Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

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

People are complicated. Love is not.

JFC, are there no editors left at that goddamn rag?

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Everybody saw this coming.

The GOP is a fucking disgrace.

Jesus, Mary, & Joseph how is that election even close?

After roe, women are no longer free.

Authoritarian republicans are opposed to freedom for the rest of us.

Accused of treason; bitches about the ratings. I am in awe.

They are lying in pursuit of an agenda.

If you’re pissed about Biden’s speech, he was talking about you.

Good lord, these people are nuts.

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

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

“Jesus paying for the sins of everyone is an insult to those who paid for their own sins.”

And now I have baud making fun of me. this day can’t get worse.

We are aware of all internet traditions.

The arc of history bends toward the same old fuckery.

New McCarthy, same old McCarthyism.

The worst democrat is better than the best republican.

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

They fucked up the fucking up of the fuckup!

I didn’t have alien invasion on my 2023 BINGO card.

You are here: Home / Books / Open Thread: Political Infotainment for the “Savvy”

Open Thread: Political Infotainment for the “Savvy”

by | 55 Comments

This post is in: , , ,

Alex Pareene, in Salonon “the PR scam”:

… The only thing wrong with these “Game Change” books, besides the meaningless cliché titles, horrific prose, virulent sexism, heavy reliance on and implicit endorsement of the viewpoints and biases of plainly self-interested anonymous sources — OK, the primary problem with these “Game Change” books, then — is that people take them seriously. News anchors and pundits tell everyone that these books explain how or why a politician won or lost an election, or how they nearly lost. These books tell funny stories about famous people.

Here are some of the reasons why Barack Obama won reelection: because the Republican Party and conservative ideas are unpopular, because the economy was improving and the president’s approval ratings were decent, because incumbents win more often than not, and because his campaign was better at identifying, motivating and turning out voters. Here are some things that had very little to do with the president’s victory: His rebound performance in the second debate, Clint Eastwood talking to a chair, and his ability to tolerate golfing with Bill Clinton…

What you have is a load of information that you may find entertaining if you care about politicians and their teams as celebrities. It is a collection of funny and embarrassing stories about famous people, mainly, except it is a collection of funny and entertaining stories about famous people that is convinced that it’s very important and monumental…

***********

Now that the latest round of voting-related agita is over, what’s on the agenda for the evening?

Reader Interactions

55Comments

  1. 1.

    catclub

    The savvy also know that Chris Christie’s landslide win would look a lot less impressive if Corey Booker had been on the Senate election ballot on the same day.

  2. 2.

    Mnemosyne

    If I want to read funny and entertaining stories about famous people, I’ll go to TMZ.com. But I’m not under any illusion that those stories mean anything about, well, anything.

  3. 3.

    Hill Dweller

    This stuff is catnip for the congenitally stupid people who deliver the “news” and appear regularly on cable, because it allows them to avoid talking about policy.

  4. 4.

    sparrow

    Sooo, I was amused by the plaintive cries of wingnuts that the Libertarian candidate in the Viriginia gubernatorial race was a ‘plant’ by Obama (personally!) to steal votes from the Cooch. I was clicking around the webs and found this:

    http://www.nationalreview.com/article/362690/sarvis-libertarian-nope-charles-c-w-cooke/page/0/1

    Apparently the fact that this guy, Sarvis, is socially liberal is not at all important to these libertarians! The key thing is being fiscally conservative. Oh… so I guess that makes them republicans. Right. Just checking!

    (Another article made the claim that Sarvis voters would have preferred McAuliffe 2 to 1 in exit polls, so it’s possible the libertarian really did peel off dem votes. Given that the guy is staunchly pro-life, I wonder if some women went for him vs. sleezy McAuliffe?)

  5. 5.

    gogol's wife

    That looks like a good analysis — I’ll have to read it later. These books are so infuriating. Although I did like the anecdotes about Romney and Christie.

  6. 6.

    catclub

    The extremely slow recovery imposes pain on the middle and lower classes for a very long time, but it also makes it more likely that we are still in a ‘recovery and improving’ phase in 2016, rather than
    ‘recession after excessive exuberance’ phase.

    I have mixed feelings.

  9. 9.

    bd of mn

    I’m happy that my fellow suburban dwellers denied the morons who ran the city aground five years ago a second chance to do it again.

