Trump "Batman" Campaign Ad Taken Down For Copyright Infringement

After Donald Trump illegally used music from The Dark Knight Rises soundtrack for a 2020 campaign video, Warner Bros. had the video taken down for copyright infringement.

Now, Trump campaign manager Brad Parscale is pointing the finger at CNN’s connection to AT&T for the removal.

Parscale tweeted an image of the dead link with the caption, "Sad to see an ⁦@ATT⁩ owned company pull such a great video made by an every day American in good fun. AT&T now owns ⁦@CNN⁩ and is positioning themselves as a weapon of the left."

CNN is owned by WarnerMedia News & Sports, which is owned by AT&T, which also owns the Warner Bros. entertainment company.

Sad to see an ⁦@ATT⁩ owned company pull such a great video made by an every day American in good fun. AT&T now owns ⁦@CNN⁩ and is positioning themselves as a weapon of the left. pic.twitter.com/jP9kM0Rx7p

— Brad Parscale (@parscale) April 10, 2019

The fact of the matter is Trump's campaign has repeatedly run into the same situation using music without permission by its creators.

Neal Young, Rihanna, Elton John, REM, Adele, Axel Rose, Pharrell and more have all asked Trump to stop using their music as they feel it represents an endorsement of Trump.

Trump Lament's Loss Of Midterm 'Momentum' After Pipe Bombs & Synagogue Shooting

Donald Trump laments loss of midterm momentum after 11 people were killed

On the campaign trail last night, Donald Trump complained that the recent pipe bomb scare and the deadly shooting at a Pittsburgh synagogue slowed momentum for the Republicans which he described as "incredible."

From The Washington Post:

President Trump complained, once again, on Thursday that the recent mail bomb scare and Pittsburgh synagogue mass shooting had “stopped a tremendous momentum” for Republicans ahead of next week’s midterms.

Speaking to an energized crowd in an airplane hangar decorated with American flags in Columbia, Mo., the president took time at the end of his speech to brag about the “tremendous numbers” of Republicans going to vote. Yet, he said that the weeks leading up to the “very important election” haven’t exactly gone smoothly.

“Now, we did have two maniacs stop a momentum that was incredible, because for seven days nobody talked about the elections,” Trump said. “It stopped a tremendous momentum.”

Trump on mail bomb campaign and Pittsburgh massacre: "We did have two maniacs stop a momentum that was incredible." pic.twitter.com/ffn4C5jklW

— Josh Marshall (@joshtpm) November 2, 2018

After two former presidents were threatened with bombs and 11 people lost their lives, the Trumpster's concern is Republican momentum?

It really says it all, doesn't it?

The “two maniacs” also stopped 11 Americans from living, but as we’ve learned, Donald Trump only cares about Donald Trump.

This statement is revolting.

— Jon Favreau (@jonfavs) November 2, 2018

Those two maniacs were both deranged right wingers.
Just like him.
The bomber coated his van in pictures of trump. Long term fan.
The Pittsburgh killer was fixated on the same anti Semitic conspiracy theory and migrant caravan as the president.
he’s complaining about his own side

— eli friedmann (@eligit) November 2, 2018

Out On The Campaign Trail, President Obama Puts It All In Perspective

President Obama ,out on the campaign trail this week for midterm elections, reminded me (again) why I loved this guy as president.

Here's just a few examples of how clear he makes it all to understand.

Remember how 'Hillary's email' was the worstest thing in the world in 2016?

OMG, the sky is falling! She's leaking classified info! She's irresponsible.

And then this week comes the report that Donald Trump doesn't like using his secure government phone.

So, he tweets and calls informal advisers like Sean Hannity on his iPhone - a phone that apparently the Chinese and Russian governments can listen in on.

Barack puts it all in perspective:

"They didn’t care about [Hillary Clinton’s] emails…because if they did, they’d be up in arms right now as the Chinese are listening to the president’s iPhone that he leaves in his golf cart," Barack Obama said at a campaign event, slamming GOP politicians and conservative media pic.twitter.com/KjlLHOTXC5

— POLITICO (@politico) October 26, 2018

Barack Obama said Republican "fear mongering" over the migrant caravan is one of many issues GOP leadership has used to distract while “they are robbing you blind.”

"They’re giving tax cuts out to billionaires, but they don’t want you to notice that," he continued pic.twitter.com/VYHKpltgia

— POLITICO (@politico) October 26, 2018

"Fox News will not tell you that what the Republicans are saying about pre-existing conditions aren’t true... but it would be nice if the serious outlets did,” Obama said, slamming the media for not calling out inaccurate statements made by elected officials pic.twitter.com/xqg1dqeqxf

— POLITICO (@politico) October 26, 2018

Dang, I miss this guy.

