Democrats Have A Handle On 9/11 Politics
A lot has happened in 8 years since the attacks on 9/11. The ‘war against terrorism’ has been one United States’ main concerns. When President Obama announced the death of Osama Bin Laden, it truly felt like we won the ‘war against terrorism.’ Now only did that victory bring the nation together as a whole, but it also turned 9/11 politics in favor of the Democrats over the Republicans. Click below to read more.
Speaking to the Republican convention in 2004, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani said that on the morning of the worst ever terror attacks on U.S. soil, with “the flames of hell” burning overhead, having just realized “a human being on the 101st, 102nd floor was jumping out of the building,” he turned to his police commissioner and said, “Thank God George Bush is our president.”
“I say it again tonight,” Giuliani declared. “I say it again tonight: Thank God that George Bush is our president!”
The party’s relative silence on issues of war and national security at their national convention last month in Tampa, Fla., was a marked contrast to just eight years before, when Republicans from across the country gathered in midtown Manhattan, about three miles north of Ground Zero, to nominate President George W. Bush for a second term in the White House.
Eight years later, the tables have turned. A new ABC News poll shows Obama with a 51-40 percent lead over Romney on the question of whom registered voters prefer to handle terror threats. At this time in 2008, Republican candidate John McCain led Obama by 20 points on the same question. That’s a 31-point swing in just four years.
As Vice President Joe Biden likes to say on the stump: “Osama bin Laden is dead and General Motors is alive!”
You’ll hear nothing of the sort from President Obama or Biden or any of their high profile supporters today, the 11th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. Both the Obama and Romney campaigns have called off the dogs, pulling television ads and silencing surrogates for 24 hours.
But even as politics may seem to stop on Sept. 11 each year, the politics of 9/11 are, more than a decade after al Qaeda struck, always very much in play.
Four years ago, as the country prepared to change leaders for the first time since 9/11, there was a more concerted effort to display bipartisan unity.
Obama and his Republican opponent, Sen. John McCain, by then in the throes of their own heated campaign season, left the trail to attend commemorative services at Ground Zero in Lower Manhattan. They laid flowers side-by-side in the morning, then briefly shared the stage during separate appearances at a panel discussion about public service at New York’s Columbia University that night.
In an election season marked by some memorably ugly attacks, the candidates’ solidarity managed to quiet some of the most skeptical observers.
There will be no joint appearances for the candidates this year, no symbolic embraces. The campaigns never discussed it, the president having as little to gain in sharing the spotlight with Romney as the challenger did in being juxtaposed with the man who ordered the deadly raid on Osama bin Laden’s Pakistani compound.
The past four years have seen a drastic re-casting of the party roles. Democrats, for decades painted by opponents as “soft on national security,” spent large parts of their convention talking up president’s military bona fides. The Republican convention, by contrast, was mostly missing talk about wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Romney’s address did not mention the conflicts once.
At the Democratic convention the following week, what former President George W. Bush called the “War on Terror” was still in full effect, as the talking points suggested: A surge of American troops, as ordered by the president, had beaten back the Taliban in Afghanistan; a deadly campaign of drone strikes on the Pakistan border had decimated al Qaeda; and, of course, the big one — Osama Bin Laden had been killed during a midnight raid, authorized without the permission of the government in Islamabad.
John Kerry, who bore the brunt of Republican attacks on his ability to competently manage “national security” during his failed 2004 presidential run, seemed to thrill in returning the favor during his speech last week in Charlotte.
“No nominee for president should ever fail in the midst of a war to pay tribute to our troops overseas in his acceptance speech,” Kerry said, making reference to Romney’s omission. “They are on the front lines every day defending America, and they deserve our thanks.”
