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You are here: Home / Past Elections / Election 2016 / Thursday Morning Open Thread: Under-Ripe to Rise?

Thursday Morning Open Thread: Under-Ripe to Rise?

by Anne Laurie|  October 22, 20154:45 am| 175 Comments

This post is in: Election 2016, JEB! = John Ellis Not-Bush 2016, Open Threads, Proud to Be A Democrat, Republicans in Disarray!, Assholes

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This is going in the background quote Hall of Fame https://t.co/M65uCGQJJU pic.twitter.com/EP5avhnjVo

— Dan Pfeiffer (@danpfeiffer) October 21, 2015

I don’t remember US News & World Report as a left-leaning publication (/snark), but here’s David Catanese’s report on “The Demise of Jeb Bush“:

… Less than four months before primary voting begins, Bush has sunk into second-tier status in the GOP nominating bout. He’s stuck in a single-digit polling slump, idling between fourth and fifth place in the 15-candidate field, even after his allies have blitzed the television airwaves with more than $5 million in advertising. His much heralded fundraising prowess has also been neutralized, as he’s raised essentially as much money as Sen. Ted Cruz this last quarter and saved less than the rogue upstart Ben Carson.

“What gave [Bush] the status of front-runner is the money that was known that he had raised. But this year, with the field this large, I’m not sure that money will dictate the outcome,” says Iowa state Rep. Mary Ann Hanusa, who attended an early Bush event before endorsing Ohio Gov. John Kasich. “The media called [Bush] the front-runner, but sometimes the voters have other ideas.”…

Even among Bush’s admirers, there’s a gathering sense he can’t win this race anymore – that in order for him to become the nominee, his rivals have to lose it…

Bush’s path to victory seems more elusive each day. And by most standards, his most viable track should have already begun to take shape. Sure, in late October 2011, there were polls that showed Herman Cain holding a small lead for the GOP nomination. But what’s less cited is that eventual nominee Mitt Romney remained consistently in second place, always polling in double-digits and usually in the 20s.

From that barometer, Bush isn’t even close to where Romney was. His current polling looks most like that of Ron Paul, who stayed in the ongoing race until May 2012 but came in fourth place in terms of delegates…

Being classed with the likes of Ron Paul has got to be the most unkindest cut of all. Well, apart from the “he’ll totally be ready for 2020!” remark…

***********
Apart from wishing further confusion to our Repub enemies (same as every day, Pinky!), what’s on the agenda for the day?

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Previous Post: « Investigative Report on the Attacks on US Facilities in Benghazi, Libya, September 11, 2012
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Reader Interactions

175Comments

  1. 1.

    John M. Burt

    October 22, 2015 at 4:52 am

    [I] order for him to become the nominee, his rivals have to lose it…

    Which is not, of course, out of the question, given the current flea circus.
    I have to try to interview people on the Water Commission about how they’re proposing to supply the Willamette Valley’s needs for drinking water, irrigation water and industrial water, given out changing climate.
    And also see if I can get my second novel, Frankenstein’s World, ready for a Halloween release date.

  2. 2.

    Amir Khalid

    October 22, 2015 at 4:52 am

    So Jeb should be ready for the 2016 presidential cycle by 2020. If he can get hold of Doc Brown’s time-travelling DeLorean in the next four years, he’s all set.

  3. 3.

    David Koch

    October 22, 2015 at 5:21 am

    Yeah, ¿Jeb? is “smart” alright.

    Here’s a clip of him discussing his super high IQ.

  4. 4.

    Steeplejack

    October 22, 2015 at 5:24 am

    This whole campaign season—which started way too early and is way too long—has the eerie feeling of “We’re not in Kansas any more, Toto!” The Democratic side is fairly “normal,” but the Republican side defies explanation. So all explanations seem equally plausible. My own theory at this point is that people responding to all the GOP polls are “voting” in reality-TV/American Idol mode, expressing their primal gut feelings with little or no regard for the real-world consequences, e.g., waking up in January 2017 with President Donald J. Trump.

    But everyone seems to be in ever increasing agreement that what they do not want is Jeb! So there’s that.

  5. 5.

    Patricia Kayden

    October 22, 2015 at 5:26 am

    Money can’t buy Jeb! love. George is an albatross around Jeb!’s neck that he just can’t shake.

  6. 6.

    Mustang Bobby

    October 22, 2015 at 5:52 am

    “He…could not ad-lib a fart.”

    I need a new keyboard stat.

  7. 7.

    Amir Khalid

    October 22, 2015 at 5:55 am

    @Steeplejack:
    That sounds about right for the Donald. Jeb has exactly as much to offer in terms of serious policy as he, or for that matter any other Republican candidate — nothing. Donald is leading because he’s the best insult comic in the Klown Kar, whereas Jeb isn’t one at all.

    The Democrats, all sober and serious and policy-oriented, are going to get dinged for a race lacking in pizzazz. The pundits, if I am right, will bemoan Onion Joe Biden’s absence from their race, and wonder how a nominee emerging from such a dull contest can hope to energise the voters.

  8. 8.

    Baud

    October 22, 2015 at 6:01 am

    @Amir Khalid:

    The Village was going to attack the Dems no matter what.

    I’m still not 100% sure they’ll stop including Biden in the polling.

  9. 9.

    sm*t cl*de

    October 22, 2015 at 6:01 am

    “He…could not ad-lib a fart.”

    That’s what we have Teleprompters for.

  10. 10.

    Baud

    October 22, 2015 at 6:05 am

    Jeb! needs to find a way to land onto an aircraft carrier.

    Maybe they can pull out the old Mission Accomplished sign from the attack and use it as a backdrop.

  11. 11.

    Baud

    October 22, 2015 at 6:09 am

    Kevin Drum

    Here’s what this means: the states that refuse to expand Medicaid are denying health care to the needy and paying about $2 billion for the privilege. Try to comprehend the kind of people who do this.

    POSTSCRIPT: Actually, there’s more. The residents of every state pay taxes to fund Obamacare, whether they like it or not. Residents of the states that refuse to expand Medicaid are paying about $50 billion in Obamacare taxes each year, and about $20 billion of that is for Medicaid expansion. Instead of flowing back into their states, this money is going straight to Washington DC, never to be seen again.

    So they’re willing to let $20 billion go down a black hole and pay $2 billion extra in order to prevent Obamacare from helping the needy. It’s hard to fathom, isn’t it?

  12. 12.

    Tommy

    October 22, 2015 at 6:16 am

    @Baud: Yes.

  13. 13.

    magurakurin

    October 22, 2015 at 6:18 am

    I’m not so sure of the wisdom of saying “beetlejuice” on the front page, though.

  14. 14.

    BillinGlendaleCA

    October 22, 2015 at 6:19 am

    @Baud: I’m not sure why Kevin is having a problem understand the reason for this. They’re Republicans and want to show the Kenyan Usurper who’s boss. They may shoot themselves in the foot, but they’ll happily hobble around on one foot proclaiming how FREE they are.

