Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Too often we confuse noise with substance. too often we confuse setbacks with defeat.

Second rate reporter says what?

rich, arrogant assholes who equate luck with genius

Let us savor the impending downfall of lawless scoundrels who richly deserve the trouble barreling their way.

They’re not red states to be hated; they are voter suppression states to be fixed.

Good lord, these people are nuts.

Shallow, uninformed, and lacking identity

Ah, the different things are different argument.

Putting aside our relentless self-interest because the moral imperative is crystal clear.

And now I have baud making fun of me. this day can’t get worse.

Tick tock motherfuckers!

It’s time for the GOP to dust off that post-2012 autopsy, completely ignore it, and light the party on fire again.

Imperialist aggressors must be defeated, or the whole world loses.

Joe Lieberman disappointingly reemerged to remind us that he’s still alive.

Perhaps you mistook them for somebody who gives a damn.

The arc of history bends toward the same old fuckery.

Reality always lies in wait for … Democrats.

Historically it was a little unusual for the president to be an incoherent babbling moron.

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

Red lights blinking on democracy’s dashboard

“Can i answer the question? No you can not!”

Let’s not be the monsters we hate.

Republicans choose power over democracy, every day.

DeSantis transforms Florida into 1930s Germany with gators and theme parks.

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Reader Interactions

181Comments

  3. 3.

    Yutsano

    @Baud: I was just about to express that exact sentiment. guachi and I were waxing about how he would barely be able to talk at the convention just from his introduction of Biden.

  4. 4.

    CaseyL

    @Baud: It would, but I don’t know how much Michelle is going to want to.  She was more than happy to kick the dust of the political world from her feet.  Maybe for a once-in-while appearance she might be OK with it.

    But yes:  As much or as little as they want to participate, it will be a tonic to see and hear them again.

  5. 5.

    bemused

    @Baud:

    I can’t wait!

    During these long years since psycho trump came on the scene, I’ve cheered myself up remembering all those sweet scenes of Obama happily interacting with children.

  7. 7.

    Lapassionara

    This reminds me of a conversation Marco Polo and I had the other day. Recall when Bill Clinton made the keynote speech at a Democratic Party convention, went on too long, but made a come-back of sorts by going on the Johnny Carson show, joking, and playing the saxophone?

    Then, at another convention, the party asked Barack Obama to keynote, and he was fantastic. He rapidly became in turn a Senator from Illinois, then a nominee for president, then president.

    It looked to me that identifying future Democratic Party leaders and giving them an important role at convention paid off.

    So who keynoted the 2016 convention? Per Marco Polo’s research, Michael Bloomberg.

    Just yuck!

    Now the question is, who should be the keynote speaker at the 2020 convention? Is there another Barack Obama in our future? If so, who could it be?

  11. 11.

    trollhattan

    @Lapassionara:

    I would have once suggested a Castro brother, but am now not sure. If it was an audition, Stacey Abrams killed the SOTU response–easily the most thankless political speech assignment extant.

  13. 13.

    Lapassionara

    @trollhattan: I heard Julian Castro speak once, but was not fired up by what he said.

    I heard Deval Patrick speak once too, and was pleasantly surprised.

     

    A woman would be my first choice, all others considerations being equal.

  15. 15.

    Tim C.

    *takes a knee*

    THE KING IN THE NORTH!

    THE KING IN THE NORTH!

    THE KING IN THE NORTH!

    THE KING IN THE NORTH!

  16. 16.

    ...now I try to be amused

    @Redshift:

    Obama and his magic baby powers! Always the best thing to brighten up a day.

    “I’m big with the zero through eight demographic.” — Barack Obama

    Gawd, I love that man.

  19. 19.

    Immanentize

    Four #SuperTuesday states moved from caucuses to primaries this year.
    CO participation is up 517% from 2016 and still counting
    ME is up 304% and still counting
    MN is up 264%
    UT is up 120% and still counting
    Democracy is stronger when more people are able to participate.— Stacey Abrams (@staceyabrams) March 4, 2020

  21. 21.

    LuciaMia

    The ‘please excuse’ notes were sweet. Trump would probably charge the kids for his signature.

  24. 24.

    Nicole

    Here’s a something good view:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=25&v=TFlUXmaZMbc&feature=emb_logo

    This guy does various pieces on film, and this one looks at what is masculinity, through the lens of film (he uses 4 Chiwetel Ejiofor films as examples, so bonus Chiwetel Ejiofor), and it’s a good view.  I’m going to rewatch it with my husband and son tonight.  My son is 9, and while his school’s curriculum does a good job teaching diversity, and he has an openly gay teacher this year (who is also his first male homeroom teacher), and he himself is pretty good about choosing reading books with girl main characters as well as the usual assortment of boy centered books, he’s currently VERY into the Terminator movies, and superhero films, and the like, and I think it’ll give him a good bit of critical thinking about these films- not in a negative way, but to make him aware that “masculinity” is not so much an innate thing as a collection of behaviors we choose to do.

    And, thanks to this Youtube piece, I was today years old when I learned that high heels were originally designed for men!  Seriously, it’s a really entertaining watch.

  25. 25.

    LuciaMia

    I was today years old when I learned that high heels were originally designed for men!

    The original belly dancers were men.

  30. 30.

    guachi

    @Yutsano: Man, if Obama gives the nominating speech for Biden it’ll be bedlam at the convention. I’ll be yelling and screaming at my tv.

    There won’t be a dry eye in the place. And hopefully America remembers, for 45 minutes, what it had.

  31. 31.