THE BLOG
HOT 97
LINKS
MUSIC
Bobby Konders Presents: Massive B Legacy, Vol. 1
Release Date: November 19th, 2018 Bobby Konders Presents: Massive B Legacy – Volume 1 is now available and includes ten features on ten tracks. Burro Banton, Vybez Kartel, Bounty Killa, Sizzla, T.O.K., Elephantman, Richie Spice, Chezidek, Chronicle, and King Kong. You can listen on Apple Music, Spotify, and Tidal.
#MusicStillMatters New Music: A Boogie – Nice For What
A boogie gave fans a snippet of this one via his instagram. Finally after all the request to drop the full version from fans – here it is. Check A Boogie’s version of “Nice For What.” Listen below.
#MusicStillMatters New Music: Dave East – Imagine
Dave East is set to release the 2nd installment of his “Karma” series, next week on July 27. Check out this new one off the tape called “Imagine.” Listen below.
#MusicStillMatters New Music: 070 Shake – Accusations
The G.O.O.D. Music rookie 070 Shake releases a new one called “Accusations.” Listen below.
(Video) Tony James – Sweat Slow
Toronto’s very own Tony James has released his major label debut single and visual for “Sweat Slow.” Tony says this one “Is about the one that got away, so we wanted to show the beautiful, happy women representing the ex-girlfriends of the men who took them for granted.” Look out for more from Tony this…
#MusicStillMatters New Music: Childish Gambino – Summertime Magic / Feels Like Summer
Childish Gambino aka Donald Glover follows up his video/song “This Is America” with not only one, but two records for the summer. The “Atlanta” creator tweeted “summer pack,” with a link to his songs, “Summertime Magic” and “Feels Like Summer.”
#MusicStillMatters Stream: Meek Mill – Legends Of The Summer
Meek Mill decided to treat his fans to new music when he dropped a new EP called “Legends of the Summer.” the 4-track tape features Swizz Beatz, Jeremih and PNB Rock. Stream below.
#MusicStillMatters Stream: Future – Beast Mode 2
Future links up with Zaytoven for the follow up to 2015’s “Beast Mode” titled “Beast Mode 2” which includes 9 tracks with a feature from Young Scooter. Listen below.
#MusicStillMatters New Music: T-Pain – Boo’d Up (Remix)
First it was Nicki Minaj and Quavo who put their touch on the track to mixed reviews. Then Fabolous laid his verse on the hit single. Now, T-Pain decided to give his take on the track. Listen below.
TECH TALK
We Know What YG’s Next Purchase Will Be: This ALL RED Special Edition iPhone!
An all red iPhone is on the way – I’m sure much to the delight of the Bloods. LOL! A special edition red version of the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus have been introduced, in celebration of the 10-year anniversary of Apple’s partnership with HIV/AIDS organization, (Red).
(Video) Apple Unveils New Spaceship Campus Called “Apple Park”
One of Steve Jobs projects he left behind before his untimely death from pancreatic cancer, was the Apple spaceship campus. Take a look.
(Video) Lil Wayne Featured In EA’s ‘Need For Speed: No Limits’ Game
While we still have no Carter 5 in sight, we can at least get SOMETHING from Lil Wayne in the form of EA’s new mobile game, Need For Speed: No Limits. Players can drive as Weezy in the game, and both his voice and likeness are there for fans to enjoy. Tune is also working…
Sprint Purchases 33% Stake In Jay-Z’s Tidal
Power moves on power moves on top of power moves. Hov just struck a big deal for Tidal and the artists who have stake in the company as well, through Sprint.
(Video) Travis Scott Previews New Heat On Snapchat
Looks like Travis Scott is cooking something up…Astroworld this year?
Azealia Banks Has Been Banned From Facebook
AzealiaBanksVEVO Well, that took longer than expected.
(Video + Photo) Ariana Grande Got Her Own Character In “Final Fantasy: Brave Exvius” Game
Soon you’ll be able to play as Ariana in Final Fantasy and she broke the news to her fans yesterday.
SoundCloud Makes A Major Update That MANY People Will Be Happy About!
