Friday Talking Points -- Let Boredom Ring!
President Joe Biden has now spent his first 10 days in office. All told, it's been fairly boring. Which is exactly what millions of Americans voted him into office to achieve. Journalists everywhere are writing absolute paeans to boredom. Throughout the land, a joyous cry is raised: "Let boredom ring!" Well, OK, that may be overstating it a tiny bit. But not by much.
Central to this newfound delight in ennui, of course, is the vast and echoing silence emanating from Mar-A-Lago. Still cut off from all his social media accounts, and perhaps legally wary of saying anything before his Senate impeachment trial, Donald Trump has been gloriously and wonderfully quiet. This continues the longest streak of silence from him in at least five years (if not "ever").
Consider what Biden's first week in office would have been like if Trump had been taking dozens of potshots at him from the sidelines, each and every day. The one thing Trump is an absolute (if not "stable") genius at is manipulating the news media and inserting his own idiocy into subjects where it was never welcome to begin with. He's a master at it. He knows that the more outrageous whatever he tweeted out was, the higher the chance that it would be all anyone in the political media would be talking about by the time the evening news rolled around.
And now there has been none of it, for weeks. And, on Twitter at least, there will never be any more of it, ever again, forever. O blissful and joyous silence!
Biden certainly has not been bidin' his time (our apologies, but we're probably going to overuse that pun repeatedly for about the next four years, so be just warned...). His cabinet nominees are getting confirmed with overwhelming majorities in the Senate (so far, at any rate), and he has issued an absolute snowstorm of executive orders in his first 10 days in office.
Call it the "cleanup on aisle 45" list, since virtually all of it was necessary to overturn the worst of Trump's many misguided (if not downright evil) policies. Here's just a partial list of what Biden has accomplished in 10 short days (all of which are quite popular with the public, it bears mentioning):
Rejoined the Paris climate agreement. Rejoined the World Heath Organization. Lifted the ban on transgendered troops serving openly. Moved to restore the process of putting Harriet Tubman onto the $20 bill. Halted the Keystone XL pipeline construction. Opened the Obamacare exchanges back up, due to the pandemic. Killed Trump's border wall construction. Ended Trump's "Muslim ban." Moved to reunite families separated from their children at the border. Mandated masks on all federal property including airplanes, airports, and other interstate travel. Restored DACA. Restored moratorium on evictions. Restored moratorium on student loan paybacks. Ended citizenship nonsense at Census Bureau. Killed off a laughable "1776 commission report" which was intended to whitewash slavery in schools' history classes. Killed the global "gag rule" on abortion. Pushed for a $15 minimum wage. Pushed for $1.9 trillion in COVID-19 relief aid. Mandated climate change as a priority for the entire executive branch. Put new limits on oil and gas drilling on federal land. Halted many last-minute Trump hires across the executive branch. Halted many last-minute rules issued by Trump administration. Encouraged the federal government to "buy American."
That's all in just 10 days, folks. So, while the atmosphere in Washington has been soothingly boring, this doesn't mean things aren't still getting done at record speed. Adding to this return to normalcy is the fact that regular (propaganda-free and falsehood-free) White House press briefings have resumed, where solid information is given to the public on important subjects such as the pandemic response and vaccination plans.
That last subject, more than anything else, will be what Biden's presidency hinges on for at least his first year in office, so it is important. Trump left the vaccination efforts in ruins, just like he left everything else. The media hasn't been stressing this fact much, but it wasn't until a day or two ago that the country finally hit the milestone of the first 20 million people getting vaccinated that Trump had promised to achieve by the end of December. But now, at least, we've ramped up to over a million shots per day, so we're at least improving. So much so that Biden had to up his promise for his first 100 days from 100 million vaccinated to 150 million vaccinated, which probably will require hitting two million vaccinations a day within a month or two. That's ambitious, but not out of the question, at this point. Biden also announced the advance purchase of 200 million more doses, meaning we'll have enough to vaccinate 300 million Americans by the summer. If that goes according to plan, we will have then reached herd immunity. And, again, this more than anything else is what Biden will be judged on by the public.
So far, they're pretty happy, it seems. Biden is already polling well above 50 percent in his job approval ratings -- a mark that Trump didn't hit once during his entire term in office. One poll even had Biden above 60 percent.
What we're wondering -- since we haven't heard a peep about it from anyone in the Washington chattering class -- is whether President Biden will actually give an annual speech to a joint session of Congress or not. Since it'd be his first such address (given right after he took office), it wouldn't technically be a "State Of The Union" address, but late January to early February is the usual season for such speeches -- which is why we're wondering why nobody's even mentioned the possibility yet.
Perhaps Biden is waiting until after the Trump impeachment trial happens in the Senate? That's certainly understandable. But the trial, no matter what happens, isn't likely to impact Biden's popularity with the public at all, since he's wisely staying out of the fray on this one.
Currently, the Senate is wrestling with negotiations over the COVID-19 relief package Biden wants to pass. The big question is whether Biden's vaunted push for bipartisanship will have the slightest chance of success, given the daunting math involved. Are 10 Republican senators really going to vote for an enormous pandemic relief bill? This seems highly doubtful. The Republican negotiators have not put forward their own proposal, all they've been doing is whining about the total cost. In other words, they've been doing precisely what Mitch McConnell did for over nine months last year: obstructing any bill from being voted on, period.
Since we obviously can't wait another nine months to get an another inadequate bill, congressional Democrats have begun an alternate way of achieving some desperately-needed aid, by beginning the "budget reconciliation" bills in both the House and Senate. This will only require a simple majority vote in the Senate, meaning it could pass with zero GOP votes.
For some reason, this has upset the Republicans, and they are shedding many crocodile tears as they vaporously clutch their pearls. They have started using terms like "betrayal" of all those promises of unity from Biden. No, seriously:
"Covid relief presents the best avenue for bipartisanship right out of the gate," said Senator Shelley Moore Capito, Republican of West Virginia and a member of the bipartisan group. Ramming a bill through reconciliation, she added, "is a signal to every Republican that your ideas don't matter, and I think -- does that end it? No, but it certainly puts a color on it."
Meanwhile, GOP Sen. Susan Collins of Maine is calling on Biden to put the brakes on reconciliation to show that he's "sincere in his commitment to bipartisanship."
They've got this entirely backwards, as usual. Biden isn't the one who needs to show sincere commitment to bipartisanship, instead it is the Republicans who must do so for it to happen. Biden is giving them a very short window where they can get their bipartisan act together, and then if they don't, the bill will move forward anyway. As Democrats were more than happy to point out:
"Cry me a river," Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) told HuffPost.
