I just want to make an Human Resources point — we’ve already seen the best hires that we’re going to see made by the Trump Administration. The Wisconsin Senate special election flip illustrates part of the reasoning:
Did you miss the special elections results yesterday?
Democrats over performed the 2016 election results by an average of 20%.
SC HD-99: D+13.08%
IA HD-06: D+20.44%
WI AD-58: D+24.90%
WI SD-10: D+27.52%Keep working hard & we’re going to flip a lot of seats in November. ?
— Millennial Politics (@MillenPolitics) January 17, 2018
Last night there was anywhere from a thirteen to twenty seven point swing. All of these seats were base Republican seats. The Wisconsin Senate seat was open for a special election because the previous incumbent resigned to join the Walker Administration. The Walker Administration chose her because her seat should have been safe. The logic is that they got an ally in the executive branch and an ideological concordant replacement was likely. This was the same logic behind all of the Trump Cabinet picks from the House and Senate. They were all from safe to very safe Republican leaning districts. GA-06 was the closest thing to a swing district and Alabama Senate was the furthest thing from a swing district.
And that strategy, with a notably rare exception, worked (Hello Senator Jones!)
And now that strategy is reduced to either selecting individuals who represent districts that make Utah look competitive or from people who are not holding elective office. This severely restricts the pool of people who are plausibly choosable for Trump administration positions. It completely disregards the other factors that discourages conservative but competent individuals from putting their names forward.
So this is the best staffing that we’re going to see and it will only get worse.
rikyrah
THE RACHEL MADDOW SHOW 1/16/18
Robert Mueller, House Intel subpoena Steve Bannon on same day
Rachel Maddow reports on the subpoenas served to Steve Bannon by Robert Mueller as well as the House Intelligence Committee and the myriad questions raised about his testimony and what investigators hope to learn from him.
rikyrah
THE RACHEL MADDOW SHOW 1/16/18
What does Mueller’s Bannon subpoena say about the investigation?
Chuck Rosenberg, former federal prosecutor, talks with Rachel Maddow about what it might mean that special counsel Robert Mueller served Steve Bannon with a subpoena instead of asking him for an informal interview like others in Donald Trump’s inner circle gave.
Patricia Kayden
Good for the Dems!! Looking good for November.
Feebog
@rikyrah:
Chuck Rosenberg addition as an MSNBC analyst is fantastic.
SiubhanDuinne
@Patricia Kayden:
We should be justifiably optimistic, but not complacent — let’s continue to support Dems at all levels however we can, and work to make sure that voting is not suppressed anywhere.
(PK, I’m not suggesting you are complacent — just expanding on your comment!)
rikyrah
THE RACHEL MADDOW SHOW 1/16/18
Bannon declines to answer House Intel questions despite subpoena
Michael Schmidt, Washington correspondent for The New York Times, talks with Rachel Maddow about Robert Mueller’s subpoena of Steve Bannon and Bannon’s refusal to honor a second subpoena from the House Intelligence Committee.
rikyrah
THE RACHEL MADDOW SHOW 1/16/18
Steve Bannon will ‘tell all’ to Robert Mueller: report
Betsy Woodruff, political reporter for The Daily Beast, talks with Rachel Maddow about breaking news that Steve Bannon will speak freely to special counsel Robert Mueller because the executive privilege that prevented him from speaking to House Intel does not apply to a Mueller grand jury.
rikyrah
DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen makes an awkward first impression
01/17/18 08:40 AM—UPDATED 01/17/18 09:39 AM
By Steve Benen
It’s easy to forget just how massive the Department of Homeland Security is. The nation’s newest cabinet agency, created in the wake of the 9/11 attacks, has nearly a quarter of a million employees, tackling a wide variety of tasks: DHS includes everything from FEMA to Customs and Border Protection to the Secret Service.
It’s therefore important for Americans to have confidence, not only in the department, but in its leadership. With this in mind, yesterday was an important day for Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, who’s only been on the job for a month, and who was confirmed to the important post despite a controversial record stemming from her tenure in the Bush/Cheney administration.
When Nielsen testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee, it was, for all intents and purposes, the public’s first real opportunity to meet the new head of this important cabinet agency.
I don’t think it went especially well. The Washington Post’s Dana Milbank highlighted one of the most memorable moments from the hearing:
rikyrah
Republicans get a ‘wake-up call’ in pro-Trump Wisconsin district
01/17/18 08:00 AM—UPDATED 01/17/18 08:41 AM
By Steve Benen
Democrats fared quite well in special elections in 2017, and as the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported overnight, the party appears to be starting 2018 on the right foot, too.
Democrats snagged a GOP-leaning state Senate seat in western Wisconsin on Tuesday, buoying progressive hopes that they could ride a wave of victory this fall.
Patty Schachtner, the chief medical examiner for St. Croix County, will take the seat that had been held for 17 years by former Sen. Sheila Harsdorf (R-River Falls). Harsdorf stepped down in November to take a job as GOP Gov. Scott Walker’s agriculture secretary.
As a legislative matter, the Democratic candidate’s surprise win has a limited impact: Republicans still control all of the levers of power in the Badger State, including an 18-14 advantage in the state Senate.
But that doesn’t make yesterday’s upset any less dramatic. This is a gerrymandered district, where voters backed Donald Trump by 17 points – Mitt Romney won here by six points – featuring a GOP candidate who received quite a bit of financial support from the right, including Americans for Prosperity Wisconsin.
