Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

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

It is not hopeless, and we are not helpless.

Is it negotiation when the other party actually wants to shoot the hostage?

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

“Perhaps I should have considered other options.” (head-desk)

Of course you can have champagne before noon. That’s why orange juice was invented.

Motto for the House: Flip 5 and lose none.

They were going to turn on one another at some point. It was inevitable.

When someone says they “love freedom”, rest assured they don’t mean yours.

Hey Washington Post, “Democracy Dies in Darkness” was supposed to be a warning, not a mission statement.

Beware of advice from anyone for whom Democrats are “they” and not “we.”

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

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

The worst democrat is better than the best republican.

The republican caucus is covering themselves with something, and it is not glory.

How stupid are these people?

I’d hate to be the candidate who lost to this guy.

Good lord, these people are nuts.

Oh FFS you might as well trust a 6-year-old with a flamethrower.

Live so that if you miss a day of work people aren’t hoping you’re dead.

The party of Reagan has become the party of Putin.

Putting aside our relentless self-interest because the moral imperative is crystal clear.

Hi god, it’s us. Thanks a heap, you’re having a great week and it’s only Thursday!

Republicans choose power over democracy, every day.

You are here: Home / Politics / Domestic Politics / Overrun with Vermin (Band Name & Open Thread)

Overrun with Vermin (Band Name & Open Thread)

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So, this is real:

White House maintenance orders reveal cockroaches, ants and mice infestations

NBC 4 Washington, which obtained the hundreds of work orders, reports that there have been a number of requests to deal with vermin in the White House, including mice in the situation room and the White House Navy mess food service area.

Other requests reported cockroach infestations in at least four parts of the White House, and a colony of ants living in chief of staff John Kelly’s office…

Some of the requests were more mundane in nature, including a redecoration of national security adviser H.R. McMaster’s office and a new toilet seat for the Oval Office bathroom. That last request was directed to be completed “after hours please.”

They should hold the McMaster redecorating order — the guy who called Trump “a fucking moron” is on his way out (see post downstairs), so the dude who called Trump “an idiot” with the “mind of a kindergartner” can’t be far behind. As for that toilet seat, surely the moron/idiot/kindergartner specified gold.

Open thread!

Reader Interactions

142Comments

  3. 3.

    ruemara

    We know the White House is overrun with vermin. That’s why we’re trying to win as many elections as possible to turn the rats out.

  5. 5.

    The Moar You Know

    Given that DC was built on a swamp, I don’t see anything abnormal about what’s in the White House save that someone left a 250-pound orange turd in the Oval Office, which is gross but you’d think someone would clean that up sooner or later.

  6. 6.

    Ithink

    This is SO repulsively disgusting…but I guess such infestations match the human vomit inhabiting the current cabinet & administration of Trump/Pence designation. Thus it’s FITTING for the times and in desperate need of a cleanup (eventually)! Need to get a few net positive Democratic electronics out of the way first.

  9. 9.

    clay

    Since Trump has taken office, the US has been hit with devastating hurricanes, wildfires, and now vermin.

    How many more plagues do you think we’ll endure before Pharaoh lets us go?

  10. 10.

    O. Felix Culpa

    A story about the consequences of electing vermin (looking at you, Susan Sarandon and various privileged others):

    Ms. O works for a school-to-work transition program for high school students with disabilities. Yesterday she got an emergency phone call: the parents of one of their students just got deported and this young man with disabilities and his younger brother are now effectively orphaned. A lowly paid job coach is volunteering to drive the young man to his internship and they’re trying to figure out long term support for these forcibly abandoned kids. I can’t imagine how frantic their parents must feel.

    Fuck Trump and his enablers. That is all.

  16. 16.

    HILFY

    “…surely the moron/idiot/kindergartner specified gold.” But is it gold leaf or gold plate? Us Taxpayers want to know. Where could I find info about the elaborate wallpaper Trump just had hung in the Oval Office?
    He is a man who needs to gild every lily.

