All Purpose News and Politics Thread Part IV: The Center Cannot Hold

[Tami]

It's broken down into 2 nights, first group is
1. Sen. Cory Booker 2. Sen. Elizabeth Warren 3. Rep. Beto O’Rourke 4. Sen. Amy Klobuchar 5. Rep. John Delaney 6. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard 7. Sec. Julian Castro 8. Rep. Tim Ryan 9. Mayor Bill de Blasio 10. Gov. Jay Inslee
Group 2 is
1. Sen. Sanders 2. Sen. Harris 3. Former VP Biden 4. Mayor Buttigieg 5. Sen. Bennet 6. Ms. Marianne Williamson 7. Rep. Swalwell 8. Sen. Gillibrand 9. Mr. Andrew Yang 10. Gov. Hickenlooper

I saw a different lineup reported.

Edit: No, it's the same only the order is switched. Biden vs Sanders....sheesh....that's going to be interesting.

[Tami]

The one man most likely to turn the U.S. into a theocracy

Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) is having a moment.

Last month, Hawley tore into a Trump judicial nominee. The nominee’s sin? Michael Bogren had the audacity to represent a Michigan city that wanted to enforce a civil rights ordinance against Catholic business owners who believe they have a constitutional right to discriminate. Hawley’s interrogation of Bogren was widely condemned even by many conservative voices.

Ed Whelan, the legal activist best known for using the real estate search engine Zillow to argue that Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh did not attempt to rape Christine Blasey Ford, warned that Hawley’s attacks on Bogren “could redound to the detriment of conservative nominees who have defended religious liberty or pro-life legislation in unpopular contexts.” The Federalist, a conservative website, published a column titled “No, Judicial Nominee Mike Bogren Is Not An Anti-Religious Bigot.”

[InformationGeek]

Oh, it's Flag Day. As such, here's a picture from the White House's official Twitter account.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

It's seeded like an NCAA tourney!

I love it. Haha ...

It wouldn’t surprise me if it’s broken down into brackets for the sake of degenerate gamblers out there.

[JCAll]

The one man most likely to turn the U.S. into a theocracy

I once again feel the need to apologize for Missouri. It's just...really bad out here.

[SquirrelMan]

It wouldn’t surprise me if it’s broken down into brackets for the sake of degenerate gamblers out there.

Warren is mostly paired with b-listers. That might give her a chance to stand out, but also won't let her prove she can be a fighter against strong opponents.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

RNC’s Doral Fundraiser Will Pour Money Into Donald Trump’s Pocket. Again.

President Trump’s visit to his Miami resort will also let him play more golf, with taxpayers picking up most of the tab. Show of hands if you're surprised. Didn't think so.

**********

Oil Tanker Owner Contradicts White House On Explosive In Mideast Ship Attack

The U.S. says it was a limpet mine attached to the ship in the Gulf of Oman. The Japanese vessel’s owner says something flew toward the ship. It's hard to believe anything ANYBODY in the Trump White says, given it's track record of rampant lying.

**********

Elizabeth Warren Sees Girls As Future Leaders. What About Joe Biden?

When Elizabeth Warren ran for Senate in 2011, she met a lot of young girls on the campaign trail. She didn’t concern herself with their appearance. Instead, she would deploy a practiced move designed to inspire, she explained to the audience at a CNN town hall in April.

“My name is Elizabeth,” she would say. “And I’m running for senator because that’s what girls do.” Then she would extend her pinky and they’d swear on it.

She went on to become the first woman elected senator in Massachusetts. And now that she is campaigning for the 2020 Democratic nomination, a bid to become the first woman elected president, she’s still using the pinky swear move — swapping president for senator, of course.

Contrast that with how fellow 2020 hopeful Joe Biden sometimes talks to young girls on the campaign trail. It’s perhaps more immediate and revealing than any policy paper.

The former vice president was introduced to a voter’s granddaughter at a coffee shop in Iowa on Wednesday. He asked her age — 13 years old — and then turned to her brothers. “You’ve got one job here, keep the guys away from your sister,” he said, according to a tweet from a reporter at the Boston Globe.

It’s unclear if he said anything else to the girl. A representative from Biden’s campaign declined to comment.

Biden’s remark was not necessarily a stereotypical Biden gaffe. It is the kind of offhand thing that a lot of adults like to say about their daughters, or grandchildren, or any young girl, really — expressing the fear that soon enough they’ll grow into attractive women and be forced to fend off lecherous boys and men.

