Another Poem For The Citizen Heroes Of Minnesota

 

Far More Say The Pretti Shooting Was Unjustified Than Say It's Justified

The chart above is from the YouGov Poll -- done on January 25th of a nationwide sample of 3,834 adults, with a 2 point margin of error.

A Visual Timeline Of The ICE Murder Of Alex Pretti In Minnesota

 

From The New York Times.

Most Say ICE Is Not Making Cities Safer & Minnesota Shooting Was Inappropriate

The chart above is from the CNN / SSRS Poll -- done between January 9th and 12th of a nationwide sample of 1,209 adults, with a 3.1 point margin of error.

 

Another Poll Shows Most Think The Killing Of Renee Good Was NOT Justified

 

The charts above reflect the results of the Quinnipiac University Poll -- done between January 8th and 12th of a nationwide sample of 1,133 registered voters, with a 3.7 point margin of error.

Most Say The ICE Shooting Of Renee Good Was NOT Justified

The chart above reflects the results of the Economist / YouGov Poll -- done between January 9th and 12th of a nationwide sample of 1,602 adults (including 1.437 registered voters). The margin of error is 3.3 points for adults and 3.1 points for registered voters. 

Trump & Sycophants Think You're Too Stupid To Watch A Video And Make Up Your Own Mind

The following is part of a post by Heather Cox Richardson at Letters From An American:

In an apparent attempt to regain control of the national narrative surrounding the deadly shooting of Renee Good in Minneapolis, Vice President J.D. Vance led the administration in pushing a video of the shooting captured by the shooter himself, Jonathan Ross, on his cell phone.

The video shows Ross getting out of a vehicle and walking toward a red SUV where Good sits in the driver’s seat. Sirens blare as he walks toward her. She smiles at him and says: “That’s fine, dude. I’m not mad at you.” As Ross walks alongside the car, she repeats: “I’m not mad at you.” As he reaches the back of the vehicle, another person, presumably Good’s wife, Becca, says: “Show your face.” As he begins to record the vehicle’s license plate, the same person says: “That’s okay, we don’t change our plates every morning,” referring to stories that agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) switch out plates to make their vehicles hard to track. “Just so you know, it’ll be the same plate when you come talk to us later.” Ross’s camera pans up to show the person recording him on her cell phone.

She continues: “That’s fine. U.S. citizen. Former f*cking veteran.” As she walks to the passenger-side door, she looks at him and says: “You wanna come at us? You wanna come at us? I say go get yourself some lunch, big boy. Go ahead.”

Another officer approaches the driver’s side of the vehicle and says to Renee Good: “Out of the car. Get out of the f*cking car.”

As the passenger calmly reaches for the passenger-side door handle, the police officer on the driver’s side again says: “Get out of the car!” Other videos indicate that he had then put his hand into the car and was trying to open the door. Good quite clearly turns the wheel hard away from the police officers to head down the street as the passenger yells: “Drive, baby! Drive! Drive!”

Someone says “Whoa!” as the car moves down the street. Ross’s camera shows his face and then sways—remember, he has been filming all this on his phone. There are three shots and the houses on the side of the street swing back into view on Ross’s camera, indicating he did not drop it. As the car rolls up the street, Ross says, “F*cking bitch!” just before there is the sound of a smash.

What is truly astonishing is that the administration thought this video would exonerate Ross and support the administration’s insistence that he was under attack from a domestic terrorist trying to ram him with her car. The Department of Homeland Security reposted Vance’s post.

As senior editor of Lawfare Media Eric Columbus commented: “Do Vance and DHS think we can’t actually watch the video?” 

In the case of the murder of Renee Good, the shooter and his protectors are clearly so isolated in their own authoritarian bubble they cannot see how regular Americans would react to the video of a woman smiling at a masked agent and saying: “That’s fine, dude. I’m not mad at you,” only to have him shoot her in the face and then spit out “F*cking bitch” after he killed her.

This is the larger meaning of federal agents from Immigrations and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Patrol in U.S. cities. While they are attacking primarily people of color, the message they carry is directed at all Americans: you must do what the Trump administration and its loyalists demand.

Trump Is Using The FBI To Sweep The Murder By An Ice Agent Under The Rug

 

After viewing the video of the killing of Renee Nicole Good by an ICE agent, most Americans want a thorough and non-biased investigation. That investigation should include all the ares law enforcement agencies - local police, Minnesota state police, and the FBI. But Donald Trump doesn't want that.

