Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

They love authoritarianism, but only when they get to be the authoritarians.

“In the future, this lab will be a museum. do not touch it.”

The real work of an opposition party is to hold the people in power accountable.

The Supreme Court cannot be allowed to become the ultimate, unaccountable arbiter of everything.

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

Democracy cannot function without a free press.

There are no moderate republicans – only extremists and cowards.

The gop is a fucking disgrace.

This isn’t Democrats spending madly. This is government catching up.

Jesus watching the most hateful people claiming to be his followers

You are either for trump or for democracy. Pick one.

Bad people in a position to do bad things will do bad things because they are bad people. End of story.

Narcissists are always shocked to discover other people have agency.

When you’re in more danger from the IDF than from Russian shelling, that’s really bad.

There is no right way to do the wrong thing.

When I decide to be condescending, you won’t have to dream up a fantasy about it.

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

You cannot shame the shameless.

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

Giving up is unforgivable.

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

This must be what justice looks like, not vengeful, just peaceful exuberance.

They traffic in fear. it is their only currency. if we are fearful, they are winning.

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

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Reader Interactions

145Comments

  2. 2.

    lamh35

    My oldest Godson turned 16 on Monday. I wished him a Happy Birthday and he said thx and “I love you nanny” and darn if I didn’t get misty eyed thinking about this lil baby who would sleep on my chest when he slept over at my house.

    The time does fly.

  3. 3.

    Comrade Mary

    Oh my God, he’s SO cute, but man, Team Bunny is already turning out some hardasses. He’s killed and skinned one panda and has the other one frozen in terror.

  5. 5.

    smith

    My oldest nephew will be 16 in two years. He already has his car picked out and can’t wait to drive. I’m scared to death and I’m not even his parent. It seems like he was born only yesterday.

    That pic is cute – how fast they grow.

  7. 7.

    kindness

    Are you saying he’s gonna wreck your car when he’s 16? I’m not sure. Tell ya what you do. Buy an old VW bug now. When he turns 16 make sure that’s the only car you ever lend him.

    C’mon, it’s not a bad idea. John could be an awful Godfather and have a Pinto for the poor kid.

  11. 11.

    MattR

    John – The best part will be after he wrecks your car, he’ll pull up this post as part of his defense.

    @lamh35: Awww. She is adorable.

  15. 15.

    SiubhanDuinne

    Young Cole and Miss Maddie are both adorable. Any chance this thread on this blog could serve as a cinematic “meet cute” for a future relationship, or whatever that’ll be called in 15 years?

  19. 19.

    DPS

    Nate Silver tonight:

    The forecast model is not quite ready to jump on board with the notion that the race has become a literal toss-up; Mr. Romney will need to maintain his bounce for a few more days, or extend it into high-quality polls of swing states, before we can be surer about that. But we are ready to conclude that one night in Denver undid most of the advantage Mr. Obama had appeared to gain in September.

    Everything that Michelle and Bill won at the convention pissed down the drain, at a minimum. And even worse, Sully has turned out to be at least partly right.

    Next time I would like the Democratic campaign to set up a special debate prep fund I can donate to. Maybe they can buy one of those fancy split screen monitors so that they can figure out that staring at your fucking shoes for the whole debate isn’t a winning technique.

  20. 20.

    ruemara

    @DPS: Maybe the issue is that lying forcefully and changing your positions during the debate is a winning strategy. Because fucking looking at your papers should not count as losing when you are goddamn right. Fucktards deserve the president you get if that is seriously making you shift your vote.

  21. 21.

    TexasMango

    @DPS: So what are they concluding it on?

    Seriously, if there are no high quality polls whats this based on?

    Also too:

    I don’t know what the electorate will look like this year, but this is the breakdown from 2008.

    http://elections.nytimes.com/2008/results/president/national-exit-polls.html

    Any poll with a cross tabs that are wildly outside of this is probably crap. So from now on if I say a poll is crap this was my reference.

