Political Randomness

[Daehawk]

I love when Trump fumes and rants on Twitter.

[Defiant]

The wealthiest supporter of the GOP in Ohio said Thursday that he is no longer a member of the Republican Party.

“I just decided I’m no longer a Republican,” L Brands CEO Leslie Wexner said during a panel discussion at a leadership summit, according to The Columbus Dispatch.

Wexner, who said he’s been a Republican since college, added that he is now an independent, before saying that he “won’t support this nonsense in the Republican Party” anymore.

Wealthiest Republican supporter in Ohio quits party

[Daehawk]

Wow , scruples. Where did he find them so I can point the GOP towards them while they must surely be on sale.

[Max Peck]

Keep in mind that he waited for the tax cuts before finding those scruples.

[Holman]

One of my high-school classmates (class of 87) just Facebooked a picture of herself meeting Tucker Carlson, and the oohing and ahhing from other FBfriends makes me what to murder everyone I met before I was 19.

[Fitzy]

Anyone else reading Laws and Sausages?

It’s a comic by the same guy who does Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal and his brother. However its about politics from an educational perspective. The brother is a political science professor. So far there have been 7 topics I think, each with multiple comics.

I brought this up because the latest one was a “response” to an earlier one about polical parties. The response was by another PS professor arguing that political parties are an asset. I’ve been thinking the opposite lately but she made some good points, including that it’s not parties that are bad, but partisanship and that partisanship doesn’t and shouldn’t be the point of the parties.

All that aside, it was something she said on the last slot I wanted to talk about though.

Direct link to comic

Even if you consider yourself independent, it might be worthwhile to be part of a party, if for no other reason than to make it less partisan.

I haven’t interacted with either party in years. Part of this is that as the Democrats moved in a direction I didn’t agree with, I felt it was not ethical for me to try to hold that back. This is more true here in Maryland than other states I’ve lived in.

Is that wrong? I don’t want the Democrats to be Republicans, but I am not a fan of the move more left. Nor am I fan of refusing to work with the other party (yes, I am aware this is a bigger problem from Republicans). And I’m just a single person so obviously I wouldn’t have much influence.

Should independents, moderates whatever move into the two parties in an attempt to influence the direction? Or is better to stay out?

[El Guapo]

People should work to reform the electoral system in ways that make it viable for third parties to compete - e.g., ranked choice voting. Third party activism under the current system is stupid and self-defeating.

[Daehawk]

They really should do a LOT more to cut political advertising and support. Just not sure how.

[GreenGoo]

One of my high-school classmates (class of 87) just Facebooked a picture of herself meeting Tucker Carlson, and the oohing and ahhing from other FBfriends makes me what to murder everyone I met before I was 19.

I meant to lol over this post when it was first made.

Better late than never.

Lol.

[GreenGoo]

Is that wrong? I don’t want the Democrats to be Republicans, but I am not a fan of the move more left. Nor am I fan of refusing to work with the other party (yes, I am aware this is a bigger problem from Republicans). And I’m just a single person so obviously I wouldn’t have much influence.

Should independents, moderates whatever move into the two parties in an attempt to influence the direction? Or is better to stay out?

If only there was a clear answer. party membership for me would be based on much I agree with basic platforms, and how much I disagree with specific initiatives.

Some people are single issue voters, and that makes it easy. For everyone else in the middle, I think voting your conscience is the most important thing for being at peace with yourself. I realize that the system you're in requires you to support one party or the other. Anything else is "throwing away your vote" but while I agree that that is technically true, trying to second guess yourself or game the system so your vote "means" something is less important than just voting your conscience.

[Rip]

One of my high-school classmates (class of 87) just Facebooked a picture of herself meeting Tucker Carlson, and the oohing and ahhing from other FBfriends makes me what to murder everyone I met before I was 19.

Damn, Pass along my name and tell her to friend me up. Sounds like a great lady.

[Holman]

One of my high-school classmates (class of 87) just Facebooked a picture of herself meeting Tucker Carlson, and the oohing and ahhing from other FBfriends makes me what to murder everyone I met before I was 19.

Damn, Pass along my name and tell her to friend me up. Sounds like a great lady.

She believes masturbation is a sin.

