Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

They are lying in pursuit of an agenda.

if you can’t see it, then you are useless in the fight to stop it.

“I never thought they’d lock HIM up,” sobbed a distraught member of the Lock Her Up Party.

I see no possible difficulties whatsoever with this fool-proof plan.

We’re not going back!

When do we start airlifting the women and children out of Texas?

When I decide to be condescending, you won’t have to dream up a fantasy about it.

Never give a known liar the benefit of the doubt.

My right to basic bodily autonomy is not on the table. that’s the new deal.

The line between political reporting and fan fiction continues to blur.

I was confident that someone would point it out and thought why not me.

I have other things to bitch about but those will have to wait.

Not so fun when the rabbit gets the gun, is it?

Authoritarian republicans are opposed to freedom for the rest of us.

Republicans are the party of chaos and catastrophe.

It is possible to do the right thing without the promise of a cookie.

Nothing says ‘pro-life’ like letting children go hungry.

Jack be nimble, jack be quick, hurry up and indict this prick.

Republicans don’t want a speaker to lead them; they want a hostage.

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

Democrats are back in array!

I’ve spoken to my cat about this, but it doesn’t seem to do any good.

Battle won, war still ongoing.

Fani Willis claps back at Trump chihuahua, Jim Jordan.

You are here: Home / Elections 2024 / The Diplomat (Open Thread)

The Diplomat (Open Thread)

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My favorite Biden diplomatic appointment is U.S. Ambassador to Hungary David Pressman. A gay human rights lawyer who brought his husband and children to his post in Budapest, Pressman’s appointment is, as described by Politico, “an implicit rebuke of Orbán’s strongman, culture wars agenda.” Pressman is famous for trolling the Hungarian government’s anti-LGBTQ agenda on social media sites.

The newspapers cover him regularly — “Clown diplomacy,” one declared. State-owned and Orbán-friendly TV channels are similarly obsessed, portraying the American ambassador as a secretive colonial overlord sent to meddle in Hungary’s internal affairs.

And in a country that recently banned the portrayal of LGBTQ+ content to minors, Pressman has put his personal life on display, posting photos of his partner and their two kids as they arrived to present his diplomatic credentials.

“I think it speaks for itself,” Pressman said. “Sometimes the power of example,” he added, “is the most powerful way we can communicate about shared values and concerns.”

This week, Pressman is throwing a massive party at the U.S. Embassy in Budapest to mark the end of Budapest Pride:

“Candidly, we’ve been pretty overwhelmed by the interest in participation from Hungarian LGBT families and their allies—and I expect about 1,000 people there, making it what we’re told will be the largest event of its kind in history in Hungary,” Pressman told The Daily Beast. “And I think now’s a really important moment for the United States and the international community writ large to stand with this community that is increasingly being used in a divisive and political way that is in tension with the commitments this government has made to upholding international human rights…”

Despite the personal attacks, he’s not taking criticisms of his actions personally. “This is really not about me, and it’s never been about me,” he said. “It’s about the United States’ longstanding commitment and President Biden’s personal commitment to stand up proudly and strongly for the fundamental human rights of all people everywhere, including LGBT people—including LGBT people in Hungary.”

Pressman invited Orbán government officials but doesn’t really expect them to show. Maybe in Biden’s second term, he could appoint Pressman as ambassador to Florida.

Open thread!

Reader Interactions

152Comments

  1. 1.

    mrmoshpotato

    Maybe in Biden’s second term, he could appoint Pressman as ambassador to Florida.

    If Floriduh hasn’t gone the way of Atlantis.

  2. 2.

    p.a.

    It’s a nice story and a deserved thumb in Orban’s eye.

    Hungary as a NATO member is problematic.  IDK how much Orban can or wants to align himself with PootyPoot’s “savior of white cis christopath civilization” schtick.

  3. 3.

    West of the Rockies

    OT, but has anyone noticed the little Tommy Tuberville is a pencil-necked putz?  Skinny little neck with slumping shoulders.

  7. 7.

    Cameron

    I appreciate your suggestion for Ambassador Pressman’s future.  DeSantisland really does depressingly resemble Orbanworld.

  8. 8.

    dmsilev

    @Alison Rose: Now I’m imagining a mashup between the stereotypical European Jungle Explorer outfit (pith helmet, etc.) and every over-the-top stereotype for gay fashion wear.

    I think there’s costume potential there.

  10. 10.

    frosty

    Maybe in Biden’s second term, he could appoint Pressman as ambassador to Florida.

    Zing! Snuck that one in at the end, didn’t you, BC? Kudos!!

  11. 11.

    frosty

    @HumboldtBlue: ​
     HBD to Linda: the singer my friend and I (over the top fans) dubbed Our Lady Of The Voice. Saw her at the Troubadour and the Palomino Club and a couple of other places around LA before she hit the stadium circuit.

  13. 13.

    Betty Cracker

    @HumboldtBlue: I grew up listening to her music because my mom was a huge fan, and now I am too. Saw a documentary a while back on Ronstadt’s work with groups that teach traditional Mexican music and dance to San Fran area kids. She’s a legend.

