• SHITPOSTING_ACCOUNT@feddit.de
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    1 year ago

    Honestly, it’s kinda icky for a candidate to campaign for himself in conjunction with handing out public money, whether it’s done by a Republican (Trump with the relief checks) or a Democrat.

    • SkepticalButOpenMinded@lemmy.ca
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      1 year ago

      “Handing out public money”? So if we increase funding of healthcare or education, are politicians not allowed to talk about that either? Is it less icky if you tell people they got a tax cut, as conservatives do? This is just nonsense. You may as well say that progressivism is icky to talk about.

      • SHITPOSTING_ACCOUNT@feddit.de
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        1 year ago

        I think there is a huge psychological difference between “spending on public good” and “here is some money”, and especially where the latter happens, it should be very clear that the money is coming from the state/nation, not the individual leading it.

        That may be obvious to you, so the message doesn’t look like a problem, but I bet at least 1% of Americans think Trump personally gave them some of his personal cash out of generosity, effectively turning it into a bribe with public money. Which is exactly why Trump insisted that his name would be placed on the check. (The letter that came with it was surprisingly reasonable and clear, which is why I estimated 1% and not 5%).

    • Telorand@reddthat.com
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      1 year ago

      Yeah, because fuck if people actually realize he’s doing the things he promised he’d do as President. /s

      The public is not smart enough to know the good things Biden is doing unless he actively promotes them, and the media, who runs on ragebait, isn’t going to throw him any bones.

      This is a necessary component of campaigning, it’s something every incumbent does to demonstrate that they deserve another term, and given that fascism is a real possibility next November, I’d say it’s explicitly vital in this case.