And Sleepy Joe Will Get The Credit: US Politics January 2021

obvs hes very good at media

Assumes facts not in evidence. He was very good at saying things that will keep the camera on him from 2015-2016, but the last four years have rubbed a lot of the shine off him as far as non-Fox/OAN/Newsmax journalists are concerned. He is not gonna be somebody Chuck Todd's gonna book on Meet the Press to talk about what he thinks of whatever Biden's doing.

To be clear -- this clip is *not* edited. This really happened. https://t.co/ptS2MkgiW4

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) January 6, 2021

Lmao No one watches meet the press except like three people on this thread xp

lol yeah trump literally had the top rated tv show before any of this shit and has been a media presence pretty much his entire adult life

I think if Biden & the Dems handle Covid well and life gets somewhat 'back to normal' next year they'll do fine in the midterms

well, depends on how well they handle the arrival of General Zod later this fall

MAGA rallies are basically circuit parties for exurbanites AFAICT

He is not gonna be somebody Chuck Todd's gonna book on Meet the Press to talk about what he thinks of whatever Biden's doing.

He won't do this sort of gig, but, like, Pat Buchanan was a loser asshole with the stink of racism and anti-semitism around him, and he was on TV all the time. Or, for another example, Rick Santorum, who is a professional loser talking head, too. Trump, however, is not particularly ambitious, just egotistical and narcissistic. I wouldn't be shocked if he just did rallies for the rest of his life, except he'll charge for them.

But ultimately, who the fuck cares. As long as I get to experience his death.

I think if Biden & the Dems handle Covid well and life gets somewhat 'back to normal' next year they'll do fine in the midterms

― frogbs, Wednesday, January 6, 2021 11:00 AM (thirty-seven seconds ago) bookmarkflaglink

prob what they think too lol

I do not want to experience Trump’s death

Imagine all the farts

but things arent just going to go —back to normal— on their own

Trump will no longer be a viable media presence because he has to make everything about himself. How tiresome will that be after the last 4 years? His why-me, no-fair whining in the last several weeks helped cost the GOP 2 Senate seats. How much more of that do people want?

I always appreciate ILX has a more historical perspective on the current GOP/Trump, as opposed to the Twitterverse where everything is brand new. Trump being the culmination of the last 50 years of the GOP etc

however, i do think it's not wrong to point out that Trump IS a pretty unique figure in American politics! And as lagoon mentioned we now have a large portion of the country that truly believes what would have 20 years ago been real tinfoil hat/talking to statues in a public park type stuff AND who see him as a god emperor of sorts

the GOP's strategy in Georgia was to triple down on Trump and it didn't work, but they also don't have any kind of clear path to move away from him either

obviously, racism is always their go-to but honestly can they make racism as this vile, nihilistic entertainment like Trump does? I don't think the old school dog whistle shit cuts it anymore - his crowd wants the pissy dramatics - and I don't believe just anyone can do what Trump does, he is a performer

Also, no one wants to hear his fucking voice except his fans, and in a milieu where ratings actually mean money, immediately turning off half the audience is probably a bad bet on anything but basic cable.

Which is to say, they should give Trump one of those ice fishing shows or something.

he is very good at tv, its kind of funny when people hate him so much they cant see this, got to know your enemy

rudy has just called for 'trial by combat'

Promising more dough + Trump not on the ticket + Xmas holiday season + lol another election -- all helped Dems.

probably a bad bet on anything but basic cable.

― Josh in Chicago, Wednesday, January 6, 2021 11:06 AM (one minute ago) bookmarkflaglink

yeah i mean a fox news show is the obvious choice

I kind of think these runoff results put a nail in Trump’s coffin in a way that even losing the general didn’t.

Predictive headline: “Raphael Warnock will have to run for re-election in just two years. If he wants to win over the Cracker Barrel voters he needs to start right now.”

— jelani cobb (@jelani9) January 6, 2021

so much to do, but yeah this also:

I know there are pressing issues like reuniting immigrant children with their families, but can we also prioritize fixing the Post Office? Like getting rid of the onerous pension funding requirement imposed by the Republicans so they can be profitable again? Asking for small business owners everywhere.

(from a friend on FB)

One thing I feel hopeful about is that the $2,000 stimulus is already on the table and can be passed quickly through budget reconciliation. In addition to the obvious merits of giving out money during a pandemic, it would serve as a clear signal to the public that Democrats, when they control Congress and the White House, can Get Things Done and tangibly make people's lives better.

Trump is McCarthy 2.0 and the natural extension of the Tea Party; I think pointing him out as "unique" undersells how the Republican infrastructure plainly and obviously contorted itself into a position where he would be its most effective avatar

Totally love that Pence is reportedly the target of Trump's full wrath right now.

he is very good at tv, its kind of funny when people hate him so much they cant see this, got to know your enemy

― lag∞n, Wednesday, January 6, 2021 10:06 AM (three minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

idk most people seem to acknowledge this as Trump's one real skill. his reality show was the one thing he did that actually made money

a lot of people ive talked to will not admit it!