    Other than that, today’s my last day at my current sucky job. I start a new, hopefully less sucky job next Monday…

  10. 10.

    piratedan

    Using the Gladwell Corollary of political thought…. string together compelling and interesting anecdotal items and you get your own political Tipping Point. Fun to read, but then again, I’m a political junkie.

  12. 12.

    Just Some Fuckhead, Thought Leader

    Ouch, sounds like Alex didn’t get an invite to the book launch party.

  13. 13.

    Anoniminous

    Kos has a diary up show the demographics yesterday’s Virginia Election. The story, except for African-Americans — Democratic voters didn’t vote.

    Pre-election polling tells us the political support is there. It’s the actualization of that support that is the problem.

    Given the turn-out demographics it’s a miracle the Governorship and Lt. Governorship was flipped.

    (And now, back to work.)

  14. 14.

    R. Johnston

    The latest round of voting-related agita won’t be over until there’s a winner in the Virginia AG race. That may, unfortunately, not happen for a while.

  16. 16.

    Baud

    Heard a pundit say that Cuccinelli won independents, so Democrats should be concerned.

    That argument makes sense when your guy wins. When he loses, not so much.

  17. 17.

    Chris

    @sparrow:

    Sooo, I was amused by the plaintive cries of wingnuts that the Libertarian candidate in the Viriginia gubernatorial race was a ‘plant’ by Obama (personally!) to steal votes from the Cooch.

    If the Obama administration’s into ratfucking the opposition that way, I can only say that I approve wholeheartedly and think we should repeat the experience as often as possible. 1912, motherfuckers!

  19. 19.

    danielx

    Here are some of the reasons why Barack Obama won reelection: because the Republican Party and conservative ideas are unpopular, because the economy was improving and the president’s approval ratings were decent, because incumbents win more often than not, and because his campaign was better at identifying, motivating and turning out voters.

    Gosh, then there was that problem with every last one of the Republican presidential hopefuls being crazy, a complete mean asshole, or both, with their craziness and assholery (and those of their audiences) on full display during the primary debates. They might actually win a national election again if they could find a candidate who doesn’t come across as a crazy and/or mean asshole…such a person is exceedingly unlikely to make it through the primaries because the loonier and meaner a Republican politician is, the better their primary voters like it – as long as the craziness and meanness are draped in well-tailored sanctimony and phoney faith.

  20. 20.

    satby

    Bad news: I got laid off. Good news: now I actually have time to try to write something for NaNoWriMo.
    I get when I hear about kids going into IT these days; I was a highly rated senior manager, and even those jobs going off-shore. And when staff in India get too expensive, there are lots of other countries to send the work to with even lower wages. I told my kids to skip college and apprentice in plumbing.

  22. 22.

    danielx

    @satby:

    Sorry to hear your bad news, and I can certainly sympathize – I haven’t had a full time job (you know, with benefits and stuff) since I got laid off in 2009, though I’ve had lots of contract and part time work doing various things. Not something you want to hear, I know.

    Told my nephew the same thing – plumbing cannot be done overseas and there’s certainly nothing wrong with being a decent godfearing plumber. Really only three things to remember: shit flows downhill, always wash your hands after work, and anything over forty hours is time and a half. The rest is detail…

  23. 23.

    scav

    Quick visit to the local Thai Asian mercado, I am set for flavors one needs on drizzly chill evenings. Held off on the karela, maybe next trip.

  24. 24.

    Yatsuno

    @danielx: And PLEASE learn the tax rules for independent contracting BEFORE you start doing it. It is nowhere near the same as when you’re working for someone, and I’ve had to help a lot of good trades folks get out of those huge messes.

  26. 26.

    srv

    There is no doubt in my mind that the Twilight crowd votes only on significant value issues and not something more pop.

    McCaullife barely won against a moron and had to go all agita, all the time. Kudos. We’ll see how that works against his legislature dominated by morons.

  27. 27.

    Turgidson

    @Baud:

    The same exit polls show that Terry won “moderates” by 20+ points. So there are a lot of “Independents” who are reliable GOP voters with paper bags on their heads.

    Knowing how indifferent the Dem base can be, I’m wondering if McAuliffe lost a point or two at the very end because so many polls were showing him coasting to victory, so the apathetic Dem-leaners had their excuse to stay at happy hour until polls closed rather than go vote. If so, those voters may well have cost Dems the AG race.

