Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

The unpunished coup was a training exercise.

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

When tyranny becomes law, rebellion becomes duty. ~Thomas Jefferson

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

Speaking of republicans, is there a way for a political party to declare intellectual bankruptcy?

Usually wrong but never in doubt

“Loving your country does not mean lying about its history.”

They are lying in pursuit of an agenda.

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

Black Jesus loves a paper trail.

Museums are not America’s attic for its racist shit.

Marge, god is saying you’re stupid.

Giving in to doom is how we fail to fight for ourselves & one another.

They want us to be overwhelmed and exhausted. Focus. Resist. Oppose.

When we show up, we win.

if you can’t see it, then you are useless in the fight to stop it.

When your entire life is steeped in white supremacy, equality feels like discrimination.

Republicans in disarray!

The arc of the moral universe does not bend itself. it is up to us to bend it.

Shallow, uninformed, and lacking identity

“But what about the lurkers?”

This chaos was totally avoidable.

The republican ‘Pastor’ of the House is an odious authoritarian little creep.

Dear media: perhaps we ought to let Donald Trump speak for himself!

You are here: Home / Organizing & Resistance / Don't Mourn, Organize / PSA Open Thread: LET AMERICA VOTE

PSA Open Thread: LET AMERICA VOTE

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Hey, remember Cole’s Missouri pick, Jason Kander?

Kander had some time on his hands after the election, so he’s started a new gig…

… “Voting in our country has never been easy, and unfortunately it’s never been guaranteed for everyone,” Kander said. “But through the work of brave civil rights leaders, some of whom died for the cause, in the early 2000s we got to a point where most, but still not all, people who wanted to vote could do so. Today, that progress is in danger as laws targeting low-income and minority voters continue popping up across the country. Let America Vote will make the case for voting rights by exposing the real motivations of those who favor voter suppression laws. For the first time, politicians intent on denying certain Americans the right to vote will first have to consider the political consequences.”

Jason Kander saw the mounting threat of voter suppression first hand when he fought against extreme voter photo identification proposals each of his four years as Missouri’s Secretary of State. Kander argued that over 200,000 legally eligible Missouri voters might not be able to vote if the laws passed, and that there has never been a case of voter impersonation fraud in Missouri, but proponents of the law would not be dissuaded. In 2016, in perhaps the most egregious and transparent act of voter intimidation the state has seen in decades, a local election authority stationed police officers outside polling places in minority neighborhoods. What is happening in Missouri is happening around the country…

Let America Vote, a 527 organization, will also team up with groups that share the mission of preventing voter suppression. iVote President Ellen Kurz will join Let America Vote as a member of the Board, and Kander will join iVote’s Board. Kander will also be joining the Board of Priorities USA in support of Every Citizen Counts, their initiative focused on voting rights litigation and statehouse lobbying. Priorities Chairman Guy Cecil will serve on Let America Vote’s Board.

Reader Interactions

103Comments

  9. 9.

    Baud

    Kander’s latest tweet.

    Does anyone in @POTUS’s orbit have ANY qualms about lying? How do they even keep track of all these lies? Seriously, this is bananas.

  10. 10.

    trnc

    @Baud: Well, I hope so. He kinda threw fellow democrats under the bus and almost appointed himself “The Last Honest Man” on Bill Maher’s show while discussing honesty among politicians. Maybe that was just a blip.

  17. 17.

    dr. bloor

    David Corn just tweeted that Chaffetz’s plan for ridding us of Betsy DeVos consists of dismantling the Department of Education.

    He’s not having a particularly good evening at home with the constituents.

  18. 18.

    FlipYrWhig

    I like what I’ve seen from Kander but I still get a whiff of Jack Conway, Bill Halter, Scott Kleeb from him — like he’ll always seem like he COULD be big-time but will struggle to break through.

  19. 19.

    Major Major Major Major

    I eat at this burger place (BurgerMeister, on church street) all the time at this same booth always, and just saw for the first time that I had been sitting under a framed Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition in recognition of outstanding and invaluable service to the community, presented by Tom Lantos in 2006.