Hillary Clinton: The Comey Letter & Wikileaks "Scared Off" Voters

I was listening to this as it happened, and I was struck almost numb listening to such a competent, thoughtful, articulate person address the issues at hand.

And to think we have Trump for a president.

Business Insider reports:

Hillary Clinton told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour during a women’s event on Tuesday that she believes she was “on the way to winning” the 2016 presidential election until the FBI announced 11 days before the election that it was revisiting the investigation into her emails.

The former Secretary of State said that while she takes “absolute personal responsibility” for her defeat, “a combination of [FBI Director] Jim Comey’s letter on October 28 and Russian Wikileaks raised doubts in the minds of people who were inclined to vote for me and got scared off.”

“The evidence” that those two “intervening events” were carried out to harm her candidacy is “compelling and persuasive,” Clinton told Amanpour on Tuesday. But she said she is “proud” of her campaign for overcoming an “enormous barrage of negativity, of false equivalence, of so much else.”

Regarding the comments on the campaign, Comey and Wikileaks, I absolutely agree with Hillary.

Yes, she and her team made mistakes, and she cops to them here taking responsibility.

But she definitely was on the cusp of winning before Comey came out with his stunning public statement about "new" (not new) emails 11 days before the election.

The clip about the campaign is below, but I really urge you to watch the full 34 minutes. It's striking to think what an intelligent president we almost had.

NYT: Trump Associates Were In Regular Contact With Russian Officials During Campaign

President Donald Trump

More bad news for the Trump administration as the New York Times reports several members of Donald Trump's campaign team were in regular contact with Russian officials during the 2016 presidential campaign.

Phone records and intercepted calls show that members of Donald J. Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign and other Trump associates had repeated contacts with senior Russian intelligence officials in the year before the election, according to four current and former American officials.

American law enforcement and intelligence agencies intercepted the communications around the same time they were discovering evidence that Russia was trying to disrupt the presidential election by hacking into the Democratic National Committee, three of the officials said. The intelligence agencies then sought to learn whether the Trump campaign was colluding with the Russians on the hacking or other efforts to influence the election.

The officials interviewed in recent weeks said that, so far, they had seen no evidence of such cooperation.

But the intercepts alarmed American intelligence and law enforcement agencies, in part because of the amount of contact that was occurring while Mr. Trump was speaking glowingly about the Russian president, Vladimir V. Putin. At one point last summer, Mr. Trump said at a campaign event that he hoped Russian intelligence services had stolen Hillary Clinton’s emails and would make them public.

The officials said the intercepted communications were not limited to Trump campaign officials, and included other associates of Mr. Trump.

And, cue the angry tweets from the Trumpster:

The fake news media is going crazy with their conspiracy theories and blind hatred. @MSNBC & @CNN are unwatchable. @foxandfriends is great!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 15, 2017

This Russian connection non-sense is merely an attempt to cover-up the many mistakes made in Hillary Clinton's losing campaign.

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 15, 2017

Information is being illegally given to the failing @nytimes & @washingtonpost by the intelligence community (NSA and FBI?).Just like Russia

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 15, 2017

The real scandal here is that classified information is illegally given out by "intelligence" like candy. Very un-American!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 15, 2017

But remember when the Donald LOVED leaked info...? Let's take a ride on the "way-back machine" to the presidential campaign:

Trump Is Tired Of Campaigning - "Cancel The Election And Just Give It To Trump"

.@realDonaldTrump has a complete disregard for democracy: We should
"cancel the election and just give it to Trump." pic.twitter.com/Zl75BLjnYl

— Hillary Clinton (@VoteHillary2016) October 27, 2016

Republican National Committee Gives Trump Campaign "Grim Prognosis"

In the aftermath of whatever success or failure folks believe occurred at the two major political parties conventions in July, it's been clear that the Trump campaign had lost it's footing as polls showed Hillary Clinton widening her lead on Donald Trump.

The past weeks saw noticeable shifts for the Trumpster. Testing the waters with a possible "softening" of his immigration prescriptions then pulling back, it was clear Trump was lurching about trying to find some kind of message that might sell in the general election.

The New York Times explains a bit as to the underlying dynamics at play in the Trump camp.

Mr. Trump’s course adjustment emerged in an atmosphere of growing urgency and alarm within his campaign. Over the last week, close associates have told both Mr. Trump and members of his family that he is in real danger of losing the race, according to a half-dozen people close to the Trump campaign and briefed on its activities, who spoke on condition of anonymity to avoid angering the nominee.

Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey, who lobbied in favor of the trip to Mexico, has told Mr. Trump that he must make immediate changes to regain his footing, associates said. And on Monday, Mr. Trump’s son Eric met with senior officials at the Republican National Committee in Washington and heard a grim prognosis of his father’s campaign, according to people briefed on the meeting.

Without a major shake-up of the electoral map, strategists indicated to the younger Mr. Trump, his father’s already narrow path to the 270 electoral votes he needs to win could vanish. Going through the swing states one by one, party officials showed Eric Trump that his father was drastically underperforming other Republicans in the polls.

Hillary Clinton's Campaign Anthem "Stronger Together" Gets Dance Remix

Pop campaign anthem "Stronger Together," penned by music industry veterans Bruce Roberts, Babyface, and Carole Bayer Sager specifically for the Hillary Clinton campaign had it's debut at the Democratic National Convention sung by American Idol finalist Jessica Sanchez following Hillary Clinton's speech.

Here's the original:

This week, Billboard Dance premiered the first official dance remix of the spirited track by remix crew Dirty Pop (the duo of DrewG and Brian Cua).

New York Times Documents Coarse, Violent Language At Trump Rallies

The New York Times documents a year on the road with the Donald Trump campaign.

The Times notes the rough, violent language on display at Donald Trump rallies.

“Kill her.” “Trump that bitch!” “Build a wall — kill them all.” New York Times reporters have spent over a year covering Donald J. Trump’s rallies, witnessing so many provocations and heated confrontations at them that the cumulative effect can be numbing: A sharp sting that quickly dulls from repetition.

But what struck us was the frequency with which some Trump supporters use coarse, vitriolic, even violent language — in the epithets they shout and chant, the signs they carry, the T-shirts they wear — a pattern not seen in connection with any other recent political candidate, in any party.

Campaign Ad: "Role Models"

Highlighting the sharp, heated rhetoric of the Donald Trump campaign, Hillary Clinton releases this new spot contrasting the images and language of the two presidential campaigns.

As Stephen Sondheim once wrote, "Careful the things you say, children will listen."

Via the Washington Post:

The sharply negative spot comes a day before Trump is expected to announce his vice-presidential running mate and several days before the Republican Party’s convention.

In it, video of Trump plays in the background as children watch. Entitled “Role Models,” it contrasts Trump — using profanity, mocking a disabled reporter, apparently alluding to a female reporter’s menstrual cycle — with Clinton, who appears at the end of the ad.

“I love the old days, you know what they used to do to guys like that when they were in a place like this? They’d be carried out on a stretcher, folks,” Trump says in one clip. “And you can tell them to go f*** themselves,” he says in another.

Remember: When @realDonaldTrump opens his mouth, our kids are listening.https://t.co/pdphHQEzuk

— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) July 14, 2016

What If The Donald Trump Campaign Was A Big Joke?

I've actually contemplated - seriously contemplated - that the Donald Trump campaign is a big "punk" on the American people.

Just when it looks like the Trumpster couldn't get more outrageous, he does. And it lands.

Cracked.com has made that scenario come to life in this short 8 minute film.

It's going to be so funny. It's going to be so funny.

It makes me believe even moreso that the "punking" of America could be true.

If not, the short film is still pretty funny.

In a very, very, very dark way.

Trump Advisors To Republicans: Don't Worry - It's All An Act

During a closed door meeting in Florida, Donald Trump's senior advisors told Republican leaders to not worry - the first part of the campaign has been an act put on by the Trumpster "projecting an image."

From the Associated Press:

Trump's newly hired senior aide, Paul Manafort, made the case to Republican National Committee members that Trump has two personalities: one in private and one onstage.

"When he's out on the stage, when he's talking about the kinds of things he's talking about on the stump, he's projecting an image that's for that purpose," Manafort said in a private briefing.

"You'll start to see more depth of the person, the real person. You'll see a real different guy," he said.

The Associated Press obtained a recording of the closed-door exchange.

"He gets it," Manafort said of Trump's need to moderate his personality. "The part that he's been playing is evolving into the part that now you've been expecting, but he wasn't ready for, because he had first to complete the first phase. The negatives will come down. The image is going to change."

Donald Trump: "The Audience Hit Back. That's What We Need A Little More Of"

When asked about the arrest of one of his supporters for sucker-punching a protester on his way out of a rally, Donald Trump said, "The audience hit back. That's what we need a little more of."

Yep - his answer to the situation is that the protester, who was leaving without inciting any violence, got what he had coming to him.

Another reporter asked, "When you say things like, I want to punch a protester in the face... is it just politics or are you playing a character there?"

"Let me just tell you, we have had some violent people as protesters," Trump responded. "They are not just people saying, 'oh!' These are people that punch, these are people that are violent people."

