Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

I’d hate to be the candidate who lost to this guy.

“The defense has a certain level of trust in defendant that the government does not.”

How stupid are these people?

Our job is not to persuade republicans but to defeat them.

If rights aren’t universal, they are privilege, not rights.

One way or another, he’s a liar.

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

Let’s not be the monsters we hate.

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

No one could have predicted…

Text STOP to opt out of updates on war plans.

“What are Republicans afraid of?” Everything.

Tick tock motherfuckers!

Never entrust democracy to any process that requires Republicans to act in good faith.

Today in our ongoing national embarrassment…

Balloon Juice, where there is always someone who will say you’re doing it wrong.

fuckem (in honor of the late great efgoldman)

The republican caucus is covering themselves with something, and it is not glory.

Democracy cannot function without a free press.

The Supreme Court cannot be allowed to become the ultimate, unaccountable arbiter of everything.

“Loving your country does not mean lying about its history.”

I like political parties that aren’t owned by foreign adversaries.

The low info voters probably won’t even notice or remember by their next lap around the goldfish bowl.

Teach a man to fish, and he’ll sit in a boat all day drinking beer.

You are here: Home / Politics / Republican Politics / Repub Stupidity Open Thread: Update on the GOP Speaker Parade

Repub Stupidity Open Thread: Update on the GOP Speaker Parade

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It’ll be a while before the white smoke rises. Per the NYTimes [unpaywalled gift link]:

… House Republicans are expected to meet on Monday evening to hold a candidate forum for aspiring speaker nominees to present their visions for the conference.

They plan to hold an internal election for a new nominee on Tuesday — and if they elect one, Republicans could go to the House floor for a vote that same day.

But because nine Republicans are running for the job, that internal election may take longer than usual. Conference rules mandate that the party nominee must capture a simple majority of votes. If no one captures a majority on the first ballot, the candidate who received the fewest votes will be kicked off the second ballot and lawmakers will vote again. That process will continue until there is a nominee…

Could Republicans form a coalition with Democrats?
The 212 Democrats in the House are expected to continue to vote as a united bloc for Representative Hakeem Jeffries of New York, the minority leader.

Mr. Jeffries has pitched the idea of forming a coalition government that he describes as an “enlightened arrangement.” But the idea is a long shot. And given that he has more votes than any Republican seeking the speakership, it is highly unlikely that Mr. Jeffries would agree to cede to a G.O.P. candidate without substantial concessions.

Mr. Jeffries said Democrats would team with Republicans to elect a speaker only if they agreed to change House rules to allow “governance by consensus” — in other words, allowing bills with bipartisan support to come to the floor. The Rules Committee, which determines what legislation gets a vote, is now structured so Republicans are in complete control of what bills the House considers. That means Democratic priorities are almost always blocked, and the hard right effectively has veto power on what is considered and what is not.

Mr. Jeffries said on Oct. 15 that “there are informal conversations that have been underway,” but he has since declined to offer any details about what a power-sharing agreement would look like…


 
In the Washington Post, “Here are the nine Republicans running for House speaker” [unpaywalled gift link]:

… All Republicans interested in running for House speaker had to announce their candidacy by noon Sunday to the office of Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), who chairs the House Republican Conference. Stefanik’s office will run the internal meetings in which the GOP lawmakers are expected to choose their next nominee. Democrats, meanwhile, are widely expected to continue nominating and voting for House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.)…

Out of the nine Republicans running, only two voted to certify the results of the 2020 election, and only two have been in Congress for over a decade.

Notably, all nine are members of the conservative Republican Study Committee — one of five of the GOP’s ideological caucuses and, historically, the largest.

Rep. Tom Emmer (Minn.)
Rep. Kevin Hern (Okla.)
Rep. Pete Sessions (Tex.)
Rep. Austin Scott (Ga.)
Rep. Byron Donalds (Fla.)
Rep. Jack Bergman (Mich.)
Rep. Mike Johnson (La.)
Rep. Dan Meuser (Pa.)
Rep. Gary Palmer (Ala.)…

Much more information on all nine at the link.

From what I’m seeing, Emmer seems to be the consensus choice at the moment, but we’ve all found out how fluid a GOP ‘consensus’ can be.

I personally wouldn’t trust any one of them to housesit, but my opinion was not solicited.

(Also, I fully expect Elise Stefanik to pull some Lady Macbeth-level stunting while she’s got the media’s full attention, so be prepared with your choice of adult beverage… )

Roll Call, for what it’s worth:

… The exact timing of a vote in the chamber is unclear: Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick T. McHenry, R-N.C., told reporters Friday that his goal was to have a candidate on the floor Tuesday and elect a speaker by the end of the week. The nine contenders will meet with Republican colleagues behind closed doors Monday night to make their pitches ahead of a closed conference vote to pick a nominee Tuesday morning…

Generally, the nine candidates have been reliable supporters of the party’s position on legislation, with their average annual CQ Roll Call party unity scores ranging from 94 percent to 99 percent. The score measures how often a member votes with their party’s majority when majorities of the two parties are on opposite sides.

