Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

I swear, each month of 2025 will have its own history degree.

Tick tock motherfuckers!

The real work of an opposition party is to hold the people in power accountable.

… gradually, and then suddenly.

There is no compromise when it comes to body autonomy. You either have it or you do not.

T R E 4 5 O N

Their boy Ron is an empty plastic cup that will never know pudding.

I really should read my own blog.

Let the trolls come, and then ignore them. that’s the worst thing you can do to a troll.

Jack be nimble, jack be quick, hurry up and indict this prick.

Bad people in a position to do bad things will do bad things because they are bad people. End of story.

Take hopelessness and turn it into resilience.

Marge, god is saying you’re stupid.

A thin legal pretext to veneer over their personal religious and political desires.

People really shouldn’t expect the government to help after they watched the GOP drown it in a bathtub.

If you can’t control your emotions, someone else will.

I might just take the rest of the day off and do even more nothing than usual.

With all due respect and assumptions of good faith, please fuck off into the sun.

Petty moves from a petty man.

Every decision we make has lots of baggage with it, known or unknown.

I have other things to bitch about but those will have to wait.

It’s always darkest before the other shoe drops.

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

They punch you in the face and then start crying because their fist hurts.

You are here: Home / Politics / Domestic Politics / Moving on?

Moving on?

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Do you agree with Greg Sargent’s read here?

Maybe, but healthcare gains won’t be safe until the GOP is out of power.

In other news, is it just me, or is the shitgibbon’s tone weirdly euphoric?

Trump made similarly odd comments about Hurricane Harvey. He seems twisted enough to believe that BIG things happening on his watch, even BIG disasters, somehow reflect BIGLY on himself. What a fucking psycho. Fuck him, and fuck everyone who voted to put that lunatic in charge.

My family and I, along with millions on the west coast of Florida, are waiting to see what happens with the hurricane track. We’re in an “A” evacuation zone (the worst), so the potential for storm surge will be the deciding factor. There’s really no way to escape the hurricane-force winds if the current models hold true, but we don’t want to be stuck in a flood, so we (people, dogs and chickens) might go stay with relatives inland if it comes to that, even though the wind would be worse inland.

I’ll check in with y’all as I’m able. Open thread!

Reader Interactions

86Comments

  5. 5.

    CarolDuhart2

    Be careful. I have a co-worker who insists on going on her cruise despite the hurricane. I would have just canceled, but apparently she thinks its still okay.

  6. 6.

    PhoenixRising

    He’s not a Republican either. He knows nothing and believes nothing, except that power/wealth should have its way and the principles supporting that view (white supremacy, misogyny, xenophobia). Of COURSE he’s gleefully attacking the losers in Congress who can’t get anything to his desk with a majority–he thinks it’s funny.

    And, in a Greek-tragedy kind of way, it is.

  7. 7.

    dedc79

    I hope the storm shifts course and Floridians (and everyone else still in the storm’s way) are spared from harm.

    I also hope that we as a nation reconsider our proclivity for building right up to the coastline.

    Feeling pessimistic on both counts.

  8. 8.

    comrade scotts agenda of rage

    I have a friend who lives in Tampa. She posted this on FB yesterday:

    Tampa Bay Meteorologist Paul Dellegatto:
    “I am getting a lot of questions asking about when we should evacuate. You only evacuate to escape storm surge flooding from the Gulf and Bay. It is why we have evacuation zones near the Gulf and Bay. You do not evacuate from the wind unless you live in a mobile home. Water is the killer. Wind is not. You run from water. You hide from wind. “

  13. 13.

    Mathguy

    Stay safe.

    The only thing the shitgibbon believes in is enriching himself to show what a marvelous person he is, so tax cuts for him are the only priority now. “Screw health care,” he says.

  14. 14.

    Barbara

    Please stay safe. Fatalities from hurricanes are almost all related to water, not wind. It’s why the Saffir Simpson scale is misleading and needs to be revised to reflect the combined threats of wind, rain and storm surge potential. Even so, Irma looks to make landfall as a category 4 hurricane. The forecaster I listened to said that 4 or 5 didn’t really matter, winds at the strength of 4 were sufficiently destructive for vulnerable structures.

  15. 15.

    O. Felix Culpa

    Thinking strong safety thoughts for you and your family, including the furry and befeathered friends.

  16. 16.

    comrade scotts agenda of rage

    @Mathguy:

    The only thing the shitgibbon believes in is enriching himself to show what a marvelous person he is, so tax cuts for him are the only priority now. “Screw health care,” he says.

    Everybody forgets that “Wealthcare” was simply the first attempt at enriching the 1%, in that case on the backs of the middle class and poor. He realizes that path to “tax cuts for the wealthy” isn’t gonna happen so “Tax Reform” (the right wing frame) is Plan B. Same end goal, different methodology.

