Media Missing The Point In Democratic Squabbles
As the Iowa caucuses draw nearer and nearer, the Democratic presidential candidates are getting a little sharper-edged towards each other, it seems. I say "it seems" because all I know of the dustups is what I read in the media, and they're an often-inaccurate judge of what is really going on. The candidates might have been this sharp all along and it is only now that the media has noticed, to give just one example of how they might be misleading us. But whether new or just the media's current obsession, the attacks flying between the candidates (and former candidates, now) are all being covered with breathless glee.
That's fine and good, because it really is just par for the course. This is a primary race, and not a feel-good yoga session, after all. Like The Highlander, in the end there can only be one. This means everyone else has to lose the race, and none of them want that to happen to them. So of course they're competing hard for voter support. However, what truly annoys me is the almost-total media focus on personality instead of paying attention to what will prove to be more important when we get to the general election: the actual or perceived substance of these attacks.
There have been many such spats covered during the past few weeks. Pretty much any of them would serve as an example, but today let's focus on the opinion piece written by Zephyr Teachout in The Guardian. Teachout is a supporter of Bernie Sanders, and she wrote her opinion about why he'd be a better candidate than Joe Biden. Biden, according to Teachout (using the one sentence that appeared in just about every media story written about the dustup): "has a big corruption problem and it makes him a weak candidate."
That's all most of the media stories quoted, and then they went on to describe in great detail what had happened after the opinion piece appeared. The impression many of these stories gave was that Teachout was somehow unfairly hitting Biden for his son Hunter's work with Ukrainian gas company Burisma. There is an impeachment trial on, after all, and Biden's son is at the heart of one of Trump's conspiracy theories about "corruption." So of course that's what she was referring to, right?
Well, no. She never brings up any of the following: Biden's son, Ukraine, Burisma, impeachment, or even the generic "politicians' family members cashing in on selling influence." None of that is included or even alluded to in what Teachout actually wrote. But you certainly wouldn't know that from the stories you see. I have no idea if the writers of such stories were just too lazy to get past the second paragraph of Teachout's short article or not. If you read it to the end, you'll find out that she's talking about an entirely different problem. In fact, if you even get to the third paragraph, you'll find a nice summary:
It looks like "Middle Class" Joe [Biden] has perfected the art of taking big contributions, then representing his corporate donors at the cost of middle- and working-class Americans. Converting campaign contributions into legislative favors and policy positions isn't being "moderate". It is the kind of transactional politics Americans have come to loathe.
She then lists three prime examples of what she is accusing Biden of:
First, Biden's support for finance over working-class Americans. His career was bankrolled by the credit card industry. He delivered for it by spearheading a bankruptcy bill that made it harder for Americans to reduce their debts and helped cause the financial crisis. He not only authored and voted for that bill, he split with Barack Obama and led the battle to vote down Democratic amendments.
His explanations for carrying water for the credit card industry have changed over time. They have never rung true.
The simplest explanation is the most likely: he did it for his donors. At a fundraiser last year, Biden promised his Wall Street donors that "nothing would fundamentally change" for them if he became president. Now the financial world is raising huge money for his campaign. It clearly thinks he's going to be its friend if elected. Most Americans, who get ripped off by the financial sector on a daily basis, aren't looking for a candidate who has made their life harder.
Second, healthcare. On 25 April, the day he announced his campaign, Biden went straight to a fundraiser co-hosted by the chief executive of a major health insurance corporation. He refuses to sign a pledge to reject money from insurance and pharma execs and continues to raise money from healthcare industry donors. His campaign is being bankrolled by a super PAC run by healthcare lobbyists.
What did all these donors get? A healthcare proposal that preserves the power of the insurance industry and leaves 10 million Americans uninsured.
Third, climate change. Biden signed a pledge not to take money from the fossil fuel industry, then broke his promise. Right after a CNN town hall on climate change, he held a fundraiser hosted by the founder of a fossil fuel conglomerate. He is pushing climate policy that has gotten dismal reviews from several leading environmental groups.
There are plenty of other examples that raise questions, like housing and Social Security. Big real estate moguls are playing a major role in Biden's campaign. Unlike his rivals, he has no comprehensive housing plan. When he pushed for cuts to Social Security, was he serving donors or his constituents?
These are very specific charges, and they are all based on either facts or the perception of facts. Biden is going to have to face such criticism at some point, whether it be from a Bernie Sanders supporter or from Trump and his campaign. But from what I read, not a single story written about the fray even bothered to address this basic fact. They all instead focused on Biden's reaction, or Bernie's reaction to Biden's reaction, or the clever quips that various supporters offered up. Not one of them bothered to address the points Teachout made about Biden's built-in weaknesses as a candidate. Bernie even apologized, said Biden was "not corrupt" and disavowed the article, in the end, meaning the whole discussion ended before it even began. But that doesn't change Biden's inherent weakness on the issues.
Teachout ends by pointing out that the truth or falsehood of such charges will not matter in the general election. It's all about perception, and the perception either already exists or will be pointed out by Donald Trump, endlessly:
But here's the thing: nominating a candidate like Biden will make it far more difficult to defeat Trump. It will allow Trump to muddy the water, to once again pretend he is the one "draining the swamp," running against Washington culture. Trump and the Cambridge Analytica of 2020 will campaign, as they did in 2016, on a message of radical nihilism: everybody lies, everybody is corrupt, nothing matters, there is no truth.
Corrupt politicians always use whataboutism. With Biden, we are basically handing Trump a whataboutism playbook. The comparison won't be fair, but if you think he won't use Biden's closeness to donors as a cudgel to try to keep people home, you haven't been paying attention. Unlike Democrats, who must give voters a reason to come out, Trump doesn't need voters to love him. He just needs to convince people the whole game is ugly.
