Playing Hooky
There will be no column today, as I will instead be playing hooky. I posted another Electoral Math column yesterday, while everyone else was on vacation (I like to post them on Mondays), so I'm taking today off as compensation.
I will try to get to answering some comments tonight -- I've been rather busy with offline life stuff for the past few weeks, and while I have been able to continue writing columns I haven't had any time for comments, so I'll try to rectify that this evening.
Tomorrow, unless a more-pressing subject suggests itself, I will wait until after the non-debate debate airs on NBC, and then post the usual snap reactions, so it'll be a fairly late column, just to warn everyone in advance.
In any case, apologies for the interruption in columns, but everyone's entitled to a day off once in a while, right?
-- Chris Weigant
Follow Chris on Twitter: @ChrisWeigant
Well, it's a good day to talk about that fake news channel and their $40 million illegal sexual harasser who now works for Team Orange. Trump TV should be well positioned against a weakened competitor. It'll be life imitating "Dirty Laundry". Racist Trump Babes in bikinis "reporting" National Enquirer conspiracy hoaxes. Believe me.
Ailes' contract forbids him from starting a new competing "cable network", but not a new "social media network", so my money is on Trump having a yuge announcement that he will share with the world a few days after Cheatin' Hillary "steals" the election from him by a land slide.
Tomorrow, unless a more-pressing subject suggests itself, I will wait until after the non-debate debate airs on NBC, and then post the usual snap reactions, so it'll be a fairly late column, just to warn everyone in advance.
????
Michale
Racist Trump Babes in bikinis "reporting" National Enquirer conspiracy hoaxes. Believe me.
BELIEVE YOU!???
NO ONE can even UNDERSTAND you!!! :D
Michale
Ahhhhhh
Johnson Not Invited to NBC/IAVA Candidate Forum, Sept. 7
http://www.uspresidentialelectionnews.com/2016/08/johnson-not-invited-to-nbciava-candidate-forum-sept-7/
I got it.... :D
Michale
1000 quatloos says that Hillary can't make it thru the forum without hacking up a storm.... :D
Any takers???
Michale
Just to indicate what kind of reception the two candidates will get in tonight's forum..
http://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2016-election/poll-trump-leads-clinton-among-military-veteran-voters-n643501
The military is overwhelmingly PRO-Trump and ANTI-Clinton...
Again, these are FACTS that is ignored by the Left Wingery...
Michale
It beggars belief that Hillary Clinton is really as clueless as she came across in her interview with the FBI. I’ve given classified briefings to cabinet officials. None of them were ever this out of it. Perhaps, accompanied by her lawyers, the Democratic nominee decided to play dumb to dodge possible prosecution. If that’s the case, Hillary repeatedly flat-out lied to the FBI—which, yet again, is something normal Americans go to prison for doing.
If Hillary actually is as dumb as she appears in these FBI documents—utterly clueless about basic classification matters even after years of Federal service at the highest levels—she is nowhere near smart enough to be our commander-in-chief.
In my time with NSA I worked in counterintelligence and I investigated people who mishandled classified information. It was rarely a pretty story and it seldom ended well. Let me state with 100 percent confidence, having now seen at least some of what the FBI discovered about Hillary and her emails, that anybody not named Clinton who did these things would be facing severe criminal charges and potentially years in prison. Democrats need to seriously ask themselves if this is the kind of person they want to represent them on November 8.
http://observer.com/2016/09/fbi-data-dump-shows-clinton-is-criminal-and-clueless/
Like I have always said...
Ya'all have yer ideology...
And then there are the facts...
Michale
Looks like the Demcorats are running scared..
Pelosi begs Republicans not to use leaked Demcorat documents
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/07/us/politics/nancy-pelosi-urges-paul-ryan-to-ban-republicans-from-using-hacked-documents.html?_r=0
:D
Don't do the "crime" if ya can't do the "time"..
This is the best indication yet that the upcoming wikileaks is going to be DEVASTATING to Hillary and the Demcorat Party...
Couldn't happen to more deserving people.... :D
Michale
Michale
[8] You once again refer to an opinion piece as being "facts".
[9]. So you support the Republicans use of stolen property, is that it?
I shake my head in bewilderment reading your comments sometimes, hoping that this level of reasoning that you exhibit began after you left law enforcement.
