• Menu
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Before Header

  • About Us
  • Lexicon
  • Contact Us
  • Our Store
  • ↑
  • ↓
  • ←
  • →

Balloon Juice

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

This country desperately needs a functioning fourth estate.

GOP baffled that ‘we don’t care if you die’ is not a winning slogan.

The arc of history bends toward the same old fuckery.

Disagreements are healthy; personal attacks are not.

Republicans want to make it harder to vote and easier for them to cheat.

Nancy smash is sick of your bullshit.

Oh FFS you might as well trust a 6-year-old with a flamethrower.

Since we are repeating ourselves, let me just say fuck that.

Republicans got rid of McCarthy. Democrats chose not to save him.

The media handbook says “controversial” is the most negative description that can be used for a Republican.

If you tweet it in all caps, that makes it true!

Jesus watching the most hateful people claiming to be his followers

They are lying in pursuit of an agenda.

Lick the third rail, it tastes like chocolate!

I desperately hope that, yet again, i am wrong.

New McCarthy, same old McCarthyism.

Republicans don’t lie to be believed, they lie to be repeated.

Relentless negativity is not a sign that you are more realistic.

Not loving this new fraud based economy.

You know it’s bad when the Project 2025 people have to create training videos on “How To Be Normal”.

Republicans seem to think life begins at the candlelight dinner the night before.

Only Democrats have agency, apparently.

If ‘weird’ was the finish line, they ran through the tape and kept running.

You don’t get rid of your umbrella while it’s still raining.

Mobile Menu

  • Seattle Meet-up Post
  • 2025 Activism
  • Targeted Political Fundraising
  • Donate with Venmo, Zelle & PayPal
  • Site Feedback
  • War in Ukraine
  • Submit Photos to On the Road
  • Politics
  • On The Road
  • Open Threads
  • Topics
  • COVID-19
  • Authors
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Lexicon
  • Our Store
  • Politics
  • Open Threads
  • 2025 Activism
  • Garden Chats
  • On The Road
  • Targeted Fundraising!
You are here: Home / Elections / Election 2010 / Wall Street’s Useful Idiots

Wall Street’s Useful Idiots

by John Cole|  November 4, 20103:35 pm| 76 Comments

This post is in: Election 2010, Free Markets Solve Everything, Teabagger Stupidity

FacebookTweetEmail

I’m sure the anti-Wall Street tea partiers will be livid about this:

A tightly coordinated effort by outside Republican groups, spearheaded by Karl Rove and fueled by tens of millions of dollars in contributions from Wall Street hedge fund moguls and other wealthy donors, helped secure big GOP midterm victories Tuesday, according to campaign spending figures and Republican fundraising insiders.

Leading the GOP spending pack was a pair of groups — American Crossroads and its affiliate, Crossroads GPS — both of which were co-founded by two former aides in the George W. Bush White House: Rove, and Ed Gillespie.

Together, the groups — which are not formally part of the Republican Party — spent more than $38 million on attack ads and campaign mailings against Democrats, according to figures compiled by the Sunlight Foundation, a nonpartisan group that tracks campaign spending in congressional races.

A substantial portion of Crossroads GPS’ money came from a small circle of extremely wealthy Wall Street hedge fund and private equity moguls, according to GOP fundraising sources who spoke with NBC News on condition of anonymity. These donors have been bitterly opposed to a proposal by congressional Democrats — and endorsed by the Obama administration — to increase the tax rates on compensation that hedge funds pay their partners, the sources said.

I’m sure this will come as a shock to all of you who were under the impression that the tea partiers and the conservatives were “mad” at Wall Street.

FacebookTweetEmail
Previous Post: « Some More Good News
Next Post: The Boomer Moynihan »

Reader Interactions

76Comments

  1. 1.

    Emily L. Hauser/ellaesther

    November 4, 2010 at 3:38 pm

    Not to be all OT and whatnot but… aren’t you on vacation?

    (Has this been brought up a million times already in other threads?)

    Also, too: I’m shocked, SHOCKED, by this news.