"I can guarantee you, no one back home cares. They just want their relief," added Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii).
The insight that voters will judge Democrats by the scale of what they deliver on, and not on whether they achieve bipartisan cooperation for its own sake, suggests Democrats have learned the lessons of 2009 and 2010.
Dan Pfeiffer, former Obama top aide, wrote even more bluntly:
Joe Biden won the election. Republicans lost. Joe Biden doing the things Americans elected him to do is not divisive. The Republicans may not like it, but that's their problem.
Republicans' big problem these days (other than the rampant unhinged batpoop craziness burrowing further within their ranks, of course) is that they have become exactly what they used to sneer at about liberals: the world's tiniest and saddest snowflakes. Just about everything sets them off these days, no matter how imagined the slight.
We're going to end this round-up with the prime example of this, Senator Josh Hawley from Missouri.
Hawley complained this week that he had been "cancelled" by those dastardly liberals. Now, "cancelled," when used by Republicans, means: "taken to task for something odious you have said or done in the past, and made to pay a price by society at large for being so offensive." It most definitely does not refer to Donald Trump trying to shame all his perceived enemies on social media -- because the idea of Trump "cancelling" people would just about make Republicans' little heads explode. No, to Republicans it now just means having to pay a price for being a complete jackass.
As Hawley has paid, for being one of two senators willing to put the country through the charade that the election could somehow be overturned on January sixth (Ted Cruz, of course, was the other -- more on him in a moment). So he wrote an opinion piece just whining that he had been "muzzled."
And it ran in the New York Post. A newspaper in the largest city in the country, that boasts a circulation almost every other newspaper would envy. Hawley's piece appeared on the front page of this paper. So he could complain about "being muzzled."
The Washington Post pushed back on this, hard. Which is what we'll end with today, since it accurately puts Hawley's snowflake complaint into some proper and necessary perspective:
[W]hat's at stake here is a serious, violent attempt to subvert the results of the presidential election, an act that was the culmination of months of dishonest rhetoric from Trump and his allies. It was a literal attempt at rebellion, however unlikely to succeed. It was deadlier than the taking of Fort Sumter, though less successful as a trigger for the collapse of the nation. More than 100 law enforcement officers were injured in what the government itself calls an "insurrection."
This is not an issue on which reasonable people can disagree. It's understandable why [Senator Josh] Hawley would want to play down his role in the events that occurred, but to portray what followed as a politically motivated disagreement is to collapse the events of Jan. 6 into a general left-versus-right split. This is very useful for Hawley, another example of his cynically using the partisan divide to bolster his political position. But some things must stand apart from our all-too-familiar blue-said/red-said dynamic.
Criticizing the actions of the mob while defending the rhetoric that helped bolster its false perceptions is not tenable, but Hawley isn't the only one to try it. [Senator Ted] Cruz, for example, was on Fox News the day after the Capitol riot to insist something similar: What he was doing was "debating on the floor of the Senate election integrity," which "has nothing to do with this criminal terrorist assault."
"What I was doing is how you're supposed to resolve issues in this country," he said. But, of course, that's not what he was doing. In his speech shortly before the mob's arrival, he insisted he wasn't arguing that the election should be set aside but also that he didn't want to send the message that "voter fraud doesn't matter, isn't real and shouldn't be taken seriously."
Setting aside how much the minute amount of fraud in any election does matter or should be considered a real threat, Cruz was arguing that this issue, which Trump had been pressing for months specifically because he wanted to shift the results of the election, must be treated as a serious matter. Shortly afterward, the mob did.
. . .
The president of the United States spent months before and after the election claiming that rampant fraud tainted the results. Members of his party elevated those claims in a rush to garner favor from his energetic base. That toxic energy led thousands of people to feel like they had to storm the Capitol on Jan. 6 to stop what they incorrectly saw as the final certification of a result they had been told was illegally obtained.
That's the context for any claims that the left and the right simply disagree on the issue of fraud or that those claims are equivalent. They are not. The issue is not that Hawley is facing retribution for being a conservative. It's that he is using the retribution to try to recast an effort to interrupt the process of electing a new president -- an effort that contributed to a violent insurrection -- as simply being part of the political debate.
Before we get to the main award, we first have to hand Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez an Honorable Mention this week, for absolutely tearing Ted Cruz a new one.
In the midst of all the frenzy on the stock market (which we have chosen to ignore this week, seeing as how we'll likely get to cover it later during the hearings), A.O.C. weighed in on Twitter with a few choice comments on the Robinhood scandal (during the GameStop stock run), saying she would support hearings into the matter.
This is when -- of all people -- Senator Ted Cruz weighed in, saying he "fully" agreed.
A.O.C. did not exactly welcome his support, and she let him know why in no uncertain terms:
I am happy to work with Republicans on this issue where there's common ground, but you almost had me murdered 3 weeks ago so you can sit this one out. Happy to work w/ almost any other GOP that aren't trying to get me killed. In the meantime if you want to help, you can resign.
Cruz tried to get up on his high horse, even though Republican high horses barely break through the slime at the bottom of the gutter these days, huffing:
There's a lot of partisan anger and rage on the Democratic side. It's not healthy for our country. It's certainly not conducive of healing or unity, but everyone has to decide how they want to interact with others.
Seriously? There's partisan anger and rage on the Democratic side? Just because of a little thing like a Republican mob trying to kill them while the president of the United States egged them on? A.O.C. wasn't taking any of this lying down, responding:
Oh, there's anger? Now why would there be anger that Cruz amplified known lies about our election that fueled an insurrection that cost ppl's lives? What does he think the logical response to his lies should be? A hug? Maybe there's anger bc his actions deserve accountability.
You go, girl! Well done!
But the winner of the Most Impressive Democrat Of The Week this week is Representative Jimmy Gomez from California. In response to all the recent revelations about the depths of both delusion and hatred newly-seated Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene has sunk (which we will discuss in more depth later, in the talking points), which included supporting calls to kill Democrats and put a bullet in Nancy Pelosi's head, Gomez did exactly what needed to be done. He filed a motion to expel Greene from the House of Representatives.
This is exactly the right response. Greene's statements, videos, and other insanity are simply indefensible. And it's time to put every Republican in the House on the record as either supporting her dangerous lunacy or opposing it.
The measure will likely not work, because it would need a two-thirds vote. But politically, it will be beneficial later (especially if she melts down in some spectacular way a few months from now) to have every Republican on the record as supporting her.
So while other Democrats hesitated, Gomez acted. Doing so was impressive. So impressive he is the obvious choice for Most Impressive Democrat Of The Week.
[Congratulate Representative Jimmy Gomez on his House contact page, to let him know you appreciate his efforts.]