The FBI (headed by Trump sycophant Kash Patel) is shutting out all other law enforcement agencies from the investigation. They, and they alone, will investigate the shooting. And it doesn't take a rocket scientist to know what they will find. The shooter will be exonerated.

Patel is already on thin ice with Trump for his misuse of FBI agents, funds, and property. He's going to make sure the investigation report reads exactly like Trump wants it to read.

In other words, the truth will be swept under the rug.

Americans are spreading unhappy with the thuggery of Trump, Noem, and their ICE agents. The coming coverup of the killing of Good will not satisfy the public. It will just make matters worse to know that agents can violate the law and even kill innocent people - and they can get away with it.

This is not right. Everyone must be subject to the same laws - even ICE agents. 

Will The Minneapolis Policeman Get Away With Murder?

The eyes of the nation are on the trial of Derek Chauvin in Minneapolis. He's the policeman who had his knee pressing down on the neck of George Floyd -- after Floyd was handcuffed and on the ground, That action resulted in the death of George Floyd, and most Americans have seen and been shocked by the video of Floyd being killed.

After viewing the video, I think many probably think a guilty verdict is a sure thing. But that is naive. It is extremely rare for a policeman to be convicted for assaulting or killing a suspect. We will have to wait and see if the Minneapolis jury is going to convict or let Chauvin off.

The following is part of a post by Shaun King in The North Star:

They weren’t subduing George Floyd - no - George Floyd was handcuffed, hands behind his back, on his stomach, and lifeless. They weren’t protecting themselves or the community. If that argument could ever be made, it damn sure ceased to be true for the final 300+ seconds that grown men refused to let up off of his limp body. That wasn’t protection - it was punishment. And on May 25th, 2020 the Minneapolis Police Department, with Officer Derek Chauvin in charge, and his band of brothers joining in, served as judge, jury, and executioner of George Floyd. 

It’s called buck-busting. Or buck-breaking. Google it. It has a long history in slave-holding countries and it’s where white men would get the biggest, strongest Black man they could find and torture him in the most unthinkable ways imaginable in front of every enslaved African on the plantation, sometimes even from neighboring plantations, often unto death, just to show everybody that the white man was in charge. Yesterday the defense attorneys already started using the Black-Hulk defense, telling the jury how huge George was and how puny Derek Chauvin was. This defense, too, has deep roots in American history and ties to the murders of Michael Brown, Eric Garner, Daniel Prude, and more.

This has always been a violent place. From the tens of millions of Native Americans who were killed, to the tens of millions of Africans who were enslaved, raped, tortured, bred, bought, sold, traded, and worked to death for generations, to the wars here and abroad, to the nearly 400 million guns in circulation - this place has always been, above all else, a deeply violent place.

The literal National Anthem of this land, written by a monster, is literally about violence with “the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air.” Our first president owned hundreds of human beings and used their good teeth to replace his rotten ones. This country killed its greatest presidents. This country murdered its greatest leaders. This country killed Emmett Till and set his killers free. This country murdered freedom riders, buried them, and refused to hold anyone accountable. This country - with its mass shootings on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday - killing Asian women, killing school children, killing Black folk in church studying the Bible - violence, not peace, not freedom, violence, is the core value of this nation.

Yes, Dr. King said that riots are “the language of the unheard,” but hear me now - if Derek Chauvin is not convicted of some degree - first, second, or third - of murder, if he is not held accountable in the court of law, a reckoning is going to befall this country one way or another. And it should.

Convicting Derek Chauvin is the floor. It is the least. Hell, that’s not even justice. It’s a fraction, a semblance of accountability, but if justice means balancing the scales for what they did to this man, then sending Derek Chauvin to prison is a start, but we’re calling for that, and so much more. We’re calling for an end to qualified immunity. We’re calling for a radical new definition of public safety in every town, city, and county in this country. We’re calling for reimagined budgets and priorities. We’re calling for the decriminalization of poverty, substance use and abuse, and mental health. We’re calling for the complete renegotiation of police union contracts nationwide. We’re calling for a ban on prosecutors and politicians receiving money from police and their unions. We’re calling for an end on the war on drugs. We are calling on a complete expungement of drug crimes from records. We’re calling on the profits and tax revenues from marijuana to be used to revitalize the people and communities most impacted by the racist war on drugs.

