Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

A tremendous foreign policy asset… to all of our adversaries.

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

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

Let’s not be the monsters we hate.

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

The real work of an opposition party is to oppose.

Anne Laurie is a fucking hero in so many ways. ~ Betty Cracker

Well, whatever it is, it’s better than being a Republican.

Impressively dumb. Congratulations.

The words do not have to be perfect.

If you still can’t see these things even now, maybe politics isn’t your forte and you should stop writing about it.

I’m starting to think Jesus may have made a mistake saving people with no questions asked.

“woke” is the new caravan.

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

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

Is it irresponsible to speculate? It is irresponsible not to.

If you are still in the gop, you are either an extremist yourself, or in bed with those who are.

“Everybody’s entitled to be an idiot.”

Republicans are the party of chaos and catastrophe.

DeSantis transforming Florida into 1930s Germany with gators and theme parks.

Everybody saw this coming.

Republicans don’t lie to be believed, they lie to be repeated.

Why is it so hard for them to condemn hate?

We know you aren’t a Democrat but since you seem confused let me help you.

You are here: Home / John Cole Presents "This Fucking Old House" / Don’t Think I Didn’t Notice

Don’t Think I Didn’t Notice

by | 106 Comments

This post is in: 

By the way, when Walz tonight told Republicans to just “Mind their own damned business” it brought a tear to my eye because as many of you long time members of the community know all too well because I repeated myself all the time, I have been telling anyone who would listen and a lot who wouldn’t that my Presidential slogan if I ever ran would be “Cole 20??- Mind Your Own God Damned Business.” Politicians really undervalue how much people just don’t want to be fucked with.

Reader Interactions

106Comments

  1. 1.

    BR

    I really love the “We’re not going back” and “Mind your own damn business” because those slogans are so authentically from Harris and Walz.

  4. 4.

    wonkie

    I think it also shifts the focus to what our business ought to be: addressing real problems.

  7. 7.

    Steven Holmes

    Today Harris is up with ads in North Carolina, they’ve been missing since Biden dropped out. Also, they are positive “Morning In America” style ads that I don’t mind listening to. I mute all negative ads, Rep or Dem, they are just annoying. Trump has been running negative ads since Harris became the nominee.

    Now if they could do a couple “Mind your own damn business” ads I’d be blissful.

  8. 8.

    HumboldtBlue

    Lifted from downstairs, these motherfuckers are weird, as in a 4Chan message board weird, and that’s their platform and when you call them weird, creepy, stalker rapist fuckers they’re like; “well yeah?” They have had a run with Trump where that was normalized. And all of a sudden, it’s not. They’re nasty, weird, foul people and it is glaringly obvious when compared to Kamala and Walz.

    The psycho 4chan bathroom pervert shit is just not going to work against this. I think unforced positive energy might be kryptonitic to their whole experiment. They’re already flailing and it’s only going to get even funnier watching them drown.

  10. 10.

    BR

    I’m curious about something that some of the never Trumpers are complaining about that I don’t know anything about — they don’t buy the idea that Walz brings over any new demographics that Harris doesn’t already have. In that while he’s rural, he doesn’t align on the conservative culture stuff (those folks are Trumpers anyway) and he doesn’t align with center right suburban voters on the Manchin style “business moderate / center right” stuff. I don’t really know, but I get that there probably aren’t too many new folks he brings over. However, someone did mention on a previous thread that their husband is a former GOP voter who was on the fence about Harris and really liked the Walz speech.

  12. 12.

    Chet Murthy

    @BR: I think “reaching out to rural voters” has been code for “throw some of your groups under the bus”.  Simple as that.  A guy like Walz who refused to throw women, LGBTQ, kids, people of color, under the bus, doesn’t qualify in their eyes.

  13. 13.

    Steve LaBonne

    @BR: Funnily enough Manchin himself gave Walz a ringing endorsement. “My friend Governor Tim Walz will bring normality back to the most chaotic political environment that most of us have ever seen. All of the candidates were strong and any one of them would have been a great pick, but I can think of no one better than Governor Walz to help bring our country closer together and bring balance back to the Democratic Party. Governor Walz is the real deal. I look forward to continuing to work with him to bring normalcy back to Washington.”

  15. 15.

    Geminid

    @Steven Holmes: This a good time for the Harris campaign to be running positive ads, it seems to me. They probably have some hard-hitting attack ads ready to rotate in before too long. They’ll want to tear Trump down, but right now Trump is getting the job done by himself.

  16. 16.

    TS

    The FTFNYT seem to be well past DougJ – and hopelessly in the hands of the fascists.  Not sure why because most trump supporters couldn’t read any newspaper, let alone the NYT.

