Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Usually wrong but never in doubt

Trump’s cabinet: like a magic 8 ball that only gives wrong answers.

Roe is not about choice. It is about freedom.

Republicans don’t want a speaker to lead them; they want a hostage.

Republicans want to make it harder to vote and easier for them to cheat.

Take hopelessness and turn it into resilience.

Sitting here in limbo waiting for the dice to roll

There are some who say that there are too many strawmen arguments on this blog.

Republicans firmly believe having an abortion is a very personal, very private decision between a woman and J.D. Vance.

Whoever he was, that guy was nuts.

You know it’s bad when the Project 2025 people have to create training videos on “How To Be Normal”.

He really is that stupid.

Why is it so hard for them to condemn hate?

I’ve spoken to my cat about this, but it doesn’t seem to do any good.

Putin must be throwing ketchup at the walls.

… gradually, and then suddenly.

The rest of the comments were smacking Boebert like she was a piñata.

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

These are not very smart people, and things got out of hand.

Do we throw up our hands or do we roll up our sleeves? (hint, door #2)

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

Red lights blinking on democracy’s dashboard

JFC, are there no editors left at that goddamn rag?

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

You are here: Home / Politics / America / Mid To Late Evening Open Thread: The Crossdressing Attorneys Of Arendelle To The Rescue!

Mid To Late Evening Open Thread: The Crossdressing Attorneys Of Arendelle To The Rescue!

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(Sort of) Queen Elsa to the rescue!

You’d expect to see this type of thing in Florida, not Boston, if Florida had blizzards.

Also, Crossdressing Attorneys would be the name of my neo-punk cover band if I had any musical aptitude whatsoever.

Obligatory:

Stay frosty!

Open thread.

Reader Interactions

96Comments

  4. 4.

    PhoenixRising

    @Baud: Nah, he asked his friends to let him be the hero we’ve waited for. Not the hero we deserve, you understand, but…no one can deserve Princess Elsa pushing out a paddy wagon in the pre-St Pat’s Day blizzard.

  5. 5.

    Davis X. Machina

    You’d expect to see this type of thing in Florida, not Boston, if Florida had blizzards.

    Well, we New Englanders are just notoriously tight-assed, undemonstrative and taciturn.

  15. 15.

    Jeffro

    Does Bolton require confirmation if appointed to replace McMaster?

    Just asking for a friend…who has a good bomb-shelter company on hold at the moment…

  23. 23.

    Jeffro

    @schrodingers_cat: Good to know, thanks!

    “…so…sorry for the delay there…so you have a special on shelters 30′ or more deep? Do those come with their own generat…wait…yes…I know you have a lot of calls cominginDON’TPUTMEONHOLDDAMMIT…”

    Shit.

  24. 24.

    efgoldman

    @PhoenixRising:

    no one can deserve Princess Elsa

    Granddaughter (five in August) has been Elsa crazy since age two.
    Parents have arranged for a character meet when they go to The Magic at the beginning of May. Child doesn’t know. They’ll tell her when they wake her up the morning of. As it is, she’s bouncing off the walls and ceilings pending the arrival of a new sibling. She’s got to sleep some time.

  26. 26.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Jeffro: No. Assistants to the President, which is what the National Security Advisor is, do not need Senate confirmation.

  27. 27.

    FlyingToaster

    This seems entirely normal to me. But of course, I’ve just lived in one of the inner ‘burbs for the past 30 years.

    [15 years in Somerville; 15+ years in Watertown, which is technically MetroWest but looking at the increased density, not to mention the “Assembly-Row-ing” of the Arsenal, not for long)

  32. 32.

    NotMax

    @raven

    Once saw a woman who had been a well-known Hawaiian entertainer in the 20s and 30s perform that number as a specialty act during a fund-raising show. Must have been in her late eighties, possibly in her nineties. Wheeled in a chair into the wings, hobbled out onto the stage with the aid of two burly stagehands.

    Once the spotlight hit her the years instantly melted away and she sang and danced as if she was 25 again. Magical moment.

  33. 33.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    Jonathan Cheng @ JChengWSJ
    No Tillerson? No problem. S. Korea’s foreign minister, originally scheduled to meet Rex in Washington, will meet Ivanka instead.

