Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

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

Second rate reporter says what?

Too often we hand the biggest microphones to the cynics and the critics who delight in declaring failure.

Narcissists are always shocked to discover other people have agency.

This fight is for everything.

There are more Russians standing up to Putin than Republicans.

“woke” is the new caravan.

Wow, I can’t imagine what it was like to comment in morse code.

We will not go back.

Baby steps, because the Republican Party is full of angry babies.

They love authoritarianism, but only when they get to be the authoritarians.

If rights aren’t universal, they are privilege, not rights.

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

Only Democrats have agency, apparently.

White supremacy is terrorism.

I’ve spoken to my cat about this, but it doesn’t seem to do any good.

Imperialist aggressors must be defeated, or the whole world loses.

I really should read my own blog.

They fucked up the fucking up of the fuckup!

I desperately hope that, yet again, i am wrong.

They are lying in pursuit of an agenda.

Make the republican party small enough to drown in a bathtub.

There is no right way to do the wrong thing.

“Everybody’s entitled to be an idiot.”

You are here: Home / Politics / Domestic Politics / The President’s Remarks in Indiana

Reader Interactions

77Comments

  1. 1.

    Jeffro

    Dude – you read my mind! (see #253 last thread, just a minute ago) Thanks Adam!

    Anyway, the speech is also being put up as a Tweet-storm (if this old person has the terminology right) and the facts are just amazing. (They’re all rigged if you ask Donald Trump of course, but hey what isn’t if you ask Donald Trump). Especially the job growth that’s happened SINCE the ACA took effect.

    The Dems need to pound these numbers from now ’til November.

  3. 3.

    jl

    I tuned in just as Obama talked about trade, so I disagree with what he is saying. Not automation,but high dollar, and foreign countries hording dollar reserves. I’ll look for a transcript later, so I can read the parts I agree with and the parts I don’t will go down easier.

    Edit: but I do give Obama credit for managing a recovery that is finally noticeable to average person, despite ferocious opposition. Fed should hold off on rate increase. Economy is not meeting their inflation target. 2 percent is supposed to be a target not a ceiling. Let’s hope. Probably Brexit vote will be enough for them to hold off for awhile.

  4. 4.

    rikyrah

    The folks that kill me are the ones who were helped by the stimulus, and pretend that that government loan just fell out of the sky.

  6. 6.

    Jeffro

    @Adam L Silverman: Super – thank you!

    One of his tweets is pointing out that his administration has brought 21 trade enforcement cases (including 12 against China) to the WTO…and has won every one of them.

    And now the feed is talking about how ‘they’ – the GOP – blame “moochers, feminists, poor folks” for dragging our economy down. (Ooo – “the 47%” “right-wing radio”)

    He’s totally calling them out on all of it – LOVE IT.

  8. 8.

    Trollhattan

    @rikyrah:
    Same time they got the bump on the head from their Obamaphone.

    Now that Trump’s on his “Has absolutely decimated the military. Decimated!” kick I find myself wondering which edition of the armed forces we need to “make great again” by emulating. I’m guessing anything less than the number of servicemen, ships, tanks and airplanes we had on 8.15.45 is for losers. Russia and China, of course, will pay for it.

  10. 10.

    the Conster, la Citoyenne

    @Jeffro:

    This is the guy that needs to start campaigning for Hillary. Old Uncle Bernie needs to take Jane and go back home to irrelevancy and a federal investigation. Of course, Elkhart will go big for Trump, because the idea that their asses were bailed out by President B-Rock the Shock Super Allah X Hussein Obama is just too much to process. It wasn’t supposed to happen that way.

  12. 12.

    jl

    I guess I am an Obama junkie. I tuned back in. I do like his suggestions for helping working families. I think, though different parts of Obama economic policy work at cross purposes with each other.

    Even though I disagree with big chunks of his foreign trade and finance policy, Obama is kind of like the mythical Benally Clinters I want to run in 2016.

  13. 13.

    Jeffro

    @Major Major Major Major:

    It’s too bad he can’t talk about, you know, his party’s nominee for president.