  18. 18.

    Scout211

    Nice article at HuffPost recapping all the joy, fun and best zingers from today’s rally. 

     

    Democrats Lost Their Minds Over Tim Walz, Kamala Harris’ New Midwestern Running Mate

    PHILADELPHIA — A crowd of thousands went absolutely nuts over Vice President Kamala Harris’ new running mate, the previously little-known Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who energized an audience at a Temple University arena into almost ear-splitting decibels of excitement on Tuesday.

    “He drove the economy into the ground, and make no mistake, violent crime was up under Donald Trump — and that’s not even counting the crimes that he committed,” said Walz, the crowd erupting in yelling, cheering and foot-stomping for several seconds.

    If you didn’t get a chance to watch the speeches today, it’s a nice summary.

  19. 19.

    Dangerman

    The other side has some seriously weird motherfuckers; I don’t see the connection between the Minnesota Flag and the Somali Flag. Maybe I’m missing something.

    Motherfuckers. Couch fuckers. Daughter wanna fuckers. That, when they lose, will find a way to toss this into the House. Fuckers.

  21. 21.

    RaflW

    @BR: Just remember that Never Trumpers still want sweet, sweet tax cuts and deregulation. They’re butthurt that a smiling, laughing Tim and Peggy and a buncha school kids signed free scool lunch for all.

    Oh, and less snarky:

    CNBC study ranks Minnesota sixth in the nation based on 128 indicators
    July 12, 2024

    [St. Paul, MN] – Governor Tim Walz today announced that Minnesota is ranked sixth in the nation for business, according to a recent CNBC study . Minnesota’s ranking is based on 128 key indicators in 10 categories of competitiveness, including workforce, infrastructure, economy, quality of life, and business friendliness. Minnesota was also recently ranked the best state for independent retailers, according to a B2B Reviews study, and earlier this week, the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport was named the best U.S. airport in 2024 by Travel + Leisure.

    “These rankings are a testament to our focus on investing in key areas that make our businesses and economy strong: job training, workforce development, child care, and broadband access,” said Governor Walz. “

  23. 23.

    RandomMonster

    I ended up watching the whole event even though I didn’t expect to, and I actually choked up a little watching Walz’s face as Harris talked about his support of the gay-straight alliance group at his high school, and yet my most cathartic moment was when he said the mind your own damn business thing. I was already a fan but that sealed the deal.

  25. 25.

    RaflW

    @Scout211: Yeah, wow, that “not even counting the crimes that he committed” line was fantastic. The response was intense, even in my car radio.

    We haven’t had a hoarse-voiced, red meat* delivering Democratic VP candidate in quite a while. Even though I’m sure he’s used the joke before, it didn’t feel like a tee-up or an over-practiced thing.

    *turkey, for those who don’t like meat. “Turkey is special.”

  26. 26.

    CaseyL

    @BR: ​

    Well, first I’d want to know which Never Trumpers are saying that, because there are two main categories.

    The first are Never Trumpers who are still very Republican. They still want to defund social programs for tax cuts, they still want deregulation of business. They’re just not into the culture wars, and they’re definitely not into allying with Russia against the democratic global order. If they’re not excited by Walz, it’s because he’s a Democrat and his priorities are Democratic priorities.

    The second, smaller, group are former Republicans who are rethinking most of what they thought they believed. Jen Rubin is one example. I don’t think there are enough of these for Walz to make a difference; they were going to vote for Harris anyway.

    I think Walz might be someone the Harris campaign believes will excite people who don’t vote in every election, who need a reason to drag themselves out of the house and down to the polling booth. Walz is an EveryGuy they can identify with. The great uncommitted/”independent”/non-engaged people. There are supposed to be quite a few of these.

  27. 27.

    BR

    @CaseyL:

    Interesting, thanks. Yeah, I could see Walz getting low information men who are vaguely Dem aligned but not really motivated to show up. Dunno, but maybe.

  28. 28.

    Kayla Rudbek

    @Dangerman: a lot of the Somali refugees settled in Minneapolis and St. Paul  (my RWNJ dad gripes about how they made threats against the airport so the Fort Snelling Officers Club had to close down).

  29. 29.

    eclare

    @BR:

    Maybe he excites more young people to go to the polls with the gun safety laws he passed in MN?  David Hogg is a big supporter of Walz.

    Aside from reaching other groups, what we really need to do is excite people who already think like we do to go vote.  Excitement and fun can help.  The Democrats are the party that have that.

  30. 30.

    Villago Delenda Est

    I remember when Jeb!’s grandstanding compelled you, John Cole, to leave the GQp behind.

