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

[worstblogever]

‘Nobody Sees Us’: Testing-Lab Workers Strain Under Demand

I spent my shift last night running so many Covid-19 tests that I had trouble running all the other microbiology tests that weren't. 5 hours on the former, 1 on the latter.

25% positivity rate. Phoenix.

[Amadeus Arkham]

JUST IN: Dr Fauci tells @TakeoutPodcast that he will meet with @JoeBiden “landing team” today for the first time, via Zoom, to discuss transition & vaccines. Told @MajorCBS he wished the transition process would have happened sooner.

[Tendrin]

JUST IN: Dr Fauci tells @TakeoutPodcast that he will meet with @JoeBiden “landing team” today for the first time, via Zoom, to discuss transition & vaccines. Told @MajorCBS he wished the transition process would have happened sooner.

Fauci is no doubt going to be particularly glad to be working with people not drive by wishful thinking and lunacy.

[worstblogever]

On this date in 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, as well as 2019, “Crazy/Stupid Republican of the Day posted profiles of U.S. Senator Roger Wicker of Mississippi, an old pal of Mississippi Republicans like Haley Barbour and Trent Lott who like the both of them, has ties to the Neo-Confederate group, the Council of Conservative Citizens (which sure explains why he whines about the Voting Rights Act being “unfair” to the South), as well as ties to the anti-gay hate group, the Family Research Council (which explains why he tried to pass legislation to stop gay couples in the military from being able to get married). Sen. Wicker proposed a Personhood bill while in the house, the Life at Conception Act, which would have guaranteed Constitutional rights to zygotes, opposed Sen. Al Franken’s anti-rape bill in the Senate, and has falsely claimed the U.S. military has court martialed Christians for their choice of religion. So far in this session of Congress, Sen. Wicker has mostly stayed out of the headlines, but has voted to confirm every member of the Trump “Cabinet of Horrors”, for Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh on the Supreme Court (calling the credible accusations against Kavanaugh a “smear” by Democrats), as well as voted for the “skinny repeal” of the Affordable Care Act.


Wicker just won re-election with 59% of the vote in the 2018 elections, and will be in office until 2024. He currently is doing his best to get people infected so they can die of Covid-19, claiming that mask mandates and advisements against large gatherings in the interests of public health “have gone too far”, and would prefer people use their “religious freedom” as an excuse to behave as a death cult to get together to become their own hot zone and die.

We’ll put it succinctly, “Go write down stupid ass things like that on a piece of paper, roll it up, and roger yourself with it, Roger.”

[Iron Maiden]

Fauci is no doubt going to be particularly glad to be working with people not drive by wishful thinking and lunacy.

And he's probably relieved that Dr. Scott Atlas left the sinking ship so he can't sidetrack things under the guise of it being an official message. He wasted no time landing back at Fox News where he belongs. Back to the cuckoos nest.

[Tami]

BREAKING: Lawyers say Trump admin has handed over new data that will help reunite separated migrant families.

"Not only have they not been helping but they have been withholding this data forever," @ACLU's @leegelernt told @NBCNews.

Twitter Link

The Trump admin withheld addresses and phone numbers of separated families, making it harder to reunite.

These families belong together here in the United States — and a human rights commission should investigate what happened, even refer prosecutions.

Joaquin Castro, Twitter Link

[Tami]

Trump is thanking Brooks based on @MZanona scoop that Brooks is planning to challenge the Electoral College result when it comes before Congress on Jan. 6



How Trump’s Hill allies could take one last shot to overturn the election

President Donald Trump's arsenal for overturning the election will soon be down to one final, desperate maneuver: pressing his Republican allies on Capitol Hill to step in and derail Joe Biden’s presidency.

Although the Electoral College casts the official vote for president on Dec. 14, it’s up to Congress to certify the results a few weeks later. And federal law gives individual members of the House and Senate the power to challenge the results from the floor — a rarely used mechanism meant to be the last of all last resorts to safeguard an election.

But several House Republican lawmakers and aides now tell POLITICO they’re considering this option to aid Trump’s quest.

“Nothing is off the table,” said Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.).

Gaetz pointed out that in January 2017, a handful of House Democrats took this precise procedural step before their efforts flamed out during a joint session of Congress presided over by none other than Biden, then the outgoing vice president.