Sadly, we have two Most Disappointing Democrat Of The Week awards to hand out this week, to Senators Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona.
At the start of the week, we were still having a showdown between Chuck Schumer and Mitch McConnell. McConnell wouldn't agree to a new set of Senate rules to organize all the committees around the fact that Democrats were now in control of the chamber, because McConnell wanted Schumer to explicitly agree not to even attempt killing off the legislative filibuster. Schumer, rightly, refused to do so. The impasse broke, though, after Democrats Manchin and Sinema declared pretty unequivocally that they would never vote to kill the filibuster.
Because their statement were so strong, McConnell not only relented but pointed to them in a floor speech as the reason why he was now reassured that he will continue to be able to endlessly obstruct legislation in the Senate.
Manchin and Sinema, of course, are free to vote any way they want on the filibuster -- but they could have at least left the door open a crack. Doing so would have strengthened Schumer's hand not only during this power struggle but also far down the road when McConnell is being completely unreasonable about a particular piece of legislation (which is absolutely guaranteed to happen, kind of like the sun rising in the east).
By wording their statements as strongly as can be imagined, Manchin and Sinema seriously undercut their own party's political leader in an evenly-divided Senate. This could have dire consequences for the next two years.
Which is more than enough reason to award this week's Most Disappointing Democrat Of The Week to both Senator Joe Manchin and Senator Kyrsten Sinema. Thanks for nothing, guys.
[Contact Senator Joe Manchin on his Senate contact page, and Senator Kyrsten Sinema on her Senate contact page, to let them know what you think of their actions.]
Volume 604 (1/29/21)
On to the talking points. There overarching theme this week (if there even is one) is how the entire Republican Party seems to have completely rounded the bend into Crazytown. I mean, we're talking Joker-level insanity here, folks. So buckle up, here we go....
Domestic terrorism gets attention
This really should have happened like 10 years ago (or even longer...).
"The Department of Homeland Security issued its first-ever National Terrorism Advisory System warning about homegrown domestic terrorists. This included pretty stark language such as warning that, quote, violent riots have continued in recent days and we remain concerned that individuals frustrated with the exercise of governmental authority and the presidential transition, as well as other perceived grievances and ideological causes fueled by false narratives, could continue to mobilize a broad range of ideologically-motivated actors to incite or commit violence, unquote. Or, not to mince words quite so much, the biggest terrorist threat America now faces is coming from Donald Trump's most rabid supporters. And yet the silence from Republican politicians on facing up to and countering this threat is deafening."
Crazy like an elephant
Of course, these lunatics wouldn't have quite as much power if they weren't aided and abetted by Republicans from the top on down.
"We are getting close to the point where it can accurately be said that the Republican Party has lost all moral standing whatsoever. Or just plain lost its mind. Last week, the official Hawai'i Republican Party Twitter account sent out messages of support for QAnon followers, saying they had, quote, a sincere and deep love for America, unquote. They went on to say that patriotism 'should never be ridiculed,' and that Q adherents 'don't deserve mockery.' Also last week, the Oregon GOP approved a resolution 'condemning the betrayal' of the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Donald Trump for inciting an insurrection against the constitutional duties of Congress. A clearer example of putting party over country is hard to imagine. This resolution called the Republicans who voted their conscience 'traitors' who 'conspired' with 'Leftist forces seeking to establish a dictatorship void of all cherished freedoms and liberties.' It then went on to state that there was 'growing evidence' that the Capitol attack was a 'false flag operation [to] discredit President Trump, his supporters and all conservative Republicans.' Folks, this is what we are now dealing with. This is not some buffoon in a tinfoil hat, these are coming from the official leaders of state Republican Party groups. These nonsensical conspiracy theories based upon pure moonbeams are now the official policy of the Republican Party. Still think 'lost its mind' is too strong a term? I don't, because the lunatics have now officially taken over the GOP asylum."
Case in point...
And then there are Republicans in Congress.
"So far, the Republican leadership in the House of Representatives has done nothing -- other than to reward her with choice committee seats -- to rein in the nuttiest flake in the party's current granola mix. Georgia Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene is now documented to have: supported QAnon and other conspiracy theories, stated that the school shootings at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School and Sandy Hook Elementary were 'false-flag' operations -- including videos of her harassing one of the Douglas High students on the street in which she points out that she has a gun, liked and echoed social media posts that called for violence against Democrats including shooting Nancy Pelosi in the head, threatened a Democratic colleague in the halls of Congress, made racist comments, and (the icing on the fruitcake) blamed California wildfires on -- are you sitting down -- giant Jewish space lasers. Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, in response to all these revelations, decided she needed a seat on the House education committee. So, yeah, even at the national level the Republican Party has completely lost its mind."
A dangerous place
Pelosi's right, on this one.
"Speaker Nancy Pelosi responded to the news that Kevin McCarthy had given Marjorie Taylor Greene a seat on the education committee -- after harassing an underage teen and claiming that school shootings were somehow faked -- by pointing out: 'What could they be thinking? Or is thinking too generous of a word for what they might be doing? It's absolutely appalling, and I think the focus has to be on the Republican leadership in the House of Representatives for the disregard they have for the deaths of those children.' She went on to echo Pogo Possum's famous line ("We have met the enemy and he is us") by saying: 'The enemy is within the House of Representatives. We have members of Congress who want to bring guns on the floor and have threatened violence against other members.' And Republican leadership not only turns a blind eye, but actually rewards such people."
Give him a jail cell instead
Nikki Haley was, right up until this week, the most unscathed member of the Trump Administration to have served. She used to be still somewhat respectable, in other words. Not any more. She's not the only one engaging in this "OK, sure we egged on an insurrectionist mob to not only kill Democratic members of Congress but also Republicans like Mike Pence, but hey, that was like over three weeks ago, so why are you bring up old stuff?" line of thinking, but her statement truly stood out. In fact, the reasons why are so glaringly obvious that we are leaving her quote untouched, for the reader to construct his or her own talking point (hint: if you need help getting started, think "Benghazi"...).
"The actions of the president post-Election Day were not great. What happened on January 6 was not great," Haley said in an interview on Fox News, referring to the violent storming of the U.S. Capitol by a mob of then-President Donald Trump's supporters. But, she added, impeaching him for inciting that mob, including in a rally that morning, was a "political game."
"They beat him up before he got into office. They're beating him up after he leaves office," she said. "I mean, at some point -- I mean, give the man a break. I mean, move on."
