Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

You can’t attract Republican voters. You can only out organize them.

“When somebody takes the time to draw up a playbook, they’re gonna use it.”

Why is it so hard for them to condemn hate?

If a good thing happens for a bad reason, it’s still a good thing.

Bark louder, little dog.

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

Shut up, hissy kitty!

The party of Reagan has become the party of Putin.

Dear elected officials: Trump is temporary, dishonor is forever.

We’ve had enough carrots to last a lifetime. break out the sticks.

There is no compromise when it comes to body autonomy. You either have it or you do not.

They are lying in pursuit of an agenda.

Consistently wrong since 2002

Republicans in disarray!

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

Do not shrug your shoulders and accept the normalization of untruths.

Russian mouthpiece, go fuck yourself.

If you voted for Trump, you don’t get to speak about ethics, morals, or rule of law.

… pundit janitors mopping up after the gop

T R E 4 5 O N

Too often we hand the biggest microphones to the cynics and the critics who delight in declaring failure.

Many life forms that would benefit from greater intelligence, sadly, do not have it.

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

I swear, each month of 2025 will have its own history degree.

You are here: Home / Open Threads / Excellent Links / Monday Morning Open Thread: Happy Spring Equinox

Monday Morning Open Thread: Happy Spring Equinox

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  1. 1.

    Baud

    Trump made up the story about being arrested in Tuesday.  Watch everyone turn cynical when he’s still walking around on Wednesday.

    I wonder if Trump’s arrest will finally break Twitter.

    Did anyone see Psaki’s new show?

  2. 2.

    Dopey-o

    Frist! Sorry, no kittens.

    ETA: as expected, Baud beat me. But in fairness, he doesn’t waste time putting pants on before posting …..

  6. 6.

    Ceci n est pas mon nym

    @Baud: Something is cooking re indictment. I heard Karen Friedman-Agnifilo on Friday night ticking off the indicators that said the grand jury probably either voted Thursday or would do so today.

    When TFG came out Saturday with his announcement, it seems it’s in some weird way  supposed to head off or cancel out the actual indictment which is only a few days behind. Who knows how that guy thinks?

  10. 10.

    Ceci n est pas mon nym

    @MagdaInBlack: Maybe when he’s not arrested Tuesday he’ll claim that he was totally exonerated again, maybe tell the mob they scared the NYAG?  Same as what he did in GA?

    I’m not sure how that plays when the actual indictment comes down but ok.

  16. 16.

    Dorothy A. Winsor

    @Baud: Mr DAW watched Psaki’s new show. He said it was okay, but covered the same things as the other MSNBC shows. I admired her as press secretary. She was quick on her feet and handled the obnoxious questions with composure. We’ll see what she decides to make of her show.

  17. 17.

    Another Scott

    @RepubAnon: I assumed they informed TFG’s lawyers (“we can do this the easy way, or we can do it the hard way…”) when it would happen and how they would expect it to go down.  TFG running screaming to his chalkboard may have changed the timing; or maybe they expected that and already planned for it and nothing changed…

    I’m reminded that the FBI tried to keep the search warrant hush-hush, but he ran to the press about it (but only after it was underway).

    Google Maps said that MaL is closed until 7 AM Tuesday.  Today would be a good day to do it, but I don’t expect it.  Putting it off until Wednesday or later would be good to show him that he can’t game the process, but getting it done properly matters more.

    We’ll see!

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  18. 18.

    RedDirtGirl

    Happy Equinox! I loved Psaki as Press Sec. not sure how new the show is but was surprised by the number of verbal slips I heard her make in that short clip.

  19. 19.

    Mai Naem mobile

    It would be nice to see all these different prosecutors coordinating the indictments so that TFG’s hit with multiple ones at the same time so that he and his fans’ attention is scattered. The prosecutors might be  doing it just strictly for logistics(TFG can’t be at 3 different places at the same time for 3 different mugshots)but I doubt for any reason deeper than that.  I wonder if this has ever happened before. Multiple prosecutors going after the same person in different jurisdictions natiionwide around the same time. Maybe a mafia person or some financial fraudster?

