.
I voted for Hillary Clinton to be the first woman President this afternoon, and therefore refuse to let the antics of the dying Repub party and its worst adherents harsh my considerable mellow.
First blowback from the big Bloomberg article. Rick Hasen, at his highly respected LawBlog:
Breaking: DNC Asks for RNC to Be Held in Contempt, Voter Intimidation Consent Decree Extended 8 More Years
Back in August, I blogged about how Donald Trump could be violating a longstanding consent decree against the RNC engaging in “ballot security” measures which have been found to intimidate minority voters. I explained how the consent decree began in the 1980s, was extended by the courts over RNC’s objection (which went all the way to the Supreme Court in an unsuccessful effort to get them involved), and now expires in 2017 unless extended for up to another 8 years by order of the Court. I explained that there were two issues: first, was Trump engaging in voter intimidation activities (it looked like he had) and second, whether Trump could be seen as an “agent” of the RNC (because the decree applies only to the RNC, its employees, and agents)…Well now it’s happened. The DNC filed papers saying that the RNC, through Trump’s actions has already violated the consent decree, and asks for another 8-year extension…
For full details and useful links — read the whole thing.
***********
Apart from that, what’s on the agenda tonight?
Viva BrisVegas
Being an ignorant foreigner, just how does this decree inhibit the RNC from being contemptible?
SiubhanDuinne
I voted yesterday. It was very satisfying.
redshirt
I have no early voting, so I’m savoring these days before voting. I can’t wait to see the result. SMASH THE REPUBLICAN PARTY!
Omnes Omnibus
@Viva BrisVegas: It forbids certain actions.
Cthulhu
Mailed my ballot yesterday and have scheduled 4 days of GOTV in NV.
Interestingly, the only GOPers on my ballot were Trump and Pence. They were shut out of all the other races in my area.
amk
too little, too late?
Lizzy L
It’s going to be interesting to observe the RNC attempt to claim that they have no connection whatsoever with that guy Trump.
Omnes Omnibus
@amk: Why?
Wapiti
@Cthulhu: I voted today. Had one state race where I had to pick between two Republicans… so went with the least sucky one.
hovercraft
POLITICO according to Brian Williams is eyeing Joe Biden for Secretary of State.
jl
Contribute, GOTV and vote. Then on Nov 9, no matter what, go after the GOP, since not a whole lot of difference between vast majority of their office holders and leaders on the one hand, and Trump on the other. The serious daddy money suits just have a more suave and disciplined presentation, with more organizational skills.
And looks like what is left of GOP with any principles is irrelevant few non office holding souls in ‘Mormon Mafia’ hunkered down in Utah. Which is an odd position for a one of the wings of the devious and all-powerful global HRC-Democratic-corporate media-Establishment GOP-survey statistician-Chinese-funded-climate-scientist-local-precinct-polling-official conspiracy. Chaffetz won’t endorse or support Trump, for the sake of morality and decency, just will vote for him. That leaves the occultated Rombot and the intrepid McMullin.
Bostondreams
So, some maybe positive news. An organization I work for has been running a Mock Election for K-12 schools here in Florida, all across the state, and so far, 75,000 students have voted. Clinton leads trump by about 30,000 of those votes. REALLY praying that the research is correct and that a student’s political beliefs are most often influenced by their parents and that this reflects good news.
chopper
it’s like watching a 3 year old throwing a tantrum out of pure spite. jeebus.
Punchy
@hovercraft: And Trump for US Ambassador in Somalia?
Another Scott
@hovercraft: Meh. Uncle Joe is going to be the AntiCancer Mooshot Man for the rest of his career. He’s not going to be SoS.
Who will be SoS? Dunno. I wouldn’t be surprised if its another woman though. Samantha Power, maybe?
Cheers,
Scott.
Omnes Omnibus
@Another Scott: Hey, sorry for being particularly cranky at you last night. I don’t know quite why you ruffled by feathers so, but you did. I should have saved my ire for the guy who called me a neocon.
amk
ClintonHillary raised $101 million in October. Has over 150 mil on hand.JanieM
@redshirt: I have no early voting
Peale
@Another Scott: well, if we have the senate…Valerie Jarret? Or should we let water flow under that bridge.
Sandia Blanca
@JanieM: Some states allow early voting, some do not.
JanieM
@JanieM: Screwed up the quotes….
@Sandia Blanca: I’m aware of that. As far as I know, redshirt lives in my state, where we do have early voting, so I was just wondering.
ETA: And redshirt also knows that we live in the same state and would have known why I was asking.
Peale
Ah. So I guess the next story is going to be whether women should be in the military.