Pilgrimage of pusillanimousness
Sometimes we have to turn over a talking point to another wordsmith. This one really caught our eye, and deserves recognition. From the Washington Post this week, here's an absolute doozy of purple prose (extra points for the alliteration!):
Meanwhile, 2,000 miles away, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) was groveling before the former president at Mar-a-Lago, a pilgrimage of pusillanimousness made necessary by McCarthy's tentative criticism of Trump for working the insurrectionists into a frenzy. Since then he has walked those comments back, saying that "we all have some responsibility" for what happened, meaning that no one does.
Morally and (hopefully) financially bankrupt
Oh, please. Please, please please....
"Dominion Voting Systems has now filed a lawsuit against Rudy Giuliani alleging he defamed the company with his incessant lies and false claims and downright conspiracy theories about the company. It charges Rudy 'cashed in' to the tune of demanding $20,000 per day for his services. Within the lawsuit, they call it all the 'Big Lie' which 'deceived millions of people into believing Dominion had stolen their votes and fixed the election.' Since this is a rather existential crisis for a company that manufactures voting equipment, it is seeking 1.3 billion dollars from Giuliani. So maybe he'll soon wind up not just morally bankrupt but also financially bankrupt as well. I couldn't think of a more fitting fate for Rudy, personally."
-- Chris Weigant
Follow Chris on Twitter: @ChrisWeigant
Cross-posted at: Democratic Underground
Chris,
Biden certainly has not been bidin' his time (our apologies, but we're probably going to overuse that pun repeatedly for about the next four years, so be just warned...).
About the next four years.
Don't you mean, at least the next four years? I'm just sayin' ...
It may be because I just taught an English class this morning to HS students who struggle with long or unfamiliar words, but your Talking Points struck me as a little, well, long-winded and tricky to read. Not for me and you, or your other readers here, I'm sure. But for a large number of non-political folks who are nevertheless adults, and often voters, an eight-line compound sentence full of long words with lots of syllables is daunting to read, or listen to. So they don't, and write politics off as meaningless nonsense.
And then it struck me: right, that's exactly how Trump *doesn't* speak. Hateful as he is, his "Talking Points" are truly that, points. He snarls out a few simple words in the English language, easy to understand, easy to get angry about. One critic guessed, as his campaign revved up in 2015, that the real-estate billionaire with an Ivy League degree spoke at roughly a fourth-grade level.
This led me a final thought. What if, at the ends of your eloquent and well-argued talking points, you gave the TLDR (Too Long, Didn't Read) "Trump" versions? The ones that someone having an internet argument in the coming week could really use to squelch those people. Just one or two lines of simple to read, easy to understand, nastily phrased English?
Biden also announced the advance purchase of 200 million more doses, meaning we'll have enough to vaccinate 300 million Americans by the summer. If that goes according to plan, we will have then reached herd immunity.
Biden did 're-join' the WHO, didn't he?
Will all adult Americans be vaccinated before all of the world's health workers, elderly and people with suppressed immune systems?
Silly questions, both. Or, perhaps, not. Maybe one of the reasons Biden wants the US in the WHO again is because he understands the mission of the WHO and America's role within it as a member state. Maybe Biden understands that while vaccines are not in plentiful supply right now, it is enough for the US and Canada and all of the developed world to vaccinate the most vulnerable of their citizens and then share what excess they have to ensure that the most vulnerable people in the low and middle income countries can be vaccinated as soon as possible.
No one and no country is safe until everyone and all countries are safe.
National unity and global solidarity.
I'm not sixty yet. Nor am I a health worker or volunteer. I don't have any known co-morbidities. Consequently, I am making a pledge not to get vaccinated until it is truly my turn. That is to say not until every country has vaccinated its most vulnerable populations.
John M,
Just one or two lines of simple to read, easy to understand, nastily phrased English?
Why don't you give us an example of what you mean?
If that goes according to plan, we will have then reached herd immunity.
I hope that is true. I hope the immunity rendered by the vaccines will last longer than a year.
I hope we all wake up and finally realize what it is that we all have to do to break the chains of tramsmission while we wait for vaccine production to ramp up and people to actually be vaccinated because if we fail to adhere to ALL of the public health measures that work to break the chains of transmission then we will see more and more variants - or, at least, we'll see the impact of them if we don't step up targeted genomic surveillance - and more of them may prove to be even more transmissable, vaccine resistant and deadly than the ones we know about today.
If we continue on the way we are, relying solely on vaccines and making sure that rich countries horde them, then we will lose this fight, I'm afraid to report. And, so-called herd immunity may prove quite elusive.
5. Nikki Haley, from the tiny 'good Trump cabinet' club, whined that the Democrats needed to 'give Trump a break' and 'move on'. Is she kidding? Give the man a jail cell instead.
Perhaps Biden is waiting [to deliver the first 'sotu'] until after the Trump impeachment trial happens in the Senate? That's certainly understandable.
Yeah, I don't think Biden will want to address Congress before Trump is acquited by the senate.
No, he'll probably wait longer than that, until he has a good sense of where everything stands and most, if not all, of his cabinet secretaries are confirmed.
After all, we don't want to hear Biden just talk about the state of affairs he inherited, do we? NO! We do not.
TP#5,
Yes, let her statements speak for themselves ... er, for herself.
There will be many more where that came from, I am very certain.
Of course, this tactic applies to any number of her fellow Republican presidential contenders. Ahem.
Re: TP #5 example.
Chris always gives his points a header, which are pretty decently short but don't always actually state the point. I took my final line from his header.
A header to go with my short version might be,
Haley, Haley, the chain gang's all here!
Chris,
The big question is whether Biden's vaunted push for bipartisanship will have the slightest chance of success, given the daunting math involved. Are 10 Republican senators really going to vote for an enormous pandemic relief bill?
That question kind of answers itself, no?
I mean, why not split the bill, putting the stuff that 10 Republicans will vote for - like the stimulus cheques directly to the American people and the UI benefits - or risk ending their careers and then using budget reconciliation for the rest of it, if need be.
You know, Biden could deliver his first SOTU address and have it completely devoted to passing the COVID package. Would it be possible to do it virtually as in a TV address to the nation? Because, that would be better than the usual setup under the circumstances.
John [9],
Heh.
That Nikki Haley really gives women a bad name. I doubt she'll be relevant in 2024.
President Biden should receive an honorable mention for those Exec Orders.
Vice-President Harris, as well, for going to AZ and WV to deliver speeches, I mean, to put pressure on Senators Manchin and Sinema to deliver for the people.
More needs to be said, out loud, very out loud, about the brave officer whose (saying this nasty) head was bashed in with a fire extinguisher.
We protested for over a hundred consecutive days here in PDX. Sometimes, as few as hundreds, other days, over ten thousand. We protected Moms, we fought cops, we were gassed (yeah, that sucked just as much as it did the last time I experienced that (40 yrs ago)). And yet, we didn't kill a single cop.
