Exactly a week ago, Jake Sherman of Punchbowl News reported that Republican House leaders were talking about moving the government funding debate away from spending levels—their original complaint—to border security. “[T]he vast majority of House R[epublican]s,” Sherman wrote, “would rather fight on border policy than spending.”
Republicans cannot govern and McCarthy cannot lead. McCarthy won't keep his promise. It's fairly pathetic to watch them and yes, the public will blame them.
If I'm Biden, I make the point that, as the great ultra-conservative John Wayne has said...."A man's word is his bond, and his handshake is a sacred symbol of that bond, and I [Biden] try to avoid dealing with people whose word is no good. He's broken his word already, so why would I believe he will not break it again. I find it very disappointing...Kevin sought to be Speaker of the House, and has wound up being Speaker of the GOP Liar's Club...and nothing more."
Too bad Jeffries doesn't find six Republicans who like not to be hung out to dry by the Fweedumbasses, get a Discharge Petition for the Senate CR, vote it into law and tell the Confederate traitors to go pound sand. And send the world's dumbest Okiefornian back to Bakersfield.
I'm always surprised that news reports don't mention what is painfully obvious if you can force yourself to watch MAGAs talk. They LOVE the idea of a government shutdown. They see "the government" as their enemy. These House idiots aren't going to lose supporters on this.
The question is how long will the chaos caucus in the House be allowed to hang up funding the government. I think that this will eventually turn on their taking down McCarthy as Speaker for not being sufficiently hard ass and it will then take a handful of the most vulnerable Republicans in the House to cross the aisle to elect a Speaker who will not bow to the chaotics demands. That may take a long long time...
"This is Shelby Connor from Parrish, Alabama. We've had 260 box car loads of dog gone shit sittin' at our rail yard for months. It stinks.”
"That's a state matter. Did you call the Alabama Department of Environmental Management?"
"What ya'll mean? These trainloads of shit have come down from New York. It's a federal inter-sate matter."
"Sir, please be respectful. It's human waste.”
"I don't care what you call it. It's stinkin' up our town. We can't even go to a Little League baseball game ‘cause the boxcars are right across the tracks. How would you like to drive to church on Sunday and take a whiff of it while praying to the Lord?”
"Did Trump send this stench down here because we didn't elect Roy Moore? Let me speak with your director."
“Sir, Mr. Pruitt isn't available. And he no longer reviews environmental issues. Our new mandate from the president is to help companies get rid of waste the cheapest way possible. They probably picked Alabama because your dumping rates are so low. You'll have to call the West Virginia office to file a complaint. They handle waste disposal. Oh wait, that office has been closed down, too."
"I wanna know why New York and New Jersey’s shit is sittin’ in our little town. Git the stuff outta here."
“Shelby, shouting into the phone won't get you anywhere. I'm trying to help. Here, let me give you the Denver office. They have experience handling bio solids. Oops, sorry, that office was recently closed, too. Mr. Connor, we're not going to be around much longer as an agency. The EPA is shutting down. Haven't you heard?"
"I voted for Donald Trump. And now he's turning his backside on us."
"The president is doing a great job getting rid of regulations so more jobs can be created. Do you know how many people you could employ shoveling that sludge into a dump? Your residents could have more work for generations. I suggest that you could turn this waste into fertilizer-rich compost and grow organic vegetables."
"You got a point there. That’s why we voted for him. I need a second job, too. How can we git more New York bio waste?"
On Trump’s bid for union support (in a non-union venue, no less!), it should be remembered that virtually every right to work state has a Republican legislature. They are implacably hostile to collective bargaining.
I hope that McConnell does not succeed in distinguishing and distancing Republicans in the Senate from their crazy brethren in the House. Considering that the vast majority of Republicans in the Senate refused to vote to convict Trump on his two impeachments, I don't see how he can make the case that there is ANY difference in kind.
How many times were some of us calling these nut cases fascists dismissed? Many saw the Tea Party movement for what it was and where it was heading when it rose it ugly head, but they were told they were over reacting.
As a retired public educator who had to live under the continued attack of conservatives, they worked to ruin the public education system. That set the stage for where we are now.
Wealthy conservatives ran the strategies put forth in the Lewis Powell Memo which was basically about gain power through taking over the informal power structures of society while working to fill government positions with "believers" of their "free, unregulated capitalism". What ever commonsense conservatives had, they have now acquiesced their responsibility if leadership to the extremists.
Under regulate business while over regulating the agency responsible for oversight, then make sure that the oversight agency is underfunded and then blame them for their failures. This happened in Texas with public education. It is now omnipresent is how the conservative faction is now governing. You can pull up the 1980 Libertarian platform and draw a line to this extreme group that is not calling the shots.