I’ll stop for now but I honestly think Trump will go into a downward spiral/overstay his welcome/completely self destruct. His legions? Yeah I’m still scared of them. But not him.

xpost djp yeah that's totally true and i said that at the beginning of my post

but if we can't acknowledge the ways in which he's different - and the ways he's thrived in a media/social media environment that's like life on mars compared to when mccarthy was alive it misses a big part of it

like their problem is not that their voters aren't racist or won't respond to the usual GOP bullshit - it's a big part of their electorate wants the SHOW, which isn't as easy to do

Trump is McCarthy 2.0 and the natural extension of the Tea Party; I think pointing him out as "unique" undersells how the Republican infrastructure plainly and obviously contorted itself into a position where he would be its most effective avatar

― Totino's Fortnite Training Room (DJP)

and Reagan without the mask. The party has lurched toward this inevitability for fifty years.

lagoon otm, it's weird when people can't see how good at media the politicians they disagree with are (e.g., Obama & leftists). I mean yes I can't stand the sound of trump's voice but I'm not the audience

probably because when you admit it you start going down the track of "is Trump some kind of 3-D chess hypnotist genius?" which he clearly he not

Trump is McCarthy 2.0 and the natural extension of the Tea Party; I think pointing him out as "unique" undersells how the Republican infrastructure plainly and obviously contorted itself into a position where he would be its most effective avatar

― Totino's Fortnite Training Room (DJP), Wednesday, January 6, 2021 11:12 AM (one minute ago) bookmarkflaglink

i think he unique in the fact that hes this non politician showman who didnt owe the party anything and won by being a bizarre insult comedian, but yeah he absolutely represents the culture/ideals of conservatism better than the party

I kind of think these runoff results put a nail in Trump’s coffin in a way that even losing the general didn’t.

My wife claims she heard some pundit insist Trump intentionally tanked the GA elections because he didn't want to be the only Republican to have lost the state, and I was all lol no way, that is exactly the kind of 5D chess he does not play. He tanked it because he is a shortsighted selfish stupid asshole.

tbc trump's not a canny political strategist, he's good at getting attention

i guess well get to see if anyone can repeat that performance lol yikes xp self

He’s the living embodiment of ‘there’s no such thing as bad publicity’.

xp

Anyway, as far as post president Trump goes, Trump Stink is possibly the most popular American scent of all time, and potentially the most costly. Watch your back, Axe Body Wash, nothing covers bad smells like another bad smell.

probably because when you admit it you start going down the track of "is Trump some kind of 3-D chess hypnotist genius?" which he clearly he not

― frogbs, Wednesday, January 6, 2021 10:17 AM (one minute ago) bookmarkflaglink

i mean he's a fucking idiot

honestly...to lagoon's point he probably reminds me of late 80s Andrew Dice Clay (in terms of his performance) than any other politician

i think where trump is good at politics and not just good at media is hes willing to break washington taboos and express actually popular sentiments that are off limits due to them being not popular with the powers that be, there is something to be learned from that for upstart lefty dems

yep

or am i supposed to say "thats right"

i never know how to use that one

Trump is obviously a magnetic presence, which goes both ways. People who like the message he sells have formed a cult of personality around him, while the rest of us can't get over how much he disgusts us (and our revulsion in turn adds to the cult of personality). Both his supporters and detractors find him outlandish and comical to a certain extent; they just differ on whether or not that's a good thing. No one else in the Republican Party is operating at that level.

tbc, I push back on describing Trump as unique because I believe it invites complacency. Obviously he has his particular set of skills (soundbyte-y quipping, ostentatious jackholery, preternaturally terrible at being photographed) and he has leveraged them in a transformative way; it is a surface transformation, not a fundamental one, and I think there is real and obvious danger in allowing the framing of his abilities as unique and only sustainable to him to lead to the conclusion that the fervent following he has whipped up is going to become disillusioned and fade away now that Trump himself has run out of runway as an elected official.

to me his historical position is what's unique to him, not anything about his psychology (though it has certainly influenced the former)

i think where trump is good at politics and not just good at media is hes willing to break washington taboos and express actually popular sentiments that are off limits due to them being not popular with the powers that be, there is something to be learned from that for upstart lefty dems

exactly. if Trump can win an election on "Mexico's gonna pay for a wall that literally cannot be built" then Dems can figure out how to campaign on broadly popular healthcare & climate legislation

another way i think about it is that the success of trump's 'saying the quiet part out loud' style, rather than being unrepeatable, has instead given any other republicans pre-approval to be even less apologetic for their racist bullshit than they would have been heretofore

this is some of the alltime weirdest shit, salute to a legend lol, hope you die shitting yrself on a gold toilet

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvQDc76-ZyA

another way i think about it is that the success of trump's 'saying the quiet part out loud' style, rather than being unrepeatable, has instead given any other republicans pre-approval to be even less apologetic for their racist bullshit than they would have been heretofore

― Li'l Brexit (Tracer Hand),

Yes. Without Trump's uh panache.

They should turn all of his hotels into YMCAs.

if Trump can win an election on "Mexico's gonna pay for a wall that literally cannot be built" then Dems can figure out how to campaign on broadly popular healthcare & climate legislation