  20. 20.

    Bupalos

    Saw h. Clinton gloat-tweeted about the ruling and man did my heart sink. It was the first time I could envision this nightmare becoming permanent.

    Full disclosure, I voted Bernie in the oh primary on the move her left theory, and then later cussed him out and voted as hard as i could for our gal.

    She needs to go. She needs to become 110% invisible. She can do no good anymore, its tragic maybe, but true.

  23. 23.

    Hal

    @Bupalos:

    She needs to go. She needs to become 110% invisible. She can do no good anymore, its tragic maybe, but true.

    Huh? Why is this terrible? What am I missing?

  24. 24.

    NotMax

    No idea if he’s any relation, even a distant one, of songwriter John Kander, who gifted us with this:

    Whatever happened to fair dealing?
    And pure ethics
    And nice manners?
    Why is it everyone now is a pain in the ass?
    Whatever happened to class?
    […]
    Jesus Christ, ain’t there no decency left?
    Nobody’s got no class
    Everybody you watch
    ‘S got his brains in his crotch
    Holy crap
    Holy crap
    What a shame
    What a shame
    What became of class?

  25. 25.

    PK

    She needs to go. She needs to become 110% invisible. She can do no good anymore, its tragic maybe, but true.

    Why does she need to go? She won by over 3 million votes yet she’s the one who needs to go?

  26. 26.

    amk

    @Bupalos:

    She can do no good anymore, its tragic maybe, but true.

    because, you said so? her tweet was spot on. seems you still have some bs chip on your shoulder.

  28. 28.

    dr. bloor

    @Bupalos:

    She needs to go. She needs to become 110% invisible. She can do no good anymore, its tragic maybe, but true.

    You’re going to have to show your work on this, because it makes zero sense on its face. She’s going to drive Trump nuts every time she surfaces and energize the base. You know, Democrats who don’t hijack a party to burn it down.

  30. 30.

    Yarrow

    @Hal:

    What am I missing?

    What you’re missing is that if people keep going down this road this thread will be yet another rehash of the primary.

  32. 32.

    Bupalos

    @Hal: she tweeted “3-0.” I think it reminded me of the “deplorables” thing. Its just stupid. It accomplishes nothing, politically it neither inspires the right side nor helps convert the opposition, in fact, it feels like deliberate baiting of the opposition. it feels like posturing to affirm Clinton’s credibility at the expense of anything else.

    Does anyone really think Clinton can help here?

  33. 33.

    Turgidson

    @FlipYrWhig: Kander seems way more charismatic and interesting than those guys. That said, I’m not sure Missouri will allow him to serve in statewide office again given how quickly it is morphing into an honorary Deep South state.

  36. 36.

    amk

    @Bupalos: bs tried kissing the white snowflakes asses and they went and voted in the current corrupt kkklown. so, you can take your ‘theory’ and shove it.

  38. 38.

    Turgidson

    @Bupalos: she’s earned the right to say whatever the fuck she wants, in my view. I was never a huge HRC fan, but she ran a good campaign, on the most liberal platform ever, tried to be inclusive, and was fucking railroaded by EMAILS, Russian meddling, and a toxic stew of racism, sexism, and 30 years worth of smears and right wing dipshittery.

  39. 39.

    rikyrah

    Luvvie for the win..

    Dear President Barack Obama, So This Love is Just Over?
    Awesomely Luvvie — February 9, 2017

    Because we’re having a rough time with the end of this relationship. I just wanna write him a letter, because he is not. Ain’t nothing worse being the only miserable party, cuz the way my petty is setup, I want us to wallow together. BUT NO. Barack outchea flourishing.

    Dear President Obama,

    Honestly, this is our fault. When you said you had to go, we should have just said “we refuse” and blocked your way. Instead, we watched you pick up your bag and walk out the door. We didn’t even fight for you.

    You’re just gon quit us like this. You’re just gonna act like what we had wasn’t real. You’re just gon treat us all disposable, as if our love was a BIC razor, from an 8-pack. You ain’t have to just up and leave like this. Well, fine you did. Because the laws of the land said that after January 20, 2017 at 12pm EST, you had to stop being our president since you’ve served two full terms.