Voters in the Democratic primaries need to be aware of such weaknesses for all the Democratic candidates. The alternative is to wait until after a nominee is crowned, and then find out when it's too late to do anything about the choice. Because negative campaigning will happen, no matter who the Democratic nominee is. The choice is whether to have it happen now or later, but that's really the only two options we have.
Biden's not the only one with such weaknesses, of course. Perhaps I was biased in the one example I chose, but to be fair all of the Democrats have things they'd prefer not to talk about. Bernie has been hitting Biden on his sometimes-support for cutting Social Security, while Biden responded by pointing out that Bernie voted against the Brady Bill a while back. At least with these accusations, the media was forced to pay a little more attention to the substance of the charges (or the perceived substance). But these are polite little spats compared to what is coming in the general election.
To be fair here, if Bernie Sanders is the eventual nominee, he will be hit for (among other things): his honeymoon in the Soviet Union; his newfound personal wealth; his wife's financial record; being pro-gun-rights in the past; his legislative record of accomplishments being too thin; not being able to get Congress to pass any of his plans; his recent heart attack; his hair; his frumpy suits; being too old; being too cranky; being too Brooklyn; being Jewish; not supporting Israel enough; his foreign policy and his support of extreme leftist leaders; and, of course, that old standby -- "Socialism! Ahh! Everybody run!"
Elizabeth Warren, Pete Buttigieg, Amy Klobuchar, and Michael Bloomberg all have a whole bunch of things they'll have to answer for as well, whether true or made-up. It's not just Biden who has weaknesses that the other side will exploit mercilessly, in other words -- they all do. Nobody's perfect, after all.
So I for one don't mind a few dustups in the Democratic race now, rather than later when it is too late to change the nominee. Weaknesses should be pointed out and addressed now, while voters still have a choice to make. That's what happens -- or should happen, at any rate -- during a political campaign. We are vetting the best man or woman to take on Donald Trump, and Donald Trump is going to show no restraint whatsoever in making such attacks. We need to see which of the candidates can face such stormwinds and who will be blown away by them, and we need this to happen sooner rather than later.
The media, for the most part, concentrates solely on the sparks flying. They love a good conflict, which usually leads them into "conflict for conflict's sake" reporting. But we deserve more. We deserve the candidates getting asked about the substance -- or even the negative appearance -- of such attacks. Any candidate who takes the route of: "We shouldn't be tearing each other down in the primaries, we should be focused on uniting to beat Donald Trump" is selling the public short, because no matter what Marquess of Queensberry rules all Democrats agree to now, all of that is going straight out the window when the nominee faces Trump in the general. The choice is to either select a candidate without knowing how they'd counter such attacks, or to explore the subject now to test their mettle. So while others gleefully obsess over who said what about which candidate, I'm much more interested in what is being said and what answer each candidate has for attacks on their perceived weaknesses. When the time comes, they're going to have to counter this stuff in real time -- either on a debate stage with Trump, or after Trump tweets something out to stir the pot for that day's news cycle. Trump is a master of media manipulation, and I don't want to see a Democrat nominated who has no strategy for how to defend against such manipulation, plain and simple.
-- Chris Weigant
Follow Chris on Twitter: @ChrisWeigant
I'm not so sure any Dem candidate is immune to Trump's diatribes, real or not, Trump will truck out whatever plays well for his crowd, regardless of who his opponent is.
Thing is, what Trump does is barrage his listeners with gibberish, bullshit, lies and conspiracies, after the first five minutes all that comes after is his patented rehash of outrages perpetrated on him by 'them' and 'they'. It's white noise, Trump's rally mob attend his speeches because they get to chant a little bit about locking people up, not for any slight chance Trump will lay bare his epiphanies on overhauled Medicare or the five gallon flushing khazi...America won't be considering Trump or the Dem candidate in the traditional general election way, facts and policies will be drowned out by the personal attacks and bald-faced gobshitery of Trump and his ragtag rabble as they attempt to convince people that water isn't wet unless you buy the Trump brand 'powdered water'.
So it's irrelevant who runs for the Dems in the general, Trump will either ride them on something so innocuous like emails about daily deli runs, or he'll just manufacture some slagging-off talking points to shovel at his sheeple to maintain the ranks. Trump's not hoping to win folk over, swell the ranks of his base with laser-like policies that sway the uninitiated his way. Fuck no. In much the same way, the Dem candidate isn't going to wrest any of Trump's acolytes from his grasp with common sense and clear thinking. The 2020 cycle is going to be won or lost on who is outraged more...The right wing and their frothy bemoaning of deep state oppression, or the left wing's universal loathing of all things Trump. Considering 53% of polled voters want Trump jettisoned immediately and banned from public office in perpetuity as we speak, 74% of black America thinks that Trump is an empty vessel when drained of his racism and bigotry and women in suburbia just plainly can't imagine another four years of Trump's preening and boasting of mental genius, I don't see a Trump win in November. I'll wager that if Trump could boast anything from the last 4 years its that he's singlehandedly forged the juggernaut that is his opposition, not only has Trump molded this voting block into the engine of his down fall, but he nourishes and suckles it everyday, tightening it's ranks and their resolve to bring about his ouster.
LL&P
[1],
You know what, please don't bring your foul language here.
And, try paragraphs. It's easier to read.
[Thanks CW, as you can see, your password fix worked a charm, were I you, I would look into some of your links at the top, the register and lost PW aspects of your page, something's on the fritz.]
I have about a bazillion posts of Michale's to respond to due to my absence, luckily 99.98056% of them fell into the 'complete and utter drivel, specious and unutterably fallacious' category, and can be dismissed without any time wasted. The remaining two or three can be assigned the reply 'Stfu'.
Hope everyone had a merry whatsits and a happy thinghy, something tells me this year will fly by as this blunt-force election cycle runs its course.
Vivir largo y próspero.