  28. 28.

    Gene108

    @danielx:

    The business type Rep winning in ‘Bana has me a bit worried.

    The only material difference between the tea party types and “mainstream” Republicans is 1. The amount of time spent wearing tri-corner hats at political rallies and 2. The volume at which you demand candidates declare their loyalty to your principles.

    Reagan and the Bushes got away with point two with a wink and a nod. Romney and McCain not so much. McCain got booed when he said Obama was born in America.

    If the base realizes winning the “mainstream” way of a wink and nod to the crazies will get them farther along in implementing their agenda, then Republicans can slip in another Reaganesque politician, who can be charming enough to win.

  29. 29.

    Elizabelle

    @Turgidson:

    @Baud:

    You wuz discussing “independents”? The scales finally fell from Chris Cilizza’s eyes. (Or maybe co-author Aaron Blake’s:)

    * Republicans don’t need independents; they need moderates: Despite Cuccinelli’s loss, he actually won among self-described independents. At the same time, he lost by more than 18 points among self-described “moderates” — further proof that these two categories are hardly the same thing. The fact is that an increasing number of conservatives identify as “independent” these days even as they continue to reliably vote Republican. That’s why Mitt Romney won independents by clear margins in states like Ohio but still lost the state. We would all be better served switching our focus to “moderate” voters rather than independents — and that includes Republicans searching for the way forward.

    6 Takeaways from Election Night 2013

    Just like our pundits were the last to figure out who those Tea Partiers really are.

    PS: I can remember how to spell Cillizza’s name by remembering “Cill my landlord.”

  31. 31.

    Mnemosyne

    @Turgidson:

    So there are a lot of “Independents” who are reliable GOP voters with paper bags on their heads.

    Frankly, that’s usually what “independents” are. It’s become even more pronounced now that Republicans are taking aim at their own feet daily, but IIRC “independents” have always leaned right.

  32. 32.

    Turgidson

    @Mnemosyne:

    Yeah, probably. Although Obama won them with some room to spare against McCain, if I recall correctly. Then lost them by a few points vs. Mittens. So they are a fluid group, and probably include greater numbers of embarrassed Republicans than usual at the moment.

  34. 34.

    Trollhattan

    @lamh36:
    Some call it “abuse,” I call it “a lifestyle.” But must add, she’s 51? Day-umn, doing something right. Snark aside, best of luck to her.

  35. 35.

    Trollhattan

    @satby:

    Well that just sucks. Good luck!

    An HR friend has gone through innumerable offshoring rounds of IT and call center jobs to India, then Poland and now one of the Balkans (does it matter which?). If it weren’t for the SEC they’d have offshored portfolio management by now.

    It’s depressing..

  38. 38.

    Elizabelle

    @Mnemosyne:

    Yup. Comment in moderation, but even Chris Cillizza finally figured out that independents =/= rugged individualists:

    Republicans don’t need independents; they need moderates: Despite Cuccinelli’s loss, he actually won among self-described independents. At the same time, he lost by more than 18 points among self-described “moderates” — further proof that these two categories are hardly the same thing. The fact is that an increasing number of conservatives identify as “independent” these days even as they continue to reliably vote Republican. That’s why Mitt Romney won independents by clear margins in states like Ohio but still lost the state. We would all be better served switching our focus to “moderate” voters rather than independents — and that includes Republicans searching for the way forward.

    Just like our pundit class were the last to figure out who the Tea Partiers really were.

  40. 40.

    different-church-lady

    The only problem with sites like Salon… okay, one of the primary problems, is that they too are part of a massive political-porn universe that treats shit that actually affects real people as just a bunch of raw material for the entertainment machines.

    And I don’t let us here at BJ off the hook for that. Yes, we do have real conversations about important stuff around here, but we also indulge in wanking and voyeurism. Perhaps not as frequently as some other places, but still.

  43. 43.

    eemom

    the latest round of voting-related agita is over

    Far from over. I’m ecstatic that Cooch and Eeeeyew are toast, of course, but I am disgusted as always by the low turnout and absolutely appalled at the AG situation.

    @PsiFighter37:

    According to the VA SBE website, Herring is currently up by 32(!!!) votes.