I asked my wife to research this b/c I already had, fruitlessly, and y'know, if a cop was killed at any BLM protest, I'm pretty sure we'd have heard about it from RW media non-stop for a month. Heck, a store had a window broken and it was RW headline for days.
We found exactly one in the entire country. One of those [expletive deleted] bois pretending to be a BLM protester in Oakland shot a cop during a protest.
That's it. RW whackos protest/riot for a few hours and cops are killed (and many, many more seriously injured and even a bunch get Covid).
This needs much more Talking-Points push. Cotton wanted to send the military to PDX to put us down, but is OK with cops getting killed. We need to say this and be very loud about it.
John M [2] is absolutely right and that was the point of TPM long, long ago (when I first saw CW in HuffPo and started reading him).
If you're explaining, you're losing.
As much as we hate it, it's got to fit on a bumper sticker or a headline. It then needs to be repeated, ad nauseam.
”This is YOUR 1776 moment!”
These words were screamed out to the Stop the Steal crowds by none other than Sen. Ted “Teenwolf” Cruz. I have yet to hear anyone explain how this is not meant to convey the message that the crowd was to rise up and overthrow the government in order to install their own leader! What does 1776 refer to if not “Revolution”? Are we supposed to believe that they were telling the crowd to trade in their assault rifles for muskets? Was this a lifestyle statement that powdered wigs were fashionable again? Or maybe it was a way of letting the crowd know the local Starbucks’ bathroom code? No, it was a call to Rise Up!
I also love that Ted Cruz can always be counted on to play the semantics game with his comments to the Republican base that he views as being complete idiots! It’s NOT “OUR 1776 moment”; because Ted is a coward and knows that the crowd is being worked up to commit sedition and does not want to associate himself with those crimes.
I, personally, believe that any day now we will wake to the news that half of the GOP has been arrested and indicted for their part in the January 6 insurrection attempt at the Capitol. It will be a huge operation involving countless federal and state law enforcement agencies conducting warrant services all at the same time in locations all across the nation. They have to swoop in and grab the leadership of the various militia groups at the same time Trump and GOP leadership are arrested to prevent an armed uprising once the news of their arrests breaks.
I look forward to the day that when someone says “2021”, we all know that is a reference to how our nation put down those who would seek to overthrow our great country!
Chris, Skip!
Get back to me when your obsession with Republican antics passes and you get tired of telling Democrats to chase Republicans around the toilet bowl.
FTP #1 - Domestic Terrorism Gets Attention
the silence from Republican politicians on facing up to and countering this threat is deafening.
I'm not sure how this is a useful strategy.
Under the second Bush administration, the DHS began an internal investigation into domestic terrorism that wasn't meant to be widely released to the public in which it reported that soldiers coming back from deployments overseas were targets for recruitment by domestic terrorist groups.
The report was leaked to the media in the early days of the Obama administration and created such an uproar over the notion that members of the military were joining these groups that the then secretary of DHS, Janet Napolitano, was forced to apologize for the report and its conclusions about recruitment of former military members by groups like the American Legion.
Fast forward to Jan 6, 2020 and we learn that 20% of those arrested for the insurrection at the US Capitol have backgrounds in the military and law enforcement.
My point - it may not be a very good idea to politicize the challenge faced by these extremist groups. In fact, this should be one of those issues that transcends partisan politics.
I can understand that this is a delicate issue but pointing out that extremist groups in the US are actively targeting people with military and law enforcement backgrounds shouldn't be avoided to appease military organizations like the American Legion.
Domestic extremism needs to be understood and addressed, not made into a political wedge issue.
LWYH on [15]
You seem to imply that Cruz was addressing the 'Save America' rally in D.C. where the president and others revved up the crowd that then stormed the capitol building.
As far as I can tell, Cruz was in the Senate or House chanmbers at that point, leading the resistance to the electoral vote certification.
Not that your bigger point is wrong. Cruz has used the '1776 moment' line, common among right-wingers, often enough. And yes, the phrase is deceptively pseudo-patriotic while actually inciting revolution against our elected government (which the Revolution of 1776 was fought to establish, not overthrow).
I'm not holding my breath waiting for the FBI to sweep up half the Republican party and its armed gangs. That seems to me to be a liberal mirror-image fantasy of the QAnon nonsense.
The FTPs this week really hit me between the eyes. They practically write themselves, don't they ...
But, the whole point behind the FTPs started out as being tips for how Democrats could get their message out and garner support for their way of meeting the challenges of the day and demonstrate that Democrats had better solutions to problems than Republicans.
And, by the way, one stimulus cheque to desperate Americans doesn't seem like it will be enough to get them through this pandemic.
In just the first week of the Biden administration, there are so many issues being tackled, not least of all is how to get the American people through a deadly pandemic that threatens lives, livelihoods and the very health systems that are on the front lines of the pandemic response.
There are, undoubtedly, many more than seven talking points that would help Democrats and, perhaps, even a few sane Republicans come together to pass desperately needed COVID relief. And, president Biden and his team would most assuredly welcome the assistance in getting the 'response to COVID' message out to the American people.
Who knows, FTPs that would seek to do that may even translate into more votes - for the COVID package and for the 2022 midterms. Stranger things have already happened.
In future, I would love to see FTPs that persuasively counter the Republican message that the "Democratic agenda" is destructive and should not supported by the American people.
These days, it's just a matter of setting the record straight, point by point.
Which is a lot easier said than done. But, you know what they say, nothing really worthwhile is ever easy. And, I truly believe that the art of persuasion is not completely dead. Otherwise, why bother with any of this?
@liz,
Republican Congresscritters never met a strawman argument they didn't like. With all apologies to rusty, sometimes the only way to fight back is to double down. E.g. "of course mr.gaetz would think it's socialism. He thinks social security is socialism. He thinks the social network is socialism. It explains his fear of social distancing..."
the playbook on that is to have all 221 democrats in congress as well as every state assembly, city council member, all the way down to dog catcher, constantly hammer that point home, about ANY phrase with the word 'social' in it no matter how silly it might seem to do so, until THEY are the ones afraid to even utter the word.
JL
Joshua,
I stand more with italyrusty on this.
How many people do you think will be persuaded by Democrats who take the easy route and condemn rather than try to explain why the Democratic party is the only party right now who is looking out for the interests of all Americans.
Yes, this way will take more effort and the FTPs won't be writing themselves but I think it is well worth the effort to raise the level of dialogue and surprise more than a few voters.
