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AUGUST 27-28,  2023

A PAIN IN THE NECK ALREADY?  IS RAMASWAMY WEARING OUT HIS WELCOME?  FROM DAILY MAIL: 

Debate darling Vivek Ramaswamy is taking a page from Donald Trump’s book by claiming that his bid for the presidency means he shouldn’t have to give evidence in a court case.

The near-billionaire is fighting a bid to force him to give testimony under oath – saying he is too busy campaigning to find time, court documents obtained exclusively by DailyMail.com show.

And he has lashed out at former investors, saying they are trying to scupper his bid for the White House by making him give a deposition linked to a court case about a biotech buyout.

As a candidate for President of the United States, I must frequently travel across the United States to campaign, make speeches, give media interviews, and meet with voters,’ he wrote in papers filed in federal court in Ohio's Southern District on July 27.

‘Consequently, I am often away from home, and when I am home it is often not until late in the evening after a full campaign day.’

Ramaswamy – who is generally considered to have been the winner in last Wednesday’s Republican Party debate – told Trump-appointed judge Sarah Morrison the bid to make him testify is a ‘fishing expedition’.

Investors in one of Ramaswamy’s companies have asked the Ohio court to force him to give a deposition to gather evidence for another case that is being heard in Bermuda.

In that case the investors, Alpine Partners, believe they were short-changed in a controversial merger deal. The agreement was finalized in March after being initially agreed last October.

Lawyers for Alpine handed Ramaswamy – whose wealth is estimated at $950million – a subpoena to appear and be quizzed at their offices in New York, a move his attorneys have likened to harassment, after winning an initial court order in Ohio earlier that month.

Their plan was to grill the GOP’s rising star over his role in the $1.7 billion buyout of Myovant Sciences in March of this year.

They are also asking him to cough up documents that they claim could boost their chances of winning their court case in the British colony, which was filed in February.

COMMENT:  Vivek is learning that, as soon as you're seen as a potential winner, everyone goes after you.  Will he survive and go on to victory?  Or has he had his 15 minutes of fame?  Reports from the field suggest that he has some temporary momentum, but that he's also seen as brash and amateurish. 

August 28,  2023     Permalink

BAD POLL FOR JOE – AND ONE THAT IS BOUND TO BE QUOTED WIDELY AND DISCUSSED PRIVATELY.  FROM NEWSMAX: 

Americans actually agree on something in this time of raw discord: President Joe Biden is too old to be an effective president for a second term.

This is according to a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research which finds much of the public united in sizing up the one trait Biden cannot change.

The president has taken to raising the age issue himself, with wisecracks, as if trying to relax his audiences about his 80 trips around the sun.

Age discrimination may be banned in the workplace, but the president's employers — the people — aren't shy about their bias.

In the poll, 77% said Biden is too old to be effective for four more years. Not only do 89% of Republicans say that, so do 69% of Democrats. That view is held across age groups, not just by young people, though older Democrats specifically are more supportive of his 2024 bid.

In contrast, about half of U.S. adults say former President Donald Trump, 77, is too old for the office, and here the familiar partisan divide emerges — Democrats are far more likely to disqualify Trump by age than are Republicans.

What's clear from the poll is that Americans are saying out with the old and in with the young, or at least younger.

Democrats, Republicans, and independents want to sweep a broad broom through the halls of power, imposing age limits on the presidency, Congress and the Supreme Court. In all about two-thirds of U.S. adults back an age ceiling on candidates for president and Congress and a mandatory retirement age for justices.

Specifically, 67% favor requiring Supreme Court justices to retire by a certain age, 68% support age ceilings for candidates for House and Senate, and 66% support age ceilings for candidates for president.

COMMENT:  There's no question that, given his obvious physical and cognitive problems, age is a serious problem for Joe Biden.  It may well be his most serious problem.   Should Trump not be on the ballot, Biden will be facing an opponent decades younger than himself.  The contrast could be devastating, especially if Biden agrees (highly unlikely) to a live debate.

This poll will be used in the whispering campaign within the Democratic Party, already begun, raising serious questions about Biden's ability to run for another term.