  21. 21.

    ? Martin

    Betty, please leave now. This strong may even get stronger before it hits Florida – some models show it returning to Cat 5 strength. We saw something similar with Katrina. It looked like a damaging storm, but it spun up into something much bigger just before it hit, when it was too late for people to get out.

  22. 22.

    Kay

    Betty, I’m glad you checked in.

    In other news, is it just me, or is the shitgibbon’s tone weirdly euphoric?

    He’s not euphoric. It’s just his incredibly used-car-salesman “lowering of expectations”- if the storm is unprecedented then he can’t be compared to other Presidents.

    Trump’s whole life is basically lowering expectations and then living up to the new lower standard.

  23. 23.

    MomSense

    @Major Major Major Major:

    Chickens and dogs!

    Please stay safe, Betty. I’m worried about all of our Florida jackals.

    BTW, I have been super exhausted lately so I haven’t been checking in very often. Have we heard from Keith P and Keith G? They live in Houston I believe. Also isn’t Daniel with the kittens (now full grown cats) in Houston? I hope they are all ok.

  24. 24.

    SiubhanDuinne

    Adding my own good wishes to the Cracker family, Mustang Bobby, Paul W, Adam Silverman, aimai’s in-laws, Mnemosyne’s nieces, and so many other Juicers and Juicer loved ones in Irma’s path. Be careful, be safe, and once it’s over, regale us with your adventures. Will be holding everyone in my thoughts over the next several days.

  26. 26.

    hellslittlestangel

    Stay safe, BC and crew.

    As for the question, Greg Sargent may be right, but so what? Tomorrow is another day, and if tomorrow Fuchs und Freunde is raging about Obamacare, then The Orange Better One will be raging too.

  27. 27.

    Mnemosyne

    Stay safe, Betty, and all of our other Florida Juicers.

    I heard back from my niece yesterday and the Devil Woman had enough common sense to evacuate herself and the two under-18s from Naples to North Carolina. Phew!

  32. 32.

    Davebo

    Be safe Betty. And raising chickens is a brilliant plan. A food source that doesn’t need refrigeration!

  33. 33.

    MomSense

    @Major Major Major Major:

    I’m just trying to picture dogs and chickens together in the same vehicle, although I think Betty’s dogs are super mellow. My car with dog and chickens would be like the carnage fantasies Dolt45 warned us about.

  35. 35.

    germy

    Sen. Lindsey Graham.

    The South Carolina Republican is on a lonely crusade to repeal and replace Obamacare, even though Republicans failed dismally this summer to get that done and the GOP has moved on to other weighty matters such as keeping the government funded past Sept. 30 and increasing the nation’s debt limit.

    Graham disputed the notion he’s on a fool’s errand.

    “Here’s what would be crazy for a Republican: the promise of repealing and replacing Obamacare for seven years, throwing your up hands and saying, ‘Sorry, we can’t do it,'” Graham told McClatchy this week. “This idea has never been tried. It’s the best idea to replace Obamacare. It’s never been given a shot.

    “You want to kill the Republican Party?” he continued. “You want to have us divided forever? Walk away from the promise to repeal and replace Obamacare without taking your best shot.”

    Graham’s idea to replace the 2010 Affordable Care Act was conceived with Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., and developed too late to be considered on the Senate floor alongside other proposals back in July. Their plan would send money spent on Obamacare back to states in the form of block grants, funded through maintaining the current law’s taxes on the wealthy.

  36. 36.

    Jeffro

    @HeleninEire:

    Leave it to Nancy to get it to the floor in a day. Before T changes his mind.

    Freedumb Party: Don’t you see she’s just playing you?

    Trumpov: Yeah but you guys really suck at your job, which is to give me ‘wins’. Hey, how about we permanently repeal the debt ceiling? Nancy and Chuck said it was stupid.

    Freedumb Party: But…but that’s the thing we threaten to blow up if Dems don’t give us our way?

    Trumpov: Has that ever worked?

    Freedumb Party: No, but…

    Trumpov: (turns to Pelosi) So…tell me more about what’ll happen if I sign the DREAM Act?

    Nancy Smash: You’ll be a hero to tens of millions of Americans and Dreamers, it’ll give the economy a boost, and the Village will be singing your praises until 2042

    Trumpov: Do you happen to have a copy on you right now that I can sign?

    Nancy Smash: And a pen, Mr. President! (smiles lovingly at Freedumb Caucus)

    Freedumb Caucus: GAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!

  38. 38.

    baquist

    Stay safe and dry. I still have PSTD from Katrina and we were lucky; we evacuated and when able to return ours was one of the 20% in New Orleans that didnt flood. Most people don’t realize how much stress evacuating is. We appreciate any updates you will be able to provide.