    Brachiator

    @Lapassionara:

    Now the question is, who should be the keynote speaker at the 2020 convention? Is there another Barack Obama in our future? If so, who could it be?

    Stacey Abams

  33. 33.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Lapassionara:

    Now the question is, who should be the keynote speaker at the 2020 convention? Is there another Barack Obama in our future? If so, who could it be?

    I’d love to see Rep. Katie Porter get a high-profile/prime-time speaking assignment at the convention. Every time I see her, I’m more and more impressed.

  34. 34.

    Kent

    My D R E A M scenario for the general election campaign.

    Trump goes to MI or PA or WI or wherever and hold a big rally attracting say a generous 10,000 of his MAGA vermin to come hear a senile Ted Nugent fire up the pasty obese faithful.   Then Obama rolls into town the next day to draw 100,000 to hear Beyonce and Taylor Swift and other A-listers rally behind Biden and Harris.

    Then repeat, and repeat, and repeat until Trump’s head literally explodes.

  35. 35.

    Kent

    @Brachiator:Now the question is, who should be the keynote speaker at the 2020 convention? Is there another Barack Obama in our future? If so, who could it be?

    I don’t know about keynote, but Adam Schiff and Val Demings certainly deserve prominent spots.

  36. 36.

    Emma from FL

    @jeffreyw: from a story about modern male belly-dancers:

    But male belly-dancing has a long history, partly because of Islamic sensibilities. In Ottoman times, men covered their faces with veils and danced for the Sultan because Muslim women were barred from performing.

    “It was against the rules – among both Turks and Arabs,” Evrim said. “So it used to be the men who were the belly-dancers – they were called koceks . I just do the same job in a more modern way”.His performance certainly went down a storm with his audience. Young and old were dancing on the tables, stomping and shouting into the early hours.

    https://www.theguardian.com/world/2000/may/22/4

  37. 37.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Lapassionara:

    Recall when Bill Clinton made the keynote speech at a Democratic Party convention, went on too long, but made a come-back of sorts by going on the Johnny Carson show, joking, and playing the saxophone?

    I was actually in the hall the night he made that interminable nominating speech. When he went on the Tonight Show, Carson started by saying “That wasn’t your finest hour.” “No,” Clinton replied. “It wasn’t even my finest two hours!”

    (BTW, the sax playing was on Arsenio Hall’s show, not Carson’s. Nit picky, I know.)

  38. 38.

    Central Planning

    A friend of mine from high school was Obama’s videographer. She wrote this piece (which is more about her experiences) and it shows what a great president he was: Go Toward The Good

  39. 39.

    Nicole

    @Emma from FL: Yeah, but as best I can tell from googling, it didn’t originate with men (it wasn’t even called “belly” dancing until the 19th century).  No one knows for sure, but it looks like it was traditional dancing, done at weddings, etc., but the sexes were segregated, so while both sexes performed it, they didn’t dance together.

    But props to LuciaMia for sending me on a fascinating google search!

  40. 40.

    MisterForkbeard

    That first video is so great. I remember what it was like to have a president that was an actual human being, with emotions and the ability to relate to people or deal with jokes. It’s sad that I’m so nostalgic for something so basic.

  41. 41.

    ...now I try to be amused

    @Nicole:

    And, thanks to this Youtube piece, I was today years old when I learned that high heels were originally designed for men!

    A key plot point in The Three Musketeers (1973 film) involved a diamond necklace the queen of France gave to her lover the Duke of Buckingham, and which Buckingham wore himself.

  43. 43.

    clay

    @CaseyL: Michelle doesn’t want to be involved in holding office, but she’s a hell of a campaigner and I fully believe she’ll be more than thrilled to get on the trail for her great friends Joe and Jill. She knows the importance of this election.

    One thing that recently occurred to me is that Joe probably ran in large part to protect Obama’s legacy. Watching Trump trample on the ACA, on the Iran deal, on rolling back the protections on the environment and LGBTQ rights… that had to drive Joe crazy, because he knew how hard he and Obama worked to make those things happen.  He wants to fix this.

  44. 44.

    zhena gogolia

    OMG, I may be the last to know but I just saw a tweet with a picture of Twitler and the caption “MORONAVIRUS.” So perfect.

  47. 47.

    VeniceRiley

    This respite ruined by the fact it made me contemplate Branch Bernidians booing Obama at the convention.

  51. 51.

    lamh36

    I know this is a respite thread, but apparently Bernie went full Trump in the presser today…smh

    @jwgop
    13m13 minutes ago
    More
    Yeah @BernieSanders Joe was so well funded he had NO ads, very little staff and didn’t even visit some of the states where he beat you. #TryAgain
    https://twitter.com/jwgop/status/1235283703913381890

    @jwgop
    13m13 minutes ago
    More
    Yeah @BernieSanders Joe was so well funded he had NO ads, very little staff and didn’t even visit some of the states where he beat you. #TryAgain

  52. 52.

    Brachiator

    @Nicole:

    This guy does various pieces on film, and this one looks at what is masculinity, through the lens of film (he uses 4 Chiwetel Ejiofor films as examples, so bonus Chiwetel Ejiofor), and it’s a good view.

    Thanks for this. I will watch it later this evening.

    … he’s currently VERY into the Terminator movies, and superhero films, and the like, and I think it’ll give him a good bit of critical thinking about these films.

    And of course one of the fun things about the Terminator films, especially Terminator 2, is that the film centers on a woman protagonist.

    And even though Arnold Schawrzenegger is the star of the film, his character takes direction from a woman and a teen. Maybe one of the reasons that adolescents really like this and other Terminator films is that they can see themselves as a leader.