    He’s giving that person a rolling start ;)

    “Republicans have daughters too – they shouldn’t want them getting paid less than someone for doing the same job”

    “In the good old days, 50 years ago, more than 1 in 4 American workers belonged to a union…they negotiated for good wages and good benefits.”

    POCKETBOOK POCKETBOOK POCKETBOOK – love it!

  14. 14.

    Roger Moore

    @rikyrah:

    The folks that kill me are the ones who were helped by the stimulus, and pretend that that government loan just fell out of the sky.

    It’s like Craig T. Nelson’s classic comment, “I’ve been on food stamps and welfare. Did anybody help me out? No!” They simply can’t acknowledge that they got help along the way because it would destroy their self-image as rugged individualists who earned everything they have through hard work. They might also have to admit that the government is capable of doing good, which they also don’t want to admit.

  15. 15.

    maryQ

    maryQ Jr, age 12, generally more interested in Taylor Swift and Pretty Little Liars than politics, says to me out of nowhere the other day, “It’s really too bad that Obama can’t run for President this time, because he would be the best. Hilary will be fine, I think, but she’ll be less amazing than Obama. And the other two-forget it. Obama will probably be one of the best Presidents in history.”

  17. 17.

    raven

    @maryQ: My undestanding is that she is going to be indicted ANY day and it’s all over.

    In this case it does appear that where there is smoke, there will be fire. IMO the FBI is losing patience with AG Lynch and whatever inclination she has (with or without instructions from Obama) to avoid indicting HC on a variety of charges of violations of federal law. The State Department dealt with violations of the federal records act, but there are more serious matters pending.

  19. 19.

    Jeffro

    @jl:

    I guess I am an Obama junkie.

    Seconded…but I am shaking my head a bit at the semi-rural twang he seems to throw in there every two minutes or so. Too funny.

    He’s leaving the GOP to defend the indefensible…and he has referred to “Republicans in Congress” (not ‘Congress’) at least a half-dozen times already.

  21. 21.

    jl

    @Jeffro: Called out the ‘cult small government’. But feed here is so jerky, I’ll have to read transcript later.

  22. 22.

    slag

    @raven: OK. But then we’re probably going to have to go ahead and indict every Secretary of State in recent history. That could be fun.

  23. 23.

    kindness

    Love you Obama but I’m not supporting the TPP. Sorry. No way to I support having arbitration by corporations wrt our environmental & labor laws.

  25. 25.

    Trollhattan

    @slag:
    And, uh, “the FBI is losing patience with AG Lynch” implies they can bypass the US fvcking Attorney General is some fashion. Has director-zombie Hoover reappeared to run the joint?

  28. 28.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    I had MSNBC on in the background, and Steve Kornacki went to a commercial with an off-hand reference to a recent poll that showed (if I heard right, wasn’t paying close attention) Clinton up 13 points in CA, after two solid weeks of the primary news being driven by the one outlier poll that showed a two point spread?

    If those numbers are right then the coverage of that one poll may be the stupidest thing the media has done all year, at least on the Dem side.

    ETA: found it:
    California Democratic Presidential Primary Hoover/Golden State Poll Clinton 51, Sanders 38 Clinton +13

  29. 29.

    Jeffro

    He’s practically laughing at the GOP now – “how can you say you’re for the middle class and want to tear down these rules (on Wall Street)?”

    “You don’t get to avoid paying your taxes – why should they?”

    “When big corporations and wealthy individuals don’t pay their fair share of taxes…it means either you’re paying more, or we don’t have enough revenue to support rebuilding our roads, or paying for our public universities…”

  32. 32.

    seaboogie

    He’s getting *shouty* and the crowd seems happy about it – what’s up with that? /

  33. 33.

    slag

    @Trollhattan: So, Hillary likely felt stymied by the government’s inability to keep up with the pace of technological development and subverted the rules so she could get shit done. And now the claim is that “the FBI” wants to subvert the rules so they can get shit done. Does this mean we also get to indict the FBI?

  34. 34.

    Miss Bianca

    @Jeffro: Obama may be one of those folks who just can’t help picking up people’s accents, attitudes (physical attitudes, I mean), etc. A lot of talented performers – raconteurs in particular – are like that, and he’s a *very* talented performer.

