DHS to label white supremacists as the 'most persistent and lethal threat' to the US: report

BY TAL AXELROD - 09/04/20 

https://thehill.com/policy/national-security/515244-dhs-to-label-white-supremacists-as-the-most-persistent-and-lethal

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is set to label white supremacists as the most serious terror threat facing the United States. 

In three draft reports reviewed by Politico, DHS says the threat posed by white supremacists is more significant than the immediate danger from foreign terrorists.

“Foreign terrorist organizations will continue to call for Homeland attacks but probably will remain constrained in their ability to direct such plots over the next year,” all three documents say.

Russia “probably will be the primary covert foreign influence actor and purveyor of disinformation and misinformation in the Homeland,” the documents add.

DHS did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Hill.

Kevin McAleenan, the former acting DHS secretary, ordered the agency last year to start crafting annual homeland threat assessments. The three draft documents use varying language to describe the threat posed by white supremacists, but all of them say they pose the most significant threat, according to Politico.

“Lone offenders and small cells of individuals motivated by a diverse array of social, ideological, and personal factors will pose the primary terrorist threat to the United States,” the earliest draft reads. “Among these groups, we assess that white supremacist extremists – who increasingly are networking with like-minded persons abroad – will pose the most persistent and lethal threat.

“We judge that ideologically-motivated lone offenders and small groups will pose the greatest terrorist threat to the Homeland through 2021, with white supremacist extremists presenting the most lethal threat,” it adds.

The next two drafts reportedly allude to “Domestic Violent Extremists,” or DVEs, instead of “white supremacist extremists” as “the most persistent and lethal threat,” though all three read, “Among DVEs, we judge those white supremacist extremists (WSEs) will remain the most persistent and lethal threat in the Homeland through 2021.”

None of the drafts refer to Antifa, the loose association of anti-fascist groups that President Trump and Republicans have described as dangerous anarchists and terrorists, though two drafts discuss groups that want to exploit the “social grievances” driving lawful protests.

 

FORTALEZA PRESIDENCIAL

A pesar de que la pandemia del coronavirus parecía descarrilar el proyecto político y económico del presidente Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO), la realidad es que aún se mantiene en una posición de fortaleza, que pocos hubieran creído en circunstancias tan desfavorables como las actuales.

Los Datos: Debido al cierre obligado de actividades económicas, los pronósticos de crecimiento para este 2020 son negativos, pero con significativas variaciones entre diversas instituciones.

Así, el Banco de México[1] estima una caída de entre -4.4 a -8.85; la Secretaría de Hacienda entre -3.9 a 0.1%; el Fondo Monetario Internacional y el banco JP Morgan Chase -10.5%; Citibanamex -11.2%; en total el promedio de un conjunto de 50 instituciones y organismos económicos nacionales y extranjeros es de -7.7% (la OCDE pronostica -7.5%).

De ahí que si se confirma este escenario, la caída de la economía mexicana no sería tan devastadora como se ha venido pronosticando entre los principales opositores y críticos del gobierno; y el presidente López Obrador podría contar con una mejor plataforma para relanzar el crecimiento económico para el próximo año, que se estima en un promedio de 2.9%.[2]

De la misma forma, a pesar de la pérdida de más de 1.3 millones de empleos por el cierre de actividades económicas, para el mes de agosto ya se recuperaron 93 mil empleos y la reapertura gradual de la economía irá añadiendo cada vez más.

De la misma forma, en el mes de julio, México obtuvo un superávit comercial con Estados Unidos mayor a los 10 mil millones de dólares, que lo colocó como el primer socio comercial de ese país, dando así sustento a las afirmaciones de AMLO de que el T-MEC ayudaría a la recuperación económica.

Y si a eso se añaden las cifras récord de las remesas de los connacionales que trabajan en Estados Unidos, que según el presidente podrían llegar a 40 mil millones de dólares en el año, entonces se puede deducir que junto con los programas sociales del gobierno y las medidas de austeridad y combate a la corrupción (que según AMLO han proporcionado hasta 560 mil millones de pesos adicionales), el gobierno federal podrá sortear bien el resto del año y el primer semestre del siguiente, cuando se supone que ya estarán disponibles varias vacunas para el coronavirus.

La pandemia: México sigue estando en cuarto lugar mundial por número de muertes con 66,851[3] (detrás de Estados Unidos, Brasil y la India); y en octavo lugar mundial por número de contagiados con 623,090 (detrás de Estados Unidos, Brasil, India, Rusia, Perú, Colombia y Sudáfrica).