  54. 54.

    Lacuna Synecdoche

    @Lapassionara: Now the question is, who should be the keynote speaker at the 2020 convention? Is there another Barack Obama in our future? If so, who could it be?

    Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez?

    If Biden wins the nomination, it would be a smart play to bring in one of Sanders biggest cheerleaders for the keynote to bring the party together and get the Sandernistas on board.

    Also, she turns 35 in 2024, so, if Biden bows after one term, or, FSM forbid, if Trump wins a second term, then AOC would be eligible to run in 2024.

    Or 2028, if a 2020 Democratic winner gets a second term.

  55. 55.

    Dorothy A. Winsor

    Re the dad jokes in the turkey pardoning video, I heard one of the Obama bros say he used to love writing that speech because Obama never looked at it ahead of time, so the bro would put in the corniest stuff he could think of and then enjoy watching Obama deliver it. LOL

  56. 56.

    Martin

    Different form of respite – Californians, be aware that Gavin is planning on announcing something today regarding affordability of Covid-19 tests.

  57. 57.

    Martin

    @Brachiator: Another vote for Stacey. Further, the party would do well to pack those speeches with folks under 40. So, yes to AOC and the squad.

    If we want youth turnout, we can’t look like an ad for a retirement community.

  58. 58.

    Gravenstone

    @guachi: 

    Man, if Obama gives the nominating speech for Biden it’ll be bedlam at the convention.

    And that will just be the BernieBros going batshit…

    // (sorta)

  59. 59.

    Kent

    Cognitive Dissonance defined:

    Over on LGM and twitter the Sandernists are arguing that Biden will never be able to pass his “feeble public option” because he will never be able to get it through Congress.

    So THAT is why you should vote for Bernie’s universal Medicare for All plan.  Because he isn’t trying to work within the “system” to get things done.

    Wait….what?

  63. 63.

    Nicole

    @Brachiator:

    And of course one of the fun things about the Terminator films, especially Terminator 2, is that the film centers on a woman protagonist.

    I KNOW!  I am also a huge fan of the first 2 Terminator films, and I got a little weepy watching the trailer for Terminator: Dark Fate, which I know didn’t do great at the box office, but I still enjoyed, because 60+ year old Sarah Connor was back and being awesome.

    One of the things I really like about the Linda Hamilton Terminator films is that while there is plenty of violence, none of it is sexualized.  That said, we did skip the big sexy scene in the first one when the kid saw it. It’s consensual; there’s nothing wrong with it, but figured as he was content to skip it, we were too.  We also skipped when Arnold takes out her roommate and his boyfriend (and the sexy time there), come to think of it.  We’re not total monsters.

    He’s inquired about Alien but I said NO NOT YET.  We will discuss about Aliens. I love both of them (and saw Aliens first as a kid myself), but Alien is still a freaking scary movie.  He clearly takes after both of us in liking horror movies, but one has to proceed carefully.  I was scarred for years by seeing Race With the Devil too young (I was 6).   Even today, I see a recreational vehicle on the road, I’m immediately looking for the Satanists chasing it.

  64. 64.

    SiubhanDuinne

    Bloomberg up.

     

    ETA: Speaking about his future political plans (MSNBC, probably elsewhere as well).

  65. 65.

    Ohio Mom

    The last time I checked my little phone screen was seven this morning, and I see that in the interim, Bloomberg has bowed out.

    That was quick. Those campaign workers in American Samoa will have quite the story for their grandchildren: “One of the richest men in our country, rich beyond your imagination, flew me and six others to a tropical island in the Pacific, American Samoa, to campaign for him for President of the United States. We rustled up 175 votes for him, and the next day, he quit the race.” Put that way, it does not sound believable.

    As far as Warren goes, I feel like a beloved family member is in the hospital and it isn’t looking good. Dreading the call but won’t be surprised by it. Just waiting and feeling helpless.

    Finally, I am cautiously optimistic that as a politician’s politician, Biden already has grasped the sea change, and will quietly forgo the across-the-aisle stuff once he’s gathered all the never-Trumpers’ votes.

  66. 66.

    Roger Moore

    @Lacuna Synecdoche:

    Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez?

    If Biden wins the nomination, it would be a smart play to bring in one of Sanders biggest cheerleaders for the keynote to bring the party together and get the Sandernistas on board.

    I don’t know if she’d be right for the keynote, but she would be a good choice for some kind of “bring the party together” speech.  While she’s obviously a big Bernie booster, she has been trying hard not to be a Bernie-or-Buster.  It was nice to see her defend Warren, for instance.

  67. 67.

    Lacuna Synecdoche

    @Kent: Please no. I like AOC well enough, but she’s not yet ready to be the leader of the free world.

    LOL, of course she isn’t. But in 4, 8, 0r 12 years? Teddy Roosevelt was only 43 when he took office. And America’s youngest presidents have a pretty good governing record compared to our oldest.

    Then again, a jar of peanut butter has a pretty good governing record compared to America’s oldest presidents:

    1. 70 years, 220 days  –  Donald Trump
    2. 69 years, 349 days  –  Ronald Reagan
    3. 68 years, 23 days  –  W. H. Harrison
    4. 65 years, 315 days  –  James Buchanan
    5. 64 years, 222 days  –  G. H. W. Bush
    6. 64 years, 100 days  –  Zachary Taylor

     

    And this is why I’m concerned about Biden’s and Sanders’s age – and about the impact that electing a Democratic President weakened by age could have on electing a Democratic successor.

