Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

if you can’t see it, then you are useless in the fight to stop it.

So it was an October Surprise A Day, like an Advent calendar but for crime.

I like you, you’re my kind of trouble.

You cannot shame the shameless.

Teach a man to fish, and he’ll sit in a boat all day drinking beer.

Thanks to your bullshit, we are now under siege.

This really is a full service blog.

Impressively dumb. Congratulations.

I really should read my own blog.

They traffic in fear. it is their only currency. if we are fearful, they are winning.

Today’s GOP: why go just far enough when too far is right there?

This blog will pay for itself.

I see no possible difficulties whatsoever with this fool-proof plan.

Let me eat cake. The rest of you could stand to lose some weight, frankly.

Schmidt just says fuck it, opens a tea shop.

Our job is not to persuade republicans but to defeat them.

Republicans seem to think life begins at the candlelight dinner the night before.

I’d like to think you all would remain faithful to me if i ever tried to have some of you killed.

Whoever he was, that guy was nuts.

Perhaps you mistook them for somebody who gives a damn.

In my day, never was longer.

“Jesus paying for the sins of everyone is an insult to those who paid for their own sins.”

Everybody saw this coming.

The party of Reagan has become the party of Putin.

You are here: Home / Politics / Trumpery / Dolt 45 / Cheap Snark Open Thread: “Only Ryan and McConnell Can Pen in Tyrannosaurus Trump”

Cheap Snark Open Thread: “Only Ryan and McConnell Can Pen in Tyrannosaurus Trump”

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Yeaaaah, like that’s gonna happen. It’s always entertaining when Repubs turn on each other, but especially so when a professional GOPster like Rick Wilson picks up his cutlass…

… Republicans who believe firing Mueller will change the political dynamic and free Trump to do whatever the hell they think he’d do without the special counsel on the scene are dreaming. Trump is already permanently stained, a president with an asterisk next to his name, a joke, a con, and a political poison that’s devouring their campaigns and their legacies. Even the White House clown bus of mooks, slowcoaches, edge case cranks, and kissers of his double-wide backside seem to understand more than the GOP in Congress; he’s crazier than a rat in a septic tank, and only Congress has any power over his behavior.

The Trump signals that he’s going to fire Robert Mueller need a more real, vigorous, and blunt response than any member of the House or Senate has yet provided. For being such fans of the Constitution, Republicans seems to have forgotten they’re in a co-equal branch of government and swore an oath to protect the Constitution from all enemies, foreign and domestic. Dismissing the special counsel in the middle of an investigation of foreign interference, obstruction of justice, and ties to hostile foreign powers isn’t just reckless; it’s politically idiotic.

I understand the argument that both Speaker Ryan and Leader McConnell need to calibrate their remarks to stay in the middle of the sentiment of their respective caucuses. Paul Ryan knows the Trump-hadis, yahoos, InfoWars conspiracy fanboys (looking at you, Matt Gaetz), dead-enders, and political anarchists on his right flank are restive, worrisome, and would stone him to death in a hot minute if Trump asked them to do so. In the center of the GOP caucus, the sense of doom is so thick you can cut it with a knife. For McConnell, his crafty, baroque mental calculus is less clear, but with Jeff Flake and John McCain headed out the door, he’s left with almost no one willing to publicly stand up and take on this president. For all that, both men are on the hot seat this week as Trump edges closer to Muellerdämmerung…

Understanding how to contain Donald Trump isn’t complicated. In every single domain of his entire life, Donald Trump is a cheater. This isn’t ad hominem. It’s documented fact in every part of his career in business, marriage, and politics. He will take advantage of any leeway, loophole, gullibility, or porn starlet he sees.

Donald Trump views red lines as green lights. The transgressive, disruptive nature of Trump is beloved by his base, and by an army of formerly conservative writers now eagerly fluffing the president’s rampant statism, corruption, and obstruction. They desperately want the narrative to become, “Donald the Magnificent girds his loins, defeats Mueller and evil sorceress Hillary in single combat, as bountiful harvests and happy peasants follow. Bards sing his praises for a thousand years.”

Even if Republicans believe Mueller ought to be fired, and hate him for being the skunk at the garden party of Trumpism, their political fortunes rest in part on whether voters see them as accomplices to a lawless, dishonest, corrupt president. If Trumpism is so powerfully hypnotic that they put their political survival after this president’s whims, I suppose they’re beyond counsel and help, but it hasn’t stopped me from trying…

And before anyone starts wailing that I need to take the risk of Trump firing Mueller more seriously: Unlike Mr. Wilson, I don’t want Donald Trump “contained”, except in one of our finer SuperMaxes. Or Gitmo, which the Repubs refuse to close down. Lord Smallgloves may or may not attempt to fire Mueller — I don’t think he’s got the guts, but some of his toadies might still talk Jefferson Beauregard Sessions III or one of his fellow revanchists into attempting it. But at this point, I really doubt Mr. Mueller will be going anywhere. Unlike his targets… who will be going to jail.

Reader Interactions

171Comments

  1. 1.

    Cermet

    Mueller, while you are correct in that he doesn’t constrain the orange fart cloud, is critical if that small handed joke of a president will see the jail time he deserves after he is voted out of office come 2020. So, Mueller is important to that end.

  2. 2.

    danielx

    Paul Ryan knows the Trump-hadis, yahoos, InfoWars conspiracy fanboys (looking at you, Matt Gaetz), dead-enders, and political anarchists on his right flank are restive, worrisome, and would stone him to death in a hot minute if Trump asked them to do so.

    The part Wilson sort of slides by is that many of the wingnuts on Ryan’s right flank don’t give a shit about the Constitution except insofar as it serves their ends. There are a great many people out there who have reached the point where they regard as fraudulent any election that doesn’t produce the results they want – by definition. They never accepted Obama as a legitimately elected president, they would never have accepted HRC.

    ETA: they are quite capable of resorting to extra-constitutional means to reach their ends if they’re disappointed at the polls.

  3. 3.

