The Kamala Harris presidential candidacy

[Blackhawk]

Citizens are running a scam on illegal immigrants. The illegals do the back breaking jobs, pay into Social Security, but cannot collect the benefits. And the deplorables want to deport them all? Does not sound like a winning proposition.

From crop fields to slaughterhouses, the US domestic food supply depends hugely on undocumented immigrants. Trump's "illegals" are literally the people who keep us alive, and for the most part citizens are *not* willing to do these jobs.

Somehow no one ever mentions this.

Then why not make them legal? Why US's food supply has to depend on breaking the law?

Once you make them legal, things like worker protection regulations and minimum wage start to take effect, and are documented.

[Isgrimnur]

Then they just change the laws

[LawBeefaroni]

If anything, this makes him even more relatable since we all have that one (or more) MAGA family member that we don’t interact with anymore.

That was my other thought but that is divisive which Harris/Walz and hopefully we all hope to move away from, quite frankly, by getting people out of MAGA mode and back in toward "we disagree mode", even as I personally believe that will take an implosion of a GOP so riddled with cancerous MAGA as well as the McConnell approach to governing at this point.

Depends how it plays out. If he goes full dark-side it may pose a bit of a problem. But if he plays into the "we can disagree and still get along"/rebuild message, it could turn into a boon for Harris/Walz.

[waitingtoconnect]

You can bet an lor of “concerned citizens” are going to offer a lot to get him to turn.

Surprised the vetting didn’t turn this up. It would have to be carefully considered if it’s disqualifying in my book. Unhinged close relative is a big risk as we saw with Hunter it can be career ending.

It’s sad but the times we live in mean a democrat has to be squeaky clean or clearly reformed or the media barons will get their “journalists” to make a big deal out of it.

[Holman]

You can bet an lor of “concerned citizens” are going to offer a lot to get him to turn.

Surprised the vetting didn’t turn this up. It would have to be carefully considered if it’s disqualifying in my book. Unhinged close relative is a big risk as we saw with Hunter it can be career ending.

It’s sad but the times we live in mean a democrat has to be squeaky clean or clearly reformed or the media barons will get their “journalists” to make a big deal out of it.

[Deep cut]This is Billy Carter, not Hunter Biden.[/Deep cut]

Tim Walz is not his brother's keeper.

[waitingtoconnect]

When has that ever stopped them?

[Carpet_pissr]

You can bet an lor of “concerned citizens” are going to offer a lot to get him to turn.

Surprised the vetting didn’t turn this up. It would have to be carefully considered if it’s disqualifying in my book. Unhinged close relative is a big risk as we saw with Hunter it can be career ending.

Whose career did Hunter end?

[Jaymann]

You can bet an lor of “concerned citizens” are going to offer a lot to get him to turn.

Surprised the vetting didn’t turn this up. It would have to be carefully considered if it’s disqualifying in my book. Unhinged close relative is a big risk as we saw with Hunter it can be career ending.

Whose career did Hunter end?

Hopefully DonOld's.

[Jaymann]

Harris endorsements incoming:

Liz Cheney

George W Bush

[Unagi]

I mean the first one was sorta implied, but the 2nd one is kinda huge, I would think.

[ydejin]

Yeah, The NY Times says that Liz Cheney was waiting for September to make a push for Harris. Her thinking was that there already was a lot going on in August. Here’s a Gift Article if anyone’s interested.

If they can get George W on board, that would be great. I would imagine Harris would want to keep her distance from W, but would welcome his endorsement nevertheless.

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/08/30/us/p ... =url-share

[Kraken]

I mean the first one was sorta implied, but the 2nd one is kinda huge, I would think.

Amongst non-MAGA Republicans, it's a big deal if the news reaches them. Bushes are RINOs in MAGA land...W was noticeably absent from their convention.

Good lord, did I just say something approving about the second-worst president of my lifetime?

[El Guapo]

I mean the first one was sorta implied, but the 2nd one is kinda huge, I would think.

Amongst non-MAGA Republicans, it's a big deal if the news reaches them. Bushes are RINOs in MAGA land...W was noticeably absent from their convention.

Good lord, did I just say something approving about the second-worst president of my lifetime?

Yeah, I think any benefit of Cheney's endorsement is probably already priced into the polls. But Bush seems like a big deal. As you say Bushes are RINOs in MAGA land, but I have to think that there are a non-trivial number of non-MAGA Republicans who think of Bush fondly, and if nothing else Bush could help give them a permission structure to vote for Harris (or at least to not vote for Trump). In short he probably helps with the portion of the Republican permission which is realistically "gettable" for Harris.

[waitingtoconnect]

I mean the first one was sorta implied, but the 2nd one is kinda huge, I would think.

Amongst non-MAGA Republicans, it's a big deal if the news reaches them. Bushes are RINOs in MAGA land...W was noticeably absent from their convention.

Good lord, did I just say something approving about the second-worst president of my lifetime?

Look at who’s spoke out against him:

The last two Republican vice presidents have spoken out against Trump.
His defense secretaries like Mattis
His national security advisors Bolton and McMaster
His chief of staff Kelly
His press secretary
His diplomats
His FBI chiefs
His niece and nephew
The list goes on

Not to mention the lives ruined by lies.

But somehow in the media and a lot of people’s eyes Tim Walzs brother makes it all equal.

Even for a Republican president any single senior member of staff or family member speaking out would have been badly damaging. I still don’t get why it isn’t for trump.

Look at fracking- Harris had an initial position but realised it was best for the country to allow it several years later after listening to all the arguments. Thats the mark of leadership. Trump flip flopped on abortion three times in a week and it’s barely mentioned.

[Jaymann]

Jim McCain (son of John) endorses Harris.

[Holman]

Jim McCain (son of John) endorses Harris.