  68. 68.

    taumaturgo

    @Kent: Working with the system. 1. Aks the donors what they want. 2. Introduce a diluted proposal most likely one discarded by the Republicans. 3. Ask the Republicans what they want. 4. Vote on a heavily compromised bill that favors donors and Republicans. 5. Tell the rubes sorry we did the best we could, hey remember we are winning! 6. Wait for the repeat of the catastrophe midterms elections of the Obama-Biden era.

  70. 70.

    206inKY

    @Kent: They couldn’t ask for a better gesture of unity than to have AOC give the keynote. I’d rather it be that than the VP slot.

    I would bet hard money that Joe is picking Stacey Abrams as VP, and that she will be the 47th president. She and Beto were the two most impressive statewide talents to emerge in 2018.

    And about this thread: it feels great to know Obama will be hitting the trail this summer and fall. His gambit on Sunday/Monday of pulling together Pete, Beto, Amy, Reid, Duckworth, Rice, and more for a coordinated thunderclap was like the final scene of the Godfather, with Bernie and Trump blindsided and sputtering. Our party is in good hands.

  71. 71.

    Patricia Kayden

    Trump blames Obama for coronavirus because he’s nuts and any reporter who covers this President as if this is normal is failing you. (My public service announcement for the day.) https://t.co/hRrVzDb2wi— Soledad O'Brien (@soledadobrien) March 4, 2020

  72. 72.

    Emma from FL

    @Nicole: An Alien anecdote: My best and oldest friend and I went to see Alien the same day she found out she was pregnant. When the thing popped out of the man’s chest she hauled me out of my seat and dragged me to the lobby. She was hyperventilating, I was shivering, and suddenly we burst into hysterical laughter.

    The little fetus was nicknamed Alien until he popped out and formally received a family name.

  73. 73.

    cckids

    @SiubhanDuinne: 

    Speaking about his future political plans

    With his money, at his age, WHY?? Find or start a worthy organization supporting one of your passions and work on advancing that. Be the guy who gets credit for solving climate change. THINK LONG-TERM, MIKE!!

  74. 74.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    MSNBC just called Maine for Biden, upping his tally to 10 Super Tuesday victories.

  76. 76.

    guachi

    @taumaturgo: I suspect Sanders would get nothing done and the Democrats would still lose in 2022. The difference would be at least with Biden something will be passed.

    Any Democrat who won in 2006 and/or 2008 and then lost in 2010 can hold his head high because at least he got Obamacare passed.

  77. 77.

    Lacuna Synecdoche

    Soledad O’brien via Patricia Kayden: Trump blames Obama for coronavirus because he’s nuts and any reporter who covers this President as if this is normal is failing you. (My public service announcement for the day.) https://t.co/hRrVzDb2wi

    Well of course it’s Obama’s fault.

    Trump never would have disbanded Obama’s pandemic preparedness team if Obama hadn’t committed the unpardonable crimes of A) Mocking Trump, and B) Presidenting While Black.

  78. 78.

    pamelabrown53

    @Martin:

    I think tradition suggests Dr. Jill as giving the nominating speech. But since we have a former president who is both popular and eloquent, I, too, think it would be negligence not to have him do it. “Fired Up and ready to GO”!

  79. 79.

    germy

    https://www.barrons.com/articles/health-insurance-stocks-biden-sanders-medicare-for-all-obamacare-51583330462

    Health-Insurance Stocks Are the Real Super Tuesday Winners

    Biden’s surge is good news for insurance companies not only because of his opposition to Medicare for All, which would severely disrupt the employer-based insurance industry, but also for his support for strengthening of the Obama-era Affordable Care Act, which could be good for companies that have had success on the exchanges set up under that legislation.

    “We view the Democratic Party coalescing and providing some momentum around Biden as disproportionately favorable to CNC given Biden’s approach to building on ACA and CNC’s success in the market,” Giacobbe wrote.

  82. 82.

    Martin

    @Lacuna Synecdoche: So, here’s the issue that gibberish is trying to address:

    Obama rules said that any private lab developed tests (Theranos) needed to be approved by the FDA. That’s the rule that Trump apparently revoked – so god help us all on future issues.

    The specific problem that was meant to address was the FDA demanding that the Covid test not have false positives from other coronaviruses like SARS, which is why the test released to the states a few weeks ago was busted. There is no SARS in the wild, so why was the FDA requiring that?

    Trump still has oversight of the FDA, not Obama, so why didn’t he just tell the FDA to certify the WHO test that every other nation is using?

    You call this out by saying that the federal government doesn’t run on autopilot. You can’t blame your fuck-ups on your predecessor who didn’t leave the worlds largest organization in precisely the state that would prevent all future problems.

  84. 84.

    Ksmiami

    @Lapassionara: So I’ve been synthesizing a lot of info and thinking long and hard about the future Democratic Party and seems to me if we really want to elect a woman before 2100, the female candidate has to be more in the mold of Obama- a natural talent who can bring together the various constituencies but unflappable- and yes of color. I read a really good Vox article about why Warren never really captured the larger audience and a lot of it has to do with White privilege-Cambridge style. There’s also a need for an optimistic approach at least in campaigns that somehow didn’t come through with Warren or even Klobuchar for the majority of voters. That doesn’t mean you don’t work toward fixing American issues but people get exhausted from a constant beat down. Anyhow, I know a lot of BJers are hurt/worried right now, but if an African-American in Texas can wait 7 hours to vote,  we can all work together to make progress and start identifying talent. Best to all of us- Now let’s demolish the GOP

  85. 85.

