Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

How any woman could possibly vote for this smug smarmy piece of misogynistic crap is beyond understanding.

When do the post office & the dmv weigh in on the wuhan virus?

I’m starting to think Jesus may have made a mistake saving people with no questions asked.

Putin dreamed of ending NATO, and now it’s Finnish-ed.

We’re not going back!

It’s the corruption, stupid.

T R E 4 5 O N

I did not have this on my fuck 2022 bingo card.

Proof that we need a blogger ethics panel.

We are builders in a constant struggle with destroyers. let’s win this.

Trump’s legal defense is going to be a dumpster fire inside a clown car on a derailing train.

Meanwhile over at truth Social, the former president is busy confessing to crimes.

You are so fucked. Still, I wish you the best of luck.

When you’re a Republican, they let you do it.

Tick tock motherfuckers!

Every one of the “Roberts Six” lied to get on the court.

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

My right to basic bodily autonomy is not on the table. that’s the new deal.

Let us savor the impending downfall of lawless scoundrels who richly deserve the trouble barreling their way.

Nothing worth doing is easy.

You can’t attract Republican voters. You can only out organize them.

Republicans don’t want a speaker to lead them; they want a hostage.

Conservatism: there are people the law protects but does not bind and others who the law binds but does not protect.

Today’s gop: why go just far enough when too far is right there?

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139Comments

  1. 1.

    Violet

    Can we please re-promote the Tony Soprano Explains Bain Capital video? Jennifer was kind enough to link it for me in the previous thread. I’d forgotten about it. It explains the “bust out” concept very well, which is what Bain and other vulture capital companies do, of course.

  2. 2.

    JGabriel

    __
    __
    TPM:

    “Right now their campaign is built on a tripod of lies,” [David Plouffe] said on ABC’s “This Week.”

    Personally, I think it’s more like a millipede of lies.

    .

  3. 3.

    Comrade Jake

    Last Breaking Bad for 2012 this evening. I wish the show didn’t have to end, but that’s the nature of the beast.

  5. 5.

    lamh35

    Romney’s bounce from convention looks short-lived: Reuters/Ipsos poll

    (Reuters) – A modest bump in popularity for U.S. presidential hopeful Mitt Romney from this week’s Republican Party convention looks to be short-lived, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll.

    Any takers on the “why the bump was shortlived”? My money’s on 3 things combined: 1)Ann/Mitt’s speeches were both “meh” and Paul Ryan’s was widely panned; 2)there is just too many channels now-adays and if u don’t wanna watch something you dont’ have to; 3)CLINT EASTWOOD!

  6. 6.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Violet:
    Agree. I hadn’t seen it before (not to mention that I may be the only person in North America who has never seen Goodfellas nor watched a single minute from The Sopranos) but there was no doubt as to how vulture capitalism operates after seeing that YouTube video. I’m sharing it with my few remaining conservative friends.

  7. 7.

    BGinCHI

    Waiting for someone to deconstruct Paul Ryan’s oft-repeated:

    If you’re feeling left out or passed by, you have not failed; your leaders have failed you.

    So if you are unemployed or otherwise not benefiting from the economy and our capitalist enterprise, it’s because our “leaders” have failed you? I assume he means government? But not business leaders? Or the folks with the money and power?

    So, when you succeed it’s all your own (We Built It!). But when you are “left out or passed by” (note the passive voice) it’s someone else’s fault, namely the government?

    The implied message is that government can help people.

    This sounds like it’s straight off a Soviet-era propaganda poster.

  10. 10.

    Violet

    @lamh35: I’m going to be interested to see what the ratings are for the Democratic convention–if they are similar to the GOP convention or what. Also if the Dems get a bounce. I wonder if we’re at the tipping point where conventions are just mostly irrelevant and people barely pay attention, so not much in terms of bounce? Or if it’s just that Mitt and the GOP are so dull and awful?

  11. 11.

    Brachiator

    @Comrade Jake:

    Last Breaking Bad for 2012 this evening. I wish the show didn’t have to end, but that’s the nature of the beast.

