Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Do not shrug your shoulders and accept the normalization of untruths.

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

Republicans do not pay their debts.

“Squeaker” McCarthy

Putting aside our relentless self-interest because the moral imperative is crystal clear.

I’d hate to be the candidate who lost to this guy.

That’s my take and I am available for criticism at this time.

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

Republicans are radicals, not conservatives.

New McCarthy, same old McCarthyism.

In my day, never was longer.

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

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

Only Democrats have agency, apparently.

Is it irresponsible to speculate? It is irresponsible not to.

A consequence of cucumbers

American History and Black History Cannot Be Separated

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

The GOP is a fucking disgrace.

A last alliance of elves and men. also pet photos.

They think we are photo bombing their nice little lives.

Never entrust democracy to any process that requires republicans to act in good faith.

Republicans are the party of chaos and catastrophe.

A thin legal pretext to veneer over their personal religious and political desires

You are here: Home / Organizing & Resistance / Don't Trip, Organize / Friday Evening Open Thread: Netroots Nation

Friday Evening Open Thread: Netroots Nation

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Haven’t heard about a Juicer meetup (yet) — leave a message here or email me if you want yours front-paged. Been told the TWiB crew is there, so I’m sure there will be much talk next week. To tide us over, here’s Dave Weigel’s first impressions:

… This conference, which has drawn more than 3,000 activists to Silicon Valley, is proudly un-newsy. Conservatives like to schlep their big events by telling activists who they can meet—Rand Paul! Donald Trump! Sarah Palin! It was difficult to even find out who’d be lighting up the night at Netroots, and the closest thing to a politics/2016 story to come out of here so far was CNN’s scoop (from Peter Hamby) that Howard Dean had not ruled out a 2016 challenge…

“Is the president perfect? No,” said former Vermont Gov./DNC Chair/2004 Great Hope Howard Dean. “But it sure is better than having Bain Capital—I mean, Mitt Romney—in there!”

The 2012 election was remembered more for its tactics than its results. Every round of panels included at least one debriefing from organizers who’d outsmarted the GOP—two simultaneous panels told progressives how the Romney “47 percent” video broke. I spent the first day looking for opinions and new activism on the NSA surveillance story. It was there, but it was far from an obsession.

No, the Democrats in power were afterthoughts. Barney Frank, who’s just as avuncular and sarcastic out of power as he was in Congress, asked his fellow progressives to “support President Obama’s unwillingness to be pushed into Syria,” but to be otherwise realistic about terrorism. He drew boos when he defended the idea of drone warfare, asking his audience of 200 or so to consider the costs and benefits of sending troops versus sending robots. But his offense didn’t stop him from giving a quick, well-received speech to the main ballroom before his plane took off.

“Harass us, because we really do pay attention,” he said. “Look at who’s on the ballot, and vote for the candidate you agree with the most. The next time, you get better choices.”

That being said… What’s on the agend, in San Jose or elsewhere, for the start of the weekend?

Reader Interactions

92Comments

  1. 1.

    danah gaz

    “Is the president perfect? No,” said former Vermont Gov./DNC Chair/2004 Great Hope Howard Dean. “But it sure is better than having Bain Capital—I mean, Mitt Romney—in there!”

    That much is true, at least. Still “at least he’s not as bad as the other guy” isn’t exactly a ringing endorsement.

  2. 2.

    Baud

    Conservatives like to schlep their big events by telling activists who they can meet—Rand Paul! Donald Trump! Sarah Palin! It was difficult to even find out who’d be lighting up the night at Netroots,

    Are there any political headliners there to meet?

  3. 3.

    Litlebritdifrnt

    Tomorrow morning I will do my usual routine. I will potter into the kitchen in my jammies, put on the kettle, let the dogs out, make myself a gallon of hot tea and then turn on all my stupid on demand shows. I will sit there, in my jammies, watching absolutely brain dead (Storage Wars, Ghosthunters, Flea Market Flip et. al.) shows until noon at which point I will get on with the rest of my day. I have to admit that I really look forward to my Saturday mornings when I veg out and just enjoy doing absolutely nothing. We are preparing for a serious armed robbery case to be tried on July 1. Any chance I get to think of nothing but trivia is welcome right now.

  4. 4.

    pacem appellant

    Pub quiz tonight! I’m the guy in the hat! If your political knowledge is Ken Rudin level, then you can be on my team.

    This con is rocking. I am meeting so many interesting activists and bloggers and regular joes and janes.

  5. 5.

    Violet

    I’d forgotten all about NN. I don’t visit GOS much at all these days. The few times I’ve visited, it’s been a cesspool of how much Obama is teh suxxors. I get tired of it, so I just don’t go.