Según el gobierno la tendencia es a la baja, tanto en muertes como en contagiados, pero la letalidad de la enfermedad en el país sigue siendo muy elevada, pues mientras a nivel mundial el porcentaje es de 3.28%; en México llega a 10.72%. Pero el gobierno de AMLO señala que el número de casos de contagio por millón de personas en el país, que es de 4.923, se compara muy favorablemente con otros países como por ejemplo Perú (21,065), Brasil (19,366) o Estados Unidos (18,871).

La aprobación presidencial: Si bien la aprobación del presidente ha venido disminuyendo desde su toma de posesión (llegó a un máximo de 81% a mediados de Enero de 2019), para las condiciones económicas, sanitarias y de inseguridad en las que se encuentra el país (en 2019 se llegó a la cifra récord de 34 mil asesinatos en el país; y se estima que este año se superará esa cifra; el 75% de los mexicanos, según el INEGI, se siente inseguro en su colonia, barrio, pueblo o ciudad), el que ahora cuente con una aprobación del 58%[4], es extremadamente positivo para él y para su proyecto político y económico.

A estas alturas del sexenio, sin haber enfrentado aún la crisis económica de fines del 2008 y de todo el 2009 (así como la epidemia de la influenza H1N1), Felipe Calderón tenía una aceptación del 62%; mientras que Vicente Fox contaba en su sexenio con un 57% de aprobación; Enrique Peña Nieto con 46% y Ernesto Zedillo con 45%.[5]

La política: El próximo año se renovarán 15 gubernaturas y la totalidad de la Cámara de Diputados federal, así como la renovación de congresos locales y alcaldías en 11 entidades; renovación sólo de congresos en 3 estados; y sólo alcaldías, en otras tres más.

Será la elección más grande y compleja en la historia del país.

Según el partido en el gobierno, Morena[6], sus candidatos/as podrían ganar en 14 de las 15 contiendas gubernamentales; con triunfo holgado en Baja California, Baja California Sur, Colima, Guerrero, Michoacán, Nayarit, Tlaxcala y Zacatecas; triunfo cerrado en Campeche, Chihuahua, Nuevo León, San Luis Potosí, Sinaloa y Sonora. Y sólo prevén una derrota, en el estado de Querétaro.

Llama la atención la competitividad del partido en el poder, que se ubica en el centro izquierda del espectro político, en entidades del norte del país, en donde tradicionalmente la derecha y el centro derecha han dominado las contiendas electorales.

En lo que se refiere a la intención de voto para diputados federales, las encuestas dan una gran ventaja al partido en el poder, con un porcentaje de intención de voto de hasta el 40%[7] para Morena; mientras el PAN llega a 24.2%; el PRI a 11.8%; PT 3.2%; Movimiento Ciudadano 3.2%; PES (que acaba de recuperar su registro) 3.2%; PRD 2.16% y PVEM 1.65%. Estos dos últimos partidos, no alcanzarían a mantener su registro.

En ese sentido, el rechazo del Instituto Nacional Electoral a la solicitud de registro del partido del expresidente Calderón, México Libre[8], abre aún más las posibilidades de la coalición de partidos que apoyan a AMLO (Morena, PT, PVEM y PES) para mantener su mayoría en la Cámara de Diputados.

A lo anterior hay que sumar que el presidente ha podido dirigir la atención de la opinión pública hacia los casos de corrupción de los dos sexenios anteriores (Odebrecht, Agronitrogenados, Etileno XXI); y hacia los casos abiertos en Estados Unidos, contra ex colaboradores del ex presidente Calderón, como Genaro García Luna, por su involucramiento en el narcotráfico; desviando así el interés de la población de las acusaciones contra su gobierno por el manejo inadecuado de la pandemia, las situaciones económica y de inseguridad graves que vive el país; y los videos en los que aparece el hermano del presidente recibiendo grandes sumas de dinero, para financiar al partido del presidente, en el estado de Chiapas, por parte de sus ahora aliados del Partido Verde.

