Ted Cruz is such a sleezeball. Sorry but the people of the United States didn’t vote for Trump as he suggests. The people overwhelmingly voted for Clinton. I hope someone calls him out on that point.
And once you realize that Donald Trump is a really stupid human being, you have to ask - then why is he President?
And the answer is because for the last half a century, Republicans have built one of the largest and most extensive organized crime rings in existence. They have built a system that legitimizes preposterous levels of corruption.
They seized on the fact that the constitution grants disproportionate representation in congress and the executive to those who hold the most states, even if those states are mostly empty.
Mitch McConnell got less than eight hundred thousand votes in his 2014 election, and now he has a stranglehold over the Senate. That's fucking incredible.
For comparison, Chuck Schumer got over five MILLION votes, and he's the minority leader and almost entirely powerless.
Who the ever-loving fuck thinks that a party that never wins the popular vote, that has a terrible approval rating and has never represented a majority of Americans should hold literally all the ratchets of power?
So you have these petty criminals and crooks rising up in essentially third-world states, like Kentucky. They've banded together. Now they have a propaganda network. They get their funding from wealthy donors that want to pass laws to legalize their unethical business practices, almost always to the detriment of the American people. And thanks to Fox News, they have an easy-to-access non-stop propaganda stream that passes itself off as news and tells a fictional fairy tale about a Republican party that doesn't exist.
Take away all their bullshit. Take away all the window dressings, the family values. Look at what they do. Dick Cheney spent trillions of our tax dollars on a war to make him and his buddies rich. I say Dick, because Bush was mostly window dressing to draw attention away from him. Now Trump is running America like a business - which is to say, he's running it like an entity which exists entirely to make him wealthy and which he has full control and ownership over.
Look at the tax bill 1.5 trillion, written by lobbyists, to make the tax evasions and other fuckery of their corporations legal, to the detriment of America.
Everything they do is nakedly, openly criminal. But they've found the Thieve's Loophole - it isn't a crime if you ARE the law.
If you just look at them without the trappings - without the suits, without the pomp and prestige of their offices - they are bare-assed crooks. And I know people say that about politicians. And politicians get up to a lot of shit - in any country, in any party.
But Republicans are not just individually criminal. Republicans are a criminal organization. They behave identical to one. Their entire legislative approach is basically a protection racket. Corporations pay them, and in return they don't unleash the law on them, or regulatory agencies on them. Other countries play ball or they unleash their horrendously bloated military on them. Which Republicans always want to make bigger. Because what gangster doesn't want more guns?
Even liberals are, in a way, in denial about the extent to which the entire Republican party is an organized crime operation. In some way we believe their legitimacy, because, they're politicians, right? They do fundraisers and speak at colleges. George W. Bush slaps Obama's ass with a binder, so they can't be all bad, right?
But as we speak Republicans are refusing outright to put any money towards literally protecting our Democracy from the attacks of a hostile foreign nation. Republican Senators are standing up and saying we should reduce sanctions on Russia. They fucking stole 1.5 trillion dollars from all taxpayers to give it to the very, very select few who pay them. They are conspiring to insulate their own President, a man who may just be the most corrupt human being to have ever lived, from any form of justice, while simultaneously refusing to impose any of the checks and balances on him that are their constitutional responsibility to impose, all to keep voters happy so that they, personally, can keep their precious seats and can continue to personally profit from their stations.
Trump admitted on live TV he fired the FBI director to protect himself in a legal investigation into his complicity in helping a foreign government attack us.
Republicans did nothing.
Trump called the media - a cornerstone of our Democracy and the shining pillar of the first amendment - the "enemy of the people," because they report "fake news", a word which by Trump's own public admission means stories that paint him in a negative light, regardless of their accuracy or veracity.
Republicans did nothing.
Trump has refused to divest from his business and forced the federal government to pay millions of dollars staying at his properties in the most obvious and blatant corrupt uses of federal power I've ever seen.
Republicans paid.
When a child acts like a selfish brat, and the parents reward them for it, you don't blame the child.
This is who the Republican party is at its core. Every piece of their apparatus - from congress to their SCOTUS picks to Fox News - is a part of it. They are criminals. They wear suits and robes, but at the end of the day they're just the most successful version of the mob. They are the mob that finally achieved legitimacy and became the law.
Am I being overly biased by sharing my feeling that any impartial person with average observational skills and common sense would come to the conclusion that Trump nominated (and Senate approved) staff (particularly cabinet members) have not generally been adequately vetted?
