Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Let’s bury these fuckers at the polls 2 years from now.

It’s the corruption, stupid.

It looks like winning debates is a black job!

White supremacy is terrorism.

I really should read my own blog.

Republicans in disarray!

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

Someone should tell Republicans that violence is the last refuge of the incompetent, or possibly the first.

They think we are photo bombing their nice little lives.

Speaking of republicans, is there a way for a political party to declare intellectual bankruptcy?

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

Republicans do not pay their debts.

Just because you believe it, that doesn’t make it true.

One of our two political parties is a cult whose leader admires Vladimir Putin.

The Supreme Court cannot be allowed to become the ultimate, unaccountable arbiter of everything.

Giving up is unforgivable. ~Joe Biden

We cannot abandon the truth and remain a free nation.

The real work of an opposition party is to hold the people in power accountable.

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

How any woman could possibly vote for this smug smarmy piece of misogynistic crap is beyond understanding.

If you tweet it in all caps, that makes it true!

Shallow, uninformed, and lacking identity

The cruelty is the point; the law be damned.

Don’t expect peaches from an apple tree.

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110Comments

  4. 4.

    JPL

    Steve appears to be quite comfy so don’t worry about it.
    You should add a few ducks to your menagerie.

  5. 5.

    Betty Cracker

    Our large dog sleeps on the small dog bed as best she can, using it as a pillow, mostly. The small dog sleeps on the large dog bed for some reason — when they’re not both hogging our bed, that is. It’s a mystery!

  6. 6.

    TaMara (HFG)

    We have had quite the morning here. Baby birds fallen from a nest, a pile of six garter snakes sitting outside my front door and finally – a Cooper’s Hawk sitting on the edge of the duck pool while the ducks huddled in the bushes. I sent the pups out to remedy that situation. But my heart is still beating pretty fast.

    It’s a freaking nature documentary here today.

  7. 7.

    dmsilev

    Trump’s SecDef nominee, Patrick Shanahan, has withdrawn to “spend more time with his family”.

    Huh.

  8. 8.

    dmsilev

    @TaMara (HFG): OK, so the snakes were to deal with the threat of the baby birds, you brought in the hawk to deal with the snakes, the dogs to take care of the hawk. What’s next, an elephant to herd the dogs?

  9. 9.

    Jeffro

    Oh hey look, Brooksie is falling all over himself to defend the racist kid whose life is ruined, RUINED I SAY, by not being able to attend Harvard. What a shock/surprise.

  10. 10.

    Burnspbesq

    @dmsilev:

    It’s more likely that his lawyers explained the potential consequences of the shit that would come out in a confirmation hearing.

  11. 11.

    NotMax

    six garter snakes sitting outside my front door

    Was one or more of them carrying a tiny copy of The Watchtower?

    :)

  13. 13.

    dmsilev

    @Burnspbesq: The story in the Washington Post is about three lines long. One of which is “The move comes amid media reports of domestic violence incidents several years ago involving Shanahan, his ex-wife and their son.”. So, yeah.

    Oddly enough, decent people seem reluctant to want to work for Trump. Funny that.

  16. 16.

    gvg

    Cats prefer beds that are slightly too small. My dog apparently does too. I think Steve is able to find the bed he wants, and will ignore those you buy especially for him. Just relax.

  17. 17.

    germy

    @Jeffro:

    Oh hey look, Brooksie is falling all over himself to defend the racist kid whose life is ruined, RUINED I SAY, by not being able to attend Harvard. What a shock/surprise.

    I would have been surprised if he didn’t. When I first heard about the story, I knew Brooks would weigh in with his bad takes.

  18. 18.

    Plato

    Three years agoTheresa May had 199 votes and 60.5% in the second round topping Andrea Leadsom on 84— steve hawkes (@steve_hawkes) June 18, 2019

    And buffoon boris gets only 126 in 2nd round. Will probably end up being the pm with shortest time served.

  19. 19.

    Burnspbesq

    @Jeffro:

    If Hahvahd consistently applied its stated policies, he wouldn’t have been admitted in the first place. Too damn bad.

    Go to Gainesville, go directly to Gainesville, do not pass go, do not collect $200.

  24. 24.

    JPL

    @TaMara (HFG): I purchased some HOMESCAPE CREATIONS Bird Repellent Reflective Scare Rods – They seemed to help. A hawk swooped down towards the maltese once.