When SoundCloud first came out, it quickly became a hub for DJs, uploading their mixes and gaining a decent following because of it. However, as labels became more hip to the new site, they began issuing copyright infringements left to right, and DJs began leaving the streaming website in droves – especially because their accounts…
MARISA EXPLAINS IT ALL
Marisa Mendez x Jamal x Tunisia – Marisa Explains It All [Episode 16: “Holiday Hangover”]
We’ve made it to episode 16 of my podcast, Marisa Explains It All, and I finally decided to share it with you guys here. LOL! On this episode, we pre-gamed before the Ebro In The Morning holiday party…and uh, yeah. Drunk talk and feelings were at an all time high. Our music picks are as…
Behind The Lyrics: Lil Wayne Admits To Botched Suicide Attempt As A Child On “London Roads”
Lil Wayne has long recounted a story of “accidentally” shooting himself when he was 12, playing with a 9 mm handgun. Thankfully, an off-duty cop was around to help young Tune, and he survived to become the rap star he is today. Apparently, that wasn’t the whole story, though! On “London Roads”, a song from…
(Video) Machine Gun Kelly Finally Opens Up About Amber Rose
Machine Gun Kelly is one of my favorite artists and has been a good friend of mine for years now, so it was double the blessing to make my Hot 97 interview debut with him on Ebro In The Morning today! The Bad Boy rapper stopped by to discuss his new single and its powerful…
Behind The Lyrics: Wiz Khalifa Comes For Amber’s Neck On “For Everybody”
Last night, Juicy J dropped his Wiz Khalifa-assisted single “For Everybody,” and boy did Wiz have some choice words for his ex Amber Rose on the track! And to drive the point home, they included a photo of themselves at his wedding to Amber as the song’s artwork.
(Video) Honey Cocaine Plays A Hilarious Game Of Taboo
Toronto-bred raptress Honey Cocaine made her rounds at Hot 97 a few weeks back, promoting her latest mixtape Like A Drug, and its 2 singles, “Gwola” featuring Kid Ink and Maino, and “None Of My Business” with Kirko Bangz and Constantine. Following her dope interview with Jen From BK for Jen’s “Ladies First” segment, I…
Interview: Machine Gun Kelly On Debut Film: “I hope that it kind of strikes a social issue…” [PLUS Details On Sophomore Album!]
This Friday, Colson ‘MGK‘ Baker will make his big-screen debut, starring as Kid Culprit in the romantic drama, Beyond The Lights. Since his 2012 Bad Boy/Interscope debut Lace Up and his breakout single “Wild Boy,” Kells has toured the world and shot not only Beyond The Lights, but two more as-of-yet unreleased films as well.…
Elijah Blake Gives 7 Tips How NOT To Act Around A Celeb, Plus Talks New EP, His First Big Check & More!
Singer/songwriter Elijah Blake has worked with a majority of the biggest names in the music business from Rihanna, Justin Bieber, Usher, Mary J and more, either having written for them or being featured on their songs. Now with his recently released Drift EP (available on iTunes here,) the talented Def Jam signee sat down to…
IFWT Exclusive: Maino Gives Us The REAL Story Of What Happened With The Porn Star!
Maino is currently being sought out by the NYPD for questioning, after an adult film star accused him of assaulting her inside of his truck after they partied at Griffin on Monday night with Drake, Ashanti, JR Smith and more. According to the police report filed by the porn star, Mellanie Monroe, “he started punching…
Mila J Reveals The Real Deal Between Her & A Rumored Beau, Plus Talks New EP, Diet/Workout, Her Mains & More!
Gorgeous singer/songwriter/dancer Mila J finally released her debut EP M.I.L.A. (Made In L.A.) yesterday, after years of trying out girl groups, various solo ventures, random day jobs and the like. She’s finally found her niche now though, and has seen success with her latest singles, “Smoke, Drink, Break-Up” and the Ty Dolla $ign-assisted, “My Main.”…