Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

The willow is too close to the house.

They think we are photo bombing their nice little lives.

SCOTUS: It’s not “bribery” unless it comes from the Bribery region of France. Otherwise, it’s merely “sparkling malfeasance”.

You passed on an opportunity to be offended? What are you even doing here?

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

We cannot abandon the truth and remain a free nation.

Thanks to your bullshit, we are now under siege.

Many life forms that would benefit from greater intelligence, sadly, do not have it.

Nothing worth doing is easy.

Our messy unity will be our strength.

If you voted for Trump, you don’t get to speak about ethics, morals, or rule of law.

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

There are consequences to being an arrogant, sullen prick.

Technically true, but collectively nonsense

White supremacy is terrorism.

Come on, man.

Decision time: keep arguing about the last election, or try to win the next one?

This fight is for everything.

Let’s bury these fuckers at the polls 2 years from now.

You don’t get to peddle hatred on saturday and offer condolences on sunday.

Balloon Juice, where there is always someone who will say you’re doing it wrong.

The current Supreme Court is a dangerous, rogue court.

Books are my comfort food!

Giving in to doom is how authoritarians win.

You are here: Home / Economics / C.R.E.A.M. / Friday Morning Open Thread: What Fresh Hell Will It Be Today?…

Friday Morning Open Thread: What Fresh Hell Will It Be Today?…

by | 196 Comments

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Somebody is still bitter he can’t find Batman underoos in his size…
************

Apart from the inevitable Friday News Drop, what’s on the agenda for the day?

Possible flashpoints:

Reader Interactions

196Comments

  2. 2.

    raven

    After seeming like she was a goner three weeks ago my former boss has rallied in her fight with cancer. I’m going to go over to the ATL for a lunch with her and other colleagues.

  3. 3.

    zach

    Get the feeling all hell is going to break loose on Trump’s twitter today… no sign he’s will to listen to an attorney who will tell him that’s a bad idea.

    Q: Did Republicans during the Clinton impeachment proceedings use that as an excuse to stop all legislation, tie up appointments, etc? Too young to remember… wouldn’t be surprised at all if there were good examples of the doing that.

  5. 5.

    raven

    “The bravery of a homeowner put an end to a 3-day long manhunt, Fitzhugh said.
    As the inmates tried to escape police once again, they ran through a wooded area to a home on Pruitt Road, near the rural community of Christiana.
    “The homeowner was alerted somehow, he looked outside and saw the suspects trying to steal his vehicle,” Lt. Bill Miller from the Tennessee Highway Patrol said late Friday.

    He called his neighbor and both men, each armed with a gun, confronted the fugitives.
    Having lost their weapons in the crash, Dubose and Rowe surrendered, authorities said.
    “I can’t say enough about the bravery of the homeowner, and what they took on, the wherewithal to call us and give us the information so we could get over there and apprehend these two subjects,” Fitzhugh said”

  6. 6.

    Cermet

    @raven: First, glad your boss is doing better. As for the killers, the only reason they are alive – thanks to these two people. These two brave people very likely saved other innocent lives by capturing these cold blooded killers. First time in a long time personal guns were used for a constructive purpose.

  9. 9.

    Baud

    @Cermet: Given the number of guns out there, it is statistically impossible for them never go be used constructively.

  10. 10.

    Felonius Monk

    I see Steve (the cat, not Bannon) is in the doghouse again. Don’t you dare sell him, Cole.

  12. 12.

    Le Comte de Monte Cristo fka Edmund Dantes

    @raven:

    Interesting that they surrendered to a sure trip to the needle.

  19. 19.

    Patricia Kayden

    @raven: That’s some good news to end the week with. Wishing her continued health.

    @Baud: Hillary Clinton is evil, horrible, wicked, mean, etc., etc., etc. We’ve been hearing about the awfulness of the Clintons since I was in my 20s and I’m nearly middle aged. YAWN.

  20. 20.

    Amir Khalid

    What Fresh Hell Will It Be Today?

    My guess would be Cuba, i.e. Trump junking Obama’s policy of re-engagement. Meanwhile his Cabinet continues dismantling Obama-era regs meant to protect people, and a Republican Congress runs its own horror show.

  21. 21.

    Baud

    @Patricia Kayden: I knew I didn’t want to know.

    It’s funny to see all these young white dudes who think they’re avant garden when they’ve simply adopted the same culture as old white Republican baby boomers.

  22. 22.

    David ?Canadian Anchor Baby? Koch

    @Baud: I think Clinton said she likes the movie “Wonder Woman”. And he’s saying that it’s a betrayal to liberalism to like something that cost money to produce.

    Of course that makes no sense, liberals like infrastructure and that costs money. In fact the patron saint of liberalism is FDR and he was filthy rich and worked on Wall street before becoming governor.

    This is the result of Sanders decrying money, which is ridiculous cuz he’s a millionaire who uses tax shelters.

  23. 23.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @Baud: You probably have problems too, but in this case I was referring to the tweeter.

    In other news, LA police or Keystone Kops?

    Three teenagers in a program for those who may want to become officers stole three Los Angeles Police Department vehicles and went on patrol around the city before leading authorities on wild pursuits that ended with crashes, Chief Charlie Beck said.

    The trio — two boys and a girl ages 15, 16 and 17 — “gamed the system” and used a vacationing sergeant’s name to sign out stun guns and radios and drive the cars right out of a stationhouse parking lot, Beck said. Police are investigating whether the teens impersonated officers and pulled over drivers.

  25. 25.

    bystander

    I’m realizing that the Moanin’ Joe repub crowd is thrilled to be back on “both sides do it” after the loon took aim at the repubs on the ball diamond. Pelosi will have to take her most extreme reps to heel. Ted Nugent calls for civility.