If you tuned in you would have heard that they actually found their spines today. Very proud of these Dems. And after their opening remarks, sure they could all walk out, it's not like it's going to change the outcome of the sham confirmation hearing, but it's probably best they stick around and continue to give 'em hell. The crew of resisters/resistors(they're all women) in the audience getting dragged out one by one are doing a great job too!
The super majority rule required 60 votes to break a filibuster and close debate on a particular item. In other words, as long as there weren't 60 votes in favor of something, the opposing side could tie up a vote by unlimited debate or the "filibuster."
Last year, the GOP senate invoked a special procedural loophole called the Nuclear Option to eliminate the 60 vote requirement as it applies to judicial nominees to end a democratic filibuster of Neil Gorsuch's nomination. Its called a Nuclear Option because it was so extreme and turned 200 years of Senate practice, decorum, and procedure on its head. Ironically, the Nuclear Option was first used back in 2013 to push through Obama judicial and administrative nominations over repeated and tenacious GOP filibusters that had brought normal Senate business to a standstill:
.Seven Members of the Committee, actually present, shall constitute a quorum for the purpose of discussing business. Nine Members of the Committee, including at least two Members of the minority, shall constitute a quorum for the purpose of transacting business. No bill, matter, or nomination shall be ordered reported from the Committee, however, unless a majority of the Committee is actually present at the time such action is taken and a majority of those present support the action taken.
And someone should remind you that the popular vote isn't what elects a President. But then that damn Constitution really is nothing more that a roadblock to your ambitions, isn't it?
The progressive left only likes the mechanics of a constitutional representative republic when it works in their favor. You folks really should be a little more subtle about your totalitarian tendencies.
I agree with Kavanaugh on some things, disagree with him on others, no matter your politics, there's no denying this guy is "next level" intelligent, quite the wordsmith...he seems to be having the time of his life discussing the nuance of law.
It's interesting watching Kavanaugh shove these guys around the chessboard, he's the most intelligent guy in the room...and it's a pretty intelligent room.
>>>And the answer is because for the last half a century, Republicans have built one of the largest and most extensive organized crime rings in existence. They have built a system that legitimizes preposterous levels of corruption.
Truth.
And I guess the Dems were getting jealous of that 'success', and they figured that was the path to take, too.
There is no moderation in American politics anymore. Both sides locked it up and killed it in the cage willingly... for their own benefit.
Are you more excited about him continuing to protect peoples rights to shoot up schools, taking away womens rights to abortion, or him helping obstruct any investigation of your corrupt president?
I'm hoping that Senators Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins adhere to their values and vote no on Coach K. I wonder how they can be bribed this time around...
And don't worry Thom: Even if Kavanaugh isn't confirmed, there are plenty on Trump's list who will uphold your values.
Sad that the Senate are obviously still patsies to POTUS. The branches of government are bending...I just hope that they don't break.
I'm hoping that Senators Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins adhere to their values and vote no on Coach K. I wonder how they can be bribed this time around...<<<
It's actually an opportunity for them both to make a pivot on the much larger issue of whether Trump is fit for office ... not holding my breath though
It comes with the territory. That's why they usually win.
The Right believes that the rights of the individual "trump" all else - if you have more muscles, or guns, you should be allowed to dominate others. The ends justify the means. "He" with the gold makes the rules.
The Left balances the rights of the individual with those of society at large. Because of this dichotomy, the Right wins more often than not.
I've been contemplating the scenario: if Trump has been proven to have committed major illegal procedure and the Senate GOP have been aware, and Dems are able to inflict a bloodbath in the Senate in 2020, they need to impeach both Gorsuch & Kavanaugh.
However, they need to paradoxically hit the "reset button" to put a halt to the practice of "hardball at any cost" by carefully installing widely respected moderates; or even better, establish a protocol that is not as susceptible to partisan influence ... perhaps an independent bi-partisan panel of some sort.
the level of deep brainwashing by conservatives is astonishing<<<
I also believe that if Hannity, Rush, Levin, Ingram cross the line in the coming days re: inciting violence ... the book needs to be thrown at them for sedition.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Def. High
Do tell.
Do tell.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Hitchhiker awaiting "true call"
Angry old folk faces.
Angry old folk faces.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Jelly roll
Fuck Chuck Grassley
Fuck Chuck Grassley
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Hitchhiker awaiting "true call"
Pretty good melt.
Pretty good melt.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Across
http://www.vivalazone.org
http://www.vivalazone.org/politics
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Johnny D
WOW!
WOW!