    Lacuna Synecdoche

    @Martin: You call this out by saying that the federal government doesn’t run on autopilot. You can’t blame your fuck-ups on your predecessor who didn’t leave the worlds largest organization in precisely the state that would prevent all future problems.

    Exactly. I hope no one was taking my earlier sardonic response as literal (although I’m pretty sure it accurately reflects Trump’s, for lack of a better word, “thoughts”). If anyone did, then I got the tone wrong and I apologize.

  86. 86.

    dmsilev

    @Nicole: I once visited H.R. Geiger’s studio/museum (in Gruyere, Switzerland) and let’s just say that guy had something of an obsession with genitalia. The designs he came up with for the Alien were really just the beginning; there was a whole room full of stuff that was even more explicit.

  87. 87.

    Chyron HR

    @taumaturgo:

    Do you understand that Bernie is getting FEWER votes than he received in 2016?   Are you aware of what’s causing that to happen?  Are you folks doing it on purpose to somehow be more pure?

  88. 88.

    Martin

    @Lacuna Synecdoche: Oh, no. I just wanted to clarify what the Presidents gibberish was, because it wasn’t clear that his mismanagement of the FDA, and likely the overall lack of urgency because he’s an idiot was what he was trying to blame on Obama.

    I give everyone free liberty to interpret that garbage language that comes out of his mouth however they want, because holy shit, the only way anyone can make sense of it is to look at what’s really happening and then try and correlate it in some way in space and time. I’m a technocrat so I really like understanding what’s happening out in the weeds and why.

  89. 89.

    Kent

    @Ksmiami:@Lapassionara: So I’ve been synthesizing a lot of info and thinking long and hard about the future Democratic Party and seems to me if we really want to elect a woman before 2100, the female candidate has to be more in the mold of Obama- a natural talent who can bring together the various constituencies but unflappable- and yes of color. I read a really good Vox article about why Warren never really captured the larger audience and a lot of it has to do with White privilege-Cambridge style. There’s also a need for an optimistic approach at least in campaigns that somehow didn’t come through with Warren or even Klobuchar for the majority of voters. That doesn’t mean you don’t work toward fixing American issues but people get exhausted from a constant beat down. Anyhow, I know a lot of BJers are hurt/worried right now, but if an African-American in Texas can wait 7 hours to vote,  we can all work together to make progress and start identifying talent. Best to all of us- Now let’s demolish the GOP

    I think the fastest way to elect a woman president, or woman of color to the presidency is to elect one to the vice presidency.  ESPECIALLY if the president is pushing 80.  If Biden or Sanders gets elected then their VP no matter who is the presumptive front runner in 2024 and might well take office before that.

    People dis the VPs office but it is the fastest route to the oval office.

  96. 96.

    taumaturgo

    @Brachiator: More like political reality. Having voted for O twice I love the photo ops, but there is the undeniable reality behind all the glitter.

  99. 99.

    Immanentize

    @Ksmiami:

    White privilege-Cambridge style.

    Please explain this little bit of seemingly meaningful but likely not phrase?

  100. 100.

    Kent

    @taumaturgo:@Kent: Working with the system. 1. Aks the donors what they want. 2. Introduce a diluted proposal most likely one discarded by the Republicans. 3. Ask the Republicans what they want. 4. Vote on a heavily compromised bill that favors donors and Republicans. 5. Tell the rubes sorry we did the best we could, hey remember we are winning! 6. Wait for the repeat of the catastrophe midterms elections of the Obama-Biden era.

    You do realize that it is Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer who will control the process along with the committee chairs who are Richard Neal in the House and probably Patty Murray in the Senate if the Dem’s take power.  And it is THEY who will control the extent to which donors and Republicans will have any say in the process.

    Sanders can wave his finger and turn red in the face, Biden can press the flesh.  But neither of them will have any real control over the legislative process other than threatening to veto.  That you think otherwise suggests you don’t have a clear grasp of the American political system.

  103. 103.

    The Dangerman

    @Kent:

    Because he isn’t trying to work within the “system” to get things done.

    I’m confused. How does that work exactly? I want them to show their work as their claims remind me of this famous cartoon.

    BS lost me early but really lost me with things like free day care; sounds great, how about free Hummers, too (and I’m referring to the one with 4 wheels, but, hey, whatever).

  105. 105.

    taumaturgo

    @guachi:  “I suspect Sanders would get nothing done and the Democrats would still lose in 2022. The difference would be at least with Biden something will be passed.”

    Of course, something will get passed masquerading as progressive completely tilted to favor the donor class.

  106. 106.

    Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

    @taumaturgo:

    Ok, Berniebro. I guess a public option would be “masquerading as progressive completely tilted to favor the donor class”

  107. 107.

    Shana

    @pamelabrown53: God I love the Fired Up and Ready to Go story that the Obama people put together after ’08.  Between Obama and the woman who started it, what a great video.

  108. 108.

    Kent

    @Immanentize:

    White privilege-Cambridge style.

    Please explain this little bit of seemingly meaningful but likely not phrase?

    I took it to mean east coast highly educated Ivy League (Cambridge MA = Harvard University) as Warren was a Harvard Professor.

    I tend to agree with the article cited.  I think we tend to over-analyze Warren’s failure as having to do with policy decisions like coming out for M4A when the problem was really larger.  She just was never able to energize a wider coalition of working class Democrats of all races because she came across as the Ivy League “know it all” who was smarter than everyone else rather than say…the poor girl from Oklahoma who fought her way up and made good in the world.    That’s why she had a loyal following among educated white urbanites but barely anyone else.

