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

Oh I’m sure Ben’s Ass clinches up every now and again

He's just a slimy strictly political creature with no principles that will do whatever it takes to stay in/with power.

As you guys know I like Pete a lot and he is pretty good in this role but I'm bummed about him being slotted into the "gay best friend with cutting remarks" stereotype

This is as much a "passive-aggressive Midwesterner" thing as it is anything else (see also: Klobuchar)

As you guys know I like Pete a lot and he is pretty good in this role but I'm bummed about him being slotted into the "gay best friend with cutting remarks" stereotype

― Guayaquil (eephus!),

bitch, please

Like, did I miss an appearance where Buttigieg commended Trump on not hiding a face that looks like that behind a mask or something?

I mean, he's just keeping his name/face out there and making the DNC happy so he can make another primary run some day? It's not devious.

Lindsey might be the only Senate Republican to truly grieve the way the party has moved -

Awww, true grief. To his true heartbreaking grief I say "die you motherfucking maggot!"

He was for it after he was agin it

lol, that lindsey clip. love how suddenly he's very concerned about citizens united

literally, every time with republicans, it has to literally happen to them before it's real

it is literal, it is known

I feel like with a zig and a couple of zags Pete would be awaiting trial for defrauding Silicon Valley investors with his heath tech startup. and ftr, I don’t think he’s literally a CIA asset, but yeah I’ll cop to being a Obama Vocal Affect truther

Let us know how it goes, I wanted to vote as soon as possible, but realized the first couple days might be bad.

Re: Texas early voting in Austin

Was in and out in five minutes this morning at one of the two UT campus polling stations, but friends who were voting around town are reporting waits of 1.5-2 hours... I assumed campus would be quick because there aren't many students here this semester and there's no free parking within half a mile of the polling stations. Glad we got a nice cool front ahead of early voting starting... it's perfect weather, sunny and cool.

Ah, yes, parking by UT.

pete's hanging around so he can run again in 2024 or 2028, and meanwhile snag some position in the biden administration, like OMB chief or federal CTO or whatever.

he's good at talking and making arguments. he would probably be better than amy fucking mcgrath vs mcconnell, that's for sure. he'll be around for a while i'd guess.

The Obama mimicry was real and hilarious in its shamelessness

it is hard to endure

I saw a clip of him doing an impression of Mike Pence (whom he portrayed in VP debate prep), and it just sounded like Obama.

So what happens if the Dems have the house, get the WH, but fall short in the senate? Four years of nothing, extra bullshit and/or rancor?

lots and lots of Bhenghazi-style horseshit and oh hey would you look at that the SC has all kinds of time to take up whatever the Senate GOP drags their way

lots of grand bargains!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNqgGPY8Ob8

i follow dave weigel on twitter and he seems like a decent reporter most of the time, but did i just listen to him talk for FIVE STRAIGHT MINUTES about the lawn signs he's seen during his travels and what he thinks they mean for the election?

no offense because i know there's a lot of lawn sign talk in these parts, but i was kind of shocked to see him go on about like that

I break it down to, some folks are convinced that we should have paid attention to other, non-predictors like SIZES OF CROWDS and LAWN SIGNS after 2016 because they have no idea what really won the election or how MOE works.

Are you sure it was him? Because I found myself reading some Tim Alberta thing on the subject this morning, and it seemed excessively detailed.

The trauma of 2016 manifests in a myriad of ways, particularly as it intersects the ongoing trauma of 2020.

Are you sure it was him? Because I found myself reading some Tim Alberta thing on the subject this morning, and it seemed excessively detailed.

― Ned Raggett, Tuesday, October 13, 2020

I read the same thing.

So what happens if the Dems have the house, get the WH, but fall short in the senate? Four years of nothing, extra bullshit and/or rancor?

Federal courts with literally zero judges as Mitch McConnell continues to execute the responsibilities the Founders whispered in his ear

One yard sign indicator that I take as good is that when I drove through North Philly in 2016 I saw very very few Hillary signs, certainly compared to all the Obama signs I saw there in '08 and '12. But this year there are a lot of Biden signs.

Pete does seem like one of the few prominent Dems who's at least CAPABLE of cutting through the layers of bullshit smarm that coat every facet of mainstream political discourse. his campaign was exceedingly terrible because as soon as he got the tiniest bit of national recognition he just completely overcorrected in the other direction and became Captain Restoring Norms

pete's hanging around so he can run again in 2024 or 2028, and meanwhile snag some position in the biden administration, like OMB chief or federal CTO or whatever.

