of an objective method to determine the nature of how things work. Now, it is something else, a talisman of truth from which policy is directed, not discussed.
Legal tells us not to get too far into it, since that is a conflict that goes back to the caves and fire-pits, wondering what the clouds will bring on the ‘morrow.
So, those are just some of the elements in this week’s Washington Circus of linked events have driven the messaging. There are others, of course. But we will have to get to them next week. There will be an address from the GOP convention that will close tonight, and perhaps some decision-making from Delaware. We anticipate there might be some messaging from both, you know? The only certainty we have and Legal permits us to share, is that it will likely be entertaining.
Copyright 2024 Vic Socotra
www.vicsocotra.com