Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

This isn’t Democrats spending madly. This is government catching up.

Republicans got rid of McCarthy. Democrats chose not to save him.

Books are my comfort food!

Republicans in disarray!

Let’s show the world that autocracy can be defeated.

Red lights blinking on democracy’s dashboard

Boeing: repeatedly making the case for high speed rail.

Fuck these fucking interesting times.

Come on, media. you have one job. start doing it.

Somebody needs to explain to DeSantis that nobody needs to do anything to make him look bad.

The poor and middle-class pay taxes, the rich pay accountants, the wealthy pay politicians.

T R E 4 5 O N

Some judge needs to shut this circus down soon.

“Cheese and Kraken paired together for the appetizer trial.”

Not all heroes wear capes.

If West Virginia and San Francisco had a love child.

When we show up, we win.

Everyone is in a bubble, but some bubbles model reality far better than others!

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

A democracy can’t function when people can’t distinguish facts from lies.

If you are in line to indict donald trump, stay in line.

The fundamental promise of conservatism all over the world is a return to an idealized past that never existed.

Happy indictment week to all who celebrate!

Narcissists are always shocked to discover other people have agency.

You are here: Home / Politics / Biden Administration in Action / Let’s Play Favorites

Let’s Play Favorites

by | 131 Comments

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I’m tired of talking about Manchin and Sinema.  Let’s play favorites.

Do you have any favorites in the new administration?  Any favorite moves the administration has made? Senators you particularly admire?  Which members of the cabinet are you particularly excited about?  Which ones give you hope?  Are there any Senators or Representatives who inspire you?

Personally, I love Jen Psaki.  (“Which Americans are saying that?”)  I love the straight-talking Joe Biden (“Putin is a killer, who knows if there will even be a Republican Party in 2024.”)  I have been impressed by Tony Blinken.

I love that Biden is firing the democracy-hating, autocracy-loving Republican assholes who have been stuffed on boards and advisory councils by the guys who pulled Trump’s strings, thinking that they could tie Biden’s hands.

Had anyone surprised you?  Chuck Schumer has been the surprise for me, and while I’d still take Harry Reid if I could, I really like Schumer’s willingness to play hardball.

Another one of the fun images sent to me by Subaru Diane. This guy knows how to enjoy life.

Open thread.

 

Reader Interactions

131Comments

  2. 2.

    SiubhanDuinne

    As a Georgian, I may be a bit biased, but Senator Raphael Warnock is impressing the hell out of me every day.

  4. 4.

    cain

    Big fan of our current smacker of the media  Jen Psaki – good to see what she is doing. However, the questions being asked are just turds. Otherwise it’s kind of early nobody has been saying much.

    Mayor Pete though has been kind of sucking already. Left twitter is not pleased.

  6. 6.

    dmsilev

    Chuck Schumer has definitely been a pleasant surprise. So has Joe Biden; would any of us in the middle of Primary Wars Summer 2019 have predicted that a guy running on a platform of ‘competent leadership, more or less continuing the policies of the Obama era’ would be angling to be the FDR or (domestic policy) LBJ of our time?

  7. 7.

    dr. bloor

    I want to marry Jen Psaki and have her babies.  Yeah, I know, I’m still working out the details.

    You know what I really like?  I can’t pick out a favorite from the feast of competent, well-related folks Biden has assembled.

  9. 9.

    cain

    @beef: Yeah, hopefully we can see some performative stuff in public that we can clap for – otherwise all the hardwork is out of sight.

  10. 10.

    Nicole

    As someone who remembers Schumer beating Al D’Amato back in 1998 (and Ferraro in the primary, despite her being way ahead of him in name recognition), I’m happy to see him getting some appreciation. He’s smart, he works hard, and while people can mock him for his enthusiasm at being in front of a camera, the guy shows up, every time. He’s got just as much of a job herding cats as Pelosi, and he’s savvy enough to let them make their speeches disagreeing with their own party, but when time comes, he knows he has their vote.

  11. 11.

    SFBayAreaGal

    All of them, especially the Democrats legislators that have said they are not going to play with the seditionists Republicans

  12. 12.

    randy khan

    I was willing to give Schumer a chance, and I have to say that I am pretty happy with him so far.  (If nothing else, you have to admire the willingness to pull the same parliamentary trick twice in three days when the Republicans gave him the chance to do it.)  He seems to get that he needs to be careful with the centrist wing of his caucus, and has done a good job, in particular, of bringing Manchin along, which it certainly was possible he could have messed up.