Si bien AMLO parece ir saliendo de la tempestad, y sus opositores y críticos no han podido acorralar al presidente (por el contrario, algunos de ellos están enfrentando el contraataque gubernamental, como la revista Nexos de Héctor Aguilar Camín, sancionada por la Secretaría de la Función Pública; o el periodista Carlos Loret de Mola, llamado a declarar ante un juez, por su participación en la “puesta en escena” que hizo García Luna, de la aprehensión de un grupo de secuestradores en el sexenio de Felipe Calderón), nada garantiza que esta fortaleza no pueda menguar, si la recuperación económica se llega a estancar; o si la vacuna contra el coronavirus tarda más de lo esperado; o si llegan a conocerse más videos comprometedores en los que el hermano del presidente o personas allegadas a él reciben dinero de oscuro origen; o si las luchas internas por la dirigencia de su partido, Morena, descarrilan un frente unido para las elecciones del 2021, que seguramente van a generar una competencia feroz, pues se supone que Morena va a arrasar en esas contiendas; o si el presidente acaba por “subirse al ladrillo”, marearse y asumir actitudes arrogantes, que lo alejen de una administración eficaz y de la implementación de políticas públicas sólidas que le den un sustento firme a su proyecto, más allá de desplantes, descalificaciones y ataques permanentes a sus críticos y opositores.

---

[1] https://elceo.com/economia/crecimiento-economia-mexico-pronosticos-2019-2020/

[2] Ibidem.

[3] https://news.google.com/covid19/map?hl=es-419&gl=MX&ceid=MX%3Aes-419

[4] https://oraculus.mx/aprobacion-presidencial/

[5] Ibidem.

[6] https://regeneracion.mx/la-sucesion-de-15-gobernadores-y-los-pronosticos-electorales-para-el-2021/

[7] https://www.infobae.com/america/mexico/2020/08/13/a-10-meses-de-las-elecciones-peligra-el-registro-de-prd-y-pvem-encuesta/

[8] Algunas encuestas daban una intención de voto para este partido de hasta el 10%.

China, Russia uphold world order as a post-WWII legacy

By Chen Qingqing and Zhang Han Source: Global Times Published: 2020/9/3

Commemoration a message to the US to stop fanning conflicts

The world will never forget the value of peace, especially on the 75th anniversary of the V-Day, when veterans across the world commemorated and reflected on the hard-won fight against Japanese aggression and the end of WWII. 

China and Russia - the two countries that paid the heaviest price for ultimate victory during that war - have a much deeper understanding of the importance of stability and world peace, while the US, which also emerged as a major victorious country in the war and used to work along with China and Russia's predecessor, the Soviet Union, to fight foreign aggression has ended up constantly stirring up conflicts and confrontations in the Asia-Pacific region.

As the world faces great changes unseen in a century amid the COVID-19 pandemic, US unilateralism and bullying have become the greatest challenge to the postwar international order, while China and Russia is expected to lead multilateralism, stability, and peace, experts said. 

Thursday (September 3) marked the 75th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against the Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War. Russia previously moved the date to mark the end of World War II from September 2 to September 3.

Top leaders of the two countries exchanged messages on Thursday, pledging to join efforts with the international community to resolutely safeguard world peace and prevent wars. 

Chinese President Xi Jinping recalled that on the same day 75 years ago, the victories of the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the Soviet Union's war against Japan marked the final victory of the World Anti-Fascist War. 

China and Russia, the main battlefields in Asia and Europe endured great national sacrifices for and made indelible historic contributions to the victory in the war, Xi said, noting that the Chinese and Russian people fought side by side and forged an unbreakable friendship with blood, laying a solid foundation for the high-level development of bilateral relations. 

Chinese people showed a great spirit of resistance during the war against Japanese aggression, demonstrated to the world the patriotic feeling, national integrity and heroic spirit and indomitable faith, Xi said at a symposium commemorating the war victory on Thursday afternoon.

Four ambassadors from China and Russia also published articles amid the V-Day anniversary, expressing the two countries' joint stance on correctly recognizing the history and stressing China and Russia will stay committed to pushing forward cooperation as good neighbors and friends, promote global stability and security.

On Wednesday, the US Defense Secretary Mark Esper spoke at a ceremony aboard the USS Missouri to commemorate the anniversary, with some media interpreting his remarks as sending a message to China because he made oblique references to China as the new threat to international order.   

"Two countries — Russia and China — are challenging that rules-based order," read a statement published on the US Department of Defense website. 

 "Such a high-profile commemoration between China and Russia on the 75th anniversary of the V-Day took place because the two countries reject the US-led hegemony in the West and any attempt to distort history and deny the contributions of the Soviet Union and China to the World Anti-Fascist War," Li Xing, a professor at the School of Government of Beijing Normal University, told the Global Times on Thursday. 

