Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Dear Washington Post, you are the darkness now.

The republican speaker is a slippery little devil.

Washington Post’s Catch and Kill, not noticeably better than the Enquirer’s.

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

You can’t love your country only when you win.

It’s pointless to bring up problems that can only be solved with a time machine.

Even though I know this is a bad idea, I’m off to do it anyway!

Bogus polls are all they’ve got left. Let’s bury these fuckers at the polls a year from now.

Make the republican party small enough to drown in a bathtub.

An unpunished coup is a training exercise.

If you are in line to indict donald trump, stay in line.

Technically true, but collectively nonsense

They fucked up the fucking up of the fuckup!

A snarling mass of vitriolic jackals

In my day, never was longer.

Damn right I heard that as a threat.

A democracy can’t function when people can’t distinguish facts from lies.

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

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

Battle won, war still ongoing.

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

They are lying in pursuit of an agenda.

…and a burning sense of injustice to juice the soul.

Of course you can have champagne before noon. That’s why orange juice was invented.

You are here: Home / Elections 2024 / Repubs in Disarray! Open Thread: The House GOP Retreat (Noun *and* Verb)

Repubs in Disarray! Open Thread: The House GOP Retreat (Noun *and* Verb)

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… Publicly, Republicans have cited a litany of reasons for not attending: from having to tend to reelection races to scheduling conflicts. GOP Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina, for example, is scheduled to appear on “Real Time with Bill Maher” later this week. Meanwhile, when asked if he was attending, GOP Rep. Kelly Armstrong of North Dakota told CNN: “No way, I have to run for governor.” And Rep. Tim Burchett of Tennessee quipped: “I don’t retreat, I move forward! I got a farm to run.”

But privately, some Republicans have complained about the venue choice. Sources said Speaker Mike Johnson selected the Greenbrier Resort because it was “family friendly,” in a break from past retreats which have taken place in sunny Florida – the preferred location of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

And other GOP lawmakers and aides told CNN they were simply not enthusiastic about the idea of having to huddle with the rest of their party at a time when Republican infighting has prevented them from even passing procedural votes…

In another hiccup for the retreat, the House GOP’s keynote speaker – Fox Business Host Larry Kudlow – had to drop out at the last minute, sources say. Howard Lutnick, the CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald, will take his place instead.

Among the Republicans who have decided to skip the retreat include Rep. Mark Green of Tennessee, the chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee; Reps. Dusty Johnson of South Dakota and Stephanie Bice of Oklahoma, the co-chairs of the Main Street Caucus; and Rep. Dave Joyce of Ohio, chairman of the Republican Governance Group…

 
Per the ever-upbeat USA Today, “‘Everybody’s tired’: Groups of House Republicans skip annual retreat, exhausted by GOP infighting”:

… “Everybody’s tired. I know I’m tired,” one House Republican, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said. The intra-party battles that have roiled the House in recent months, the GOP lawmaker explained, has sapped the energy from some members.

Another House Republican who does not plan to attend noted frustration remains with ultraconservative lawmakers who have impeded House action and “is wearing everyone out” as a result.

The lawmaker reflected that there’s still hard feelings in the Republican conference, since it has been “less than six months since everything happened,” referring to the ouster of former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif.

Lawmakers typically use the retreats to talk about policy, hold discussions about ongoing debates and more. But one of the handful of Republicans who voted to oust McCarthy, Rep. Eli Crane, R-Ariz., told USA TODAY the events are “not productive.”…

Dozens of officials are also retiring from Congress in the coming months, given the dysfunction that has consumed the House recently. Those lawmakers don’t have much incentive to attend the retreat and “working on future agendas might not be as interesting,” Rep. David Schweikert, R-Ariz., said.

… The chaos that has plagued House Republicans in the 118th Congress spilled over into the annual event — meant to promote team-building and set priorities — which returned for the first time in several years to The Greenbrier in West Virginia, a historic luxury resort nestled in the Allegheny Mountains.

“We live in challenging times, we live in a time of divided government. Democracy is messy. Sometimes it’s very messy. This is part of that process,” Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters gathered on The Greenbrier’s lawn, with members and their guests watching from one of the hotel balconies. Johnson, R-La., was joined by New York Rep. Elise Stefanik, chair of the House Republican Conference, and North Carolina Rep. Richard Hudson, chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee.

Despite Johnson’s optimism, it was a not-so-triumphant return. Fox Business’ Larry Kudlow, who was scheduled to deliver a keynote speech, dropped out at the last minute. Presumptive presidential nominee Donald Trump won’t be coming. And a spokesperson for the Congressional Institute, which sponsors the Republican Issues Conference, said just over 100 members of the 218-member majority had RSVP’d they were going. Some cited scheduling conflicts. Others were more blunt…

GOP hardliners like Matt Gaetz and Marjorie Taylor Greene are both reportedly sitting out the free gathering in the resort. And some in Republican leadership were also opting out. CNN reported House Homeland Security Chair Mark E. Green, Main Street Caucus co-chairs Dusty Johnson and Stephanie Bice, and Republican Governance Group Chair David Joyce would not attend.

The meeting comes a day after the conference learned it would be shrinking further: Colorado Republican Rep. Ken Buck announced Tuesday he’s quitting next week, citing frustrations with the party.

