Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

It’s time for the GOP to dust off that post-2012 autopsy, completely ignore it, and light the party on fire again.

You don’t get to peddle hatred on saturday and offer condolences on sunday.

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

I was promised a recession.

Everyone is in a bubble, but some bubbles model reality far better than others!

Just because you believe it, that doesn’t make it true.

New McCarthy, same old McCarthyism.

I like you, you’re my kind of trouble.

Stamping your little feets and demanding that they see how important you are? Not working anymore.

Incompetence, fear, or corruption? why not all three?

Since when do we limit our critiques to things we could do better ourselves?

Republicans do not pay their debts.

Yeah, with this crowd one never knows.

It’s easy to sit in safety and prescribe what other people should be doing.

Republicans are the party of chaos and catastrophe.

Too often we hand the biggest microphones to the cynics and the critics who delight in declaring failure.

They’re not red states to be hated; they are voter suppression states to be fixed.

if you can’t see it, then you are useless in the fight to stop it.

We cannot abandon the truth and remain a free nation.

Optimism opens the door to great things.

I’m sure you banged some questionable people yourself.

And we’re all out of bubblegum.

The party of Reagan has become the party of Putin.

Speaking of republicans, is there a way for a political party to declare intellectual bankruptcy?

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Open Thread

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Eating some pork and sauerkraut and watching the Rose Bowl. Kind of curious about the Orange Bowl and how Northern Illinois will hold up against FSU.

Latest news on the fiscal cliff, according to C-Span, is that there are not 218 votes for an amended bill, and they are currently in recess and may bring the Senate bill to the floor for an up or down vote. On a side note, I died a little on the inside when the C-Span announcer quoted a Luke Russert tweet.

Reader Interactions

97Comments

  2. 2.

    karen

    I think that the GOP House won’t pass it and will add things the Dems won’t vote for and Obama wins by looking reasonable. If the media narrative cooperates.

  4. 4.

    dmsilev

    So, let’s say the Senate bill comes to the House floor for an upperdown vote, and it passes on the strength of a bunch of Democrats and a few Republicans voting aye. What happens on Thursday when the new House votes for Speaker?

  6. 6.

    RedKitten

    Not up to much. Trying to figure out how I’m going to keep the kidlet entertained after his dad goes back to work. It’s too frigging cold out (plus I’m scared of slipping on the ice), and my energy levels have gone down the shitter. Poor kid is going to be spending the next few weeks with Netflix and Angry Birds as his primary source of entertainment.

  8. 8.

    22over7

    @dmsilev:

    If that happened, then the bill would go to the President, probably tonight, and he’d sign it. If that doesn’t happen, the bill dies.

    And little Luke is either a big fat liar, or he has a lot of connections in the Capitol, because he was the one with the scoops all day long. He looks like Greg Marmalade, though.

  12. 12.

    redshirt

    If Boner does bring the Senate bill as is up for a vote, does this spell the permanent end of the “Hastert Rule”, or one time deal only.

    Because getting rid of that rule would greatly help the country.

  15. 15.

    General Stuck

    Boehner has an opportunity to have history record him as a statesman and true patriot, by stopping this madness and allow for clean a senate bill vote.

    In other news, the GOP must die. It must die in the form it is currently in. And the only ones that can insert the unholy knives in the correct places, are the wingnut elders.

    The window is open to act right now, to begin the process, or we can kick the can a little longer. And watch in morbid fascination as the Obama team slices off piece by piece of the monster in our midst. Hopefully, before it kills us all.

  18. 18.

    karen

    Is it just me who thinks that New Year’s Eve was anti-climatic compared to the fiscal cliff “crisis?”

  20. 20.

    Rosie Outlook

    @RedKitten: Get some Yaktrax. In these parts one often sees mailmen wearing them. At least some True Value stores carry them and of course you can also get them from Amazon.

  21. 21.

    General Stuck

    @redshirt:

    I believe the Hastert Rule, which was more a Delay Rule, was tossed with the original debt ceiling deal last summer. Passed with dem votes.