    I’m no longer surprised by Biden, not after the way he ran during the general election campaign.  He’s showing the benefits of having a seasoned old pol in the job, including recognizing the need for a top-notch staff, but without the caution you often see from the old pols.  It’s great.

  14. 14.

    cain

    @Nicole: The funny thing is that a lot of us didnt’ have that good of impression when he held the reigns when Obama was in charge.. but yes I guess that he did manage to pass the ACA. (or was that Harry Reid?)

    With the senates in “no fucks to give” they have been working much closer as a team I think.

  16. 16.

    Nicole

    @cain: It was Harry Reid.  This is Schumer’s first go as Majority Leader.

    I’m so old I remember people criticizing Reid, especially after he became Minority Leader.  What I keep thinking of, is an article I read about Pelosi when the ACA was passed- she was on the phone with Democratic Reps and she was honest with a lot of them, saying that yeah, they would probably lose their seats by voting for the ACA, but that it would be worth it.  Reid was willing to risk losing the Senate for it, too.   I’m a cynical realist about politics, and am always the first to say you don’t owe your elected representatives any loyalty and your political party should not be part of your personal identity, but it’s things like that that make me proud to be a Democrat.

  17. 17.

    Nicole

    @HumboldtBlue: And Schumer did it by getting right down in the gutter with D’Amato!  Schumer is not a wimp; he knows how to fight dirty when the situation calls for it.

  18. 18.

    Ken

    @cain: Mayor Pete though has been kind of sucking already.

    Wait until the next election day in Georgia, when he uses his Secretary of Transportation superpowers to move Georgia six time zones west, and the polls have to stay open until (what was) 11 PM.

  19. 19.

    dmsilev

    Lest we forget what the alternative was…

    Many of you will be upset that I am sharing this new statement from The Former Guy but it’s such an incoherent word salad that you really need to read it for yourselves. pic.twitter.com/gY6cWzLXtB— Andrew Feinberg (@AndrewFeinberg) March 29, 2021

    (The short version, for those smart enough not to click through, is that TFG saw CNN’s story in which Birx and others tried to blame TFG as much as possible for the COVID response fuckups, and, um, he’s not happy. Or coherent.)

  20. 20.

    mvr

    @randy khan: ​
     
    When seasoned (white) old pols get to be president in a five way crisis there is little left for caution to do for them. Unfortunately for us, Obama had lots of reasons for caution and less of a crisis to deal with.

  21. 21.

    hrprogressive

    I am a 1000% fan of Jen Psaki. She’s a certifiable badass, and is not taking any dumb white male “some say” bullshit when she’s at the podium. She is exactly the person needed to be Press Sec at exactly the right time.

    Newly minted Reverend Senator Raphael Warnock is bringing the kind of energy the Party needs. Cori Bush’s righteous anger makes me happy, and we need more people who don’t come from privilege but come from working class America serving Americans. Stacey Plaskett and Joe Neguese deserve to be rising stars after their performances as Impeachment Managers.

    Yes, Joe himself has come and surprised me, because it truly appears that he has taken a lot away from his time as VP BFD with Obama and, though I may not agree with every word spoken or the lack of action on certain items (looking at you, student loan debt), his ability to not play games with a foolish press and also to say “Hey I’d love Republican votes, but if we don’t get ’em, oh well” is good.

    This is not Obama 2.0. This is something different.

    And, because it needs to be repeated often:

    Fuck Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema.

  23. 23.

    Joe Falco

    I too must be biased as a Georgian because I’m enjoying the fight Senator Warnock brings to the voting rights issue. With the possibility he may only have 2 years to do the job, Warnock is making an impression that I hope will last.

  24. 24.

    Mike in NC

    This afternoon I again watched “Trump’s American Carnage” documentary on Frontline. What a deeply fucked up individual. We cannot rest until he is in prison or six feet under.

  25. 25.

    Omnes Omnibus

    Haaland. I don’t care that she hasn’t done anything. I just love the idea that she is running Interior. Back into my bailiwick, I like the foreign policy team and I can’t wait to see what Garland does at Justice.

  27. 27.

    NotMax

    If I never hear Schumer repeat “Failure is not an option” ever again it will be too soon. He’s overworked it more than Gary Coleman’s “Whatchu talkin’ about, Willis?”

  28. 28.

