US Politics, November 2019: These people are truly sick.

Off to Impeachment-land we go!

At some point, I’m going to sit down, perhaps as a fireside chat on live television, and I will air the tape and allow the American people to decide for themselves whether I was being 'peed on'.

https://www.kimballstock.com/pix/DOG/07/DOG_07_RK0504_02_P.JPG

has this bimbo ever told the truth?

Having called around some, reassured in my judgment that those House Republicans open to voting for impeachment simply decided to stick with the party yesterday, and to save their dissent for the real vote. No point telegraphing the jail break to the prison guards ahead of time.

— Bill Kristol (@BillKristol) November 1, 2019

His moron logic makes no sense. Republicans on deep background share their disagreements with the president, but publicly vote to support him. Again on deep background they claim they really do disagree with him, but claim next time they might not vote to support him. Sure. Fool me once ...

I am sure the transcript will not have been altered with a Sharpie

Or a Shar-pee

Just as the dog who totally did not pee on the President was not a shar-pei

All I can say is that if the President goes on the radio, urine for a surprise

I had a dream last night that Trump died of massive organ failure in American Samoa. The big news item was the fight over the body — the Samoans insisted he had to be buried there immediately.

Imagine my disappointment when I woke up to find he’s still alive.

I'm sure his organ often fails but I'm equally sure that it's far from massive.

ted cruz has... i dunno, i guess you could call them 'thoughts' in the broadest possible sense of the word

Hmm. Only 169 retweets. It’s almost like the 3.4M people who chose to follow this account never saw this particular tweet.... Wonder why? https://t.co/p1VdOKqxAK

— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) October 31, 2019

thought immediately of the @dril tweet that was like "my impressions are down! I'm fucked!!" and was glad to see it in the replies

i think some of these politicians think that just because they put it on twitter, the entire universe should be seeing or hearing about it.

Check yr mailbox, Ted, I just shot one of these your way

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/61JI0QUD70L._UX466_.jpg

xp well everyone else thinks that too, so it's nice to feel reflected in the leadership of the country

dang I wish the concept of shadowbanning had existed when I had to run social media accounts for work

Aaaand they just did it *again.*

They brought us into session this morning, saw all the Dems were there, so they called a recess,

then another,

then another,

then another,

then another,

and every time we came back all the Dems were there.

So they cancelled the vote.

— Sen. Jeff Jackson (@JeffJacksonNC) October 31, 2019

lmao at these people crying about the process

every kid who reached over and hit the reset button on the N64 when they were losing at Goldeneye is now a Republican

What, are you just supposed to accept that any aspect of the known universe might not be operating in your particular favor at a given moment? Absurd!

Kristol is terrible, but?

I'll go with Bill's call. https://t.co/TEBm0HCV5n

— Robert Reich (@RBReich) November 1, 2019

Bullshit, maybe they'll get like two votes. The GOP is bat shit.

brave GOP congressmen who anonymously complain about Trump and publicly support everything he does will one day have a memorial on the DC mall

this is going to be straight party line votes all down the line - with maybe a couple vulnerable GOP Senators defecting (to no avail)

always bears repeating that Kristol is a fucking idiot who should be in jail for his role in the Iraq War

XPS Memorial in the shape of a giant waffle.

Re: Bill Kristol's nonsense. If House Republicans can't muster the courage and integrity to vote in favor of examining the evidence to determine whether the president committed an egregious abuse of power, then there's no reason on earth to think any of them will suddenly acquire courage and integrity when the evidence proves he did commit a high crime.

should also be noted that the subset "House Republicans open to voting for impeachment" is probably like 5 people

What vote was cancelled? re: Jackson's tweet

NC veto override

Ah yes of course

Revealed: Trump wanted to build a mega-church. His spiritual advisor and friend, @Paula_White, told me it was "dream" of @realDonaldTrump -- and they still might do it! https://t.co/6LOgcnMzSe pic.twitter.com/O7XzQXqYF0

— Paul Bedard (@SecretsBedard) November 1, 2019

surely that's supposed to read maga-church

Finding Trump Over Trials

I'd think it would be difficult to believe in a god who takes such a light touch with the living, breathing embodiment of blasphemy.

their god is money

head like a hole

Bullshit, maybe they'll get like two votes. The GOP is bat shit.

― Josh in Chicago, Friday, November 1, 2019 12:07 PM (one hour ago) bookmarkflaglink

i don't think they'll even get 2 (unless you count that independent libertarian guy). they'll get will hurd and that's it.

Amash will vote for it

of course he's no longer GOP, as you note

I have little doubt that Trump's "dream of building a mega-church" rests largely on his knowledge of how lucrative they can be.

He wants to go to superHeaven, where they get the ape channel

A Donald Trump fireside chat would be De Niro's talk show from CASINO, to the 10th power. This needs to happen. And it can't be a one-off. We need Fox News to give him 90 minutes a night if he wants it - sitting in that bizarre defecatory posture in the Oval Office, sniffing like someone stuffed steel wool into his nostrils, squinting at the camera because he's too vain to wear his glasses...

Halloween was yesterday, ain't gotta give me nightmares today

Speaking of Fireside Chats, when did Presidents stop doing weekly radio addresses? I remember hearing recaps on weekend news at least through Clinton and maybe some of W.

Great costumes! Thomas, #OutOfTheWill! https://t.co/ta6aJqfYq3

— Mitt Romney (@MittRomney) October 31, 2019

Donald Trump continued the weekly video address for the first nine months of his administration, after which he put the address on hiatus.[2] He later released occasional "weekly" addresses before discontinuing the tradition entirely in June of 2018

DJTJ and his Fox News gf went as a hunter and a witch, respectively.

XP Thanks!

I have little doubt that Trump's "dream of building a mega-church" rests largely on his knowledge of how lucrative they can be.

― A is for (Aimless), Friday, November 1, 2019 12:47 PM (twenty-five minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

Of course, it's literally the only reason he would even consider it.

Tax Exemptions too

i'd honestly be curious to see how he'd manage to make that hemorrhage money.

read a pretty convincing argument that Trump literally does not know what "quid pro quo" is which is why he talks about it in such bizarre terms

clearly he doesn't understand what a "witch hunt" is either

he's best pals with the falwell mega church empire, of course it's all about money

good afternoon!

i'd honestly be curious to see how he'd manage to make that hemorrhage money.

― FRAUDULENT STEAKS (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Friday, November 1, 2019 1:22 PM (fifty-two seconds ago) bookmarkflaglink

Stops paying contractors, roof left unfinished, black mold infestation, settlement of class action lawsuit from surviving parishioners whose loved ones subsequently died in droves from various lung diseases.

Trump has my vote.

can we not use "Trump" and "hemorrhoids" -- sorry, "hemorrhage" -- in the same sentence

how hilarious would it be to be fly on the wall when some underling has to explain shit like quid pro quo to Donnie

''Quid'? You mean like an octopus?'
'No, President Trump. You're thinking of a squid.'
'No, that octopus thing is called a quid.'
'Of course it is, sir.'
'And what the hell is a 'proke whoa'?'

I'm starving. Order me one of those squid pork rolls you mentioned earlier.

a huge stained glass portrayal of a beaming trump leaking sickly orange sunlight down onto thousands of hooting prosperity-gospel chuds is the next logical step for him, dunno why it’s taken him so long to get moving on it

other than his skull is filled with porridge cooked with rancid piss, obv

That's going to make communion unpleasant.

communion is done with dried Burger King patties that only represent the piss porridge

would be nice to see Eisenberg go to jail, could see Trump sacrificing him

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/white-house-official-who-heard-trumps-call-with-ukraine-leader-testified-that-he-was-told-to-keep-quiet/2019/11/01/dbed7fae-fc07-11e9-ac8c-8eced29ca6ef_story.html

Man, Jesse Eisenberg is everywhere

I was on a supply job yesterday, and--because it was at my old school and I knew the students--the music teacher arranged for me to cover two of her periods involving guitars. So I switched with the teacher who was in for her: Ms. Trump. She was in her late 20s, so it was probably her first or second year supplying. I wouldn't wish that name on anybody--"Good morning grade 8s, I'm Ms. Trump"--much less someone new.

surely with Hitler a surname doomed to obsolescence

If not for horrors to come just the pure clown quotient

like you hardly meet any Shitforbrains these days

is 'supply job' canadian for substitute teaching?

I used to know a guy named Gruber whose family changed it from Schicklgruber a few generations earlier. I guess Tiffany's and Barron's kids will have to go in a totally different direction -- Jones, maybe, or O'Bama.

lads

🏆 COVFEFE has won the @BreedersCup Filly & Mare Sprint. pic.twitter.com/gPMc1hoj2F

— World Horse Racing (@WHR) November 2, 2019

hit the trifecta with longshots Smocking Gun and Phone Tapp

(xpost to mookie) Yes--when I was supplying in the early-'90s, before I moved to full-time, I had an American tell me he thought it meant I came in and organized the supply cupboard.

The President is here and the boos are deafening. #UFC244 pic.twitter.com/MbQdKIvuil

— Ricardo Montero (@RicardoMonteroH) November 3, 2019

wow, impossible to prove from the recording but the house music certainly seems to get louder about 30 seconds in. could just be the phone recording but it also seems like something the president's handlers would tell the production crew ahead of time, juuuuuuuuuust in case maybe the entire stadium wants to boo at the worst fucking dipshit on the planet

This WaPo story fills in some blanks. It’s kind of funny because it’s all these guys going, “We could just never understand where his obsession with Ukraine came from ...”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/a-presidential-loathing-for-ukraine-is-at-the-heart-of-the-impeachment-inquiry/2019/11/02/8280ee60-fcc5-11e9-ac8c-8eced29ca6ef_story.html

In the fall of 2017, Trump was set to meet with then-Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko at the United Nations in New York. At the time, U.S. officials were working to convince Trump that Ukraine, locked in a long war with Russian-backed forces, was worthy of American support.
Then-Secretary of State Rex Tillerson told Volker that he would have about 45 seconds to brief Trump ahead of his meeting with Poroshenko. If Trump was interested in learning more, Tillerson said, the president would ask questions. Volker rushed through his pitch, according to former U.S. officials who, like others, spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive diplomatic topics.
Trump then peppered Volker with his negative views of Ukraine, suggesting that it wasn’t a “real country,” that it had always been a part of Russia, and that it was “totally corrupt.”