The scores cover the member’s entire congressional career, with the longest-serving candidate, Sessions, going back to the 1990s.

One issue that cost Jordan support last week was his role in trying to overturn the results of President Donald Trump’s defeat in the 2020 election. Of the nine candidates seeking the gavel, all voted to reject electors from Pennsylvania and Arizona in January 2021 except Emmer and Scott.

In 2020, Trump beat Joe Biden in all nine of the candidates’ districts, with his narrowest margin, 17.6 points, coming in Emmer’s 6th District in Minnesota and his largest, 36.5 points, coming in Meuser’s 9th District in central Pennsylvania…

Reader Interactions

157Comments

  1. 1.

    bjacques

    Open carry at the forum or GTFO.
    Whatever the outcome, we probably all win.

    EDIT: I remember from an old Ripley’s “Believe It Or Not” cartoon, that a Roman Senators, when he proposed a law, had to wear a noose around his neck.

    They should try that.

  2. 2.

    Sister Machine Gun of Quiet Harmony

    None of the 9 GOP candidates for Speaker will get 217. What will be next?

    None of the above is my guess until there is a shutdown. Once the pressure really starts to ramp up, we might see something change.

  3. 3.

    Butch

    Bergman is my representative.  As I said elsewhere, his record appears uncontaminated by any legislative accomplishments.

  4. 4.

    AM in NC

    Emmer and Scott (the only two who voted to certify the election) signed on to the lawsuit out of Texas to overturn electors so Trump could win regardless – so they are insurrectionists too. Wish the reporting were clear on that.

  5. 5.

    The Kropenhagen Interpretation

    I like the notion of supporting a Speaker across the aisle with rule changes to promote bipartisan consensus bills. Question is what is an easier lift? Five Republicans for Jeffries or a few dozen Democrats for whomever?

    Answer ought to be obvious, but…

  7. 7.

    Brachiator

    The WaPo link was very helpful. I was curious about who might be a pro Trump stooge, and who might be election deniers.

    Notably, all nine are members of the conservative Republican Study Committee

    This is also worrisome. Not a lot of political diversity here.

    No matter who the Republicans select, it will be bad for the country.

    Also, from where the GOP is right now, it’s clear that they are not interested in any compromise or deal with the Democrats.

  8. 8.

    Sister Golden Bear

    Meanwhile Bannon is urging the the cult to destroy Republican Whip Tom Emmer’s speaker bid.

    “If you take out Emmer, who’s the whip, in less than three weeks — the people, the populists, the MAGA, the deplorables — you have taken out basically 12 years of leadership. What they’ve worked on for 12 years as the cartel’s leadership apparatus. The first thing to do is to stop Emmer today. Once Emmer’s stopped — just want to repeat this — you have decapitated what they’ve invested, what the cartel, the lobbyists, the corporatists, Wall Street, they’ve invested over 12 years. This is their team. You, this audience, did that. Nobody else did that, you did this. You did this by the pressure campaign.”

    *inserts Godzilla “Let them fight” meme.

  9. 9.

    mrmoshpotato

    GOP Rep. McCaul on his party’s Speaker chaos: This is probably one of the most embarrassing things I’ve seen… We can’t govern

    Oh really?!

    Sincerely,

    The Democratic Party

  11. 11.

    dmsilev

    Ok, so one candidate getting a majority of the caucus votes will eventually happen, even if with N candidates it takes N-1 ballots. But what then? Steve Scalise won a majority of the caucus votes, and couldn’t even get his nomination to the floor. Gym Jordan won a majority of the caucus votes and deeply pissed off enough people (largely because of what he and his allies did to Scalise) that his floor votes suffered the death of a thousand cuts. How are they going to guarantee that whoever the caucus settles on this time gets 98% of the caucus to vote for them on the floor of the House?

    Until they answer that question, this is all just theater.

  12. 12.

    mrmoshpotato

    Tapper to GOP Rep. Turner: Do you guys have any idea how clownish you look?

    Jake, do you have any idea how you bastards acted in 2015-16?

  13. 13.

    Mr. Bemused Senior

    @WaterGirl: the chart you posted downstairs is illuminating.

    The longer this goes on the worse for the Rs. The country is paying a cost too, sure, but I think this is the best we can do [don’t save them]

  14. 14.

    Another Scott

    I can think of a few plausible scenarios.

