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You are here: Home / Elections / Biden For President / Open Thread: A Real, Compassionate Leader

Open Thread: A Real, Compassionate Leader

by | 97 Comments

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I’m going to make it my mission over the next few months to remind us what real leadership looks like.

 

Also: If anyone sees a good campaign ad, especially from the Senate candidates in possible flip states, send them to me and I’ll highlight them.

Open thread

Reader Interactions

97Comments

  2. 2.

    burnspbesq

    You can buy Lindsey Graham flip-flops on the Harrison campaign’s website. How good is that?

  4. 4.

    debbie

    I know David Brooks and E J Dionne are disparaged, but they both were on NPR this afternoon in a feature titled, “How Presidents Lead In Times Of National Mourning.” Without naming the current asshole (other than pointing to his lack of empathy) and by citing and quoting previous presidents as they rose to their various national tragedies, there couldn’t be a better description of the lack of leadership (and so much else) of the slob currently in the White House. Plus the bonus of a bit of Auden at the end.

  6. 6.

    Baud

    I’m going to make it my mission over the next few months to remind us what real leadership looks like

    That’s excellent, TaMara.

  7. 7.

    HumboldtBlue

    @debbie:

    OK, but it’s easy to point out Trump’s an asshole now, it’s so easy even a fool like Brooks can do it.

    But where the hell were they in 2015 and 2016? I’m not giving any rightwinger even a hint of the benefit of the doubt when it comes to our current national crisis, they enabled this, they allowed this to happen, they wanted this to happen and now that it’s a dumpster fire they do what rightwing asshole always do, they make simpering noises and wait for the adults (Democrats) to come back and fix so that they can then righteously criticize the manner in which the cleaning up was done.

    Fuck all of them, they aren’t honest brokers in any form or fashion.

  9. 9.

    debbie

    @HumboldtBlue:

    My point wasn’t about them. It was about the subject of the piece. Like them or not, their historical perspectives are nothing to sneeze (carefully) at.

  10. 10.

    HumboldtBlue

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    I was set off by seeing Brooks’ name, not E.J., but even then, they’re both part of the same media tribe and I saw earlier with the paeans being paid to Romney for speaking up about the Scarborough affair giving these assholes any form of legitimacy after seeing what the past 3.5 years has wrought just ain’t gonna happen.

  13. 13.

    JMG

    I’m with TaMara. Look ahead until Nov. 3. Then the next morning, if Biden wins, start looking back with a vengeance.

  17. 17.

    Martin

    Trump is supposed to sign an executive order tomorrow related to social media. He’s gonna ban Twitter or some shit. Let’s see if anyone can talk him out of it.

  20. 20.

    Kattails

    Yup, need to stick with TaMara on this.  Virtually all my friends are solid, but I can work on my mother and her husband, nice people but very old and Trump supporters.  I’m going to give them the drip feed.  Just about to subscribe to the local newspaper plus a few others, not TFNYT, so I can feel fine about sending off letters to the editor.

    Open thread? My sis and her BF just brought over her old-ish but good John Deere yard tractor w/ the 38″ mowing platform and plow. It’s almost too big for my place but I’ll figure it out, hope to get a snowblower attachment since I have to do 400′ of driveway with an old walk-behind. She just moved in with him and his is, ahem, bigger… ;-) Should last freaking forever. Happy dance.

  21. 21.

    Mary G

    Texas Supreme Court announces* that lack of immunity to COVID-19 does not entitle a voter to an absentee ballot.*Decision announced via remote proceedings because of lack of immunity to COVID-19.— (((Noah M. Horwitz))) (@NoahMHorwitz) May 27, 2020

  25. 25.

    dmsilev

    The local health department send out guidelines for improving workplace safety as we reopen. A few pages in, I get to

    shut off or remove shared coffee machines

    Noooooooooooooooo!

    I’m staying home.

  26. 26.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    Kellen Squire @SquireForYou 15h
    According to the CDC, so far this year, Florida has had 1,762 deaths from #COVID and 5,185 from pneumonia.
    Average pneumonia deaths in Florida from 2013-2018 for the same time period are 918.
    Probably just a coincidence, yeah?

  28. 28.