  14. 14.

    trollhattan

    Repeating from the caboose of the old thread.

    Rep. Katie Porter narrowly leads the wide open race for California’s Senate seat, a new poll reported Friday. Porter, D-Orange County, was the choice of 19% of likely voters, just ahead of Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Los Angeles, at 16% and Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Oakland, at 13%, a June survey by the Public Policy Institute of California found.
    The other voter preferences were scattered among several candidates, topped by Republican Eric Early at 7%. Six percent were undecided.
    PPIC also found in a June poll that in the race for the White House, 50% of the state’s likely Republican voters support former President Donald Trump. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis trailed with 24%, followed by former Vice President Mike Pence at 6%. In the general election, President Joe Biden would trounce Trump in California, 57% to 31%. Biden beat Trump in the state 63.5% to 34% in 2020.
    The Senate survey, conducted last month, showed the race remains highly competitive. The three Democrats are vying to succeed veteran Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who plans to retire when her term ends in January 2025. The top two finishers in the March 2024 primary will compete for the seat in November. Among Republican candidates, six are each receiving 10% of the vote. “It seems most likely that two Democrats will make the top two,” said Mark Baldassare, PPIC statewide survey director, in a blog post.
    The contest between Porter, Schiff and Lee is expected to remain in a tight. Their voting records are similar and each is regarded as having a strong base of support. The PPIC results were similar to a May Berkeley-IGS poll that found Porter also with a slight lead over Schiff and Lee. The poll analysis noted that “the race remains a wide open affair.”
    Porter’s campaign reported raising $3.2 million in the second quarter of the year and enters the summer with $10.4 million on hand. Lee, who is regarded as a favorite of grassroots progressives, raised about $1 million in the second quarter. Schiff’s campaign outraised them both, hauling in $8.1 million during the spring quarter. He had $29.5 million on hand.
    Schiff was in the news when the PPIC poll was taken. The Republican-controlled House voted June 21 to censure him for his role in investigations of Trump. Schiff called the action a “badge of honor”.

    Link

  15. 15.

    Mike in NC

    So Hungary is now the Floriduh of Central Europe?

    Interesting to note that we toured Budapest in 2010 during a Danube cruise, and one of the places we saw was the biggest synagogue in Europe. How much business it sees these days is questionable, since Hungary’s Jews were targeted for elimination in late 1944 and early 1945. There’s a memorial to them in the form of a bunch of shoes along the riverbank.

  17. 17.

    trollhattan

    @Betty Cracker: It’s so sad and ironic she lost her instrument–that unique and lovely voice. Parkinson’s is hell.

    Some of her recordings are simply timeless, and her body of work has few equals. I mean, who covers Roy Orbison and pulls it off?

  20. 20.

    Betty Cracker

    @Mike in NC: To be fair to Orbán, Florida under DeSantis is copying Hungary, not the other way around.

    I was in Budapest about 15 years prior to your visit. It’s a beautiful city, but I found the overall vibe deeply weird.

  21. 21.

    UncleEbeneezer

    Just stopped at my favorite breakfast burrito place on my way home from work and the nice lady who runs it asked about the book I had with me.  It’s titled Tell Me I’m Worthless by Alison Rumfitt and as I told her as simply as possible it’s sort of like the movie Get Out only instead of Racism being the big monster underlying everything, in this book it is Transphobia.  I’m really enjoying it so far, though I hear it goes to some incredibly dark and explicit places so major trigger warnings, but according to many of the reviews I read, it does a great job of portraying the very real terror of navigating the world as a Trans/NB person and is also still very engaging and at times fun etc.

    Anyways, after I told her what it was about I paused to start prepping myself mentally in case the woman turned out to be Conservative or responded problematically…but fortunately she was like “Oh that sounds great.  I have a friend who was a Transgender child and they are so supportive and all this shit happening now is just so cruel and terrible…”  I was very glad to hear it, because I always liked this lady and would’ve been really sad if she had said some f*ck-sh*t.  And then I  would’ve never gone there again.

  22. 22.

    Andrew Abshier

    Back when South Africa had the apartheid government, Presidents of both parties made it a point to name black diplomats to the ambassador post in Pretoria.   An openly gay ambassador in Orban’s Hungary has the same energy.  It sounds like Mr. Pressman is rolling with the punches and keeping his head up.  That is setting a good example.

  24. 24.

    Betty Cracker

    @trollhattan: It is. She did an interview about losing her ability to sing some years back  — I think with Terry Gross? She (Ronstadt) is so humble about her talent. She knew something was wrong but doctors didn’t believe her at first.

  26. 26.

    Kathleen

    @Betty Cracker: I highly recommend her memoir Simple Dreams. She’s an elegant and eloquent writer. Not a gossip filled tell all either, though she does share in incident involving her friends and Jim Morrison. I think she included it because of what he did to her friends.

  29. 29.

    Miss Bianca

    @trollhattan: Hoping for Schiff or Lee to pull it out over Porter – her district seems kind of iffy for Dems, and we need all the Dems in the House we can get.