    1. No Speaker this week, none the week of November 17.  Shutdown happens.  House GQP demands that Biden do something by Executive Order, Biden says, can’t do that, wouldn’t be prudent.  Days pass, pressure on GQP rises, they finally come up with a Speaker after a few days.
    2. Speaker soonish, but no consensus on getting rid of the 1 guy can MTV the Speaker.  Chaos continues, brief shutdown, but eventual CR.
    3. Speaker soonish, no progress on appropriations bills, still 1 guy can MTV the Speaker.  Eventual CR.  No budget.  January 1, 1% cuts start.  Chaos and screaming, but no progress.  Crazy GQPers declare victory.

    It’s still too early, IMHO. I don’t expect this to be resolved until November 17, and even then the bomb-throwers won’t completely release the hostage.

    Grr…,
    Scott.

  15. 15.

    smith

    @WaterGirl: The other problem is trust. McCarthy was happy to renege on his promises and blame the Dems. What guarantee do we have that any promised concessions for Dem support would actually materialize? I could easily see another round of breaking promises and then blaming the Dems. And, as before, the media will be pleased to go along with this line. There is still the assumption that Dems are obliged to clean up the GQP’s messes and should expect nothing in return.

  18. 18.

    WaterGirl

    But here’s an awesome chart: (click the chart to see a bigger, more readable version)

    But here’s an awesome chart: (click the chart to see a bigger, more readable version)

    Auto Draft 87

  20. 20.

    smith

    @Another Scott: You suppose it will occur to the GQP terrorists that Nov 17 is just 6 days before Thanksgiving? Assuming our sleepy electorate accurately perceives who is cutting off funds at the start of the Christmas spending season, I think there will be hell to pay.

  22. 22.

    Ken

    “Here are the nine Republicans running for House speaker”

    I feel this needs an adverb, or adverb phrase.  “Currently”, perhaps, or “this week”.

  23. 23.

    Alison Rose

    @WaterGirl: From a follow-up tweet:

    For those that have asked, Bergman, Emmer, Scott & Sessions voted for $300 million in supplemental aid to Ukraine (on September 28)

    Donalds, Hern, Johnson, Meuser & Palmer voted against it

  24. 24.

    Mai Naem mobile

    McHenry gavel moment  is like the worker who’s really justifiably pissed off and does that one thing that feels really good in that one moment  but just as soon as they do it, they realize what a massive fuck up it was and how they’re never going to live it down. That stupid gavel moment is going to follow him for years.

  26. 26.

    dmsilev

    So, nine candidates. We’re going with Nazgul, right? Not a baseball team or an attempt to (somehow) make the Supreme Court even worse?

  27. 27.

    Betty Cracker

    @Sister Golden Bear: There’s a blurb in Politico about how Team Emmer is trying to counter the Trumpist attack, essentially by declaring that “Donald Trump is the kindest, bravest, warmest, most wonderful human being I’ve ever known in my life.”

  31. 31.

    Mr. Bemused Senior

    @Betty Cracker: … declaring that “Donald Trump is the kindest, bravest, warmest, most wonderful human being I’ve ever known in my life.”

    They’re really going for the old CCCP flavor, aren’t they? [public self-criticism]. Will they progress to the Cultural Revolution? Send them to the countryside!
    [ fixed formatting]

  33. 33.

    feebog

    They will never elect Emmer.  He will suffer the same fate as Scalise if elected in caucus.  It will have to be someone no one has ever heard of.

  34. 34.

    Mai Naem mobile

    I have felt for a while that the GOP might have a better chance of having Paul Ryan stand for speaker but he’s probably making too much money lobbying to make a speakership worthwhile. Ryan would get points from the MAGats for asking Mittens not to vote for TFG’s impeachment but he also  comes across as normal enough for the non-MAGats.

  37. 37.

    cain

    @smith:

    @Another Scott: You suppose it will occur to the GQP terrorists that Nov 17 is just 6 days before Thanksgiving? Assuming our sleepy electorate accurately perceives who is cutting off funds at the start of the Christmas spending season, I think there will be hell to pay.

    It’s the one thing that wakes them up and take note when they are losing a paycheck or others losing a paycheck causes them disruption. It’s not a pandemic though, heaven forbid.

  38. 38.

    kindness

    I’m an outlier I figure.  One thing I’ve wondered is if a certain segment of the House Republican party wants to keep the current paralysis going till after the 45 day budget ‘compromise’ ends, sending the US into default.  The far right only wins when total chaos is at hand.  They want to burn the whole thing down because then they think they’ll win.  Me?  I think they’re really more like the South Park Underwear Gnomes.

  40. 40.

    cain

    @feebog:

    They will never elect Emmer.  He will suffer the same fate as Scalise if elected in caucus.  It will have to be someone no one has ever heard of.

    With those rules in place, they won’t last long before the freedom and the prayer/study caucus decide to throw  a wrench into things.

  41. 41.