    You could get a scarecrow but you have to change it’s outerwear. Who knew that hawks are into fashion.

  27. 27.

    rikyrah

    @Jeffro:

    Oh hey look, Brooksie is falling all over himself to defend the racist kid whose life is ruined, RUINED I SAY, by not being able to attend Harvard. What a shock/surprise.

    No shock, whatsoever.

  28. 28.

    rikyrah

    If any of y’all remember how Conservative White America™ closed ranks around the Covington Catholic kids, and MLK’s “white moderates” in the media quickly followed suit?

    Conservative White America™ has found a new young racist hero in Kyle Kashuv’s quest to remain at Harvard.

    — Arya’s Needle (@Needle_of_Arya) June 18, 2019

  30. 30.

    rikyrah

    Someone tweeted that 44 should talk to Harvard about Kashuv….
    Folks weren’t having it

    ……………………………………..

    Imagine the white privilege required to say that the first African-American president should lean on a private university to let in a kid who spammed the N-word and said “kill all the fucking Jews.” https://t.co/w6Poibq86A

    — Matthew Chapman (@fawfulfan) June 17, 2019

  31. 31.

    rikyrah

    I’ve said it for awhile. They HAVE freedom of speech. What they want is – freedom from the consequences of said speech.
    They wanna party like it’s 1928??

    This right wing outrage session over Kyle Kashuv certainly demonstrates at least one thing — conservatives REALLY miss being able to say the n-word without consequences.

    That’s what MAGA is all about.

    — Charles Johnson (@Green_Footballs) June 17, 2019

  32. 32.

    rikyrah

    Remember how Trayvon Martin’s middle finger selfies were the reason he deserved to be murdered?

    Isn’t it strange how the same people don’t want Kyle defined by his use of the n word? ?

    — Bernie’s 3rd house ?? (@OjPats4) June 18, 2019

  33. 33.

    Bill Arnold

    A story that might interest noted germophobe D.J. Trump:
    Climate Change May Be Spreading Flesh-Eating Bacteria to Unexpected Waters (Mandy Oaklander, June 17, 2019)

    A new report published in the Annals of Internal Medicine links five recent cases of Vibrio vulnificus to the Delaware Bay, bordered by New Jersey and Delaware. These bacteria live in brackish water—a mix of salty and fresh, often where a river meets a sea. Historically, in the U.S., V. vulnificus have mostly been found in the southeastern part of the country.

    Seriously, this might attract his attention. (Then perhaps he’ll propose spraying these areas with antibiotics or something equally idiotic and we’ll have to listen to the right-wing-o-sphere spin up nonsense about how it’s really a brilliant good idea. But i’d take if it mean new correct information taking root in his mind.)

  34. 34.

    JPL

    @rikyrah: Besides his racists opinions the young man apparently wants to kill the jews. You have to wonder what type of person defends that behavior.

  35. 35.

    Betty Cracker

    @rikyrah: IIRC, the dude who suggested it wasn’t white, but I agree the suggestion was out of line. PBO doesn’t owe that racist twit anything.

  38. 38.

    tokyokie

    Did Shanahan say which was his family? The Hutches? The Kinahans? Or is he more old school and runs with i Gambini?

  39. 39.

    rikyrah

    If your speech outs you as a racist, sexist, homophobic or whatever else kind of person and people choose not to fuck with you accordingly then deal with that shit and stop fucking whining.

    I mean you guys are the “fuck your feelings” crowd right?

    — Wakandan War Dog (@Kennymack1971) June 18, 2019

  40. 40.

    Jeffro

    @Bill Arnold:

    Seriously, this might attract his attention. (Then perhaps he’ll propose spraying these areas with antibiotics or something equally idiotic and we’ll have to listen to the right-wing-o-sphere spin up nonsense about how it’s really a brilliant good idea.

    Yup, just like the proposed aerial water bombardment of Notre Dame. That was a hoot. Or trillion-dollar tax giveaways to the rich that do nothing for the economy or 99%. Now that was some fun!

    The guy is just a fountain of good ideas. And a fountain is what he’s gonna get from me, once he passes, too.

  43. 43.

    Betty Cracker

    @Burnspbesq: Florida has more than enough assholes already, thanks.