  34. 34.

    Gin & Tonic

    So tomorrow is the one-year anniversary of my arm incident. I’m going to commemorate it by going skiing. If things go badly, Mrs. G&T is going to be mighty pissed off.

  36. 36.

    Waratah

    I know this off topic but we are going to Rome and the information I am reading is confusing on we need to safely charge our phones pads and cameras. I thought you well travelled commenters could help me.

  37. 37.

    Adam L Silverman

    Beinvinidos a Miami!

    I lived in Miami for two years in grad school. This is about what I was expecting:

  38. 38.

    FlyingToaster

    @efgoldman: I recommend dance parties. It’s what we did all through Preschool and Kindergarten.

    Albums we used back in the day:
    “Kids in Motion” by Greg and Steve
    “Music from the TV Show” and “Volume 2” by the Fresh Beat Band
    “Music is Awesome, vols 1,2,3” by Yo Gabba Gabba.
    And whatever HerrDoktor put together from They Might be Giants.

    Every night, about 15-20 minutes before bathtime, we had a dance party. It meant I could get WarriorBabyGirl to go the fuck to sleep.

    These days, at age 10, it involves confiscating the electronics from WarriorGirl and sending her upstairs, with required reading a book before bedtime.

  41. 41.

    Gin & Tonic

    @Waratah: All you need is the converter for the shape of the plug. All of the charging adapters (known sometimes as “bricks”) that come with your devices will be fine. Everything charges over mini-USB, micro-USB or Lighting these days.

    ETA: If you really want to play safe, just get one of these. https://www.miniinthebox.com/universal-travel-usb-charger-adapter-wall-portable-eu-plug-mobile-phone-smart-fast-charger-for-iphone-samsung-huawei-xiaomi-5v-3-1a_p5359706.html?currency=USD&litb_from=paid_adwords_shopping&sku=1_45&country_code=us&utm_source=google_shopping&utm_medium=cpc&adword_mt=&adword_ct=202569733657&adword_kw=&adword_pos=1o2&adword_pl=&adword_net=g&adword_tar=&adw_src_id=33249133621_866657477_43349667763_pla-323333425346&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIuYqnh-Lv2QIVRVcNCh2wkApUEAQYAiABEgL1DfD_BwE (sorry about the sloopy URL, I’m in the edit window.)

  43. 43.

    Adam L Silverman

    @raven:

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/amphtml/politics/trump-decides-to-remove-national-security-adviser-and-others-may-follow/2018/03/15/fea2ebae-285c-11e8-bc72-077aa4dab9ef_story.html?utm_term=.1b53c43df467&__twitter_impression=true

    President Trump has decided to remove H.R. McMaster as his national security adviser and is actively discussing potential replacements, according to five people with knowledge of the plans, preparing to deliver yet another jolt to the senior ranks of his administration.

    Trump is now comfortable with ousting McMaster, with whom he never personally gelled, but is willing to take time executing the move because he wants to ensure both that the three-star Army general is not humiliated and that there is a strong successor lined up, these people said.

    The turbulence is part of a broader potential shake-up under consideration by Trump that is likely to include senior officials at the White House, where staffers are gripped by fear and un­certainty as they await the next move from an impulsive president who enjoys stoking conflict.

    For all of the evident disorder, Trump feels emboldened, advisers said — buoyed by what he views as triumphant decisions last week to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum and to agree to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. The president is enjoying the process of assessing his team and making changes, tightening his inner circle to those he considers survivors and who respect his unconventional style, one senior White House official said.

    More at the link.

  48. 48.

    Doug R

    @Waratah:

    I know this off topic but we are going to Rome and the information I am reading is confusing on we need to safely charge our phones pads and cameras. I thought you well travelled commenters could help me.

    Never been to Europe myself but I hear cell phone rates are WAY better over there. It might be cheaper to buy a prepaid phone there, it would probably come with a charger that with any luck would be the same as one of your phones.
    Everywhere around here it’s USB chargers with a wall plug in adapter, I’m thinking Europe would have their voltage adapters -> USB available.
    A large drug store here like London Drugs or Rite Aid probably has adapters if you look hard enough.