    David Fud

    There is nothing that Trump’s supporters are going to take as crossing any line. And Congress is full of Trump supporters. The Constitution does not apply to Republicans in general, and this one in particular. All this talk of people going to jail need to think about Nixon, Reagan, Bush, and Bush II after waking up from this wet dream. It won’t happen.

  4. 4.

    Ian G.

    Wilson is my favorite of the never-Trumpers. His prose in describing Combover Caligula is magnificent.

    Someday, hopefully, when this dark period in American history is done, and the republic is on stable ground again, I want to buy Wilson a drink, toast to the USA, and go back to arguing about marginal tax rates with him.

  5. 5.

    Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes

    I was just listening to Katy Tur interview someone on MSNBC. What our mediots fail to register is that Deadbeat Donnie lurches from position to position not out of plan, but because his thinking is chaotic and ill-considered. This is the brain that conjured Trump Steaks, Trump Vodka, Trump University while bankrupting casinos.

  6. 6.

    RepubAnon

    When he fires Mueller, Trump will follow his standard procedure:
    1) create major distractions, such as having Bolton start publicly singing “Bomb Iran”, or giving North Korea a “bloody nose”

    2) Once the front pages are filled, fire Mueller

    3) Claim that anyone objecting to Mueller’s firing is supporting Iran, North Korea, etc.

    4) Wait for new shiny objects to distract the public.

  9. 9.

    Elizabelle

    Good morning, all.

    Tomorrow we march. And we will be heard.

    No doubt Trump and Co. will do something idiotic to grab the news cycle, but this one belongs to the students and others marching and speaking out for gun safety, especially in our schools.

  10. 10.

    MattF

    I don’t particularly trust Wilson politically, but when someone echoes your thoughts-in-the-shower you gotta pay attention.

    In fact, I was thinking about how ‘genius’ is a trigger for Trump– his immediate, panicked response is “I’m the genius, I’m the genius.” Well, it’s the ‘God of the schoolyard’ thing. And, well, I guess maybe Trump is the ubermensch, (not) but then again, Nietzsche didn’t know about reality TV.

  11. 11.

    Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes

    @Ken:

    You’re giving him way too much credit for his ability to plan. I’ve dealt with shady developers before – just like him but didn’t start with the same kitty. They lurch from decision to decision because they’re mentally lazy and use bravado to get their way, trusting fate to bring them through.

  12. 12.

    NotMax

    Like being stuck at an incessant taping of Let’s Make a Deal, only behind every door is a zonk.

  14. 14.

    No Drought No More

    I have no idea what her salary is at MSNBC. But Katy Tur isn’t paid enough to justify her being forced to sit next to Bloody Bill Kristol this early in the morning, much less solicit that snake’s opinion about anything.

  15. 15.

    japa21

    Now the word is he may veto the spending bill. Just the last 24 hours has my wife on the verge of a nervous breakdown. Yet that is exactly what Trump loves. He believes that since he loves to wallow in chaos, the whole country probably loves it as well.

  17. 17.

    dmsilev

    Speaking of Trump vs. Congress, I just got a news alert saying that he might veto the spending bill because it doesn’t do what he wants re: immigration. Probably hot air on his part, but possibly not. Who the hell really knows any more?

    Edit. TPM’s summary:

    President Donald Trump on Friday said he is “considering a veto” of Congress’ $1.3 trillion spending bill that finally passed in the Senate around midnight Friday.

    In a tweet, Trump cited the lack of a plan in the bill for recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program — which he ended last year — and a partially funded border wall.

    The White House on Thursday said Trump would support the bill, despite opposition from conservatives over some of the provisions included in the legislation, like a lack of full funding for Trump’s wall.

    Those naysayers may have gotten the President’s ear.

    “I am considering a VETO of the Omnibus Spending Bill based on the fact that the 800,000 plus DACA recipients have been totally abandoned by the Democrats (not even named in the Bill) and the BORDER WALL, which is desperately needed for our National Defense, is not fully funded,” he said.

  18. 18.

    Comrade Nimrod Humperdink

    @dmsilev: Stephen Miller whispering in his ear again. Wouldn’t that be cute right as the Congressional recess is meant to start?

  20. 20.

    Frankensteinbeck

    For McConnell, his crafty, baroque mental calculus is less clear

    He’s a corrupt white supremacist, a Kentucky aristocrat for pity’s sake, who’s not all that good at his job. A black man became president and he wants to punish the country, which also means he might as well go all-in on bribes.

    Paul Ryan

    …is a lunatic extremist who gets treated as a knowledgeable wonk because he hardly ever mentions bigoted causes and can show off a Power Point slide.

    @RepubAnon:
    Trump ain’t that smart. He hasn’t shown any of the pattern you describe. He just bumbles around and every ‘distraction’ is some horrible mistake that he should be distracting from.

  22. 22.

    Frankensteinbeck

    @japa21: and @dmsilev:
    I doubt it. Trump is the definition of chickenshit. I put decent odds he will never veto anything, even if Dems take power, in his entire presidency. I admit I’m not 100% sure on this one, but I do doubt it. He has a pattern of saying stuff like this and then backing down.

  23. 23.

    GregB

    The Digital Brownshirts are on the move. Al Gore warned us year ago.

    The dumbest man on the internet helped to project a smear of Broward Country Sheriff Israel.

    Link.

    The saving grace is that their soup to nuts propaganda pipeline has taken a torpedo and is listing. That still won’t stop the stupidest people in America, Trump dead enders, from falling for the latest moronic attack.

  24. 24.

    MomSense

    @Frankensteinbeck:

    Our fucking media let Ryan and McConnell get away with saying they haven’t seen twitler’s rants. They let them get away with their complete failure to provide any kind of oversight or defending of norms. It’s their god damned responsibility to hold the executive accountable but they are too busy using the trump administration chaos and corruption as cover for dismantling the safety net.
    I hope every last Republican member of Congress is caught up in the Russia Mess and that it destroys that corrupt and greedy political party forever.

    Also too I adore elephants and resent the association with those assholes. It will be good to get elephants back from those sociopaths. The GOP don’t deserve them.

  26. 26.

    Spanky

    @Elizabelle:

    No doubt Trump and Co. will do something idiotic to grab the news cycle,

    A pretty good bet, but your timing was exquisite. He just threatened to veto the budget.