    BUT FUCK THEM LAWS. They don’t matter. Hell, we see they don’t because the dustbucket who took your place is surely not paying attention to any of them. That niglet can barely READ and his illiterate ass is what happens when you hand over the keys to an 18-wheeler to a toddler. Cheeto Satan is the worst!!!

    Barack, you left us with Voldemort, and him and his Death Eaters are about to run us all into the ground. You didn’t even finish your Dumbledore’s Army Defense Against the Dark Arts trainings before you hopped on a helicopter and went on vacation. I hadn’t perfected my Patronus charm yet!

  43. 43.

    Major Major Major Major

    @Yarrow: Sure!

    So as I mentioned, apparently Tom Lantos must have liked the place. I’ve also seen it mentioned on here once or twice for a good place in SF to get a burger. It was a ‘western burger’, with bacon and bbq sauce and onion rings. I got a salad, slaw, and fries on the side. Just in the sort of mood where it seemed like a good idea. It’s OK, though, I’m active and healthy.

    What about your crab cake?

    @Steve in the ATL: They have turkey and also various veggie options.

  45. 45.

    Mary G

    @Bupalos: Sorry to pile on, but as a citizen she has every (First Amendment) right to tweet whatever she wants. All it said was

    3-0— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) February 10, 2017

    You are a Kreskin getting gloating out of that. I call it well-deserved trolling, myself.

  46. 46.

    PK

    it neither inspires the right side nor helps convert the opposition, in fact, it feels like deliberate baiting of the opposition.

    Do you really think the opposition is going to be converted? There are only two options left in this country, either defeat the deplorable or be subjugated by them.

  48. 48.

    geg6

    @Bupalos: m

    Jesus fuck. She has every right to do and say whatever she wants. She has earned that and more. You may want her gone but I was happy as hell to see her tweet. You are an ass.

  49. 49.

    Mike J

    @TheMightyTrowel:

    Missouri is, was and always has been a Deep South state by my reckoning.

    The bootheel, yes. The rest of the state used to be proudly midwestern.

    However, there has always been the same rural/urban divide that you’ll find in deep south states like Washington and Oregon.

  51. 51.

    Yarrow

    @Steve in the ATL:
    @Major Major Major Major: It was a Maryland style crab cake, so light on the breading with lots of crab. I didn’t make it myself but did fry it up in some Kerrygold butter. YUM. I also made a salad with lettuce from my own garden. And some fresh sliced ciabatta with olive oil and garlic and some red pepper flakes. It was great.

    Forgot to add, I love a good burger and that sounds delicious. I don’t eat them often but sometimes nothing else will do.

  52. 52.

    NoraLenderbee

    @Bupalos: HRC is a private citizen and she can say whatever the hell she wants. She has no obligation any more to inspire or convert anyone, nor to look “presidential” to you.

    She’s also one of a horde of politicians trolling himbo, yet you single her out for criticism? Why could that be?

  53. 53.

    Bupalos

    @Mary G: its stupid. I’m sorry, spiking the ball on this is political malpractice. For gods sake, talk about someone whose life or dream was saved because…you know…that’s what actually happened and what matters. 3-0?

  56. 56.

    Yarrow

    @Omnes Omnibus: Should have been a crisp white. I’m partial to Fume Blanc, but I could have gone lighter. Although it is a cooler time of year so I’d probably want something with a bit of body. I haven’t been drinking much in the past year because it has been the most awful year of my life and I have had too many people to take care of and too much responsibility to add in a known depressant. So I basically gave it up. Halfway through the meal I realized I should have had a small glass, though.

  58. 58.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Bupalos: Exactly how much disappearing should she do? Never leave the house again? Delete her Twitter account. Decline to help raise funds for Dems who need money?

  59. 59.

    Yarrow

    @Major Major Major Major: You’re welcome! I gave the pre-made burgers a good look at the supermarket the other day. I know what you mean that sometimes you just have to have one. I haven’t had one in awhile and they were calling to me. Your comment reminded me. Maybe this weekend.