    That is good news though, thank you.

  44. 44.

    Lurking Canadian

    I’m not so sanguine about the second debate. I can’t be the only one who was getting a kind of queasy sensation watching the red and blue lines creep closer and closer together at Nate Silver’s site before “Please proceed, Governor” put the thing away.

  45. 45.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @catclub:

    The savvy also know that Chris Christie’s landslide win would look a lot less impressive if Corey Booker had been on the Senate election ballot on the same day.

    So, total coincidence that Christie decided to waste a metric shit ton of NJ resources by holding separate elections just a few weeks apart.

    Are there any actual numbers out there to show how much more it cost to hold a special election than it would have to have the election for Senate on the Tuesday after the first Monday in November? Somehow, I don’t think Christie was all that concerned about Senator Booker’s putative seniority in the Chamber of Sober Reflection.

  47. 47.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @bd of mn:

    today’s my last day at my current sucky job. I start a new, hopefully less sucky job next Monday…

    Congratulations! And if the new job turns out not to be less sucky, I hope at least that it’s a different kind of sucky. That could be entertaining for a while.

  48. 48.

    gbear

    @bd of mn: You must be in Maplewood. I grew up in North St. Paul. I’m glad to see that whacko couldn’t get re-elected mayor & I’m happy for every non-wingnut in Maplewood.

  49. 49.

    rikyrah

    Here’s a trip down election memory lane…

    Since I didn’t want Fox to spoil my Election Night, I had no idea about Rove until I saw it on Rachel Maddow’s opening segment the next night. I was like W-T-F?
    It was obvious.
    Those mofos thought that they had ‘ fixed’ Ohio.
    But, somewhere along the line, the co-conspirators chickened out. They knew that the Obama campaign and the DOJ was on their asses like White on Rice, and they left Karl holding the bag.
    When I found out that Willard’s SON was owner in the company of the electronic voting machines used in Ohio, the tinfoil hat was on point.
    But, I was also fortified by the amount of early voting, and the fact that the County that contains Cleveland, one of the largest vote areas of OH, doesn’t use electronic machines for Early Voting – they only use paper ballots.
    Watching Rove’s meltdown on Fox was fucking hilarious.

    http://youtu.be/hkRe33nDF08

    http://youtu.be/9TwuR0jCavk

  50. 50.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @satby:

    Bad news: I got laid off.

    So sorry to hear that. Sucks majorly.

    Good news: now I actually have time to try to write something for NaNoWriMo.

    Sounds very promising. If your writing schedule permits, please keep us posted.

    And good luck, all the way around!!

  51. 51.

    Hal

    Based on the media coverage I saw today, if I had just skimmed the news I might have come away with the impression that McAuliffe lost

    I’m also enjoying the anointing of Chris Christie as the second coming by our Liberal MSM. It’s not like they ever got that wrong. Maybe now that Christie is all but officially running the MSM will start covering his actual policies instead of his BOLD! personality.

  52. 52.

    BD of MN

    @gbear: You are correct… I have no idea why she ran again, apparently losing the Democratic (!) congressional primary last year 95% to 5% wasn’t enough abuse. Hopefully the 67%-33% drubbing she took yesterday will scare her away for a little longer….

  53. 53.

    satby

    @ everybody: thanks. I’m secretly slightly pleased; finances will suck but I had survived 3 layoffs before the axe finally got me so it’s a relief at this point. And I was beginning to set up a business of my own and planning to leave in about 4 more months if I had lasted that long. And I’m 58, so I’m hoping that my little business can keep me afloat until retirement because I really don’t want another corporate IT job!

  54. 54.

    snetzky

    dont blame you. Ive been contracting (mostly through consulting cos.) and the pay is better and I get paid for ALL my hours. True, I have to pay my own med, vac, etc, but no reviews (that comes to my bank every Friday) and much less bullshit.

  55. 55.

    Matt McIrvin

    @sparrow: I think Sarvis just failed to pull votes from Cuccinelli after getting people to say they’d vote for him in polls. The biggest difference between the polls and the actual numbers was actually in Cuccinelli vs. Sarvis; McAuliffe’s win margin may have gotten pulled down by Sarvis supporters coming back to the Republican.

    Notice how Ron Paul was stumping for Cuccinelli right at the end; that might have been what that was about.

Comments are closed.