August 28, 2023       Permalink

AUGUST 25-26,  2023

I LOVE IT WHEN THEY ARGUE AMONG THEMSELVES:  There is upset and anguish in the house of Joe and Kammy.  From Fox: 

Political advisers to both President Biden and Vice President Harris were reportedly annoyed with Democrat California Gov. Gavin Newsom over a planned debate with the Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a 2024 Republican presidential hopeful.

"It's disrespectful," an outside adviser to Harris said, according to a report from NBC News on Sunday. "Joe Biden is running with Kamala Harris. That's the Democratic ticket."

The adviser is one of several in the Biden and Harris orbit that have begun to view Newsom as a nuisance, according to the report, in part because of the California governor's planned debate with DeSantis. While many Biden advisers no longer see Newsom as a potential primary challenger to the president, they do believe the planned debate would carry more risks than rewards.

The debate, which is slated to be televised on Fox News and hosted by Sean Hannity, has the potential to make some voters believe that Newsom is running a shadow campaign against the president in 2024, the report said. The debate comes at a time when many Democrat voters have expressed a desire for change at the top of the ticket, the report noted.

The debate has been viewed in an even more negative light by those in Harris's orbit, with some reportedly seeing it as an attempt by the California governor to position himself ahead of the vice president for the 2028 Democratic presidential primary.

Newsom made the standing challenge to debate DeSantis this month, an invitation that was seemingly accepted by the Florida governor. But the two camps have yet to agree on the rules and format, calling into question whether the event will go ahead as planned.

DeSantis's office did not immediately respond to a Fox News request for comment.

COMMENT:  I don't see the problem.  If Newsom gets out of line, Biden or Harris can simply put him in jail.  They've had practice with Trump.  Harris would probably want to take the credit.  She could show she's right up there with the big boys in establishing a banana republic.  And she's from California.  She'd get extra credit for overthrowing the elected governor of her native state. 

August 26, 2023       Permalink

THE SEARCH FOR EXCELLENCE:  It's the last week of the slowest month of the year, and I was looking around for something new to report to you, maybe something positive in our grim world.  And, yes, I found a piece that I think will interest you.

Have you heard of St. John's College, in Annapolis, Maryland?  Among people I consider true educators, it is revered, a rare spot of excellence amidst academic mediocrity and conformity.  St. John's teaches the Great Books, and teaches them well.  If you want your child to have a classical education, you can't do better.

And St. John's has now made changes in its admissions system to allow the college to know the applicant well, and to judge whether that student is right for the St. John's approach.  This is a serious college taking admissions seriously.  From College Fix: 

Applicants to a liberal arts college can now participate in discussions and a seminar in lieu of the traditional essay and letters of recommendation.

St. John’s College Vice President of Enrollment Benjamin Baum told The College Fix via email that the seminars have groups of 10-20 students discussing historical books with one or two full-time faculty members. An “opening question” gets a conversation going, Baum told The Fix.

The “discussion-based application” is currently offered to early decision or early action applicants for spring or fall 2024. If the discussion-based application proves successful, Baum said the school may consider it for other undergraduate and graduate programs.

The new option is part of a “groundbreaking approach to college admissions” for the Great Books and “classrooms discussions” focused school with campuses in Maryland and New Mexico, according to a university news release. The discussion-based expedites the admissions process, offering decisions within two weeks.

The college will continue to offer the written application as an option, but students can apply based on participation in a seminar, a short application form and two interviews. The two interviews are with an admissions counselor and a professor “in a dialogue that mirrors the college’s classroom discussions,” the spokesman said.

The Fix asked Baum how confident interviewers can feel evaluating applicants over a short period of time without recommendations.

“Interviews can be a way of gathering more information about a student than essays or recommendations, since we can ask follow-up questions and engage in a genuine back-and-forth with the student,” Baum said.

The approach will help “students, especially from rural areas, small towns, and large public school systems, [who] may lack the college preparatory infrastructure or teachers who know them well,” Baum added.

Baum said St. John’s aims to even the playing field with this new application method.

COMMENT:  Read the rest.  A fascinating idea.  I'd love to hear from our readers on how they feel about this structure.  Send your comments to allmatters@urgentagenda.net

This is the most personal admissions system I've seen.  And yes, a good teacher can make a reasonable evaluation of a prospect by hearing her or his reply to discussion questions.

Much better than affirmative action.

August 26, 2023       Permalink