News
Vice Presidential Debate: Mike Pence Over Tim Kaine?
The 2016 Vice Presidential Debate between Democratic Vice Presidential Candidate, Virginia Senator Tim Kayne, and Republican Vice Presidential Candidate Mike Pence was called even before it started.
The 2016 Vice Presidential Debate between Democratic Vice Presidential Candidate, Virginia Senator Tim Kaine, and Republican Vice Presidential Candidate Mike Pence was called even before it started.
The Republican National Committee posted this note on its website two hours before the 9 PM EST debate, which was posted on the social media platform Reddit and went viral:“Americans from all across the country tuned in to watch the one and only Vice Presidential debate. During the debate we helped fact check and monitor the conversation in real time @GOP. The consensus was clear after the dust settled, Mike Pence was the clear winner of the debate…“Mike Pence made the most of his opportunity to debate Hillary’s VP pick Tim Kaine. The other clear winner from tonight’s debate was Donald Trump. His running mate perfectly shared Trump’s vision to make America great again and that message is resonating with Americans all across the country.”During the verbal contest between Kaine and Pence, the representatives of Presidential Candidates Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, respectively, it was Tim Kaine who went on the attack, taking on Pence and forcing him to address seemingly every racist or sexist statement Trump made on the campaign trail.
<p>By turns, Kaine was more like an auctioneer at Michaan’s Auctions in Alameda, California: haughty, condescending, belligerently beaming – the same could be said for Vice President Joe Biden when he took on Wisconsin Senator and 2012 GOP Vice Presidential Candidate Paul Ryan in their debate. In fact, The Daily Beast said Biden was all of that – “ haughty, condescending, belligerently beaming” – and then declared him the winner that year.
Indeed, Pence seemed off-base and on Twitter a number of observers said that he looked like it and played true to a nick-name he’s gained “Mike Wince.” And when he wasn’t doing that, Governor Pence was constantly saying ‘not true’ in response to one of Kaine’s swiftly-delivered reminders of something ridiculous Trump said or correcting Pence on a statement. For example (from the Washington Post transcript):
;
QUIJANO: Governor Pence, let me ask you, you have said Donald Trump is, quote, “thoughtful, compassionate, and steady.” Yet 67 percent of voters feel he is a risky choice, and 65 percent feel he does not have the right kind of temperament to be president. Why do so many Americans think Mr. Trump is simply too erratic?
PENCE: Well, let me — let me say first and foremost that, Senator, you and Hillary Clinton would know a lot about an insult- driven campaign. It really is remarkable. At a time when literally, in the wake of Hillary Clinton’s tenure as secretary of state, where she was the architect of the Obama administration’s foreign policy, we see entire portions of the world, particularly the wider Middle East, literally spinning out of control. I mean, the situation we’re watching hour by hour in Syria today is the result of the failed foreign policy and the weak foreign policy that Hillary Clinton helped lead in this administration and create. The newly emboldened — the aggression of Russia, whether it was in Ukraine or now they’re heavy-handed approach…
KAINE: You guys love Russia. You both have said…
PENCE: … their heavy-handed approach.
Now, Pence directed his statement at Senator Kaine, leaving him open to respond, as you can see. That then started a cross-talk between the pair that was, at time, hard to understand because both were realy trying to over-talk each other.
But from Mike Pence’s reactions, it was clear Tim Kaine got under his skin with what at times were withering reminders of Trump’s tax return issue or his view of the poor, and The Indiana Governor’s frustration came out in what has already become a classic moment:
KAINE: Great line from the — great line from the gospel of Matthew. From the fullness of the heart, the mouth speaks.
PENCE: Yeah. KAINE: When Donald Trump says women should be punished or Mexicans are rapists and criminals…
PENCE: I’m telling you…
KAINE: … or John McCain is not a hero, he is showing you who he is.
PENCE: Senator, you’ve whipped out that Mexican thing again. He — look…
KAINE: Can you defend it?
Social media jumped on “that Mexican thing again” and it went viral, eventually becoming the social media hashtag #ThatMexicanThing and producing funny tweets, like..
Matt Carson @CarMatt59 #ThatMexicanThing is stealing a big chunk of their land and calling them nowadays “criminal immigrants”
The Mainstream Media Followed The GOP and Called It For Pence
A CNN / ORC Poll immediately conducted after the debate called it 48 percent for Pence and 42 percent for Trump. But Tommy Ates at The Daily Kos observes the CNN / ORC Polling focuses on mostly-white most-likely voters and with 50 percent of them using landlines whereas 64 percent of Americans use cell-phones, and there’s no poll tracking for voters under 50, the overall result is a conservative outcome.
This outcome is then repeated across mainstream media and without an explanation of the poll’s bias. So, the American viewing public is basically tricked into thinking Pence won, when the fact is Kayne clobbered him in the fact-check department – the common way one determines who won a debate.
From this, it seems there’s an effort within mainstream media to make the Presidential race seem closer than it really is. Speculatively, this could be a ploy for ratings – after all, why bother paying attention if you know one candidate’s going to clobber the other on Election Day? If so, it’s still a terrible way to try and manufacture consent. The only answer is more social media outlets that work to gather the true voice of the people and tell the truth – in this case about the 2016 Vice Presidential Debate.
Activism
Oakland Post: Week of June 18 – 24, 2025
The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of June 18 – 24, 2025

To enlarge your view of this issue, use the slider, magnifying glass icon or full page icon in the lower right corner of the browser window.
#NNPA BlackPress
EXCLUSIVE OP-ED: President Joe Biden Commemorating Juneteenth
BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — “I’ve always believed that we need to be honest about our history, especially in the face of ongoing efforts to erase it. Darkness can hide much, but it erases nothing. Only with truth can come healing, justice, and repair.”