    Mike in NC

    @dmsilev: When the Fat Orange Bastard once lied about how scientists were telling him (with tears in their eyes, no doubt) in awe, “How do you know so much”? I wanted Dr Fauci to call him on his narcissistic bullshit and counter with “Nobody ever said that”.

  30. 30.

    citizen dave

    @dmsilev: Jeebus, stay classy Former Guy.  I read some of the statement.  Love that it starts our calling Brix and Fauci “self-promoters”.  That is rich.

    Also it will always be funny how he has to put out these written statements instead of using the twitter machine.

  31. 31.

    Ruckus

    @dr. bloor:

    You know what I really like?  I can’t pick out a favorite from the feast of competent, well-related folks Biden has assembled.

    This. They all have their strengths and dems for the most part, even most of the older ones have stepped up their game.

    I have to say I’m a bit less than impressed with Pete though.

  33. 33.

    trollhattan

    @NotMax:

    What, no DiFi on that list? :-P

    Otter tell y’all about the otter ambling on the bike trail today. Have ridden that trail for decades and this was a first. Cute li’l otter.

    Psaki didn’t even need to be a redhead but that kind of seals the deal, doesn’t it. She’s THE point person for the administration and could not be a better choice.

    Joe’s done good. Joe’s done well. I have no complaints. Okay, my corner taco truck is conspicuously absent.

  36. 36.

    Patricia Kayden

    I love President Biden. He’s the breakout star of this administration. Wasn’t expecting to love him this much but whenever I see him, I am proud that he’s my President and he’s such a caring human being. He’s a hero for stepping up and running and by doing so, saving this country.

  39. 39.

    The Moar You Know

    I’m going to gloat as the person who was probably the first person here to support Biden. I never considered any other candidate, and he has turned out exactly as I knew he would.

  44. 44.

    Roger Moore

     This guy knows how to enjoy life.

    FWIW, it’s a gal. Birds only use nests as a place to hatch and raise young, not as a permanent home, and only the female hummingbird is involved in that. If you see a hummingbird on a nest, it’s a female. You don’t even need to recognize their markings to know that.

  45. 45.

    Nicole

    @debbie: I still remember-it was either the NY Post or the Daily News- the front page, the day after the election with CHUCK!  CHUCK!  CHUCK!  as the headline.  D’Amato was the last GOP Senator from NY.  I think it’ll be awhile before we have another one. (insert Grumpy Cat GOOD here)

  46. 46.

    Another Scott

    They’re all pretty good.

    Psaki is great.

    Yellen has impressed me, above my already high regard for her.

    Blinken is good.

    Austin is good.

    I’m expecting good things from Garland.

    Biden picked a great team.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  47. 47.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @cain: Left twitter is not pleased.

    If Left Twitter were ever pleased it would be a sign to pack your bags and get out… if you can.

  48. 48.

    trollhattan

    Another day ending in Y. Walking past the house just now–woman pushing stroller, trailed by two toddlers. In the stroller are two potted plants.

  50. 50.

    Brachiator

    Deb Haaland.  I like how she presents herself and what she represents.

    I absolutely agree with this.

    I also like VP Harris and Treasury Secretary Yellen.

  52. 52.

    rikyrah

    Rep?

    Lauren Underwood.

    All day. Everyday.

     

    Senator Warnock

    Don’t sleep on him

    Looking forward to Garland, Gupta and Clarke at DOJ

  55. 55.

    japa21

    @The Moar You Know: Not going to contest who was first, but the day he announced Betty C was lamenting about how we were getting a super conservative Dem and  I told her she should be prepared to be surprised by him. That a lot of people changed when they worked for Obama, always for the better, the exact opposite of what happened to Trump’s hires.  And that Biden was probably the most changed.

  56. 56.

    Chris Johnson

    My new favorite is THIS BLOG.

    ‘cos today I got my Asian spices from The Mala Market, that somebody on here mentioned. Don’t even remember who it was, just that I went to check it out, and I ordered some peppers and hua jiao. And they came, promptly, today.

    And the hua jiao were soooo clean and nice. I took one, just one, and ate it. At first, nothing much happened. then… oooooh holy fuck! Zang! Never tasted such an electric charge, it stuck around for minutes. WHOA.

    Next time I make my stirfry, it’s gonna be amazing. Thank you, Balloon Juice jackals :)

  58. 58.

    piratedan

    Have also to give a shout out to Sen Ossoff, he’s spoken well.  I also believe we should recognize Madame Speaker again, for having these legislative ducks in a row, ready to be addressed.