  18. 18.

    rikyrah

    Sessions hints at crackdown on recreational pot, affecting California, other states
    NOVEMBER 29, 2017 06:12 PM

    Attorney General Jeff Sessions hinted Wednesday that the Justice Department may take a tougher stance on recreational marijuana in the near future, a change in policy that would have a significant impact on the five states plus the District of Columbia that already allow the drug to be used for more than medicinal purposes.

    California is scheduled to join that group on Jan. 1.

    Sessions and other DOJ officials previously indicated they would continue the policy laid out by the department under former President Barack Obama, which in essence allows state officials leeway in how they deal with the drug as long as they meet certain standards, like keeping cannabis out of the hands of minors, keeping it from crossing into states where it isn’t legal and preventing drugged driving.

    Marijuana, however, remains illegal under federal law, and there was always the possibility the Trump administration could crack down.

    “In fact, we’re looking at that very hard right now, we had a meeting yesterday and talked about it at some length,” Sessions said at a press conference Wednesday. “It’s my view that the use of marijuana is detrimental, and we should not give encouragement in any way to it, and it represents a federal violation, which is in the law and is subject to being enforced.”

  20. 20.

    Corner Stone

    @The Moar You Know: 250 pounds? If Trump actually is 6’2″ or approaching it (I never believed 6’3″ but he’s certainly over 6ft) then he is every bit of 275 right now. Watch those clips of him walking slowly through the halls of the Capitol bldg. He can barely maintain pace or balance. His knees knock together and he has a weird, almost waddling gait.

  24. 24.

    Mnemosyne

    @O. Felix Culpa:

    Ugh. And it’s tricky to publicize, because asshats will say that those American citizen children should be exiled to a foreign country with their parents for the crime of being born to non-citizens.

  26. 26.

    Betty Cracker

    @O. Felix Culpa: So many heartbreaking situations like that, and for what? Spite and stupidity.

    I know two young women in DACA status — brilliant girls who are each worth at least 100K Trumps put together — who never got to see their dying mother again because she had been deported, was diagnosed with a terminal illness shortly after Trump was elected, and they were afraid they wouldn’t be allowed back in the U.S. if they left the country briefly to say goodbye to her.

    They agonized over it and were willing to take the risk to see their mom once more. But their father forbade it since the family had sacrificed everything to give them an opportunity to get an education here. So, that decision will haunt them for the rest of their lives.

    Goddamn it, it makes me so angry, I want to find the nearest Trump voter and punch his fucking lights out. Cruel, spiteful morons.

  29. 29.

    O. Felix Culpa

    @Betty Cracker: I alternate between tears and rage at this wanton cruelty. Sometimes I hate the self-satisfied, comfortable, privileged pigs who inflicted this needless pain on vulnerable people who did them no harm.

  32. 32.

    bemused

    @Corner Stone:

    The bouncing belly has to affect his balance. From a golf swing pic of him, he doesn’t seem to have one of those solid hard bellies a lot of guys have. It looked pretty jelloy to me.

  34. 34.

    quakerinabasement

    OK, so when Trump called the White House “a dump?” Guess we have to give him that one.

  38. 38.

    TenguPhule

    @Betty Cracker:

    I want to find the nearest Trump voter and punch his fucking lights out.

    I would suggest brass knuckles, you don’t want to injure your hands on their face.

  39. 39.

    jl

    Paul Krugman twitter has some great resources over past few days for people contacting Congress on the GOP tax nightmare.

    https://twitter.com/paulkrugman

    Collins, Coker and McCain need to be shamed into maybe doings something, or at least into demanding changes that will limite the damage somewhat. Corker and Collins need to be ridiculed saying in public that they trusted Trump’s worthless words and promises for some fixes to the tax bill and that the administration started betraying them immediately.

    I’ve expressed extreme disappointment to Murkowski’s office and asked her to reconsider.

  41. 41.

    TenguPhule

    @Corner Stone:

    His knees knock together and he has a weird, almost waddling gait.

    The Trump-suit is wearing out. The occupant needs to find another one soon.

  43. 43.

    jl

    @Manyakitty: It could be. Eric Prince is deeply plugged in to AH through, I think, deVos. And he has lied about his efforts to establish private mercenary national security contractor as big players. And I heard news spot that he has just been caught in lying about his Russian connections and contacts on the idea. Amazing.
    Maybe Adam or Cheryl could do a post on it, or update what they have already written.

