All-purpose news and politics thread: Two Steps Beyond!(Part II)

[BeastieRunner]

There's a list I spotted over at DailyKos of speculative House Republicans who might head for the exits before 2020, citing age, being term-limited by their party for Committee chair titles (5 of 6 chairs who faced this limitation retired in 2018), indictments (Hunter and Collins), or seeking Senate or Gubernatorial aspirations, as reasons they might be leaving those seats.

They see 19 Republicans potentially bailing, versus 12 Democrats (Two of which are Seth Moulton and Dan Lipinski, who they predict will get primary challenges).

Democratic turnout is always higher in general elections, compared to mid-terms, and the Democrats just got 9 million more votes than the GOP and they picked up 40 seats in the House in the mid-terms. What this could also do to the Senate, in a year where the GOP are playing defense across the Senate map...

They're already looking at the possibility of losing more seats to Democrats, even after the Blue Wave year we just saw in the House. Those 19 seats being at risk will not make their fortunes much better, if that list proves prescient.

Also, non-elected Arizona senator John Kill (using the completely unrealistic nom de crime of Jon Kyl) announced today he is resigning, so governor Doug Douchey will have to find somebody willing to take the job who has a better chance of keeping the seat red than Kill.

I know everyone is watching 2020 but I'm actually watching 2022 ... that will be the telling election. If the Dems repeat 2018, the GOP is dead.

[BeastieRunner]

Stop counting money, start counting indictments! Trump names budget director Mick Mulvaney as acting White House chief of staff. His first official comment as acting chief?

"I did not and do not want the job."

What a fucking circus ...

[WestPhillyPunisher]

Stop counting money, start counting indictments! Trump names budget director Mick Mulvaney as acting White House chief of staff. His first official comment as acting chief?

"I did not and do not want the job."

What a fucking circus ...

I’m surprised He Went To Jared or Ms. Complicit didn’t land the job. Meanwhile, I’m gonna take a wild assed guess and say Trump begged Mulvaney to take the position after everyone turned it down.

[BeastieRunner]

I’m surprised He Went To Jared or Ms. Complicit didn’t land the job. Meanwhile, I’m gonna take a wild assed guess and say Trump begged Mulvaney to take the position after everyone turned it down.

Mick is now the head of the Office of Management and Budget, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and Trump's Chief of Staff.

It appears it was an ordered succession. That means ... Lighthizer, Coats, and Nauert all said no.

[numberthirty]

Doesn't a felony bar you from voting in most states and running for office?

You know that part in Animal House where Bluto is talking about the Germans bombing Pearl Harbor, and over on the sideline Otter says "Germans?" only to have Boon kick in "Forget it. He's rolling"?

I feel like you just said "Germans?"

Forget it. Dude is rolling.

[numberthirty]

It's the new cover photo for WBE!

Also, Chris Christie said no to Trump for Chief of Staff.

Cited all the dick moves he's done to him.

AHAHAHAHAHAHA!

That is just the polite way of saying "Everything around you is hotter than a two dollar pistol."

[Tami]

Trump’s Inauguration Paid Trump’s Company — With Ivanka in the Middle

When it came out this year that President Donald Trump’s inaugural committee raised and spent unprecedented amounts, people wondered where all that money went.

It turns out one beneficiary was Trump himself.

The inauguration paid the Trump Organization for rooms, meals and event space at the company’s Washington hotel, according to interviews as well as internal emails and receipts reviewed by WNYC and ProPublica.

During the planning, Ivanka Trump, the president-elect’s eldest daughter and a senior executive with the Trump Organization, was involved in negotiating the price the hotel charged the 58th Presidential Inaugural Committee for venue rentals. A top inaugural planner emailed Ivanka and others at the company to “express my concern” that the hotel was overcharging for its event spaces, worrying of what would happen “when this is audited.”

[BeastieRunner]

You know that part in Animal House where Bluto is talking about the Germans bombing Pearl Harbor, and over on the sideline Otter says "Germans?" only to have Boon kick in "Forget it. He's rolling"?

I feel like you just said "Germans?"

Forget it. Dude is rolling.

Hah!

Excellent reference.