Joshua[22],
I could get behind that effort!
they're just, y'know, "anti-social"
How many people do you think will actaully read Biden's plan to shut down the virus? I mean, it's a pretty thick pamphlete of proposals ... this is where FTPs could be very helpful.
Pamphlet of proposals - which shouldn't just be bandied about like Biden did at one of his events last week and tell people to read it.
I would bet that there are hundreds of potential FTPs hidden away in there!
as to rusty's point, it's just that so much keeps coming out that is hard to ignore. case in point, trump in the 1980's was (allegedly) a KGB asset.
https://www.businessinsider.com/russia-cultivating-trump-asset-40-years-says-ex-kgb-spy-2021-1
Did I say that anything had to be ignored?
We can keep all of the Republican shenanigans and worse in the spotlight AND come up with more effective ways to get the better counter-message out, no?
Of course, Democrats will have to start delivering on the message, too.
Hey, Joshua ... I've got a great book for you to read!
It's written by Robert Harris, who used to be a close advisor to prime minister Tony Blair. This book is pure fiction, if you believe the author! Heh.
It's called The Ghost. Roman Polanksi made a film based on it called The Ghostwriter (or, the Ghost Writer), which is also very well worth the time to watch! I was wondering how the movie would deal with the ending and it was pretty well done.
http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/letter_fromlondon/2007/10/the_ghost_and_mr_blair.html
It is the very definition of page turner. I've never read a book faster, before or since. And, the ending is a veritable shocker!
I don't think talking about Trump as being a KGB asset is a very productive track to follow. Not that I don't believe it but, that it would be hard to persuade the Americans who Democrats should be trying to persuade. Ahem.
One more thing about the book, The Ghost - read it before seeing the movie but both should be done!
The Ghost takes the 'Trump as KGB asset' and turns it on its head!
I will say no more except to say that this book is a must read ... for the sheer enjoyment of a wonderful (fictional) novel.
And, speaking of social security, I'd love to see Chris revisit the 'Cut Social Security Taxes For 94% of Workers' talking point.
Maybe this could be deferred to later in Biden's first term, given the current circumstances. Or, maybe it should be front and center BECAUSE of the current circumstances!
I have to say that over the last four years I have come to hold VanityFair magazine in much higher regard when it comes to reporting on our government. This article was one of the most fascinating I have read in a while, and it completely made me re-evaluate my opinion of acting Sec. Of Defense Christopher C. Miller:
https://apple.news/A36Rd3SBzQx612yWlJg5DvA
John M from Ct.[18]
No, I realize that Cruz was not at the Stop the Steal rally on January 6, but I believe he did speak at one of the smaller ones on January 4 or January 5. The video I saw him in was reporting on the Stop the Steal bus that toured across the country trying to rally supporters to be at the Jan 6 event. They were really pushing this event big time — because they needed the masses to help make it look like the riot was a spontaneous event and not the poorly planned and even more poorly executed attempt to overthrow our government that it truly was.
@russ,
wow, that was some heck of an article.
JL
@liz,
scrap the cap! didn't CW write an article about that at some time or another? it bears repeating.
JL
ah! here it is:
http://www.chrisweigant.com/2012/12/10/if-were-going-to-tax-the-rich-then-lets-tax-the-rich/
Speak2 [13]
I completely agree with you that the fact that one officer died on January 6 seems not to have bothered the Republicans too much. It should also be pointed out that two officers involved in trying to combat the riots have committed suicide in the aftermath.
I have not heard anyone questioning whether the Capitol Police involved in the events of January 6 were ever given a debriefing of any kind that would have been the first step in addressing any mental or emotional trauma that the officers are suffering from as a result of that day’s events.
Poet [40]
In the beginning, the Soc Sec system was envisioned as pretty much of a flat tax- flat benefits program, but it has evolved (as most taxes do) over the decades, until at this time, high earners already pay substantially more than low earners, and while they do receive slightly higher benefits, not NEARLY in proportion.
And I'm betting that while you wish to "scrap the cap" on contributions, you'd be far less eager to "scrap the cap" on benefits, am I right?
Doesn't it always distill down to 'We all want somebody else to support us'?
Money. That's what I want.
@crs,
no, that's not accurate.
where social security is concerned, scrapping the cap means people who rake in ridiculous money would pay the same percentage of their income as everyone else, instead of paying a significantly lower percentage of their income than everyone else.
as for pay-outs, it was conceived out of the great depression, to provide a safety net in case someone old goes completely broke and needs a little extra to survive. doesn't matter if they were a gazillionaire or destitute, they get exactly the same benefits.
even without the cap, it would be a completely flat tax, which by definition is not progressive at all. it would just cease to tax the ultra-rich at significantly lower rates than everyone else.
JL
Joshua,
Yes, we need to talk more about scrap the cap and why wouldn't Biden want to do this??
Joshua,
Do you have CW's book, How Democrats Can Take Back Congress...I'm gonna brush up on it again, especially the parts about social security.
Because, now, it's all about how to keep Congress and increase members to a filibuster proof majority!
On the back cover, Senator Sherrod Brown wrote the following.
"I very much liked the social security tax proposal. It speaks directly to those for whom the burden is most oppressive ..."
So, I ask again, why haven't Democrats jumped all over this?
Oops ... the book is actually written by "Tom Paine".
Here is a link for the book ...
https://www.amazon.ca/How-Democrats-Take-Back-Congress/dp/0977775909
with two young boys in the house, i haven't had much time for reading that isn't on audible.
CW's book does merit a sequel, however.
JL
nypoet22,
wow, that was some heck of an article.
Seriously, right?! I was blown away at just how transparent Miller seemed willing to be with the author. Usually authors embedded with military higher ups are overseas in war zones...so having one traveling all over the country with the acting Sec of Def really gave us a view into things that I know I have never felt privy to before.
What little we were allowed to get to know Ms. Miller was more than enough for me to know that I LOVE her!
Joshua, you really should try to find time for The Ghost. It really is that good!
Here’s something that no one has been able to answer concerning the January 6 riot/insurrection/sedition: What was their plan if they had captured members of Congress? What was their end game? Did they honestly believe they were the new Founding Fathers of the new country they planned on putting in place? Did they really think that a “revolution” could occur in less than 24 hours?
I can tell you what Trump planned on doing had they taken the Capitol hostage — Trump would have declared martial law and sent troops in to put down the “terrorists” holding it hostage! Face it, we know that Trump had been considering declaring martial law if he lost since before the election occurred. Trump knew that he could not just declare martial law without there being some major event that could be used as the reason for him needing to declare it! Terrorists “pretending to be Trump supporters” and taking Congress hostage would be seen by some as a legit reason to declare martial law. The day before the insurrection, the My Pillow Guy was photographed with notes that he had written that said Trump should declare martial law. Coincidence? I think not.
