Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

No offense, but this thread hasn’t been about you for quite a while.

Quote tweet friends, screenshot enemies.

Take hopelessness and turn it into resilience.

People identifying as christian while ignoring christ and his teachings is a strange thing indeed.

Hot air and ill-informed banter

They are lying in pursuit of an agenda.

It’s pointless to bring up problems that can only be solved with a time machine.

The line between political reporting and fan fiction continues to blur.

When we show up, we win.

Oh FFS you might as well trust a 6-year-old with a flamethrower.

the 10% who apparently lack object permanence

Their freedom requires your slavery.

Tick tock motherfuckers!

“Until such time as the world ends, we will act as though it intends to spin on.”

Within six months Twitter will be fully self-driving.

People really shouldn’t expect the government to help after they watched the GOP drown it in a bathtub.

When do we start airlifting the women and children out of Texas?

Come on, media. you have one job. start doing it.

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

This year has been the longest three days of putin’s life.

It’s a good piece. click on over. but then come back!!

Speaker Mike Johnson is a vile traitor to the House and the Constitution.

The “burn-it-down” people are good with that until they become part of the kindling.

We cannot abandon the truth and remain a free nation.

You are here: Home / Elections / Election 2016 / Biden Continues to Not Run for President, Makes it Official

Reader Interactions

219Comments

  1. 1.

    I'mNotSureWhoIWantToBeYet

    As I just said in a couple of threads below, it obviously means he’s running as an independent.

    ;-)

    Haven’t seen the clip yet, but good for Joe. I hope he has a good retirement.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  3. 3.

    dmsilev

    I felt a great disturbance in the Force, as if millions of political reporters and pundits cried out in anguish, and we all laughed at them.

    More seriously, I always got the sense that Biden For President was mostly a case of the news media wanting a New Shiny Object to play with rather than a serious move on Biden’s part. There was no serious effort, no staff, no fundraising, no nothing.

  4. 4.

    Woodrow/asim

    I’m so glad he shut this damned shitshow down. I know it’s a pipe dream that reporting will move to something more serious, but dammit, I can hope.

    He just said something wonderful about, basically, intersectionality. He’s def. taking this moment to lay it all on the line, and it’s beautiful to hear.

    Not always been Joe’s best fan, but this is him close to his best.

  5. 5.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @I’mNotSureWhoIWantToBeYet: Haven’t seen the clip yet, but good for Joe. I hope he has a good retirement.

    Did he go that far? Cause I wouln’t be surprised or displeased to see him as Sec of State. Or Ambassador to Ireland.

    (just turned it on and the tone does kind of sound like a retirement speech)

  6. 6.

    SarahT

    Wish he could just stay on as VP for life. Then again, I also wish Obama could just stay on as Prez for life. Anyway, thanks Mr. VP – doing the right thing,

  10. 10.

    Jeffro

    @dmsilev:

    I felt a great disturbance in the Force, as if millions of political reporters and pundits cried out in anguish, and we all laughed at them.

    Gonna just have to borrow that line for today, thanks very much…

    Called it.

  12. 12.

    dmsilev

    @Frankensteinbeck: And meanwhile, the Republicans are truly in Disarray. No, make that DISARRAY. Maybe if Ryan goes down in flames over the next few days (a real possibility; the fanatics in the far far far right corner aren’t happy), that will make it truly sink in to the heads of the pundits and so forth.

  13. 13.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    Sweet Christ , MSNBC, I never knew the firefighters union decided Democratic primaries

  15. 15.

    Archon

    Good call Joe. Beating Clinton for the nomination would have required a really tough, ugly race and it would have had a low chance of success at that.

  16. 16.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    Tweety has referenced “Irish” twice in less than two minutes

    and he’s still a step up from Mitchell and Willaims

  19. 19.

    BGinCHI

    Did anyone check Bill Kristol’s twitter feed to see if earlier today he assured us Biden would run?

  20. 20.

    srv

    Clearly, Hillary has more on him that he on her.

    Chris Matthews says Bush didn’t keep us safe and blames W. for Benghazi

    The buck stops here

    Once again, Donald Trump accomplishes what all those democrats and the John Coles of the Left can’t with just his Twitter account.

  21. 21.

    ET

    @dmsilev: I agree. I always though if he was going to run we would have heard about is a year or two ago. This whole will he/won’t he was totally the invention of pundits with the assistants of those that wanted to be quoted by said pundits.

  23. 23.

    Amir Khalid

    This was the decision many expected all along. There’s an interesting book to be written, I think, explaining why Joe took so long to decide.

    Now that Joe definitely ain’t running, the Democratic candidate polling is going to look quite a bit different. If the difference is roughly what I expect, I look forward to an entertaining reaction from the Juicitariat’s most strident Bernista.

  24. 24.

    Elizabelle

    Good to hear it. About BFD time.

    The media was using Biden as a tool to hit Hillary. Watched CBS this morning; Very Serious Person (TM) Charlie Rose and others informed me that Biden is doing what he’s doing to hurt Hillary’s credibility, and went after Biden’s own (re the Bin Laden decision drama story). Some other cracks I’ve (blissfully) forgotten.

    Nothing is ever good for a Democrat in TV Land, unless it’s so blatant they’ll be laughed at if they don’t report more accurately.

    (RE 60 Minutes Obama interview, on Syria, where he talked of Hillary’s emails: he noted at end of their broadcast that if he ran for President again, he could get elected. NYTimes political reporting harpie a day or two later: that means Obama thinks the Democrats choices are weak.)

  25. 25.

    SiubhanDuinne

    I’m very relieved. I like Joe too much to wish him to go out in an ugly campaign ending in a loss. Better to go out as one of, if not the, best VPs in the history of this country.

  30. 30.

    Frankensteinbeck

    @dmsilev:
    This whole situation is a living nightmare for the media. The Democrats are having a friendly and peaceful primary based mostly on debating whose policies will help people most. The two front runners of the Republican primary are loudly declaring that bigotry and ignorant fundie insanity are the real motivators of the GOP. George Bush is being talked about, and it turns out everyone hates him. They spent three decades doing everything they could to destroy the Clintons, and it turns out nobody cares what they think. Biden was their big chance to restore the Narrative and everything they believe in.

  31. 31.

    Elizabelle

    Happy to have been away from the news today.

    Caught most of another airing of The Shootist on Retroplex.

    The Shootist is def in my top five movie favorites. Story and acting are superb, and so is the very early spring setting in Nevada.

  32. 32.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @ET: he hung that shiny object high with the MoDo column, and kept it polished for pundits for two months.

    If, as I’m hearing and reading, his message to HRC was to be loyal to Obama, that’s good. I think Hillary might have gotten that message, I suspect a few people around her still need to accept it.

    ETA: case in point: Uber-PUMA Ed Rendell has to say HRC will be the one to carry on the Obama legacy.

    Hope it hurt, you fucknozzle.

