The Note: From Birtherism to Bombings

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September 19, 2016

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From Birtherism to Bombings

Trump Repeats Calls for Police Profiling Following NYC Area Explosions

One day after explosive devices were discovered in the Manhattan neighborhood of Chelsea, Seaside Park, New Jersey, and in the city of Elizabeth, New Jersey, Republican nominee Donald Trump repeated his calls to implement police profiling to stop more attacks in the United States, ABC's ALANA ABRAMSON notes. "Our local police, they know who a lot of these people are, they are afraid to do anything about it, because they don't want to be accused of profiling, and they don't want to be accused of all sorts of things," Trump said on "Fox and Friends" when asked what policies he would implement as president to "get tough" on terrorism. http://abcn.ws/2cMIqdt

Trump Argued That the Country Should Follow the Lead of Israel

"Israel has done an unbelievable job and they will profile. They profile. They see somebody that's suspicious," he said. "They will profile. They will take that person in and check out. Do we have a choice? Look what's going on. Do we really have a choice? We're trying to be so politically correct in our country and this is only going to get worse." Trump has made similar comments before. Following the Orlando nightclub shooting in June, he said in an interview on "Face the Nation" that profiling was something the U.S. needed to seriously consider. http://abcn.ws/2cMIqdt

What Clinton is Saying

"I strongly condemn the apparent terrorist attacks in Minnesota, New Jersey, and New York," Clinton said in a statement yesterday. "Law enforcement officials are working to identify who was behind the attacks in New York and New Jersey and we should give them the support they need to finish the job and bring those responsible to justice - we will not rest until that happens. ISIS has claimed responsibility for the attack in Minnesota, and this should steel our resolve to protect our country and defeat ISIS and other terrorist groups. I have laid out a comprehensive plan to do that. This includes launching an intelligence surge to help identify and thwart attacks before they can be carried out, and to spot lone wolf attackers. We also need to work with Silicon Valley to counter propaganda and recruitment efforts online. Americans have faced threats before, and our resilience in the face of them only makes us stronger."

Analysis - ABC's Rick Klein

"Jeb exclamation point!" Jeb Bush exclaimed, finally, in a funny Emmys cameo that featured him as an Uber driver, doling out campaign advice to Jimmy Kimmel. Bush drove off, but we know he wasn't headed to a Donald Trump rally. And with RNC Chairman Reince Priebus offering a shot across the 2020 bows of John Kasich and Ted Cruz, it's worth considering the roles of the jilted, even offended former rivals over the final seven weeks. Bush is a Floridian who is an obvious bridge to the GOP establishment. Kasich is the popular two-term governor of the largest swing state. Cruz is among the most prominent Latino Republicans in the country, and the effective runner-up to Trump. The fact that none of the three will endorse or work on Trump's behalf in any way is not something that can be solved by threats from Priebus. (And if Trump loses, who thinks Priebus will be in the position to exact revenge on Trump's failed opponents?) It's also something that's easier for Kimmel to laugh off than Trump.

One Week to Go -- The Impact of Debates? It's Debatable

With the first of three Hillary Clinton-Donald Trump debates around the corner, ABC's GARY LANGER asks the quadrennial question: Do these showdowns matter? The chances for impact seem ripe this year. The two most unpopular major-party candidates in the history of ABC News/Washington Post polls are facing off. Donald Trump's unorthodox campaign style and provocative positions have piqued public interest; the debates may be the single best opportunity for him to allay concerns about his qualifications, temperament and policy promises alike. Hillary Clinton, for her part, needs -- like Trump -- to ease questions about her trustworthiness, as well as to spark greater enthusiasm among her supporters. Can either candidate move the needle? It will be tough: A review of data since 1960 suggests that past debates have almost never directly and measurably changed the candidates' relative standings. That's admittedly a high standard, though, and at least some debates may have had more subtle impacts. http://abcn.ws/2daluGz

Obama Describes Trump's Presidential Run as an 'Infomercial'

President Barack Obama characterized Donald Trump's presidential campaign as an "infomercial" during a fundraiser in Manhattan Sunday night. In town for this week's United Nations General Assembly, Obama spoke to supporters at the Gramercy Park home of restaurateur Danny Meyer and his wife Audrey. "This guy's unqualified to be president and he shows no interest in even gaining the rudimentary knowledge required to make really hard decisions on a day to day basis," Obama said of the Republican presidential candidate. "There's no curiosity. There's no desire to get up to speed. It's a infomercial. It's a reality show." More from ABC's JORDYN PHELPS: http://abcn.ws/2cJ0Jnf

Trump Surrogates Push Narrative That Clinton Started 'Birtherism'

Donald Trump's surrogates and leading supporters on Sunday were pushing a narrative that the Republican candidate started two days earlier when he declared that Hillary Clinton's 2008 campaign "started the birther controversy," meaning the false notion that President Obama was born outside the United States, reports ABC's CANDACE SMITH. On CBS News' Face the Nation on Sunday, Trump campaign manager Kellyanne Conway pushed the claim that so-called "birtherism" began with the Clinton 2008 campaign by invoking the words of former Clinton campaign manager Patti Sollis Doyle. "Even Patti Solis Doyle, who was Hillary Clinton's campaign manager in 2008...until she was fired by Hillary Clinton, admitted on Friday ... that she said, yes, these are her words: There was a volunteer in Iowa who was pushing this," Conway said. http://abcn.ws/2d4C4vC

'Strait Talk' with Matt Dowd & LZ Granderson: Live from Detroit on Sept. 19

ABC News is bringing its original livestream series 'Strait Talk with Matt & LZ' to the University of Detroit Mercy in front of a live audience on Monday, September 19th at 7:00 PM ET for an open discussion about the biggest issues facing America this election cycle. ABC News Political Contributors Matthew Dowd and LZ Granderson, both Detroit natives, will be joined by Digital Host Amna Nawaz and ABC News Chief White House Correspondent Jonathan Karl as they speak with business leaders and community activists from the Motor City on key issues ranging from politics, race relations and law enforcement to religion and the economy. http://abcnewspr.tumblr.com/post/150409164106/strait-talk-with-matt-lz-to-stream-live-from