So yeah - convict this man - do it on the evidence - but understand this - millions of Americans have already had their patience worn thin. And millions of Americans no longer believe you when you call for peace and calm for some and not others.

NYT/Siena Poll Shows Biden Leading Four Battleground States

 

The chart above reflects the results of the New York Times / Siena College Poll -- done between September 8th and 11th of 445 likely New Hampshire voters, with a 5.5 point margin of error.

The chart above reflects the results of the New York Times / Siena College Poll -- done between September 8th and 10th of 760 likely voters in Wisconsin, with a 4.7 point margin of error.

The chart above reflects the results of the New York Times / Siena College Poll -- done between September 8th and 10th of 462 likely Nevada Voters, with a 5.3 point margin of error.

The chart above reflects the results of the new New York Times /Siena College Poll -- done between September 8th and 10th of 814 likely voters in Minnesota, with a 3.9 point margin of error.

Fox Poll Has Joe Biden Leading Donald Trump By Large Margins In Michigan, Minnesota, & Pennsylvania

The chart above reflects the results of the Fox News Poll -- done between July 18th and 20th of a sample of 756 Michigan voters, with a 3.5 point margin of error.

The chart above reflects the results of the Fox News Poll -- done between July 18th and 20th of a sample of 776 Minnesota voters, with a 3.5 point margin of error.

The chart above reflects the results of the Fox New Poll -- done between July 18th and 20th of a sample of 793 Pennsylvania voters, with a 3.5 point margin of error.

Donald Trump is trailing badly in these important battleground states -- by 9 points in Michigan, by 13 points in Minnesota, and by 11 points in Pennsylvania. Trump carried Michigan and Pennsylvania by a tiny margin in 2016, and must do that again to be re-elected. But he has a lot of work to do to catch up with Biden in those states.

Medical Examiner Says Floyd's Death Is A HOMICIDE

The document above is the report from the Hennepin County Medical Examiner regarding the death of George Floyd. Note that the manner of death is listed as homicide.

Most Of The Minneapolis Rioting Is From Outside Groups

For several days now, there have been protests in Minneapolis and other cities around the nation. These protesters are demonstrating against the police violence which happens far too often against Blacks.

These people have the right to protest. Something must be done to rein in police violence and racist activities in Minneapolis and across the nation.

Unfortunately, as night falls the demonstrating has been turning to violence and rioting. Many buildings have been burned down.

This is not the work of those honest Blacks (and Whites) who want to end the racism and police violence. Most of them have gone home before the rioting starts, and Minneapolis officials have said the 80% of those arrested for rioting have been from out-of-state.

Both Donald Trump and his lap dog (William Barr) want you to think that all of this violence is coming from left-wing groups. That is simply not true.

I don't doubt that some of the rioters are ultra-left anarchists, but there are those from the right that are rioting also. Many of those who have been arrested have been linked to white supremacist groups. They are not there to protest racism or police violence (both of which they support). They want to see Blacks and progressive Whites blamed, thinking they can use that to justify their own sick agenda. And some of them are even trying to foment a civil war (race war) that they hope will result in a white authoritarian government being established.

Don't let the anarchists and the white supremacists defame the honest protesters. Both are just trying to accomplish their own perverted agenda.

We need to end racism and reform police departments in this country. But we won't do that through violence, or listening to the anti-democratic forces of the ultra-left anarchists or the rabid-right white supremacists. We must be better than that if our democracy is to survive.

Has The Minneapolis Police Murder Hurt Klobuchar?

The chart above reflects the results of the latest Economist / YouGov Poll -- done between March 23rd and 26th of 1500 adults nationwide, with a 3.2 point margin of error. This chart reflects the views of Black voters on some of serious candidates Joe Biden could pick to be his vice-presidential running mate.

The Black vote is very important to the Democratic Party, and it would help Biden to pick a candidate well-liked by Black voters. This chart shows that Elizabeth Warren is viewed favorably by most Blacks (about 65%). Others who do well are Amy Klobuchar (54%), Kamala Harris (53%), and Stacey Abrams (49%).