    Being dismissed by the media as an also-ran of course didn’t help.  But I don’t think any of it really had much to do with any of her specific plans.  She just didn’t have wide appeal outside the white educated liberal elite and they are only maybe 10% of the party.

  113. 113.

    Kent

    @The Dangerman:

    I’m confused. How does that work exactly? I want them to show their work as their claims remind me of this famous cartoon.

    BS lost me early but really lost me with things like free day care; sounds great, how about free Hummers, too (and I’m referring to the one with 4 wheels, but, hey, whatever).

    Since the problem is “the system” you just don’t work with it.   Problem solved.

    See how simple that is?

    Bernie is a genius.

  114. 114.

    taumaturgo

    @Kent: “And it is THEY who will control the extent to which donors and Republicans will have any say in the process.”  LMAO

  115. 115.

    guachi

    Steve Bullock running for Senate in Montana.

    This turns into a pickup opportunity. I suspect it’s no coincidence it happened the day after a Super Tuesday Biden won big.

  116. 116.

    Calouste

    What must be completely alien to the shitgibbon is that Bloomberg promised to pay all his campaign staff until November and that they will be there for the nominee even if he doesn’t win, and then when he bows out, he doesn’t decide to go back on that and screw everyone over. The orange fartcloud would just have screwed everyone over just because the opportunity was there. If someone else loses, he must win, right?

  118. 118.

    Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

    @taumaturgo:

    “And it is THEY who will control the extent to which donors and Republicans will have any say in the process.”  LMAO

    You seem nice /s

  119. 119.

    dmsilev

    @Immanentize: They have a whole cheese museum there, complete with an aging cave equipped with a cheese-retrieving robot.  The old castle up on top of the hill is now an art gallery; very nice.

    if you ever happen to be visiting Geneva, it’s an easy day-trip, about an hour or so on the train each way.

  121. 121.

    Brachiator

    @Ksmiami:

    So I’ve been synthesizing a lot of info and thinking long and hard about the future Democratic Party and seems to me if we really want to elect a woman before 2100, the female candidate has to be more in the mold of Obama

    Totally disagree and will gladly discuss it in another thread.

    But not here.

    I like respites.

    Alien or Terminator?

  122. 122.

    Martin

    @The Dangerman: So, it doesn’t work.

    But one of the things that Sanders sort of gets right, and then utterly fails to articulate well, but which Warren has done a better job of, is that we’re already paying for all of this stuff. It’s not about adding new money, it’s just about shifting the mechanisms that the money flows.

    So, CA has a new solar mandate on new homes. Build a new house, and it needs to have enough solar to power it. A lot of people are up in arms arguing that it’ll just make housing in CA more expensive. But the reality is that it makes it cheaper, because the panels are free. In fact, they’re cheaper than free, but it sorta doesn’t work out that way.

    We think of solar as a $15K renovation, which will pay for itself after x years. x being reasonably long. If you have  $15K you can part with for x years,  you should do it. But homes already define x to be 30. That’s your mortgage. And the  $15K gets discounted because it’s not a renovation – it’s during construction, and because it’s  during  construction, it just becomes part of your mortgage. So every new homeowner will pay $8K more for their house, sure, but they’ll have electricity savings enough to more than cover the added cost to the mortgage.

    So, no new money being spent to get all of this solar capacity, it’s just a reconfiguration of the financing – you give more to your mortgage and less to your power bill. But CA doesn’t sell it as ‘free solar’, even though it’s free solar. That’s how single payer should work as well. We’re already spending all of that money on healthcare. If set up right, people will spend half as much and get as good or better care. No new money, but you give more money to taxes and much less to premiums (or your employer much less to premiums and return the difference to your salary). Day care basically works the same way as well. It’s a bit more abstract, but the productivity gains should easily pay for it.

    Bernie is kind of a terrible messenger for this kind of approach though. Warren is better. Harris came up with a VERY California solution which was the illusion of choice to consumers which was really designed to steer the consumer to the single payer solution without forcing them. CA is very good at taking the public to a place they say they don’t want to go, and then are thankful they got there.

  123. 123.

    Jinchi

    @Kent: Whoever becomes VP to Biden or Sanders will almost certainly have to do a significant part of the job on themselves. Fortunately even the younger Democratic presidents have been good about creating partnerships with their VPs so it shouldn’t be hard to continue the pattern. Seeing a woman perform that part of the job would be a big deal.

  124. 124.

    Ksmiami

    @Kent:  thank you yes- basically the VOX article delved into  how narrow Warren’s appeal really was at this moment. Affluent white women and some men with college and grad degrees just is a small part of the Democratic constituency even though “all your friends are supporting her.”

  125. 125.

    LuciaMia

    How to make you own hand sanitizer. Link is from a local area food co-op.

    I have also seen recommendations NOT to try to make your own, for what that’s worth.

    And Ive read soap works as well as anything. Hand sanitizer is supposed to work on bacteria, does it eliminate a virus as well?

  127. 127.

    Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

    @taumaturgo:

    You of course realize plenty of other nations with universal healthcare still have private insurance? That few have complete single-payer? That many have hybrid systems with a public option? Germany is one such place. Even the UK still has private insurance for those that want it

    Besides, there’s a reason why the Culinary Union in Nevada doesn’t like Sanders’ M4A; it will fuck up the good healthcare they’ve managed to negotiate for themselves through many years of hard work. The labor movement is a significant part of the Democratic base. We will need every single vote this November to beat Trump

  128. 128.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @dm: I know she was. I think that’s one of the reasons I like her so much — she seems to have absorbed all the right lessons.

