Archive for the ‘Politics’ Category
It’s Time for the STFU
Posted on: February 5, 2019
- In: 2018 Election | Democratic Values | Donald Trump | Leadership | Open Thread | Politics | Television | Trump
- 131 Comments
Oy vey! Today it’s the SOTU – or as I call it, the “STFU.” As usual, I have no interest in watching the Mango Moron spew his ignorance and lies for the 8,000th time. Literally! As of January 21, 2019, the man has told over 8,158 lies since his inauguration, an average of 11.35 per day.
Ah, but what may be worth watching is the Democratic response, given by the fabulous Stacey Abrams…yet another strong, intelligent woman who was cheated out of victory in a transparent case of (say it with me now) Republican. Election. Fraud. Abrams was an unusual choice, given that the respondents both usually hold elected office, and are not African-American women.
That’s what makes it so brilliant.
“I know there were some headlines that characterized her as the future of the Democratic Party. In my estimate, she is the present and the future. She’s shaping the future,” Rep. Ayanna Pressley, who in 2018 became the first African-American woman to represent Massachusetts in Congress, said in an interview with ABC News.
And while Abrams’ defining characteristics set her apart, they also match her up for the current, unpredictable era — one in which the State of the Union is pushed back after a historic government shutdown, and the president giving the address had never held elected office himself before taking office.
“I think it’s untraditional in all the right ways — and ways voters are showing themselves to have an appetite for,” said Jamila Michener, a professor at Cornell University who researches racial inequality and the electoral system. Particularly African-American women, Michener said, who are “the electoral bedrock of the Democratic Party.”
“It’s almost a kind of ‘duh’ moment for the Democrats, and one it’s good they finally had,” she said.
After the triumphant Blue Tsunami of 2018, which women of color played an enormous part in making possible, it seems like the entire Democratic Party is finally overcoming their gender and color blindness to honor their true base.
This awakening does not, of course, include that self-centered screamer who won’t release his tax returns. You know who I’m talking about…the one who’s only a Democrat when he wants to run for office to help elect Comrade Drumpf. Yup, he’s just certain that all his fauxgressive cultists cannot live another day without hearing the same bullsh*t from his yelling pie hole.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) will deliver his own response to President Trump’s speech to Congress on Tuesday for the third year running.
The senator’s office confirmed to The Hill that his response will follow Trump’s State of the Union address as well as the Democratic rebuttal and be streamed on Facebook, YouTube and Twitter.
So, not on TeeVee then? Mwahahaha.
All righty then, here’s my plan. Who’s with me?
- Don’t watch Drumpf.
- Tune in to Stacey. (And, Xavier Becerra is giving the response in Spanish, so you can also tune in to him.)
- Ignore #theBernout.
This is an open thread.
- In: 2020 Election | Open Thread | Politics | Quick Posts
- 76 Comments
Good day to you Widdershins!
You may have noticed that mb has not been around the past few days. It appears that the real world and her job have taken her away from us. However, she assured us she will be back. LOL
The other day we were discussing the announced 2020 Democratic candidates for President. Some of us were wondering who Kamala Harris had previously supported for Prez. Shadowfax said that she, Harris, had supported Barrack Obama. I’m guessing that was the 2008 election. For me, that was a particularly odious election. It was pretty cut-throat between Obama and Clinton and after the Rules and Bylaws committee meeting (or was it the Credentials committee?) of the DNC I decided I would vote for McCain in the general election. It’s not that I supported him or his veep choice Palin. It’s that I was that angry at the way I thought the DNC screwed over Hillary.
We know that by the time of the convention Hillary and Obama had “made up” and she endorsed him. But there were lots of us who were not happy about it. That’s when the PUMA movement came about. There were lots of hard feelings back then.
But now we are heading into the 2020 Presidential election cycle. 2008 was two cycles ago. Do we or should we care that much right now about who supported whom in that election? Or should we consider more who has the best chance of defeating tRump if he’s still around and runs for reelection?
