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

[WestPhillyPunisher]

Clinton's baggage was far from bullshit.

And Trump was pure as the driven snow? He had enough baggage to fill the hold of a 747! Come on now!

The perceived corruption along with the elitist attitude (and deciding to not bother campaigning in states that Obama won TWICE) was more than enough to sink her.

Elitist attitude? Like an arrogant billionaire who lives in gilded penthouse in midtown Manhattan with his goddamn name on the building is just an ordinary Joe Blow from Smalltown, U.S.A.?

There's a reason that women voted for Trump over Clinton, and it has nothing to do with racism, etc. She didn't come off as trust worthy.

And what was there to trust in Trump who was an irrational reactionary and came off sounding like a racist, xenophobic demagogue who blew smoke up the asses of like minded lemmings?

[aja_christopher]

I'm not going to tell someone else how to feel about Bernie's understanding of current race issues, but the man marched. The resume is not blank there.

What someone did in the 60s doesn't change what he has said and done since then -- Bernie's attempt to change racial discussions to matters of economics shows just how tone deaf he was to the current issues facing African-Americans today, and that alone was enough reason for me to vote for Clinton over Sanders.

When multiple black people themselves tell you that Bernie has no real credibility with many black voters, it's best to listen to us rather than assuming that our vote is so easily won.

That said, even Clinton had problems in that respect, and the lack of black voter turnout played a large part in her losing many southern states (such as Florida) in the election.

All of this is moot regardless -- both could have lost to Trump so there's no point in debating an unknown.

[Tami]

Donald Trump’s White House is on the verge of a raging fire over Russia allegations

Know that cliche “Where there's smoke, there's fire”? The Trump White House is now engulfed in smoke over contacts between his presidential campaign (and transition team) and the Russian government. It's time for Trump to dump a whole heaping bucket of cold water on the fire or risk it beginning to burn out of control and threatening his entire presidency.

The danger to Trump surged Tuesday night when the New York Times and CNN both reported that numerous contacts had been detected between Trump campaign officials and the Russians over the course of the 2016 race. While it remains unclear just how high-ranking these aides were or whether there was any coordination with the Russian efforts to hack the election, the very fact that Trump officials were reportedly in regular contact with Russia flies directly in the face of a slew of denials from Trump and his aides on that matter over the course of the last many months.

Something's burning....

[IheartBatman]

As they say: Could've, Would've, Should've.

As long as you are taking into account the human factor, you don't make logical analysis of the past with the argument "this Would have Happened if". The best you can do is acknowledge that "This didn't Happen" then ask why.

My biggest concern is getting the Democrats off of their defeatist attitude issues and start fighting to win elections. Elections are already starting across the country.

I agree, and it was stupid of me to bring it up, so I apologize to the members of the thread. I hope the DNC learns from their mistakes and move forward and go back to the party of the worker and not the Elitist LimoLiberals.
Less candidates that are beholden to Wall Street (looking at you, Booker) and more that are dedicated to the people in the country that are hurting.

[Tendrin]

What someone did in the 60s doesn't change what he has said and done since then -- Bernie's attempt to change racial discussions to matters of economics shows just how tone deaf he was to the current issues facing African-Americans today, and that alone was enough reason for me to vote for Clinton over Sanders.

When multiple black people themselves tell you that Bernie has no real credibility with many black voters, it's best to listen to us rather than assuming that our vote is so easily won.

That said, even Clinton had problems in that respect, and the lack of black voter turnout played a large part in her losing many southern states (such as Florida) in the election.

All of this is moot regardless -- both could have lost to Trump so there's no point in debating an unknown.

Thank you.

[Tami]

Trump's likely science adviser calls climate scientists 'glassy-eyed cult'

The man tipped as frontrunner for the role of science adviser to Donald Trump has described climate scientists as “a glassy-eyed cult” in the throes of a form of collective madness.

William Happer, an eminent physicist at Princeton University, met with Trump last month to discuss the post and says that if he were offered the job he would take it. Happer is highly regarded in the academic community, but many would view his appointment as a further blow to the prospects of concerted international action on climate change.

“There’s a whole area of climate so-called science that is really more like a cult,” Happer told the Guardian. “It’s like Hare Krishna or something like that. They’re glassy-eyed and they chant. It will potentially harm the image of all science.”

Trump has previously described global warming as “very expensive … bullshit” and has signalled a continued hardline stance since taking power. He has nominated the former Texas governor Rick Perry, a staunch climate sceptic, as secretary of energy and hopes to put the Environment Protection Agency (EPA) under the leadership of Scott Pruitt, the Oklahoma attorney general, who has been one of the agency’s most hostile critics.

John Holdren, Barack Obama’s science adviser, said Happer’s outspoken opinions would be a “substantial handicap” for a job that has traditionally involved delivering mainstream scientific opinion to the heart of policy-making.

Even educated people can be ignorant.