    Any idea if the attendance at NN is up or down from previous years? Not asking for any reason–just curiosity.

  7. 7.

    pacem appellant

    @Baud: Locally, Mike Honda and his youthful minions are out in force. He reps my district (CA 17), so I’m glad to see him earning his progressive creds.

  8. 8.

    Litlebritdifrnt

    Oh and by the way, some good news, Boss and I were driving to Swansboro to interview witnesses on Thursday and as usual we drove past Camp Lejeune. On the side of the road, in full view of everyone is one of the largest solar farms I have ever seen. Panel after panel after panel, all arranged in neat rows, all hooked up to the main power plant for the base. It warmed the cockles of me heart to be honest.

  11. 11.

    lamh35

    I’ve commited myself to taking my God daughter and her crew (wherever she goes THEY go…lol) to Chuck E Cheese’s. It was her choice, the Audubon zoo or Chuck E Cheese, so Chuck E Cheese it is…lol. Then off to Harrah’s casino for the dinner buffet since my cuz has free vouchers for buffet and I’m sure I’ll need the free drinks at casino after spending the afternoon at Chuck E Cheese

  12. 12.

    piratedan

    @danah gaz: I could very well be wrong, but when you have liberal bastions of thought such as Mark Pryor, Joe Manchin and Claire McCaskill (amongst others) inhabiting your Senate chamber and the House is a clown car full of fail, my expectations are altered based on the hard cold realities that he’s doing the best that he can with the cards he’s been dealt.

  15. 15.

    Violet

    I think I’ll go to the farmer’s market tomorrow. Then I’m cooking a birthday dinner. So far melon from my garden with prosciutto, then spring roll wrappers baked into little cups with a modified crab rangoon filling served with some kind of sweet and sour sauce. I think I might go with a blackcurrent vinegar I’ve got in the cupboard. Not sure of the main course yet–farmers market will probably decide that. Dessert is flourless chocolate lava cakes. Might serve that with some sour cherry jam, but not sure yet. I’ve got raspberries in the fridge. Thinking a coffee ice cream might be an accompaniment too. We’ll see.

  18. 18.

    Baud

    FWIW

    Progressive activists with plenty of reasons to be unhappy with President Barack Obama’s administration instead swatted away charges that the president’s record has become “Bush Lite” on some of the issues they care about most.

    Revelations of the government’s secret surveillance programs, an aggressive crackdown on government leakers, increased use of drones for killing terrorists overseas, and the failure to close the military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, are all sore points with the crowd here at Netroots Nation, the largest annual gathering of liberal activists in the country.

    But the attendees here bristle at suggestions this president is anything like George W. Bush, despite some of those policy similarities.
    ……
    But the prevailing sentiment among rank-and-file activists here was much more pragmatic. They said that while they may be disappointed in some things, they still support the president, because he agrees with them on a majority of issues — from ending the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to the discontinuation of “torture” tactics, as well as passage of the health-care law, the push for immigration reform and support for same-sex marriage.

    Obama acknowledged the nuanced relationship in a video before the group Thursday night. “We won’t always agree on everything, and I know you’ll tell me when we don’t,” the president said, “but if we work together, then I’m confident we’ll keep moving this country forward, so thanks.”
    ……
    And he likened the hardest-line liberals to the Tea Party.

    “There are some people who won’t ever be happy,” Moulitsas said. “Dennis Kucinich could be elected, and they won’t be happy. Their perception of what should happen isn’t realistic. Those people are aligned with – have an ideological rigidity very similar to the Tea Party movement.”

  19. 19.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Baud:

    But the prevailing sentiment among rank-and-file activists here was much more pragmatic. They said that while they may be disappointed in some things, they still support the president, because he agrees with them on a majority of issues — from ending the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to the discontinuation of “torture” tactics, as well as passage of the health-care law, the push for immigration reform and support for same-sex marriage.

    Fucking Obots.

  20. 20.

    Anne Laurie

    @lamh35: You mentioned a “casino” — FYWP hates those. (Me, I’d blocked the ‘Chuck E. Cheese’ ref! /snark)

  22. 22.

    Chyron HR

    Why did Barney Frank and Howard Dean betray us? Must be afraid of winding up as the third and fourth spots on the CLINTON OBAMA DEATH LIST.

  24. 24.

    Violet

    @Baud:

    “There are some people who won’t ever be happy,” Moulitsas said. “Dennis Kucinich could be elected, and they won’t be happy. Their perception of what should happen isn’t realistic. Those people are aligned with – have an ideological rigidity very similar to the Tea Party movement.”