  46. 46.

    Duane

    On the subject of band names, I still like Bled Us Good. (thanks John Cole.) BUG for short, and their fans buggers. A large show an infestation, and we’re back to the White House.

  47. 47.

    Emerald

    @Droppy: Can you summarize for those of use who can’t get beyond the paywall?

    I did get to read the title. I assume she’s channeling Jonathan Swift?

  48. 48.

    TenguPhule

    @jl:

    Collins, Coker and McCain need to be shamed into maybe doings something, or at least into demanding changes that will limite the damage somewhat.

    Based on the reporting so far, they’re all lost causes and can only be stood up against a wall when the revolution comes. McCain is getting a beer bribe, Collins is getting a healthcare sop and Coker is just a fucking wanker.

  49. 49.

    TenguPhule

    @Emerald:

    I am going to argue for the unpopular, nay, shocking view that Alabama voters should consider eating baby Democrats. No, this isn’t satire. Satire is dead.

    Even if Roy Moore did what he is accused of doing, and we often can agree he did, I still think voting for him would be appropriate — no, just. What he did had a certain merit to it, when you consider that he was born centuries ago, in biblical times, before we had laws or limits to consent. At least, I think he was. That is certainly the vibe he gives off. But after coming to that decision, we reach the real problem: As long as there are Democrats in Alabama, some of them will vote against Moore or run for office against him, which seems a great shame now that we have decreed he is morally acceptable. What alternative remains?

    Simple: Eat the Democrats’ young.

    Many in recent weeks have written essays at which I have sneered. They argue, “You cannot advocate doing evil in the name of good!” To them I say, “Politics has always been the choice of the lesser of two evils.” Now, would you rather see a Democrat in the Senate, or eat all baby Democrats as soon as their political leanings become clear (a bib with Elizabeth Warren on it, say, or a romper that says “WOMEN’S PLACE IS IN THE HOUSE … AND SENATE”)? Both options are unpalatable. In one scenario, there will be a Democrat in office. In the other, you will probably have a sticky mess in your saucepan.

    Let’s get one thing straight. I have a baby, and when I look down at him and see his big eyes and little feet, I just want to gobble him up — metaphorically only. I, personally, would murder anyone who actually tried to eat my baby. But my baby is bound to grow up and become a good Republican, unless something disastrous happens at college. Democrat babies are another story. They look, as a class, edible. And when I consider that they might grow up to support a candidate like Doug Jones, my resolve stiffens. If we cannot convince them to be absorbed into our party voluntarily, let us forcibly absorb them in the form of nourishment.

    This practice is not without historical precedent. Yes, eating children is, today, considered taboo, but you have to remember that the Democrat is our enemy, and devouring the progeny of enemies is an ancient and time-honored tradition. If you are trying to feed your own growing family, you could not do better. Democrats are grass-fed, I think. Eat them now and grow strong on their meat, or watch them wither and die without a safety net later. Once they age and fail to receive health care, they will become stringy and unpalatable.

    Most importantly, we must remember: Many Democrats support a right to abortion. I can think of nothing more inhuman than terminating the life of a fetus. That is why we ought to eat them as infants. Once they are outside the womb, they are threats to the only true people: those still inside it.

    We can agree that pursuing 14-year-olds as a 30-something is a sound and advisable practice, with biblical precedent. And if we are arguing for that, we should be just as able to argue for smashing an infant’s head in with a rock and roasting it over a low fire. I bet that happened in the Bible somewhere.

    What is so sacred about babies anyway? Either we are in favor of letting something bad happen to them now, or in favor of something bad happening to them in 14 years. And if I can convince myself of the second thing, the first one seems increasingly… palatable.

    Happy 350th birthday, Jonathan Swift. I am so glad you did not live to see today!

  51. 51.

    jl

    Collins needs to hear from Maine people here that she is a dishonest malfeasant hack and they will put her out of her job if she does anything to help this bill.. Collins is dismissing Joint Tax Committee analysis of the GOP tax scam nightmare.