  15. 15.

    BillinGlendaleCA

    October 22, 2015 at 6:19 am

    @magurakurin: I thought the same thing.

  16. 16.

    OzarkHillbilly

    October 22, 2015 at 6:21 am

    @Steeplejack: Correction: “We’re not in Kansas any more, Toto!” should read “Sorry Toto, we’re back in Kansas.”

  17. 17.

    Steeplejack

    October 22, 2015 at 6:24 am

    @Amir Khalid:

    Jeb has exactly as much to offer in terms of serious policy as [Trump], or for that matter any other Republican candidate—nothing.

    Yeah, you’re right. None of the Republicans is offering anything beyond (a) reversing Obama’s accomplishments and (b) lowering taxes even more (on the rich). So, once that’s factored into the equation, all that’s left is the candidate’s media presence and persona. And none of them can beat Trump at that. He’s like the Max Headroom of GOP politics.

  18. 18.

    Steeplejack

    October 22, 2015 at 6:26 am

    @OzarkHillbilly:

    Point taken.

  19. 19.

    bystander

    October 22, 2015 at 6:27 am

    I lasted about 2 minutes into Moanin’ Joe. Joe was letting the little people who are his viewers know that “we”, being those in the Beltway, knew that Joe and Hillary hate each other. Lots of jealousy.

    So, who are you going to vote for, a dispassionate giant of enormous business acumen or a shrewish harpy?

  20. 20.

    NotMax

    October 22, 2015 at 6:30 am

    OzarkHillbilly</a.

    A memorable T-shirt, seen some 40-odd years ago, had a picture of a post card upon which was written the following:

    Em – –

    Hate you.
    Hate Kansas.
    Taking the dog.

    – – D.

  21. 21.

    BillinGlendaleCA

    October 22, 2015 at 6:30 am

    My YorkiPom is rather tough and independent, unlike my cocker who’s a big baby. Nikki, the cocker, sleeps under the covers with me and will start shivering when it gets under 75 degrees. Earlier this evening, Conni(the YorkiPom) disappeared, then I noticed a bump in the throw that’s on the couch. I looked underneath to find Conni sleeping under there. She’s getting as wimpy as Nikki.

  22. 22.

    Mustang Bobby

    October 22, 2015 at 6:30 am

    @bystander:

    a shrewish harpy

    Funny, she doesn’t look shrewish. Oy.

  23. 23.

    NotMax

    October 22, 2015 at 6:30 am

    Sigh. Code fail. Fixed.

    OzarkHillbilly

    A memorable T-shirt, seen some 40-odd years ago, had a picture of a post card upon which was written the following:

    Em – –

    Hate you.
    Hate Kansas.
    Taking the dog.

    – – D.

  24. 24.

    BillinGlendaleCA

    October 22, 2015 at 6:31 am

    @bystander: And Handsome Joe Biden didn’t endorse the Hilldabeast.

  25. 25.

    raven

    October 22, 2015 at 6:32 am

    Did you know W was a “great statesman”?

  26. 26.

    bemused

    October 22, 2015 at 6:33 am

    @bystander:

    That’s the best Joe’s got this morning? He’s running on empty the same as the whole kamikaze party.

  27. 27.

    BillinGlendaleCA

    October 22, 2015 at 6:33 am

    @raven: He kept us safe, raven; from that naturally occurring rubble.

  28. 28.

    raven

    October 22, 2015 at 6:35 am

    @bemused: They are in full throated freakout about Trump.

  29. 29.

    NotMax

    October 22, 2015 at 6:35 am

    @bemused

    They’re just polishing up the talking points in case she should get the tiniest bit snippy during the Benghazi committee circus.

  30. 30.

    BillinGlendaleCA

    October 22, 2015 at 6:36 am

    My latest attempt at infrared photography.

  31. 31.

    Amir Khalid

    October 22, 2015 at 6:36 am

    @bystander:
    Joe and Hillary are politicians. To no small extent, they have competing ambitions (or did, until yesterday). But they are also grownups; you never saw them argue with each other in public. And now that you never will, some political-fight fans are disappointed.

  32. 32.

    raven

    October 22, 2015 at 6:36 am

    @OzarkHillbilly: Hey, if the pressure washer dude hit the GFI on the porch and the breaker won’t reset I assume I need a new one?

  33. 33.

    Phylllis

    October 22, 2015 at 6:38 am

    @BillinGlendaleCA: Yep. As my esteemed Guv Nikki Haley said about whatever outrage of the day that the federal government was proposing (pre-SC flooding mind you), ‘Well, we can get loud’.

  34. 34.

    raven

    October 22, 2015 at 6:38 am

    @BillinGlendaleCA: Ros Angeres!

  35. 35.

    raven

    October 22, 2015 at 6:39 am

    Swarmy Kristol and Barney comin up!!!!

  36. 36.

    NotMax

    October 22, 2015 at 6:40 am

    @raven

    Even positing an infinite number of parallel universes, not in a single one of them.

    Wish they would pull back to a longer shot so we at home could also see the pigs flying around the studio.

  37. 37.

    Tommy

    October 22, 2015 at 6:42 am

    @NotMax: I am a military brat. Lived in a lot of places. Kansas was always close to the top of the list of places I liked. I was a kid and I could rant on how I loved living in Leavenworth’s KS for hours. Best story I got, coming out of my tumbling class I asked my grandmother to see Star Wars. We saw it once and went back in again to see it a second time.

  38. 38.

    OzarkHillbilly

    October 22, 2015 at 6:42 am

    @NotMax: I had one of those shirts.

  39. 39.

    BillinGlendaleCA

    October 22, 2015 at 6:44 am

    @raven: Grendare.

  40. 40.

    raven

    October 22, 2015 at 6:46 am

    @BillinGlendaleCA: There is an area of the ATL they call Chambodia!

  41. 41.

    Another Holocene Human

    October 22, 2015 at 6:46 am

    In more “everything sucks” news, I worked all day and into the night yesterday, I’m tired as fuck, and I have to work all day today. I already told the scheduler I may have to leave early due to fatigue but I have no idea what the supervisor might do to retaliate. (Depends who’s on duty.) I can’t call in now because I have a meeting at 1pm. Don’t feel prepared, though.

  42. 42.

    Another Holocene Human

    October 22, 2015 at 6:48 am

    @Amir Khalid: Hm. Grownups. That’s one way to characterize not having a massive personality disorder.

  43. 43.

    Another Holocene Human

    October 22, 2015 at 6:49 am

    @raven:

    Did you know W was a “great statesman”?

    In the world according to Joe, words lose all meaning.

  44. 44.

    OzarkHillbilly

    October 22, 2015 at 6:49 am

    @raven: Most likely. Remove the hot lead from the GFI and see if the breaker will reset. If it does, you have your answer.