  2. 2.

    dmsilev

    November 4, 2010 at 3:41 pm

    I’m sure the rank and file tea-partiers *are* mad at Wall Street. It’s just that they either don’t know or don’t care that they’re being used as useful idiots by Wall Street.

    dms

  3. 3.

    fouro

    November 4, 2010 at 3:42 pm

    Carried Interest, um, carried the day. (google it) Hedge Funders get wha they want but the TP bastiges get what they deserve cuz they didn’t ever ask what it really was they’d be getting. The shaft.

  4. 4.

    beltane

    November 4, 2010 at 3:44 pm

    These hedge fund traders really need to come back in their next life as those foie gras geese who are confined and force-fed to enlarge their livers. Greed that is so insatiable as to bring down the global economy should have consequences attached to it.

    Decades of red-baiting have deprived of us the proper rhetorical tools to fight these grotesque human impersonators.

  5. 5.

    Steve

    November 4, 2010 at 3:45 pm

    Years ago, Public Citizen revealed that the campaign against the estate tax was secretly bankrolled for years by 17 of the nation’s wealthiest families. The fact still hasn’t penetrated the public consciousness and, as we all know, the campaign against the estate tax continues unabated. So call me cynical, but I expect this new revelation to change the minds of exactly no one.

  6. 6.

    beltane

    November 4, 2010 at 3:46 pm

    I was under the impression that the thing Teabaggers wanted the most was for the government to take its hand off their Medicare, a wish the Republicans would be all too happy to grant them.

    High decibel stupid is always a bad thing.

  7. 7.

    "Fair and Balanced" Dave

    November 4, 2010 at 3:46 pm

    But…but…but… Obama is a racist Kenyan Muslim socialist….

  8. 8.

    BR

    November 4, 2010 at 3:49 pm

    This is why I called my congresswoman and the white house and asked them to do two things from here on out:

    1) Don’t compromise with the GOP on things that they’re wrong on. On tax cuts, don’t give in to their demands just for the sake of giving in.

    2) Go after the fraud in the banks relentlessly. Have the FDIC take over the big banks and clean shop. Prosecute. Listen to guys like Bill Black who took down criminal banksters the last time around.

  9. 9.

    Ash Can

    November 4, 2010 at 3:52 pm

    BUT OUR GUY IS DIFFREN HE AINT TAKIN NONE O THAT WALL STREET MONEY HE TOLD US SO HISSELF HE’S A GOOD GUY.

    /tea partier

  10. 10.

    Mark S.

    November 4, 2010 at 3:54 pm

    @Emily L. Hauser/ellaesther:

    He’s got to get all of his rage out before his big date tonight.

    I’ll be very disappointed if John has twenty posts up between 7pm and 10pm.

  11. 11.

    harlana

    November 4, 2010 at 3:57 pm

    @beltane: A great analogy, if only.

  12. 12.

    Paris

    November 4, 2010 at 4:01 pm

    Our little turd sure has blossomed.

  13. 13.

    harlana

    November 4, 2010 at 4:02 pm

    Mr. Cole, you have tweaked all readers’ imaginations by revealing a small nugget of the non-pet related aspects of your personal life.

  14. 14.

    bemused

    November 4, 2010 at 4:04 pm

    I don’t remember where I read this but the two founders of Tea Party Patriots fly in style to rallies on a private jet dubbed Patriot One funded by a GOP operative. Someone is making a documentary about this tea party and I saw a clip that started out with “Danger Zone” playing and scenes of the jet. Not exactly the image of folksy, grassroots tea partiers. There has been some grumbling among the members but the two founders don’t seem to be worried as they are pictured smiling on the jet.

  15. 15.

    cleek

    November 4, 2010 at 4:05 pm

    thanks for that hot news item, NBC!

    cows, closing the barn door, etc.

  16. 16.

    kindness

    November 4, 2010 at 4:05 pm

    French Revolution time yet?

  17. 17.

    ET

    November 4, 2010 at 4:08 pm

    It still amazes me that the anti-Wall Street crowd on the GOP side of the aisle still doesn’t seem to understand that is where the big money the GOP gets (and pays attention to) comes from. Of course one some level they may not care or they may even tacitly agree with the GOP/Wall Street bargain.