In other words, this is a race Republicans should have won without breaking a sweat – and yet the Dem won easily. Gov. Scott Walker (R) called it a “wake-up call” for his party ahead of the 2018 elections, when he’ll be seeking a third term.
Orpho
Put up a post asking for money for the next election in the cycle! I’m pumped about this special election win, and I want to make ActBlue bars fill up somewhere.
rikyrah
How Michael Wolff Got Into the White House for His Tell-All Book
January 17, 2018 at 7:24 am EST
Author Michael Wolff’s pitch to the White House to win cooperation for his book included a working title that signaled a sympathetic view, a counter-narrative to a slew of negative news stories early in Donald Trump’s presidency. He called it The Great Transition: The First 100 Days of the Trump Administration. And in part due to that title, Wolff was able to exploit an inexperienced White House staff who mistakenly believed they could shape the book to the president’s liking.
Nearly everyone who spoke with Wolff thought someone else in the White House had approved their participation. And it appears that not a single person in a position of authority to halt cooperation with the book — including Trump himself — raised any red flags, despite Wolff’s well documented history.
Orpho
Nevermind! Found it below.
Jeffro
OMG, I am reading the Post’s story of this Wisconsin special election and man, the fundamentals are looking absolutely OUTSTANDING for the Dems.
We are coming for you, GOP assholes: (oh, and fuck you doubly, Kochs)
Scott Walker is busy tweeting that the GOP “needs to help spread the good news about what we’re doing here in Wisconsin”. EXCUSE ME? What ‘good news’ are you talking about, you putz??
People are on to the GOP’s lies, intolerance, and looking out for the rich. Here it comes, Republicans…
rikyrah
Cory Booker on Sec. Nielsen: “She was not telling the truth. She was an American citizen under oath before a Senate Committee and she pretended like she didn’t remember… It was so offensive to me that she lied under oath.” (via CBS) pic.twitter.com/reHUptZCDD
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) January 17, 2018
Patricia Kayden
@SiubhanDuinne: Agreed. This is going to be a fight to the finish given the voter suppression tactics employed by the other side. We have to be vigilant and prepared to fight for every vote. Look what happened to that Virginian seat which was tied and then went to Republicans on a draw. Every vote counts.
schrodingers_cat
@rikyrah: Mnem speculated yesterday that her rapid rise under former DHS secretary Kelly (she was his deputy both at the DHS and at WH) may have something to do with her Fox blonde looks rather than her qualifications for the job.
Patricia Kayden
@Jeffro: Wisconsin voters have had several opportunities to vote out Walker but haven’t done so. I wonder if they’ll finally get rid of him given his support of Trump. Thanks Trump!! You’re doing fine, Sweetie.
rikyrah
Happy Birthday Forever FLOTUS ???????????
Patricia Kayden
@rikyrah: Echoing your birthday wishes to Mrs. O. Hope she is somewhere warm enjoying herself.
Kay
@rikyrah:
I hope Democrats do something about it if they get either chamber.
It’s in their interest to do so. If people can just sashay in there and lie their asses off hearings become a waste of time and a joke.
It’s inequitable too, in terms of the what’s expected of the public- ordinary people. Tens of thousands of people testify under oath in this country every day. The VAST majority do not lie.
It has to mean something and it has to be applied to everyone. If everyone in this country lied under oath as much or as frequently as the Trumpsters do the justice system would grind to a fucking halt. This thing runs on a kind of agreement- MOST people comply without sanctions. These people are violating that norm. Hit them hard. Impose a 500k fine. Put a lien on their house to collect. It’ll stop, and quickly.
MattF
I think Dems have stayed outraged about Trump, while Republicans have become bored, confused, and somewhat hostile by Trump’s lies and changing positions. Trump’s ‘deal-making’ talents have a lot to do with persuading people that they’ve seen all they want to.
MomSense
@Jeffro:
We have to win with huge margins because you know voter suppression and Russian interference will be in full force.
rikyrah
Uh huh
Uh huh
Trump privately said that a terror attack on American soil could save the GOP from a 2018 election bloodbath. This sort of thinking is so dangerous for this country. If he knew of an incoming terrorist attack, would he let it happen to help the GOP? Sadly, the answer is prob yes.
— Scott Dworkin (@funder) January 17, 2018
Jeffro
@rikyrah: Here’s hoping that, as many of us were discussing yesterday, when the Dems take the House (and the Senate?) that they hold all of the perjurers accountable. It’s way past time.
(Kay, as usual, put it quite well in #20 above). It has. to. mean. something.
rikyrah
@MomSense:
Yep.
No lie told
Jeffro
@rikyrah: People will absolutely riot in the streets if that happened. I would. W and Cheney got a pass for not acting when they could have/should have. No more.
VOR
The Wolff book briefly talked about the Trump hiring process and pace of hiring. One theory was that Trump was uninterested in all these people who he didn’t see every day so didn’t push for filling slots. Also, personal loyalty to Trump was a top criteria. There are still a LOT of unfilled positions and the number of people willing to join this administration is limited. Plus the turnover is ferocious, the highest of any recent administration. The government is going to be half-staffed for the rest of his term.
rikyrah
Um….Um……
Since their divorce, Murdoch has been telling anybody who would listen that Wendi is a Chinese spy–and had been throughout the marriage.
