Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Their boy Ron is an empty plastic cup that will never know pudding.

This blog will pay for itself.

When they say they’re pro-life, they don’t mean yours.

This year has been the longest three days of putin’s life.

Peak wingnut was a lie.

Republicans: The threats are dire, but my tickets are non-refundable!

Hi god, it’s us. Thanks a heap, you’re having a great week and it’s only Thursday!

I am pretty sure Katy Tur wasn’t always such a bootlicking sycophant.

Relentless negativity is not a sign that you are more realistic.

Black Jesus loves a paper trail.

Something needs to be done about our bogus SCOTUS.

Let the trolls come, and then ignore them. that’s the worst thing you can do to a troll.

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

The current Supreme Court is a rogue court. Very dangerous.

Fear or fury? The choice is ours.

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


 riddled with inexplicable and elementary errors of law and fact

Tick tock motherfuckers!

“Let’s not pretend [Trump] wants to engage in high-minded discourse.”

Nikki Haley, who can’t acknowledge ‘slavery’, is a pathetic shill.

New McCarthy, same old McCarthyism.

Don’t expect peaches from an apple tree.

Battle won, war still ongoing.

Sitting here in limbo waiting for the dice to roll

You are here: Home / Pet Blogging / Cat Blogging / Thursday Morning Open Thread: Political Death Panel

Thursday Morning Open Thread: Political Death Panel

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Be the killer you want to see in the world.

Speaking of which: Probable topic of the day…



Politico, “‘Clear and present danger’: Jan. 6 committee to describe lingering Trump threat”:

… “Tune in for our discussion of Trump’s clear and present danger presented to democracy and freedom in America by a movement that he’s galvanized,” panel member Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) said this week at a virtual People for the American Way event.

The panel intends to focus on evidence that Trump has “consistently and increasingly” been using rhetoric “that we knew caused violence on Jan. 6,” Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) told reporters recently. Cheney cited recent comments by U.S. District Court Judge Amy Berman Jackson in which she upbraided elected Republicans for continuing to indulge “one man, who knows full well that he lost, instead of the Constitution he was trying to subvert.”

The select committee’s closing pitch to Americans will draw on all aspects of its more than yearlong probe. It’s expected to feature evidence that Trump’s allies were pushing him to declare victory on Election Day 2020 even before the votes were counted, and that Trump was warned of the unfolding violence at the Capitol before he tweeted an inflammatory attack on then Vice President Mike Pence.

By contending that even amid the wreckage of Jan. 6, Trump continued to plot ways to remain in power, the hearing will also function as a segue of sorts to the criminal case that federal prosecutors are piecing together — bolstered by the recent issuance of dozens of grand jury subpoenas and court-authorized searches of some of Trump’s top allies…

The hearing had been scheduled to take place originally on Sept. 28, but the select committee postponed it as Hurricane Ian bore down on Florida; the delay may turn out to be a boon for the panel. In the intervening two weeks, the committee obtained testimony from Virginia Thomas, wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. And last week, Jeremy Bertino, a North Carolina leader of the Proud Boys who also interviewed with the select panel, pleaded guilty to seditious conspiracy.

Thursday’s hearing is likely to feature some of the select panel’s evidence obtained after its summer hearings, like interviews with Trump Cabinet members about internal discussions concerning the potential invocation of the 25th Amendment to remove him from power. It’s also set to include documentary footage of longtime Trump ally Roger Stone, who was followed around by a camera crew in the weeks leading up to Jan. 6.

The Stone footage, provided by a Danish film crew and obtained by CNN, includes audio of Stone — one day before Election Day — telling an associate, “Fuck the voting, let’s get right to the violence,” while laughing.

Select panel Chair Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) has also described a significant trove of documents and messages recently turned over by the Secret Service. Investigators have viewed the agency with skepticism after learning that thousands of messages sent among senior officials — including on and around Jan. 6, 2021 — were erased in what the agency described as a tech upgrade…

Reader Interactions

187Comments

  9. 9.

    Another Scott

    AP says:

    managed to collect a staggering trove of material

    WTF??

    Maybe throw in a few “try” and “hapless” and “disarray” and “contentious” and …

    Grr…

    The Congress has investigative power – there’s no somehow “managed” about it.
    Documents are produced in any investigation. People at home have a “staggering trove of material” if they count the bytes of movie and music collections…

    Why not just cut to the chase and say – “Some say it’s an over-reaching witch-hunt by Democrats – maybe! Can’t be sure!!”

    What a load of crap.

    Grr…,
    Scott.

  10. 10.

    Betty Cracker

    @lowtechcyclist: Ornato — the chickenshit who had anonymous people contradict Hutchinson’s 1/6 testimony* in the media and falsely claim he was prepared to testify to that under oath. He resigned a couple of months ago, IIRC.

    *Hutchinson said Ornato and the limo driver told her Trump had attempted to grab the steering wheel because he wanted to join the mob on Capitol Hill. 

  16. 16.

    gene108

    @Betty Cracker:

    He resigned to avoid testifying under oath. As a government employee, he would be forced to testify before a Congressional investigation.

    He quit the day before his scheduled appearance to testify. The J6 Committee extended considerations to him, because he’d scheduled a vacation, and other excuses he made to delay testifying.

  18. 18.

    Betty Cracker

    @Baud: When he resigned, Ornato claimed he’d long planned to exit the agency at that time for a private sector gig. Maybe, but I’d like to think the admin took on the monumental task of getting rid of the Trump flunkies.

  19. 19.

    Kay

    @gene108:

    Really, really tired of paying law enforcement people who are far Right political operatives.

    No wonder we can’t seem to solve any crimes, although law enforcement budgets grow every year, without fail. 

  20. 20.

    Josie

    Also, the director of the Secret Service recently retired and Biden appointed a new one, Kim Cheadle.

  21. 21.

    Kay

    They need 2000 more employees and 22 million more dollars so they can more effectively lie to Congress and dodge subpeonas.

    “We are highly committed to our human capital strategic plan, which gets the agency to somewhere around 9,595 [employees] by fiscal year 2026,” so funding will be critical for that, Murray told the subcommittee. The agency––which had 7,609 employees as of December 2020, according federal data––is currently working to achieve its fiscal 2021 year goal of about 7,900 positions filled.