    @Jeffro: Maybe they’re waiting to see if another shoe drops. Kashuv was cagey in his apologies about not having access to the materials used by the folks who brought the receipts, e.g., texts, online study group transcripts, etc.

  44. 44.

    rikyrah

    @Jeffro:

    I think if it was just ‘ Ni**er’, it would have been, but then, he had to complicate it all with his hatred of Jews too that folks also had receipts.

  45. 45.

    Jeffro

    FYI (not that everyone here doesn’t already know this) but since trumpov has absolutely nothing to offer his base (other than “I gave huge tax cuts to rich people” and “I tried really, really hard to take away your health care”) he’s going to do nothing but gin up culture-war issues from here through next November. Non-stop and on steroids. (Or should I say non-stop and on crushed Adderall in his case?)

    I like to slap that nonsense down hard and right away, of course, but when talking with low-info voters/family/friends/acquaintances/water cooler pals at work, I try to slap it down and then point out that’s what he’s trying to do – gin up culture-war issues to distract from his the tax scam, rolling back health care, the exploding deficit, 401ks going nowhere, etc. Fight it…and then pull back the curtain a bit on Donnie’s act. It’s not a sure thing but it’s surprising how many people have that ‘light bulb moment’

  46. 46.

    dmsilev

    @Bex: Secretary of the Army is the new acting SecDef.

    Also, and I’m sure not coincidentally, the Washington Post has a very detailed story about those domestic violence episodes. It’s pretty graphic, so be warned. Long story short, Shanahan’s teenaged son attacked his mother and left her in a pool of blood. Shanahan’s primary response was to ignore her and instead focused on hiring a defense attorney for his son.

  47. 47.

    CaseyL

    Imagine if Steve didn’t have his summer cut: you wouldn’t be able to see the bed at all. The photo would be of a giant Floof seemingly hovering in mid air.

    Shanahan came to the SecDef position from Boeing, didn’t he? He ran the company when it designed the 737 Max and made the decision to call vital safety equipment “optional.” Sooo… not someone who cares overmuch about other peoples’ lives, is what I’m saying.

  48. 48.

    The Dangerman

    @Jeffro:

    And a fountain is what he’s gonna get from me, once he passes, too.

    I want the beer concession near where he’s buried; I assume it’s going to be at the spectacular Trump Library, wherever the fuck that is gonna be. I’ve visited Reagan’s Library, where he’s buried, before he was there; the Library is actually pretty cool as there is a ton of history from that era. I assume Trump’s Library will be about the size of a 7-11 next to an 18th hole someplace. Accent on hole.

  49. 49.

    JPL

    @tokyokie: The Washington Post has an article which is heartbreaking. The family no matter what age now should have therapy if they haven’t already.
    Shanahan wasn’t truthful with the FBI to protect his family.

  50. 50.

    Brachiator

    @dmsilev:

    Trump’s SecDef nominee, Patrick Shanahan, has withdrawn to “spend more time with his family”.

    A Politico story says that Trump never filed the paperwork to start the confirmation process.

    The new acting secretary is Mark Esper. Pretty soon we will be down to Young Jared or Ivanka.

    We need a new acting president.

  52. 52.

    Jeffro

    Man, that’s the second comment I’ve had get ‘disappeared’ today…weird…

    (Probably a cue from the mods that I need to keep it shorter and sweeter =)

    Anyway, the shorter version of my disappeared comment was: since culture-war stuff is all trumpov really knows, cares about, or can run on…I’m sure we’re all expecting him to do that all day every day from now ’til next November. We should slap it down at every opportunity, of course, but when talking with relatively low-info friends/co-workers/family, it’s always interesting to slap it down and then pivot right to “You know that’s what he does, right? Throw some inflammatory racist, sexist, Dem-trolling stuff out there to distract from his tax scam, attempts to roll back health care coverage, 401ks-going-nowhere, and general chaos, right?”

    It’s not guaranteed but folks seem to have a bit of a ‘lightbulb moment’ more often than not when you tack that on. It’s like a glimpse behind the curtain. They feel smarter and from then on they’re a little more ‘immune’ to trumpov’s nonsense.

  56. 56.

    Jeffro

    @The Dangerman: I know it’s juvenile but I just don’t care: he’s going to get a recycled 12-pack of Bud Light from me in the not-too-distant future.

    It’s the only negative-leaning item on my bucket list, but it’s sure as hell staying on that list.

