🗞️ #064 NoFOMO | Musk and Trump Break X While Harris and Walz Interview Each Other
No FOMO 🚫 here; bringing you the highlights of the week's news.
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Over the Weekend
News broke over the weekend that the Trump campaign email had been hacked, and guess who's taking the blame? Iran! Or at least reports from the Trump campaign are that it was Iran. But why is Iran hacking the Trump campaign?
Now, let's ponder this for a moment. Why would Iran hack Trump? Could it be because, deep down, Iran's thinking, "Let's make sure Trump loses because a Harris administration might just be more beneficial for us?" The Biden-Harris administration did lift Trump’s sanctions on Iran, dismantle the Abraham Accords, and had been putting the screws on Israel, where Iran has been engaged in a proxy conflict. If you were Iran, who would be your choice, Trump or Harris?
The materials collected from the hack were reported to be vetting documents on senators J.D. Vance and Marco Rubio. Three major media outlets received the hacked materials but opted not to publish them.
Many are surprised that the materials were not published. When asked, The Times refused to discuss why it decided not to print details of the internal communications. A spokesperson for the Post said: “As with any information we receive, we take into account the authenticity of the materials, any motives of the source, and assess the public interest in making decisions about what, if anything, to publish.”
Many on the left are calling foul, claiming that the media is withholding to protect the Trump campaign. Talk about living in an alternate reality.
J.D. Vance made the rounds on three prominent Sunday shows, whereas Harris and Walz 🦗 dodging the press. The interviewers largely focused on past statements from Trump and Vance, neglecting important issues such as the economy and border security. Nonetheless, Vance effectively showcased Trump’s policy initiatives and noted that Harris has yet to participate in an interview. You can view the full interviews using the links below.
On Monday
Trump officially returned to X (formerly known as Twitter) in a big way, holding an X Space after being banned from the platform following the January 6 riots and being reinstated following Musk’s purchase of Twitter.
The Space, scheduled for 8 p.m., was delayed by 45 minutes, reportedly due to a DDOS attack. But once they got going, it lasted approximately two hours and, at its peak, had active listeners of 1.3 million. They discussed topics ranging from climate change to political strategies.
The most revealing part of the event was the obvious effort to censor Trump:
EU's Warning: Before the interview, the European Union sent a letter to Elon Musk warning X about its obligations under the EU's content moderation laws, citing disinformation concerns. Many on X saw this as election interference from a foreign government and an attempt to censor or influence the conversation preemptively. Elon’s response to the EU? 👇
#BlackoutX Campaign: In protest of Trump’s return, a campaign emerged on X, #BlackoutX. Users were going to boycott X during Musk and Trump’s conversation, claiming that it would only spread disinformation.
DDOS Attack: Coinciding with the interview, Musk reported a Distributed Denial of Service (DDOS) attack on X, which some users speculated was an attempt to disrupt the free flow of information during the Trump-Musk discussion.
Washington Post's Reporter Calls for Censorship: In a twist of irony, a journalist from The Washington Post asked how President Biden might censor Musk and Trump’s conversation, highlighting the ongoing debate over government influence on media content.
This X Space was a forum that allowed Trump to bypass the negativity from the mainstream media and engage in a discussion on important issues. How did the mainstream media report on it? Primarily through jokes and dismissals of the conversation's validity, focusing primarily on Trump’s alleged slurring, which seems to stem more from a sound issue after his communications director released a video.
If that wasn't enough, Dana Bash of CNN misleadingly edited a part of the conversation to make it seem like Trump and Musk thought the atomic bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima were insignificant by removing all context from the discussion.
The Edit
The Context
It is revealing how sad and divided our democracy has become, along with the media's failure, when discussions about ideas are overshadowed by censorship and misinformation.
Listen to the full conversation with timestamps.
On Tuesday
The Algerian boxer Imane Khelif who caught up in controversy after having been previously disqualified from the World Boxing Championship for testing positive for being biologically male. Files suit against Elon Musk and J.K. Rowling
Khelif has filed a lawsuit in France, accusing Musk and Rowling of "acts of aggravated cyber harassment." This stems from their public statements and posts on X (formerly Twitter), where they criticized Khelif's participation in the women's category at the Olympics, suggesting Khelif had an unfair advantage due to his biological sex.