[1], [2]:
In the sense that Fox News has been part of the GOP (from a "The Party Decides" way of looking at things), it wouldn't be surprising that as the Republican party as whole shows signs of fracturing, so also the associated Media partners would also fracture into segments that better reflect/support the various factions.
I could see a Breitbart/TrumpTV stepping up their presence as Fox moves to more of a National Review Online kind of vibe...
This article is really interesting: http://washingtonmonthly.com/2016/09/07/clinton-has-learned-from-her-2008-mistakes/
Throughout the 2008 primary, Obama enjoyed an immense advantage over the team Clinton had assembled. Most glaringly, Team Obama understood that the competition was for delegates, not votes and not states. In many congressional districts (say, districts with four delegates), both candidates were assured of getting two delegates unless one of them fell below 25% of the vote. And two-thirds of the delegates were assigned by congressional district. Therefore, Obama’s organizers and campaign team focused like a laser on odd-numbered delegate districts. This informed where Obama campaigned, where he advertised, who his people called, which doors got knocked, and how he polled.
This time around, the Clinton campaign has it all figured out, and the man in charge is named Elan Kriegel. Kriegal commands a high salary and a corner office in the Brooklyn headquarters, and the campaign makes few major decisions without his input. See if this sounds familiar:
It goes on to discuss how the Clinton Team handled the primary and some of how they're handling the general. Good meaty stuff. It's not just that Trump doesn't have much GOTV -- he doesn't have ANY of this kind of data. Yay.
Listen,
[8] You once again refer to an opinion piece as being "facts".
The person giving the opinion had PLENTY of facts, based on personal experience and expertise...
Sound like someone you know?? :D
You just don't LIKE the facts, so you ignore them...
[9]. So you support the Republicans use of stolen property, is that it?
Demcorats would have no problem using Trump's tax records if they were hacked and thrown into the wild..
And you would support the Demcorats in doing so...
Does that answer your question???
Michale
It goes on to discuss how the Clinton Team handled the primary and some of how they're handling the general. Good meaty stuff. It's not just that Trump doesn't have much GOTV -- he doesn't have ANY of this kind of data. Yay.Z
Then you have NOTHING to worry about, right???
Trump is toast... Demcorats can just stay home.. :D
Michale
[9]. So you support the Republicans use of stolen property, is that it?
Pentagon Papers....
'nuff said....
Michale
Cue the sputtering reply...
But... But... THAT'S different!!!"
:D
Michale
Trump is toast... Democrats can just stay home.. :D
Au Contraire! They must come out. And they will if HRC and Team have anything to say about it. And they do!
Oh my God. Listening to HRC was fabulous and Trump is just a complete idiot. God he's bad. He is soooooo bad. His plan for ISIS is to get a bunch of generals to give him a plan for ISIS.
[18]:
And his plan to get along with Putin is to get along with Putin. And so on and so forth!
He was unbelievably bad. I'm still marveling. Just utter empty nonsense. Circular statements. Vague bluster. Could not answer a single question with any substance.
[19] Hey, Putin called him brilliant so they're best friends!
"His plan for ISIS is to get a bunch of generals to give him a plan for ISIS"
When Trumpthugs are asked about Big Orange, they often say that he'll hire good people despite the clear evidence to the contrary provided by his multiple scampaign managers or whatever they're called. He thinks everything is an episode of his reality TV show.
The fake news channel paid Roger Ailes $40 million dollars to go away after Gretchen Carlson proved that he was a sexual harasser. GC sued RA and Fake News paid her $20 million. So, in other words, a creepy sexual harasser scammed his company into paying twice as much for his illegal behavior as they paid to his victim. You have to admit that he's a first class grifter. It's easy to see why Trump would want him on Team Orange even with all that anti-lady baggage.
And, Secretary Clinton still hasn't figured out how to answer questions about her private email server. Unbelievable.
[24] Boring!
Oh, I forgot. HilRod probably murdered somebody with email.
I think Hillary came off really well. The fact that Lauer was pushier with her and she handled it made a nice contrast to Trump's feckless bombast. She had to push through on answers because they were so meaty -- I loved it.
[25-26] Very funny.
As far as I'm concerned, Hillary's use of her private email server is a non-issue.
What is at issue and what is making it an issue is her inability to deal with it in a way that makes it a positive for her. And that is what makes my head explode.