    Ah, but it is also the first Doctor Who of the season. Kind of a television circle of life.

    “Asylum of the Daleks” was kickass. Glad I was able to avoid major spoilers. On the other side, the creator of Breaking Bad is promising some strong stuff for next time. Should be big fun.

  12. 12.

    danah gaz

    @Comrade Jake: This is a “mid-season break”. It’s scheduled to run through season 6 (at least that’s what the story is prepped for). So roughly, after this evening there are still 24 more episodes scheduled, based on my back of the napkin calculations.

    At least if it ends where it’s supposed to, their should be at least a bit of closure. That won’t stop me from wanting more, but nothing lasts forever. =)

  14. 14.

    General Stuck

    My tank is empty for political enthusiasms enthusiasms. Nothing but GOP circus clowns taxes the spirit, but now it’s on to Charlotte and a better circus I can understand.

  17. 17.

    trollhattan

    @Comrade Jake:
    They’re really ramping up Walter’s complete embrace of the Dark Side. The story arc can only be sustained for just so much longer.

    My remaining question: who finally offs Walter? There are four obvious choices, one less obvious choice, and what will actually happen (BB is nothing if not the master of the unexpected).

  19. 19.

    trollhattan

    @lamh35:
    “Terrorist fist bump” was longer-lived. I simply can’t believe there’s much of an undecided cohort this year. The election largely revolves around GOTV efforts.

  20. 20.

    Old Dan and Little Ann

    @SiubhanDuinne: Much thanks. Yeller is sweet but he’s also a nut job. I played wolves howling for kicks last week and he went nuts. I figured I’d may as well document it. Cheers.

  23. 23.

    Violet

    I wish the Democrats would riff on the “I built it” thing the Republicans are going on about and say, “Sure, you built it and Mitt Romney wants to buy it and destroy it and leave you bankrupt” or something.

  24. 24.

    Yutsano

    @lamh35:

    One thing about being president or running for president – if you’re easily offended, you should probably choose another profession

    Ouch. He’s real good at the subtle stabbing of Willard isn’t he?

  26. 26.

    Brachiator

    @Violet:

    I wonder if we’re at the tipping point where conventions are just mostly irrelevant and people barely pay attention, so not much in terms of bounce? Or if it’s just that Mitt and the GOP are so dull and awful?

    Probably a bit of both. I don’t think that the average citizen cares that much about either convention, and this time around, there are no surprises. Romney announced Ryan as VP pick before the convention, and the Democrats are the incumbent party, so nothing new here.

    The tv coverage is as relentlessly stale as NBC’s Olympic Games coverage. Worse, the media (with the notable exception of Chris Matthews) is trying hard to pretend that GOP lies are not really lies.

    I am mildly curious as to how well the GOP was able to control its message and image in the new social media environment. Although it is not statistically reliable, I wonder what the reaction to the GOP convention has been on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.

    The only interesting news story coming out of the GOP convention is that Republicans have decided to back Romney, no matter what. They don’t care that he is Mormon, don’t care that he is bland, don’t care that he lies. But they are not going to stay home and not vote, and no one, not even libertarians, are going to split into a third party.

    This puts the burden on the Democrats to mobilize voters and to prevent independent voters from slipping away.

  27. 27.

    mamayaga

    Re the lack of a bounce, Booman thinks it was the internet. Of course, that’s pretty much the same as saying we have so many more channels now.

  28. 28.

    trollhattan

    @Yutsano:
    Always interesting to compare/contrast the two Harvard grads. Obama reminds me of the scary smart students who got good grades from their brains (while maintaining social lives outside class) and Willard reminds me of students who would study 24/7 memorizing lists from the textbooks specifically to pass their tests.

    No two “As” are alike.

  29. 29.

    Violet

    @Brachiator: Or maybe the Dems have been saving the big stuff in the tax returns until after the convention when it would most put the Republicans in a pickle. I’m not surprised to see the GOP support Mitt–they are the part of “fall in line” after all. I am interested to see how long it lasts.

    I hope the tax returns stuff that came out earlier was just the warm up. I’ll be surprised if it isn’t.

  32. 32.