    Refreshing to hear from someone in his position. Now if only the mouth-foamers on his site would listen.

  26. 26.

    Baud

    @Violet:

    He should have stood up to them in 2009. On the other hand, if he had, I might never have found this place. :)

  30. 30.

    Violet

    @Baud: Yeah, he should have. Instead he was urging people to call their reps to tell them to vote against the healthcare bill. So…

  31. 31.

    lamh35

    @Anne Laurie: ah, the dreaded C word is what did it huh…lol. Dang, either I never used the word before, or I just wasn’t paying attention last time?

  32. 32.

    boss bitch

    Barack Obama is not just better than Mitt Romney. He’s a lot better than many in the Dem leadership and way better than what’s on the plate for 2016. The Dem party should be bowing to him for what he’s brought to the party.

  33. 33.

    Chris

    @Baud:

    But the prevailing sentiment among rank-and-file activists here was much more pragmatic. They said that while they may be disappointed in some things, they still support the president, because he agrees with them on a majority of issues — from ending the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to the discontinuation of “torture” tactics, as well as passage of the health-care law, the push for immigration reform and support for same-sex marriage.

    Back in 2000, a few left-wingers disenchanted (very understandably) with the modern, DLC/Third Way “New Democrats” decided to vote for Nader – whether because they thought both parties had become too similar or in an attempt to remind the Democratic Party not to take them for granted, or whatever. Gore lost, and we the most catastrophic eight years in decades. I think that experience sobered up a lot of people with puritan tendencies and graphically illustrated the fact that no matter how bad you think it is, Republicans can always make it worse. Much, much worse, in ways you can’t even imagine right now.

    (To be clear, I’m not saying that Nader voters are the reason Gore lost – it’s not like I’ve studied the election in depth and even if it’s true, it’s only one of the reasons. But I think the “look what happened last time we thought the Democratic Party was too impure for us” narrative has left a mark whether it’s justified or not).

  34. 34.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    Yahoo News reporter auditions for AP as a stepping stone to Fox:

    Yahoo! News issued a correction Friday evening after a reporter mistakenly referred to Kenya as President Barack Obama’s birthplace.
    A piece on Obama’s upcoming trip to Africa by Rachel Rose Hartman included a lede that echoed sentiments heard among the “birther” movement.
    “President Barack Obama makes the first extended trip to Africa of his presidency next week—but he won’t be stopping in the country of his birth,” Hartman originally wrote.

    What’s truly amazing is how these right wing talking points seep into coverage by reporters who probably genuinely consider themselves “liberal”. This is an obvious and pretty stupid example, but the benefits of “austerity” and the evils of “spending” are treated as unchallenge-able facts by people who buy into the “liberal media” whine because they themselves have gay friends and recycle.

  37. 37.

    danah gaz

    @piratedan: “House is a clown car full of fail, my expectations are altered based on the hard cold realities that he’s doing the best that he can with the cards he’s been dealt.”

    Oh I agree with that to a degree, but just maybe not the degree that a lot of the people that voted for him do. Particularly as it pertains to executive power. YMMV of course. And again, I’m just a bomb-throwing leftist, not a liberal, so std. disclaimer and all of that.

  39. 39.

    rda909

    @danah gaz: How about the most liberal president in any of our lifetimes, and possibly ever when you consider the number of Democrats in the Senate and House during his TWO terms and THE MOST obstructionist Congress EVER. That’s not my opinion, that’s a simple fact when one takes an objective look at his record across the board on every issue.

    Is that enough of a “ringing endorsement” for you?

  41. 41.

    Chris

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:

    That’s a huge part of the reason for their drumbeat alternate reality media. They don’t have to convince everyone of their ideology in order for a huge part of it to seep into the general public consciousness. It’s the old story about repeating a lie often enough that it becomes the truth.

  43. 43.

    Svensker

    @lamh35:

    Take drugs or a flask or psychedelics or prozac or something. God, I hated that place. Was so glad when my kid got beyond it. Like a nightmare with screaming children, clowns and lousy food.

  44. 44.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @boss bitch: Hear, hear. I was surprised to see BooMan, usually an arch-pragmatist, saying he would prefer Dean to Hillary Clinton. God knows I’ve had and have my beefs with HRC, but even at the height of Dean-mania in ’04, I was lukewarm, and I don’t think he’s a very strong candidate.

  45. 45.

    amk

    @danah gaz: Does your ‘liberal’ standards stop with the #kenyanmuslin or do they extend to the other part of gobinment, you know the congress & senate ?

  47. 47.

    Svensker

    @Violet:

    Well, dang, I wanna come hang out by you.