(LL&P)
Chris,
However, what truly annoys me is the almost-total media focus on personality instead of paying attention to what will prove to be more important when we get to the general election: the actual or perceived substance of these attacks.
Is there really anything substantive that Democrats can throw at each other in the fight to become the nominee that will, in any way, inform the Democratic strategy to beat Trump?
I really don't think so.
Of course, they all have to be prepared to answer substantively and obliterate the lies and specious attacks that will surely come from the president. And, that goes especially for Biden, who has dealt with falsehoods like those in the article you highlight here throughout his career and, not always in the most effective manner, I have to admit.
So, I agree with your bottom line, wholeheartedly.
But, I think that burden should be on the candidates themselves, individually, to demonstrate to voters that they fully understand how to beat Trump. Right now, the best way to do that is to treat every single campaign event during primary season as an opportunity to obliterate your Democratic opponents' substantive positions and approaches to solving problems, on every issue, one at a time, again and again, even if only to highlight miniscule differences on issues that they all agree on.
In other words, forget about the media. In large part, the media is decidedly too lazy not to focus on personality. And, even when they try to provide substance, an in-depth analysis based on deep knowledge is usually missing resulting in misguided perceptions of where a candidate stands on any given issue.
Biden has been a constant victim of that sort of sloppy and superficial journalism and, presumably, has had more practice dealing with it than any of his Democratic rivals. I know he has to do much better in this regard to prove to voters that he's their man.
The Democratic nominee will be the candidate who can get this message out despite the media.
P.S. What is wrong with Hillary Clinton and why, oh why, won't she go away?
Russ,
It says NOTHING only if you ignore the fact that MLK, Jr. died a victim of gun violence.
BBBBWWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
So MLK was killed because he was a gun owner... :D
You keep pushing the lie that the articles of impeachment must cite criminal charges for the offense to be impeachable. History tells us that you don’t know what you are talking about.
It's not a lie..
What part of HIGH CRIMES AND MISDEMEANORS is unclear to you??
It's in the CONSTITUTION..
Yunno.. The founding document that Dumbocrats CLAIM to respect.. When it suits their agenda..
All the rest is just more of the same so it's safely ignored..
CW,
As the Iowa caucuses draw nearer and nearer, the Democratic presidential candidates are getting a little sharper-edged towards each other, it seems.
That cannot be!!!!
{Democrats} are able to have differing opinions on how we best solve problems without having to resort to name calling and insults.
-Russ
:D
I say "it seems" because all I know of the dustups is what I read in the media, and they're an often-inaccurate judge of what is really going on.
Is it REALLY inaccurate?? Or is it that your Party Loyalty requires you to believe it's inaccurate??
Because the "dust up" between Warren & Sanders was QUITE real.. So much so, it was recorded...
I'm just sayin..
Biden, according to Teachout (using the one sentence that appeared in just about every media story written about the dustup): "has a big corruption problem and it makes him a weak candidate."
Which is (Liz forgive me :D) factually accurate...
There is an impeachment trial on, after all, and Biden's son is at the heart of one of Trump's conspiracy theories about "corruption." So of course that's what she was referring to, right?
Oh puuullleeeesssseeeee.. It's not a "theory" it's a fact...
When the time comes, they're going to have to counter this stuff in real time -- either on a debate stage with Trump, or after Trump tweets something out to stir the pot for that day's news cycle. Trump is a master of media manipulation, and I don't want to see a Democrat nominated who has no strategy for how to defend against such manipulation, plain and simple.
That ship has sailed, my friend..
Hillary Clinton was the MASTER politician... The CONSUMMATE political fighter..
And she FAILED against Donald Trump..
None of the candidates are even CLOSE to Hillary's division when it comes to political brawling..
None of them really stand a CHANCE when it comes to PRESIDENT Donald Trump...
Hiya 'nuck...
Glad ta see my space in your head is still mine.. :D
BBBBWWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
I won't bother responding to anything you said because it was all just bullshit anyways.. :D
Schiff, Nadler impeachment tension spills out during trial
The first question at Wednesday’s news conference with House impeachment managers was directed at Rep. Jerrold Nadler, the New York Democrat whose Senate presentation helped prompt a rebuke from Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. and a flood of criticism from Republican senators.
Nadler appeared to take a half step toward the podium as Rep. Adam B. Schiff cut off the CNN reporter. “I’m going to respond to the questions,” the California Democrat and lead impeachment manager said, then turned to call on another reporter for a question on a different topic. Nadler was silent.
The exchange was one of a few moments that hint at some internal discord among House managers about the best way to present their case for impeaching President Donald Trump to the Senate as well as the American people — and how to stay on that message.
http://www.rollcall.com/news/congress/schiff-nadler-impeachment-tension-spill-onto-senate-floor
GOP'ers are utterly united and Democrats are falling apart..
How sweet it is!!! :D
Democrats appeal for GOP help to convict ‘corrupt’ Trump
https://apnews.com/29b81fda30045ec649467abb7ee47d28
Democrats are BEGGING for GOP help!!! :D hehehehehehehe
Ya really GOTS to appreciated the irony..
Democrats started this faux impeachment coup and are now BEGGING the GOP to bail them out of this morass of BS of their own making..
Yes.. Today IS a good day..
The strategy of more witnesses, though, seems all but settled. Wrangling over rules for the trial stretched past midnight Tuesday night, with Republicans shooting down one-by-one Democratic efforts to get Trump aides including former national security adviser John Bolton, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, and acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, to testify.
Senators are likely to repeat those rejections next week, shutting out any chance of new testimony.
If Democrats wanted witnesses they should have called them when the House had the impeachment..
They didn't so OBVIOUSLY they felt their case was airtight..
"{They} chose....poorly""
-Knight, INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE
“People ask the question, isn’t the president going to be stronger and harder to beat if he survives this? Yes, probably.”