“It is over,” Biden said at the time, gaveling down Democrats as Republicans cheered.

This time, Vice President Mike Pence will be in the chair for any potential challenges — a potentially awkward scenario as his boss continues to deny the reality of the election he lost.

[MacrossPlus]

I think the main problem with politics is that folks get caught up in their echo chambers. Now I'm not saying to out and talk to Trumpers (**** them) but at least know what the world is like outside your bubble. It's the reason dems thought Hillary was going to win in 2016, why folks were convinced Sanders would win the primary in 2020 and why Trumpers still think there is no possible way that Trump lost the election. Like speaking truth to power makes people feel good and what not, but if you actually want tangible policy change, then you have to know what the world is like outside of your bubble.

[DrNewGod]

...Trump really shouldn’t fire Barr after he basically did the right thing, and told the truth not out of principle(since we all know how little Trump cares about that word), seeing as Barr(like Trump) is a lame duck who’s going to lose the job either way, but Trump does want to disgrace people he’s fallen out of favor with...

Barr is prepping his "I was the only sane guy in the room, and you wouldn't believe some of the s*** that I protected all of you from" narrative. I don't think "the right thing" came anywhere into it, except by coincidence.

And [Fauci]'s probably relieved that Dr. Scott Atlas left the sinking ship so he can't sidetrack things under the guise of it being an official message. He wasted no time landing back at Fox News where he belongs. Back to the cuckoos nest.

The irony is that's leaping from one sinking ship onto another.

[Hellion]

The Kraken was at a Georgia rally recently urging voters to NOT participate in the run-off election. It's baffling.

Just to humor them, say the election is rigged? The Democrats will win and gain control of the Senate. But regardless of whether the election is rigged or not, Democrats will still win if enough Republicans don't even bother to vote for their own team. So why risk the Senate like this? It's impossible to overestimate the bounds of human stupidity.

[Tami]

I think the main problem with politics is that folks get caught up in their echo chambers. Now I'm not saying to out and talk to Trumpers (**** them) but at least know what the world is like outside your bubble. It's the reason dems thought Hillary was going to win in 2016, why folks were convinced Sanders would win the primary in 2020 and why Trumpers still think there is no possible way that Trump lost the election. Like speaking truth to power makes people feel good and what not, but if you actually want tangible policy change, then you have to know what the world is like outside of your bubble.

I'm of the mind that there was another reason why they thought Clinton would win. There has never been a candidate for President like Trump, at least not one who made it past the primaries.

His winning was a shock to nearly everyone, possibly including many who voted for him.

The Dems couldn't believe that Trump woudl have enough support to win

The Republicans were even skeptical that he could win

Even Trump himself was doubtful that he'd win

And even Putin doubted Trump would win.

[Joker]

Clinton should have won. She thought so, too. It's probably why she mismanaged her campaign and took certain voters for granted.

You're not wrong that there has never been a candidate like Trump, and because of that no one really took the threat seriously, but we have to stop blaming everyone but the Clinton campaign for that loss. Should have won, regardless of Trump's unknown factor, and still didn't. Against a bunch of incompetence that we've spent the last four years dealing with. These people are morons!

[Amadeus Arkham]

God Bless Leslie Jones.

[Iron Maiden]

Trump is thanking Brooks based on @MZanona scoop that Brooks is planning to challenge the Electoral College result when it comes before Congress on Jan. 6



How Trump’s Hill allies could take one last shot to overturn the election

I can see Gaetz leading this charge. I suspect he may run in the primaries in 2024 in case Trump kicks the bucket or lands in prison.

[Tami]

Clinton should have won. She thought so, too. It's probably why she mismanaged her campaign and took certain voters for granted.

You're not wrong that there has never been a candidate like Trump, and because of that no one really took the threat seriously, but we have to stop blaming everyone but the Clinton campaign for that loss. Should have won, regardless of Trump's unknown factor, and still didn't. Against a bunch of incompetence that we've spent the last four years dealing with. These people are morons!

I'm not denying that the Clinton Campaign made huge mistakes. However, they might have made fewer of them if the person they were running against was someone they understood. Someone like like Ted Cruz, or John Kasich, or Marco Rubio, or Jeb Bush.