Genuine Enthusiasm Is Not Overconfidence

    

Vice President Kamala Harris onstage at the DNC accepting the Democratic Party Nomination for President of the United States. (photo: DNC/AP)

 

 

Marc Ash / Reader Supported News 24 August 24

 

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Vice President Kamala Harris and the Democrats put on a great show in Chicago. It was well composed, authentic and very well received. Harris got to be Harris, no holds barred, no punches pulled. 

Although the event was clearly scripted there was a spontaneity that transcended the staging. The crowd had fun at the show and no one could stop them.

Does one good night, one good event translate to a win in the November presidential election? It might if the good event was the sum of all its parts. 

Did Kamala Harris work her entire career to put herself in position to be on that big stage? Is Tim Walz really the perfect guy to renew trust in government? Is the country finally well and truly done with Don J Trump’s Traveling Circus? Those are what appear to be the underlying factors that gave rise to one of the best Democratic Nominating Conventions in decades.

Are Harris and the Democrats overconfident? No, they are exactly what they appear to be, unafraid and fired-up. There appears to be in the Harris camp a sincere desire to accomplish something, something good, to achieve change for the better. 

It wasn’t just that the crowd at the convention was excited by her message but that they wanted to be a part of the mission. To be, “of the people, by the people, for the people” the people have to participate. What we saw at the DNC was a movement people wanted to join and be a part of.

The universe of things that could wrong is broad. A quick glance at the expansive Project 2025 manifesto provides a glimpse of the designs Trump’s supporters have on a second Trump presidency. They’re highly motivated to run-free in a Trump regime unconstrained by any guardrails and that leaves alone Trump’s own plans for an America that he alone rules. 

Trump world is corrupt and ruthless. They will not stop; they must be stopped.

The network of Trump supporters includes the Stop-the-Steal crowd now deeply embedded in swing-state governments in positions critical to November’s vote counting. They have a mission, do whatever is necessary to facilitate a return to power by Trump. They are fully committed and no tactic is out of bounds. 

A number of their cohorts have already been convicted of federal crimes in connection with electoral malfeasance, on Trump’s behalf and there is every indication they will work to further that cause this election cycle.

With the same certainty that a bear lives in the woods, the Supreme Court guards the entrance to the Oval Office. Would the Court conservatives intercede on Trumps behalf in an election-deciding legal dispute? They have already told you they would and will. Believe them, they’re not kidding. 

When Trump says, "We don’t need more votes; we have enough votes,” what he’s really saying is that his strategy doesn’t require winning the election. It’s a path to the White House through alternative means. Vote suppression, voter intimidation, vote count manipulation, post election litigation with appeals to the supreme court - expect all of it, because it’s all coming.

The question is not if Kamala Harris and Tim Walz will win the election, but if it will matter. It’s going to be a dog-fight and they know it. The bar for Harris and Walz is high. The standard is what Jamie Raskin called in his address to the DNC, “A landslide so big that Donald Trump and his kangaroo court, Supreme Court justices cannot even try to steal it.” That’s a high bar.

So let’s not call it overconfidence.  Let’s call it a stomach for a fight and prepare for the battle.

When Trump says, "We don’t need more votes; we have enough votes,” what he’s really saying is that his strategy doesn’t require winning the election. It’s a path to the White House through alternative means. Vote suppression, voter intimidation, vote count manipulation, post election litigation with appeals to the supreme court - expect all of it, because it’s all coming.

Kamala Harris gets personal—and presidential—in powerful acceptance speech

Kamala Harris accepts her party's nomination for president.  Credit for all photos in this story: AFP via Getty Images

By Joan McCarter

Daily Kos Staff 

Thursday, August 22, 2024 at 9:24:47p MDT

 

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In front of a raucous and rapt Democratic National Convention Thursday, Vice President Kamala Harris accepted the party’s nomination for president.

"We gotta get to some business,” she said while the crowd was still shouting and cheering. “Let’s get to business.”

The first business was honoring and thanking President Joe Biden. 

"When I think about the path that we have traveled together, Joe, I am filled with gratitude," Harris said. "Your record is extraordinary, as history will show, and your character is inspiring, and Doug and I love you and Jill and are forever thankful to you both,” she added. 