    Violet

    @Maude: Did you see the book I recommended for you last night in the thread where we were talking about the Facebook building? You might find it interesting.

  33. 33.

    gene108

    I don’t believe we need another open thread.

    We need the FP’ers to get cracking and bring us the news nuggets of the day we so desperately crave to discuss.

  34. 34.

    Ben Franklin

    @mamayaga:

    I think Booman is wrong on that. Nothing incites like the Tubes

    There just wasn’t any gotcha catch phrases, easily sound-bitten which could eclipse ..
    Eastwooding.

  35. 35.

    Doggie D

    She had not been blessed by Nature, but had found a mate. He was rotund, grey haired, and stupid. Judging by the way he interacted with the 30-something at the rental car counter, he had spent most of his life around children, very likely as a male schoolteacher.

    The rental car associate explained the different cars available. As I waited, these idiots debated for several minutes which car they wanted to rent. The rental car associate pleasantly suggested that the couple go look at the cars and make a decision. The couple waddled off to the parking lot. The rental car associate set me up with a Chevy Malibu, a pretty nice car.

    The fat couple returned. They selected the Prius.

  38. 38.

    kideni

    “The Amazing Feats of Paul Ryan” Facebook page started up yesterday and is already chock full of goodness (on the page and in the sidebar posts-by-others).

    One of my favorites:
    “Ryan explained the 71-minute discrepancy in his marathon time: he actually stopped to give CPR to an elderly man and a little further along the course he had to stop AGAIN to help a woman deliver her baby. He of course scolded the new mom afterward because she had been selfish and not married her rapist, which is why she didn’t have anyone to help with her delivery. He also, as a charitable gesture, told her to get a job.”

    Also:
    “Paul Ryan’s ‘conversion’ of 4h 01′ to “less than 3 hours, 2 fifty-something” is a discount of 1,6% per year. He calculates all rounding errors in his head instantly and disregards anything less than the inflation rate as non-significant.”

    And shorter:
    “The Curiosity rover reached Mars in just under 9 months. Paul Ryan did it in 6.”

  39. 39.

    RedKitten

    ”One thing about being president or running for president – if you’re easily offended, you should probably choose another profession,” Obama told USA Today.

    Subtle. I like it.

  40. 40.

    Violet

    @Ben Franklin: Yeah, the only thing anyone will remember about the GOP convention is Eastwood. Maybe Paul Ryan’s LyinRyan speech, but that’s about it.

    It’s not good for the GOP that the most memorable thing to happen at the GOP spawned a trend where people posted pictures of empty chairs. Not good at all.

  41. 41.

    Violet

    @kideni: Ha! Excellent. I was hoping it would catch on. Now if only the mountain climbing community in Colorado will have a look at the 40 fourteeners claim…

  42. 42.

    Ben Franklin

    @RedKitten:

    ”One thing about being a yankee president or running for baseball president – if you’re easily offended, you should probably choose another profession,” Jackie RobinsonObama told USA Today.the New York Post

  43. 43.

    trollhattan

    @kideni:
    Lots of Win! Ryan’s orbit is so big he’s eclipsed Chuck Norris.

    Today, Paul Ryan got up and while exercising, counted to infinity. Twice.

  44. 44.

    Maude

    @Violet:
    I just went back to thread thread and wrote down the title. Thanks so much. I’ve heard of it. I may order it from Barnes & Noble and read it on Nook PC.
    I am again reading the Big Short by Michael Lewis. Found a paperback of it for a quarter. I also have Liar’s Poker by him. Both books are enjoyable.

  48. 48.

    quannlace

    Any takers on the “why the bump was shortlived”?

    Because it involved Mitt. Simple
    *************
    But seriously. If it hadn’t been Romney, who would it have been? Who else did they have? Forget the joke picks (Perry, Cain, Bachmann, Gingrich). Uhhhh, Huntsman, Pawletney? Guiliani? (Ha ha ha ha)
    Maybe Christie could have taken a bullet for the party?

  49. 49.