His entire worldview is parroted Russian talking points.

Getting booed by the UFC crowd is really something

good morning!!

We slept the whole night through

wow, the UFC crowd really hate AC/DC

Fake blues!

Then-Secretary of State Rex Tillerson told Volker that he would have about 45 seconds to brief Trump ahead of his meeting with Poroshenko. If Trump was interested in learning more, Tillerson said, the president would ask questions. Volker rushed through his pitch, according to former U.S. officials who, like others, spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive diplomatic topics.


Come on Volker, step up your gain. You can’t rush your 45 second pitch on Ukraine, we’ve been over this

Step up your gain. Sigh. This is how facts gets distorted.

xp lol stan

xp km vg

The Angry Majority!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 3, 2019

what's weird is that just before that he was bragging about his 95% approval rate among republicans. so is that who is angry? it must be, right? he's not going to say republicans aren't in the majority (even though they're not)

No I think he means his base, the majority, is rightfully angered

tbf though almost everybody is pretty angry

I think there's gonna be a fight

an ultimate fight

there was a long ass NPR opinion piece yesterday kind of chiding him for goiing to UFC when there are lots of nice things to do in NYC this weekend that don't involve people beating the fuck out of each other, and noted that the audience for this was likely to be more welcoming to him than the baseball audience. Well, guess not.

“the angry majority” refers to the house imo

however he’s a huge dumbass whose meanings are not worth parsing

xpost

there are other clips from other spots in the audience where all you can hear are cheers, and the boos are drowned out. there were probably a ton of cheers and boos in the audience, from all sides. this is just another one of those "take a screen capture of trump or someone behind him at a particular moment and analyze it to death" scenarios

both sides

the screen capture that PROVES that president trump has lost his MARBLES and can't even find his own SHOES any more!!

He used the same phrase a few days ago to mean Republican voters.

“The American people are fed up with Democrat lies, hoaxes and extremism,” said Trump. The Democrats, he said, “have created an angry majority that will vote many do-nothing Democrats out of office in 2020.”

ahhh

horrible

It's weird, but you might be getting an anti-Nixon moment. That is, there might be a very large 'silent majority' who just want those angry idiots to shut the fuck up and not tweet and not yell and not do crimes. After Trump loses everything but West Virginia they will walk around bewildered and go 'but I don't know anybody who voted for Warren?'

After Trump loses everything but West Virginia

well, it's nice to dream

I bet he gets FL, OH and maybe (probably?) NC but picking up any other “swing” states seems unlikely as of today. Totally going off nothing other than my gut here.

He is def going to win FL and OH

Tinhat time:

That’s three whistleblowers. What about the other four? Cockburn’s source says that at least one is nothing to do with Ukraine but instead was reporting a call between Trump and the Saudi ruler, Mohammed bin Salman. Specifically, the whistleblower is said to have ‘concerns’ about what was said on the call about the president’s son-in-law and adviser, Jared Kushner. Kushner himself is known to have a very close relationship with MBS. Cockburn has previously written that Kushner may have been what Cosmo would call an ‘oversharer’ when it came to MBS. Unfortunately, it’s claimed that what he was sharing was American secrets: information Kushner had requested from the CIA would (allegedly) be echoed back in US intercepts of calls between members of the Saudi royal family. One source said this was why Kushner lost his intelligence clearances for a while.

According to Cockburn’s source about the seven whistleblowers, there’s more. It is that Kushner (allegedly) gave the green light to MBS to arrest the dissident journalist, Jamal Khashoggi, who was later murdered and dismembered in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. A second source tells Cockburn that this is true and adds a crucial twist to the story. This source claims that Turkish intelligence obtained an intercept of the call between Kushner and MBS. And President Erdogan used it to get Trump to roll over and pull American troops out of northern Syria before the Turks invaded. Cockburn hears that investigators for the House Intelligence Committee know this whole tale and the identities of some of the people telling it. Whether any of is true is another matter but Adam Schiff certainly seems to be smiling a lot these days.

Well, if Adam Schiff is smiling then Trump is definitely going to be removed in a few days!

We got them! It’s over!!!!!

In this timeline a pee tape is like the least possible conspiracy.

speaking of cockburn

Always remove tape before peeing to prevent cockburn

good morning!

josh can you link that^

The two witnesses who had been subpoenaed to testify at 9am - NSC lawyer John Eisenberg and Mulvaney deputy Rob Blair - did not arrive. The other two who were subpoenaed - Eisenberg deputy Michael Ellis and OMB official/former Energy chief McCormack - also expected no-shows at 2p

— Manu Raju (@mkraju) November 4, 2019

Live updates: White House lawyer to defy House subpoena; Trump sees ‘no reason’ to summon witnesses on Ukraine call https://t.co/yVgEgtxuCn

— Ellen Nakashima (@nakashimae) November 4, 2019

weird they're doing this given the phone call was so perfect

Can I link it? Yes I can!

https://spectator.us/seven-whistleblowers-jared-kushner-bin-salman/

hrm this seems sketchy unless I guess someone at NYT/WP validates parts of this in the next day or two

sort of liberal definition of the term "whistleblower" here

"a source tells cockburn" says cockburn

weird they're doing this given the phone call was so perfect

It's the principle of the thing, they're protecting executive privilege for future presidents who might have less perfect phone calls.

did have a nice conversation over the weekend with a well-off dude who is not necessarily a Trump fan but votes for him anyway because he doesn't like "paying for other people's stuff"

basically he thinks 'impeachment' means the Dems are desperate because they know they can't beat him in 2020, that the phone call didn't say "if you do this I will do that" so it's actually fine

I tried to explain that there's a lot more to the story but then he was like "well you can't just reverse the results of the election"

fwiw this is probably the smartest Trump supporter I know

"well you can't just reverse the results of the election"

When Trump is removed, all of us who wrote-in Pence are going to be cackling with glee

Impeachment is not "reversing" or "short circuiting" an election, for fuck's sake. It's a legal, legitimate step that has fuck-all to do with an election.

well then why is it being called a witch hunt? I've totally heard that a lot, so it must be true.

“Jared did Khashoggi” is an even milder, less tinfoil conspiracy theory than “Epstein didn’t kill himself”

Impeachment is not "reversing" or "short circuiting" an election, for fuck's sake. It's a legal, legitimate step that has fuck-all to do with an election.

― TikTok to the (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Monday, November 4, 2019 11:28 AM (two minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

yeah this argument is so deeply headache inducing. no reason I guess to think then that Trump can't just start summarily executing Democratic leadership without fear of impeachment, because how dare we nullify the results of the 2016 election?!

fwiw this is probably the smartest Trump supporter I know

― frogbs, Monday, November 4, 2019 10:25 AM (eight minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

Even a smart horse only seems to be doing arithmetic with its hooves.

yeah the whole conversation was basically a reminder that Trump's main political "skill" is attacking the media 24/7 for telling the truth, since it allows people like this who don't really follow things closely to think of the news media at large as a partisan body with their own goals and agendas. they see that Trump gets constant negative coverage and think "wow the media really does hate this guy" rather than "maybe Trump actually is bad"

at one point he was like "I'm not a conspiracy guy but I did think it was odd we got that whole caravan thing during the mid-terms, it's almost like it was set up by Democrats to make Trump look bad" to which I said "did you ever consider the opposite? Doesn't that sound much more likely?" and sure enough he hadn't, b/c in his mind the Dems are always the shady ones who control everything, while the Republicans are always well-meaning but maybe a little unpolished

body with their own goals and agendas

well this is kinda true, but the goal is "make money" and the agenda is "doing things that will help us make money"

fwiw this is probably the smartest Trump supporter I know

― frogbs, Monday, November 4, 2019 8:25 AM (eighteen minutes ago)

As someone who comes from a family of not particularly wealthy nor intelligent Fox News parrots, your buddy's opinions are not entirely original nor noteworthy.

right and I've made this argument many times, but ultimately it seems the right simultaneously believes that the media is out to silence them while simultaneously giving as much coverage as possible to Trump and his campaign

The counter to chuckleheads who complain the only reason the Democrats are pushing for impeachment is because they are afraid they can't win the election is that the GOP is pushing against impeachment because they don't think they can win an election.

I mean, all questions of critical reasoning and just like basic cognitive function aside, are the memories of these people really so goddamn short that they fail to recognize that the MSM doesn't just dogpile on presidents as a matter of course? Or even so goddamn short that they fail to recall that the MSM was pretty much all up on Trump's jock for the majority of the time he's been president? In short: fuck these stupid, stupid people.

you need to win stupid votes to win an election, unfortunately

my analogy was "do you think ESPN is biased against the Cincinnati Bengals because they always report negatively on them?"

Alternate reality is made possible by the mediation of experience and voters rarely know more about politics than what they are told by others. Both Trump and FOX understand that extremely simple talking points, endlessly hammered home, work best. Once they have captured your trust, all the rest follows along its natural course. Plausibility is not required because that trust, coupled with repetition, generates the same effect in the brain.

I used to wonder how those hypnotists managed to get a mall-full of people to lift their right arms simultaneously but I don't wonder about that anymore.

I’m pretty sure nobody expected those witnesses to show up fwiw

trust, coupled with repetition, generates the same effect

so otm imo.

gradual social pile moving is mostly how the monstrous becomes mundane. i guess another way is like, ginormous extrinsic event intervening, like a 911?

i assume steve bannons work these. xp

So GOP argument is now going to be "Biden was actually engaged in corrupt behavior in the Ukraine, and Trump just happened to be concerned about it":

Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) said on Monday that he didn't see an example of quid pro quo during the conversation between President Trump and Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky, but argued that even if there was, it wouldn't warrant removing the president from office.

Cornyn, when asked if there was a quid pro quo, pointed to a rough transcript of the conversation between the two leaders, saying he didn't "see the quid pro quo."