    Via tweet, of course.

  29. 29.

    Spanky

    @Yutsano: Sitting here in $GIANT_GOVT_AGENCY in the DC ‘burbs, I can tell you that it got a lot of people’s attention.

  31. 31.

    Princess

    I hope he does veto the budget. Send everything into chaos. Make the GOP own what they have wrought.

    I like reading Rick Wilson on twitter and elsewhere, and I think he’d be fun to hang with. But I don’t forget he is my political enemy about more than just marginal tax rates, and that, while obviously genuinely appalled by Trump and GOP racism, he was the architect of the Obama Jeremiah Wright ads that fanned those flames and fed off them. He’s as responsible for this mess as anyone so while I am glad he is helping to fight it, I am not grateful.

    Though I will say I have been surprised and happy to see him recently edge towards seeming to support some gun regulations, based on what he has retweeted.

  32. 32.

    Frankensteinbeck

    @Davey C:
    I’m not sure. That would only be idiotic in the sense of harming the country. In the sense of being a dimwitted incompetent boob on the personal level, claiming he has principles and will veto something, then go take a nap and afterwards saying ‘I can write my name real good, General!’ is stupider.

  33. 33.

    SFAW

    @GregB:

    Not too long ago, I proposed that Gohmert, Hannity, and Hoft (the Stupidest Men in Congress, on TV, and on the Internet, respectively) be put in a locked room, and tell them they need to fight it out to the death in order to be let out. I have not yet come up with a downside risk on that one, other than one of them might survive.

  34. 34.

    Cermet

    @Frankensteinbeck: Yet if he does go through with the veto, that even offers hope for Dreamers – he say’s that he wants a deal for the Dreamers in exchange for a fully funded wall. That would require dems and is a trade I can’t see a down side. Get all the Dreamers safe and provide full funding for the wall; when the dems take the house, it can be knee-capped. Certainly, when the orange fart cloud loses in 2020 and the Senate is taken by the dems as well, it can be dropped. I’ll get hit if the gov shuts down but frankly, to save the Dreamers, I’d have no objection. Yes, he does back on his word all the time but so what? If he does, the gov is shut down and he looks bad to his base and the amerikan people. If he back tracks and then signs the existing deal, he looks like a fool after letting the gov get shut down causing pain to even his base. Looks like a win/win for dems in any and all cases. Might even get the Dreamer deal the dems need for the mid-terms and 2020.

  35. 35.

    Procopius

    Please recall that it is not only Republicans who refuse to close Gitmo, just as it is not only Republicans who voted to gut Dodd-Frank. I hate to sound like “both sides do it,” that’s not my view, but just because the Republicans are two or three orders of magnitude worse should not exonerate the Democrats.

  38. 38.

    satby

    It would case hardship (and I am on SS too) but I would like to see this mess carried over for about 10 days, Drumpf veto the spending bill and the chaos cause SS checks to be delayed by about a week. I think a few scales will fall from some eyes then about voting for someone to come in and “shake things up”.

  39. 39.

    Frankensteinbeck

    @Procopius:

    I hate to sound like “both sides do it,” that’s not my view

    And yet you bring it up in an utterly unrelated conversation, searching to find the rare situations – again, unrelated to this topic – where there was crossover.

  41. 41.

    rikyrah

    Fueled by Democrat Doug Jones’ stunning upset Senate win, the #MeToo movement, opposition to Trump and a desire to carry on Obama’s legacy, a record number of black women are running for office in Alabama https://t.co/htVhDAgwIc

    — MSNBC (@MSNBC) March 23, 2018

  42. 42.

    rikyrah

    Sounds about white.

    Former cop who fatally shot unarmed black man #SamDuBose, not only walks away with zero repercussions, but also receives $350,000 settlement: https://t.co/fLrtBfVLtV pic.twitter.com/M2YIHTtz1l

    — The Root (@TheRoot) March 23, 2018

  43. 43.

    rikyrah

    White House counsel Don McGahn is expected to step down later this year, though his resignation is contingent on Trump finding a replacement, four sources tell Politico.

    McGahn’s told associates he’d like to leave the White House by the summer. https://t.co/IMtxw5iNc7

    — Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) March 23, 2018

  44. 44.

    mai naem mobile

    Let him veto the budget bill. His Wall Street pals are going to love him. IIA wondering if he will fire Mueller on Sunday to distract from the Stormy Daniels interview.

  45. 45.

    rikyrah

    Somebody asked me did my baby have on makeup ?? no honey that’s that MELANIN! I can’t get over this picture. pic.twitter.com/E8YCFDUL4C

    — ✨KDG✨ (@_BeautyFULL) March 21, 2018

  46. 46.

    kindness

    Nice to see Wilson’s words. Hope they strike home to some on the right. Trump is going to fire Mueller though. Trump knows Mueller has the data on the Russian mob money laundering Trump did by selling overpriced condo’s for cash to them for the last 20 years. Trump thinks he can stop that coming out by firing & shutting down the investigation. Republicans in Congress won’t stop him either. It’s up to us.

  47. 47.

    gvg

    @GregB: I find the youtube and google obstruction to taking down a smear video really bad. they need to be regulated. I will say that imagining myself in their shoes, I can imagine ways to manage content on American content but those 2 countries are spread world wide over a lot of languages. It would not be equally hard to manage to moderate in all countries so if they promise it in one and are expected to be as good elsewhere where it’s harder, then that could also get them in trouble. Still has to be solved tho.

  49. 49.

    mai naem mobile

    I wondering what Rick Wilson knows about Cambridge Analytica being that he worked on Cruz’s primary and Cruz used CAmbridge Analytica .

  51. 51.

    No Drought No More

    “Dismissing the special counsel in the middle of an investigation of foreign interference, obstruction of justice, and ties to hostile foreign powers isn’t just reckless; it’s politically idiotic”.

    No, it would transcend idiocy. It would be treason; it would be the bombardment of Fort Sumter made worse by the traitor’s evil pact with the criminal leadership of a foreign power.

