US Politics, August 2024 -- "Unburdened By a Has-Been"

As if a relatively junior Representative can significantly move US policy on Israel one way or another.

Yeah I think for AIPAC this isn't "We have to get rid of Cori Bush's massive influence," it's a signal that they can/will primary people who don't toe the line.

maybe hes already talked about it perhaps a minnesotan will tell us xp

It is astonishing to me that as the state has lurched into irretrievably red territory, that St. Louis Democrats have the time and energy for a primary squabble.

― cubing the gleam (Ye Mad Puffin), Wednesday, August 7, 2024 10:41 AM (ten minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

it wasn't a squabble, it was AIPAC upending the entire race. just a few months ago, Bell (the person who won last night) even told Bush he wasn't challenging her in the primary. then AIPAC dumped absurd amounts of money in his lap, and for some reason he decided to get in

Apparently the challenger was a campaign manager for a Republican just a couple years ago.

― Bad Bairns (Boring, Maryland), Wednesday, August 7, 2024 10:42 AM (nine minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

you mean for the general election? i have no idea who the challenger is, but there's no way they'll win. the districts in missouri are gerrymandered so that the democrats win in kansas city and st louis, and then lose in the other 6 districts. the real election is the primary.

Bell is a prosecutor, doesn't seem like a horrible guy or anything but he certainly represents AIPAC, and he was the one who declined to prosecute darren wilson, who murdered michael brown

cori bush was the first representative in the country to call for a cease fire in palestine after the genocide started, so she had to go

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyuLKi2LDq8

aipac def making an example of people, in line with israel generally over playing its hand

Since I was the guy saying "let's face it all politicians are pretty rich" the other day, worth commenting that it seems like Walz is actually... not that rich? Doesn't own a house (used to, sold his place for $315K when he moved into the governor's mansion), no book deal, doesn't own a single stock. I mean, I'm not saying he's working class, he makes a $160K salary as governor and he has a pension coming from being a teacher and I assume from Congress too. But he's not like Bernie Sanders or Kamala Harris rich (let alone Trump rich or Bloomberg rich.)

yeah theres no reason why politicians have to be rich, there is a good argument for electing ones who arent

Public school teachers from my own experience retire very comfortably (not sure how far back his political career goes) but not rich-rich.

https://i.imgur.com/1W5bVa2.png

not even one rich not even affluent

yeah, personally speaking i want a pro-wrestler who is eternally 5 years old, rich and who chooses an avatar that's a close-up pic of his own face smashed into the american flag and shouting at me whenever i see it

Is this a conservative position?

does it matter? JD is going to let corporate interests do whatever they want, whenever they want, because that's the function of the GOP, whether it's about foreign investors owning housing in the US or "bringing back jobs." their nationalism isn't about policy, it's just about stirring up anger and fear and racism. imo it's not worth taking seriously as a position or coherent ideology

yeah im sure if you asked a lot of republican voters should foreigners be able to own our wonderful american houses theyd say no (i agree fwiw) but that has nothing to do with what the bosses want

way xxxxxxp but Z_tbd I had heard that Bell worked on a Republican campaign, could be BS.

worth commenting that it seems like Walz is actually... not that rich?

Hence all the dollar bin stuff in his Electric Fetus haul.

I have a sneaking suspicion the "foreigners" they really mean are immigrants. Remember about 10-15 years ago there was a Republican movement at the local politics level to try to legally forbid undocumented immigrants from owning real estate (this was tried in Hazleton, PA, and endorsed nationwide by Kris Kobach from Kansas).

we had our own "Tea Party" County Commission chairman in Frederick County, MD who tried to do the same thing.

they def hate immigrants most of all but they do also hate foreigners generally, so i think both are prob true

Seems like Jon Tester sees an opening to become the new Joe Manchin. Ugh.

Montana U.S. Sen. Jon Tester was the state’s lone Democratic delegate to withhold a vote backing Vice President Kamala Harris for the 2024 ticket. At the same time, the senior senator is courting Republican voters during a tight re-election campaign.

Twenty-four of Montana’s 25 delegates to the Democratic National Convention voted to make Harris their presidential nominee. The delegates had to choose a new nominee after President Joe Biden ended his campaign last month.

Tester’s campaign confirmed Tuesday that he didn’t return a ballot in the convention’s virtual roll call vote. According to the Democratic National Committee, Harris won her party’s nomination with support from 99% of participating delegates.

Tester did not offer a statement on his decision. He often distances himself from national Democrats and works to maintain a moderate brand.

The incumbent launched a new component of his campaign this week called ‘Republicans for Tester’ with more than 100 members signed on. Notable supporters include former GOP Gov. Marc Racicot, former Secretary of State Bob Brown and sitting state Sen. Terry Vermeire of Anaconda. They say Tester puts people above party.

Grain of salt and all that, but we've doomscrolled polls so it's nice to hopescroll them too:

Harris now leads by 13 points with women (55%-42%).