  41. 41.

    Jeffro

    Slowly…so. unbelievably. slowly….it begins to dawn on folks that perhaps we really were attacked last year.

    Sometimes an international offensive begins with a few shots that draw little notice. So it was last year when Melvin Redick of Harrisburg, Pa., a friendly-looking American with a backward baseball cap and a young daughter, posted on Facebook a link to a brand-new website.

    “These guys show hidden truth about Hillary Clinton, George Soros and other leaders of the US,” he wrote on June 8, 2016. “Visit #DCLeaks website. It’s really interesting!”

    Mr. Redick turned out to be a remarkably elusive character. No Melvin Redick appears in Pennsylvania records, and his photos seem to be borrowed from an unsuspecting Brazilian. But this fictional concoction has earned a small spot in history: The Redick posts that morning were among the first public signs of an unprecedented foreign intervention in American democracy.

    I’m sure Republicans would be ok winning the popular vote, but losing the electoral vote, due to the machinations and attacks by a hostile foreign power. Absolutely.

  42. 42.

    Frankensteinbeck

    If tax reform can be filibustered, it is dead already.

    @Major Major Major Major:
    As I commented before, bring it to the floor and it will easily pass.

    @germy:
    Fuck Graham and his posturing. Fuck McCain for trying to give his buddy a spotlight. McConnell does not have the votes for anything that cuts Medicaid, and thankfully McCain has no power over that.

  44. 44.

    Amir Khalid

    @Davebo:
    Back when she got the hens, Betty C said they would never wind up in a cooking pot.

    @MomSense:
    I too am a bit worried about Betty C and the mister putting the dogs and hens in the same vehicle. I remember her saying she keeps them apart because the dogs have a strong prey drive.

  45. 45.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @germy: Their plan would send money spent on Obamacare back to states in the form of block grants, funded through maintaining the current law’s taxes on the wealthy.

    so it would never pass the House

    @Frankensteinbeck: as you say, this is posturing for the demented warmonger– my god does he want a hot war against NORK, it’s scary– and Sunday Morning Beltway pin up boy to pose as a “moderate” from what apparently is now being called “the governing wing of the Republican Party”

  47. 47.

    CarolDuhart2

    @Patricia Kayden: I know that cancelling late has its issues, but even if they say they are going somewhere safe away from the storm (where fuck is that?). Those places are going to be overrun with evacuees and stranded people anyway. Or else that boat is going in circles with nowhere to land for a while.

    A little distant survivors’s guilt: Where I am is sunny and 60 degrees.

  48. 48.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    @Jeffro: The irony that Trump’s greed is the only virtue opens his eyes to the absurdity of the Republican plan….

  49. 49.

    geg6

    My John and I badgered the hell out of my step-daughter to get herself, her hubby and their 4-month-old baby the hell out of Bradenton/Anna Maria Island starting Monday. Problem is the hubby is a charter fishing boat operator and he had to get his boats tied down as best as he could before leaving and that is, apparently, a major undertaking. They finally left yesterday and made it to his mother’s in Charlottesville, VA this morning. That’s a big relief. However, I have numerous friends in the West Palm/Jensen Beach/Stuart area who aren’t evacuating and seem to think they will be safe at home. I am very, very, very worried about them. Very worried.

  53. 53.

    gene108

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:

    I hope some Dem ad maker can figure out a way to get people pissed about this

    The problem is the people, who are mad about Trump are livid and are staying mad. The issue is how to get the people, who think “both sides do it” to get mad at Republicans.

    Part of the problem is Democrats are politicians. Politicians will wind up in various levels of inefficiency, incompetence, and corruption; it doesn’t matter what Party you represent. You have people seeing Democratic politicians in cities like Philadelphia or Baltimore get run out of office on corruption charges, so it gets hard to make a convincing argument to them that Democrats are above the bad side of politics.

    It doesn’t matter that Democratic policies are better for them. The Democratic brand gets muddied by the very nature of being a politician.

  54. 54.

    clay

    He can’t wash his hands of health care repeal. He can grumble all he wants about how Republicans talked about repeal/replace for so long, but he forgets that he was promising the same.

    In fact, he promised a lot more: it will be “so easy” to get “everybody” health care that is “so much better” and he would do it “on day one”. This failure is his just as much as it is Congress’, and we shouldn’t let anyone forget it.

  55. 55.

    gratuitous

    Twitter is a flat medium for communicating, but yeah, Trump seems a bit giddy about the prospects for Irma. Nice to know the federal G is ready to help in Florida, because they sure as the world aren’t helping with the wildfires out west.

  57. 57.