    That said, God bless the great Russian people. They’re no more responsible for their Putin’s than the American people are for the Mercers, Koch’s, and the various other grouping of lunatic oligarchs that command and control today’s republican party. Quite the contrary, in fact.

  54. 54.

    Jim Laliberte

    So entertaining to see all the lefty radical morons trying to impress everyone with there foolish rhetoric. You are all the same to me…idiots.

    You want different leadership?? Move to Canada or Europe. I’ll chip in for the ONE WAY ticket.

  55. 55.

    low-tech cyclist

    But at this point, I really doubt Mr. Mueller will be going anywhere. Unlike his targets… who will be going to jail.

    I’m somewhat concerned about the possibility that Trump will fire Mueller.

    I’m starting to be genuinely scared of the possibility that Trump and Bolton will launch a strike on NK or Iran. A first strike on NK that didn’t blow up everything it needed to, could result in WWII-level carnage in a day. I can only hope that Mattis tells them to fuck off, he’s not giving those orders.

  56. 56.

    brendancalling

    You know, as much as i enjoy reading Rick Wilson’s latest bilious missive, I can’t help but think “fuck you Rick. Fuck you, fuck the horse you rode in, fuck your party, fuck your goddamn dogs, and fuck Ana Navarro too while we’re at it. Just for good measure.”

    Rick Wilson, who made his bones smearing decent Democratic candidates. Rick Wilson, the Atwater acolyte. Rick “Jeremiah Wright” Wilson. He’s a piece of fucking shit, and if there’s any bright spot to the past few years it’s that people like Rick Wilson have to watch what’s left of their party burn to the ground.

    So yeah, it’s great to read his latest piece. It’s well-written and sharp and funny. But Rick Wilson is not my friend, he is no friend of the left generally or Democrats in particular, and the only response to him should be pointing and derisive laughter if not outright brickbats.

  57. 57.

    Cermet

    Again, the dems should egg the fart cloud on to veto; calling his bluff on Dreamers is a win/win: if he gives the deal it is a – WIN! and the dems look even better for the mid terms; if he back tracks, then the shut down and failure to get a Dreamers act done falls on him and the thugs. – again, WIN! for the mid terms (and even 2020.)

  59. 59.

    schrodingers_cat

    @Cermet: The DACA deal is a mirage, and T is hoping that people fall for it. It only gives the people currently on DACA a reprieve for 3 years, in return it slashes legal immigration, throws the current GC wait lists in the trash and criminalizes every action of the undocumented not eligible for DACA.
    That’s the reason this so called “offer” was not taken seriously by the elected Ds and the DACA advocacy groups.

  60. 60.

    Gin & Tonic

    @mai naem mobile: In one of last night’s threads, MikeJ ran a sql query against the FEC 2015-16 database, and Ted Cruz’s committee spent nearly $6 mill with CambAnal in that time. But as was pointed out, with Cruz being funded by the Mercers, this could either have been payment for services or a form of money laundering.

  62. 62.

    rikyrah

    @schrodingers_cat:

    The DACA deal is a mirage, and T is hoping that people fall for it. It only gives the people currently on DACA a reprieve for 3 years, in return it slashes legal immigration, throws the current GC wait lists in the trash and criminalizes every action of the undocumented not eligible for DACA.

    tell it.
    total scam

  63. 63.

    Gin & Tonic

    @MattF: As a mustache-American myself, I take umbrage at you characterization of Bolton. There are plenty of substantive issues to criticize him about.

  65. 65.

    germy

    Craigslist nuking *all personal ads* is a FOSTA unintended consequence I don't think many people saw coming https://t.co/qY8MOPwC6M— Susan Elizabeth Shepard (@SusanElizabeth) March 23, 2018

    “Those of us”? rest assured I followed it and anticipated shutdowns of ad sites and forums. But I didn’t see anyone predict “all dating sites”— Susan Elizabeth Shepard (@SusanElizabeth) March 23, 2018

  66. 66.

    Jeffro

    @Gin & Tonic:

    Donald J. Trump will never see the inside of a prison cell. You can take that to the bank.

    What about house arrest in Trump Tower, does that count?

  67. 67.

    Elizabelle

    @MattF: Bolton’s start date is April 9. I hope he never makes it; that he becomes so radioactive in the meantime that Trump is forced to choose someone less whack.

    Could happen. You know this has put steel in the Mueller investigation’s spine (which was already plenty resolved before). You cannot have one of their targets taking the NSA slot.

  68. 68.

    rikyrah

    I have absolutely no words… Thank you not only for your service but for standing with us as we #MarchForOurLives tomorrow all over the world #VeteransForGunReform #GunControlNow #NeverAgain https://t.co/RIqLXq55MC pic.twitter.com/TYDiV7czCa

    — Emma González (@Emma4Change) March 23, 2018

  70. 70.

    tobie

    If trolls are a measure of a site’s importance, BJ has hit the big leagues. See #53 for evidence.

  71. 71.

    Another Scott

    @Procopius:

    just because the Republicans are two or three orders of magnitude worse

    You do understand what “orders of magnitude” means, right?!?

    “Here Johnny – here’s $100. Here Janie – here’s 10 ¢. Now you both contribute equally to paying for your lunches today. Ok?”

    (groucho-roll-eyes.gif)

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  75. 75.

    rikyrah

    But, her emails…
    Uh huh
    Uh huh

    I can say, without equivocation…that this WOULD NOT be happening in a President Clinton Administration.

    Exclusive: Trump official quietly drops payday loan case, mulls others – sources
    Patrick Rucker

    WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The top cop for U.S. consumer finance has decided not to sue a payday loan collector and is weighing whether to drop cases against three payday lenders, said five people with direct knowledge of the matter.

    The move shows how Mick Mulvaney, named interim head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) by U.S. President Donald Trump, is putting his mark on an agency conceived to stamp out abusive lending.

    The payday loan cases are among about a dozen that Richard Cordray, the former agency chief, approved for litigation before he resigned in November. Cordray was the first to lead the agency that Congress created in 2010 after the financial crisis.