    Pavonis

    So today’s tracking polls, as of 1PM Eastern, show Gallup with O+1, Reuters with O+1, and good ol’ Rassy with R+4. One of these is not like the others.

    Actually, Rasmussen just upped his Republican Party weighting by 3 points going from August to September. So most of Rasmussen “convention bounce” is an artifact of his weighting methodology.

    And a National Journal article seems to imply that Obama’s internal polling shows him ahead nationally and in all key swing states.
    http://www.nationaljournal.com/2012-election/the-confidence-game-20120822?page=1
    Yet I still can’t relax about this election…

  50. 50.

    Violet

    I think we’re going to have to follow Twitter if we want the Fear and Loathing in West Virginia tour updates:

    Imani ABL ‏@AngryBlackLady
    __
    We are on the road. @johngcole is threatening to force us to listen to hair metal. I have my Bose headphones & throwing knives.

    And this photo: http://instagram.com/p/PFI7kUg7qx/

  51. 51.

    lamh35

    Is/could this be a big deal or not?


    Romney’s Former Company Under Investigation For Tax Evasion

    Bain Capital, the private equity firm founded by presidential candidate Mitt Romney, is under investigation for questionable tax practices, according to the New York Times. Since July, New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has been issuing subpoenas to private equity firms including Bain, which he believes intentionally changed management fees into capital gains as a way of hanging onto millions of dollars that would have otherwise been taxed at a higher rate. Bain alone is estimated to have saved “more than $200 million in federal income taxes and more than $20 million in Medicare taxes.” It is unclear whether the tax strategy was used while Romney was at the helm of the company, but the Times reports that Romney is still making money on funds that are using the method in question. A lawyer who handles Romney’s money says he “can confirm that neither he nor the trust has ever done this, whether before or after he retired from Bain Capital.” Still, little is known about Romney’s finances, except that he makes a windfall on capital gains each year, since he has refused to release his tax returns

  52. 52.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @quannlace:

    Maybe Christie could have taken a bullet for the party?

    I’m not going to say it. It would be size-ist.
    I’m not going to say it.
    I’m not going to say it.
    I’m not. I’m just NOT!!
    It would be size-ist. And wrong.

  54. 54.

    Pavonis

    @lamh35: It seems like no one really knows yet how connected Romney was to the tax evasion. Is this the reason why he doesn’t want to release the returns?

  55. 55.

    trollhattan

    @Violet:
    Oh boy. Bumpy ride–we haz it.

    Hippie Subaru, bedecked in commie bumper stickers and hauling a multiracial group of passengers, cruises rural West Virginia. What could possibly go wrong?

  56. 56.

    Corner Stone

    @Violet:

    It’s not good for the GOP that the most memorable thing to happen at the GOP spawned a trend where people posted pictures of empty chairs. Not good at all.

    I’m waiting for the pictures of empty suits to start showing up. Something like an empty suit standing by a podium and an empty chair off to the side.

  57. 57.

    arguingwithsignposts

    @Haydnseek:

    guys like Romney were always suspected of being narcs.

    I’m pretty sure Romney would have been a narc. A former professor of mine attended BYU for a year, and said that there was a very police state atmosphere with regards to shit like drinking coffee or caffeinated soda off-campus, not to mention the obvious alcohol stuff. Lots of rats.

  59. 59.

    hoppipolla

    @Ben Franklin: Yanks were actually among the most racist MLB teams. Elston Howard didn’t become the first African-American player until 1955 (Branch Rickey brought Robinson up to the Dodgers in ’47).

    of course, the Yankees don’t compare to my Boston Red Sox (why can’t I quit you?) who brought up the immortal Pumpsie Green in ’59.

    also too, per Bloomberg, the New York state AG is investigating Bain and other PE firms for tax naughtiness.

  63. 63.

    Anya

    @Violet: I am kinda worried about an Angry Black Lady and a Cranky White Guy on the loose in the south. Someone should put a Paypal for bail money, just in case.

  64. 64.

    Cacti

    I’d like to see a DNC version of “He Built This” for Mitt Romney.

    A photo montage of Mitt’s mansions juxtaposed against the empty factories, shuttered by Bain.