  33. 33.

    Cermet

    @srv: Why are you so concerned that bush-wack and his leader bloody hands cheney be called out for allowing numerous terrorist attacks on US Embassy’s after 9-11, and ignored very loud warnings by intelligence briefer’s before 9-11 saying that Bin Laden was about to attack us? Are you ill? If you are not up to trolling shouldn’t get back on your meds?

  34. 34.

    Elizabelle

    @Frankensteinbeck: Yeah. Fuck the media. They need to report on issues. They keep throwing darts at one set of horses (the Democrats and the Socia l ist in the race) and pretending not to see or hear the other one (the clown car).

    They’re all about political gossip and won’t do their job, which is reporting on issues accurately.

    Perhaps they are not capable of doing that, even if it were lucrative for their networks.

    Lot of rot in that fish.

  35. 35.

    Frankensteinbeck

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:
    I’ve seen no sign that Hillary was ever anything but loyal to Obama, except in media fantasy land. For that matter, she seems to have run liberal right out of the gate, and needed no pushing from Sanders. I think she learned a lot working for Obama, and I think that’s both in terms of the political game and what’s right to do policy-wise.

  36. 36.

    hells littlest angel

    Coolest Vice President Ever is an achievement to be proud of.

    Thanks for your service, Old Handsome Joe.

  37. 37.

    lamh36

    Does that mean we’re done with the side swipe post bout Biden now?

    Now that Biden won’t “stand in the way” are the usual commentera back to talking about Biden in more glowing turns?

    Anyway…I guess that’s it for the Dem Primary…so now I guess it’s time to speculate on who HRC is picking for her running mate. Is it too soon for the betting ro begin?

  39. 39.

    bystander

    The whole focus on MSNBC was that Joe did not endorse Hillary in the speech. Biden has been talking about the OBL raid to “tweak” Hillary, fercrissakes. Ayndrea: There are “broken eggs” between Biden and Hillary.

    Great speech! Joe did the right thing. Can’t think of a better VP!

  40. 40.

    Betty Cracker

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: I didn’t hear Rendell’s comment, but I don’t get what’s offensive in your summary of it. Won’t the next president (a Democrat, dog willing) have to carry on PBO’s legacy? A Republican will destroy it; they’re all vowing to do so. A Democrat will hopefully preserve it and improve upon it. That’s how it’s supposed to work, no?

  43. 43.

    Yatsuno

    @Brachiator: The sigh of relief heard round the world.

    I would have supported Uncle Joe if he decided to make a go for it this time around. But it’s pretty much gonna be Hillary all the way now, for better or for worse. And personally I think it’s hers.

  44. 44.

    Punchy

    @benw: But is Jo-Jo’s no-go a blow to the status quo? Hard to know where Joe’s mojo flows.

    With Webb wrapping, Bernie barely breathing, O’Malley O’faced, it’s Clinton’s to clinch.

  45. 45.

    Waspuppet

    @dmsilev: Well, they desperately needed a reason to say “Hillary’s in trouble!” Cos as much as I like Bernie Sanders and think his much-stronger-than-expected numbers really do mean something, she’s not in trouble.

    But she’s a Clinton, so the idea that she just may be right an that Americans agree with her cannot be allowed to stand.

  46. 46.

    JPL

    Sorta wish that Biden would have made his announcement tomorrow. We need something to keep Gowdy out of the news.

  49. 49.

    Elizabelle

    FFS: take it away, NY Times: by Republican-whisperer Peter Baker and political harpy Maggie Haberman: First two paragraphs:

    WASHINGTON — Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. said Wednesday he will not be a candidate in the 2016 presidential campaign, bringing to a close a three-month exploration that began shortly after the death of his eldest child and threatened to fracture the Democratic Party. [Democrats in disarray! Never mind the GOP cannot agree on a Speaker of the House — they’re trying to keelhaul that bright young Paul Ryan to do it — and its 2 top presidential candidates have never held political office! The Democratic Party was in danger of fracturing, we tell you!]

    Mr. Biden’s decision, announced in the White House Rose Garden with President Obama looking on [it’s what Obama does, he’s a looker onner], ends one of the most public episodes of indecision [let’s face it, he’s a Democrat, not a deciderer] about a political path since Gov. Mario Cuomo of New York left a plane bound for New Hampshire idling on a tarmac in 1991 as he fretted over whether to run for president. [Let’s all think of another failed Democratic presidential aspirant. All together now.]

  52. 52.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Betty Cracker: Nothing offensive in those comments, I see them as a good sign from the Bubba sector of Hillary-land, but Ed Rendell has been one of the nastiest, most bitter PUMAs floating around the media (also a paid shill for the extraction industry, Wall St and the Peterson Institute), all fronted with that old-school, big city pol affect that the media so adores. I hold him in minimum high regard. Seeing him have to call for Hillary Clinton to carry on Obama’s legacy is pleasing to the petty O-Bot schadenfreudenist in me

    Once on Alex Wagner’s old show he took a full two minutes of air time to explain that his goodfriend Tom Ridge should be addressed as Secretary Ridge, not “Governor”, because secretary was both his most recent and highest ranking position. It was an interesting little window into the PUMA-bitter of a cabinet-secretary manqué

  53. 53.

    Brachiator

    @Frankensteinbeck:

    I’ve seen no sign that Hillary was ever anything but loyal to Obama, except in media fantasy land

    Fair point.

    Obama helped keep Hillary’s presidential dreams alive by appointing her to his cabinet, in a brave bit of political payback. She served capably as Secretary of State (despite the coming flack from the GOP that she was the worst Secretary of State ever), and did much to burnish her potential presidential credentials.

    @lamh36

    Anyway…I guess that’s it for the Dem Primary…so now I guess it’s time to speculate on who HRC is picking for her running mate. Is it too soon for the betting ro begin?

    A potential good choice might be a Latino VP choice. This might be a nail in the coffin for the GOP.

  54. 54.

    Amir Khalid

    @bystander:
    Vice-President Joe can’t endorse until there’s a nominee — any more than President Obama can. That would amount to inserting the administration into the party’s nomination race. Even I know that. Did that not occur to MSNBC?

  56. 56.

    Elizabelle

    @JPL: Good point, but maybe that’s why for today, because otherwise the mediocracy would never shut up about Joe B stepping on the day’s narrative.

  58. 58.

    lamh36

    Seriously though…at this point there no need to pay attention to Dem Primary anymore.

    HRC is the nominee at this point. Webb is out, Chafee is not factor…OMalley is going for VP but too bad for him HRC prob go with Ethnic pic amd Sanders won’t win over HRC…especially since Biden isn’t in.

    Oh and aside from media folk, I’ve already noticed the change in commentary on Biden from some folks. So I guess all the issues with Biden are no longer relevant so no need to wrap it all up in a “I like Biden but…” comments anymore

  61. 61.