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"Even if there was, I don't think it would be impeachable or illegal for the president to do so. So this is just an excuse, I think, to continue this campaign that's existed since the president was sworn in to remove him from office," Cornyn said during an interview with Texas radio station KFYO.

The Washington Post reported last week that some Senate Republicans were mulling a strategy that would acknowledge a quid pro quo, but also argue that the action was not illegal and it was not impeachable.

Cornyn argued on Monday there was a "double standard" being applied to Trump's actions.

"What never fails to amaze me is the double standard that is applied to this president as opposed to other presidents. It's always been the case that presidents have been able to leverage aid to other countries in order to advance U.S. policy. And here there was a corruption problem in Ukraine," Cornyn said.

Trump, during his conversation with Zelensky, asked the Ukrainian president to work with his personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, to "look into" former Vice President Biden and his son, Hunter Biden.

In their ongoing impeachment investigation, Democrats have focused on that call, a related whistleblower complaint and whether Trump tied aid to the country to Ukraine opening up an investigation into the Bidens.

The House is expected to start holding public hearings as soon as this month as it continues its investigation.

Republicans view it as increasingly likely that the House will vote to impeach Trump, setting up a trial in the Senate.

Cornyn on Monday said there wasn't "any reasonable chance," based on current information, that the Senate would convict Trump, an action that requires the vote of 67 senators.

Instead, he argued that Trump should focus on policy, and let Senate Republicans handle the impeachment articles if they come over from the House.

"I would tell him, let us do our jobs, and if the House does vote on the impeachment articles, let the Senate do its job and focus on what's good for the American people. ... We'll take care of the impeachment articles if and when they come to the Senate," Cornyn said.

they've finally grasped that the weak point in the Democrats' argument is the assumption that the Bidens didn't actually do anything wrong. Because this is nebulous and hard to understand for most people and hinges on the classic "both sides do it" truism, it's their only point of defense.

I'm sure congressional aides are currently scrambling for past examples of Dem administration's asking foreign governments to investigate GOP rivals. Funny how nothing's turned up yet.

Cornyn argued on Monday there was a "double standard" being applied to Trump's actions.

i really do want to start a thread collecting all the times republicans unintentionally blurt out the truth, but we probably don't need another us politics thread

It's always been the case that presidents have been able to leverage aid to other countries in order to advance U.S. policy

this is the key point. It conflates "US policy" with investigating a Democrat. Because of course the Democrat was engaged in corrupt behavior that the Justice Department was not able to investigate on their own.

remember all those great relationships Biden had with GOP Senators?

also interesting that the GOP is willing to just let this become standard, to set this precedent that its okay to invite foreign governments to interfere in this way. Nothing to worry about, nope!

as usual, their unethical behavior puts is a political advantage: they know democrats wouldn't do the same, they know their base won't hold them accountable for it, and they know democratic voters forget about everything after a few months pass

also there are no foreign governments eager to help the Democrats undermine the GOP. At least, I can't think of any.

maybe Mexico haha

We all know that within every republican beats the heart of an unalloyed patriot, and I can think of no act more patriotic than allowing foreign entities to have unchecked influence upon our president while simultaneously painting those opposed as rank traitors.

the best part of the entire bs affair is that it's the gop on biden, he can reap the fruits of his comity.

It conflates "US policy" with investigating a Democrat.

Trump's interests are now US interests

tbf, US does love fast food.

I feel like a potentially good countermessaging strategy runs as follows: First, start with the completely demonstrable campaign finance violation, all of which is admitted public record.

1. There doesn't need to have been an explicit quid pro quo because asking for foreign help in elections is illegal to begin with. Cite the relevant USC section.

2. The alleged non-guid-pro-quo doesn't need to have been helpful, because asking for foreign help in elections is illegal to begin with. Cite the relevant USC section.

3. The foreign election help doesn't even need to have been given, because asking for foreign help in elections is illegal to begin with. Cite the relevant USC section.

Then move to the case for obstruction.

4. If everything about the call was perfect, why did the administration move to keep it from public view (e.g., moving it to a double-secret server)?

5. If everything about the call was perfect, why did the administration explicitly vow to not cooperate with investigations by providing documents in compliance with subpeonas?

6. If everything about the call was perfect, why did the administration explicitly vow to not cooperate with investigations by allowing witnesses to testify in compliance with subpeonas?

7. If you're so innocent, why are you acting like you're a guilty person with something to hide?

For the tl;dr crowd, this boils down to: You know that that thing you said you didn't do (but it would be totally cool if you had)? You did that thing. And innocent people aren't afraid of scrutiny.

this boils down to: You know that that thing you said you didn't do (but it would be totally cool if you had)? You did that thing. And innocent people aren't afraid of scrutiny.

your tl;dr is too complicated. GOP rejoinder is much more easily digestible pablum: the Democrats hate Trump; the call was perfect; they'd do it, too.

Fair point, Aimless. I am still trying to wrap my head around GOoPers saying both "there was no quid pro quo, nothing to see" AND "oh of course he was using leverage because he's a savvy dealmaker who makes deals. That makes him smart."

Seems like in a sane world just asking them to CHOOSE ONE OF THESE TWO DIAMETRICALLY OPPOSED OPTIONG might be a useful messaging strategy?

But clearly that's not the world we live in. Which is why I drink.

Maybe we'll get to a point where there will be less solemnity and hand wringing and more "yeah, we *don't* like Trump, he's an asshole and a racist and a criminal and here are all the reasons why. Now I ask of my friends across the aisle, why do you *like* Trump? Say it loud, so the people in the cheap seats can hear."

the Democrats hate Trump; the call was perfect; they'd do it, too.

Worst verse of "Cell Block Tango".

NEW: The 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals has affirmed a lower court's ruling that the President cannot stop a grand jury subpoena seeking his tax documents, as sought by the Manhattan D.A.

This now likely sets up a Supreme Court fight.

— Tom Winter (@Tom_Winter) November 4, 2019

where's the tax retur-

oh. still working on it. we can trust the golden boy brett kavanaugh to make the right call!!!

Transcript of Trump's next perfect phone call: "I went to bat for you, brett. You know what to do."

I've said this before but a huge majority of Trump's legal strategy is banking on "his guys" at the Supreme Court to save his ass. Whether Roberts will allow this to happen remains to be seen, but it's sort of insane the number of huge Constitutional issues Trump is throwing at the SC.

!!! The State Dept pulled Yovanovitch from Ukraine in such a rush because they were trying to get ahead of a potential Trump tweet. pic.twitter.com/u9l2hnFJN0

— Miriam Elder (@MiriamElder) November 4, 2019

Quite a few sporting events for the president of late https://t.co/8gsnz6KA0P

— Jonathan Lemire (@JonLemire) November 4, 2019

hahaha he's desperate to attend one event where he won't get booed

He is gonna invent his own sport to prevent it

Are there no Monster Truck rallies these days?

Or Toby Keith concerts?

Surely there's like a shuffleboard tournament on a cruise ship somewhere that he can chopper in to.

MAGA Ball

There's no actual ball, players just run around proclaiming how many points they scored and then blow each other

so, lacrosse?

WASHINGTON — The Trump administration formally notified the United Nations on Monday that it would withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement on climate change, leaving global climate diplomats to plot a way forward without the cooperation of the world’s largest economy.

The action, which came on the first day possible under the accord’s complex rules on withdrawal, begins a yearlong countdown to the United States exit and a concerted effort to preserve the Paris Agreement, under which nearly 200 nations have pledged to cut greenhouse emissions and to help poor countries cope with the worst effects of an already warming planet.

you see, the trump administration is definitely capable of punctually taking action on important issues, as long as they're evil

conveniently, the yearlong countdown to the US exit will end on Nov 4, 2020 - the day after election day

then it will hopefully be time for the US to rejoin the paris accords. by the time all of that paperwork gets finalized, it should be just about time for the US to elect some other complete dumbass in 2024 and withdraw again

Ornaldo Bloomps imo

Upside to existential issues is no one is gonna be around to sweat the fumbles.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-trails-democratic-rivals-in-national-survey-as-independents-move-away/2019/11/04/e068afac-ff38-11e9-9518-1e76abc088b6_story.html

This was heartening. Trump's just not going to catch anyone past the chud base. Biden +17, Warren +15, Sanders +14, Buttigieg +11, Harris +9.

How long til he privately blames Pence and starts saying he wants a new veep

One that won't spill
Or cost too much

too busy freaking out about democrats' piss poor showing in battleground states to be happy about the national advantage. :(

nothing heartening about Biden having any support at all tbh

I'm not worried about either poll.

yeah this stuff is meaningless this far out

In 2016, Australia held their second-longest federal election campaign ever, after the Senate were dismissed six months early (essentially combining mid-terms & the regular election, in US semi-translation). This marathon campaign lasted 54 days.

How long til he privately blames Pence and starts saying he wants a new veep

― Jordan Pickford LOLverdrive (Neanderthal), Tuesday, November 5, 2019 8:44 AM (twenty-eight minutes ago)

BREAKING: Pence OUT, Kurt Suzuki IN

I agree that polls are meaningless right now but Biden consistently trending down seems significant

Maybe he shoulda thought twice about doing Ukraine, huh

Sondland's memory was jogged and he finally testifies there was indeed a quid pro quo regarding Burisma investigation holding up Ukraine aid:

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/05/us/politics/impeachment-trump.html

Funny how it works

jokes on us because quid pro quo is totally cool now

yeah, part of the pivot. Can't deny it, now just argue that it's totally cool cuz the Bidens are corrupt.

he should just murder somebody and get it over with. Maybe Giuliani.

More than 60 percent of respondents who support President Trump say they support him no matter what, according to a new survey.

The Monmouth University poll released Tuesday found that 62 percent of Trump supporters said they could not think of "anything that Trump could do, or fail to do, in his term as president that would make [them] disapprove of the job he is doing." The sample size for the question was 401 adults age 18 and older.

The numbers released in the poll show Trump supporters becoming more entrenched in their belief of the president, with a 12 percent increase from the last time the question was asked in January of 2018 to a sample of 341.