Because, if she loses this thing, the noise around this issue will be no small part of what will be responsible for Trump becoming the next president, God forbid.
[27]
Shocking. Positively shocking.
[28] Elizabeth -
In your view, what's a possible response that makes it "a positive" for her?
To my mind, I think her response has been about as good as can be expected. Nothing's never going to sway those who have already decided she's a dishonest cad and worse. And nothing will ever dissuade voters who have already decided she's awesome. For the remainder, I think it's an expected albeit noisy sideshow (comparable to Trump, tax forms, etc.); and it's likely their vote will be decided on other issues.
http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/09/lauers-pathetic-interview-made-me-think-trump-can-win.html
chasz,
I have commented about this before, in a discussion with Paula.
There is old saying that goes like this ... if you don't like the narrative, then change the conversation.
Hillary is not very good at changing the conversation in ways that would highlight her strengths while being open about admitting her errors. This is particularly so with regard to her private email server and the Clinton Foundation situation (both essentially non-issues, in my view, but have become and remain issues by her lame response and lack of bold leadership).
With respect to her private email server and the FBI investigation, she missed an excellent opportunity to put the focus on the state department and how she would improve its handling of classified information.
And, more importantly, she could shed light on the fact that the state department is woefully under-resourced for the diplomatic role it plays in forming and executing US foreign policy and make it clear that US global leadership is more successful when America leads not only by the example of its power but also by the power of its example.
The FBI director's testimony before congress was also illuminating in terms of his understanding of how Hillary could have made statements about her email that were not true but also not lies. There is a clear distinction there that Hillary has not elaborated upon.
Hillary could use a similarly bold strategy with respect to the "cozy relationship" between her state department and the Clinton Foundation that would also highlight her leadership as Secretary of State.
But, all of this advice is moot since voters will not be making their decision with any of Hillary's flaws in mind. I hope you're right about that!
apophis,
Is there something in the link you provided that you expect us to read?
Hi Elizabeth -
I recall that interchange you had with Paula; and I was swayed at the time by your position, but I find myself less convinced now.
I was swayed at the time, because it was an argument that worked for ME - it addressed MY concerns. But then, I'm (a) already generally predisposed towards Clinton for many other reasons; and (b) the argument that we need an over-haul of how we look at both the transparency and the security of electronic conversations (both governmental and corporate) is something I've already had more than a passing interest in (being a tech-nerd and all!).
(Sidebar: Matt Yglesias has a very nice article on Vox: 'Against Transparency' that you might find interesting in this context!)
But the thing is, a person of my temperament was always going to vote for Clinton over Trump anyway.
What I want to try to do is put myself into the mind-set of someone who is "on the fence"; and imagine what argument might matter regarding these "horribly scandalous e-mail revelations". And this is where I think Clinton has to essentially respond to the question "When did you stop beating your husband?"
I don't think there's any "positive" way to respond to that!
To flip the question, early on in the Republican primary debates, Trump pretty much admitted to bribing politicians. He said that he gave money to politicians; and that he thereby gained influence; and that was just how the game was played. And thus, he argued, because he was wealthy, he could resist that sin. So vote for him!
I dunno. Was that a successful response? To say that you know that the system is broken, and you admit you took advantage of its broken-ness, so that's why you are an ideal candidate to be a good reformer?
What I think tonight's forum said to me is that Clinton is getting better at projecting "I.. am.. not.. a... robot..."; and that may be more effective than any logical argument regarding what version of Linux/sendmail her sysadmin used...
Cheers - Chas
So, Chasz,
Do you think Hillary changed the minds of any fence-sitters with her performance last evening?
Are you saying that she should just ignore the email and foundation issues and hope they aren't important to any of the fence-sitters?
Good luck with that play-out-the-clock strategy, I would say to the Clinton campaign, knowing where the race stands at the moment and knowing that there may be more related obstacles she must overcome between now and election day ...
All statements are IMHO, of course!
I think that fence-sitters who worry about what they may hear about email servers or the Clinton Foundation are open to being swayed by more general considerations - does Clinton _sound_ like a person who, more generally, thinks and acts like a reasonable person? More or less so than Trump? (This is certainly subjective!)
So, emphasizing 'sounding reasonable on various unrelated subjects' may be more effective than anything she may say about the specific issues that the media have focussed on. (Hmmm. and why have they focussed on these issues? Interesting question!)