Johnson, Hudson and Stefanik didn’t dwell long on their internal issues, however. Instead, they hit President Joe Biden and Democrats on crime, immigration and the economy…

Lawmakers are scheduled to hear from Marc Andreessen, a venture capitalist and Republican donor; Jeanne Mancini, president of the antiabortion group March for LIfe; and Michael Herzog, the Israeli ambassador to the U.S.

This year’s is not the first House Republican retreat to the Greenbrier tinged with drama. A train carrying GOP lawmakers to the resort in 2018 collided with a truck, killing the driver. For the last several years under McCarthy, Republicans retreated to Florida. Some of those who skipped this year were reportedly unimpressed with the location compared to past retreats.

“It is not far from Washington — so a good place to bring the members to get them out of the hustle and bustle of Capitol Hill,” Johnson said of the Greenbrier.

The resort is owned by West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice, who is seeking the Republican nomination for the seat Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin III has decided not to defend. Justice’s challenger in the GOP primary is Rep. Alex X. Mooney. It wasn’t clear as of Wednesday afternoon whether Mooney was in attendance…

In part because of its proximity to D.C. — it’s around four hours via car, six hours via train, or a very short plane ride — the Greenbrier has significant political history.

Twenty-eight sitting presidents have stayed at the hotel and, in the 1960s, Congress ordered the construction of an emergency Cold War fallout shelter and relocation facility at the Greenbrier.

Members of the media took tours of the bunker as they settled in Wednesday afternoon, waiting for the diminished crowd of lawmakers to arrive.

The perfect place to discuss the GOP’s upcoming extinction level event, I guess.

Guess it’s not lying, if Pastor Mike actually believes this…

Reader Interactions

207Comments

  2. 2.

    Spanky

    OK, I was going to give props to the comment about eating their own liver with Hannibal Lecter, but now I’m wondering if they were being literal.

  3. 3.

    Ramalama

    Democracy is messy. Sometimes it’s very messy. This is part of that process,” Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters.

    “Democracy is messy,” said Speaker Mike, tip-toeing around the excrement left by his insurrection buddies in the Capitol hallways and offices.

  4. 4.

    JMG

    You’ve got to really hate your fellow GOP caucus members to pass up a free weekend at the Greenbrier, which is a luxury resort to the max (I’m lucky enough to have been, many years ago).

  5. 5.

    OzarkHillbilly

    Misery made the front page at the Guardian twice this AM: ‘Gorilla hail’ expected in parts of Kansas and Missouri Wednesday night

    Nuttin’ here, barely a few drops of water from the sky, but we are expected to get as much as 4″ of rain today. We’ll see.

    I did once see baseball sized hail, scary looking stuff with spikes all around it. My ’72 Chevy p/u was parked unprotected and when it was over I went out to inspect the damage. I expected at least a busted windshield and a dented up hood and roof but it was absolutely unfazed. All the glass was still there and not a new dent in it. (maybe in the bed but who could tell?)

    Yeah they don’t build them with steel like that anymore. Of course, most vehicles also get better mileage than the 11-12 mpg that beast gave me.

    Also in Misery, Olivia Rodrigo handed out morning-after pills at her concert in STL the other night. I wonder how long it will take for MO AG Andrew Bailey to issue an arrest warrant for attempted murder against her.

    Ever since Ashcroft, our AGs have been getting worse and worse. I don’t understand how one tops one’s predecessor by going even lower but that’s what they’ve been doing here.

  8. 8.

    Ramalama

    @Baud: It’s as if Johnson thinks he’s in a Christianist version of Grey’s Anatomy (tv series), where all the relationships end up, at some point, being messy, and the characters all preface their talks with their lovers, “It’s messy. It’s complicated.”

  10. 10.

    mrmoshpotato

    This year’s retreat for House GOP is Wednesday and Thursday in the Allegheny Mountains of WV. But no one wants to go. “Everybody’s tired.” one House Republican says. “I’d rather sit down with Hannibal Lecter and eat my own liver.” (Axios)

    Feast away!

  13. 13.

    mrmoshpotato

    Many Republicans plan to skip House GOP retreat at Gov. Jim Justice’s Greenbriar Resort in West Virginia (less than 100 attending) as they grumble about location and spending time with one another.

    Let them fight.

  14. 14.

    Karen S.

    I wouldn’t want to be stuck anywhere with those mean-spirited losers, no matter how nice the surroundings. I think it’s hilarious that their God Trump won’t be there. He doesn’t need to be. He’s getting what he wants without having to show up at that sad gathering. Sad.

  15. 15.

    mrmoshpotato

    The first order of business at the House GOP’s annual retreat, which kicked off Wednesday, was a press conference on expanding the majority, though less than half of that majority planned to attend the retreat sucking of Trump’s fat, orange, fascist asshole.

    Fixed!

  16. 16.

    MattF

    They’re all feeling the ‘gonna lose big’ vibe. TFG’s recent thoughts about cutting Social Security aren’t helping.

  19. 19.

    Geminid

    I think the last year House Republicans retreated to the Greenbrier was 2018, when they hit that garbage truck 20 miles west of Charlottesville. They never got over it.