On the flip side, among respondents who disapprove of the job Trump is doing, 70 percent said there's nothing the president could do to gain their support.

Forty-three percent of respondents in the survey approve of the job Trump is doing as president, compared to 51 percent who disapprove, on par with the numbers from the September poll.

The findings come as Trump is facing an impeachment inquiry that has divided lawmakers in the House. The chamber voted last week along party lines for a resolution approving procedures for the inquiry. No Republicans voted in support of the resolution.

The Monmouth University poll was conducted between Oct. 30 and Nov. 3 and surveyed 908 adults by phone. The margin of error for the total sample is plus or minus 3.3 percentage points.

figured this was coming, wasn't there a story last week that the GOP was going to transition to "quid pro quo, so what?"

yes

there was a GOP Senate luncheon where they made this decision

More than 60 percent of respondents who support President Trump say they support him no matter what, according to a new survey.

Right-wing internet has consistently made the point that polls are designed to manipulate public opinion, not measure it.

And further, polling organizations are largely media and academia (in other words, THE ENEMY and THE OTHER ENEMY). As a result, I'm going to assume that almost every poll response coming from a rightward direction is 97% "fuck you, next question" and maybe 3% "this is exactly how I think and feel."

right-wing internet has made the point that if your parents leave you $500,000,000, and you're willing to cut taxes and promote fascist judges, the law doesn't matter. mrga

I wonder how granular you could get with that line of questioning and still get the same response. Would you continue to support President Trump if he ate your children in front of you? If he insisted that you grab a fork and join him?

I mean genuinely...what kind of goddamn monster would support a person NO MATTER WHAT

are you worried about other sixth and seventh graders teasing you? vote trump

funny how this will be the headline and not the "70 percent said there's nothing the president could do to gain their support". I guess it's nice to have gerrymandering, voter suppression, and the electoral college on your side otherwise something like that might actually matter

tens of millions approve of rich kid dumbfuck bully don trump. and america, you really did begin in slavery

Is it uncool and conservative to believe that 2020 Trump voters should have that fact branded onto their faces such that the rest of us know to steer the everloving fuck clear of them at all times forever? Or is that just something they'd proudly embrace anyway if it were mildly suggested to them?

When did qualmsey return? And more importantly, where are the tax returns?

tax returns will be coming as soon as the golden boys puts his stamp of approval on it. should be very soon

good afternoon!

I'm sure the GOP will be very, very concerned about this case of voter fraud

https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/469082-authorities-looking-into-possible-election-fraud-in-marion-ohio

Trump rejects Native American Heritage Month, proclaims November “National American History and Founders Month.” https://t.co/ZnBGIaUcXj

— Simon Moya-Smith (@SimonMoyaSmith) November 5, 2019

cool

Lindsey Graham, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, says he won't read any of the transcripts, and dismissed Sondland's reversal.

"I've written the whole process off ... I think this is a bunch of B.S."

Per @alanhe

— Kathryn Watson (@kathrynw5) November 5, 2019

new GOP strategy is

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PD8se6iN548

but Benghazi, now that was a real scandal amirite

December is going to become National Benghazi Month (And Also Christmas For All Month).

Don't know about the other state elections, but Virginia turnout numbers are apparently up 35%!

BREAKING NEWS New numbers in from the voter registrar in Virginia Beach. As of 5pm 96,000 people have voted compared to 63,000 in 2015 when the entire General Assembly was up for election. That is 32% and climbing. @WAVY_News

— Andy Fox (@AndyFoxWAVY) November 5, 2019

I find Graham’s honesty refreshing, tbh

That vest...

https://cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/assets/191104202059-03-trump-ky-rally-1104-rand-paul-super-tease.jpg

Ah yes, of course.

From the Trump campaign to my inbox: “PRESIDENT TRUMP TO LAUNCH 'BLACK VOICES FOR TRUMP' COALITION ON FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 8 – ATLANTA, GA”

— Geoff Bennett (@GeoffRBennett) November 6, 2019

So ... Black Friday?

so that will be Candice Owens and who exactly?

Diamond and Silk

That Simon Moya-Smith tweet is seriously misleading. There's no evidence that Trump "rejected" or replaced Native American Heritage Month with National American History and Founders Month. You can question the intentions behind the latter (which didn't exist before this year), but both months have been proclaimed (along with Natl Adoption Month, Natl Entrepreneurship Month, and a few others, just like every month). For some reason, the NAMH proclamation didn't appear on whitehouse.gov last night, though it did appear on other gov sites, and it's on whitehouse.gov now.

It really does look like a deliberate dilution of the Native American month though - the acronyms are near identical (NAHM vs NAHFM) and celebrating "founders", who by definition took what they had from Native Americans, seems like a deliberate slap or provocation. Kind of like declaring a "white history month" to coincide with Black History Month, or adopting All Lives Matter to try to silence the sentiment of Black Lives Matter.

I think this was obviously intended as a diminishment of native american history month

So uh election results seem good for Dems so far

Early results for Cleveland/Cuyahoga County voting on a lot of municipal elections and city & county issues (including, in my city, an issue to change our form of government from city council-appointed city manager to elected mayor) are showing a whopping 7.7% turnout. The highest turnout is just under 25% in the extremely white-flight suburb of Independence. Yay, democracy!

I've seen enough. Projection: Andy Beshear (D) has defeated Gov. Matt Bevin (R) in #KYGOV.

— Dave Wasserman (@Redistrict) November 6, 2019

is this a fantasy? would be nice

Trump won KY by 30 btw

It looks like it's going to be a squeaker: https://results.enr.clarityelections.com/KY/97213/web/#/summary

Although winning by +3 in a +30 Trump state is fucking incredible.

the gov is really hated there right?

Looks like VA (finally) flipped both house and senate?

don't want to get too hopeful but it looks like Beshear might win

Btw odd year election schedules are obvious scams against the populace designed to avoid exposing state and local incumbents to presidential election levels of turnout and should be abolished

don't want to get too hopeful but it looks like Beshear might win

― Dan S, Tuesday, November 5, 2019 6:11 PM

omg it's going to happen!

Btw odd year election schedules are obvious scams against the populace designed to avoid exposing state and local incumbents to presidential election levels of turnout and should be abolished

no, voting should just be accessible to all (and businesses should be unable to donate money to candidates)

Trump held a rally for Governor Matt Bevin in Kentucky last night and told the crowd, "If you lose, it sends a really bad message … you can’t let that happen to me.”

— Molly Knight (@molly_knight) November 6, 2019

:(

There are a couple things worth noting about the KY Gubernatorial. 1) KY traditionally elects Democratic Governors. Bevin was an outlier. 2) Bevin was uniquely unpopular. 3) We can win in KY, but this is not some magic harbinger of doom for Republicans in this state.

— Lauren North (@northlauren) November 6, 2019

Looks like the lady that flipped off Trump's motorcade and lost her job as a result is about to get a new one, as the Loudoun County Supervisor representing....wait for it....the district that's home to Trump's golf course. #VAelections

— Mike Hettinger (@Hettinger_Tech) November 6, 2019

what does that even mean

Nothing more than a symbolic stick it to Trump win.

Anyone care to guess what Fox News' coverage is tonight?

something about a chicken sandwich?

The GOP romp and stomp in Mississippi statewide elections?

bloodthirsty Mexican drug zombies

lol

Joking aside, I imagine Fox is gonna run with that story about those Mormons slain by the cartel for a long long time.

I mean...

This is the time for Mexico, with the help of the United States, to wage WAR on the drug cartels and wipe them off the face of the earth. We merely await a call from your great new president!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 5, 2019

xp yes, I've already heard about this from a friend who is a macho man

Dems win control of VA legislature

https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/469164-democrats-flip-virginia-state-senate

excellent news re: Virginia and Kentucky

"There have been more than a few irregularities. They have been substantiated," Gov Bevin says, explaining his decision to not concede the #KyGov election. "We want the process to be followed." ^JC

— Bluegrass Politics (@BGPolitics) November 6, 2019

Wait til he finds out concession has no legal significance

did roy moore ever concede?

No!

dope re virginia state senate

dunno if anyone else on ilx is in tucson or even arizona but we got some cool news tonight:

https://tucson.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/regina-romero-becomes-first-latina-to-serve-as-tucson-s/article_66dddb7a-0042-11ea-bb64-1fdf625b36b4.html

This don't mean shit but:

I spent the day the Senate, talking with Republicans. They are all paying close attention to the KY gubernatorial race. They are not just watching the returns, but President Trump's political capital as they make decisions about how to handle impeachment and their own future.

— Robert Costa (@costareports) November 6, 2019

"whoa!!! I just realized the President is a giant fuckin' dumbass!!"

so happy that Andy Beshear won

also great that Virginia is now a solidly blue state

i almost feel embarrassed for her

No one energizes our base like @realDonaldTrump.

In Kentucky, the governor was down 17 points.

President Trump helped lift the entire ticket, winning 5 of 6 statewide races so far!

— Ronna McDaniel (@GOPChairwoman) November 6, 2019

Reading Dan S's comments from last night made me really happy :) Congrats to everyone who won.

oh hey what great news to wake up to

good morning!!

I’m watching CNN right now and they’re currently posting that there has been a large shift away from Trump among white women without a college degree.

My mom, who is nearing 75, spent most of her adult life (as far as I can tell) registered as an independent who mostly voted Democrat but I'm sure occasionally (or for all I know more frequently) voted Republican. She's in southeastern Pennsylvania, outside Philly, which has been a hotbed of shifting demographics and redrawn districts. Post Trump she said fuck it and not only registered as a democrat for the first time but got more politically involved. And lo and behold, she can't be the only one, since things there, where I grew up, are clearly on the upswing:

Locally, Democrats will hold all five seats on the Delaware County Council, a Republican stronghold since the Civil War, and also assumed a majority on the legislative body in Chester County. https://t.co/b3zwcvv5gt via @phillyinquirer

— Adam Goldman (@adamgoldmanNYT) November 6, 2019

“That should concern every one of you that has a home a family or a business in Delaware County," (Delaware County GOP chair) McGarrigle said. "Because, you know what? You shouldn’t feel safe anymore.”