-Joe Biden
Even Uncle Joe acknowledges that President Trump will be STRONGER after this impeachment..
Democrats ROYALLY scroo'ed da pooch with this faux impeachment coup..
"I am so excited to hear the 'overwhelming evidence' the House Democrats promised against Trump. And once we’ve heard that overwhelming evidence, I don’t know that we’ll need to see additional witnesses, but let’s hear about that overwhelming evidence."
-Senator Jodi Ernst
"There is mimicry and there is mockery and THAT was definitely mockery"
-Dr Leonard 'Bones' McCoy
:D
Yea, Democrats really frak'ed up here... :D
But Ernst raises a good point..
If Democrats have "OVERWHELMING EVIDENCE" then they obviously don't need any additional witnesses because the evidence is, as they say, "OVERWHELMING"..
Once again, the stoopidity of the Dumbocrats shines thru... :smirk: :D
Schumer bemoaned the remaining limitations, saying Wednesday the impeachment trial “begins with a cloud hanging over it, a cloud of unfairness.”
Dood.. This faux impeachment coup itself began "with a cloud hanging over it, a cloud of unfairness"...
House Democrats holding secret trials with absolutely NO Representation of the GOP or the President...
Quit whining, Chucky boy....
You got the EXACT same process in the Senate that your Dumbocrats gave in the House..
Suck it, bitch...
Yunno what's even FUNNIER about Joe Biden's quote??
“People ask the question, isn’t the president going to be stronger and harder to beat if he survives this? Yes, probably.”
Not only will President Trump be STRONGER...
But it will also WEAKEN Democrats.. Democrats are going to be so demoralized by this YYUUUUGGGGEEEEE President Trump win, they are just gonna chuck it and stay home on 3 Nov 2020... :D
Way ta go, Dumbocrats.. You have not only made President Trump stronger, you have also demoralized and weakened yer own side!! :D
What's not to love?? :D
Support For Impeachment is going down and Support For President Trump is going up.. :D
https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/other/public_approval_of_the_impeachment_and_removal_of_president_trump-6957.html
Who could have POSSIBLY predicted this!?? :D
Oh wait... :D
President Trump’s got Davos cheering the US economy, Hillary beating up a socialist heading the Dem polls, and an Impeachment farce heading towards another big win for him. No wonder he’s laughing his way back to the White House
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7916377/Piers-Morgan-President-Trumps-got-Davos-cheering-economy-Hillary-beating-Bernie.html
Yunno, Democrats are boosting President Trump so much, ya have to wonder if it was Trump who outlined and implemented the Democrat plan!! :D
I mean, President Trump couldn't ASK for better enemies than he has right now.. :D
It's simply uncanny how, no matter WHAT Democrats do.....
President Trump *ALWAYS* wins... :D
‘Nobody likes him,’ rages Hillary Clinton in a new documentary film. ‘Nobody wants to work with him. He gets nothing done.’
She expanded on her vicious personal attack in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter: ‘It’s not only him, it’s the culture around him. It’s his leadership team. It’s his prominent supporters….and their relentless attacks on lots of his competitors, particularly the women.’
She concluded: ‘I think people need to pay attention because we want, hopefully, to elect a president who’s going to try to bring us together and not either turn a blind eye, or actually reward the kind of insulting, attacking, degrading behavior that we’ve seen… it’s all just baloney and I feel so bad that people got sucked into it.’
Wow.
but!! but!! but!!!
{Democrats} are able to have differing opinions on how we best solve problems without having to resort to name calling and insults.
-Russ
I told ya that quote of yers would come back and bite ya on the ass over and over and over again.. :D
OK, just this last article and I'll stop.. For about a half hour.. :D
She was talking about Bernie Sanders, a fellow Democrat and the man who is now leading the polls to be the party’s official nominee.
It’s hard to imagine a more glorious bone for President Trump to delightedly gnaw on with his KFC as he flies back home today from the World Economic Forum in Davos.
Here’s the last Democrat he faced – and beat - in an election ripping apart someone who may be the next one, in language so harsh it makes even Trump look like a linguistic choirboy.
Yea, Hillary just SAVAGED Bernie...
Still think the Democrat v Democrat civil war is just a media construct??? :D
And Hillary’s brutal takedown of Bernie comes just days after millions of TV viewers watched another presidential candidate, Elizabeth Warren, furiously harangue him at the end of a CNN debate for saying she lied about her claim that he told her no woman could be elected president.
It’s staggering to see the Democrats eat each other alive like this at the start of Election year.
But then this is a party that seems to specialize in acts of spectacular self-harm.
Word....
Take Trump’s Impeachment trial that’s just begun in the Senate.
It’s already descended into such a pathetic, petty, partisan farce that Chief Justice John Roberts had to warn both sides to stop behaving like squabbling children as they branded each other traitors and liars in unedifying late-night slanging matches.
Yet what is the point of it at all?
Everyone already knows the verdict: ‘Not guilty.’
At some time in the next two weeks, Trump’s going to be acquitted by a Republican majority Senate that has absolutely zero intention of bowing to what they see as a purely political attempt to unseat their President.
So, this is all a complete waste of time.
But worse than that, from a Democrat perspective, it’s going to hand their sworn enemy a gigantic vote-boosting win political victory just as they move into caucus game mode for the 2020 election.
And what is SO utterly fascinating about this is that Democrats EAGERLY ***PLANNED AND EXECUTED*** this entire President Trump boost!!
Democrats WILLINGLY and EXCITEDLY began and nurtured the process that will only serve as a HUGE Re-Election Push For President Trump...
It's MIND-BOGGLING in it's scope and depth...
behaved very badly over the Ukraine scandal.