    When they get amped and get out the votes they think they deserve consideration and that “this time” will be different. They always get disillusioned by the party (not a few individual members) because at some point they realize they got used and that their help, opinions, and ideas are only valuable at election time. They keep going back like an abused spouse. It is all rather pathological.

  18. 18.

    Just Some Fuckhead

    November 4, 2010 at 4:08 pm

    Seeins how the so-called Tea Party was called for initially by Wall Street spokesmodel Rick Santelli in response to the government trying to help up to nine million homeowners avoid foreclosure at the hands of big business….

    Things that make ya go hmm.

  19. 19.

    electricgrendel

    November 4, 2010 at 4:09 pm

    My favorite part of all of this is that they bother to report it two days after the election. Maybe if they had done some great reporting on this three weeks ago people could have made an informed decision. But now it’s just trivia.

  20. 20.

    Mako

    November 4, 2010 at 4:10 pm

    @Emily L. Hauser/ellaesther:
    Also hasn’t the, “This will come as a shock to all of you who were under the impression” bit pretty well run it’s course?
    Come on! There’s got to be other life?
    http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2010/11/04/close-photos-comet-hartley-reveal-space-peanut/

  21. 21.

    Andy K

    November 4, 2010 at 4:11 pm

    I’m sure this will come as a shock to all of you who were under the impression that the tea partiers and the conservatives were “mad” at Wall Street.

    No, just at Obama’s soshulist bailout of Wall Street.

  22. 22.

    Mako

    November 4, 2010 at 4:11 pm

    @Paris:
    2 “hehs” up

  23. 23.

    cleek

    November 4, 2010 at 4:13 pm

    @ET:

    It still amazes me that the anti-Wall Street crowd on the GOP side of the aisle still doesn’t seem to understand that is where the big money the GOP gets (and pays attention to) comes from

    they’ve been trained not to care. one word, and any qualms they might have had vanish into the aether: Soros.

    if you’re going to do something your supporters will hate, make sure you blame your opponent for the same thing first.

  24. 24.

    MattR

    November 4, 2010 at 4:13 pm

    @cleek:

    thanks for that hot news item, NBC!
    __
    cows, closing the barn door, etc.

    To reveal the truth before the election would have been partisan, obviously.

  25. 25.

    Anonymous At Work

    November 4, 2010 at 4:18 pm

    “These people do not speak for me…they just give me lots of money.”

  26. 26.

    New Yorker

    November 4, 2010 at 4:20 pm

    Stuff like this actually makes me relax a bit: It means there isn’t a snowball’s chance in hell that the teabaggers will do something batshit insane like allowing the US to default on its debt.

  27. 27.

    Polish the Guillotines

    November 4, 2010 at 4:21 pm

    @kindness:

    French Revolution time yet?

    Oui.

  28. 28.

    sherifffruitfly

    November 4, 2010 at 4:22 pm

    Good thing lefty bloggers have learned their lesson and stopped joining with teabaggers on the iblameobama bandwagon.

    Oh wait……

  29. 29.

    jo6pac

    November 4, 2010 at 4:23 pm

    Yep, I’m Shocked after all the demodogs did for ws;)

  30. 30.

    Poopyman

    November 4, 2010 at 4:23 pm

    I guess it could be time for the elderly to hoard food, but this is ridiculous.

    The new white meat?

  31. 31.

    BR

    November 4, 2010 at 4:27 pm

    @New Yorker:

    That’s a bit twisted, but you’re right.

  32. 32.

    Ash Can

    November 4, 2010 at 4:27 pm

    @New Yorker: Unless those teabaggers’ personal bankrollers are in the options business. That segment of the financial industry thrives on market uncertainty.

  33. 33.

    Just Some Fuckhead

    November 4, 2010 at 4:28 pm

    @harlana:

    Mr. Cole, you have tweaked all readers’ imaginations by revealing a small nugget of the non-pet related aspects of your personal life.

