There is so much to love here:
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s (R-KY) campaign manager said he’s begrudgingly working in his current capacity to help the presidential prospects of Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), according to an explosive phone recording that surfaced Thursday.
In the recording, obtained by Economic Policy Journal, Jesse Benton — who ran Paul’s successful 2010 campaign before joining McConnell’s team — told conservative activist Dennis Fusaro that he has an ulterior motive in working the GOP leader’s 2014 campaign.
“Between you an me, I’m sorta holding my nose for two years,” Benton said in the recording, “’cause what we’re doing here is gonna be a big benefit to Rand in ’16.”
The call was recorded by Fusaro on January 9.
What’s more priceless? McConnell’s campaign manager dumping all over him, or the fact that these nutters think Rand Paul is a viable 2016 candidate?
dmsilev
“Between you and me and that audio recorder of yours that you will soon send to the media…”
Also amusing that Benton released a statement basically claiming to love Mitch McConnell and everything associated with him. Yeah. Um. No.
JPL
Poor Turtle.
EconWatcher
Hitchens once wrote about one of his enemies (I think it was Kissinger)–“He has no friends; only cronies.” That seems to fit the Mitchster pretty well.
billgerat
It’s great entertainment watching the watching the GOP slowly committing suicide. Pass the popcorn, please.
Ajabu
I’m sure Rand Paul is a viable candidate for 2016. Just not here on Planet Earth.
Maybe he could talk to Rmoney’s former staff and find out what his chances are on that planet
the Mormons always talk about.
Ruckus
@billgerat:
It would be better if they did it faster, like all at once. Less popcorn but that’s the only downside I can see.
gbear
All of them, John!
Jim, Foolish Literalist
and Jesse Benton is married to Ron Paul’s granddaughter, Rand’s niece. I kinda think the Turkdleman can’t fire him.
Tom Levenson
Its a dessert topping and a floor wash!
BillinGlendaleCA
Sam Stein was just on Tweety’s(Smirk is guesting) saying that this is the second leak of an audio recording from Yertle’s campaign. His point was one leak sometimes happens, two is quite unusual.
piratedan
@JPL: fuck that Turtle, Machiavellian bastard has stood in the way of more common sense business than anyone has a clue about. A large part of the histrionic hyperpartisanship can be laid directly on his doorstep for not only misleading the public, but even his own party regarding what is and isn’t in legislation. If he ends out on his ass, I’m sure he’ll coast into a cushy consultants gig, so the best I can hope for is that the fucker gets hit by a bus, but doesn’t do too much damage to the vehicle while his life hangs in the balance, reliant upon the first responders he was so happy to shit on.
David Koch
Speaking of fail, CNN had a big, heavily promoted documentary on Benhazi!1i1i1 that was going to blow the lid off the entire conspiracy aaaaaaaand nobody watched. HA!
A repeat of anderson cooper captured 506K viewers. The heavily promoted teabagg blow job got ….. wait for it…. 361K — a 29% drop. They lost viewers to their own repeat!
Please proceed, CNN. Even the dogs won’t eat the Benngzaeee dog food.
kindness
We’ve reached the point where Republicans are no longer proving their sociopathology nor their own insanity. We’ve reached the point of Peak Teahaddist. A point where the Senate Minority Leader will whimper in the corner and not say a bad thing about the employee who just blew his nuts off.
HmmmOK, that may not be the best analogy to use with McTurtle, but you catch my drift.
JPL
@BillinGlendaleCA: I mentioned earlier, that I thought it was intentional. Rand Paul can’t openly support his soul mate who is running against MItch.
Redshirt
It’s like John Cole actively supporting Ted&Helen.
dmsilev
And lets not forget that the Senate Minority Leader is so frightened at the prospect of losing a _primary_ that he hired Rand Paul’s campaign manager in a desperate attempt to buy himself some tea party cred.
This is the part in the movie where the scientists who accidentally created the zombies are watching as their hastily-erected barricades are failing to hold back the horde.
mai naem
The dumbass that is Rand Paul was asked who he thinks should be Fed Chair.
http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-08-08/rand-paul-on-republicans-voter-appeal-and-the-federal-reserve
Dumbass first says he would like Hayek but that Hayek is dead and then says Friedman. Now, I am assuming he’s talking about Milton not Thomas but Milton died in ’06 at the ripe age of 94.
Hungry Joe
@piratedan: Mitch’s personal wealth is estimated at between $10 million and $40, so it’s not like he’s in it for the money.
It’s odd … he graduated from law school, then interned on the Hill, then was appointed Deputy Assistant Attorney General (by Ford). Next he was Jefferson County Judge/Executive in Kentucky. In ’84 he was elected to the U.S. Senate. I had no idea public service paid so well.
I’m not sure that “odd,” above, is the right word …
reflectionephemeral
Here’s the response from Team Mitch, which has some funny replies: https://twitter.com/Team_Mitch/status/365582786062606336
IowaOldLady
@dmsilev: Leaders do sometimes run into trouble. Look at Harry Reid, saved by Sharon Angle.
Haydnseek
@Redshirt: He does. You saw that thing on John’s wall in the cat tree photo.I suspect the shit doesn’t fall too far from the bat.
patrick II
@mai naem:
The other sad thing is that Friedman is famous for saying that Fed austerity is what caused, or at least exacerbated, the great depression, and it needed a looser monetary policy at the time.
dmsilev
@IowaOldLady: Sure, but in a primary?
Jfly
Chris Matthews predicted last night that Rand Paul would be the 2016 Repub nominee…for what it’s worth.
Ruckus
@piratedan:
Are you trying to say that turtle is a less than useless blob of shit, as shitstain as it were, on the human race?
Because if you aren’t I sure am.
IowaOldLady
@dmsilev: Good point.