  77. 77.

    waspuppet

    Lord Smallgloves may or may not attempt to fire Mueller — I don’t think he’s got the guts, but some of his toadies might still talk Jefferson Beauregard Sessions III or one of his fellow revanchists into attempting it.

    But that’s how mob bosses — which Trump wishes he were tough enough to be — work. If you follow them around for a week, a month, even longer, you won’t see them actually commit any crimes. But everyone knows what the boss wants, and they just do it. It’s why RICO laws were invented.

  79. 79.

    Jeffro

    Dozens, no hundreds, of indictments just waiting to be dropped…money laundering…espionage…perjury…obstruction of justice…theft…will it be this Friday? Or next Friday? only The Mueller knows…

  80. 80.

    Cermet

    @schrodingers_cat: I, of course, intend and figured that the dems are smart enough to demand a real deal for the Dreamers in order to get their votes, not the fake deal the orange fart cloud offered. Again, if he refuses, no big deal and no budget and the thugs get the blame. If he concedes a real deal, give the small handed fat fucker the wall his base believes they need. The cost of a few F-35 fighters. Actually, it would do more for the economy (pump-primer money into the hands of people that spend it) than those fighters, anyway.

  82. 82.

    tobie

    @rikyrah: You read a gracious tweet like that and you think, “My God, that’s how politicians are supposed to behave,” and then you remember that Emma is a high school student and acts like more of a statesman than anyone in the Republican party. Thank you so much, students from Parkland and beyond, for giving me hope!

  85. 85.

    MomSense

    @rikyrah:

    I’m so impressed that his response was to tell them he supports them but declines the interview because their voices are more powerful and more important. That is the response of a mature adult. Well done, George.

  87. 87.

    rikyrah

    RIP

    TOO TOO YOUNG

    School shooting victim ‘brain dead,’ life support ending
    Associated Press

    GREAT MILLS, Md. (AP) — A teenage girl who was shot when a classmate opened fire inside their Maryland high school is brain dead and is being removed from life support, her mother said Thursday

    Melissa Willey told news reporters Thursday night that her daughter, 16-year-old Jaelynn Willey has “no life left in her.” She said Jaelynn would be removed from life support during the evening.

    The teen was shot Tuesday by 17-year-old Austin Rollins at Great Mills High School in St. Mary’s County.

    Rollins died after shooting Willey. A school resource officer got there within a minute and fired a shot at Rollins, but it’s not yet clear whether Rollins was killed by the officer’s bullet or took his own life.

    The St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office said Wednesday Rollins and the girl had been in a relationship that recently ended.

    “All indications suggest the shooting was not a random act of violence,” police said in a statement.

  88. 88.

    MomSense

    @Elizabelle:

    I’ll be marching, too. If anyone sees two really tall people in the Naples,FL march with a possibility of a third person in a wheelchair, say hello.

  89. 89.

    germy

    @MomSense:

    I’m so impressed that his response was to tell them he supports them but declines the interview because their voices are more powerful and more important.

    Unlike that other guy who showed up at one of their rallies with a bullhorn.

  90. 90.

    bystander

    MSNBC woman said the porn star and the playmate “have tales that intertwine.” If twitler is on executive time, there’s a good chance he wasn’t mentally spelling “tale” the same way I did.

    When will some earnest reporter dare to ask if everybody has had HIV testing? I’m sure Second Lady Daniels is routinely tested, but I don’t know about Playmates. And does our First Lady know how much contact her nether parts have been having with the nether parts of other women?

  91. 91.

    Major Major Major Major

    @Cermet: it would also cause lots of eminent-domain tears among Trump-supporting landowners which I’m in favor of. And that would be a prerequisite for any real construction, and take long enough to cut the purse strings before said construction really got going.

  92. 92.

    Cermet

    Nice; a troll (or even a russian troll) and one that so enjoy’s smelling the small dick pretender-in-chief’s fart’s reads our posts! So, there is hope for the true brain dead even if it is just echo’s of our words in their empty mind’s.

  93. 93.

    Chris

    @schrodingers_cat:

    in return it slashes legal immigration

    “Oh my God we don’t hate immigrants! We just want them to come here legally!”

    Pull the other one. It’s got bells on.

  96. 96.

    Fair Economist

    @Ian G.:

    I want to buy Wilson a drink, toast to the USA, and go back to arguing about marginal tax rates with him.

    As several have pointed out above, Rick Wilson has been particularly vile even by the standards of Republican political operatives. Most infamously, he’s the one who smeared Max Cleland. He’s an ally for now but it’s a Joe Stalin situation; he has not been somebody like Bruce Bennett you can have a civilized discussion with over policy differences.

  98. 98.

    Gin & Tonic

    @bystander: I’d bet real cash money that the First Lady’s nether parts haven’t had contact with her husband’s nether parts in many years.

  100. 100.

    SiubhanDuinne

    Zell Miller is dead. He was without question a DINO, but he did a couple of good things for Georgia when he was Governor, before he listed so far to starboard.

  102. 102.

    Cermet

    @schrodingers_cat: Again, I understand that but compromise can limit the extent of any such limits; getting these dreamers safe is and MUST be priority #1. These are amerikans that wil be deported! If that requires limiting legal immigration for a few years (until 2020 and the fart cloud is voted out), that is a deal anyone with heart should accept. If his position is too extreme, then let the shut down stay – the thugs will fall over themselves to get a fix once their bases suffers from it and the dem’s will get, at the least, good concessions if nothing else.

  103. 103.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Gin & Tonic: I wonder if we’ll ever see the prenup, including whatever revisions were agreed to for her to stick around through the campaign, and then the presidency. I’m pretty sure she hates him, I could see her releasing the documents once she’s back in Europe and the money is hidden in Switzerland. And the idea that trump is afraid a divorce will cost him cash he doesn’t have is as plausible as any gross theory flying around, because trump.

  105. 105.