  59. 59.

    Nicole

    @trollhattan:

    Walking past the house just now–woman pushing stroller, trailed by two toddlers. In the stroller are two potted plants.

    Well, in all fairness, the toddlers can move of their own volition.  It’s right there in the name.

  60. 60.

    feebog

    Rochelle Walensky, the new CDC Director.  Straight shooter, no nonsense Scientist.  She is on TRMS right now.

  61. 61.

    TriassicSands

    Psaki is great. She would be great even if we didn’t contrast her to the lying creeps What’s His Name hired. Right now she has the advantage of frequent exposure, whereas others in the administration haven’t had any real time yet to show us what they’ve got.

    A favorite? I just read an interview with Senator Mazie Hirono. If only West Virginia or Arizona could elect someone like her. She’s really special.

  62. 62.

    Geminid

    @cain:  Pete Buttegieg could never please left twitter. He put himself on their shit list. First he cheated Bernie Sanders out his rightful victory in Iowa. By winning more votes. Then, he joined fellow Corporate Democrat Klobuchar in endorsing Biden before Super Tuesday. Just when Sanders was about to make his move.

    But these people still tweet snake emojis when Senator Warren’s name comes up. They won’t be pleased, and have an axe to grind against the Democratic party. Buttegieg is just a convenient target for them.

  63. 63.

    Quiltingfool

    I can’t pick a favorite.  There are so many good Democrats, and the best thing?  They all have great individual strengths.  They compliment each other.   I’m also glad they have quit acting scared of Republicans (fuck those guys).

    Honestly, I just don’t think I could do the job of our Democratic legislators; I have a feeling I’d get arrested for slapping the shit outta one of those assholes when they said stupid stuff.  My mantra would be, “Lord, give me patience or an untraceable handgun.”  Or, I’d have to take a page out of Senator Klobuchar’s book and start flinging staplers at them…I think Klobuchar wanted to do that to Ted Cruz at a hearing when he was jibber jabbering nonsense.

  64. 64.

    zhena gogolia

    I love Biden, Harris, Psaki, Garland, Blinken, Buttigieg, Haaland, and lots more.

    I love my own senators Murphy and Blumenthal, who can now do something every once in a while.

    I love my rep Rosa DeLauro.

    I love Schiff, Swalwell, lots of other reps.

  65. 65.

    J_A

    Secretary Buttigieg (aka Mayor Pete) for the win. Front and center in delivering the Infrastructure Package.

  71. 71.

    trollhattan

    After a brief period of activity, Willard has placed his spine back into cold storage.

    Sen. Mitt Romney told the Salt Lake Tribune that he will not support attempts to tighten federal gun laws in the wake of recent back-to-back mass shootings, although he’s open to working with his colleagues on improving background check technology.

  72. 72.

    Ken

    @Another Scott: Gov. Northam, Sec. Pete, AMTRAK, CSX, Virginia Railway Express “important announcement” at 11 AM on Tuesday.

    AMTRAK PRISON TRAINS TO TAKE CITIZENS TO FEMA INTERNMENT CAMPS
    — MUST CREDIT SLUDGE —

  73. 73.

    stinger

    @trollhattan: Couldn’t believe my eyes the other day when I got an email from the JFK Library that Romney is this year’s recipient of their Profiles in Courage award.

  76. 76.

    Geminid

    I like all of Bidens personnel picks. Deb Haaland stands out, and I think Biden showed guts when he chose her to be Secretary of the Interior.

    But I have to put in a plug for Dr. Cameron Webb, who is an advisor on the White House Covid response team. Webb came up 5 points short in his 5th VA District congressional race against the loathsome Bob Good, but I’m hoping for a rematch next year. Assuming Virginia’s new redistricting commission leaves them in the same district.

  77. 77.

    Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

    It’s really hard to choose to be honest. Biden has impressed me with how damn progressive he’s been. When he campaigned during the primaries I really didn’t want him to be the nominee. He was far too moderate for me. His calling for the $15 minimum wage and for Amazon employees to unionize, along with his nominations have greatly impressed me. He’s the leader we need in this moment

    It makes one wonder, if he had decided to campaign in 2016 if his other son hadn’t died and he won the nomination if the last 4 years could’ve been avoided

  80. 80.

    artem1s

    @piratedan:

    I also believe we should recognize Madame Speaker again, for having these legislative ducks in a row, ready to be addressed.