Stacy Maillie felt safe voting for Democrats. A nurse and a registered Republican, she voted Democratic after a 12-hour shift in the emergency room.

“I’m not happy with our current state of the Republican Party," Maillie said after voting at Springfield Township High School. "I think it’s too divisive and i think that the Democratic Party is more tolerant and inclusive. I just find that the current Republican Party has become more extreme.”

The flip side:

CNN New Day featured on Wednesday a panel of women identified as Pennsylvania swing voters, moderated by anchor Alisyn Camerota — and two had a jaw-dropping answer when asked what President Donald Trump could do to lose their vote.

The segment had fascinating insights into the minds of voters in a state that is considered critical for whoever will win the 2020 presidential election. But ended on a curious and chilling moment revealing the stunning support for Trump.

The last question in the segment was put to Crystal, who despite being a “swing voter” was the most ardently pro-Trump. Camerota asked “Crystal, is there anything he could do that would make you not vote for him?”

Crystal replied “No.”

Camerota then cited an infamous hypothetical scenario once proposed by Trump during the 2016 election, asking “If he shot someone on 5th avenue, would you vote for him?”

Another (unidentified) panelist interjected: “You’d have to know why he shot him.” Crystal agreed, saying, “Yeah, why did he shoot him?”

This segment not only reveals rampantly chauvinistic support for President Trump, but also a cautionary note to pedestrians on Fifth Avenue upon the president’s next visit to New York City.

(lol "swing voter")

i mean these stories are just updates of ppl with "my country, right or wrong!" bumper stickers, right?

It seems a little more ... pathological. I do want to hear some specific Trump behavior redlines for once, just to get these lunatics on the record.

Behavior redlines = him dying basically.

The GOP would probably say his death was fake news

Taking a step back from KY and looking at all the elections last night, GOP should be most concerned about what happened in local elections in Chester, Delaware and Bucks County, PA last night. That is genuinely alarming if you know the voting history.

— Josh Holmes (@HolmesJosh) November 6, 2019

The redline is probably 'would it be okay for Trump to shoot YOU on 5th Ave.?'

Crystal, who despite being a “swing voter” was the most ardently pro-Trump

There is a long and dismal history of mainstream news outlets credulously interviewing "swing voters" and "undecideds" who turn out to be the chairs of their county Republican party or whatever, so I mean, tell me a little more about "Crystal" before I make too much of this.

A friend of mine won her election to the school board in a county in suburban VA DC area last night. Her opponent, the incumbent, recently "made the case" that both sides of the Holocaust should be taught in schools.

!

Needless to say, a lot of smaller local elections got overlooked against the big ticket races, but the trend of suburbs going blue or bluer seems not to be limited to PA. Heard similar stories about little elections in Minnesota, Iowa ...

There's a very real possibility of Trump getting impeached and losing the popular vote by an even bigger margin next year but still winning the office, which would be ... weird.

xp: I mean, that's not necessarily wrong; there's the side that said "what will make our country great is murdering an ethnicity" and the side that said "murdering an ethnicity is wrong and you must be stopped" and, after the first side was stopped, they looked at the aftermath and said "you know what, you were right; murdering an ethnicity is bad"

I assume that wasn't the opponent's take, though

Yeah, the only legit both sides would "this side was victimized on a historic scale, and the other side was villainous on a historic scale."

was looking at some of the KY gov polls and it turns out...maybe Trump is actually kinda right? Bevin was incredibly unpopular, there were very few polls showing him with any sort of lead at all.

Trump is way, way out in front as most popular republican, that's not controversial

But according to Nate Silver there was really only one poll with a double digit lead for Beshear, and that wasn't from a very good pollster. Bevin really seems like an even worse politician than Trump, but it seems difficult to find evidence that Trump really helped there. Even if he is kinda popular in the state.

xp I think her opponent's case was: we need to teach the Nazi side and the Jewish side, and let the students decide which is better, inside of just saying that Nazis are bad.

my friend got just over 50% of the vote.

The KY argument being made was that if the GOP asshole won, that was good for Trump/bad news for impeachment, so it's disingenuous to say that if the GOP guy loses it *isn't* bad news for Trump, however disliked the GOP guy may have been. Trump exemplifies the "he's an asshole, but he's my asshole" mentality, so if even that wrongheaded approach isn't enough to help a guy he explicitly supported in a race he/they explicitly linked to impeachment/national politics, it's not good news for Trump or the GOP, however well they did elsewhere.

yeah I think at the end of the day the whole "impeachment is actually helping Republicans so Dems should back off" thing seems to be demonstrably not true

ultimately Trump supporters already believe he's the most persecuted president in history, so actually slightly turning the screws on him ain't gonna do much

xp I think her opponent's case was: we need to teach the Nazi side and the Jewish side, and let the students decide which is better, inside of just saying that Nazis are bad.

my friend got just over 50% of the vote.

― L'assie (Euler), Wednesday, November 6, 2019 8:31 AM (three minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

It's just a wonder to realize how many people are working overtime to ensure that Godwin's Law will someday be updated to include Americans as an unambiguously-pejorative point of reference.

There was that one principal recently who was fired for refusing to acknowledge the Holocaust happened because "some parents might not believe that it did"

Needless to say, a lot of smaller local elections got overlooked against the big ticket races, but the trend of suburbs going blue or bluer seems not to be limited to PA. Heard similar stories about little elections in Minnesota, Iowa ...

There was a good NYT feature about this a couple of weeks ago, which says this is definitely a thing but also differentiates between inner-ring and outer-ring suburbs: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/25/us/democrats-republicans-suburbs.html

lol, so literally moving the goalposts out?

out to sea

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/national/wp/2019/11/06/judge-voids-trump-administrations-conscience-rule-letting-health-care-providers-refuse-to-give-care-for-religious-moral-reasons/?arc404=true

good

i'll take this onslaught of good news for the foreseeable future thanks

pessimist in me thinks we're due for more retaliatory prison camps by friday

Trump def probably flailing around for some headline-changing stunt at the moment

I'm sure that as he watches Fox and Friends, they'll reliably feed him his next tangent.

John Roberts and His Furious Five are gonna be workhorses by the time the Trump Years end in 2021 or 2025.

I bet they are so excited about so handling so many cases from an out-of-control executive

not sure if this got mentioned up above but a friend pointed out that Virginia could now ratify the ERA (realizing that some deadline passed but I'm sure something could be done about that).

I bet they are so excited about so handling so many cases from an out-of-control executive

It is completely in line with their historically consistent conservative stances about limiting government power and reserving the rights of states and individuals to... aw fuck it just kidding, it'll be a shitbath

xp and yeah if ERA gets ratified there will be much rejoicing

xp a bit more detail on that from a friend: "Passage in Virginia would be awesome — but alas, would not actually mean formal ratification and adoption. There’s complexities with deadline language in the original measure, and other subtle legalities. But finally having the states needed would definitely help force the question."

Also, a charlottesville friend that was seriously injured during the first night of the white supremacist rally there, his spouse just got elected to cville's city council.

<3 S3na, old family friend

Yeah, the deadline for the ERA was originally set for 1979, and then Congress extended the deadline to 1982. Theoretically, Congress could vote again to extend the deadline, but it's unclear whether the original votes to ratify still count, or whether the amendment would need to be reintroduced.

xpost Yes! (I only really know him but I was at their wedding a long time ago)

First public hearings announced:

House Democrats will begin convening public impeachment hearings next week, they announced on Wednesday, initially calling three marquee witnesses to begin making a case for President Trump’s impeachment in public.

The hearings will kick off on Wednesday, with testimony from William B. Taylor Jr., the top American envoy in Ukraine, and George P. Kent, a top State Department official, said Representative Adam B. Schiff, Democrat of California and the chairman of the Intelligence Committee. On Friday, Mr. Schiff’s committee will hear from Marie L. Yovanovitch, the former American ambassador to Ukraine, he said.

Also worth reiterating:

The sessions will not look like traditional congressional hearings, where Democratic and Republican lawmakers alternate asking questions in five-minute blocks and witnesses can easily avoid answering unfavorable questions.

The House voted along party lines last week to approve rules for an impeachment process for which there are few precedents. Those rules include allowing the top Democrat and Republican on the committee to designate questioning to trained staff and for each side to have up to 45 minutes at a time.

Witnesses under Republican questioning will spend their 45 minutes rhapsodizing on the pleasures of drinking beer, while being complimented furiously for their service to the nation. After a time, the House member and witness will weep copiously about how this out-of-control process has ruined their previously idyllic family life.

https://s.yimg.com/uu/api/res/1.2/7uSs_uYCp3GEQLYBR.YdEA--~B/Zmk9c3RyaW07aD0zODY7cHlvZmY9MDtxPTgwO3c9NDQwO3NtPTE7YXBwaWQ9eXRhY2h5b24-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/ap.org/ae37e092512b3edd333393114fe09364

this photo is really begging for some photoshopping

why do we always come here
i guess we'll never know

will the GOP totally fuck up in Alabama yet again? maybe

Former Attorney General Jeff Sessions is expected to announce plans to run for his former Senate seat before Friday, multiple sources told The Hill.

A source who is in regular contact with Sessions said Wednesday there is “99 percent certainty he will announce today or tomorrow.”

A separate source familiar with Sessions’s plans told The Hill that the former Alabama senator “will come out forcefully in support of [President] Trump’s agenda while denouncing Democrats’ impeachment efforts. And steps have already begun to hire campaign staff.”

The deadline to file for the Senate race is Friday.

Rick Dearborn, a former top aide to Sessions, declined to comment on whether his former boss would announce a bid in the coming days.

Three other sources familiar with the plans said the announcement would be made Thursday.

Jumping into the Alabama race would put a national focus on Sessions’s rocky relationship with Trump.

Sessions held the Senate seat from 1997 until 2017, when he was tapped to serve as Trump’s first attorney general. But he quickly fell out of favor with the president after recusing himself from oversight of the Russia probe, eventually leaving the administration in November 2018, a day after the midterm elections, at Trump’s request.

Despite his turbulent relationship with Trump, Sessions has remained popular in Alabama, a state Trump won with 62 percent of the vote in 2016.

