US Politics, June 2020 — You have to dominate.

As far as potential symbolic victories go, is there any chance Steve King loses his seat tonight?

https://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/farce-tragedy-and-photo-op

...What became clear was that the presidential remarks and driving off the crowd were timed to coincide to create a presidential photo op or what is probably best seen as a cartoonish but choreographed reality TV event. The plan was for the President to give his short speech with explosive concussions in the background and tear gas in the air followed by the President walking over to the ground just cleared of protestors to make a symbolic visit to St. John’s Episcopal Church where he would hold ostentatiously hold up a bible. The slight shifts in schedule were to make sure the timing was just right.

Within hours, his campaign released staged photos of the proceedings.

A short time later it emerged that the owners of the Church, the Episcopal Diocese of Washington hadn’t been informed or asked whether their Church would be used as a prop in what amounted to an ersatz white Christian nationalist photo op. But federal officers – police or military isn’t clear – actually forcibly expelled a priest from the Church grounds with tear gas.

It was a set-piece tableau of Trumpism, a visual demonstration of the dominance Trump demands but usually shrinks from personally. You protestors were on this literal ground. I commanded force against you and now I am on the same ground holding a bible aloft in victory.

Thankfully, it doesn’t appear there was any loss of life in this staged incident or I think any major injuries. But like so much of Trumpism it manages to bring together with a unique crudity the mix of rightist nationalism and TV production which is the heart of Trumpism – a loud red hat with gleaming white lettering of state violence. Nothing more captures the man than holding a Christian bible in the air as a sort of dominance talisman after driving priests out of a church where they were tending to the needs of peaceful protestors. Much as he bogarted tax payer money for use as campaign funds in extortion plot against the government of Ukraine here he turned the US military and federal police on peaceful protestors for what was in the final analysis a planned campaign event.

https://i.imgur.com/qEXqqPP.png
https://i.imgur.com/LqfUVrn.png
https://i.imgur.com/aeTDaSH.jpg

I can't quite figure this out, does the US actually have a functioning government right now? That passes laws and stuff? Or is it just a scorched earth retreat?

One half of the government was trying to block Congress from remote voting on bills. Three guesses who!

yeah we're still confirming a dozen hardline right-winger judges every day so some part of it is working

As predicted, he's claiming victory. Pretty sure many citizens don't feel victorious rn, particularly our own MN residents.

He left his rage for NYC

D.C. had no problems last night. Many arrests. Great job done by all. Overwhelming force. Domination. Likewise, Minneapolis was great (thank you President Trump!).

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 2, 2020

Fucking sick

fucking asshole, i hope he dies

Trump’s response here is going to leave lasting damage. His presidency is like 9/11 - the bad energy will reverberate for a long, long time

Getting Travis Bickle vibes from his tweet about NYC 'lowlifes and losers'.

The Governor refuses to accept my offer of a dominating National Guard. NYC was ripped to pieces. Likewise, Fredo’s ratings are down 50%!

A Godfather reference two sentences after making an offer that was refused. WEAK!

https://thehill.com/homenews/news/500642-residents-clash-before-police-arrive-in-philadelphia-neighborhood

Oh look "Antifa" at it again and weirdly acting out Trumpian fantasies

literally, Christafuck

Pelosi asked about Trump’s Bible photo op last night. She goes and grabs her own bible and is now reading from it. pic.twitter.com/F64v4JFBH6

— Heather Caygle (@heatherscope) June 2, 2020

OUR GOD IS A MIGHTY GOD

No one stepped up to convincingly claim it, so I can’t put all the blame on Pelosi, but it sure would have been nice if the political leaders who are busy confronting their own mortal demise due to being very old would have “passed the baton” to younger leadership that is in touch with the country

*cough*Jayapal*cough*

if i remember correctly, the most successful challenger to pelosi's throne was fucking tim ryan

the new litmus test for american political leadership:

without asking an intern to do it for you, can you successfully set up an automatic Out of Office message for your email

remember, decaying leadership: you are allowed to type "how to set up automatic out of office message for my email" into google.com in order to find the answer if you don't know how to do it