[Rip]

One of my high-school classmates (class of 87) just Facebooked a picture of herself meeting Tucker Carlson, and the oohing and ahhing from other FBfriends makes me what to murder everyone I met before I was 19.

Damn, Pass along my name and tell her to friend me up. Sounds like a great lady.

She believes masturbation is a sin.

That's hot.

[Max Peck]

Service does not guarantee citizenship. Even for a natural-born citizen.

Retired Marine Gunnery Sgt. Enrique Martinez fell in love with the military service that transformed him from a kid in Brownsville fresh out of high school into a man with a purpose greater than himself.

He wore the eagle, globe and anchor, ready to defend the United States, for 20 years in such far-flung places as Okinawa, South Korea and the Philippines.

Now Martinez, 51, is fighting the State Department, which denied him a passport almost a year ago. The agency said the same birth certificate that got him into the Marine Corps isn’t sufficient proof that he’s a U.S. citizen.

“It all boils down to the idea that as a fellow American, they’re telling me that they’re giving me permission to risk my life in defense of freedom, but they’re not giving me a right to consider myself American,” Martinez said.

Martinez is among thousands of Hispanics born along the U.S.-Mexico border who were told in recent years that they need more than a birth certificate to get a U.S. passport.

[Kraken]

Should independents, moderates whatever move into the two parties in an attempt to influence the direction? Or is better to stay out?

I was taught -- and it has long been my own belief -- that one should vote for the person, not the party. 90% of the time that leads me to the D, but every now and then the R is the better candidate. Plus, as an independent I can take either party's primary ballot...and sometimes I do. I know which tribe I run with, and I also know that my tribe is wrong sometimes.

[El Guapo]

Should independents, moderates whatever move into the two parties in an attempt to influence the direction? Or is better to stay out?

I was taught -- and it has long been my own belief -- that one should vote for the person, not the party. 90% of the time that leads me to the D, but every now and then the R is the better candidate. Plus, as an independent I can take either party's primary ballot...and sometimes I do. I know which tribe I run with, and I also know that my tribe is wrong sometimes.

That doesn't really make sense in the current reality where the parties are pretty parliamentary in nature (e.g., 90%+ of the time the person votes in line with the party leadership). That can work for governor / mayor / etc., to be clear, but it doesn't really apply to federal elections anymore.

[LordMortis]

Should independents, moderates whatever move into the two parties in an attempt to influence the direction? Or is better to stay out?

I dunnanobout should but I am fairly conservative with a few extremely progressive views whose found himself cauausing with democrats in an attempt to influence direction. It's not where I want to be but tea party snake oil has long since seen me wanting republicans to have no control over anything even when I strongly disagree with the party I am trying to influence. Of course, the real goal is to try to influence the Rs to re-evaluate their entire existence and clean house.

I was taught -- and it has long been my own belief -- that one should vote for the person, not the party. 90% of the time that leads me to the D, but every now and then the R is the better candidate. Plus, as an independent I can take either party's primary ballot...and sometimes I do. I know which tribe I run with, and I also know that my tribe is wrong sometimes.

I was never taught that but it's what I did... until close to a decade ago. At first I just stopped voting R but I gradually moved to where I am now, voting in D primaries and actively voting not R. My vote is now in the primaries and I pretty much concede to if I lose and vote D like a good sheep. I have no idea when that will change but I don't see the horizon yet, so it will be a while.

[Fitzy]

Should independents, moderates whatever move into the two parties in an attempt to influence the direction? Or is better to stay out?

I was taught -- and it has long been my own belief -- that one should vote for the person, not the party. 90% of the time that leads me to the D, but every now and then the R is the better candidate. Plus, as an independent I can take either party's primary ballot...and sometimes I do. I know which tribe I run with, and I also know that my tribe is wrong sometimes.

Ah, I could work with that system. But in Maryland you have to be registered in a party to vote in the primary. That sucks because it’s almost a foregone conclusion that the winner of the Democratic primary is going to win the general election. Though there’s been a few wrenches in that prediction lately.

I understand the idea of a closed primary, the parties are private. I don’t like it though given the power they wield.

If only there was a clear answer. party membership for me would be based on much I agree with basic platforms, and how much I disagree with specific initiatives.