  22. 22.

    J R in WV

    If the recently retired top dog at the Secret Service was connected in any way to the suppression of evidence within the agency, he should be indicted for conspiracy to obstruct, and when convicted should lose his pension and benefits as well as receive a lengthy prison sentence.

    Then later on he could publish a book on how to live comfortably under a bridge near DC.

  23. 23.

    MisterDancer

    @Josie: Biden appointed a new one, Kim Cheadle.

    Maybe she can talk to Don Cheadle, borrow that War Machine suit to help clean up the Secret Service.

  24. 24.

    Betty Cracker

    @Kay: Far right politicians complain about the lack of “intellectual diversity” in education all the time — and make policy and spend public money to counter it. But we’re supposed to just accept that law enforcement at all levels is riddled with wingnuts because that’s just the natural order, I guess. Has there ever in the history of the agency been an FBI director who wasn’t a Republican? I can’t recall one.

  26. 26.

    MisterDancer

    @J R in WV: he should be indicted for conspiracy to obstruct

    I agree. The issue I suspect we’re having, is that the DoJ is:

    • WAY PAST OVERWHELMED in terms of people with the skills to prosecute these many acts of malfeasance — much less make the connections to get to the real planners/organizers, and
    • still unsteady as to whom can be trusted to actually prosecute these crimes properly, and aren’t themselves sympathetic to these asshats.

    I mean, we all recall the stories about the NY FBI Field Office, and it’s hostility to Clinton, right?

    And we can suspect that Federal Law Enforcement likely has similar issues around White supremacist infiltration/recruitment, that we’ve seen with State/Local LEOs, much less in our Military?

    So yeah, I, too, would like to see Justice Done. But we have some real hurdles, logistical and otherwise, to getting these people behind bars.

  27. 27.

    Kay

    The Washington Post basically had a special “Secret Service fuck up” beat during Obama. Over and over and over again they put either Obama himself or his family (including his children, twice) at risk because they were sloppy and lazy and I think ideologically captured. 

    This has been going on a long time. It should stop. It’s nonsense. They’re paid well and they’re supposed to be professionals. Find better hires.

    November 2011: A man with a semiautomatic rifle parks in front of the White House and fires at the building, with Sasha Obama inside and Malia Obama on her way home. A Secret Service supervisor, mistaking the shots for car backfire, orders officers to stand down. The service does not figure out that shots hit the building for four days, and only then because a housekeeper noticed broken glass. The president and first lady are infuriated, The Post reports years later.
    Sept. 16, 2014: In perhaps the most chilling of the Secret Service lapses, a security contractor with a gun and an assault record gets on an elevator with the president during a trip to Atlanta. The Post, citing people familiar with the incident, reports that the contractor used his cellphone to take video of Obama and did not stop when Secret Service agents told him to. The Secret Service only learns that the man has a gun when he is fired on the spot and turns it over. Obama was not told, The Post reports.

    There were more, including one where they disabled an alarm because it was bothering them, distracting them from scrolling on their phones or something.

  28. 28.

    NotMax

    @Kay

    Drop in the bucket budgetwise trivia:

    Grace Kelly, when a child, attended the girls summer camp across the lake from the one I worked at. After she married Rainier and had kids she sent both her daughters to that same camp every summer.

    It was a wide open secret locally that a Secret Service person was also assigned each summer to basically sit in a room at the nearest motel, which was a handful of miles away – an early 1950s establishment of maybe 8 rooms total (think Bates Motel) – and be on-call 24/7. Of course these were the days before cell phones so the agent couldn’t stray far. Isolated area in the boonies so on the best of days then a TV could pull in but a single channel not totally washed out by snow.

  29. 29.

    lowtechcyclist

    @Betty Cracker:  I’d heard he’d departed, but I didn’t think he was enough of a big shot to control whether the Secret Service cooperated with the committee or the DOJ.  Wikipedia says he was assistant director in the office of training between his stint as a Trump politico and his resignation.

  30. 30.

    lowtechcyclist

    @Josie:

    Also, the director of the Secret Service recently retired and Biden appointed a new one, Kim Cheadle.

    OK, that makes more sense.

  31. 31.

    Kay

    @Betty Cracker:

    I have a friend (I’m friends with his sister) who quit policing because it was too wingnutty. Not the language he used- he’s not political- but he felt like a really aggressive violent culture was strictly enforced. He has a huge family and a lot of sisters! He’s a good talker, not a shoot first ask later! He knows how to use his words as a kindergarten teacher might say.

    Funniest part of the convo- “I’m a car guy not a gun guy- do I have to be a gun guy?” No. You do not.

  32. 32.

    Betty Cracker

    @Kay: I didn’t know about the second incident. JFC. I hope Cheadle was given the task of burning the agency down and starting over.

  35. 35.

    Kay

    @NotMax:

    An intruder got into the Obama White House and was at the stairs to the residence part.

    I cannot imagine a bigger failure, other than one of the Obamas actually getting hurt. Michelle Obama always seemed worried to distraction over the safety of their kids and I do not blame her. They were surrounded by keystone cops.

  36. 36.

    brendancalling

    @zhena gogolia: Our interim reports are coming out Friday, and I have a whole bunch of kids who are so deep in the hole, they will never get out. I’m giving them a make-up day today—my kid is visiting til Sunday, so I’m taking Friday off for some quality time with him—but they are screwed, I’m almost sad to say.

    “Almost sad” because they have, in general, chosen not to do the work.

    Good luck to you and grading!

  37. 37.

    Baud

    @Kay: Don’t forget the infamous party crashers. The media had a field day with that one, and apparently it was Obama’s fault somehow.

  38. 38.

    Spanky

    Meanwhile, of interest to a large fraction of jackals:

    The Social Security Administration announced on Thursday an 8.7 percent increase in benefit checks for seniors starting next year, a response to the fastest inflation America has seen in four decades.