JustRuss
The Stench rides again!
NotMax
Find it of interest that that the current governor (term limited) of Kentucky is a Democrat and from what I’ve read, the probable D candidate for the next gubernatorial election in 2015 is polling ahead.
Keith P
@EconWatcher: He’s got that banjo-playing guy Neal as a friend. Wait, wrong Turtleman.
David Koch
@Jfly: Matthews is the kiss of death. For years, prior to 2008, he predicted giuliani would win the nomination. giuliani failed to win a single delegate even though “the hero of 9/11” had raised the most money and had the highest name i.d.
burnspbesq
It’s absurd to assert that Rand Paul is not a viable candidate for the Presidential nomination of a party whose last two nominees were John McCain and Willard M. Romney.
Liquid
Ayn Rand Paul Ryan *blank*
gogol's wife
@Liquid:
O’Neal?
lojasmo
@Haydnseek:
I believe that was the point.
SFAW
@burnspbesq:
and a party that considered – albeit briefly – Herman Cain, Ricky Santorum, Michele Bachmann, Newton Gingrich, and Donald Trump viable.
It’s also not unreasonable to think that Paul or Cruz will have a chance. The stupid is strong with the electorate, as Darth Wanker might opine.
Comrade Jake
@burnspbesq: Really? I think McCain and Romney seem pretty damn mainstream compared to Rand Paul.
The Sailor
I’m stealing the lynyrd skynyrd reference when I post about this. I stand on the shoulders of giants. And steal from artists.
Betty Cracker
Slow and steady wins the race for the Senior Senatortoise from KY.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@SFAW: I think Cruz is a viable longshot. I don’t think Rand Paul stands up well to a long exposure. If I can get all wonky and political science-like, he’s a goofy fuck, even for that electorate.
Liquid
Now there’s a picture of McConnell standing next to his nose-holding campaign manager.
Dolly Llama
The tastiest part of this shitshow is that this isn’t just a Senate seat in fucking Kentucky. This is the mullah-fucking minority leader this shit is happening to.
Of course, being the consummate veteran pol, he defused it quickly and deftly with this.
Dolly Llama
OK, why in the hell is my last comment in moderation? Come on, please. I’m legit. I may not comment here all the time like some people, but I comment here enough to where you might give me the benefit of the doubt.
dmsilev
@Liquid: Sadly, neither one was wearing an “I’m with Stupid” T-shirt.
Yatsuno
@Betty Cracker: You know, I like turtles. Turtles rule. I think Yertle should get plastic surgery to remove his unfortunate resemblance. For teh reptiles, natch.
SFAW
@Jim, Foolish Literalist:
I hope you’re right, at least as regards Paul’s chances. (I know you’re right re: his being a goofy fuck.)
Cruz sorta scares me, but I hope I’m just being unjustifiably worried. (Because of Mencken, of course.)
SFAW
@dmsilev:
Revision makes it neither more true nor less true, of course. But it IS less confusing for the base.
Roger Moore
@David Koch:
Proving that dogs have more sense than the average Teabagger. As if any more evidence were needed.
Chris
@burnspbesq:
McCain and Romney got the nom because the elites at the top of the GOP trusted them – they were their kind of people. I highly doubt if they see Paul in the same light.
Roger Moore
@Yatsuno:
You’re not the only one.
Thoughtcrime
“Once,” said the Mock Turtle at last, with a deep sigh, “I was a real Turtle.”
feebog
@JFly:
One can only hope. Hillary Clinton will crush him like a bug on a concrete slab. Much too early at this point, but I put Paul and Rubio in not ready for prime time section of the Republican clown care. Not going to be either of them.
bemused
@Dolly Llama:
Awkward.
Thoughtcrime
The Mock Turtle is getting schooled in Reeling and Writhing, and the different branches of Arithmetic—Ambition, Distraction, Uglification, and Derision.
fuckwt
Keep fucking that chicken.
The Moar You Know
I’ve eaten turtle soup. It’s very good.
Thing is, turtles aren’t really good for anything else.
Matt
@Liquid:
OH NOES, you’ve said the true name of the coming conservative overlord! A terrible beast, with two faces, five assholes and no heart at all, that feeds on white pride and the tears of the unemployed!
IA IA AYN RAND PAUL RYAN FHTAGN!
Frankensteinbeck
@Chris:
Romney got the nom because all the other contenders were wildly incompetent. They had no campaign staffs, weren’t even signed up right in some states. Romney was the only candidate who didn’t self-destruct early who had an organization. The ONLY one. And he still had trouble winning. It was surreal.
Rand Paul is not wildly incompetent. Maybe a little incompetent, but not wildly. He won the Senate seat in Kentucky by publicly repudiating his Teabagger roots the morning after he won the primary. He won 56-44 in a state that went Romney 60-38. He’s a much more Romney figure than his more openly crazy pants father.
Dolly Llama
I would have figured this particular story would have been chum in the water for this crowd, and I had looked forward to it. But apparently nobody gives a shit if it doesn’t have to do with domestic animals of one kind or another.
Just sayin.
Odie Hugh Manatee
@Redshirt:
Odie Hugh Manatee
Damn, hit the wrong key!
@Redshirt:
No, Yertle keeping this guy around for his campaign makes sense.
LosGatosCA
Democrats need to start learning from this stuff.
You cannot expect to do bidness with people who are fully practiced and more than fully committed in applying this kind of ruthlessness to their own kind. These people are congenital ratfuckers and are perfecting their ratfucking on each other before they apply it to Democrats.
Lee Atwater and Karl Rove perfected their craft on college republicans and primary opponents before they ever hit the big time against Democrats in general elections.
Matt McIrvin
@Liquid: Ayn Rand Paul Ryan Seacrest DSV