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Lucky Day
Ted Cruz is such a sleezeball
Ted Cruz is such a sleezeball. Sorry but the people of the United States didn’t vote for Trump as he suggests. The people overwhelmingly voted for Clinton. I hope someone calls him out on that point.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: El Nino
And once you realize that
And once you realize that Donald Trump is a really stupid human being, you have to ask - then why is he President?
And the answer is because for the last half a century, Republicans have built one of the largest and most extensive organized crime rings in existence. They have built a system that legitimizes preposterous levels of corruption.
They seized on the fact that the constitution grants disproportionate representation in congress and the executive to those who hold the most states, even if those states are mostly empty.
Mitch McConnell got less than eight hundred thousand votes in his 2014 election, and now he has a stranglehold over the Senate. That's fucking incredible.
For comparison, Chuck Schumer got over five MILLION votes, and he's the minority leader and almost entirely powerless.
Who the ever-loving fuck thinks that a party that never wins the popular vote, that has a terrible approval rating and has never represented a majority of Americans should hold literally all the ratchets of power?
So you have these petty criminals and crooks rising up in essentially third-world states, like Kentucky. They've banded together. Now they have a propaganda network. They get their funding from wealthy donors that want to pass laws to legalize their unethical business practices, almost always to the detriment of the American people. And thanks to Fox News, they have an easy-to-access non-stop propaganda stream that passes itself off as news and tells a fictional fairy tale about a Republican party that doesn't exist.
Take away all their bullshit. Take away all the window dressings, the family values. Look at what they do. Dick Cheney spent trillions of our tax dollars on a war to make him and his buddies rich. I say Dick, because Bush was mostly window dressing to draw attention away from him. Now Trump is running America like a business - which is to say, he's running it like an entity which exists entirely to make him wealthy and which he has full control and ownership over.
Look at the tax bill 1.5 trillion, written by lobbyists, to make the tax evasions and other fuckery of their corporations legal, to the detriment of America.
Everything they do is nakedly, openly criminal. But they've found the Thieve's Loophole - it isn't a crime if you ARE the law.
If you just look at them without the trappings - without the suits, without the pomp and prestige of their offices - they are bare-assed crooks. And I know people say that about politicians. And politicians get up to a lot of shit - in any country, in any party.
But Republicans are not just individually criminal. Republicans are a criminal organization. They behave identical to one. Their entire legislative approach is basically a protection racket. Corporations pay them, and in return they don't unleash the law on them, or regulatory agencies on them. Other countries play ball or they unleash their horrendously bloated military on them. Which Republicans always want to make bigger. Because what gangster doesn't want more guns?
Even liberals are, in a way, in denial about the extent to which the entire Republican party is an organized crime operation. In some way we believe their legitimacy, because, they're politicians, right? They do fundraisers and speak at colleges. George W. Bush slaps Obama's ass with a binder, so they can't be all bad, right?
But as we speak Republicans are refusing outright to put any money towards literally protecting our Democracy from the attacks of a hostile foreign nation. Republican Senators are standing up and saying we should reduce sanctions on Russia. They fucking stole 1.5 trillion dollars from all taxpayers to give it to the very, very select few who pay them. They are conspiring to insulate their own President, a man who may just be the most corrupt human being to have ever lived, from any form of justice, while simultaneously refusing to impose any of the checks and balances on him that are their constitutional responsibility to impose, all to keep voters happy so that they, personally, can keep their precious seats and can continue to personally profit from their stations.
Trump admitted on live TV he fired the FBI director to protect himself in a legal investigation into his complicity in helping a foreign government attack us.
Republicans did nothing.
Trump called the media - a cornerstone of our Democracy and the shining pillar of the first amendment - the "enemy of the people," because they report "fake news", a word which by Trump's own public admission means stories that paint him in a negative light, regardless of their accuracy or veracity.
Republicans did nothing.
Trump has refused to divest from his business and forced the federal government to pay millions of dollars staying at his properties in the most obvious and blatant corrupt uses of federal power I've ever seen.
Republicans paid.
When a child acts like a selfish brat, and the parents reward them for it, you don't blame the child.
This is who the Republican party is at its core. Every piece of their apparatus - from congress to their SCOTUS picks to Fox News - is a part of it. They are criminals. They wear suits and robes, but at the end of the day they're just the most successful version of the mob. They are the mob that finally achieved legitimacy and became the law.
The whole rant:
https://np.reddit.com/r/politics/comments/9cm3wg/trump_has_normalized_ra...