  20. 20.

    Geminid

    Assuming that the Manhattan grand jury hands down indictments, I am curious as to whether they will just concern the hush money payments, or will cover unrelated criminal matters as well..

    And I’m kind of glad Trump made that post over the weekend. House Republicans are trying to dope out their strategy for the next few months at their retreat in Orlando. The last thing they need is more Trump trouble to divert their energy. They do not have that strong a hand to play as it is.

    I think that generally, the more Trump is in the news the worse it is for the Republican party. He’s a chaos agent, but it looks like it’s the Republicans now who bear the brunt of his chaos.

  25. 25.

    Shalimar

    @Ceci n est pas mon nym: Costello is appearing before the NY Grand Jury today, so they haven’t indicted yet.  That should come either this afternoon after Costello and Cohen appear, or the next time they meet, usually Wednesdays.   Even if they indict today, it is unlikely the logistics of Trump’s booking will be worked out by tomorrow.  And the only way he is getting arrested is if he refuses to surrender himself voluntarily.

  26. 26.

    Soprano2

    I don’t care when they do it, as long as they arrest him. He’s a walking crime wave.

    On another note, we got a new TV this weekend. Hoo boy, someone told me it would be a different world and they were so right! It took me 30 minutes just to set up the TV, creating accounts and logging in to various things. I elected to try YouTube TV, we’ll see how it goes. I have one show on my DirecTV DVR I want to watch, and once that’s done I’m kicking their ass to the curb. Can’t wait until we can do it at the bar in April, it’s ridiculous we can’t watch some of the NCAA tournament games because they’re on the local CBS station. I’d rather switch than try to mess with having an antenna just for that and switching the TV’s.

  27. 27.

    Ken

    @Baud: BJ should have a regular formal night where people get all gussied up to post comments.

    Wait, am I the only one who rents a tux for the Medium Cool posts?

  28. 28.

    Jeffro

    I hope the suspense keeps Mr. Septuagenarian Workout-Hating Rarely-Sleeping Fast Food Fan stressed out all week long.

    FSM owes us one, after all.  ;)

  30. 30.

    Amir Khalid

    @NotMax:

    Actually, it could work. Have TFG charged in NYC first, make him fly to Atlanta the next day on his own dime to get charged there, and finally make him fly to DC on the third day to get charged. Then he’ll have to fly back to Florida on his own. The Secret Service will be there to makesure he doesn’t try anything.

  31. 31.

    Scout211

    USAToday reports that the Florida legislature is pushing more bills that control language in schools to “protect” children from . . .  health education? The latest is one that could be called “Don’t Say Menstrual Period.”  And did you know that periods are “woke” now?  Well, they are if you live in Florida and your kids are not yet in 6th grade.

    House Bill 1069 would only permit “instruction in acquired immune deficiency syndrome, sexually transmitted diseases, or health education” only in grades 6 through 12.
     
    Democratic state Rep. Ashley Gantt noted that young girls could start their periods earlier than sixth grade and asked for clarification on whether the bill would ban those girls from talking about them.
     
    McClain confirmed that the bill’s language would do exactly that: “It would” McClain responded.

     

    The bill is one of the latest in a series of bills expected to be signed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis as he seeks to transform Florida’s education system in his fight against what he calls “woke ideology.”

  32. 32.

    NotMax

    @Soprano2

    Next thing to research are soundbars. Even a budget one will be an improvement, IMHO. In-built speakers are where modern TVs cheap out.

  33. 33.

    Dorothy A. Winsor

    @Scout211: Not allowing talk about periods is inhumane. I still remember walking home from school behind a girl with blood on the back of her skirt. Someone like that needs to be able to talk to a teacher.

  35. 35.

    Shana

    I’ve been traveling so haven’t paid as much attention as usual, but did tRump say it would be NY? Could Tuesday refer to a Georgia case?

  36. 36.