Sessions would be joining a crowded primary field that includes Rep. Bradley Byrne (R-Ala.), former Auburn University football coach Tommy Tuberville, Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill, businessman Stanley Adair, state Rep. Arnold Mooney and Roy Moore, the 2017 GOP nominee who lost to Sen. Doug Jones (D) in the special election to fill Sessions’s former seat.

The primary is slated for March 3.

Some Republicans, including his potential opponents, are not keen on Sessions launching a bid to return to the Senate.

“I think it would be a mistake for him and really bad for the state given the president’s extreme displeasure with him. Alabama is very pro-Trump,” Byrne told The Hill on Tuesday.

Sessions also does not have the blessing of key Republicans. Since kicking the tires on a potential run, Sessions has yet to speak with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) or Sen. Todd Young (R-Ind.), the chairman of the Senate GOP campaign arm, according to a Senate Republican operative.

Sessions also has not spoken to Trump or Vice President Pence directly, although the White House has communicated to Sessions's inner circle that they would view his candidacy “extremely unfavorably,” according to the GOP operative.

"hmmm, the pedophile or the traitor... so hard to decide"

GOP in a single tweet

Bevin presser just now. He uses GOP cheating in North Carolina and Russian meddling in 2016 to justify his call for a recount.

— Krystal Ball (@krystalball) November 6, 2019

the White House... would view his candidacy “extremely unfavorably"

Once you're down on the list of "persons showing insufficient fealty" Trump will kick you in the nuts every chance he gets until the end of time. Do it, Jeff!

https://i.imgur.com/FiQ8QDX.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/LYHCZkh.jpg

Getting good here.

Lindsay Graham is now speculating that Gordon Sondland (who donated $1M to Trumps inauguration) is in cahoots with Democrats pic.twitter.com/jjGzmc57uj

— Andrew Lawrence (@ndrew_lawrence) November 7, 2019

It's weird how Democrats are powerful enough to be puppetmasters but we can't rig elections well enough to take the Senate

it's also weird how sondland, in cahoots with democrats, managed to convince trump back in 2016 to be obsessed with the idea that ukraine hacked the DNC server, to the point of convincing trump to direct others to use back-channel diplomacy to demand that ukraine at least make a show of "investigating" biden in exchange for a few hundred million dollars. sondland must be very smart and convincing, in addition to being able to see the future

also, lol at the idea of sondland donating $1 million to trump for the privilege of eating his shit in the inner circle. fucking pathetic man

BREAKING: Footage of Lindsey Graham kompromat finally obtained.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=im3vHOEm-r4

Hmmm.

SCOOP: Trump wanted Barr to hold news conference saying the president broke no laws in call with Ukrainian leader. He's mentioned in recent conversations that Barr wouldn't do it. https://t.co/pB6PkhhUuh w/ @jdawsey1 @CarolLeonnig

— Matt Zapotosky (@mattzap) November 7, 2019

also, lol at the idea of sondland donating $1 million to trump for the privilege of eating his shit in the inner circle.

The deepest of deep states.

Rep. Mark Meadows objecting to MSNBC’s @LACaldwellDC saying that Republicans are struggling to defend the president pic.twitter.com/nkp5Z3gXEq

— Yashar Ali 🐘 (@yashar) November 6, 2019

that is just about the most strugglingest soundbite I can remember seeing

Are we sure it's not the janitor?

1. Exclusive: I've obtained passages from the book by 'Anonymous', the author of the NYT Op-ed

In the book, Anonymous claims that senior officials had no doubt that Pence would support invoking the 25th amendment if the majority of the cabinet agreed. https://t.co/MoTiIaQnuM

— Yashar Ali 🐘 (@yashar) November 7, 2019

Pence was thinking that "some have greatness thrust upon them".

Idk, sounds kinda gay

still can't get over how sonderland gets to 'revise his testimony'

these people are all snakes

Sondland used the Mayella Ewell approach

If you stare at this long enough, you can hear them ask you if you ‘swing’ https://t.co/YzivL7DiLe

— h. jon benjamin (@HJBenjamin) November 6, 2019

He was in Journey lol

Oh fuck, that's why there's a bunch of Jonathan Cain stuff on HJB's twtter rn!

Third rate Vegas magician and his wife who's going to prison for some kind of MLM tainted supplement scheme

don't stop

They remind me of the lizard people from V, the 80's alien invasion miniseries.

I can totally see them eating gerbils.

he reminds me of one of the neighbors from Rosemary's Baby

"I'm forever yours, Satan...faithfully"

kinda looks like he mighta done a bid for carjacking a 9 year old kid on the Grand Prix ride at Disney World

trump retweeted this earlier

The Alabama SGA warns groups: Protest Trump during the LSU game and risk losing your reserved seating. https://t.co/8WYaFAtmwK pic.twitter.com/6l5VUisRyN

— AL.com (@aldotcom) November 6, 2019

brb just grabbing a ticket and a bullhorn

https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fi.pinimg.com%2Foriginals%2F2f%2Fb5%2Fa1%2F2fb5a1fbb6185cc2386dc9cd9ced2b0d.jpg&f=1&nofb=1

https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2010/12/17/captain-beefheart_custom-e687671b2bd839c4dbb1cfd2d76ff98b7ec906b6-s1400-c85.jpg

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/5/5f/StrangeMusicLaVey.jpg/220px-StrangeMusicLaVey.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/iV2j0JC.png

i'm not sure what we're doing, but here's tony levin

https://i.imgur.com/8M99Smu.jpg

https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KIVncLo0M8A/UdXyF-Z8j1I/AAAAAAAAJMc/q9gNSzW3QTA/s475/Separate+Ways+-+screenshot+1.jpg

See, Tony Levin is a fine musician and seems like a genial dude. I kinda thought we were going for "creepy and smarmy and probably evil," not just "looks weird and/or menacing and has stupid facial hair."

Mea culpa if I misunderstood the brief

Tony Levin's facial hair is not stupid

this is the most pissed I've ever been on this thread

Guys...this is what they want us to do. They want us divided!!!!1

Rep. Jim Jordan tells reporters that Republicans plan to request that the House Intelligence Committee bring in the whistleblower to testify.

— Phil Mattingly (@Phil_Mattingly) November 7, 2019

but everything the whistleblower claimed has been proven many times over. they are literally trying to get this person killed

i didn't even know what was going on, i'm sorry

xposts

They should just bring in some random volunteer and just say he's the whistleblower

It was just explained to me that for next weeks Fake Hearing (trial) in the House, as they interview Never Trumpers and others, I get NO LAWYER & NO DUE PROCESS. It is a Pelosi, Schiff, Scam against the Republican Party and me. This Witch Hunt should not be allowed to proceed!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 7, 2019

your lawyer is in jail dude

The whistle is being blown from inside the house

It was just explained to me that for next weeks Fake Hearing (trial) in the House, as they interview Never Trumpers and others, I get NO LAWYER & NO DUE PROCESS

I love that no one has explained to him that the trial is in the Senate. Or they did and he instantly forgot it.

Also like the president is JUST getting up to speed on this thing called the Contsitution

by his people, who are the best people

what is he even talking about? he gets no lawyer / due process for "next weeks"?

The resolution adopted Thursday sets rules for how the various committees will funnel their evidence to the Judiciary Committee, which traditionally considers whether to recommend articles of impeachment. The Intelligence and Judiciary committees will hold public hearings, with the release of transcripts of the confidential witness testimony that the trio of committees collected in depositions.

Trump’s counsel will be allowed to participate in the Judiciary Committee’s phase of the process by receiving evidence and staff reports, questioning witnesses, submitting additional evidence and being invited to offer a concluding presentation.

is this what he's yelling about?

But Republicans complained that Intelligence Chairman Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., will be able to reject Republican subpoenas. Republicans also criticized Nadler's power to limit the president's ability to call or question witnesses if he rules that the administration is withholding documents or witnesses.

Fake Hearing (trial)

I luv it

As senior security officials tried to get a meeting with President Donald Trump to convince him to release the hold on military aid for Ukraine, the administration's attention was elsewhere, according to newly released evidence.

A 324-page transcript of closed-door testimony of top U.S. diplomat in Ukraine released Wednesday revealed that the meeting was difficult to arrange partly because the president's national security advisors and cabinet officials were busy dealing with his desire to buy Greenland.

it’s like discovery with fewer rules. for weeks.

Bannon to testify against roger stone?

DJTJ on The View this morning is the expected trainwreck.

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/coup-has-started-whistleblowers-attorney-said-in-2017-posts-calling-for-impeachment
i am hearing "coup has started" as
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8I43bF840s

apologies for fox link but it's at the top of the current white house propaganda daily email

aw shit, you subscribe to the WH propaganda email? i should get on that - i enjoy waking up to fresh, severe mental anguish every morning

Alabama GOP Senate primary is gonna be such a shitshow - Sessions, Roy Moore, and Byrne, none of who are gonna drop out, two of whom already have shitty relationships with Trump.

popcorngif

also funny how the White House/House GOP are still obsessed about the whistleblower, who basically doesn't matter anymore now that there's all this other testimony + people coming forward. Nothing to be gained politically by "unmasking" or discrediting him/her, all the details in the complaint have already been corroborated and will enter the record anyway.

Nothing to be gained politically by "unmasking" or discrediting him/her, all the details in the complaint have already been corroborated and will enter the record anyway.

yeah, it's weird. maybe they want to throw the more rabid conspiratorial part of their base a bone by giving them to scapegoat? once qanon figures out who the whistleblower is, that'll be months of activity until they connect everything back to the lizard people et al

These are not bright men.

I mean its perfectly in line with their usual strategy, 1) intimidate anyone else from coming forward and 2) try like hell to cast whoever this is as some Deep State plant funded by Soros or whatever

once qanon figures out who the whistleblower is

he's been doxxed for a couple weeks now?

Not knowing the names means they can't besmirch them as DEM OPERATIVES or NEVER TRUMPERS.