  57. 57.

    Brachiator

    @dmsilev:

    Long story short, Shanahan’s teenaged son attacked his mother and left her in a pool of blood. Shanahan’s primary response was to ignore her and instead focused on hiring a defense attorney for his son.

    This sounds complicated and sordid. And it is more than that Shanahan was involved in a domestic abuse case. Is the son mentally ill? What happened to the mother? There is some fucked up shit going on here.

  59. 59.

    JPL

    @Brachiator: If he was intent on protecting his family, why put him in a situation where the FBI was going to do an extensive background check.

  60. 60.

    Brachiator

    @Jeffro:

    Throw some inflammatory racist, sexist, Dem-trolling stuff out there to distract from his tax scam, attempts to roll back health care coverage, 401ks-going-nowhere, and general chaos, right?”

    That’s funny. I think this shit is almost secondary to the actual pain that he is causing people. Like putting immigrants in camps. Trying to make transgender people nonpersons. Setting the stage for the GOP war on women. Overtly racist policy.

    This is not just a cover for his other bullshit. This is his agenda.

  61. 61.

    mrmoshpotato

    @CaseyL:

    Imagine if Steve didn’t have his summer cut: you wouldn’t be able to see the bed at all. The photo would be of a giant Floof seemingly hovering in mid air.

    And what a magnificent Floof it would’ve been! :)

  62. 62.

    Mike in NC

    @The Dangerman: I picture part of Trump Tower in Manhattan being converted into a mausoleum similar to Lenin’s Tomb on Red Square. Fat Bastard will be pumped full of preservatives and placed on display for the MAGA fans to pay their (dis)respects. Like Lenin, Trump’s corpse will get a semi-annual overhaul, to include a heavy coat of orange spray tan.

  64. 64.

    NotMax

    @Jeffro

    Voluntarily drinking Bud Light? Familiar with the phrase ‘taking one for the team,’ but that’s above and beyond.

    ;)

  71. 71.

    bemused

    @gvg:

    It’s hilarious to watch our chunky kitty manage to squeeze into a cardboard box that was about 7×7. Actually, I was quite impressed.

  72. 72.

    Brachiator

    @JPL:

    If he was intent on protecting his family, why put him in a situation where the FBI was going to do an extensive background check

    You know, once I get to “teenaged son attacked mother and left her bleeding,” I don’t care about the FBI background check.

  73. 73.

    Tony Jay

    @Plato:

    126 votes is…. very surprising. That’s only 12 more than the last vote, and is hardly more than the extremist anti-May vote last December. Not really the tornado of inevitability his supporters have been the touting all week.

    He couldn’t fuck this up, could he? Not Boris?

  74. 74.

    The Moar You Know

    If he was intent on protecting his family, why put him in a situation where the FBI was going to do an extensive background check.

    @JPL: The obvious explanation is that he’d been told there wouldn’t be one.

    You can see why he thought that might be true.

  75. 75.

    The Dangerman

    @Mike in NC:

    … will get a semi-annual overhaul, to include a heavy coat of orange spray tan.

    So, you’re saying no change from the present?

    Yeah, I could see him getting the Lenin treatment; the MAGAt’s will make their pilgrimage, once in their lifetimes, kinda like Hajj to Mecca.

  77. 77.

    The Moar You Know

    He couldn’t fuck this up, could he? Not Boris?

    @Tony Jay: I’ve heard he’s known by the name “The World’s Most Competent Man”. He’s got this.

    Christ, what a shitshow and it just keeps on giving! Like a perpetual motion machine, but of fail rather than anything useful.

  82. 82.

    NotMax

    @The Dangerman

    Unlike Lenin though, he’ll be propped up vertically so the rubes who shell out to get a golden ticket for the “privilege” can take a selfie with him.

  83. 83.

    germy

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    Welcome to Trump Heights, the Israeli Town That Doesn’t Exist

    The sign with gilded letters and the dramatic ceremony, just as the president likes, hides the fact that the proposal to establish the new Golan Heights community does not include any actual steps toward building it

    No new community named for U.S. President Donald Trump was actually established on Sunday in the Golan Heights. As even the founder of the Knesset caucus for the Golan, Kahol Lavan MK Zvi Hauser, observed: “Anyone who reads the fine print of the ‘historic’ decision understands that this is a conceptual decision. There is no funding. There is no planning. There is no location and there is really no committed decision.

    https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/elections/welcome-to-trump-heights-the-israeli-town-that-doesn-t-exist-1.7374026

  85. 85.