    @WillBrabold
    ” COLLINS says she does not think the #JCT score is accurate. That’s a blow to anyone hoping she’d flip and vote no. ”
    https://twitter.com/WillDrabold/status/936351772590985216

  52. 52.

    John Revolta

    @rikyrah: Yeah, I expect this. Sessions hates weed- he was quoted as saying “I used to think those Klan boys were okay until I found out they were smoking pot”.

  54. 54.

    O. Felix Culpa

    @jl: She doesn’t think the JCT score is accurate? On what basis? Does she have better analysis and economic models to show us? I’m guessing not.

    And my unscientific hunch is that the real outcome will be far worse than the JCT projects. So there, hacktastic Senator Collins.

  55. 55.

    Mnemosyne

    @Dorothy A. Winsor (formerly Iowa Old Lady):

    It’s also bad to poison mice because you can accidentally poison any owls who eat the mice. There are organizations that will help you build (outdoor!) owl houses, but you have to commit to maintaining them and cleaning them out once a year for new residents to nest in. And also to making sure that your neighbors don’t poison their rodents, either, so the owls can do their work.

  56. 56.

    Mnemosyne

    @John Revolta:

    I sure hope the dudebros who just couldn’t bring themselves to vote for a corporate whore like Hillary are proud of themselves now. Way to stand on principle and screw yourselves over.

  57. 57.

    Mary G

    I finally gave up and turned on the TV. The vote to send the tax bill back to the Senate is 48 yes (all the Dems) and 49 no and Corker & McConnell have a tight little group intensely talking. Please god send the bolt of lightning there now.

    ETA: Corker, Johnson & Flake are the outstanding votes, so Collins & Murkowski & McCain failed this test of character. Sad!

  59. 59.

    Roger Moore

    @Mnemosyne:

    10 Downing Street has had official cats in residence since the time of Henry VIII.

    Not quite correct. The article mentions it being associated with the Treasury or Prime Minister. 10 Downing street was completed during the reign of Charles II, so that specific residence can’t have a tradition going back to Henry VIII.

  61. 61.

    Droppy

    @Emerald: Bezos forgive me, here’s the whole thing:

    I am going to argue for the unpopular, nay, shocking view that Alabama voters should consider eating baby Democrats. No, this isn’t satire. Satire is dead.

    Even if Roy Moore did what he is accused of doing, and we often can agree he did, I still think voting for him would be appropriate — no, just. What he did had a certain merit to it, when you consider that he was born centuries ago, in biblical times, before we had laws or limits to consent. At least, I think he was. That is certainly the vibe he gives off. But after coming to that decision, we reach the real problem: As long as there are Democrats in Alabama, some of them will vote against Moore or run for office against him, which seems a great shame now that we have decreed he is morally acceptable. What alternative remains?

    Simple: Eat the Democrats’ young.

    Many in recent weeks have written essays at which I have sneered. They argue, “You cannot advocate doing evil in the name of good!” To them I say, “Politics has always been the choice of the lesser of two evils.” Now, would you rather see a Democrat in the Senate, or eat all baby Democrats as soon as their political leanings become clear (a bib with Elizabeth Warren on it, say, or a romper that says “WOMEN’S PLACE IS IN THE HOUSE … AND SENATE”)? Both options are unpalatable. In one scenario, there will be a Democrat in office. In the other, you will probably have a sticky mess in your saucepan.

    Let’s get one thing straight. I have a baby, and when I look down at him and see his big eyes and little feet, I just want to gobble him up — metaphorically only. I, personally, would murder anyone who actually tried to eat my baby. But my baby is bound to grow up and become a good Republican, unless something disastrous happens at college. Democrat babies are another story. They look, as a class, edible. And when I consider that they might grow up to support a candidate like Doug Jones, my resolve stiffens. If we cannot convince them to be absorbed into our party voluntarily, let us forcibly absorb them in the form of nourishment.

    This practice is not without historical precedent. Yes, eating children is, today, considered taboo, but you have to remember that the Democrat is our enemy, and devouring the progeny of enemies is an ancient and time-honored tradition. If you are trying to feed your own growing family, you could not do better. Democrats are grass-fed, I think. Eat them now and grow strong on their meat, or watch them wither and die without a safety net later. Once they age and fail to receive health care, they will become stringy and unpalatable.