  37. 37.

    Professor Bigfoot

    @West of the Rockies:  I get serious “Wade Hampton” and “Nathan Bedford Forrest” vibes from Tuberville.

    And I notice, though he MUST have coached Black players, NONE have stepped up to defend him in any way.

  38. 38.

    Alison Rose

    Adam may have this in the update tonight, but I love this photo of Zelenskyy and Zelenska(*) with the President and First Lady of South Korea in the Saint Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv. What a stunning place!

    (*Since the nomenclature in Ukraine uses different last name endings for men and women, can you still pluralize a couple with the man’s name, e.g. the Zelenskyys? I don’t want to say “Zelenskyy and his wife” like she’s no one because she’s awesome, or to say “…and Olena” because that type of phrasing always bugs me. Yes, I am overthinking this. It’s my forté.)

  39. 39.

    BR

    @trollhattan: ​
    As Brachiator said, I think I’m going to go with the youngest candidate here. I’ve been lucky to have had multiple of the Dem candidates for senate as representatives, and they’re all excellent. But the Dem senate needs to pass the generational torch.

  40. 40.

    Mike in Pasadena

    @Mike in NC: It is not only one of the biggest, it’s one of the most innovatively decorated and furnished (if we’re talking about the same synagogue). American movie stars, I think Tony Curtis or others donated heavily to its restoration. A beautiful building inside and out.

  41. 41.

    BR

    @Baud: ​
    I don’t think we need to force Porter to keep that seat for the rest of her life — she’s far more valuable in the senate, and there’s value in developing a bench (and there is one already) in OC.

  42. 42.

    jonas

    @Betty Cracker: I’ll always appreciate Ronstadt’s cameo on The Simpsons way back in the day when she cuts a commercial — with a jingle in Spanish, natch — for Barney’s snowplow business, which is competing with Homer’s (“Mr. Plow”). When the barflies are impressed that Barney was able to get Linda Ronstadt to appear with him, he replies, “Oh, we’ve been looking for a project to do together for a while…”

  43. 43.

    JWR

    I read a Politico story about Ramaswamy at the Tucker Confab, and I found this bit a bit curious?

    Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy blamed censorship for motivating rioters to storm the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, rejecting the idea that former President Donald Trump’s false rhetoric about a stolen election caused the violence.

    In conversation with former Fox News anchor Tucker Carlson at the Family Leadership Summit on Friday afternoon, Ramaswamy reasoned that big tech platforms’ moderation of news about Hunter Biden’s laptop in 2020 and perceived government overreach around vaccines and stay-at-home mandates during the pandemic prevented people from accessing truth.

  44. 44.

    Dan B

    @Andrew Abshier: I looked up Pressman’s bio and it is very impressive.  He riles up their conservative media.  They claim he is stupid but his academic credentials alone refute that claim.

  45. 45.

    Martin

    @Miss Bianca: Yes, our district is pretty iffy for Dems.

    I’m not asking that Katie be our rep forever, but I don’t think Katie will beat Barbara Lee (Gavin’s preference) or Schiff (who I think national Dems are going to back). If I thought she was likely to win, then yeah – go for it.

    One problem is that the district is VERY recently turning blue, so we don’t really have a deep bench to work from. We just got a majority with the county supervisors, we have a few cities with Dem control – but they aren’t household names, and frankly there’s more than a few scandals running around that are anchors on many of these candidates. My guess is the district Dem is not going to be a local political name, but someone like Katie, who was plucked out of the university, that sort of thing.

  46. 46.

    laura

    @Miss Bianca: I’m 100% Barbara Lee in the primary and Schiff in the general election. Work horse over show pony any/every day of the week. If Katie Porter had a record of legislative acheivement anywhere near that of Lauren Underwood, I’d be ride or die for her, but the beclowning by reading or being seen with a copy of the gentle art of not giving and fuck while seated in the House and the support for Nina Turner turned me All the way off.

  48. 48.

    BR

    @laura: ​
    Lee would be my pick if she were younger. She was my representative for many years and she was great in every way. But sadly I can’t justify voting to replace Feinstein with someone in their 70s.

    I used to be neutral between Schiff and Porter but Schiff’s very surveillance-friendly views have turned me off to him — there’s no need for him, in his district, to be all-in on the sort of thing that Northern Virginia Dems would have to support.

  49. 49.

    Brachiator

    @Dan B:

    I did a quick look at Wikipedia and agree that Pressman has an impressive record and background.

    As a side note, Pressman has worked with actor George Clooney on some projects. Clooney has a legitimate background with respect to humanitarian projects. I didn’t know this.

  52. 52.

    Betty Cracker

    @trollhattan: I’m surprised — thought I’d heard Schiff was well ahead. I like Lee, Porter and Schiff, but if I were a Californian, I’d probably vote for Porter.

  53. 53.

    Redshift

    @p.a.:

    Hungary as a NATO member is problematic. IDK how much Orban can or wants to align himself with PootyPoot’s “savior of white cis christopath civilization” schtick.