    A welcome change from discussing the treasonous rot that infects the core of the repub party.

  27. 27.

    Patricia Kayden

    Remember when Trump claimed that if Hillary Clinton was elected, she would be under FBI investigation for many years culminating in criminal charges? Projection to the max because here we are with Trump being investigated by the FBI, along with many of his henchmen.

  29. 29.

    David ?Canadian Anchor Baby? Koch

    @Baud: yeah, without looking it up, and judging only by his the inference of his lameo attack, I guess the bronze statue was financed by either a hedge fund or someone who works at a hedge fund.

  31. 31.

    ?BillinGlendaleCA

    @Baud: I was confused about that Tweet too, I’m still confused.

    Anyway, the only thing missing is “Posted from my iPhone.”

    Cause we all know how Apple doesn’t like to make money, they give those fruity phones away.

  35. 35.

    Baud

    A headline today from the paper of record garbage.

    Secrecy Surrounding Senate Health Bill Raises Alarms in Both Parties

  39. 39.

    satby

    @raven: @Baud: But most law enforcement (in my experience) wouldn’t want that kind of help honestly… If the two convicts still had their weapons that story could have ended an entirely different way. The fantasy Dirty Harry that many gun owners see when they look in the mirror doesn’t need to be encouraged.

  48. 48.

    bystander

    Finally Joe has turned the discussion to how much Trump is like Bill Clinton. According to Joe, Clinton was the last big liar in the WH and Trump could turn it around if he did the revamp BC did. Forget that Clinton’s unpopularity was because he tried to give lesbians and gays the right to serve in the armed forces without persecution and he tried to devise a solution to the healthcare debacle. But that’s the same thing as colluding with a foreign government, violating the emoluments clause on an hourly basis, and actively trying to obstruct justice.

  49. 49.

    David ?Canadian Anchor Baby? Koch

    @OzarkHillbilly:

    Police are investigating whether the teens impersonated officers and pulled over drivers.

    Remember when Mittens used to do that

    “Laid out on his bed was a Michigan State Trooper’s uniform,” Mr Madden told US journalist Joe Conason. “He told us that he was using it to pull over drivers on the road. He also had a red flashing light that he would attach to the top of his white Rambler.”

    Mr Romney claimed to have been given the outfit by his father George Romney, then the Governor of Michigan, he said.

    “We thought it was all pretty weird. We all thought, ‘Wow, that’s pretty creepy.’ And after that, we didn’t have much interaction with him,”

  51. 51.

    Lapassionara

    Good morning, everyone.

    I find the Deputy AG’s statement ironic to the max, given that Trump benefitted from his voter’s lack of skepticism and their poor judgment about his “promises.” Remember, “trust me, I can fix this. We will be winning so much, you will get tired of winning”?

  53. 53.

    David ?Canadian Anchor Baby? Koch

    @different-church-lady: This! He wouldn’t said shit If Hillary had liked some Mark Walhberg movie. But movies with a strong female protagonist obviously makes him uncomfortable.

  54. 54.

    Immanentize

    What does Rosenstein’s press release even mean? That the DOJ never leaks? Untrue That foreign governments are making up fake news? Possible. That Trump ordered Sessions to Order Rosenstein to do something about “fake news?”. Likely.

    We will know when Trump mentions the release in a tweet or in his Cuba presser.

    PS. On Cuba — I hate Bob Menendez.

  55. 55.

    Patricia Kayden

    @bystander: I don’t recall Russian hackers compromising our democracy under President Clinton but that’s just me. President Clinton, despite his personal failings, was an excellent President (I would put him as second to President Obama, who is my personal favorite).

    Trump is a disaster. No way can he turn around his failing presidency. Trump won’t even admit that Russia tried to interfere with our election. How can he possibly turn things around when he won’t admit the obvious?

  56. 56.

    germy

    andrew kaczynski ?‏Verified account
    @KFILE

    the modern Democratic Party is a Hillary Clinton RT for an ad for a $150 million movie on top of an ad for a hedge fund.

    I liked this response to kaczynski’s tweet:

    Morticia Dahling‏ @GomezReporting 17h17 hours ago

    Look at the wealthy, white, male CNN employee mansplaining Hillary Clinton, the defiant girl and Wonder Woman all in one post.

  57. 57.

    Kay

    DeVos is holding a “fathers and families event” (Father’s Day). They invited The Family Research Council, a group that is so far Right DeVos went to great lengths to distance herself from them at her confirmation hearing. The invitation to the Family Research Council caused the national PTA to back out because the Family Research Council promotes “conversion therapy” and the national PTA’s position is that conversion therapy has no scientific basis and is harmful to students. The national PTA is decidedly “mainstream” partly because it’s HUGE and it has elected governance. The PTA would have been by far the largest group as far as members among those attending.

    President Obama’s Surgeon General Vivek Murthy publicly stated that “‘conversion therapy’ is not sound medical practice” and that such programs “are harmful and are not appropriate therapeutic practices.”

  59. 59.

    Baud

    @germy: E
    Wait, that guy works for CNN??? Why are they allowing him to tweet such things? Didn’t they fire some guy for calling Trump a piece of shit?

  60. 60.

    randy khan

    My cynical mind wonders if the Rosenstein statement actually is an attempt to deflect people who might be wondering if he’s leaking information. It wouldn’t be the first time somebody did that.

  65. 65.

