All GOP right now pic.twitter.com/wRtaz90u8n
— Patti Mulligan #StayHome #WearAMask (@chachina) December 12, 2020
I think a lot about those White House aides, campaign staffers, and GOP office-holders who spent the first 10 days after the election anonymously saying “what’s the harm in letting him vent while he comes to terms with his loss?” to reporters.
1/— Jacob T. Levy (@jtlevy) December 13, 2020
I suspect that there are plenty of Republicans who neither intended nor wanted for things to get as out of hand as they have, and who, despite all evidence from the last four years, thought this would all just blow over instead of escalating.
— Jacob T. Levy (@jtlevy) December 13, 2020
Cowards before and after: “Of 17 Republican attorneys general who endorsed the case none agreed to be interviewed by the Times. Requests for comments sent to the office of more than two dozen top congressional Republicans
were either declined or ignored.” https://t.co/NpngxPE22b— Kurt Andersen (@KBAndersen) December 13, 2020
“The quality of ideas seems to play a minor role in mass movement leadership. What counts is the arrogant gesture, the complete disregard of the opinion of others, the singlehanded defiance of the world.” – Eric Hoffer, The True Believer
— Mark K (@mjklin) December 11, 2020
Idpol – ‘identity politics’, i.e., racism in a clean shirt…
this is a pretty strong argument, but it's also possible that a lot of the most recent GOP radicalisation is down to white idpol reacting to the existence of a Black president. we're gonna get a test of the hypothesis real soon https://t.co/ben2BOa2fl
— Zoomcock Archivist ?? (@canderaid) December 11, 2020
Georgia Voices for a Blue Senate: A Virtual Concert Tonight at 8pm Eastern
dmsilev
The GOP is stuck with Trump now. One thing that his extended temper tantrum has done is force nearly all of the current set of Republican office-holders to publicly declare their support for said temper tantrum. Call it an oath of fealty if you will. Now, consider the hypothetical challenger-to-Trump for 2024. Where do they even start?
smike
@dmsilev:
And they are stuck with a base that will eat their face. Right/wrong does not matter, they just need to eat. And eat they will.
I pity them not.
mrmoshpotato
Yeah! No harm in letting a Soviet shitpile mobster manbaby scream his fat, orange, fascist head off when he still has the power of the land’s highest office.
Has Dump learned his lesson yet, Suzie?
Idiots.
mrmoshpotato
Forget it, Jake. It’s been a pile of shit party for at least 40 years.
Yutsano
Junior has officially gone over the deep end.
mrmoshpotato
@dmsilev:
If only it had been completely fucking obvious that Dump was a pile of shit racist manbaby back in 2015…
Too bad. So sad. Fuck ’em.
mrmoshpotato
@Yutsano: Can you give us a one-sentence summary?
West of the Rockies
I dont think this gets enough play: 35 years of right wing rage media, starting with Limbaugh, contributed mightily to this GOP decay.
Well, soon enough Rush will “assume room temperature” (as he has crudely been saying for years about Democrats who have passed). But the damage is done. Cape GirLardo must be proud.
jonas
Shit. I don’t even want to know. Trump supporters aren’t even pretending not to be full-blown fascists at this point.
different-church-lady
Again: Trump is the symptom, not the disease.
jonas
@West of the Rockies: As we know Rush, like Fox News, spawned a thousand imitators across the am spectrum. He may pass — hopefully into eternal perdition — but his influence will live on, unfortunately.
The Moar You Know
Trump’s hands are really incredibly small. I wouldn’t be showing my hands off in public like that if I were him.
Edmund Dantes
@different-church-lady: exactly. Trump is not the cause of the rot. Trump is just what the rot looks like when it finally gets too hard to hide with spackle and paint.
mrmoshpotato
Justice Karofsky added, “Too bad. So sad. Suck an ass’s ass, and get the fuck out of our courtroom, you traitorous Trump trash!”
Kineslaw
@mrmoshpotato: Trump Jr. high as a kite in a cheap motel room ranting about Hunter Biden and China.
NotMax
With all due apology to Betty, when it comes to Dolt 45 –
“What cracker is this same that deafs our ears
With this abundance of superfluous breath?”
– Wm. Shakespeare, The Life and Death of King John
.
mrmoshpotato
@jonas: Nope. They don’t believe in democracy anymore. The GOP has shown its fat, orange, fascist ass.
prostratedragon
@mrmoshpotato: Didn’t listen, just watched for a moment, and the man do not look good at all. If anyone cared about him they’d try to get him to seek help, like now.
mrmoshpotato
@Kineslaw: Thanks. Also, SAD!
