U.S. Politics, November 2022: “I don’t know, you hear the same things I do”

xp yeah, one of many

https://www.thebulwark.com/attack-ads-are-darkening-the-skin-tone-of-black-candidates/

every single Packer game so far there's been this attack ad against Barnes that says he wants to "cut the prison population in half" and every time I see it I say "that's a little extreme, the regular death penalty is enough"

love the fact that Ds hate his guts, because they hate liberals in return

Politics has been cynically called the systematic organization of hatreds.

I don't think that's so for everyone everywhere. But it certainly seems like "he has the same enemies as me" is a pretty good predictor of voting patterns.

Further, "would like to have a beer with" is often just a nicer way of saying "he has the same enemies as me."

In my hate-reading of various aoshq and donald.win and q stuff, there is loads of "I don't really have a politics except hating libs" greeted by "that's enough, fren."

Cruz skates in Texas because he has the strength of the Texas GOP behind him, which is what his voters are really voting for--he could be anyone.

He's a fitting avatar to a lot of exurban nebbish cowboys who take F-250s to their office building.

It really doesn't matter which lump of misshapen, swearing clay that someone hastily slaps a fake beard on, as long as there's an (R) after the name, it'll win.

meant sweating, but probably swearing too

Yeah but how does anyone get any inspiration from venal toads like, say, Ron Johnson? He'd never get elected for anything if there wasn't a -R after his name on the ballot.

Owning the libs, sticking it to those cultural elites who made a RAPPER one of the heroic agents on your favorite CBS military crime drama.

Yeah I think one of the organizational and vision-coherence problems for the left is that it's much less driven by anger, fear and resentment than the right. I know, Tucker Carlson's head would probably explode at that — I hope — but it's hilarious to me how so much right-wing rhetoric is dependent on painting Dems/liberals as these wild-eyed hateful maniacs. If only! Not that there isn't real anger on the left, at injustices and inequities, but it's more structural than personal. Where the anger on the right is all personal, all ad hominem, hating individual people. That's what Libs of Tiktok is all about, naming and shaming specific people. I listened to a local podcast today (for work purposes) where two right-wing lunatics were frothing about young adult books in school libraries with trans characters. The male co-host kept repeating that any person "exposing children to this pornography" should be "thrown out of a helicopter." He said that about 12 times, savoring the phrase more each time.

Where especially among middle-class and affluent liberals I think there's a real hesitance to personalize the fights, to see the other side as evil, there's an assumption that there's some reasonable way to work things out. And to distance themselves from anyone on the left they perceive as too angry. There's an anger gap, basically. And that's probably inevitable given the basic difference in right and left worldviews, the left worldview is inherently more inclusive as a primary value. But, like the man says, anger is an energy. If you don't have that to fire people up, you need something else.

the old Alex Cockburn story

Which brings me briefly to Ed Miliband, now chosen to be the leader of the British Labor Party. The last time I saw Eddie he was an intern at the Nation in the late 1980s or early 1990s. Round the corner from the Nation when it was on Fifth and 13th st in Manhattan was Zinno’s restaurant and amid a pleasant lunch with JoAnWypijewski, my own intern Richie McKerrow and Eddie, I asked the future leader what I asked all interns as a matter of form, “Eddie, is your hate pure?”

The man who first asked me that question was the late Jim Goode, editor of Penthouse. Like Playboy, Penthouse would pay good money for long articles about the corruption of America, thus giving the pointyheads an excuse to thumb through the pinups. Goode, tall and cadaverous, was gay, clad in black leather as he crouched on the floor of his office, gazing morosely at hundreds of photos of bare-breasted women. As I entered with some screed about corporate and political evil, he snarl, “Alex, is your hate pure?” “Yes, Jim, my hate is pure.”

It was a good way of assaying interns. The feisty ones would respond excitedly, “Yes, my hate is pure.” I put the question to Eddie Miliband. He gaped at me in shock like Gussie Fink-Nottle watching one of his newts vanish down the plug hole in his bath. “I…I… don’t hate anyone, Alex,” he stammered. It’s all you need to know.

Owning the libs, sticking it to those cultural elites who made a RAPPER one of the heroic agents on your favorite CBS military crime drama.

It will probably never happen but I am still holding out hope for a crossover episode in which NCIS:LA's LL Cool J meets L&O:SVU's Ice-T.

Bonus points if their suspect somehow ends up being played by Ice Cube

Where especially among middle-class and affluent liberals I think there's a real hesitance to personalize the fights, to see the other side as evil, there's an assumption that there's some reasonable way to work things out. And to distance themselves from anyone on the left they perceive as too angry. There's an anger gap, basically. And that's probably inevitable given the basic difference in right and left worldviews, the left worldview is inherently more inclusive as a primary value. But, like the man says, anger is an energy. If you don't have that to fire people up, you need something else.