    The change will affect about 70.3 million Social Security beneficiaries, including roughly 8 million Supplemental Security Income recipients. The adjustment will increase monthly Social Security checks by about $145 per month on average, according to the AARP, which represents seniors.

  39. 39.

    Burnspbesq

    @SFAW:

    Either that, or have him bring in Mouse. Less flashy, but probably just as effective.

    Walter Mosley has created some unforgettable killers, hasn’t he?

    Howdja like to see Mouse and Hush working together?

  40. 40.

    Tony Jay

    “I feel like I’m shouting into an oncoming storm here, but sometimes that’s what freedom means. Let me be clear, I can’t be the only person that finds it highly goddam convenient, suspicious really, that after two years of this tawdry witch hunt, after sending their stormtroopers to do breaking and entering on President Trump’s private estate, after stealing his declassified memorandums and personal effects, after all that, after they did all that and the Courts pushed them back, it wasn’t until Joe Biden’s operatives staged a coup at the Secret Service that they suddenly ‘discover’ a lot of, what is it, a million documents? Five million? What the hell, while they’re making things up up let’s say a billion. A billion documents. And they’ll say they say whatever they need them to say, because this witch hunt has failed to find any evidence implicating President Trump or his staff in anything untoward and they are terrified, top to bottom terrified, of the verdict that the American people are due to deliver unto them this coming November. Maybe you ought to go back to your Liberal enclaves on the coast and report on that. The American people don’t like to be taken for fools. This November they’ll remind you of that, loud and clear.”

      “Okay, great. That’s the public statement, sir. What are we going to say to Congressional leadership?”

      “Whaddya think? That someone better 5th story that dumb orange prick before he fucks us all.”

     

    Extract from Access/ory To History – A no-holds-barred memoir from the fiery heart of American political reporting, by Haggie Maberman

  41. 41.

    peter

    @Kay: I worked with a guy whose cousin was in the Secret Service. When Obama was elected, the cousin told my co-worker “No way I take a bullet for that n—–“

  43. 43.

    Ken

    @peter: No problem, the Secret Service has many other duties. Perhaps he could be investigating counterfeiting activity in the Aleutian Islands…

  45. 45.

    Almost Retired

    Sort of off topic, but I’m in Arizona for a couple days (Flagstaff) and local television is, not surprisingly, saturated with political ads. Because this is a small market, a lot of them were very local races.Senator Mark Kelly is running what’s probably an effective ad for Arizona – distancing himself from the national party and emphasizing his ‘moderation’: “I stood up to those who said ‘defund the police’ and those who disrespected the Capitol police” or something like that. There’s a comically-bad, Demon-Sheep level negative ad running against Kelly, with ominous funeral parlor organ music over a slow-motion baritone narrative warning of his leftist fealty to — evidently international communism or something…it wasn’t clear.’

    There is an excellent ad against Republic Secretary of State candidate Mark Finchem. It methodically lists each of his anti-democracy positions and actions, and emphasizes his unique ability to wreak havoc on the electoral process in the SoS position. You can’t counter that with “but what about inflation” when it goes to the heart of his responsibilities.

    Gubernatorial candidate Katie Hobbs seems to be badly losing this news cycle. The issue has been her refusal to debate Kari Lake because of her stated (and probably correct) position that it would degenerate into a side show. Smarter strategists than I undoubtedly concluded that was the position to take, but they forgot to coach her on how to defend it. Kari Lake is a former newscaster, and is articulate and polished and immaculately turned-out, as you would expect Satan to be if he held a press conference. “What is she afraid of — that I’ll expose how her leftist agenda is out of step for Arizona” etc
    At least in this cycle, Katie Hobbs has stammered her way through interviews on the subject and seems to be entirely on the defensive. Although it shouldn’t matter, in two separate news bites, she looked disheveled and tired, in contrast to Lake’s “I just stepped out of a Nordstrom ad” coolness. This is, of course, only a snapshot of time, but if voters are just tuning in because early voted has started, it wasn’t a good day for Katie Hobbs (who is incredibly well-qualified and would be a fantastic Governor).

    And let’s take a moment to acknowledge the plight of television Personal Injury lawyers in Arizona, who are unable to buy any ad time featuring attorneys riding mechanical bulls while promising to defend your rights, etc, because all the available time has been sold to candidates and PACs.​​​​​

  48. 48.

    Matt McIrvin

    @Kay: Sooner or later our Praetorian Guard is going to try to assassinate a President and anoint their own Caesar. The first part might be easy for them.

  49. 49.

    Deputinize Eurasia from the Kuriles to St Petersburg

    “The Jan. 6 committee—with the help of some highly-anticipated documentary footage—is expected to turn its attention to Roger Stone this week.”
    —————————-
    It won’t move the needle any further. America is too full of “good Germans”.

  52. 52.

    Betty Cracker

    Verdict reached in the Parkland shooter trial penalty phase. Cruz pleaded guilty to all 17 counts of murder, etc., so this is about the punishment — life without parole or death penalty. If the latter, the recommendation has to be unanimous. Jury recommendation to be read at 10:30 AM according to CNN.

  53. 53.

    Soprano2

    @Almost Retired: The issue has been her refusal to debate Kari Lake because of her stated (and probably correct) position that it would degenerate into a side show.

    This seems like a dumb decision to me. It makes people feel that you have something to hide. It doesn’t always hurt Republicans when they do this, but sometimes it does

    I feel discouraged today. I read that Barnes is down to Ron Johnson in WI in the latest poll, probably because Johnson has successfully “Willie Horton’ed” him by tying him to crime, crime, crime in “independent” voters minds. Inflation is still bad, gas prices are going up again, and the stock market is still sliding while NPR reports that 98% of the executives they surveyed say there’s going to be a recession in the next 18 months right after their daily story on how badly inflation is hurting the average person (it’s true, they literally do a story on this EVERY.SINGLE.MORNING). In September it seemed that all of the stars were aligning to help Democrats in November; now it seems as if all those stars have been torn asunder.

  55. 55.

    Brachiator

    @Spanky:

    The Social Security Administration announced on Thursday an 8.7 percent increase in benefit checks for seniors starting next year, a response to the fastest inflation America has seen in four decades.