  32. 32.

    JWR

    Listening to clips on tonight’s news, I couldn’t help but notice just how much Don Jr, Eric and now Couchman Vance all sound alike. Not talk alike, even though they all do, but they all sound alike. Maybe it’s a weird sort of cadence, or a set of learned inflections? I really don’t know.

  33. 33.

    karen gail

    @BR: I’ve spent most of my life in Wisconsin, first boyfriend was from Mankato; Walz reminds me of family and home. I believe that he is going to touch that part of Midwesterners that will remind them of family in a much deeper way than JV Vance ever could. Walz isn’t fake, he is “our” school teacher, our coach, our grandparents, our parents, our cousins.

    I don’t care where people are living now, if they or their families are from the Midwest he is going to touch and remind us of “home.”

  34. 34.

    Trivia Man

    @BR: I like the earlier suggestion – friday night football  talk  with the  coach on local radio stations in michigan, Wisconsin, and Texas(!!!)

    politics might come up but … maybe not

  35. 35.

    BR

    @karen gail:

    Great to hear. I know lots of folks from Minnesota and Wisconsin, but culturally it’s so different for me vs. California that I have no perspective on these things myself.

  36. 36.

    Glidwrith

    @BR: Walz was a football coach, the true and holy religion of the South. My Southern husband is certain a lot of folks will seriously consider voting for Harris because he’s on the ticket.

  37. 37.

    Almost Retired

    Honestly, the best thing on all the internets I read today was in the comments on one of the VP threads this morning on this blog:  something to the effect of Walz being what our older white fathers and grandfathers might have been without the toxic influence of right wing media.

  39. 39.

    CaseyL

    @Glidwrith: ​

    That sounds nuts to me, but I guess it’s no more nuts than people voting for Bush the Lesser because “he’s someone you could have a beer with.”

  40. 40.

    Rusty

    I found out tonight that one of my daughters was at the Harris/Walz rally.  She is med school in Philadelphia, and surprised us all with a picture from the rally.  I will see her next week amd can’t wait to hear what it was like to be there with all that energy!  She wants to do OB/GYN, so women’s health and access to proper care including abortion is super important to her. All three of my daughters are big Harris supporters.  The kids are all right!

  41. 41.

    Glidwrith

    @BR: There was a Southern state, can’t remember which, that the thug governor utterly screwed the pooch for state finances. So badly, the colleges were in danger. Democratic governor voted in to clean up the mess. He threatened the electorate that if they didn’t get with the funding, he would make sure they lost any ability to have football.

    They couldn’t push the funding through fast enough.

  42. 42.

    eclare

    @Glidwrith:

    I’m hoping he somehow gets on College GameDay, they always have a celebrity host in addition to the usual crew.  That would be mindblowing.  Probably won’t happen, but if Ashton Kutcher and Katy Perry can go on there and give their opinions, why not an actual coach?  I can dream.

  44. 44.

    piratedan

    very happy with how far we’ve watched the party move from where we were three weeks ago.

    I don’t blame the Dems for being disheartened about the Biden campaign, as the well coordinated effort between print and visual media and Biden’s own missteps took all of the O2 out of the room.  Biden couldn’t make himself any younger and this solution is optimal and effectively shut out all of those others that had control of the narrative and allowed the Dems to completely reset it.

    In tracking what I’m seeing on the TV commercials between Olympic event coverage…

    RFK is now rebranding himself as a Progressive Democrat in favor of abortion rights (so now we’re back to trying to strip away low info Dems again I guess)

    DJT’s dark money allies are attempting to lay the blame for immigration fear mongering on Harris, at least we’re seeing this on steady rotation here in AZ.

  45. 45.

    West of the Rockies

    I said it in a previous thread and will say it again:  Walz may prove to be a cult off-ramp for Magats bored with Trump.

    I can picture Trumpers liking the “Mind your own damn business” slogan and declaring, “Trump has lost his way.  I llikethis Walz guy. I could have a beer with him.  Mind your own damn business is all I really ever wanted out of Trump, but he didn’t deliver.  I may just vote Walz.”

  46. 46.

    West of the Rockies

    @piratedan:

    RFK is toast.   He won’t appeal to young voters, not with that weird, old, angry face and voice like a spoon in a garbage disposal.

  48. 48.

    Doc Sardonic

    While I am not from the Midwest, far from it, I live in Florida and Governor Walz very much reminds me of men I knew when I was younger. He’s the older neighbor that helps you out when you are trying to fix something after buying your first house, or you mower breaks and he shows up with the right tool to fix it but lets you do the work so you know for next time. This is going to resonate with a lot of people across many states, your really great neighbor is running for Vice President.