— Michael Wolff (@MichaelWolffNYC) January 16, 2018
schrodingers_cat
@rikyrah: And he thinks people won’t blame him, because ?
Kay
@Jeffro:
They run that place. They have to protect their own process. Booker is 100% right to draw a line. Apparently there’s no process to force the president to tell the truth but Congress can run their own hearings properly.
We had a judge here (he’s retired) who fined lawyers for being late by making them donate X to the charity of their choice. It stopped in 2 weeks and the lawyers who were on time thanked him.
The people who tell the truth are as important as the people who lie. The liars can’t get special treatment. People testify truthfully to all kinds of humiliating things, things that get them in trouble with their boss, things that ruin their reputations. Why should they do that if powerful people don’t have to? It’s just unfair.
FlipYrWhig
@Feebog: My wife had an idea for a new show: Chuck Rosenberg, Nick Akerman, and Jill Wine-Banks discuss how they’d prosecute the day’s various offenses committed by the Trump Administration.
Sab
@rikyrah: He didn’t care when they were happily married. Nitwit. What kind of multinational business genius can’t even vet his own prospective wife? The current wife has air for brains, but at least she has no brains. Most business geniuses manage to find a pretty wife with brains who supports their mission. Rupert failed several times.
The Moar You Know
Those are bloodbath numbers. And I thought “well, what if the GOP gets their shit together this year” and then I pissed myself laughing. Of all the things that could happen, that won’t be one of them.
Kay
Negotiating with liars is a waste of time. It’s impossible. His word is no good and his word is ALL HE HAS in a negotiation because it’s prospective- it hasn’t happened yet.
Trump’s dishonesty is treated as a kind of side issue, it would be NICE if he could be trusted but it’s not essential. That’s wrong. It’s essential. “Credible” isn’t optional like “funny” or even “smart”. It’s the basis for everything. They can’t function.
Mike in DC
@rikyrah:
His good friend Putin has experience staging terror attacks. I’m sure he could throw something together. On the other hand, there is a nonzero risk for Trump that the people who already dislike him would blame him for failing to keep the country safe. Also, of course, nuking a terrorist cell won’t go over well internationally.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
people on TV and in the ‘tubes keep talking about the “strong” economy. I find that questionable, but the people who benefit (for now) from this economy, and trump policies, don’t seem to like him.
jeffreyw
Ack! not too serious but Mrs J took a fall and hurt her foot yesterday, we are at the Dr and they scheduled surgery for tomorrow, they will be installing some plates and screws.
rikyrah
The Indypendent
@TheIndypendent
NYC Immigrant Rights Leader Jean Montrevil was deported to Haiti earlier today. He had lived in NYC for 31 years and has four U.S. born children
………………….
Wendell Pierce@WendellPierce
The Authoritarian State Is Here. The American Democracy Is Ending. I lived in Brooklyn for decades and was aware of this Haitian immigrant advocate. His deportation was targeted. This is how the Chinese Cultural Revolution began. Purging the State. A Racial Purging of America
raven
@jeffreyw: Crap, those can take time to heal.
Raoul
Scott Walker had a lovely set of panic-tweets last night (and more this morning).
It won’t change what he and his cronies do in WI, but he has seen the newsflash: he and Trump are very, very unpopular. And in WI, forking over $4.5 Bn for FoxConn may not be playing very well. Esp after years of cuts to WI universities and public schools.
He has already announced that he’s running in Nov. 2018. Nice to see him crap his pants – his chances look pretty bad right now (not to be overconfident, WI is a very strange state electorally). I think Paul Ryan may also be giving more thought to his transition to Wingnut Welfare in the fall.
jeffreyw
@raven: They are telling her 8 weeks before she can put any weight on it.
schrodingers_cat
@rikyrah: Not surprising, the Final Solution gained momentum when the military defeats started piling up for the Third Reich.
ETA: Attacking immigrants is all that they have left.
trollhattan
@jeffreyw:
That’s an ungodly long time to not walk–best wishes!
trollhattan
@Raoul:
Sweet, sweet Koch cash. Walker needs to be crushed under a boulder once and for all, side-by-side with Brownback.
Raoul
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: The wealthier GOPers bordering the St. Croix River (which does feed the Mississippi, but SD 10 does not border it – sorry Christian) are basically Twin Cities peeps (not all, but some certainly – by economy if not residence). I’d say quite a few of them are in the Nice Polite Republican fold – and they forgot the politeness, held their noses, and voted for Trump out of party ID. That is clearly, significantly weakened now.
Good luck, Scotty! There will be plenty of opportunities to share this photo of you and Dullard together in the Oval.
trollhattan
@schrodingers_cat:
Nah, they also need to attack SS and Medicare along with those immigrants. Three-fer!
schrodingers_cat
@jeffreyw: I have fractured my toes thrice and it has always taken a long time to heal. Good luck!
Major Major Major Major
@jeffreyw: eeeesh, oh no!
schrodingers_cat
@trollhattan: Immigrants on long term work visas ( the various H visas) contribute to SS and Medicare but don’t profit from them unless they become GC holders and/or citizens. Also the ones working without papers will never benefit from the contributions they make. So attacking immigration is an indirect attack on the SS and Medicare too.
Amir Khalid
@rikyrah:
I think Adam mentioned that this was obvious from the beginning of their relationship. Maybe Uncle Rupe missed it because he was dazzled by the attentions of a beautiful younger woman.