  60. 60.

    Bupalos

    @PK exactly what I’m talking about. If NONE of the opposition can be converted do you know what that means?

  63. 63.

    Shalimar

    @Bupalos: It matters that even Republican-appointed judges join opinions against the administration. If Congress won’t push back against dictatorship, we’re dependent on the judiciary. If you see something as stupid, it might be because you’re the one missing something important.

  66. 66.

    BlueDWarrior

    @Mike J: top this end, there should be a speculative fiction about the US disintegrating into sundry city states with massive ‘liberal’ populations vs a large disaggregate, conservative rural amalgam.

    Like say if Jesusland of that old meme game was one country, dotted by a bunch of megalopoli that were the opposite.

  67. 67.

    Bupalos

    @Omnes Omnibus: all of it. All the disappearing. She was actually doing an awesome job, and it was helping.

    This is politics. I don’t care one bit whether she has a “right” or free will or any of that. She. Can’t. Help. And it scares me to think she might try.

  68. 68.

    Anne Laurie

    @Bupalos:

    Does anyone really think Clinton can help here?

    Yes, many millions of us do.

    This is a prime example of (hopefully unconscious, on your part!) political sexism: the idea that a woman who loses, for any reason, should immediately enter a nunnery and never be heard in public again. Because, she’s disgraced! Her ‘virginity’ is lost!

    I don’t think HRClinton will run for office again — certainly not for the presidency. But she’s got plenty to offer as a mentor, an advisor, and a cheerleader, hopefully for many years to come.

  73. 73.

    MomSense

    I can’t even remember what I had for dinner. All the shoveling of snow has now been undone by the wind.

  77. 77.

    PK

    If NONE of the opposition can be converted do you know what that means?

    Yeah. It means Democrats have to turn out their own voters. She lost by around 100,000 votes. Trump did not have an overwhelming victory here. She can tweet whatever she wants. You’re being ridiculous if you think her tweets are going to somehow prevent a Trump supporter from becoming a democratic voter, because such a phenomenon is not actually going to occur.

  78. 78.

    satby

    @Bupalos: you really need to fuck off, “friend”. Or at least make your peace with the first amendment.
    And your continued insistence on the subject marks you as a troll.

  79. 79.

    tobie

    @Bupalos: Funny, I feel that way about the junior senator from Vermont. Can’t he just shut up already? He did enough damage during the primaries, and his comments after the election were downright offensive.

  81. 81.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @PK:

    She lost by around 100,000 votes.

    In three states – some of which had stunningly restrictive voter ID laws.

  82. 82.

    Bupalos

    @Shalimar: YOU make a good point. In less than 140 characters, too. Funny, all she said was “3-0”. Like its a game we won. In the 1st quarter. I’m sorry, I think in context of what this decision is (a brief reprieve in an avalance of shit, some of which is killing people) and who she is (the politician that just got rejected in favor of a disabled baboon with an uzi) and above all what were taking about and counting on (judicial independence) its just more malpractice. IMO the less we hear the name clinton the better, the best invocation to me is in reminding e eryone that she was historically unpopular and yet trump still got 3MM votes than her.

    This whole thing goes double for Bernie and 10x for stein.

  83. 83.

    Felanius Kootea

    @Bupalos: I’m still a member of Pantsuit Nation and the 3.99 million members would like to tell you to fuck off or do something useful like buy Nordstrom stock, write letters to your Congressperson or send a postcard to Trump telling him what you disagree with him on. You know, useful stuff that doesn’t involve badmouthing the winner of the popular vote or trying to tell those who voted for her how to think. I certainly remember “President McCain” on all the talk shows after Barack won in ’08 and don’t recall you saying much about that. Don’t recall you period.

  84. 84.

    tobie

    I was with a group of immigrants tonight when word of the court’s ruling came through. They cheered and gave high-fives. Should I have told them they were being insensitive to the gravity of the situation, the hard road ahead, etc? Of course not…even small victories mean something to people feeling desperate. Your inability, if not refusal, to understand the tremendous relief folks feel tonight marks you as a concern troll.