    Jeffro

    @lamh36:

    I guess it’s time to speculate on who HRC is picking for her running mate.

    (O’Malley’s ears just perked up, someplace in Iowa…)

    Good choices:
    – Tim Kaine
    – Julian Castro
    – whomever Bill Kristol says would be a drag on the ticket

  62. 62.

    the Conster

    @BGinCHI:

    Of course Kristol predicted Joe would run, based on info from a Democrat he trusts. Like Simon Maloy said, Kristol’s like the tides.

  63. 63.

    feebog

    Biden is polling between 10 and 20% in most polls that included him recently. HRC gets the majority of those voters. HRC had already widened the gap between her and Bernie after the first debate. It will be interesting to see how much further the gap widens after this announcement. That said, I hope Bernie hangs in as long as he can. He is dragging HRC to the left on important issues and that’s a good thing.

  68. 68.

    Heliopause

    I have to admit to all of you, I was wrong. There is a God.

    But in this solemn moment, let us think of the real victim here: Wolf Blitzer.

  69. 69.

    Elizabelle

    @Elizabelle: Thinking, on second thought, that the NYT’s Mario Cuomo and the campaign plane story, if true, is a pretty good metaphor.

    Sh** or get off the pot. Get on the plane, or don’t.

    Anyway, thank you for your service, VP Biden, and I hope that you’ll get a wonderful Cabinet position in the future, if that is what you desire. For however much longer you wish to continue in public service.

  70. 70.

    Origuy

    @BGinCHI:

    Did anyone check Bill Kristol’s twitter feed to see if earlier today he assured us Biden would run?

    Billmon did. Kristol, yesterday:

    Biden confirms to Obama at lunch today he’s running, announces at U Delaware tomorrow. You can feel the Joementum!

    He’s more reliable than the Cubs choking.

  72. 72.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @lamh36: OMalley is going for VP but too bad for him

    He was in ’08, as HRC slyly pointed out in the debate last week, but I think he’s pissed on her too many times in his futile efforts to break into the mid-single digits.

    @Jeffro: I think Sherrod Brown could be a dark horse. He’s got (I think) “authenticity”, and potentially a lot of appeal to labor, the Warren-Sanders wing, and Ohio.

  73. 73.

    Elizabelle

    @Heliopause: And collateral damage: The Morning Joe-ksters.

    Might get me to tune in tomorrow, although they’re more likely to be orgasming over Benghazi! And so the boycott will continue.

  74. 74.

    Brachiator

    @Yatsuno:

    I would have supported Uncle Joe if he decided to make a go for it this time around.

    I would have given Biden a very serious look myself.

    But it’s pretty much gonna be Hillary all the way now, for better or for worse. And personally I think it’s hers.

    For now, this looks like a rare amount of unity for the Democrats while the Republicans are still mired in klownish kaos. Who would have thought it?

  75. 75.

    Elizabelle

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: I like the idea of Sherrod Brown as VP.

    Wonder what Kay says about that. He’s great on issues, and approachable. Smart journalist wife; would appeal to moderates who live and work in our universe.

  76. 76.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Elizabelle:

    I didn’t watch either — probably will when a video link goes up. And I don’t know whether or not he actually used the word “retire” — that was my own gloss on things, about his “going out” on a high note. I do think he’d probably be an effective ambassador, or perhaps held in reserve as a “special envoy” like George Mitchell. Whatever happens in his life, I hope it’s a long and happy one and am really glad it won’t include another run for the presidency.

  78. 78.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @benw:

    Variety‘s on the phone for you. Something about a job offer? Headline writer? Something like that.

  79. 79.

    Betty Cracker

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: I don’t think Sherrod Brown would want the job. I’d rather see him stay where he is since he’s a pretty effective senator. HRC won’t really need much shoring up on the labor side if she’s the nominee.

  81. 81.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    Andrea Mitchell: Joe Biden was hurting her in the polls…

    unsaid: Her national lead sometimes dipped below 25%!

  82. 82.

    hells littlest angel

    We could speculate on VP picks for a long time, because there are so many good, exciting Democrats out there. Either of the Castros, Sherrod Brown, Elizabeth Warren, Bernie — and that’s just the A list. More wild speculations: Donna Edwards, Raul Grijalva, Elijah Cummings and — what the fuck — Old Handsome Joe himself.

  83. 83.

    jl

    @feebog: I think Sanders will hang in a long time. Even if he can’t get the nomination, he wants a political revolution and the influence a sizable grass roots political organization can get him. I think the open questions are whether he can build an effective grass roots organization, and whether he has the political skills to keep it together to push for change after a probable HRC primary victory.

    If HRC emerges as a solid candidate with Bill Clintion, Obama, Biden and Warren actively campaigning for her, and with Sanders leading his supporters for a broad Democratic win, that would be a very good thing. I suppose Sanders would want some promises from HRC, and perhaps most important differences between them are on approach to financial regulation. And maybe on gun control, but not sure either HRC or Sanders approach can do much on that in short term anyway.

  84. 84.

    Mnemosyne (iPhone)

    @lamh36:

    I like Crazy Uncle Joe, but I don’t think he’d be a very good president, so I’m relieved he’s decided not to run. I’d love to see him VP 4 Life, though, or at least asked back onto all of the Sunday talk shows to defend the Democrats.

  85. 85.

    MattF

    Next up, Hillary’s Congressional testimony. The media are desperate for a “Let’s you and him fight” session, but Republicans may not cooperate. They suspect that Hillary would be delighted to give them a hard kick in the balls.

  87. 87.

    Mike in NC

    @the Conster: Ed Henry — the FOX turd in the White House press corps — was saying a few days ago that his sources confirmed Joe Biden would be running.

  88. 88.

    Patrick

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:

    Andrea Mitchell: Joe Biden was hurting her in the polls…

    This is dumb even by Mitchell/Greenspan standards: Anybody is going to look great UNTIL they actually start to run for office.

  89. 89.

    NonyNony

    @Origuy:

    Kristol, yesterday:

    Man if I followed Twitter I would have been able to place a few bets on Joe announcing his non-candidacy today.

    Wrong-way Kristol strikes again. Has he ever been right about anything in his life?

  90. 90.

    jl

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:

    ” unsaid: Her national lead sometimes dipped below 25%! ”

    Yep, that HRC was sure in dire straights. Big crisis averted today (/snark). Now that Webb is gone, if can get Chafee off the stage, there will be a chance for interesting policy debates between Sanders and HRC, and maybe O’Malley will have something interesting to say.

    In the meantime, I hear on the news that Trump is charging that Gowdy is wimping out and letting HRC off the hook. Trump strongly suspects HRC has committed serious crimes, very serious crimes. He wonders how the Democrats could nominate someone who may well be gong to the pokey very soon! More good news for Republicans.

  93. 93.

    Tommy

    @Brachiator: I want Bernie. But if it is Hillary I will climb onboard.