The real kicker would be that countless Americans would have been tricked into sacrificing their own lives believing they were doing it for one reason when Trump’s real reason was something completely different! Those Trump loyalists would have been sacrificed by Trump without any hesitation, and you can bet that they were not read in to this portion of Trump’s plan. Trump supporters support a man who does not care for them beyond what they can do for him at any given moment. There is no other scenario that seems like it could have been the expected outcome.
LWYH [53]
All the indications I can see suggest that the organized group expected to take Congress hostage, execute the leaders, and use the threat of further executions to force the body to 'count' the ballots in a way that would "legally" make Donald Trump the victor in the Electoral College and so president for a second term.
Realistic? Well, sure, when it comes to hogtying and shooting politicians. Not so much when it comes to dictating who will be inaugurated on January 20th in the face of a resistant political establishment, majority electorate, and United States Army.
But we know that the organized mob believed it was doing Trump's bidding, and that as president in power and as president now "elected" thanks to them to a second term he would be able to protect them from the remaining traitors who might try to rectify the situation after the blood-stained 'vote' that evening.
If Trump was planning on declaring martial law in reaction to the Capitol take-over and his forced re-election by a cowed and tormented Congress, it would not have been to take back the Capitol from his team. It would have been to protect his team, and enforce the electoral college results they'd so bloodily engineered.
And of course we have every reason to believe a martial law declaration would have been ignored by the military, no matter what the president and his toadies in the Pentagon civilian leadership wanted. But the horror-show of the mob actually carrying out its plan, and the coup actually being proclaimed over the corpses of Pence, Pelosi, Schumer, and Ocasio-Cortez, and then suppressed at whatever cost by a Special Forces team, would have had a far worse impact on our political structure and future than we're seeing from the actual results.
I think your scenario depends on Trump making rational and carefully thought-out plans, which every indication tells us he has been incapable of doing since the early 2000s.
Just wondering if anyone has any ideas for themes, events in music history or whatever for our CW Sunday Night Music Festival and Dance Party or will we just have fun and wing it!? :)
So, Canada has ordered hundreds of millions of dose of COVID -19 vaccines.
That's great. That's more than five times our population!!??
Un-freakin'-believable.
I'll be spending some time today looking into this absurdity with the hope that all of the extra vaccines doses we have will very soon be shared with low income countries so that they may be able to vaccinate their most vulnerable populations. While more than two or three doses may eventually be required to boost immunity, what Canada is doing is, on the surface at least, disgraceful. I will report back ...
Make that hundreds of millions of dollars worth of vaccine doses which is enough to vaccinate all Canadians four to five times over. It's still not right to horde vaccines when they are still a scarce resource for the world.
CORRECTION
News reports are inaccurate - surprise, surprise.
Canada is actually contributing 200 million dollars to the World Health Organization's COVAX facility to purchase vaccines for low and middle income countries.
I'm assuming the US is doing the same ...
The European Commission and France were also involved in launching the COVAX facility to ensure the equitable distribution of vaccines.
This is good news!
This is a great site for understanding the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines ... https://www.gavi.org/covax-facility
Well, Fareed Zakaria just made the same mistake I did regarding Canada hoarding vaccines - hey, it happens. Hope he makes a correction and soon!
I think the gamestop investors deserve some musical love
https://youtu.be/mmo3HFa2vjg
y'know, just for example...
John M from Ct.
I agree with your assessment of my post. When I type up a longwinded train of thought to post here, I write it in Notes and then cut and paste it to the website when it is ready. I do this for multiple reasons: 1 ) Over the years, I have spent countless hours typing these rambling comments up only to lose them all when my browser chose to refresh the page once I hit “Submit”. 2 ) Because I know that I am prone to rambling, it is easier for me to edit my own posts by cutting out paragraphs that I determine are not necessary to get my point across effectively.
Why am I sharing far more about the process that goes into the creation of my posts than you ever wanted to know? Because I spent 6 or 7 paragraphs arguing your points, but removed them for brevity. Unfortunately, I took out the one paragraph that I note that Trump stupidly believed that the American people would see the insurrection as a positive and patriotic act! Trump was not prepared for a police officer being killed by his crowds. He never considered that Americans might not see his actions in a positive light. I believe that one reason no one could get Trump on the phone when it became obvious that it was going South real fast was because Trump & Friends were scrabbling on how they were going to deal with the shitstorm that they had unleashed. Trump was lucky that his minions were as inept as he is — because had they captured the Congress and held them hostage, Trump could read the room well enough to know he had to distance himself from them as quickly as possible. Trump would have had them killed to silence them from testifying against him if he could have.
So I agree that Trump had not planned on turning on his base originally, but I still believe that Trump would have done whatever he believed was necessary to save his own skin...no matter the cost of life to others not named “Donald J. Trump”!
Well, Don, things are about to get decidedly less boring around here. Ahem.
Welcome everyone to the CW Sunday Night Music Festival and Dance Party!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KHZQ054xMqM
Okay, everyone! I have an idea for a new game and I'd like to try it out on y'all!
It's called Six Degrees of PRiSM (Ron Tabak era to present).
Been getting into all kinds of music since the pandemic began and especially during the lockdowns. What has struck me is how interconnected musicians, bands, and the music industry as a whole are.
And, so - Six Degrees of PRiSM (RTE to present)!
You know, like the Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon. But, in this game, Six Degrees of PRiSM (RTE to present), players would challenge each other to find the fewest connections between a musician/band and PRiSM! Whoever could make the connection in the fewest links would win.
Who will be the first to play!? Give me a favourite band or musician and I will try to find connections to PRiSM in six degrees of separation or less ...
And, I have a tune to go with that! This may be the first time I've posted a Prism tune without their definitive lead vocalist, Ron Tabak. Don't Let Him Know features Henry Small and was the most commercially successful for PRiSM and their biggest US hit, reaching number one on the Mainstream Rock chart and 39 the Billboard Hot 100. As a single it made it to 49 on the Canadian Singles chart. Well, the departure of Ron Tabak was very hard to accept for Canadian fans but, most of us have come around. :)
This song was off the fifth PRiSM studio album in 1981. Here it is from the Over 60 Minutes With ... Prism, a compilation album released in 1988,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCrl-TO1Ghw
The last song Ron Tabak recorded with Prism was Cover Girl, a wonderful tribute to Canada's very own cover girl and 1980 Playboy Playmate of the Year, Dorothy Stratten, murdered forty years ago by her estranged husband.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=haeni0hu7LY
Anyone up for a dance, cheek-to-cheek!?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=haeni0hu7LY
Oops, that's the wrong link for Cheek To Cheek, here is the right one!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLmlnNXtW04
I'm sitting here wondering when we will ever get back to live music events ...