  45. 45.

    HinTN

    October 22, 2015 at 6:49 am

    @raven: Remove breaker, gently use hair dryer on it, replace. If still fail, buy new.

  46. 46.

    David Koch

    October 22, 2015 at 6:50 am

    Real tender photo of Biden and his wife

  47. 47.

    Another Holocene Human

    October 22, 2015 at 6:52 am

    I guess this is too early in the morning for Richard Mayhew. I had a coworker come up to me and say his family was on Obamacare. We have a qualified plan (under 9.5% of income) wrt to the employee. The family plan is pretty pricey. I told him he was going to have to pay those subsidies back at tax time. He said, oh no, we don’t make enough money. Uh, no, we’re in Florida, already been through this one. No medicaid for you.

    I’m right, though, right? This guy is fucked.

  48. 48.

    Thoughtful David

    October 22, 2015 at 6:52 am

    I’m waiting with great anticip…
    …
    …
    pation the day when Jeb? has to admit and drop out. It’s going to be great.

    The reason is that Jeb? is a totally entitled asshole. He’s been handed everything he’s ever gotten, ever.

    His reasoning: It’s MY turn! Daddy was President, and Junior was President, now it’s MY TURN, dammit! If it wasn’t for Junior fvcking it up for me, I wouldn’t be having all these problems!

    Right now, he’s hoping that Junior can save him, hence the 9/11 nostalgia, but once he realizes he’s not going to get the nom, and realizes that Junior is a millstone around his rapidly sinking neck*, I’m really hoping he’ll cut loose and tell us what he really thinks about his brother. It could be really epic, and great fun–moar popcorn!

    * Of course, it’s not just Junior that’s a problem for him: he’s an idiot with the personality of toe fungus and an abysmal candidate.

  49. 49.

    Baud

    October 22, 2015 at 6:53 am

    @Amir Khalid:

    But they are also grownups; you never saw them argue with each other in public

    They’d never make it in the blogging world.

  50. 50.

    Aleta

    October 22, 2015 at 6:53 am

    Elizabeth Drew’s description of Gwb and Cheny’s evasion of responsibility for the 9-11 attacks. http://www.nybooks.com/blogs/nyrblog/2015/oct/21/bush-responsibility-twin-towers/

  51. 51.

    NotMax

    October 22, 2015 at 6:55 am

    Unusual diplomatic maneuver.

    Two Chinese diplomats are suspects in the shooting deaths of two of their colleagues at a restaurant in the Philippines, authorities said.
    [snip]
    Two employees of Cebu’s Chinese consulate were shot dead — a woman named Hui Li and a man named Sun Shen. Consul General Song Ronghua was wounded, Santander added. Source

    And, speaking of Chinese diplomacy –

    In China, formerly vitriolic blasts in the tightly-controlled government press that Britain is good for little more than museums and education have been replaced by warm, if sometimes rather odd, compliments for Britain.
    [snip]
    The official China Daily, used by the government as an English-language mouthpiece to the world, has put a video on its website listing 29 things the Chinese and the British share, including binge drinking, unhealthy food and “adorable creatures” like pandas and David Beckham. Source

  52. 52.

    Mustang Bobby

    October 22, 2015 at 6:56 am

    I wanted the Cubs to win. I want the Blue Jays to win.

  53. 53.

    Baud

    October 22, 2015 at 6:57 am

    @BillinGlendaleCA:

    I think a lot of pundits don’t want to admit just how far down the rabbit hole their extended friends and family in red states are. They’ve been taught that these people are the backbone of American democracy.

  54. 54.

    NotMax

    October 22, 2015 at 7:01 am

    @Baud

    More like the coccyx.

  55. 55.

    Baud

    October 22, 2015 at 7:02 am

    @NotMax:

    Keep going. You’re getting warmer.

  56. 56.

    Aleta

    October 22, 2015 at 7:03 am

    @BillinGlendaleCA:
    VERY nice picture.

  57. 57.

    Baud

    October 22, 2015 at 7:04 am

    @BillinGlendaleCA:

    Cool.

  58. 58.

    Steeplejack

    October 22, 2015 at 7:06 am

    @Mustang Bobby:

    Yeah, I’m with you. I went into the playoffs not having strong feelings for anyone—my teams, the Braves and (distant second) the Nationals were out of it—but after the Cubs unexpectedly beat the Cardinals (the boring, non-obnoxious NL version of the Yankees) I started pulling for them. I got a similar underdog feeling for the Blue Jays. If the Jays make it to the World Series, I’ll be rooting for them. If it’s the Royals, I will lapse back into apathy. I’m an NL guy, but it’s hard to root for the Mets, because they are in the NL East with Atlanta and Washington. I don’t hate them, but they are usually the enemy, and they’re just meh to me. Yeah, that’s the ticket: the New York Me(h)ts!

  59. 59.

    Baud

    October 22, 2015 at 7:08 am

    GMA says Carson is ahead of Trump in Iowa.

  60. 60.

    amk

    October 22, 2015 at 7:12 am

    He could not ad-lib a fart.

    Nonsense. His motor mouth is doing that job very finely.

  61. 61.

    Aleta

    October 22, 2015 at 7:12 am

    @Baud:
    Do these polls about R candidates give respondents the option of Undecided? (Or ‘none of the above’ ? )

  62. 62.

    Baud

    October 22, 2015 at 7:14 am

    @Aleta:

    I don’t know. GMA also said Rubio was also on the rise.

  63. 63.

    David Koch

    October 22, 2015 at 7:15 am

    @Baud:I don’t trust Quinnipiac

    PPP had Trump up over Carson 24-17 just 4 weeks ago in IA.

  64. 64.

    amk

    October 22, 2015 at 7:15 am

    jebmentumbaggage

  65. 65.

    Baud

    October 22, 2015 at 7:17 am

    @David Koch:

    Four weeks is an eternity.

  66. 66.

    Amir Khalid

    October 22, 2015 at 7:17 am

    @NotMax:
    David Beckham played for Manchester United. How can he be an “adorable creature”?
    ETA: Of course, I speak as a Liverpool fan.

  67. 67.

    JPL

    October 22, 2015 at 7:19 am

    @Aleta: Thank you for that link. George W. can’t be happy that his inaction before 9/11, is once again being discussed. Cheney was too busy worrying about the pending oil crisis to care.

  68. 68.

    OzarkHillbilly

    October 22, 2015 at 7:20 am

    @Mustang Bobby:

    I wanted the Cubs to win.

    Now you know why Cub fans drink so much.

  69. 69.

    David Koch

    October 22, 2015 at 7:22 am

    Iowa isn’t a good bellwether for the gop nomination

    the eventual national nominee lost IA in 80,88,08,12, only winning in 96,00

  70. 70.