    Jut as an example:

    2008 electorate: 74% white, 47% male, 43% over 45 and 32% South

    Yesterday’s Pew Poll: 84% white, 44% male 70% over 50 and 38% South

    The only measure that was close was the gender breakdown.

  22. 22.

    TexasMango

    @ruemara: What is this even based on? If the polls aren’t “high quality” where is it coming from?

    And yeah, if all it took was one debate then this country is nuts and deserves everything it gets from R-Money good and hard. This isn’t rocket science, just fucking vote. If America wants Rich White Big Daddy again then fuck it.

  23. 23.

    max

    Your late night moment of Zen via Godson Cole:

    Cute!

    You know that picture of the dogs in the bucket you were posting for awhile there? Maybe you could scrounge up some more babies and put them in a bucket. (And get a picture, yes.)

    max
    [‘They’d be on the Ryan Express.’]

  24. 24.

    Political Observer

    BREAKING NEWS

    Obama convention bounce KILLED, his lead is eviscerated by Romney debate performance! Democrats utterly panicked! OBAMA NOW LOSES FLORIDA IN NATE SILVER FORECAST. VIRGINIA too close to call. Ohio slipping…

  25. 25.

    DPS

    So what are they concluding it on?

    Well, it’s Nate Silver, so he’s just pulling it out of his ass, of course. But if you were interested you could probably just go look at his posts from the past couple of days.

  26. 26.

    Political Observer

    Obambi is circling the drain.

    *GLUG GLUG GLUG*

    Get ready to threaten to move to Canada once again, leftists.

  27. 27.

    TheMightyTrowel

    @TexasMango: There’s lots of space here in Australia. We have our crazies too, but they’re less dangerous and don’t really want to nuke Iran.

  28. 28.

    Political Observer

    And yeah, if all it took was one debate then this country is nuts and deserves everything it gets from R-Money good and hard. This isn’t rocket science, just fucking vote. If America wants Rich White Big Daddy again then fuck it.

    Shorter Texas Mango: waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah! waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah! WA-HAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

  32. 32.

    Political Observer

    McGovern. Carter. Mondale. Dukakis. Gore. Kerry. Obama.

    I think the Democrats should just give it up as a political party at this point.

  33. 33.

    TexasMango

    @Political Observer: Um, my candidate still has a 70% chance of winning and your has a 30% chance winning. My candidate is still winning and will win. And Nate’s map still looks the same. Romney is not going to win OH, PA, WI, NM, NV, CO or NH. He may win FL and NC. Obama doesn’t need those states.

    Oh and how’s Romney’s ground game going? Democrats are beating Republicans in every swing state. Do I think this country would be stupid to elect Romney? Hell yes but it won’t. Enjoy this little “bounce”. It won’t last.

  39. 39.

    Political Observer

    @TexasMango:

    I keep hearing these predictions of the demise of the GOP. Year after year after year after year. Yet we keep on winning. Perhaps the demise of the Republican Party is greatly exaggerated…

  42. 42.

    pseudonymous in nc

    When Very Ass shows up to gloat, it’s always a good sign, because no commenter has displayed UNLIMITED CORPORATE WANK like Very Ass.

  43. 43.

    Political Observer

    Face it losers, we always win in the end.

    Republicans=the Party of Winners.

    Democrats=the Party of Losers.

  44. 44.

    Political Observer

    @pseudonymous in nc:

    Romney is now the OVERWHELMNG FAVORITE to win your state.

    How does that make you feel?

    Just when you thought Obama and the Democrats were about to fly, Romney and the GOP lean over, grin, and clip your wings yet again.

  45. 45.

    pseudonymous in nc

    Face it, Very Ass, if you didn’t rely upon the $0.20 per comment that you’re getting from your UNLIMITED CORPORATE WANKTANK, you’d be huffing paint at your Party of Winners under the bridge.