    Hal

    I was listening to Dahlia Litwick’s Amicus podcast recently where she was talking with Leon Neyfakh about Rod Rosenstein as one of those professionals who is always seemingly above politics. Reading Neyfakh’s Slate article on the same subject, this really sticks out for me:

    slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/jurisprudence/2017/05/rod_rosenstein_is_being_used.html

    Rosenstein was exactly the mouthpiece Trump needed to make it end. Trustworthy, not known for being loyal to Team Trump, and utterly convinced that Comey actually did deserve to get fired.

    Michael Vatis, who served in the office of the deputy attorney general from 1994 to 1998 and is now a partner at Steptoe & Johnson, pointed out on Tuesday night that there was a “very weird but very strong parallel” between Rosenstein and the man he just urged the attorney general and the president to terminate. Just as Comey faced nothing but bad options during the election in his quest to prevent the FBI from becoming involved in politics, Rosenstein now appears to be stuck between his convictions and the reality of how this all looks. “Both did what they think was the right thing, so convinced of their righteousness that they failed to see that they were being used for purely political ends,” Vatis told me in an email. “Or they saw it but decided they didn’t care, since their own motives were pure and the only thing that mattered was the principle they thought they were defending.”

  67. 67.

    satby

    Well, you all have a lovely day. I’m getting off my lazy ass and dragging myself and my soaps to the farmers market. Got everything in my yard planted in time for most of the rain, including a last minute Japanese maple, now I get to sit back and watch it grow. The best part of gardening!

  68. 68.

    germy

    Trump lashes out at ‘bad,’ ‘conflicted’ Russia investigators

    I was wondering what he meant by “conflicted” but now I think I understand: he means the investigators have conflicts of interest?

    Investigate the investigators!

  69. 69.

    Chyron HR

    The modern Republican party is a mentally incompetent white nationalist sex offender stammering “I didn’t do it, nobody saw me do it, you can’t prove anything!”

    But, sure, that retweet is really bad and stuff also too I guess.

  71. 71.

    Hal

    Speaking of Wonder Woman, I haven’t seen the movie yet, but I did see the no man’s land scene (someone uploaded a bad recording to youtube) and it gave me chills, grainy video an all. I hate going to the movies, but I might have to make an exception for this one. But I might just save it for home viewing since the movie is supposed to come out in August.

  72. 72.

    Bobby Thomson

    Good lord. Is Rosenstein being that clumsy to signal that Trump asked him to “get out there” that he “personally isn’t under investigation” in probably exactly the same heavy handed approach he used on Comey? Or is he just a lot more stupid and lacking in political survival skills than I assumed?

  73. 73.

    Weaselone

    @satby:

    This is not technically correct. The statue was commissioned by State Street Global Advisors (an asset management firm) to promote SHE (an ETF) and women in positions of corporate leadership.

  74. 74.

    Cheryl Rofer

    Speculation on the Rosenstein statement includes

    1) Something seriously bad for Trump is coming from one of our intelligence allies.
    2) Trump wanted him to agree with Trump’s earlier tweets and this is the minimum damage Rosenstein felt he could do.
    3) The pee tape will be released today.

  75. 75.

    germy

    Trump Puts Event Planner in Charge of New York and New Jersey’s Housing Programs

    The New York Daily News reports that Lynne Patton has been appointed to lead the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Region II, which covers New York and New Jersey. Like HUD secretary Ben Carson, Patton has no experience in housing policy. She does, however, have a lot of experience working for the Trump family.

    According to her Linkedin profile, Patton got her start at the Trump Organization in 2009, planning “upscale events and celebrity golf tournaments.” She was then promoted to “senior assistant” to Donald Jr., Ivanka, and Eric, with responsibilities such as “serving as primary family liaison & handling all calendar appointments, scheduling, media appearances, travel, expenses, purchases, event coordination, contact/engagements, as well as home & business responsibilities.” (She also did Eric’s 2014 wedding.)

  77. 77.

    Weaselone

    @Chyron HR:
    The Democratic Party is a coalition party. Part of that coalition is indeed Wall Street and Hollywood people that have or at least feign interest in social justice issues. Or, you know just think that competent governance is more important to their bottom lines than tax cuts.

  79. 79.

    Bobby Thomson

    @JPL: Measured.

    God, Rosenstein is such a weasel. He’ll find a way to fire Mueller when he’s asked as easily as that great “textualist” Scalia always found a way to ignore the text of provisions he didn’t like.

  81. 81.

    Iowa Old Lady

    I’m going to 4th Street Fantasy convention in Minneapolis today and the rest of the weekend. JMN (Tissue Thin Pseudonym) will be there too. We’ll have our own little mini BJ meetup.

  83. 83.

    Kay

    @satby:

    DeVos is one of the eternally victimized conservatives. She often begins speeches with a line about how unfairly she has been treated. She’ll portray it as some kind of affront but the fact is she was asked about this at her confirmation hearing and she distanced herself from this group. Her family has some kind of wingnut grift foundation that donated to the FRC and DeVos was listed as an officer on tax filings. She said this was an “error” which was an obvious lie:

    DeVos, clearly prepared for such questions, assured the committee that she has nothing to do with the contributions made by her mother’s foundation, the Prince Foundation (formerly known as the Edgar and Elsa Prince Foundation). DeVos said that her immediate family — presumably meaning her husband and children — had nothing to do with the financing of anti-gay causes and groups and that she has never supported “conversion therapy” for gay people.

    When I heard that, I pulled up the 990 tax documents of the Prince Foundation, which I investigated for my book “Blackwater.” Betsy DeVos was clearly listed as a vice president of the foundation’s board, along with her brother Erik, for many years, at least until 2014. DeVos was a vice president during the precise period Hassan was referring to

    Vice President. On a tax form. She lied about it- easily and without even seeming to care. Hassan was good at questioning DeVos. She has a low key style that is really effective with conservatives who are convinced they are victims and can’t be questioned because that’s a “free speech” violation under the Confederate States of America constitution, or something.

