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You are here: Home / Open Threads / Because of wow. / President Obama: On Helping the Midwest, and Mozambique

President Obama: On Helping the Midwest, and Mozambique

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86Comments

  2. 2.

    Lapassionara

    A leader speaks. If we are not careful, we are going to forget what leadership looks like.

  4. 4.

    satby

    After the earthquake in Haiti I witnessed Doctors Without Borders and Save the Children doing heroic work. And UNICEF too.
    Good places to donate.

  5. 5.

    Miss Bianca

    “Maybe it’s a sign from God”…?

    No, no, I really *don’t* want to know what they think they mean by that.

  6. 6.

    Cermet

    As I keep reminding people here, AGW is just starting such that we are noticing real trends and these events are the trivial, ultra minor effects so far. The only act of god is stupidity across so much of the region in the midwest that is underwater, apparently. When a human caused and preventable storm occurs and ass wipes try to use a mystical deity to blame it on, those people deserve exactly what they get. The tragedy are the people that either never caused it or those trying to mitigate the effects that have to suffer thanks to these morons and greedy bastards.

  7. 7.

    Brickley Paiste

    It’s interesting how a simple, sane observation seems just so unpresidential nowadays.

  8. 8.

    trollhattan

    How common is it for cyclones to hit eastern and southern Africa? This seems unusual.

  13. 13.

    piratedan

    @WaterGirl: I would like to think by now, Biden would look at the field of candidates that have declared and ask himself, what could I offer the country that isn’t being offered by the group that has already started.

    perhaps he’ll call down to the Bell Desk, get a cart for all of that baggage and check out and spend some time with his family.

  14. 14.

    Kelly

    189 acre forest fire started Tuesday, controlled Wednesday at North Santiam State Park 2 miles upriver of our house. The usually soggy west slope of the Cascades. In March. This is not normal.
    Probably an adjacent homeowner’s backyard burn pile that got away. I did not sleep well Tuesday night with the fire 20% controlled and the wind blowing towards us.

  20. 20.

    WaterGirl

    @rikyrah: That is one criticism I just don’t get. I did not see a thing wrong with what Buttigieg said there, and I wonder how many of the people who are complaining about that have not actually seen the question and his response.

  21. 21.

    What Have The Romans Ever Done for Us?

    @debbie: I don’t think I’ve even heard him acknowledge the flooding in Nebraska. He doesn’t seem focused on anything but Twitter.

  22. 22.

    Brickley Paiste

    No need for Russian bots to attack democrats and spread discord, Rikyrah is doing it for free!

  23. 23.

    zhena gogolia

    @rikyrah:

    This response sums up my feelings:

    I don’t know about that. I am old enough to remember the relitigation of Al Gore’s loss over and over…and we weren’t nearly as polarized then.

    “1 strike and you’re out” is not how I’m planning to treat this primary season.

    ?Devin Nunes Cocaine BJ Cow Did Treason
    ‏

    Andi ?
    ‏

    @AndiDealsPoker
    24m24 minutes ago
    More
    Well, if i cancel every candidate that says something I dislike, i’m left with…nobody. That’s unacceptable. So I choose to cancel no one until i know more about their actual policy positions. YMMV.

  25. 25.

    brendancalling

    It IS a sign from God. It’s a sign that you should stop voting for fucking Republicans and start taking climate change seriously, you dumb cluck.

    I’m sorry, but I am tired of the inevitable whining from people who really should know better. Who deals with climate and weather more directly than fucking farmers??

    Same clods who voted to chase away immigrants, then whines they couldn’t get any labor. Same folks who hate welfare but don’t you touch my subsidy.

    Obama is far more gracious than I am. I feel badly too, but wtf, did they think they were immune?

  26. 26.

    What Have The Romans Ever Done for Us?

    @debbie: I figured he probably did something but am a little surprised I hadn’t heard anything. His stupid tweets suck up all the oxygen.

  28. 28.

    debbie

    @WaterGirl:

    I didn’t listen to the town hall, but judging by the reactions here and on Twitter, he needs to get in front of whatever he said immediately, like yesterday.

  30. 30.

    WaterGirl

    @debbie: Nebraska clearly needs help, so I don’t begrudge them aid. But wow, Trump doesn’t even try to hide his disgusting racism and concern only for republicans.

  31. 31.

    hueyplong

    @brendancalling: “I feel badly too, but wtf, did they think they were immune?”

    Yes. They’re confused, waiting for FoxNews to tell them it’s all Hillary’s fault.

  32. 32.

    debbie

    @WaterGirl:

    His order cutting aid to schools and colleges who don’t permit what he considers to be free speech (read Richard Spencer et al.) is only the latest evidence of that.

  33. 33.

    WaterGirl

    @brendancalling:

    wtf, did they think they were immune?

    Well, you know, they know god loves them more than the brown people and the democrats, so they probably did think they were immune.

  34. 34.

    WaterGirl

    @debbie: It wasn’t in the town hall — it was in an interview. I posted the entire quote in one of the afternoon threads yesterday. From my perspective, it’s only a problem if someone goes out of their way to interpret it in the worst possible light.