    Procopius

    @Major Major Major Major: Well, I’m very ambivalent about Obama. I voted for him. Twice. I liked the ACA that he got through, though I suspected he could have gotten much more if he had wanted to. I was also willing to recognize that maybe I was wrong and he was a lot better than me at judging what was possible. I was deeply moved by his remark, “Sometimes you cannot save that child’s life.” I think that was sincere, and greatly admire his honesty in confessing it. I think he had a dark side, shown by his constructing the new Star Chamber, authorizing the President to kill anybody, anywhere, man, woman, child, citizen or not, based on the word of the President alone that he has evidence the victim is an imminent danger to the nation, without having to reveal what that evidence is or have it examined by anybody and offering the victim no chance to defend himself from the accusation. His was the most opaque administration in history, although I suppose the Orange-otan will manage to surpass it. He appointed some good people and some agencies did some good, while others (I’m thinking Justice and the SEC) did not.

  107. 107.

    gene108

    @Chris:

    “Oh my God we don’t hate immigrants! We just want them to come here legally!”

    Pull the other one. It’s got bells on.

    Anyone, who paid the least bit of attention to the anti-illegal-immigration crowd realized after they were done with illegal immigrants, they are coming after everyone else not born here and not white.

    What the Left does not understand is curtailing legal immigration is not about keeping people from entering the country. Once you are here as an immigrant, your legal status is based upon laws that the current crop of xenophobes in the White House want to screw with.

    Curtailing legal immigration means kicking people out, who are here now, as well as keeping fewer people from entering.

  109. 109.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Procopius: liked the ACA that he got through, though I suspected he could have gotten much more if he had wanted to.

    “Congress doesn’t really exist”

  111. 111.

    scav

    @tobie: That was totally a low-rent effort if indeed an example of the troll big times. Thus I suppose totally representative, emblematic and worthy of his idol.

  112. 112.

    gene108

    @Cermet:

    I understand that but compromise can limit the extent of any such limits; getting these dreamers safe is and MUST be priority #1. These are amerikans that wil be deported! If that requires limiting legal immigration for a few years (until 2020 and the fart cloud is voted out), that is a deal anyone with heart should accept.

    So a Dreamer is more valuable than other groups of legal immigrants, who will be deported under Trump, if he gets what he wants on legal immigration?

    Trump, Miller, Kelly, et. al. are creating a narrative that it is Dreamers against people in college on student visas, for example. They’ll keep the Dreamers, but destroy the ability of foreigners to attend college here. They want to turn this into a zero sum game, where one group of immigrants wins and another group(s) loses.

  113. 113.

    schrodingers_cat

    @gene108: Yes, they want to get rid of the ability of adjusting your status too. That has been floated by Tantonite anti-immigration think tanks. Current USCIS head was Chuck Grassley’s aide.

    ETA: T and company are counting on the fact that most Americans have no idea about the thicket that immigration is. No fucking clue, but everyone has an opinion.

  115. 115.

    Immanentize

    @rikyrah:

    “All indications suggest the shooting was not a random act of violence,” police said in a statement.

    Is this supposed to be a comfort to (probably) now dead Jaelynn?

    Also, no need to include the race of the shooter whose name was “Austin Rollins.” There may be a Black or Hispanic “Austin” highschool kid somewhere. But I don’t know where. Perhaps.

    Nah

  116. 116.

    rikyrah

    @gene108:

    Anyone, who paid the least bit of attention to the anti-illegal-immigration crowd realized after they were done with illegal immigrants, they are coming after everyone else not born here and not white.

    What the Left does not understand is curtailing legal immigration is not about keeping people from entering the country. Once you are here as an immigrant, your legal status is based upon laws that the current crop of xenophobes in the White House want to screw with.

    Curtailing legal immigration means kicking people out, who are here now, as well as keeping fewer people from entering.

    YES YES YES YES

    People better understand this.

  120. 120.

    cintibud

    @rikyrah:

    Sounds about white.

    Former cop who fatally shot unarmed black man #SamDuBose, not only walks away with zero repercussions, but also receives $350,000 settlement: https://t.co/fLrtBfVLtV pic.twitter.com/M2YIHTtz1l

    — The Root (@TheRoot) March 23, 2018

    Totally disgusting.
    In this case the problem wasn’t with the DA’s office, it’s that it’s nearly impossible to get a jury that doesn’t have someone who would never convict a cop of anything!

    ETA – at least in this part of the country

  122. 122.

    sheila in nc

    @low-tech cyclist: I will also be at the march. I have a small yellow construction paper sign saying “I stand with THE KIDS” on one side and “USA Yes, NRA NO” on the other. (The R is backwards.) And I’ll bring my American flags.

  123. 123.

    Immanentize

    @gene108: That is exactly why the anti-immigrant groups also have convoluted arguments that the 14th amendment, which clearly grants citizenship to those born in the US, does not mean that those born in the US are citizens.

  124. 124.

    brendancalling

    @MomSense: like this shit, for the article: “The transgressive, disruptive nature of Trump is beloved by his base, and by an army of formerly conservative writers now eagerly fluffing the president’s rampant statism, corruption, and obstruction.”

    More “conservatism can never fail, it can only be failed” bullshit. Suddenly, conservatives supporting Trump aren’t conservative anymore? On what fucking planet?

    Of course, these are the same nincompoops that were rushing to defenestrate Dear Leader Bush after he tanked the economy in 2007-2008, despite following him like lemmings into an unnecessary war, Medicare Part D, attempts to go after Social Security, Teri Schiavo, etc etc etc. “HE WAS NEVER CONSERVATIVE, HE WAS NEVER ONE OF US.”

    Bullshit. Just total bullshit.

  125. 125.

    trollhattan

    Filed in my collection of unfortunate headline wording this, yesterday on the local paper’s website breaking news:

    “Police shooting protestors blocking downtown traffic”‘

    Today’s is written somewhat better.

  126. 126.

    Another Scott

    @gene108:

    Curtailing legal immigration means kicking people out, who are here now, as well as keeping fewer people from entering.

    I think it also means the possibility of having more people in “guest worker”-type situations. Which helps depress wages and weakens collective bargaining opportunities (at least to some extent), of course.

    Donnie hates immigrants, unless they’re working for peanuts with no rights at his Xanadu…

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  127. 127.

    schrodingers_cat

    @Another Scott:

    I think it also means the possibility of having more people in “guest worker”-type situations. Which helps depress wages and weakens collective bargaining opportunities (at least to some extent), of course.