Benw
Some of those that work forces, are the same that burn crosses
Yutsano
@prostratedragon:
I already see the problem…
There is no such thing as love or care in that family. There is only who can do what for whom at any given time. No one from his supposed family will do anything. The ex Mrs Newsom will not do anything for him. He’ll have to keep decaying until either he can no longer function or some outside force kills him.
different-church-lady
@Edmund Dantes: Trump is what the rot looks like when you tear down everything that isn’t rotted.
HumboldtBlue
I came across a good recipe.
jonas
The GOP is now composed of two key constituencies: rich, entitled mofos who would as soon see America and all it stands for burn to the ground than pay one more cent in taxes; and redneck fascists who long to see an authoritarian jackboot pressed across the throat of all those they perceive as “elitists” who look down on them, but are willing to let the rich bastards run roughshod over them, if it means that they can swing their
penis extendersguns around in public without people thinking they’re losers. The problem is, that’s not really a governing coalition. It’s not really anything except a mob of entitled, spoiled bastards who don’t give a shit about the country and think it’s all about them. Funny that they’ve found their idol in Trump.different-church-lady
@prostratedragon:
…they’d have to do an end-run around karma.
Another Scott
@dmsilev:
Someone will find a way.
Watch people like Kasich. They may not win in 2024, but they’ll change the conversation from Donnie to something else.
Political parties forget about losers and change their message when a new standard bearer comes along. The GOP will change, too, because they want to win more than anything else. Parties forget about losers, or at least don’t mention them any more even when their ideas survive.
We can’t be complacent and think that Donnie will be an anchor around all the GOP candidates in the next cycles. Too many people are too ambitious to be in his shadow for long. They’re going to fight it out for the nominations, and not let Javanka or Junior or Eric or that screaming crazy lady just take over.
Yeah, they’re scared of his RWNJ supporters. But those people have always been out there. When the government actually pushes back, they go back under their rocks…
My $0.02.
Cheers,
Scott.
Danielx
mrmoshpotato
@HumboldtBlue: Native Australian spices? Aren’t you only allowed to make that dish in Australia then?
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Another Scott:
Most losers tend to go away quietly, assuming the role of elder statesman. Trump won’t do that, he’ll be more like a stalker if they try to spurn him.
Redshift
@mrmoshpotato: I realized after watching the government set up by the GOP in Iraq that the conservative definition of democracy is “elections are held and the right people win.” Will of the people has no part in it.
Redshift
@mrmoshpotato:
Deep Throat said it best: “they’re not very bright, and things got out of hand.”
NotMax
@mrmoshpotato
Not to mention needing to stir everything counter-clockwise.
;)
mrmoshpotato
@?BillinGlendaleCA:
Spurn away, assclowns! Let the monster you created destroy your party.
mrmoshpotato
@Redshift: In this case, “They’re fascist con(wo)men who got deservedly fucked by a better conman.”
mrmoshpotato
@NotMax: Yes. Least they rip a hole in the spacetime-kangaroo continuum.
mrmoshpotato
Gassy galaxy. ?
matt the somewhat reasonable
Well, Trump might have lost but his supporters are going to go down gloating about how they’re still going to steal the election from the voters.
That’ll show em.
Viva BrisVegas
@NotMax:
I think you mean clockwise.
Brachiator
@mrmoshpotato:
I had a copy of The New Yorker from November, 2015, with a long article about how wary the GOP was of Trump. Even some disparaging remarks from the GOP leadership.
It’s funny how quickly and completely they fell in line behind him. And continue to do so. The GOP abandoned any principles they had a long time ago. They want to win at any cost. A few of them may talk about Trump privately, but who has gone on record publicly about him?
They will fall in line again if he comes back in 2024. And the right wing propaganda machine will be ready to roll. The crazy thing is that the right wing propaganda machine will deny that Trump ever existed if it serves their purposes. That’s how craven these fools are. Plus they know that the GOP base are suckers who will fall for anything. You just have to spoonfeed them lies coated with patriotism and “economic anxiety” and give them a few scapegoats to hate and they will be happy.
mrmoshpotato
@Viva BrisVegas: You stir things counter-clockwise? You monster. :)
NotMax
@Viva BrisVegas
Strewth, busted! :)
mrmoshpotato
@Brachiator: Dump was the fascist of Rethuglican dreams.
mrmoshpotato
Popehat is currently SeverelyPunishableHat.
