Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

I would gladly pay you tuesday for a hamburger today.

Damn right I heard that as a threat.

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

The gop is a fucking disgrace.

“Until such time as the world ends, we will act as though it intends to spin on.”

Reality always lies in wait for … Democrats.

Is it negotiation when the other party actually wants to shoot the hostage?

Dear legacy media: you are not here to influence outcomes and policies you find desirable.

The only way through is to slog through the muck one step at at time.

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

This chaos was totally avoidable.

Since when do we limit our critiques to things we could do better ourselves?

Sadly, media malpractice has become standard practice.

Republicans do not pay their debts.

Black Jesus loves a paper trail.

We can show the world that autocracy can be defeated.

There are times when telling just part of the truth is effectively a lie.

My years-long effort to drive family and friends away has really paid off this year.

But frankly mr. cole, I’ll be happier when you get back to telling us to go fuck ourselves.

SCOTUS: It’s not “bribery” unless it comes from the Bribery region of France. Otherwise, it’s merely “sparkling malfeasance”.

Donald Trump found guilty as fuck – May 30, 2024!

Too little, too late, ftfnyt. fuck all the way off.

Trumpflation is an intolerable hardship for every American, and it’s Trump’s fault.

Narcissists are always shocked to discover other people have agency.

You are here: Home / Open Threads / Wednesday Morning Open Thread: We Are Going To Run Out of Popcorn

Wednesday Morning Open Thread: We Are Going To Run Out of Popcorn

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So much right about this photo:

ETA- made the CSPAN feed!

Wednesday Morning Open Thread: We Are Going To Run Out of Popcorn

They are scheduled to begin around noon EST. If I find a live feed once it starts, I’ll add here

Here is the only live feed so far:

Other live feeds possible:

PBS Newshour live feed

ABCNews live feed

I’ve got end-of-the-year stuff to keep me busy, and I’ll have MSNBC on in the background.

This is a while we wait open thread

Reader Interactions

105Comments

  3. 3.

    mrmoshpotato

    I’m gonna go back to watching this Aussie plumber unclog this toilet.  Exposed to less shit there.

  6. 6.

    mali muso

    Love that baby!  Maybe he should be the speaker.  Couldn’t do a worse job than the current applicant.

  7. 7.

    cain

    Hey, Jan 6th is coming up – so this must be insurrection week – GOP edition. The crazies are now creating an insurrection inside the GOP caucus! :-)

  8. 8.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    from something called Puck via the Bulwark (paywalled?), more signs that trump is losing his mojo

    But it’s unclear whether it will actually make a difference. This detail from Palmeri’s report is fascinating.

    I’m told from sources close to him that he’s been burning up the phone for McCarthy, but his pleas don’t seem to be making any impact. Even Trump loyalist Matt Gaetz hasn’t been moved. Instead, I’m told, the recipients of Trump’s calls have rebutted his request to support Kevin with relentless flirtation and flattery, Trump’s ultimate love language, such as suggesting that he should be speaker. Naturally, this deactivated and neutralized the ’24 presidential candidate.

  9. 9.

    worn

    I suppose, faced with the inconvenience of being stuck at home after our testing positive for Covid on New Years Eve, we could’ve been provided with less entertaining fare than the yesterday’s clown show. Luckily the party’s production surpassed predictions.

    One has to count the small blessings.

    I just hope this joint gets picked up as a ongoing miniseries.

  12. 12.

    Barbara

    @danielx: I disagree.  It’s certainly newsworthy but I don’t see people tuning in to watch hours and hours of peoples’ names being called and responding McCarthy or Jordan or Jeffries.

    In a larger context, I really don’t know how you handle people whose sole goal seems to be to seed chaos.

  17. 17.

    piratedan

    hearing speculation that the McCarthy group may seek an immediate adjournment this morning because they still don’t have the votes

  22. 22.

    lowtechcyclist

    Mona Charen, who I’d forgotten about entirely until just now: “The battle unfolding over the speakership is not between the extremists and the establishment. It’s between two camps of extremists.”  It can’t be between extremists and the establishment, because “the Republican establishment is deader than dead.”

    Yeppers to both.

  23. 23.

    Leto

    @Dorothy A. Winsor: better than the three seashells from Demolition Man.