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Johnny D
Am I being overly biased by
Am I being overly biased by sharing my feeling that any impartial person with average observational skills and common sense would come to the conclusion that Trump nominated (and Senate approved) staff (particularly cabinet members) have not generally been adequately vetted?
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: long live the dead
THOM?
THOM?
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: jonaspond
Johnny -- No you're not being
Johnny -- No you're not being overly biased. You are a sentient being. No need to apologize for that.
Idiocrasy is coming people...
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Def. High
They've spent decades dumbing
They've spent decades dumbing down the people.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: 2 Room Shack
why have hearing?
why have the hearings?
why go along with the process at all?
they should stay home.
no quorum.
no vote.
spineless fucks.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Johnny D
(No subject)
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Ken D.
>>>> why go along with the
>>>> why go along with the process at all? they should stay home. no quorum.
If the dems could, they would just like the GOP blocked Merrick Garland for almost a year by refusing to take up his nomination for consideration.
Problem is that the GOP controls the senate 51-49. 51 senators is the official quorum.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: joy
Didn't this set of Repubs
Didn't this set of Repubs change the necessary vote from 2/3rds to 51 a year or 2 ago?
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Woz
Yup
Yup
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: That’s Nancy with the laughin’ face
>spineless fucks.
>spineless fucks.
If you tuned in you would have heard that they actually found their spines today. Very proud of these Dems. And after their opening remarks, sure they could all walk out, it's not like it's going to change the outcome of the sham confirmation hearing, but it's probably best they stick around and continue to give 'em hell. The crew of resisters/resistors(they're all women) in the audience getting dragged out one by one are doing a great job too!
>Fuck Chuck Grassley
yes ^
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Ken D.
The super majority rule
The super majority rule required 60 votes to break a filibuster and close debate on a particular item. In other words, as long as there weren't 60 votes in favor of something, the opposing side could tie up a vote by unlimited debate or the "filibuster."
Last year, the GOP senate invoked a special procedural loophole called the Nuclear Option to eliminate the 60 vote requirement as it applies to judicial nominees to end a democratic filibuster of Neil Gorsuch's nomination. Its called a Nuclear Option because it was so extreme and turned 200 years of Senate practice, decorum, and procedure on its head. Ironically, the Nuclear Option was first used back in 2013 to push through Obama judicial and administrative nominations over repeated and tenacious GOP filibusters that had brought normal Senate business to a standstill:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_option
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: That’s Nancy with the laughin’ face
https://www.nytimes.com/2018
>Democrats Demand Delay to Brett Kavanaugh Hearing as Protests Erupt
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/04/us/politics/kavanaugh-confirmation-he...
https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2018/09/chaos-erupts-as-democrats-d...
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Bucky Badger
It might not be the worst
It might not be the worst thing if that courtroom actually erupted.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Thumbkinetic
I'm guessing RBG is close to
I'm guessing RBG is close to deaf.
Wait...what?
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Hitchhiker awaiting "true call"
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: nebulous nelly
Regarding quorum
Regarding quorum
.Seven Members of the Committee, actually present, shall constitute a quorum for the purpose of discussing business. Nine Members of the Committee, including at least two Members of the minority, shall constitute a quorum for the purpose of transacting business. No bill, matter, or nomination shall be ordered reported from the Committee, however, unless a majority of the Committee is actually present at the time such action is taken and a majority of those present support the action taken.
https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/about/rules
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Thomas O' Bagenhammers
" The people overwhelmingly
" The people overwhelmingly voted for Clinton."
And someone should remind you that the popular vote isn't what elects a President. But then that damn Constitution really is nothing more that a roadblock to your ambitions, isn't it?
The progressive left only likes the mechanics of a constitutional representative republic when it works in their favor. You folks really should be a little more subtle about your totalitarian tendencies.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: That’s Nancy with the laughin’ face
Thom is getting hysterical
Thom is being hysterical again.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: good at drinking water
Republicans whining about
Republicans whining about the supreme court justice nomination process is about as hypocritical as it can get.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: 2 Room Shack
Yeah...like because the
Yeah...like because the electoral college is like, so democratic...
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Lucky Day
>>>>>>And someone should
>>>>>>And someone should remind you that the popular vote isn't what elects a President
Im award of that and never said different but Chuck Grassley isn’t aware of who won the popular vote and he’s a fucking Senator.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Bryen
I agree with Kavanaugh on
I agree with Kavanaugh on some things, disagree with him on others, no matter your politics, there's no denying this guy is "next level" intelligent, quite the wordsmith...he seems to be having the time of his life discussing the nuance of law.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: W. Claude Dukenfield
The Democrats are starting to
The Democrats are starting to like this guy.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: New & Improved
>> But then that damn
>> But then that damn Constitution really is nothing more that a roadblock to your ambitions, isn't it? <<
Thom, why didn't the Senate consider Garland's nomination?