  20. 20.

    mrmoshpotato

    @MattF:

    They’re all feeling the ‘gonna lose big’ vibe. TFG’s recent thoughts about cutting Social Security aren’t helping.

    Wait.  The “Go fuck yourselves and die, seniors!” dollar isn’t a good dollar?  (h/t Bill Hicks)

  22. 22.

    Baud

    @mrmoshpotato:

    Seniors love sacrificing their retirement to pay for tax breaks for billionaires and corporations. That’s why they overwhelmingly vote GOP.

  26. 26.

    Uncle Cosmo

    Yeah, it’s messy, particularly when you’re messing around with peoples’ lives and not accomplishing a fucking thing. With the lead role of “Mackie Messer”** played by under(thebus)study “Pastor”*** “Mock” Johnson

    ** German speakers will get this; the rest of yinz möchten fischen gehen.

    *** Pronounced “bastard,” I remind yinz.

  27. 27.

    Ken

    ‘I’d rather sit down with Hannibal Lecter and eat my own liver,’

    Why is there never a malignant genie granting wishes when you really want one?

  28. 28.

    mrmoshpotato

    @Baud:

    Seniors love sacrificing their retirement to pay for tax breaks for billionaires and corporations. That’s why they overwhelmingly vote GOP. 

    Not in my neck of the woods.  Regardless of age, we are all blue in the face – and where is my primary ballot, Louis DeShitass?  (Seriously, my March 17 ballot hasn’t come in the mail yet.)

  29. 29.

    OzarkHillbilly

    On a personal note, poor Percy has the ear infection from hell and it’s driving him crazy. He’s shaking his head every 30 seconds to 5 minutes. Picked up 3 different treatments for him from the vet yesterday, and I hope they work because if not, it’s gonna be a long week in NOLA for us.

  31. 31.

    Betty

    The Reps don’t want to listen to another Johnson sermon like the last time they met.  It must have been torture for Gaetz and Greene. You might think a few of them had had enough of this guy and agreed with the Dems on a replacement to get at least a few important things done.

  34. 34.

    Suzanne

    “’I’d rather sit down with Hannibal Lecter and eat my own liver,’ said one House Republican when asked if they are attending the House GOP retreat.”

    Funny, that’s how I feel about spending time with Republicans.
    This is one of many reasons I don’t join a country club.

  37. 37.

    gene108

    TFG’s recent thoughts about cutting Social Security aren’t helping.

    I’m of the opinion that unless something gets the saturation of Hillary’s email server or Al Gore being accused of taking credit for inventing the internet, most people won’t notice.

    Republicans have been talking about privatizing and/or cutting Social Security and Medicare ever since Bush, Jr.’s failed attempt to privatize SS in 2005, but it never registers with voters.

  38. 38.

    mrmoshpotato

    @Betty:

    It must have been torture for Gaetz 

    Well, anything that takes away from Matty’s fucking high school girls time – allegedly…

    and Greene

    Where do I even start with that baseball cap wearing trash?

  42. 42.

    OzarkHillbilly

    This opening line of a sad story cracked me up:

    The grim task of assessing the carnage is under way after the largest wildfire in Texas history turned the Panhandle’s picturesque hillsides into a hellscape of ash and ember.

    Ah yes, the “picturesque” Llano Estacado, a place Coronado described to the king of Spain thusly: “There is not a stone, nor bit of rising ground, nor a tree, nor a shrub, nor anything to go by.”

    Mind you, I find it to have a rather stark and simple beauty but picturesque? Ummmmmm… No.

  47. 47.

    mrmoshpotato

    @Baud: LOL!  We ain’t talking about Bitchass Ghouliani here.

    But it is time to watch last night’s A Closer Look because we got subtitles now, and I can mute Dump’s disgusting face.

  48. 48.

    TBone

    Whatever fresh hell awaits today, I will not be attending because neighbors have prevailed upon us to care for our newest neighbor (golden retriever puppy named Maui) while they’re out.  Puppy Day is good for the soul, this one is very, very cute and smart.  She’s gonna get lots of tummy rubs and treats. Puppy love! Also, did anyone notice it’s Pi Day?

  49. 49.

    gene108

    @TBone:

    I thought all Republicans were conservative God fearing family values Christians? Why would they not appreciate a good sermon to emphasize God’s role in Making America Grate Again?

  51. 51.

    catclub

    @Baud: Seniors love sacrificing their [other people’s] retirement to pay for tax breaks for billionaires and corporations. That’s why they overwhelmingly vote GOP.

     

    especially if those other people are those people.

  52. 52.

    TBone

    @gene108: it didn’t go over well last time he did it.  One of them said to the press “I’m not in church.” I’d have said much more 😆

    Man who farts in church sits in pew.

  55. 55.

    rikyrah

    Tired?

    Tired?

    How.are they tired?

    They don’t do any work.

    Everytime you turn around, Preacher Speaker has called for a break 😡🤬

  57. 57.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @Baud: Flat as a pancake, any rises are so gentle as to be unnoticeable. There is the Palo Duro Canyon which is absolutely stunning, even more so because it is so completely at odds with the rest of the Llano.

  58. 58.

