All purpose news and politics thread part v: The quickening

[worstblogever]

Do you believe these two idiots represent the party (IE- that the majority of Republican county officials are on the same level)?

Well, the Mark Harris caucus within the GOP, at least. And the Redmap guys. And the Katherine Harris wing. And the Brian Kemp wing. And the...

Point being, own what your party is.

[Mister Mets]

I don't get to live in the world I want to live in, so why should you?

Are you still comfy in the fascy party or are you not, Mets?

You're the one who gets to determine your own standards. Do you agree that it is the right thing for members of groups to be asked to distance themselves from whatever member of their group commits a crime?

Well, the Mark Harris caucus within the GOP, at least. And the Redmap guys. And the Katherine Harris wing. And the Brian Kemp wing. And the...

Point being, own what your party is.

These do appear to be different scenarios.

I get that officials in a city with 38,067 people did something dumb, but can you articulate why you think what they did was wrong?

[jetengine]

Do you believe that it is the right thing for members of minority groups to be asked to distance themselves from whatever member of their group commits a crime? If you don't think that's appropriate, how is it ideologically consistent for you to ask this of me?

Your not born Republican mets

[babyblob]

Your not born Republican

I was. Came out in a little suit and tie and tried to have my Muslim doctor deported.

[Jackalope89]

I was. Came out in a little suit and tie and tried to have my Muslim doctor deported.

And it turned out said doctor was Sikh and born in Austin, Texas.

[numberthirty]

ABC News anchor caught on hot mic saying network quashed Epstein story 3 years ago.

https://mobile.twitter.com/JamesOKee...178034180?s=19

Jeez...

..........

[babyblob]

And it turned out said doctor was Sikh and born in Austin, Texas.

Texas is like its own little crazy country so that counts.

[Dalak]

Texas is like its own little crazy country so that counts.

While I'd like to be able to take Texan offense and demand a duel of honor, it kinda is true considering the vast differences in the extremes of Texas (The Panhandle (BEWARE: Snow), West Texas (Limbo), East Texas (Texianna), Central Texas (Damn Hippies), South Texas (Insert Joke Here), and 'The Coast'). You've still got to deal with your heat-crazy neighbors to the south because we're a state, we might flip blue some day, and despite the repeated attempts of a vocal minority we're stuck with the USA.

[InformationGeek]

Crazy things are going down in my state.

Politics in Wisconsin has devolved into a mixture of absurd pettiness and serious erosion of democratic norms.

Today, the Senate GOP prepares to reject the first Cabinet nominee since records have been kept because he urged more funding to reduce suicide in farm communities.

So what happened to this nominee that everyone agreed was qualified? He criticized the Senate majority leader for not supporting $100K in funding to reduce suicides in farm communities. The Senate Majority leader then pledged to block his nomination. 3/

The broader story here is that after a bruising power-grab last December, the WI legislature have been slow-walking approving Democratic Governor Ever’s nominees. The first five, nominated in January, were not considered until October. Normally, confirmations are routine. 4/

So here's that story mentioned here.

Agriculture Secretary Brad Pfaff on Tuesday blasted Republicans' decision not to release $100,000 worth of funding this week for mental health services for farmers.

"There’s no two ways about it: Republicans have chosen to leave farmers behind," Pfaff said after Republican lawmakers on the finance committee rejected Democratic members' request to vote on releasing the funding allocated in the state budget.

"As of today, (the Agriculture Department) has funding to provide just five more counseling vouchers to farmers in need of mental health care," he continued. "If the Joint Finance Committee doesn’t want to move this funding forward immediately, then they have a choice to make: Which five farmers will it be?"

Subscribe to our On Wisconsin Politics newsletter for the week's political news explained.

Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald on Wednesday called Pfaff's comments "offensive and unproductive."

"Your flippant comments yesterday referring to farmer suicide is beneath your position and makes light of the seriousness of suicide," Fitzgerald said. "Mental health can be something that people struggle with for years, if not their whole lives, and your statements about 'abandoning our state’s farmers' and 'which five farmers' should be saved does nothing other than to create division on a subject that matters to all legislators."