(Side note: It's cute how being "outed" as a Democratic campaign contributor or an anti-Trumper or a "partisan" means you're automatically a bad source. And yet all the pro-Trump Trumpophiles from Trumptown are all just honest brokers of the unvarnished nonpartisan truth and.... grmph, no point in even pointing out hypocrisies at this point.)

Anyway it's not like having the heads of the whistleblower and the anonymous op-ed writer on pikes would do them any good, politically speaking. It's just stupid naked vengeance.

Well, apparently you can donate $1 million to the Trump campaign and still be lumped in with the Never Trumper plebes.

YOU DO NOT CROSS BARON HARKONNEN

YMP otm

only scanned it but not the worst fox news piece ever tbh? the mostly implied claim is that zaid wants to illegally overthrow trump based on political prejudice, and it does not go into the fact that nothing about impeachment is a coup, nor does it address whether zaid has found legitimate allegations of impeachable offenses, which he has.

he's been doxxed for a couple weeks now?

DJTJ tweeted his name the other day

He claimed it was okay, since he was merely signal boosting a Drudge story.

so why hasn't Schiff subpoena'd Bolton? There's no way Bolton's gonna get his court ruling in time for the public hearings.

Looks like Schiff has a system?

BREAKING: SCHIFF details questions that witnesses must speak to in order to be considered relevant to impeachment hearings.

This is meant to guide which GOP witnesses they're willing to call. The questions: pic.twitter.com/lzVxZcbUcj

— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) November 7, 2019

they’re expecting a favorable ruling any day on the issue of the subpoena of McGahn from last April, hoping that will clear up the constitutional dispute, I guess

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/bolton-willing-to-defy-white-house-and-testify-if-court-clears-the-way-according-to-people-familiar-with-his-views/2019/11/07/dd72d73c-00aa-11ea-9518-1e76abc088b6_story.html

oh c'mon that will just get appealed to the Supreme Court

the article doesn't lay it all out, but maybe they think if the lower court clarifies the constitutional issue to Bolton's satisfaction he will be willing to defy the white house order not to appear

it would be the funnest denial of cert ever (which won't happen, but dreaming is free).xp

from the WP article:

"“It would not be appropriate for a private citizen, like Dr. Kupperman, to unilaterally resolve this momentous constitutional dispute between the two political branches of our government,” Cooper wrote in a letter to House committee chairs.

In a court hearing last week, Cooper made clear that if Bolton is subpoenaed, he would probably join Kupperman in the lawsuit.

At Kupperman’s request, U.S. District Judge Richard J. Leon in Washington fast-tracked the case, ordering that final arguments be held Dec. 10.

But on Wednesday afternoon, the House withdrew its subpoena of Kupperman and asked for the suit to be dropped.

House lawyers said that in the interest of speed, they would rely on another case that is further along in judicial proceedings — one involving a subpoena to McGahn, whose testimony was first sought in April after the release of special counsel Robert S. Mueller III’s report.

That case raises similar issues of whether the White House can bar high-ranking administration officials from testifying.

U.S. District Judge Kentanji Brown Jackson in Washington heard oral arguments in the McGahn case last week and said she would probably issue an opinion before the end of November."

oh so that's why

House Democrats have signaled they are moving on from their efforts to obtain testimony from former national security adviser John Bolton after they say a lawyer for Bolton threatened to file a lawsuit if their client was subpoenaed.

xps

guess I shouldn't be surprised by Bolton being a cowardly shitbag

Lipmerkin gonna Lipmerkin

I'd heard about Trump using charity $ to buy a painting of himself, but hadn't heard this part:

... Trump bid $10,000 of foundation money on a portrait of himself at a charity auction benefiting the Unicorn Foundation. Trump Organization attorney, Alan Futerfas told the court Trump only donated to start the bidding, but when no one else would bid, the Donald J. Trump Foundation was stuck with the painting.

lolololololololol

Trump Organization attorney, Alan Futerfas

I've seen this name a time or two, and my brain always turns it into Alan Futterwacken

In hindsight, perhaps they should have been a little more insistent that Mr. Trump keep his pants on while posing.

in my big Ledger of Human Deaths, this checks out

you love to see it

A Republican PAC is out with a new ad Thursday slamming former Attorney General Jeff Sessions as a “traitor” as he prepares to announce that he’s running for his old Alabama Senate seat.

“The attorney general said, ‘I’m going to recuse myself,’ and I said, ‘Why the hell didn’t he tell me that before I put him in?’ He’s bad. He’s a bad, bad guy,” President Trump says in the ad, which was put out by GRIT PAC.

“Time for Jeff to hang up the cleats. Say ‘no’ to traitor Jeff Sessions,” a narrator adds at the end of the 15-second clip.

GRIT PAC is an independent expenditure committee associated with former Auburn University head football coach Tommy Tuberville, who is one of several Republicans running for the chance to challenge Sen. Doug Jones (D-Ala.) next year.

hang up the cleats? was js a high school cornerback or something?

it's a "running for office" metaphor

they called him Shutdown Sessions

time for jess simsins to THROW IN THE TOWEL on this fandango!!!!!

Christ Tommy Tuberville.

that's an example of being willing to let your enemies fight til some gets choked out, regardless of "standards." NB- if tuberville polls better against jones, intervene if u can.

I got a mailing yesterday from Melania Trump (yeah, right) on behalf of the RNC. On the envelope was written: Check enclosed. As I suspected, the check was made out to The Republican National Committee, not to me. You'd think a cheap stunt like that would irritate the recipients when they eagerly opened it hoping for money. But what surprised me even more was that it was made out for a paltry $45. Why not shoot for the moon, guys?

$45 as in.....45.

Ah, it's symbolism! No, on second thought, it's numerology!

It’s faith

For 45 days and 45 nights, ye shall make a contribution of at least $1. The you shall be invited into the group of people who touch each other’s shoulders as they pray

To the surprise of no one.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/book-by-anonymous-describes-trump-as-cruel-inept-and-a-danger-to-the-nation/2019/11/07/b6b6c6f2-0150-11ea-8bab-0fc209e065a8_story.html

It's OK with me I guess that yet another insider book exposes Trump to full view as cruel, inept and a danger to the nation. It might erode his support by another half percent. But obviously what we're going to do about it is what really merits our attention, not a bunch more anecdotes showing what a repellent person he is. We know.

When in doubt, become the victim and/or plead insanity...

The investigation I conducted concerning 2016 Ukrainian collusion and corruption, was done solely as a defense attorney to defend my client against false charges, that kept changing as one after another were disproven.

— Rudy Giuliani (@RudyGiuliani) November 6, 2019

guess I shouldn't be surprised by Bolton being a cowardly shitbag

― Οὖτις, Thursday, November 7, 2019

I wonder if any of them will ever suffer consequences from ignoring subpoenas

Mick Mulvaney was just subpoenaed tonight

We changed the cover of Don Jr's book to make it a little more honest and put them up in Barnes and Noble. You're welcome, Junior! pic.twitter.com/ZZqfRP6Jhj

— Jason Selvig (@jasonselvig) November 7, 2019

We really are going to be seeing Don Jr's face on our TV sets for the next 40 years, aren't we

There's no way junior can continue this way without going to jail at some point

to visit his dad and uncle Rudy?

Nah, you're never going to see Don Jr again after Trump is out of office. He has nothing to offer the MAGA chuds once Daddy's out of power/dead.

I think that's extremely wishful thinking.

He is going to try and milk this for everything it's worth, and he has enough connections to make it happen. Meghan McCain is on television, and what has she got to offer anyone? But I still assume he is going to jail sooner rather than later.

Any trump will be toxic outside of conservative media after this presidency is over. You wouldn’t see jr or ivanka on the view imo

Ivanka is an entirely different ball of wax. She'll figure out a way to slither out of the slime, to the chagrin of everyone who's paying any actual attention rn.

She's blonde and has perfect teeth. She'll come out of this just fine.

same

According to the book, the president shouted at an aide who was scribbling in a notebook during a meeting, “What the (expletive) are you doing?” He added, “Are you (expletive) taking notes?” The aide apologized and closed the notebook...

well we can at least be certain Anonymous has seen The Wire

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pBdGOrcUEg8

Trump on the South Lawn tells reporters that he will release a second transcript, @HansNichols reports

— Geoff Bennett (@GeoffRBennett) November 8, 2019

but the first one was so perfect

lmao

The call was perfect. The transcript is being revised (read: set in Comic Sans) to meet that level of perfection.

I'm going to guess that he won't actually release anything and MSNBC hosts will be asking why for months

Needs more Sharpie

Any trump will be toxic outside of conservative media after this presidency is over. You wouldn’t see jr or ivanka on the view imo

― treeship., Friday, November 8, 2019 7:59 AM (two hours ago) bookmarkflaglink

I really can't predict which way this thing is gonna go. My gut is that Trumpism has activated/inflamed a significant bloc of the GOP base that is not easily going to embrace "reasonable" conservatism anytime soon. The whole project of conservatism for these people is owning libs and culture wars and macho posturing. They're gonna call anyone less vitrolic than Trump a cuck. Maybe the party can't find someone to capably fill that void but there's going to be a wide open lane for another insane carnival barker.

More likely is that the GOP, with its usual prestidigitation, will embrace Trumpism while pretending, like with Bush II, he never existed.

the Beltway press, with its usual cynicism, will help the party put its mask on.

It will be interesting to see how loving an embrace it will be if the GOP gets decimated at the polls in 2020. Can't wait to see how many people revise their history such that they were actually secret Mother Night-ing Never Trumpers all along.

Also, 'reasonable' conservatism is mostly that the rich should have all the money and everyone else should suffer and die, and that message isn't really that popular.

a significant bloc of the GOP base that is not easily going to embrace "reasonable" conservatism anytime soon. The whole project of conservatism for these people is owning libs and culture wars and macho posturing. They're gonna call anyone less vitrolic than Trump a cuck

For me this is one of the only pieces of potential good news on the horizon!

Of course there are many hideous people in the GOP. But none with Trumpian levels of id-based pulling power, AFAICT.

The chud gang is not going to embrace Pence 2024. You should hear them rail about how disappointed they were with RINO McCain and Milquetoast Romney. Yes, they are R partisans, but the energy is different. Post-Trump, they will probably still vote GOP in a knee-jerk fashion, but they will never again be as energized, or feel as validated, or be as loud about their tribal bullshit.

