Richard Jefferson says he understands Kyrie Irving’s trade request
July 25, 2017 by admin
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Cleveland Cavaliers forward Richard Jefferson said that Kyrie Irving‘s search for a more stable situation by requesting a trade is understandable considering the state of the franchise.
“I think Kyrie is a hyper-intelligent kid,” Jefferson said on the latest episode of his “Road Trippin’” podcast, released Monday. “Really, really smart. Doesn’t get enough credit for how smart he is, and I think seeing that the franchise is in flux, I think seeing [David Griffin] leave and the amount of coaches … I think Kyrie has had a much tougher time in this stretch of the organization than anyone ever wants to ever really fully [recognize].
“He’s the No. 1 pick right after LeBron [left for Miami in 2010], then he has three different coaches, then LeBron comes back, now there’s trade rumors, now it’s ‘LeBron’s leaving.’ It’s like at some point in time, anybody would want some sort of stability.”
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Inside the weeks of dysfunction surrounding Kyrie’s trade demand
Kyrie Irving expressed a willingness to return to the NBA Finals with LeBron James just two months ago. Paul George was nearly a Cavalier. Now, Irving’s trade demand has thrown Cleveland for yet another loop this offseason.
Irving is actually playing for his fourth head coach in Tyronn Lue since entering the league six years ago, having already been reared by Byron Scott, Mike Brown and David Blatt. In that relatively short amount of time, the Cavs have also cycled through three general managers, going from Chris Grant to Griffin to the 34-year-old Koby Altman, who was officially named the team’s new GM on Monday after serving in an interim capacity following Griffin’s departure in late June.
Jefferson, whose podcast is hosted on James’ “Uninterrupted” multimedia platform, took exception to the notion that Irving’s trade request is being fueled by any sort of feud with James.
“I don’t think that there’s a power struggle, like with LeBron and Kyrie and [Kevin Love],” Jefferson said.
Jefferson, who announced on his podcast last month that he would be returning to the Cavs for a 17th season, pointed out that James and Irving have opened up about their mutual admiration on past episodes of the podcast.
“I think Kyrie knows how important he is to our team,” Jefferson said. “LeBron knows how important he is. He has been on this podcast. They have been on this podcast together multiple times together where ‘Bron was like, ‘Dude, this is my guy, I need him. He is so important to me, my kids love him.’ And again, just like any family there are ups and downs, there are moments that you hate them, moments that you love them, and then you just kind of keep it moving.”
Jefferson recorded the podcast as the news of Irving’s request broke last Friday. After sharing his initial thoughts, he opted to keep the conversation moving away from the latest round of Cavs drama. Jefferson said he wanted to enjoy the Corona he was drinking and get back to his discussion with podcast guest Lindsey Vonn, who is preparing for what could be her final Winter Olympics in February 2018.
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New Dem message doesn’t mention Trump
July 25, 2017 by admin
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BERRYVILLE, Va. — Eyeing big wins in 2018, Democrats are fighting to reclaim the populist mantle from President Trump — without actually talking about him.
In 12 pages of messaging documents released Monday, the Democrats unveiled their much-hyped 2018 agenda designed to win over working-class voters, ditching an emphasis on attacking an unpopular president in favor of a new agenda focused on the economy while passing over the social issues that have sometimes defined the party.
Trump is not mentioned once in the messaging documents.It’s the clearest sign yet that congressional Democrats want to discard last year’s campaign playbook, which revolved largely around attacking Trump. Instead, they favor a 2018 theme designed to address the financial insecurities of working-class voters.
Their “Better Deal” campaign focuses on pocketbook issues such as creating jobs, training a modern-day workforce and lowering the cost of essential items like prescription drugs and secondary education.
It also proposes aggressive new efforts to rein in corporate power, particularly large mergers and anti-competitive actions that harm consumers and workers alike.
Launching their campaign in rural Virginia, Democratic leaders said their recent election woes are not the product of misplaced priorities, but of the party’s inability to define their agenda — and a reluctance to fight for it.
“Too many Americans don’t know what we stand for,” Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer
Charles SchumerTrump: Why aren’t ‘beleaguered AG,’ investigators looking at Hillary Clinton? Trump: Washington ‘actually much worse than anyone ever thought’ Schumer: Dems didn’t ‘tell people what we stood for’ in 2016 MORE (D-N.Y.) said.
“Not after today.”
As a sign of the uphill battle the Democrats face, Monday’s rollout was briefly overshadowed by the sprawling investigation into Russia’s election interference and possible collusion with the Trump campaign.
Just as the Democrats took the podium in Virginia, TV networks were instead carrying Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner’s statement on his meeting with the Senate Intelligence Committee live from outside the White House.