OTM! The anger gap reminds me of how some liberals found Michael Moore's work distasteful for being too much like "propaganda" in its presentation, i.e., appealing to people's emotions/anger rather than calmly, bloodlessly presenting the facts. It's less present now, but candidates like Gore seemed to believe that firing people up was taking the low road.

(this is worse than a cigar in a waiting room)

where's the tax returns?

good afternoon!

hope you're doing well, alfred :)

Thanks, qualmsey, likewise. I've tried. Please come back regularly.

Rank & file voters are deeply concerned about crime, chiefly Hunter's laptop crimes

Well we'll have an investigative committee for that very soon, don't you worry.

A non-USian asks: is there any chance that the Democrats will do better than expected?

Yes. Definitely.

But it's a wait and see thing. FiveThirtyEight kind of laid out the various scenarios iirc

Seeing a lot of reports about turnout being high, especially among young people, so ya Dems could definitely beat expectations. GOP enthusiasm is high too though

I doubt there will be a blowout, either way

there's been a lot of Dem doom-mongering lately, but that's also a way to drive voters to the polls - so it's hard to read what's really going on

covid has probably killed significantly more repulican voters than democrats, so there's that.

Nearly 500,000 people have voted in Philadelphia. 91% of 2018 with 70 mins to go

— umichvoter 🏳️‍🌈 (@umichvoter) November 8, 2022

This for example seems good

Tbh I never had high hopes for 2022 but Oz winning would be legitimately depressing. A guy like that should lose In Pennsylvania by 40.

covid has probably killed significantly more repulican voters than democrats

true dat, but mask mandates super-energized the republican base to vote for FREEDOM

The media keeps alive this myth of intra-party mobility - i.e. 'well, I think the GOP is better on crime and the economy, so I'll give them a shot this time around.' And I just think it's utter bullshit - everyone is voting for the party they always vote for, it's super calcified. So.. it's all about turnout

It’s probably mentioned above, but Fetterman defeated the establishment Dem candidate in the primaries, thus plenty of people in the state machine(and their media friends) have incentive for him to lose.

The media keeps alive this myth of intra-party mobility - i.e. 'well, I think the GOP is better on crime and the economy, so I'll give them a shot this time around.' And I just think it's utter bullshit - everyone is voting for the party they always vote for, it's super calcified. So.. it's all about turnout

the media does like to find weird examples of people who are voting for Shapiro and Oz; because Mastriano is 'crazy' but they think Oz is not? I dunno how many idiots there are like this but I fear there are many.

Swing voters definitely exist they’re just mostly complete weirdos like Ken Bone

I’m shocked Bone isn’t running for something this year

I'm more hopeful that Fetterman will win than Cortez-Masto. If she loses, then Warnock better pull it out, or we will lose the Senate.

warnock is way ahead as of right now, but only like 30% of the votes are in

DeSantis already predicted to have won. No surprise but fuck you Ron anyway

Nixon in 1973 moment. DeSantis had his best night. It's his peak now that Trump will be the nominee.

Incredible that he barely eked it out against the guy who got busted in an hourly motel with meth and now this. America!

DeSantis now praying that DT chokes on a chicken wing and/or strokes out on the shitter some time between tomorrow and primary season '24.

Whomst among us

Ron at his most relatable!

Lol

Crist fucking sucks though it’s true

posting this should get you pelted with rotten fruit

This is the way I’ve voted in basically every election since I became a journalist: Blank ballot. Only because of the current climate do I feel like sharing publicly. #PoliticalCelibacy pic.twitter.com/g8FKR5spih

— Dave Orrick (@DaveOrrick) November 8, 2022

Taking "No Nut November" way too seriously.

fun

It is very likely that the top of the ticket Republicans will be ahead after tonight, with thousands of mail ballots uncounted.

Will they try to declare victory even though the races may not be over?

What do you think?

Ugh.

— Jon Ralston (@RalstonReports) November 9, 2022

OK, I checked and the crook I voted for, Bob Menendez Jr., is winning 82-18. Even Tom Malinowski, the guy I've seen the most attack ads against this year, is up 63-37 over the son of one of our former Republican governors. Jersey ain't flipping red anytime soon.

Betcha Warnock/Walker goes to runoff.

Red Tsunami 🤔

— Political Polls (@PpollingNumbers) November 9, 2022

not looking very red wave-ish

— John Harwood (@JohnJHarwood) November 9, 2022

Lol the Needle is back but they completely changed it to not be panic attacky anymore.

No I'm not watching, taking Tracer's advice

So far tonight’s results are like an advertisement for DeSantis’ candidacy for Republicans. He waxed his opponent, delivered 3 seats with an aggressive gerrymander in his seat while Trump nominees are running behind Generic R’s all around.

— Chris Hayes (@chrislhayes) November 9, 2022