I want them to die frustrated and disappointed. If they do so while clutching their red hats, wondering what might have been if MACHO HE-MEN like themselves had prevailed, who cares. The rest of us will move forward without them.

one person i do worry about is Nikki Haley. in a weird spin on sexism i think she wouldn't be punished as much for not being a frothing-at-the-mouth loon as someone like Mittens or Kasich or whomever. I know the easy response is that the GOP would never support a woman at the national level but somehow I'm not convinced. plus she can tie herself to the Trump base if necessary because she served in his administration yet she managed to get out with her rep largely intact.

"Morning" Joe has already croaked his enthusiasm for her, proving his imbecility and gullibility and cynicism -- all at the same time.

none with Trumpian levels of id-based pulling power, AFAICT

The Rock

there's obv still gonna be awful Republican prez candidates but it'll really be hard to find anyone truly as awful a human as DT

they're all awful human beings if they believe being rich and white and male makes them God's chosen

there's obv still gonna be awful Republican prez candidates but it'll really be hard to find anyone truly as awful a human as DT

Gauntlet thrown down!

the President has been ordered by a judge to pay $2 mil fine for using charity funds for personal expenditures and it's barely a news story

if Obama had etc etc

I know the easy response is that the GOP would never support a woman at the national level

Son, ain't your elders ever made sure you heard tell of a lady that some called Sarah of Wasilla?

the one dude I worry about is that TX rep with the eye patch, Crenshaw or whatever. he's dumb as shit but the MAGA crowd loves him

yesterday I heard him going ham on someone asking if making govt. contractors sign anti-BDS pledges was against the 1st amendment

XP Yup. GOP kingmakers see Crenshaw as their AOC.

the President has been ordered by a judge to pay $2 mil fine for using charity funds for personal expenditures and it's barely a news story

― A True White Kid that can Jump (Granny Dainger), Friday, November 8, 2019 11:20 AM (eleven minutes ago)

this would be a scandal of huge proportions at any other time with any other pres

plus he's pretty good at making idiotic bad faith arguments on Twitter which plays pretty well with the GOP base

Thanks for the PSL, @RollCall. pic.twitter.com/VEmFAZ25wu

— Rep. Dan Crenshaw (@RepDanCrenshaw) November 6, 2019

totally normal dude accepting drinks from random strangers who know what you do for a living

this would be a scandal of huge proportions at any other time with any other pres

― (•̪●) (carne asada), Friday, November 8, 2019 11:33 AM (forty-eight minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

It’s super weird. I guess people were saying repub voters going forward will want offensive candidates. I wonder if they’ll want their candidate to be a criminal from now on too.

When being a Republican is outlawed, only outlaws will be Republicans

Yeah for every headline that goes like "OMG Trump has ignored norms" or "OMG Trump has bucked tradition" or "OMG Trump is hollowing out the experienced Federal workforce" or "OMG Trump is undermining our institutions"? My reaction is, like DUH.

That's exactly what he said he was going to do and he's kept his promise.That was his stated purpose. And it was the motivation for most of the votes he got. Most of his voters will acknowledge that shredding norms was, and is, his selling point. It is a feature, not a bug.

It would be silly and pollyannaish to now be like, "oh, but we didn't want THOSE norms shredded! We only wanted you to shred THESE norms!"

i feel like burisma type jobs always exist for these failkids, even when dads are revealed as faildads.

or in this case feeldads

xp (sorry, my viewable string ended way up on milo z's djtj post so my post above was, super xp now)

also, thanks to current events/the wire/commentary for explaining what it means when the boss insists nobody take notes, and what it means when the boss tells a mark "talk to (fixer guy name), talk to him" over and over.

Also, 'reasonable' conservatism is mostly that the rich should have all the money and everyone else should suffer and die, and that message isn't really that popular.

― Frederik B, Friday, November 8, 2019 9:51 AM

Do you know many poor white Americans? Cause they LOVE that message.

poor white americans have this fantasy that someday they're going to get rich too, though they're fuzzy on the details of how it might happen

keep brown ppl from getting rich first iirc

They're happy to take a sock on the arm as long as people of color get a broken jaw, and there are tens of millions of those fuckers out there.

it's going to be so amazing when Trump throws Don Jr under the bus:


The White House tried to distance the president from his son’s actions, despite Trump's repeated calls for the whistleblower’s identity to be revealed.

The White House told reporter Yashar Ali that neither “the president nor any senior administration official was aware in advance that the president’s eldest son was going to tweet out the name of the alleged whistleblower.”

A defiant Don Jr. told Ali that the “outrage” over his outing of the purported whistleblower was “BS.”

The White House tried to distance the president from his son’s actions, despite Trump's repeated calls for the whistleblower’s identity to be revealed.
The White House tried to distance the president from his son’s actions, despite Trump's repeated calls for the whistleblower’s identity to be revealed.
The White House tried to distance the president from his son’s actions, despite Trump's repeated calls for the whistleblower’s identity to be revealed.
The White House tried to distance the president from his son’s actions, despite Trump's repeated calls for the whistleblower’s identity to be revealed.
The White House tried to distance the president from his son’s actions, despite Trump's repeated calls for the whistleblower’s identity to be revealed.

maybe next time, Kendall Roy.

i ordered some pizza earlier. in fact, i ordered the pizza and demanded that my pizza arrive quickly on social media for the next 30 minutes. i tagged everyone i could think of.
and now you're telling me that the delivery person, who is also my son, is gonna show up at MY house, with the pizza **I** ordered, in 30 minutes? after i directly messaged my son and asked him to bring me my pizza that i ordered?

it goes without saying that i am distancing myself from my son's actions

He hardly even knows Don Jr.

I've said it before and again, going back up to poor white people.

My dad had multiple strokes and barely talks now. he can no longer work. He has gone bankrupt twice in the last 11 years, can barely afford his rent, and without me and my brother, he and my mother would likely be on their asses.

and after a very quiet afternoon where he hadn't spoken much, he saw a homeless person in the street and managed to say the first thing he said in over an hour, without stammering - "get a job!". and he complained about freeloaders, which sitting next to me, with zero sense of irony.

I love the man but he epitomizes the whole "I identify with rich folk so I am one even though I'm not" white person. my mother, on the other hand, has gotten fairly woke.

oh that is heartbreaking pathology

also sorry neanderthal

thank you. It especially stung because they have been coming to me for money since I was 18, not due to circumstances (both were always gainfully employed with decent paying jobs), but buying things they couldn't afford, living above their means, etc. so that now, when they have a legitimate reason tehy're struggling, they have no safety net.

to go through all that and still bite his thumb at homeless people really pisses me off.

wtf w this nonsense, they're more interested in a Constitutional legal argument being resolved than in whether or not Bolton actually testifies? Does he want to testify or not jfc

An attorney for former national security adviser John Bolton and former deputy national security adviser Charles Kupperman said Friday he is "dismayed" that his clients will not be be compelled to testify in the ongoing House impeachment inquiry after lawmakers declined to issue subpoenas.

Charles J. Cooper, whose clients declined to testify voluntarily, wrote in a letter to House General Counsel Douglas Letter obtained by The Hill that he had hoped to determine in court whether House subpoenas to testify or the White House's assertion of executive privilege took precedence.

"We are dismayed that the Committees have chosen not to join us in seeking resolution from the Judicial Branch of this momentous Constitutional question as expeditiously as possible," Cooper wrote. "It is important both to Dr. Kupperman and to Ambassador Bolton to get a definitive judgment from the Judicial Branch determining their Constitutional duty in the face of conflicting demands of the Legislative and Executive Branches."

"Dr. Kupperman stands ready, as does Ambassador Bolton, to testify if the Judiciary resolves the conflict in favor of the Legislative Branch’s position respecting such testimony," he added.

House Democrats had scheduled Bolton to appear on Thursday, but said they wouldn't issue him a subpoena after he declined to appear.

"Mr. Bolton would take us to court if we subpoenaed him," a House Intelligence Committee official said in a statement.

bolton likely actually believes unitary executive bullshit and while he respects rules enough to preserve his freedom, i imagine he would likely prefer both to avoid testifying and to have this type of executive privilege to be created/blessed by courts.

WmC otm

i know so many of these people in real life it's stupefying

yeah, the NYT has a similar article with this quote:

"House Democrats have argued that ongoing court proceedings to compel Donald F. McGahn II, the president’s former White House counsel, to testify on other matters should guide Mr. Bolton and Mr. Kupperman. But Mr. Cooper said any final judgment on Mr. McGahn would still not answer the question about whether his clients should testify because they would be asked about national security matters in a way that Mr. McGahn would not be."

Ned Price is speculating that all of this may have more to do with Bolton's book deal than with impeachment (I'm not sure how exactly)

I only got on that subject because I wanted to counteract Fred B's self-assured and very wrong notions about what messages are and aren't popular in America.

click to die instantly

found the best one, i'm about to give up after this pic.twitter.com/So2B4a12v4

— Aric Toler (@AricToler) November 8, 2019

man, fuck you stupid ass teenager

get that kid a GOOD Music record deal

these people are truly sick

top that!

no fuckin way i'm clicking that, not today satan

I hope you’ll consider my #MAGAChallenge, Mr. President. I had a blast making this. pic.twitter.com/YAd2VnaLR4

— Richard Armande Mills (RAM) (@RAMRANTS) November 8, 2019

I'm not going to watch the video and imagine it's some kind of Aristocrats type of abasement and that they wind up dead at the end of the video

ahahahha he's doing a "BLACKS FOR TRUMP" event today no wonder this is happening

I admit I feel some hesitancy to clown teens on twitter

no matter how obnoxious they're being

xxpost

IS HE EVER

https://i.ibb.co/JpPXYj3/EI3-UFd7-Xk-AABZFn.jpg

xps no

it is you who will die

signed,

a corpse

they'll soon be equally awful adults so *shrug*

I did a reverse-image search of that photo and

https://i.imgur.com/MZNZiPf.png

Ah yes, Fred and Ethel Black