Hehe
Mary G
They had to close down the Michigan State Legislature because tomorrow’s electoral votes will be cast in the same building, and they received credible threats of terrorism.
Chris T.
I’m not a good judge of these things, but I think part of it is actually how Trump tries to look taller and disguise how fat he is. With 4 or more inches of lift in his shoes and those oversize suits and coats he wears, it makes him look as if it’s about 6’2″ and has a large body (rather than just a large stomach), and hence his hands ought to be larger too. So viewers expect bigger hands, and then his just look tiny.
Brachiator
@Yutsano:
Junior looks as if he is seriously toasted. I’m also surprised that he seems to be in such a cheap ass motel room.
That boy ain’t right.
Geoduck
@Chris T.: No, he’s seriously got A Thing about how small his hands are. It was Spy Magazine who really started that particular ball rolling in public with their “stubby-fingered vulgarian” crack, and twenty years later, the Shiatgibbon is/was still sending picture of his grubby little mitts to at least one of the former editors.
NotMax
@Brachiator
Reprobates Motel?
Citizen Alan
For some reason, this tweet reminds me of this Onion article.
Brachiator
I need to come back to this. Republicans saw what Trump was, but there is something about them that is attracted to feeble minded autocrats.
The GOP knew what Trump was. They had many opportunities to reject him. They could have kept the nomination from him. They could have voted to remove him from office as part of the impeachment process. They could have clearly and forcefully endorsed the election results.
But they didn’t. They coddled him and flattered him and protected him. And used him.
And now he is raising money for 2024 and has a core of supporters who share his sense of grievance.
And still there are pundits who think that there are Republicans with values and honor instead of this morally bankrupt bunch of fools with their heads up Trump’s ass. They can’t shake him loose and are waiting to see if he cuts a fart.
mrmoshpotato
and just cheesify and bake the hell out of it
NotMax
@Brachiator
And now he is raising money advertised as being for 2024. Like all else he spouts, it’s a lie. There will be no stab at running outside of meaningless window dressing.
mrmoshpotato
@Citizen Alan: Hahaha, I’d forgotten about that.
mrmoshpotato
@NotMax:
Yup. The grift goes on. And I’m expecting Dump to be dead or in prison by 2024.
gene108
@Another Scott:
Republicans have only gotten more radically conservative after an election loss.
Ford’s loss got Reagan. Bush, Sr.’s loss got Gingrich’s Contract on America, and Bush. Jr., who was considered very conservative in 2000.
Bush, Jr.’s demise & McCain’s loss got us the Tea Party, and Romney’s loss got us to Trump.
Trump’s loss is going to lead to openly fascist, and racist Republican politicians by 2022 and definitely by 2024.
smike
@mrmoshpotato:
Bingo! Bingo!
Brachiator
@NotMax:
And now he is raising money for 2024
The fundraising keeps his base tied to him whether he runs or not. Pence is the immediate loser here. And it will be tough for anyone else to break through if Trump runs a crackpot shadow presidency out of Mar a Lago.
Of course, Trump may decide to do nothing but play golf. But he will keep the cash from the suckers rolling in.
The GOP can’t shake Trump loose without some display of courage. Trump is, for now, still in control of the GOP.
ETA. I will be curious to see how Trump reacts to the Electoral College meeting later today.
Hmm. I guess states will be voting throughout the day. California by 5 pm Eastern time. Hawaii by 7 pm Eastern Time.
burnspbesq
@mrmoshpotato:
I could feel my arteries clogging as I read that.
mrmoshpotato
@burnspbesq: Yummo!
opiejeanne
@NotMax: Nicely done.
burnspbesq
Want to know the future direction of the Republican Party? Watch this Saturday’s runoff election for a state Senate seat in Texas.
statesman.com/story/news/politics/2020/12/11/texas-senate-runoff-pits-shelley-luther-and-drew-spring…
mrmoshpotato
@burnspbesq: Ahhhh Trash 1 v Trash 2.
mrmoshpotato
No Pants Allowed
?BillinGlendaleCA
@mrmoshpotato: Baud approves of this message.
mrmoshpotato
@?BillinGlendaleCA: I’m sure.
NotMax
@mrmoshpotato
Trivia: Comics covers from 1940 featuring Phantasmo.