As I’ve said many times, his conversation with Ukraine President Zelensky was a stupendously dumb thing to do, especially coming so soon after he was cleared by Special Counsel Mueller of colluding with Russia to fix the 2016 Election.
For the President of the United States to ask a foreign leader to investigate his main domestic political opponent, Joe Biden, was unquestionably an abuse of his power.
But I’ve never felt it reached the very high bar for impeachment, which requires one of these four criteria: ‘Treason, Bribery or other high crimes and Misdemeanors.’
"You keep pushing the lie that the articles of impeachment must cite criminal charges for the offense to be impeachable."
-Russ
You paying attention, Russ???
The previous 2 impeachments and the 1 almost impeachment had ONE THING in common..
They were all about CRIMES...
There is a reason for that..
The US Constitution DEMANDS that a President be impeached for CRIMES...
Even Gerald Ford's nascent and unconstitutional quote re-enforces the concept that an impeachment MUST be about CRIMES....
Anyone who claims that an impeachment DOESN'T have to be about crimes is an ignorant fool...
But even without the fire, there’s enough grubby smoke blowing around Trump’s actions to warrant a firm reprimand.
That, though, is all it should have been.
For the Democrats to pursue an impeachment they know they can’t win is mind-blowingly stupid politics.
And they will find out just how mind-blowing when Trump embarks on his lengthy victory tour and rubs their noses in it.
Yep.... "Mind-blowingly stupid politics"...
That describes the Democrats actions PERFECTLY..
This faux impeachment coup will likely go down in the annals of history as the BEST example of "Mind Blowingly Stupid Politics"...
And I am betting there are at least THREE Weigantians who would agree..
:D
The President will be sitting on Air Force One now, basking in the joyous double whammy of his opponents destroying each other, and severely damaging their election hopes with a D.O.A. impeachment.
He’ll be even more emboldened by what happened in Davos, where the undeniably strong performance of the U.S. economy, including record job numbers and stock market highs, was met with widespread approval and admiration by a crowd who in previous years have been rather sniffy towards all things Trump.
Ironically, it was a Ukranian oligarch and politician who best summed up the mood of many delegates to Trump’s claim that America was experiencing an ‘economic boom’ that was ‘nothing short of spectacular'.
‘It was a speech of a country’s leader,’ said Vadym Novynskyi. ‘This is actually what we lack in Ukraine… so our country would demonstrate great results like Mr Trump has just demonstrated.’
Again, one has to MARVEL at the utter incompetence of the Democrat Party..
It couldn't have gone better for President Trump if he had planned it all himself... :D
But overall, I’d say this has been a brilliant 24 hours for him.
I don’t know what a state of Utopia feels like for Trump, but it’s not hard to imagine it involves his opponents tearing themselves to pieces, an ardent old socialist roaring into the lead for Democrat nominee, the purring U.S. economy being lauded by the world’s top business brains, and an Impeachment trial circus that is 100% guaranteed to end in a big win for him just as election fever hots up.
The President’s laughing all the way back to the White House.
And not only President Trump is laughing..
I am having a HOOT-EN-NANNY of a time!!! :D
Waitatic!!!!
I just realized!!!
I am the TOM SERVO of the Political World!!! :D
hehehehehehehe
Gonna give ya'all a bit to catch up and get some comments in edge-wise... :D
Back in a few.. :D
I don't see a Trump win in November.
That's our 'Nuck...
Still as delusional as ever... :D
Nothing like sticking yer head in the sand and ignoring ALL facts and reality... :D
FOLLOW LIVE: Schumer pushes for Senate to demand files from Mulvaney, Bolton, other officials
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-senate-impeachment-live-blog-lawmakers-debate-ground-rules
BUT!!! BUT!!! BUT!!!!
Schiff-head said that the case against President Trump is "OVERWHELMING"..
So, OBVIOUSLY, no more evidence is required...
DUH.....
Democrats.. Caught in a quagmire of their own making...
"Giggidy, Giggidy"
:D
It's not a lie..
What part of HIGH CRIMES AND MISDEMEANORS is unclear to you??
It's in the CONSTITUTION..
Yunno.. The founding document that Dumbocrats CLAIM to respect.. When it suits their agenda..
All the rest is just more of the same so it's safely ignored..
What part of “HIGH CRIMES AND MISDEMEANORS” DOES NOT MEAN CODIFIED CRIMINAL CHARGES NECESSARILY do you not understand??? Read the Federalist Papers. Pick up a history book.
Trump is still violating Congress by his continued refusal to release the requested documents. His claims of “executive privilege” are a joke, especially when items were related to the impeachment inquiry and he put out the order to refuse all document requests as a blanket policy that didn’t consider what was being requested prior to refusing to turn over the info being sought. FOIA requests must be responded to in a very specific way, or the law penalizes the agency breaking the law with hefty fines. The agencies must state the statute that justifies withholding the requested document from being released. “The President doesn’t want you to see the evidence showing his criminal actions,” is not a federal statute for refusing a request for records.
Now we come to find out the FACTS regarding Buttigigs "military service"
Buttigieg’s Hollow Military Bragging
https://tinyurl.com/qtqna4o
The most obscene???
American Traitor John Kerry was his "hero"... Buttigig's "motivation" for joining the military... :eyeroll:
Follow-up to that, obscene-wise...
Buttigig went thru NO MILITARY TRAINING... He was simply handed a commission...
(No, Russ.. Not a Police Office "commission".. :eyeroll: )
Buttigig is as much of a military member as Balthasar (the angel, not our fallen comrade).....
Sanders, Gagged in the Senate, Suffers Rivals’ Slings
https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2020/01/22/sanders_gagged_in_senate_suffers_rivals_slings_142211.html
Who could have POSSIBLY predicted this outcome!!???
Oh... wait.. :D
One has to wonder... Was this the goal when Pelosi made her bonehead HURRY UP AND WAIT play???
