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

[Jack Dracula]

The GOP would be motivated to clean house if there were some push to do so from the saner elements of their base. If it were obvious to them that doing so would cost them elections. That isn't happening. The pressure is coming from the Democrats and the left-leaning media, in other words, the people who wouldn't vote for them anyway. Their own base consists of extremists and moderate cowards who whisper about Bush and Reagan but don't dare say anything against Trump out loud.
McConnell will do nothing because he has nothing to actually gain by it and will lose nothing if he doesn't.

[Tendrin]

If the GOP finally casts Trump aside, lead at last at the hands of Mitch McConnel, it must mean that the corporate cash bloodbath threat is even worse than we know.

I do not believe it will happen but I'd like to be wrong. Mitch is nothing if not an utterly amoral and ruthless politician and it's quite possible that what he knows will become public about the capital riot will be even worse at the ballot box than continuing to support Trump.

[Gray Lensman]

The GOP would be motivated to clean house if there were some push to do so from the saner elements of their base. If it were obvious to them that doing so would cost them elections. That isn't happening. The pressure is coming from the Democrats and the left-leaning media, in other words, the people who wouldn't vote for them anyway. Their own base consists of extremists and moderate cowards who whisper about Bush and Reagan but don't dare say anything against Trump out loud.
McConnell will do nothing because he has nothing to actually gain by it and will lose nothing if he doesn't.

There is pressure from doners at the very least - profits aren't secure if what is or isn't legal changes at the whim of someone with unchecked power.

And while Donnie's approval rating remains too high, his disapproval rating has spiked to over 60%, and the saner Republicans are smart enough to realize they'll be locked out of power for quite some time if almost 2/3 of the public will be motivated to vote against them no matter what.

[Revolutionary_Jack]

And while Donnie's approval rating remains too high, his disapproval rating has spiked to over 60%, and the saner Republicans are smart enough to realize they'll be locked out of power for quite some time if almost 2/3 of the public will be motivated to vote against them no matter what.

Nationally, Trump is phenomenally unpopular, as is the GOP as a party, as are its policies at present.

After the Putsch, Trump isn't just unpopular...he's hated. The GOP are on their way there too.

[worstblogever]

The GOP would be motivated to clean house if there were some push to do so from the saner elements of their base. If it were obvious to them that doing so would cost them elections. That isn't happening. The pressure is coming from the Democrats and the left-leaning media, in other words, the people who wouldn't vote for them anyway. Their own base consists of extremists and moderate cowards who whisper about Bush and Reagan but don't dare say anything against Trump out loud.
McConnell will do nothing because he has nothing to actually gain by it and will lose nothing if he doesn't.

McConnell's the minority leader. He knows 2022 has more GOP seats up for grabs (22) than Democratic (11). After a failed coup, there's probably not a great chance of the GOP retaking the Senate, especially if Trump is ALREADY campaigning for president while the country heals from a pandemic both literally and economically and ALL the corruption of the Trump administration is brought to bear in the media, and in courts. Mitch already has seen Adelson die, and corporations snub the GOP for fundraising since 1/6. He knows all of that amounts to him remaining Minority Leader for almost the remainder of his time in office.

Mitch McConnell just won re-election to a 6 year term. He won't face the consequences of whatever he does for six full years in any election in 2026. At that time, McConnell will be 84 years old. EIGHTY-FOUR.

That's when he cashes out anyway and retires after 42 years in the Senate. He literally has nothing to lose by this personally, and can, in the long term, extract his party from Donald Trump's insanity.

[evolutionaryFan]

And while Donnie's approval rating remains too high, his disapproval rating has spiked to over 60%, and the saner Republicans are smart enough to realize they'll be locked out of power for quite some time if almost 2/3 of the public will be motivated to vote against them no matter what.

So have a bunch of the 74 million people that voted for Trump changed their minds because of the riot?

[evolutionaryFan]

Nationally, Trump is phenomenally unpopular, as is the GOP as a party, as are its policies at present.

After the Putsch, Trump isn't just unpopular...he's hated. The GOP are on their way there too.

How do you know? I'm suspicious of the polls. He got 74 million votes... did those voters change their minds after the riot?

[Gray Lensman]

So have a bunch of the 74 million people that voted for Trump changed their minds because of the riot?

Even if it is only a few hundred thousand, scatter them into the right districts and it will be enough. A half of a percent is 370k - more than enough to lock the GoP out of power if the rage isn't mollified, especially when the margins in some states are in the 10s of thousands.

[The Cool Thatguy]

How do you know? I'm suspicious of the polls. He got 74 million votes... did those voters change their minds after the riot?

I imagine enough of them voted for him because he was the GOP's candidate, and I bet plenty of them are disgusted by what he did.

I'm certain Trump has his cult and sadly, always will, but that won't matter if enough sane Republicans leave the party or flip

[worstblogever]

How do you know? I'm suspicious of the polls. He got 74 million votes... did those voters change their minds after the riot?

I mean, when you attempt a coup with Neo-Nazis and Neo-Confederates and the people who literally were at Charlottesville running among it and fail?

Kinda a bad bag to be left holding. His approval rating already dropped like 8 points immediately. And that's before the public sees a trial where they're going to detail his actions.