    And as reported earlier…

    Each year the Medicare Part B premium, deductible, and coinsurance rates are determined according to the Social Security Act. The standard monthly premium for Medicare Part B enrollees will be $164.90 for 2023, a decrease of $5.20 from $170.10 in 2022. The annual deductible for all Medicare Part B beneficiaries is $226 in 2023, a decrease of $7 from the annual deductible of $233 in 2022.

  56. 56.

    Soprano2

    @Betty Cracker: Unfortunately, many people vote based on shallow things like that – “she looks like I want our governor to look”, as if that’s actually the most important thing.

  57. 57.

    Quiltingfool

    Cat topic!  I picked up my new kitty yesterday.  She walked right into the carrier, good sign, right?  On the trip home, she seemed to be a bit scared, but my cats didn’t like car rides, so I wasn’t concerned.  We got home, I opened the carrier in the utility room where the food and litter box are located.  She bolted out, hid behind the door, and when I wasn’t looking
she vanished!

    I wasn’t expecting that.  My former cats didn’t hide when I brought them home, but they were kittens.  Allie is not, she’s a little over a year old.  Once I thought about it, it’s not surprising she hid.  She has lived in a shelter most of her life.  My house is scary and different.

    I looked around a bit, then just went about my business and left her alone.  This morning I checked the food bowl and litter box, no sign of usage.  I then looked around more and found her under the bed in the guest bedroom.  Let me tell you, a cartilage-free knee makes getting down on the floor (and getting back up) a bitch!  I laid on the floor and talked to her; her ears were forward and she didn’t hiss or growl.  I walrused myself up from the floor (not a pretty sight) fetched the food bowl and put it by the bed, just in case she wants a snack.

    I guess this isn’t an unusual behavior for a shelter cat.  My bad, I should’ve been more prepared and put food, water and the litter box in the spare room and released her there
but here we are!

    I’ll leave her be and let her decide when she feels safe.  May be a minute before I have a purring lap cat!

  59. 59.

    Elizabelle

    @Betty Cracker:   re the Parkland shooter:  I am hoping he gets life without parole.  Enough death from that horrible episode.  I do not support the death penalty for young killers.  Including Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.

  60. 60.

    Elizabelle

    @Quiltingfool:  It will take her a while to realize she has won the lottery.

    And you.  With all that fabric.  Moving mysteriously around.  Including ribbon and thread.   I think she will find you quite entertaining.

  61. 61.

    Betty Cracker

    @Soprano2: True. Regarding the Wisconsin senate race, Jennifer Rubin said this on Twitter:


    But according to the copy, he’s also reaching out to Obama and Harris. I have no idea how any of this plays to WI voters, but Johnson is a piece of shit, and I think the only reason he ever got elected in the first place is because his name would rhyme in a Wisconsin-focused limerick.

    My name is Ron Johnson
    the senator from Wisconsin

    I mean, it’s as good an explanation as any, right?

  62. 62.

    Almost Retired

    @Soprano2:  It sure seems like ducking the debate was the wrong decision in retrospect, but the Republican primary debate was a You Tube-shareable level of shit show.  I suppose a savvy campaign could have positioned it as “why should we dignify this sort of behavior” and followed it up with primary debate clips and crazy-talk sound bites.  But so far, Republicans seem to be effectively playing the “what is she scared of card,” which is ironic coming from a party who will not be holding presidential primary debates.  The best hope for Arizona is going to be turnout, and possibly a last minute revelation that Kari Lake is actually a robot.

  63. 63.

    Deputinize Eurasia from the Kuriles to St Petersburg

    @Soprano2:

    “‘Crime’ is what them colored folks do”, and this notion is passed from grandparent to parent to grandchild, and confirmed by aunts, uncles, pastors, beloved mentors, coaches and schoolteachers as if graven in stone.

    “And what the hell kind of name is ‘Mandela’? Sounds radical and counterculture like. He must be all about the ANTIFA and CRT and reparations and Islam and atheism and hip hop and jungle culture and communism and crony capitalism
”

  64. 64.

    Betty Cracker

    @Elizabelle: I agree. I don’t support the death penalty for anyone. My guess is Cruz will get the death penalty though. It’s Florida, and it was a horrific case. Also, they didn’t deliberate that long. ETA: Update — now they’re going to read the verdict at 10:15.

  65. 65.

    TS

    @NotMax:

    Hearing begins at seven in the morning here. How inconsiderate.

    I think it is about 4am in the morning where I am – so completely inconsiderate.  I think I will be watching on replay

  67. 67.

    Soprano2

    @Deputinize Eurasia from the Kuriles to St Petersburg: Yep. Whether we want to admit it or not, black candidates have a harder lift in statewide races in swing states like WI. The candidate has to acknowledge this at least to themselves and figure out how to overcome it if they want to win. Bringing in Bernie Sanders is not the way to do it; he has to appeal to the swing voters and dispel the notion that he is just like “those criminals”, which is what I understand Johnson has been doing in advertising there.

  69. 69.

    Betty Cracker

    My guess is Barnes believes a Rad Grandpa appearance might goose the yoot vote. If it’s even true that he’s reaching out to Sanders (as well as Obama and Harris). The source is Politico, so maybe it’s bullshit. I haven’t read the article.

  70. 70.

    Kay

    Marcy Kaptur was driving from one Ohio event to another, drove by a small business here with the owner’s name on the sign, recognized the name from the D county central committee so stopped to say hello. Owner has a grown child with drug abuse problems, can’t get kid into decent rehab (most rehabs suck) Kaptur gives him a name of a new 18 bed experimental rehab in Erie County she personally got federal funding for and sends him there.

    Just an absolute pro. He texted me. It’s the sort of thing people never forget.

  72. 72.

    topclimber

    @Spanky: Good to hear. Now I have a way to pay for another $100 contribution to Matt Castelli, the moderate Dem alternative to Elise Stefanik. As most jackals know, she is the hacko turned wacko who is the #3 GQPer in the House because, you know, Liz Cheney wasn’t conservative enough.

