“I gotta say,” I tell my pal Larry O’Connor, “the circus has come to town — and the ringmasters here are Alvin Bragg and his prosecutors.” Larry joined me while prepping for live coverage on Salem News Channel of the Donald Trump arraignment and speech this evening. We talk quite a bit about that, but we also discuss HBO’s decision to invest in its Harry Potter franchise despite the cancellation campaign against its creator, J.K. Rowling. Plus, we discuss our Lenten paths and why we might read Leviticus backward to celebrate the end at Easter … and then check our confession schedules. Plus, lots more, especially on the future of the abortion debate!
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Welcome back to our aVIP video series “Off the Beaten Path,” featuring my friend Larry O’Connor! The Townhall columnist and Salem News Channel host starts off our week by discussing stories and ideas that may fly under our radar, in culture, politics, sports, and more. Plus, Larry previews tonight’s SNC show!
If Bragg’s interested in pursuing Class E felonies, Larry has a suggestion. “So we got a leak yesterday from Michael Isikoff at Yahoo News that there are 34 Class E felonies” in the indictment. “Leaking information of a grand jury proceeding to the media is also a Class E felony. So Michael Isikoff got his Class E felony leak about Donald Trump’s Class E felony leaks, But Michael Isikoff won’t be arraigned, nor will anyone who from the DA’s office who leak could be Alvin Bragg himself instead.”
That led to a couple of analogical arguments from both of us. ” I’m just pulling this out of my hat,” I say, but “if I was a presidential candidate who paid for a oppo research hit job and chalked it up as you know, legal expenses rather than a campaign expense,” I suggest. “If you’re pursuing this, wouldn’t that be worth pursuing now? Nobody’s ever done that before, Larry. Of course, this is entirely hypothetical.”
Larry and I discuss the report that HBO will invest significantly into a new Harry Potter television series that will convert each of the books into full seasons. After indulging our geekiness over debates about the timelines, I point out that HBO’s decision cuts against the current cancel-culture mob effort to silence Rowling on trans issues. One important point is that woke has its financial limits, I argue.
“Warners, which is now Discovery and on up the chain, invested a ton money into this. And they need to make money. They’re hurting, as Christian [Toto] said. And one of their best properties is the Harry Potter universe and so they need this,” I say. They need to have something catch fire for them and so they don’t really have a lot of choice except to engage with Rowling, because … she’s not going to sit on the sidelines. They’re not going to Roddenberry her like Paramount did after Star Trek The Motion Picture, right?”
There’s plenty more discussion today, so be sure to watch it all — and join the conversation in the comments!