    This is already the case. The path to getting an employer sponsored permanent residency is long, narrow and steep.

  128. 128.

    Cermet

    @gene108: Really? How not? A child raised here from age one, two or three and then grew up here to young adulthood knowing only english and our culture – now in college and/or holding a job does not deserve all our efforts compared to someone who entered here by non-legal means as an adult and also grew up in that country of origin thus, not just speaking their language, but has a network of family in that same country, is even somewhat equivalent? If you see no difference between the horror of what the Dreamers would suffer and the likely inconvenience most adult immigrants who entered illegally would face, I think we would waste our time disusing this topic.

  129. 129.

    germy

    I hope Stormy Daniels says "I have people that have been studying it and they cannot believe what they're finding," about the pee tape.

    — Schooley (@Rschooley) March 23, 2018

  130. 130.

    catclub

    @MattF: It sure looks to me that, although what CA did was very unpopular, and Facebook should
    have stopped them. It will turn out that nothing they did – or the pols who hired them – was illegal. When they asked one state attorney what crime they were looking at, the closest they could get was ‘violated terms of service, maybe’. 50M people had the data they gave to facebook handed on to others.
    Because the US has such weak personal data laws, there will be no crime.

  131. 131.

    bemused

    @Princess:

    I also read him along with other conservatives who are horrified by trumpism but always mindful of their past records. Wilson is pretty entertaining. Not a guy you’d want for an enemy. I could be mistaken but I thought he was also responsible for smearing Max Cleland.

  133. 133.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Cermet: You are mangling gene108’s argument. I suspect you really don’t understand the broader immigration argument at all.

  134. 134.

    Dorothy A. Winsor (formerly Iowa Old Lady)

    @low-tech cyclist: I’ll be at the local one. I heard an encouraging report related to guns this morning. City Bank has announced that any new business customer that wants their financing or to use their credit card has to not sell guns to anyone under 21, run background checks, and not sell bump stocks. They would work existing customer to get agreement or “transition them away from City.” Maybe it’s becoming socially unacceptable to be a gun nut.

  135. 135.

    gene108

    @schrodingers_cat:

    ETA: T and company are counting on the fact that most Americans have no idea about the thicket that immigration is. No fucking clue, but everyone has an opinion.

    It’s a safe bet, as seen by comments on Balloon-Juice. People think 21st century immigration is like what their ancestors dealt with in the 19th century. Get off the boat, clear customs, and you can stay here as long as you like.

  137. 137.

    gene108

    @Another Scott:

    I think it also means the possibility of having more people in “guest worker”-type situations.

    Bush, Jr. proposed a guest worker program. Republicans in Congress shot it down. That was too much like amnesty for Republicans 12 years ago. They have not gotten more tolerant since.

    But there are basically two tiers of immigration. Skilled labor here on various work visas, which are basically a guest worker program, and unskilled labor on H2B visas, seeking asylum, or other visa statuses, and here illegally.

    The skilled labor force maybe here legally, but until they get Green Cards they are on temporary visas, which Trump’s immigration plan will curtail and force many to leave. They are basically on a guest worker program, but known as H1-b visas, L1 and L2 visas, etc.

    A guest worker program for unskilled labor would be an improvement, especially for those here illegally, as it would give them legal status to work and reside here, as well as people on H2B visas, as it would give them greater flexibility in who they work for.

  139. 139.

    Fair Economist

    @catclub:

    Because the US has such weak personal data laws, there will be no crime.

    The underlying crimes will involve espionage (because they handed that data to the Russians) unreported campaign assistance, and violation of contract with Facebook. There will be a blizzard of associated wire fraud, mail fraud, and conspiracy charges. It will be a while before they get filed publicly though.

  140. 140.

    schrodingers_cat

    @gene108: If the approved Green Card applications are trashed then the ones on the provisional H1-Bs etc (provisional because their application to immigrate has been approved but have to wait for their place in the queue to officially become a permanent resident.) will immediately become undocumented. These people are already here, btw. In case that was unclear.
    ETA: I know that you know this but the clarification was for people who may not know.

  143. 143.

    Another Scott

    @Fair Economist:

    unreported campaign assistance

    Isn’t it a major no-no for any foreign entity to contribute in any financial way to any federal campaign? I seem to recall that when Citizens United was still a thing, one of the criticisms was that it was an open conduit for undisclosed foreign donations – which are illegal. (Remember Al Gore and the Buddhist Temple stuff.)

    How was it legal for CambAnal to have any role in Trump’s campaign in the first place, especially as they themselves described it in the Channel 4 tape (“we ran everything!”)?

    Am I missing something, or is the MSM so desperate for their usual false equivalence (“Obama used Facebook data too!!1”) that they can’t see the difference between a candidate using data purchased from a US company and the case of a foreign entity (CambAnal) paid by another foreign entity (Putin) using stolen data (Facebook, e-mails) to corruptly influence US politics??!

    (sigh)

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  144. 144.

    gene108

    @Cermet:

    Really? How not? A child raised here from age one, two or three and then grew up here to young adulthood knowing only english and our culture – now in college and/or holding a job does not deserve all our efforts compared to someone who entered here by non-legal means as an adult and also grew up in that country of origin thus, not just speaking their language, but has a network of family in that same country, is even somewhat equivalent?

    I am not talking about people here illegally as adults.

    I am talking about Hari Govindarajan, who came here in 2008 to do his Masters degree, got a job offer and has been working in the USA ever since on an H1-b visa. He filed for a Green Card through his employer in August 2011.

    He has married, and has two American born children. But because the queue for employment based Green Cards, for people from India with Master’s degrees is currently processing applications received prior to November 2008, he has many more years to wait to get his Green Card and then he has five years to wait to apply for citizenship.

    It’s this guy and tens of thousands more like him that Trump wants to kick out of the country. That’s his deal for DACA. We’ll give 800,00 DACA recipients a reprieve, and the tens of thousands (or more) of people like Hari and his family will get kicked out of the country.