    We poor souls in NY-21 can only work and hope…

  73. 73.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Betty Cracker: Barnes and Johnson have their second and final debate tonight.  Barnes is also doing a video appearance with Vindman today to highlight the fake elector scheme and, I suspect, Johnson’s Russian connections.

  77. 77.

    James E Powell

    @Soprano2:

    Unfortunately, many people vote based on shallow things like that – “she looks like I want our governor to look”, as if that’s actually the most important thing.

    I don’t know if people will ever be more stupid than “guy I want to have a beer with,” but that’s the kind of thing that determines whether Roe v Wade gets overturned.

  78. 78.

    Mousebumples

    @Betty Cracker: lol, the real reason he was elected was that he was a part of the post-Obama election 2010 Red Wave. Gov. Walker’s Voter ID shenanigans might have also had an impact but I forget when an that went into effect.

    The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel endorsed Barnes today. I’m pestering all my friends and family (that lean blue) to early vote or vote by mail.

  79. 79.

    topclimber

    @Betty Cracker: The Marquette poll has found Johnson ahead in likely voters since September 15 (two polls), but Barnes and he in a dead heat since then among registered voters.

    So, drumroll please…it comes down to turnout. I don’t see how Bernie’s support hurts Barnes in this regard. It could help. The Magats are coming out in force regardless.

  82. 82.

    Brachiator

    @Soprano2:

    Bringing in Bernie Sanders is not the way to do it; he has to appeal to the swing voters…

    I would think that you would need to know who the swing voters were, what their concerns were. I am not even a Sanders fan, but he might have an appeal to some types of swing voters, and maybe to some younger voters, especially in college towns. Sanders might be perceived as more of an outsider.

    Also, it was claimed that the candidate was also trying to get Obama and Harris. That’s a wide net.

  83. 83.

    Mousebumples

    @Omnes Omnibus: oooh, thanks for the head’s up. Was planning to watch the 1/6 hearings tonight, but we’ll watch one tonight and one tomorrow.

    I’m guessing Michels has refused to debate? He seems like the type.

  84. 84.

    Mousebumples

    @Omnes Omnibus: I almost felt like Barnes was working the rules to get extra time, too. If he didn’t “answer” the Moderator called that out and gave him an extra 30 seconds. So he’d apologize for not answering, give more context, and close with the answer he’d “missed.”

    But he’s fortunate to have less subjects where the Democrats and Independents want different answers.

  86. 86.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @topclimber: I think the polls are underestimating the effect of Dobbs.  I think they are setting their samples like they would in an ordinary off year election.  Of course, my thoughts and $4.99 will get you a cup of coffee.

  87. 87.

    Deputinize Eurasia from the Kuriles to St Petersburg

    @James E Powell:

    Actually, “person I want to have a beer with” is a pretty decent marker for me.

    I don’t like drinking with stupid assholes.

  88. 88.

    Kay

    @Betty Cracker:

    I think the collapse of her opponent was over-rated as a win for us. If Marcy Kaptur loses it’s a national Democratic bloodbath, even if they did change her district to a Trump plus 3, no matter who her opponent is. BUT i’m thrilled she takes nothing for granted.

  91. 91.

    Tony G

    @Baud: These people know their audience.  The average MAGA person has the cognitive ability and degree of memory retention of a fruit fly.

  92. 92.

    Geminid

    @James E Powell: I suspect that  Adam Laxalt’s male-model looks will snare him a few extra votes in Nevada.

    They don’t neccesarily impress his kin, though. A number of the Laxalt clan have signed an open letter endorsing Cortez-Masto in their Senate race.

  93. 93.

    Paul in KY

    @Tony Jay: Hi, Tony. Responded in the dead thread on shows to your Rings of Power comment:

    True dat.  I’m crazy and think the story that Tolkien tells in 2nd age would be fine:

    Sauron comes around as Annatar and befriends Celebrimbor and other elves.

    Shows them how to create the Rings (9 for men & 7 for dwarves)

    Celebrimbor creates the 3 Elven rings with no help from Sauron (but using his template)

    Sauron creates the One Ring in Mordor & Elves realize he’s back!

    Sauron then attacks Hollin/Khazad Dum & manages to get the 9 and 7 and kill Celebrimbor.

    He increases his power until he pisses off the Numenoreans who come over and cow all his minions. He slyly gets taken ‘prisoner’ and is off to Numenor to wreak havoc there, etc. etc.

    Teen Galadriel could be a part of all this.

  94. 94.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Brachiator: ​
      Also, despite the emphasis here, Sanders is not mentioned as Barnes primary outreach. It simply notes that the Sanders is coming to Wisconsin in the near future and that Barnes will probably reach for an appearance. FWIW Sanders endorsed Barnes back in July.

  95. 95.

    Sure Lurkalot

    @Lapassionara:

    Kari Lake always looks like she has been photographed with a soft focus lens.

    Thinking the same thing after reading Almost Retired’s post. Not sure if it has anything to do with the fact that she’s a total loon.

    That so many loons seem to be on the threshold of elected office has me a bit down today.

  96. 96.

    Tony G

    @Kropacetic: I’m old enough to remember when a cup of coffee cost 25 cents.  Of course, we drank it while wearing onions on our belts, as that was the style.

  101. 101.

    Kropacetic

    @Tony G: Most places I go are between one and three dollars for coffee right now.

    Though after my message, I got to thinking of my buddy who gets these wild confections at Starbucks that wind up costing about ten bucks each. More syrup and cold foam than actual coffee.

  102. 102.

    Kay

    Dasha Burns
    @DashaBurns
    ·Oct 12
    We were happy to accommodate closed captioning. Our reporting did not and should not comment on fitness for office. This is for voters to decide. What we do push for as reporters is transparency. It’s our job. Fetterman sat down and answered our questions. That’s his job.

    Fetterman coverage is junk- it sucks- and rather than accept any criticism at all they are once again circling the wagons and all fan-girling their fellow journalists. Not QUITE as embarrassing as them all sucking up to Maggie Haberman but close.
    Fetterman gives tons of interviews and Oz gives NONE (except on Fox) so who do the dopes reward?
    Oz. The candidate who won’t talk to any of them.
    There is no fucking upside to transparency and media THEMSELVES have made this so. They are actively harming the cause of transparecy with their insane devotion to their own careers and wallets.
    Now that it’s clear the douechebags think people who have had strokes are “icky” can we move on or are they going for another “but her emails” record of shitty work?