  65. 65.

    Hill Dweller

    I love Goodbye, Mr. Chips.

    Why was Drew Barrymore chosen to co-host “The Essentials” on TCM? She is awful.

  66. 66.

    Pavonis

    @arguingwithsignposts: One of my high school classmates attended BYU in the early 2000s. It’s still much the same, i.e., very strict. For example, men can only visit the women’s dorm for a maximum of two hours and must be chaperoned at all times. And visa-versa.

  67. 67.

    PurpleGirl

    @SiubhanDuinne: I’ve never seen Goodfellas or The Sopranos. I don’t like any movie or TV show which is about the mafia and Italian mobsters.

    But I had to follow the changes to corporations when I worked in fund-raising to keep current as to what the corporate contributions of companies were and to what charities. (You should know what happened that Nabisco ultimately became part of Kraft after KKR & Co. L.P. (formerly known as Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co.) got through with some of their “investment” schemes.)

  69. 69.

    Brachiator

    @Violet:

    Or maybe the Dems have been saving the big stuff in the tax returns until after the convention when it would most put the Republicans in a pickle.

    The Democrats don’t know anything about Mitten’s tax returns. And the major thing is that Romney has, for now, got away with returning to secrecy and non disclosure. Unlike previous candidates, and the example of his own father, Romney has not been punished by either the press or Republican voters for failing to reveal his tax returns or the identity of his big money bundlers. This is very bad for democracy. I am amazed that Romney has pulled this off, at least for now.

    I’m not surprised to see the GOP support Mitt—they are the part of “fall in line” after all. I am interested to see how long it lasts.

    It only has to last until the first week of November. I don’t see much that might erode this support.

    And as far as conventional wisdom goes, Romney succeeded without the supposedly guaranteed and traditional pivot to the center.

    I continue to be amazed that Romney has made it this far. The mood of the electorate, and the acceptance of lies and emptiness among those on the right, is very puzzling.

  70. 70.

    Cacti

    @hoppipolla:

    of course, the Yankees don’t compare to my Boston Red Sox (why can’t I quit you?) who brought up the immortal Pumpsie Green in ‘59.

    Tom Yawkey passed on a chance to sign an 18 year old Willie Mays in 1949, due to his lack of pale skin.

    Imagine a lineup with Ted Williams and Willie Mays.

    sigh

  72. 72.

    lamh35

    Bhahaha

    POLITICO (@politico)
    9/2/12 12:09 PM
    Via @DylanByers,The most popular GOP convention tweet was from Obama politi.co/N746SG

    Sent from my iPhone

  74. 74.

    quannlace

    Why was Drew Barrymore chosen to co-host “The Essentials” on TCM? She is awful.

    She always sounds like someone doing a impersonation of her.

  77. 77.

    hoppipolla

    @Cacti: i try not to, actually. my history as a Red Sox fan, dating from 1967, the year of Yaz, the Impossible Dream pennant, and the 7-game WS loss to Bob Gibson and the Cardinals, is already overstuffed with agonizing what-ifs. Bucky fvckin’ Dent.

  78. 78.

    arguingwithsignposts

    @Brachiator:

    And as far as conventional wisdom goes, Romney succeeded without the supposedly guaranteed and traditional pivot to the center.

    Romney hasn’t succeeded at anything yet. The general election is just now underway.

  79. 79.

    Pavonis

    @Brachiator:

    I continue to be amazed that Romney has made it this far. The mood of the electorate, and the acceptance of lies and emptiness among those on the right, is very puzzling.

    Economic hard times tend to increase racial and class anxieties. And when you have multi-billionaires willing and able to pour fuel on the fire and exploit the situation, then yes, you can get a surge of hard-right sentiment.

  80. 80.

    PurpleGirl

    @SiubhanDuinne: Yes, and both were “clients” of KKR. Nabisco was ladened with debt from being acquired by Reynolds with loans. After a few years Reynolds spun off Nabisco and Nabisco got to keep the debt from the original Reynolds purchase. Nabisco had to close plants and fire workers to pay the debt and then Kraft bought Nabisco. (A trustee of the non-profit I worked for was an executive of Nabisco.)