    Soprano2

    We have the same thing in the MO legislature – they have a state “Freedom Caucus” that is wearing out the other Republican members. They’re actually helpful to Democrats because they prevent the R supermajority from doing some bad things, believe it or not, because the bad things the other R’s want to do aren’t extreme enough for the “Freedom Caucus”. It’s a clown show.

  59. 59.

    sdhays

    “No way, I have to run for governor.” And Rep. Tim Burchett of Tennessee quipped: “I don’t retreat, I move forward! I got a farm to run.”

    Man, Tim Burchett sounds busy! He should resign (immediately) so he can have more time to devote to his shitty farm!

  61. 61.

    p.a

    A political philosoph of NO!  should have  really tiny windows for electoral success.  But Electoral College, racism, gerrymander, $$$ influence…

  62. 62.

    Chief Oshkosh

    @JMG: Weeeellllll, sorta. The Greenbriar is a very, very old-school luxury resort, very much from a by-gone era. I’ve been twice (work-associated), with one visit being pretty “swank.” Just does not compare to luxury resorts in Florida, especially this time of year. Generally, small rooms, 2nd tier amenities, and not much to do except golf and hike. Maybe fish a little. I loved it, especially as I wasn’t paying for the privileges, but like the Balsam’s in NH or the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island, it’s not everybody’s cup of tea.

  64. 64.

    catclub

    @gene108: God’s role in Making America Grate Again?

     

    I really want to put up a sign in my yard.
    “America IS great. Greater with Trump in prison.”

  67. 67.

    catclub

    @Chief Oshkosh: Generally, small rooms, 2nd tier amenities, and not much to do except golf and hike. Maybe fish a little. I loved it,

     

    I went to a much smaller version in North Carolina and loved it because they had a library AND bookshelves in every room. This is a real contrast to the Florida Gold Coast, which had … beaches and glitzy crap.

  70. 70.

    trnc

    Lawmakers typically use the retreats to talk about policy,

    How much can you talk about the single policy of impeaching Biden?

    hold discussions about ongoing debates and more.

    So, talking about talking. Brilliant.

  72. 72.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @Soprano2: It was predicted for last night in our more northern regions. Today is torrential rains. Maybe. Right now the sky is awfully dark, saw some lightening off to the north earlier.

  73. 73.

    Sid

    Biden could do the country a lot of good by using the Trump ‘president-is-king’ theory and sending Seal Team Six to The Greenbriar. Maybe send Teams Seven and Eight, just to be thorough.

  76. 76.

    catclub

    CNN fluffing a perennial loser in the prediction stakes:

    Jeremy Grantham, the investor famous for predicting the dot-com crash in 2000 and the financial crisis in 2008, has an answer Wall Street won’t like: He believes that AI is a bubble that could start letting out some air.

    Not mentioned: He has been continually saying we are in a bubble and expects a 50% drop in stock prices since 2011. Just think if you believed him and got out of stocks then.

  81. 81.

    BellyCat

    Did a spa visit years ago to Greenbrier. Optimistically, it felt like a set for The Shining.

  82. 82.

    EarthWindFire

    @sdhays: Something tells me that the democratic Senator from MT, also a farmer, doesn’t skip his party’s retreats. No proof, just a hunch.

  83. 83.

    lowtechcyclist

    @Basilisc: ​
     

    I mean, would you want to spend a weekend with these people?

    I’m surprised they can stand to be with their own selves.

  85. 85.

    catclub

    @Baud: The folks in the Ritholtz and Reformed Broker crowd are finally on to those guys.  They ask when these debbie downers say when to get back IN, and also point out they are wrong 98% of the time.

  87. 87.

    trnc

    @Geminid: I think the last year House Republicans retreated to the Greenbrier was 2018, when they hit that garbage truck 20 miles west of Charlottesville.

    Ironically, at the end of the same year, their train ran into a steamroller named Nancy Pelosi, but there were no casualties on the steamroller side.

  88. 88.

    OzarkHillbilly

    Paul Alexander, lawyer who lived for decades with an iron lung, dies aged 78

    “After surviving polio as a child, he lived over 70 years inside of an iron lung. In this time, Paul went to college, became a lawyer and a published author. His story travelled wide and far, positively influencing people around the world. Paul was an incredible role model who will continue to be remembered.”
    ……………………….
    While Alexander spent much of his time in the mechanical respirator – which used pressure to artificially pump air into his lungs – he was not completely confined to it. He taught himself to breathe by gulping air and forcing it down his throat, allowing him to represent clients in court, travel on a plane and attend disability rights protests. Alexander told the Guardian in 2020 that this breathing technique was like riding a bicycle, but he could only do it while awake. In his last years, however, Alexander had been almost permanently confined to the 300kg machine.
    …………………………….
    In his Guardian interviews, Alexander said he had become an activist by chance. “You have to understand, back then, there were no cripples … Wherever I went, I was the only one. Restaurant, movie theatre … I thought: ‘Wow, there’s nobody else out here. I’ll just pave the way,’” he said. “I kind of thought of myself as representing a group. I fought for that reason. ‘What do you mean, I can’t go back there? I want to go back there!’ ‘You can’t do that.’ ‘Oh yes I can!’ I was always fighting.”

    RIP

  89. 89.

