Political Randomness

[Rip]

Your tax dollars at work: The Palestinian Authority is now using half of its foreign aid to reward terrorism.

The new PA budget boosts support to terrorists in prison by 13 percent and aid for the families of those killed “in the struggle against Zion” 4 percent, reports the Institute for Contemporary Affairs.

The total, $344 million, equals 49.6 percent of all foreign aid to the PA. In other words, cash from Uncle Sam, Europe and even Israel is subsidizing “welfare for terrorists.”

The PA sends a salary to each Palestinian imprisoned for an attack on Israelis, hitting over $3,000 a month after 30 years. Other stipends go to families of “martyrs” killed in the act. That’s $344 million for 2017 that’s not going to build roads or hospitals.

http://nypost.com/2017/07/28/palestinia ... rd-terror/

[Max Peck]

I can't decide whether Chinese rhetoric reminds me of Trump's bombast, or if Trump reminds me of China...

China's Xi calls for building elite forces during massive military parade

Chinese President Xi Jinping told the military on Sunday to transform itself into an elite force, as he oversaw a parade with flybys of advanced jets and a mass rally of troops to mark 90 years since the founding of the People's Liberation Army.

China's armed forces, the world's largest, are in the midst of an ambitious modernization program, which includes investment in technology and new equipment such as stealth fighters and aircraft carriers, as well as cuts to troop numbers.

Xi presided over the large-scale military parade at the remote Zhurihe training base in China's northern Inner Mongolia region, where he inspected troops from the back of a jeep, an event carried live on state television.

Traveling down a long strip lined with tanks, missile launchers and other military vehicles, Xi, wearing military fatigues and a field cap, greeted thousands of troops.

Xi, who oversees the PLA in his role as head of the powerful Central Military Commission, repeatedly shouted, "Hello comrades!" and "Comrades, you are working hard!" into four microphones fixed atop his motorcade as martial music blared in the background.

The troops bellowed back: "Serve the people!", "Follow the Party!", "Fight to win!" and "Forge exemplary conduct!".

Tanks, vehicle-mounted nuclear-capable missiles and other equipment rolled by, as military aircraft flew above, including H-6K bombers, which have been patrolling near Taiwan and Japan recently, the J-15 carrier-based fighters and new generation J-20 stealth fighter.

"Today, we are closer to the goal of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation than any other time in history, and we need to build a strong people's military more than any other time in history," Xi told the assembled troops in a short speech that did not yield any new policy announcements.

"The great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation" does seem like a more literate version of "Make <country> great again."

But the important thing is that when the president of China wants a military parade, he gets a military parade.

[pr0ner]

It appears the Democratic party will NOT have an abortion litmus-test for candidates in 2018, focusing on trying to win votes of pro-life Democrats in more conservative areas.

Needless to say, some people are NOT pleased.

This is a betrayal of every woman who has ever supported the Democratic party.

[Max Peck]

Democrat purity tests are good news for the GOP. Four more years!

[El Guapo]

Forcing every democrat running anywhere to be pro-choice was always a stupid idea. The thing is that a pro-life representative or senator from a conservative area - say, a pro-life senator from South Dakota or whatnot - still helps pro-choice causes, for the simple reason that that pro-life representative / senator is going to vote for a Democrat for Speaker / Majority leader.

And if a group thinks that a more conservative district / state would support a pro-choice candidate, they're free to run one for office.

[pr0ner]

Forcing every democrat running anywhere to be pro-choice was always a stupid idea. The thing is that a pro-life representative or senator from a conservative area - say, a pro-life senator from South Dakota or whatnot - still helps pro-choice causes, for the simple reason that that pro-life representative / senator is going to vote for a Democrat for Speaker / Majority leader.

And if a group thinks that a more conservative district / state would support a pro-choice candidate, they're free to run one for office.

Looks like Howard Dean thinks it's a terrible, idea, and he's going to withhold support from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee if they really are willing to support a pro-life Democrat.

Other people hate on it, too, saying Democratic leaders are "abandoning core values" and "betraying their base" for this decision.