  85. 85.

    Bupalos

    @Anne Laurie: not even gunna. How HOW did you decide this had to do with… virginity?

    Look people, I had a reaction. My reaction was that the politician we just lost…let me put this in your language… an UNFUCKING LOSABLE election with isn’t going to help us with chiming in with a gloat. I feel like her tweeting “3-0” on this is counterproductive. You maybe don’t. And fine JUST FUCKING SAY WHY YOU THINK SO AND TRY TO FUCKING CONVINCE SOMEONE INSTEAD OF FUCKING.

    I don’t know. I’m broken. The internet sucks.

  87. 87.

    Anne Laurie

    @tobie:

    I was with a group of immigrants tonight when word of the court’s ruling came through. They cheered and gave high-fives. Should I have told them they were being insensitive to the gravity of the situation, the hard road ahead, etc?

    Hell, the lead stories on the national TV news were all clips of happy-looking families hugging each other in airports — little kids with their moms, elderly ladies being embraced by ecstatic middle-aged men — plus voiceover clips of the President-Asterisk sounding like a cranky, nasty, impotent old man.

    As Cole said… Trump’s being cast as a losing LUZER who can’t win. Which is the only thing that might peel off some of his salt-of-the-earth supporters, who think this is all professional wrestling.

  88. 88.

    Yarrow

    @Bupalos: You know, sometimes the crappy stuff that’s happening gets to be too much and it gets really overwhelming. It could be possible that your strong reaction to that tweet is due to you feeling overwhelmed by the gravity of everything that has been happening since the inauguration. I think most people who aren’t supporters of the current president have felt that way at some point in the last few weeks and months. Sometimes it seems really dark and like there’s no way we can find a way out of it.

    If you’re feeling that way it might be a sign to step back and do some things to nourish yourself. Self-care is just as important as anything else you’re doing to fight what’s happening. Take care of yourself so you can fight another day.

  89. 89.

    efgoldman

    @dr. bloor:

    it makes zero sense on its face. She’s going to drive Trump nuts every time she surfaces and energize the base.

    And she will be a demon fund raiser for the next two cycles as well. Don’t EVER dismiss that as a factor.

  91. 91.

    efgoldman

    @satby:

    But despite our antipathy, no one is suggesting he has to shut up

    Well, I am, but I’m almost as old as he is, and twice as cranky.

  95. 95.

    Mart

    @Mike J: Mason Dixon split the Missouri during Civil War with brothers fighting each other on either side. Today STL and small parts of KC are Mason, rest of the state is Dixon.

  96. 96.

    Bupalos

    @Yarrow: I appreciate the thought. I am at a really low point and probably overstressed. It may be that I don’t want to hear anything from Clinton because she just reminds me of the loss. Maybe I’m not thinking straight.

  97. 97.

    Yarrow

    @Bupalos: It could be. You do sound like you’re at a low point. Sometimes taking a step back and focusing on other things for a bit is the best thing you can do. Take care of yourself.

  98. 98.

    Chet Murthy

    @Omnes Omnibus: Awwww, hells yeah, I fouhd it inspiring! -Anything- that twits Lord Dampnut is good. And especially from his nemesis, that Nasty Woman! Anything.

    OK.

    That said, it’s fair to say, that Hillary should be done with elective politics. Why? Not because she did a bad job (she didn’t). Not because she was corrupt (she isn’t — anymore than the run-of-the-mill presidential candidate). But because she’s got a TON of enemies on the right. I don’t like it, but it’s true.

    There -was- and -is- a vast right-wing conspiracy. And there -are- different rules for Clintons.

    I don’t know what this means for the Dems going forward. But I know one thing: if we ever get our nation back on a safe track, NO TURNING THE PAGE. These cretins need to be investigated, prosecuted, and jailed. B/c this wasn’t just “political differences”. And b/c if they aren’t taught what happens when you mess with democratic norms they WILL do it again.

