All purpose news and politics thread part VI: This Is Not The Time For Posing

[GindyPosts]

Matt Gaetz just tested positive for COVID. Shoulda wore that gas mask more.

No thoughts and prayers for this jackass.

[MindofShadow]

The popular victories of the last 10 years says otherwise.

The population as a whole is never on average one thing or another.

-- Florida went red this election but at the same time they voted to increase the minimum wage by $15. A good chunk voted for Trump and voted for this progressive measure too.
-- Social Welfare programs and the ACA are so popular that the Republicans never outright deleted or removed it when they had trifectas and a SCOTUS majority.

We also voted to let felons vote last election (and then the R governor went LOL nope). We also voted to allow medical marajuana last election. And last election, a black bisexual kinda progressive cheating alcoholic barely lost the governor race lol

A lot of people are more progressive than they seem if you throw away the D and R labels. Once those labels get on there, everyone starts taking sides. If you just look at individual issues, people aren't nearly as conservative as they seem.

I swear, if the abortion thing wasn't such a big carrot every single election, i wonder how many R votes would change? Abortion and 2A is a humongous carrot keeping the country from pushing left at all.

[Bruce Wayne]

Strikes me the GOP base in those states might power high turnout with near-rabid they-stole-our-presidency outrage.

They are like a coiled spring. The more you back them into the corner, the greater the counter response.

[Revolutionary_Jack]

Matt Gaetz just tested positive for COVID. Shoulda wore that gas mask more.

Schadenfreude is surprisingly cathartic and sweet for an emotion founded in such negative feelings.

In other news, Steve Bannon's comments were so toxic that his own attorney quit his counsel, and now Bannon has to get another attorney
(https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-...worse-n1246834)

One of the biggest mistakes in 2016 was the faux-celebrity Bannon got where people decided he was the architect of Trump's victory, that he was the real voice in Trump's ear and that he's some kind of Machiavellian genius. Then this a--hole got fired by Trump, lost Alabama to Doug Jones by pushing Roy Moore there, and now look at him, all set to go to Prison and not a Trump pardon in sight to come for him in the offing.

It's not really center-right at all. Only one Republican got a majority of votes for President in the last 8 Presidential elections. The Democrats in the Senate have gotten more votes than the Republicans for decades, even when the GOP gets the majority due to small Red States. And the House remains Democratic.
And there is this, look at the big Blue States in the Electoral College, CA, NY, IL. They went overwhelmingly for Biden and there is little chance of them tu4rning Republican anytime soon. Now look at the big Red States, TX, FL, NC, and GA. Trump won with a small percent and there is talk about when the will be Blue, or at least purple. Georgia is going for Biden and NC is very close.
If anything we are a straight center country rather than center-right.
One more thing, if you ask people about policy in a way that doesn't sound like left/right, on things like Rights, Healthcare, Taxes, etc...they are much more progressive than conservative. The GOP has just convinced too many working people that they are on their side while they take away what they have to give to the Rich.

Exactly. And the more important thing is that people change, populations change, demographics change, parties change. Nothing is forever. There might come a day when NYS goes Republican, it's not likely to happen any time soon but it's possible. Likewise, the reverse can happen too. Demographics isn't destiny, geography isn't desting, electoral maps aren't. Heck the red/blue states comes from 2000 Election coverage, it was never a thing before.

And the GOP aren't supergeniuses. McConnell has a low-cunning for sure and is a great opportunist but this guy turned AZ blue. He was the one who asked the Governor of AZ to have McSally replace McCain's seat despite the fact she just lost her election to Sinema. It was such a moronic obviously partisan power move that didn't respect the constituency of AZ. Then in 2020, rather than have McSally step down in favor of a candidate with no baggage, they field her against the Astronaut and Husband of the survivor of a mass shooting incident and a beloved Representative.

Mitch McConnell made a present of Arizona to Joseph Biden. Full stop. This guy's not some genius. He's smart and ruthless but that's not the same thing. Do not feed into his media image because that allows him to come off as more powerful and capable than he actually is.