Historians of democracies and authoritarian have shown that it does not take but a few well placed people to being down a democracy. America is not immune. Let's hope that Churchill's faith in the American people is true "Americans will do the right thing, but only after trying everything else."
11 Republican Senators vote against the nomination of the black general who was confirmed as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs. The Republican majority in the house votes to reduce the salary of the black Secretary of defense. Could their agenda be any clearer?
Then Trump can say anything and it flies. Anything at all.
Dunning/Kruger is my favourite. That one is about how it is impossible to know how stupid you are if you lack the intellect to comprehend your own stupidity.
Sad to say, my stellar U.S. Rep, Jennifer Wexton, will not be seeking re-election in 2024. She has been a shero for Democrats in an otherwise red district in Virginia.
Here is her letter (excerpted): "By now, some of you will have seen the news about my plans for 2024. I wanted to take a couple of minutes to reach out to all of you who have been a part of Team Wexton – to share my endless gratitude, explain my decision, and reflect upon my time in Congress.
Back in April, I shared that I had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease. At the time, I made the decision to carry on with my Congressional work and political activity. My doctors believed that my condition would not stop me from performing my duties in Congress, and my goal was to stay in office for years to come.
"During the months that followed, as my symptoms worsened, I sought additional medical opinions and was given an updated diagnosis of progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP). It is a rare neurological disorder that is often mistaken for Parkinson’s in its early stages– but while both are progressive degenerative diseases, PSP develops far more rapidly.
"After some difficult and honest conversations with my family and doctors, I’ve concluded that juggling the realities of a re-election campaign in a tough district while managing the symptoms of my PSP is not feasible for me. It’s with a heavy heart – yet also a deep appreciation for the privilege I’ve been granted by the people of Virginia’s 10th District – that I will be retiring from Congress at the end of my current term.
"I wish that I could serve longer. But being able to serve at all has been the highest honor of my life. And it was people like you that made it all the more worth it.
To my family, to my staff, and to all my supporters: thank you for everything.
September 27, 2023
Why not reduce their pay to a dollar a year?
Republicans cannot govern and McCarthy cannot lead. McCarthy won't keep his promise. It's fairly pathetic to watch them and yes, the public will blame them.
So McCarthy wants to meet with Biden!
If I'm Biden, I make the point that, as the great ultra-conservative John Wayne has said...."A man's word is his bond, and his handshake is a sacred symbol of that bond, and I [Biden] try to avoid dealing with people whose word is no good. He's broken his word already, so why would I believe he will not break it again. I find it very disappointing...Kevin sought to be Speaker of the House, and has wound up being Speaker of the GOP Liar's Club...and nothing more."
Too bad Jeffries doesn't find six Republicans who like not to be hung out to dry by the Fweedumbasses, get a Discharge Petition for the Senate CR, vote it into law and tell the Confederate traitors to go pound sand. And send the world's dumbest Okiefornian back to Bakersfield.
Todays Redumblican party… completely tone deaf, dumb and blind…. Coming to a race near you! For the love of Pete, get out the Vote!!!
I'm always surprised that news reports don't mention what is painfully obvious if you can force yourself to watch MAGAs talk. They LOVE the idea of a government shutdown. They see "the government" as their enemy. These House idiots aren't going to lose supporters on this.
The question is how long will the chaos caucus in the House be allowed to hang up funding the government. I think that this will eventually turn on their taking down McCarthy as Speaker for not being sufficiently hard ass and it will then take a handful of the most vulnerable Republicans in the House to cross the aisle to elect a Speaker who will not bow to the chaotics demands. That may take a long long time...
Environmental Protection Agency
"Hello, EPA, may I help you?"
"This is Shelby Connor from Parrish, Alabama. We've had 260 box car loads of dog gone shit sittin' at our rail yard for months. It stinks.”
"That's a state matter. Did you call the Alabama Department of Environmental Management?"
"What ya'll mean? These trainloads of shit have come down from New York. It's a federal inter-sate matter."
"Sir, please be respectful. It's human waste.”
"I don't care what you call it. It's stinkin' up our town. We can't even go to a Little League baseball game ‘cause the boxcars are right across the tracks. How would you like to drive to church on Sunday and take a whiff of it while praying to the Lord?”
"Did Trump send this stench down here because we didn't elect Roy Moore? Let me speak with your director."
“Sir, Mr. Pruitt isn't available. And he no longer reviews environmental issues. Our new mandate from the president is to help companies get rid of waste the cheapest way possible. They probably picked Alabama because your dumping rates are so low. You'll have to call the West Virginia office to file a complaint. They handle waste disposal. Oh wait, that office has been closed down, too."
"I wanna know why New York and New Jersey’s shit is sittin’ in our little town. Git the stuff outta here."