    From what I understand, Orban’s fascism isn’t really inspired by or dependent on Putin (though he’s certainly pro-Putin.) Which is better in some ways, but also means it’s unlikely to collapse if Putin goes down.

  54. 54.

    trollhattan

    @Betty Cracker: Glad we’re well out from the primary and I don’t need to think hard on it. Unless something happens to DiFi, and then Newsom’s choice becomes fraught.

    I envision Schiff eventually having her former Judiciary Committee seat with relish, so probably where I lean.

  55. 55.

    Brachiator

    @trollhattan:

    The contest between Porter, Schiff and Lee is expected to remain in a tight. Their voting records are similar and each is regarded as having a strong base of support. The PPIC results were similar to a May Berkeley-IGS poll that found Porter also with a slight lead over Schiff and Lee. The poll analysis noted that “the race remains a wide open affair.”

    I might vote for the youngest candidate.

    Except for incumbents, I think that 77 should be the retirement age for elective officials.

  56. 56.

    Martin

    So, I’m not optimistic about Katie winning the Senate race, but the two things I think she has a big advantage with are:

    1. California has a lot of young voters, and she’s much better at reaching them than Lee and Schiff. That may not help her in the primaries because we’re not picking a Democratic presidential candidate, but I think it will in the general *provided* that Democrats can help motivate young people to vote for Biden a 2nd time (the GOP seems to be doing a good job of that with their top two candidates).
    2. I’ve never heard Lee or Schiff speak in an impassioned way about topics like climate change. They are both good on the topic (they’re great candidates) but I think Katie is going to appear to be the more dynamic candidate. If you believe that certain things are urgent – existential, etc. such as abortion rights and climate change and so on, then I believe there is a benefit to the candidate that can kind of thunder about the topic. There’s a point at which being the calm statesman kind of works against you. Schiff doesn’t really *do* animated. Barbara does but she’s almost 2 generations removed – so it’s reaching a different audience.

    And I think whether its right or not, going into an election where Biden’s age will unavoidably be part of the campaign, and replacing a Senator that is definitely impaired by age, youth may play stronger in this campaign than perhaps it should.

    I’m not unbiased in this despite my efforts to be – I knew Katie before she ran for office. And I’ve made my position here very clear that I’m a very strong advocate for younger elected officials – like as young as Constitutionally allowed. My preference would be to keep Katie as my Rep because I do like both Schiff and Lee quite a lot, and she’s the safest option to keeping this seat.

    But I think our community here also has a bias against youth, about the potential for young voters, about how to reach young voters, and I would advocate for folks here to take the effort to step out of their bubble and explore how younger generations are experiencing the world – because they are having a VERY rough time of it, and not getting a lot of institutional support, so their political views are getting increasingly radical due to a lack of action and even recognition of the things that concern them.

  58. 58.

    Brachiator

    @HumboldtBlue:

    It’s Linda Ronstadt’s birthday.

    I always thought that it was cool that she and former governor Jerry Brown.

    I admired her work for a long time, but took a few years to truly appreciate how great she was.

    She is approaching National Treasure status with me, almost up there with Dolly Parton.

  59. 59.

    Jeffro

    @HumboldtBlue:

    @Betty Cracker:

    @jonas:

    The first time I heard of her was when I was reading the album liner notes* to Graceland by Paul Simon.  She sings on “Under African Skies.”

    LOVE that album!

    *now I’m going to go bug one of my kids and let them know that back in my day, there used to be these things called ‘liner notes’…

  60. 60.

    Baud

    @Martin:

    I don’t have a dog in the California race as long as a Dem wins the general. My bias is in favor of winners.

  62. 62.

    trollhattan

    @Martin: ​
    Strictly from electability, the Dem will win the general, or a Dem will win the general if two emerge from the primary.

    With Trump on the ballot I am not the least worried about November ’24 turnout.

  63. 63.

    The Kropenhagen Interpretation

    @Baud: I don’t have a dog in the California race

    Me neither, but that hasn’t stopped Adam Schiff from texting me three times daily.  😩

  65. 65.

    trollhattan

    @JWR: Pretty funny so many Jan 6 convictions have been because they wouldn’t shut their treasonous yaps. Censorship after the fact?

  66. 66.

    Another Scott

    @Martin: @Baud: @Jeffro:

    I think we should invite them all to debate on a Zoom meeting on B-J.  :-)

    Seriously though, they’re all very good.  None of them are perfect, of course (e.g. it was great that Schiff was here to talk about his book, but I really didn’t understand his being in the press about (roughly) “Garland’s DOJ isn’t doing anything about January 6” for so long.  :-/ )

    I assume there will be debates.  I assume those will be interesting (depending on the questions, of course).

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  67. 67.

    Martin

    @Baud: Yeah. The safe holistic electoral strategy is to keep her in the house.

    But she’s surprisingly good at this. When she and Dave Min announced they were running, I had a really hard time seeing Katie do well at this relative to Dave. She doesn’t fit the stereotype well. I wasn’t sure how good she’d be fundraising (she’s pretty damn good at it).   And she knows how to reach voters. There are a lot of moms my age I know that are VERY active campaigners for her. She found her army.