"America, the path that led me here in recent weeks was no doubt unexpected. But I’m no stranger to unlikely journeys,” Harris said. That journey, she said, started with her mother Shyamala.

"My mother was 19 when she crossed the world alone, traveling from India to California with an unshakeable dream to be the scientist who would cure breast cancer,” Harris said. She explained that her mother raised her in “a beautiful working-class neighborhood of firefighters, nurses, and construction workers, all who tended their lawns with pride.” 

"She taught us to never complain about injustice but do something about it," she said about her mother. “And never do anything half-assed. And that is a direct quote!”

Harris’ introduction to public service, to helping people, came when she was in high school.

“I started to notice something about my best friend, Wanda. She was sad at school. And there were times she didn’t want to go home,” she said. Wanda didn’t want to go home, she explained, because she was being sexually abused by her step-father.

“I immediately told her she had to come stay with us. And she did,” Harris continued.

"That is one of the reasons I became a prosecutor. To protect people like Wanda. Because I believe everyone has a right to safety, to dignity, and to justice.”

The rest is history. After gaining degrees from Howard University and the University of California College of the Law, she started her law career and rose up as a county and city prosecutor to being elected as San Francisco’s district attorney, then the state’s attorney general, and finally U.S. senator.

As a prosecutor, she said, she had one guiding principle. "In our system of justice, a harm against any one of us is a harm against all of us,” she said. “No one should be made to fight alone. We are all in this together."

In my entire career, I've only had one client: the people. So on behalf of the people, on behalf of every American, regardless of party, race, gender, or the language your grandmother speaks, on behalf of my mother and everyone who has ever set out on their own unlikely journey, on behalf of Americans like the people I grew up with, people who work hard, chase their dreams, and look out for one another, on behalf of everyone whose story could only be written in the greatest nation on earth, I accept your nomination to be president of the United States of America.

With this election, our nation has a precious, fleeting opportunity to move past the bitterness, cynicism, and divisive battles of the past. A chance to chart a New Way Forward. Not as members of any one party or faction, but as Americans.

"I know there are people of various political views watching tonight. And I want you to know: I promise to be a president for all Americans,” Harris continued. “You can always trust me to put country above party and self.” 

"I will be a president who unites us around our highest aspirations,” she said. “A president who leads—and listens. Who is realistic. Practical. And has common sense. And always fights for the American people. From the courthouse to the White House, that has been my life’s work.”

Harris related some of the biggest fights for the people of her career. "These fights were not easy, and neither were the elections that put me in those offices. We were underestimated at practically every turn. But we never gave up because the future is always worth fighting for."

"And that's the fight we are in right now—a fight for America's future."

Her opponent, Harris said, “is an unserious man. But the consequences of putting Donald Trump back in the White House are extremely serious.... Consider not only the chaos and the calamity of when he was in office.” 

Kamala Harris showed no mercy to Trump.

When he was out of office, “Donald Trump tried to throw away your votes. When he failed, he sent an armed mob to the United States Capitol where they assaulted law enforcement officers."

"And now for an entirely different set of crimes, he was found guilty of fraud by a jury of everyday Americans and separately found liable for committing sexual abuse,” Harris said. “Consider what he intends to do if we give him power again."

"Consider the power he will have, especially after the United States Supreme Court just ruled that he would be immune from criminal prosecution. Just imagine Donald Trump with no guardrails."

But “we are not going back,” she and the crowd changed. "We are charting a new way forward,” Harris said. “Forward to a future with a strong and growing middle class because we know a strong middle class has always been critical to America's success, and building that middle class will be a defining goal of my presidency."

"I believe American cannot truly be prosperous unless Americans are fully able to make their own decisions about their own lives, especially on matters of heart and home,” Harris continued. “But tonight in America, too many women are not able to make those decisions. And let's be clear about how we got here."

We got here because of Donald Trump and his Supreme Court appointees, Harris said.

“And now he brags about it. Simply put, they are out of their minds. And one must ask: Why exactly is it that they don't trust women? Well, we trust women," she said. 