Idk politicians should flush the Bible down the toilet tbh

google.com is a search engine. you need to go on the internet and type it into the big spot at the top where you can type

Remember when our biggest enemies were Bobby Jindal

it's pretty obvious by now that Pelosi is good at some aspects of her job, like organizing her caucus, while being fucking terrible at the part where she's the de facto face and voice of the entire party.

nooo---- nonono don't click the picture of the home insurance trick that obama doesn't want you to know about---fuck, it's too late

would have “passed the baton” to younger leadership that is in touch with the country

likely Rahm Emanuel and his Zionist hoodlum clan didn't return their calls though

my best friend lives in Philly and works for WHYY, he sent me Jon Ehren's stuff about Fishtown as it was happening. glad it got some attention.

it's pretty obvious by now that Pelosi is good at some aspects of her job, like organizing her caucus, while being fucking terrible at the part where she's the de facto face and voice of the entire party.

― Evans on Hammond (evol j), Tuesday, June 2, 2020 11:25 AM (fourteen minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

I think "public relations" for members of Congress used to just mean cultivating relationships with the press. In other words, it was never that public: It was about calling up reporters and feeding them stories and talking points. But the current media environment demands a much more direct approach. Younger pols like AOC get this. Many older ones do not, or seem uncomfortable with it.

it's pretty obvious by now that Pelosi is good at some aspects of her job, like organizing her caucus, while being fucking terrible at the part where she's the de facto face and voice of the entire party.

For better or for worse, that's Joe Biden as soon as he's the nominee, and to some extent right now.

xp to jaymc

yeah. to use a tiresome phrase, she has trouble "thinking on her feet" these days. there was a time when statements were prepared and delivered as part of a communications strategy which politicians could somewhat control. now, an effective politician needs to be able to say something powerful (or at the bare minimum make a coherent point) at a moment's notice, in situations that are out of their control

cool

House Dems had an emotional caucus call today with some members crying as they spoke.

They agree that they need a bold response and quickly. But exactly what that is is up for debate.

Dems will talk again Thursday, w/ the call being entirely devoted to this discussion. https://t.co/nvevIM3nmQ

— Heather Caygle (@heatherscope) June 2, 2020

that is cool, actually

I just think - maybe the bold response should get figured out before Thursday? Things are happening pretty fast.

sure. but it the purpose of the meeting is to develop legislation, that's gonna take time to pass anyway (especially considering that if it's decent legislation, mcconnell and trump won't let it pass)

btw, just imagine a republican in 2020 crying about civil rights

it's literally impossible

well there were a fair number of black and liberal Republicans in 1968

I just have so little faith in the Dems right now. Thursday will be another call to decide on a meeting for later next week, while events continue to outpace them.

Exactly what do you want from legislators?

Why legislate now when you can legislator, am I right?

powerful words from pelosi here:

“We would hope that the president of the United States would follow the lead of so many other presidents,” Ms. Pelosi said, “and be a healer in chief and not a fanner of the flame.”

#healerinchief

#notafanneroftheflame

her comm team is good. really, really good

#nailedit

2020: a cross between veep and idiocracy

you must admit the following scene seems a lot more realistic than it did just a few years ago
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sGUNPMPrxvA

kushner is joe

Why legislate now when you can legislator, am I right?

― Josh in Chicago, Tuesday, June 2, 2020 6:33 PM (nine minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

I've got legs but
I'm not a legislator

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=muhFxXce6nA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=muhFxXce6nA

Fun to think about what the republican response to Tea Partiers getting teargassed and Obama calling for greater force would have been.

Hard to say. They do like to be dominated, after all.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rczBM8BnQBk

Trying to imagine explaining this turn of events to someone from 1980 and not getting very far

Kpop fans are taking over M*GA and pro-police hashtags and crashing law enforcement snitch apps and it’s beautiful https://t.co/h2HzGj9MEx pic.twitter.com/uUPgHOu76W

— Laura Hudson (@laura_hudson) June 3, 2020