Things that make ya go.... Hmmmmmmmm... :D
Undeniably more dangerous to Sanders’s White House aspirations are political attacks. Rivals past and present have taken advantage of the Sanders silence to bloody the presidential candidate-turned-mute-impeachment-juror.
Hillary Clinton’s voice re-emerged, however, just as the third impeachment trial in American history began. The former Democratic nominee told the Hollywood Reporter in a piece Tuesday morning that her former rival led a movement hostile to women. She declined to endorse Sanders publicly, but rather took the opportunity to tear into him personally.
Ya really have to marvel at the cowardice of Hillary Clinton..
She waited until Sanders was gagged before launching her broadside against him..
Liz,
P.S. What is wrong with Hillary Clinton and why, oh why, won't she go away?
Word... :D
But I am sure the GOP don't WANT her to go away..
Hillary is one of their best weapons against Democrats.. :D
Please take your requests to refrain from using foul language elsewhere.
This is an adult forum where people use adult words.
Shut the fuck up! :D hehehehehe
"We're likely to believe an upstanding business man rather than some foul mouthed jerk from out of town."
"Foul mouthed?? Fuck you!"
-Beverly Hills Cop
:D
Sorry, Liz...
I respect what ya are doing, but sometimes I just can't help myself.. :D
Patrick Mahomes takes heat on social media after George Zimmerman tweets resurface
https://www.foxnews.com/sports/patrick-mahomes-heat-george-zimmerman-tweets
Makes me almost like Mahomes... Almost..
Impeachment trial is Dems’ misdirection: Devine
Every one of the 63 million Americans who voted for Donald Trump should be incandescent with rage about the impeachment trial under way in the Senate.
This shameful pantomime is the culmination of a three-year temper tantrum by the Democrats for their 2016 loss. It is therapy for Trump Derangement Syndrome, at your expense.
Meanwhile, the president is out there working 16-hour days and scoring goals, with the economy booming, blue-collar wages up and workers prospering.
https://nypost.com/2020/01/22/impeachment-trial-is-dems-misdirection-devine/
Leave it to Democrats to try and take out the BEST President this country has had since Saint Ronald Reagan..
:eyeroll:
Whatever you think of his bombast, Trump has been meticulous in keeping his promises to the American people, and his almost Tourette-like candor frustrates the Democrats’ demonization project.
Impeachment is their only way to drown out his good news because they don’t yet have a candidate capable of beating him in November. They’re afraid that any reasonable voter will say he has earned the right to a second term.
The FACTS completely support such a claim...
"If we don't impeach him, he will win re-election."
-Rep Al Green
"We *MUST* impeach President Trump to prevent his re-election."
-Nancy Pelosi
“Today, I hold up the American model as an example to the world of a working system of free enterprise that will produce the most benefits for the most people.
“A pro-worker, pro-citizen, pro-family agenda demonstrates how a nation can thrive.”
-President Donald Trump speaking at DAVOS
A-frakin'-men to that!! :D
What part of “HIGH CRIMES AND MISDEMEANORS” DOES NOT MEAN CODIFIED CRIMINAL CHARGES NECESSARILY
Facts to support??
None??
That's what I thought....
Trump is still violating Congress by his continued refusal to release the requested documents.
Factually not accurate...
President Trump is simply invoking Executive Privilege.. Something Odumbo did all the time..
Funny you didn't have a problem then, eh? :smirk: :D
Face reality, Russ.. President Trump is going to be COMPLETELY vindicated and exonerated, just like he was with yer Russia Collusion delusion...
And even Joe Biden concedes that such vindication and exoneration will make President Trump STRONGER and HARDER to beat in the General Election...
You can't win.. :D
Trump’s Latest Manufacturing Jobs Achievements Should Terrify 2020 Democrats
As Democrats frantically and feverishly work to convince the public Donald Trump deserves to be impeached, America’s economy continues to make remarkable progress.
Asians, African Americans, Hispanics, and women all enjoyed historically low unemployment in 2019, and with a significant chunk of the U.S.-China trade war now in the rearview mirror, it seems unlikely the United States’ low unemployment trend will falter prior to November.
https://www.theepochtimes.com/trumps-latest-manufacturing-jobs-achievements-should-terrify-2020-democrats_3212754.html
President Trump has got a great economy and an awesome American standing and pride in his corner..
Democrats have 2 failed coups and nothing else in their corner...
Geee.. I wonder who is going to win in November.. :D
This presents an important problem for Democrats. Whatever you happen to think about Trump’s phone calls with heads of state, late-night Twitter rants, or any number of other factors, history has proven repeatedly that when it comes to presidential elections, the one thing that matters above all else is job growth. And as badly as so many on the left would love to see a recession strike just in time for Election Day, at present, America’s job numbers are stellar, which suggests strongly that President Trump will win a second term.
In fact, an examination of modern American history shows quite clearly that incumbent presidents usually win a second term, and when they do lose, it’s usually during or immediately after a period of economic decline. In fact, over the past several decades, no sitting president has ever lost an election while presiding over a well-performing economy.
But even these considerations don’t fully capture just how big the massive hill is that Democrats will have to climb as the presidential race accelerates.
As Hillary Clinton knows well, Democrats can’t win in 2020 by convincing a majority of American voters that Trump doesn’t deserve a second term; they must convince the majority of voters in key parts of the country, especially the Midwest.
Democrats simply CANNOT overcome all the '+'s that President Trump has on his side..
They put all their eggs in the 'coup' basket...
And look at where it's gotten them... :D
‘Outlet challenge’ prompts safety warnings from fire investigators
https://www.foxnews.com/us/outlet-challenge-prompts-safety-warnings-from-fire-investigators
Democrat Millennials..
The epitome of stoopid..
