Quote for the Day:

If you don’t want your tax dollars to help the poor, then stop saying you want a country based on Christian values, because you don’t. -John Fugelsang

Today’s independent commentary deals with these people/issues:

• Montana Marijuana Legalization
• The Tulsa Rally
• Largest Single-Day Increase

MONTANA MARIJUANA LEGALIZATION:

Montana Public Radio (MTPR) reported Friday that New Approach Montana says it has turned in 52,000 signatures in support of a ballot initiative to allow retail marijuana sales at a 20% tax rate. Organizers also turned in more than 80,000 signatures for an accompanying constitutional initiative that would allow the legal age buying age of marijuana to be set at 21.

This is great news! The next step is for election officials to verify the signatures before the measures can be approved for the ballot.

When these measures appear on the ballot in November, please join me in supporting them.

THE TULSA RALLY:

When Fox News reports that the Tulsa Fire Department counted only 6,200 people in a 19,200 seat arena for Trump’s rally, it was that bad. The Trump campaign had bragged about having one million requests for tickets. Come to find out many of the requests might have been from teenagers who can’t drive and live nowhere close to Oklahoma. Fox News does not agree with that, and if it’s not true than many folks just did not have the gumption to get out and see “The Donald.”

Nonetheless, it was a bad night for Team Trump. They even canceled speeches to people in the overflow area, which I heard could hold 40,000. There were only a dozen or so outside in the area.

His overall speech was terrible, long, and controversial.

Concerning coronavirus testing Trump said:

“When you do testing to that extent you’re going to find more people, you’re going to find cases,” Mr. Trump told supporters. “So I said to my people, ‘Slow the testing down, please.’ They test and they test. We got tests for people who don’t know what’s going on.” (CBS)

The White House tried to spin the “Slow the testing down” remark as a joke. It wasn’t.

The Daily Mail and many others reported “Trump uses racist term ‘kung flu’ to describe coronavirus.”

The president, speaking in Tulsa, Oklahoma at his rally in three months, said of the virus: ‘It has more names than any disease in history. I can name kung flu. I can name 19 different versions of names.‘

Many in the crowd of 6,200 laughed and applauded when he said that. That shows the ignorance of his supporters.

Overall, I have to say that former Trump White House Director of Communications Anthony Scaramucci probably summed up the event the best:

Trump campaign said 1 million tickets requested. 20,000 seat arena is maybe half full. Outdoor event cancelled. Sad when the farewell tour doesn’t sell out. 

LARGEST SINGLE-DAY INCREASE:

The World Health Organization on Sunday reported the largest single-day increase in coronavirus cases by its count, at more than 183,000 new cases in the latest 24 hours. The UN health agency said Brazil led the way with 54,771 cases tallied and the U.S. next at 36,617. Over 15,400 came in India. (AP)

People need to wear masks when they are out in public. Wearing masks should be a requirement, not a suggestion. This is still phase one.

##END##