In the postwar era, China and Russia share the same vision in upholding multilateralism as the international order, which carries realistic value today, the expert said.

Threats and challenges

What is the mainstream value in the postwar world? It has become a widely discussed question among strategists, academics, and world leaders. For some Chinese academics, the most important values learned from WWII is rebuilding the world order on the basis of peace, and never allowing the same tragedy to be repeated.

As permanent members of the UN Security Council, China and Russia both shoulder important responsibilities for the cause of world peace and development, the Chinese President stressed, while Russian President Vladimir Putin said world leaders have an obligation to prevent wars.

"What will change those values?" asked Wang Yiwei, director of the institute of international affairs at the Renmin University of China in Beijing. 

"Especially when the US [another major victorious country of the WWII] frequently withdraws from multilateral organizations, undermining joint efforts and consensus on major global issues, we see fewer consultations among major powers," Wang told the Global Times on Thursday. 

While the US stunned other members of the UN Security Council on Friday by blocking a vote on a resolution for a ceasefire in order to help troubled nations better fight the COVID-19 pandemic, as media reported, the country has been constantly instigating regional conflicts, particularly as it seeks a NATO-like alliance with Indo-Pacific countries. 

From the South China Sea, the Taiwan Straits, and the China-India border conflict, the influence of Washington is increasingly palpable amid rising tensions between China and the US, making the world much more concerned about whether a cold war between the two largest economies is turning into a hot war. 

"The US is shifting off its responsibilities as a great country, as it has been constantly making provocations and trouble in other regions," Wang said, noting that Washington should be reflecting on who is now diverting from mainstream values established since the end of the WWII.

China and Russia shoulder the responsibility of safeguarding world peace and security, carrying on the mission to help push forward the development of humankind, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Thursday. 

The great victory 75 years ago was of special significance to China and Russia, as well as to human history, which laid the foundation for the reconstruction of the postwar international order, Hua Chunying, the spokesperson of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, told a press conference on Thursday.

Common goal 

While Russian and China reject a zero-sum game mentality by firmly upholding the legacy of the victory in WWII, Russia's past experiences in dealing with long-term strained relations with the US could also offer China some idea, as Beijing has been preparing for a prolonged confrontation with Washington. 

Since the end of the Cold War, Russian leaders at first wanted to improve relations with the West and later became disillusioned, Alexander Lukin, head of the Department of International Relations at HSE University and director of Center for East Asian and SCO Studies at MGIMO-University of the Russian Foreign Ministry told the Global Times in a recent interview. 

"It turned out that the only option for a big country to maintain independence is to be prepared for a lengthy period of strained relations with the US," Lukin said, noting that this situation will only change when the US again learns how to coexist with other big powers, without undermining international stability.

Russia and China, as well as other non-Western centers of power need to learn how to survive and cooperate with each other to overcome their problems, while keeping the door open to cooperation with the US on equal and mutually beneficial terms, the Russian scholar added. 

The Soviet Union suffered the most in the European battlefield during World War II, with 27 million deaths, and its contributions should not be forgotten, analysts said. 

Today, it is important to remember post-war agreements on a mechanism that would allow leading powers to remain within the framework of diplomacy in resolving their differences, given that historical revisionist forces dangerously distort the historical narrative and the principles of peaceful development, they said.

While the world will soon commemorate the 75th Anniversary of the UN, national leaders are also urged to adjust their vision amid the rapid changes in today's world, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated those changes. 

Experts suggested that it would be the greatest sin in the 21st century to decouple the world, and place humanity at great risk of new conflicts. However, the geopolitical rivalry can't be avoided, as the US pressure has put China and Russia on one side, and the two countries also face some common challenges posed by Washington. 

Four ambassadors from China and Russia published articles amid the V-Day anniversary, which was considered unprecedented for high-ranking diplomats of the two countries to convey a common message to the US, experts said. 

Lukashenko afirma haber interceptado una conversación entre Varsovia y Berlín sobre la falsificación del envenenamiento de Navalny

Publicado: 3 sep. 2020

https://actualidad.rt.com/actualidad/365381-lukashenko-envenenamiento-navalny-falsificado

El presidente de Bielorrusia, Alexánder Lukashenko, ha declarado este jueves que su país ha interceptado una conversación entre Varsovia y Berlín de la que se desprende que la reciente afirmación de la canciller alemana Angela Merkel sobre el envenenamiento del opositor ruso Alexéi Navalny es una falsificación.