Trump has attempted to portray the protesters, not his supporters, as violent. But no reporter covering his campaign says they've seen evidence of that. Quite the opposite. We've seen protesters raise their voices but not their fists, even as they are shoved and spit on as they exit Trump rallies.

The latest incident happened at Wednesdays'rally in Fayetteville, which was caught on camera from several angles. A white man identified as 78-year-old John McGraw approached a group of protesters and punched one, identified as Rakeem Jones, in the face.

Hope Hicks, the Trump campaign spokeswoman, called the violence unfortunate in an interview with the New York Times and said Trump's campaign had “no control” over its supporters’ behavior.

(source)

Video: "Disaster Politics - Trump Style!"

I don't want to insinuate that The Donald has a limited vocabulary, but...

Campaign Ad: Ted Cruz Is Desperate To Get Attention

This is honestly one of the dumbest campaign ads I've ever seen. Is this supposed to make him look tough?

GOP presidential hopeful Sen. Ted Cruz wants you to believe he cooks bacon by wrapping it around the barrel of a high-powered gun.

SRSLY?

From the folks who brought you Dr. Ben Carson playing "Operation" and Sen. Lindsey Graham destroying his cell phone.

Donald Trump Tweets Campaign Ad Featuring Nazi Soldiers On American Flag

Earlier today, Donald Trump tweeted out the above image, then quickly deleted it when it became apparent the image of soldiers featured in the corner are Nazi soldiers.

From Mediate:

The lead soldier with the camo uniform in the now-deleted tweet is very obviously wearing a Waffen-SS uniform. For those who skipped history class, the SS were basically the worst kind of Nazis there were.

CNN’s MJ Lee reports that the Trump campaign claims “an intern accidentally posted questionable photo” and apologized. Meanwhile Mother Jones managed to track down the original image used in Trump’s tweet, and confirmed that the soldiers are Nazis.

See tweet below showing the original image incorporated into campaign image.

Now, if Trump can't oversee a campaign team, HOW is he going to lead the United States?

Donald Trump just tweeted a campaign ad featuring Nazi uniforms on an American flag http://t.co/YNh6HpOwT3 pic.twitter.com/pavd5fYMPi

— Mother Jones (@MotherJones) July 14, 2015

Donald Trump Apparently Had To Pay For Crowd Enthusiasm At Campaign Launch

According to the Hollywood Reporter, some of the folks in the "enthusiastic crowd" at Donald Trump's presidential campaign launch were paid to wear the t-shirts and hold the "home-made" looking signs to gin up the crowd factor.

New York-based Extra Mile Casting sent an email last Friday to its client list of background actors, seeking extras to beef up attendance at Trump's event.

"We are looking to cast people for the event to wear t-shirts and carry signs and help cheer him in support of his announcement," reads the June 12 email, obtained by The Hollywood Reporter. "We understand this is not a traditional 'background job,' but we believe acting comes in all forms and this is inclusive of that school of thought." (Read the full email at the bottom of the post.)

The pay was listed as $50 for less than three hours of work. According to the email, Extra Mile was reaching out to potential extras in partnership with Gotham Government Relations and Communications, a New York-Based political consulting group that has worked with Trump in the past. Gotham GR had no comment.

Questions as to whether the Trump campaign had hired extras were first raised Wednesday by anti-Trump activist Angelo Carusone, who came across an Instagram photo showing a man he recognized as a background actor posing at the Trump event. Carusone screengrabbed the photo of the actor, Domenico Del Giacco, and published it in a blog post. The photo shows Del Giacco with a woman, identified in the now-deleted Instagram post as actress Courtney Klotz. (Del Giacco has since deleted his entire Instagram account.)

GOP Campaign Ads and The Modern Family

You'll never guess what hit TV show seems to attract GOP campaign ads.

And guess which television genre seems to be the most apolitical when it comes to advertising?

MSNBC's Lawrence O'Donnell and Judah Friedlander look at the facts and try to figure it out.

Arizona: Campaign Ad Features Lesbian Couple

New campaign ad from Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard, who is running for Secretary of State.

Featured in the ad are Melanie Puskar-Blakely and Tonya Blakely recounting how Goddard's opponent, Sen. Michele Reagan, supported the anti-gay SB 1062 which would have legalized discrimination against the LGBT community in Arizona.

Thankfully, the bill was vetoed by Gov. Brewer.

Very rare - but welcome - to see a lesbian couple head up a campaign ad.

Senatorial candidate for Human-Dog Marriage

Ron Spiner is the only candidate brave enough to fight for your right to marry whoever you want.

As long as they're a dog and not the same sex as you.