Personally I’m not going to worry that much about who supported/endorsed a candidate back then.
Right now Harris is the latest bright, shiny object in front of Democrats. I watched a large part of the Iowa town hall she held. She was articulate, answered people’s questions well and came off pretty good. However it’s a long time between now and the primaries and the general. Should we still be concerned about who supported Obama in 2008 and keep it up like a feud between the Hatfields and McCoys? Or should we be more concerned about who has the best chance of appealing to the voters and defeating tRump or Pence or whomever the Repubs run in 2020?
Discuss.
Open thread naturally.
Lazy Weekend~Cartoons Edition
Posted on: December 16, 2018
Winter’s coming
Good Weekend Widdershins!
For a change of pace I thought we could take a look at what’s going on in the world of political cartoons. No thinking needed for this and all that’s required is the ability to have a small chuckle or huge guffaw depending on what you think about the cartoon.
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And last but certainly not least
Okay Widdershins, that’s it! Hope y’all got a chuckle or two out of these.
Open thread of course.
- In: "the Holidays" | Holidays | Open Thread | Politicians | Politics | Snark
- 89 Comments
This Maccabee is really Santa! THE HORROR. Courtesy of The Forward.
Happy Tuesday, Widdershins. If you hear the rap version of “The Little Drummer Boy” playing faintly in the background, it’s because I am writing from the center of the War on Chanukkah, otherwise known as San Francisco, the “City by the Bay” “City Sans Oy Vey.”
As I promenade through the streets of downtown, I hear only Christmas music. I see only Christmas trees, presents and lights. Wherefore the miraculous menorah? Wherefore the light that burned for eight nights instead of just one, to protect the besieged Maccabees in their temple? It’s enough to make you meshuggeneh!
After so many years in Noo Yawk, where there are roughly as many Jews on the Upper West Side as there are in Israel, this blatant discrimination is a shock to my system. It shall not stand! I will plant my Chanukkah bush on this Widdershin ground, and share some fun holiday music with you. Maybe then all the goyim will realize we’re here, we’re eating schmears, and we’re not giving up till you sing the Dreidel song with us!
Oh by the way, I’m in such a good mood because…it’s #MuellerTime.
Enjoy the day! This is an open thread.
Continuing Activist Tuesday
Posted on: November 8, 2018
- In: 2018 Election | Congress | Democrats | Open Thread | Politics | Trump
- 102 Comments
Okay folks, let’s continue mb’s excellent Tuesday post covering the election.
While we did well in taking back the House we know that much work lies ahead.
Open thread of course.
Lazy Weekend Music – High Hopes?
Posted on: October 21, 2018
- In: 2018 Election | Music | Open Thread | Politics | You Tube
- 41 Comments
For illustration purposes only
Good Sunday and weekend Widdershins!
Fredster here today for our GAgal; who needed to give her creative muse a rest. She may need a while to let the muse have a break and that’s understandable. I thank her again for coming to my rescue so turnabout is fair, no?
So despite tRump’s success in getting Kavanaugh on the bench at the Supremes, it may cost him more than he or the Repub congress critters realize. He and they have fired up not only women but other Democratic-friendly groups also and right.before.the.midterms. From watching Maddow’s show this past week, early voting number have been staggering, in Georgia as well as other states. Dare we have hope? Perhaps even high hopes of capturing the House and maybe the Senate? So with that in mind, let’s take a look at some songs about hopes.
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High Hopes (Sinatra version)
High Hopes – Pink Floyd
Dixie Chicks – I Hope
Mandy More – Only Hope
Phil Wickham – Living Hope
Ben Lee – We’re All In This Together
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So there’s a nice selection of songs and Fredster is going go rant online some more at various sports sites. He was happy that LSU beat Moo U (Mississippi State) but is furious that the Tigers’ best defensive player got ejected in the second of the game for targeting the Moo U quarterback. Since the player, Devin White, was ejected in the second half of this game he will not be eligible to play for the first half of LSU’s next game, which happens to be Alabama. The call on the field was reviewed at SEC conference headquarters and was upheld. And where, you might ask is SEC conference headquarters? Why in Birmingham Alabama. As the Church Lady would say, “How conveeenient!”. 