"Observando los acontecimientos rusos, me di cuenta de que Occidente tiene una nueva característica distintiva: otra vez el Novichok, otra vez envenenamiento. Debo decirle que ayer o anteayer, antes del discurso de Merkel —esta dijo que a Navalny le querían cerrar la boca— interceptamos una conversación... Entendemos que Varsovia habla con Berlín", afirmó Lukashenko durante una reunión en Minsk con el primer ministro de Rusia, Mijaíl Mishustin, en unas declaraciones recogidas por RIA Novosti.

El líder bielorruso señaló que compartirá la grabación junto con la transcripción con el FSB (Servicio Federal de Seguridad de Rusia) y también se lo dará a leer a Mishustin. Según Lukashenko, la grabación "claramente dice que es una falsificación: no hubo ningún envenenamiento de Navalny".

"Que yo entienda, un grupo de especialistas prepararon los hechos para la Administración de Merkel y a lo mejor también las declaraciones que hizo. Lo hicieron para —voy a citarlo— 'quitarle las ganas a Putin de meter las narices en los asuntos de Bielorrusia'", declaró Lukashenko.

Por su parte, el portavoz presidencial ruso, Dmitri Peskov, ha señalado que el Kremlin de momento no dispone de los detalles acerca de los datos de los servicios de inteligencia de Minsk que apuntan que el envenenamiento de Navalny pudo haber sido falseado.

Why Trump Commands So Much Loyalty From His Base

by SONALI KOLHATKAR

SEPTEMBER 1, 2020

https://www.counterpunch.org/2020/09/01/why-trump-commands-so-much-loyalty-from-his-base/

The last four years have been deeply traumatizing to millions of Americans as we have watched our nation in the stranglehold of a maniacal, dictatorial, and compulsively deceptive president. But it is worth examining the relationship that President Donald Trump has with his voters in order to understand why he won the 2016 election and why he continues to command such fervent loyalty a few months ahead of the next election. Willing to overlook his lies, improprieties, and corruption, Trump’s voters have a transactional relationship with the president that is practical, powerful, and surprisingly instructional to the rest of us.

While a majority of Americans might be stunned and horrified by Trump’s casual racism, unscientific claims, sexist attacks, and more, his rambling rhetoric matters little to his base, and perhaps Trump voters don’t even bother trying to make sense of his words. To them, it matters what he does and how loyal he is to them. Trump’s reelection campaign website is literally called “Promises Kept.” Although several of his claims of promises are not true, the point is that he touts decisive action and convinces his supporters that he has fulfilled his pledges to them. He works for them and they know it. They are willing to overlook the ugliness that accompanies his rule. It is a practical and effective approach to transforming America into the country they want.

Trump’s presidency has meant very clear-cut things to specific (but overlapping) communities, movements, and demographics. He offers his anti-abortion supporters a radical transformation of the judiciary from lifetime federal judgeships to Supreme Court seats. To his anti-immigrant base, he has shown he is willing to go to any lengths to keep out migrants and refugees, going as far as separating children from parents and even deporting them into the hands of their abusers. To racist suburban white people, he is making good on a promise to keep Black and Brown people out of their neighborhoods. To law enforcement, their families, and supporters, he has promised to uphold police autonomy and immunity from prosecution. And on and on.

Examined through the lens of such far-reaching promises that Trump has either kept his word on or aggressively pursued, it is no wonder that enough Americans are supporting him so as to make the election competitive. Trump has shown his base that he is willing to go as far as it takes to please them, including violating norms, pushing the boundaries of laws, and even breaking them. Such fealty is rare in a politician, let alone in a president.

Trump offers his base clear-cut policies while the campaign hopes that voters look past his character flaws. In contrast, 2020 Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden offers his voters few specific policies or sweeping changes, and his campaign hopes the Democratic Party base focuses mostly on his character, personality, and words and connects with him on a personal level. The Washington Post summarized that the Democratic National Convention (DNC)’s “big message,” is that, “Biden is a good guy”—not that Biden made specific bold promises to the party’s base to fundamentally transform America.