    Joy in FL

    1. Betty, I hope you & all yours will be safe. I live in Pasco (evac zone F), so I feel a lot of sympathy for you.
    2. Same wish for all Juicers dealing with fire or water.
    3. I wonder if 45* is trying to trick Dems into compromising with him. They better not. He has shown that his only principle is pursuing his own advantage, financial and/or vengeful.

  58. 58.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Joy in FL: 3. I wonder if 45* is trying to trick Dems into compromising with him. They better not. He has shown that his only principle is pursuing his own advantage, financial and/or vengeful.

    I can’t imagine all the coverage about how “Chuck and Nancy” played him isn’t festering under his orange husk. I’m surprised he hasn’t already lashed out after it was reported that Pelosi dictated his tweet about DACA yesterday, but I guess he’s enjoying watching Ryan squirm.

    Also, the Russia investigation isn’t going away, and I’m surprised (again) that he didn’t lash out over Fredo’s testimony yesterday> Fox and Friends must have told him Donnny done good.

  60. 60.

    Betsy

    Hey you Florida gal, stay safe. I hope your evacuation and/or battening-down goes smoothly, and gives you something interesting to talk about later, but nothing more.

  61. 61.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Joy in FL: 1. Betty, I hope you & all yours will be safe. I live in Pasco (evac zone F), so I feel a lot of sympathy for you.

    and I hope that means you’re set well back from the storm surge?

  62. 62.

    JGabriel

    @Joy in FL:

    I wonder if 45* is trying to trick Dems into compromising with him. They better not. He has shown that his only principle is pursuing his own advantage, financial and/or vengeful.

    I think Pelosi & Schumer both know well enough that Trump slimes everything he touches, and that their watchword with respect to Putin’s Pet needs to be: wariness.

  63. 63.

    Raven Onthill

    “He seems twisted enough to believe that BIG things happening on his watch, even BIG disasters, somehow reflect BIGLY on himself.”

    I think he’s right in that belief.

  64. 64.

    cmorenc

    Trump’s tweets that Greg Sargent reads as giving up on further attempts to repeal ACA, in favor of going for sweeping Tax cuts for the wealthy – would be a sagely educated inference to draw about most other politicians in leadership roles. However, Trump’s mindset about just about anything except his narcissistic, greedy, bigoted self is so thinly rooted about anything but getting approval from his hard-core base that his direction can change with whichever puff of wind last blew against his noggin. That’s exactly why Kelley is trying so hard to evict or severely restrict any leftover Bannonites or others habitually inclined to push Trump in a counterproductive incendiary direction from having access to Trump.

  66. 66.

    EL

    Betty, I hope you and yours stay safe. Irma is more than just “any” category 4. It has unprecedented energy, and it may strengthen further over warm water before it gets to Florida. Don’t wait until too late to evacuate – by the time the track is known it may be too late.

    I highly recommend this resource It moves fast, so go to the last page. This is a forum of storm chasers, meteorologists, etc.

  67. 67.

    NotMax

    Golly gee willikers, when a hurricane hit Florida and when Sandy descended upon NYC, the evangelicals were all over that being God’s wrath for legalizing same sex marriage.

    Nary a peep about how Harvey, Irma, etc.are God’s wrath for electing Dolt45.

    Funny, innit?

  71. 71.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Betsy: as I understand it, Ryan knew that a good chunk of his caucus was going to vote against anything they put up, so he/they needed Dem votes; and between the threat of shutdown, even default, combined with the need for immediate hurricane relief, there was no way Ryan could not go along with what they agreed to, especially with trump so erratic and likely to go public

  76. 76.

    Betty

    Best wishes, Betty Cracker, for a safe journey through this hurricane. You have lots of folks sending positive thoughts and prayers your way. See you on the other side.

  78. 78.

    a thousand flouncing lurkers (was fidelio)

    My best wishes to everyone dealing with Irma. Good luck getting the chickens into the pet carrier, Betty, and at least the weather will help you avoid having to talk politics with the relatives! I hope the girl-child is managing safely, too.

  79. 79.

    a thousand flouncing lurkers (was fidelio)

    @Betsy: Not only did Ryan know he needed Dem votes, he’s an inept manager up against a Minority Leader who knows all the parliamentary tricks and has close control of her own caucus. Pelosi can juggle chainsaws and flaming torches without breaking a sweat, but when little Paulie tries to juggle baseballs, he gives himself a black eye.

    John Boehner is laughing as he drinks his lunch.

  81. 81.

    Joy in FL

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: I’m in evac zone F, which is the lowest likelihood for evacuation. I expect local flooding from the rain and am hopeful that my house & I will sustain only minor damage. The forecast just keeps getting worse for this part of FL as the track moves west. That’s worrying.
    We will do the best we can and give & receive help.

  86. 86.

    Tehanu

    Betty, I don’t know if it’s better for you to stay or go, but whatever happens, I hope you stay safe!

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