Niccolo Machiavelli said something once that I think applies to McConnell and Trump,
“It cannot be called virtue to kill one's fellow-citizens, betray one's friends, be without faith, without pity...by these methods one may indeed gain power, but not glory.”

[Amadeus Arkham]

I do wonder if the protests had any impact on the increased Trump turnout rate.

[Kirby101]

McConnell is just a corrupt ******* who wields whatever power he has. He is effective only because of the warped system we have of electing the Senate. He has no restraint based on anything civil or moral. He's smart, but not a political genius by any stretch. He owes all his power to mostly Southern and smaller deep Red States

[Revolutionary_Jack]

I do wonder if the protests had any impact on the increased Trump turnout rate.

The George Floyd protests? Well it was certainly a reason you didn't see the Republican defections people had unrealistic hopes about. A lot of conservative voters who backed Trump in higher numbers say they want Law and Order. The Police Unions endorsed Trump, and the police in many individual parts tend to be popular and respected more than Trump and others are. A cop may be a racist and bully but the same guy (or girl) can be a perfect gentlemen/lady to the white constituency.


But that's not the real reason for the voter turnout. The truth is the Pandemic increased voter turnout from both parties. Everyone knew that the Democratic turnout would be a blockbuster thanks to mail-in ballots (which gotta say has to stick going forward) but what nobody realized is that the Pandemic conditions (work-for-home, furloughed, unemployed) applies to Republicans too. In 2016, people from both parties didn't vote as much because a lot of them had to work on election day and didn't have time to learn about early voting and mail-in ballots. In 2020, all people had was time, so the Dems managed to train their voter base, and the Republicans could count on a bigger chunk of their usual base to turn up. If the Republican turnout of 2016 recurred in 2020, Biden would have won TX and FL. He won more votes in Texas than Trump in 2016, it's just that the Republicans were able to field a bigger number than people thought too, which even they thought.

Anyway here's the thing, the full Democratic electorate and the Republican electorate went head to head in the Pandemic and the Republicans still lost the popular vote and the Electoral College, and 2 red states.

Absolute Meme Hulk.jpg

[Amadeus Arkham]

Trump adviser says campaign has “nothing concrete” in terms of voter fraud.

[Jack Dracula]

There is a chance that the senate might end up split 50-50 after the January runoffs.

This gives me hope. I wasn't looking forward to a Biden Presidency facing constant obstruction. IMO, a balanced Senate minus Trump in the Whitehouse makes it much more likely the Democrats may be able to undo much of the damage from the last four years and actually help some of our most vulnerable citizens.

Of course, I'd prefer a Democratic majority, but I'll take what I can get.

Were already seeing a bit of a flag of peace being waved at Biden now. Lindsey Graham brought up knowing Biden and will sit with him to discuss his cabinet choices. "Nothing to extremist.." he said. But were already seeing Graham realize , **** HAS TO GET DONE this time. Or the country may never recover.

If I were Biden I'd be inclined to tell Graham to go f**k himself.

[PaulBullion]

Matt Gaetz just tested positive for COVID. Shoulda wore that gas mask more.

Apparently he tested positive for antibodies, so he never bothered getting tested while he was infectious.

In his position!!

[Revolutionary_Jack]

This gives me hope. I wasn't looking forward to a Biden Presidency facing constant obstruction. IMO, a balanced Senate minus Trump in the Whitehouse makes it much more likely the Democrats may be able to undo much of the damage from the last four years and actually help some of our most vulnerable citizens.

Of course, I'd prefer a Democratic majority, but I'll take what I can get.

The runoffs will be crucial. Traditionally in GA, the Republicans draw on Libertarian voters to make the difference in runoff tight elections. But at the same time Libertarians cost them electoral votes in GA so there will be anger and bitter feelings on both sides. The Republican base and the Trump base voted overwhelmingly on election day for the strong GOP turnout but with Trump defeated at the ballot, and bitterness and ill feelings of the Trump base will turn to GOP who refused to outright participate in fascism to keep their man in office.

But at the same time, everything is up for grabs and Pandemic conditions (Dem. turnout and GOP turnout higher because people have more time to read up on elections and vote) are still in play. So this could go either way.