Frankensteinbeck
If Democrats take full control of any state, its gerrymandering will be reversed.
Gin & Tonic
@jeffreyw: As the recipient of plate and screws last year, I’d suggest “not too serious” may not be appropriate. Wishing her good luck, and make sure she stays on top of her PT.
schrodingers_cat
@Amir Khalid: She looks mean, not beautiful but then I am not a geriatric man.
Yarrow
@jeffreyw: Oh, no! I hope the surgery goes well. Was it ice?
p.a.
@Kay:
Heh. Tell that to Cotton & the other guy lying about ‘shithole =/= shithouse’. (And yes, I realize it’s Kay quoting something, not Kay’s comment.)
trollhattan
@schrodingers_cat:
Facts don’t matter. SS and Medicare are “welfare” and need to be eliminated. Goldwater’s unfinished business.
Mnemosyne
@SiubhanDuinne:
As someone was saying in the thread below, human nature is that people like to support winners, so this kind of good news is going to make it a lot easier for the Democrats to find volunteers, raise money, etc. I doubt anyone on our side is going to become complacent while the Mango Menace is squatting in the White House.
Mnemosyne
@rikyrah:
Holy crap. I did not realize that Walker is up for re-election THIS YEAR.
I know where my election money is going.
Mnemosyne
@schrodingers_cat:
I was mostly being an a-hole and making a snarky joke, but I would LOVE IT if Kelly got caught with his pants down. The universe owes us this one. ?
Raoul
@Mnemosyne: Indeed. He announced last Nov. 5th. Based on his twitterrhea this morning, he’s quite worried!
rikyrah
Anyone have an air fryer?
Do they really work?
Does the food taste good?
I got a very good deal on one at Amazon last night, and bought one.
jeffreyw
@Gin & Tonic: I had ozakhillbilly’s news in mind when I made that observation.
mai naem mobile
@Mnemosyne: he needs to be utterly humiliated. Like 70/30 or something . Asshole.
laura
@rikyrah: Ethnic Cleansing. Right out in the open and televised.
Fascism. Out and out fascism. In America.
A cold civil war.
jeffreyw
@Yarrow: yes, the kitty litter we put down melted into the ice and then froze again, slicker than snot, but she thought that patch was ok.
Yarrow
@Mnemosyne: No one thought Petraeus would have an affair. He was too good for that. How wrong people were. No reason Kelly can’t be similar in that regard.
And I keep meaning to say, if “Fox-ready blonde” isn’t already the name of a hair dye color, it really should be.
Yarrow
@jeffreyw: Oh, gosh. I’m so sorry. Ice is so treacherous.
Mnemosyne
@jeffreyw:
Tell her to listen to the doctors. My mom wouldn’t and ended up having to have a second surgery on her foot because she caused some additional damage trying to walk too soon. ?
Raoul
Bigger picture, the SD10 swing may help influence the Tina Smith special election in November. Banker-lobbyist Pawlenty looks prescient for announcing a non-run just days ago.
Crazy Eyes Bachmann is about the only name in regular circulation here.
As I said upthread, I don’t want to be overconfident. But I’d bet experienced GOP politicians here will probably wait for 2020 to run against her.
Jeffro
Btw now that Flake and McCain have said their piece…the RWNJ commenters (on FB, Twitter, and elsewhere) are really quite amazing.
Like this one (on McCain):
Or this one (on Flake):
And (back to McCain) here’s none other than BillO:
Wow…had no idea the NYT bore the responsibility for the W campaign’s dirty tricks?! LOL, BillO, thanks for playing…
rikyrah
@jeffreyw:
Wishing her a speedy recovery.
Jeffro
@Raoul:
It’s about time he got off of government dependency…the man’s been a lifelong leech on the taxpayer…get a job, ZEGS!
Jeffro
Breaking news: something about Bannon relaying the House committee’s questions to the WH, which told him when not to respond…whaaaat?
schrodingers_cat
@Yarrow: Someone should get Kristjen (Sp?) on camera and quiz her about her former boss. If she goes all giggly like Paula Broadwell in that interview with Jon Stewart, that would be a definite tell..
Kelly
@jeffreyw: The ice got me just before Christmas. Slipped and fell mostly on my back which spread the blow. Flailing my way down I didn’t keep my left elbow out of the way and it’s been tender ecer since. No bruise, works painlessly but still tender.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
I don’t actually care, but I don’t think either John or Cindy deny they consummated their marriage whilst McCain was still married to the first Mrs McCain. And I’m pretty sure the rumors about both of them cheating on each other are true. Still don’t care.
ETA: Very odd point for O’Loofah to be bringing up. I guess it falls under “hit dogs holler”
McCain, Flake, Collins, Corker… the leverage they had over trump was their vote on the tax bill. They can only hurt trump if they’re willing to hurt Ryan and McConnell. Not one of them are. I don’t see any comparable situation on the horizon. The House “freedom caucus” would be happy to let immigration law go to hell, and probably an even larger group doesn’t care about infrastructure
Raoul
@Jeffro: Add that to the list of things that would have melted down the political press a couple years ago, that will now get a few dozen tweets and an article or two.