    Jeffro

    Twitter is full of that Onion story from 2003 re: Iraq War II

    This War Will Destabilize The Entire Mideast Region And Set Off A Global Shockwave Of Anti-Americanism vs. No It Won’t

    Which is exactly the BS us anti-war folks had to put up with, and what do you know, we were 110% right.

    It’s been 20 years, so they’re overdue for a reminder that they should listen to the libs next time.

  40. 40.

    Matt McIrvin

    @Dorothy A. Winsor: The extent to which old men consider menstruation a “dirty” topic and are repelled by the prospect of even learning how it works is amazing to me.

  41. 41.

    Soprano2

    @NotMax: Yeah, but their charge wasn’t much different than the others except one that was so cheap it made me suspicious. Still cheaper than DirecTV, plus they aren’t blocking me from watching Colbert

    Saw your later comment, I already have one because the sound on my previous 2012 Samsung TV was terrible. It took some fiddling to get it to work on my new TV, I have no idea which button I pushed made it start working.

  43. 43.

    Soprano2

    @BenCisco 🇺🇸🎖️🖥️♦️: You know, I was perfectly happy with DirecTV until they cut me off from CBS On Demand last week. That was a bridge too far for me, because the CBS network has NOTHING to do with their dispute with the company that owns my local CBS station. We needed the TV because our old one had developed the annoying habit of randomly turning off and turning back on. The pauses were getting longer, which indicated to me that it could throw craps completely any day.

  44. 44.

    Other MJS

    If you don’t explain or define it, anyone can be accused of it. Feature, not a bug.

  48. 48.

    Jay C

    @Shana:

    No. TFG was quite specific in his unhinged ALL CAPS Twitter rants that it was Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg’s case (Stormy Daniels payoff related) that was pushing his panic buttons.

    Hopefully he will similarly blow his circuits when(ever) the Georgia election indictments come down. (?? Next month ??)

  49. 49.

    NotMax

    @WaterGirl

    In the pantheon of flopsweat, the throne is held by the premiere episode of Chevy Chase’s mercifully short-lived late night show. What a disaster.

  50. 50.

    Geminid

    It should be a pretty Spring day up in Washington. Politico Playbook tells me that the President has a good schedule:

             Biden’s Monday

    10:25 a.m.  The President and VP Kamala Harris will receive the President’ Daily Brief.

    1 p.m.  Biden and first Lady Jill Biden will hold a reception celebrating Nowruz. Harris and second gentleman Doug Emhoff will also attend.

    3:25 p.m.  The Bidens will welcome Jason Sudeikis and other cast members of “Ted Lasso” to the White House to discuss mental health.

    Vice President Harris’s schedule includes:

    3:10 p.m.  The VP, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and senior advisor Mitch Landrieux will hold a press call to announce wildfire resilience funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

    The administration is determined to highlight these different Infrastructure grants as much as practicable. Today’s announcements could get little attention on national news sites, but local and state media will cover them

  52. 52.

    geg6

    Anybody else catch the mess that happened on The Circus last night? If you don’t watch, it’s on Showtime and is weekly wrapup of whatever is going on politically the last week or so. Stars John Heilmann, Mark McKinnon and Jennifer Palmieri.

    McKinnon fucked up royally, which you don’t find out about until the last 5 minutes or so. He was doing a report on the bigotry against trans people and drag queens aired constantly on FOX and the protestors that come out every Tuesday to demonstrate outside FOX’s studios in NY. He said he realized later that he forgot to do the selfie with his interviewees (the protestors) that he always does for advertising spots for the show, so he called them up the next morning and asked them to come back to the FOX building and take a selfie. So, apparently FOX flipped out and accused him of unethical journalism for setting up an unexpected protest at their building. They must have talked to the producers (who include the three stars) and threatened them somehow. Anyway, that last five minutes was Heilmann and Palmieri pretty much tearing into McKinnon over his fuck up and him apologizing over and over. It was pretty funny. I’m sure they didn’t find it as amusing as I did.