    Mike in NC

    100K Americans dead from the Trump Virus in three months and my hunch is that the media will let him tap dance his fucking way around that grim statistic. Wait for the first pundit to tell us to “look forward, not back”.

  31. 31.

    Ken

    @Martin: He’s gonna ban Twitter or some shit.

    They should give him his wish and block further posts from his account.

  32. 32.

    Duane

    @japa21: Old enough to remember Trumpov saying 60-70k total deaths. Of course it was a lie, but fuck him with a rusty Covid-19 swab.

  33. 33.

    burnspbesq

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:

    Surely you don’t mean to suggest that a fine upstanding god-fearing white Christian man like Ron DeSantis would be SECRETLY ORDERING HIS UNDERLINGS TO SYSTEMATICALLY FUCK WITH THE DATA.

    Why, the very idea …

  35. 35.

    rikyrah

    The everloving PHUCK ??

    RESIGN: Today we learned that House Speaker @MikeTurzai has known that Republican Members have either tested positive, or been quarantined, and withheld this information from Democrats including those of us who serve on the committees with those members!— Brian Sims (@BrianSimsPA) May 27, 2020

  36. 36.

    rikyrah

    @rikyrah:

     

    These same Members were among those leading the daily shouts to reopen the state. They yelled and screamed about it being safe for others across the state to gather, while they were testing positive and notifying each other, but none of the Democrats that work with them!— Brian Sims (@BrianSimsPA) May 27, 2020

  38. 38.

    trollhattan

    @David ? ☘The Establishment☘? Koch:

    Oh, yes, that’s good. And chilling, appropriately so.

    Bloomberg earned kudos from me for the ads he ran before our primary (ah, remember those innocent times) and is going to go after Trump before the election. Very interested to see what he’ll do, for sure he’ll vacuum up lots of airtime (probably already in contract).

  42. 42.

    Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

    @Mary G:

    Texas Supreme Court announces* that lack of immunity to COVID-19 does not entitle a voter to an absentee ballot.*

    Shouldn’t that be, “doesn’t entitle a voter to an absentee ballot application?

    It’s bullshit regardless.

  44. 44.

    JMG

    @rikyrah: The honorable Rep. Sims should bring a tire iron into the chamber and give the Speaker a full Mike Trout swing to the kneecap.

  45. 45.

    Mary G

    BREAKING: Democrat John Hickenlooper is leading GOP Sen. Cory Gardner by 18 points in the Colorado senate race in new poll.— PoliticsVideoChannel (@politvidchannel) May 27, 2020

  46. 46.

    Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

    Don’t know if this was talked about here last week, but there won’t be a lockdown in Ohio again thanks some asshole judge in Lake County:

    In response to a lawsuit file by the 1851 Center for Constitutional Law on behalf of 35 gyms, Lake County Court of Common Pleas Judge Eugene Lucci enjoined Acton from enforcing punitive actions against the plaintifs and similar businesses, providing “they operate in compliance with all applicable safety regulations.” Lucci ruled that Action “has no statutory authority to close all businesses, including the plaintiffs’ gyms, which she deems non-essential for a period of two months. She has acted in an impermissibly arbitrary, unreasonable, and oppressive manner and without any procedural safeguards.”

    Lucci has run in Republican primaries previously, according to Ballotpedia. It seems like this prick’s ruling ensures the state will be helpless if/when a second wave hits, possibly in the fall/winter

  47. 47.

    burnspbesq

    @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):

    if you’re under 65 and not going to be absent from the state, Texas law says you can only vote absentee if you’re “disabled.” The statutory definition of “disability” is so poorly drafted that Paxton will probably get away with this bullshit.

  48. 48.

    different-church-lady

    OK… first of all… DCL +3.

    Next…

    I am not one who puts a lot of stock in the conventional understandings of sympathy. Or even, for that mater, empathy.

    But goddammit… the idea that we could have a president who even BEGINS to comprehend the value of those things… I mean… for fuck’s sake, a president who understands the value of ordinary human emotions seems extraodinary. Just someone who isn’t a monster.

    It feels like we are about to make a decision about what the human race itself is.

  49. 49.

    Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

    @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):

    Sorry, “bullshit” in that anybody should get be entitled to vote absentee if they wish because of this pandemic. It’s blatant hypocrisy and the members in the majority opinion on the Texas Supreme Court should be forced to answer for it. How can they justify this when they themselves are holding remote hearings?

  53. 53.

    FelonyGovt

    @different-church-lady: I agree. Biden presents a STRONG contrast with the Malignant Moron. One of the important jobs of the President is being the “consoler in chief” when times warrant it. Even setting aside Trump’s shocking mismanagement of the crisis, he can’t even pretend to care about the human toll.

  55. 55.

    burnspbesq

    @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):

    Your beef is not with the court, it’s with the Legislature.

    Or are you cool with disregarding statutes when they don’t say what you wish they said?

    That’s a very Trumpian attitude.

  58. 58.

    West of the Rockies

    As a longtime NPR listener (I also worked for an affiliate in the mid 80s), the fact that Brooks is clearly stymied and embarrassed by Trump is a sign that he (Trump) is eroding the crumbling edges of his base.

    Oh, he’ll still get 50 million votes (thanks, white male assholes and assorted self-loathing people), but HE WILL LOSE.  GOTV!

  59. 59.

    Barbara

    @rikyrah: I used to drive home from school with Mike Turzai. We weren’t really friends so I have no idea what happened to him, but there has been something missing from his soul for a long time now.

  63. 63.

    rikyrah

    "Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR) and Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) today unveiled the SECURE CAMPUS Act, legislation that would prohibit Chinese nationals from receiving visas to the United States for graduate or post-graduate studies in STEM fields." https://t.co/TeKVnSdqa2— Chemjobber (@Chemjobber) May 27, 2020

  64. 64.

    different-church-lady

    @West of the Rockies: I’m not greedy: an erosion of 13 million or so votes is something I’ll happily take and then move on to fight the next battle down the line.

  65. 65.

    raven

    We finished Mrs America and it was really good, especially when Reagan fucked her over at the end!

  67. 67.

    rikyrah

    Texas Supreme Court announces* that lack of immunity to COVID-19 does not entitle a voter to an absentee ballot.*Decision announced via remote proceedings because of lack of immunity to COVID-19.— (((Noah M. Horwitz))) (@NoahMHorwitz) May 27, 2020

  70. 70.

    cckids

    @different-church-lady:the idea that we could have a president who even BEGINS to comprehend the value of those things… I mean… for fuck’s sake, a president who understands the value of ordinary human emotions seems extraodinary. Just someone who isn’t a monster.

    I so agree.  Trump can just never be kind, empathetic, or – Jesus, even appropriate.

    Never. I’m so tired of him.

  73. 73.

    Shalimar

    I just made the mistake of reading stock market news and broke my brain.

    “Dow Jones Futures rise as Boeing 737 Max production resumes”

    What the fuck?  It’s very clearly dangerous to get on a plane for the next year or so.  Who gives a damn whether they’re making more planes?

  74. 74.

    Redshift

    @West of the Rockies:

    HE WILL LOSE.  GOTV! 

    I’m feeling pretty optimistic, but one thing really worries me. We got a report that the number of new voter registrations this year is way way below what is normal for a presidential year, below even off years where there are no federal or statewide elections. Some of that, obviously, is that we can’t do voter registration drives, but most of likely that the DMVs have been closed, so no motor-voter registrations.

    A wake-up call for what to focus on.

  75. 75.

    Duane

    @cckids: The happiest day of my life will be when Joe Biden is elected president.  That may seem odd but I sincerely mean it.

  77. 77.

    Yutsano

    @Shalimar:  The people who work that line, for one. The airlines who didn’t cancel their orders who need new aircraft. And air travel is going back up although airlines are taking a bath right now.

  78. 78.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @rikyrah: The ghost of Senator Fullbright and the grand muckety-mucks of Vanderbilt U must be so thrilled

  81. 81.

    Jeffro

    @Duane: Not odd at all.  I mean, I’d probably still put it at sixth place, but other than the usual major life events, it’s way, way up there.

