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

[worstblogever]

On this date one year ago, Crazy/Stupid Republican of the Day” first profiled Brad Klippert, a member of the Washington House of Representatives who has served District 8 since first winning office back in the 2008 elections, after unsuccessful U.S. Senate runs in 2004 and 2006.

Klippert has been nothing but an obstructionist as a legislator over the past decade:

• February 28th, 2011: Brad Klippert votes against HB 1267, to define parenthood in such a manner to allow for gay adoption and same sex couples to have legal domestic rights.
• February 8th, 2012: Klippert votes against SB 6239, which was the bill that legalized same sex marriage in Washington state.
• March 3rd, 2015: Brad Klippert votes against HB 1355, a minimum wage increase, during the greatest period of income inequality in our country in a century.
• February 23rd, 2018: Klippert votes against SB 5992, a ban on bump stocks that turn semi-automatic weapons into fully automatic weapons, after they were used by the Las Vegas shooter to murder fifty people in minutes.
• February 28th, 2018: Brad Klippert votes against SB 5722, a ban on gay conversion therapy on minors in the state of Washington.
• March 7th, 2018: Klippert votes against HB 2595, automatic voter registration.
• April 23rd, 2019: Brad Klippert votes against HB 1739, a ban on 3D printable “ghost guns” that would be impossible for law enforcement to trace, or restrict the sale of to criminals.
• April 25th, 2019: Klippert votes against SB 5258, a bill that would require isolated workers to undergo sexual assault and sexual harassment training.
• March 3rd, 2020: Brad Klippert votes against SB 5165, a bill aimed at prohibiting discrimination against people based on their citizenship or immigration status.

But it’s not Brad Klippert’s voting record that has brought him to our attention. It was during discussion of HB 1742, a bill that would establish a policy for the state’s criminal statutes for underage children sending sext messages to each other that he chose it as a great time to rant and rave about anal sex. Because that’s the logical next step that kids will do. Sext. BUTT STUFF. There’s no stopping them along the way from opening the back exit for deliveries.

If that wasn’t enough to cause us some concern that this guy might not be right in the head, only a few weeks ago, he joined a bunch of militia lunatics protesting Washington Governor Jay Inslee’s “stay at home” orders, ignoring the threat of Covid-19. Because why not legitimize an astroturf protest by conservatives trying to open the economy at the cost of thousands of lives? That’s the responsible thing for a legislator to do, right?

Klippert coasted to yet another term in office in the Washington state legislature in 2020, and in 2022, he’s already announced his intention to run for Congress in Washington’s 4th Congressional District, looking to knock off incumbent Dan Newhouse. Should Newhouse retire, we would start to worry about this homophobe getting elevated to Washington, D.C.

[CJStriker]

[Amadeus Arkham]

Trump, GOP Leaders, and Even Liz Cheney Allies Say She Is a 'Dead Woman Walking'

[Tami]

He makes an excellent point. A 'Republican' in congress could have a voting record even more liberal than AOC and still get a leadership position as long as they promote the Big Lie and do whatever Trump wants them to do.

[Amadeus Arkham]

Liz Cheney is objectively awful so I don’t care if they boot her out. Good riddance.

[Tami]

Liz Cheney is objectively awful so I don’t care if they boot her out besides she doesn’t need the job anyway since she’s a rich person.

That's not the point. The point is that the Republican Party is becoming the Party of Liers and Thieves, of Cheaters and Conmen. If you aren't a criminal at heart, if you refuse to be dishonest, if you prefer facts over conspiracy theories, then you don't belong in this version of the Republican Party.

[BeastieRunner]

Liz Cheney is objectively awful so I don’t care if they boot her out. Good riddance.

Do you really think kicking out one of the few people within the party that is openly trying to STOP the crazies from taking over is good?

Because that just means the loons are taking over.

[Jack Dracula]

It's not a given.

I do believe that the forming of America is a good thing. I recognize that people may believe differently, but they should also understand that their view is going to be unpopular. No one should write anything for a general audience in the United States based on the understanding that the forming of America was a bad thing. That is going to be a fringe opinion.

I'll make an aside that I hold some views that are unpopular. But I generally recognize when I'm in a clear political minority. I would not in good faith write a piece with a headline like "Jesus Christ, Democrats are against surge pricing!" because I understand that reasonable people can be against a controversial thing that I understand to be ultimately useful.

I'm not saying that a politician in Tennessee should say that America is a good thing because this is so obviously true. That is based on my understanding of what ordinary voters believe. If the position of the Democratic party were that the foundation of America was a bad thing, I suspect they would lose elections in Tennessee, as well as many other states.\

I'm not asserting that slavery being baked into the foundation of the United States is okay. My whole point on the three-fifths compromise is that the people against it under the logic that slaves should count as full humans were ultimately criticizing abolitionists for not giving slaveowners a complete political victory.

The founding of America was only good for some, not all, so doesn’t that make it inherently bad?

[BeastieRunner]

The founding of America was only good for some, not all, so doesn’t that make it inherently bad?

We can't go back and undo what was done.

We can only strive to make it better.

We're one of the few 1st world countries that has outright refused to apologize for our missteps.

I would start there, personally. Own our bad stuff, apologize, and make it right.

[Amadeus Arkham]

That's not the point. The point is that the Republican Party is becoming the Party of Liers and Thieves, of Cheaters and Conmen. If you aren't a criminal at heart, if you refuse to be dishonest, if you prefer facts over conspiracy theories, then you don't belong in this version of the Republican Party.

Becoming? lol. They are the party of Liers, Thieves, Cheaters and Conmen, and have been that for a while now. I guess I sort of get some sort sick and petty delight and seeing anti-LGBT bigots that Cheney finally get their comeuppance but I understand, of course, there are bigger fish to fry when it comes to the state of the party and further decline to fascism and authoritarianism which puts American Democracy at risk but I just don’t care about what happens to Cheney one way or another.

[Jack Dracula]

Should Senate Democrats approach Liz Cheney about switching parties?
Thoughts?

[Hellion]

The founding of America was only good for some, not all, so doesn’t that make it inherently bad?

You could make that point about any organized grouping of humans that's ever existed, mate.

[BeastieRunner]

Should Senate Democrats approach Liz Cheney about switching parties?
Thoughts?

Wyoming isn’t looking much better. It won't do much. It is the proverbial band-aid on the head wound.

[Jack Dracula]

You could make that point about any organized grouping of humans that's ever existed, mate.

I don’t disagree.

[Tami]

Should Senate Democrats approach Liz Cheney about switching parties?
Thoughts?

I'm pretty sure she isn't going to do that. She is too conservative for the Democrats and they are too liberal for her. If it was possible for the Republicans to force her out of the Party, she would probably end up as an Independent.