"One must ask, why exactly is it that they don't trust women?” she continued. “Well, we trust women. We trust women."

Democrats, she said, also trust voters and will restore those rights. "With this election, we finally have the opportunity to pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Act and the Freedom to Vote Act."

Speaking about national security, Harris gave full-throated support to Ukraine, and to the strength of the NATO alliance. "I will not cozy up to tyrants and dictators like Kim Jong Un who are rooting for Trump—who are rooting for Trump!—because they know he is easy to manipulate with flattery and favors."

“Fellow Americans,” Harris went on, “I love our country with all my heart. Everywhere I go—in everyone I meet—I see a nation ready to move forward. Ready for the next step, in the incredible journey that is America.”

I see an America where we hold fast to the fearless belief that built our nation and inspired the world. That here, in this country, anything is possible. That nothing is out of reach. An America where we care for one another. Look out for one another. And recognize that we have so much more in common than what separates us. That none of us has to fail for all of us to succeed. And that in unity, there is strength.

Another lesson from her mother: "Never let anyone tell you who you are. You show them who you are. America, let us show each other and the world who we are and what we stand for: freedom, opportunity, compassion, dignity, fairness, and endless possibilities."

“We must be worthy of this moment. It is our turn … to fight for this country we love.” To fight for the “privilege and pride that comes with being an American.”

Tim Walz positively nails his big DNC moment

Vice presidential nominee Tim Walz

By Joan McCarter

Daily Kos Staff

Wednesday, August 21, 2024 at 9:56:16p MDT

 

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Yes, Gov. Tim Walz is that guy: your favorite neighbor, teacher, coach—the guy you’d call when you needed help changing a tire, or facing a hard conversation with your parents, or just want to have a fun fishing companion.

That’s the man who showed up Wednesday night to accept the nomination at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago to be vice president. The heart of his message: “Everybody belongs.”

"It's the honor of my life to accept your nomination for vice president of the United States,” he said. “Thank you for bringing the joy to this fight.” 

He told the story of how his students convinced him to enter politics for the first time, running for Congress.

“So there I was—a 40-something high school teacher with little kids, zero political experience, and no money running in a deep red district. But you know what? Never underestimate a public school teacher.”

And when he got there? “I was a better shot than most Republicans in Congress, and I got the trophies to prove it. But I'm also a dad. I believe in the 2nd Amendment, but I believe our first responsibility is to keep our kids safe.”

Gus Walz cheers through his tears as his father accepts the nomination.

He went on to talk about his tenure as governor of Minnesota.

"While other states were banning books from their schools, we were banishing hunger from ours," he said. And when other states were banning abortion, his state became a haven for its citizens.

"We've got a golden rule,” he said. “Mind your own damn business."

Then he turned to this campaign. Talking about Project 2025, he warned that his coaching experience taught him one thing.

“When somebody takes the time to draw up a playbook, trust me, they're gonna use it,” he said. “It's an agenda nobody asked for. It's an agenda that does nothing for our neighbors in need. Is it weird? Absolutely. But it's also wrong. And it's dangerous,” he added.

"I don't know about you, but I'm really ready to turn the page on these guys,” he continued. “We've got something better to offer the American people." 

And in true coach mode, he added, "There'll be time to sleep when you're dead. We're gonna leave it on the field!"

Walz's championship football team cheers him on at DNC

Benjamin Ingman, a former student of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, would like you to know that his former teacher, coach, and neighbor is practically a saint. He’d pull you out of a snowbank. He’d take on extra jobs to help you pay off your school lunch debt. He’s that guy.  The team Walz coached to a state championship apparently agrees. They showed up—in their jerseys—at Wednesday’s Democratic National Convention to introduce their coach, their neighbor, their mentor, their friend.

 

Trump supporters focus on regaining power—no matter how Americans vote

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speaks at a news conference at Trump National Golf Club, Thursday, Aug. 15, 2024, in Bedminster, N.J.

By Mark Sumner

Daily Kos Staff

Tuesday, August 20, 2024 at 7:45:02a MDT

 

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On Monday, the Republican National Committee asked the Supreme Court to step into an election dispute in Arizona by blocking up to 40,000 registered voters from casting ballots in November. That’s because the more likely that it becomes that Vice President Kamala Harris will win this election, the more focused Donald Trump and his supporters become on that other contest—the one to ensure he regains power no matter how Americans vote.