  53. 53.

    geg6

    @Mai Naem mobile:

    The prosecutors might be doing it just strictly for logistics(TFG can’t be at 3 different places at the same time for 3 different mugshots)but I doubt for any reason deeper than that.

    This would be highly unethical, if not illegal.  IANAL, but I’m pretty sure I’m right.

  55. 55.

    cmorenc

    @NotMax:  We have been very happy with the Sonos soundbar we got when we upgraded to a 4k Sony tv.  I listen to a lot of youtube music videos on the new tv, and the sound quality is outstanding.  IMHO it’s unnecessary to also get the subwoofer, unless you are *really* into watching movies with elaborate sound effects, but YMMV.

    We also have a Bose soundbar at our 2nd home beach house to go with the 4k tv down there, and it’s good but IMHO the Sonos is better, and I would choose the latter if I ever needed to replace the bise.

     

     

    @NotMax:

  56. 56.

    Geminid

    @Geminid: This morning’s Politico Playbook also reported some events planned this week. Two important ones are:

    Wednesday: Fed Chairman Jerome Powell will speak to reporters after the FOMC decides whether to proceed with a planned interest rate hike.

    Thursday: Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and General Mark Milley will testify before the House Appropriations Committee.

    And one less important event is:

    Tuesday: Mike Pence delivers remarks on entitlement reform at Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia.

  57. 57.

    NotMax

    Spring equinox? Heh. Received a missive in Saturday’s mail from Ford about my vehicle, which I brought home one year ago tomorrow, which starts out “Now that winter is here.”

  59. 59.

    NotMax

    @cmorenc

    Bought Mom a Roku soundbar last year specifically because it has optional settings which boost voice clarity. That it includes full Roku software as well enabled moving her pre-existing Roku box to the TV in her combination office/guest room.

  60. 60.

    Another Scott

    @NotMax: I tried YTTV when it was new and ~ $35 a month.  I liked the higher resolution than we were getting on our standard cable, and a few channels that we didn’t get on our normal service.  But the price kept going up, and I didn’t watch it enough to justify it.  I see it’s around $70 a month now (but with many more channels, etc.).  Seems like a lot!

    And then I occasionally glance at our cable bill of ~ $250+ a month…  :-/  J is the one who watches TV and it’s mostly the Tennis Channel, RedSox baseball, and British mysteries so she pays that bill.  I fear we’re going to be living with it for a long time…

    When I’m elected Benevolent Despot, channels will be ala carte.  Bundling is of the devil!!

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  61. 61.

    NotMax

    @NotMax

    Feel beholden to also mention another brand of soundbar noted for adjustable emphasis on vocal clarity (should any be looking for one) is Zvox.

  62. 62.

    Gin & Tonic

    @NotMax:

     In-built speakers are where modern TVs cheap out.

    It’s not that they “cheap out”, it’s that physics works against them. With an overall depth of under 1″, you really can’t do much to move sound waves.

  64. 64.

    Geminid

    @Baud: All I know is that this will be a boring and inconsequential event. It’s gonna be a really nice day down there; reporters will be wishing they were outside.

    And Lexington is a really nice town. As they drive out, the journalists will be telling themselves: “This is a really nice town! I’m gonna have to come back here, sometime when I don’t have to listen to that tedious twerp.”

  66. 66.

    Mai Naem mobile

    @Another Scott: i thought of Weinstien but I think his are just two state cases with multiple victim and he lives in one of those states.  TFG I believe  has  states, counties(or is it city?), districts and the feds? .

     

    @NotMax: i sure as heck did not mean collusion at least not what I think  collusion means.  My thought was more of a security concern because of TFG’s MAGAt fans.

  69. 69.

    Ksmiami

    @Scout211: everyone decent needs to ditch that pos state yesterday … sorry Betty, but it needs to sink under its own ignorant weight.

  70. 70.

    Kirk Spencer

    So I’m kind of hoping that when Jan 6 indictment comes down, Mr Orange makes a plea for reduced sentence in exchange for testimony. Followed by a LOT of sudden resignations on the right side of the aisle.

    Won’t happen, but it warms my cockles.

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