    Be on time, John. Open all doors. Let her speak and try not to be forceful or declarative. Listen but don’t get too familiar with her. Make sure you put the napkin in your lap. Don’t drink more than she does. Pay the bill, being sure to look like a generous tipper. It pains me that I can’t be there to make sure your clothes are free of stains and pressed nicely.

    This is your last chance. Don’t fuck it up.

    ps. It might be nice to have a phrase you repeat in your head to lighten you up and relax you. I like “gazillions of brazilians.”

  34. 34.

    Hunter Gathers

    November 4, 2010 at 4:28 pm

    @New Yorker: There’s a decent chance that Johnny the Orange will not be able to control 100% of his caucus. It’s a real possibility.

  35. 35.

    Resident Firebagger

    November 4, 2010 at 4:31 pm

    Wall Street, insurance companies and other players pay a bit in campaign contributions to get Obama and other Democrats to compromise on legislation. Then, compromise in hand, these entities do everything possible to toss Democrats on their asses.

    I’d say the Democrats are useful idiots, too.

  36. 36.

    Dennis SGMM

    November 4, 2010 at 4:31 pm

    @kindness:
    You can’t kill future shock.
    You can’t kill the willful stupidity it causes.
    Ain’t but one damned song that can make me break down and cry.

  37. 37.

    FlipYrWhig

    November 4, 2010 at 4:31 pm

    @Andy K:

    No, just at Obama’s soshulist bailout of Wall Street.

    I think there’s a lot of truth to that distinction. “Wall Street” isn’t necessarily bad in a Tea Partier’s eyes; Teh Gummint giving Our Money to “Wall Street” is very very bad, on account of it’s being Our Money.

    @Just Some Fuckhead: And that _remains_ very unpopular. I’m still not too clear on what Republican voters want to see happen in order to help “create jobs.” I know that they want tax cuts to “help the economy,” because it puts money in their hands. But how does that “create jobs”? Is the thinking that if only businesses were paying less in taxes they’d be hiring more people?

  38. 38.

    Citizen_X

    November 4, 2010 at 4:32 pm

    @cleek: If it turns out NBC sat on this until after the election–not wanting to unduly influence the voters with pertinent things like facts, you know–I’m gonna…I’m gonna…well, I’m gonna be pissed off and powerless to do anything about it, of course.

    But I will not forget, or forgive.

  39. 39.

    gbear

    November 4, 2010 at 4:32 pm

    @Mark S.:

    I’ll be very disappointed if John has twenty posts up between 7pm and 10pm.

    He’ll forget about time and be late for his date.

  40. 40.

    dms

    November 4, 2010 at 4:36 pm

    Or an unfunded “grassroots” organization.

  41. 41.

    wasabi gasp

    November 4, 2010 at 4:36 pm

    The rubes won’t be duped by your fact-laden propaganda.

  42. 42.

    chopper

    November 4, 2010 at 4:36 pm

    @Just Some Fuckhead:

    yes, right after crickets outta the guy over TARP.

  43. 43.

    harlana

    November 4, 2010 at 4:38 pm

    @gbear: Somehow I doubt juicy bits of detail will be forthcoming, but, all things considered, it would such a nice distraction. This begs for a John Cole Datecam.

  44. 44.

    Bill in OH

    November 4, 2010 at 4:38 pm

    @electricgrendel:

    I don’t think that’s accidental.

  45. 45.

    Bokonon

    November 4, 2010 at 4:38 pm

    Better give Wall Street what it wants. Or they might take away MORE of our jobs. And SOONER.

    As Mao once said, all power comes from the barrell of a gun.

  46. 46.

    Martin

    November 4, 2010 at 4:39 pm

    @Poopyman: What do you want to bet she was very eager to vote on Tuesday for that Toomey feller?

  47. 47.

    Delia

    November 4, 2010 at 4:40 pm

    @kindness:

    French Revolution time yet?

    To steal a phrase, sadly no.

    The teatards are too heavily invested in their fantasies to let truth intrude. If you try to tell them that they’re simply dupes of the banksters they will simply shout louder and tell you that you’ve been listening to Soros or Bill Ayres or the Kenyan Mooslim Soshulist himself. Any plan of action must proceed on that assumption.

  48. 48.