Since Harris began her candidacy and quickly gathered the support necessary to become the Democratic nominee, Trump has been pushing the idea that her ascendency was somehow illegal. As The Washington Post reports, the narrative meant to delegitimize Harris as a candidate has included Trump claiming that Harris should be “disqualified” for what Trump claimed was a fake image of a campaign rally crowd (it wasn’t). But the more consistent theme from Trump is that Harris took over as the Democratic candidate in a “coup” and that the presidency was “Unconstitutionally STOLEN from him.”

At the same time that Trump is prompting his followers to question the legitimacy of Harris as a candidate, Republicans are also preparing for Insurrection 2.0. They're not waiting for Jan 6, 2025. Efforts to stop democracy are already underway from state governments to the Supreme Court.

As The Los Angeles Times reports, Arizona set state rules requiring that voters show proof of citizenship, like a birth certificate, when registering, which exceeds the requirements of federal law. Now Republicans want to disqualify all the voters who signed up without meeting those proof-of-citizenship requirements.

As Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes points out, there’s no evidence of fraud among any of these voters, most are Native Americans, students, or service members who didn’t have a birth certificate available at the time of registration.

But the possibility of eliminating a large group of voters who are mostly young, Native American, or both is enough to get Republicans salivating. Native American voters in Arizona played a critical role in the 2020 vote and Harris’ rapid improvement in recent polls has been largely driven by a combination of women and younger voters. Biden’s margin of victory in Arizona was 10,457 votes in 2020, so 40,000 voters taken off the rolls could definitely affect the outcome in that state.

But trying to keep voters from voting in the first place is just one way that Republicans are attempting to keep democracy down. Trump supporters have gained power over local election boards in multiple states. Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington has identified at least 35 “rogue election officials” who have already refused to certify election results and may do so again.

But no state may be doing more to help defeat democracy in advance of the election than Georgia.

Nothing says banana republic like Trump's multiple strategies to sabotage the election.

From Bible bucks to legal debt, you couldn't make up Trump's wild financial disclosure

Trump revealed he made $300,000 for his part in selling Bibles and owns more than $100,000 in gold bars.

By Mark Sumner

Daily Kos Staff

Friday, August 16, 2024 at 4:00:12p MDT

 

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On Thursday, Donald Trump released the financial disclosure forms required of candidates to comply with election campaign laws to the Office of Government Ethics. Those forms show that Trump drew his income from a number of sources—from peddling Bibles to putting his image on trading cards to the hefty fees charged by his golf facilities. They also show that Trump still owes a large amount from legal settlements that he has been in no hurry to pay.

These documents are not as detailed as the tax forms that Trump promised to release, then refused to release, and which were finally released in part by the House Ways and Means Committee. Still, at over 250 pages, there’s a lot of information and it may take days before analysts and accountants have put together everything revealed in this document.

What can be seen from even a casual glance is that, while Trump might not be as wealthy as he claims, he has more than enough income to pay his legal bills, donate to his campaign, and keep up even the most lavish lifestyle. In other words, all the begging he did to get other people to fund his legal expenses was a flat-out scam.

A few highlights from Trump’s disclosure include:

• Trump made $300,000 for his part in selling those Lee Greenwood Bibles. This seems significant, but if Trump is worth $6.5 billion as he claims, then this is the equivalent of Gov. Tim Walz (whose net worth happens to be just over $300,000) embarrassing himself for about $14. 

• Trump got $12 million in licensing fees, $7 million of which came from putting a version of his face, and scraps of a suit, on those pricey (and ridiculous) NFT trading cards. He may be the only one to come out of this investment a winner.

• Melania was also paid $330,609 in license fees for NFTs, so she must have made some appearance on those cards.

• Trump owns between $1 million and $5 million worth of cryptocurrency, despite having frequently declared that it's a scam.

• Showing that he’s a true watcher of late-night Fox broadcasts, Trump also owns somewhere over $100,000 in gold bars.

