All-purpose news and politics thread: Two Steps Beyond!

[Tazirai]

Message to the Democrats tonight?

RUN EVERYWHERE YOU MORONS!!!!

Get money from the local donors and stop taking PAC money. Many of the 2017 and now the 2018 races are being won by people NOT taking large donations.

Get a cohesive Message beyond Trump bad sad, and run that ****!

[Tendrin]

Actually, absentee ballots typically favor Republicans. That's why there have been no laws to fight voter fraud for absentee ballots despite them being the type with the most proven fraudulent votes.

Do they? I've heard the opposite frequently and that they're expected to do the same in this case.

[Tendrin]

Man, "Yes" and "No". "Yes", in that I agree generally. "No", in that it's hard to frame being Pro-"Right To Work" in that District as that sorta whatever "Trump Populism" thing is. Trump is saying they need protection from competition. Saccone is trying to say they don't need a union. Jibes, just not exactly.

Republicans have won on union turf before running on racial resentment politics and 'Our God Is Under Attack' messages before. It just didn't fly with Saccone.

[numberthirty]

Republicans have won on union turf before running on racial resentment politics and 'Our God Is Under Attack' messages before. It just didn't fly with Saccone.

Because he decided to pick a "Right To Work" fight that the prior Republican was smart enough not to. Heck, he had union donors.

You can't be "Populist" and pull that off there.

[BeastieRunner]

On absentee voting:

The data favors the primary party of power in a state but favors more moderate to left candidates the larger the scale of the election.

A lapsed Dem is more likely to show up when moved or motivated to vote.

Rs tend to vote no matter what. They are just shrinking more and more.

[Iron Maiden]

So I guess March is coming in with a Lamb in Pennsylvania. (please, don't throw any rocks! ) Keeping my fingers crossed that the lead holds up. Keep doing those campaign stops, Trump! I think it brings out the more moderate GOP to vote against your madness.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

Democrat Holds Slim Lead In Pennsylvania District Trump Won By Nearly 20 Points

Democrat Conor Lamb declares victory early Wednesday, but the special U.S. House race may end up with a recount. Listening to my local all-news radio station here in Philly. Still no winner officially declared. Meanwhile....

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GOP Blames ‘Lackluster’ Candidate And His ‘Porn Stache’ For Pennsylvania Setback

Ice cold. No kidding! Republicans wasted little time dumping Saccone after what could end up being a shocking loss for the party.

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Mosque Terror Attack Suspect Put In Detailed Bid To Build Trump A ‘Great’ Border Wall

The former sheriff’s deputy submitted an extensive proposal that would make the border wall a recreational attraction. This would be laughable if it also wasn't pathetic. More proof of the overall folly regarding Trump's stupid wall.

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American Muslim Groups Troubled By Trump’s Secretary Of State Pick

Mike Pompeo has ties to one of America’s largest anti-Muslim organizations. Why DOESN'T that surprise me? It's just the sort of thing our Xenophobe-in-Chief loves.

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Veterans Are Pissed At Trump For Not Knowing How To Spell Marine Corps

The president called it the Marine “Core.” Well, what can you expect from a notorious draft dodger.

[Carabas]

This is our chance. We can send him a few Green Lantern comics and distract him for a year.

He doesn't read, remember?

[worstblogever]