    Germy Shoemangler

    October 22, 2015 at 7:24 am

    @Baud: I can’t watch GMA anymore, or ABC news. Jon Karl makes me want to throw something at the flatscreen.

  71. 71.

    amk

    October 22, 2015 at 7:24 am

    @David Koch:

    The current kkklown car is so very ‘different’ that any and all precedents have become meaningless.

  72. 72.

    OzarkHillbilly

    October 22, 2015 at 7:28 am

    @Steeplejack: The Mets are Pond Scum.

    From the ’80s when the Cards and Mets were in the same division.

  73. 73.

    BillinGlendaleCA

    October 22, 2015 at 7:28 am

    @Baud: @Aleta: Kamsamnida.

  74. 74.

    bystander

    October 22, 2015 at 7:37 am

    @BillinGlendaleCA: You didn’t see Hitlery’s face there in the audience, did you? Not invited, I hear. And she’s in town. What a kick to her shins!

  75. 75.

    gnomedad

    October 22, 2015 at 7:38 am

    @sm*t cl*de:
    “He couldn’t ad lib a fart with a TelePrompTer”?

  76. 76.

    Honus

    October 22, 2015 at 7:45 am

    @raven: let it dry out for a day or so. Then it should work fine.

  77. 77.

    bemused

    October 22, 2015 at 7:48 am

    @raven:

    Yup. They’re running around in a panic mode hair on fire.

    How is Lil Bit?

  78. 78.

    Mustang Bobby

    October 22, 2015 at 7:53 am

    @raven: A couple of weeks ago I had the friendly neighborhood pressure-cleaning company do my back patio. They did a great job, and they also cleaned the exterior, including around the aluminum-framed horizontal sliding kitchen window that was installed when the house was built in 1972.

    The patio looked great but there was a great coating of water, dead bugs, and residual flurb all over the kitchen counter and sink. I’m sure they didn’t know what havoc they had wrought.

  79. 79.

    Aleta

    October 22, 2015 at 8:02 am

    @JPL:
    I’m actually happy that Jeb is running, for a single reason: it’s a chance for stories that were let die while he was president to come up again. Baud’s mention of the aircraft landing reminded me of how he actually stopped his flight training in the N Guard (afraid of going to Vietnam if he continued it?) and then went AWOL for a year, and then made a deal in order to get an honorable discharge, and then never did what he’d promised to do in exchange, and then got the h. discharge anyway. And then they had the nerve to land him on a flight deck, suited up and holding a pilot’s helmet, acting like he’d flown in himself because he was a great pilot. They were so arrogantly confident that they could hide the truth, “create their own reality.”

  80. 80.

    Paul in KY

    October 22, 2015 at 8:02 am

    @bystander: The shrewish harpy.

  81. 81.

    NorthLeft12

    October 22, 2015 at 8:03 am

    @BillinGlendaleCA: Somehow the Republicans in those states that have refused the expansion have convinced enough of the voters of their states that they will actually save billions of dollars in the future by not expanding now.

    They can do this because of Carlin’s law of stupidity.
    https://youtu.be/8rh6qqsmxNs

  82. 82.

    OzarkHillbilly

    October 22, 2015 at 8:06 am

    The reward in the North STl church fires has been increased:

    The reward for a tip that leads to the arrest and conviction in the arsons has grown by more than double, to $9,000. St. Louis Fire Chief Dennis Jenkerson said after the prayer service that the state fire marshal’s office had added $5,000 to the pot. On Tuesday, the St. Louis Police Officers’ Association announced that it would match the $2,000 reward being offered by the St. Louis Regional CrimeStoppers and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

    And I was wrong about all the fires being in St Louis city, 1 and a half were in Jennings which is in the county. (1/2 because one of the churches apparently straddles the St Louis/Jennings boundary)

  83. 83.

    SFAW

    October 22, 2015 at 8:08 am

    @Mustang Bobby:

    I’m sure they didn’t know what havoc they had wrought.

    “Cry havoc, and let slip the bugs of wa(te)r”?

    which is better, I guess, than “let’s sip the bugs in water.”

  84. 84.

    OzarkHillbilly

    October 22, 2015 at 8:10 am

    Those poor Swedes, utterly incompetent at mass murder. Bringing a sword when an Uzi is clearly called for. How embarrassing.

  85. 85.

    SFAW

    October 22, 2015 at 8:10 am

    @Aleta:

    I’ve checked the kerning of your comment, and you clearly are making stuff up.

  86. 86.

    bystander

    October 22, 2015 at 8:13 am

    @OzarkHillbilly: In Trollhattan, no less.

  87. 87.

    Paul in KY

    October 22, 2015 at 8:17 am

    @Aleta: Bush & Cheney should both be in jail. I’m personally convinced that Cheney (at least) was hoping for the attack, so they could go ahead with the PNAC dreams that had been outlined previously.

    IMO, you should be executed for crimes like that. NOT given 3 hots & a cot.

  88. 88.

    SFAW

    October 22, 2015 at 8:18 am

    @Paul in KY:

    The shrewish harpy.

    Not a harpy-like shrew?

    Opinions differ.

  89. 89.

    Peale

    October 22, 2015 at 8:19 am

    @Paul in KY: are the harpies the ones who shat on Phineas’ plate so he could never enjoy a meal? If so, I’ll vote for the harpy if it means Morning Joe will never have a pleasant day again.

  90. 90.

    Tommy

    October 22, 2015 at 8:20 am

    @OzarkHillbilly: Glad you brought this up, as a dude that lives here. Charles Pierce said you want a war on religion come here.Where I live we are burning churches. Waiting.

  91. 91.

    Paul in KY

    October 22, 2015 at 8:24 am

    @Peale: I’m not sure. had never heard the Phineas story. They do have canckles, though.

  92. 92.

    lonesomerobot

    October 22, 2015 at 8:24 am

    This is what happens when your marketing department gets taken over by Libertarians.

  93. 93.

    OzarkHillbilly

    October 22, 2015 at 8:24 am

    @Paul in KY:

    IMO, you should be executed for crimes like that. NOT given 3 hots & a cot.

    Execution is too good for the likes of them, quick and relatively pain less. Much better he share a jail cell with his husband Bubba for 30 years.

  94. 94.

    MattF

    October 22, 2015 at 8:26 am

    The commentariat has a single narrative: “Let’s you and him fight.” Republicans are happy to oblige, but Democrats keep being polite. It’s a scandal. O tempora! O mores!

  95. 95.

    geg6

    October 22, 2015 at 8:26 am

    Happy Benghazi! Day everyone!

  96. 96.

    Elizabelle

    October 22, 2015 at 8:30 am

    @geg6: Backatcha, geg.

    It’s beautiful weather here in NoVA this week. A gasp of summer. 70s and sunny. Not sure this is “Indian summer” yet, but YMMV.

    May have the hearings on in the background, on radio. Eight hours is endurance test for listeners/viewers too.