    3Sice

    Maybe demographics of the caucus have changed. They are now bougie social climbing sorts who are not comfortable with a $50 breakfast. More of a free breakfast buffet at a Courtyard by Marriot crowd.

    I got into politics to stuff my pockets, not to have them picked….

  91. 91.

    Splitting Image

    @catclub:

    Not mentioned: He has been continually saying we are in a bubble and expects a 50% drop in stock prices since 2011. Just think if you believed him and got out of stocks then.

    Well, in fairness, he is right about AI.

  93. 93.

    Ken

    @Baud: Also known as the Jeane Dixon effect, for those of us of a certain age. Tout your successful predictions, ignore your failures.

  94. 94.

    BellyCat

    AP reporting that Nex Benedict, the non-binary teen who died the day after being attacked by three girls in a bathroom, did not die of concussion the next day. Was determined by coroner to have toxic levels of two different drugs in their blood and death was by suicide.

    The sadness. I grieve for them, their parents, friends, and family.

  95. 95.

    RedDirtGirl

    @rikyrah: Anyone willing to share what BC has told the blog about what is going on? I missed her original mention of her health issues…

  98. 98.

    WaterGirl

    @OzarkHillbilly: There’s the lame ear medication you can get from the vet, and then there’s the good stuff.  The lame stuff from the vet was basically the same thing you can get from Amazon.

    The lame stuff never worked on Henry’s ear infections, but the good stuff prescribed by the vet school started making a difference right away.

    Is there a vet school you could call?  Vets here can get a consult with the vet school.

  104. 104.

    Kay

    david.heath.writer
    Joe Rogan shows his racism.
    He says Biden’s cabinet is a “f**** sideshow of diversity” and “you can’t have those people running a Ben and Jerry’s. You certainly can’t have those kind of people running the f***** most powerful government the world’s ever known.”

    A (slightly) younger Rush Limbaugh. He and his guests – people like Glenn Greenwald and Matt Taibbi- pump this shit out daily to millions of men.
    There’s so much of this now – Rogan, Taibbi, Greenwald, Tucker Carlson. They’ve sprouted a whole genre of middle aged, formerly “hip” Right wing male entertainers.
    BLM and Me Too drove them ’round the bend.

  105. 105.

    BellyCat

    @Ken: Agreed. There is also some reasonable concern that that the drugs found may have been related to hospital efforts. Regardless, tragic from every angle.

  106. 106.

    Salty Sam .

    @Baud: Never been to that area, but I always assumed it was flat, not hilly.

    One major town in the area is named Levelland.

  108. 108.

    Ladyraxterinok

    Wikipedia says 658 Cantor Fitzgerald employees were working in company headquarters in the North Tower on 9-11.

    All were killed

  109. 109.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @WaterGirl: Our vets are good. I got a prescription ear drop, an allergy injection (just in case) and a bottle of OTC ear cleansing solution. Gave him his first dose of the morning and he seems to be doing better. Fingers crossed as it is truly miserable for him. He’s right up my butt all the time.

  110. 110.

    Kay

    Amusing too because Biden’s cabinet members are just …competent. Most of them you never hear from. Maybe that’s the error the Right wing entertainment sector are making – they think people who just mind their own business and quietly get the job done aren’t doing anything. They require proclamations, self promotion and histrionics. Celebrity politicians.

  111. 111.

    Betty

    @TBone: This particular money trail concerns payments to FBI informant Smirnov for those who want to check out the link.

  114. 114.

    Kay

    @Baud:

    They’re SO bad for young men, especially in rural areas. The message is “don’t do anything to improve yourself- you are entitled to a good job and a girlfriend/wife and as many children as you demand and if you don’t have all that it’s the fault of someone else”.

    It’s terrible advice, besides the politics of it. Wholly negative, 100% victimhood – it’s a message of resentment. Which young white rural men DON’T need. They lean that way anyway. I hear it day after day in the practice with the juveniles – a chorus of “I can’t because…” which really means “because some one was supposed to give me these things”.

  115. 115.

    TBone

    @Betty: payments by a foreign entity connected to Rump, no less.  I know we’re all shocked!  But good on this reporting trail of breadcrumbs.

    An American company that paid the now indicted FBI informant Alexander Smirnov in 2020 is connected to a UK company owned by Trump business associates in Dubai, according to business filings and court documents.

  117. 117.

    Eolirin

    @Baud: Meanwhile they’re bleeding women (figuratively and unfortunately literally). I don’t think that works out for them in the long term even if they’re somewhat successful with the men.

  121. 121.

    Kay

    @Eolirin:

    I think that’s the line they’re drawing to divide – men v women. It’s overt with some – Gaetz says it out loud. I think you’re right too- if they succeed women would probably win that fight. Slightly better numbers and turnout.

  124. 124.

    Downpuppy

    I absolutely cannot imagine being disappointed that Larry Kudlow, the world’s worst stock picker & an aging bore, cancelled.

  126. 126.

    Kay

    I just love the role taking shape with Kamala Harris in the campaign. I think it’s bold and new and a bit of a risk (but a good, worthwhile risk). More and more she’s out front on those issues – reproductive rights, Gaza – where Biden is more conventional. I’m pleased they’re not holding her back out of fear that she’s a woman and a minority. It feels like progress and I need to see it after a couple of very bad years for womens rights.