    I’ve said this over and over. Time and time again. I first worked on a campaign when in 1991, I went door to door for Jerry Brown in Louisiana of all places. I was a “Yankee” from Illinois. Ponder that for a few …. used to those I like not getting to the general. In fact I am O for, not happened once!

    I am not a raving fan of Hillary, but will stand and vote for her with more than a little pride. I dislike liberals, and I am to the far left, that slam her. She worked on Water Gate. First Lady of Arkansas. First Lady of the US of A. Senator. Secretary of State.

    Say what you will but if there is any person in recent memory with a resume to be POTUS it is Hillary.

    Oh and as a dude who is 46, and my mother still scares me (she is a badass mother fucker — don’t mess around with mom), I wouldn’t mind voting for a lady just once in my lifetime.

  94. 94.

    SFAW

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:

    in his futile efforts to break into the mid-single digits.

    You talking about Jeb!?

    Oh, wait, you said “futile” effort. Jeb!’s efforts to get there from 17-plus percent have already borne fruit. He’s at 7 percent now, but he has his sights set on 5.

  96. 96.

    Keith G

    @Elizabelle:

    I like the idea of Sherrod Brown as VP

    As do I except:

    In the Senate he (and Warren) would be a strong voice keeping HRC from moving too close to her and Bill’s corporate buddies. As VP, his voice is muted.

    Is there another Democrat in Ohio that can reliably hold that seat? I am not sure that should be risked if there is not a high degree of certainty.

  97. 97.

    burnspbesq

    @lamh36:

    For everything good he’s done as Veep, Biden is still the former senator from MBNA. A couple of years as a kick-ass SEC or CFPB chair under HRC could go a long way toward finally purging that taint.

  99. 99.

    Mnemosyne (iPhone)

    Also, too, I really think it depends on who the Republican nominee is. If it’s one of the establishment candidates, I think HRC wins. If the worst happens and Trump actually gets the nom, I think Sanders could keep unattached voters from defecting to Trump. So I hope both HRC and Sanders keep running strong campaigns until things shake out on the Republican side.

  101. 101.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @SFAW: I wonder, not seriously, but who knows?… if Jeb’s turn steering the Bush-family Oedipal loop-de-loop (MoDo never got much, but she got the Bush family) is subconsciously about burning the whole thing down:to get revenge on Dumbya for going off script (and breaking his official Red Ryder, carbine action, two-hundred shot range model air rifle in January, 1957), to punish Barbara for liking (as near as its capable of positive, human emotion) her first-spawned better, and punish Poppy for not keeping the eldest in his role of drunken family fuck-up.

  102. 102.

    jl

    Nice timing that Gowdy messed up right before the hearing by releasing the name of a CIA source in another of his attempts to smear HRC. And it was a name that was redacted for privacy, not security reasons. I think that was supposed to be Gowdy’s big gotcha moment on HRC at the hearings, do humiliate and destroy her completely and forever in front of the whole country.

    Also Gowdy had to return some money. It looks like he was coordinating a PAC expenditures with his committee’s smear campaign.

    I wondered whether Gowdy was big enough to fill Issa’s shoes when he took over. Looks like he is, and I hope he keeps up the good work and continues to live up to the Issa legacy.

    How Trey Gowdy Went From Being The Hunter To The Hunted On Benghazi
    http://talkingpointsmemo.com/dc/trey-gowdy-hillary-clinton-testimony

  103. 103.

    hells littlest angel

    @jl: I wonder why Trump hasn’t tasked some of his TOP PEOPLE to do a real investigation of Hillary Clinton? He could send a team to Mena Airport. Or Hawaii.

  104. 104.

    lamh36

    @Mnemosyne (iPhone): here is what I don’t like…I don’t like the convenient way folks literally dragged for Joe Biden, all on the whims of the media…all Biden ever said was he was still thinking, which is his right, IMHO yet certain HRC partisans felt the need to shit on Biden in the guise of “hey I love the guy…” when they thought he might really get in…then less than minutes after Biden uttered the words “i’m not running…” ya got the same media types eho were wrong claiming Biden was a tease and the HRC partisans to a man/woman tweeting bout Biden in glowing terms al of a sudden there is nothing but good things bout the man when less than 24hr before he was horrible for women, in the pocket for business bigwigs, another old white guy and a gaffe machine blowhard.

    IJS the disingenuous nature of it with certain folks was ridiculous.

    Bit at this point I really could care less…the to HRC as nominee is clear and that’s fine…but it means alot of folk will dial out and until election day Nov ’16.

    Maybe they’ll dial back in once the GOP primary is over…but until then thw Dem Primary is likely a foregone conclusion.

  105. 105.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Betty Cracker:

    I follow Connie Schultz on Facebook, and she has said, decisively and repeatedly, that Sherrod does not want to be VP. Same reasoning — he’s more effective in the Senate.

  108. 108.

    NonyNony

    @Elizabelle:

    I like the idea of Sherrod Brown as VP.

    Yes good idea. Let’s take an effective liberal Senator who is going to hold that seat until 2018 and put him into the mostly ceremonial VP slot. So he can be replaced by a John Kasich appointee who will hold that seat until 2018 and have the incumbency advantage instead.

    STOP TRYING TO STEAL MY SENATOR PEOPLE! Ohio law does not require the governor to pick a replacement Senator from the same party as the one leaving the office mid-term, and so he won’t. We need more good liberal Democrats in the Senate where they can do some good, not fewer.

    (Clinton should not be taking anyone out of the Senate to be a VP. Nor from governor’s mansions in purple states. I don’t know who she should best pick for the VP, but I know it isn’t a Senator. Maybe she should ask Joe Biden – I hear he’s going to be free and the media tells me that Democrats love them some Joe Biden.)

    @Keith G:

    Is there another Democrat in Ohio that can reliably hold that seat? I am not sure that should be risked if there is not a high degree of certainty.

    It doesn’t matter because the seat won’t come open again until 2018 and Kasich can appoint whoever he wants to it. Also no – the Ohio Democratic Party is laughably weak and has a very shallow bench when it comes to statewide politicians at the moment.

  109. 109.

    Punchy

    @lamh36: This is gunna stroke out myriad MSM mouthpieces. No horserace on the Dem side means no controversies, no eyeballs, and thus no ad revenue. No sound bites, cheap shots, attack ads to attack, or anything at all to talk about besides Trump. Not sure the MSM can live purely on Trump.

    At least MSNBC and CNN can now sabbatical ~70% of their staff until September 2016.

  110. 110.

    Tommy

    @jl: Clearly he wasn’t ready for “prime time.” Or I should say his staff wasn’t. It is one thing to be in and/or around the national media. It is another for them to turn their attention to you. Just to you for a few seconds much less a news cycle or two. He has found it ain’t a lot of fun …….

  112. 112.