    We pity you.

  46. 46.

    Political Observer

    @pseudonymous in nc:

    Obama is a loser.

    L O S E R. LOSER.

    Bewildered, lost, so confused without his teleprompter.

    His political career is fucking over, dipshit.

    Suck it. Suck it long. Suck it hard.

  47. 47.

    Mnemosyne

    @DPS:

    Uh, dude, did you bother to read to the end?

    So far, the evidence that Mr. Romney’s debate bounce is receding is a bit anecdotal. Indeed, this case seemed a bit clearer a couple of days ago. But it is a plausible hypothesis; a fresh round of swing state polling could help to settle the question.

    Silver is actually saying that Romney’s post-debate bounce seems to be going down, and that he will need to see a lot more evidence to believe that Romney is not on the downswing right now.

    Jaysus, change your Depends and nut up.

  51. 51.

    Mnemosyne

    @DPS:

    I hate to break it to you, but I think you’re the one who tossed the bait to him since his link is to the 538 post that you referenced.

  52. 52.

    TexasMango

    @Hill Dweller: I actually don’t think his money situation is very good. He hasn’t released his September numbers and that was the month that he need it to build his ground game. Also Obama is doing his last fundraiser this week. So it looks like he’s good for money.

  56. 56.

    TexasMango

    @Hill Dweller:

    Also if Willard’s internal polls looked like that poll with Obama only ahead by 2 points he’d stay. Make me think the other polls are crap too. He got a bounce, but I think this is all overreaction across the board.

  57. 57.

    pseudonymous in nc

    I imagine that Very Ass, being a staunch defender of 2nd amdt. rights, will eventually cash in his lifetime NRA membership in the way so many of his bitter kind do, and stiff whoever has the ugly job of cleaning up after him. As ever.

    It is to be pitied. What a sad waste of a life.

  58. 58.

    DPS

    @Mnemosyne:

    Parody trolls can find the NYTimes on their own.

    Silver is actually saying that Romney’s post-debate bounce seems to be going down, and that he will need to see a lot more evidence to believe that Romney is not on the downswing right now.

    No, I think you might want to reread what you’ve quoted. He’s saying that the evidence that Mitt is *losing* his bounce is now spottier—or, in other words, that it now seems likelier to him that the bounce is durable.

    I’m not trying to say that we’re doomed. I’m just saying that the debate was an actual, not an imaginary, fuck-up that needs to be compensated for. This is not just Andrew Sullivan in a tizzy.

  59. 59.

    DPS

    @RaflW:

    Andrew Sullivan did not drive a multiple percentage point shift in the polls, although I’m sure he wouldn’t mind you imagining that he could.

  61. 61.

    Fuck ALL the chickens! (né Studly Pantload, t.e.u.u.)

    Why would someone bother to take time to argue over the intert00z with an obvious bomb-thrower whose only goal is to create an emotional rise out of people rather than argue the facts — any facts whatsoever — on merits?

    But enough about arguing with John Cole! (badda-boom!)
    =o D

    Speaking of Cole — hey, Tunch’s owner (and other NFL fans), seen the great “NFL Q-B comments exchange” making the rounds? Someone’s got great satiric chops, they do.

    http://profootballmock.com/?p=4810

  62. 62.

    Mnemosyne

    @TexasMango:

    I’m still convinced that Mitt’s “bounce” was less him swaying voters to his side and more that it energized Republican voters to start telling pollsters that they’re more likely to show up to vote on Election Day.

    Unless someone can show me the polls with Mitt getting at least 40%+ of the Hispanic vote, the “bounce” is pretty much useless.

  63. 63.