    Ruckus

    @Brachiator:

    Is there actually a republican who is interested in running THIS country as it stands now? Or is every one of them that would get more than 3-5 votes for speaker actually fully against even having a government of, by and for even the people they represent? The current republican party wants what they think we had as a government at least 100 yrs ago. They want to run and CONTROL this country to the nth degree – completely. A choice, an actual democracy, people’s choice — NO. And of course they can’t even agree on the degree of that control that they want. The maga want complete control so that all the money and power flows to them and the wealthy that they admire for being whatever the hell they are. The rest just think that they should be in control because the unwashed masses surely can’t be. We might actually have a democracy if that happens.

  42. 42.

    The Kropenhagen Interpretation

    @WaterGirl: It makes a substantive difference if we’re getting concessions that will help pass good legislation. The degree to which substance matters in our political discuss is a separate question.

  44. 44.

    artem1s

    have a candidate on the floor Tuesday and elect a speaker by the end of the week.

    So, beatings shall continue until morale improves.

  45. 45.

    Jeffro

    Also, I fully expect Elise Stefanik to pull some Lady Macbeth-level stunting while she’s got the media’s full attention, so be prepared with your choice of adult beverage…

    I think you’re on to something.

    I could see her…oh so reluctantly...agreeing to serve as Speaker and unite the GOP and blah blah blah.

    Why isn’t she in the mix, so to speak?  (other than, while evil, she appears to have half a brain and knows what a shitshow it would be)

  47. 47.

    Captain C

    @artem1s:

    So, beatings shall continue until morale improves.

    They do have to spend a whole lot of time with each other these days, in close proximity, so that’s at least a kind of punishment.

  50. 50.

    Betty Cracker

    @Alison Rose: It’s been interesting to watch Trump’s 2024 GOP primary rivals cope with that same dynamic. Matt Bai, who is a shitty columnist (IMO), had a piece in WaPo the other day urging the GOP field to start kicking Trump in the shins since that’s the only way they can distinguish themselves from Trump and have a chance to beat him. As if no one has thought of that!

    I mean, in one sense, it’s true, but it ignores the fact that the the cultists in Trump’s cult of personality are the GOP base. The candidates are starting to cut loose on Trump more now out of desperation, but the only effect so far is some DeSantis voters migrated to Haley. I think Trump’s lead has increased. They’re basically fucked unless he drops dead or goes to jail.

  57. 57.

    Captain C

    @Sister Golden Bear: Bannon doesn’t seem to stand for anything besides chaos, hurting as many people as possible, and him being driven around, seen by everyone, in a convertible with a carload of simpering model-hot women (sorry for the image, sale on brain bleach in aisle 5).

  60. 60.

    Brachiator

    @Ruckus:

    Is there actually a republican who is interested in running THIS country as it stands now?

    Short answer: No.

    Longer answer: No.

    The GOP believe that they are the only legitimate political party in America. On top of this is Trumpism. The Republicans intend to rule it obstruct, as necessary. There is no middle ground.

    The rest just think that they should be in control because the unwashed masses surely can’t be.

    The sad thing is that a good chunk of the unwashed masses have been suckered into believing that the Republicans care about them. Previously they had a hard time pretending that they were not a tool of plutocrats. Trump, and his fake populism, was the piece that the Republicans needed to scam a critical mass of voters.

  61. 61.

    Captain C

    @Betty Cracker:

    They’re basically fucked unless he drops dead or goes to jail.

    And possibly even if he does go to jail.  I would think there’s a nonzero chance he still at least technically wins enough delegates if he’s in the can (do they still do winner-take-all in the Republican primaries?  That helped TFG a ton in 2016).  That would be some hilarious chaos at the convention, at least if it weren’t so serious.

  62. 62.

    Betty Cracker

    @rikyrah: Yep. Another thing that needs to be shouted from the rooftops daily: there is no U.S. ambassador to Israel because GOP senators are dragging their feet on confirming a highly qualified, unimpeachably pro-Israel nominee. The House clowns aren’t the only show in town.

  64. 64.

    JaySinWA

    I had thought for some time that the GOP would split in a manner similar to the Dixiecrats. I suppose the Tea party was a similar movement, but they never seemed to shed the GOP label and just morphed into different “you can’t make me” caucuses.

    This speaker election revolt might actually cause a formal split. There seem to be two factions one with a few rebels and a slightly larger “establishment” hardliners and a squishy middle that just wants it to stop. Either side might trigger the split and I am not sure which side or how big the rump party would end up being.

    I am not sure how the House would build a coalition speaker afterwards.

  65. 65.

    smith

    @Captain C: No way he’s in jail as of the convention. The earliest trial for which he could be criminally convicted is the Jack Smith DC trial, starting in early March. Assuming that he gets a guilty verdict, there will be a loooong series of appeals that will undoubtedly reach SCOTUS, and are highly unlikely to be resolved by July 15, 2024. Best case puts TFG in jail sometime in 2025.