  23. 23.

    dmsilev

    @redshirt: That was sort of what I was getting at with my question above. I’d say that if Boehner manages to survive, there would be at least a chance that we could see other violations of that rule. If bringing the bill to the floor ends up with Boehner on the floor with a number of metaphorical knives sticking out of his back, whatever maniac ends up on top will regard the Hastert rule as a Commandment only slightly less sacrosanct than ‘Thou shalt not raise any rich person’s taxes.’

  24. 24.

    BGinCHI

    1-1 on the alma mater scoreboard.

    UGA handles NE but Purdue loses a squeaker to OK State by 44.

    Oh, that vaunted Boiler defense.

  25. 25.

    Mr Stagger Lee

    Damn you people with your pork and sauerkraut,you’re torturing me. I am trying to break the 250lb barrier in my weight loss. ;-)

  27. 27.

    Baud

    @dmsilev:

    We’re going to test that theory with the debt limit vote in a couple of months. I don’t see that passing with Dem votes.

  28. 28.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @22over7: And little Luke is either a big fat liar, or he has a lot of connections in the Capitol,

    Joan Walsh quoted him in a story in Salon, and kind of defensively (I thought) wrote something along the lines of “he does have excellent Republican sources”. What a surprise that the likes of Paul Ryan see a kindred spirit in the legacy appointed trust fund baby who thinks his (alleged) political expertise is a birth right. I was thinking the other day: I don’t think I’ve ever seen him on a prime time MSNBC show, which I suspect isn’t just about his schedule.

  29. 29.

    Mark S.

    @Raven:

    Yeah, remember when the Orange Bowl used to have Oklahoma or Nebraska vs. some Florida team? That was a lot more exciting than ACC champion vs. Big East Champion.

  30. 30.

    cmorenc

    So let me get this straight:
    – there are 218 (all-GOP) votes for an amended bill which would effectively be a deal-killer with the Senate/Obama Admin, if that was all that passes the house. Boehner will permit a vote on the amended bill.
    – there are also 2018 (Dems + enough GOP) votes for the original (unamended) Senate bill. Boehner will also permit a vote on the original bill (despite this not satisfying the unofficial Hastert rule), which Obama would then sign.

    Do I understand this bit of Kabuki Theater correctly?

  31. 31.

    Eet Corp

    As I understand it, conservatives GOPers don’t even want to vote for the special bill with added cuts, but by doing so, this allows the House to pass the Senate bill without the added spending cuts.

    Are they aware of this, and just trying to let it pass without their fingerprints? Or do they not understand?

  32. 32.

    Litlebritdifrnt

    You know what amazes me is that to the rest of the world you are all looking like a bunch of fucking fools who couldn’t govern themselves given a flashlight and a map. Yet, this is the funny part, the people who are making you look like you couldn’t govern yourselves with a flashlight and a map are the people who scream “MURICAN EXCEPTIONALISM” at every fucking turn, those people who scream “GREATEST COUNTRY ON THE PLANET EVER IN HISTORY” who also scream “FREEDOM” forgetting that a huge part of the rest of the planet is also free and a democracy and is able to elect a government that is actually capable of governing (regardless of whether or not that governance is appreciated by the populace). The US government right now is viewed as the biggest clown car on the planet and you guys really have no idea how much that hurts America’s image. It really does just amaze me.

  34. 34.

    Raven

    @efgoldman: I don’t generally do a lot of BJ when games I really care about are on. I wanted so badly for Murray and the rest of the team to do well today. I left a very nice party after only 45 minutes so I could be in place for kickoff and I’m glad I did.

  37. 37.

    Rosie Outlook

    I can now say in Spanish: Come una bolsa de carajos con sal.

    I feel like a real Balloon Juicer now.

  41. 41.

    CaseyL

    Reports are that the House now in the process of doing an about-face and voting on the Senate bill as is.