  86. 86.

    germy

    Caroline O.‏ @RVAwonk 10h10 hours ago

    Newest addition to Mueller’s team: Trial attorney Lisa Page, who specializes in money laundering & organized crime

  90. 90.

    Citizen_X

    @Chyron HR:

    But, sure, that retweet is really bad and stuff also too I guess.

    And, it singlehandedly defines the Democratic Party. Quite a feat for a casual RT, eh?

  94. 94.

    Weaselone

    @Kay:
    Her schtick should be as obvious to anyone from the Midwest as Trump’s was to people from urban areas of the Northeast.

  97. 97.

    Cheryl Rofer

    The morning’s whining has begun.

    After 7 months of investigations & committee hearings about my “collusion with the Russians,” nobody has been able to show any proof. Sad!

    I make a practice of not linking to Trump’s tweets. I either screenshot them or copy the text. I don’t want to give him the stats, even though I am only one. I don’t follow him either.

  100. 100.

    Morzer

    @Cheryl Rofer:

    Could this be history’s first recorded case of attempted seppuku by Maine Coon? Has Cole’s attempt at domesticity finally tipped him over the edge? Should we stage an intervention – and if so, who has the suit of plate armor handy?

  101. 101.

    rikyrah

    @Hal:
    Story about that scene:
    “The suits” at the studio didn’t “get” that scene. They didn’t understand why it was needed. The female director insisted that the scene stay-believing that this was the scene that turned Diana into Wonder Woman.
    The director was right.?

  102. 102.

    Another Scott

    @David ?Canadian Anchor Baby? Koch: I see that Wilmer finally filed his 2016 annual financial report (on June 4).

    It’s here. I haven’t had time to read it yet.

    [ Names substituted to foil the trolls. ]

    Here’s a story about it:

    Wilmer made more than $858,000 in royalties for two new books last year, according to the 2016 financial disclosure the senator quietly filed on Sunday.

    […]

    Most of that money, $795,000, comes from Our Revolution: A Future To Believe In, a book Wilmer wrote for St. Martin’s Press. Published on Nov. 15, the book included Wilmer’s account of the 2016 election. Hardcover copies sold for $27—the average amount contributed to Wilmer’s presidential campaign.

    Wilmer also made 14 stops on a book tour to promote Our Revolution, receiving reimbursement from the publisher for airfare, ground transportation, lodging and meals, the financial disclosure says.

    In addition, Wilmer received $63,750 in royalties for a book that hasn’t yet hit the shelves: The Wilmer Guide to Political Revolution. The book seeks to help its teenage audience “learn more about progressive causes and how to mobilize around key issues they care about,” Teen Vogue recently wrote. Its publication date is Aug. 29, 2017.

    […]

    The financial disclosure also shows that Wilmer and his wife, Mrs. Wilmer, created a trust fund, Islands Family Trust, when they bought a $600,000, four-bedroom summer home in Vermont last August. The property includes 500 feet of shorefront access to Lake Champlain.

    […]

    FWIW.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  104. 104.

    Baud

    Interesting if true

    Russia’s Ministry of Defense says it is investigating whether Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the ISIS leader, was killed in a Russian airstrike near Raqqa, Syria, on May 28.

  106. 106.

    Betty Cracker

    Speaking of pets, I had a dream last night that someone in my family had ordered a retriever puppy to be delivered to my house. In the dream, I was waiting for it to be delivered with great anticipation, even though I disapproved of ordering a dog as if it were a package of coffee pods. I woke up before the delivery came and was disappointed not to get a chance to find out what kind of puppy it was and play with it!

  110. 110.

    Aleta

    @Lapassionara:

    Brad Heath @bradheath
    DOJ routinely relies on anonymous allegations as a basis to knock down doors and search people’s houses.

  111. 111.

    Kay

    @Weaselone:

    I have to say, no one even pretended to buy DeVos. She’s been a far Right GOP operative for 30 years. She was barely confirmed which is unheard of for Secretary of Education. It was gratifying because it’s all true 1. she is a far Right political operative and everyone knows it and 2. she’s absolutely unqualified for that job.

    It’s particularly insulting because a big part of her job is cheerleading for “merit”- she has to go around the country and tell 17 year olds that if they work hard and rise through the ranks they can succeed. That the game ISN’T rigged. They have to believe that! It’s the belief they have to accept or they won’t bother trying. That rule does not and has never applied to her. It’s important to be CREDIBLE. This complete abandonment of even attempting to have SOME connection between what one says and what one does is really fucking disturbing and damaging .

    One of the scolding lectures she delivers is on how young people have to constantly re-train. They have to “upskill” and “stay nimble” and always be learning and adding “skill sets”. She did none of this. She has a 40 year old bachelors degree and no relevant work experience, yet she was promoted to this job. You can’t do this to people. You can’t tell them to do difficult things that you don’t do. It’s just bullshit. Words.

  112. 112.

    D58826

    Saw something on Tweeter about a stabbing(s) near Parliament in London. But no details

    Also saw that Ted Nugent has seen the light. In a statement he said he will tone down his rhetoric and challenges the left to follow his responsible example. He did not apologize for any of his previous statements. (sigh)

  113. 113.

    germy

    @rikyrah:

    I read that and pursed the lips.

    At the same time, she served as vice-president of the Eric Trump Foundation, mostly handling fundraising and charity events. The foundation is now under investigation for allegedly funneling money raised at those events to the Trump Organization.

