From Wikipedia:
In American political jargon, an October surprise is a news event deliberately created or timed (or sometimes occurring spontaneously) to influence the outcome of an election, particularly one for the U.S. presidency. The reference to the month of October is because the date for national elections (as well as many state and local elections) is in early November. Therefore, events that take place in late October have greater potential to influence the decisions of prospective voters.
Since the 1972 presidential election (when it came into use), the term "October surprise" has been used preemptively during the campaign season by partisans of one side to discredit late-campaign news by the other side.October surprises have gotten so bad they should call October "National Mudslinging Month".
Case in point:
Fox News:
Four women have accused Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump of sexual assault on Wednesday in a series of reports, adding to the already damaging revelations about his suggestive comments about women.And so naturally you waited until less than a month until Trump becomes the most powerful man in the country to tell your story? Isn't that what all molestation victims do?
Trump’s campaign dismissed the allegations as having no merit or veracity, and it attacked The New York Times, accusing the media outlet of having a vendetta. In a letter from his attorneys Thursday, Trump demanded The New York Times retract what it called a "libelous article" and apologize.
...In a story published Wednesday evening, The New York Times says 74-year-old Jessica Leeds of New York told the paper that Trump groped her on a flight more than 30 years ago. Leeds says Trump grabbed her breasts and tried to put his hand up her skirt.
"He was like an octopus,” Leeds says. "His hands were everywhere ... It was an assault."
In the same story, Rachel Crooks tells the paper that the real estate developer "kissed me directly on the mouth" after she introduced herself to him outside a Trump Tower elevator in 2005.
"It was so inappropriate," Crooks tells the paper. "I was so upset that he thought I was so insignificant that he could do that."
There are two more dubious stories mentioned in the article which came out this week.
Don't get me wrong: I firmly believe Trump is capable of such actions. And he even might have done what these ladies accuse him of doing. What I question is their reaction to it. They wouldn't wait this long without some kind of payoff if they were truly offended by the advances.
Trump isn't worthy of the White House, but these women aren't worthy of our sympathy either.
On the other side of "National Mudslinging Month":
The Washington Free Beacon:
Hillary Clinton’s campaign chairman John Podesta lamented that the campaign needed endorsements from “needy Latinos” and called a former Hispanic governor “a dick,” according to newly released hacked emails.Haven't the Democrats always looked down their noses at minorities?
Podesta laid out an endorsement strategy for Clinton’s presidential campaign in an email to the candidate on August 21, 2015.
“A few calls you might consider making,” Podesta wrote to Clinton in an email with the subject line “Needy Latinos and 1 easy call.”
To be honest, this is probably a more recent development. But it is clear that Democrats have gotten used to minority support, to the point where they treat it with all the grandeur of making toast in the morning.
That said, we are starting to see more October surprises for Democrats than we have in quite a long time.
Speaking of the Democratic victims of October...
CNN:
It's not a new Cold War. It's not even a deep chill. It's an outright conflict.First, there is only one political party that has been victimized by hacking so far, and that was the Democrats. Second, if the Russians did do it, we should send them a nice fruitcake for Christmas, because they did us a huge favor.
US-Russia relations have deteriorated sharply amid a barrage of accusations and disagreements, raising the stakes on issues ranging from the countries' competing military operations in Syria, disputes over Eastern European independence and escalating cyber breaches.
"This is a conflict, there should be no doubt," said Matthew Rojansky, director of the Kennan Institute at the Wilson Center, on the US-Russia confrontation.
On Tuesday, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said the US was considering a "range" of "proportional" responses to alleged Russian hacking of US political groups. Washington publicly accused the Kremlin of cyberattacks on election systems and the democracy itself last Friday. That came after talks on a Syria ceasefire broke down as US officials suggested Russia be investigated for war crimes in the besieged city of Aleppo.
Moscow has steadfastly denied that it's meddling in the US presidential election. In an interview this week with CNN's Christiane Amanpour, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said it was a baseless accusation.
"It's flattering, of course, to get this kind of attention -- for a regional power, as President Obama called us some time ago ... We have not seen a single fact, a single proof," Lavrov said.
Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton has pointed to the hacks as evidence that Russia favors her GOP opponent, Donald Trump. Appearing at an investment forum in Moscow on Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed that charge.
"There was a whole hysteria about that being of interest to Russia, but there is nothing within the interest of Russia," Putin said.
"The whole hysteria is aimed at making the American forget about the manipulation of public opinion," he added. "No one is talking about that, everyone wants to know who did that, what is important is what is inside and what that information is about."
Admittedly, Trump is no gem, but now we also know that Clinton is just as bad (arguably worse, in my opinion). Putin is right about it not being important who did it, but rather what was in it. What we have seen in the email leaks is abuse of power, total disregard for the American people, and a Media conspiracy that makes Watergate look tame by comparison.
And one last bit of news...
CBS Minnesota:
[Minnesota] Gov. Mark Dayton made a stunning admission on Wednesday about rising health insurance costs and the future of MNsure.
“Ultimately I’m not trying to pass the buck here but the reality is the Affordable Care Act is no longer affordable,” Dayton said.
Dayton says changes to the program are critical, as he stepped away from one of his signature political platforms.
“The Affordable Care Act has many good features to it, it has achieved great success in terms of insuring more people, 20 million people across the country and providing access for people who have pre-existing conditions alike, but it’s got some serious blemishes right now and serious deficiencies,” Dayton said.
Premiums for 250,000 Minnesotans, or 5 percent of the population, insured under MNsure will skyrocket by 50 percent or more on some health plans.Note that Drayton is a Democrat. This isn't just partisan sniping (I wouldn't waste your time with that).
The death of the health insurance market continues unabated. Just more change you can believe in...
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