  129. 129.

    mad citizen

    @Roger Moore: The sax clip plays on a loop at the Clinton library (was just there 3 weeks ago), and the saxes are there as well.

     

    @dmsilev: That must be an indelible memory!  I have the foldout Geiger piece entitled “Penis Landscape” that came in a Dead Kennedys album.  Haven’t looked at it in years but the image is still in my mind, more or less.

  132. 132.

    Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

    @LuciaMia:

    Yes. Alcohol-based hand sanitizer with an alcohol concentration of 62- 91% will kill the vast majority of bacteria and viruses. Hand washing is still preferred, but hand sanitizer will do with no access to clean water and soap

  133. 133.

    Kent

    @LuciaMia:And Ive read soap works as well as anything. Hand sanitizer is supposed to work on bacteria, does it eliminate a virus as well?

    You don’t really need to actually make hand sanitizer if you already have rubbing alcohol, which is the main ingredient  Just use the rubbing alcohol.  Over time it might dry out your hands but it will sanitize them.  That’s why they add aloe gel.  But you can just sanitize with a spritz of rubbing alcohol then moisturize with some lotion to get the same effect.

  134. 134.

    Suzanne

    @Martin: SECONDED. Make the entire thing a showcase for young talent. AOC. Ayanna Pressley (my favorite of the Squad). Beto. Mayor Pete. Let’s fertilize that soil.

  136. 136.

    Martin

    @LuciaMia: Generally no.

    Washing physically removes the virus from your hands. Hand sanitizer works by killing it in place,  but viruses can generally survive contact with alcohol.

    I mean, it’s better than nothing. I’ve been adapting my daily routine around an extra pass by the mens room. Rather than head back to my office from the coffee shop, I hit the men’s room and wash up before returning. I also give the outside of the cup a pass.

    I also wash on the walk to and from the car to my office, and on the way to and from meetings

    [Edit] Apparently alcohol DOES work on coronaviruses. So yes, hand gel with high alcohol content should work. Nonoviruses are alcohol resistant.

  137. 137.

    Gin & Tonic

    @Martin:

    Apparently alcohol DOES work on coronaviruses

    So I’m not lying when I say that evening cocktail is for medicinal purposes. Good to know.

  138. 138.

    Kent

    @taumaturgo:@Kent: “And it is THEY who will control the extent to which donors and Republicans will have any say in the process.”  LMAO

    You obviously have never been close to the legislative process have you?  Committee chairs have phenomenal power.  Very little legislation is ever done in the full House and Senate chambers.  It’s all done in committee.  At least when the Dems are in control.

    During the development of the ACA, Obama and the White House were smart enough to understand this.  They had broad policy ideas they advocated, but they let the process play out and were not stupid enough to put forward a specific legislative proposal that would become a lightening rod.  They took what they could get out of Congress and made it their own.

    The minute Sanders or Biden or anyone sends up a fully drafted piece of legislation it will become a lightning rod and galvanize the opposition who will use it for target practice.  You are just providing a giant bulleye for the GOP to try to take aim at and a scalp for them to nail to the wall.  That is why smart presidents don’t generally do that sort of thing.   They rely on their PARTY in Congress to legislate.

    But somehow Sanders, the man without a party, is going to wave his finger and mobilize the 99% to march on Washington and he will get everything he wants.

  140. 140.

    AxelFoley

    @Lacuna Synecdoche:

    Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez?

    If Biden wins the nomination, it would be a smart play to bring in one of Sanders biggest cheerleaders for the keynote to bring the party together and get the Sandernistas on board.

    Also, she turns 35 in 2024, so, if Biden bows after one term, or, FSM forbid, if Trump wins a second term, then AOC would be eligible to run in 2024.

    Or 2028, if a 2020 Democratic winner gets a second term.

     

    Not only no, but HELL NO.

    She’s a Justice Dem, who spend all their time targeting real Democrats to primary. Democrats like Hakeem Jeffries, who was one of the outstanding leaders during Trump’s impeachment.

    She and her ilk are not unifiers. They seek to take over the Democratic Party. Fuck her and the rest of her crew.

  141. 141.

    MisterForkbeard

    I see one of our new trolls took the day off yesterday to grieve and/or receive instructions from the hivemind and is back here yelling about how Biden is REALLY going to pass republican legislation, or pass something but have it so that it only benefits rich people.

    I’ve seen this in a lot of other places today too: “Biden is basically a Republican!” seems to be the new lie they’re going to push. It’s already giving me a headache.

  142. 142.

    Barb 2

    When Trump is in jail – play those clips over and over and over again.

    (Ha short comment!)

  143. 143.

    trollhattan

    @MisterForkbeard:

    Biden might could be a Republican circa George Romney if you squint really hard, after a couple beers. Good thing Republicans have stayed true to their roots since then.

  144. 144.

    jl

    I find it a nice respite that, with Sanders down and Biden up, we can switch from hearing the Trumpster yell about commie Democrats, to yelling about Burisma. Variety is the spice of life.

    I find it hard to believe that the voting public will fall for such transparent crap from the Trumpsters. But I am not sure. I hope they don’t.

  146. 146.

    LuciaMia

    unclear *why* Gaetz is wearing a gas mask on the floor

    Cause he’s a preening, pompous ass.

  147. 147.

    Roger Moore

    @chopper:

    biden doesn’t have the green lantern ring bernie has, apparently.

    I’m unimpressed by the quality of Bernie’s ring.  If he can’t get voters to turn out for the primary, what’s his case for being more electable? How is he going to bully the Republicans into line?