    Brachiator

    @JPL:

    Besides his racists opinions the young man apparently wants to kill the jews. You have to wonder what type of person defends that behavior.

    Didn’t this kid make the statements a couple of years ago?

    Asswipe conservatives should butt out. I don’t know if this guy should still get into Harvard, but he should be given a chance to atone. Most of the time, we seem to agree that teens are not emotionally mature.

  86. 86.

    Harry Hamid

    I was going to say “or a smaller cat,” but first, I saw others had already said that and second, I have a cat and I can easily see what the path of least resistance is. Get a bigger bed.

  87. 87.

    Brachiator

    @germy:

    So proud of Bibi and Netanyahu for creating #TrumpHeights

    Maybe they meant a sister, Bibi Anne Netanyahu.

    What a bunch of dopes.

  89. 89.

    jonas

    @dmsilev: “Spend more time with his family?” I don’t know whether that’s supposed to be funny or intentionally cruel. What appears to have sunk Shanahan’s nomination was an incident in 2010 wherein his teenage son nearly killed his mother (Shanahan’s ex) with a baseball bat and Shanahan attempted to cover for the kid. Both Shanahan and his ex-wife claim physical abuse by the other.

    Sheez, Trump sure knows how to pick ’em.

  90. 90.

    Gravenstone

    @Roger Moore: Cats are somewhere between liquid and gas; changing shape to adapt to any container and sometimes expanding to fill the available space, whatever the shape.

  91. 91.

    Brachiator

    @JPL:

    The Washington Post has an article which is heartbreaking. The family no matter what age now should have therapy if they haven’t already.

    Shanahan wasn’t truthful with the FBI to protect his family.

    I have to tweak my browser to get around the WaPo paywall, but was able to read some related stories elsewhere. You’re right, I think. These people have quite a tragic mess on their hands. It’s sad that the son was pulled into it as well.

  93. 93.

    scuffletuffle

    Looks like a perfect fit to me…I have always let my cats make that determination for themselves.

  95. 95.

    ET

    I just want to get down next to him an smoosh my face on this tummy and tell him how much I love him.

  99. 99.

    Brachiator

    @jonas:

    What appears to have sunk Shanahan’s nomination was an incident in 2010 wherein his teenage son nearly killed his mother (Shanahan’s ex) with a baseball bat and Shanahan attempted to cover for the kid

    The story you link to doesn’t remotely report anything like this. It may be, sadly, that the ex wife has problems that the husband tried to cover for.

  101. 101.

    JPL

    @Brachiator: I think he was trying to protect all of them. The one question is why give such a length interview to the Post? It’s likely that they had the story and gave him a chance to respond.

    I’m beginning to think he had assurances that the past would not come out.

  102. 102.

    TenguPhule

    @NotMax:

    Voluntarily drinking Bud Light? Familiar with the phrase ‘taking one for the team,’ but that’s above and beyond.

    Remember, you’re not buying it, just renting it.

  104. 104.

    laura

    Look at Him. Gaze upon his lumpen mass. Steve is one magnificently glorious hunka hunka chunky gato.
    LOOK AT HIM!11!

  108. 108.

    Bobbette

    @Bill Arnold: Interesting article. So I sent the link to my daughter & she responded by sending me the paper she co-wrote, from which they borrowed for the article. Talk about your small world. I feel semi-famous! :)

  109. 109.

    sgrAstar

    @Brachiator: colleges admit on the content of high school records and achievements. His behavior certainly is disqualifying, as it falls right into the very domain of school citizenship that many universities like to prioritize. He has the rest of his life to atone. Good luck with that.

  110. 110.

    randy khan

    @Brachiator:

    Reading that story, it just sounded awful all around. Obviously, when a teenager beats his mother with a baseball bat, a lot of things have gone wrong, but when you get to the last part and find out that the kids don’t seem to have any contact with the mother now that they’re adults, that suggests a pretty terrible childhood for all of them.

    I suspect that he and the children felt this was all behind them, which is why he took the first job at the Pentagon and was willing to go for SecDef, but stuff like that has a way of coming out, regardless of whose fault it was.

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