You'd think Democrats would be trying to present a unified front against Trump, but nah, they just want to bicker amongst themselves. I get that abortion is a big issue, but there are bigger issues than this.

[El Guapo]

To be fair, announcing the application of a litmus test and then going back on it shortly thereafter was pretty much the worst possible option. You're doing what you were doing before, only now you have made it a controversy and everyone's upset.

And if people want to donate money to pro-choice groups instead of the DCCC, that's fine. As long as candidates are supported, everything doesn't need to run through the DCCC.

[noxiousdog]

We're totally inclusive (unless you disagree with us)!

[pr0ner]

To be fair, announcing the application of a litmus test and then going back on it shortly thereafter was pretty much the worst possible option. You're doing what you were doing before, only now you have made it a controversy and everyone's upset.

And if people want to donate money to pro-choice groups instead of the DCCC, that's fine. As long as candidates are supported, everything doesn't need to run through the DCCC.

Yep, we discussed the original "oh, you must be pro-choice!" decision three months ago. How quickly things change.

We're totally inclusive (unless you disagree with us)!

Sadly, that's the liberal irony.

[Isgrimnur]

I'm not a member of any organized political party.... I'm a Democrat.

Democrats never agree on anything, that's why they're Democrats. If they agreed with each other, they'd be Republicans.

Politics pretty quiet over the week-end. Democrats are attacking and the Republicans are defending. All the Democrats have to do is promise "what they would do if they got in." But the Republicans have to promise "what they would do" and then explain why they haven't already "done it.

[noxiousdog]

I'm not a member of any organized political party.... I'm a Democrat.

Democrats never agree on anything, that's why they're Democrats. If they agreed with each other, they'd be Republicans.

Politics pretty quiet over the week-end. Democrats are attacking and the Republicans are defending. All the Democrats have to do is promise "what they would do if they got in." But the Republicans have to promise "what they would do" and then explain why they haven't already "done it.

The more things change.....

[Moliere]

Try the random ideology generator you Christian Afro-Futurists!

[El Guapo]

Try the random ideology generator you Christian Afro-Futurists!

Heresy! The Progressive Pan-Traditionalist Party will wipe the scourge of your vicious ideology from the Earth!

[Fitzy]

I got Catholic Neo-Traditionalist, isn't that a real thing? I sort of feel robbed.

[Rip]

Wow it nailed me as a Libertarian Orthodox Zionist.

[Kraken]

"Orthodox Conservative Socialist." I could make that work.

[ImLawBoy]

Catholic Orthodox Populist.

So I'm in with Mel Gibson, right?

[Carpet_pissr]

Post-Colonial Stalinist.

Da, comrade Trump!

[Fretmute]

I got Esoteric Techno-Fascist . . . and it has 7,500 Google hits, and a Facebook page.

[stessier]

I think it's running out of options - I got Zionist.

[El Guapo]

Honestly, this is far from the worst way to come up with new political parties.

[Smoove_B]

Isn't it nice when we just have random political news - like the Governor from West Virginia announcing he's switching political party affiliation?

[Unagi]

Isn't it nice when we just have random political news - like the Governor from West Virginia announcing he's switching political party affiliation?

Oh man.
barf.

[malchior]

GOP sued for racketeering and fraud...by a donor upset at the failure to repeal the ACA. I give props to a man who wants to pay good money in the pursuit of telling everyone how goddamn stupid he is.

[Holman]

More of this shit: Fox News host Eric Bolling suspended for sending unsolicited dick pics to female colleagues.

Fox News suspended Eric Bolling, a longtime host at the network, on Saturday pending an investigation into reports that he sent lewd photographs to three female colleagues via text message.

Fox News learned about the allegations against Mr. Bolling after an inquiry from HuffPost, the network said in an emailed statement.

In an article published Friday night, HuffPost cited a dozen anonymous sources who said Mr. Bolling “sent an unsolicited photo of male genitalia via text message to at least two colleagues at Fox Business and one colleague at Fox News.”