Some people are single issue voters, and that makes it easy. For everyone else in the middle, I think voting your conscience is the most important thing for being at peace with yourself. I realize that the system you're in requires you to support one party or the other. Anything else is "throwing away your vote" but while I agree that that is technically true, trying to second guess yourself or game the system so your vote "means" something is less important than just voting your conscience.

Pretty much where I am. A comic shocked me into considering whether staying out of party politics was the principled stand our shooting myself in the foot. On the other hand, I know my limits and a charismatic leader who’s going to change the hearts and minds of people is not it. So staying indie works.

Our country really does need election reform. Far too many people have no voice in elections.

[Kraken]

Should independents, moderates whatever move into the two parties in an attempt to influence the direction? Or is better to stay out?

I was taught -- and it has long been my own belief -- that one should vote for the person, not the party. 90% of the time that leads me to the D, but every now and then the R is the better candidate. Plus, as an independent I can take either party's primary ballot...and sometimes I do. I know which tribe I run with, and I also know that my tribe is wrong sometimes.

That doesn't really make sense in the current reality where the parties are pretty parliamentary in nature (e.g., 90%+ of the time the person votes in line with the party leadership). That can work for governor / mayor / etc., to be clear, but it doesn't really apply to federal elections anymore.

I am much more likely to flip in state and local (where party affiliation isn't even on the ballot) elections. At the federal level, I still give each candidate a hearing...and if Republicans never win me over, that's on them. I haven't voted for a Republican president since Ford, for example, although I have voted for third parties more than once. If all elections were national, I could be a Democrat.

But they aren't, and I'm not, and I won't vote to fire Baker without a better reason than having an R after his name (linking arms with Diehl would be such a reason). He's been our best governor since Weld and the Trumpsters hate him. I'll give Gonzalez a chance, and maybe he can do it if he's a real progressive. I haven't even heard his pitch yet, so IDK what he stands for or if he can be trusted to follow through. Point is that I can be convinced, but he's got to do better than just being a D or hating Trump more than Baker does.

[Daehawk]

I was musing tonight if I had a choice of Obama for 16 years or Trump for 2 more Id go Obama.

[stessier]

How money affects elections is complicated - by 538

How strong is the association between campaign spending and political success? For House seats, more than 90 percent of candidates who spend the most win. From 2000 through 2016, there was only one election cycle where that wasn’t true: 2010. “In that election, 86 percent of the top spenders won,” said Sheila Krumholz, executive director of the Center for Responsive Politics, a nonpartisan research group that tracks campaign fundraising and spending.

****

Money is certainly strongly associated with political success. But, “I think where you have to change your thinking is that money causes winning,” said Richard Lau, professor of political science at Rutgers. “I think it’s more that winning attracts money.”

That’s not to say money is irrelevant to winning, said Adam Bonica, a professor of political science at Stanford who also manages the Database on Ideology, Money in Politics, and Elections. But decades of research suggest that money probably isn’t the deciding factor in who wins a general election, and especially not for incumbents.

[GreenGoo]

Which comes first, the money or the winning?

I don't doubt that donors place their bets based on who they think has the greatest chance of winning, all else being equal.

It has been shown that presidential elections are a different beast.

[stessier]

Which comes first, the money or the winning?

I don't doubt that donors place their bets based on who they think has the greatest chance of winning, all else being equal.

It has been shown that presidential elections are a different beast.

Indeed - if you read the article, it shows that money matters the least in the presidential elections. It matters the most in primaries or for small county/state seats.

[Isgrimnur]

Vice

Farmers around the country have been hacking their way past the software locks that John Deere and other manufacturers put on tractors and other farm equipment, and the Farm Bureau lobbying organization has thus far been one of the most powerful to put its weight behind right to repair legislation, which would require manufacturers to sell repair parts, make diagnostic tools and repair information available to the public, and would require manufacturers to provide a way to get around proprietary software locks that are designed to prevent repair.

In most states, the legislation would cover all electronics, which includes tractors, cell phones, computers, video game consoles, appliances, and everything in between. So far, this legislation has been proposed in 19 states, but hasn’t yet passed. In any case, the momentum and outrage behind the right to repair movement is real, and the Equipment Dealers Association (which represents John Deere and other manufacturers) has been anxious to show that manufacturers like Deere aren’t actively trying to screw over farmers, while continuing to do just that.