Scott Fitzgerald is a real piece of work here in Wisconsin. Here he is on the gun debate.

Wisconsin Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald said he won't hold hearings or debate a pair of gun control bills Democratic Gov. Tony Evers called a special session to consider.

Fitzgerald, a Republican, told reporters Tuesday that "the support's not there to tackle these two issues."

Evers on Monday called a special session for the Legislature to take up two measures on guns. One would expand background checks for more types of gun purchases. The other is a "red flag" proposal, which would allow judges to take guns away from people determined to be risk to themselves or others.

Fitzgerald said his intention is to convene the special session and then immediately adjourn it without taking action.

Evers and Democrats point to polls showing 80 percent support for the ideas as a reason to vote on them.

But Fitzgerald said Evers is "playing politics" with the issue.

Here he is on impeachment!

Scott Fitzgerald, the Wisconsin Senate leader running for U.S. Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner's suburban Milwaukee seat, said there was nothing wrong with Trump asking Ukraine's president to investigate one of his political rivals. And he said there is no reason to take seriously Trump's statement last week that China should investigate former Vice President Joe Biden and his son.

...

"It sounds like everything that was done within that discussion was in the purview of what a president of the United States should be able to do with a foreign diplomat," Fitzgerald said of Trump's July call with Ukraine's new president, Volodymyr Zelensky. "And it shouldn't necessarily be made public. So far nothing's been proven."

He is also a bit delusional, but that's neither here nor there.

Fitzgerald predicted that President Trump will perform better in the conservative Milwaukee counties of Waukesha, Ozaukee, and Washington than he did in 2016, when President Trump didn’t fare as well there as Republican Mitt Romney did in 2012. Those counties were the center of the anti-President Trump conservative movement then, but Fitzgerald said he believes President Trump’s standing had improved with suburban voters there.

I bring up this clown because guess what? He's looking to seek higher office, as in, take over Jim Sesenbrenner's spot if I'm not mistaken! So, WBE, gear up for a look at another loon from my own state of Wisconsin.

[babyblob]

With 11 percent of the districts reporting in Kentucky the Republicans are holding on. Bevin is up by 12000 votes and the Attorney general race Daniel Cameron is up by over 30000 votes. The Republicans are also winning in several local races. They are also ahead in the Secretary of State race as well.

Bevin's credits his visit from Trump last night for the surge in voters today.

Edit to update his lead.

[thwhtGuardian]

Sen. Mike Braun of Indiana, meanwhile, said he was skeptical any new testimony brought against the president would change the minds of Senate Republicans.

“Regardless of how many people you bring out to make the point, I don’t think that’s going to do the job for most of us to change our opinion,”

I mean, what the literal heck is that? We don't care how many people say this was quid pro quo, we refuse to acknowledge it.

[InformationGeek]

This is close in Kentucky. 0.7% spread with Bevin losing. We could be going into a recount with this!

[Kirby101]

Sen. Mike Braun of Indiana, meanwhile, said he was skeptical any new testimony brought against the president would change the minds of Senate Republicans.

“Regardless of how many people you bring out to make the point, I don’t think that’s going to do the job for most of us to change our opinion,”

I mean, what the literal heck is that? We don't care how many people say this was quid pro quo, we refuse to acknowledge it.

You have to remember that this is the same Republican party that became pro-torture when we found out Bush approved torture as a policy.

They will back trump no matter what crimes he commits. Even treason is not too far for them.

[Theleviathan]

This is close in Kentucky. 0.7% spread with Bevin losing. We could be going into a recount with this!

God damn....that's some encouraging news right there. Politico has him winning from what I just googled.

[Gray Lensman]

Sen. Mike Braun of Indiana, meanwhile, said he was skeptical any new testimony brought against the president would change the minds of Senate Republicans.

“Regardless of how many people you bring out to make the point, I don’t think that’s going to do the job for most of us to change our opinion,”

I mean, what the literal heck is that? We don't care how many people say this was quid pro quo, we refuse to acknowledge it.

Lindsey Graham said he will never read any of the impeachment transcripts, so your final conclusion seems spot on.