  67. 67.

    rikyrah

    UH HUH

    UH HUH

     

    Qondi (@QondiNtini) posted at 9:54 AM on Mon, Oct 23, 2023:
    I need everyone to stop praising Liz Cheney

    She has her own ambitions

    She is not a Democrat even if she is saying Trump is bad

    She might not even vote for Biden!

    She isn’t ruling out running herself

    Stop gassing her up and start boosting Democrats

    Qondi (@QondiNtini) posted at 10:21 AM on Mon, Oct 23, 2023:
    Liz Cheney was censured, primaried and now excommunicated from the Republican Party but people are really out here saying she is a viable alternative to restore sanity to the GOP

    Come on…

    Democrats are the only ones who keep talking about her

    Mind your own house

    Win 2024

     

    Qondi (@QondiNtini) posted at 10:49 AM on Mon, Oct 23, 2023:
    Take a break from your soliloquies and dissertations about something Liz Cheney did a year ago

    Especially since you don’t spend as much time talking about the Chair of the January 6th Committee Benny Thompson

    He did most of the work

    Save your praise for Democrats
    (https://x.com/QondiNtini/status/1716482099065057774?t=EmhfmGE0nzP4Lw4oji-TjQ&s=03)

     

    Beverly Foy (@BeverlyFoy6) posted at 10:53 AM on Mon, Oct 23, 2023:
    And isn’t it amazing her dad has nothing bad to say about the Republicans who did it to her

    The Cheney’s helped build The Republican Frankenstein Monster and now they can’t control them

  68. 68.

    Alison Rose

    Secretary Haaland posted a video clip on FB of her discussing water conservation and droughts and such with another person.

    With investments from President Joe Biden Investing in America agenda, U.S. Department of the Interior is working to make the West more climate resilient. I spoke with __________ about the importance of conserving America’s most precious natural resources to ensure that they exist for future generations.

    If I gave you 1000 tries, would you ever have guessed that the name in the blank was Billy Idol? I would not have. But okay!

  69. 69.

    JaySinWA

    @smith: Hey, there’s always the criminal contempt option. That could put him in jail fairly quickly. Unlikely, and probably only temporarily, but still a possibility.

  70. 70.

    rikyrah

    Noah Shachtman (@NoahShachtman) posted at 9:45 AM on Mon, Oct 23, 2023:
    EXCLUSIVE: Trump and his team are actively planning to pull the United States out of NATO — or, barring that, kneecap the collective defense provisions at the heart of the alliance.

     

    DatBlaueHus (@BlaueDat) posted at 10:50 AM on Mon, Oct 23, 2023:
    If you want to understand the Magadonian king, always ask what Putin would do.

    Usually he is 100% aligned.

    Do not ask what is in the interest of the US. It’s usually a mismatch.

    Dystopian Girl #FBPE #IStandWithUkraine 🇺🇦 (@DistopianGirl) posted at 10:25 AM on Mon, Oct 23, 2023:
    ❌ It would seem some bad actors in our world want WWIII.

    While Putin does his best to destabilise the Middle East. Trump will do his best to destabilise the entire West.

    NATO is the only thing that has kept the West safe from invasion since it’s implementation in 1949.

  71. 71.

    Brachiator

    @rikyrah:

    Liz Cheney was censured, primaried and now excommunicated from the Republican Party but people are really out here saying she is a viable alternative to restore sanity to the GOP

    Irony is not dead.

  74. 74.

    Sister Machine Gun of Quiet Harmony

    @Brachiator:

    The sad thing is that a good chunk of the unwashed masses have been suckered into believing that the Republicans care about them.

    Not really. A good chunk of the unwashed masses don’t want people speaking Spanish or black people in their neighborhoods. They mostly believe in ridgid gender roles where men should lead and women should submit.  Even if they are open to the idea of women working and men helping out with children and housework, they think homosexuality, abortion, and especially the re-interpretation of gender by the trans community is a serious threat to their interpretation of a Godly ordered society.

  76. 76.

    sdhays

    @kindness: Default isn’t happening. That can got kicked further down the road earlier this year. What will happen in November is a government shutdown, right before Thanksgiving, and if the Republicans were worried about getting the blame for a shutdown because they were “negotiating” with the WH and the Senate, who do they think is going to get the blame if the House can’t pass even a new CR because they don’t have a Speaker?

    Something will give. Will it happen in time? I don’t know. But if that’s really the plan of at least 5 House Republicans, then they’re going to find themselves outside the governing coalition.

  77. 77.

    Hoppie

    Roll Call, for what it’s worth

    Not much, Katie.