  69. 69.

    Baud

    @Martin:

    That’s great to hear. Almost wish she wasn’t in California but in a purpley state.

    ETA: In a less blue state, the risk with candidates with a passionate army is that they get dejected if their candidate doesn’t make the general.

  70. 70.

    Martin

    @trollhattan: I’m not either. I think Katie’s prospects come down to who turns out for the primary. If CAs dem primary is a snoozer, her voters aren’t the ones who are most inclined to vote in the primary. I think Barbara’s are. But yeah, there’s zero scenario where the CA senate isn’t won by a Democrat.

    The issue is the effect on the House. Dems safely hold Lee and Schiff’s seats. Dems don’t safely hold mine.

  71. 71.

    Miss Bianca

    @Martin:

    @laura:

    Yeah, I find her grandstanding stunts a bit tiresome, myself, and while I don’t wish to “keep her there for the rest of her life,” I do find myself thinking this is like, what, her second House term? In a Dem-iffy District? Frankly, she’s more valuable where she is right now in that case, and there are other/better candidates for the Senate seat.

    But it ain’t my decision to make.

  72. 72.

    BeautifulPlumage

    @Dan B: Hi Dan B! I was thinking of you when miss Cleo Marie stretched out on a ledge I placed near the porch. Like your rockery ledges, it got the kitty stamp of approval, and it feels good. Cheers!

  73. 73.

    The Kropenhagen Interpretation

    @Baud: I wonder how they decide who texts whom.  I assume Katie Porter has access to the same voter lists that Adam Schiff does.

  74. 74.

    BeautifulPlumage

    OT: for you day people, Cole put a bleg in a post last nighthere and I’m headed over to pitch in a bit.

  77. 77.

    mrmoshpotato

    @trollhattan:

    Pretty funny so many Jan 6 convictions have been because they wouldn’t shut their treasonous yaps. Censorship after the fact? 

    Don’t forget that a bunch of Trump trash recorded themselves committing crimes.

    Dumbfucks!

  78. 78.

    Fair Economist

    I’d be game for a Porter vs. Schiff general. I think Porter would have the advantage in that general because of how savagely the Republicans have demonized the excellent Schiff. My pick of the 3 is Porter, but they’re all really good. It’s a pity all three will leave the House next year.

  80. 80.

    Maxim

    There are some definite Porter not-fans among the blue voters I know, but they’re probably well outnumbered by those who like her. I prefer Schiff on the substance, especially regarding succeeding Feinstein on Judiciary, plus I worry that Katie’s district is not necessarily safely blue yet. Barbara Lee is great, but age really is an issue. Of course I will vote for whoever wins the primary.

  81. 81.

    The Kropenhagen Interpretation

    @mrmoshpotato: Trump supporters have fallen victim to the supposition that “if you crime on camera, it’s not a crime” because that’s how their god-king operates.

    They then failed to notice he’s actually getting special treatment because, despite this, he constantly cries “victim.”

  83. 83.

    Martin

    @Baud: The army doesn’t have that energy. I think that candidate is usually an ‘anti the opponent’ army, but this is more of a ‘she’s one of us’ vibe. Katie is not putting on an act – the minivan and kids in tow really is who she is and a lot of women identify with that in a way that they don’t always get to see in candidates for public office.

    I think a lot of that is generational where the pre-internet generations are more guarded about how they present to others. I think Republicans have been a bit better about pulling that off with the whole gun rack in the pickup bullshit (in the few cases where it’s authentic – not in the Ted Cruz way) where Democrats still feel pretty compelled to wear that tie. I mean, you know Adam Schiff is wearing that suit to the gym. I think that’s part of why John Fetterman did so well, and why if you ask a lot of young people if they know who AOC is they would answer ‘oh, she’s the congresswoman who plays Among Us’. She doesn’t win because of legislation she passed, she wins because she’s one of them.

  84. 84.

    The Kropenhagen Interpretation

    @Baud: I have not donated to Adam Schiff or, for that matter; Katie Hobbs, Diamond Stanton Williams, Arkansas Venkat, or any of the solicitors on my phone. Here is my lifetime list of political donations.

    Howard Dean

    Carol Mosely Braun

    Dennis Kucinich

    Barack Obama

    Hillary Clinton

    MA Yes on 2 (2020)

    Act Blue local funds etc up by balloon juice

  86. 86.

    Suzanne

    @Martin: California’s Senate seat is a great spot for the leftiest Dem we can get through a primary. The purple states elect the Bob Caseys.

  87. 87.

    The Kropenhagen Interpretation

    @Baud: The list was basically chronological. Dean, Braun, and Kucinich I gave to as a group.

  88. 88.

    trollhattan

    @Baud: ​
    DiFi won the last time against a Dem. Newsom, surprisingly, had a Republican opponent for both of his governor runs. You’re permitted to ask “who?!?” I refuse to discuss the idiotic ecall-ray.

