"Will you shut up, man?" US Politics October 2020

I don't underestimate him, but neither do I think Biden's in a passive or losing position.

I know what you're saying, but I just can't see it. Three months ago, I thought everything was set up for a perfect storm in the last few weeks: a COVID breakthrough, the economy in clear recovery, some other bit of a good news for him. Those doors seem closed. Outside of interference, I can't see anything.

Thinking of Alaphillipe on the LBL the other day, need to keep focussed until the last moment. Sure Biden won’t be complacent but I won’t relax until after the election.

and people are voting already

oh yeah, for sure. i am the opposite of relaxed, i assume everyone else is too

xp

As time ticks down and the stupid and reckless moves cascade and snowball, it's getting increasingly difficult to see how Trump can possibly fight his way out of the massive hole he's dug for himself, especially when he is showing zero inclination to correct course whatsoever. I know Biden's passive strategy is frustrating, but it's worked remarkably well, and nothing has happened that suggests he needs to change it up.

And this is happening in Florida.

Biden should debate Clint Eastwood's chair.

I think if anyone in the WH outbreak dies that might seal things. If everyone clearly recovers and Trump seems fine it might make it look like his approach is vindicated. Although it's so down to the wire in terms of timing that it may be too late for something like that.

Besides, with the Michigan news today...

― Ned Raggett, Thursday, October 8, 2020 10:51 AM (eleven minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

i assume you're speaking of this news?

https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2020/10/08/feds-thwart-militia-plot-kidnap-michigan-gov-gretchen-whitmer/5922301002/

The FBI says it thwarted what it described as a plot to violently overthrow the government and kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, and federal prosecutors are expected to discuss the alleged conspiracy later Thursday.

The alleged plot involved reaching out to members of a Michigan militia, according to a federal affidavit filed Thursday.

"Several members talked about murdering 'tyrants' or 'taking' a sitting governor," an FBI agent wrote in the affidavit. "The group decided they needed to increase their numbers and encouraged each other to talk to their neighbors and spread their message."

I hate to play Save-a-Sleepy, but how has Biden been passive? He gave a thorough and (for him!) solid speech on Tuesday that didn't ONCE mention the president, he answered questions in Miami at a town hall, and Harris last night did the anti-Trump stuff for him.

I just don't what you guys want Biden to do!

It's more specific: https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2020/10/08/feds-thwart-militia-plot-kidnap-michigan-gov-gretchen-whitmer/5922301002/

and people are voting already

― Patriotic Goiter (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Thursday, October 8, 2020 11:03 AM (one minute ago) bookmarkflaglink

at this point there must be a historic number of votes already cast right?

:O at that Michigan news

definitely i saw the numbers last night somewhere xp

I'm still on edge, but only because of the prospect for interference, not that he's going to suddenly rally. So, like most of the rest of the non-American world, I'm hoping--and confident--that Americans will stay vigilant with regards to interference.

Including mine!

xxxpost

dang
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-early-vote/more-than-4-million-americans-have-already-voted-suggesting-record-turnout-idUSKBN26R1LR

(posted two days ago)

With four weeks to go before Election Day, more than 4 million Americans already have voted, more than 50 times the 75,000 at this time in 2016, according to the United States Elections Project, which compiles early voting data.

got mine mailed off yesterday, minnesota has a good ballot tracker site so you can check to see if it was received and counted

figured best to get if off now in case there is a problem

I'd like to see Biden lift up the White House with his bare hands and shake it until Trump falls out like lunch money out of a nerd's pocket.

Estimated voting population of the US is around 200 million, I gather -- be interesting to see what the overall percentage of that group ends up early voting in the end.

Now, see, this is good stuff: politico.com/news/2020/10/08/progressive-agenda-2021-joe-biden-427673

story from a day later says 5M
https://www.cnn.com/2020/10/07/politics/ballot-returns-early-voting-2020-election/index.html

would imagine the daily number of early votes cast/absentee ballots received will grow at a fast rate every day from here until the election

So, trying to catch up. Is the sequence

1. Commission on presidential debates says the debate will be virtual

2. Trump says he won't participate

3. Biden camp says (or strongly implies) Trump's a coward who is afraid to debate virtually

?

Or is it more like

1. Biden camp refuses to debate unless it's virtual

2. Trump says Biden's a coward for not being willing to debate mano a mano

3. Commission on presidential debates says the debate will be virtual

4. Trump says he won't participate in a virtual debate

5. Biden says Trump's a coward who is afraid to debate virtually

6. Trump camp accuses Biden camp of having inappropriately influenced (excuse me, RIGGED) the Commission to set the debate on Biden-friendly terms

?

The outcome will likely be the same but the optics are different

The prof at Florida who studies this surely has his reasons but I'm not getting why the surge of early voting is thought to indicate high turnout. Why isn't it just a sign that more people are voting by mail than ever have before? My vote's in, and I never voted by mail before, but I always vote.

Yeah I don't get that either.

xxp it's both depending on who's reporting

Yes. I suspect the figures will re-align when early voting starts and GOP voters line up.