Reminds me of the time I tried to build a PA/INTERCOM system by wiring a plug cord from the wall to one speaker (to talk in to) and from there to another speaker (to listen from).. :D
Didn't work out too well, but I heard the "sound" of electricity.. :D
My Dad had heart failure when I explained the concept to him.. :D
Granted, I was only 8 at the time, so.... :D
Millenials... Proving Darwin right every day... :D
Russ,
I am also constrained to remind you that in EVERY impeachment in the HISTORY of impeachment the impetus was criminal activity...
Even if it's only "tradition and precedent" (which it's not) Democrats have stated that, in the case of President Trump's tax returns, "tradition and precedent" should have the force of law...
Do you see how you and Democrats change yer "truth" to suit ya'all's agenda?? :D
This is why it's so easy to win debates here... :D
Dems' challenge: Making impeachment case with evidence recap
WASHINGTON (AP) — The challenge is becoming increasingly clear for House Democrats prosecuting President Donald Trump’s impeachment case as the Senate convenes for a second day of arguments in the landmark trial.
The evidence confronting Trump becomes less compelling when presented again and again, day after day, as Democrats try to convince not just fidgety senators but an American public deeply divided over the Republican president in an election year.
As the Senate gavels in Thursday, the Democrats are one-third of the way through the 24 hours allotted to make their case.
https://apnews.com/5dbd0f2716438d40395b36f054f7d55d
And Democrats are FAILING to make the case to the GOP **AND** to the American people..
How did Piers Morgan put it??
"Mind-blowingly stupid politics"
THAT perfectly describes Democrats and their actions!!
Impeachment backfire? Key GOP senator 'offended' by Nadler charge, as trial tests patience and stamina
House Democrats' handling of the Trump impeachment to date may be turning off Republicans -- notably, those seen as possible defectors in a final vote.
The first sign of a backlash among that critical group came Wednesday when Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, a moderate member of the conference, said she was offended by House manager Rep. Jerrold Nadler’s assertion that GOP members voting against allowing new testimony and evidence were engaged in a “cover-up.”
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/impeachment-backfire-key-gop-senator-offended-by-nadler-charge-as-trial-tests-patience-and-stamina
What *IS* it about Democrats that they have this over-whelming URGE to viciously attack the VERY PEOPLE they need to accomplish their goals??
Is it a learned attribute of Democrats??
Or does it just come naturally???
“I took it as offensive,” she told reporters Wednesday. “As one who is listening attentively and working hard to get to a fair process, I was offended.”
Nadler’s opening statement, which led to U.S. Chief Justice John Roberts admonishing those in the chamber, accused Republican senators of “voting for a cover-up, voting to deny witnesses, an absolutely indefensible vote, obviously a treacherous vote.”
Murkowski’s complaint about Nadler's remarks is particularly noteworthy, as she is among the small group of Republican senators seen as a possible swing vote on impeachment and a possible supporter of allowing more witness testimony later on in the trial.
But Murkowski is not alone—Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., on Wednesday said Democrats “took a huge step backward” in their opening.
“I mean, that’s an extraordinary thing to say on the floor of the United States Senate, the middle of the trial, and that’s what drew the rebuke and rightly so,” Hawley told reporters. “I can tell you, there was an open, open gasping on the Senate floor when Nadler was saying these things. I mean, it’s really, really extraordinary.”
He added: “If the goal was to persuade, they took a huge step backward last night.”
It's almost as if Democrats *WANT* Republicans to support President Trump to the hilt..
I am also constrained to remind you that in EVERY impeachment in the HISTORY of impeachment the impetus was criminal activity...
Even if it's only "tradition and precedent" (which it's not) Democrats have stated that, in the case of President Trump's tax returns, "tradition and precedent" should have the force of law...
Do you see how you and Democrats change yer "truth" to suit ya'all's agenda?? :D
This is why it's so easy to win debates here... :D
Yes it is... because you are constantly lying and we are not fooled by your dishonesty!
In the legal case seeking the IRS to release the President’s tax returns, it is a law that says the IRS SHALL release the financial records to the House Committee Chair upon request... “precedent and tradition” have nothing to do with past presidents turning theirs over voluntarily, the LEGAL PRECEDENT of having to obey the law as it is written is what Democrats are asking the court to rule on.
I mean, look how dishonest you describe Chief Justice Roberts’ admonishment of both all parties in the Senate chambers. Nadler was not the only person that caused Roberts to speak up, but I do give credit to the pearl clutching done by the Republicans over Nadler simply calling their actions out for what they truly are!
It almost seemed, for a split second, like those remarks shocked and offended the Republicans as if they had no idea where Nadler could have come up with such outrageous accusations. I’m surprised that he wasn’t accused of being on bath salts for such crazy allegations.
Yes it is... because you are constantly lying and we are not fooled by your dishonesty!
Of course you say that..
Just as, OF COURSE, you have no facts to back it up..
In the legal case seeking the IRS to release the President’s tax returns, it is a law that says the IRS SHALL release the financial records to the House Committee Chair upon request... “precedent and tradition” have nothing to do with past presidents turning theirs over voluntarily, the LEGAL PRECEDENT of having to obey the law as it is written is what Democrats are asking the court to rule on.
And if Dumbocrats prevail in the SCOTUS, then they can have President Trump's tax returns..
But you and I both know that won't happen..
Regardless I am not talking about that.
I am talking about the mewlings and whinings of Weigantians when Trump didn't release his tax returns in the campaign.
Ya'all whined and bitched.. IT'S TRADITION!!!!!
Funny how you ONLY want to uphold "tradition" when it suits yer agenda.. :D
I mean, look how dishonest you describe Chief Justice Roberts’ admonishment of both all parties in the Senate chambers. Nadler was not the only person that caused Roberts to speak up, but I do give credit to the pearl clutching done by the Republicans over Nadler simply calling their actions out for what they truly are!