    NonyNony

    @Punchy:

    No horserace on the Dem side means no controversies, no eyeballs, and thus no ad revenue. No sound bites, cheap shots, attack ads to attack, or anything at all to talk about besides Trump. Not sure the MSM can live purely on Trump.

    They could talk about the substantive differences between Clinton and Sanders to fill some time. Compare their policy positions, talk about where they have real disagreements.

    BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Oh man, I think I hurt myself with that joke.

  113. 113.

    Betty Cracker

    Any reason no one ever mentions Tom Perez (DOL) for potential VP pick? He seems great on paper. Maybe he’s an awful public speaker or something?

  114. 114.

    Peale

    @Elizabelle: Yeah. Biden wants to hurt Hillary’s credibility…by taking himself out the day before the Benghazi hearing so that. Will need to have a meltdown of epic proportions (Not only did I want him to die, I gave the password to my e-mail account to Jihadi John!) not to have a big bounce in the polls in the post hearing releases next week.

  116. 116.

    rikyrah

    @lamh36:

    @Mnemosyne (iPhone): here is what I don’t like…I don’t like the convenient way folks literally dragged for Joe Biden, all on the whims of the media…all Biden ever said was he was still thinking, which is his right, IMHO yet certain HRC partisans felt the need to shit on Biden in the guise of “hey I love the guy…” when they thought he might really get in…then less than minutes after Biden uttered the words “i’m not running…” ya got the same media types eho were wrong claiming Biden was a tease and the HRC partisans to a man/woman tweeting bout Biden in glowing terms al of a sudden there is nothing but good things bout the man when less than 24hr before he was horrible for women, in the pocket for business bigwigs, another old white guy and a gaffe machine blowhard.

    lamh,

    I hear you.

    Because, they wanted to plow the way for Hillary’s Coronation.

  117. 117.

    Paul in KY

    @JPL: Fuck Trey Gowdy.. He’s a pipsqueak, who’s got nothing & knows he has nothing. If we’re scared of Trey Gowdy, we are in deep shit, IMO.

  118. 118.

    Anoniminous

    So Biden is a never-was-in which clears Clinton’s right flank for the former DLC’er to move Left-ish in the primary and back to the center for the election.

  119. 119.

    I'mNotSureWhoIWantToBeYet

    The Hill:

    Draft Biden, which had hoped to be part of a Biden presidential campaign, reacted quickly Wednesday after the vice president announced he will not seek the Democratic nomination in 2016.

    “We are so grateful for the gigantic outpouring of support from hundreds of thousands of Americans around the country in our effort to encourage the Vice President to run,” Will Pierce, the group’s executive director, said in a statement.
    “While the Vice President has decided not to run, we know that over the next year he will stand up for all Americans and articulate a vision for America’s future that will leave no one behind.”

    It is unclear whether Draft Biden will disband, and what it will do with the money it raised.

    Of course…

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  120. 120.

    Face

    could go a long way toward finally purging that taint.

    That’s your opinion. Perhaps we could open up the discussion and decide what is the best way to purge the taint?

  122. 122.

    Tom Q

    When do people stop claiming MSNBC is some sort of liberal equivalent to Fox? Ever since Biden’s announcement, their coverage has been that Joe was using the speech to rash Hillary. Yeah, the evening hours are fronted by liberal hosts, but their daytime coverage might even be worse than CNN’s.

    What James Carville said about Perot on Election Night ’92 — “the greatest single act of masturbation in American political history” — could apply here as well; not to Joe (though he probably enjoyed it) but to the press, who clearly viewed this as a chance to destroy Hillary. Who knows what they’ll concoct now to try and pretend the Dems are in disarray.

  124. 124.

    MazeDancer

    Such good news. A great Veep. And a great way to remember Mr. Biden

    Did not want him to do more sniping at Hillary. Made him look small. And now Charlie Pierce notes Biden even said good things about Dick Cheney. It was all going to be terrible.

  125. 125.

    Elizabelle

    @Betty Cracker: Think it’s the “who?” factor?

    I like what I have seen of Thomas Perez too. And what I have seen is pretty much only here at BJ. Even for him being from neighbor state Maryland. Could name 10-15 Maryland pols before ever realized he’d been one too.

    Maybe he’s quiet and competent.

  126. 126.

    Paul in KY

    @jl: I would like Bernie to stay in, so as to ensure Hillary has to tack left a little. ‘Left’, IMO, is where most principles are that separate Democrats from the vanished ‘moderate’ Republicans.

  131. 131.

    Kay

    @NonyNony:

    It’s unimaginable to me because Congress is so horrible, but I think Sherrod Brown is a legislative branch person. I asked him at a town hall meeting once whether he liked being a Senator (or something like that) and he was both amused and slightly insulted. Anyway, since those people seem to be few and far between- people who genuinely want to become good at lawmaking and rules and such, and stay there- he should stay there.

  133. 133.

    Elizabelle

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: News to me. Didn’t he make his bones with a huge settlement on behalf of fair housing in Richmond? And he was mayor there too (admittedly, not a strong mayor city).

    Tim’s not your DLC mold type. Think Mark Warner fits that mold more closely …

  134. 134.

    Mnemosyne (iPhone)

    @lamh36:

    I think the people who were dragging Joe down started to get worried by the media hype. I saw him on Colbert’s show, so I wasn’t worried — he did not look for one second like a guy who was seriously going to run, though he seemed flattered by the attention. You could see his heart just wasn’t in it.

    What I would love to see post-2016 is to see Joe and Obama (and Jill and Michelle) continue their partnership on new projects, because they really seem to like each other and work well together. Just because I don’t think Joe would be a good general doesn’t mean he’s not a good soldier.

  136. 136.

    Brachiator

    @schrodinger’s cat:

    Did you see the videos I put up in the thread last evening.

    Yes I did!

    I particularly liked the cinematography and production design, the colors, in the Deewani Mastani video.

    Thanks.

  138. 138.

    jl

    @Paul in KY: I think Sanders stays in until very end. Sanders is in a win-win situation if he goes all out for primary and general in 2016 general regardless of what happens. Consider:

    Sanders wins primary: polling says he has about as a good a shot at winning as HRC
    Sanders loses primary: an HRC win with coat tails means two years guaranteed influential spot in Democratic Senate before he defends his Senate seat. And if he builds an effective grass roots political organization, bargaining power with HRC to push his political revolution.

    I think when you see Sanders pull his little smiley interludes in interviews, he really means it.

  139. 139.

    Mnemosyne (iPhone)

    @Tommy:

    I think Sanders could keep certain voters from defecting to Trump in the general, but I still think Hillary would win. I just think Hillary vs Trump would be a little closer than Bernie vs Trump.

  140. 140.

    Bobby Thomson

    @Elizabelle: forced birth advocate, not that good on TV, fairly conservative overall, plus it creates an open seat that would be expensive to defend.

  144. 144.