  89. 89.

    Kathleen

    @Miss Bianca: I support candidates outside of Ohio but I will never send her any money. She endorsed Nina Turner and anyone who endorsed Turner is on my No Donate list.

  90. 90.

    Baud

    @Martin:

    That’s sounds right about the generational divide.

    Part of it may be that older Dems feel the need to manage different factions, so they take on a more socially neutral affect rather than “identify” with any one group.

    Of course, part of it is that young people are always generally less stuffy.

  94. 94.

    Betty Cracker

    @Martin: Couldn’t agree more with your last paragraph. I’m an old fart, but my 24-year-old gives me insight into a perspective that is way outside my direct experience.

  95. 95.

    Baud

    @Kathleen:

    Since I don’t feel passionate on any of them, and California is a safe state, I would never even consider sending money there.

  96. 96.

    The Kropenhagen Interpretation

    @Baud: Hey, that was my first Presidential election. Even then, way back in 04, I knew RFK Jr. was a jackass.

    I believe I concluded this due to an interview with Bill Maher, also a jackass.

  97. 97.

    BeautifulPlumage

    OT: to JRinWV….good to see your comment yesterday and to hear you’re feeling pretty good after the chemo. Enjoy the hummingbirds and best wishes for the next step!

  98. 98.

    Martin

    @trollhattan: I’m not really hooked into how the party is finding a candidate here, and I think her plan for the primary is to have the better media strategy (which I wouldn’t bet against) and to keep leaning into the ‘I’ll fight the system’ strategy she’s had, which I think plays really well for CA dems. That’s kind of what Gavin does as well.

  102. 102.

    Miss Bianca

    @Baud: You know, it is amazing to me how many guys who passed themselves off as super-lefty populists have swung so hard in the opposite direction. Kucinich being a case in point.

    Was it Obama? Did a black man in the White House break as many ‘lefty’ brains as it did right-wingers’? Does it come down to “there is no right-wing or left-wing in America anymore, there’s White Wing and everything else”?

  103. 103.

    Baud

    @Miss Bianca:

    It is amazing, and probably due to a complex set of factors.

    It occured to me the other day that early modern liberalism (FDR to Ted Kennedy in 1980) was led by educated white males.  And maybe a lot of them have had trouble making the transition to a more diverse liberalism akin to the way the GOP base can’t handle modern America.

  105. 105.

    trollhattan

    @Miss Bianca: ​
    Good question and IDK, but I sure got sick of Cornel West showing up on Maher to bitch about how Obama had forgotten his roots and instead spent his time presidenting for the entire nation. And now he’s running? Give me a break.

  106. 106.

    SteveinPHX

    @Betty Cracker:

     
    Post triggered a memory from early 1970’s. I had a large poster photograph of Linda hanging on my office wall right over my desk where I worked at a large US Army R&D facility. Don’t think I would get away with that these days.
    Always loved her singing.
    Thanx!

  109. 109.

    Alison Rose

    @trollhattan: One of my favorite local news headlines was in June 2022, after the primary where Dahle ended up as Newsom’s opponent in the general. SFGate’s headline was “California Republicans Send Latest Sacrifice to Gavin Newsom”. Accurate.

  110. 110.

    StringOnAStick

    @Betty Cracker: I was in Budapest 11 years, and also found the vibe to be deeply weird.  We saw pro Serbian graffiti on bridge abutments at a time when the war crimes tribunals of their leaders was very much in the news.

  116. 116.

    The Kropenhagen Interpretation

    @Baud: I was actually into Wesley Clark in 2004.

    I can see that.  I don’t remember anything he said or proposed, but my emotional memory is coming back with “affable, acceptable.”

    My only true enemy that campaign season was the news media. I hadn’t yet gotten used to the idea that the media can put their thumb on the scale for an election so significantly.

    Soured me so much on the process I refused to vote for John Kerry. In fact, I don’t think I voted for a single Democrat above state rep that year

    Eta: To justify this to myself, I created what I called the “Missouri rule.” As in, if I lived in even a remotely purple state, I’d vote strategically. In Mass I got free protest votes.

    Michigan 2016 kind of put me off that notion. I voted for Hillary (even donated) but point was Michigan was a state where I would have felt safe protest voting.

  118. 118.

    Miss Bianca

    @Baud: I think you’re right. I hope Dems just keep on proudly diversifying.

    (this is part of what makes me so crazy about the “Biden’s so OLD” crap – so much of it seems driven by the fear/loathing of Kamala Harris).

  121. 121.

    Baud

    @The Kropenhagen Interpretation:

    As in, if I lived in even a remotely purple state, I’d vote strategically. In Mass I got free protest votes.

     

    IMHO that’s one of those things that works in theory rather in practice. I just don’t think enough people who live in purple states are willing to accept the unique burden that entails.

  123. 123.

    Dan B

    OT in Musk-rat news.  Andrew Tate of criminal misogyny fame has been paid $20,000 by Musk-rat to post on Twitter.  There are other fascists being paid as well.