    Love to know how and why that happened. What interest group got to Cantor and/or Boehner…

  42. 42.

    kooks

    @redshirt: I thought this was an interesting idea for Boehner, so I looked up if Pelosi and the Dems could force a recorded vote (not that they would, but if they could). Looks like 1/5th of the body can force a recorded vote, or the House automatically records votes on bills that raise taxes. I don’t know how the Senate bill is structured though, if it specifically raises taxes or if it just lets parts of the Bush cuts expire and extends the rest.

  46. 46.

    J. Michael Neal

    @cmorenc: No. It’s a two-step process:

    1) The GOP caucus gets to figure out whether or not they have the votes for an amended bill. If they do, they pass that and don’t do anything else;

    2) If, and only if, they don’t have the votes for an amended bill, THEN the Senate bill gets a floor vote. IF Boehner keeps his word on that (which I still figure has to be less than certain) AND there are 218 votes for it (which I think is highly likely), THEN you will see mourning (likely premature) for the Hastert Rule.

  47. 47.

    lamh35

    Happy New Year’s BJers!

    Dirty Dancing on ABC Family. If ya know me, then you know I’m watching it…lol

    One of my fav scenes from Dirty Dancing. I hate to admit, at first, I was sorta obsessed by the shirt she was wearing in the beginning of this scene. I thought it was cute. Hey, I was like 11 years old. As I got older though, I completely forgot about the shirt…for obvious reason…lol. RIP Patrick Swayze

    http://youtu.be/-pouIFiaIig

    A screen capture from this scene was literally my screensaver and my online avatar FOREVER!

    http://youtu.be/aiilV691CzY

    can’t mention dirty dancing without this scene.

    http://youtu.be/l9BbUqHrWFI

  48. 48.

    Rosie Outlook

    @Litlebritdifrnt: Well, I have an idea, but since most Americans are only vaguely aware that the rest of the world exists, I believe that in the main you are absolutely right.

  49. 49.

    Mark S.

    @Raven:

    Wasn’t there a game where they thought there was a touchdown and rode the wagon out and got a 15 yard penalty that cost them the game?

  50. 50.

    Villago Delenda Est

    @General Stuck:

    The Hastert Rule is basically still being followed by Boner. A ‘majority of the majority’ must approve of the bill before it comes to a vote. The only way around this is a discharge petition, and that would basically involve a number of Rethugs defying the leadership to ally with Dems to get a bill put to a vote.

  51. 51.

    Mnemosyne

    Someone (geg6?) was saying in another thread that Lil Luke has been on fire today, calling the Republicans clowns and suchlike.

    When you’ve lost Luke Russert … well, okay, nothing happens, but it’s still funny to watch.

  52. 52.

    Raven

    @Mark S.:

    The 1985 Orange Bowl, played between the Sooners and the Washington Huskies, is often called “the Sooner Schooner game” because of an incident during the game’s second half.

    The Miami area had received rain before the game, and the condition of the Orange Bowl’s natural grass playing surface deteriorated as the game moved into the third quarter. The game was tied 14-14 when the Sooners lined up for a short, 22-yard field goal which would have made the score 17-14 in Oklahoma’s favor.

    The kick sailed through the uprights and the Oklahoma sideline thought it was good; the kickoff unit trotted out and the Schooner, as was traditional, also trotted slowly onto the Orange Bowl’s wet, mushy field. However, the kick was nullified due to an illegal procedure penalty on Oklahoma. A Sooner player did not report his temporary jersey number to the officials, which he was required to do before the ball was snapped.

    The Schooner was already out on the field before the Oklahoma sideline and the RUF/NEKS realized the kick had been disallowed. Worse, while moving across the wet, sloppy natural turf, the Schooner’s wagon wheels ended up in a sticky, muddy patch of field and got stuck – right in front of the Washington bench. The Sooners were quickly penalized an additional 15 yards for unsportsmanlike conduct.

    What was previously a 22-yard field goal became a 42-yard attempt after the 20 yards of penalties were marked off. The re-kick was blocked by Washington, and the game remained tied. Oklahoma ultimately lost the game 28-17.