  35. 35.

    burnspbesq

    @raven:

    Last time I looked at a DOJ org chart, the FBI didn’t have the authority to convene grand juries, and its director reported to the AG.

  40. 40.

    Jeffro

    @Miss Bianca: Definitely – and it’s not just him. Here’s an old take on that very thing:

    http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/politics/2010/01/code_black.html

    He just wrapped up and while I would have advised him to simply not mention TPP, nor make such an extensive list of people’s non-pocketbook reasons to not vote Democratic, I think it’s a hit. I think he could have also flat-out challenged the media to fact-check every one of his economic statistics…and then compare that accuracy “with the next five or ten things Donald Trump says”. BOOM.

  41. 41.

    Cat48

    Well, someone’s fired up and ready to go! I’m truly going to miss my president.

  42. 42.

    Litlebritdifrnt

    Question for all you IT types. My computer here at work updated me to Windows 10 over a weekend WITHOUT MY PERMISSION and now every damn setting on my computer is screwed up. I can’t scan documents because my scanner can’t find my computer, I cannot access IE (which I need for specific court documents), there is no damn start menu to speak of so I can’t go in and do a system restore to get rid of the damn thing. Is it possible to just uninstall it?

  43. 43.

    slag

    Nice Obama callback to Romney’s 47%. And taking a sledge hammer to the Republican disinformation machine. GoBama! May the force be with you.

  44. 44.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    @maryQ: Snark adjustment perhaps?

    ETA: maryQ Jr sounds smart and awesome!

  46. 46.

    slag

    Was this speech written for Paul Krugman? It feels a bit like a Kthug Valentine. In all the best ways.

  47. 47.

    The Moar You Know

    @raven: Haven’t checked in over there in a long time. Too bad. Pat’s finally lost his shit but good. Time to put him in a home.

    Commentariat over there has gotten pretty weird. He’s keeping some odd company these days.

    Question for all you IT types. My computer here at work updated me to Windows 10 over a weekend WITHOUT MY PERMISSION and now every damn setting on my computer is screwed up. I can’t scan documents because my scanner can’t find my computer, I cannot access IE (which I need for specific court documents), there is no damn start menu to speak of so I can’t go in and do a system restore to get rid of the damn thing. Is it possible to just uninstall it?

    @Litlebritdifrnt: http://www.howtogeek.com/220723/how-to-uninstall-windows-10-and-downgrade-to-windows-7-or-8.1/

    Doable. Maybe. Good luck. Windows 10 is a security disaster, so you’re doing the right thing.

  48. 48.

    Feathers

    @Litlebritdifrnt: Don’t know about Windows 10, because my dad got so furious at a previous Windows that he now has a Mac, but from my previous job as familial tech support, I know that there is invariably an emulate previous versions of Windows hidden in the interface. That probably won’t help with the scanner, but may with the other issues.

  49. 49.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    @Miss Bianca: Even some untalented performers can do it regularly. I’ve been mistaken for “from pretty close to here” in both Raleigh NC and Troy NY. Also central KY Appalachia “you sound like you’re from here,” as if -4 – 6 weeks of age would count.

  52. 52.

    Miss Bianca

    @Mike in NC:What??

    @Litlebritdifrnt: Yes, there is a way – see if this works for you: Go to Windows START (little window icon on lower-lefthand side) and search GPEDIT.MSC Then go to Administrative templates – then -Windows Components – then choose “turn off upgrade” and then “enable”. Hope that works for you!

  57. 57.

    El Caganer

    @raven: I go over there to read the posts on foreign affairs. Never bother myself with the posts on domestic politics.

  61. 61.

    raven

    @El Caganer: You mean you don’t talk about THE BORG or the NARCISSIST? For a bunch of supposedly educated people they latch onto bullshit like little fucking jack russell’s!

  63. 63.

    Sister Rail Gun of Warm Humanitarianism

    @Litlebritdifrnt: If your IT intended up upgrade you to W10, then they need to sit there until they get it working again.

    It is possible to rollback to an earlier version of Windows, but it is not an easy fix. I’ve been seeing comments from non-techie people about it taking three+ hours on the phone to Microsoft to get their computer working again.