    Most importantly, we must remember: Many Democrats support a right to abortion. I can think of nothing more inhuman than terminating the life of a fetus. That is why we ought to eat them as infants. Once they are outside the womb, they are threats to the only true people: those still inside it.

    We can agree that pursuing 14-year-olds as a 30-something is a sound and advisable practice, with biblical precedent. And if we are arguing for that, we should be just as able to argue for smashing an infant’s head in with a rock and roasting it over a low fire. I bet that happened in the Bible somewhere.

    What is so sacred about babies anyway? Either we are in favor of letting something bad happen to them now, or in favor of something bad happening to them in 14 years. And if I can convince myself of the second thing, the first one seems increasingly… palatable.

    Happy 350th birthday, Jonathan Swift. I am so glad you did not live to see today!

  65. 65.

    Barney

    The vermin clearly followed the odour of Bannon into the White House, and then couldn’t believe how at home they felt, so set up residence even when their master left.

  66. 66.

    Ohio Mom

    @O. Felix Culpa: Next up is that the tax breaks which businesses get for hiring disabled people (which make them attractive to hire because they hardly cost their employer anything) are being taken away by that tax increase horror about to be enacted.

    I am not surprised that your wife and the rest of her staff are stepping up — special ed people are the best. I hope the disabled teen is put in the front of the line for group home funding and that a spot is found for him. (Don’t know what to wish specifically for his younger brother.)

    Sign me,
    Mom with a kid in a similar transition program

  68. 68.

    Roger Moore

    @germy:

    Let me guess who had a problem sitting on Obama’s toilet seat.

    I’m sure he peed all over it before having it replaced. #PeeTape

  70. 70.

    BlueDWarrior

    It should say several bad things that Republicans have to struggle this much on procedural votes to pass tax cuts. They know this bill is abominable, they just don’t care (or have been convinced not to) and they thoroughly believe that they are unassailable.

    Voters need to quickly disabuse them of those notions. That is the only way this situation gets fixed.

  71. 71.

    tobie

    @Betty Cracker: I felt the earthquake in Central Maryland. This is the second earthquake we’ve had in the mid-Atlantic in the past ten years. This one was brief and relatively mild but unlike California the houses here are not built to withstand earthquakes.

    In other news: Who the heck does Susan Collins think she is to question the legitimacy of the JCT’s findings? The opinion of experts (say, climate scientists) counts for nothing among GOP politicians, whether supposedly moderate or neanderthal.

  73. 73.

    TenguPhule

    @tobie:

    Who the heck does Susan Collins think she is to question the legitimacy of the JCT’s findings?

    We know what she is. And now we know her price.

  74. 74.

    BlueDWarrior

    @Mary G: Why should Senators like Barasso and Wicker skate while we excoriate McCain and the others. The entire Republican Party needs to burn, instead of holding out that a handful of them will find some sanity.

    Republicans should be regarded by non-Republicans like how Republicans regard Democrats, one of them is as bad as the worst of them.

    Just like how every House Democrat is a Pelosi Clone, every House Republican should be a Gohmert/Issa/etc. clone.

  75. 75.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    @TenguPhule: There are instructions for cannibalism in the old testament. Might just be time for such a modest proposal in Alabama.

  76. 76.

    O. Felix Culpa

    @Ohio Mom: I repeat myself, but I am staggered by the wanton cruelty of these “people” (are they really human?) and their policies. Wishing all the best for you and your son.

    ETA: Could it be that all Republicans have empathectomies when they’re born?

  79. 79.

    Ohio Mom

    @Ohio Mom: I should further explain that once that tax break for hiring the disabled is gone, the success rate for transition programs Iike Mrs O’s, and the one my kid is in, are bound to go way down.

    Just another small example of how the tax plan is not going to boost employment.

  81. 81.

    kindness

    It’s all the old buckets of KFC laying around. Trump is an Okie.

    Funny how the last president kept the place so much cleaner.