  49. 49.

    The Other Bob

    I just watched Walz speak.  That was unexpectedly great.

    I was shocked by the couch comment. And agree that the “mind your own damn business” comment should be standard messaging.  I also liked that he segued into “creepy” and weird.

    Republicans should be scared of that guy.  He will only be 68 when Harris is out of office.  The coach can bring down the house.

  50. 50.

    piratedan

    @West of the Rockies: I feel the same, just noting that his campaign message has rebooted.  While watching his ad I wondered if he’s such a Progressive Democrat, why didn’t he declare for the primaries?

    just keeping tabs on what the bad guys are doing because its important to do so

  51. 51.

    Maxim

    @Almost Retired: Agreed. I think that will resonate with a lot of people. But those who haven’t had that experience can still respond to his Midwestern quintessence, or his genuineness, or his humor, or his rescue pets …

    I also think Coach Walz doing football / sports chats on Friday nights is genius, and I hope the campaign jumps on that.

  53. 53.

    Ohio Mom

    @Dangerman: I just googled, apparently Minnesota has a brand new state flag and it does have similarities with the Somalian flag. Both are very simple, bold designs; the Somalian flag is light blue; the new Minnesota flag is partly dark blue and partly light blue; both flags have a large white star.

    To which I say, So what?” I am sure the similarities are a coincidence, and it’s a ridiculous thing to get bent out of shape about.

    Though I am impressed that anyone pays so much attention to flag design.

  56. 56.

    Soprano2

    @Geminid: I saw one of those ads on the Olympics on NBC tonight. I saw it at least twice. Also, I haven’t seen any TCFG ads on those broadcasts.

    In related news. Cori Bush lost her primary to Wesley Bell, the St. Louis prosecutor who replaced the previous embattled prosecutor.

  58. 58.

    jonas

    “He drove the economy into the ground, and make no mistake, violent crime was up under Donald Trump — and that’s not even counting the crimes that he committed,”

    Lol! Inject that straight into my fucking veins!!!

  59. 59.

    Anyway

    @Soprano2: Yep, Kamala Harris ads have been all over the Olympics coverage. They are good – mostly snippets of her Milwaukee speech radiating positivity, strength, joy.

  60. 60.

    MomSense

    I am loving the campaign slogans and messaging because I think they are authentic to the candidates and so damned appropriate for the moment we are in.
    I am also loving that both Kamala and Tim are so confident and comfortable in their own skin.  They are driven to help people and they make it fun.  The energy is soooo good and so positive.  You want to be a part of it.
    I knew that Harris would be the nominee and she would be the right person for this moment.  Choosing Tim as our VP is the icing on the cake.  We can do this!

  62. 62.

    VeniceRiley

    @Almost Retired:

    Hi AR. That was me. :)

    Honestly, the best thing on all the internets I read today was in the comments on one of the VP threads this morning on this blog:  something to the effect of Walz being what our older white fathers and grandfathers might have been without the toxic influence of right wing media.

  63. 63.

    Kent

    @Steve LaBonne: Manchin is done with politics in West Virginia and has no fucks left to give.  He also hates Trump.  So it doesn’t surprise me that he would come out with a statement like that. It is basically a big fuck you to all the MAGA people running his state.

  66. 66.

    dm

    ActBlue took in $41 million yesterday, their sixth best day since the outpouring of support in the wake of RBG’s death in 2020 (which prompted the creation of the ActBlue ticket tracker).

    Fundraising was strong ($2.5M an hour) starting at 9AM Eastern time, but something big happened between 6-7 PM (I’m guessing people got home from work and saw the news), leading to a $5M spike

  68. 68.

    JWR

    @Origuy: I’m in SoCal and didn’t feel it, though I may have been in my car when it hit, but the local evening news is acting as if this was the Big One. Nothing else. I guess it’s all the fairly sizable aftershocks that has the attention of Lucy Jones of Cal Tech, saying that the 5.2 might have been a foreshock. Boy, haven’t we had enough excitement already today?

  69. 69.

    KatKapCC

    @Origuy: Yeah, my friend is at her grandma’s in some little nothing of a CDP down there. She was like “Well, that’s all the excitement I’m gonna see down here!”

  72. 72.

    Llelldorin

    I think a lot of these pundits only pay attention to voters with actual political beliefs. There are a lot of folks who vote entirely on vibe, momentum, and affect, and I think that’s where Walz really, really helps us.