In the case of Biden, I hope he's going ahead with the idea of what he can do with a GOP majority and a nihilist like McConnell. The President has a lot of powers with Executive Orders, and Foreign Policy, and significant push on allocation and direction of the Federal budget. The thing is Biden and his team need to advertise this like crazy...do the liberal version of Trump signing his name on Stimulus Checks. Make sure everyone knows it's Biden in charge of the good stuff and McConnell is responsible for the bad stuff.

When Obama had the WH, he had a Dem trifecta so that made it harder for him to make that play, and that was part of the reason for the Midterm loss in 2010. But Biden has McConnell as a scapegoat...a man who is already significantly disliked and hated by a lot of people. So people who think the 2022 midterms are a replay of 2010, think again. Different conditions apply, which of course doesn't mean the outcomes couldn't go the same of course.

[DrNewGod]

This gives me hope. I wasn't looking forward to a Biden Presidency facing constant obstruction. IMO, a balanced Senate minus Trump in the Whitehouse makes it much more likely the Democrats may be able to undo much of the damage from the last four years and actually help some of our most vulnerable citizens.

Of course, I'd prefer a Democratic majority, but I'll take what I can get.



If I were Biden I'd be inclined to tell Graham to go f**k himself.

Even if we get a 50-50 senate, Biden et al. can only count on 18 months to get anything done before the mid-term elections lock everything up. I hope the mid-terms roll in such a way that he has a full 42 months to work with, but he can't count on it.

[Amadeus Arkham]

The runoffs will be crucial. Traditionally in GA, the Republicans draw on Libertarian voters to make the difference in runoff tight elections. But at the same time Libertarians cost them electoral votes in GA so there will be anger and bitter feelings on both sides. The Republican base and the Trump base voted overwhelmingly on election day for the strong GOP turnout but with Trump defeated at the ballot, and bitterness and ill feelings of the Trump base will turn to GOP who refused to outright participate in fascism to keep their man in office.

But at the same time, everything is up for grabs and Pandemic conditions (Dem. turnout and GOP turnout higher because people have more time to read up on elections and vote) are still in play. So this could go either way.

In the case of Biden, I hope he's going ahead with the idea of what he can do with a GOP majority and a nihilist like McConnell. The President has a lot of powers with Executive Orders, and Foreign Policy, and significant push on allocation and direction of the Federal budget. The thing is Biden and his team need to advertise this like crazy...do the liberal version of Trump signing his name on Stimulus Checks. Make sure everyone knows it's Biden in charge of the good stuff and McConnell is responsible for the bad stuff.

When Obama had the WH, he had a Dem trifecta so that made it harder for him to make that play, and that was part of the reason for the Midterm loss in 2010. But Biden has McConnell as a scapegoat...a man who is already significantly disliked and hated by a lot of people. So people who think the 2022 midterms are a replay of 2010, think again. Different conditions apply, which of course doesn't mean the outcomes couldn't go the same of course.

How did McConnell win re-election?

[The Cool Thatguy]

How did McConnell win re-election?

Satan and stupidity

[Revolutionary_Jack]

How did McConnell win re-election?

1) As Sen. Majority Leader, McConnell brought in funding and other stuff into Kentucky that offered them advantages which an incoming blue candidate like Amy McGrath could not offer. McGrath also alienated and shut out the progressive challenge in her primary so she wasn't a strong candidate even for her party.

2) Kentucky has major voter suppression and gerrymandering like all Red States.

3) McConnell delivered a 6-3 Republican majority on the SCOTUS, getting religious types to see him as their man. And that meant the threat and fear of court-packing which McGrath had to play down made her vulnerable to respond as a moderate.

In other words,

Satan and stupidity

Is totally correct, accurate, precise. Voters believe Dems are Satan, and think that supporting a nihilistic conservatism as long as it works for them is fine.

McConnell's obstructionism on Congress has allowed Kentucky to get in a lot of funds, especially from blue states like NYS (which Andrew Cuomo furiously pointed out when Mitch slow-dragged stimulus and tried to attack blue governors and blue states).

So Kentucky has benefited from McConnell's nihilism and that's allowed him to get their vote.