  81. 81.

    Tripod

    @Pavonis:

    For at least two months, the (Obama) campaign has detected a ripple in the data caused by a spike in voters identifying themselves as Democrats. The numbers that come back on self-identified Democrats don’t match, statistically, voter-registration rolls or historical patterns. This anomaly cropped up in public polls in August. Romney aides have taken careful note and don’t know what to make of it.

    The storm flag is up. If the GOP-Romney choose to ignore it..well, it’s gonna suck to be them.

  82. 82.

    Davis X. Machina

    @Pavonis:

    Yet I still can’t relax about this election…

    There’s a lot of racism, and stupidity, and cupidity in the world.

    Take the fundamental depravity of mankind and the points. It doesn’t always win, but it always covers the spread.

  83. 83.

    dance around in your bones

    @Old Dan and Little Ann:

    I made my first youtube video last night. It’s my hound dog Yeller listening to wolves for about a minute before he decides to chime in and howl along.

    Gawd, that is hysterical – look at his ears twitching and the contemplative look on his face…..should I or should I not respond to the Call of The Wild?

    My dog used to howl at sirens when we were driving around in NYC – yeah, THAT was fun.

  84. 84.

    Villago Delenda Est

    @lamh35:

    ”One thing about being president or running for president – if you’re easily offended, you should probably choose another profession,” Obama told USA Today.

    He’s talking to you, ferretface Rmoney.

  87. 87.

    danah gaz

    @Doggie D: Why are you stalking people at rental car agencies?

    Why are you then submitting an unprompted and mean-spirited diatribe about it here?

    Don’t you have any hobbies?

    I know this is an open thread, but you still managed to go off-topic. I’m not sure if you should receive a golf-clap or a thorough beating for that, but I suppose in your little world it counts as some sort of accomplishment.

  91. 91.

    Villago Delenda Est

    @arguingwithsignposts:

    Yes, this tool is suspected of being a sockpuppet for BOB.

    I note that the latest sockpuppet of UNLIMITED CORPORATE CASH! is missing again as well, as the Ryan fail marathon clocks in another sub three hour performance.

  94. 94.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @PurpleGirl:

    How very complicated. I am beginning to recall that I once tried to read Barbarians at the Gate but found the whole thing way too confusing. Maybe I should give it another try.

  95. 95.

    Violet

    @arguingwithsignposts: Agreed. The election is just getting started in most people’s minds. The tax returns stuff of the summer was the Dems defining Romney. They’ve done a good job of that and the tax returns stuff will come up again. And again.

  97. 97.

    kay

    @Villago Delenda Est:

    “

    I think we’ll be playing this pretty straight,” Obama said.

    Unintentionally hilarious because it’s just classic Obama understatement and personal discipline. This is the calm, measured, completely practical person professional media have insisted for years (ALL polling to the contrary) is elite and professorial and abstract and out of touch. Do they ever actually LISTEN to what he says, or are they busy composing the next brilliant question in their head?

    He’s going to be in Toledo on labor day at a UAW event at a high school. Good choice of city for Labor Day, good choice of venue and a rowdy crowd, guaranteed. I hope he rips Kasich a new one for that disgusting convention speech where Kasich took credit for an economic recovery plan he opposed.

  99. 99.

    hoppipolla

    @Maude: Barbs is by Brian Burrough and John Helyar. it’s easy to lose the narrative thread amid all the detail. James Stewart wrote the not-bad Den of Thieves, about Boesky, Levine, and other inside traders. Stewart went on to defend the oh-so-noble Ken Starr. dick.

  100. 100.

    arguingwithsignposts

    @kay:

    Do they ever actually LISTEN to what he says, or are they busy composing the next brilliant question in their head?

    This is a problem for a lot of folks, not just the media. If I hear one more person say “Why hasn’t Obama being talking about (X) for the last three years?” when a casual perusal of speech transcripts or WH weekly addresses or even press briefings would show that he has been talking about (X), I will scream.