You DO realize that you are going to NEED those Republicans if you want your wish to remove President Trump to come true, right??
If the GOP'ers are like you say they are, how is it you expect President Trump to be removed??
You realize yer talking out of BOTH sides of yer ass, right???
It almost seemed, for a split second, like those remarks shocked and offended the Republicans as if they had no idea where Nadler could have come up with such outrageous accusations. I’m surprised that he wasn’t accused of being on bath salts for such crazy allegations.
No.. Just a moron... A run o the mill every day Democrat Moron.. :D
Also, you keep on harping on and on about Mueller being the “Democrats’ coup attempt”, but Mueller was ordered to take over the investigation into Trump’s campaign by the Republican appointed Acting Director of the FBI, Rod Rosenstein.
So if it was a “coup attempt”, it was one instigated by Trump’s own GOP. Jeff Sessions should have just tossed the investigation if it were meritless, but instead he recused himself as he knew the investigation did have merit!
Also, you keep on harping on and on about Mueller being the “Democrats’ coup attempt”, but Mueller was ordered to take over the investigation into Trump’s campaign by the Republican appointed Acting Director of the FBI, Rod Rosenstein.
Yea.. Trump/America hater..
So???
So if it was a “coup attempt”, it was one instigated by Trump’s own GOP. Jeff Sessions should have just tossed the investigation if it were meritless, but instead he recused himself as he knew the investigation did have merit!
ANd yet.. President Trump was COMPLETELY and UTTERLY exonerated by Mueller, either by commission or omission..
You have a funny definition of "merit".. :D
It's all in yer head, Russ...
And if Dumbocrats prevail in the SCOTUS, then they can have President Trump's tax returns..
But you and I both know that won't happen..
Don’t include me in your delusional worship of Trump...I know that SCOTUS is not likely to make a ruling that completely ignores the plain word reading of the statute they are being asked to review. Plus, I have no doubt that even you do not really believe that will happen. How do I know this?
Regardless I am not talking about that.
I am talking about the mewlings and whinings of Weigantians when Trump didn't release his tax returns in the campaign.
Because you moved the goalposts once your argument got slammed! Your original statement was:
Democrats have stated that, in the case of President Trump's tax returns, "tradition and precedent" should have the force of law...
You were talking about Democrats, not Weigantians. You brought up the legal case regarding Trump’s tax returns — which none of us here filed. And even if I ignore these two facts, there is your false claim that anyone here argued that because other presidents have voluntarily released their tax returns, we believe “‘tradition and precedent’ should have the force of law.” NO ONE has made that claim except for YOU!
Do you not see why I say that you fool no one with your dishonesty on here? I could continue if need be, but I would prefer to not have to.
Don’t include me in your delusional worship of Trump...I know that SCOTUS is not likely to make a ruling that completely ignores the plain word reading of the statute they are being asked to review.
Yea.. You said much the same thing before EVERY TIME the SCOTUS ruled in President Trump's favor..
You were talking about Democrats, not Weigantians.
One and the same..
Besides, Democrats were ALSO making the same whinings and mewlings...
Do you not see why I say that you fool no one with your dishonesty on here?
Whatever you have to tell yerself to make it thru your day...
Let's compare predictions before you spew BS on "honesty"...
ANywho, it's Poker Night.. See ya in the am.. :D
ANd yet.. President Trump was COMPLETELY and UTTERLY exonerated by Mueller, either by commission or omission..
If you consider Trump’s being name the “unindicted co-conspirator” of the crimes that sent Trump’s personal attorney to prison; Trump’s national security advisor pleading guilty for lying to federal investigators; Trump’s campaign manager being convicted on felony charges; Trump’s inauguration co-manager pleading guilty to federal charges; Trump’s personal advisor being convicted on felony charges for lying about his role in having a foreign government interfere on Trump’s behalf in our 2016 election in order to get Trump elected...there’s still a lot more, but I think even YOU get the point that I am making...if you think all of these things somehow “COMPLETELY AND UTTERLY exonerate” Trump, then you aren’t well!
Republicans are stuck in a “damned if ya do, damned if ya don’t” situation early on in the Impeachment trial. They cannot allow the Democrats to get the requested documents and testimony from the witnesses they want to subpoena because they already know that Trump is guilty as hell and this would only provide more evidence of his guilt that they would have to ignore if they “acquit” Trump! Damned if they do.
But by refusing to allow for the evidence that could clear Trump of any wrong doing to be considered in this trial before they vote to acquit, they have made it clear to their constituents and the American people that this was a sham trial that was never meant to do anything but cover-up the President’s crimes. Trump says the impeachment was a hoax, but the Republicans refusal to provide a fair trial is what everyone will call the TRUE HOAX! Damned if they don’t.
And this is the part that his cult members failed to see coming —Trump won’t be exonerated, no matter how many times he says that he was! The vast majority of Americans are wanting Trump to get a fair trial, but Trump does not want a fair trial. Trump is basically saying to Americans that he is rich, so why should he be expected to face a trial that isn’t gamed in his favor? That will look great on his campaign caps!
If the Republicans refuse to look at the evidence prior to ruling on this case, Trump will hear people laughing anytime he tries to claim he was exonerated of all wrong doing when he was acquitted.
The Democrats will take back the White House, the Senate and maintain the House — all thanks to pointing at Trump’s presidency and asking if the American people truly want 4 more years of corruption, lies, and division from the GOP.
Now do you see why I believe the Republicans may shock us all by voting with the Democrats to remove Trump from office... because it is the only way they don’t come off looking completely corrupted and under Trump’s control in this “damned if you do/don’t” moment in history!
Plus, you have to agree that if the Republicans were going to vote to remove Trump from office, what I have suggested would be the safest way they could do it and possibly avert the GOP’s complete implosion after Trump is removed.