    It’s not impossible to change immigration laws so folks like Hari and the Dreamers all come out winners, but that’s not what Trump, Miller, Kelly, et. al. want. They want us to pick and chose a side and the side we don’t pick will get hosed, and they will blame us for screwing those people over.

  146. 146.

    schrodingers_cat

    @Another Scott: Indian government shut down CA’s offices in India, yesterday after it came to light that they had tried to influence some state level elections in the state of Bihar in 2010.

    ETA: Our response is so weak sister in comparison.
    ETA2: CA had non-citizen and non GC-holders working for them in their Delaware and London offices clearly trying to manipulate our elections. Where the hell is FEC is on this?

  149. 149.

    Another Scott

    @gene108: Yup.

    We need to remember that Trump broke DACA though his own actions. Him trying to deflect blame onto the Democrats is not even wrong. It’s a category error.

    Trump is trying to make things even worse – even for DACA recipients – while getting “bipartisan” cover in the process. The Democrats need to continue to stand firm.

    We need to maintain a clear choice in November and going forward. Not by wrecking things, but by maintaining a clear and consistent message.

    “Trump broke DACA. He can fix it.”

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  151. 151.

    MomSense

    @Immanentize:

    In spite of slathering on the sunscreen, I’m pretty tan and my hair is turning red. Weird.

    I also broke my sunglasses catching them before they fell into a swamp full of alligators.

    I may be pushing a wheelchair so that should give me away.

  152. 152.

    Cermet

    @gene108: Then what? If no deal and everyone gets deported is better? I agree with your point but first, dems need to get Dreamers safe. If that creates issues for others, their battle can then be fought. I again, agree that all such should be saved but until and unless we control the house and presidency, no such deal will occur. Then saving 1.8 million Dreamers, is far away more important (the 880 k number is those currently applied; another 800 K are too afraid to apply.) I do believe your example person would far, far and away better if deported to India than an 19 year old Dreamer who has never seen India, or Mexico, or Central America, or Africa etc.

  156. 156.

    Miss Bianca

    @dmsilev: wow, that’s rich. In one sterterous breath blame Democrats for “abandoning” Dreamers and then wailing about the wall we so desperately need to hold them back once they’ve been deported. Even for Trump, that takes the cake left out in the rain.

  158. 158.

    Another Scott

    @Cermet: Reuters:

    The White House also wants Congress to change rules to allow for the rapid deportation of illegal immigrants from countries other than Mexico and Canada who arrive at the U.S. border, the officials said.

    White House officials made clear that a deal could not only address DACA and the border wall but must also end a visa lottery program for certain countries and limit family sponsorship of immigrants to spouses and minor children – ending sponsorship for parents, older children and siblings.

    Stephen Legomsky, who was chief counsel at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services in the Obama administration, called the plan a “horrendous tradeoff” and predicted Democrats would reject it.

    “It offers a one-time citizenship path to innocent Dreamers and expects in return a massive permanent cut to family immigration, the permanent elimination of the entire diversity program, and a huge expenditure for a border wall,” said Legomsky, now at Washington University Law School in St. Louis.

    A group of immigrant youth called United We Dream said the deal was “pitting us against our own parents, Black immigrants and our communities.”

    It’s a bad “deal”.

    Trump broke DACA and he can fix it.

    He can only get his Wall if Democrats go along. Trump is the one that is over a barrel on this subject. Democrats need to stay strong.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  159. 159.

    boatboy_srq

    @Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes: One wonders whether Lord Dampnut is not better understood as the worst kind of dot-com developer, running from startup to startup spinning nebulous schemes with grand unrealisable designs, and leaving ruins in his wake for others to clean up. His empire just screams Pets.com and/or Webvan.

  165. 165.

    Another Scott

    @schrodingers_cat: It seems to be a nearly world-wide problem.

    I’m reminded of the Bell Pottinger/Gupta/Zuma scandal in South Africa. BBC News:

    Bell Pottinger and ‘white monopoly’

    One of Britain’s leading PR firms found itself at the heart of the scandals surrounding the family after it was accused of pushing the idea of “white monopoly capital”.

    Bell Pottinger, which was founded by Margaret Thatcher’s advisor Lord Bell, also created fake Twitter pages which emphasised the power of white businesses, and used the hashtag #whitemonopolycapital to – as the opposition Democratic Alliance party pointed out – inflame racial tensions in a country where the white minority still wields considerable economic power.

    But why did they do it? Allegedly, to divert attention away from corruption claims being made against the Gupta family and their close relationship with President Zuma.

    The PR firm was reportedly paid £100,000 a month by Oakbay Investment – a company owned by the Guptas.

    Following an uproar over the campaign, the Bell Pottinger was expelled from the PR trade body and went into administration.

    (Emphasis added.)

    Why are both CambAnal and Bell Pottinger both headquartered in the UK?? Hmm…. :-/

    Cheers,
    Scott.
    (“Who suspects there are many, many more examples of things like these that we just haven’t heard about yet…”)

  167. 167.

    TenguPhule

    @brendancalling:

    I can’t help but think “fuck you Rick. Fuck you, fuck the horse you rode in, fuck your party, fuck your goddamn dogs, and fuck Ana Navarro too while we’re at it. Just for good measure.”

    This is normal and healthy.

    They’re not allies, but expendable decoys.

  168. 168.

    TenguPhule

    @Cermet:

    ? A child raised here from age one, two or three and then grew up here to young adulthood knowing only english and our culture – now in college and/or holding a job does not deserve all our efforts compared to someone who entered here by non-legal means as an adult and also grew up in that country of origin thus, not just speaking their language, but has a network of family in that same country, is even somewhat equivalent?

    And you’ve fallen for the GOP divide and conquer tactic.

    You do realize that people fleeing for their lives from countries previously ruined by prior American intervention are in your Group B?

  169. 169.

    MomSense

    @Immanentize:

    Sunshine is so good. I think Immp would find a lot to interest him, too. If everyone is healthy next winter, I’m going to bring my son here to do some wildlife hikes.

  170. 170.

    Matt

    Kudos to Wilson for bringing some sense to the conversation, but fuck him with a chainsaw for being part of how we got here.

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