Now, Mueller my be paying attention, so the patient may get a reward…
Frankensteinbeck
@Jeffro:
It’s always a little weird to see the Opposite World Republicans live in in action.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@Jeffro: Yeah, that one has my head spinning. Also, IANAL and know less than nothing about the professional ethics, but the hair-splitting distinction* people are making about Bannon and McGahn having the same lawyer strikes me as inadequate.
* the guy is only representing Bannon in matters related to the campaign, of which McGahn was not a part– I think I have that right.
Jeffro
Speaking of “only the best people, only the best”: Fox News dot com has a piece up right now criticizing Jeff Flake for ‘having no moral compass left’. It’s by…Sebastian Gorka.
Gin & Tonic
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: I thought Bannon’s questioning by House Intelligence was in a SCIF, so he wouldn’t have been able to communicate with anyone.
germy
Charles Pierce took a look at the new Chelsea Manning campaign video.
http://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/a15334581/chelsea-manning-campaign-video/
(I noticed she holds a red rose)
In the video she seems to suggest Schumer, Pelosi, et al. are complicit with the republicans.
Spanky
@jeffreyw:
And then you talk about plates and screws? Don’t even!
Healing thoughts to Mrs. W.
Timurid
@Jeffro:
I’m guessing their defense will be that the instructions were about which questions executive privilege did/did not apply to.
patrick II
I hope that during the campaigns the democratic candidates are not just going after Trump, but are tying the republican party, for its policies, its omnivorous greed in its willingness to cut taxes beyond what is sustainable for people to eat, to build infrastructure for our children, and to move away from harmful but still profitable coal and oil which are destroying our planet, and its use and encouragement of racist and sexual differences to divide people and spread fear in ruthless furtherance of those goals, which come down to — more for me, screw my neighbors, screw the country.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@germy: I could be wrong– I’m still a bit baffled by the popularity of the Sanctimonious Bellower– but if I were Ben Cardin, I wouldn’t be worried about Manning.
germy
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: I remember when I wasn’t worried about trump.
Anything’s possible nowadays, is what I’m saying.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@germy: Yeah, I missed that, too. Oy.
@patrick II: I think protecting, and expanding, Social Security and Medicare is a great platform– it was a big part of trump’s appeal. And I think Sweet Paulie Blue-Eyes got a bit overexcited and talked about ‘reform’ on camera.
MomSense
Just took the dog for a “walk” in the woods. It was like a combination tug of war, giant slalom, Iditarod.
patrick II
@Jim, Foolish Literalist:
I couldn’t believe the google eyed granny starver mentioned cuts to SS and Medicare, but I was glad/sad to hear it. Sad to hear he was actually planning it, but glad he said it out loud — and I heard it a few other places too. They got bold with their tax success. I don’t know why, the bill just barely got it through. The granny starver’s one chance with both houses and the presidency and he can’t stop himself.
MomSense
@jeffreyw:
Yikes. Hope the surgery goes well.
schrodingers_cat
@germy: I wonder what JGC has to say about this run, he was pretty sympathetic to Manning during her ordeal.
japa21
The results in those special elections are fairly misleading, in that the Dems only won one of them. IOW, the GOP can say, we won, the Dems lost. But what is important is that though the GOP won 3 of the districts, 2 by double digits, they should have won them by much more. Think what this means in a GOP + 5-10 district. Those are now in jeopardy.
Frankensteinbeck
@japa21:
Yes, a +20 shift is earth-shaking, and it’s happening a full year after Trump’s election. I was very worried the anger from the early protests would die down. I bet a lot of elected Republicans were depending on it. Well, the special election results aren’t settling. If anything, they keep moving in our direction. Marching in the streets became determined election activism. That, and while I was annoyed with their coddling Bernie, the current DNC clearly has its shit together and is focusing full bore on GOTV.
Timurid
@MomSense:
Lafayette was 15 degrees and buried in ice this morning. The one in Louisiana, not the one in Indiana…
satby
@jeffreyw: kitty litter is mostly clay. Wet icy clay is easier to slip on than plain ice.
Best wishes for a full recovery to Mrs.w
aimai
@schrodingers_cat: Lots of doctors here seem to be on various immigrant visas. Hard to see how we can keep delivering health care if they drive out all the immigrant medical professionals. And there will basically be no home health care for elderly white people if all the Africans and Haitians leave.
Mnemosyne
@Kelly:
It turns out you can actually bruise your bone short of a fracture, but there’s no way to know for sure without an MRI. It may be worth mentioning to your doctor.
d58826
So Sen. Jeff ‘profile in courage while voting 100% trump line’ Flake has given another speech ripping Der Fuhrer. Maybe next time he has the chance he will vote against something that Der Fuhrer wants passed.
Dorothy A. Winsor (formerly Iowa Old Lady)
@jeffreyw: Wow. That sounds serious.
schrodingers_cat
@aimai: Yes I know. I have a friend who was on a J-1 visa who changed to an H1-B by taking up a job in an under served urban neighborhood. She was a star student, did her residency at Johns Hopkins in pediatric hematology, oncology then a fellowship at NIH. I think her employer was going to start the green card process for her but I haven’t talked to her in over a year, so I don’t know what’s up with her.
ETA: But according to this administration all immigrants are moochers or worse.
Mnemosyne
@d58826:
Flake thinks he’s going to ride anti-Trump sentiment to the White House in 2020. Good luck with that, brah.