  149. 149.

    Roger Moore

    @Calouste:

    The orange fartcloud would just have screwed everyone over just because the opportunity was there. If someone else loses, he must win, right?

    The big difference is that Bloomberg is self made and actually rich.  He isn’t afraid to spend money because he believes he’ll always be able to make more.  Trump knows on some level that he inherited everything, and the only way he knows how to make money is by cheating somebody.

  150. 150.

    Immanentize

    @Gin & Tonic: ha!  Maybe they should, Bloomy grew up here.  When we first moved here, 2001, baby in arms, I met his Mom.  She was tough, loving and probably an actual communist.  At least we certainly thought she could have been!  I do not think they were close.

  152. 152.

    Miss Bianca

    @guachi:

    Oh, good! He seems like a good sort, and man, we *need* more Democratic Senators from western states!

    @dmsilev:

    a cheese-retrieving robot.

    Oh, man…how do *I* get one of these?!

  156. 156.

    J R in WV

    @taumaturgo:

    Every time I see your ‘Nym on a comment I bow to cleek and Major^4 and WaterGirl to thank them for the pie filter and it’s evolution into an easy to use tool.

    When I do (rarely) toggle one of your little dessert pictures, my faith in the Pie Filter is reinforced. No manners, no logical thought, really, no thought at all, just bot-like reflexive hateful lies and distortions.

    Won’t un-pie your lame remarks ever again… what a troll ~!!~

  157. 157.

    Ohio Mom

    Martin @136: I hope you know that the door handle in a public bathroom is the most germ-laden part of the facilities. Touching it can negate your hand-washing.

    If the door pushes open, lean against it with your shoulder; if it has a handle you must pull, take a paper towel from the dispenser to wrap around the handle. Not sure what you are supposed to do in other scenarios — take that rest room off your regular route, for starters.

  159. 159.

    J R in WV

    @LuciaMia:

    Hand sanitizer is supposed to work on bacteria, does it eliminate a virus as well?

    According to the WHO, hand sanitizer with more than about 60% alcohol works against this particular virus. Not all viruses, but this one for sure. Hand sanitizer is for when you don’t have access to running clean water to use soap. Like on the road!!

  161. 161.

    Baud

     

    @Ohio Mom:

    : I hope you know that the door handle in a public bathroom is the most germ-laden part of the facilities. Touching it can negate your hand-washing.

    Truth. I once spent two hours stuck in a bathroom until I figured out a trick to get out with clean hands.

  163. 163.

    Slim from MA

    The Pence task force was surprisingly on point during today’s briefing until the toady Doktor Ben Carson stepped up to the podium. I smell a Medal of Honor for the good doktor.

  165. 165.

    debbie

    @Lapassionara:

    There are many possibilities, but I’m going toss in Sherrod Brown. He’s clearly got the WWC sector; he’s well spoken; and he cares passionately about the things we all care about. He’s no firey AOC-type, but he’s an able and convincing speaker.

  166. 166.

    Roger Moore

    @Baud:

    I once spent two hours stuck in a bathroom until I figured out a trick to get out with clean hands.

    I think the trick is to wait until somebody else opens the door.

  167. 167.

    Mr. Kite

    @gwangung: Also too, AOC has been working hard on unity on twitter lately. Like pointing out how she has been working with Warren organizers in events together. She gets coalition building.

  169. 169.

    Mr. Kite

    @debbie: why would you take a popular senator, who would be replaced by a republican, out of the senate to guard a warm bucket of piss?

  171. 171.

    gwangung

    @Mr. Kite: That, too. She’s less combative and more interested in coalition building than Sanders (I think that’s a function of being active in POC community groups).

  172. 172.

    Gravenstone

    @Ohio Mom: If the door is close enough to the sink, open the door, hold it open with your foot as you wash your hands,  leave.

  173. 173.

    Brachiator

    @Ohio Mom:

    I hope you know that the door handle in a public bathroom is the most germ-laden part of the facilities. Touching it can negate your hand-washing.

    But there is this:

    Are door knobs dirty? — The good news about doorknobs and handles — most are made of metal. … So while definitely dirty, doorknobs aren’t the best breeding ground for bacteria.

    Do brass door knobs really disinfect themselves? — It’s called the oligodynamic effect, and it’s the result of metal ions in brass and copper having a toxic effect on molds, spores, viruses, and other living cells. Unvarnished brass doorknobs magically disinfect themselves in about eight hours

    Plastic is probably not as clean. Also, a lot of germs are relatively harmless.

  175. 175.

    Mary G

    So one of my friends has boys. Three of them. Just before this the baby was crying and the biggest one stepped into comfort. I thought there might be a weary heart or two out there that could use a little sugar tonight. You’re welcome. ? pic.twitter.com/z9e1zIMWay— Nelba Márquez-Greene (@Nelba_MG) March 4, 2020

  178. 178.

    John in Park Hill

    Dammit TaMara!  Here, I had lowered my expectations enough to just want someone who doesn’t embarrass me on a daily (sometimes more) basis.

    Then you had to go remind me we actually had someone with class, grace, poise, humor, honesty and intelligence in the White House….and my expectations are suddenly a jumbled teary mess!

    Just….stop!  It hurts.

  181. 181.

    AxelFoley

    @gwangung:

    @AxelFoley: To an increasing number of POC, as well as progressives, she’s the face of the future.

    Maybe better get used to it

     

    Yeah, no. She’s being primaried in her own district. She might not be around for long, so maybe you get used to that.

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