During his DNC speech, Biden’s words offered a salve for the nation’s frayed nerves. He repeatedly touted his presidency as offering light over darkness and representing unity over division. He promised us that, “Character is on the ballot. Compassion is on the ballot.” And while he made some specific promises such as strengthening the Affordable Care Act, improving public education, and so on, there were very few bold and transformational plans.

In past years, we have been told that there are only so many things that a president can do to carry out real change. Even if politicians run on big, bold platforms—think of Barack Obama’s first presidential campaign—once in office, they tone down their rhetoric and pull back on their sweeping promises. As president, Obama curbed his own ambition and was eventually met with Republican intransigence in Congress. Aside from a handful of legislative victories and executive orders, he fit his ambitions into bite-sized pieces. Then along came Trump, showing Americans who were disillusioned by this view of political leadership that it was possible to get very close to all the things they wanted if they had a president willing to fight tooth and nail for them.

Even if Congress has not capitulated to many of Trump’s wildest demands, he has often found ways to achieve success. For example, on the issue of immigration, Trump backed a bill in the early part of his presidency to dramatically cut family-based migration and some employment visas. Although it went nowhere in Congress, when the coronavirus pandemic hit this year, the Trump administration saw an opportunity and pushed through many aspects of that bill via executive order. Even if the restrictions are temporary, it is an achievement he can tout to his anti-immigrant base.

Similarly, on the judiciary, many who back Trump do so because the stakes are so high they are willing to overlook everything else. Former Bush-era lawyer John Yoo was quoted as saying that he knew Republicans, “who would normally be utterly turned off by a guy like Trump,” and yet they backed him “because of [the] appointment to Justice [Antonin] Scalia’s vacancy.” Their loyalty to Trump was rewarded with the appointment of Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch, a man who one right-wing newspaper said has, “exceeded… conservatives’ expectations.”

This strongly transactional relationship between Trump and his voters work both ways. The president’s base does not care that his motivations are based in self-dealing and that he will do what it takes to preserve political and personal power, or that he is busy enriching himself and his friends in the process. They don’t care if he lies, vilifies the media, and attacks women and people of color on Twitter. Those are details that matter little in their day-to-day lives. All that matters is that Trump has made promises in line with their desires and will go to any lengths to fulfill them. Trump’s racism, sexism, deception, and corruption are part of his charm to some segments of his base. To the rest who continue to stick by him, they are simply not deal breakers. They may weigh the good against the bad and decide it is worth it to have a president whose persona and rhetoric are embarrassing but who delivers the goods. A new poll found that “90 percent of Republicans approve of the job he’s doing and 91 percent say they would choose him over Biden.”

Meanwhile, what does the Democratic Party say to its supporters? Postpone your demands for Medicare for All, for defunding the police, and for a Green New Deal until after this election. But left-leaning voters are given such lectures every four years as if their hopes for sweeping policy changes are a mirage of water on a hot and dusty road. The farther the thirsty masses walk toward the water, the farther away it moves, and so it remains persistently out of reach. It’s no wonder Biden struggles with an “enthusiasm gap.”

Among Latinos, a group that has been vilified by Trump repeatedly since his last campaign, one might expect strong support for Biden. But one commentator pointed out that simply claiming support for the reinstatement of the popular DACA program (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) is not enough. Writing in the New York Times, immigrant justice activist Cristina Jiménez Moreta explained that “Access to affordable health care was a top issue for Latinx voters who sided with Bernie Sanders in the Democratic primaries. Mr. Biden has refused to endorse Medicare for All—a popular solution to our nation’s health care catastrophe that would serve all people.”

During the Republican National Convention, Trump and his allies repeatedly cast Biden and the Democrats as “socialist,” in spite of the fact that the party establishment has rejected popular government-led economic, environmental, and social plans. No matter what Biden does or says to prove that he eschews socialism, Trump’s campaign will paint him as a radical socialist, and it will continue to make a compact with Trump’s base to fulfill specific promises.

It is possible and perhaps likely that Biden will win based on many new polls that paint a favorable outcome for the Democrat. And indeed, for the future of the nation and especially women, immigrants, and people of color, it is imperative that Biden beats Trump. But if he does cinch the presidency, it will be in spite of his choice to offer character over concrete policies, not because of it.

Sonali Kolhatkar is a columnist for Truthdig. She also is the founder, host and executive producer of “Rising Up With Sonali,” a television and radio show that airs on Free Speech TV (Dish Network, DirecTV, Roku) and Pacifica stations KPFK, KPFA, and affiliates.