[JCAll]

Elitist attitude? Like an arrogant billionaire who lives in gilded penthouse in midtown Manhattan with his goddamn name on the building is just an ordinary Joe Blow from Smalltown, U.S.A.?

That really is the image people want to push about Trump, that he's a man of the people. Eating KFC on his private jet with a knife and fork.
But apparently it worked. I would say he wouldn't piss on the poor if they were on fire, but apparently he pays to do that.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

Trump's likely science adviser calls climate scientists 'glassy-eyed cult'





Even educated people can be ignorant.

Exactly. Lord knows Ben Carson is ample proof of that.

[aja_christopher]

Thank you.

No problem.

After months of debating Sanders supporters on this issue on many "liberal" forums (Huffington, Salon, etc) you get tired of the patronizing attitude many of them take towards "black voters" -- many of them acted as if they knew better than we did about which candidate was the best choice with regards to racial issues when in fact neither candidate was very appealing in that regard.

Like I told my friend who voted for Sanders in the primary: if I see you voting in the mid-terms, then I'll believe you're serious about changing your government.

I don't blame Bernie himself for the behavior of SOME of his followers, but said behavior even here on these boards tells you everything you need to know about how hard it is to reason with many of them who refuse to accept the validity of anyone's opinion but their own.

For instance, I can admit that Sanders' might have won -- but if he hadn't, I certainly wouldn't be here repeatedly complaining three months later about how Clinton should have been the nominee when it would serve no real purpose in dealing with the immediate problem at hand.

[Iron Maiden]

That really is the image people want to push about Trump, that he's a man of the people. Eating KFC on his private jet with a knife and fork.
But apparently it worked. I would say he wouldn't piss on the poor if they were on fire, but apparently he pays to do that.

Yeah, he likes people that pay $100,000 to join his private club at Mar-a-Lago. He likes them so much he upped it late last year to $200,000.

BTW the new all gold Oval Office looks overdone, just like his spray on tan.

And another thing. Where are all the Trump troopers around here lately to defend all this stuff that went down since Friday?

[Tuck]

What someone did in the 60s doesn't change what he has said and done since then -- Bernie's attempt to change racial discussions to matters of economics shows just how tone deaf he was to the current issues facing African-Americans today, and that alone was enough reason for me to vote for Clinton over Sanders.

I'm aware. But the post I responded to put "Civil Rights" in quotes. That comes with implications.

There's also this ongoing issue with intersectionality that causes liberals/democrats to get into circular firing squads.

When multiple black people themselves tell you that Bernie has no real credibility with many black voters, it's best to listen to us rather than assuming that our vote is so easily won.

I'm aware. And that is the national sample. Of course, among the set of "people I personally know" black support for Sanders was the norm, not the deviation. (Which probably says more about the circles I move in than anything else.)

[WestPhillyPunisher]

It seemed to me like Bernie was obsessed with the economy to the exclusion of everything else, including the plight of black people, thus his missteps with BLM. While the following example is a gross over-simplification, Bernie was like this during the campaign:

Question: Mr. Sanders, what's your opinion on Kim Jong Un and his belligerent attitude?
Sanders: Jobs.

Question: Mr. Sanders, how would you address the unrest between Israelis and Palestinians over settlements?
Sanders: Jobs.

Question: Mr. Sanders, what's your view on the growing problem of climate change?
Sanders: Jobs.

Bernie was a one trick pony when it came to the economy. And while that is an important subject, it wasn't the only concern of voters during the election, something I'm not sure occurred to him.

[aja_christopher]

I'm aware. And that is the national sample. Of course, among the set of "people I personally know" black support for Sanders was the norm, not the deviation. (Which probably says more about the circles I move in than anything else.)

I'll easily admit that there are a lot of black Sanders' supporters out there, but as to whether it would have been enough to help him win the general election, I can't say for certain, though I doubt it.

Conversely, maybe he would have captured more of the Rust Belt vote to make up for it -- it's all conjecture really and much of that is based on personal bias, including my own.

[Tuck]

It seemed to me like Bernie was obsessed with the economy to the exclusion of everything else, including the plight of black people, thus his missteps with BLM. While the following example is a gross over-simplification, Bernie was like this during the campaign:

It's what a lot of socialists do. They see economic solutions as magically fixing everything else. Same with the more hardcore libertarians, just from the other side.

Honestly though, a strong economy with broad prosperity is pretty much a prerequisite to fix a lot of other problems. Maslow's Hierarchy.

[MindofShadow]

After months of debating Sanders supporters on this issue on many "liberal" forums (Huffington, Salon, etc) you get tired of the patronizing attitude many of them take towards "black voters" -- many of them acted as if they knew better than we did about which candidate was the best choice with regards to racial issues when in fact neither candidate was very appealing in that regard.

People only care about the "black vote" every 4 years.

Outside of that, no one gives a shit sadly