  127. 127.

    Hoodie

    @Baud: in that vein, maybe has something to do with ability to get attention. These are guys who want to be bleeding edge, but a lot of that space has been co-opted by more diverse pols like AOC who tend to be more authentic. You go on things like Bill Maher because no one else pays attention to you, and you know what Maher’s audience wants.

  128. 128.

    Dan B

    @Baud:  I’m shocked!  Totallyshocked!!  When do Kim Jong Un, Putin, and Modi start posting on the regular?

  129. 129.

    The Kropenhagen Interpretation

    @Baud: And you’re absolutely right. But, again, I was young and really very set on justifying a vote against John Kerry.

    Now don’t get me wrong; Bush’s reelection victory remains the most devastated I’ve been over any election result by a wide margin.

  130. 130.

    NotMax

    @Dan B

    WaPo link.

    On Thursday, Twitter announced that it would begin sharing ad revenue with content creators on its platform for the first time. But the offer won’t apply to all creators.

    The first beneficiaries appear to be high-profile far-right influencers who tweeted before the announcement how much they’ve earned as part of the program. Ian Miles Cheong, Benny Johnson and Ashley St. Clair all touted their earnings.
    Tech is not your friend. We are. Sign up for The Tech Friend newsletter.

    “Wow. Elon Musk wasn’t kidding. Content monetization is real,” tweeted an anonymous account called End Wokeness, with 1.4 million followers, accompanied by a screenshot showing earnings of over $10,400.

    So far, many of the influencers who have publicly revealed that they’re part of the program are prominent figures on the right. Andrew Tate, for example, who was recently released from jail on rape and human trafficking charges, posted that he’d been paid over $20,000 by Twitter.
    [snip]
    The program is available only in countries where Stripe, a payment platform, supports payouts, and recipients must pay for Twitter Blue, the platform’s monthly subscription service, to be eligible.

    Not all creators who want to monetize will be able to. Creators who apply to the program will have to pass “human review,” and there is currently no open application for those interested in joining. Source

  132. 132.

    The Kropenhagen Interpretation

    @Dan B: I subscribed to Twitter for the first time a month ago. Ever since, they have been pushing right wing nonsense to the top of my feed no matter how much I block.

    For the record, I only follow porn related accounts on Twitter.

  134. 134.

    Martin

    @Baud: Exactly. I think a lot of older Dems are afraid of how to present themselves. Republicans wrap themselves in the flag and shoot shit as a way to signal their ‘real American’ nature, but black Dems don’t want to present as TOO black, and gay Dems don’t want to present as TOO gay, and so on. I think there’s a lot of ‘be afraid of who you are’ in the Democratic Party.

    Katie is a single mom with kids with all of the baggage that comes with that, which is what you get. Fetterman is this oversized dork that doesn’t blend into a cocktail party but genuinely cares about people, and that’s what you get. And AOC is this borderline millennial/zoomer that does normal young people Instagram stuff and plays video games, and that’s what you get.

    And I think that’s one big generational difference – young voters have little tolerance for people who are overly guarded about who they are – if you can’t self cringe you shouldn’t be trusted. They can see through that shit, and if they never see your authentic self because you’re too afraid to look at your authentic self, they do not trust you.

  135. 135.

    The Kropenhagen Interpretation

    @Miss Bianca: He voted for the Iraq War. And our vile news media seemed hell bent on propping him up as the nominee.

    ETA: I also voted against Ted Kennedy that year for blocking renewable energy projects and against Stephen Lynch for having priorities all out of whack (his main focus at the time being steroids in baseball).

  136. 136.

    Baud

    @Martin:

    Well, I would emphasize the fear less. I think older Dems actually have a different disposition than younger Dems. I don’t get the sense that there’s some secret Biden that much different than the Biden we see, but the real Biden is simply going to be different than the real AOC.

    I also question whether any generation is really less fearful about how they present themselves.  They are simply less fearful about different things.

  137. 137.

    schrodingers_cat

    @Baud: Same here. I find that white board and hectoring questioning, annoying. Don’t have anything against Lee or Schiff

    Although I was not too happy when Schiff joined the pile on against Merrick Garland. Do something, do something.

  138. 138.

    Martin

    @Alison Rose: Yeah, every time someone gets concerned about California Republicans I challenge them to name the Republican candidate for governor – in a race we voted on barely 6 months ago. Nobody has ever remembered his name. Not once. And I’ve asked easily over 100 people this – including a lot of Republicans a month after the election. It’s like the (R) is a horcrux that causes the individual to forget the 3 words that immediately preceded it within 24 hours.

  140. 140.

    Geminid

    No love for Rahm Emanuel, Ambassador to Japan?

    [ducks flying brickbats]

    I guess not. But Emanuel has been a vocal advocate for same-sex marriage in culturally conservative Japan.

    I discovered that former Senator Jeff Flake is Ambassador to Turkiye back in February, when I read about him greeting the US destroyer Nitze as it made a port call in Istanbul. Then I read that Flake pissed off Turkiye’s President by meeting with opposition challenger Kilicdaroglu.