    Him in handcuffs would be fifth place (sorry, my youngest child…your birth was special, but...;)

  83. 83.

    rikyrah

    ???BIG NEWS: Wisconsin voters will be mailed absentee ballot requests for the Fall election. Approved tonight on a bipartisan basis, and fully funded by a Congressional elections assistance grant. Very important progress!— Steven Olikara (@StevenOlikara) May 27, 2020

  84. 84.

    Viva BrisVegas

    @rikyrah: 

    I’m probably reading this wrong, but didn’t the court say that while fear of covid-19 is not a qualifying disability for getting issued an absentee ballot, it is up to the voter to determine whether or not they qualify for an absentee ballot on health grounds and that the state cannot question that determination?

    If so, that would seem to be a de facto win for absentee voting.

  85. 85.

    Martin

    @rikyrah: Good way to wipe out about 50% of the STEM graduate students in the US. Expect an epic amount of pushback on this idea.

  89. 89.

    cain

    @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):

    This is what makes me feel so helpless. I hope this judge gets some fall out from that decision – it’s the only way they’ll learn – it seems if the innocent must die then let it be those who will weigh most on the guilty.

  92. 92.

    Bill Arnold

    @rikyrah: 

    “Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR) and Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) today unveiled the SECURE CAMPUS Act, legislation that would prohibit Chinese nationals from receiving visas to the United States for graduate or post-graduate studies in STEM fields.”

    Neither of them have any significant STEM education[1], and can be safely presumed to be ignorant about such matters, so they can fuck themselves (recursively, forever, yada yada.). This goes nowhere with a Democratic House. (I’ve worked with Chinese PhD students and postdocs, and enjoyed working with them, and to repeat, asshole Tom Cotton should fuck himself.)

    [1] Tom Cotton[2], BA in Government, JD Harvard Law, Marsha Blackburn BS in Home Economics.
    [2] needs an update, but this will do: The Long And Dickish History Of Tom Cotton (R-Dick) (Gary Legum, March 11, 2015)
    “We just noticed you can’t spell Cotton without Otto. New nickname achieved! “ … “You see, ladies, men are like the wild mustangs of the West, roaming free across the desert, fighting with each other, conquering fillies, neighing up at the stars. You are all failures for not relieving them of the responsibility to behave like civilized human beings.”

  93. 93.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Bill Arnold:

    Marsha Blackburn BS in Home Economics

    that’s one of those things that, if you made it up, somebody would say, “Come on, that’s taking a joke too far”

  94. 94.

    hitchhiker

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:

    Marsha Blackburn is one of the stupidest people in the USA. Not just in congress. In the whole country.

    The idea that she gets any say in anything that happens outside the space of her living room is completely bonkers and wrong.

  95. 95.

    Uncle Jeffy

    @Bill Arnold: Here’s a thought: given that Trump/McConnell have been so uninterested in trying to counteract foreign interference in our elections (presumably because they thing only Russians can do that and they will do to help Rethuglikkkan candidates), it would be the ultimate irony if Chinese hackers won the election for Democrats. Just sayin’

  96. 96.

    Uncle Cosmo

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: IIRC when I was a grad student at Cornell in the early 1970s the school had just changed (or was in the process of changing) the name of their Home Economics department** to “Human Ecology.” So instead of “Home Ec” everyone said “Hume Ec.” I guess it made all those Hume Eckies less reluctant to confess their major in polite company.

    ** Surprised at a Home Ec department in an Ivy League school? You shouldn’t be. The motto of the University is a quote from founder Ezra Cornell: “I would found an institution where any person can find instruction in any study.” Including an Ag School – which is why Cornell has often been referred to as “the cow college of the Ivies.”

    Far above Cayuga’s waters, there’s an awful smell.
    Some say it’s Cayuga’s waters – we know it’s Cornell.

    :^p

  97. 97.

    Miss Bianca

    @Mary G: Yeah, that’s great and all (dead thread), but everyone seems to forget that Hickenlooper HASN’T EVEN WON THE PRIMARY YET, so I’m sort of wondering where the data is on how many points Andrew Romanoff would be beating Cory Gardner by.

    Don’t get me wrong, I think it’s lovely news, and I’m planning on voting for Hick in the primary, but I’m wondering where the hell all these polls are actually coming from.

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