    NonyNony

    @Kay: Oh God yes – besides the political problem of stealing Brown from the Senate and reducing the Dem count there by 1 there’s also the fact that I don’t think Sherrod Brown wants to be President. He isn’t an executive – he seems to like committee work and like policy and like legislating rather than administering and speechifying. I mean, he’s pretty good at the speechifying, but I don’t think it’s the thing he likes best about being a politician.

    He’s an excellent Senator. I hope he holds that seat as long as he wants it. He’s one of the only shining spots in Ohio’s political scene, so I understand why people want him to move up, but he really can do a lot of great things in the Senate (especially if we can get a Dem majority in there again when he’s got the seniority to make things happen).

  145. 145.

    stinger

    @Frankensteinbeck: Agree, 100%. She has worked on behalf of women and children all her professional life, and it doesn’t get much more “liberal” than that. She does seem to have learned some things about politics and style through her close association with Obama as his SoS. Over the years I’d always thought she was supporting her husband, rather than her own preferences, when he was the politician, and I respected that. Now she can be her own woman — and he should support her!

  146. 146.

    Jeffro

    @Elizabelle:

    What’s the “ugh” about Tim Kaine? I think he’s wonderful. (Of course, am a Virginian, and he’s my Senator ….)

    Seconded here on all counts. He’s great on education, unions, the environment, LGBT rights, speaks Spanish, is VERY solid on gun sanity, etc etc. I saw someone with a ‘DLC’ problem but oh well – Kaine’s record is excellent and having him on the ticket would help keep Virginia blue in ’16.

    Having said that…there are plenty of other good candidates out there, so it’s not ‘Kaine or bust’, lol.

  148. 148.

    bystander

    @Amir Khalid: No, the savants at MSNBC don’t know that. They don’t have their jobs by virtue of knowing anything except how to try and gin up controversy.

    They no longer have an empty podium to fantasize about. Obviously the reason Biden decided not to run was so he could make digs about Hillary.

  149. 149.

    PJ

    @MomSense: As would I. Now my dollars, small as they are, will go to Bernie. If Hillary wins the primary, I will vote for her, but I am not looking forward to a president whose primary interest is expediency.

  151. 151.

    Redshift

    @Bobby Thomson:

    forced birth advocate, not that good on TV, fairly conservative overall, plus it creates an open seat that would be expensive to defend.

    I agree the open seat is a potential problem, but “forced birth advocate”? Kaine is a Catholic who is personally against abortion, but is there any federal abortion restriction he hasn’t spoken out against and voted against?

  152. 152.

    schrodinger's cat

    @Brachiator: You are welcome! The lyrics are in 3 different styles and languages

    The opening where Mastani is introduced is in Marathi, in a folk style called lavani. Then Mastani sings in Urdu/Hindi and the chorus that backs her are singing in the qawwali style, a form of Sufi devotional poetry in Urdu with a heavy Persian influence.

    In Maharashtra and the rest of the Deccan (south), the Muslim influences are Persian not Arabic and Islam is mostly Shia, very different from the north Indian Sunni variant.

    Also, Priyanka Chopra’s outfit is accurate down to the hair style and the mark on her forehead, which looks like a half moon.

    I apologize in advance if I am boring people with this level of detail.

  154. 154.

    Sherrell

    Good!…Now may he be forever remember for the Rudy Giuliani zinger of the ’08 campaign…

    Noun, verb, 9/11

    Ha! Still hilarious!

  156. 156.

    gene108

    @Frankensteinbeck:

    I think they’ve been desperate for the Democrats to be in Disarray. Right now, everything they love and believe in is crumbling.

    I think too many political reporters and/or their bosses came of age between 1968 and 1992, when the FDR coalition was fracturing and Democrats were a bit confused as to what to stand for exactly.

    What I find interesting is that during this period, Democrats controlled the House throughout, the Senate for all but six years and had as many or more state governments than Republicans.

    But Democrats were considered the Loser Party, because they could not win the White House.

    Now the Democrats are the Loser Party, because they can win the White House, but are struggling to control Congress and state governments.

    Interesting how that works.

  157. 157.

    Alex S.

    I had to see what Bill Kristol had to say about another one of his predictions refuted by reality. His tweet made me cringe.

  159. 159.

    Mnemosyne (iPhone)

    @rikyrah:

    As long as Hillary is smart enough to realize that her best plan is to make herself appealing to the Obama coalition and promise to keep us on the same track — which she seems to be doing — I’m fine with her. She seems to have learned a lot from working for Obama and to be wise enough to realize she had things to learn.

  160. 160.

    Betty Cracker

    @gene108: Interesting point. Maybe it takes a while for the loser stamp to take. If the GOP can’t win the White House in 2016, that may ding the Republican brand in ways that will hurt it down tickets on a national, state and local level. In other words, a lag between how the national perception plays out and its effect downstream.

  161. 161.

    Tom Q

    As far as the VP thing goes: I’m thinking much of the “ugh, Tim Kaine” is from people who are confusing him with VA’s other Senator, who is more doggedly centrist. The advantages of Kaine would be a boost in VA (another state GOPers can’t afford to lose, and the national baseline percentage in ’12), and Terry McAuliffe to appoint his (at least temporary) replacement. Whether there’s a good candidate to recapture the seat next election is the concern.

    I know many people are sold on Julian Castro, and I really like the guy, but I wonder if the party is truly ready to put up a ticket of No White Guys. I get the calculation of driving up Hispanic turnout, but some may feel the optics of excluding white guys entirely is risky.

    Of course, poli-sci folk have been saying for decades that the Veep pick barely impacts the presidential choice, so none of this may matter.

  162. 162.

    JMG

    Don’t kid yourselves. If Clinton wins next November, the entire Washington media corps will go into full “investigative” mode the next day. Look for calls to have Vince Foster’s body exhumed.

  163. 163.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Betty Cracker:

    If you had offered me a million dollars to name the Secretary of Labor, I’d be exactly as wealthy as I am now. Didn’t know a thing about Perez, but he does look good on paper.

  164. 164.

    schrodinger's cat

    @Tom Q: I agree, Hillary’s veep candidate will be a white guy. I personally think she should pick Kristin Gillibrand. If she chooses a woman or someone like Castro, hate radio will call it an affirmative action ticket and I can see that gaining traction.

  167. 167.

    jl

    @JMG: As if she will last that long. HRC will be impeached and the case delivered to the Senate on DAY ONE!

    GOP House cirtters have promised it.

    Conviction and removal on DAY TWO!

    If by a miracle she survives to DAY THREE, it will be an impeached WH in disgrace. Country may be driven mad by countless Issa and Gowdy mini-mes investigating everything, starting from the use of the WH pet (whatever it turns out to be, dog cat, guinea pig or ant farm) for political purposes and secret unauthorized diplomatic initiatives.

  169. 169.

    NonyNony

    @jl: Day one? Hell I thought one of them was saying they intend to impeach her before she takes office should she get elected.

