Where Are We Runnin’? - American Politics Thread, May 2022

One thing's clear, the American remake of Years & Years will be a western.

on the one hand, yeah, he'll lie his face off. but on the other hand, why not let him?

Jan. 6 committee chairman Bennie Thompson says its “not our expectation” to call Donald Trump as a witness. He said it’s not clear Trump would enhance investigators’ understanding of the evidence they’ve already unearthed.

— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) May 17, 2022

Spokane is also a Christofascist shithole, has become whiter and whiter as white supremacists and assorted shitheads move there from Seattle and other parts of the state.

My husband was put in a coma by Nazi skinheads there when he was a teenager because he is mixed-race, and that was more than 20 years ago.

Talking with his mother, who is white, it is pretty certain that she and all of his white relatives are completely in thrall to these monsters. Really sad shit, to lose one’s mom in such a way.

it is so far beyond idaho, and it is not a good idea to ignore it to reduce it to ruby ridge 2.0. if only it were just that

a repeat of ruby ridge as one of the main news events of the year would be an ASTONISHING and unexpected return to form, the kind where even the detractors have to admit that they didn't see that one coming

Also Rob, it is difficult to take seriously the downplaying of Ruby Ridge as a turning point in the state— that and the Aryan Nation HQ being there did a lot of PR for the white nationalist movement. That is, it wasn’t simply one family’s stand-off with the US govt— they were part of a connected, worldwide movement to advance the interests of Aryan people, and the events there did not happen in a vacuum.

the people who have, earlier, said that it won't be a coup, because it will be legal by that point, were correct. this is happening across the country - the replacement of "moderate" GOP people with the full-on christian nationalist fascist kind. i have not heard a story about it being effectively combated.

also, i do think trump will legitimately win the vote in 2024, or come very close again, just because of who the people are in this country. so they might not even need to rely on their local GOP mutant troll army to do anything too illegal

I didn't mean to reduce it a redux of Ruby Ridge - I was just using that historical example to draw inference about the political identity of a big part of Idaho: i.e., this didn't start yesterday, it's been around for quite awhile in one form or another. But yeah, the idea that wealthy assholes from CA are moving up there, even being actively recruited to move up there, is very disturbing... as is the takeover of the GOP.

sorry Andy, i'm not sure why i said it that way, i know you weren't trying to say it was on the same thing or anything like that. i put you in strawman land a little too quickly there, sorry!

i think for halloween this year i might go as a strawman and just let people have at me

there's a straawwwmaaaan
waiting in the sty

xp to table

True and point very much taken. tbf I was responding to what I thought Andy was saying: [inaccurate paraphrase deleted after reading his clarification], which I thought off-base after reading about such an alarming accumulation of legitimate state power. But you're right, it's wrong to dismiss RR as the work of loners.

xposts: sorry for bad posting blargh

apologies if this was already noted, I only saw it today

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/16/us/politics/biden-military-somalia.html

WASHINGTON — President Biden has signed an order authorizing the military to once again deploy hundreds of Special Operations forces inside Somalia — largely reversing the decision by President Donald J. Trump to withdraw nearly all 700 ground troops who had been stationed there, according to four officials familiar with the matter.

In addition, Mr. Biden has approved a Pentagon request for standing authority to target about a dozen suspected leaders of Al Shabab, the Somali terrorist group that is affiliated with Al Qaeda, three of the officials said. Since Mr. Biden took office, airstrikes have largely been limited to those meant to defend partner forces facing an immediate threat.

Together, the decisions by Mr. Biden, described by the officials on the condition of anonymity, will revive an open-ended American counterterrorism operation that has amounted to a slow-burn war through three administrations. The move stands in contrast to his decision last year to pull American forces from Afghanistan, saying that “it is time to end the forever war.”

he probably forgot

The Bolivarian Government of Venezuela has verified and confirmed the news published to the effect that the United States of America has authorized U.S. and European oil companies to negotiate and restart operations in Venezuela.

— Delcy Rodríguez (@delcyrodriguezv) May 17, 2022

I've seen enough: Lt. Gov. John Fetterman (D) defeats Rep. Conor Lamb (D) in the #PASEN Dem primary.

— Dave Wasserman (@Redistrict) May 18, 2022

That’s cool, this guy rocks

Mostly mentioning this because guy's name is literally Chesebro.