  49. 49.

    Gin & Tonic

    @Doug R: As long as you have a US cellphone that’s not carrier-locked, it’s best to just buy a local SIM card. I only use a second phone in certain special circumstances.

  50. 50.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Amir Khalid: Kiss up, kick down.

    He will enable all of the President’s worst instincts. If Kelly is still there I could see them getting in a fist fight. And I don’t expect he’ll survive the first time he tries to give Secretary Mattis a stupid order.

  53. 53.

    NotMax

    @Adam L. Silverman

    There was a story maybe a month or so ago that the Pentagon (Marines?) was frantically searching for a four-star position to lay on McMaster. Presume he would have to unretire first?

  56. 56.

    Waratah

    @Gin & Tonic: Thank you so much we did not want to go and not be able to charge or damage anything. I thought about you today as you said you were a foody while we were researching places to eat and food. We will have to do some major walking.

  57. 57.

    What Have the Romans Ever Done for Us?

    Looks like he’s heading your catch phrase and staying frosty!

  58. 58.

    Jeffro

    @Adam L Silverman: (from the reporting)

    “They are eager to show that someone can serve in the Trump administration without suffering severe damage to their reputation”.

    Um, I believe the horse done already left the barn on that one, folks…it’s nothing but shittier appointees all the way down at this point…

  59. 59.

    Jeffro

    @Adam L Silverman:

    If Kelly is still there I could see them getting in a fist fight. And I don’t expect he’ll survive the first time he tries to give Secretary Mattis a stupid order.

    From your lips to the FSM’s noodly appendages…

  61. 61.

    Waratah

    @Doug R: we have not decided on telephone charges but we might check out the phones there. We do not plan to have a lot of calling but would like for emergency’s.

  62. 62.

    Adam L Silverman

    @NotMax: Not the Marines. LTG McMaster is in the Army. You are correct that that was reported, that they were looking for an appropriate billet for him. Otherwise he retires from service when he steps down as National Security Advisor as he was scheduled to retire in early 2017 with his last assignment being Deputy Commanding General Training and Doctrine Command and Director Army Capability Integration Center.

    The problem is finding a billet for him. They could promote him on retirement, what is referred to as a tomb stone, but he wouldn’t draw 4 star retirement pay because he never served in grade. This leaves finding him an actual billet. Unfortunately they’re either filled or they have a bunch of 3 star generals already lined up to be promoted in to them. So they either sidetrack someone’s career or end someone else’s career early. A good number of McMaster’s peers never wanted him to make 1 star, let alone 3. So there’s a lot of general officer politics that also has to be negotiated around here too.

  63. 63.

    EBT

    Dear open thread: I now have 405 or the 809 backgrounds I need to draw for the first arc of my interactive fiction.

  66. 66.

    Adam L Silverman

    @NotMax: Actually there’s a cottage industry in stories of staffers bumping into Secretary Mattis on his way to the Pentagon basement after hours. He does is laundry in the machines there.

  67. 67.

    Anne Laurie

    But can somebody help “Queen Elsa” meet Adam Ripon? From Boston.com:

    The Elsa impersonator — who wore a blue and white dress and a silvery, braided wig — was Jason Triplett, a 37-year-old attorney from Boston, according to The Boston Globe. Triplett visited The Gallows Tuesday night dressed as Elsa to make his friends laugh, Triplett told the Globe…

    Haynes said patrons inside the restaurant cheered Triplett on and then burst into applause when the wagon was freed. Triplett curtsied after the wagon drove away.

    “The officers involved were especially grateful for the help and would like to thank the Elsa-impersonator for the assist,” Boston Police Officer James Kenneally, a spokesman for the department, told the Globe.

    Haynes, a restaurant publicist who represents The Gallows, said he had not met Triplett before Tuesday and that the video “was absolutely not staged.” Haynes said he fielded media calls Wednesday morning from People, The Washington Post, TMZ, and from publications as far away as London, Brazil, and Ireland.

    “Everyone will be over it by noon,” Triplett told People. “But if this is my 15 minutes, I would like to leverage it to meet [Olympic figure skater] Adam Rippon.”