One could argue that is 'changing the narrative by changing the conversation'; or that instead it is just ignoring the issue. I'm in the former camp - but YMMV!
Of course, all of this pales compared to Today's Big News Rocking All Of Journalism - there is no headphone jack on the iPhone 7!!! Why are we not talking about this instead!!!??! :)
Cheers - Chas
Liz,
Good luck with that play-out-the-clock strategy, I would say to the Clinton campaign, knowing where the race stands at the moment and knowing that there may be more related obstacles she must overcome between now and election day ...
That is EXACTLY Clinton's strategy...
Ignore the bad things. Cede the battlefield to Trump.. Stay behind the lines and consolidate forces..
That is exactly what Hillary is doing..
And that is exactly why Hillary has totally blown her lead and this election is now, essentially, tied...
Hillary CAN'T face her mistakes and own up to them because, in her mind, she hasn't MADE any mistakes..
Oh sure, she'll offer a platitude now and then.. But that's like a political promise. It doesn't mean anything...
In this, Hillary IS just like Obama..
Neither of them has the integrity to give a sincere and authentic I frak'ed up...
Michale
And now that the WIKILEAKS *AND* the FBI are promising more document leaks, Hillary's troubles are just starting...
Michale
http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/why-the-polls-are-tightening-up/article/2601206
The best summation to date...
The VERY BEST line is this:
The candidate touted as the most qualified ever professed deep ignorance about government classification practices.
Michale
Pentagon Papers....
'nuff said....
Cat got yer tongue, Listen?? :D
Michale
Probably more appropriate in the OPW commentary, but who wants to go back that far?? :D
WW3 WARNING
Planet closer to catastrophic World War III than at any time for SIXTY years, experts warn… and it doesn’t look good for Britain or America if it does kick off
Several flashpoints could erupt into a global conflict involving the US, China and Russia, it is claimed
https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/1741507/planet-closer-to-catastrophic-world-war-iii-than-at-any-time-for-sixty-years-experts-warn-and-it-doesnt-look-good-for-britain-or-america-if-it-does-kick-off/
THAT is Barack Hussein Obama's and Hillary Clinton's legacy..
Michale
E-mails won't matter in this election because nobody CARES. People do not understand the workings of e-mail, nor do they even know what a server is, let alone which server handles their e-mail. To try to hang Hillary because she used the wrong server is ludicrous. What secrets were divulged? Of what importance were they?
E-mails won't matter in this election because nobody CARES.
Despite ALL the *facts* to the contrary... :D
Oh...
"Welcome to the party, pal!!!!!"
-John McClane, DIE HARD
:D
Michale
SF Bear,
I think you are looking at the email issue far too narrowly.
Michale,
This isn't SF Bear's first kick at the can, you know.
Try to keep up!
SF,
If the email issue is such a non-issue with the electorate, then I'm curious as to what issues you think are preventing Hillary from performing better in the polls.
This isn't SF Bear's first kick at the can, you know.
Try to keep up!
I THOUGHT his nick looked familiar..
But I would rather err on the side of cordiality and inclusiveness.. :D
I think you are looking at the email issue far too narrowly.
In spades..
Hillary's trustworthy and integrity numbers dropped from a high of high 70s to a low of low 40s, SOLELY because of her moronic and boneheaded decision to use a private email server exclusively..
Apparently, a LOT of Americans care......
Michale
If the email issue is such a non-issue with the electorate, then I'm curious as to what issues you think are preventing Hillary from performing better in the polls.
ding, ding ding ding We have a winner!!
Tell 'er what she's won, Johnny!!!
Michale
But, I'll but out now and let ya'all have a debate about the issue...
As long as the facts are adhered to, I'll be as quiet as a church mouse... :D
Michale
But I would rather err on the side of cordiality and inclusiveness.. :D
Naturally.
:-)
As long as the facts are adhered to, I'll be as quiet as a church mouse... :D
That's mighty considerate and generous of you.
But, there's no reason for you to stay out of the fray just because facts are being adhered to ...
... oh, wait. :)
That's mighty considerate and generous of you.
I thought so...
But, there's no reason for you to stay out of the fray just because facts are being adhered to ...
... oh, wait. :)
hehehehe...