    There’s something happening here, but what it is ain’t exactly clear

  78. 78.

    rikyrah

    Ron Filipkowski (@RonFilipkowski) posted at 2:39 PM on Sun, Oct 22, 2023:
    Rudy says Biden is an Iranian spy: “He’s on Iran’s side and he’s on Hamas’s side. He is not on our side. He’s got a bunch of spies in his Admin. This guy is working for Iran. Why? Maybe because they’ve infiltrated his Admin the way the communists infiltrated FDR’s Admin.”

    🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

    Josh Marshall (@joshtpm) posted at 10:52 AM on Mon, Oct 23, 2023:
    Sounds insane, even from Rudy. But when you think of an 80 year old drunk facing financial ruin and prison, the comments become easier to understand.
    (https://x.com/joshtpm/status/1716482803133526231?t=2UJ6O9qtRAJiB9hb8NAipg&s=03)

  79. 79.

    Paul in KY

    @Geminid: Santos said she traveled down to Brasil to urge him to come up here to run for House. Gave him money, her condo, suggested his aliases, etc.

  80. 80.

    rikyrah

    Brian Allen (@allenanalysis) posted at 10:14 AM on Mon, Oct 23, 2023:
    Tom Emmer

    Tom Emmer, while not voting against certifying the 2020 election results, is known for his erratic behavior. His Wikipedia page notably features sections on “Drunk driving,” “Allegations of antisemitism,” “‘Fire Pelosi’ machine gun video,” and “Bullying.” https://t.co/LMUq4ADEHu
    (https://x.com/allenanalysis/status/1716473248416677948?t=OQwUmksbvSHAIDGGtbt74Q&s=03)

  84. 84.

    Captain C

    @NotMax: “Joe Biden has won the election with 54% of the vote and 350+ Electoral Votes.  The Republican vote was split between deceased convicted felon Donald Trump, who got 27%, and  the 14% which went to eleven write-in candidates who declared after Trump’s six or so dozen convictions in multiple jurisdictions during the spring and summer.  Despite those normally insurmountable obstacles, he won the nomination on the first ballot at the convention before choking on a triple Big Mac in early September while improving his lie on the 14th at Doral while out on bail awaiting sentencing.  The remaining votes went to various third-party candidates and assorted write-ins, including exactly one for, and we quote, ‘Steve Bannon, the sexiest man alive’.”

  89. 89.

    MattF

    Ars Technica has a post with details about the beetle T. Kingfisher alluded to in her recent Hugo award acceptance speech. The award was for the novel ‘Nettle and Bone’, and it is excellent.

  94. 94.

    jonas

    @Sister Golden Bear: ” you have decapitated what they’ve invested, what the cartel, the lobbyists, the corporatists, Wall Street, they’ve invested over 12 years”

    So Steve Bannon’s in favor of radical campaign finance and corporate lobbying reform? Who knew?

  100. 100.

    Paul in KY

    @smith: Me too! I heard he was the inspiration for that story of young George Washington (or was it Santos) chopping down the cherry tree…

  102. 102.

    sdhays

    @rikyrah: We keep finding out the George Santos is the median House Republican, not an outlier. He’s just a bit more brazen, and people actually talk about it.

  103. 103.

    Paul in KY

    @WaterGirl: I would actually go with ‘not true’. Probably with everything he says except ‘I was born in the past and I will die in the future.’

  104. 104.

    Brachiator

    @Sister Machine Gun of Quiet Harmony:

    RE: The sad thing is that a good chunk of the unwashed masses have been suckered into believing that the Republicans care about them.

    Not really. A good chunk of the unwashed masses don’t want people speaking Spanish or black people in their neighborhoods.

    I don’t think we disagree. The Republicans are bought and paid for by plutocrats.  And they had a sizeable portion of Americans supporting them. But there was a hard core of voters who felt that the GOP would talk about immigration, abortion and other issues, but never deliver.

    But then along came Trump. He claimed that he understood the plutocrats because he was one of them. But he promised to be the plutocrat who cared about the people. He promised to actually deliver on the promises that the GOP made, but never kept. And Trump kept things simple. Immigrants out, jobs in. Fuck the climate, have some oil.

    And most of all, he hated the same people that his base hated. He promised revenge against all those unworthy groups who didn’t know their place.

  107. 107.

    lee

    I agree that the Dems bailing them out could blow back on the Dems for not doing it sooner.

    I do also think the most likely scenario is that the Dems get some concessions from the GOP with regard to the House rules and then help then vote in the least toxic candidate they can offer up.

    Then the GOP will renege on all of the concessions.

  109. 109.

    jonas

    Sorry if this was already posted somewhere today, but I was amused to see that amid all the Speaker chaos, James Comer has apparently found time to still be busy-beavering away on the notion that Joe Biden is world’s biggest crook, or whatever. Anyway, he recently produced a “smoking gun”: a $200,000 check — made out to one “Joseph Biden” — from his brother, James.