    I’ve been busy with stuff around the house this morning and just tuning in now. Seeing Fred Upton’s name still in play. Loooooooool

  24. 24.

    bbleh

    “President leads through bipartisanship, rebuilds the nation.” vs “GOP throws feces at each other, badly.”

    Which poses the obvious question: why isn’t the President doing more to solve problems?

  25. 25.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    I, for one, did not see this coming

    Henry J. Gomez @HenryJGomez

    New from Kaptur’s aides on her openness to backing McCarthy: “If, with Republicans in the majority, the path to getting things done for hard-working Northwest Ohioans is forming a … group to deliver for the American people it is no surprise Marcy Kaptur would pitch in to help.”

    but it doesn’t seem that shocking, I guess. I wonder how much of it is drawing McCarthy out on what concessions he’s willing to make.

  29. 29.

    Mike in NC

    House Republicans will probably adjourn until Monday because they’re used to getting paid to do nothing.

  30. 30.

    dmsilev

    @Baud: Another alternative is the scene from The Dark Knight where the Joker announces he has one job opening and two ‘applicants’.

  36. 36.

    Scout211

    Someone has probably  already posted this, but new meme:

    GOP learns the hard way: Turning the base up too high blows out your Speaker

  39. 39.

    PAM Dirac

    @lowtechcyclist:

    “The battle unfolding over the speakership is not between the extremists and the establishment. It’s between two camps of extremists.”

    Exactly, which is why talk of the one cute trick to get a speaker completely misses the point. Get a speaker and then do what? The entire R caucus would unite behind Hunter Biden’s laptop, Fauci’s lies, and making sure the IRS does catch rich people. Why should any Ds participate in enabling that? If some cute trick got say Jeffries to speaker, he’s say no to that agenda, and a vote to remove him would be called and the entire R caucus would be united in removing him. Any negotiation about finding a speaker has to really be a negotiation about finding a working governing coalition, most certainly including what the governing agenda is going to be. I don’t think that is possible at the moment. It might after a few months of chaos.

  40. 40.

    Barbara

    @Alison Rose: There are people in my office who have two or even three tvs tuned to news stations all day every day — CSPAN is sometimes one of them.  I know it’s of interest to many people, it’s just not very entertaining, the way some of the January 6 hearings were.  That’s my main point.  People are going to lose interest in watching, even if they are interested in the outcome.

  43. 43.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @The Moar You Know: Lady Olenna to Cersei Lannister: My dear, you’ve been stripped of your dignity and authority, your head shaved and driven naked through the streets. What’s left to make a deal with?

  46. 46.

    Dorothy A. Winsor

    @PAM Dirac: Any negotiation about finding a speaker has to really be a negotiation about finding a working governing coalition, most certainly including what the governing agenda is going to be. I don’t think that is possible at the moment. It might after a few months of chaos.

    That observation really centers the discussion. This is what electing the Speaker really means

  52. 52.

    Ken

    @Dorothy A. Winsor: Oh, good, because Loki is also famous for being made the fool when his schemes backfire — think “coyote orders from Acme catalog again”, but with more toilet humor — and that’s also just where the Republicans seem to have placed themselves.

  53. 53.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @tobie:

    Kaptur won reelection in a tough year, so I don’t know why she’s saying this.

    Maybe to get McCarthy, or Patrick McHentry, or at least Don Bacon, or somebody, to start talking about things like the debt ceiling.

  56. 56.

    Sure Lurkalot

    I hope no Democrat votes for McCarthy. That cipher cannot be trusted, not that any of them can. IMHO, this is no time to break ranks.

  57. 57.

    Ken

    @Scout211: the Dems are actively whipping against adjournment right now

    “We brought fresh popcorn. Also, you are aware we can’t actually do anything until this vote is complete?”

  61. 61.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Sure Lurkalot: @tobie: Kaptur’s been in Congress for forty years, and I don’t ever recall her being a rebel or a troll, like Gottheimer. I’d bet a few quatloos that this is part of the broad strategy of what Jeffries said yesterday about being ready to work with Republicans to help the country, but not to save them from themselves.

  62. 62.

    Cheryl from Maryland

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: UGH.  I know Ms. Kaptur has supporters here, and she fits her district while maintaining D loyalty, but this “solid Mid-Western values” pose vs. the coastal “elite” pisses me off.  First, I believe “Mid – Western values” are the same anywhere else, and second, my experiences with people from the Mid-West have not been positive.  I only give her a pass as Nancy said: Just Win, Baby.