Warren’s pinky swear is far more deliberate.

“Biden talks to girls and brings in their looks,” said Rebecca Katz, a progressive Democratic consultant. “Warren talks to girls and brings up their potential.”

And yet, despite Biden's misogyny which borders on Trumpian levels, he's the current front runner for the Democrats, and it's not even close. That has to leave women scowling.

**********

Missouri Restaurant Cancels Wedding Dinner After Learning It Was For 2 Brides

A cafe in O’Fallon refused to host Kendall Brown and Mindy Rackley’s rehearsal dinner because the owners disapprove of their relationship, the couple said. So, this restaurant chose faith over money. And now that place is going to catch hell over their decision after the incident went viral. NOT a good way to do business.

**********

Donald Trump Gets Savagely Trolled On His Birthday As Tweeters Celebrate #JohnMcCainDay

The hashtag went viral after Ellen DeGeneres’ producer Andy Lassner called on Twitter users to honor “an American hero” on the president’s 73rd birthday. Savage BUUUUUUUUUUURN!!

[Tami]

Trump has a new favourite news network - and it's more right-wing than FOX

Donald Trump and Fox News are said to have one of the strongest marriages in political showbusiness. But there is a young rival hoping to outfox Fox and catch the US president’s wandering media eye.

The obscure One America News Network (OAN) makes up for its lack of clout or viewers by covering every Trump utterance, recycling conspiracy theories, downplaying Russian threats, bashing the mainstream media and championing the “Make America Great Again” agenda.

Most Americans have not noticed, but the most powerful one has. The president rewards OAN with shout-outs and access wildly out of sync with its reach, leading some observers to suspect that he is playing OAN and Fox News off one another to ensure their undying affection.

It is a stark example of how Trump as media commentator cuts both ways: while deriding mainstream outlets as “enemies of the people”, he champions those that offer flattering coverage. Others, however, condemn OAN as a “Fox News wannabe” that is run on a shoestring with a team of underpaid and inexperienced staff.

An article on the Daily Beast website last month was headlined “The Hell of Working at Trump’s New Favorite Network”, based on interviews with four former OAN employees. One ex-video producer, Ernest Champell, said he was told on his first day at work, “Yeah, we like Russia here,” and recalled how the network spread conspiracy theories and ran “hit jobs” on politicians. He quit after four months.

Basically, this is Alt-Right News, which isn't news but propaganda of the worst kind.

[Tami]

I do think it's kind of lopsided, and I'd rather have had Harris on the same debate stage as Warren, but both noghts could be interesting.

Biden, Sanders to share debate stage after a lopsided drawing divides presidential candidates for two events this month

While the lineups were chosen through a randomized drawing — with candidates’ names written out on note cards and drawn to make two groups of 10 — four of the five top-polling candidates ended up clumped together. NBC News, which along with MSNBC and Telemundo will air the events, chose to hold that debate second as a way to increase ratings, which sparked protest from the Democratic National Committee and frustration from some of the presidential campaigns.

The debates, on June 26 and 27 in Miami, loom perhaps more important than ever this year, with a 23-candidate field so vast it has seemed to paralyze many primary voters and made it extraordinarily difficult for candidates to break out. This will be the largest audience that many candidates have ever appeared before, and all of them hope the debates offer a clarifying moment that works in their favor.

The DNC had intended the two nights to be randomly assigned, but before the drawing, an NBC representative had announced that after the orange and purple teams were picked, the network would decide which group went first.

A representative of the Booker campaign asked how the network would decide. To maximize viewership, came the response, and be fair to the candidates, according to two people who were there.

Xochitl Hinojosa, a representative of the DNC, voiced her objection to that decision, making clear to all the campaigns present that the party wanted the nights determined randomly. NBC did not change its mind.

[worstblogever]

I'm wondering if we'll get an embarrassing enough old man fight between Biden and Sanders that it makes Warren, Buttigieg or Harris the front-runner instead.

Those two have a long history, and I don't recall any animosity in it, though. But then again, they're both older and crotchetier than ever.

[Tami]

I'm wondering if we'll get an embarrassing enough old man fight between Biden and Sanders that it makes Warren, Buttigieg or Harris the front-runner instead.

Those two have a long history, and I don't recall any animosity in it, though. But then again, they're both older and crotchetier than ever.