    Makewi

    November 4, 2010 at 4:42 pm

    Rove and Gillespie are not Tea Party. If anything, they represent the sort of good old boy establishment that perpetuates the same old same old regardless of the current makeup of the Federal Government.

  49. 49.

    Delia

    November 4, 2010 at 4:43 pm

    @Bokonon:

    As Mao once said, all power comes from the barrell of a gun.

    Looks like it comes from the bank now.

  50. 50.

    Cat Lady

    November 4, 2010 at 4:46 pm

    @Just Some Fuckhead:

    Shorter Fuckhead: Don’t be a Stu, be a Steve.

    More advice for Cole: be excellent in her presence, and work in the word solipsist.

  51. 51.

    Steeplejack

    November 4, 2010 at 4:46 pm

    @Just Some Fuckhead:

    Also, Cole, they speak Portuguese in Brazil, so don’t try to impress her with your command of Spanish yard-crew Spanglish.

  52. 52.

    Sly

    November 4, 2010 at 4:48 pm

    @kindness:

    French Revolution time yet?

    We already had it. The mob of peasants was lead by the Baron de Breteuil, who carried a diamond-encrusted pitchfork, and marched on the Bastille to protest potential tax hikes on the Second Estate.

  53. 53.

    BGinCHI

    November 4, 2010 at 4:49 pm

    @Steeplejack: Also, don’t do that trick where you get a spoon to “magically” stick to your nose.

    No one wins when that happens.

  54. 54.

    meh

    November 4, 2010 at 4:49 pm

    speaking of that, on one of the tv’s in my office, they have fox news on – is it just me or does it seem a bit disingenuous for Neil Cavuto crowing about how gold is up $45/ounce today?

    One, it sounds like an infomercial for Glen Beck’s show

    and

    Two, it’s probably in response to the crazy guys taking over the country’s bank account I would imagine…

    kept waiting to see “Your World with Neil Cavuto brought to you by, Goldline – when the libruls ruin the country, turn to the most trusted name in Gold…Goldline”

  55. 55.

    Steeplejack

    November 4, 2010 at 4:50 pm

    @BGinCHI:

    True dat.

  56. 56.

    FlipYrWhig

    November 4, 2010 at 4:52 pm

    @meh: Neil Cavuto has one of the most annoying voices I have ever heard.

  57. 57.

    Sly

    November 4, 2010 at 4:56 pm

    @New Yorker:

    Stuff like this actually makes me relax a bit: It means there isn’t a snowball’s chance in hell that the teabaggers will do something batshit insane like allowing the US to default on its debt.

    Legally, technically, or unofficially; it’s kind of impossible to default on the debt. There are mechanisms in place outside of Congressional hands that prevent it, to the extent that interest due on the debt would have to increase beyond all other spending before it even becomes theoretically possible. At the very least, the Federal Reserve would have to be abolished before debt default becomes a practical consideration.

    No, the worst that the House can possibly do at this point is refuse to continue unemployment benefits. Which is no small thing, considering that unemployment benefits are likely making up a significant portion of consumer demand at this point.

  58. 58.

    Davis X. Machina

    November 4, 2010 at 4:56 pm

    @Sly: What little domestic tumbrel-manufacturing capacity we had was offshored in the ’90’s anyways.

  59. 59.

    Carnacki

    November 4, 2010 at 5:02 pm

    Anyone stupid enough to attach tea bags to their hats as a political statement is too stupid to understand how they are used by the ilk of Karl Rove and company to promote the very interests they are against.

  60. 60.

    kindness

    November 4, 2010 at 5:06 pm

    John….ask the fine lady if she is a dog or a cat person. You have all the bases covered. Also, google a map of Brazil so you have some idea of where what is.

  61. 61.

    WyldPirate

    November 4, 2010 at 5:11 pm

    @FlipYrWhig:

    I’m still not too clear on what Republican voters want to see happen in order to help “create jobs.” I know that they want tax cuts to “help the economy,” because it puts money in their hands. But how does that “create jobs”? Is the thinking that if only businesses were paying less in taxes they’d be hiring more people?