  77. 77.

    prostratedragon

    @Glidwrith:  Actually that sounds like Illinois, which though not southern is so long north to south that KY is it’s southern border. Bruce the Vandal Rauner all but destroyed the balance sheet in just 4 years, and pushed most of the State colleges and universities much too close to the edge. JB Pritzker was voted in with cathartic relief.

  78. 78.

    David 🐝KHive🐝 Koch

    @CaseyL: It’s true It’s true there’s 2 camps.  The other day Rick Wilson was on TV saying he’s gonna spend the rest of his life working to get Biden on Mt. Rushmore and he was serious.

    Nothing like the zeal of a convert.

  79. 79.

    thalarctosMaritimus

    @Ohio Mom:

    I just googled, apparently Minnesota has a brand new state flag and it does have similarities with the Somalian flag. Both are very simple, bold designs; the Somalian flag is light blue; the new Minnesota flag is partly dark blue and partly light blue; both flags have a large white star.

    To which I say, So what?” I am sure the similarities are a coincidence, and it’s a ridiculous thing to get bent out of shape about.

    Indeed; it’s most vexing.

  83. 83.

    2liberal

    @The Other Bob:  Republicans should be scared of that guy.  He will only be 68 when Harris is out of office.  The coach can bring down the house.

     

    sounds good!

  84. 84.

    hitchhiker

    @eclare:

    Maybe he excites more young people to go to the polls

    I’m just guessing here, but I think it wouldn’t be a particular policy that could make that happen. Someone on reddit said that Walz is the guy our grandpas and uncles and dads used to be, before trump came along and turned them into bitter assholes.

    That feels like truth to me; it would mean Walz is like that teacher you had for a year and never forgot. That guy is telling you to vote now, and you still want to make him happy.

  87. 87.

    206inKY

    @karen gail: Yes! A feeling of home is a great way to put it for both Harris and Walz. Also I’m not sure there’s any more potent cultural hero in the Sunbelt and Midwest than the inspirational high school football coach who turns a losing program into state champions. He knew the symbolic power already in 1999 with the Gay-Straight Alliance, which redirected that energy toward making sure everyone belonged. I think he’s going to help not just win the election but help change our culture as a role model alongside Harris.

  88. 88.

    MomSense

    @The Other Bob:

    The Republicans want to monitor students’ menstrual cycles.  That is creepy as hell and definitely calls for a mind your own damned business.

  89. 89.

    JWR

    Oh boy. Can’t wait.

    “ON MONDAY NIGHT I’LL BE DOING A MAJOR INTERVIEW WITH ELON MUSK — Details to follow!” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.

    From NBC.

  90. 90.

    columbusqueen

    @West of the Rockies: The thing that strikes me is that Walz may have great appeal to the younger set despite his appearance.  I think he comes across as the warm, caring teacher & coach that a lot of kids, especially misfits with unsympathetic families, long for & admire.

  95. 95.

    Quaker in a Basement

    “Cole 20??- Mind Your Own God Damned Business.”

    I’m in. Where do I send my money?

  96. 96.

    Sister Golden Bear

    @Chet Murthy:

    I think “reaching out to rural voters” has been code for “throw some of your groups under the bus”.  Simple as that.

    Nailed it.

    Walz hasn’t done that — and won’t do that — so obviously he’s not a Real ‘Murican.

  97. 97.

    piratedan

    @Sister Golden Bear: I think Walz scares the absolute fuck out of the GOP because he’s the actual ideal that they aspire to:

    helpful, modest, slightly quirky, served his country, straight, Christian

    It’s how they’ve projected themselves within their tribe for decades, this white-bread 1950’s Leave It To Beaver surburbia and he’s rejected the GOP because they’re bigoted, petty, cruel and misogynistic.

  98. 98.

    Jay

    @VeniceRiley:

    MeMaw only had Windsor chairs, with no cushions, which is why JV Vance had to wait until college to experience the pushin of a cushion.

  100. 100.

    Ruckus

    @Geminid:

    I think they can do better by being positive and mainly because shitforbrains only has negative.

    I see no point in negative, other than the other guy is only negative because he has zero vision other than saving his own ass. And he’s failing at that, seemingly every time he opens his mouth. We are not going to get any of the hard right wing, may not get many of the right wing no matter how it’s spun. Go for the dems and the squishy middle. If any right wingers are swayed – great but the hard core right isn’t coming over unless trump tells them all to fuck themselves – and many of them not even then.

  106. 106.

    Starfish

    @BR: Walz brings over the normies who aren’t paying that much attention to politics but can sense that this dude is good. Seeing him doing normie things like going to the amusement park with his kid or fishing is going to hit them right in their normie feels. I mean, after several years of a pandemic, there is a deep desire for normalcy.

Comments are closed.