    But should she be encouraging and mentoring younger (hopefully female) pols? YES. Should she be twitting Twitler as often as possible? Oh, ALL THE TIMES, Katie.

  99. 99.

    Chet Murthy

    @Bupalos: With respect, I disagree. The BIG danger is allowing Tangerine Twitler to calm down and pretend to be a decent human being. The longer this reign of error goes on , the tougher it gets to boot him out. Yeah, we’ll get Pence, but at LEAST we won’t get nuclear war or Putin running our country. It’s a PATRIOTIC DUTY to twit Dampnut every time anybody can. The more enraged he is, the more he shows the world that he needs to go.

    We need him so enraged that the Rs in congress start to worry about their families and whether their bomb shelters are stocked.

    B/c otherwise, four years from now, we’ll have no democracy left.

    She’s doing God’s The Goddess’ work, is Hillary.

  100. 100.

    Chet Murthy

    @Bupalos: Twitting Dampnut is not the same as impugning every R. Twitting Dampnut is about making Rs ashamed and also afraid, of supporting him (for the consequences to their families, states, country, and planet) if they continue. The more unhinged he is, the ealrlier, the likelier it is that they’ll pull the trigger and replace with Pence.

    And I hate Pence. But he’s still better than Twitler (and Bannonazi).

  101. 101.

    sam

    I think this is great, with one caveat (which I tweeted at Kander and didn’t get a response). It’s splashy to start a new group, but there are groups already on the ground that have been doing this work for years – in particular the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and their Election Protection arm, which was formed after the 2000 election and has been fighting various voter restriction laws in courts and helping inform voters of their rights and assist them with their ability to vote. (I’m biased, because I volunteer for them). It would be good to make sure that a splashy new group figures out how to coordinate WITH, rather than take resources away from an already existing group that’s been doing this work without a lot of…appreciation for the last several election cycles.

  102. 102.

    J R in WV

    @Steve in the ATL:

    I don’t use bread crumbs on the exterior of my crab cakes. I have a pound of crab just waiting to be made into cakes. Of course I use a little bit of bread crumbs in the crab cake mixture, along with minced celery and onion and a tad of garlic and some egg, to hold things together. Maybe a little smoked paprika too, instead of Old Bay mix.

    I have a new range, which has a convection bake setting, which I’m trying to learn how to use. So I think I’ll use that instead of frying the crab cakes, and perhaps use the cast iron tools to fry some oysters for an appetizer, what do you think about that? And sparkliing Prosecco wine to go with!

  103. 103.

    J R in WV

    @Bupalos:

    Virtually every word you utter is either a lie/falsehood or a serious error in your memory – I can’t tell which from here. I suspect deliberate falsehoods as others do I think you are a troll.

    yet trump still got 3MM votes than her.

    You really think Hillary lost the popular vote by 3 million votes? Because it WAS THE OTHER WAY AROUND YOU DOLT – she WON by 3 million votes!

    I see later in the thread you say you are having a bad time, so maybe not a troll. But the appeals court did rule against Trump, 3-0, and the trial court judge found that a restraining order was appropriate too, so really, 4-0. And that IS a very good thing, and totally appropriate for Hillary Clinton to be glad about that!

    I worked hard to elect Sec. Clinton, both by contributing on an automatic monthly contribution and by showing up to the local Hillary Campaign Office to do phone calls into Ohio. It was usually me, myself, and the young woman who volunteered to manage the office, keeping it open all day 7 days a week. Mostly just the two of us.

    I’ve started reading a ton of fiction and trying to keep busy around the house. Keeping plugged into politics 24-7 would be bad for me right now. But it’s really hard. The number of people that distrust Hillary Clinton is sad proof that The Big Lie really does work. Repeated for 30 years, a woman who goes to Methodist church every Sunday, demonized for service to her country and its children. That’s the only crime Hillary Clinton is associated with – the big lies told about her by Republicans AND SOME DEMOCRATS like you!

    I hope you turn your life around. Best of luck to you with that! But please, please give Hillary a break going forward!

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