Omnes Omnibus
@JanieM: You are in Maine?
JanieM
@Omnes Omnibus: Yes.
Ian
@hovercraft: That is two guarantees he will not get the job.
frosty
@Cthulhu:
It’s the opposite for me. The loathsome Tea Party Republican Scott Perry is running unopposed.
Chris T.
We’re doing the vote-by-mail thing, which saves a lot of hassle.
Considering there are about forty thousand propositions to vote on this year, hassle-saving is a big deal….
Ian
@Another Scott:
I cannot find link, but she said some mighty negative things about HRC in 08. I don’t think she will be in the next admin.
Omnes Omnibus
@JanieM: Okay then. Thank you
Ian
http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2013/10/03/power-recalls-monster-comment-working-with-hillary-clinton/
Omnes Omnibus
@Ian: Why should I click on your link?
Another Scott
@Omnes Omnibus: No worries. Thanks.
Cheers,
Scott.
Ian
@Omnes Omnibus: See #29?
amk
sam wang
Omnes Omnibus
@Ian: Meh.
Another Scott
@Ian: Thanks. That’s how one apologizes when one is in the public eye. It seems like she could still be worth considering.
Cheers,
Scott.
Mary G
Politico has a piece up about YOLObama. Bams is having a ball on the trail.
And of course the pure joy in his eyes put pure joy in my heart:
The whole article is full of win, especially tonight.
MomSense
@JanieM:
I think technically Maine has in person absentee voting which isn’t exactly the same thing as early voting. Absentee ballots can be challenged.
Matt McIrvin
@amk: Sam is getting cranky. Personally, I like his site as a bulwark against both panic and irrational exuberance–all the talk of 400 EV blowouts irritates me, because I know it’s not going to happen and people will be distraught and confused when it doesn’t. He’s certainly convinced me to give a lot of money to Senate campaigns.
RareSanity
@Omnes Omnibus:
Can you explain in layman’s terms what the extension of this decree means?
I understand that it’s supposed to stop voter intimidation, but I don’t understand how it stops anything. I mean, can’t Trump still go out in a rally and talk about “observing certain polling places”? How is it violated and what are the repercussions?
If you don’t feel like typing a wall of text, could you point me in a direction where I could learn more about it?
ETA: Nevermind…an explanation is linked in the Election Law Blog article.
Omnes Omnibus
@RareSanity: What was going on before, continues.
RareSanity
@Omnes Omnibus:
I don’t know whether to laugh at that response, or be insulted…I’ll choose laughter.
Well played.
Major Major Major Major
@Mary G: oh man, taking Issa’s seat would be sweet.
sigaba
Presently watching the Hamilton Great Performances on the PBS app.
So, it’s a documentary, but one thing is very frustrating… THEY CLEARLY HAVE THE WHOLE FUCKING MUSICAL ON TAPE. And it looks like they shot it great, the whole LMM/original cast performance is documented and in the can. When will they release that you suppose?
Jim, Foolish Literalist
I just gave the DSCC some money, just in time to catch the Maddow rerun where she says they’re going back to FL, bigly.
Mary G
@sigaba: I read somewhere that they are just going to stick in a vault somewhere (LMM said Gringotts). Don’t know why.
Major Major Major Major
Edit: nm
Dan Riley
A few open threads ago my golden boy, Tom Brady, came in for a round of Balloon Juice whipping as he often does as the alleged poster boy for white privilege. I wanted to jump in at the time with a lifeline for him, but was predisposed, so let me address some of the main attacks made on him here:
1. When he attended the Bush State of the Union, which is often taken as prima facie evidence that he’s a right-winger, Bush popularity was sitting north of 60% and he had yet to start the Iraq War, so for Brady to protest back then by refusing the invitation (which he did not seek), that would’ve made him the most prescient 24-year old in the country.
2. When he didn’t show up at the Obama White House to celebrate the Pats Super Bowl two years ago that was because he was generally pissed about the whole deflategate affair and had virtually stopped talking and appearing in public.
3. He never endorsed Trump. After stumbling into a joke about how great it would be for Trump to win and put a golf course on the WH lawn, he quite clearly stated that he wasn’t endorsing anyone. He did the same thing in ’04 when John Kerry tried to recruit him for his campaign.Even his biographer Charles Pierce has admitted that he can’t divine Brady’s politics, though given that his family is of that strain of social conscience Catholics, it’s unlikely that he’s a true Trumpian.
All that being said, he and the Pats do have a potential Trump problem as I discuss here:
http://thenobbyworks.blogspot.com/2016/10/dear-mr-kraft.html
amk
@amk: My guesstimate is 350+ EV, +6 to 9% PV and 51 senate.