    The only problem was that it was just paying back a personal loan and not, you know, in return for life-extending juices extracted from trafficked children or something.

    So, yeah. Still not doing too well there. If they keep searching maybe they’ll turn up some *really* incriminating dry-cleaning receipts or something. “Proof that the president is involved in a years-long laundering scheme!!!1!”

  111. 111.

    Chris

    @JaySinWA:

    I’m not sure how you can have a split when one of the two factions (“the moderates,” “the establishment,” whatever the media is calling them at the moment) has zero support from Republican voters.

    People were predicting a Republican split all the way back in the early Obama years when the teabaggers went crazy, and probably a lot earlier than that too.  It never happens because you need two sides to have a split.

  114. 114.

    lee

    @Chris: ​
    I guess there might be one or two ‘establishment’ Republicans left in The House. We just wouldn’t know their names because of the howler monkeys that make up the rest.

  115. 115.

    Chris

    @rikyrah:

    Maybe because they’ve infiltrated his Admin the way the communists infiltrated FDR’s Admin

    “Sounds insane, even from Rudy,” but it’s worth remembering that conservatives mostly grow up learning and believing an entire alternate history of the United States in which things like this are simply taken for granted.  For like 40% of the electorate, the only reaction to this is ::nod:: “yes, continue.”

  116. 116.

    Ruckus

    @Mai Naem mobile:

    There is an alternative rational here for him trying to break the target. He may have just been that pissed off. OR. He wanted to prove that he can make the point, no matter how quiet and reserved anyone thinks he is.

    And yes, I agree, that stupid gravel moment made him look like himself.

  119. 119.

    S Cerevisiae

    @WaterGirl:  Nine rings were given to the GOP House men, who above all desire power.

    But unknown to them, it the land of Mor-Dor-Lago, their dark lord had forged a ruling ring to bend them to his will…

  120. 120.

    Ruckus

    @Butch:

    As a veteran I can honestly say that the only support that rethuglicans want to give to veterans is NONE. Giving anything costs money and they do not want their money going in the outbound direction for any reason.

    Folks, we really do need to understand that to conservatives the concept of conserve is to do that with their money and even more important to make sure that the ultra wealthy can continue to prove their value to the world by keeping as much money as they can steal. And if it comes from people not really willing to give it to them, they are even happier.

  121. 121.

    Ruckus

    @trollhattan:

    Having been reading by then I’d say you are actually pretty spot on.

    Oh wait, Spot was one of the things I’d read not long before that……

  124. 124.

    Suzanne

    @Mai Naem mobile:

    I have felt for a while that the GOP might have a better chance of having Paul Ryan stand for speaker but he’s probably making too much money lobbying to make a speakership worthwhile. 

    I think, at this point, anyone who’s not dumb as as a GOT-DAMN STUMP realizes that the GOP Speaker position is a curse. I can’t imagine Paul Ryan wants to come back to that shit. He’s evil, not stupid.

    There’s a few GOP ex-politicians who I think might be hiding their time, waiting to see if the conditions on the ground ever change enough for them to give it another go. Ryan is probably one of them. But if anything, shit is crazier now than it was then. So wait a bit longer.

  125. 125.

    Ruckus

    @Brachiator:

    By George I think you’ve got it!

    OK smartass moment over, I agree with you. There is no rational reason to have ShitForBrains anywhere near power, including plugging in a toaster. Except. He is their guiding light, their proof of concept, an idiot with money, because to them money equals power and smarts. They have yet to realize that what ShitForBrains specializes in is claiming he has a lot of money. I mean he’s not sleeping on the street poor, but he’s no where near worth what he claims or thinks he is. It wouldn’t amaze me to find out that SFB actually owes more money than the US government.

  126. 126.

    patrick II

    The chaos in the Republican party seems so on point with their philosophy of extreme individualism.  Each person acts for their own benefit and the invisible hand will sort it out doesn’t always work, not even in economics. Sometimes compromise and working for a community’s goals are worthwhile.

  128. 128.

    JML

    It’s absolutely wild to me that Tom effing Emmer is being floated as a possible “reasonable” person to be Speaker. He got his House seat by being slightly less bat-shit crazy than Michele Bachman, emphasis on slightly. He’s supported damn near every nasty and mean-spirited piece of legislation the GOP has ever put out there, and is unquestionably a craven political opportunist. He didn’t become the Whip because he knows how to count, either: he’s there because he’s a shameless lickspittle.

    I still shudder to think about what would have happened in MN if he had become Governor, and he came damn close. He’s not a good guy, he’s not someone who can be trusted, and he will 100% embrace the darkest evil the GOP comes up with. Good god, he’s actually the ideal speaker for them: craven, venal, and evil.