In February, the Equipment Dealers Association promised to make a few concessions—notably, the group said Deere and others would begin to make repair manuals, product guides, diagnostic service tools, and on-board diagnostics available to farmers by 2021. Notably, it did not promise to actually sell repair parts, and it also contains several carve-outs that allow tractor manufacturers to continue using software locks that could prevent repair.

This is what the Equipment Dealers Association voluntarily offered to do for every farmer in the country earlier this year. In the meantime, the Equipment Dealers Association has continued to fight against comprehensive right to repair legislation, which would end their repair monopoly overnight (it has continued to put out information sheets that say self-repair is dangerous, and that tractors are too complicated for farmers to repair themselves. An example of one of these is embedded at the end of the article.)

[GreenGoo]

Welcome to the club, farmers

[Holman]

(Stolen from Twitter:)

American slavery ended just two Mitch McConnells ago.

[milo]

Math is hard. Can ya convert that into Scaramuccis?

[GreenGoo]

Michael Moore promises to move to Canada.

No thank you.

[Paingod]

Michael Moore promises to move to Canada.

No thank you.

A lot of our best Americans come from Canada. I'm not sure what you do to them up there, but they're very polite when they arrive.

We're happy to make the exchange.

[Defiant]

Michael Moore promises to move to Canada.

No thank you.

Consider it payback for Ted Cruz.

[GreenGoo]

Here's a joke:

2 strangers meet on a train, a Canadian and an American. The Canadian says "shallow grave". The American says "deal".

[Isgrimnur]

[Isgrimnur]

Buzzfeed: The Future Of Publishing Is Just Books About Donald Trump Forever Until You Are Dead

[Isgrimnur]

CBS

A South Carolina Republican congressman joked at a Thursday debate with his Democratic opponent that 85-year-old Supreme Court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was "groped" by Abraham Lincoln.

"Did you hear about this?" Rep. Ralph Norman said at the opening of the debate, according to The Post and Courier. "Ruth Bader Ginsburg came out saying she was groped by Abraham Lincoln."
...
The congressman's jab prompted "some scattered nervous laughter from the Kiwanis Club of Rock Hill," according to the paper. Norman, a freshman lawmaker who won a special election to his seat in 2017, is currently running for reelection.

Norman's brief tenure in the House has attracted national attention before. Earlier this year, during a meeting with gun control activists, the congressman placed a loaded pistol on the table. Norman said he did this to show that "guns don't shoot people; people shoot guns." He also said he was "not going to be a Gabby Giffords," the former congresswoman who was shot and nearly killed while meeting with constituents in 2011.

[Max Peck]

I guess you know that you're successfully stigginit to the libs when even PayPal is tired of your shit.

PayPal ends business dealings with Alex Jones's Infowars

Payments processor PayPal Holdings Inc said on Friday it decided to end its business relationship with popular U.S. conspiracy theorist Alex Jones’s Infowars website after finding instances of hate speech and discriminatory content on the site.

“We undertook an extensive review of the Infowars sites, and found instances that promoted hate or discriminatory intolerance against certain communities and religions, which run counter to our core value of inclusion,” the PayPal spokesman said.

[tjg_marantz]

Who's gonna fight off the gay frogs now???

[Max Peck]

This is shaping up to be the best Infrastructure Week ever!

[Isgrimnur]

This is shaping up to be the best Infrastructure Week ever!

NPR

In early June 2017, the White House kicked off its own Infrastructure Week.
...
The White House went back to infrastructure in August.
...
And this past February, the Trump administration finally unveiled its infrastructure plan.
...
SHAPIRO: So now industry leaders are in Washington for their official Infrastructure Week, and NPR's David Schaper is in town covering it. David, good to see in person.

DAVID SCHAPER, BYLINE: Good to see you, Ari.

SHAPIRO: The industry leaders you're talking to are very aware of this running joke, right?

[Kraken]

That story is from May. I gather that we're about due for another Infrastructure Week now.

[Max Peck]

That story is from May. I gather that we're about due for another Infrastructure Week now.

Nah, any week full of distractions and unexpected plot twists is Infrastructure Week. Which is to say, every week is Infrastructure Week.