    Basically you answered it, but you forgot about putting more money i everyone’s hands so they can spend more and invest more.

    Trickle-down economics doesn’t mean that the TeaTards are getting pissed on by the wealthy, uh-uh. Just so long as them pigmented folks don’t get none of our tax money.

  62. 62.

    max

    November 4, 2010 at 5:12 pm

    I’m sure this will come as a shock to all of you who were under the impression that the tea partiers and the conservatives were “mad” at Wall Street.

    What I’ve been hearing today from the right-wingers is that the Tea Partiers will come down hard on the banks.

    First I fell off my chair and then I laughed until I cried.

    max
    [‘Next up! Earmarks!’]

  63. 63.

    suzanne

    November 4, 2010 at 5:15 pm

    And don’t ask whether or not she gets Brazilians. Let that be a surprise.

  64. 64.

    max

    November 4, 2010 at 5:18 pm

    @Sly:

    At the very least, the Federal Reserve would have to be abolished before debt default becomes a practical consideration.

    Fairly to raise the debt ceiling wouldn’t cause a default, I agree, but if they refused to raise the debt ceiling, it would put a hell of a squeeze on the Federal budget. They’d need to make cuts to avoid the debt, which would be a rather large sum of money. WHich is why Rand Paul is threatening to do that.

    Of course, supposedly the R’s are going to raise the debt ceiling and blame it on Obama.

    max
    [‘Of course, in two years Obama will still be black, so I don’t think that the debt is really going to matter to the tea baggers.’]

  65. 65.

    gene108

    November 4, 2010 at 5:21 pm

    I’m sure this will come as a shock to all of you who were under the impression that the tea partiers and the conservatives were “mad” at Wall Street.

    It should also come as a shock to people, who felt Obama sold out to Wall Street and is a corporatist whore, because Wall Street thoroughly hates Obama’s guts and will do everything in its power to make sure he’s a one term President.

  66. 66.

    Jay in Oregon

    November 4, 2010 at 5:24 pm

    @suzanne:

    And don’t ask whether or not she gets Brazilians. Let that be a surprise.

    I am soooo glad I wasn’t drinking anything when I read that, or I’d need a new laptop.

  67. 67.

    Belafon (formerly anonevent)

    November 4, 2010 at 5:28 pm

    OT-But this really did make me laugh. A conservative critic considers MSNBC biased while Fox and CNN aren’t.

  68. 68.

    chopper

    November 4, 2010 at 5:30 pm

    @New Yorker:

    hard to say. these rich guys, through rove, funded a lot of goopers but not all of the teabagger candidates. in fact, rove was pretty solidly skeptical of many teabaggers. look at what he said about o’donnell – he’s all about the establishment, and using the tea party to its own ends just like boner and the other leadership.

    the tea party guys i’m worried about messing with policy are precisely the guys rove didn’t want anything to do with. those guys are the wild card.

  69. 69.

    Carnacki

    November 4, 2010 at 5:32 pm

    Explain to her she’s a good demographic for you electorally when you run as the Democratic candidate in WV-01 against David McKinley.

    @Cat Lady:

  70. 70.

    chopper

    November 4, 2010 at 5:34 pm

    @Sly:

    well there may be a decent-sized gulf between going over the debt limit and full-bore default, but that gulf includes a lotta bad shit. you don’t need to full-on default for the bond market or the stock market to take a huge shit.

  71. 71.

    chopper

    November 4, 2010 at 5:35 pm

    @kindness:

    and ask her if she’s ever been bitten by a wandering spider.

  72. 72.

    Pongo

    November 4, 2010 at 5:42 pm

    I think you still suffer under the same delusion as the rest of the media. The Tea Party might have been started by libertarians who were truly disgusted by the excesses of Wall Street and the governments unwillingness to stop them. The Tea Party now is just an arm of Koch Industries with a fair smattering of Evangelicals who trust in God to reform Wall Street. They won’t be livid–they’ll be thrilled.