The suit also names as defendants James R. Troupis, a lawyer for the Trump campaign in Wisconsin, and Kenneth Chesebro, a Massachusetts lawyer who wrote a key December 2020 memo to Mr. Troupis proposing the fake elector scheme.

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/17/us/politics/wisconsin-fake-electors.html

Another positive development:

I've seen enough: Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R) has lost renomination to state Sen. Chuck Edwards (R) in the #NC11 GOP primary.

— Dave Wasserman (@Redistrict) May 18, 2022

lmao

I've seen enough.

you ain't seen nothin' yet

well, yeah

Good to hear.

Cawthorn to deliver concession speech wearing only cocaine, a key ring w/keys, and a wheelchair.

Fetterman got almost 60% of the vote, btw. Will a single journalist concede that his positions represent the Democratic mainstream? No, of course not.

Why is it necessary to "concede" what no one would deny? Everything on here

https://johnfetterman.com/issues/

looks to me like something 90% of elected Democrats, including the President of the United States, would sign on to. That sounds like Democratic mainstream to me.

(Except legalizing weed, which I do think Dems would probably be smart to whole-heartedly instead of half-heartedly adopt.)

Cawthorn finally going down, one of the only examples of a republican being held accountable in the last several years, and it’s because of cocaine and orgies, is one of the most bleakly funny things that has ever happened

Re weed, Tennessee couldn't even muster the outrage to ban Delta 8 this year, because the vape shops are making too much money. The weed war is effectively over, Democrats ought to declare victory and make fun of politicians who pretend to be worried about it.

seems like it's a similar situation here in Texas, at least in Austin. There are tons of stores that sell delta 8 and other weed-like products, and they were all panicking that they were going to be shut down immanently, but then the day came and it didn't happen, it's still being sold everywhere.

In #OR05, progressive Jamie McLeod-Skinner (D) carrying Deschutes Co. (Bend) 70%-30% over Rep. Kurt Schrader (D). Looking very grim for the incumbent Blue Dog.

— Dave Wasserman (@Redistrict) May 18, 2022

Cawthorn’s remaining term will be interesting.

honestly i think he ends up on newsmax. i know people always say that about various politicians, that they're headed to cable, but he's perfect for newsmax, and they definitely don't give a fuck

i love when the newsmax hosts just let the other person (giuliani, navarro, whoever) just go off as long as they want, and they even start laughing and look to the side at their producers as it gets more outrageous. even dogshit cnn hosts know not to do that

hi this is newsmax's Normal Kegger, and I'm your host madison cawthorn

today I will tell you about my visit to Hitler's House, where I learned how to bide a Reich

come on, everybody who goes to europe goes to hitler's house. you gotta go to hitler's house it's beautifu, just beautiful land

what, is it now illegal to go to hitler's house? is hiter's house banned? are we not supposed to admit that it happened now? isn't this what's wrong with america, the censorship of hitler?

god...i'm just gonna go to hitler's house to make a point, now, and maybe make my own little custom hitler button on the flight there...

Centrists are playing the long game getting creamed in the primaries - when the Democrats eat shit in November they can blame it on the "progressive wing."

I mean, they'd do that anyway but they'll have more fun doing it now.

i also find this really funny

I'm done.

I no longer believe the Republican Party can be saved. The vitriolic rhetoric is inspiring violent radicals.

I'm quitting the GOP. And I hope more do the same.

— Miles Taylor (@MilesTaylorUSA) May 17, 2022

that's the "anonymous" trump official NYT op-ed guy from 2018. he's HAD it!

Cawthorn finally going down, one of the only examples of a republican being held accountable in the last several years, and it’s because of cocaine and orgies, is one of the most bleakly funny things that has ever happened

and it wasn't even his cocaine or his orgies!!

it was some shit he most likely made up to seem cool on Warrior Poet Radio is the funniest thing

well, bizarro cool. qanon cool.

He should have just named Matt Gaetz

“Warrior Poet Radio”?

“Warrior Poet Radio”?

Nebraska last week, Idaho this week - GOP voters nearly tossing out secretaries of state *in places Trump won* bc they're so Lindell-pilled. https://t.co/gZIhpn8AJM

— David Weigel (@daveweigel) May 18, 2022

lurid/bleak profile. difficult to see this ending well tbh

https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2022/05/13/madison-cawthorn-injury-profile-00032002

i started reading that and then realised i have no interest in this fuckhead