    I wish the RNC were billed for the whole of the Committee’s work. It’s been shameful.

    (ETA: although that could just bring on more witch hunt committees. No doubt there are dozens of GOP sugar daddies and mommas who would love to fund witch hunts against opponents, day in and day out. So not a good precedent.)

    But bring up the five million and counting of taxpayer money every time Committee or Trey Gowdy are in the news.

  97. 97.

    MattF

    October 22, 2015 at 8:33 am

    @Elizabelle: Democrats on the panel will drive the Republicans crazy by simply treating Clinton with respect. How dare they!

  98. 98.

    Paul in KY

    October 22, 2015 at 8:40 am

    @lonesomerobot: I tried Airbnb & could never get anyone to ‘agree’ to rent to me. The damn thing (IMO) is like dating, where the renter can pick/choose/discriminate (that’s what I call it when it comes to renting). They should have a rule where it is 1st come, 1st served (like it is at their competitors, you know hotels, motels, etc.).

  99. 99.

    Paul in KY

    October 22, 2015 at 8:42 am

    @OzarkHillbilly: I could see where that might be worse, but almost none of anyone ever sentenced to death seems to agree with you. Thus, I think they think it is worse (being executed), so I’m going with that.

  100. 100.

    Aleta

    October 22, 2015 at 8:43 am

    @Paul in KY: Yes, the consp theories about the govt orchestrating 9-11 are beside the point. Fail to stop a little attack, and have an excuse to go into Iraq. Russia had done a version of this shortly before, and gone into Chechnya.

  101. 101.

    rikyrah

    October 22, 2015 at 8:45 am

    Good Morning, Everyone :)

  102. 102.

    lonesomerobot

    October 22, 2015 at 8:47 am

    @Paul in KY: I don’t think I’d ever find myself using that service. I just think a business snarkily attacking libraries and schools as accessories to some perceived injustice is a really poor attempt at marketing. Are they going exclusively for the Zero Hedge crowd? They may as well have put “LATER BITCHEZZ!” at the bottom.

  103. 103.

    JPL

    October 22, 2015 at 8:48 am

    @Aleta: The 9/11 commission did uncover a warning about planes being used as weapons. I could never understand, why airlines weren’t ordered to lock their doors.

  104. 104.

    Ben Cisco (onboard the Defiant)

    October 22, 2015 at 8:49 am

    Mrs. Cisco just got wheeled back to the surgical team. May the Prophets guide their path.

  105. 105.

    OzarkHillbilly

    October 22, 2015 at 8:50 am

    @Paul in KY: We all owe a death.

  106. 106.

    Gravenstone

    October 22, 2015 at 8:50 am

    @OzarkHillbilly: Executed, preferably having it carried out as they lie face up – the better to see the blade fall. Then I want their disembodied heads permanently affixed to either side of the main entrance of the White House as a permanent warning to all future occupants about the price to be paid for imperial hubris.

  107. 107.

    JPL

    October 22, 2015 at 8:52 am

    @Ben Cisco (onboard the Defiant): Thinking of you.

  108. 108.

    Omnes Omnibus

    October 22, 2015 at 8:55 am

    @Ben Cisco (onboard the Defiant): Good thoughts headed to you and yours.

  109. 109.

    OzarkHillbilly

    October 22, 2015 at 8:57 am

    @rikyrah: :-)

    @Ben Cisco (onboard the Defiant): Safe travels for her.

  110. 110.

    Paul in KY

    October 22, 2015 at 8:59 am

    @lonesomerobot: I guess it is ‘hipster renting’. Definitely marketed at people who are up-to-date on all modern internet conveniences, etc.

  111. 111.

    Elizabelle

    October 22, 2015 at 8:59 am

    @Ben Cisco (onboard the Defiant): Best wishes to you and Mrs. C. In my thoughts, for a good outcome.

  112. 112.

    Paul in KY

    October 22, 2015 at 9:00 am

    @JPL: They (the Al-Qaida scum) had already used an airliner as a weapon, over in Asia, years before the 911 attacks.

    Think it had also been done in WW II…

  113. 113.

    Paul in KY

    October 22, 2015 at 9:01 am

    @Ben Cisco (onboard the Defiant): Best wishes on safe outcome for Mrs. Cisco!

  114. 114.

    OzarkHillbilly

    October 22, 2015 at 9:02 am

    But others, like House Benghazi Chairman Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-SC), suggest they’re treating Benghazi like they would any other terrorist attack.

    Yeah. Right. You keep fvcking that chicken Trey. Maybe today is the day you squawk.

  115. 115.

    SiubhanDuinne

    October 22, 2015 at 9:02 am

    @Mustang Bobby:

    Same here, on both counts.

  116. 116.

    rikyrah

    October 22, 2015 at 9:04 am

    You work in a racist cesspool for nothing but overt racists…
    what did you expect?
    We’re supposed to feel sorry for you?
    And you shinned and grinned for them?
    Get.Da.Phuq.Outta.Here.

    …………………………

    Black Fox News Staffers Sound Off About ‘Difficult’ Work Environment
    The staffers find it “very difficult” to work at the network, former president of the National Association of Black Journalists Bob Butler tells TheWrap.

    BY: RICHARD PRINCE
    Posted: Oct. 11 2015 3:34 PM

    Network Blasts Observation by Former NABJ President

    “African-American Fox News staffers find it ‘very difficult’ to work at the network, former president of the National Association of Black Journalists Bob Butler told TheWrap on Thursday,” Jordan Charlton reported for TheWrap.com.

    ” ‘I’ve talked to some folks who work there and it’s very difficult, especially when you have all the hit pieces that are done on Obama,’ Butler said.

    “His comments come as Rupert Murdoch continues to face criticism over a controversial tweet on Wednesday that insinuated President Obama isn’t ‘a real black president.’ Murdoch apologized on Thursday.

    “But those disillusioned staffers also told Butler, ‘Look, this is a job, I have to do it, and sometimes you have to just hold your nose and do what you have to do to collect a paycheck.’ Butler, who served as president of the NABJ from 2013-2015, said those employees are good producers who pride themselves on covering news.

    http://www.theroot.com/blogs/journalisms/2015/10/ex_nabj_head_bob_butler_black_fox_news_staffers_find_work_environment_difficult.html

  117. 117.

    Cervantes

    October 22, 2015 at 9:04 am

    @Ben Cisco (onboard the Defiant):

    Hey, good luck with that.

  118. 118.

    Cervantes

    October 22, 2015 at 9:05 am

    @Gravenstone:

    Hey, good luck with that.

  119. 119.

    Elizabelle

    October 22, 2015 at 9:05 am

    @lonesomerobot: That’s almost ratf*cking from within Airbnb.

    The tone deafness. It shouts.

  120. 120.

    rikyrah

    October 22, 2015 at 9:06 am

    You know why.
    I know why.
    Lamar does not have the protection of complexion.

