NEWS AND OPINION:
Former President Donald Trump has a new public outreach called Truth Social which he describes as “America’s ‘Big Tent’ social media platform that encourages an open, free, and honest global conversation without discriminating against political ideology.”
It just got some muscle.
The Trump Media & Technology Group — TMTG — has signed up for a “wide-ranging technology and cloud services agreement” with Rumble Inc., a video and news platform which draws some 44 million monthly users, according to the company.
“As part of our mission, TMTG continues to align with service providers who do not discriminate against political ideology. Therefore, I have selected the Rumble Cloud to serve as a critical backbone for TMTG infrastructure. TMTG has already launched Truth Social on the Rumble Cloud for invited guests only, and the initial Beta launch has been excellent. America is ready for TRUTH Social, and the end to cancel culture,” Mr. Trump said in a statement.
The site — Truthsocial.com — could have special appeal.
“Rumble was built on the belief that all creators should have the opportunity to freely express themselves and reach their followers without censorship or restrictions,” the company said in a public mission statement.
“We continue to build the infrastructure to deliver a free, open, and neutral internet. Rumble was designed to be immune to cancel culture, and we are at the forefront of a movement that believes everyone benefits from access to a neutral platform that hosts diverse ideas and opinions,” said Rumble founder and CEO Chris Pavlovski, also in a statement.
It is also a company which appears to stand by its mission.
On Tuesday, Rumble also announced that it had terminated its relationship with the Unruly Group and Tremor International, advising in a press release that the organization “attempted to censor Dan Bongino,” a Fox News host and conservative talk radio personality.
“Tremor allegedly removed its advertisements from conservative radio talk show host Dan Bongino’s websites and Rumble’s video player after complaints from unnamed partners over alleged ‘fake COVID information.’ When asked to provide examples of the so-called ‘misinformation,’ Rumble said the company failed to provide any,” the conservative press watchdog Newsbusters reported Tuesday.
TANKS, PLUMMETS, SINKS
The news media is about to run out of adjectives and verbs to describe President Biden’s lousy approval ratings. Here’s just a few examples from news coverage this week:
“Biden’s approval rating on crime tanks” (Fox News); “Biden’s approval rating on economy, COVID response both plummet” (New York Post); “President Biden’s job approval sinking on inflation, crime and COVID (ABC News); “Public view on Biden’s handling of COVID and the economy takes another hit” (CNBC); “Biden approval rating on inflation sinks to just 28%” (Mediaite); and “President Joe Biden’s approval rating plummets in Utah” (Salt Lake City Tribune).
In the meantime, here are some handy synonyms for “plummet,” courtesy of the Merriam-Webster Dictionary: Crash, crater, decline, descend, dip, dive, drop, fall, lower, nose-dive, plunge, sink, skid and tumble.
NEW HAMPSHIRE SOURS ON BIDEN
Things are pretty chilly in the all-important Granite State as far as the White House is concerned.
A New Hampshire Journal poll released Wednesday reveals that a “jaw-dropping” 70% of New Hampshire registered voters believe the country is on the wrong track — and 57% give an unfavorable review of President Biden and 52% oppose his Build Back Better trillion-dollar spending plan.
“One of Biden’s biggest problems may be the perceived gap between Biden the candidate and Biden the president. When asked whether the Biden presidency was going better than expected, worse than expected or he was governing as they expected him to, just 14% said Biden’s job performance was better than they expected,” the poll analysis said.
See all the numbers in the Poll du Jour at the column’s end.
McCARTHY’S HEATED DISCUSSION
House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy is hot under the collar over energy costs.
“Heating costs continue to soar for Americans. In less than 12 months, Democrats’ policies have driven up inflation on everyday purchases to a staggering 39-year high,” Mr. McCarthy said in a brief analysis shared with Inside the Beltway.
“The steep rise in costs has been particularly brutal in the energy sector, where the consumer price index year-over-year increase stands at a jarring 33.3%,” he said, citing a U.S. Energy Information Administration advisory.
“Energy bills could rise 15 percent for households heated by electricity, 50 percent for those depending on natural gas, and 59 percent for those that mostly use heating oil. Propane users would be in for the biggest blow — a 94 percent increase, or potentially hundreds of dollars over the six-month heating season,” the lawmaker continued.
“Democrats’ agenda of spending trillions more in new government spending and creating more taxes on America’s energy sector will only cause prices to go up even more. The immediate solution is to stop the White House’s massive ‘tax and spend’ agenda and work to leverage our own domestic energy production,” Mr. McCarthy advised.
POLL DU JOUR
• 70% of registered New Hampshire voters agree that “things in America” have gotten off on the wrong track.
• 55% say that $2 trillion in federal spending will increase inflation; 20% say it will have no impact; 16% are unsure; and 9% say the spending will decrease inflation.
• 51% have an unfavorable opinion of President Biden.
• 47% would vote for a Republican if the election for Congress were today; 42% would pick a Democrat; 8% are unsure; and 3% would pick someone else.
• 43% say Mr. Biden’s presidency has gone “worse than expected”; 43% say it’s gone “as expected”; and 14% say “better than expected.”
SOURCE: A New Hampshire Journal poll of 729 registered New Hampshire voters conducted Dec. 9-10.
• Follow Jennifer Harper on Twitter @Harperbulletin.