    In 2015, Patton became a “senior advisor and family liaison” on President Trump’s campaign, a role that included making a video denying that Trump is a bigot. After his inauguration, Trump made her HUD’s White House liaison.

  114. 114.

    Cheryl Rofer

    @rikyrah: I lean toward the explanation that Trump is raging and insisted Rosenstein put out a statement. It’s possible that was provoked by WaPo or NYT checking a story before they publish it today, but there seems to be enough stimulus out there to Trump’s fragile ego.

    Also: My kittehs like their food at 5 am too, but I usually wake up at 5, and they are polite enough not to start meowing until somewhat after 5. The other day it was 5:25, very late for me.

    And: We are having forest fires in New Mexico, so I had to close up the entire house last night. Still smoky out there.

  118. 118.

    D58826

    So the D’s won the ball game last night and promptly gave to Trophy to the R’s to go into Scalise’s office. Nice touch.

    I just wonder if the party of Cruz, Gohmert, Brooks, Collins, and Steve King et. al. would have done the same thing if the situation had been reversed.

    I guess to ask the question is to suspect the answer.

  120. 120.

    Another Scott

    @David ?Canadian Anchor Baby? Koch: Yup.

    Almost immediately the “brave girl” statue was decried as a publicity stunt by critics of the hedge fund that paid for it. “If they’re so worried about girls and women being empowered, why don’t they themselves have more women in the C-Suite? And what about women actually striking on IWD?” is the kind of thing I heard at the time. E.g..

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  122. 122.

    D58826

    @Quinerly: Well I guess there are a few Goopers that may not have totally sold out. Will have to see if it is a real investigation or just a way to relieve the pressure and then slow walk it to death.

  123. 123.

    liberal

    @Kay:

    They have to “upskill” and “stay nimble” and always be learning and adding “skill sets”.

    Yep. If only everyone learned JavaScript, unemployment and hunger would end.

  124. 124.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @Cheryl Rofer: Our cat doesn’t meow for her food until I start to get the Woofmiester his morning meal. Then she won’t stop until her bowl hits the countertop.

  126. 126.

    D58826

    @rikyrah: Tape or no tape he has bragged about walking into the dressing room of the Miss Teenage pageant unannounced. Imagine if a D did that.

  129. 129.

    Quinerly

    @D58826:
    I try to be hopeful. Only way that I can take the daily onslaught. Can’t survive being angry all the time. Takes a toll.

  130. 130.

    liberal

    @Weaselone:

    Part of that coalition is indeed Wall Street and Hollywood people that have or at least feign interest in social justice issues.

    Yawn. The problem isn’t a claimed interest in social justice issues. The problem is no interest in real economic reform (yes, of course they’re better than the Republicans). Let’s see when the party gets behind a transaction tax on Wall St. and getting rid of the preferential treatment of capital gains.

  132. 132.

    Betty Cracker

    @Kay: Same thing with Ivanka’s “apprenticeship” shtick. I read some blurb yesterday about her and Trump holding forth in Wisconsin on “the dignity that comes with hard work.” There aren’t two people on the entire planet less qualified to lecture others on that topic. You’re right — such bald-faced hypocrisy breeds cynicism. How can it not?

    @D58826: Steve M at No More Mr Nice Blog has a write-up about Nugent’s so-called change of heart. Basically, he’s a chickenshit. He’s allegedly contracting SEALs and Green Berets to provide security at his upcoming concerts because he’s afraid a deranged Bernie Bro is going to plug him mid-regurgitation of some dumbass song that was already stale by 1985.

  134. 134.

    Chris

    @Patricia Kayden:

    @Baud: Hillary Clinton is evil, horrible, wicked, mean, etc., etc., etc. We’ve been hearing about the awfulness of the Clintons since I was in my 20s and I’m nearly middle aged. YAWN.

    I was like ten at the time of the Lewinsky scandal. Which is how I remember one of my first political opinions being “who the fuck cares?”

  135. 135.

    Betty Cracker

    @liberal:

    Let’s see when the party gets behind a transaction tax on Wall St. and getting rid of the preferential treatment of capital gains.

    Both were part of the 2016 Democratic Party platform.

  136. 136.

    D58826

    @Betty Cracker:

    he’s afraid a deranged Bernie Bro is going to plug him

    Well I hope it doesn’t happen. The Bernie Bro should spend the money on buying ammo for something useful like a food bank.

  138. 138.

    tobie

    @OzarkHillbilly: Caught the reference with the Ezekiel quote! Loved the scene where Julius explains he used that quote before popping a guy’s head off because it sounded good.

  139. 139.

    Betty Cracker

    @D58826: Agreed. Nugent is a truly awful human being, but he should be free to play terrible music and spew hateful and/or stupid bullshit in peace. I’d rather see him fade into long-overdue irrelevance than become a martyr for the wingnut cause.

  141. 141.

    D58826

    @Betty Cracker: I was listening to a couple of progressive guests on Chris Hayes last night. They were arguing that the reason the D’s lost in 2016 was it was a change election (maybe true) and people were looking for a progressive agenda rather than the status que offered by Hillary. Now the platform that Hillary ran on, the policy positions that she talked about were all progressive. Bernie could have run on most of them.
    Now if the electorate voted against Hillary (at least in the EC) because they thought that the R’s AND Trump would offer up a positive change as opposed to Hillary they deserve what they get. But her e-mails and the fact that she was under FBI investigation drowned out the entire message. Funny how the only FBI investigations that have to remain secret are the ones affecting R’s.

    Now in one sense the voters are getting the change they wanted. What they forgot was change can move in a positive direction or a negative one. And the change that the R’s have been pushing since 1980 is in the direction oft he 17th century.

  142. 142.