See ya next week!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLmlnNXtW04
Wow, you guys have been missing a great live concert!
'cause that link up there is the wrong one. :-)
Here ya go ... it's never too late,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kfORcR2VSbc&list=RDkfORcR2VSbc&start_radio=1&t=31&t=31&t=31
After watching this wonderful Stones concert in Glastonbury in 2017, I remembered that I actually saw the Stones live just last year when they did a virtual performance of You Can't Always Get What You Want at the big Pandemic Concert, One World - Together At Home ... brought to us by Global Citizen, the World Health Organization and Lady Gaga.
I do hope I have this link right ;)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N7pZgQepXfA
Well, that does it for my portion of the evening.
I do apologize for all of the mix up with links. Good show there was no one around to notice. Heh.
Until next Sunday ... keep rockin!
well, now that we're back on the politics clock, i suggest that chuck schumer structure the senate verdict in two parts - first a finding of fact, then a finding of guilt.
whatever insane theories senate republicans may be using to signal their not-guilty verdict, not a single one to my knowledge has claimed that the factual basis for the charge is untrue.
so i say make them vote on the substance of the charge separately, before the verdict is issued. if schumer is able to make it happen, that should result in quite a bit of squirming, and lots of fodder for 2022 campaign ads.
JL
[15]
Listen wrote,
I, personally, believe that any day now we will wake to the news that half of the GOP has been arrested and indicted for their part in the January 6 insurrection attempt at the Capitol. It will be a huge operation involving countless federal and state law enforcement agencies conducting warrant services all at the same time in locations all across the nation. They have to swoop in and grab the leadership of the various militia groups at the same time Trump and GOP leadership are arrested to prevent an armed uprising once the news of their arrests breaks.
I'm down for this! But I wonder if the QAnon folks will feel vindicated because they finally got The Storm. Can't be too careful with these loonies!
[74]
Dammit, Elizabeth I plumb forgot about Dance Party. I'll check out your generally excellent DJing tomorrow.
Hey CW:
Nothing to do with your FTP column. But I find it interesting that with Dems in control of the Senate you haven't explored what that means for cannabis "regulation."
Granted the events of the last few weeks are overwhelming, but that really hasn't stopped you in the past.
While their majority is slim, they don't actually need all Dems, they can replace some Dems with Repubs in legal states, some of which have pushed Congress in that direction.
The majority point is that such bills would actually get a vote in the Senate, not just ignored. That's huge.
We've disagreed in the past about what's important here, but the big players (who I don't like, but acknowledge that we need them if we want to see real change b/c money) want banking/finance reform. In my view, that's one of the two big impediments.
The other is tax law (can a cannabis business write stuff off like any other business).
I don't expect travel thru states to differ in concept from alcohol and I don't expect usage to differ from tobacco smoking. But even allowing to those levels would be huge (you've mentioned those as your big things).
We were in CA before the pandemic and I was shocked at how difficult it was to purchase legally. There are lots of places where you can't. I mean, seriously, I can't purchase in Santa Barbara? It's a college town! Why the heck not???
Looking forward to you taking a break from the horrors and playing with this once, at least.
[2]
I agree with you, John. It seems to me that honing FTPs down to sub Twitter brevity is difficult and very time consuming. I just wrote my Seditionist Repug Congressman who voted against Joe & the Impeachment. Then I decided to Tweet in reply to his tweet. Boy, 280 characters goes by real quick! Short & punchy is tough but it can go viral if it's especially good.
... or especially bad.
[75]
I think that's a great idea. Tons of political fodder for these upcoming Election cycles.
[80]
Yeah that, too. Not only is it sometimes hip to be square but sometimes something is so baaad it's goood
[78]
Joe didn't play the Reefer Card to juice turnout in 2020. I think he'll hold off until, say, mid-2022 to play it. Reefer will get those youngsters to vote, methinks.
Alright nypoet22/Joshua! Glad to know that I've got a fellow nighthawk Weigantiac counterpart on the lEast Coast.
You didn't miss much MtcCaddy ... maybe next week will be better.
And, by the way, what would you guys do without politics, for God's sake, go into withdrawl!? Geesh.
News Flash - Trump will be acquitted. Again.
It's technically still Sunday night out here on the Left Coast, so Elizabeth listen up...
SNDP* theme could be pairing two different versions of a given song, to wit:
Black Hole Sun -- Soundgarden
Black Hole Sun -- Eydie Gormé & Steve Lawrence
Or...
Dancing in the Street -- Martha & the Vandellas
Dancing in the Street -- Grateful Dead
*Sunday Night Dance Party, yeth
Whoa! Yer still up Elizabeth?
Predict It is a politics wagering website. It's quite interesting to me as politics and gambling, er, handicapping are two of my fave food groups.
Regarding whether Trump is removed via Impeachment -- in Joe's first 100 days:
YES, Trump is toast is paying 12.5:1
NO is paying only 1.09:1
[85]
Um, yeah. I read, research & study politics at least 50 hours per week, so I truly jones for it when, say, a snowstorm* shuts down my internet.
*8+ feet of snow (5 in the last week) thus far this winter in Green Valley Lake, California. What about you in Kitchener?
It's just very cold here. Not much snow. Not much sun.
And, I very much like your suggestion for the theme for the SNMFDP so, let's do it! I have some ideas ...
... next week. G'nite.
G'Nite Elizabeth
[91]
I grew up in Detroit and I remember how dreary winters were.
So, Brother Don. What do you think about Bernie Sanders? Is he just another "Deathocrat/Republikiller" as you are wont to paint every living politician?
i doubt bernie's commitment to pie.
get edible.
[97]
First, you got it wrong. AOC is making political hay by highlighting her discomfort working with Repug Seditionists in the House & Senate. It's a no-brainer to bash Repugs for this.
Second, the Dems have to talk about "unity" because us Libtards like that whole idea of Kumbaya (as opposed to many Repugs who'll brook NO compromise with The Godless Enemy.)
Third, seeking "bipartisanship" back in 2009-10 got the Dems and idiot Obama BURNED. While the Dems are IMO as right-center Corporatist as the Repugs, it still matters to the politicians themselves who wins. And that's why the Dems (off the record) are understandably "fuck unity." Once bitten twice shy, one would hope.
Fourth, you've added "Get Credible" to your closing admonishments. How that working for you?
Fourth, you've added "Get Credible" to your closing admonishments. How that working for you?
And BOOM!!!! goes the dynamite!