Enhanced Voting Techniques
@rikyrah:
More likely successful a terrorist attack would be held up as another example of how the Trump admin sucks ass by everyone but The Base(tm), who will blame Hillary and Deep State. No one is going to vote for an incumbent went they dont like the way things are going.
Jeffro
Hey by the way, where are these Fabulous #FakeNews Awards that Trumpov was supposed to be handing out today??
Well? We’re all waiting, you dumbass. Let’s see these awards! (tweets don’t count)
Dorothy A. Winsor (formerly Iowa Old Lady)
We’re just back from Florida after an early morning flight. It was wonderful weather by our standards–highs in the low 70s.
Among other things, we saw “The Post,” which I recommend for its comments on the free press and the relationship between the Village and politicians.
We also saw an exhibit of Star Wars costumes and one of National Geographic’s 50 Best Photos.
Jeffro
@Jeffro: And right on cue, with no prompting from me, my RWNJ dad just emailed to say he’s sticking by Fox today and can’t wait to see the awards(!) Swear to FSM.
Let me out, Alternate Reality, I’m ready to go back now…
Yarrow
@Mnemosyne: I tend to call people like Flake a “more in sorrow than in anger” Republican. They’re the ones that like to give the impression they’re upset by and aren’t fully on board with the racism, anti-immigrant, fuck-the-poor, etc. policies promoted and endorsed by the Republican party, but vote along with their fellow Republicans 99.9% of the time. David Brooks is the pundit of this type. It’s like they think we won’t notice what they’re doing if they look sad when they hurt people.
glory b
@Mnemosyne: Yep, a friend of mine refused to listen to the Dr’s advice about putting weight on a broken foot YEARS ago, and still walks with a limp.
Frankensteinbeck
@Enhanced Voting Techniques:
As we all know, the rule used to be that terrorist attacks give big bumps to Republicans, who run on the Brown People Are Scary ticket and reap the Daddy Will Protect Us conventional wisdom. I think that’s dead. There have been terrorist attacks over the last couple of years, and they have not moved things one iota. It may be that Trump is just too incompetent to take advantage of them, but I think that a lot of old conventional wisdom is dead because we’ve become so polarized. Nobody believes Republicans keep us safe who wasn’t already voting Republican.
lurker dean
ICE really are out of control. what was gained by this other than sadism?
http://nbc4i.com/2018/01/16/ice-officials-arrest-ohio-business-owner-plan-to-deport-him/
“Al had voluntarily purchased a plane ticket for January 7, 2018 to depart the United States for Jordan after being told by ICE he was to be deported. In anticipation of his departure, Al has prepared his luggage and started to say goodbyes. On January 4, ICE issued a stay of his deportation, following an outcry from the community and a bipartisan effort from local politicians.
Less than two weeks later, on January 16, ICE officials changed course and took Al into custody while he was attending a routine meeting. Al was accompanied by his wife, Fidaa Adi, lawyer, friends, Congressman Tim Ryan and Tracey Winbush, vice chairwoman of the Mahoning County Republican Party. Upon arrival, he was taken from his wife’s arms, handcuffed and taken into custody. His wife offered to purchase new plane tickets and depart immediately with her husband, but ICE refused. He was given no warning or opportunity to say goodbye to his wife or daughters.”
Fair Economist
@Frankensteinbeck: What we need is a bunch of Democratic states planning bloodthirsty pro-Dem gerrymanders. Once that happens the rightist on the court will suddenly see how bad gerrymanders are and put tight restrictions on them, which will be a good thing.
ruemara
@Patricia Kayden: Have you seen the pics of her walking with Malia in a white bikini top and white short shorts? Wooo, Ms. O is living her best life, does not give 2 fucks and Pres. O is a lucky man.
Fair Economist
@Raoul:
2020 is unlikely to be a good year for Republicans either.
Frankensteinbeck
@lurker dean:
Nothing. Trump’s message to the country, even more to law enforcement, and most of all to ICE, has been to get your mean-spirited bigot freak on, and the executive branch will look the other way. Anyone in the ICE who wants to be a complete sadistic shit and ruin as many brown people’s lives as they can is free to do so. Even if the ICE was mostly good people, there would be more than enough bad apples to create constant horror stories as they indulged their most fuckhead desires.
cain
@Timurid:
I was going to say… cuz I believe that is true for the one in Indiana as well. (West Lafayette, is my home town)
marcopolo
Haven’t seen this mentioned and it is a big deal. Even though Ds lost 3 of the 4 elections yesterday, we need to consider the improvement in voter margin from R -> D in the statewide context. In 2016 Jason Kander lost the MO Senate race to Roy Blunt by 3%. The D’s did not even run candidates in 67 (out of 163) MO House races in that election. Average D vote in those uncontested districts was something like 25%. Changing margins like we saw last night in strong R districts (even if you lose the election) can mean flipping the results at the statewide level. I have no doubt Kander would beat Blunt if that election were held in 2018. Also let’s hope this bodes well for Claire McCaskill in her re-election bid. But no matter how steep the hill to actually winning each election is, there are serious benefits to contesting every election and motivating your folks to get out to vote.