I'm thinking of it from the male 'misogynist' direction. Neither Biden nor Sanders have a great history in dealing with women, Biden focusing on how 'attractive' a woman (or girl) is, and Sanders and his finger wagging talking down to women, and both going up against Harris who is not going to take any of it.

I can see Sanders getting flustered or frustrated and finger wagging Harris, then Biden jumping in and chiding him for it but not really helping since Harris can take care fo herself.

[Malvolio]

RNC’s Doral Fundraiser Will Pour Money Into Donald Trump’s Pocket. Again.

President Trump’s visit to his Miami resort will also let him play more golf, with taxpayers picking up most of the tab. Show of hands if you're surprised. Didn't think so.

**********

Oil Tanker Owner Contradicts White House On Explosive In Mideast Ship Attack

The U.S. says it was a limpet mine attached to the ship in the Gulf of Oman. The Japanese vessel’s owner says something flew toward the ship. It's hard to believe anything ANYBODY in the Trump White says, given it's track record of rampant lying.

**********

Elizabeth Warren Sees Girls As Future Leaders. What About Joe Biden?



And yet, despite Biden's misogyny which borders on Trumpian levels, he's the current front runner for the Democrats, and it's not even close. That has to leave women scowling.

**********

Missouri Restaurant Cancels Wedding Dinner After Learning It Was For 2 Brides

A cafe in O’Fallon refused to host Kendall Brown and Mindy Rackley’s rehearsal dinner because the owners disapprove of their relationship, the couple said. So, this restaurant chose faith over money. And now that place is going to catch hell over their decision after the incident went viral. NOT a good way to do business.

**********

Donald Trump Gets Savagely Trolled On His Birthday As Tweeters Celebrate #JohnMcCainDay

The hashtag went viral after Ellen DeGeneres’ producer Andy Lassner called on Twitter users to honor “an American hero” on the president’s 73rd birthday. Savage BUUUUUUUUUUURN!!

You know, it's one thing to tell gay couples ahead of time that they won't host their weddings or rehearsal dinners. But letting them plan it all out, probably put down a deposit, and then cancel at the last minute, that's just a dick move.

[Mister Mets]

You know, it's one thing to tell gay couples ahead of time that they won't host their weddings or rehearsal dinners. But letting them plan it all out, probably put down a deposit, and then cancel at the last minute, that's just a dick move.

According to the article, the cancellation occurred a day after the reservation was made.

Rackley said that her future mother-in-law called Madison’s Cafe on June 3 to make a reservation for a rehearsal dinner on June 13. The owner reportedly called Brown the next day with questions about the event, including the groom’s name.

“She said, ‘Your spouse is another woman?’ and I said, ‘Yes,’” Brown told NBC affiliate KSDK-TV in St. Louis. “And she said, ’I’m sorry, we’re going to have to refer you to someone else because we don’t condone that kind of relationship.”

[worstblogever]