But the poll was done before the police murder in Minneapolis, and one has to consider whether that has hurt Klobuchar's chances to be selected. Before being elected to statewide office, Klobuchar was a prosecuting attorney in Minneapolis, and her record of prosecuting police for abuse is not necessarily one to be proud of. Here is just a part of how The New York Times is reporting it.

Senator Amy Klobuchar swept into office in 2007 as a former tough prosecutor, boasting of how she had reduced crime in the most populous county in Minnesota. But as protests over George Floyd’s death in police custody bring chaos and violence to Minneapolis, her record as prosecutor there is facing renewed scrutiny as she prepares to be vetted as a leading vice-presidential contender.

With a police force in Minneapolis that has long faced accusations of racism and complaints of abuse, Ms. Klobuchar declined to bring charges against multiple police officers who were involved in shootings during her seven-year tenure. Instead she often opted to send cases to a grand jury, a common practice at the time but one that some law enforcement experts say favors police officers.

On Friday, Ms. Klobuchar said that grand juries were used “in every jurisdiction across our state,” and that she now regretted those decisions.

“I think that was wrong now,” she said in an interview on MSNBC. “I think it would have been much better if I took the responsibility and looked at the cases and made the decision myself.”. . .

During her own presidential campaign, Ms. Klobuchar faced continued protests, as well as some calls to drop out of the race from local black leaders in Minneapolis, after news reports found numerous faults in the prosecution of a black teenager named Myon Burrell while Ms. Klobuchar was the prosecutor. Mr. Burrell had been charged in the murder of an 11-year-old girl and was convicted, but maintained his innocence, and one of Mr. Burrell’s co-defendents had said he was in fact the gunman responsible.

Two days before Super Tuesday in March, a rally in her home state was shut down by protesters demanding she do more to help free Mr. Burrell.

In the months since she dropped out of the presidential race and endorsed Mr. Biden, Ms. Klobuchar has taken steps to rectify some of her record.

On the Wednesday after Mr. Biden dominated Super Tuesday states, Ms. Klobuchar sent a letter from her Senate office to the district attorney’s office in Hennepin County, asking them to launch an independent review of Mr. Burrell’s case. She also met with Mr. Burrell’s family and local activists.

Has this hurt Klobuchar's chances of being selected? I have to believe it probably has. Joe Biden needs Black voters to show up in large numbers next November, and picking Klobuchar now would just create a problem that he doesn't need.

Charges Are Finally Filed Against Minneapolis Policeman

The images above are the charging instrument filed against Derek Chauvin in the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Chauvin has been arrested finally.

Frankly, I don't understand why it took so long to file those charges. The video of Chauvin with his knee on the neck of Floyd for nearly nine minutes has been public for days, and Chauvin's action was AFTER Floyd was handcuffed and on the ground. The incident should have been over once the handcuffs were applied. Chauvin's actions after that were nothing short of assault -- an assault that turned into murder.

So far, the other three officers have not had any charges filed against them, but have been fired. Charges should also be filed against them. They had to know that Chauvin's actions were unnecessary and dangerous, but they did nothing to stop him. That makes them at least accessories to Chauvin's crime.

There is criticism of the rioting that occurred in Minneapolis on Thursday night. I don't condone that rioting or arson. But I do believe it could all have been avoided by the Minneapolis and Minnesota state officials acting in a timely manner. But they didn't, and the demonstrations were understandable (even if some protesters took their protest too far).

The police murders of unarmed Black men are happening far too often in this country. It has to stop!

Klobuchar Leads In Her Home State Of Minnesota

The chart above is from the Mason-Dixon / MPR News / Star-Tribune Poll done between February 17th and 20th of 500 likely Democratic primary voters in Minnesota, with a 4.5 point margin of error.

The poll shows Amy Klobuchar leading in Minnesota -- her home state. Minnesota is a Super Tuesday state, and will vote on March 3rd. It is critical that Klobuchar hold this state, or she will no longer be a viable candidate.

Trump Is Not Doing Well In Four Critical Swing States

These charts reflect the results of the Cook Political Report / Kaiser Family Foundation Poll -- done between September 23rd and October 15th of registered voters in four battleground states. They questioned 767 voters in Michigan, 958 voters in Minnesota, 752 voters in Pennsylvania, and 745 voters in Wisconsin. The margin of error was 4 points in all four states.

These four states are going to be critical for both parties in the 2020 general election. In 2016, Trump won three of them and finished close in the other. He will need to repeat that performance to get re-elected.