    Amir Khalid

    @Cheryl Rofer:
    Having been a cat’s subordinate human all these years, John Cole should be aware that it’s not his place to question Steve’s expectations. When Bianca wakes me up in the middle of the night because she wants to be let out of the bedroom, I don’t argue. I just do it.

  143. 143.

    Baud

    @D58826: That doesn’t make sense since she won the popular vote and would have won the electoral college with Russian and Comey meddling.

  144. 144.

    Chyron HR

    @Betty Cracker:

    But Democrats only do progressive things because they’re politically popular, they don’t BELIEVE in them the way the senator from Vermont does.

  145. 145.

    Aleta

    The old power is finally seeing, or remembering, the importance of movement building for an electoral strategy. The new power is seeing the importance of an electoral strategy for movement building. This transition to a non-binary singularity is critical for democracy to survive Hair Trump. One need look no further than the fact that though 750,000 turned out to march in Los Angeles only 14 percent of voters turned out in the LA mayoral race a few weeks later.
    …
    In the long-haul of the resistance, I’ve heard many conversations about the importance of self-care. Voting equals self-care.
    -Kate Clinton in the Blade

  148. 148.

    Betty Cracker

    @D58826: My take is that there were so many factors that contributed to the 2016 catastrophe that no one thing can be identified as the definitive cause. There was voter suppression. There was the fact that the Democrats had held the White House for eight years. There was sexism. There was the fact that Trump explicitly ran a white identity politics campaign in a time of heightened racial tensions. There was the 25-year character assassination campaign against Clinton. The unprecedented influence of a foreign power. The outrageous decision by Comey to insert himself into the race in the final days. I could go on.

    But one thing that drives me nuts is the post-election finger-wagging about neo-liberalism dooming the party in 2016. The Democrats ran on the most progressive platform in party history in 2016. That’s just a goddamned fact. We can argue about strategies to get the message out more effectively, finding standard-bearers with more mavericky images, etc. — all worthy of discussion. But anyone who claims the 2016 party platform was a DLC product is either lying or misinformed.

  149. 149.

    D58826

    @Baud: Well I agree that what they were saying didn’t make sense but they are PROGRESSIVES. What also wasn’t mentioned last night was that most of the candidates that Bernie has supported have lost, including the big loss in VA. last week. And at the moment the decidedly UN-Bernie in GA-06 looks like he might pull out a win.

    I know I sound like a broken record on this, but most of the country is not waiting with baited breath for the Bernie Progressive train to pull into town. Outside of VT and maybe MA there are few places that Bernie could win a statewide election. It doesn’t mean that the country at large doesn’t support many of his ideas however illogical that may sound. You can probably sell an increase in the minimum wage in most of the country but just not wrapped in the banner of a liberal democrat or socialist. The opinion polls continue to show that even in red states the D’ platform ideas are very popular. But for some reason the party can’t find candidates that can sell those ideas in terms that a red stater will vote for. THat make sense?

  150. 150.

    Morzer

    @Betty Cracker:

    One problem seems to have been that Clinton spent more time talking about Trump and blasting him with campaign commercials than anything else. It’s possible that people might have liked her better, if she had spent more time talking about her platform rather than her opponent.

  151. 151.

    ThresherK

    @Baud: Well, considering the NeverTrumpers were R’s who wanted to be the first rat away from the ship, to look good for 2020, we got a compiant media who treated Trump like the Tea Party: Someone new and different, the aberration rather than the distillation, of the party whose ticket he ran on.

    And if I had a dollar for every Wilmerite I heard echo Ted Cruz’ full-throated convention endorsement of Trump voting yer conscience, I could spring for the next Juicers’ meetup.

  152. 152.

    Baud

    @D58826: All I ask for is real analysis, not personal political opinion dressed up as analysis. Objectively speaking, why is the progressive analysis more persuasive than the centrist analysis that the Dems lose because they moved too far to the left too quickly? Other than groupthink and personal preference, I don’t have an answer to that question.

  153. 153.

    D58826

    @Betty Cracker: Yep it was a perfect storm. The analogy that I use is an airplane crash. Other than MH17 which was shot down or German air which was crashed into a hill side by the pilot, air crashes today are the result of a chain of events, often very small events. Pull one of those events out of the chain and the plane doesn’t crash. Change one ofthose negative factors to a positive one in 2016 and Hillary is POTUS

  154. 154.

    Morzer

    @D58826:

    Outside of VT and maybe MA there are few places that Bernie could win a statewide election.

    Unfortunately, in large swathes of the country that’s been true for any and all Democrats you care to name over the last decade. I don’t think Bernie is the future, but I also don’t see much appetite among the yearning masses for whatever Clintonism might be either. If the Democrats are going to revive, they need something new and punchy that isn’t reducible to NOT TRUMP!

  155. 155.

    Amir Khalid

    @Betty Cracker:
    The Nooge faded into irrelevance as musician a long time ago. When did anyone last hear about him dropping a new song, let alone a new album? He’s only been in the news as a nasty right-wing kook. The guy he ripped off, Chuck Berry (God rest him), has a new album out.

  156. 156.

    O. Felix Culpa

    I’m late to the morning thread as usual (Mountain Time plus catching up on all the comments = dead thread), but you will be SURPRISED to know that the Trump Administration and Sessions DOJ are quietly rolling back civil rights efforts.

    All of the internal changes at the DOJ have left attorneys and staff with “a great deal of fear and uncertainty,” said Yeomans. While he says the lawyers there would like to stay at the department, they fear Sessions’ priorities will have devastating impact on their work.

  157. 157.