  127. 127.

    3Sice

    When they say Bakersfield Kev was a good fundraiser, much of that was in the margins. Like getting ROXXON to picks up the incidentals and provide a resort goodie bag.

    An out of pocket church retreat at a high end resort sounds like a blast.

  130. 130.

    Eolirin

    @Kay: They’re also being taught they have to work to get things and the men the right wing are attracting are being taught the opposite. It’s a recipe for getting left behind as you point out. That means there’s an effort and resources gap that only widens as well.

    There’s nothing left but violence for the men falling into that.

  131. 131.

    Kay

    I miss Cracker Stacker. I hope she’s comfortably recovering, propped up in bed with pillows, watching movies.

  132. 132.

    Kay

    @Eolirin:

    They just sell them such bullshit. They’re all going to be influencers or podcasters or bitcoin billionaires. There’s no community sense at all, not even any “working well with others” like at a job.

    It’s very 1980s, really. Self. Me, me, me.

  133. 133.

    Geminid

    @Steve in the ATL: During the the Second World War, the Greenbrier served as a home for convalescing miltary patients.

    Later, during the Cold War, the federal government paid for a new wing with an underground facility with 535 cots intended to shelter Congress during a nuclear war. There is a similar facility northeast of Charlottesville where the Federal Reserve governors could hide.

  134. 134.

    Steve in the ATL

    @Kay: I like seeing more of Kamala too.  Even my well-educated and intelligent liberal friends have complained that she’s been mostly invisible and unimpressive when she wasn’t.  I disagreed, but hopefully this will change some attitudes among our side.

  135. 135.

    eversor

    @Kay:

    I don’t think most older people get why Rogan is popular.  It seems they just pay attention when the most obnoxious guests are on there.

    I’m in blue as fuck NOVA and Rogan is popular with tons of people regardless of their politics. The obnoxious guests are what the olds care about.  For the youngs it’s all about MMA, fitness, military stuff, and oddball items.  Rogan is actually really good about all that stuff and does get amazing guests.

    If you see a guy at the gym who’s in shape, got his life together, has a good job, and is able to land women with ease he’s going to be a Rogan fan.  If you see a gal at the gym who’s in shape, has her life together, has a good job, gets any man she wants, she’s probably going to be a Rogan.  Guys it’s more close to universal though.

    It really comes down to fitness stuff, MMA, sports, military, and those things for the most part.  Outside of the in shape life going great crowd he’s much less popular.  As in not regularly watched, however they are still going to know of him and even if they don’t like the obnoxious guests they will still watch him and enjoy it for when he’s stoned off his ass and talking about aliens or some other bonkers stuff.

    Most people are pretty good at compartmentalizing stuff and utterly hate politics so they tune it out.  Elon Musk is a shitlord and people may not like him personally.  But Elon Musk getting stoned and making an idiot of himself, the cyber truck fiasco, or his constant self owns are utterly hilarious to watch.  Teslas for all their faults are also the EV that popularized EVs and made them cool and are by far the most popular EV out there.  He’s horrible, but it’s always fun to watch a ferret on acid try to fuck a porcupine.

     

    Tucker and Shapiro are the ones targeting fat middle aged white men or incels.

  136. 136.

    Uncle Cosmo

    @Ken: IIRC many years ago an astronomer (I believe it was Donald H. Menzel of Harvard) said (I paraphrase) that while one bad apple is often said to spoil the whole barrel, the presence of one good apple cannot turn a barrel of bad apples good. (He said this as a riposte to the prediction of Immanuel Velikovsky, in his book Worlds In Collision, that Jupiter would be found to emit radio waves – pretty much the only one of Velikovsky’s claims that turned out to be true. Shades of Jeane Dixon…)

  137. 137.

    Kay

    @eversor:

    Don’t take this personally but I think you;re too close to it to see it. You’re bro-curious, IMO. I think you admire them.

  140. 140.

    Kay

    @eversor:

    We see it the opposite. I think all the cool bro stuff – we smoke weed! we do mushrooms! we lift weights! is the draw-in. The message – the meat – is 100% resentful middle aged white guy. He doesn’t object to Biden’s cabiniet because they’re incompetent – no one says they’re incompetent- that’s not the reputation. He resents them because he thinks those jobs BELONG to white men. That’s what he’s telling  his listeners.

    I also don’t believe people go out of their way to listen to Elon Musk to laugh at Elon Musk. Come on. that’s bullshit. You’re listening to him because you admire him.

  141. 141.

    Chief Oshkosh

    @Kay: Not sure how someone couldn’t take your observation personally. ;)

    OTOH, I don’t really care that Rogan is popular for reasons. He got a lot of people killed by hosting anti-vaxxers and expanding their reach. He also supports authoritarian pricks who work non-stop to make the rest of us miserable. So fuck him and fuck his fans. It would be great if they all OD’d on steroids and blew various cardiac valves.

  143. 143.

    Kay

    @eversor:

    Matt Taibbi turned reactionary Right on a fucking dime. He did that the moment women in media criticized his incredibly sexist (and grossly predatory) behavior in Russia. A to B. A straight line. These are a group of middle aged white men, semi celebrities, who believe they are entitled to complete deference. No one may criticize them.