[BeastieRunner]

"How many Scaramuccis does he last?" Fortsccaramucci and Scaramucci are trending in reference to the new Chief of Staff.

[Jack Dracula]

I was watching a show where they were showing how much Cohen's story has changed through the years, and they showed him on Fox News praising Trump back in 2011. Then Cohen in 2015, and 2016, before today.

He looks like he's aged 20 years in the past 7. Most of that in the past two.

I find myself wondering at what point he realized how big of a mistake he'd made getting involved in Trumps BS. I imagine it was when Stormy Daniels first appeared on television and Trump went on record denying any knowledge of payments being made.
If he were less of a sleaze-bag I might feel sympathy for him.

[JCAll]

Cohen looks like a broken man.

Well, he was fined 20 million dollars. He's literally a broke man.

[JCAll]

So... will Wisconsin's Scott Walker be remembered for going out like an autocrat by signing the GOP power grab into law...

... or for having no understanding of how Venn diagrams works?

The only things I hate more than terrible charts are terrible politicians with terrible charts.

[Tami]

Federal judge in Texas rules Obama health-care law unconstitutional

A federal judge in Texas threw a dagger on Friday into the Affordable Care Act, ruling that the entire health-care law is unconstitutional because of a recent change in federal tax law.

The opinion by U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor overturns all of the sprawling law nationwide.

The ruling came on the eve of the deadline for Americans to sign up for coverage in the federal insurance exchange created under the law.

Since the suit was filed in January, many health-law specialists have viewed its logic as weak but nevertheless have regarded the case as the greatest looming legal threat to the 2010 law, which has been a GOP whipping post ever since and assailed repeatedly in the courts.

A spokeswoman for California Attorney General Xavier Becerra (D), who leads a group of states opposing the lawsuit, said that the Democratic defenders of the law are ready to challenge the ruling in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit.

The Supreme Court upheld the law as constitutional in 2012 and 2015, though the first of those opinions struck down the ACA’s provision that was to expand Medicaid nationwide, letting each state choose instead. No matter how O’Connor ruled, legal experts have been forecasting that the Texas case would be appealed and could well place the law again before the high court, giving its conservative newest member, Justice Brett Kavenaugh, a first opportunity to take part.

O’Connor is a conservative judge on the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas. He was appointed by President George W. Bush. O’Connor ruled once before on an issue arising from the ACA, issuing a nationwide injunction two years ago on an Obama administration rule that forbid providers of health care to discriminate based on gender identity.

And in June, the administration took the unusual step of telling the court that it will not defend the ACA against this latest challenge. Typically, the executive branches argues to uphold existing statutes in court cases.

[GindyPosts]

Federal judge in Texas rules Obama health-care law unconstitutional

Trump worshipers are celebrating this as a HUGE victory because just think of all the free money this saves up to build that wall that'll keep us safe from all those murderers and rapists. Getting rid of all those icky, sick people that are currently living here is a bonus because while teaching biological Darwinism should be banned in public schools, Social Darwinism is beautiful and must be the law of the land.

[Tazirai]

Now that's not fair at all, I try to stay out of these particular debates but Tendrin was clearly saying you can't compare 2% of a party making a bat shit crazy WRONG decision versus 90% of a party making a bat shit crazy WRONG decision. I'm all for naming, shaming and primarying the 2%, but putting this on Democrats as a whole as Thirty is doing, is all kinds of looney.

I'm not putting it on them as a whole, just those CORPORATE types who keep doing this shit over and over. Because they have a D next to their name.

Look, Democrats have got to realize, they WILL get criticism for doing shit like this in the name of Bi-Partisanship. BAD Bi-Partisanship is still bad. So bad even some Republicans voted against it.
I left the Democrats to become an Independent. But I still vote for the left. But it's getting old allowing the same shitshow to keep happening. But we need them because of the D by their names.

Sorry, but i'm sick of it. REAL lives are at stake.

Yes, Tendrin overall is right about the math being with us. But America causes so many problems around the world, and people want us to Fight against it, just not so hard, loud, or much. We MUST maintain the Status Quo at all cost, and only accept Incremental changes.

Bernie and Mike Lees bill will help reset that, so I hope those 5 Democrats change their votes in January and allow Debate.