I admit I was thinking similarly here:

It will be interesting to see if this was a credible threat or if it followed the FBI’s “we caught a terrorist” model, which is (1) find a mouthy shiftless loser, (2) whip them up more, (3) offer to give them guns or bombs or stuff, and (4) arrest them for the plot. https://t.co/6SDkJUNIq0

— MonsterHat (@Popehat) October 8, 2020

Did Pence actually mention Soros?

Trump can fight his way out of a corner. He does it over and over again and people keep assuming he'll trip himself up. MAYBE this time it's different, I just wouldn't bet the farm on it.

― longtime caller, first time listener (man alive), Thursday, 8 October 2020 15:57 (four minutes ago) link

Why I'm so obsessed with the famous "wriggle" tweet is because I don't see it as fighting at all. He just gets away with it. And the pattern of intense "THIS will be his downfall!" rubbing of palms together for each notable example have been justified but never deliver. The cult around him dig in their heels more defiantly each time; they will not give liberals the satisfaction to any degree. As each scandal/revelation/investigation has fizzled out anticlimactically with no consequence, it's really hard to not have defenses up to protect myself from even more disappointment this time. I want to believe! And the disappointment is not healthy. It makes us pore over every little image and statement, grasping for evidence to support our hope that this will finally be it. The desperation goes too far in that hunt sometimes, but it's counter balanced by the desperate stubbornness on the other side.

This morning:

"She's a communist. She's not a socialist, she's well beyond a socialist," he said, going on to make false, fear-mongering claims that Harris wants to "open up the borders to allow killers and murderers and rapists to pour into our country."

He twice called Harris, the first woman of color on a major party ticket, a "monster."

I imagine they will focus such derangement heavily on Harris the last three weeks.

https://www.cnn.com/2020/10/08/politics/trump-covid-fox-interview/index.html

everything the Dems do from now on needs to be focused on preventing another person like Donald Trump from ever existing

The Democrats really need to find ways of stealing the attention and controlling the narrative right now.

lmao

at this point there must be a historic number of votes already cast right?

https://electproject.github.io/Early-Vote-2020G/index.html

Nationally, voters have cast 4.5% of the total votes counted in the 2016 general election.

(20+% in wisconsin and virginia, 10+% in florida, wisconsin and michigan among others)

MCCONNELL: “I haven’t actually been to the White House since August the 6th. Because my impression was that their approach to how to handle this is different from mine and what I suggested that we do in the Senate, which is to wear a mask and practice social distancing."

— Julie Tsirkin (@JulieNBCNews) October 8, 2020

"i don't trust him with my health ,the rest of you should though"

everything the Dems do from now on needs to be focused on preventing another person like Donald Trump from ever existing

https://filmschoolrejects.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/the-time-machine-1960.jpg

MCCONNELL: “I haven’t actually been to the White House since August the 6th. Because my impression was that their approach to how to handle this is different from mine and what I suggested that we do in the Senate, which is to retract into our shells and consume a healthy diet of shredded carrots and Omega One Floating Pellets, fortified with critical Omega 3 & 6 Fatty Acids and slightly elevated protein levels for consistent, healthy growth"

In the year 2525

Ha!

That explains how McConnell has lived to the age of 155

"Several members talked about murdering 'tyrants' read the indictment of every message board and comments section on the internet

Mostly this is just kinda sad

Trump campaign manager Bill Stepien, who tested positive himself, says the Trump campaign agrees to delaying the second debate by a week to October 22 so it can be in person.

"And accordingly, the third debate should then be shifted back one week to October 29," he says.

— Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) October 8, 2020

xp, I can't find it right now, and don't really want to, but when the ISIS phenomenon was gaining steam, there was a very well produced propaganda video going around the internet that included a speech by some ISIS fighter about "tyrants," and this totally makes me think of that.

One of those involved complained in June that Whitmer (D) was controlling the opening of gyms

well this is clearly tyranny

There's def something about the gym owner/personal trainer mentality that lends itself to Trumpism I've noticed. Small business owner + aggression + "self-sufficiency" ideology I guess? Plus just the practical reality that COVID especially sucks for gym owners and trainers.

the pain & gain presidency

This all gets lost in the ridiculous firehose-full-of-sewage that is current political news, but.

One of the endlessly repeated talking points from Republicans has been that the Obama Administration presided over "the slowest recovery since the Great Depression."

Pence said it again yesterday. "Slowest recovery."

There is a part of me that wishes someone would wheel round with "Oh yeah? Well at least we HAD a recovery. Where the fuck is yours?"

Like, imagine if there were a two-car race, and Car #1 finished, albeit slowly. Then Car #2 flipped over, crashed into a wall, caught on fire, killed thousands of people, and the resulting toxic cloud ended most sentient life on the planet.

Is it seemly that the talking point from Team #2 is still "yeah, but the other people were so SLOW"?

Brad Parscale cried during arrest, told officers his wife won't have sex with him https://t.co/UrzgSa7gcl pic.twitter.com/Dny3sXgnnM

— New York Post (@nypost) October 8, 2020

just putting this out there

damn it's not often that this song from my youth is so topical

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=deKRFMjQ5sY&ab_channel=AndrewJohnson