JMG
Why do I have the sinking feeling Congressional Democrats will do their best to smooth the wave in their favor in the next two weeks by caving on DACA? They can’t resist the plaudits of the serious Villagers by keeping the government running by betraying people the Serious Villagers care nothing about. Of course, that presupposes the Republicans can get out of their own way here, which is still a question.
marcopolo
@Fair Economist: Well, I’d argue that the first thing that needs to happen when Ds retake control of a state’s legislative process is to ensure universal voter registration, to make the voting process as easy as possible, and to ensure the integrity/security of the state’s voting system. I think this is already happening in WA and in AK they have tied voter registration to signing up to get your Permanent Fund Dividend check (which every resident does so it winds up being universal). While I realize the value of gerrymandering (and see it everyday in our current state and national legislatures), the optimist in me believes that just getting more folks to the polls will end up with pretty much the same result over time.
Fair Economist
@marcopolo:
Amen. In California we have yet another benefit – improved D turnout in hot primaries in R districts improves our chances of D vs. D contests in statewide races, which will in turn suppress R turnout in the general. If there are no Republicans in any headline races in CA no Republican House seat is safe, regardless of partisan lean.
Frankensteinbeck
@JMG:
Since that hasn’t been happening since Trump’s election, and honestly wasn’t happening for years before that, I think you have that feeling because of old memories and the media constantly assuring you this will happen, since it’s what they want.
marcopolo
@JMG: Worst comes to worst (I think), CHIP makes it in this CFR and DACA doesn’t. Yes, that is awful for the DACA folks. But then they get another bite at it in Feb when the next CFR will be due for a vote. I too want to see everything resolved now (and have called my Dem Senator and Congressman to vote no if both those issues are not resolved but I am not going to throw them under the bus until I have to–which would be after the Feb CFR vote. DACA finally expires in March.
danielx
@p.a.:
Cotton in particular isn’t interested in deal making/legislating, any more than Ted Cruz, and for much the same reasons. He looks in the mirror and sees presidential timber, and who cares about legislating when showboating for wingnuts is what gets you ahead?
Granted that in a way I can’t blame him considering some/most of the Republicans who have thought the same thing. Alongside those people, Cotton probably looks like Demosthenes to potential Republican primary voters.
lurker dean
@Frankensteinbeck: all true. i still haven’t figured out how ICE didn’t get any pushback from disregarding court orders when the first immigrant ban order was put into effect. they are completely out of control and no one seems to be care. i contacted my congressman about ICE, again.
JMG
@Frankensteinbeck: You could be right. Dems have been much stouter on defense than I expected in this Congress.
Fair Economist
@marcopolo:
Yes, that’s a fantastic and important goal. I don’t really want D gerrymanders as much as giving the corrupt Republicans on the Supreme Court incentive to stop gerrymandering, which in practice has been generally more harmful that the voter suppression the Republicans have been doing. The VA statehouse gerrymander is as bad as suppressing 20% of the Democratic voters, and I don’t think any voter suppression has been that bad. Many other gerrymanders have been comparably bad.
Scamp Dog
@schrodingers_cat: Feature, not bug, to the Rs.
a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)
@jeffreyw: Damn, that sucks. Surgery and no weight for 8 weeks sounds pretty serious to me. Best wishes for an uneventful surgery and full recovery.
MomSense
@Timurid:
Yikes. I’d much rather have two feet of snow than ice.
The Moar You Know
@lurker dean: Nothing. That was done because some sick fuck thought it was funny.
I posted in an earlier thread that my personal first priority when Dems regain control over the government is the total elimination of ICE/CBE, and the banning of every single ICE/CBE employee from holding a federal or law enforcement job ever again.
Cops are supposed to be here to help us. Instead, they’ve declared war on America. It must end.
Cheryl from Maryland
@Dorothy A. Winsor (formerly Iowa Old Lady): Hey, was that in St. Petersburg? I worked on that exhibition. Did you like it?
cain
@JMG:
That will be fixed by repeatedly calling your congress critter and tell them to hold firm and that if not, you would be happy to vote for a primary challenger. They need to fear YOU the voter, not villagers, and not democratic third way pundits/advisors.
catclub
@schrodingers_cat:
George W Bush got a promotion after 9/11. Why shouldn’t he get the same if something similar happens?
The first is what happened. the second is his thinking. Does not take into account that we better be much better prepared AFTER 9/11.
trollhattan
@Mnemosyne:
My kid had this exact injury–“hematoma of the tibial plateau” and it was a ten-week recovery, same as a break.
The Moar You Know
@Kay: I was involved in a civil case several years back where my clients nailed the defendants dead to rights for perjury. The judge simply did not care.
(We had also nailed them dead to rights for destruction of evidence and the judge didn’t care about that either, said he’d see if he felt it worthy of sanction when it went to trial. You could have picked my jaw up off the floor)
So far as I can tell, there is every motivation to lie and none to tell the truth, because if you lie the judicial system, at least the civil end, doesn’t really seem to consider that a problem. The criminal courts may well differ; I’ve never been involved with them, only civil.
trollhattan
@marcopolo:
Republicans will end DACA. The only question is whether they will pay for doing so.
lurker dean
@The Moar You Know: yeah, it’s stunning that we don’t have a single GOP member of congress interested in preventing abuse by ICE. yes, we need to win and start some investigations of ICE, and hold people accountable. as i mentioned earlier, i have no idea how ICE just straight up defied federal court orders during the first muslim ban executive order, without any consequences.
Gravenstone
@rikyrah: As Adam pointed out in another thread a day or two ago, that was known from the outset of their relationship. She was basically a “honey trap” for old Rupert and he fell willingly enough into it.
