 September 28, 2020 Donald Trump has spent his life overcompensating for an inferiority complex that has benighted him since youth. He does not merely deny the critical things those voices in his head and in the world say—he goes further. He isn't merely "not an idiot," he is a genius with the greatest memory in history! He isn't just "not unpopular," he is historically popular and loved by all! Women don't just want him and men don't just want to be him but men and women both will prostrate themselves on the ground just so they may know what it's like to feel the bottom of his shoe on their face. On Sunday we learned this rule also applies to what Trump says about business too. The New York Times published a bombshell investigation with the long-sought-after details contained within Trump's tax returns. Turns out he's pretty awful at it! If he has a talent for anything, it's for hiring crafty accountants who are good at thinking of innovative tax avoidance schemes. In our bones and in our blood, this has always been some kind of intuitive. Trump protested too much. He was clearly a con man—he is clearly a con man—and now the NYT has the receipts. Tomorrow is the first presidential debate. Trump will invariably accuse Joe Biden of things he is himself guilty of. He will say that Biden is too old, and too lazy. He will say this without a hint of irony. Maybe he'll go the full monty and accuse Biden of spending all day live-tweeting Fox News! And then the evening will end, like evenings do, and the moon will rise, like it does, and it will hover and then fall and the day will break and then night will come again and then day again and night again and again and again and after a few dozen more nights—but only a few!—the sun will rise and it will be Election Day and people will get a chance to tell the world if they're still in the market for snake oil. —Ben Dreyfuss    Business failures, shady tax dodges, conflicts of interest—now we know why he didn't release them. BY DAVID CORN  BY RUSS CHOMA BY NATHALIE BAPTISTE BY INAE OH BY KEVIN DRUM   "Would be a big WIN For the USA!" BY DANIEL FRIEDMAN  Support from readers allows Mother Jones to do journalism that doesn't just follow the pack.  SOME GOOD NEWS, FOR ONCE
When he was 7, Sam Myers was left blind by cataracts, which shaped his childhood and adulthood but never affected his solo tours and ascension of the blues world as a pioneering singer, harmonica player, and drummer from Mississippi. He became, before he died at the age of 70, one of the most decorated blues giants, jamming with Elmore James in the 1950s and with Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, and Little Walter. Today marks the release, after decades of recording at bars, restaurants, and clubs, of a long-anticipated album, Sam Myers & the South Dallas Shoan-Nufferz: My Pal Sam. It’s a studio compilation of never-before-heard tracks, produced by Jack Chaplin, the versatile chef and blues champion who’s familiar to Recharge readers. The album is available through his Patreon page. Chaplin is credited with getting Myers into the studio again and into Chaplin’s restaurants in Dallas and New London, Connecticut, along with the blues giant Lucky Peterson. Chaplin himself has helped to keep the blues at bay, cooking for families and community members in need during the pandemic, with all the kindness and creativity found in his series Cooking With the Blues. There’s plenty of blues coming in the news ahead, little of it welcome. Here’s some blues and strength to meet it with. Share your Myers and Chaplin stories at recharge@motherjones.com. —Daniel King Did you enjoy this newsletter? Help us out by forwarding it to a friend or sharing it on Facebook and Twitter.
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