    Laura

    @rikyrah: Underage girls have been his “THING” since forever.
    In 1999, the younger roadie brother was tour managing a then 15 year old Christina Aguilera and she was booked to perform at Miss Universe in Branson. While in her trailer changing (not dressed), 2 Security Moes and the Donald approached and one Moe began explaining that Trump needed to go inside and meet her.
    Brother’s bullshit meter engaged and demanded to know why an old man needed to be in the dressing room of a child while she was changing. A bit of back and forth until brother declared that he did give a fk what fkg Trump wanted and if they didn’t leave he was calling the cops to arrest the lot of them. The three scuttled away. Trump never said a word.
    Shortly thereafter she performed at the Whitehouse Holiday party and brother had his picture taken with then FLOTUS Hillary Clinton.
    It IS who Trump is -an entitled douchenozzle with a raging case of underage pussy fever.

  158. 158.

    Quinerly

    OT: Funny story. I post a lot of container gardening pictures to the Book of Faces and another site. Tag friends asking if they want baby cactus, succulent clippings, other clippings to root. (Things are getting out of hand here.?) Very hearty sun coleus this year. I have typed “Comey” so much that now when I type “coleus” autocorrect changes it to “Comey” everytime. Gardening friends were wondering was “sun Comey’s” were. Yes, autocorrect is adding the apostrophe s. My morning smile. Taking it as a good sign.?

  159. 159.

    rikyrah

    @Betty Cracker:

    My take is that there were so many factors that contributed to the 2016 catastrophe that no one thing can be identified as the definitive cause. There was voter suppression.

    I will say this again….

    The amount of voters denied the franchise due to voter suppression…

    was at least 2-3 times the ‘ margin’ of victory in those states…..

    Without the voter suppression…

    Hillary would have won.

    Period.

  160. 160.

    D58826

    @Morzer: didn’t matter what she said.
    1. E_MAILS
    2. Trump speeches carried live and in their entirety because he was short on boring policy and long on a cage match.
    3. Hillary’s speeches were shown in a cut and paste manner, and mostly the Trump parts, because the policy parts were ratings killers.

    I’m not saying she was perfect but she still ran up 3 million more votes than Trump. She still received more votes than any previous white male candidate. In any other western democracy she would be living in the WH and the country would be treated to the hilarious sight of first dude Bill picking out china and floral arrangements for the state dinners. That would have been worth risking voter fraud and voting for Hillary twice on Nov. 8th.

  161. 161.

    WaterGirl

    @Cheryl Rofer: I may need to send Cole Rules for the Cat so he can put it up on his fridge:

    Rules for the Cat

    The cat is not allowed on the furniture.

    Alright, the cat can go on the furniture, but NOT the kitchen counter.

    OK, the cat can go on the kitchen counter too, just now when I’m preparing food. Deal?

    Fine… The cat can go wherever it wants, whenever it wants, as long as he doesn’t swat me in the fact at 5:30 in the morning demanding to be fed.

    The cat will be fed at 5:30 in the morning.

  163. 163.

    Chris

    @Kay:

    DeVos is one of the eternally victimized conservatives.

    I’ve never met a conservative who didn’t have this mindset.

  164. 164.

    But her emals!!!

    @Morzer:

    Given that Clintonism is the the most progressive platform ever run on by a Democratic candidate, what do you think this would look like? As was demonstrated by the esteemed commenter Liberal above, people appear to object to Clintonism for not including what it actually does include or Hillary for not campaigning on things she actual campaigned on.

  168. 168.

    Chris

    @Immanentize:

    We’re Schrodinger’s liberals. Simultaneously weak-kneed limp-wristed effete pansies who would faint at the first sight of blood, and bloodthirsty mass-murdering street thug terrorists who are going to burn down the republic.

  169. 169.

    ? ?? Goku (aka Junior G-Man) ? ?

    @Chris: War Is Peace, Freedom is Slavery, and Ignorance is Strength.

    That phrase could describe the modern GOP platform to a T. Inherant contradictions and all.

    Cognitive dissonance is a liebral concept

  170. 170.

    Immanentize

    @Morzer: I don’t believe that is factually true. She talked about policies everywhere she went and had dozens of policy specific events. And, the ads I remember from her campaign were positive and policy based (some policy lite for sure). And in the debates she always tried to do policy first What notable anti-Trump ad did Hillary run?

  172. 172.

    Chris

    @? ?? Goku (aka Junior G-Man) ? ?:

    The rise of the teabaggers eight years ago made me start reading about totalitarianism again (discovered Hannah Arendt during that time). Old Orwell is definitely as relevant as ever, especially the concept of doublethink which the entirety of movement conservatism embodies.

  175. 175.

    D58826

    @Baud@Morzer: : I think we are talking about the ‘whatever happened to Kansas’ or Hillary’s deplorables problem.
    I would like to think that most of the country is not hardcore racist/homophobic/etc. Those folks are not reachable in any imaginable D platform/policy agenda. The R’s have them locked up and are more than entitled to them. It is the other, and I hope larger, group of people that the D’s have to roach. The progressive purity pony has to be put out to pasture. The D’s have to pick candidates who can walk the walk and talk they talk of THEIR district, not Liz Warrens. They will break with party orthodoxy on occasion but they will help put Nancy back in the speakers chair. They are called blue dog democrats. Somehow the D’s have to convinced these folks that it is not 1950 and that Mayberry didn’t really exist even in 1950. African Americans and illegal Mexicans are not responsible for that company in Indiana moving to Mexico. It is corporate greed. Trans folks are not trying to sneak into the ladies room to take up skirt photos of their pre-teen daughters. The D’s have to have a message that tells these folks that their way of life is good and honorable but it is disappearing, not because of anything they did, but because the world is changing. The farm based world of the 1880’s changed to the industrial world of the 1900’s. Obviously the new jobs were still in the US and it was relatively easy to get home to see/support the family. The D’s have to come up with a way to help those who want to leave get the skills to compete in the new economy. AND, just as importantly, they have to find ways to help those who want to stay home live a good productive life. In spite of what some ‘experts’ say about following the jobs that isn’t easy or often practical. For The people in those WVA coal towns that is HOME. They may have family obligations to met that prevent them from leaving. And even if you retrained every last one and they were all willing to move – who will buy the houses. The home is the largest asset that most folks, in the hills of West Va. or the San Fernando valley of Calif. have. None of this is easy.