    Her actions post Jan 6 were amazing. Keeping everything together while Pence and McConnell flailed around was – I don’t have words.  there have been a lot of times I was glad she was Speaker, but especially during that time.

    Jen Psaki is my younger self’s hero.

    Schumer is having such a good time it’s hard not to love his enthusiasm.

    I hope to see more of Stacy Plaskett and Jamie Raskin working on less unpleasant tasks.

    so many great people and it’s so obvious they love what they are doing.  so refreshing.  This first 100 days seems like it’s lasted a years, but in a much better way than the 100 days before those.

  81. 81.

    burnspbesq

    @cain:

    Mayor Pete though has been kind of sucking already. Left twitter is not pleased.

    The former does not follow from the latter.

  84. 84.

    Formerly disgruntled in Oregon

    I’m especially grateful for one our fantastic Oregon Democrats, Senator Jeff Merkley. He’s been advocating for Filibuster reform from his first day in the Senate, and it’s getting closer and closer to reality!

  86. 86.

    cain

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:

    I think in this case, I can kind of understand – he was talking about taxing people for how much they travel. Which would tax a lot of poor people who depend on cars to get around. That said, the tax rate can change based on income level I think.

    I don’t think the poor needs any new taxes.

  87. 87.

    planetjanet

    @Ken: ​
     I am sure they are just announcing funding for the new Long Bridge. Replace and upgrade a major rail crossing over the Potomac.

  90. 90.

    burnspbesq

    To my severe surprise, it appears that Bernie shows promise as chair of the Senate Budget Committee.

    There are still some important sub-cabinet jobs left to be filled: assistant AGs for the criminal and tax divisions; SG; chair of the SEC, and head of the enforcement division; USAs for SDNY and CDCA; and I’m curious whether Joe is going to keep Chuck Rettig, the commissioner of the IRS.

  91. 91.

    Felanius Kootea

    There are so many choices: Kamala Harris, Jen Psaki, Elizabeth Warren, Raphael Warnock, Katy Porter, and of course, Joe Biden. Can I say how much I have been pleasantly surprised by him? He wasn’t one of my picks for the Dem primary, but I am exceedingly happy that he is president.

  92. 92.

    A woman from anywhere (formerly Mohagan)

    I adore Senators Elizabeth Warren, Maisie Hirono, Rafael Warnock, and Chris Murphy is my hero. Schumer has really impressed me, as has Biden and his entire administration. US Reps Nancy Pelosi, Jamie Raskin, Katy Porter, and a couple more I can’t put my finger on just now.

    I read somewhere that Schumer was talking about first running for senator, and he discovered all he really had to say was “I’m running against D’Amato”.

  93. 93.

    Ken

    @planetjanet: I am sure they are just announcing funding for the new Long Bridge. Replace and upgrade a major rail crossing over the Potomac.

    CORRUPT BIDEN SPENDS YOUR TAX DOLLARS ON HIS PERSONAL RAIL LINE
    WEEKLY PLEASURE TRIPS TO DELAWARE LOVE NEST WITH “DOCTOR JILL”
    — MUST CREDIT SLUDGE —

  95. 95.

    burnspbesq

    OT: the consensus among women’s basketball pundits is that UConn benefited from an egregiously bad no-call in the final seconds of its win over Baylor.

  99. 99.

    jl

    More than I expected. Haaland, Klain, Becerra, Gupta, Yellen, Lander. All should be very good. Young should be good at OMB, better than Tanden in qualifications and policy orientation, IMHO.

  100. 100.

    Martin

    We won’t really know how Pete is doing until the infrastructure bill starts to take shape. That should be roughly 100% of his energy, plus backing any state level plans. Hopefully the announcement tomorrow is speeding up and expanding the plan for bridge replacements and quad-tracking and right of ways for VRE. A lot of that has already been getting done, but IIRC it’s gated behind state revenues so it’s still years off until the states can raise the funds. The feds could simply provide a zero interest loan and get that done now instead.

  101. 101.

    jl

    @Ken:  Biden is a corrupt grafty politician in the pocket of Big Amtrak. Drain the swamp of US passenger rail, I’m tired of it running our lives.

  102. 102.

    dww44

    @Xavier:  Whitehouse is a personal hero because he always is focused on doing the tough and important stuff, all the while never making himself the story’s lead.