  84. 84.

    debbie

    Charles Grassley hopefully guaranteed the end of this carer with this interview, saying the wealthy deserved the tax breaks because they had worked hard for their money and hadn’t squandered it. Fucker.

  85. 85.

    Ohio Mom

    @O. Felix Culpa: I have to say that as cruel as they are, they are also remarkedly thorough. They are taking these relatively small and very low-profile programs and destroying them.

    I mean, sure everyone knows Social Security is a big budget item, but how many people know about the hire-the-disabled tax break, or the very small deduction teachers got for spending their own money on their classrooms? They looked at graduate school tuition remissions and said, “Hey, that’s something we can tax!” These are all things I didn’t know existed until very recently, and of course they are only a few examples of the pain that is about to be inflicted.

    Part of my despair is realizing exactly how long this has been in the works.

    They obviously have been researching what they wanted to do away with for a very, very long time, and keeping an updated list.

    This isn’t like the ACA repeal, where they threatened for years and years and then were caught flat-footed when the chance came up to fulfill their threats. They have a very detailed plan this time around.

  86. 86.

    O. Felix Culpa

    @Ohio Mom: My guess is ALEC had the legislation prepared a long time ago. The current crop of Republican legislators aren’t smart or diligent or experienced enough to do the work themselves.

  89. 89.

    TenguPhule

    @Ohio Mom:

    This isn’t like the ACA repeal, where they threatened for years and years and then were caught flat-footed when the chance came up to fulfill their threats. They have a very detailed plan this time around.

    What’s worst is that this has literally every bad or foul idea they’ve conceived of in the last 20 years stuffed into one big fucking mess.

    It shafts the teachers, the grad students, it has oil drilling the ANWR, it has personhood for fetuses, you name it and we can probably find a line for it in there.

  90. 90.

    No Drought No More

    It’s a damned outrage. Someone hasn’t been doing their job, and this is one that can’t be hung on Donald Trump.

  94. 94.

    Ohio Mom

    @TenguPhule: Yes, that is exactly what I mean. It’s astounding in its completeness.

    I am trying to console myself with the idea that much of this can be undone, it might take a while. But right now, I am alarmed at how enraged I am.

    And I do not have time this week to be this enraged (long stories). It does help to have the camaraderie that is this blog community.

  96. 96.

    momus

    Perhaps FOTUS was lonely for NYC and had the vermin and insects imported to remind her of Trump Tower?

  97. 97.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Mnemosyne:

    November 30, 2017 at 4:45 pm
    10 Downing Street has had official cats in residence since the time of Henry VIII. They don’t belong to whatever prime minister is in office — they actually belong to the building itself and are officially assigned there.

    I take the point you are making, but Number 10 wasn’t even completed until 1684, nearly 150 years after the death of Henry VIII. Still, an unbroken succession of official Prime Ministerial cats/mousers is worth celebrating.

  98. 98.

    jl

    Wow! Trouble on tax scam front? Everyone needs to contact their Senators. As soon as I have time I am sending polite but firm inquires to DiFi and Harris about why they are not all over the media yelling about this:
    Call call call.

    @MikeDorning
    BREAKING: Treasury Department Inspector General has opened inquiry on why tax analysis hasn’t been released to the public, @SalehaMohsin reports
    https://twitter.com/MikeDorning/status/936359445898170368

    That is via Josh Marshall’s twitter which also has news that Corker, Flake and Johnson very unhappy about something and causing trouble. They need to hear something from people.

  100. 100.

    TenguPhule

    @Ohio Mom:

    I am trying to console myself with the idea that much of this can be undone, it might take a while.

    If it passes we’re looking at a three year minimum to undo it. That’s what’s so horrifying.

    Its so easy for them to break shit, but we need to move heaven and earth to repair anything.

  102. 102.

    jl

    @Ohio Mom: Yeah, they had a list of hits they wanted to make. They forgot about a sensible tax rate cut and refrom plan, which is supposed to be whole point of the bill. They are winging it on that just as much as they were on ACA repeal/replace scam.