• A book called “Letters to Trump”—which is exactly that, a collection of notes that celebrities have written to Trump, mostly before his first run for office—brought in $4.5 million. That book also contains the story of Trump and Willie Brown being on a helicopter ride. But Brown’s actual letter to Trump makes no mention of a helicopter.

• Trump set the value of the company behind Truth Social at “over $50 million” even though the company just posted a $16 million loss in the second quarter. 

• The big money came from Trump’s properties at a monster $513 million: that includes $56.9 million from Mar-a-Lago and a whopping $160.7 million from the Trump National Doral Miami golf resort.

In addition to the income, Trump has outstanding debts. In particular, there are three line items related to legal decisions over the last two years.

• Trump still owes writer E. Jean Carroll between $1 million and $5 million for his loss in the first case she filed against him. Since the settlement in that case was for $5 million, it seems like a good bet that Trump has paid her nothing.

• Trump also owes E. Jean Carroll another $83 million for his loss in the second trial after he repeatedly called her a liar even after a jury held him accountable for sexual assault and a judge claimed that what Trump did to Carroll was rape. The disclosure form only ranks this item as “greater than $50 million,” but again, it’s a good bet that Trump hasn’t begun to pay Carroll what he owes.

• Also in the over $50 million category is a debt where Trump lists New York Attorney General Letitia James as the creditor. This appears to be the $355 million Trump owes after losing his New York trial on real estate fraud. Clearly the people who made “over $50 million” the top category didn’t anticipate someone like Trump filling out these forms.

Trump has income and he could pay off what he owes to Carroll. He could put more of his own funds into his campaign. He could certainly afford to pay his own attorneys.

He just doesn’t want to pay. And why should he, so long as there is a stream of suckers and losers who will sign up to cover his bills?

Porn star prostitutes do not come cheap, so Donald has to resort to his "stream of suckers and losers" to help him pay the steep price. 

Harris Team Assembles Massive Legal Team to Combat Trump Attempts to Steal Election

Marc Elias, Top Democratic Voting Rights Lawyer, now on Team Harris

Legal Team is Ten Times Bigger than Biden’s was in 2020, Hires Marc Elias

by ericlewisO

Community

Daily Kos

Saturday, August 17, 2024 at 12:44:53p MDT

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From The New York Times:

Amid threats of certification battles and mass voter challenges, Vice President Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign has assembled an expansive senior legal team that will oversee hundreds of lawyers and thousands of volunteers in a sprawling operation designed to be a bulwark against what Democrats expect to be an aggressive Republican effort to challenge voters, rules and, possibly, the results of the 2024 election.

The legal apparatus within the Harris campaign will oversee multiple aspects of the election program, including voter protection, recounts and general election litigation, and it is adding Marc Elias, one of the party’s top election lawyers, to focus on potential recounts.The legal group is headed by Bob Bauer, who served as personal counsel to President Biden for years, and Dana Remus, the general counsel to the 2020 Biden campaign, and also includes Maury Riggan, the general counsel for the Harris campaign. Josh Hsu, formerly from the vice president’s office, will join the team, and Vanita Gupta, a former director of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights…

…

With the lessons of 2020 still fresh in Democrats’ minds, Harris advisers claim that the legal team is about 10 times the size of the 2020 operation.

This is very welcome news in the wake of so many stories about how Trump’s minions are planning to mess with certification, as well as their attempts to deny voting rights to literally millions of Americans.

Marc Elias is perhaps the best Democratic lawyer fighting for voting rights. His team is frequently successful in cases all over the country.
 

From Marc Elias’ Twitter feed earlier today:

Marc E. Elias

@marceelias

Republicans are building an election subversion war machine. They are sending their lawyers into courthouses around the country to lay the groundwork for their anti-democratic plans.  We will be ready for any and all shenanigans Trump tries to pull..

And we aren’t going back!

When will his supporters see through him.  He is a Mafia don in every sense of the word. He is a jack-of-all-scams.  A liar.  A thief.  A philanderer.  And on and on ad infinitum...