    I’m not sure about the crab, though. Welfare moocher food, you know…

  48. 48.

    Jebediah

    Trying to decide whether or not to take Chucky for a run. She needs it, I need the exercise, but I don’t know what my shins and knees will have to say about it.
    On the other hand, if I time it right, we will run into Ziggy, who has a major crush on Chucky and is pretty damn cute himself. I took that picture during our walk this morning – Ziggy spotted us from about half a block away and dragged his human over to us as fast as his (very short) legs could manage.
    Leaning towards doing it, and fuck the sore knees and shin splints, since I have to work tomorrow anyway.

  49. 49.

    maven

    Thank god I didn’t go to the awful Values Coalition Thingy………

    Every round of panels included at least one debriefing from organizers who’d outsmarted the GOP

  50. 50.

    lamh35

    @Svensker: I haven’t been to Chuck E Cheese since I became an adult…so I am dreading it, but I asked maddie and the words “shuc e shees” was her answer and I couldn’t say no…lol.

    So my plan is to not eat more than a slice of pizza, and save my appetite for the c-a-sino buffet

  52. 52.

    sacrablue

    I’m not doing anything for awhile, except doctor visits and insurance forms. On Tuesday morning, my neighbors’ puppy got stuck under their deck. The neighbors were not home so after more than an hour of barking I decided to see if the puppy was really stuck. I never got there. Instead I got a no expenses paid trip to the nearest emergency room to repair my dislocated elbow. I guess I tripped over my own feet. Now I am trying to navigate the Tricare system and remembering why I still can’t stand being a “dependent”.

  54. 54.

    Jebediah

    @lamh35:
    Love the color coordination… looks like there’s a fairly wide age range – they all get along OK?
    and yes to Svensker’s advice, I can’t imagine handling Chuck E Cheese without some help, alcohol or some other chemical. Fingers crossed that you survive the trip.

  55. 55.

    Jebediah

    @amk:
    I think you are right. Who am I to keep them apart? Off I go to find a clean (enough) pair of shorts…

    ETA: And leaving for a run is so much fun… she gets so excited she levitates!

  57. 57.

    Cacti

    @lamh35:

    Wikileaks founder says he is brokering talks over possible asylum for Edward Snowden, but getting to Iceland will become a major problem

    One fugitive assisting another.

    How sweet.

  58. 58.

    Svensker

    @lamh35:

    Oh, I know that “couldn’t say no” thing to the cuteness. But still, the place is a hellhole. I had to get sit in a darkened room and breathe into a paper bag the last time I went to one. And it WAS the last time! Good luck!

  63. 63.

    Jebediah

    @amk:
    Yup, I am about to break out her leash and watch her start leaping about in irrepressible, endearing joy.

  66. 66.

    ruemara

    I’ve run off with one of the office cameras and will be photographing the local Livestrong bike thingy (race? ride? tap dance tournament?). It’s like I’m indulging in a last hurrah of doing what I enjoy before I’m cut off for…reasons that make no fiscal sense.

  67. 67.

    Yatsuno

    @lamh35: Iceland has an extradition treaty with the US. There may be issues relating to his asylum claim since there right now is little evidence his prosecution would be politically motivated.

  68. 68.

    eemom

    Fuck Howard Dean.

    What a perfect testament to the actual, you know, relevance of this event, that he’s the opening act.

  70. 70.

    Jebediah

    @amk:
    @TaMara (BHF):

    It is with great disappointment that I report that there was no Ziggy sighting. But I will get a pic of the two of them together as soon as I can.

  71. 71.

    wmd

    I helped at a booth again today. Met emptywheel (I’d met bmaz the previous day and he helped put me in touch with Jon Walker at FDL – the booth I was helping should be featured at Just Say Now on FDL).

    met markos too FWIW (not much in my opinion).

    The TWiB booth was at the end of the same aisle as the booth I was helping and I must say they were having fun.

    Around the corner was a booth that had some fantastic posters, wish I could afford them. My favorite:

    I’m a slut.

    I vote.

    So does everyone I sleep with.

    You politicians are about to get fucked more than I do.

    They had 4 slut empowerment posters, I like that one the most.

  73. 73.

    danah gaz

    @amk: I don’t have “liberal” standards, amk.

    I was the one that set fire to your Prius last week, cupcake.

    /leftist bomb thrower

  75. 75.

    danah gaz

    @rda909: I’ve not been enamored with any of the politics in this country for a very long time, which is why I’ve set up shop south of the border as well.

    Don’t take it too personally. I hate the “other” pols too.

  78. 78.

    nineone

    “Is the president perfect? No,” said former Vermont Gov./DNC Chair/2004 Great Hope Howard Dean. “But it sure is better than having Bain Capital—I mean, Mitt Romney—in there!”