  144. 144.

    Sister Machine Gun of Quiet Harmony

    @Kay: It feels so much like what the Wahhabists did though. Targeting you men. Brainwashing young women. Taking over schools. It’s so wrong.

  146. 146.

    Kay

    @Chief Oshkosh:

     Not sure how someone couldn’t take your observation personally. ;)

    you’re right. Okay, I think eversor is a bro. IMO it just comes thru in the comments.

  149. 149.

    Salty Sam .

    @eversor: it’s all about MMA, fitness, military stuff, and oddball items.  Rogan is actually really good about all that stuff and does get amazing guests.

    Really appreciate you letting us all know just exactly where you’re coming from.

  153. 153.

    Kay

    So my daughter told me my grandaughter “hijacked” the children’s Sunday school discussion and turned it to dinosaurs – she’s interested in dinosaurs. I said “what did the other children say when she did it? Did they follow?” and my daughter said “oh, there’s only one other child – our church is older”. So the poor little thing is in a Sunday school class of…two. Methodists. They might want to step up recruiting! :)

  155. 155.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Kay: It isn’t unreasonable for children to want to know exactly what kind of dinosaur Jesus used to ride.

  158. 158.

    Geminid

    @Steve in the ATL: The big bomb shelter was there when you were, but it was not revealed until the 1990s. They even let reporters tour it.

    I don’t think they did the same with the Fed’s shelter under Turkeysag Mountain, so that’s still just a rumor. Something’s up there though, at the end of a steep, paved driveway with a “Do Not Enter” sign.

  159. 159.

    Ruckus

    @rikyrah:

    He’s just trying to figure out what day it is, and is he supposed to be where he is.

    And why does it smell so much in here?

    You know, the important questions in life.

  161. 161.

    TBone

    @Ladyraxterinok: oh thank you!  My new-then (rescue, now deceased) calico cat was named Einstein after she jumped from the floor straight up to the top of the fridge, and was so pleased with herself that she rolled over and fell off 🤣 and my then BF said “Way to go Einstein!” Since we didn’t know her age, we celebrated her birthday on this date in history.  She’ll be getting flowers in Heaven today.  As will Albert, who was HOT IMO.

  162. 162.

    Soprano2

    @BellyCat: I wondered about that when I saw the claim that they didn’t die from the injuries sustained in the fight. What a sad, sad story. I always wish I could tell a teenager that as you get older things can get better, that what feels like it will last forever when you’re 16 actually won’t.

  163. 163.

    Soprano2

    @Kay: I notice it didn’t say that Rogan is showing his misogyny too. “Those people” meaning anyone who isn’t a white man. *rolleyes* Would that I had the confidence of a mediocre white man, they think they know everything and can do anything better than anyone else can.

  164. 164.

    Ruckus

    @Soprano2:

    It’s a clown show.

    My understanding is that clowns are supposed to be funny.

    Side story. When I was very young we had a neighbor who lost a leg in WWII and he had a metal/artificial replacement – he was a real clown, costume, makeup, big nose. Out of costume he was quiet, studious, normal human. In costume he was hilarious.

  165. 165.

    Soprano2

    @Kay: They seem to think government should be like reality TV, with a “drama of the week” every week. I guess they think quiet competence is actually incompetence.

  166. 166.

    Geminid

    @Omnes Omnibus: I bet Snowshoe is a nice place to visit in the summertime. It’s good country for hiking, fishing, wild flower spotting etc. Mid-Atlantic ski resorts are developing as year-round resorts now that winter snow has become scarcer. The Wintergreen resort west of Charlottesville is a good example of this trend.

  169. 169.

    Soprano2

    @Kay: I see it here too, somehow they think they deserve to be at the front of every line just because of who they are, and if they aren’t then some terrible injustice has been done to them. Our repair supervisor was just telling me that one guy said he was being “held hostage” because they moved him to a different construction crew! He’s not working with his best buddy anymore, so he’s a “hostage”. That’s the mindset, if I don’t get everything I want something is wrong with the world. No one ever told them that life isn’t fair.

  172. 172.

    Kay

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    She’s a treat but you have to rein her in sometimes. She told me she does “zero” cleaning up during clean up time at daycare. Made the zero sign with her hand for extra oomph.

  173. 173.

    Soprano2

    @Kay: It’s why Bill fucking Maher thinks “woke” is the number one political issue today, because he’s mostly shitty about women and the Me Too movement called that out and he’s kind of shitty about trans people. He’s obsessed with it, he brings it up on every show to say if only the Democrats would bail on everything that makes them Democrats they could win, conveniently ignoring that for the most part Democrats have been winning since 2018!

  177. 177.

    Soprano2

    @Kay: I honestly think most R voters don’t care about competence in their politicians anymore – it’s why they elect shitty people like MTG and TFG. They care about appearances, “owning the libs” and shitposting on social media. They care about the politicians performing stunts because it gets them media attention. Whether or not anything that actually benefits the voters gets done isn’t much of a concern to them. They believe politics is like reality TV.

  178. 178.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Soprano2: It’s funny that eversor talked about how the Rogan bros are really into military things.  A lot of them must never have actually served because one of very first things you learn in the military is that life isn’t always fair and some times bad shit happens.  Not really surprising.