All the Artists Who Have Demnded That Donald Trump Stop Using Their Music

 

From Céline Dion to the Smith’s Johnny Marr, these musicians have demanded that the former president stop playing their songs at events

Rolling Stone

18 August 24

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Sure, it’s not uncommon for politicians to use popular songs at events and campaign rallies — but lots of artists have drawn the line when it comes to Donald Trump. Since the former president began campaigning ahead of the 2016 election, some musicians have not been happy to hear that the Trump team has played their music, often without authorization. From Canadian singer Céline Dion to the family of soul icon Isaac Hayes, they’ve done everything from issuing public statements to sending cease-and-desist letters to Trump through lawyers.

Here’s a list of the artists who have told Trump to back off and stop using their songs.

Céline Dion (2024)

Céline Dion was not happy when Donald Trump used her Titanic classic “My Heart Will Go On” at a recent campaign rally. “And really, THAT song?” she wrote on social media when she learned he’d been playing the hit. The Canadian star’s team issued a statement on Aug. 10 slamming the former president for “unauthorized usage” of the track from the Nineties film. “Celine Dion does not endorse this or any similar use,” the statement from Dion’s team said.

The family of James Horner, the song’s composer who died in 2015, also said in a statement that “the Horner family does not endorse or support the Trump/Vance campaign or its use of the song at its events. The campaign does not reflect the beliefs and values of James Horner or his family. It is important to the family that his music not be used by those seeking to profit inappropriately from his work after his death.” —T.M.

Isaac Hayes’ Family (2024)

The family of late soul singer Isaac Hayes wants to stop Trump from playing the hit “Hold On, I’m Comin’” at rallies and events, including at an NRA convention. Hayes’ son, Isaac Hayes III, shared that they planned to file a lawsuit after learning that the Trump team has used the song about 135 times without licensing the song or asking for permission. “I was pissed,” Hayes told The Hollywood Reporter. “There’s just been a mass shooting. So why are we using it at the NRA convention? I wanted to take legal action because Trump has made statements against women, and here is a man who has been convicted of sexual abuse. I’m a brother to seven sisters, and I don’t want anybody to think of ‘Hold On’ and think of Donald Trump.” —J.L.

Sinéad O’Connor’s Estate (2024)

Sinead O’Connor’s estate quickly shut Trump down when he started using the late singer’s song “Nothing Compares 2 U” at his rallies in Maryland and North Carolina. “It is no exaggeration to say that Sinéad would have been disgusted, hurt, and insulted to have her work misrepresented in this way by someone who she herself referred to as a ‘biblical devil,’” O’Connor’s estate representatives shared in a statement to Variety. “As the guardians of her legacy, we demand that Donald Trump and his associates desist from using her music immediately.” —J.L.

Johnny Marr (2024)

While the Smiths might seem wildly out of place at a Trump rally, the camp certainly tried it. In early 2024, multiple political reporters took to Twitter to share how the hopelessly desperate “Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want” was making its rounds with MAGA folks. Founding guitarist and the song’s writer, Johnny Marr, immediately responded when he quote-tweeted a video saying, “Ahh … right … OK. I never in a million years would’ve thought this could come to pass. Consider this shit shut right down right now.” —M.G.

Village People (2023)

Trump’s love of the Village People is well-documented. For years, he played “Y.M.C.A.” and “Macho Man” at his rallies with little pushback from founding member Victor Willis. Willis finally changed his tune in June 2020 amid the uprising against racial injustice. Then, in May 2023, he sent Trump’s legal team a cease-and-desist letter after video emerged of the former president at Mar-a-Lago dancing along to “Macho Man” with a group dressed up like the Village People. Willis called the performance “unauthorized” and noted that “many fans, and the general public as well, mistakenly believe” the actual Village People delivered the performance. —J.B.

Journey’s Neal Schon (2022)

When Journey guitarist Neal Schon sent a cease-and-desist letter over a performance of “Don’t Stop Believin’,” he actually wasn’t targeting Trump so much as his bandmate Jonathan Cain. Cain had performed the 1981 hit at Mar-a-Lago in 2023, alongside backup singers that included Marjorie Taylor Greene, Kimberly Guilfoyle, and Kari Lake. In order to prevent similar moments, Schon filed the cease-and-desist, stating the use of Journey’s music at a Trump event was of “harmful use” to their brand. —J.B.