  129. 129.

    Kent

    My prediction?

    After these 9 fail they will finally circle back around to McCarthy who to date has gotten more votes than any single one of the alternatives.

  131. 131.

    Jay

    George Santos, (if that’s really his name) has a new lie out.

    “I’ll give you one, I’ll give you one story that nobody talks about,” he replied, before telling me how his 5-year-old niece disappeared from a playground in Queens, only to be located 40 minutes later on a surveillance camera with two Chinese men.

    He said the incident was the subject of an active police investigation, implying heavily that it might have been in retaliation for his vocal stance against the Chinese Communist Party.

    “So you think it was China?” I asked, clarifying.

    “Look, I don’t want to go into like, conspiracy theory,” he said. “But you know, if the shoe fits, right?”

    Surprise, surprise, surprise,

    Never happened.

    https://www.wonkette.com/p/shocking-the-chinese-communist-party

  132. 132.

    Ruckus

    @rikyrah:

    A very difficult question.

    How do you build a monster, let it loose and then keep it from turning on you when it gets even hungrier?

    Part 2 of the question.

    If you built a badass enough monster (and they did), how do you control it so that it doesn’t eat your sorry ass at some point?

    Answer.

    You can’t. You built a strong enough monster to eat your opposition,  at some point it is going to start eating the closest eatable thing. And a monster is likely not a picky eater. So you are on the menu.

  136. 136.

    MattF

    @Jay: The thing that makes me unusually suspicious about anything Santos says is his large number of made-up identities. It’s a sort of trademark, and… I don’t think it’s, um, normal.

  137. 137.

    Geminid

    @sdhays: Santos may well have been doing astronaut training then. But he’s very reticent about his years in the French Foreign Legion.

    George Santos is a canny fellow; his fellow Legionaires nicknamed him, “The Fox.”

  145. 145.

    prostratedragon

    @Jay:  Well if he really has got a niece😉 I’m glad she’s fine, but sorry she has an uncle who would exploit her like that.

  146. 146.

    Bill Arnold

    @kindness:

    The far right only wins when total chaos is at hand.

    Conservatives are not particularly good at working chaos; it’s not their mindset. And the current GOP is welded to a profoundly inaccurate model of the general USA polity.
    I do hope that the Democratic House leadership is gaming this all out very carefully, updated daily. There are options for working around the core GOP crazies. It would be very good to have the option of some actual majority-based legislation.

  148. 148.

    Frankensteinbeck

    @patrick II:

    The chaos in the Republican party seems so on point with their philosophy of extreme individualism.

    The chaos in the Republican Party is directly connected to their philosophy of “Fuck you, I do what I want!” yes.

  149. 149.

    Chris

    @patrick II:

    The chaos in the Republican party seems so on point with their philosophy of extreme individualism.  Each person acts for their own benefit and the invisible hand will sort it out doesn’t always work, not even in economics. Sometimes compromise and working for a community’s goals are worthwhile.

    There’s a point where I realized that Ayn Randian philosophy runs on the same exact principle as the Sith Order from Star Wars.  Whose backstory was that with that many egos all claiming absolute power, they ended up wiping each other out to the point that all the Jedi had to do afterwards was mop up.

    (The “only two, one master and one apprentice” rule from the movies came about afterwards because two is literally the maximum number of Sith you can have in the same room without them trying to kill each other – and even then that impulse is still in force, it’s just channeled).

  150. 150.

    Chris

    @Geminid:

    George Santos is a canny fellow; his fellow Legionaires nicknamed him, “The Fox.”

    You’re sure it wasn’t “the Jackal.”

  151. 151.

    Fake Irishman

    @JML:

    Agreed on Emmer. Minnesota was within 5,000 votes of following Wisconsin into the post 2010 darkness. Instead, so far, it’s followed a much happier timeline.

  153. 153.

    Gvg

    Do any of the speaker candidates have a reputation as keeping thir deals? Not promising what they can not deliver? I think thats the best we cold get.

  156. 156.

    unctuous

    @Sister Machine Gun of Quiet Harmony: I agree. The fanaticism in the current GOP/trumpers has its roots in and is an expression of the fundamentalist religious beliefs of their base.

    These people have managed to create a de facto religious party, a very un-American thing to do, and very dangerous to democracy because it is inherently undemocratic, hierarchical, discriminatory and intolerant of compromise.

  157. 157.

    HeartlandLiberal

    Conference rules mandate that the party nominee must capture a simple majority of votes. If no one captures a majority on the first ballot, the candidate who received the fewest votes will be kicked off the second ballot and lawmakers will vote again.

    Kinda like the ranked choice voting the GQP hates so much! After all, it elected a DEMOCRAT to the House in Alaska!

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