Still, the Democrats said it’s the economy, not Trump or the many controversies surrounding him, that voters are most concerned with.
“People need to know not only what we’re fighting against,” said Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), “They need to know what we’re fighting for.”
A Washington Post/ABC News poll released last week lends credence to the Democrats’ strategy — and highlights their challenge. The survey found that just 37 percent of voters think the Democratic Party “stands for something,” while 52 percent view the party as simply anti-Trump.
The poll also found that, while just 36 percent of voters approve of Trump’s performance in the White House, a majority — 51 percent — said Trump would not be a factor in how they vote in the 2018 midterms.
The Democrats’ “Better Deal” campaign arrives after nine months of post-election soul searching and number crunching in search of a formula that might translate their policy prescriptions — which enjoy widespread approval in national polls — into election victories.
The post-mortem has been complicated by internal disagreements about whether the Democrats should pursue the diverse liberal coalition of voters that propelled President Obama into office, or make an aggressive push for the more conservative-leaning heartland voters who came out for Trump.
Schumer called the dilemma “a false choice,” arguing that economic insecurity is a shared concern for all voters, regardless of region or party affiliation.
“What resonates in North Dakota or Montana or Missouri [also] resonates in California, New York and Massachusetts,” Schumer said. “There is not that divide on economic issues. What happened is the Democratic Party forgot to emphasize them.”
House GOP aides were quick to note the similarity to House Speaker Paul Ryan
Paul RyanNew Dem message doesn’t mention Trump Intelligence authorization fails in House Overnight Finance: Dems roll out ‘Better Deal’ economic agenda | Regulators mull changes to ‘Volcker Rule’ | Gingrich, small biz launch tax cut campaign MORE’s (R-Wis.) “Better Way” agenda, which the Republicans released last year.
AshLee Strong, a spokeswoman for Ryan, quipped on Monday that reporters “might be thinking to yourself: That sounds familiar. I swear I’ve seen this message before. Maybe from House Republicans?”
The Democrats quickly pushed back, challenging Ryan to debate the two plans on their merits.
“Speaker Ryan should probably be most concerned about how ‘A Better Way’ falls short in helping the American people, and especially hard-working families,” said Rep. Ben Ray Luján (N.M.), the head of the House Democrats’ campaign arm.
The plan unveiled on Monday is the first phase in the Democrats’ messaging push. It features a series of specific policy changes designed to boost wages, train new workers, lower drug costs and rein in corporate power.
Yet even as the Democrats were promoting their message, a group aligned with Sen. Bernie Sanders
Bernie SandersNew Dem message doesn’t mention Trump Senate Dems launch talkathon ahead of ObamaCare repeal vote Overnight Healthcare: Trump pressures GOP ahead of vote | McConnell urges Senate to start debate | Cornyn floats conference on House, Senate bills | Thune sees progress on Medicaid MORE (I-Vt.) was looking to pull the Democrats’ agenda further to the left.
Schumer said Sanders had “great input” in crafting the message, noting the push for a $15 minimum wage and efforts to dilute the power of corporations — both prominent themes in Sanders’s surprisingly competitive primary run against Hillary Clinton
Hillary Rodham ClintonNew Dem message doesn’t mention Trump Pressure on Trump grows as Kushner is questioned Cruz being considered to replace Sessions: report MORE last year.
In a nod to the populist Sanders’ camp, the Democrats unveiling their message Monday included Sen. Elizabeth Warren
Elizabeth WarrenNew Dem message doesn’t mention Trump Senate Dems launch talkathon ahead of ObamaCare repeal vote Democrats roll out ‘Better Deal,’ new economic agenda MORE (D-Mass.), another liberal leader whose fight against Wall Street has made her a national figure. Calling the economy “rigged,” Warren highlighted Democratic proposals for stronger enforcement of antitrust laws.
“We’re here today because the economy is broken,” she said.
Clinton has been criticized since the election for blaming her loss largely on Russian interference and the decision by former FBI Director James Comey to open a new phase of his investigation into her emails just days before voters went to the polls.
But Democratic leaders on Monday were offering no excuses, blaming themselves for failing to come up with a message that spoke to voters’ financial concerns.
“When you lose elections as we did in 2014 and 2016, you don’t flinch, you don’t blink, you look in the mirror and ask, what did we do wrong? The number one thing we did wrong is not present a strong bold economic agenda to working Americans,” Schumer said.
“President Trump campaigned on a populist platform, talking to working people — that’s why he won. But as soon as he got into office he abandoned it.
“We Democrats are going to fill that vacuum.”