  179. 179.

    Ruckus

    @Soprano2:

    People told them life isn’t fair, the problem is that they think fair is when they get every thing they want and everyone else gets doodly squat. The world isn’t screwed up as much as they are.

  180. 180.

    rikyrah

    @Kay:

    They’re SO bad for young men, especially in rural areas. The message is “don’t do anything to improve yourself- you are entitled to a good job and a girlfriend/wife and as many children as you demand and if you don’t have all that it’s the fault of someone else”.

     

    Meanwhile, the young women are working on themselves, and doing what they can to carve out a life for themselves. And, know that they actually deserve a partner who is willing to work with them. I know that’s what I’m telling Peanut everyday.

    1. Work on yourself.
    2. Don’t settle for anything less than you want.
    3.  No build-a-bear projects with Men. That era is over.
  181. 181.

    rikyrah

    @eversor:

    If you see a guy at the gym who’s in shape, got his life together, has a good job, and is able to land women with ease he’s going to be a Rogan fan.  If you see a gal at the gym who’s in shape, has her life together, has a good job, gets any man she wants, she’s probably going to be a Rogan.  Guys it’s more close to universal though.

     

    You do mean White People

    I don’t know anyone Black who cares for him.

  184. 184.

    Geminid

    @Omnes Omnibus: That’s how it is for most people. But with all the good skiing out West a plane flight away, building a business around skiing won’t cut it in the Middle Atlantic  anymoe, and the resorts know this.

    I am not a skier and I’ve never been to Snowshoe, but I’ve been near there in Summer and it’s nice country with temperate weather. That’s often hard to find in the lowlands that time of year.

    Iv

  188. 188.

    Kay

    @rikyrah:

    There really are opportunities for them – normal, real opportunities, not this dumb shit chasing after celebrity or quick money. But if they’re going to throw their hands up and claim they “can’t” when were talking about a free algebra class at a community college as the price of entry to a trades program then I’m done with them. Hell, Obama had a rural work program where they got a gas card to get to free training. We – the public- picked up the gas and I’m happy to do it! Go get trained! Godspeed! It’s a good nvestment – they’ll pay taxes on the increased income. The spots STILL went begging.

  189. 189.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Baud:

    The Elon Musk vs Don Lemon spat is hilarious.

    Not familiar with that, but their names, anagrammed, would make a fine film title:

    ON OLDEN MUSKMELON

    Like that Henry Fonda-Katharine Hepburn movie, only with rotting produce.

     

  190. 190.

    Soprano2

    @Kay: It’s like you said, they turn their noses up at those programs because people like Rogan are telling them they shouldn’t need to do anything other than be themselves and all good things should just fall in their laps. Of course, the world has never been like that for anyone except the ultra wealthy, but they don’t know that. They believe Rogan because he’s older than them and acts like he knows about all things.

  192. 192.

    Ceci n est pas mon nym

    @catclub: Not mentioned: He has been continually saying we are in a bubble and expects a 50% drop in stock prices since 2011. Just think if you believed him and got out of stocks then.

    Reminds me of an old tale which I can’t remember whether it was relayed to me as a math joke or an actual scam. Probably actual scam. I wouldn’t be surprised if this guy plays it regularly.

    Here’s how it works. You pick some power of 2 number of prospects. Let’s say 32. Half of them (16) you send a newsletter predicting a certain stock will go up, half to go down.

    Whichever one you got right, you send half of that bunch (8) a prediction that another stock will go up, and the other half a prediction that it will go down.

    If you start with 32, then after 5 rounds you’ve got one person who thinks you’re a genius for your amazing streak of 5 correct predictions. It would probably work for 8 cold prospects and 3 in a row. Getting a new client in 1 out of 8 cold calls is I imagine a pretty good return.

  195. 195.

    Gvg

    @gene108: Regan said he would cut SS one of the time he ran. My dad was peeved and vented to me when my grandfather complained after Regan did it. Grandfather (mom’s dad) voted for Regan. Dad pointed out to grandpa the Regan had said he intended to, and Grandpa replied “but I didn’t think he meant it”. Lots of people were like that, they just liked Regan and assumed he couldn’t mean anything they didn’t like. That’s what irritated my dad. Also the sense they were refusing to learn from the experience and weren’t going to vote smarter in the future. Sometimes my grandfather did not seem that bright.

  196. 196.

    Kosh III

    How much does this cost the taxpayers? I know the RNC allegedly pays but you know…..

    Anyone else watching the Fabulous new version of Shogun?

  198. 198.

    Citizen Alan

    @Kay: I hope you’re right. But we cannot underestimate the extent to which conservative white women hate all other women. And also themselves.

  200. 200.

    Ruckus

    @Lobo:

    One of the 4 states I haven’t visited.

    Wyoming, Alaska, North and South Dakota.

    Been to a few foreign countries though.

    New Zealand, UK, Norway, Denmark, Italy, Spain, Greece, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Canada, Mexico, Virgin Islands. I think that covers it. I might be missing one or two…..

  205. 205.

    Geminid

    @Omnes Omnibus: I think the people “evorser” sees at the gym he frequents include a lot of current and former miltary people. They’re pretty thick in his part of Northern Virginia.

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