Month: November 2016

Only Nine Presidential Elections Had Smaller Electoral College Wins than Donald’s

Buck Banks

44th of 54

Nate Silver: “In a historical context, Trump’s Electoral College performance is decidedly below-average… There have been 54 presidential elections since the ratification of the 12th Amendment in 1804. (Before that, presidential electors cast two votes each, making it hard to compare them to present-day elections.) Of those 54 cases, Trump’s share of the electoral vote — assuming there are no faithless electors or results overturned by recounts — ranks 44th.”

Obama Approval Hits Second-Term High

Buck Banks

50% to 43%

President Obama’s job approval rating, his highest score since right after he won reelection four years ago, according to a new Quinnipiac poll. Most interesting: “Obama’s policies have helped the nation’s economy, 44% of voters say, as 38% say his policies have hurt the economy and 16% say his policies haven’t made a difference. But only 21% of voters say Obama’s policies have helped their personal financial situation, as 33% say these policies have hurt them personally and 44% say they’ve made no difference.”

Kellyanne Conway: Presidency Will be Donald’s ‘Day Job’

Jon Ponder

It’s tempting to think that Kellyanne Conway, Donald’s robotically always-on-message spokesperson, made a classic Kinsey gaffe — meaning, she accidentally told the truth — in this Nov. 17 interview on Fox when she twice described the presidency as Donald’s “day job.” But it’s more likely it wasn’t a gaffe of any sort, but rather simply the truth.

After all, when his team tried to recruit Ohio Gov. John Kasich to run as Donald’s vice president, the conversation went like this:

[…]

Hey Donald, the Press and the Dems Are Watching …

Buck Banks

I don’t know if there’s anyone around him who can convince him that the attitude with which he’s operated for 50 years must end, and something wholly new and different begin. … But whoever does must be aware of this: The press, which wants to kill him, is going to zero in on his biggest weak spot: money, profit, the deal. Democrats too will watch like hawks. And this is understandable! Presidents shouldn’t ever give the impression things aren’t on the up and up. And Mr. Trump campaigned saying he’d dismantle the rigged system, drain the swamp, fight the racket.

— Peggy Noonan

Secret Service to Pay Donald $3 Million Per Year Rent in Trump Tower

Buck Banks

$3 million

Amount of rent the Secret Service is set to pay the Trump Organization to take over two vacant floors in the gilded 68-story Fifth Avenue tower, law enforcement sources told the New York Post. “The federal agency and the NYPD plan to run a 24/7 command post out of the space that would be housed at least 40 floors below Trump’s $90 million penthouse triplex, where wife Melania and their 10-year-old son Barron will continue to reside at least through the spring, sources said.”

Donald Can’t Be Bothered with Security Briefings

Buck Banks

2

Number of classified intelligence briefings President-elect Donald Trump has received “since his surprise election victory earlier this month, a frequency that is notably lower — at least so far — than that of his predecessors,” the Washington Post reports. “A team of intelligence analysts has been prepared to deliver daily briefings on global developments and security threats to Trump in the two weeks since he won. Vice President-elect Mike Pence, by contrast, has set aside time for intelligence briefings almost every day since the election.”

Kids Can’t Tell Real from Fake News

Buck Banks

82%

Of middle-schoolers failed to differentiate between news stories and “sponsored content,” according to a Stanford University study, reports Quartz. “According to the study, more than two-thirds of middle-school students failed to flag as biased a post written by a bank executive and arguing for young adults to pursue more financial-planning help. Likewise, some 40% of high-school students believed a photo and headline that suggested deformed daisies were evidence of toxic conditions near Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. The photo included no source or location tag.”