“Shelby, shouting into the phone won't get you anywhere. I'm trying to help. Here, let me give you the Denver office. They have experience handling bio solids. Oops, sorry, that office was recently closed, too. Mr. Connor, we're not going to be around much longer as an agency. The EPA is shutting down. Haven't you heard?"
"I voted for Donald Trump. And now he's turning his backside on us."
"The president is doing a great job getting rid of regulations so more jobs can be created. Do you know how many people you could employ shoveling that sludge into a dump? Your residents could have more work for generations. I suggest that you could turn this waste into fertilizer-rich compost and grow organic vegetables."
"You got a point there. That’s why we voted for him. I need a second job, too. How can we git more New York bio waste?"
(From "Donald's Vanity Tantrums")
There is a “No Pay for Congress During Default or Shutdown Act” that would withhold Congress member’s salaries during a shutdown. I believe it has languished in some committee. See: https://spanberger.house.gov/posts/spanberger-fitzpatrick-introduce-bipartisan-bill-to-block-congressional-pay-during-defaults-or-shutdowns
On Trump’s bid for union support (in a non-union venue, no less!), it should be remembered that virtually every right to work state has a Republican legislature. They are implacably hostile to collective bargaining.
Yesterday, UAW president Shawn Fain said, “I find it odd he’s going to go to a non-union business to talk to union workers. I don’t think he gets it.”
But so true to form.
I hope that McConnell does not succeed in distinguishing and distancing Republicans in the Senate from their crazy brethren in the House. Considering that the vast majority of Republicans in the Senate refused to vote to convict Trump on his two impeachments, I don't see how he can make the case that there is ANY difference in kind.
“I don’t think he gets it”. Sums up the GOP (insert throat clearing sound) strategy about just about everything.
How many times were some of us calling these nut cases fascists dismissed? Many saw the Tea Party movement for what it was and where it was heading when it rose it ugly head, but they were told they were over reacting.
As a retired public educator who had to live under the continued attack of conservatives, they worked to ruin the public education system. That set the stage for where we are now.
Wealthy conservatives ran the strategies put forth in the Lewis Powell Memo which was basically about gain power through taking over the informal power structures of society while working to fill government positions with "believers" of their "free, unregulated capitalism". What ever commonsense conservatives had, they have now acquiesced their responsibility if leadership to the extremists.
Under regulate business while over regulating the agency responsible for oversight, then make sure that the oversight agency is underfunded and then blame them for their failures. This happened in Texas with public education. It is now omnipresent is how the conservative faction is now governing. You can pull up the 1980 Libertarian platform and draw a line to this extreme group that is not calling the shots.
Historians of democracies and authoritarian have shown that it does not take but a few well placed people to being down a democracy. America is not immune. Let's hope that Churchill's faith in the American people is true "Americans will do the right thing, but only after trying everything else."
11 Republican Senators vote against the nomination of the black general who was confirmed as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs. The Republican majority in the house votes to reduce the salary of the black Secretary of defense. Could their agenda be any clearer?
It might be "odd" but it works.
Let's combine the effects of :
- Confirmation Bias
- Illusion of Explanatory Depth
- The Dunning/Kruger effect
and - Anchoring Bias.
Then Trump can say anything and it flies. Anything at all.
Dunning/Kruger is my favourite. That one is about how it is impossible to know how stupid you are if you lack the intellect to comprehend your own stupidity.
Noted, Heather!
Sad to say, my stellar U.S. Rep, Jennifer Wexton, will not be seeking re-election in 2024. She has been a shero for Democrats in an otherwise red district in Virginia.
Here is her letter (excerpted): "By now, some of you will have seen the news about my plans for 2024. I wanted to take a couple of minutes to reach out to all of you who have been a part of Team Wexton – to share my endless gratitude, explain my decision, and reflect upon my time in Congress.
Back in April, I shared that I had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease. At the time, I made the decision to carry on with my Congressional work and political activity. My doctors believed that my condition would not stop me from performing my duties in Congress, and my goal was to stay in office for years to come.
"During the months that followed, as my symptoms worsened, I sought additional medical opinions and was given an updated diagnosis of progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP). It is a rare neurological disorder that is often mistaken for Parkinson’s in its early stages– but while both are progressive degenerative diseases, PSP develops far more rapidly.
"After some difficult and honest conversations with my family and doctors, I’ve concluded that juggling the realities of a re-election campaign in a tough district while managing the symptoms of my PSP is not feasible for me. It’s with a heavy heart – yet also a deep appreciation for the privilege I’ve been granted by the people of Virginia’s 10th District – that I will be retiring from Congress at the end of my current term.
"I wish that I could serve longer. But being able to serve at all has been the highest honor of my life. And it was people like you that made it all the more worth it.
To my family, to my staff, and to all my supporters: thank you for everything.
Sincerely, Jennifer."