    The big donors are already unhappy that they are not getting more (believe it or not). I read that they are pissed that they have to wait at all for a complete elimination of estate tax. The big funders and donors are also pissed that they were even asked by GOPers to find some actual tax reform, and they were forced to go through the unpleasantness of saying “Hell no, we keep all our loopholes, now go pass this right now dammit”.

    Need to pester a few Senators into at least trying to fight the insanity. Any delay or jam can hurt it and if not stop it, get it improved. For example, getting a trigger for repeal of a lot of tax rate cuts if their fantasy growth projections don’t pan out (and they won’t).

  103. 103.

    Sab

    Sorry , Betty. I grew up as a Yankee in northeast Florida in the sixties. Vermin were everywhere. We weren’ t shocked. They wete just southern wildlife. That is why God made Tupperware, turn the lights on for ten seconds before you enter a room at night and only morons store snack bars in their desk. Also, of course cockroach can fly. Everyone knows that.You just hope their tiny little pronged feet hold out at night when they are crossing the bedroom ceiling across your bed. Mostly their little feet held.

  104. 104.

    O. Felix Culpa

    @Ohio Mom: Just wondering, would your son be in Project Search by any chance? Thought I might ask since it’s based in Ohio.

    Edited.

  107. 107.

    Ladyraxterinok

    @jl: Lankford from OK is a So Bapt minister. When I called his Tulsa office, I expressed my personal concerns about Medicare; also concerns about grad students.

    I emphasized that many in OK live from paycheck to paycheck and depend on Medicaid. Said that as fellow Christians (said I used to be in SBC) we feel a strong desire to care for the needy. Hope this appeal to his Christian faith gets relayed and helps him vote vs bill.

  109. 109.

    imonlylurking

    I have an emergency pet rescue bleg. Is there anybody in or near Tidewater VA that can take in an adult black cat for a while? The owner is getting divorced-she has had to move in with her mom who is deathly allergic to cats. Time is of the essence. My email is my user name at yahoo.com-put rescue kitty in the subject line so I know it isn’t spam.

  110. 110.

    TenguPhule

    @jl:

    Need to pester a few Senators into at least trying to fight the insanity. Any delay or jam can hurt it and if not stop it, get it improved.

    Now is the time to pray that McCain suddenly drops dead from his medical condition.

    No, I’m being serious here. That might be one of the only things which would delay this mess until the government can be shut down in December.

    Please die, McCain. Serve your country for once.

  111. 111.

    Tazj

    Bruce Bartlett @ BruceBartlett -24h
    Prediction-EVERY Republican will whore himself or herself to pass this tax monstrosity. They should all go to Hell
    He’s really letting Republicans have it and even complaining about the AARP saying they should have been announcing their opposition to this a lot sooner and that it’s been weak.
    I know he’s been against Trump from the start, but his Twitter feed stating that Trump will be opening the door for Republicans when they get to hell-Wow.

  113. 113.

    TenguPhule

    @Sab: This is why Hawaii has geckos in every house. We refuse to put up with what Florida seems to take for granted.

  115. 115.

    jl

    @WaterGirl: OK, thanks. I think everyone with Dem Senators should call and ask why they were not issuing press releases and protests to get what the GOP is trying to do all over the news tonight.

  116. 116.

    B.B.A.

    Supposing a senator were to resign, how soon would his successor be seated? Would McConnell be able to put her swearing-in on hold for a week or two, leaving the Democrats a vote short in the meantime? Asking for a friend.

  118. 118.

    TenguPhule

    @B.B.A.: Wouldn’t help. They’d still have 2 votes left to ram it through. One of the Republican Senators would have to drop dead of natural causes to buy us some time.

  119. 119.

    Villago Delenda Est

    Donald and every one of his appointees need friendly company.

    Hence the mice, cockroaches, and bedbugs.

  121. 121.

    O. Felix Culpa

    @jl: My Dem senators are posting like hell about it. My guess is the other Dems are doing the same. As we saw with the Hillary campaign, just because we don’t see it in the MSM doesn’t mean it ain’t happening. My Congresscritters are using social media instead.

  123. 123.

    WaterGirl

    @B.B.A.: This is what I hear when you comment: Blah, blah, blah, Franken.