  171. 171.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Mnemosyne (iPhone):

    Interesting, I was just thinking exactly the same thing about continuing the Obama-Biden partnership after January 20, 2017. The four of them, and the various combinations therein, seem to genuinely like and respect one another — in addition to working well together. Maybe some very high-level, high-profile position for Joe at the Obama Center/Foundation, and a major education/childhood health initiative for Jill and Michelle to run. They are all so smart (and attractive, which doesn’t hurt) and I think could make a formidable team.

  172. 172.

    Jeffro

    @schrodinger’s cat: I like Gillibrand too, but I think there are Constitutional difficulties, if not impossibilities, if the P and VP candidate are from the same state?

    For the other comment about hate radio & an ‘affirmative action ticket’: true, but they’ll come up with something slimy and stupid no matter who the VP nominee is. We shouldn’t consider in the slightest what they have to say or think.

  174. 174.

    Mark B.

    I’m just wondering if all of the serious journalists that have been saying for the last couple of days that their ‘sources’ told them that Joe was running are going to talk about those sources now. Either they got burned, or they made the whole thing up, and I’m pretty sure it’s the latter. I’d make a list of them as people not to trust, but I pretty much already knew they were full of bullshit anyway.

  175. 175.

    Jeffro

    @Tom Q:

    Of course, poli-sci folk have been saying for decades that the Veep pick barely impacts the presidential choice, so none of this may matter.

    True!
    http://journalistsresource.org/studies/politics/elections/evaluating-impact-vice-presidential-selection-voter-choice

    No wait, not true!
    http://www.centerforpolitics.org/crystalball/articles/debunking-some-myths-about-vice-presidential-selection/

    let’s be honest: all we really know is that it felt good to vote against the possibility of VP Palin back in 2008, amirite?

  176. 176.

    Kerry Reid

    @JPL: I was making a lame metric-system reference, since that seems to be what Chafee is best known for this cycle, aside from his deer-in-headlights debate performance. I kinda have some affection for him, truthfully. Shame that the GOP no longer welcomes people like him.

  177. 177.

    NonyNony

    @Mark B.:

    Either they got burned, or they made the whole thing up

    Or Biden told his friends “I’m still thinking about running”, they passed it onto the press, and the press reported it as “he’s running”.

    Or Biden told his friends “I’m still thinking about running – I’ll decide by Wednesday” and they decided that meant he was running because they really wanted their buddy to be President.

    Or Biden really was going to run up until right before the announcement, but his wife made him come to his senses.

    There are a lot of explanations for this whole thing. I tend to think that Biden himself was floating a lot of trial balloons to see how much support he was going to get and was the source of a lot of all of this. (He is a professional politician – if there’s one thing he knows how to do, it’s self-promote).

  178. 178.

    trollhattan

    Similarly, but not related, our mayor Mr. Rhee has decided not to seek term #3. Am pretty sure he was planning to run but recently got caught up again in his history of serial harassment complaints from women and girls. In this heavily Democratic town there was no obvious challenger so he would have won in a walk. This is better; now he and Michelle can go ruin the teachers unions together!

  179. 179.

    AnotherBruce

    @JPL: No, I think we want Gowdy in the news. Let the public see what that miserable milksop is up to with his fake commission. Now we can focus on Hillary taking him apart.

  180. 180.

    trollhattan

    @Jeffro:

    let’s be honest: all we really know is that it felt good to vote against the possibility of VP Palin back in 2008, amirite?

    VP, hell I was worried sick about President Palin, presuming that McCain would got so spun up presidentin’ he’d blow an aneurysm.

    Thank you, Tina Fey.

  181. 181.

    Redshift

    @Bobby Thomson:

    until recently he was like Casey.

    How so? Sources?

    If you consider ten years ago when he was running for governor “recent” then there might be some similarities, but not enough to make him “like” Casey. But unless you can point to something that actually happened when he was governor or senator, as opposed to just not saying things the way you’d prefer, then there is no “advocate” to match your accusation of “forced birth advocate.”

  183. 183.

    trollhattan

    @AnotherBruce:
    Agree. The tribunal is so caught up in their crazy narrative bubble they can’t see what vindictive morons they present to the public. I think Hilz can handle them and maybe spring a trap or two.

  184. 184.

    Redshift

    @Mark B.: Horse-race journalism isn’t about trust like investigative journalism is. It’s “hit-based,” like movies or video games. If a source gives you a good story that gets lots of attention, then it doesn’t matter if the whole thing is BS, to a horse-race journalist, they’re still a good source.

  188. 188.

    Redshift

    @trollhattan: Yeah, there was a news story I saw this morning that I can’t find now, talking about how Republicans are trying to figure out how to avoid being too mean to Hillary during the hearing. Apparently there are some among them who are smart enough to realize that a replay of Cecile Richards will backfire on them in a similar way. I don’t think most of them will be able to help themselves, though, and we’ll have another Rick Lazio moment.

    Basically, I expect they’ll be putting forth questions that will play well with the Republican base, because most of them are too deep in the bubble and not bright enough to realize that damaging Hillary with the Republican base will not affect her presidential prospects one bit.

  189. 189.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Redshift: I don’t think most of them will be able to help themselves, though, and we’ll have another Rick Lazio moment.

    there’s one critter, Jim Jordan, who had a tantrum at Cecile Richards and is also on the Benghazi committee, someone else mentioned Pompeo as a potential eruption. I used to watch CSPAN’s call in show in the mornings, and I was always struck by the people who were just so breathless and anxious to say X– Clinton’s a murderer! those are BABIES!, Saddam’s coming here to kill us all!– and you could tell on some level they really thought if people just heard them say it, the scales would all away and Americans would rise up… etc etc. Jordan strikes me as on of those, and he may not be able to help himself, whatever memos about dignity and professionalism (watch your ass, you fucking goober) he may be getting from Gowdy and the leadership. Such as that is.

  190. 190.

    trollhattan

    @gus:
    Agree the outcome was never in doubt, it’s just that Palin’s very presence on the ticket was such a profoundly dangerous and shameless gambit, in that she technically had a direct path to the White House that only required two things to happen. I would not entrust her with dogsitting my pooch.

  191. 191.

    trollhattan

    @Kay:
    Heh. A year ago he was GOLDEN and I assumed on the Democratic Party’s highly eligible for national office list. That came crashing down in a hurry and I’m rather relieved. Of course, he’ll probably turn Republican and run in 2020.

  192. 192.

    gene108

    @Betty Cracker:

    Maybe it takes a while for the loser stamp to take.

    If memory serves, I think Democrats got clubbed with it in 1984, given how lopsided that Presidential election was and the also very lopsided, but marginally better, showing in 1988’s Presidential contest sort of drove the point home.

    One reason Bill received so much venom for winning, in 1992, is because the Democrats were supposed to be dead and buried, with respect to every winning the White House again.