    Violet

    @Valdivia: Here’s a link. It’s CBS News. Don’t know if you can see that in China. If not, here’s a summary:

    The Romney campaign is moving five staffers from Pennsylvania to Ohio in order to help out with efforts in the Buckeye State.
    __
    “With early voting already underway in Ohio but 96% of voting taking place on election day in Pennsylvania, these 5 of 64 staff will be better utilized in Ohio right now,” one Romney aide told CBS News.
    __
    The campaign is not entirely pulling out of Pennsylvania, however, contrary to reports suggesting otherwise. Neither is the Republican National Committee or their “Victory” operation. Between the campaign and the national party, there are 24 offices in Pennsylvania, and 40 in Ohio.

  64. 64.

    Mnemosyne

    @DPS:

    No, I’m pretty sure you’re reading Silver wrong (emphasis mine):

    So far, the evidence that Mr. Romney’s debate bounce is receding is a bit anecdotal. Indeed, this case seemed a bit clearer a couple of days ago. But it is a plausible hypothesis; a fresh round of swing state polling could help to settle the question.

    The “plausible hypothesis” is that the bounce is receding, not that Romney is gaining.

  65. 65.

    Hill Dweller

    @DPS: Actually, Willard’s bounce was very good on Thursday and Friday, but it had started dropping by Sunday. But the continued freak out by Sullivan, Matthews, Schultz and other liberals during the first part of this week did give the Village cover to keep piling on Obama and covering for Willard’s opportunistic transformation to a moderate.

    If the narrative had been more focused on Willard’s mendacity, his bounce would have completely disappeared. While Sullivan didn’t cause the bump, I think he helped to maintain it(if it in fact has staying power).

  66. 66.

    Violet

    @Hill Dweller: Mitt may have just messed up his moderate credentials with the mixed messaging on abortion. And let’s see how Ryan holds up. If he seems like a lightweight, that won’t reflect well on the ticket.

  67. 67.

    Fuck ALL the chickens! (né Studly Pantload, t.e.u.u.)

    @Hill Dweller: Mental Habitrail alert: “Caution: Pundits’ influence in mirror are smaller than they appear.”

  68. 68.

    TheMightyTrowel

    Apparently WI voters who vote absentee have to find an american citizen to sign their ballot envelopes.

    I learned this because an art history MA student just knocked on my door. She’d been going dept to dept looking for an American so she could post her ballot and have it counted.

    Apparently she never managed to vote in the recall election because her go-to American moved and the US embassy wouldn’t help.

    I can’t believe how hard we make voting. This seriously sucks.

  69. 69.

    Valdivia

    @Violet:

    Thank you Violet! All those polls yesterday showing Mitt doing so well in so many states seemed highly suspect to me. If he were winning in all of them he would not be shifting his staff around.

    The VPN works with some sites and not others. twitter is definitely one that I have no access to.

    Is the debate on weds night or thurs? Need to make sure I carve some time to follow along here :)

  70. 70.

    DPS

    @Mnemosyne:

    Indeed, this case seemed a bit clearer a couple of days ago.

    My understanding of the point of this sentence is that the case that El Mitterino’s bounce is fading has gotten *less* clear over the past couple of days, or in other words, that the case that it is durable has gotten more clear.

    I also think that that sentence needs to be understood in light of his unequivocal statement earlier in the post that

    we are ready to conclude that one night in Denver undid most of the advantage Mr. Obama had appeared to gain in September.

    I don’t think he has phrased this lazily; he cares about his reputation.

  71. 71.

    TexasMango

    @Mnemosyne: This what I think as well. Republicans are really, really excited to vote against the Kenyan Usurper. There is no evidence of a shift in Hispanics, women or independents. Also the cross tabs in many of the polls don’t reflect the electorate ans some of them are Republican polls that I have never heard of.

    Here’s something else that’s strange. Wouldn’t a national shift show up in the Senate polls as well? Because they look the same as they did before the debate.

  72. 72.

    magurakurin

    @TexasMango:

    And yeah, if all it took was one debate then this country is nuts and deserves everything it gets from R-Money good and hard.