    From personal experience I know. I have a 21st century skill – programmer. As the result of a bank merger it was the good news is you have a job but the bad news is it isn’t in Philly. Due to my wife’s heath issues, time vested in the bank, and the financial package it was no brainer to move to Charlotte. BUT Charlotte, nice as the city is, is NOT home. It is simply a high p[riced motel room. Home is the Phillies, the IGGLEs and rwal Philly cheese steaks.

  176. 176.

    D58826

    @Immanentize: I agree but it doesn’t fit the narratives that Hillary was the worst possible candidate in all respects and she should now just go back into the woods and shut up. because we don’t have e-mails to talk about anymore

  178. 178.

    Kay

    @Betty Cracker:

    Same thing with Ivanka’s “apprenticeship” shtick.

    Apprenticeships that are partially or wholly federally funded are regulated by the federal government, thru the Dept of Labor. It’s important they be regulated because there have to be quality standards. “Apprenticeship” is just a word. It’s not like “MD”- it doesn’t mean anything without standards.

    What Ivanka did was take them out of the Labor Dept and give the funding directly to the groups that manage or create apprenticeships. What will happen is the word won’t mean anything, and so the apprentice loses the value of the credential.

    I told you they’d discredit apprenticeships, and they are. The whole point of the thing is employers don’t have to delve into details and judge quality. The standards ensure value. Without the standards it’s just a bullshit credential that may or may not have value. That matters because the APPRENTICE is investing years of his or her life in this- many of them are five years long.

    This IS NOT the German model. It’s a low quality imitation of the German model, put together by a low quality nepotism hire.

    You could weep, right? The people who earned NOTHING are creating programs for people who have to earn EVERYTHING and the result is predictable- cheap garbage.

  179. 179.

    D58826

    @D58826: And just to add one more point, the D’s have to be able to consistently win the votes of the somewhat racists who voted for the black guy with the MOOSLIM sounding name. Or the somewhat sexist men who have voted for Liz or Tammy Duckworth. Or the still uncomfortable with gay marriage who voted for Tammy Baldwin in Wisc. And not to put to fine a point on it the progressive/Bernie supported Russ Feingold lost in 2016.

  180. 180.

    O. Felix Culpa

    @rikyrah:

    That’s the whole point of keeping Attorney General White Citizens Council.

    I know. Sigh. Shameful. To follow your lead: Purses lips.

  181. 181.

    ? ?? Goku (aka Junior G-Man) ? ?

    @Kay: What the fuck business Does Ivanka have doing that? What’s her qualifications? This is all because Trump is too paranoid to hire anyone outside the family/Trump Organization

  182. 182.

    D58826

    @Kay:

    That matters because the APPRENTICE is investing years of his or her life in this- many of them are five years long.

    sound like what is being proposed is a different version of Trump U or the rip-off private colleges.

  183. 183.

    SFAW

    And, for all you literati (or whatever):

    Happy Bloomsday!

    Introibo ad altare Dei, baby!

  184. 184.

    rikyrah

    @Kay:

    I told you they’d discredit apprenticeships, and they are. The whole point of the thing is employers don’t have to delve into details and judge quality. The standards ensure value. Without the standards it’s just a bullshit credential that may or may not have value. That matters because the APPRENTICE is investing years of his or her life in this- many of them are five years long.

    This IS NOT the German model. It’s a low quality imitation of the German model, put together by a low quality nepotism hire.

    You could weep, right? The people who earned NOTHING are creating programs for people who have to earn EVERYTHING and the result is predictable- cheap garbage.

    Keep on telling the truth, Kay.

  186. 186.

    the Conster, la Citoyenne

    @liberal:

    This is rich. Only Wilmer of all of the Dems has the best interests of Obama’s Iran deal at heart – the same guy who wanted to primary him, erased him from all mention of great Democratic accomplishments, and used Cornel West to reach out to Obama’s coalition. You cultists shame pretzels with your logic.

  188. 188.

    SFAW

    @O. Felix Culpa:

    Celebrate by eating with relish the inner organs of beasts and fowl.

    What kind of relish? Peach? Mango? Beer? I normally use pickle relish on hot dogs, sometimes on turkey sandwiches..

  193. 193.

    different-church-lady

    @Aleta: approx. 3.976 million x .14 = approx 550,000. Consider that many of the 750, 000 who marched probably did not live in Los Angeles itself and you end up with numbers that are not as disparate as the prose would lead one to believe.

    The problem isn’t that there was a falling off, or that people didn’t care about a local issue. The problem is how few people care in the first place.

  194. 194.

    J R in WV

    @SFAW:

    Celebrate by eating with relish the inner organs of beasts and fowl.

    What kind of relish? … I normally use pickle relish on hot dogs,…

    If you’re eating hot dogs (I do too!) you are certainly eating “inner organs of beasts and fowl!”

  195. 195.

    Uncle Cosmo

    @D58826: Food banks accept donations of ammo now? Maybe they send volunteers with .22s out to local parks early in the morning to hunt squirrels for lunch? =;^p

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