    Have to enjoy traditional Republicans railing a bit against the monster they created: http://www.politico.com/blogs/onmedia/1110/Kondracke_Palins_a_joke.html. They wanted free reign for corporate spending in elections, got it with Citizens United, and now have to deal with the fact that Koch Industries appears to be determined to get the most extreme of the wingers into office. This Republican analyst is absolutely right. Sarah Palin and Jim DeMint screwed the pooch with their reckless primary endorsements.

  73. 73.

    NobodySpecial

    November 4, 2010 at 7:15 pm

    @Pongo: The best part is that no one will listen to Kondracke, as the Wurlitzer is already primed to treat Palin and DeMint as Very Serious People…thanks to the efforts of folks like Kondracke.

  74. 74.

    Mako

    November 4, 2010 at 8:19 pm

    @NobodySpecial:
    Wurlitzer? Kondrake? Palin, yeah, I know her. And DeMint… but Kondrake, he’s that crippled angry guy in a wheelchair? Wait, was he the guy with the comeover on McGlaugklin Group? You people really watch too much bad tv.

  75. 75.

    pattonbt

    November 4, 2010 at 11:02 pm

    All the Tea Partiers care about is that they get theirs and “the other” doesn’t. They don’t care if the banksters make out like bandits. They might give lip service to that, but that’s all it is.

    The Tea Partiers accept there are elites and that those elites are better and deserve more (as long as they fit a certain mold and say the right things) – its an authority thing. But the Tea Partiers need to be able to wallow in the belief that, even though there are some elite who are better in some ways, they are still better overall because they are down to earth and all good and Jesusy and patriotic on the inside and especially the outside. So they need “the other” to be worse off as a benchmark to plump up their own self worth.

    And thus those that are not as good (“the other”) must be shifty and must be the root cause of problems and therefore do not deserve assistance.

  76. 76.

    chaseyourtail

    November 5, 2010 at 2:07 am

    The T-Baggers will be fine with this because they don’t really care about anything other than getting rid of Obama. Their anti-government screed is a smoke screen. They only have a problem with government when it’s headed by a black Democrat. The baggers are happy to be useful idiots. They know their role and are more than willing to play it.

Comments are closed.

Primary Sidebar

Image by MomSense (5/21.25)

Recent Comments

  • pieceofpeace on On The Road – JanieM – Car Bits (May 21, 2025 @ 11:21am)
  • zhena gogolia on Parsing the Pandemic Pause (May 21, 2025 @ 11:20am)
  • prostratedragon on Parsing the Pandemic Pause (May 21, 2025 @ 11:19am)
  • Belafon on Parsing the Pandemic Pause (May 21, 2025 @ 11:19am)
  • CaseyL on Parsing the Pandemic Pause (May 21, 2025 @ 11:17am)

PA Supreme Court At Risk

Donate

Balloon Juice Posts

View by Topic
View by Author
View by Month & Year
View by Past Author

Featuring

Medium Cool
Artists in Our Midst
Authors in Our Midst
War in Ukraine
Donate to Razom for Ukraine

🎈Keep Balloon Juice Ad Free

Become a Balloon Juice Patreon
Donate with Venmo, Zelle or PayPal

Meetups

Upcoming Ohio Meetup May 17
5/11 Post about the May 17 Ohio Meetup

Calling All Jackals

Site Feedback
Nominate a Rotating Tag
Submit Photos to On the Road
Balloon Juice Anniversary (All Links)
Balloon Juice Anniversary (All Posts)
Fix Nyms with Apostrophes

Hands Off! – Denver, San Diego & Austin

Social Media

Balloon Juice
WaterGirl
TaMara
John Cole
DougJ (aka NYT Pitchbot)
Betty Cracker
Tom Levenson
David Anderson
Major Major Major Major
DougJ NYT Pitchbot
mistermix

Keeping Track

Legal Challenges (Lawfare)
Republicans Fleeing Town Halls (TPM)
21 Letters (to Borrow or Steal)
Search Donations from a Brand

PA Supreme Court At Risk

Donate

Site Footer

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Comment Policy
  • Our Authors
  • Blogroll
  • Our Artists
  • Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2025 Dev Balloon Juice · All Rights Reserved · Powered by BizBudding Inc

Share this ArticleLike this article? Email it to a friend!

Email sent!