    I’m of this mind as well. If America votes for Rmoney, fuck it. Let em rot. I don’t live there anymore. I just have stock investments. They will probably be fine. I live in a country with health care and if the world goes up in a ball of nuclear flame…well, I have always thought that would happen some day anyway.

    That being said, I dropped $150 in Obama’s war chest last night. And I am fairly confident that Obama will do much, much better in the next debate and in the end the increased employment in Ohio from the auto bailout will be enough for Obama to hold on to Ohio and the EC.

  73. 73.

    FlipYrWhig

    @DPS: I interpret that bit like Mnemosyne does: “a few days ago it looked like Romney’s debate bounce was fading, but now I’m not so sure, yet I’m not going to rule it out either, and so more information will help determine what the real situation is.”

  74. 74.

    J R in WVa

    @Political Observer:

    If you think electing a Republican like Bush is winning, you’re too dumb to remember how to chew and swallow.

    Everything that is wrong with America is the fault of the Republican party, everything!

    So go suck on a straight pipe outfall, dumbass loser.

  75. 75.

    Hill Dweller

    @Violet: I don’t think the VP debate will matter much, barring a complete meltdown from either of them.

    The next Presidential debate will matter more, in my view. If Obama improves, which I think is likely, he will have regained the momentum.

    I have a hard time believing the majority of the country wants to elect Willard. The President would have to give them a reason to do it with a series of mistakes. The debate was a mistake and gift for Willard, but not the deciding factor. Willard pulling ahead has set the table for a comeback narrative, but OFA and the President are going to have to be damn near perfect from here on out to earn it from the hacks in the media. If they can, it will give them momentum in the last couple of weeks.

  76. 76.

    FlipYrWhig

    @TexasMango: I guess it’s possible that people would say, “The local Republican senate candidate seems like a chucklehead, so I’m still not voting for him, but I like what I see out of this Mitt Romney lately.” It kind of makes me gag a bit just pretending to think that way, but it’s not impossible…

  77. 77.

    DPS

    If the narrative had been more focused on Willard’s mendacity, his bounce would have completely disappeared.

    Maybe. I do recall my own experience of the debate, which was squirming and repeatedly switching away. And that was well before I had a look at Sully’s meltdown, or anybody’s tweets, or any other commentary. I thought it was manifestly a disaster, and I was even more freaked out to realize that my reaction had been like Andrew Sullivan’s. That’s a disturbing thing to have to deal with on the same night that you’ve already seen that shitty debate performance by Barack.

  78. 78.

    DPS

    @FlipYrWhig:

    a few days ago it looked like Romney’s debate bounce was fading, but now I’m not so sure

    I think you’re interpreting it like me. It looked like it was fading, but now there is less evidence for that.

  79. 79.

    TexasMango

    @Hill Dweller: I agree the president must perform well in the next debate. But some things haven’t changed. Romney’s favorables are still under water. He still behind with Independents and 40 points behind with Latinos. The OFA geound game is still superior and the President is at or above 50% approval in important swing states. He’s also doing his last fundraiser on Thursday which suggests the campaign has plenty of money ($181 million in September). There us a whole heck of a lot still working in his favor. Even Frank Luntz said he still thinks Obama is going to win.

    I would also say that the lead Obama built was without any help from the MSM. The MSM being negative against Obama is nothing new.

  80. 80.

    Valdivia

    @TexasMango:

    when I read about the last fundraiser I sent more money, not a lot but just anything to help in this last month.

    Also–seeing the crowds show up for him in spite of the media narrative makes me feel like the energy on the ground is with us.

  81. 81.

    TexasMango

    @DPS: McCain and Kerry both had surges at this point. Was it the debates or a tightening that was expected?

    I did expect some tightening of the polls.

  82. 82.

    Hill Dweller

    @DPS: I didn’t actually see it live. I hate debates, and didn’t even plan on watching it. But after the meltdown here and elsewhere, and some astonishingly low expectations going in, it wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be.