  101. 101.

    rikyrah

    @Anya:

    I am kinda worried about an Angry Black Lady and a Cranky White Guy on the loose in the south. Someone should put a Paypal for bail money, just in case.

    BWA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA

  102. 102.

    Villago Delenda Est

    @arguingwithsignposts:

    Romney hasn’t succeeded at anything yet. The general election is just now underway.

    On the contrary, he’s succeeded at subduing the mutinous crew of the SS GOP for now and had his little coronation, which, unfortunately for him, was upstaged by Clint Eastwood.

    Who may or may not have done that deliberately as ratfucking Rmoney in spectacular fashion.

    Now, as to whether or not he’s ever going to be able to shake the etch-a-sketch and tack to the center, the magic 8 ball is giving us a “signs point to no” given the themes he’s pushing. He’s not talking about the economy, he’s sending racial dogwhistles out. In part to keep the crew under control. They need their red meat, particularly with him, the non-Christian, you’d never want to have a beer with him even if he was permitted to cultist heading the ticket. Ryan was the veep choice in part to feed the rabid base.

  104. 104.

    Villago Delenda Est

    @kay:

    Do they ever actually LISTEN to what he says, or are they busy composing the next brilliant question in their head?

    What he actually says has nothing to do with the narrative that they have been ordered by their corporate masters to dispense.

    So, naturally, a reality gap will develop.

  106. 106.

    lamh35

    President Obama Makes Video Appearance at Jay-Z Concert

    Not very many rappers can say they’ve brought out the President of the United States at a show. However, if your name is Jay-Z then you can.
    The “Empire State of Mind” rapper headlined the first night of the “Budweiser Made in America” music festival in Philadelphia this weekend. President Obama made a video appearance, urging the crowd of nearly 50,000 to get out to vote.
    The president also added that he enjoys listening to Jay-Z’s music on his iPod and that the rapper’s story is “what made in America means,” reports the Huffington Post…

  109. 109.

    hoppipolla

    @Maude: happy to oblige. yes, it’s the red cover. it’s an easy mix-up to make, those books came out around the same time, and Stewart had an only semi-deserved rep as the premier financial investigative reporter in the game. funny how he and Burrough et al ended up as tireless defenders of the overdog. but they’re all WSJ boys, and i guess they know what side their bread is buttered on.

    on the other hand, i shouldn’t run around correcting people all the time. kinda obnoxious.

  110. 110.

    Brachiator

    @JGabriel:

    Personally, I think it’s more like a millipede of lies.

    Ryan promised a millipede of lies, then had to backtrack and admit that he had only brought a centipede of lies.

  111. 111.

    danah gaz

    @lamh35: I’m glad Jay-Z rocked the vote. This will certainly get those white suburban kids in his audience to the polls.

    Now he should make an appearance at an MF Doom or Mos Def show.

  113. 113.

    arguingwithsignposts

    @Villago Delenda Est:

    On the contrary, he’s succeeded at subduing the mutinous crew of the SS GOP for now and had his little coronation, which, unfortunately for him, was upstaged by Clint Eastwood.

    If that is the low bar we’re defining as success, then carry on.

    Personally, I define success here as being the person who’s sworn in as the president next January.

  114. 114.

    gogol's wife

    @Hill Dweller:

    Bring back Alec Baldwin!

    ETA: I think it’s because they show so many Lionel Barrymore movies, and it gives her a chance to get teary-eyed over her old great-uncle or whatever he was to her.

  120. 120.

    Comrade Jake

    @danah gaz:

    @Comrade Jake: This is a “mid-season break”. It’s scheduled to run through season 6 (at least that’s what the story is prepped for). So roughly, after this evening there are still 24 more episodes scheduled, based on my back of the napkin calculations.

    Yes, I am familiar with the break. That’s why I wrote “2012”. And there are precisely 8 eps left after tonight.

  123. 123.

    xian

    @Villago Delenda Est: politicalwire just hired disqus moderators and they’ve been weeding out the most ocdc trolls and all of teh sockpuppets, and it is a joy to behold. we all have our echo chambers, fellow obots, but it’s pathetic how weak fox fu is in a fair fight.