    Barry Switzer, Oklahoma’s coach at the time, said later that he had never seen a flag thrown on the Schooner before or since, “but that wasn’t the difference. It would have been closer. But they (Washington) were the better team that night.”[1]

  54. 54.

    lamh35

    @Maude: if u have a chance you gotta see Patrick and his wife Lisa dancing togegther. They really were a beautiful couple and there seem to have been a lot of love there. They danced so beautifully together.

  55. 55.

    General Stuck

    @efgoldman:

    I didn’t say the elders would act. But John Boehner has at least the opportunity to insert a long knife into the beast by a last resort vote on a clean senate bill. He has the loyal troops, and Nancy can deliver the rest for passage. It will be a process, dismantling the current GOP, or it will come as a hideous spasm of destruction and the monster takes us all down with it. Next up another debt ceiling lifting.

  58. 58.

    Rosie Outlook

    @Mr Stagger Lee: Congrats! My dr advised me to lose 50 lb, and I lost 10 with no problem, but for the last 2 months I have kept losing and gaining the same 4 lb. I wish you better luck.

  59. 59.

    mainmati

    There has been a lot of talk about the business world (“Wall Street”) freaking about yet another kamikaze attack by the Teahadists and especially looking to the debt ceiling and that, as a result, this makes clear that the Teahadists are “ideological nihilists”. First, nihilism is, by definition not an ideology; it is the absence of ideology or philosophy. Second, I personally think there is a big difference between Main Street businesses, even including many multinationals and the rabid group of billionaires who want to literally pull the strings of the primary voters for the Teahadists and the GOP generally to somehow get their version of a neo-feudalist society. That such a society would be highly unstable socio-politically and economically disastrous appears not to bother them.

  61. 61.

    JCJ

    @BGinCHI:

    The Boilers were stout today! I did not really have any hope that they would win, but that was awful! My other alma mater is IU so at least they didn’t embarrass themselves like Purdue.

  62. 62.

    Villago Delenda Est

    @BGinCHI:

    UGA handles NE but Purdue loses a squeaker to OK State by 44.

    Yes, pretty much in the same sense a “squeaker” as Obama defeating Rmoney, that is, by Dick Morris standards.

  63. 63.

    geg6

    We had the yummiest pork and sauerkraut here. Homemade kraut is the bomb.

    And though Lil Timmeh is a vile entitled toad of a legacy with little to commend him, I’ll give him props on his ability to cultivate a great network of GOP sources. He’s been breaking news all day and no matter how it hurts me to say it, he has performed to his highest ability today. This is how his mommy and daddy operated in their careers and the apple hasn’t fallen far from the tree. I foresee a long Village career for him. The WaPo or NYT will have him on the editorial page right next to David Brooks.

  66. 66.

    BGinCHI

    @JCJ: IU football can never really do anything worth inspiring hope.

    I mean, Lee Corso is probably their greatest coach and he was terrible.

  67. 67.

    SiubhanDuinne

    Eating some pork and sauerkraut

    Oh, fine. Pork and sauerkraut for thee, a bag of salted dicks for we.

  72. 72.

    Mnemosyne

    @Rosie Outlook:

    Weight Watchers. And I’m not just saying that because I used to work for them. ;-) They really are the program that’s easiest to fit into your life and to help you maintain after you lose the weight.

  73. 73.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Mnemosyne:

    Lil Luke has been on fire today, calling the Republicans clowns and suchlike.

    IIRC, the exact term he used was “chuckleheads.”

  74. 74.

    JCJ

    @BGinCHI:

    Well, IU football had a decent run in the late 80’s when Anthony Thompson was the running back with Bill Mallory as coach, but otherwise I would agree that Corso was their best coach.
    I remember going to the Purdue-IU game when Rod Woodson was a senior and he played almost every down. I was there with mostly IU fans. That made Purdue’s win extra sweet.

    @Raven – Yeah, IU’s best football player on defense of the past many years (except maybe Tracy Porter) had a great NBA career.