Lizzy L
@Major Major Major Major: Wonderful. Issa’s loathsome. Wouldn’t that be a great going-away gift for BHO, and a pretty good welcome gift for HRC. Now, if we could only get rid of Jason Chaffetz.
Hafabee
@MomSense: Yes, Absentee Voting and Early Voting are two different things. They are each independently allowed/embraced differently by different states and/or counties. I live in WV — absentee voting is fairly restrictive, you need to request an absentee ballot and you have to have a good reason why you cannot vote in person. And it is a multi-step process: submit request, receive ballot, return ballot. Early voting, in my county, can be done by any person, but it must be done at the county courthouse — 25 miles away from me. Personally, I am looking forward to voting (by OptiScan Ballot) on November 8th at my local Ruritan Park, a mere 5 mile drive, with a short line and (mostly) recognizable poll workers. Even though all of my (Dem) candidates will, in all probability, lose.
JanieM
@MomSense:
For the record:
This not one of my big worries in life. ;-)
Edited to add the source of the quote.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@Major Major Major Major: well, she they’re moving seven figures to the FL race, and I sent three figures, so, yeah, I figure that’s almost half me.
You’re welcome, America
Aleta
Voting tomorrow. Plan to go have tacos first, then make yard sign: “I ate a taco and voted today.”
sigaba
@efgoldman:
Mutatis mutandis, when the national tour ends.
Major Major Major Major
@Aleta: Gee, but then nobody will ever be able to guess who you voted for!
amk
@Major Major Major Major: yeah, honor the sanctity of secret ballot, you leftist partisan hacks.
Major Major Major Major
@amk: What’s next, ballot selfies?
amk
@Major Major Major Major: exactly. traitors to the ‘republic’.
WaterGirl
@sigaba: Shortly before he left Hamilton, LMM said he was recording the whole thing with the entire original cast. As I recall, he was coy about what he was going to do with it. I imagine that at some point the whole thing might be released, but I doubt if that will happen for years. Totally guessing on the timing.
Mnemosyne
@sigaba:
Here’s a secret for you — EVERY Broadway musical of the last 40 years (at a minimum) is on tape and in a vault. There is apparently a way that you can make a request to see a specific one, but you have to have a book contract or approved dissertation.
As far as Hamilton goes, LMM has always said that they will eventually release something with the original cast, but the rights are very complicated because of the way Broadway plays are financed. I wouldn’t expect to see a thing until at least after the first national tour is completed.
And if you miss it at the Pantages, it will be in Costa Mesa for their 2017-2018 season.
Mike E
I voted today (#207 out of 1,109 at that site’s 1st day).
This was my 8th day of nonpartisan GOTV phone bank (enviro grp) and Sat I’ll be starting a stretch of 9 sessions over 10 days, or 35 hrs of calls. NC needs a lot of help
LeftMass
I went to the post office to hand deliver my ballot this afternoon. If Clinton wins CA by 1 vote, it was me. Also had the privilege of voting Pelosi.
Two great slices of pizza afterwards to mark the occasion.
RK
@Mnemosyne: You may want to check my post on SYG/Martin Case in the other thread.
Cracker and toast
@Matt McIrvin: Yea that was a wierd post he made today. I don’t think he likes running that site anymore. Said at one point he was considering shutting it down. So this might be the last election for him.
He’s a lot better than Nate “click bait” Silver. That site annoys the hell out of me trying to feed red meat to both sides.
I think Sam is overlooking one difference this election. Hillary has a grass roots GOTV ground operation and The asshole has nothing. At least Rmoney tried to have a ground operation and the software to go with it. The asshole is too buys opening hotels. So fucking pathetic. Every Republican should be hanging their head down in shame at the clown their party nominated. Just amazes me to no end that the tangerine ballsack is still going to get at least 30-40% of the vote.
redshirt
@Major Major Major Major: Duckface ballot selfies.
redshirt
@Cracker and toast: This was a great post and you should make more like this and less attacking other posters as scared or weak.
Major Major Major Major
@redshirt: millennials are the worst.
redshirt
@Major Major Major Major: Gen X seems way worse.
Sm*t Cl*de
Wave upon wave of demented avengers march cheerfully out of obscurity into the dream.
sigaba
@Mnemosyne: I couldn’t bear to see it with the touring company, at this point it’s like Fiddler on the Roof. Too known, a fly in amber. If there’s some rightsholder to the video I can probably lay hands on it, I have privileges with CAA’s library and Sony.
I’m so lonely.