  104. 104.

    NotMax

    OT.

    Noticed the listing for the house the Kushner couple were renting in D.C. avoids mention by name of them at all as a selling point, only the vaguely worded “recent tenants.” It does, however, include a direct mention that Obama lives nearby (around the corner, actually).

  107. 107.

    columbusqueen

    @trollhattan: This a thousand times over. I’ve followed Joe for a long time & always dug him, but thought he was too old last year. Never been so glad to be wrong.

  109. 109.

    sdhays

    @burnspbesq: I’ve also been pleasantly surprised by the degree to which Bernie’s acting as a team player. I know I’m guilty of becoming cynical about the degree of importance years of personal relationships mean in today’s polarized Washington, but on the Democratic side I think the combination of the urgency of the moment and Biden’s almost completely unique bond all across the Democratic caucus, from Sanders to Manchin and everyone in between, really does seem to be greasing the skids.

  110. 110.

    frosty

    Deb Haaland at Interior. What an inspired choice! And of course Jen  (No BS accepted!) Psaki.

  111. 111.

    Mary G

    @The Moar You Know: You did indeed tell us so. I hated his hands-on actions, not that I think it was molestation or sexual harassment, but to people like me who even after years of therapy can go into full-blown panic fight or flight reactions when grabbed unexpectedly by the shoulders from behind, it was triggering. Covid has taken care of that. I worried about gaffes. I was wrong. He has done a superb job. I can also watch Kamala swearing in people all day long.

  112. 112.

    coin operated

    Jen Psaki…holding the WHPC accountable.   That said…I have to admit that I’m waiting for Kamala to bring the heat on some foolish Rethuglican.  They don’t do well when a smart women, regardless of race, calls them on their BS.

  113. 113.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @sdhays: like you, I tend to roll my eyes about their personal relationships, but I think it was Lawrence O’Donnell who pointed out earlier tonight that Schumer has named Sanders, Warren and Manchin to a “leadership team” that meets once a week. I do wonder how much contact that three have had over the years, and what sort of effect the face-to-face meetings have.

  114. 114.

    Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

    OT:

    This is awful:

    Trump, Bush Appeals Court Judges Rule in Favor of Professor of ‘Christian Thought’ Who Refused to Call Students by Their Preferred Gender Pronouns

    The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday ruled in favor of a “devout Christian” professor who was disciplined because he “refused to refer to students by their ‘preferred pronouns’” after a 2016 directive at a small state university in Ohio ordered him to do so.  The court held that university officials and a lower federal district court failed to recognize the professor’s First Amendment rights to free speech and to the free exercise of his religion. By so holding, the court decried the notion that a university might “wield alarming power to compel ideological conformity.”

    The professor, Nicholas Meriwether, “strives to live out his faith each day,” the Sixth Circuit’s opinion reads. As such, “his religious convictions influence how he thinks about human nature, marriage, gender, sexuality, morality, politics, and social issues.”  Meriwether believes that “God created human beings as either male or female, that this sex is fixed in each person from the moment of conception, and that it cannot be changed, regardless of an individual’s feelings or desires,” the opinion adds.

    Though the university’s policy was announced in 2016, Meriwether’s troubles started later.  In Jan. 2018, he referred to a student known in the opinion only as “Jane Doe” as “sir.”

    “[N]o one . . . would have assumed that [Doe] was female based on Doe’s outward appearances,” Meriwether said.

    One of the worst parts of this shitty “ruling” is that the opinion is so vague that university faculty could use open racial and sexist slurs and justify it with the First Amendment and “religious freedom”. I also read it would render most anti-discrimination laws unconstitutional ?

  115. 115.

    TS (the original)

    @dmsilev:

    So TFG can’t tweet – but a WH reporter can do it for him.

    It is so nice living in a world where we no longer hear anything about said former guy, that countries outside of the US can go back to concentrating on their own issues and/or problems without wondering if the world will implode because of the US President. (And down under we sure have many of those issues at the minute)

    For the topic, like many others Jen Psake is one of the best in the new admin. Every time she asks “who said that”  brings a smile to my inner self

  116. 116.

    NotMax

    @sdhays

    His day to day experiential ties with Manchin are less substantial, however, as they never served as senators at the same time.

  117. 117.

    hitchhiker

    Agree with everybody praising Joe By God Biden. If there was ever a man prepared to confront this awful, overwhelming moment, it’s him.