  75. 75.

    rikyrah

    Still love Dirty Dancing. Patrick Swayze spent so many years making crap, and that final tv show he did on A&E was some of his best work in decades

  77. 77.

    mainmati

    @Litlebritdifrnt: Agreed completely. And these rabid fanatics have persuaded themselves that FREEDOM = Limited Government, i.e. the Federal Govt. shriveled down to a subsidy program fro defense contractors and agribusiness. Everything else goes. Problem is that, like Nature, Politics abhors a vacuum. So, economic oligarchies would swiftly take over the regulatory functions of government, preventing competition, driving down health, safety, environmental and social standards and rights and reducing the US to a large, dysfunctional banana republic.

  79. 79.

    JCJ

    @Raven:

    That could be. I think Bobby Knight told Buckner he had to commit to basketball full time. Turned out to be be a good move for him.

  80. 80.

    BGinCHI

    @JCJ: Shit, I think we’re the same age. Graduated from PU undergrad in ’88. Went to IU my freshman year.

    Saw Rod Woodson play in HS. Probably the best HS football player ever.

  81. 81.

    RAM

    Hoping for a win by the NIU Huskies; would settle for not being embarrassed on national television…

  82. 82.

    Rosie Outlook

    @Mnemosyne: I lost 10!lb in the early ’80’s on WW, when it was $3/week. I’ll have to see if I still have the material. I don’t think I could afford the modern WW.

  84. 84.

    Burnspbesq

    Haven’t listened to The Royal Scam for a while, but it seems apropos in light of today’s farce on the Hill. Easy to imagine “Don’t Take Me Alive” as Cantor and Ryan’s theme song.

  85. 85.

    Keith G

    On a side note, I died a little on the inside when the C-Span announcer quoted a Luke Russert tweet.

    I’ve only seen him once and was not impressed, but I suppose someday he might develop into something. Others have.

  86. 86.

    PurpleGirl

    @RedKitten:

    (plus I’m scared of slipping on the ice),

    I have no ideas about how to entertain kidlet, sorry; being cautious about ice is a very good idea, pregnant or not. I hope the next few weeks go quickly and calmly for you, your husband and kidlet. (Is kidlet looking forward to the new family member?)

  87. 87.

    Steeplejack

    WTF is with this Star Wars-type music being blasted throughout ESPN’s coverage of the Orange Bowl game?! Jeezy-creezy.

  88. 88.

    WaterGirl

    @RedKitten: But you have your wonderful house with the amazing stone fireplace to do it in! Congratulations, by the way. I missed the birth of your little one. Name?

  89. 89.

    JoyfulA

    @A Ghost To Most: Pork and sauerkraut here, too, with parents, sisters, nieces, etc., so we’ll all have good luck in the new year, although my southern husband always thinks we’d do better with hoppin’ john and collard greens.

  90. 90.

    PurpleGirl

    @WaterGirl: I don’t think she’s had kidlet #2 yet; in a comment within the last two/three days I think she said she’s due in two/three weeks.

  91. 91.

    Don K

    @geg6:

    My god, I haven’t had homemade kraut since my uncle died in like ’71. He and my dad used to get together in his basement every fall first for the shredding and the salting, then later for the canning. After he died the kraut was never the same. We’ve always joked that the two cases of beer laid in before the weekend resulted in copious amounts of beer being added to the crocks along with the cabbage and salt.

    Now I rely on a couple of German brands that are as close as I’ve tasted to the real thing for pork and kraut, hot dogs and kraut, and reubens. And yes, dinner today for me and my partner was a couple of country ribs oven-braised in sauerkraut with a half bottle of ale, and mashed potatoes.

  92. 92.

    JCJ

    @BGinCHI:

    I wandered off for a bit. If you are still here I graduated from Purdue in ’84. I graduated from West Lafayette High School in ’79 – I spent a year of college in Germany so I needed five years to graduate. I remember from long ago that you are also from Tippecanoe County.

  95. 95.

    BGinCHI

    @JCJ: You’re 5 years older than me. Harrison HS.

    Good to see some Hoosier presence here. Where you live now?

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