  68. 68.

    lgerard

    From the Wapo

    Trump has sometimes expressed confusion about what agencies and secretaries are in charge of what duties, a senior administration official said. For example, this official said, he has complained to Pruitt about regulatory processes for construction projects, although the EPA is not in charge of the regulations.

    That’s certainly reassuring

  73. 73.

    Adam L Silverman

    @NotMax: If there like every set of laundry machines I’ve ever seen on a military base, then they take quarters. And they plug into an outlet. That’s about it.

  77. 77.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Omnes Omnibus: I wouldn’t either. I know the White House is trying to get Mattis to get the Sec Army and CSA to do something here, but I don’t see how they do it without screwing someone else over who is already in the chute for their 4th star and the billet that goes with it.

  78. 78.

    Origuy

    @Waratah: Might be worth buying a small surge protector. Belkin makes one which I think comes with multiple plugs. I bought it after frying a PC power brick in a Stalin-era apartment in Moscow.

  80. 80.

    MoxieM

    The South End rocks… of course, it’s changed a lot. When I first started working, I had a friend who lived there because it was cheap–maybe $200 bucks a month? Him and hookers & junkies on his street. Then, people realized the buildings are beautiful, and gentrification happened. It’s got a decent historical society (well, it’s Boston after all…)

  82. 82.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Omnes Omnibus: Yep. I suppose they could try to offer him as the backfill for GEN Nichols in Afghanistan. That would give him about 24 to 32 months at the 4 star level. But that would depend on whether there was someone in the chute to take over that assignment.

  83. 83.

    J. Adams Jefferson

    Haven’t properly introduced myself. Joined a recent thread & added some thoughts, no one seemed to notice. I usually only get to read these interesting discussions a few days later, when I’m offline, in my wonderful Appalachian wilderness. Happen to be checking in tonite. Hi, all.

    I don’t know how to paste an image here: google search shows it’s a common troll meme/false profile pic used worldwide.

    Patriot Lady

    I think it ought to be the header of this account:

    Clifford (aka Daniels) v. Trump et al.
    by Stephanie Clifford (aka Stormy Daniels)
    Civil Liberties
    Lawyers: Avenatti & Associates, APC
    Los Angeles, California, United States of America
    Stephanie Clifford (aka Stormy Daniels)
    I am attempting to speak honestly and openly to the American people about my relationship with now President Donald Trump and the intimidation and tactics used against me.
    28 days to go
    $143,971
    pledged by 4,787 people

    Up about $16,000 since I checked a few hours ago.

  85. 85.

    Lyrebird

    @Adam L Silverman: You’ve probably seen this, but just in case:

    BuzzFeed News reached that conclusion after reviewing court documents. Late Thursday, ProPublica acknowledged that it had erred in reporting that [Haspel] had been present for Abu Zubaydah’s interrogation.

    So maybe Haspel is more of a Mattis pick than we thought. Something useful actually came from Ayn Paul Rand’s complaints! Fact checking, that is. Credit to ProPublica for not just acknowledging that they were wrong but giving their correction a headline, not just teeny print at the bottom of the “About Us” page or something.

  86. 86.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Lyrebird: I’ve seen some of the pushback on this. Apparently the Chief of Station (facility) at that time was not Haspel. She didn’t get there till later that year. The two questions that are now going to come up are:
    1) Were the reports that she was the Chief of (that) Station (facility) that destroyed the surveillance recordings/evidence under orders from higher also incorrect and it was her predecessor?
    2) How do Senators McCain and Feinstein respond to this revelation?

  92. 92.

    Lyrebird

    @Omnes Omnibus: I don’t know, but I didn’t click before bc I don’t know who Channing Tatum is. Whoever he is, he’s a good dancer, and that was hilarious, thank you!

    I would like to know if I could find his version of the dress available in a smaller size. My kid would be so amused, and most of what I have found is sized for tweens who aren’t planning to do rolls on the stage either.

  95. 95.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Omnes Omnibus: It’s possible WP got confused because it was a very polite reply. If you’d just said “Fuck you!” there might not have been an issue at all.//

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