  124. 124.

    quannlace

    When I think about so many recent GOP candidates. All of them have had the ‘bar set low’ for something, usually the debates. Bush, Palin, Romney (tho his more for trying to come across as human.) I’s as if they get through it without drooling on themselves, it’s a Big Win!
    The Republicans must be so proud of this stellar group.

  125. 125.

    Brachiator

    @arguingwithsignposts:

    Romney hasn’t succeeded at anything yet. The general election is just now underway.

    Despite the sentiment that he was too bland, too Mormonly cultish, too weak and too wishy washy, Romney shut down any hint of rebellion from Ron Paul and seemingly unified the GOP. This in itself is an achievement. In addition, he has managed to return the Republican Party to the monied elite while keeping the evangelicals and social conservatives in line. Maybe there are wingnuts who still believe that Mitt will meekly do their bidding, but it is beginning to look as though Romney is the rat pulling the chain.

    This does not necessarily make Mitt strong going into the national election, he is far from a sure thing. But I continue to be surprised that he has come out of the convention with fairly unified support, given how crappy he was during the primary season. Even Grampa McCain had some Republicans snapping at his heels, and the fundamentalists and Tea Party People loved Palin more than they loved the Arizona Maverick.

    I would love to see the Democrats sow some dissension among the GOP ranks.

  133. 133.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @xian:

    It’s really kind of amazing that on top of everything else he has done (Lily Ledbetter, auto bailout, ACA, OBL, etc. etc.) he has also taken on the job of turning his own damn party around. He shouldn’t have to be doing that, but damn, I’m glad he is!

  134. 134.

    Violet

    @Brachiator:

    Romney shut down any hint of rebellion from Ron Paul

    Ron Paul’s delegates caused quite a ruckus. They were not shut down, although they were shut out through tricky rule changes.

    Even Grampa McCain had some Republicans snapping at his heels, and the fundamentalists and Tea Party People loved Palin more than they loved the Arizona Maverick.

    The Tea Party people love Ryan far more than they love Mitt. I’ve seen and heard wingnuts speak of it as the Ryan/Romney ticket.

    In addition, he has managed to return the Republican Party to the monied elite while keeping the evangelicals and social conservatives in line.

    For what, three days? Let’s see just how well that fake unity front works a week, two weeks, a month from now.

  135. 135.

    Brachiator

    @Violet:

    Ron Paul’s delegates caused quite a ruckus. They were not shut down, although they were shut out through tricky rule changes.

    But that’s the point. Paul’s people were shut out, but for now they appear to be meekly going along, which is all that matters.

    I will grant that there appears to be more love for Ryan than for Romney; still Mittens has shaken some of the distrust that dogged him during the primary.

    RE: In addition, he has managed to return the Republican Party to the monied elite while keeping the evangelicals and social conservatives in line.

    For what, three days? Let’s see just how well that fake unity front works a week, two weeks, a month from now.

    I will be looking for signs of weakness and cracks in the facade. The bottom line is that the Democrats have their work cut out for them. Right now, the GOP does not have to fight to keep their voters in line, and this is a small, but significant tactical advantage.

    I want to see the Democrats demolish the GOP’s position coming out of the upcoming convention. Let’s see how they do.

  136. 136.

    Chris

    @Violet:

    The Tea Party people love Ryan far more than they love Mitt. I’ve seen and heard wingnuts speak of it as the Ryan/Romney ticket.

    You’d think those fucking nimrods would pick up on the fact that it was the McCain/Palin and Romney/Ryan tickets and not the other way around. Both times, the Establishment got the candidate it wanted, and then threw in some eye candy for the Activist Base. All you have to do is look at who’s president and who’s VP to know who’s wearing the pants in the relationship.

    ETA:

    For what, three days? Let’s see just how well that fake unity front works a week, two weeks, a month from now.

    I suspect the coalition will be held together by foaming-at-the-mouth Obama hatred between now and the election (unless Ovenmitt does something really stupid to piss them off, and that is always possible), and if Romney loses, it’ll split apart right after that as the base furiously blames him for losing them the election just as they did McCain.

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