    …………………

    Where’s the Media Sympathy for Lamar Odom?
    Journalists bent over backward to show compassion for the Long Island, N.Y., mom who was found in a “cocaine apartment” in New York City. They should do the same for the former NBA star.

    BY: DEMETRIA LUCAS D’OYLEY
    Posted: Oct. 16 2015 3:00 AM

    Of course you’ve heard that two-time NBA champion Lamar Odom was found unresponsive in Las Vegas on Tuesday. He was taken to a local hospital, where he remains in critical condition.

    This has caused a major media frenzy, a circus. I guess it’s to be expected because Odom is a celebrity. He became a familiar face during his days playing for the Los Angeles Lakers, and he was the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year pick for the 2010-11 season.

    In 2009, while he was a professional athlete, he became even more famous when he met and married reality star Khloe Kardashian, a brief courtship that was captured on Keeping Up With the Kardashians. A spinoff show, Khloe & Lamar, followed the couple after they were married.

    ………………….
    This is a sad, sad story. Not because Odom had so much athletic skill or so much fame, or because people felt they “knew” him, since they’d watched him on reality TV. The story is sad because Odom is a person, someone’s son, two little people’s daddy and a whole lot of other people’s friend. And the media—the same media that bent over backward to humanely tell the story of another recent tragedy, involving the Long Island, N.Y., mother and dermatologist who visited a “cocaine apartment” in New York City and was later found dead in the building lobby—seems to have lost sight of the humanity it temporarily found for that woman, Kiersten Rickenbach Cerveny.

    http://www.theroot.com/articles/culture/2015/10/where_s_the_media_sympathy_for_lamar_odom.html

  121. 121.

    Gravenstone

    October 22, 2015 at 9:11 am

    @OzarkHillbilly: So we can look forward to the House convening hearings related to the attacks of 9/11/01 any day now, right?

  122. 122.

    oldgold

    October 22, 2015 at 9:12 am

    Biden: first class guy, second class pol, third class mind. Glad he opted out.

  123. 123.

    Cervantes

    October 22, 2015 at 9:16 am

    @rikyrah:

    You know why. I know why. Lamar does not have the protection of complexion.

    That could be part of it.

    Also, weren’t he and his marriage willingly broadcast as part of two “reality shows”? Did Ms. Cerveny seek the limelight in any similar way?

    Personally, if I had my druthers, we wouldn’t be talking about either case but even leaving complexion aside, they aren’t precisely comparable.

  124. 124.

    Aleta

    October 22, 2015 at 9:19 am

    I’m guessing that one of the uses of keeping Benghazi alive is to bring back the fear of terrorist attacks that was used to win the 2004 election. A current Jeb theme. The situation is “grave again,” he says. Obviously, the hearings will try to show, HRC is not the one who will “keep us safe” from the coming dangers.

  125. 125.

    Elizabelle

    October 22, 2015 at 9:21 am

    @OzarkHillbilly: Has there ever been a chart or two like that in the NY Times or other mainstream newspapers? Because it’s compelling data.

    For those who didn’t click, here’s selected data used for the chart:

    Congressional Committees Investigating Past High-Profile Terrorist Attacks:

    Benghazi …………………………………………….. 8

    September 11th, ……………………………………… 2 each
    Khobar Towers,
    USS Cole

    Oklahoma City bombing ……………………………. 0

    and

    Congressional Hearings held on same:

    Benghazi ……………………………………………… 32

    September 11 ………………………………………… 22

    They’ve held almost as many Benghazi hearings (32) as the combined total of hearings on the USS Cole, the Boston Marathon Bombing, the Oklahoma City Bombing, and the 1998 Embassy Bombing (34 total).

  126. 126.

    rikyrah

    October 22, 2015 at 9:22 am

    really?
    seriously?

    Ari Berman
    ‏@AriBerman
    Reopening 31 closed DMV offices for only one day a month hardly a solution to voter ID problem in Alabama http://abc3340.com/news/local/alabama-gov-robert-bentley-dmv-offices-in-rural-counties-will-open-once-a-month …

  127. 127.

    SFAW

    October 22, 2015 at 9:23 am

    @Ben Cisco (onboard the Defiant):

    Best wishes to you and Mrs. Cisco for the best of outcomes.

  128. 128.

    Elizabelle

    October 22, 2015 at 9:24 am

    For your reading pleasure while I look at that data again:

    Bernie Sanders, Washington Post op ed today: Make college free for all

  129. 129.

    rikyrah

    October 22, 2015 at 9:25 am

    This is what the Prison Industrial Complex is all about.

    ………….

    lean in award winner
    ‏@SeanMcElwee
    youre going to need to stop what youre doing and read this @TheAtlantic piece on prison labor http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/09/prison-labor-in-

  130. 130.

    rikyrah

    October 22, 2015 at 9:27 am

    The Black Tax is real.

    BuzzFeedVerified account
    ‏@BuzzFeed
    17 things black people deal with on a daily basis http://bzfd.it/1LbtMZQ

  131. 131.

    Elizabelle

    October 22, 2015 at 9:32 am

    @rikyrah: I disagree. I’m picking up sympathy in stories about Lamar Odom. Lot of people saying what a good guy he was, with deaths and addiction issues clouding his life. Spending $75,000 for a binge weekend looks unsympathetic, of course ….

    I’d never paid any attention to him before the overdose, and he’s in my thoughts for a full recovery. Perhaps as an athlete, he’s got some extra strength to aid his recovery.

    Feel a lot of sympathy for being so damaged and in the Kardashian sphere of hell too.

    ETA: but doubtless I am not reading the same articles the Root is discussing. I just see the LA Times and the initial reporting. Not obsessed with the topic.

  132. 132.

    Barney

    October 22, 2015 at 9:32 am

    So that would make him the Mulligan President if he ever got elected? Fail the first time, work out what went wrong, try again – election against Chiles, election of Jeb!, presidency of Bush brother … or he totally fails in his first term as well, and hopes to get re-elected with “don’t worry, I know what I did wrong last term …”.

  133. 133.

    JPL

    October 22, 2015 at 9:34 am

    The Guardian is already live blogging the scene on Capitol Hill. Frank Luntz is there in his sneakers. I have to leave at ten thirty to pick up my vegies from the farmer, so will miss some of the hearing.

  134. 134.

    Gin & Tonic

    October 22, 2015 at 9:34 am

    In monster gourd news, a guy from RI has grown a 2,230 pound pumpkin, the largest grown in the world this year.

  135. 135.

    Omnes Omnibus

    October 22, 2015 at 9:36 am

    @Gin & Tonic: You must be so proud.

  136. 136.

    Gian

    October 22, 2015 at 9:37 am

    @Baud:
    To Republicans, going to Medicaid is worse than going to a black hole, it’s going to black people

  137. 137.