  63. 63.

    MisterForkbeard

    @Kelly: However else this ends, I really hope that happens. Always nice when a power play by a total asshole just doesn’t work out.

  64. 64.

    MisterForkbeard

    @lowtechcyclist: This is so right. Thanks to Mona Charen for pointing it out.

    @Leto: Upton spoke out this morning, saying he’d be a consensus candidate who would give Democrats and Republicans equal seating in committees so there’s no majorities there. Which is… interesting?

    I’d wait until he formally abrogrates the Hastert Rule.

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: Pretty sure some of that is performative, but I’m all for Dems publicly stating they’d do the right thing for the good of the country (unlike Rs). And then extracting some concessions to do it or using it to twist the knife for McCarthy.

  68. 68.

    gene108

    @lowtechcyclist:

    “The battle unfolding over the speakership is not between the extremists and the establishment. It’s between two camps of extremists.” It can’t be between extremists and the establishment, because “the Republican establishment is deader than dead.”

    I think it’s between those who are 100% committed to defaulting on U.S. debt, if they don’t get their way versus some group that’d be willing to raise the debt ceiling by either working with Democrats or not refusing to allow a bill to come to the floor.

  70. 70.

    Matt McIrvin

    @PAM Dirac: There was a Washington Post article whose headline said that all but two of the Republican Reps who voted against McCarthy were election deniers.

    Noted in the body of the article: McCarthy himself is an election denier, and the vast majority of his supporters are election deniers. Yes, it’s epic self-ownage.

    Mona Charen is an awful person from way back. It is nice to see she has limits.

  71. 71.

    Leto

    Rep Gomez stepping up to nominate Rep Jeffries, to loud applause. Sadly, no cute baby attached to him. Def Dems in Disarray :(

  72. 72.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Cheryl from Maryland: my theory about Kaptur may be way off, but I share your frustration with the idea of mid-western vs coastal values. I was disappointed to hear Debbie Dingell, whose gimlet-eyed pragmatism is usually right up my alley, is starting a “Heartland caucus”. That term is so loaded with the idea that some Americans– white and rural– are more American than other Americans

  73. 73.

    Ken

    @Barbara: how could you ever trust McCarthy to keep his word?

    @geg6: They do it electronically by some device built into their desks or chairs.

    I am disappointed that geg6’s comment wasn’t a proposed answer to Barbara.

  74. 74.

    Ksmiami

    Day 2 and I’m already sick of this Republican so called house. These people would fuck up a bake sale and should be expunged from our government- all of them.

    at least Bloomberg news is coming to the same conclusion

  75. 75.

    schrodingers_cat

    A reminder that this shit show is brought upon us by the voters who voted for Rs  despite their track record (over 60% of white men and over 50% of white women and a small percentage of deluded white wannabe minorities) and their cheerleaders in the media.

  76. 76.

    Sure Lurkalot

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: What work will get done with McCarthy as speaker? He has not one policy position aligned with the Democrats or the good of the country. He has no spine which is why he cannot get elected speaker without peeling off Democrats. Just no.

  78. 78.

    Martin

    If I were Jeffries, I’d see how vote 4 goes, and if it’s like yesterday, tell 20 safe Democrats to go ahead and vote for Jordan on vote 5, just to fuck with them. I mean, it’s not like Jordan is materially worse than McCarthy given that McCarthy will do literally anything to win this vote, but at some point this stops being useful to Democrats. But why make McCarthy feel like he can just repeat this vote forever.  Fuck with him a bit.

  80. 80.

    MisterForkbeard

    Cheryl Rofer over at LGM remains awesome and unless there’s some sort of surprise here I think this is correct, though also unlikely to happen:

    “The Democrats have no immediate reason to do anything but vote for Hakeem Jeffries and eat their popcorn. Longer term, it is important that the US Congress become minimally functional. A good outcome would be a compromise candidate, if the Democrats can pick off enough “moderate” Republicans. Undoubtedly they are trying to do that, but what is happening now will provide fodder for the 2024 campaign, and the danger to the moderates is from the right. So allying with Democrats to vote for governance will be difficult for them.

    The Democrats can wait for the Republican factions to try to stare each other down for a week or so. I don’t expect to see any big changes today.”