    So tiresome, can’t you peddle that someplace else?

  124. 124.

    NotMax

    Not going to search it out, it’s obvious enough there must already be right wing sites pushing a “Let the ni-clangs movie in and see what happens?” meme.

    And Dolt 45 may well be nitwit enough to re-tweet some of them.

  125. 125.

    Ohio Mom

    @O. Felix Culpa: No, his teachers would not recommend him for Search because he is chronically tardy (I think the most recent calculation is that he is late 60% of the time). Search is very stringent: after three tardies or five unexcused absences, you are bounced out.

    I didn’t disagree with the teachers but it remains a source of pain (for me. He doesn’t care).

    My kid, despite his autism, is fairly capable and one of Search placements here (there are three in Cincinnati) would have been an excellent fit for him. Also, his peers would have been more his level; the program he’s in is mainly for kids with moderate cognitive impairment. Meanwhile, he is getting mostly Bs as a part-time student at the community college.

    But that is autism for you, it can include a big dose of not understanding or caring why you have to go along to get along.

    I did hear the founder of Search speak at a conference last year. She is one of those people you want to drop everything and follow, in the hope that some of her genius and heart might rub off on you.

  127. 127.

    BlueDWarrior

    @TenguPhule: it’s a very simple ploy, starve liberal and progressive voices of oxygen on economic issues. You will only see liberal Congresspeople and Senators talking about social issues.

    If anything, the great failing of liberals was not funding alternate media houses in the 80s; then again, there might not have been liberal enough billionaires to do that with. Hard to say really…

  132. 132.

    O. Felix Culpa

    @Ohio Mom: The Search founder is inspiring. I met her about a year ago too. I’m sorry your son wasn’t recommended for the program. It is stringent. It’s so hard when your kids don’t understand how much it would help them (and you) if they would modify their behavior just a little bit. I know that heartbreak from the inside. You’re a great Mom and I admire how you seek to do what’s best for your son. That’s as much as any loving parent can do.

  135. 135.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    Kamala Harris‏Verified account @ KamalaHarris
    Don’t forget: it was your calls, letters, and action that stopped Republicans from repealing the Affordable Care Act, saving health insurance coverage for tens of millions of Americans. Let’s stop this tax bill: (202) 224-3121.

    Brian Schatz‏Verified account @ brianschatz
    Republicans are about to vote to transfer literally trillions from regular people who work at regular jobs to around 5,500 people with estates, and the largest and most profitable global corporations in human history. Don’t be despondent. Be angry.

    Senator Dick Durbin‏Verified account @ SenatorDurbin
    Just when you thought the #GOPTaxScam couldn’t get any worse, Senate Republicans just voted to let corporations ship jobs overseas. My amendment with SenSherrodBrown would have stopped that.

    Sen. Patrick Leahy‏Verified account SenatorLeahy
    #GOPTaxScam is a giant holiday gift for corporate CEOs, paid for on the backs of working Americans and the health of our economy. It will cheat our future for the sake of a tax-cut windfall for the Republican donor class.

    Senator Dick Durbin‏Verified account @ SenatorDurbin
    Under the Republican tax plan, America’s seniors will see their health insurance premiums increase by an average of $1,490 according to the @AARP.

    Our seniors deserve better that this.

    I’m not big into twitter, but the Senators have shockingly small followings, it seems to me. Harris is over a million, but Schatz is at about 70K and Leahy just over 100K (related to state size, obviously, but still…)

  139. 139.

    B.B.A.

    @TenguPhule: Would it make it any better if I told you I want Bernie to resign too? Just not now, when there’s a chance a single vote could affect something.

  140. 140.

    M. Bouffant

    @tobie: Californian here: The best buildings to be inside of during an earthquake are new, built-on-rollers skyscrapers, or a single story, wood frame house. Preferably the house will be bolted to its foundation.

  141. 141.

    KithKanan

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: That’s extremely impressive for Leahy!

    Followers / State Population of the three:
    Kamala Harris – 2.7% (admittedly she’s new to being our senator)
    Brian Schatz – 5.0%
    Patrick Leahy – 22%

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