Good Wednesday morning!
I’m filling in for Liz Sheld today. For any questions about the liveblog, click here.
This afternoon, I’ll be going to the doctor so my wife and I can see our baby daughter Alanna in an ultrasound! The doctors have said she’s a bit small, so they want to see her again, which means we get to see her again, too. But enough about me. You all clicked to see Beto O’Rourke make a fool of himself, didn’t you?
Beto’s apology
So, in an interview on The View, 2020 Dem Robert Francis “Beto” O’Rourke apologized for his elitist campaign launch on the cover of Vanity Fair. When Meghan McCain asked him if he has “any regrets about launching on Vanity Fair” he admitted that it was a mistake.
McCain suggested a woman could not get away with the kinds of comments Beto made in that story, from his claim that he was “born to be in it” to his admitting that he “sometimes” helps in raising his kids. “You’re right, there are things that I have been privileged to do in my life that others cannot,” he admitted.
“Are those mistakes?” Joy Behar pressed.
“Yeah, I think it reinforces that perception of privilege. And that headline that said I was born to be in this, in the article, I was attempting to say that I felt my calling was in public service. No one is born to be president of the United States of America, least of all me,” Beto said.
He admitted that he “deserved” the flak he got for admitting he is a “part-time dad.”
Beto clearly went on The View to do some damage control. I’m not sure it worked…
Beto O’Rourke on criticisms of his ‘Vanity Fair’ “born to be in it” remark: “I was attempting to say that I felt my calling was in public service — no one is born to be President of the United States of America.”
“I have a lot to learn, and I still am.” https://t.co/f8u2wc159S pic.twitter.com/eQ5TKpXdAa
— The View (@TheView) May 14, 2019
Day two of de Blasio watch
So, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio committed to publicly making a decision about the 2020 presidential race “this week.”
“We’ll make a final decision this week and we’ll announce this week,” de Blasio told reporters on Monday. That decision did not come on Tuesday, so there’s a one-in-three chance it’s coming today.
Times have been tough for the New York mayor recently. He has received small crowds and few headlines as he toured Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, and South Carolina. Polls have shown that New Yorkers would prefer de Blasio focus on running the Big Apple for the remainder of his term. No less than 76 percent of registered New York voters told Quinnipiac they’d rather see de Blasio stay put in City Hall, while only 18 percent said they’d like to see him run for president.
After all, do Americans really want to see a New Yorker face off against a New Yorker in 2020?
Oh, and it seems like de Blasio may have a police cover-up scandal brewing…
By the way, Eric Trump slammed de Blasio for attacking the Trump Organization.
(1/4) The fact that the Mayor of a major city would attack an iconic organization (which employs thousands of hardworking New York taxpayers) for his own political gain is an abuse of power, unethical and simply counterintuitive. @NYCMayor
— Eric Trump (@EricTrump) May 13, 2019
Then the mayor shot back.
Spare me. You and your dad have spent decades evading taxes and stiffing your workers.
NYC’s Green New Deal is one law the Trumps won’t get away with breaking.
Fix your buildings or pay the price. https://t.co/NZdqbWQF7T
— Mayor Bill de Blasio (@NYCMayor) May 13, 2019
And Eric Trump said he’s never created a job in his life. His dad retweeted him.
Spare me? First you have never created a job in your life. Second, our great city has gone to shit under your leadership. Crime is up, the men & women of the NYPD detest you, homelessness is rampant, our streets are dirty and people are leaving our city in record numbers. https://t.co/3Fn1glQJEa
— Eric Trump (@EricTrump) May 14, 2019
Biden’s pitiful denial of corruption
While we’re talking about the 2020 Democratic primary, let’s take a look at the frontrunner, former Vice President Joe Biden. You see, Biden took the lead in Obama’s relationship with Ukraine (investing billions), and his son was making a killing with a certain company in that very country. As it happens, Ukraine dropped a criminal investigation into that same company for $1.8 billion in lost aid funding — days before Biden’s very last trip to Ukraine.
What a coincidence! Or so Biden would have us believe.
On Monday, the former VP dismissed concerns about this potential corruption. As the Associated Press reported, “The New York Times has reported Biden pressured Ukraine’s government to dismiss a top prosecutor believed to be tolerating corruption. The prosecutor was looking into the firm, Burisma Holdings. Biden denied Hunter Biden’s work for the company had anything to do with the effort.”
“We never once discussed it when he was there,” Biden said. “There’s not a single bit of evidence that’s been shown in any reporting that’s been done that he ever talked about it with me or asked any government official for a favor … I have great confidence in my son. He’s a man of great integrity.”
Yeah, right. There’s no chance Biden spoke with his son about the company that was paying him $50,000 per month, when the VP led boom’s efforts in Ukraine. It’s all a total coincidence. Riiiiiiiight.
Photo of the day
Ray Kroc’s original McDonald’s in Des Plaines, Ill., is seen, Nov. 18, 1982. The first McDonald’s opened here in April 1955, and will be closing next year to move to a modernized new store across the street. (AP Photo/John Swart)
There is a debate about the first McDonald’s, but one of the claimants to that title opened in San Bernardino, California, on this day in 1940. The McDonald Brothers actually opened their first restaurant adjacent to the Monrovia Airport in 1937, but it was called the Airdrome. That building was moved to San Bernardino in 1940. There’s a museum there. This photo shows Ray Kroc’s first McDonald’s in Des Plaines, Ill., one year before it closed in 1983.
Other morsels
22nd Dem Enters 2020 Race — With Tirade Against Free Speech in Politics
Now THAT would be a good idea: Political Confessional: I Think Democrats Should Compromise On Abortion To Win Votes
Will Joe Biden’s Black Support Squash ‘Identity Politics’ In 2020?
6 Things to Know About the Prosecutor Investigating Spying on Trump Campaign
I wouldn’t be surprised… Could Buttigieg Surge Again?
The Media Are Lying To You About Georgia’s Pro-Life ‘Heartbeat Bill.’ Here’s The Truth.
Harvard Launches an Attack on the Culture of Liberty
‘Deal-Breaker:’ AOC Can’t Stomach Joe Biden Seeking ‘Middle Ground’ on Climate Change
What if Joe Biden runs away with this thing?
Ouch: Alyssa Milano’s Anti-Feminist ‘Sex Strike’
PROPAGANDA: CNN Spreads Deceptive Info On School Shootings, Calls For Gun Confiscation
Lol: A Darwinist Deconstructs the Declaration of Independence
Follow Tyler O’Neil, the author of this article, on Twitter at @Tyler2ONeil.
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