    Ego or idiocy? You decide.

    Still, it’s gotta be tough for Howie to watch B-Rock accomplish what he has and not think “I couldda been a contendah”. Oh well, there’s always ’16, amirite?

  79. 79.

    David Koch

    It’s telling that no possible 2016 candidate attended. Not even the liberal Elizabeth Warren.

    It wasn’t like that. But dailykos turned themselves into a joke.

  80. 80.

    David Koch

    Barney Frank.. drew boos when he defended the idea of drone warfare, asking his audience of 200 or so to consider the costs and benefits of sending troops versus sending robots. But his offense didn’t stop him from giving a quick, well-received speech to the main ballroom

    Wow! 200 people! Main ballroom!

    What a massive audience.

  82. 82.

    David Koch

    Howard Dean on Medicare:

    I think the Medicare system is one of the worst things that ever happened. It demonstrates the notion that the federal government ought not to be allowed to run a national health care system. It’s a bureaucratic disaster.

    Dean on Social Security:

    Dean did suggest increasing the Social Security retirement age to 70, and also that the program itself shouldn’t be exempt from the effort to trim the federal deficit.

    Dean on why he opposes the public option:

    I’m not interested in reforming the system first. I want everybody in the system first. I’m tired of people being uncovered. I’m tired of people paying almost as much for their health care payments every month as they do for their home mortgage.

    I want everybody in the system. Then we can have a big fight about how to reform the system. But let’s get everybody in it first.

    Dean on Iraq:

    Howard Dean warns of danger in Iraq pullout
    Conrad Defiebre, Star Tribune
    April 21, 2005. “Now that we’re there, we’re there and we can’t get out,” he told an audience of nearly 1,000 at the Minneapolis Convention Center.

    An American pullout could endanger the United States in any of three ways, Dean said: by leaving a Shiite theocracy worse than that in Iran, which he called a more serious threat than Iraq ever was; by creating an independent Kurdistan in the north, with destabilizing effects on neighboring Kurdish regions of Turkey, Iran and Syria, and by making the Sunni Triangle a magnet for Islamic terrorists similar to the former Taliban-ruled Afghanistan. “That’s where Al Qaida will set up,” he said.

    On teh ghey:

    Some state officials say they support gay marriage. But Gov. Howard Dean, a Democrat, said he thought the Legislature would pass a domestic partnership law. Same-sex marriage, he said, ”makes me uncomfortable, the same as anybody else,”

    On moolims:

    Howard Dean reiterated his belief that the mosque plan is “a real affront to people who lost their lives [on 9/11],” arguing that critics of his position were “guilty of” the same type of absolutism on the issue that they’ve accused Republicans of harboring.

    On the Confederacy:

    “I want to be the candidate for guys with Confederate flags in their pickup trucks,”

    Hmmmm, tell me how Dean is better than obummer, again?

  83. 83.

    wmd

    @David Koch:

    RIght, a non congressional election year, 3 years before the next presidential election is when all the potential candidates are going to court the progressives.

  86. 86.

    David Koch

    @James E. Powell: no work at all when you have a good memory and google to help you pull up exact quotes. I can remember the 2003/4 cycle like it was yesterday, perhaps because, I, like so many others, fought against the 2003 invasion.

  87. 87.

    Kathleen

    @lamh35: Aside from the “ambiance”, I had issues with an establishment that paid homage to a stuffed rat. I always felt like my soul was being sucked out when I took my grandkids, who, thankfully, have outgrown Chucky.

  88. 88.

    Bart

    “He drew boos when he defended the idea of drone warfare, asking his audience of 200 or so to consider the costs and benefits of sending troops versus sending robots.”

    Or — and here’s a novel, revolutionary idea — you could simply STOP KILLING PEOPLE.

  89. 89.

    LAC

    @amk: you mean teh Obama is not in charge of teh whole government? Three branches of government? NOOOOOS!!! So he can’t executive order the meanies away?

  90. 90.

    LAC

    @danah gaz: sorry you had to lift a finger to type since amuurica sucks hard. Since you will be sending a fart my way, make it a small one. Don’t want your brain falling out.

  92. 92.

    danah gaz

    @LAC: “sorry you had to lift a finger to type since amuurica sucks hard”

    If you conflate the country in which you live with the politics of it then I feel sorry for you.

    “Since you will be sending a fart my way, make it a small one. Don’t want your brain falling out”

    Pro-tip: Don’t try to be clever. You’re simply not very good at it.

    As far as trolling me on a thread from yesterday, you need better hobbies.

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