US Politics January 2018: "You All Just Got A Lot Richer"

i'm sure lots of them could (and would), but only trump could get away with it

he's a very special man

The kind you don't take home to mother.

His brazen lack of shame allowed him to ascend to the level of freakshow celebrity. The name recognition afforded him as a freakshow celebrity allowed him to win an election. It is, of course, more complex than that, but a jaw-dropping degree of shamelessness on its own (however disarming the tendency may be for those who are ill-prepared to combat it) are never going to be enough to win anyone a presidential election.

are is

if schoolyard bully tactics are so effective in winning elections, why was Trump the only one smart to figure that out?

this is where various berniebros have a major point imho. the mainstream DNC is like idle rich kids who stand on the side at recess while the bullies abuse the weak. they act like just because they're not harassing anyone, they're above it all, when they should, you know, be more active in taking out the bully, even risking their (entitled / born-privileged) status for it. instead the mainstream DNC refuses to recognize the bullying for what it is, because comfortable from birth (for the most part) they're reluctant to discomfort themselves by fighting fire with fire

^otm.

not only was he a man born into wealth who was given infinite chances to fuck everything up, he also possesses an extraordinary shamelessness that's practically inhuman

i think the latter is directly related to the former and neither are unique to this one guy

Not unique in kind but surely in degree. He's pure id injected with megadoses of HGH.

xpost You could probably make this point w/o referring to the many, different kinds of people who feel this way as "berniebros"

Hillary only had to say “Do you kiss your daughter with that mouth?” in front of an audience and let the world draw obvs conclusions.

she only had to say go fuck yourself.

suzy v otm. you can 'go there' with these idiots without being dumb (cf Marco's feckless little hands/ little peen salvo)

This is all fanfic.

Here we go: "No wall, no DACA"

Nice work Chuck

so what, another shutdown in 3 weeks?

Let’s just say I have a lot of experience taking school bullies (male and female) down a couple of pegs!

Who gives a shit about what that toddler says. There's a majority for DACA, and not for the wall.

Those facts are irrelevant to McConnell. There was a majority for DACA before the shutdown, too. I mean...you know he's gonna come w/ a wall built into the bill, right?

I just don't see how in this context each subsequent CR iteration of "comprehensive immigration reform" isn't going to be more nationalistic/terrifying. At some point you have to call their bluff. You can't keep saying "ok we'll let you hold the dreamers hostage for another month." I don't believe that except for a small number of nutjobs deportation is a serious prospect, it would be political suicide.

(I also understand these are not small stakes and not to be taken lightly)

unfortunately, IIRC "ok we'll let you hold the dreamers hostage for another month" is entirely possible as the president can authorize dreamer extension beyond march, turning it into a sort of everlasting carrot

Another useful Mariotti thread here:

THREAD: What does today’s @NBCNews report about Flynn’s FBI interview tell us about Mueller’s obstruction investigation? (Short answer: Quite a bit.)

— Renato Mariotti (@renato_mariotti) January 24, 2018

As the timeline gets clearer, things get more...focused.

xpost stick, whatever

Ned is your sense that we are getting a lot closer to something happening here ? xp

A big part of the point of McConnells promise was to get Trump as far away from the process as possible. There's no reason to think McConnell will bake the wall into the bill he has promised to put on the floor, he doesn't give a shit. Really, the problem will probably either that House racists keep Ryan from putting the deal to a vote, or that Trump vetos it. Both things would lead to DREAMERS losing protection and another shutdown, but it's really tough to do anything about it, other than making sure the electoral outcome is different soon. And hopefully Ryan won't control the house in a year.

There's no reason to think McConnell will bake the wall into the bill he has promised to put on the floor

You must not be from around these parts

how much flour do you use to bake a wall

Ned is your sense that we are getting a lot closer to something happening here ?

In terms of the obstruction part of the inquiry, certainly. If anything, per Mariotti's thread, Cobb's endlessly-joked-about claim that that part of the investigation is wrapping up isn't far off.

That said, it's unclear what else is exactly being looked at, though plenty of general guesses all apply. The formal brief from Rosenstein to Mueller that opened the inquiry:

https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/3726408-Rosenstein-letter-appointing-Mueller-special.html

...hinges in part on a key phrase that has to be kept in mind: "any matters that arose or may arise directly from the investigation." Essentially, a lot of cans of worms have almost certainly been opened. And besides Gates apparently negotiating a plea -- which if that goes through means three out of the four people already charged basically admitting something -- there's this little side issue:

https://medium.com/@Erinlank/felix-sater-subpoenaed-newly-cooperative-in-new-york-money-laundering-case-against-trumps-kazakh-d865281454fc

I still think most of this involves a whole lotta people both out for themselves and trying to butter up Trump. The latter's susceptibility to flattery and his belief that everything can be quietly taken care of has kept tripping him up further.