  103. 103.

    Geminid

    @topclimber: I’ve noted a decline in Bernie bashing here. It used to be an everyday occurence. There was an outbreak a couple days ago and to be honest, I enjoyed it!

    But I’ve also noticed that generally, people tend to ascribe extra frequency to comments that irritate them.

  105. 105.

    Kropacetic

    @Geminid: But I’ve also noticed that generally, people tend to ascribe extra frequency to comments that irritate them.

    Sticks in the mind far more than a comment that doesn’t affect someone emotionally one way or the other.

  106. 106.

    Almost Retired

    Just saw a repeat of the excellent anti Finchem for Secretary of State ad in Arizona. It was paid for by the Arizona Democratic Party and “authorized” by the Democratic candidate, Mark Finchem Adrian Fontes. Good to see the AZ party throwing some money into this, and using it wisely!

  107. 107.

    Mike in NC

    White male cops — and that includes most of the Secret Service — overwhelmingly supported Trump because he was a racist authoritarian who defended police brutality, especially against non-whites.

  108. 108.

    WereBear

    @Quiltingfool: She’s under YOUR bed.

    She’ll come along :)

    It works almost as well if you sit on the edge of the bed with a hand mirror and talk to her. She might creep out to see, but she will love to hear you explain all these new things.

    Congratulations!

  109. 109.

    Paul in KY

    @Betty Cracker: I think he should receive the death penalty. Appropriate punishment (IMO) for his heinous acts. Plus, he is 100% the guy who did it, so no doubt about getting the correct person, etc.

  110. 110.

    Kay

    @Mike in NC:

    They basically admit now that they went on a two year wildcat strike because we stopped kissing their asses as “first responders”- refused to do any policing at all while still collecting a payckeck because their feelings were hurt by BLM protestors.

    Apparently this is okay for “professionals” in law enforcement. If they’re criticized in any way they should throw a two year hissy fit. We all have an obligation to not only pay them but pretend they’re doing a good job with 30% clearance rates and never ask them to do any better.

  111. 111.

    Paul in KY

    @Quiltingfool: Yay!  So glad for you. I’ve only had 1 cat out of 9 that didn’t mind riding in a car. Think it might be how their eyes process movement.

  113. 113.

    Tony Jay

    @Paul in KY:

    You have to think that the reason they set their story in the Second Age and called it The Rings of Power was so they could tell that saga (obvs) but the world-building they’re doing craps all over it and seems destined to create problems in the future.

    I can understand compressing the time-period between the forging of the Rings and the Fall of Numenor from roughly 1500 years to something less immense, but I can’t understand the decision to compress it this much while also rewriting Numenorean, Elven and let’s call it ‘Mordorian’ history in such a radical way.

    They’ve paid a fortune for the rights and intend multiple seasons, they’ve got tons of immortal characters around whom different casts of mortals can revolve, putting those two things together to tell the actual story you paid half a billion dollars for should not be beyond the wit of Man.

  119. 119.

    Jojo

    @Betty Cracker: Johnson’s first win was in the teabag wave in 2010, and his second was in the Trump wave in 2016. So he benefitted greatly from those two events.

    Unfortunately Johnson also benefits from Mandela being a black man in a state filled with many scared white people who are absolutely receptive to dog whistles about supposed black criminality. This is going to work very well in Waukesha, Ozaukee, and Washington Counties, which are mostly conservative, populous enough to matter, and at least based on my personal experience, racist as fvck. It’s been depressing to see, especially since Dems made SOME progress winning votes in Waukesha county in 2018 and 2020 (not enough to win, but some progress nonetheless), but without TFG to fight against, scared white WI are reverting back to form.

  120. 120.

    schrodingers_cat

    @Soprano2: I got a text for Barnes from BS of Vt. I promptly blocked the number. I doubt I was the only one to do that. BS of Vt turns off many voters that Barnes needs to win in a purple state like Wisconsin.

    Johnson has tied him to successfully to the unpopular “Defund the Police” slogan.

    Only yesterday did he scrub Moscow Gabbard from the Sanders Institute roster. I just don’t trust the man.

    The Red Rose agenda is not all that popular even among many staunch Ds

  124. 124.

    Baud

    @schrodingers_cat: I believe you.  I just remember people talking about the fact that she was associated with the Institute, and that Sanders should remove her.  I’m just a little surprised it happened.

  126. 126.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @schrodingers_cat: BS of Vt turns off many voters that Barnes needs to win in a purple state like Wisconsin.

    That is not necessarily the case.  WI is not purple because it is wishy-washy.  WI is purple because it is a nearly even mix of deep, deep blue and bright, bright red.  The middle is not that big.  As I noted above, Sanders won the 2016 primary by a lot.  Also, you can note that Baldwin is one the most liberal senators and Johnson one of the most conservative.

  127. 127.

    Kropacetic

    @schrodingers_cat: Johnson has tied him to successfully to the unpopular “Defund the Police” slogan.

    Funny how often that happens with candidates that didn’t tie themselves to the slogan…

    I just found a CNN article on the matter trying to fudge his position with a clickbaity headline, some strong implications of dishonesty at the beginning then his actual position with quotes toward the end.

    Short version, he’s never used the slogan and has taken the more nuanced reform POV.

  129. 129.

    Soprano2

    @Omnes Omnibus: The fall colors are going to suck here, we’ve been so dry. We had 1.14″ of rain in September, and the first rain of any consequence in October yesterday. The official rainfall yesterday was 0.14″.

  130. 130.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @schrodingers_cat: ​
      As I noted above, I think that the polls have consistently underestimated the effect of Dobbs on the electorate. I think that the Barnes can win, but it will be close. I am not laying odds.

  132. 132.

    Betty Cracker

    @Baud: I’m surprised by this outcome. I feel bad for the victim’s families because many will be disappointed, but I think the jury did the right thing.