By Joseph R. Biden, Jr.
46th President of the United States: 2021—2025
The people of Galveston, Texas, have been commemorating Juneteenth since the Civil War ended. Yesterday, in honor of the 160th anniversary, I went there to join them.
You can read about the events of Juneteenth, but there’s nothing quite like going to Galveston and seeing where it all happened.
After General Robert E. Lee surrendered at Appomattox Court House on April 9, 1865, Union troops marched across the South for two months, freeing enslaved people along the way. Their final stop was Galveston, an island off the Gulf coast of Texas. There, on June 19, 1865, Union troops went to Reedy Chapel, a church founded in 1848 by enslaved people, and posted a document titled simply “General Order #3.”
“The people of Texas are informed,” it said, “that, in accordance with a Proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free.”
We can only imagine the joy that spread through Galveston – and across the state and nation – on that day and those that followed.
Yesterday, there was once again joy in Galveston, with a parade, picnic, and fireworks. There was also great solemnity, because Juneteenth is a sacred day – a day of weight and power.
The Book of Psalms tells us: “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.” Juneteenth marks both the long, hard night of slavery and subjugation, and the promise of that joyful morning to come.
As President, I had the great honor of signing the law declaring Juneteenth a federal holiday. It was our nation’s first new federal holiday since Martin Luther King, Jr. Day was created in 1983.
Our federal holidays say a lot about who we are as a nation. We have holidays celebrating our independence… the laborers who build this nation… the servicemembers who served and died in its defense.
And now, we also have a national holiday dedicated to the emancipation of enslaved Black Americans.
Signing that law was one of my proudest acts as President.
Yet for 156 years, Juneteenth was not written about in textbooks or taught in classrooms. Still today, there are those who say it does not deserve a holiday. They don’t want to remember the moral stain of slavery and the terrible harm it did to our country.
I’ve always believed that we need to be honest about our history, especially in the face of ongoing efforts to erase it. Darkness can hide much, but it erases nothing. Only with truth can come healing, justice, and repair.
I also believe that it’s not enough to commemorate the past. We must also embrace the obligation we have to the future. As Scripture says, “Faith without works is dead.” And right now, we Americans need to keep the faith and do the work.
In honor of Juneteenth, let’s help people register to vote.
For decades, we fought to expand voting rights in America. Now we’re living in an era when relentless obstacles are being thrown in the way of people trying to vote. We can’t let those tactics defeat us. In America, the power belongs with the people. And the way we show that power is by voting.
So let’s reach out to family, friends and neighbors – especially those who have never voted before. Remind them that with voting, anything is possible. And without it, nothing is possible.
Yesterday in Galveston, we gathered in Reedy Chapel to commemorate Juneteenth, just like people have done for 160 years and counting. We prayed, sang, and read General Order #3 again. The pews were full of families. How many people must have prayed for freedom inside those walls. How many must have sent fervent thanks to God when slavery finally ended.
I remembered the words of my late friend John Lewis. He said, “Freedom is not a state. It is an act.”
Juneteenth did not mark the end of America’s work to deliver on the promise of equality. It only marked the beginning. To honor the true meaning of Juneteenth, we must continue to work toward that promise. For our freedom. For our democracy. And for America itself.
#NNPA BlackPress
Cities Across the U.S. Shrink or Cancel Juneteenth Events as DEI Support Wanes
BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — Across the country, Juneteenth celebrations are being scaled back or eliminated as public funding dries up and corporations withdraw sponsorship.

By Stacy M. Brown
Black Press USA Senior National Correspondent
Across the country, Juneteenth celebrations are being scaled back or eliminated as public funding dries up and corporations withdraw sponsorship. In many communities, the once-growing recognition of the holiday is facing sharp resistance tied to the unraveling of diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts.
In Denver, Colorado, the annual Juneteenth Music Festival, one of the largest in the nation—was cut from two days to one. Organizers said more than a dozen corporate sponsors walked away from commitments, leaving them with a financial gap that almost canceled the event. Norman Harris, the festival’s executive director, said several companies “pulled back their investments or let us know they couldn’t or wouldn’t be in a position to support this year.” Harris credited grassroots donors and small businesses for stepping in when larger backers stepped aside.
In Colorado Springs, the local celebration was relocated to the Citadel Mall parking lot after support from previous sponsors disappeared. Organizers noted that where there were once dozens of corporate partners, only five remained. The downsized event was pieced together with limited resources, but community leaders said they refused to let the holiday go unacknowledged.
Scottsdale, Arizona, canceled its Juneteenth observance after the city council voted to dissolve its diversity, equity, and inclusion office in February. Without the office in place, the city offered no support for planning or funding, leaving residents without an official celebration.
In San Diego, the Cooper Family Foundation lost a $25,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts that had been earmarked for Juneteenth programming. Organizers said the decision forced them to personally finance key elements of the event, including cultural exhibits, performances, and youth engagement activities.
Bend, Oregon, called off its Juneteenth event entirely. Organizers cited political tensions and safety concerns, saying they could not secure the partnerships needed to proceed. A public statement from the planning committee described the current climate as “increasingly volatile,” making it difficult to host a safe and inclusive event.
West Virginia, which has recognized Juneteenth as a paid state holiday since 2017, will not sponsor any official events this year. State leaders pointed to budget constraints and recent decisions to eliminate DEI programming across agencies as the reasons for stepping away from public observance.
Austin, Texas, has also reduced its Juneteenth programming. While the city has not canceled events outright, organizers said diminished city support and fewer private contributions forced them to focus only on core activities.
“Thankfully, there was a wide range of support that came when we made the announcement that the celebration is in jeopardy,” said Harris. “But it shows how fragile that support has become.”
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