The promise is a DACA bill open to amendments. There will def be a wall amenment, but is there 50 votes for it? Ie, the ones to watch aren't McConnell but Collins, Graham, etc.

basically the message the populace should take from these proceedings is "we're on our own"

Ned is your sense that we are getting a lot closer to something happening here ? xp

― (•̪●) (carne asada), Wednesday, January 24, 2018 5:06 PM (one hour ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I'm no Ned, lol, but I think there's definitely some movement going on with the special counsel - at least with regards to Gates/Manafort. There were articles last night about Gates potentially flipping (which is pretty obvious given his age, exposure, and resources to fight) and also a superceding indictment which would add more charges against them. I would assume those additional charges would be more relevant to the Russia/campaign stuff and less Ukraine related.

a link

https://www.cnn.com/2018/01/23/politics/rick-gates-new-attorney-mueller-russia-investigation/index.html

and a quote

"For months, court-watchers -- including Gates' own attorneys -- have anticipated additional charges against the defendants. Superseding indictments, which would add or replace charges against both Gates and Manafort, have been prepared, according to a source close to the investigation. No additional charges have been filed so far. When there is a delay in filing charges after they've been prepared, it can indicate that negotiations of some nature are ongoing."

returning to the thread late but the re-appropriation i was talking about was like... pieces about “shithole” countries that were meant to lift them up but still used the term, or even lazy use of “make (blank) great again” / “make america (blank) again.” it just tightens his short fingered grip on this nation’s neck

“I think it is just a conversation. I don’t think it intends of, you know, all of these terrible things that people are trying to put forward,” McDaniel said on CNN’s “New Day.” “I ask people who they vote for sometimes. I think it’s trying to get to know somebody. This is a president who is just getting to know people, and that’s part of those conversations.”

^this would be RNC chair McDaniel

This regrettable shutdown reminded all of us that, in United States #Senate, brinksmanship and hostage-taking simply do not work.

— Leader McConnell (@SenateMajLdr) January 23, 2018

I want horrible things to happen to this person

also those things totally work

xposts I give people stock tips sometimes. I see no reason why we should hold someone to a different standard if they work for the company about which they're giving stock tips. They're just being a buddy.

https://i.imgur.com/NDX721b.jpg

somehow i missed this:

https://i.imgur.com/oeoonkF.png

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/jan/23/senate-stick-susan-collins-government-shutdown

holy fuck

President Stick in 2020

Collins/Rainbow Dildo '20

i'm beginning to understand why schumer did what he did. whenever i'm in the room with a talking stick i just do whatever i can to get out of there as quickly as possible

especially when Susan Collins approaches you with her Maine smile and her glowing stick

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-m9ioOwX3mxY/URO3tXafomI/AAAAAAAAEks/jXdvZJlrk7M/s1600/inanimate-carbon-rod.jpg

In Oregon, we passed a healthcare funding ballot measure that never should have been a ballot issue. The rep who spearheaded the campaign is a shithead republican from West Linn. The NYT wants to interview Trump voters? Head to the wealthy suburbs of any city, Portland or no.

https://splinternews.com/three-oregon-republicans-tried-to-blow-up-medicaid-it-1822351473

I've said it before, drive an hour outside of most cities and you might as well be in Texas.

Re: Mueller, there are several overlapping investigations going on at once. There's Russian collusion, there is Russian interference, there is obstruction of justice (re: Russia), there is financial malfeasance and crimes of his underlings (often related to Russia or Russian interests), and then there is financial malfeasance and crimes of Trump himself and Trump Inc. It's hard to say how close we are to "the end" since there are multiple ends, and just as Gates and Manafort may be charged with more, it's possible one of these investigations may "end" but the parties involved may still be in the crosshairs for other stuff.

Compare this to Ken Starr, fwiw, whose investigations were almost wholly unrelated: Whitewater, Lewinsky, Travelgate (how quaint!).

republicans are basically traitors at this point

I've said it before, drive an hour outside of most cities and you might as well be in Texas.

of the 25 million people in texas, 22 million live in cities

get out more

i think he was just referring to redness of TX