  134. 134.

    Jojo

    @topclimber: as I recall, Bernie won the 2016 Wisconsin primary. I can’t say if his following is as strong now as it was then, but if Mandela’s team is thinking turnout is the key to victory then a Bernie appearance isn’t such an illogical choice.

  135. 135.

    Brachiator

    @Geminid:

    I’ve noted a decline in Bernie bashing here. It used to be an everyday occurence. There was an outbreak a couple days ago and to be honest, I enjoyed it!

    Sanders generally has been a strong supporter of the Biden administration. There have been times during media appearances when he has argued forcefully for the Democrats’ agenda. And he has forcefully opposed Republicans.

    But he is who he is, and he loses me when he tries to push his own policies.

  140. 140.

    Kropacetic

    @Steeplejack: The Trump threat is not so much lingering as banging on the door.

    Too bad do much of the electorate is in their room, minding their own business with noise canceling headphones on.

  141. 141.

    Geminid

    @schrodingers_cat: Speaking of the Wisconsin Senate race, retweeted by @(((BuffaloMeg))):

          Dick Uilen of packaging giant Uline, along with roofing magnate Diane Hendricks, together had contributed $20 million to Johnson2016 reelection campaign.

    The tax break Johnson muscled through netted them $215 million in deductions in 2018 alone.

    Voting Rights!!  @larson_jewell

    I bet you’d like Ms. Meg’s twitter account. Although on game day it’s Bills day!

  143. 143.

    CCL

    @Almost Retired:  shouldn’t this be  Adrian Fontes who is the Democratic candidate running against Finchem??

    …authorized by the Democratic candidate, Mark Finchem  –

     

  144. 144.

    Kayla Rudbek

    @Kay: I have been told by other federal law enforcement that the Secret Service hires ex-football players who can take bullets. I’m not sure whether that affects all of the hiring, but it would definitely create a certain environment within the agency


  146. 146.

    Betty Cracker

    The media coverage of the Cruz trial has been uniformly brutal in its criticism of the defense team. So was the judge. But they must have done something right.

  148. 148.

    Paul in KY

    @Tony Jay: Can understand the compressing of the timeline. Do not have a problem with that. Agree with all you said! Do not think Bezos is that big a fan if he approved all that.

  149. 149.

    Geminid

    @Brachiator: During this blog’s blackout, I wandered over to the Daily Kuss. One difference that struck me was the virtual absence of Bernie-battling and Squad-squabbling. I got the impression that this was not allowed.

    I did not stick around long enough though to get a good handle on policies there. The threaded comment format drove me crazy! After ten days I wanted to send them a picture of a flag with an angry jackal on it, and the motto “Don’t Thread in Me.”

  151. 151.

    Baud

    @Geminid:

    The threaded comment format drove me crazy! After ten days I wanted to send them a picture of a flag with an angry jackal on it, and the motto “Don’t Thread in Me.”

    You know that’s right.

  155. 155.

    WereBear

    @Betty Cracker: The truth of the death penalty is that a lot of families want it but don’t realize how much it drags out the pain and any recovery they attempt.

    With life sentences like this they go away, and rarely surface again in the peoples’ lives.

  156. 156.

    Jim Appleton

    @Paul in KY: I watched some of the readings.  Struck by the body language and what appeared to be emotional exhaustion of the families.  What they’ve been through is unimaginable.  Cruz appeared to glance at them a few times.  We can only hope that their anguish is one motivation for him to do good, as you say.

  157. 157.

    Another Scott

    @Baud: Good.

    WorldPopulationReview.com:

    Amnesty International’s 2021 year-end report noted that 579 executions had been recorded worldwide, spread across 18 countries.

    […]

    Top 10 Countries that Conducted the Most Executions in 2021 (Amnesty International)

    1. China — 1000+
    2. Iran — 314+
    3. Egypt — 83+
    4. Saudi Arabia — 65
    5. Syria — 24+
    6. Somalia — 21+
    7. Iraq — 17+
    8. Yemen — 14+
    9. United States — 11
    10. South Sudan — 9+

    Great company, there. :-/

    Virginia abolished the death penalty when the Democrats had quasi-full control. The federal government will do the same, eventually. The question is, how many people will be killed in our name before that happens.

    :-(

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  160. 160.

    Betty Cracker

    @WereBear: That makes sense to me. There’s no closure in cases like this, but maybe there’s a sense of finality when the trial and sentencing are over so people can get on with their lives as best they can.

  161. 161.

    Elizabelle

    @Another Scott:  I think so too, re the federal death penalty.

    Florida jury spared Cruz’s life.  I am grateful.

    FWIW, I don’t think Dylann Roof (the Mother Immanuel shooter) should be on death row either.  And I would bet that his too soon gone victims would agree.

    Mercy is an underappreciated quality.

  163. 163.

    lowtechcyclist

    Midterms are much, much more about turnout than swing voters.

    In 2016, about 60% of eligible voters voted.

    In 2018, that number was 50% – and that’s an unusually small drop-off between a Presidential election and the next midterm.

    Get even 90% of the people who voted our way in 2020 to the polls in 2022, and we win.

  164. 164.

    VFX Lurker

    @Tony Jay:

    I personally love what they’ve done with the show. However, I acknowledge that not everyone shares my tastes.

    You and Paul in KY should not watch any more episodes of Rings of Power. Watch shows that you like.

  165. 165.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Elizabelle:

    Mercy is an underappreciated quality.

    Mr. Shakespeare would agree with you:

    The quality of mercy is not strained.
    It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven
    Upon the place beneath. It is twice blest:
    It blesseth him that gives and him that takes.

  166. 166.

    Paul in KY

    @Jim Appleton: I just can’t imagine their pain. Kids lives snuffed out for the most banal of reasons, made by 1 weirdo.

    I hope the celebrate Valentine’s Day again at the school & send him videos of all having a great time.

  167. 167.

    Cameron

    @Paul in KY: Haven’t had my eyes checked in way too long – read “Elves” as “Elvis,” and thought to myself they’re really giving Tolkien a strange treatment.