    That’s not to say Obama was good by any stretch. Willard was more effective, especially for people with no clue about policy.

    That said, the hysteria that followed was so disproportionate to the actual event, I think it has changed a lot of minds.

  83. 83.

    TexasMango

    @Valdivia: It’s all about the dog fight on the ground. Democrats out registered voters in Florida by a good margin. I have a hard time believing that that doesn’t mean anything.

  84. 84.

    TexasMango

    @Hill Dweller: They guy who does the Gallop polls said on MSNBC that most people polled heard about the debate from the media. They didn’t actually watch it.

    I still don’t think there are enough real undecideds to swing anything too far in Willard’s direction.

  85. 85.

    Violet

    @Valdivia: VP debate is on Thursday. Good luck following it here–last debate, B-J melted down.

    @Hill Dweller: Where the VP debate will matter is in changing the narrative. The media is still focused on Obama’s debate meltdown and the ensuing change in the polls. If Ryan does well, that will solidify that narrative. If Biden does well, the narrative changes.

    Does Ryan have much experience debating? I think he’s had a pretty safe seat and hasn’t had to debate much, right? I wonder how well he’ll hold up on the big stage. His whole job is to seem up to the job of being president. If he comes across like a lightweight, that won’t do the team any good. He already looks like a lost puppy, so I think he’s starting with a disadvantage.

  86. 86.

    Fuck ALL the chickens! (né Studly Pantload, t.e.u.u.)

    @TexasMango: “Democrats out registered voters in Florida by a good margin.”

    Did they? I thought I saw on Maddow’s show just a couple weeks ago that the new, draconian registration laws had shoved out the left-leaning grassroots and left a ginormous advantage for Republican registrants.

  89. 89.

    Valdivia

    @Violet:

    oh thanks so that is fri am, good to know. I do remember how slow it was here and now I am not going to even get near Sully because he will totally go hysterical again no matter what. I guess I will just keep my fingers crossed this will work.

  90. 90.

    TexasMango

    @Fuck ALL the chickens! (né Studly Pantload, t.e.u.u.):

    Nope. 290.000 (D) to 47,000 (R)

    http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/the-buzz-florida-politics/content/democrats-say-superior-voter-registration-ground-game-will-deliver-florida-obama?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

    http://www.alternet.org/election-2012/florida-democrats-crushing-gop-2012-voter-registrations

    http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/10/09/voter-registration-gives-democrats-edge-in-many-swing-states/

    Like I said. There is no way that Willard wiped away all of Obama’s advantage after one debate.

  91. 91.

    trollhattan

    Bay Area fans shall celebrate the smiling upon them by the baseball gods tonight.

    Carry on.

  92. 92.

    TexasMango

    @Violet: I think Ryan has actually become a non-factor. But Joe has to do well to put the breaks on The Narrative and then Obama has to kill it next week. I think they both can. Lord knows they know what’s at stake now.

  94. 94.

    Hill Dweller

    @Violet: Most people seem to think Joe is a lovable F up. He’ll have room for error and a low bar to clear.

    Ryan, on the other hand, is the beltway’s boy wonder. The expectations for him are much higher.

    However, Biden could win handily, but the Village will never pile on Ryan the way they did Obama.

  95. 95.

    Violet

    @TexasMango: I think people underestimate Joe because of the SNL caricature and the general conclusion that he’s a gaffe machine. No one seems to remember that he definitively defined Giuliani as “A noun, a verb, and 9/11” in one of the Dem primary debates. And he managed to successfully “debate” Palin, an unknown, inexperienced, attractive woman, which was a real challenge to do.

    I think people are going to expect Joe to be an idiot and he’s going to surprise them.

  97. 97.

    TexasMango

    @Hill Dweller: Just like if Romney loses the next debate they won’t pile on him like Obama. The media has never been Obama’s friend. Not even MSNBC.

  98. 98.