[Revolutionary_Jack]

How do you know? I'm suspicious of the polls. He got 74 million votes... did those voters change their minds after the riot?

Why do people keep obsessing over the 74million votes?

Dude 81million voted for Biden. That's basically the full population of modern day Germany (Largest Population in W. Europe) voting for the Dems.

America's population is 330 million people. 74 million voters is maybe a little more than a quarter of that. It's not representative as a sample.

A good chunk of the people who voted for Trump voted for SCOTUS judges and Republican causes, not because they liked Trump. Pandemic made it easier than ever to vote.

So I wouldn't be so intimidated.

[Jack Dracula]

There is pressure from doners at the very least - profits aren't secure if what is or isn't legal changes at the whim of someone with unchecked power.

And while Donnie's approval rating remains too high, his disapproval rating has spiked to over 60%, and the saner Republicans are smart enough to realize they'll be locked out of power for quite some time if almost 2/3 of the public will be motivated to vote against them no matter what.

The biggest donors already have so much invested they're more likely to hang in there for the next two years.
If McConnell cared about public opinion he wouldn't have held up the relief package to protect business interests. He knows GOP voters have short memories and will fall in line. The last Presidential election proved it.

McConnell's the minority leader. He knows 2022 has more GOP seats up for grabs (22) than Democratic (11). After a failed coup, there's probably not a great chance of the GOP retaking the Senate, especially if Trump is ALREADY campaigning for president while the country heals from a pandemic both literally and economically and ALL the corruption of the Trump administration is brought to bear in the media, and in courts.

Mitch McConnell just won re-election to a 6 year term. He won't face the consequences of whatever he does for six full years in any election in 2026. At that time, McConnell will be 84 years old. EIGHTY-FOUR.

That's when he cashes out anyway and retires after 42 years in the Senate. He literally has nothing to lose by this personally, and can, in the long term, extract his party from Donald Trump's insanity.

Mitch and the GOP have 2 full years to obstruct, lie and cheat while their propaganda machine shouts non-stop about how the Dems are destroying the country and not accomplishing anything. If he can keep Trump somewhat in line he will keep the crazies engaged and the moderates will follow because they still vote for the hope of a sane GOP over any Democratic candidate. He has Trump right where he wants him and nothing to lose.

[Gray Lensman]

The biggest donors already have so much invested they're more likely to hang in there for the next two years.
If McConnell cared about public opinion he wouldn't have held up the relief package to protect business interests. He knows GOP voters have short memories and will fall in line. The last Presidential election proved it.



Mitch and the GOP have 2 full years to obstruct, lie and cheat while their propaganda machine shouts non-stop about how the Dems are destroying the country and not accomplishing anything. If he can keep Trump somewhat in line he will keep the crazies engaged and the moderates will follow because they still vote for the hope of a sane GOP over any Democratic candidate. He has Trump right where he wants him and nothing to lose.

That's the rub, and McConnell knows it. The likelyhood of keeping Trump in line for 2 whole years is nil.

[Powerboy]

How do you know? I'm suspicious of the polls. He got 74 million votes... did those voters change their minds after the riot?

It's hard to say. Mary Trump predicted that the riot would have zero impact with his followers or even increase their approval of him because that's the nature of such fanaticism and cognitive dissonance. The more the evidence mounts that he's a lying, narcissist madman, the more Trump supporters dig in their heels and double or even triple down on their denial of reality.

[Revolutionary_Jack]

The biggest donors already have so much invested they're more likely to hang in there for the next two years.

Most of the big GOP donors also donate to the Dems. So that's not too much of a concern. The donors who leave today will come back if the GOP makes a show of reform and brings forth a more agreeable candidate.

If he can keep Trump somewhat in line he will keep the crazies engaged and the moderates will follow because they still vote for the hope of a sane GOP over any Democratic candidate. He has Trump right where he wants him and nothing to lose.

That's assuming that Mitch McConnell is some mastermind genius rather than an obnoxious ******* with a hall monitor's prissiness. McConnell looks a bit like Mr. Burns but he's really Martin Prince and Trump is Nelson or the Three Bullies.

Mitch never had it in him to keep Trump in line or in control. There was never a moment where McConnell and not Trump was calling the shots in the party. McConnell has a say in the Senate but not a total one. In the past many candidates McConnell backed got primaried and usurped by either Tea Party types or Magats. McConnell appealed to Trump's vanity and ego by making his legislative agenda into his, by selling it as "owning the libs" and getting one over Obama which was a theme he followed in his historic obstruction in Obama's final years.

McConnell cost himself his own Senate majority. He insisted and supported the AZ governor to have Martha McSally take McCain's seat despite her losing an election to Sinema. That action irritated AZ voters who felt that a candidate they rejected was given a position she wasn't elected for. That made McSally vulnerable to Mark Kelly. McConnell lost Arizona and also Georgia (the stimulus bill nonetheless). The GOP would have had an even worse election in 2020 and lost more seats had RBG not died and McConnellh hadn't rushed to seat Barrett. The big thing that helped the GOP down-ballot on election night, that was luck, not McConnell's doing.