  82. 82.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    Some day, I hope the statue of MLK JR on the Mall comes to life like the Golem Of Prague to slap the crap out of every bigoted Republican who trots out the “content of their character line”

    for those not watching, some goober from Texas is nominating Byron Donalds (R-FL) for Speaker, because he’s a “Christian man” who loves his wife and children

  83. 83.

    schrodingers_cat

    @Martin: I wouldn’t do that unless you really want Jordan to become the speaker.

    If I were Jeffries I would offer the Rs from bluish purple districts enticements to declare themselves independent and caucus with the Ds.

    How many R representatives are there in the districts that Biden won?

  86. 86.

    Another Scott

    @Martin: I strongly disagree.  There’s no pressing need for this to end today.  There’s nothing on the House calendar until January 24.

    The GQP need to fix this.  They’re the majority, they have to figure it out.

    My $0.02.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  87. 87.

    circular reasoning

    Was the calculus of putting up Donaldson to be able to 1) have a fig leaf for their racism and 2) scare the rest of their caucus to McCarthy rather than accept another “blah” man in a position of power? Going to be pretty telling if this is the vote that gets him over the top.

  90. 90.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: found the Jeffries line

    CSPAN @cspan 17h
    .@RepJeffries: “We are looking for a willing partner to solve problems for the American people, not save the Republicans from their dysfunction.” #118thCongress

  91. 91.

    lowtechcyclist

    @Another Scott:

    There’s no pressing need for this to end today.  There’s nothing on the House calendar until January 24.

    The GQP need to fix this.  They’re the majority, they have to figure it out.

    Strongly agree.  When your adversaries are busy embarrassing themselves, let ’em go to town.

  93. 93.

    circular reasoning

    I just learned that Donalds (not Donaldson as I had earlier) was the one who changed his vote yesterday from McCarthy to Jordan in Rd. 3. Maybe this was his reward???

    I should really not try to find logic with these folks actions.

  94. 94.

    Ken

    @circular reasoning: Maybe this was his reward???

    “You’ll lose, obviously, but a hundred years from now you’ll have that footnote in the history books, as the first black person the House Republicans ever nominated for, well, anything.”

  95. 95.

    artem1s

    @tobie: ​
     

    Kaptur won reelection in a tough year, so I don’t know why she’s saying this. Yuck.

    she’s gonna get primaried from the left if she breaks rank. I thought she was smarter than Ryan but I guess not.

  96. 96.

    circular reasoning

    @Ken: You must have been in the room with them then!

    Has that Caddyshack vibe of the Dalai Lama’s tip

  98. 98.

    Sister Machine Gun of Quiet Harmony

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: I live in a mid-western city, and still think that a ‘heartland’ caucus is a good idea. It’s not because mid- westerners are any more American, but that rural areas have different industries and needs. I think Dems would do a better job addressing those issues.

  100. 100.

    Nettoyeur

    @schrodingers_cat: Goldberg aka Doughy Pantload only went anti Trump when he realized it was gonna pay better for him to be an anti Trump  “principled”  reactionary than a Trumper crazy. This is the guy who wrote a book claiming that liberals are in fact fascists because  well, they accept realities that are inconvenient for wingnuts. Also, too  because  liberals accept the metric system used by everyone except the US and the post Brexit UK (whose economy is melting without easy access to Europe). Doughy actually wrote screeds against the metric system…

  101. 101.

    H-Bob

    @lowtechcyclist: Agree with letting the Republicans embarrass themselves.  Although the Democrats should be coming up with memes and quips about how the Republicans can’t even elect their own guy so they’re gonna screw up the country. Or how the Republican caucus is a 2008 do-over.  And run ads with those quips throughout the next 2 years.

  102. 102.

    Geminid

    @artem1s: I think people are jumping go conclusions here and inferring too much from this statement. These are the words of a staffer, and I cannot tell what they actually mean so far as what Kaptur’s actions might be. But from what I know of Marcy Kaptur, she’s about the last person I would expect to break ranks with her leadership and her caucus.

  103. 103.

    jnfr

    I guess I’m just gonna sit here and watch McCarthy keep losing over and over. I’m not sure why the Rs want to keep watching it happen, but here we are.

  105. 105.

    Another Scott

    The 6th nominating speech for McCarthy is telling us that they’ll emerge stronger as a result of this process.

    Haha.

    Good one.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

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