    JPL

    October 22, 2015 at 9:38 am

    @Gin & Tonic: Why?

  138. 138.

    debbie

    October 22, 2015 at 9:38 am

    @OzarkHillbilly:

    Thank you for that link! I now have numbers to bludgeon my GOP family members with at Thanksgiving. I hope ThinkProgress will also come up with the dollar amounts spent on all these hearings.

  139. 139.

    Gian

    October 22, 2015 at 9:40 am

    @Elizabelle:
    it depends I think on the reports coming from people who knew him more as a sports guy versus a reality show guy.
    not that the two are totally separate. during one of the NBA finals with Boston, the Boston crowds chanted “ugly sister” whenever her got the ball in reference to (nope, I can’t type it)

  140. 140.

    debbie

    October 22, 2015 at 9:41 am

    Well, the GOP isn’t coalescing behind Paul Ryan. Glenn Beck is taking a brief break from railing at W for his criticism of Cruz to rail at the members of the Freedom Caucus who are saying they’ll approve Ryan. The sense of betrayal is palpable!

  141. 141.

    Gin & Tonic

    October 22, 2015 at 9:42 am

    @JPL: Why do people climb Mt. Everest?

  142. 142.

    rikyrah

    October 22, 2015 at 9:43 am

    hmmmmmmm

    ……………….

    Asian Americans speak out against a decades-old ‘model minority’ myth
    By Yanan Wang October 20

    A column published over a week ago in the New York Times began with what the writer calls “an awkward question”: “Why are Asian Americans so successful in America?”

    Nicholas Kristof is no stranger to controversy, and the framing of his first sentence indicates that he knew he would be wading straight into it with a piece titled “The Asian Advantage.” But perhaps even Kristof did not expect the magnitude of the pushback from the Asian American community to be so great that it would prompt him to post a follow-up on Facebook this Saturday.

    “My column last weekend on Asian-Americans sparked lots of conversation and criticism,” he wrote, addressing at length the various objections to and interpretations of the column. “Thanks for joining the conversation, whether you were patting me on the back or whacking me over the head.”

    While many Asian American commenters said they appreciated Kristof’s attempt to clarify his points, the post likely befuddled others. What could be objectionable, after all, about a column representing as fact the achievements of Asian immigrants in America?

    But to many Asian Americans, the column’s opening gambit isn’t just awkward. It’s offensive — and dangerous.

    “Angry!” one tweet said. “What a way to wake up. Thanks @NickKristof for feeling the need to perpetuate a sustained, damaging myth.”

    “Someone pls make Nicholas Kristof’s hack race analysis go away,” read another from Vulture editor E. Alex Jung.

    http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/10/20/asian-americans-speak-out-against-a-decades-old-model-minority-myth/

  143. 143.

    oldgold

    October 22, 2015 at 9:44 am

    Looks like there might be some competing news today. Apparently there was a military rescue mission in Iraq today.

  144. 144.

    Gin & Tonic

    October 22, 2015 at 9:45 am

    @Omnes Omnibus: Has the world’s largest pumpkin ever come from Wisconsin? I think not.

  145. 145.

    rikyrah

    October 22, 2015 at 9:46 am

    but…he is ‘the smart one.’

    …………

    Jeb Bush Has Learned the Wrong Lessons from His Family Tradition
    The struggling candidate ought to emulate his tremendously impressive father. Instead he is defending the lackluster legacy of his big brother.

    CONOR FRIEDERSDORF 7:54 AM ET

    Jeb Bush may be his own man, as he has repeatedly insisted to interviewers. But in his place, practically everyone would be influenced––even in spite of themselves––by knowledge of what their father and big brother did in similar situations, especially given that every likeness and reversal will prompt commentary. As voters weigh whether to entrust the presidency to a third member of the Bush family, it is proper to reflect on the legacies of George H.W. and George W. Bush.

    http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2015/10/jeb-bush-has-learned-the-wrong-lessons-from-his-family/411604/

  146. 146.

    ThresherK

    October 22, 2015 at 9:46 am

    @Ben Cisco (onboard the Defiant): All the healing thoughts to you and yours.

    @rikyrah: I don’t know how any black journo has the stomach to work there, and even the “tech crew” folks must know what the big grift is. As a straight white middle-class CIS-male who can pass for Christian, I don’t know if I’d have internal strength to do what these folks do.

    That said, part of me wants to know how blatant the things are there. When it comes to covering Obama v. Carson, or Medicare/SocSec/Medicaid/TANF v. “good” govermnent spending, how instructed are the folks there? Is it simply a bunch of unwritten acknowledgments, or are there widespread, daily email blasts to keep people on message?

  147. 147.

    SFAW

    October 22, 2015 at 9:49 am

    @Gin & Tonic:

    Has the world’s largest pumpkin ever come from Wisconsin? I think not.

    Maybe not, but they have either the world’s largest dickhead, or world’s largest douchebag, occupying the Governor’s office.

  148. 148.

    SFAW

    October 22, 2015 at 9:51 am

    @rikyrah:

    Jeb Bush may be his own man, as he has repeatedly insisted to interviewers.

    Jeb’s his own (little) man, and he has Babs’s permission to say so.

  149. 149.

    RaflW

    October 22, 2015 at 9:52 am

    I hope Barbara is confronted with the “Jeb couldn’t ad-lib a fart” comment on a regular basis. Her one-term, lip-reading husband is looking more and more like the pinnacle of the declining Bush dynasty.

  150. 150.

    Cervantes

    October 22, 2015 at 9:59 am

    @rikyrah:

    1. The treatment of various voters in Alabama (and elsewhere) is awful.

    2. Alabama’s new DMV policies are unhelpful at best.

    3. Reporting of Alabama’s new DMV policies has not been the best.

    4. And tweets “based on” that reporting aren’t always helpful, either. Ari Berman, for example, says “31 closed DMV offices [are being re-opened] for only one day a month,” without pointing out that the article he himself cites says the offices in question were only open one day a week before. (Is the article accurate? Not a safe assumption (see 3).)

  151. 151.

    ruemara

    October 22, 2015 at 10:00 am

    I do applaud trolling right to ROFL first thing in the morning.

  152. 152.

    Paul in KY

    October 22, 2015 at 10:03 am

    @rikyrah: That’s about the most ‘no shit’ story I’ve ever seen.

  153. 153.

    Aleta

    October 22, 2015 at 10:05 am

    @Ben Cisco (onboard the Defiant):
    Will be thinking of both of you. Best wishes for a quick recovery and relief.

  154. 154.

    Paul in KY

    October 22, 2015 at 10:07 am

    @rikyrah: GHWB was ONLY a good president, when you compare him to his son.

  155. 155.

    Booger

    October 22, 2015 at 10:08 am

    @Patricia Kayden: Yes, and the albatross was an innocent victim. George W. is an ancient mariner around !Jeb!’s! neck, with the albatross around both of their necks.