  36. 36.

    Dr. Ronnie James, D.O.

    Sigh. We’ll get a decent fucking human being back in the White House.

  37. 37.

    WaterGirl

    @debbie: Here is a copy of my comment from yesterday’s cory booker on ellen thread.

    @VeniceRiley: Below is the full text for what you must have based this comment on:

    “Buttigieg just lied and said HRC slogan was “Imwithher” but it wasn’t. That was a defense and defiance by her voters and supporters in response to insane press, Wilmerites, and the right. HRC campaigned on the message “STRONGER TOGETHER.” So; Pete may be smart, but he ain’t all that.”

    I don’t think that “Buttigieg just lied” is in any way an accurate reflection of his answer:

    QUESTION: One of the hallmarks of the campaign so far has been a really rich and detailed debate about policy within the Democratic Party. Is that what’s important right now? Or should the Democratic Party simply be organized around the simple premise that Donald Trump is a national emergency and must be defeated above all else and that the policy particulars should take a back seat to that?

    BUTTIGIEG ANSWER: So actually I don’t agree with either of those approaches. The problem with making it all about him is that’s what we did in 2016, and when we make it all about him, then there’s a lot of voters in places like the industrial midwest, where I live, who say, “Okay, but who’s talking about me?” Part of how we lost our way in 2016 was, first of all, it was all about our own nominee. “I’m with her,” was literally the button.

    Then when we realized who the Republican nominee was going to be, the message became, “Don’t vote for him.” And we just left a lot of people out because it didn’t seem like we were talking about the lived experience of Americans.

    For the same reason I don’t think that we should do the usual Democratic thing, which is experiencing your competition through competing policy proposals. I think that policy matters, I’m a policy guy. But I think that you need our altitude to be both higher and lower. Higher in the sense that I think we need to talk about values and principles, that’s why I’m out there talking about what freedom and democracy and security mean before we get into the depth of any policy idea. And at the same time also be talking in terms that are nearer to the ground, really explaining what we believe in in terms of everyday lived experience and how different under us it will be than under them. And that’s how good political narrative works.

    Just putting it all together here so everyone can judge for themselves.

  39. 39.

    debbie

    @WaterGirl:

    it’s only a problem if someone goes out of their way to interpret it in the worst possible light.

    So I’ve noticed. //

    People should at least wait until the debate in June before crossing any names off their list. Except maybe one guy…

  40. 40.

    cckids

    @Miss Bianca: I’m originally from NE, and have been following the flooding through friends/groups on FB. (There’s one called Nebraska through the lens that has great photos). On one, someone laments “We send billions to Israel, and this is how God repays us?”

    I can only hope it was sarcasm.

  41. 41.

    danielx

    @rikyrah:

    Which changes in bankruptcy laws were a straight payoff to the credit card industry, nothing more and nothing less.

  42. 42.

    debbie

    @WaterGirl:

    Yeah, I just skimmed that thread and was surprised to see how little it took to start an argument. People should just chill, or they’ll be burnt out before the primaries even get started!

  43. 43.

    Adam Lang

    Any of the folks here have a house that is underwater? I have an idea of how I might be able to help someone in that situation, especially someone who is trying to rebuild, but it would be one family.

    If anyone happens to see this and is in that situation, maybe email me at alang@, followed by the address of my web site (what you see if you hover/click on my name.). Sorry to be abstruse, but I get a giant helping of spam as it is.

  46. 46.

    Steve in the ATL

    @satby:

    After the earthquake in Haiti I witnessed Doctors Without Borders and Save the Children doing heroic work. And UNICEF too.
    Good places to donate.

    My daughter goes to Haiti and provides free dental work to people, so donate to her too! Or, better yet, to her dad.

  49. 49.

    WhatsMyNym

    The best quote was from a farmer in MO –

    Kyle Tubbs in Craig, Mo., about 90 miles north of Kansas City, hauled all 400 of his hogs to higher elevations on Saturday afternoon, losing only one animal in the transition. The only building on his farm not underwater is his house, which he raised nine feet after the floods of 2010 and 2011. Tubbs is four days into this flood, the third in 10 years, and he said it’s far from over.
    “There’s such a volume of water up in the Dakotas, we’ll be battling this all summer. Our rivers are managed so terribly.”

  52. 52.

    rk

    “Maybe it’s a sign from God.”

    And I know how this one goes. It’s a sign from god because, choose all which apply:
    We kill babies,
    We allow gays to marry
    Transgendered bathrooms/soldiers
    We’ve taken god out of our classrooms
    Godless Hollywood
    What will not be a part of the discussion is climate change.

  54. 54.

    Mary G

    LA Times has a story: Marine Corps commandant says deploying troops to the border poses ‘unacceptable risk’ Two memos were leaked:

    In two internal memos, Marine Corps Gen. Robert Neller said the “unplanned/unbudgeted” deployment along the border that President Trump ordered last fall, and shifts of other funds to support border security, had forced him to cancel or reduce planned military training in at least five countries, and delay urgent repairs at bases.

    This is not normal.