    But the cranky Erdogan is always mad at someone. He probably lets his new Foreign Minister, Hakan Fidan, deal with Flake. Fidan is one of Erdogan’s most trusted associates, and looks like he could have been an NFL tight end; I was interested to see that Fidan’s father is a Kurd.

  141. 141.

    Ruckus

    @Alison Rose:

    Don’t underestimate yourself….

    Besides most of us only think we have a lot…. The reality is often less, even if we would never admit it…..

  142. 142.

    CarolPW

    @Geminid: Flake was crucial in quickly getting American aid (people, equipment and supplies) to the earthquake-stricken areas in Turkiye. Cut through a lot of US red tape to get stuff moving. I was surprised at how good a job he has done there.

  143. 143.

    Heidi Mom

    @Suzanne: There’s only one Bob Casey, and I’m proud to claim him as our senior Senator.  He’s a solid Democratic vote and a  decent human being.  And no one needs to take my word for it–they can take Barack Obama’s.  In his memoir A Promised Land, Obama noted that Casey had decided to endorse him but hadn’t yet made the announcement when Rev. Wright made his “God damn America” speech.  In case the resulting outrage put Casey in a difficult position, Obama offered to free him from his commitment but Casey declined, and “then backed up his endorsement with decency and courage, campaigning by my side for more than a week, up and down Pennsylvania.”  There are Democratic Senators whose re-election we need to worry about next year, but Casey isn’t one of them. 

  145. 145.

    Geminid

    @CarolPW: Ambassador to Turkiye is an important  post, and a tricky one. I was aware that US-Turkiye relations have been strained, but I’ve only recently paid enough attention to find out why. A lot is due to follow-on effects from George Bush’s disastrous Iraq war. The region has yet to get past the instability it caused.

    Regarding Turkiye’s terrible earthquake in February: London based Middle East Eye does a lot of good reporting on Turkiye, and last month they published a long article about the earthquake and its aftermath. Key points included:

    1) Turkiye’s frequent zoning amnesties allowed builders to put up high rise buildings on less stable soils. Also, building inspections are performed by private companies paid by the builders.

    2) Turkiye’s emergency response authority was hampered by a power grab by the Interior Minister, who had incorporated it into his ministry and appointed an inexperienced ally to lead it. Local officials had to take matters into their own hands, and the Army was not mobilized for almost two days. Plus, many of the local emergency response teams were themselves quake victims. When Erdogan selected his new cabinet last month, Interior Minister Soylu did not make the cut.

    One big factor was that plans and drills were designed for a magnitude 7.5 quake, and this one was a much more destructive 7.8 magnitude quake. The before and after pictures show appalling damage.

  146. 146.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @schrodingers_cat:

    Although I was not too happy when Schiff joined the pile on against Merrick Garland. Do something, do something.

    as a former prosecutor, a congressman and most of all as the lead manager of the first impeachment, he shouldn’t be encouraging the idea that prosecuting a former POTUS is simple.

    I don’t dislike Katie Porter, the white board schtick is, to me… fine. I don’t understand the level of fandom she inspires, and endorsing Nina Turner is just flat out stupid (and before anyone feels the need to ask, yes I feel the same about Raskin), and the book stunt during the McCarthy chaos was embarrassing.

  147. 147.

    CarolPW

    @Geminid: ​
     My main point was that Flake has been a suprisingly effective Ambassador. As an aside, using (in some cases any, and in others more) rebar in the masonry buildings that came down would have helped a lot, but the amnesties (and grift) affected that too.

  148. 148.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Martin:

    why if you ask a lot of young people if they know who AOC is they would answer ‘oh, she’s the congresswoman who plays Among Us’. She doesn’t win because of legislation she passed, she wins because she’s one of them.

    also because she lives and runs in a D+20-something district

  150. 150.

    Geminid

    @CarolPW: I’m glad Jeff Flake has that job. I don’t hear about him that often, but one measure of the effectiveness of a diplomat in such a challenging post is the problems we don’t hear about because they were avoided.

    You might find the Middle East Eye article reviewing the earthquake and the response interesting. It’s by Istanbul bureau chief Ragip Soylu and is titled “What went wrong with Turkey’s earthquake response,” March 6, 2023.

    I started paying attention to Turkiye because of its role in the war in Ukraine.  I’ve since become fascinated by the Turkish Republic’s history and its current role in the region, as well as its domestic politics. I have never traveled to another country besides Canada, but I would like to visit Istanbul some day.

  151. 151.

    Geminid

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: Well, at least Representatives Raskin and Porter did not endorse Turner in her rematch with Shontelle Brown. So I have included them in the Geminid Political Amnesty Program.

  152. 152.

    pluky

    @Betty Cracker: I listened to that interview. There was a bit where she (Ronstadt) talked about singing a little duet with one of her nieces (IIRC). When told she sounded great, Ronstadt replied something along the lines of “not really”. My guess is she can still sing better than 99.9% of people on the planet, but that last 0.1% is to her a deal breaker.

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