On this date in 2015, 2016, 2017, as well as 2018, "Crazy/Stupid Republican of the Day" published profiles of Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, who used her office to serve, alternatively as a puppet for Florida Governor Rick Scott, and to waste taxpayer money on failed lawsuits to try and overturn the Affordable Care Act, or same sex marriage. The latter case fascinating because she has been divorced multiple times, but is supposedly obsessed with “upholding the sanctity of marriage”. Among her more disturbing abuses of power include signing an amicus brief to provide support for Arizona's controversial anti-immigration law, SB 1070, trying to overturn laws to allow gun sales to 18 to 20 year olds (Note: This was in the wake of the trial of George Zimmerman in Florida after the death of Trayvon Martin.) asking Florida Governor Rick Scott to reschedule the execution of a death row inmate because it conflicted with her personal schedule so she could host her re-election fundraiser party, and an investigation that revealed that both Pam Bondi and Rick Scott had violated Florida's "Sunshine Laws" for transparency by destroying e-mails and failing to retain text messages. For someone in charge of ensuring the law is upheld, she’s remarkable for defying courts whenever possible and breaking the law quite a bit. After winning re-election in 2014, Bondi immediately used the power of her position to dig her heels in and try to do everything she could to keep same sex couples from getting married in Florida, even beyond the point where the Supreme Court ruled in the Obergefell v. Hodges ruling, asking for delays before allowing gay marriage to happen for… reasons, and threatening to arrest individuals who performed marriage ceremonies during that would-be interim. Most could only guess as to her motivations, other than trying to make herself a martyr and later parlay that into running for higher office. Maybe she should have been more focused on the fact that up until April, unmarried couples in Florida were forbidden from living together since 1868. Convenient that she never bothered enforcing one edict about romantic partners, and hell bent about another one, right? She probably wished people didn’t remember that fact about her at one point… As tragedy struck in Orlando, Florida and the biggest mass shooting in the history of the United States took place at Pulse, a gay nightclub in the city that claimed the lives of 49 victims, Pam Bondi began After YEARS of fighting to file whatever lawsuits she could to prevent marriage equality and insisting that allowing it would cause “public harm” in the wake of the shooting, she began to posture herself as a champion of the LGBTQ community that would keep them safe. What she didn’t realize, though, was that she would be interviewed by the Silver Fox himself, Anderson Cooper, who was having none of it, and as professionally as a journalist can do so, effectively let her know, “I haven’t forgotten about you motherf***er.” Feel free to watch CNN’s Cooper remind her of all of her previous work with the LGBT community, and her hypocrisy at trying to play at being their friends now. It’s… breathtaking. So the good news is, love won, and Pam Bondi lost (as she frequently does in her quixotic quests, at taxpayer expense). But there’s a far more interesting news story involving her floating around, and it just so happens to also tied into the corruption scandals of one Donald Trump. There was talk about while Trump was being investigated for fraud in relation to Trump University, his online real-estate education program that most describe succinctly as “straight up fraud” that the New York Attorney general pursued several lawsuits on the behalf of individuals wronged by Trump’s business dealings. But as it turns out, New York wasn’t the only state to file a lawsuit on behalf of a large number of people defrauded… both Texas and Florida saw people file complaints as well. Pam Bondi received those complaints back in 2013, and shortly thereafter, Donald Trump, out of the kindness of his heart (yeah, right) decided to donate $25,000 to her re-election campaign. She never did anything to help the people he wronged, and effectively filed the case in the trash. Pam Bondi, of course, has not commented on her failure to do her job, and get $25,000 to sit on her hands by Trump (who she endorsed for president, of course). But it’s sure a disgusting bit of quid pro quo that amounts to bribery. Bondi continued her shady relationship with Cheeto Mussolini has seen her appointed to a White House position to serve on a commission to curtail our nation’s opioid abuse epidemic, serving under New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and doing… nothing except collecitng a paycheck.Considering most of Bondi’s career as an attorney general ended in her failing to execute her agenda, for the time being, we have been spared seeing her run for higher office. As such, we’re going to go ahead and set aside her profile at this time and go ahead and take a look at a different wacky Republican today instead. (Current crazy/stupid scoreboard, is now 758-40, since this was established in July 2014.)


Loretta Miller

Welcome to the 759th original “Crazy/Stupid Republican of the Day” profile, where today we’ll be taking a look at Loretta Miller, a 2018 candidate for U.S. House of Representatives for Florida’s 15th Congressional District who was, for a brief time, the only Republican on the ballot in the race after long time Republican Congressman Dennis Ross abruptly announced his retirement in April of 2018. The Republican Party quickly scrambled to find someone… ANYONE else to get on their primary ballot, because Loretta Miller is really into spreading conspiracy theories, including the legendary “Pizzagate” conspiracy theory about the Clinton family running a child sex ring out of the basement of a pizzeria in Washington, D.C. that doesn’t actually have anything below the ground floor of it. The former member of the Israeli Defense Force also was advocating for the xenophobic policy of “English only” to be the only language spoken by U.S. citizens, which is, of course, unconstitutional.

The Florida GOP managed to keep Loretta Miller off the ballot in 2018, but we’re not going to assume they’ll be able to continue to do so going forward. We’re just going to mention her with this quick paragraph and note that at least this time the Florida GOP managed to keep a kook by the way side. THIS TIME.

[Iron Maiden]

According to the article, the cancellation occurred a day after the reservation was made.

I noticed that quote said that the owner called the future mother-in-law and asked the name of the groom. Unless the owner was making a special cake or banner with the couple's name on it, I am suspicious as to why then wanted to know the groom's name. Then you are getting into the issue of refusal to service some one for prejudicial reasons. If two women or two men walked in to their restaurant just for lunch or dinner, do they screen them what their relationship is?