  194. 194.

    jl

    I see our worthless corporate media spending the afternoon speculating about what hidden messages were in Biden’s announcement. Was he signalling support to Bernie he advocated free public college, or, no, he was singalling for HRC on child care. NO! He was dissing HRC when talking about importance of running on Obama administration successes. O.M.G., he will continue to speak out on issues (obs to undermine HRC, that is a given)! Hope lives for future Democrats in Disarray!

    Sheeyeeesh. I wish I could get a high pay gig typing out nonsense.

  195. 195.

    Repatriated

    @gene108: @Betty Cracker: That was, in fact, the raison d’etre for the TEA Party: an alternate flag around which GOP hardliners could rally despite the failures and electoral repuduation of the Bush2 Admin.

  197. 197.

    J R in WV

    @Tommy:

    I’m 64, and lost my Mom back in 1997. She was one strong person, and after being a life-long Republican, she voted in her last two elections for the Democratic candidate, because of the issues – she disagreed with the Republican positions, and voted against them on that account.

    I agree with you Tommy. I hate it when people who call themselves liberals give Hillary a hard time. She has been a stand up woman, a professional lawyer (which Republicans forget, to their dismay) First Lady to Governor and then President Bill Clinton, Senator, and most recently Secretary of State for her primary opponent, President Obama.

    She’s evolved over the years, becoming more progressive, which is another good thing about her.

    I look forward to voting for her twice in the next few months. First in the Democratic primary for the presidential nomination, and then in the national election for president.

    I just wish Mom could have lived to see this election, and to have voted for a woman successfully running for President of the United States!

  198. 198.

    Hoodie

    @Jeffro: They can be from the same state, but NY electors couldn’t vote for both. Could be solved by Clinton changing residence to Arkansas, for example, just like Cheney did. I think the “affirmative action” ticket meme would be a huge mistake by Republicans, would alienate most women in the country. Frankly, I think the choices among Democratic women may be better, e.g., Gillibrand, Klobuchar, Murray, McCaskill, etc., and two women on the ticket could drive the gender gap through the roof. Castro has an unfortunate last name that might be a bigger problem than two women on the ticket. He may be a great guy, but are there other alternatives?

  199. 199.

    burnspbesq

    @Face:

    Perhaps we could open up the discussion and decide what is the best way to purge the taint?

    Got something in mind?

  200. 200.

    Brachiator

    @Tommy:

    I’ve said this over and over. Time and time again. I first worked on a campaign when in 1991, I went door to door for Jerry Brown in Louisiana of all places. I was a “Yankee” from Illinois. Ponder that for a few …. used to those I like not getting to the general. In fact I am O for, not happened once!

    I am not a raving fan of Hillary, but will stand and vote for her with more than a little pride.

    Well, let’s hope you’ve picked the winning team this time. So far, it’s looks pretty good.

    If Hillary is, as appears likely, the candidate and the Democrats maintain some unity, they may be able to present an impressive campaign front. It would be interesting to see Hillary, Biden, Obama and the Big Dog – Bill Clinton, out shaking the grass for votes.

  201. 201.

    Elie

    @Redshift:

    Hillary also gets to look Presidential under fire of likely stupid and outrageous questions. Her poise (crossed fingers that she repeats debate attitude and presence), will be a plus for her. The Benghazi committee will just keep up what they do. Its all that whole party is about — nothing much but being stupid. The Dems on the committee have set this up for her nice as they can — witch hunt, revealed real intentions, etc. She just has to have fall back responses couched in the right attitude — no contempt, just easy — Like Cecile Richards from PP

  202. 202.

    rikyrah

    UH HUH
    UH HUH

    Matt Murphy
    ‏@MattMurph24
    Carville wants the next 4 years to be different from the last 8
    12:11 PM – 21 Oct 2015

  204. 204.

    Betty Cracker

    @J R in WV: I was talking to my grandmother the other day about her upcoming birthday (she’ll be 96), and I noted that when she was born, women didn’t have the right to vote and said I hoped she’d be around to see a woman sworn in as president. Old wingnut that she is, Grams launched into an anti-Hillary tirade, LOL!

  206. 206.

    SoupCatcher

    @Betty Cracker: Yay for political grandmothers! Mine is 97 and has had a picture of POTUS and FLOTUS – a People magazine fluff article type picture – taped to her wall over the kitchen table ever since Obama was elected. It’s frayed and fading, but she says a prayer for them every time she sits down to eat.

  207. 207.

    Tom Q

    @Hoodie: One other that comes to mind, besides Kaine, is Mark Dayton, a pretty progressive governor with a long enough tenure that he can’t be hit with the inexperienced tag.

    It is a thin field, though, because Dems don’t want to sacrifice a Senator with so many GOP governors in position to appoint replacements — and that very fact of so many Pub governors means there’s not a lot to choose from there (except the too-old Jerry Brown and the odious Cuomo). And, since you’d like to line up someone as logical successor, you’d prefer someone on the young side. It’s not going to be an easy call.

  208. 208.

    Brachiator

    @schrodinger’s cat:

    The lyrics are in 3 different styles and languages

    I had no idea that the song lyrics were so multi-layered in different languages and historical styles.

    Also, Priyanka Chopra’s outfit is accurate down to the hair style and the mark on her forehead, which looks like a half moon.

    Her costume (and the male’s) also subtly has more color than the costumes of the singer and dancers.

    Very interesting stuff.

  209. 209.

    Iowa Old Lady

    I find the idea of a Clinton/Castro ticket exciting. He’s young, personable, a good way to look to the future. He might also motivate Hispanics to vote in higher numbers. And the ticket would represent the D base well, and make a good contrast to the race baiting, anti-immigrant garbage coming from the R front runners.

    OTOH, I’ll vote for whoever the Democrats nominate. The alternative is too horrible to contemplate.

  212. 212.

    David Koch

    @Iowa Old Lady: He’s a pretty smart guy. A graduate of Stanford and Harvard Law.

    He doesn’t have Obama’s charisma, but he does have the vitality of youth and the excitement of breaking barriers on his side.

  213. 213.

    Yatsuno

    @trollhattan: I still have no idea how that fucking marriage works.

    @David Koch: Castro would be an interesting pick yes. He might even get a few of the Hispanic voters in Texas to come out of the woodwork. I think Hills knows she has to do a really good pick here to keep the younger voters interested.

  218. 218.

    Kay

    This is genuinely nice. It’s a letter from the Governor of Pennsylvania to Philadelphia public school teachers, who have had a very difficult time of it:

    I’m not writing today to ask you for anything other than this: please, stay the course. Hang in there. You do tremendous work every day, and for that I thank you.

    http://www.pft.org/blog.aspx?id=141

  219. 219.

    Kerry Reid

    @trollhattan: The Chicago Reader had two covers ready to go for the week of Election 2008. They went with a caricature of Obama and the slogan “Please Don’t Screw Up.” They ran the alternate cover with McCain, which had the slogan “Please Don’t Die.”

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