She has gone from a 23-point lead with Black voters over Trump a couple of weeks ago, to a 54-point lead.

Harris is up 9 points with independents (53%-44%). She was down 14 points with them last month.

Harris has gone from… https://t.co/it8XKZMAuo

— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) August 7, 2024

way xxxxxxp but Z_tbd I had heard that Bell worked on a Republican campaign, could be BS.

oh, you're right! didn't know about it, but it was in 2006. interesting that in bell's current bio he says that he first got involved in politics and civil affairs during and after ferguson and michael brown. who knows

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/wesley-bell-republican-campaign-manag_n_66747f65e4b069d92e24ad5e

i'm sure bell will vote for harris legislation and do all the regular democratic party things, but unfortunately that includes providing the weapon systems for the people committing genocide and telling israel that they're eternal partners with the US and there's absolutely nothing they can do to break that bond

And if you can't see the embedded link with the topline #s:

NPR/PBS/Marist poll:

TWO-WAY
Harris 51%
Trump 48%

THIRD PARTIES ADDED
Harris 48%
Trump 45%

shes gonna win

you guys know that Chris Gentile is really just Garth Brooks in a wig, right?

maybe tim walz can be the one democrat not afraid to take back the word "progressive". "hell, yeah, i'm progressive, i'm not going back to a time without unions with donald trump."

you know what i mean? its such a dirty word thanks to the GOP. which, if you ask me, is WEIRD. its a perfectly good word.

fuck yeah she's going to win. by that, i mean the rational part of my brain knows that it's more like she has a 70% chance of winning but she has to win by a huge margin because of electoral college bullshit that will never be addressed (or even talked about - we are programmed by the great simulator and when "electoral college" comes up we stare blankly at each other because ... ______ ... reset procedure _XX13)

but the gutsy intuitive part of me thinks she's going to win, knows it, even. and that's a huge change, because my guts told me that biden had like a 0.00001% chance of winning

i already called it yesterday everyone is free to watch the olympics or whatever go swim in a lake

maybe tim walz can be the one democrat not afraid to take back the word "progressive". "hell, yeah, i'm progressive, i'm not going back to a time without unions with donald trump."

you know what i mean? its such a dirty word thanks to the GOP. which, if you ask me, is WEIRD. its a perfectly good word.

― scott seward, Wednesday, August 7, 2024 12:49 PM (one minute ago) bookmarkflaglink

its a nice word i could go for a little progress right now as a mater of fact

there is energy now around harris, and biden not only had zero energy, he sucked energy out the room and made people want to hide under a blanket and wait for a new astrological sign to arrive and spread its influence over the solar system

xp yeah if the electoral college is such a great idea why are we the ONLY COUNTRY IN THE WORLD that uses this bullshit

ha, lag∞n I actually mentioned that you had called it to my wife yesterday!

xxxp

gah bad syntax but w/e

Interesting that RFK is polling at 5% and presumably pulling 3% from Trump and 2% from Kamala (I figure she loses the other 1% to Stein.)

lag00n has seen enough

ha, lag∞n I actually mentioned that you had called it to my wife yesterday!

xxxp

― I painted my teeth (sleeve), Wednesday, August 7, 2024 12:51 PM (one minute ago) bookmarkflaglink

lmao, honored

you guys know that Chris Gentile is really just Garth Brooks in a wig, right?

― Andy the Grasshopper, Wednesday, August 7, 2024 11:47 AM (eight minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

yeah it was pretty obvious when he said his policy agenda was to pass cool stuff, slick stuff, and neat stuff

...i really like that!

harris/walz rally in wisconsin looks PACKED. i'm like a deadhead for these things now.

oh yeah well Trump is going to Montana for rally

shes gonna win

― lag∞n, Wednesday, August 7, 2024 12:46 PM (seventeen minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

i wish gawker was still around so you could do another guest post

eventually it will become a story that trump is just not really doing rallies any more. he has one this week (in Montana, not a swing state). Harris/walz have like 8.

living in the U.S.A

Books by Margaret Atwood, Judy Blume, Rupi Kaur and Sarah J Maas are among 13 titles that the state of Utah has ordered to be removed from all public school classrooms and libraries.

Implementation guidelines say that banned materials must be “legally disposed of” and “may not be sold or distributed”.

So straight-up book burning, that's where we're at now

Which tractor pull is he doing tonight

xp caek I read somewhere that part of the reason for that is that he has stiffed so many venues? also the reason why lots are outdoors.

shes gonna win

― lag∞n, Wednesday, August 7, 2024 12:46 PM (seventeen minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

i wish gawker was still around so you could do another guest post

― 𝔠𝔞𝔢𝔨 (caek), Wednesday, August 7, 2024 1:05 PM (two minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

bring back gawk (again)

I'm guessing it's some combination of

he's very tired which makes sense because he's old and sick
he's worried about the crowd size contrast
his people are worried that he makes less sense than he used to

he also got shot at one of those

yeah tbf I would not do any more if I got shot at one