    Or something.

  156. 156.

    gene108

    October 22, 2015 at 10:08 am

    @Gian:

    To Republicans, going to Medicaid is worse than going to a black hole, it’s going to black people

    Nah…they know it also goes to whites…

    They don’t care.

    The modern Republican Party has morphed into the Party of Rule or Rune. Either they get everything they want or no one gets anything.

    As Barry Goldwater sagely warned over thirty years ago:

    xThe Berry Goldwater quote

    Mark my word, if and when these preachers get control of the [Republican] party, and they’re sure trying to do so, it’s going to be a terrible damn problem. Frankly, these people frighten me. Politics and governing demand compromise. But these Christians believe they are acting in the name of God, so they can’t and won’t compromise. I know, I’ve tried to deal with them.
    …..
    The religious factions that are growing throughout our land are not using their religious clout with wisdom…. I’m frankly sick and tired of the political preachers across this country telling me as a citizen that if I want to be a moral person, I must believe in ‘A,’ ‘B,’ ‘C,’ and ‘D.’ Just who do they think they are?… I will fight them every step of the way if they try to dictate their moral convictions to all Americans in the name of “conservatism.”

    http://www.religiousrightwatch.com/2007/12/the-berry-goldw.html

    He summed up what the modern Republicans have become very nicely.

  157. 157.

    Paul in KY

    October 22, 2015 at 10:08 am

    @SFAW: I go with douchebag, but others do have firm data that leads them to dickhead.

  158. 158.

    Woodrowfan

    October 22, 2015 at 10:09 am

    @SFAW: I thought that was Maine….

  159. 159.

    gene108

    October 22, 2015 at 10:10 am

    @Paul in KY:

    GHWB was ONLY a good president, when you compare him to his son.

    He signed the Americans with Disabilities Act into law and the 1990 Clear Air Act into law.

    That’s a level of responsible government Republicans are no longer capable of.

  160. 160.

    Paul in KY

    October 22, 2015 at 10:10 am

    @gene108: Sen. Goldwater was certainly their enemy by the end of his life. Today, he’d be a RINO!

  161. 161.

    Woodrowfan

    October 22, 2015 at 10:11 am

    @gene108: The modern Republican Party has morphed into the Party of Rule or Rune. Either they get everything they want or no one gets anything.

    ‘they’re Vikings??? :)

    Seriously I’d say they are the party of Rule AND Ruin.

  162. 162.

    Aleta

    October 22, 2015 at 10:12 am

    @Woodrowfan: Currently it is the fellow in the big leather chair in the Longworth House Office Building.

  163. 163.

    magurakurin

    October 22, 2015 at 10:13 am

    @Elizabelle:

    I’d be more impressed if he said “make high school high quality and safe for all.” Ditto for Clinton, too.

    I’m a little tired of the narrative that the only path to a “good life” is college. How about we just decided to respect all work equally and pay all work at a decent wage instead of worshiping the lawyers, doctors, mba’s and other college educated professionals. But, you know, I actually am a socialist. So, sorry Bernie, gonna go with Hillary since she can actually win and you two just aren’t that far apart. Like not far at all.

  164. 164.

    Paul in KY

    October 22, 2015 at 10:13 am

    @gene108: He obviously wasn’t a complete fuckup. Those good ideas (and I have to imagine that the Clean Air Act of 1990 was passed over republican objections) he signed into law, are for me eclipsed by his bad deeds (which I will not list here, as they are numerous).

    Certainly, he was waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyy better than his POS kid.

  165. 165.

    Librarian

    October 22, 2015 at 10:13 am

    On Morning Joe, Lindsay Graham said he was concerned about the “growth of ISIL in Iraq and Indiana.” He then corrected himself and said “Iraq and Syria.” Heh.

  166. 166.

    Punchy

    October 22, 2015 at 10:16 am

    @Gin & Tonic: That picture just reinforces how absurd it is. One could hollow it out and live inside of it. The seeds must be the size of iPhones. I’m guessin it’s stuffed with more ‘roids than Barry Bonds circa 2001.

  167. 167.

    SFAW

    October 22, 2015 at 10:23 am

    @Woodrowfan:

    I thought that was Maine….

    Well, LePage was certainly in the running, made it through the semis, but then withdrew to vie for the title of “biggest asshole.” Of course, he’ll have more competition, but he’s confident he can out-asshole the lot of ’em.

  168. 168.

    Elizabelle

    October 22, 2015 at 10:31 am

    @Gian: Makes sense. I missed the whole Lamar in a reality series bit. Avoid Kardashian Planet as much as possible.

  169. 169.

    Paul in KY

    October 22, 2015 at 10:33 am

    @SFAW: My money’s on Page. Odds aren’t too good, but you gotta win to get the payout.

  170. 170.

    WaterGirl

    October 22, 2015 at 10:40 am

    @Ben Cisco (onboard the Defiant): Sending good thoughts your way, and a prayer. Crossing my fingers, too.

  171. 171.

    Cervantes

    October 22, 2015 at 10:53 am

    @magurakurin:

    I’m a little tired of the narrative that the only path to a “good life” is college. How about we just decided to respect all work equally and pay all work at a decent wage

    Leaving objective reality aside for a moment: There are needs people (think they) have to which the candidates must respond, and likewise there are some things about the electorate the candidates can’t even think about trying to change in the short run.

    If a candidate’s platform ignores working-class interests only to concentrate on the interests of the middle class or those of the wealthy, then I agree: they should be called on it. Name one such candidate who is not a Republican.

  172. 172.

    Gex

    October 22, 2015 at 11:18 am

    You know, I think smart is not accurate. If he needs that much longer than most other politicians to learn political lessons and adjust, he’s not smart. What it means is that he needs operatives to break it all down and coach him on how to respond. Much like they tried to coach Palin to be able to respond on the campaign trail. And if there’s a surprise? Well it’s gaffe time all over again.

    That’s not smart. That’s dim, rote learning instead of being able to think.

  173. 173.

    J R in WV

    October 22, 2015 at 12:04 pm

    @raven:

    There might just be water in there still. I’d wait several days to see if time and fresh air might not allow that interior water to slowly evaporate.

    I don’t like pressure washers for just this reason. They can force water into places where you don’t want it ever, and where it has a hard time ever evaporating.

Comments are closed.

Trackbacks

  1. Paying To Be Cruel » Balloon Juice says:
    October 22, 2015 at 11:51 am

    […] Juice’s own presidential aspirant, ¡Baud! 2016, reminded me of something I meant to FP yesterday:  how red state Republicans have chosen to pay — hugely […]

  2. Paying To Be Cruel | The Inverse Square Blog says:
    October 22, 2015 at 12:15 pm

    […] Juice’s own presidential aspirant, ¡Baud! 2016, reminded me of something I meant to FP yesterday:  how red state Republicans have chosen to pay — hugely […]

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