Right now, it doesn't look like he could do that. The voters in all four states don't approve of the job he is doing. They also disapprove of how he's handling healthcare, immigration, foreign trade, and foreign policy -- and they are split on how he's handling the economy.

Trump is going to have to do a lot better than this in these states to get re-elected.

Trump Trails The 3 Leading Democrats In Minnesota (Bigly)

The charts above are from the Star-Tribune Minnesota Poll -- done between October 14th and 16th of 800 registered Minnesota voters, with a 3.5 point margin of error.

It shows that at this time, all three of the leading Democrats would easily beat Trump. Biden would win by 12 points, Warren by 11 points, and Sanders by 9 points.

Trump recently held a rally in Minnesota, and has told aides that he thinks he can win that state in 2020. This poll shows that is unlikely at best.

Rep. Ilhan Omar Gets A Hero's Welcome In Minnesota

Donald Trump has done his best to demonize four women representatives of color, and turn the public against them -- especially Rep. Ilhan Omar (who came to this country as a refugee 27 years ago, became a citizen, and now represents Minnesota's 5th district in the U.S. House of Representatives).

Trump has appealed to the racism of his supporters, telling Rep. Omar to go back to her country. He also basked in a chant of "send her back" at a rally of his supporters. But Trump's racist efforts are not impressing the people in Minnesota.

On Thursday, she returned home to Minneapolis -- and a crowd of supporters gave her a hero's welcome. Here's part of how ABC News reported it:

Congresswoman Ilhan Omar received a warm welcome back home in Minneapolis Thursday, with supporters cheering her on at the airport and at a health care town hall event after a week of racist attacks from President Donald Trump, who told four Democratic congresswomen of color to "go back " to where they came from, and from supporters at a Trump campaign rally, who chanted "send her back" on Wednesday night.

"I know there are a lot of people that are trying to distract us right now, but we are not going to let them," she said at her "Medicare for All" town hall event with Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., after the crowd of 500 constituents and supporters gave her a standing ovation. . . .

More than 100 supporters warmly greeted Omar at the airport. Speaking with a megaphone at baggage claim, Omar teed off on Trump, who attempted to distance himself from his attacks and the cheers at his Wednesday rally.

"Everybody is talking about that he is threatened because we criticize him," she said. "But the reality is that he is threatened because we are inspiring people to dream about a country that recognizes their dignity and humanity."

"We are not deterred, we are not frightened, we are ready," she said. "We are in the ring, we are in the people’s house ... we are going to continue fighting until we have the America we all deserve."

Trump Is Losing The Upper Midwest (Bigly!)

In 2016, Trump won the state of Michigan by only 11,000 votes (out of about 4.8 million votes cast), and won the state of Wisconsin by only 23,000 votes (out of about 2.98 million votes cast). If he had lost either of these states, he would not be living in the White House -- and he needs to keep those states in his column to have any chance of being re-elected. In addition, he lost in Minnesota by a razor-thin margin -- giving the GOP hope he could carry that state in the future.

How is Trump doing in those states after 18 months in office. Not good! Not good at all! A new poll shows he is far behind in all three states right now in job approval. In Michigan,  the public disapproves of him by an 18 point margin. In Wisconsin, the public disapproves of him by a 16 point margin. And in Minnesota, the public disapproves of him by a 13 point margin.

The poll also shows that  Trump has no coattails for Republicans to cling to in these states. In the coming election, Democrats are favored over Republicans by 9 points in Michigan, by 8 points in Wisconsin, and by 12 points in Minnesota.

And none of those states thinks Trump deserves to be re-elected in 2020. In Michigan, he is opposed by a 34 point margin, in Wisconsin by a 32 point margin, and in Minnesota by a 30 point margin.

Michigan and Wisconsin are purple states (leaning toward blue) and Minnesota is a fairly reliable blue state. It was a real surprise (at least to me) that Trump did so well in all three in 2016. But it looks like they have now come to their senses.

The liver-caller NBC/Marist polls were conducted July 15-19 among respondents contacted by both landline and cell phone.

The margin of error for the 886 registered voters in Michigan is plus-minus 3.9 percentage points. The margin of error for the 876 registered voters in Minnesota is plus-minus 4.0 percentage points. And the margin of error of the 906 registered voters in Wisconsin is plus-minus 3.8 percentage points.