    “It’s pretty unusual for the commandant to be raising concerns that… a top political priority for the president is undermining the ability of the Marine Corps to do the training they need,” said Mandy Smithberger, a defense expert at the Project for Government Oversight, a nonpartisan independent watchdog group.

    “It looks like from Commandant Neller’s perspective, he does think these policies are undermining readiness,” she added.

    “This is a pretty strongly worded memo,” said Todd Harrison, director of defense budget analysis at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a nonpartisan think tank in Washington.

  55. 55.

    NotMax

    “Maybe it’s a sign from God.”

    RWNJ #1: “Never heered ’bout that there Sodden ‘n’ Gomorrah? Ain’t you read yore Bible?”

    RWNJ #2; “Sure sign we finally ditch that Injun name and rename it the Trump River the way God wants.”

    // // // //

  56. 56.

    WaterGirl

    @VeniceRiley: Sorry, I just copied my whole reply from yesterday without thinking that the part of your comment that I quoted might be a problem. I’m sorry to have upset you – it never occurred to me that it would.

  58. 58.

    WaterGirl

    @VeniceRiley: It looks like no one is paying any attention to this today, so hopefully no harm, no foul,

    Was your birthday yesterday or is it today? Either way, happy birthday!

  62. 62.

    ruemara

    Well, the good news is I will have time to work on creative projects. The bad news is I got a 60 day layoff notice. A lot of fed funding cuts to sustainability projects.

    I’m only upset when I worry I’ll have to give up the cats.

  65. 65.

    Miss Bianca

    @ruemara: I am so sorry to hear this! But I am sure that BJ will rally for a kitty for the kitties if you need it. Let us know! {{Virtual hugs o’ commiseration}}

  68. 68.

    Sab

    @schrodingers_cat: I put my purse on counters occasionally and it has been in awful places (my car floor, restaurant floors, hospital floors, bus floors, my house floors beside the cat, my house floor beside the dog.) If you think restaurant counters are clean you are living in a fantasy world. That’s why we put food on plates.

  70. 70.

    spudgun

    @ruemara: Oh no! De-lurking to say I share your pain…got my 60-day notice back in January. Next week’s going to be a BEAR.

    From your past comments I know you are very creative and do a lot of things extremely well, so I’m not too worried about you landing on your feet. Hang in there!

  75. 75.

    spudgun

    @ruemara: Thanks. We’ll be all right! And you won’t have to give up the kitties, don’t worry! Your fellow Balloon Juicers won’t let that happen–

  77. 77.

    Dan B

    @rikyrah: Beto’s crowds this week look very white. It would be interesting to see if he would draw any crowds at HBCUs. So far he seems to be building on charisma and looks but policy on only a few areas.

  80. 80.

    Dan B

    @WaterGirl: Thanks for posting the full answer to the question. To me Pete’s response is vague, unlike him so it’s unsettling. Does he mean that “I’m with Her” was a bad message? Sounds like he does. To me the button was cute. What does Buttegieg think it should have been?

    I think he imlies it should have been “She’s for Us” or “Hillary for USA!” Without an alternate message it just comes across as I could have done better. It leaves a bad taste. He ought to cleat that up.

    At the same time the criticism is way over the top. It implies that Buttegieg is a misogynist with thin evidence. If the reason is: please not another white male, own it. I’m enthused for Harris, Warren, and Abrams.

    Buttegieg brings great communication chops but he’s got to prove more than that. Harris is being branded a cop. Warren is being branded a scold. Abrams is being branded a race activist. We need to focus on what they believe and their capabilities.

  81. 81.

    Dan B

    @VeniceRiley: I doubt anyone on this blog is homophobic. I’ve seen no evidence. At the same time there is a history of gay men being called woman haters, lesbians being labeled man haters, and every racial and nationality being labeled as something they are usually not. These micro-prejudices add up so it’s important for us all to be careful.

  82. 82.

    Brickley Paiste

    @WaterGirl:

    Yep a whole lot of righteous indignation yesterday – there had to be at least a dozen people calling him out – for supposedly getting Clinton’s ***OFFICIAL*** campaign slogan wrong.

    Tiresome twits can’t even get outraged properly.

  86. 86.

    WaterGirl

    @Dan B: I didn’t take his words in the way you did at all, but that’s the nice thing about getting the full quote; we all get to decide for ourselves.

    The money quote from the question: is the policy debate most important or should Dems organize around the defeat of Donald Trump?

    Pete’s answer: Neither. Policy matters, but policy isn’t enough. We need to talk about policy as a representation of our values. And if it’s all about Trump, or all about our nominee, then a lot of voters in the industrial midwest say — it’s all about the candidates and nobody’s talking about me and my problems. Buttigieg thinks we need to talk about values and principles, like freedom and security, and talk about the real meaning of those instead of the bastardized versions that the Republicans have managed to get away with for al this time.

    I don’t have a single problem with Pete Buttigieg’s response. I wanted Hillary as president as much as the next person, but we also have to be able to look — with clear eyes — at what we could have done better in 2016. And we have to be able to do that without people taking things personally. My two cents.

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