Pete's perfect job in the new administration would be as volunteer to be hooked up to and communicate with whatever eldritch alien technology is sitting out in Area 51.

I despise Pete with such an intense passion that his continued presence as a living being makes my blood boil.

xps re the yard sign index:

I drove up to rural PA this weekend. Relatively few yard signs compared to a similar trip in 2016, when entire rural roads were just absolutely lined with Trump signs. Most of the signs I saw this time were for Trump, but there just weren't nearly as many of them. And there were a handful of Biden signs whereas in 2016 I saw none for Clinton.

I've probably mentioned before, but my neighborhood, which skews about 60/40 rep/dem, has had a major increase in Dem signs this year, while there were just none last time and a handful of bumper stickers.

I despise Pete with such an intense passion that his continued presence as a living being makes my blood boil.

Odds are he would respond to this with a rueful smile, a sad shake of his head, and a quick phone call to increase the costs of all of your staple foods by 500%

legit lol

speaking of rueful smiles:

I had to work harder on this than any other magazine piece I’ve written. But in the end it was among the most rewarding. https://t.co/jovMMHkWAP

— David Brooks (@nytdavidbrooks) October 11, 2020

Rueful smile or strained grunt?

Are you sure it was him? Because I found myself reading some Tim Alberta thing on the subject this morning, and it seemed excessively detailed.

― Ned Raggett

yep, definitely. it was on the WashPost's coverage of the hearings, while they were trying to fill time during a break. I immediately recognized him (i love his refusal to dress up or even wash his face before going on television, for real) and thought "hey that's dave weigel, a guy i've seen on twitter!")

maybe he read the same article you and alfred read, i suppose

cool!

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/va-politics/virginia-state-websites-shut-down/2020/10/13/8e4443d8-0d5d-11eb-b1e8-16b59b92b36d_story.html

speaking of rueful smiles:

I had to work harder on this than any other magazine piece I’ve written. But in the end it was among the most rewarding. https://t.co/jovMMHkWAP
— David Brooks (@nytdavidbrooks) October 11, 2020
― Patriotic Goiter (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Tuesday, October 13, 2020 12:54 PM (three minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

lol does this mean he had to take like THREE people to a Brooklyn sandwich shop so he could shake his head ruefully at their ignorance of prosciutto?

Are you sure it was him? Because I found myself reading some Tim Alberta thing on the subject this morning, and it seemed excessively detailed.

Have Weigel and Alberta ever been seen in the same room?

with David Brooks and some good prosciutto.

Brooks has been doing a lot more of the, "Gosh, everything is so bad, how did it get this bad!" type of column, while occasionally making correct diagnoses. To be honest, it would be unnerving under normal circumstances, but that he refuses to accept that conservative policies and social mores are responsible for a majority of these societal ills makes it just another day for him.

Also, I know we should focus on the here and now, but I will honestly say that I will do anything I can to prevent a Buttigieg presidency.

I have the same criticism about Buttigieg! xpost

I spent part of the weekend hiking in north GA and you can probably guess what the yard sign sitch was on the drive up. One in particular did stand out though. It was the guy’s name (which escapes me rn), underneath that “Republican” and underneath that a silhouette of whatever assault rifle gets chuds the frothiest. In its own super special way I kind of appreciated it.

If I had the time, cash, & frankly the temerity I’d consider moving safely outside the 285 loop, running the same campaign. and if I were to win, legislating as a pro-gun socialist until being recalled (or more likely assassinated).

with David Brooks and some good prosciutto.

― Patriotic Goiter (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Tuesday, October 13, 2020 12:03 PM (ten minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

what is this "pro-shoot-oh" you speak of? i went to a public university, sorry

My mom was telling me the other day about how much she likes David Brooks and appreciates his moral perspective. I held my tongue.

what is this "pro-shoot-oh" you speak of?

the chosen charcuterie of second amendment enthusiasts around the country

Meantime, remember this feeb?

Some quotes from Ronny Jackson, who was meant to pitch Biden's unfitness for office:

"I actually don't even practice medicine at this point."

"I literally had nothing to do with [Biden's] medical care at the White House."

"I'm not even remotely trying to diagnose him."

— Andrew Solender (@AndrewSolender) October 13, 2020

(He's due to land in the House, GOP safe seat by all accounts, and I hope he's miserable there every day.)