;)
Brachiator
@burnspbesq:
This Texas contest is wild. Luther doesn’t appear to have much political experience. And background character Allen West is a grifter.
mrmoshpotato
@NotMax: Not exactly the pantsless ghost I was expecting.
Geminid
@Brachiator: Shelley Luther of the Texas runoff is comparable to Lauren Boebert, recent winner of the Colorado 3rd Congressional District. Boebert also made her name by keeping her business open in defiance of Covid-19 restrictions. Boebert capitalized on her notoriety by defeating six term republican Congressman Scott Tipton in a primary. She then won the general election and will now represent the 3rd in Congress. Like Luther, Boebert is relatively young, in her 30s I believe.
satby
Nice to see a shout-out to Hoffer’s True Believer, which was one of the first books I read about political thought and mass movements way back in the 60s, and has influenced me my entire life. It inoculated me against much of the simple sound byte political con jobs so many people seem to fall for.
p.a.
Hive mind question: odds on tRump being physically able to campaign by late ’23/’24? If the private docs he chooses (no more free gvt healthcare) are like his lawyers, he’s doomed.
Cameron
Of course Trump will be running in 2024. Against Hugo Chavez.
trnc
And, in their eyes, an American.
As far as the opinion that republicans just thought they would ride this out, are we STILL giving them Chuck Todd levels of tongue bath? Every time the republicans had a choice, they backed up DT. Every single time. I was done giving them passes a long time ago. I’d love to think this will come back and bite them in the ass in Georgia in January, but hate, rage and psychosis seem to be working pretty well for them as far as their base are concerned.
Uncle Jeffy
Allen West ran for office here in Illinois a few years ago and got his ass kicked so thoroughly that he left the state immediately afterward.
SFAW
@Another Scott:
You’re assuming a rational Rethug Partei. Were I Kasich, I’d be worried that some MAGAt will try to take out me and my family, for daring to rise up against the god-emperor.
Chris Johnson
@Brachiator: I do have to wonder what it’s gonna take for you to stop putting scare quotes around ‘economic anxiety’. How many people have to starve?
Just saying. Granted, I’m an Elizabeth Warren Dem. The rest of what you’ve got to say, yep, agreed. It just really bugs me, every time. The only reason I’m not still panicked and scrambling for Bernie Sanders figures as some sort of refuge is, my parents (who owned stuff) DIED.
That doesn’t scale. Even under COVID. My folks were lucky, plus they hung on to every possible resource they could as long as they did live, making the effect more striking.
As a result of this, everybody I know lives in economic anxiety, and I never like seeing the scare quotes. It’s like seeing somebody around here spouting Trumpist talking points.
Jake Gibson
@smike:
The problem being they will eat our faces too.
boatboy_srq
Ya think?
Just One More Canuck
@mrmoshpotato:
Blasting gas that far would require the energy of 100,000 supernovae. #BadAstronomyt.co/OHB4drHodm— SYFY WIRE (@SYFYWIRE) December 13, 2020
or a dog
bluefoot
@Redshift: The US track record in South America is the same. It’s just that they’ve come out from behind the curtain here at home. Plus they’ve realized that they can get away with it here, where before they thought they had to be behind the scenes/subtle about it. No longer.
Miss Bianca
@Geminid: And with any hope, Boebert is stupid enough to get eaten alive in Washington. Yeah, I’d like to think so, anyway.
Boris Rasputin (the evil twin)
@West of the Rockies: I’m hoping Rush lives long enough to see Biden sworn in, and then dies. Spontaneous combustion would be nice.
ballerat
@Another Scott: It isn’t about what the party wants anymore. It’s what the trumpist base wants.
As others have pointed out, Trump is a symptom not the disease. As long as Trump is alive they will want Trump. If Trump dies in at least the next four years they will still demand from the next GOP candidates what Trump was pushing.
I don’t know if Kasich has the sociopathy it takes to deliver that, but I am certain there will be others who can easily manage it.
One more thing and it’s important: The base doesn’t see Donnie as a loser. He was a winner by every measure that matters for them, and most now believe his second term was stolen from him.
Donnie isn’t just a winner to them, he’s a hero. And a victim! His successor must and will acknowledge that.
ballerat
@Brachiator: I’m thinking hard drugs or young prostitutes.
No One You Know
@mrmoshpotato: And just sat there waiting for things to “Get better by themselves.”