Ailes, O'Reilly, now this. Your move, Hannity.

[Isgrimnur]

If a woman wants to see your dick, she will ask.

[Unagi]

or explore

[Unagi]

in fact, I've not once been asked 'can I see your dick'. Not even my wife. They all just assume.

[em2nought]

in fact, I've not once been asked 'can I see your dick'. Not even my wife. They all just assume.

A smart hooker with ask, it's part of the vetting process.

[Smoove_B]

But his emails...

With the full electronic cache in hand, the state can now begin to process roughly 50 public record requests for Pence’s emails. Some of those requests are more than a year old and about half were made while Pence was governor, but went unfulfilled.

The pending requests seek Pence’s emails on a variety of topics, including Donald Trump, Indiana’s controversial Religious Freedom Restoration Act, voter fraud, Syrian refugee resettlement, lead contamination in East Chicago and the HIV outbreak in Scott County.

[Smoove_B]

It's good to see the Republicans have started turning on one another:

"They lied about repealing ObamaCare. Now, Mitch McConnell’s D.C. slime machine is spending millions spreading lies about Roy Moore, bearing false witness," the ad's narrator says.

"Why? We know why. We all know why," the ad continues. "Roy Moore is honest and Roy Moore is his own man. And Roy Moore fears God, stands for the Constitution, fights for what is right and believes what we believe.

"Drain the swamp. Send McConnell a message. Send them all a message,"

"Bearing false witness" sounds like the kind of phrase I'd expect from someone that will need to challenge Mitch. Buckle up! Also, Roy Moore is gross.

[Fitzy]

I don't know anything about Alabama politics, is there any realistic chance that if Moore wins the primary someone else could win the seat?

[Skinypupy]

Also, Roy Moore is gross.

Congratulations, you just won the "Understatement of the Year" award!

[Holman]

I don't know anything about Alabama politics, is there any realistic chance that if Moore wins the primary someone else could win the seat?

No. In Alabama the Republican will win the senate race.

Roy Moore will be in the U.S. Senate. I think my head's about to explode.

(To my disgust, I believe I'm related to him. My grandmother was a Moore from the same part of Alabama.)

[Fitzy]

[El Guapo]

It doesn't matter regardless, because if the Republicans are in danger of losing the Alabama Senate race in 2018 (with Moore or without), they're almost certainly boned everywhere else as well.

I will say that it would be crazy to nominate Moore, because the only way that the Alabama Senate seat could be put into play would be to nominate a crazy candidate. Like if Moore gets nominated *and* he does something super crazy (in the wrong way) after getting the nomination.

Basically Moore seems like a high variance candidate, and you don't want high variance if you are the favorite.

[Holman]

Interestingly, today Trump endorsed Luther Strange (the incumbent, appointed to replace Jeff Sessions) in the primary battle against Moore.

I wonder if that will shift the balance. Moore has run a Trump-friendly campaign, but his chief allegiance is to the Christian Right (which is what got Sessions elected in 1996 and re-elected every term thereafter). He's a more extreme Christianist that anyone running anywhere.

[Smoove_B]

I wonder if that will shift the balance.

You mean towards chaos?

Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Ala.) says he is confused over President Trump's endorsement of Sen. Luther Strange (R-Ala.) in Alabama's Senate race.

"I respect President Trump, but I am baffled and disappointed Mitch McConnell and the Swamp somehow misled the President into endorsing Luther Strange," Brooks said in a statement.

[gilraen]

I guess Trump should be happy that his staff has just supplied the media with yet another distraction from anything that's actually important:

Married ex-Trump aide admits to fathering a child with campaign ex-advisor

[A.J.Delgado on Twitter:] The father and I were dating for two months (he was separated from his wife, he said, and had been since June.)

...or in other words:

[Rip]

My Rift comes in Friday so I went ahead and downloaded the Oculus software and am downloading some stuff to be prepared. I made sure that the White House one was the first download. That way I can assure Donald that I know my way around the place when he taps me for a key post.....