? ?? Goku (aka The Hope of the Universe) ? ?
@rikyrah:
A local Jordian businessman who has lived here for over 30 years in my area (owns a convenience store that is an important local landmark.) had recently received assistance from Rep Tim Ryan to get a stay pending a hearing on his status. The ICE assholes arrested him at the meeting. He’s in the local lockup pending deportation.
I hate ICE and I wish there was something I could do to stop them. It’s times like these that I wish I did have super-strength so I could clean the clocks of these monsters.
Mnemosyne
@lurker dean:
Somebody needs to remind these assholes that this is what they asked for. This is what they wanted and supported. They don’t get to cry crocodile tears now that the policies that they pushed for are affecting people they know.
ETA: Correction — Ryan is a Democrat, so Winbush is the one who needs to stop her sobbing.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@lurker dean: no bigger phonies in politics than “libertarians”
Roger Moore
@schrodingers_cat:
Not true at all. The administration would welcome more immigrants from Norway!
Gravenstone
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: Apparently the same lawyer also represents Priebus. So yeah, his attention is likely to be somewhat divided once the Mueller train shifts into overdrive.
WaterGirl
@jeffreyw: oh, ugh, I’m so sorry she has to go through that.
Dorothy A. Winsor (formerly Iowa Old Lady)
@Cheryl from Maryland: Yes! It was a great exhibit. I enjoyed it even more than I expected. The costumes and signage were both great.
geg6
@rikyrah:
My sister loves hers and so does a co-worker. I generally am not enamored enough with fried food to shell out for one, but the people I know who are love them.
danielx
@The Moar You Know:
It would be nice to think so, but….such is not the case.Their purpose(s) include the preservation of order, protection of private property, and enforcement and protection of norms for the ruling political class. These aims may or may not coincide with helping people, but helping people is incidental to their unwritten mandates. Generally speaking, calling the cops is an absolute last resort because there is no situation that a cop cannot make worse, depending on the cop.
People go into police work for one of three reasons: the traditional and honorable “protect and serve”, because it’s a civil service job with okay pay and better than average benefits, or because they get to carry a gun and a badge and authority to do pretty much what they like to those they are ostensibly serving. Which tendency predominates is a function of a particular agency’s management and the nature of the agency itself. I leave it to you to decide which predominates in the case of ICE, bearing in mind that they arrest and detain many people who are not charged with any crime other than being in the US illegally.
The Moar You Know
@lurker dean: In the words of some previous asshole president, “Justice So-and-so has made his ruling, now let him enforce it”.
They were obviously told to ignore those orders, and obviously wanted to, because they did, and here we are. Which is why I want the entire agency abolished and replaced. Without rule of law, you have nothing. You are no longer a functional society.
I’d say “you might as well hire street gangs to do law enforcement” but they’d do a better job because at least they observe, respect and enforce chain of command and orders. ICE doesn’t even do that.
rikyrah
@aimai:
You make good points.
I will admit that I honestly didn’t know this. I live in an urban area, and of course, I run into doctors from all sorts of countries. It wasn’t until the ban in the beginning of the year, that I understood the scope and depth of the amount of foreign-born doctors working in this country. And, that many of them took assignments in rural America because it was how they could get a Visa. So, all this time, we’ve had a rural White population seething everytime they went to the doctor, not comprehending that these foreign doctors are why they don’t have to go three hours to get quality medical care.
Nothing but truth.
Roger Moore
@Gravenstone:
My completely ungrounded suspicion is that he walked into it because he saw it as a way of currying favor in China. A man like Rupert Murdoch would happily marry a foreign spy if he thought it would make doing business in that spy’s country easier, especially if she were hot.
rikyrah
@lurker dean:
And, if reading this, you find this ok, well, I have nothing to say to you.
I despise you and everything you stand for, because you don’t stand for anything good.
And, no, I’m not going to try and understand you.
KarenH
@jeffreyw:
Hope the surgery goes well and she has an easy and full recovery. A few years ago I injured my ankle (it’s fine now) and was supposed to keep off it for eight weeks. I rented a kneewalker and it made the whole thing much easier. Maybe it would be appropriate for her.
http://www.rentakneewalker.com
chris
@Roger Moore:
Hard-workin’ guys like these very fine people!
Shana
@rikyrah: I got an air fryer as a gift a year ago. I like it fine, fried kale chips, air fried chicken, frozen french fries, pita chips. A word of advice (or two), put in less stuff than directions call for, and food frequently takes longer than the instruction book says. All in all, I’m satisfied, but not overwhelmed.
Shana
@Frankensteinbeck: It’s not just the DNC working on GOTV. Here in Virginia we’ve had a lot of different Indivisble and like-minded groups helping campaigns. There was a great article in the NYT Magazine a few months ago about a campaign manager for one of the Delegate races that worked really well with a bunch of those groups in support of her candidate, who won.
And to chime in on the earlier thread about enthusiasm locally, at last week’s Fairfax County (VA) Democratic Committee reorganization meeting (where my daughter was elected as one of the Vice Chairs – she’s only 27) there was enormous enthusiasm for replacing Barbara Comstock, the only R congressperson in the county. Our other congressperson is Gerry Connolly (D) and so far doesn’t have a challenger, but has been doing a great job and is pretty safe so most of our local work will go to Comstock’s race.