I dislike selective Constitutionalists.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Bryen
It's interesting watching Kavanaugh shove these guys around the chessboard, he's the most intelligent guy in the room...and it's a pretty intelligent room.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Oaksterdam Dan
Sorry Bryen Kavi's not the
Sorry Bryen Kavi's not the smartest guy in the room. One of the oldest most distinguished deadheads in the senate is and has weighed in...
Sen. Leahy: Withheld Emails Show Brett Kavanaugh May Have Perjured Himself
“There is simply no reason they can’t be made public,” Leahy said.
By Paul Blumenthal
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/pat-leahy-brett-kavanaugh_us_5b9019...
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Hitchhiker awaiting "true call"
Senators risking jobs today.
Senators are risking jobs today.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: vivalavuvuzela
>>>And the answer is because
>>>And the answer is because for the last half a century, Republicans have built one of the largest and most extensive organized crime rings in existence. They have built a system that legitimizes preposterous levels of corruption.
Truth.
And I guess the Dems were getting jealous of that 'success', and they figured that was the path to take, too.
There is no moderation in American politics anymore. Both sides locked it up and killed it in the cage willingly... for their own benefit.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Imagine
I miss Brick.
I miss Brick. Dude was dam funny.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: 2 Room Shack
protect corporations.
protect corporations.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Lucky Day
Well if there’s one thing I’m
Well if there’s one thing I’m certain of after the hearings it’s that Kavanaugh definitely wears socks during sex.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Thomas O' Bagenhammers
He'll be on the Court by the
He'll be on the Court by the time the next term begins.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Lucky Day
Are you more excited about
Are you more excited about him continuing to protect peoples rights to shoot up schools, taking away womens rights to abortion, or him helping obstruct any investigation of your corrupt president?
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Johnny D
Even Mitch McConnell was
Even Mitch McConnell was concerned about this pick:
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/07/us/politics/trump-mcconnell-supreme-c...
I'm hoping that Senators Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins adhere to their values and vote no on Coach K. I wonder how they can be bribed this time around...
And don't worry Thom: Even if Kavanaugh isn't confirmed, there are plenty on Trump's list who will uphold your values.
Sad that the Senate are obviously still patsies to POTUS. The branches of government are bending...I just hope that they don't break.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: 19.5 Degrees
I'm hoping that Senators Lisa
I'm hoping that Senators Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins adhere to their values and vote no on Coach K. I wonder how they can be bribed this time around...<<<
It's actually an opportunity for them both to make a pivot on the much larger issue of whether Trump is fit for office ... not holding my breath though
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: 2 Room Shack
the "right" in this country
the "right" in this country are completely fucking nuts.
you cannot speak rationally to anyone of them.
perjuring yourself apparently is completely fine.
this guy, as quoted by sen. kennedy years ago " is an ambitious republican operative".
the level of deep brainwashing by conservatives is astonishing.
gerrymandered motherfucking anti american shit bags, the fucking lot of them.
they can't win without cheating.
you all should be ashamed.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: long live the dead
"YOU FOLKS!
"YOU FOLKS!
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Def. High
>>>>>they can't win without
>>>>>they can't win without cheating.
It comes with the territory. That's why they usually win.
The Right believes that the rights of the individual "trump" all else - if you have more muscles, or guns, you should be allowed to dominate others. The ends justify the means. "He" with the gold makes the rules.
The Left balances the rights of the individual with those of society at large. Because of this dichotomy, the Right wins more often than not.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: 19.5 Degrees
I've been contemplating the
I've been contemplating the scenario: if Trump has been proven to have committed major illegal procedure and the Senate GOP have been aware, and Dems are able to inflict a bloodbath in the Senate in 2020, they need to impeach both Gorsuch & Kavanaugh.
However, they need to paradoxically hit the "reset button" to put a halt to the practice of "hardball at any cost" by carefully installing widely respected moderates; or even better, establish a protocol that is not as susceptible to partisan influence ... perhaps an independent bi-partisan panel of some sort.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: 19.5 Degrees
the level of deep
the level of deep brainwashing by conservatives is astonishing<<<
I also believe that if Hannity, Rush, Levin, Ingram cross the line in the coming days re: inciting violence ... the book needs to be thrown at them for sedition.