    DPS

    @TexasMango:

    That’s a good question. My impression (possibly wrong) is that out-party candidates have benefitted from the first debate. I guess what we’d want to know is whether the bounce that finally emerges in retrospect was greater or smaller than what we’ve seen in those cases.

    Since we don’t know that yet, it’s entirely possible that it wouldn’t have mattered what Barack (or the Mittster) did that night. We may not even know that in retrospect, as there are other contingent factors that could affect the polls more dramatically in this year than in others.

    So I am making a leap, that the shitty debate (and not just the fact of there having been a debate) affected the polls. And maybe that’s wrong.

  99. 99.

    Redshift

    @Violet:

    “With early voting already underway in Ohio but 96% of voting taking place on election day in Pennsylvania, these 5 of 64 staff will be better utilized in Ohio right now,” one Romney aide told CBS News.

    That’s a nice line of BS. It will probably even work on journalists who have never worked on a campaign, but think about it — staff organize GOTV efforts, they don’t just jump in at the moment they start and make them happen. So sure, it’s somewhat plausible that they’re more useful in Ohio right now, but they’re really needed in both PA and OH now for maximum effectiveness on Election Day. What this really tells us is that either they don’t have enough staff (because only campaign money can pay for them, not SuperPAC money), or they’re continuing to abandon Pennsylvania.

    Back in the primaries, there were news stories about a flying squad of Romney staffers, who would land in a state a week or so before a primary and “whip people into shape” (translation: piss off local party people by treating them like peons and ignoring their knowledge) and then fly off the day after the primary, leaving nothing lasting behind. I remember thinking at the time, “so what are they going to do in the fall, when it’s every state at once?”

    I guess we’re starting to see that now…

  100. 100.

    TexasMango

    @Violet: Joe’s most important role is as ambassador the white voters. He’s great on the stump and was really good in his last debate. In this case Ryan will be the “wonk” and Joe will be the down to earth guy that explains things clearly and quickly. He talks to people that Obama doesn’t always connect with.

  101. 101.

    TexasMango

    @Redshift: I really think they don’t have the money to stay in Pa. Obama’s campaign has not and will not pull anybody out from anywhere. They know on the ground is where it’s at and they are miles ahead of Romney in terms of infrastructure. One debate will not make up for this deficit.

  102. 102.

    Violet

    @Redshift: Yeah, it’s the kind of thing that the media probably ignores because it doesn’t fit their horse race model. Fucking horses. Why do they always have to be in a race? Why can’t they stay in the barn or mill around the paddock?

  103. 103.

    DPS

    It also occurs to me to note that Nate set his model to anticipate post-convention bounces, since he regards those as predictable. So far as I know, he didn’t put anything in to adjust temporarily for a challenger’s bounce after the first debate, which suggests to me that he doesn’t view that as something to be assumed.

  105. 105.

    Redshift

    @DPS:

    My impression (possibly wrong) is that out-party candidates have benefitted from the first debate.

    Maddow was going over the record a few days ago, and pointing out that the only incumbent to win the first debate in the era of televised debates was Bill Clinton over Bob Dole in ’96. That’s not to say that they all got equal benefit from it, but the media judgment in each case clearly declared the challenger the winner, with more than one “this is a whole new race” post-debate narrative.

  106. 106.

    Yutsano

    @TexasMango: It will get more entertaining when the “wonk” gives no specifics during the debate. Then Joe has a wide open opportunity to rip Little Paulie a new one over his supposed big ideas that he just can’t tell us about.

  108. 108.

    DPS

    @Redshift:

    I think vote suppression via ID checks was their only hope with Pennsylvania. Apparently they’ve given up on that. So transferring staff to Ohio does make sense, although the “Pennsylvania can wait because we’ll be back there for election day” line is horseshit. They’re not ever going back to PA, because they can’t win it.

  110. 110.