Neil Young (2020)

Neil Young’s spat with Trump dates back all the way to 2015, when Trump played “Rockin’ in the Free World” immediately after announcing his plan to run for president. Young, unsurprisingly, was not happy and repeatedly expressed his discontent when the song played at Trump rallies over the coming years. Eventually, in 2020, Young tried suing Trump, claiming he did not have a proper license to play his music at his rallies. But a few months later, the musician ultimately chose to voluntarily dismiss the complaint. —J.B.

The Rolling Stones (2020)

The Rolling Stones made a pun out of one of their own song titles in 2020 when they told the Trump campaign to stop using their songs: “This could be the last time Trump uses any Jagger-Richards songs on his campaigns,” the band’s rep said at the time. Trump had been using “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” at rallies. Apparently, he wanted threats of legal action. —K.G.

John Fogerty (2020)

Unsurprisingly, Trump — the son of a multimillionaire who got out of Vietnam due to supposed bone spurs — saw nothing ironic about playing John Fogerty’s “Fortunate Son” (“I ain’t no millionaire’s son, no”) at his campaign rallies in 2020. Fogerty and his lawyers immediately told him to stop via a cease-and-desist letter. “I wrote this song because, as a veteran, I was disgusted that some people were allowed to be excluded from serving our country because they had access to political and financial privilege,” Fogerty said. “I also wrote about wealthy people not paying their fair share of taxes. Mr. Trump is a prime example of both of these issues.” —A.G.

Tom Petty’s Estate (2020)

The Florida rocker had a history of sending cease-and-desist letters to politicians using his music, including George W. Bush in 2000 (“I Won’t Back Down”) and Minnesota congresswoman Michele Bachmann in 2011 (“American Girl”). Three years after his death, his family spoke out about a certain Florida Man’s use of “I Won’t Back Down,” writing that Trump “was in no way authorized to use this song to further a campaign that leaves too many Americans and common sense behind.” His family continued, “Tom wrote this song for the underdog, for the common man and for EVERYONE.… We believe in America and we believe in democracy. But Donald Trump is not representing the noble ideals of either.” Amen to that. —A.M.

Phil Collins (2020)

MAGA energy was not in the air when Phil Collins made “In the Air Tonight.” The musician issued a cease-and-desist to Trump for usage of his 1981 single during the 2020 election. In the letter sent to Trump, Collins slammed the candidate for using the song “as a satirical reference to Covid-19” when Iowa was going through a spike in cases. “Mr. Collins does not condone the apparent trivialization of Covid-19,” the letter stated, adding that the musician had “serious concerns” that Trump’s usage would “damage” Collins’ reputation. —T.M.

Steven Tyler (2018)

Donald Trump was living on the edge of a lawsuit in 2018 when Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler felt it was necessary to send a cease-and-desist letter to the then-president’s campaign for using the song “Livin’ on the Edge.” This came three years after the band already told Trump to knock it off with playing “Dream On” at rallies. —K.G.

Rihanna (2018)

Just after Trump played Rihanna’s 2007 hit “Don’t Stop the Music” at a rally in Chattanooga, Tennessee, her team sent him a cease-and-desist letter threatening legal action. “It has come to our attention that President Trump has utilized [Rihanna‘s] musical compositions and master recordings, including her hit track ‘Don’t Stop the Music,’ in connection with a number of political events held across the United States,” Rihanna’s legal team wrote in the letter. “As you are or should be aware, Ms. Fenty has not provided her consent to Mr. Trump to use her music. Such use is therefore improper.” —J.L.

R.E.M. (2015)

Maybe if R.E.M.’s “It’s the End of the World as We Know It” didn’t come with the parenthetical “(And I Feel Fine),” they wouldn’t have complained about Trump using the song on the campaign trail in 2015. Regardless, all was not fine and Michael Stipe issued a stern rebuke to the Trump campaign for using the song: “Go fuck yourselves, the lot of you — you sad, attention-grabbing, power-hungry little men. Do not use our music or my voice for your moronic charade of a campaign.” —K.G.