  169. 169.

    artem1s

    @Tony Jay: producers have the attention span of a gnat. They can’t imagine an audience attention span lasting 2 seasons let alone 5 or 10.

    Disney wouldn’t green light two films for Jackson’s LOTRs because they couldn’t imagine there would be a big enough audience to pay for one movie, let alone two. Newline greenlighted three because the CEO was a huge Tolkien fan and because when Disney passed, they got it rights for a pittance.

  170. 170.

    Paul in KY

    @VFX Lurker: So you like the dude in the meteor, mithril cures the elves from ‘fading’, Isildur is some kind of doofus, etc. etc.?

    I’m going to continue. Maybe it will get better once Sauron comes on the scene.

  172. 172.

    Steeplejack

    @Kay:

    “A Secret Service supervisor, mistaking the shots for car backfire, orders officers to stand down.”

    What a laugh. I live in a big metro area with a fair number of beaters and shitrigs, and I can’t remember the last time I heard a car backfire. Been decades, probably. “Firecrackers” would be a more plausible excuse. I’m not a mechanic, but I’m tempted to ask whether cars even do backfire any more.

    I flipped over to MSNBC to start prepping my rage gland for the hearing this afternoon, and the first thing I saw on the bottom chyron was: “Internal FBI email reveals ‘sizable percentage’ of FBI workforce is sympathetic to Jan. 6 rioters.”

    This gets to the larger issue, which the J6 committee—and the government at large—has barely scratched the surface of: institutional rot in federal law enforcement: FBI, Secret Service, and don’t get me started on the Border Patrol/​CBP paramilitary gang. Probably DEA, too, and whatever Homeland Security has in the shadows. Remember those unmarked troops who showed up at BLM and anti-Trump demonstrations?

    There still hasn’t been an investigation of the New York FBI office’s rabidly anti-Hillary faction, which plausibly influenced James Comey into his October surprise. And a few weeks ago I read several stories about FBI agents refusing to carry out January 6-related assignments because of their sympathy to the cause. And I have always thought it was suspicious interesting that a lot of the January 6 rioters were identified by on-line groups going through publicly available videos and photographs rather than by the FBI, with its assumed access to state-of-the-art forensic tools. Maybe it was just a “not enough people” thing. đŸ€”

    . . . Cripes. Now Katy Tur is reading a letter (maybe that email?) from an anonymous FBI agent saying, among other things, that all the TVs in his office were tuned to far-fight channels like NewsMax because the agents thought Fox News was getting too liberal.

    Rant over. I’m sputtered out.

  173. 173.

    Geminid

    @lowtechcyclist: There are fewer and fewer true swing voters, and political professionals know that good base motivation strategy contributes much more than “conversion” strategies.

    Swing voters can still make a difference in close races, though. I think Glenn Youngkin won by two points in Virginia last year because of more effective base turnout by Republicans than Democrats, plus a swing to Youngkin among some Independents who voted for Biden the year before.

    The state does not register by party, but Independents seem to hover around 32% of Virginia registered voters when Wason Center polls ask for self-descriptions. A majority seem to vote consistently with one party or another. Rachel Bitecofer used to help run Wason Center polling, and says that there are more conservative Independents in Virginia than either moderate or liberal ones. Findings by social scientists as well as voting analysis tends to show that some percentage of Independents between 10 and 20% are in fact swing voters.

    Some people see base motivation and attracting Independents as incompatible strategies. I think that  conflict is overrated. Successful practical politicians can shape their messaging strategies to motivate base voters and not repel independents, and vice versa. For instance, I think issues like abortion rights and voting rights motivate both groups, and Democrats are pushing them this year

    On the other hand, Supreme Court  expansion is not being pushed by any of our Senate candidates in battleground states, at least so far as I know.

  174. 174.

    Steeplejack

    @Almost Retired:

    Katie Hobbs was on one of the MSNBC shows last night (Stephanie Ruhle?), and she did sound a little shaky and defensive. She made good points about the danger Kari Lake poses, but her demeanor was sort of “nervous grad student.” Ugh.

  177. 177.

    Geminid

    People interested in the races in Oregon can find a recent article on them in Politico. President  Biden will travel to the state tomorrow and campaign with former Oregon House Speaker Tina Kotek on Saturday.

    Kotek is locked in a tight race with the Republican, and a renegade Democratic State Senator is attracting enough Democratic voters to her Independent candidacy to put Oregonians in danger of having their first Republican Governor since 1982.

    There are three close House races as well, including one for a new seat being added through reapportionment. The other two are for retiring Peter DeFazio’s district, and for that of bad Blue Dog Kurt Schrader. Attorney Jamie McLeod-Skinner beat Schrader in the primary.

  179. 179.

    Geminid

    @Betty Cracker: Rubin has her strengths, but as an critic of campaign strategy and tactics she is an amateur like people here.

    Whether Sanders will turn off Wisconsin swing voters is an interesting question to this amateur, though. The Johnson camp will try to use his visit against Barnes, and Sanders does have a bad name among Republicans.

    But I wonder about Independents. The typical Independent is often thought to be some sort of super-centrist who would be sceptical of Sanders. They are actually a disparate group, though with differing viewpoints. Sanders might well swing some to Barnes, even if they are not particularly liberal themselves.

  180. 180.

    Tony Jay

    @artem1s:

    Have they somehow missed the notable success of Game of Thrones? People wanted that to go at least another couple of seasons, you’d have thought even the philistine community would have thought “Hey. Golden Goose.”

    Bunch of gonks.

  181. 181.

    Tony Jay

    @VFX Lurker:

    I’ll take that under advisement. In the meantime I’ll just enjoy the scenery and continue pointing out when they’ve fucked things up for no good reason at all.

  185. 185.

    LiminalOwl

    @Elizabelle:  I agree on both. Well, I don’t ever support the death penalty, but it’s sometimes a harder argument. Tsarnaev was not, for me, one of those times; living in Boston, I found very very few who agreed.

  186. 186.

    evodevo

    @Kay: Yes…THAT’S how you get and keep voters (and publicize it)…but it takes a LOT of energy and time, and a phenomenal memory, and a lot of people running for office don’t have that…

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