    I heard some dudes on a podcast last summer (doesn’t matter who, really — they were DC insider types of the sort eager to display their stupid insider-ish takes), and they were so dismissive of Joe Biden.

    As in, “I mean, come on, Joe Biden’s gonna be the guy who leads us out of this mess?! Ha ha ha ha, tell me another one.” And the way they said his name, like they were talking about Bozo the Clown, was evidence to me that they and everybody who thinks like them believed he was just a dopey old gaffe machine.

    But holy shit, he’s been almost perfect, day after day. Really couldn’t ask for more, and so grateful.

  118. 118.

    HumboldtBlue

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    Yes, I’ve now been corrected on three different media platforms by four different people (if any of youse is actually people) and in my defense I was listening to Jaco Pastorius, keeping an eye on the basketball with my left eye and with my other eye and one ear on making sure my newly-9-year-old-homeslice gets to revel in her birthday (not yesterday’s party in the park but actual birthday) so I was slack in background verification.

    @NotMax:

    I see you.

  119. 119.

    Ken

    @sdhays: That was Hillary’s special promise to us all, and when TFG became Preznit, that dream died.

    I think “taco trucks” was a warning from a Republican, who seemed to think having tens of thousands of small business owners would be a bad thing.  Sort of like the Republican who warned us that Joe Biden was like Mr. Rogers, except this time the dream came true.

  120. 120.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @HumboldtBlue:

    Didn’t mean to pile on — sorry about that! (As usual, I commented without first scrolling down, and by the time I saw that others had got there first, the edit window had closed.)

  121. 121.

    sfinny

    So happy with many of the appointments and new and re-elected people.  Warnock is impressive as well as Porter.  Mostly I am just happy that I can re-focus on the good or bad legislation coming up and fight accordingly.  Not waking up to see what TFG did or said.

    On a personal note, the very vocally pro-Trump neighbor has been very nice and very quiet about politics when we run into each other at the pool.  Prior to the election she would talk loudly about whatever the “crush the libs” issue of the day was on Fox News.

  124. 124.

    jame

    Senators Warren and Sanders are amazing. I’m so glad, too, that Joe Biden has surpassed my early expectations.

  125. 125.

    Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    I thought I made it clear. The three judge panel essentially made bad precedent about the First Amendment and trans rights, potentially opening the door for federal anti-discrimination laws to be declared unconstitutional. Any university professor now can claim “first amendment” protections when being a bigot, and it’s not limited to just trans people either.

    This is based on the fears of the lawyers for Jane Doe as well as other legal experts weighing in. They can certainly appeal. They said they’re reviewing their options. This seems like very bad precedent to me.

    Am I wrong?

  126. 126.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): Yes, you are.  The appeal was from a motion to dismiss filed by the defense which was granted.  The appeals court merely reversed the decision on that motion.  This simply means that the case can go forward.  In considering a motion to dismiss, a court must accept all of the factual allegations made by the plaintiff as true and resolve any inferences in the plaintiff’s favor.  And then, if there is no way even if every fact goes the plaintiff’s way, that the plaintiff could win, the court can grant a motion to dismiss.  It’s a really tough standard to meet.  All the court really said was that if you assume everything that Meriwether said was 100% true and and you squint at it funny, there is a possibility that he has a valid case.  Therefore, he gets his day in court.  That’s it; don’t read more into than that.

  127. 127.

    David ? ☘The Establishment☘? Koch

    @sdhays: 

    For all those whose “a taco truck on every corner” have been their concern, the work goes on, the cause endures, the hope still lives, and the dream shall never die.

  128. 128.

    Mike Field

    @The Moar You Know:

    I prefer Biden to Obama. Sorry. Hope no one’s head blows up. I wept when Obama was elected and didn’t shed a tear when Joe prevailed. But I have come to conclude that while rock stars are sexy and wonderful but they ultimately can’t help believing (at least some) of their own press. The older I get, the more I value humility above all.

  131. 131.

    Inspectrix

    I’m really questioning my ability to judge candidates. It wasn’t until I heard Brene Brown’s pre-election podcast with her Joe Biden interview that I felt optimistic about him as a potential president. Before that I felt like we all had settled on a non-progressive. She really assessed him as a collaborative leader who is willing to share power rather than dominate others. He’s clearly unafraid to bring on a crew of really talented experts to govern with him. I want her to help us assess others who aspire to public service. Leadership style matters a lot.

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