    Redshift

    @TexasMango: It’s also probably partly caused by the fact that the Obama campaign (like most Democratic campaigns) has more volunteers, and Romney is more dependent on paid campaign workers.

  111. 111.

    Hill Dweller

    @Redshift: I read somewhere(Washington Monthly?) that the biggest post-debate bounce was 2.5-3 points.

    We’ll see how it all shakes out, but it looks like Willard has received the biggest post-debate bounce ever. That is partly the result of media hysteria convincing many people that didn’t even see the debate Obama is lazy and dumb, IMO.

  115. 115.

    Fuck ALL the chickens! (né Studly Pantload, t.e.u.u.)

    @Redshift: Aye, ’twas. Which then assumes a bit advan for Dems going forward in that state, but with still one wicked-sized gap to close in such a short time, if I recall the Repub’s size advantage anywhere near correctly.

  116. 116.

    Yutsano

    @Valdivia: Don’t I wish! Interestingly enough I have enough leave for it (I’m packing on extra hours to avoid using what I have when the holidays come around) but the fundage isn’t quite there. I did get my next step up though, so the money sitch should be improving here soon.

  118. 118.

    TheMightyTrowel

    @Yutsano: COngrats on a step up in salary. I got one too this month and immediately spent ALL of it (and most of the rest of the paycheck too) on my deposit and first month’s rent. SIGH.

  120. 120.

    amk

    You’re a preemptive worrier/complainer, aren’t ya, cole ? Give the kid a break. He will prolly turn out to be a better driver than you.

  121. 121.

    Jewish Steel

    I want to go to the meetup!

    When is one of the fpers going to come visit me, arguingwithsignposts and normal liberal here in Cornutopia IL?

    Don’t make me hold my breath until I turn Republican. I’ll fucking do it. I’m that crazy.

  124. 124.

    Keith G

    @ruemara:
    @DPS:
    I guess blaming the debate prep technigue or the lying opponent is useful to get through the night. But the problem was the attitude and choices of the President.

    @TexasMango:

    I would also say that the lead Obama built was without any help from the MSM. The MSM being negative against Obama is nothing new

    So…a month and a half of media converage of Romney/Ryan mistakes did not register with you? Hell even FOX was critical. I guess it’s true when they say:

    Obama can not fail. He can only be failed.

  128. 128.

    Keith G

    @raven: You say that as if dick heads are bad things. I disagree….depending.

    Assuming you were being critical of what I typed, please tell me where me where my errors are. I have 45 min til I walk to work, so I am willing to engage with an open heart.

  132. 132.

    WaterGirl

    @raven: Hey Raven. I can’t seem to sleep tonight, which almost never happens to me. But here I am and now I get to wish you happy birthday! (Slightly belated.)

  134. 134.

    SiubhanDuinne

    Oh, just kill me now. I just heard a commercial (okay, an underwriting spot) on NPR Morning Edition advertising the new Atlas Shrugged movie.

  136. 136.

    hep kitty

    This is really strange but I haven’t been paying attention to the news so I didn’t realize Mitt had finally, predictably, flip-flopped on abortion until I saw ABL’s article. I imagine it’s going to continue this way until the election.

    I am officially sick of Mitt. Considering he will do and say anything, no matter how outrageous, it’s getting pretty predictable, , and boring.

  140. 140.

    Lojasmo

    @Keith G:

    so, because the media recognized Romney as a stupid mendacious asshole, they are somehow in the tank for obama?

    Riiiight.

  141. 141.

    Keith G

    @Lojasmo: Oh come now, you are stating a proposition that I did not argue and do not believe. I am wondering what value you see in saying otherwise. Why do you think it’s okay to lie?

    See how easy that is? Truthful and to the point

  143. 143.

    lamh35

    @WereBear: what she is is spoiled rotten…LOL.

    She!s very girly do she loved the dress. She was probably tired of waiting for my sister to get ready for church. I’m pretty sure her mom dropped her off already dressed

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