The lawsuit hinges on French laws concerning cyber harassment, particularly focusing on gender-based discrimination and public insults. However, Musk and Rowling's supporters argue that their critical comments fall under free speech, especially when discussing sports integrity and fairness.
A video reveals Minnesota Governor Walz, now Harris's running mate, with Imam Asad Zaman, a radical Muslim cleric. In the video from 2018, Walz refers to Zaman, who has shared pro-Hitler content and expressed support for Hamas, as a "master teacher" with whom he has spent considerable time.
This footage, unearthed by The Washington Examiner, directly contradicts claims from the Harris-Walz campaign that there was no personal relationship between Walz and Zaman. The video has triggered extensive conversation on X, with many users raising questions about what it means for Walz to praise a figure known for controversial and antisemitic views. How supportive of Israel can Walz truly be if he considers a Zaman, who supports Hamas, to be a “master teacher”? With the upcoming election is a significant concern for many Jewish and pro-Israel voters.
On Wednesday
Trump held a rally in Ashville, North Carolina, in the swing state. Following the rally, Trump did a short interview with local ABC13, but no national news outlet covered it. The interview focused on the most important issues for voters in battleground states, such as the economy and border security.
Meanwhile…Harris and Walz did an “interview” where they will interview each other in a totally not stylized and scripted conversation to be posted on YouTube.
It has now been 26 days since Harris announced and has yet to do a press conference, interview, or unscripted event.
According to the Washington Post, RFK Jr. sought a meeting with Vice President Kamala Harris last week and offered his endorsement in return for a role in her administration if she wins. However, Harris's team reportedly rebuffed this offer. It is speculated that he made a similar offer to the Trump campaign before the RNC after a video of his conversation with Trump was leaked.
However, RFK Jr. took to social media to clarify his stance. He denied rumors of dropping out and emphasized his commitment to the race, stating, "I'm in it to win it." He also highlighted that the Democrat party is not the party of his father and uncle and that he is focused on efforts to achieve ballot access in all 50 states, suggesting his campaign will continue.
In what could be the largest data breach in history, hackers allegedly accessed and potentially stole the Social Security numbers and other personal information of nearly every American. The breach occurred at National Public Data, a company known for aggregating personal information for background checks. The hacker group USDoD claims to have stolen around 2.9 billion records, including sensitive data such as names, addresses, and Social Security numbers. After failing to sell the entire database, portions were leaked for free on forums, putting millions at risk of identity theft and financial fraud. Security experts recommend freezing your credit with major bureaus and considering identity protection services. National Public Data faces a class-action lawsuit and is currently under investigation for this massive security failure.
On Thursday
Kamala Harris is set to finally announce a new economic policy to combat what she terms "corporate price-gouging," particularly focusing on food and groceries. This policy, which critics argue could lead to price controls, is expected to be detailed in her upcoming speech on Friday. The plan has stirred controversy, with critics like John Stossel on X calling it "economically illiterate," suggesting that price gouging isn't the root cause of inflation but rather government spending.
Critics dismiss the proposal as government overreach, arguing that such interventions historically fail.
But that's not all! She also plans to offer up to $25,000 in down payment assistance for first-time homebuyers. Harris promotes this initiative as a way to make homeownership easier, especially for those who are the first in their families to buy a home. However, critics argue this will raise home prices as the market adjusts for the "free money" and will add to the U.S. deficit. There are also concerns that individuals may buy homes that exceed their financial means, which could lead to a crisis similar to the housing bubble in 2008.
Finally, remember last week how Harris announced a proposal not to tax tips two months after Trump first proposed it? Well, the new economic policy includes a $6,000 child tax credit—an interesting amount choice considering J.D. Vance proposed a $5,000 child tax credit earlier this month. Is Kamala being a one-upper?
Harris is due to test drive these proposals during a Friday rally in Raleigh, NC. Despite these criticisms, the left loves it! The proposals are framed as a move to always put the middle class and working families first.
Well, Walz and Vance have confirmed a Vice Presidential debate on October 1. However, the dates for the main event's debates remain unresolved. Nonetheless, Kamala Harris insists that they are, in fact, settled. In a statement from the KamalaHQ X account, it was declared that the "debate about the debates is over."
Harris is only willing to commit to the original Biden vs. Trump debate date set for September 10 on NBC while sidestepping the extra dates proposed by Trump: September 4 on Fox and September 25 on ABC.
That’s it. That’s the news this week. For Friday’s headlines, follow me on Instagram.