It's clear that SF Bear is not adhering to the facts with his claim that the American people don't "care" about Hillary's incompetence and lack of transparency and lies...
The American people DO care... Which is why her trustworthy, honesty and integrity numbers are in the toilet....
Maybe SF will follow-up and explain the disparity between his claim and the facts...
Maybe not... :D
Michale
On another point..
'Blue lives matter' law used in arrest of New Orleans man who shouted slurs at police: warrant
New Orleans police arrested a man this week and charged him with a hate crime and other offenses after police say he damaged a window at a French Quarter hotel and then shouted slurs at a witness and officers, according to the man's arrest warrant.
It appears to be the first time Louisiana's so-called "blue lives matter" provision has been used to charge someone with a hate crime involving police officers, according to the Anti-defamation League.
http://www.nola.com/crime/index.ssf/2016/09/nopd_hate_crime_blue_lives_mat.html
If we MUST have "hate crime" laws (which I think is totally and completely ridiculous) it's nice to see it applied fairly.....
Michale
Michale,
Demcorats would have no problem using Trump's tax records if they were hacked and thrown into the wild..
And you would support the Demcorats in doing so...
Does that answer your question???
NO, it doesn't.
I asked you a simple question. Your answer consists of you creating a fictional future event and, playing the role of the clairvoyant, describing how I would react to the actions of others in said future fictional event.
So you ARE advocating the use of stolen property? Again, you demonstrate your inability to discuss the actual topic at hand in favor of turning the conversation so you do not have to defend the actions being criticized directly!
Would I support Trump's hacked tax returns being made public? No, because there is no way to verify that they are real as the IRS would never confirm if they were the actual returns. Trump's refusal to release them himself shows that he has something to hide and that speaks volumes! If Trump isn't going to be honest with us, that's his choice. If someone hacked him, it might get Trump some sympathy support from undecideds.
So, again, NO, I wouldn't support the Dems using the information. We already know enough about Trump to know that he is majorly indebted to foreign interests. If he can't man up and release the tax returns himself, that is far more damaging to his credibility than ANYTHING that might be discovered from his tax returns could ever be, IMHO!
See, there is the direct answer to your question! I didn't bring up other unrelated events for you to compare and contrast and demand you defend the actions of others. I answered the question asked!
Michale,
[9]. So you support the Republicans use of stolen property, is that it?
Pentagon Papers....
'nuff said....
Michale
Still fails to answer the question. Might as well have answered,
Cranial bowel obstructionist.
That, at least, somewhat answers the question.
Michale [6] -
As noted elsewhere, you can pony up those Quatloos now...
Heh.
Paula [12] -
Yeah, I saw that article, it was fascinating. Thanks for the link!
chaszzzbrown [30] -
From a different comment thread, my advice to Clinton would be to issue a promise that she will never personally use email as president for any official business whatsoever. That would at least put it behind her, although maybe not make it a "positive."
Michale [53] -
Interesting, if off topic. I have a problem with all "hate crimes" laws myself.
ListenWhileYouHear [55] -
Heh. I prefer "cranio-rectal inversion" myself, but yours is pretty funny too!
:-)
-CW
Still fails to answer the question. Might as well have answered,
Actually it answers the question perfectly.
Democrats supported the use of stolen property when it suited their agenda..
YOU only complain about the use of stolen property when it goes AGAINST that Demcorat agenda..
So, your question has been answered perfectly.
You just are pissy because the answer totally exposes your ideological slavery....
Michale
Interesting, if off topic. I have a problem with all "hate crimes" laws myself.
I know, right!??
All hate crime laws do is give special protections to classes of people...
Michale
Interesting, if off topic.
In my defense, this was sort of an "open" commentary.... :D
Mostly.... :D
Michale
Actually it answers the question perfectly.
Democrats supported the use of stolen property when it suited their agenda..
YOU only complain about the use of stolen property when it goes AGAINST that Demcorat agenda..
So, your question has been answered perfectly.
You just are pissy because the answer totally exposes your ideological slavery....
However, I will give you the kind of answer you were looking for...
Yes... If it serves the greater good (which, in this case, it clearly does) I have absolutely NO PROBLEM with having stolen property used in this manner..
I thought you Demcorats supported Whistleblower protections..
I guess ya'all only support it when it supports yer partisan agenda... Color me shocked.. :^/
Michale