    For anyone who has yet to be bitten by this “upgrade”, be sure to check out GWX Control Panel.

  64. 64.

    Kay

    I love the President but there’s a reason free traders don’t have any credibility in places like Elkhart, and it’s because they wildly exaggerate the benefits of these deals.

    The U.S. International Trade Commission said on Wednesday that the sweeping pan-Pacific trade deal President Barack Obama wants Congress to approve before he leaves office would likely have only a small positive effect on U.S. growth.
    The influential trade panel said in a new analysis that gross domestic product would be $42.7 billion higher in 2032 with the 12-country Trans-Pacific Partnership in place than without it, about a 0.15 percentage-point gain.
    The increased output would translate to about 128,000 more jobs by 2032, the ITC said. Recent U.S. job gains have averaged 200,000 per month, according to Labor Department data.

    They really have to come up with a better rationale than “middle class jobs”.

    This is the official US report on the estimated benefits of the deal. Ask yourself if this looks anything like what we were told.

    Luckily, no one will read it! :)

  65. 65.

    Captain C

    @Roger Moore:

    It’s like Craig T. Nelson’s classic comment, “I’ve been on food stamps and welfare. Did anybody help me out? No!”

    I’d love to see the reaction if someone said to his face, “That was your help, you twit! And it came out of taxpayer money!”

  66. 66.

    slag

    @Kay: Technically, there was also a more level regulatory field and tax structure included in the speech.

  67. 67.

    Socraticsilence

    @Trollhattan:

    If it were true– and I seriously doubt it, virtually everything Obama’s done in his Presidency indicates that if Hillary were guilty he’d let the chips fall where they may– the FBI would have a play but they’d have to straight up Watergate days and have some mass resignations and/or the Director step down.

  68. 68.

    J R in WV

    @Litlebritdifrnt:

    I’m not a Windows guru, but I don’t think Win 10 will run IE. Otherwise, you probably need new drivers for tools like scanner, printer, etc. A Re-intsall in effect. You should probably try for assistance from your employer’s technical staff, if they have any.

    Else, go to the companies who built your scanner and search for a Windows 10 driver. Then repeat the process for the other tools you were using that don’t seem to work any more. You can Google for directions on how to do this for your hardware and Windows 10 OS. Best of luck!!

    I hate Microsoft’s posture of ownership over their customer’s equipment more than even their shoddy software! An update not started by the owner/user should always result in a machine that operates as well after the update as it did before the update. If it doesn’t, there should be a recovery utility available.

  69. 69.

    Kay

    @slag:

    650,000 jobs was the oft-repeated claim. Rubio said 2 million but it really doesn’t matter. They could just make up a number. They do!

    It’s just pisses me off when they combine that with this sort of regretful tone on how people “don’t understand trade deals”. The people who promote the deals obviously don’t understand them either.

  71. 71.

    The Golux

    @Mike in NC:

    All I know is that Windows 10 doesn’t support Internet Explorer…

    Not true. I use IE on Win10 with no issues. I suppose I could use Microsoft Edge, but since I only use IE when a page looks borked on Firefox (e.g. WaPo), why bother?

  73. 73.

    les

    @MomSense:

    Fewer horses and bayonets, also too.

    Trump will solve the bayonet crisis. Trump bayonets are the best. I am very concerned about the bayonet gap. I am not a crank.

  75. 75.

    Matt McIrvin

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: It’s not just the one outlier. The primary polls in California are actually weirdly bimodal: about half of them show Clinton up over Sanders by over 10 points, and the other half show a two-point spread. And there are multiple firms in both camps. I’m thinking it’s some kind of methodological split.

    Of course, neither result would really help Bernie Sanders, but it’s a little odd.

  76. 76.

    I'mNotSureWhoIWantToBeYet

    Great speech. Hillary should study it and learn from it and hammer the same themes just about every time she’s in front of a camera.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  77. 77.

    slag

    @Kay: Yeah. In the speech Obama differentiated arguments based on principle vs. those based on outcomes. I kind of feel like trade deals are often designed to adhere to some unstated principle under the guise of designing for outcomes. Which makes them hard to understand, for me at least.

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