Open thread of course.
“The damage inflicted by President Trump’s naiveté, egotism, false equivalence, and sympathy for autocrats is difficult to calculate. But it is clear that the summit in Helsinki was a tragic mistake,” McCain said in a statement. “President Trump proved not only unable, but unwilling to stand up to Putin. He and Putin seemed to be speaking from the same script as the president made a conscious choice to defend a tyrant against the fair questions of a free press, and to grant Putin an uncontested platform to spew propaganda and lies to the world.”
— Time Magazine, July 16, 2018
On August 25th, 2018, Senator John McCain passed away at the age of 81. Not only did he handle his fatal illness with characteristic bravery and flair, but he also survived long enough to ensure that his legacy was exactly what he wanted it to be. He helped save the ACA, along with Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins, and as noted in the quote above, was quite vocal after the #TreasonSummit in Helsinki.
I have only voted for two Republicans in my life: Rudy Giuliani and John McCain. (I am sure you are all surprised that I voted for Giuliani…but you have no idea what a terrible mayor David Dinkins was, he had issues with Jewish people, and Giuliani was a lot more moderate back then. Sigh.) I regret my vote for one, but not for the other – I think McCain would have been a decent President, and Obama truly didn’t earn my vote in 2008, although he certainly got it in 2012 (after the 2010 wave swept all the moderates out of the GOP).
I do think that McCain is benefiting from a bit of wishful thinking in terms of his record. He did vote with Republicans quite a bit, supporting Drumpf about 83% of the time. However, the chart below shows that he truly was more independent than most.
While the nation mourns, we also wonder what will happen now with Arizona’s Senate seat. This article in FiveThirtyEight breaks the options down, and unfortunately, it looks like the Governor of Arizona is likely to pick someone a lot more Trumpy.
A new occupant of McCain’s seat is good news for McConnell, Trump and Republicans who want the party to largely follow the edicts of those two GOP leaders. McCain was largely absent from public life while he was receiving treatment for brain cancer, and during that time, the Senate was split 50-49 in favor of the GOP. That meant one Republican defection could kill any bill. With 51 active Republicans, one defection still left room for Vice President Mike Pence to cast a tie-breaking vote in favor of McConnell and the president. With 50, Pence’s vote isn’t enough as long as one Republican sides with the opposition.
With the addition of a reliable McConnell ally, the Senate’s partisan breakdown returns to 51-49, giving Republican leadership some breathing room. Retiring Sen. Jeff Flake of Arizona, a Trump critic who occasionally bucks party leadership, will have less power to stall Senate GOP initiatives. That could help the party get more federal judges appointed, a big priority for Trump and McConnell. (I don’t think the return to full strength in the Senate will mean much for other issues, because the Republicans aren’t really trying to push through major initiatives before the midterms.)
Ack, I really hate reading that…but, this of course assumes that Drumpf will keep being President till 2020. I think that is a rather risky assumption; like DYB, I believe something has changed, as so many of the Trump insiders are making plea deals and being convicted of felonies. I also refuse to assume the Rethugs will keep the Senate. Look at Doug Jones in Alabama…who expected that?! Who really knows how many people will vote blue in November? I think we have not yet begun to show our strength.
Whatever happens next, nothing can take away from the fact that Senator John McCain was a brave and honorable man, and he accomplished a great deal in his long life of public service. I thank you, Senator, for helping save ACA and being a strong voice against #TrumpRussia. My heart goes out to your family, friends and colleagues in the Senate…the Democratic ones, anyway.
This is an open thread.
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