On this date in 2015, 2016, as well as 2017, “Crazy/Stupid Republican of the Day posted profiles of Al Baldasaro, from the New Hampshire House of Representatives. Baldasaro is truly reality-challenged, having claimed in 2010 that the state of New Hampshire was selling children to homosexual families for $10,000 each in a hearing where he continually would say "no disrespect" after each homophobic accusation he uttered, as if that negated it. Which, he probably also believes was possible when Baldasaro commented on the 2012 GOP debate where a gay soldier was booed by the crowd, and said it was "great" and the soldier's admission was "disgusting". Baldasaro also warned against the United Nations Agenda 21 environimental treaty as stripping a citizen's right to go fishing (which makes no sense), and believes there is a "secret" alternate 13th Amendment to the Constitution which bans people of noble lineage from holding office. We also are re-sharing the same profile photo of Al Baldasaro that is from his wedding, where he posed with the whole bridal party with firearms, because he loves the 2nd Amendment arguably as much as his wife. Even just in his daily affairs in Concord, Al Baldasaro managed to make an ass of himself. A bill seeking to criminalize new forms of public nudity, New Hampshire Republicans wanted a woman showing any part of their nipples in public to be a misdemeanor offense, but not men. After Rep. Amanda Bouldin shared the content of the bill on Facebook, calling it sexist, and Baldasaro was one of two members of the GOP who came running to defend their legislation... by shaming her in the most misogynistic and insulting ways possible, and saying her nipples would be the last ones he'd ever want to see. In 2016, Al Baldasaro has become a spokesperson for the campaign to elect Donald Trump, helping the cause by getting on Facebook to share stories to stoke Islamophobic, anti-immigrant fears that he found on anti-Islamic and white supremacy websites. Baldasaro was also very comfortable with Donald Trump's idea to ban all Muslims from entering the United States, comparing it to that great time we had Japanese internment camps during World War II. Baldasaro also went on CNN on behalf of Donald Trump to try and argue in favor of Trump's stance on using torture. Not "enhanced interrogation", but straight up torture. Before the 2016 elections were over, Al Baldasaro drew headlines again, when he wasn't content with just yelling "LOCK HER UP!" like most Trump supporters were at the Republican National Convention, choosing instead to literally call her "a piece of garbage" and that she should "be put in the firing line and shot for treason". That got him a visit from the Secret Service, but we'll note that Donald Trump or his campaign not only refused to criticize Baldasaro for this threat, but kept him as an adviser and continued to praise him. Baldasaro never apologized for his remarks, and a month later, was a part of the Trump campaign's attacks against Khzir Khan, a Gold Star parent, who in an extended rant on Twitter, said Khan, "disgraced" his son and "used him as a pawn". After returning to the New Hampshire state legislature in 2017, Baldasaro voted to continue to allow the barbaric practice of parents forcing their children into undergoing gay conversion therapy, because he’s that swell of an individual.

In April 2017, Baldasaro made baseless charges about widespread “voter fraud” taking place in New Hampshire, insisting he had “seen it with my own eyes”. However when pressed for this evidence, Baldasro could provide precisely none. In spite of Baldasaro’s long line of insane quotes including hints about shooting presidential candidates for treason, it’s noteworthy that he was one of a handful of people that the Trump administration lined up to be present for a very rare bill signing (this one empowering the VA to fire detrimental employees more easily). You would think the Secret Service would want to keep someone so willing to advocate for assassination as far away from the president as possible, let alone set him by his side in the Oval Office. Back home, he’s still voting against bans against gay conversion therapy on minors. Baldasaro has never shown himself in synch with reality, and that’s probably why he’s ignoring all the obvious signs that a Democrat Blue Wave election is coming in 2018, stating his desire to not just run for re-election, but his belief that he will be able to win that race, but after he does, that he will be appointed Speaker of the New Hampshire House of Representatives.

And while he might have been the most popular Republican in his district in 2016, there have been enough outrageous moments to make 2018 a risky proposition for him. We’ll have to see what his future entails.

[Tami]

Document: House Intelligence Committee Minority Russia Investigation Status Report

The full report is here and it's an interesting read.

[TheInvisibleMan]

so anyone crying about voter fraud in PA yet?

[kidfresh512]

What you need to know about the national school walkout

We will see how this goes today with the national walkout at schools.

[TheInvisibleMan]

What you need to know about the national school walkout

We will see how this goes today with the national walkout at schools.

I thought it was planned for 3-23 or 3-26?

[kidfresh512]

I thought it was planned for 3-23 or 3-26?

National school walkout to mark month since Parkland mass shooting

PARKLAND, Fla. — Exactly one month after 17 people were killed at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, survivors of the massacre will join tens of thousands of students across the U.S. and walk out of class Wednesday.

The 10 a.m. protest will last 17 minutes and aims to highlight "Congress’ inaction against the gun violence plaguing our schools and neighborhoods," according to organizers.

In Parkland, students, teachers and administrators will spill out onto the football field, while some students plan to walk out to a nearby park for a rally.

Organized by the Women's March, an estimated 185,000 people in 50 states are expected to join the walkout.


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There is a March for our Lives protest they are doing later on the 24th according to the CNN article. The one today is the one alot of Universities have been issuing statements that they will not take into account any student that wants to participate in terms of enrollment. If they happen to get punished or whatever by their respective schools. Because some school districts and schools are treating it like they are skipping class or something.

[Tendrin]

Didn't see it mentioned but it probably was. Just in case it wasn't, though....

https://www.politico.com/story/2018/...-claims-459244

A protester who filmed the violent clashes at a white supremacist rally last year in Virginia sued far-right news site InfoWars and its leader Alex Jones on Tuesday, saying the site stoked conspiracy theories that he was working as a “deep state” operative for the government.
Brennan Gilmore, a foreign service officer at the State Department, alleges that Jones, his website and several of its contributors made “false and defamatory” statements by claiming he had an “ax to grind” in recording the event.