He also announced that he has registered as a Democrat.

His sister Megan immediately put out a huffy message saying that she would do neither.

[hepcat]

Yeah, she's thrown away her 15 minutes worth of goodwill after her father's death by slowly but surely leaning into the dark side.

edit: she's apparently announced she's voting for neither Trump nor Harris...which means she's giving her vote to Trump. She's the worst kind of Republican: one who's aware what's happening to her party but won't do anything about it.

[Jaymann]

Liz Cheney announced in a speech at Duke University she will be voting for Kamala Harris.

[Carpet_pissr]

No surprise there

[El Guapo]

No surprise there

Well, it would have been a shock if she said that she was voting for Trump, but she is still a very conservative Republican otherwise, so she could have easily said that she's writing in someone / casting a blank ballot / etc.

[Carpet_pissr]

No surprise there

Well, it would have been a shock if she said that she was voting for Trump, but she is still a very conservative Republican otherwise, so she could have easily said that she's writing in someone / casting a blank ballot / etc.

My take on her is that she will do ANYthing that hurts Trump the most, or at least appears to in public. I just assume that she will behave based on that underlying principle (and for that I applaud her - he needs someone on the R side that is constantly badgering him and calling out his BS).

[Kraken]

No surprise there

Well, it would have been a shock if she said that she was voting for Trump, but she is still a very conservative Republican otherwise, so she could have easily said that she's writing in someone / casting a blank ballot / etc.

My take on her is that she will do ANYthing that hurts Trump the most, or at least appears to in public. I just assume that she will behave based on that underlying principle (and for that I applaud her - he needs someone on the R side that is constantly badgering him and his calling out his BS).

Eventually the real Republicans will be able to reclaim their party. Some prominent figures are laying the groundwork now, but first trump has to lose again, and then it will be protracted and messy. In the end, though, we'll be able to go back to opposing them over normal political disagreements.

[Carpet_pissr]

No surprise there

Well, it would have been a shock if she said that she was voting for Trump, but she is still a very conservative Republican otherwise, so she could have easily said that she's writing in someone / casting a blank ballot / etc.

My take on her is that she will do ANYthing that hurts Trump the most, or at least appears to in public. I just assume that she will behave based on that underlying principle (and for that I applaud her - he needs someone on the R side that is constantly badgering him and his calling out his BS).

Eventually the real Republicans will be able to reclaim their party. Some prominent figures are laying the groundwork now, but first trump has to lose again, and then it will be protracted and messy. In the end, though, we'll be able to go back to opposing them over normal political disagreements.

I hope you're right.

[Unagi]

Liz Cheney announced in a speech at Duke University she will be voting for Kamala Harris.

And apparently, her father - Darth Vader - is also going to be voting for Harris:


https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-e ... rcna169979

[Holman]

Eventually the real Republicans will be able to reclaim their party. Some prominent figures are laying the groundwork now, but first trump has to lose again, and then it will be protracted and messy. In the end, though, we'll be able to go back to opposing them over normal political disagreements.

I wonder.

The GOP since the 1980s has been the party of the rich and of corporations. Its electoral success, however, always depended on subtly reassuring reactionaries and racists that it was their party too. Trump came along and seized control of the party simply by taking all the subtlety out of it.

Does "reclaiming the party" mean stuffing the reactionary shit back in the closet but still relying on it? I don't think Trump voters will settle for that.

"How you gonna keep 'em down on the farm/now that they've seen Paree [1930s Germany]?

[raydude]

Eventually the real Republicans will be able to reclaim their party. Some prominent figures are laying the groundwork now, but first trump has to lose again, and then it will be protracted and messy. In the end, though, we'll be able to go back to opposing them over normal political disagreements.

I wonder.

The GOP since the 1980s has been the party of the rich and of corporations. Its electoral success, however, always depended on subtly reassuring reactionaries and racists that it was their party too. Trump came along and seized control of the party simply by taking all the subtlety out of it.

Does "reclaiming the party" mean stuffing the reactionary shit back in the closet but still relying on it? I don't think Trump voters will settle for that.

"How you gonna keep 'em down on the farm/now that they've seen Paree [1930s Germany]?

Hate (and Hate related grift) sells. Now that the right-wing media, right wing bloggers, influencers, and general grift peddlers know how much money people are willing to fork over if you promise to punish their enemies I doubt that genie will go back in the bottle.

[Pyperkub]

Eventually the real Republicans will be able to reclaim their party. Some prominent figures are laying the groundwork now, but first trump has to lose again, and then it will be protracted and messy. In the end, though, we'll be able to go back to opposing them over normal political disagreements.

I wonder.

The GOP since the 1980s has been the party of the rich and of corporations. Its electoral success, however, always depended on subtly reassuring reactionaries and racists that it was their party too. Trump came along and seized control of the party simply by taking all the subtlety out of it.

Does "reclaiming the party" mean stuffing the reactionary shit back in the closet but still relying on it? I don't think Trump voters will settle for that.

"How you gonna keep 'em down on the farm/now that they've seen Paree [1930s Germany]?

Hate (and Hate related grift) sells. Now that the right-wing media, right wing bloggers, influencers, and general grift peddlers know how much money people are willing to fork over if you promise to punish their enemies I doubt that genie will go back in the bottle.

It also pays well. not only from the marks, but Russia. It sounds like there were over 500 RW "influencers" who may be on the Russia payroll in the US alone maybe...

The affidavit references one document maintained by the Social Design Agency, which is not included in the unsealed court documents, that contains a list of more than 2,800 people identified as influencers. While this list is global, US-based influencers account for around 20 percent of the accounts being monitored, including many US lawmakers, according to an analysis of the list by the FBI...

...In a note from one of the meetings with Russian government officials discussing the campaign’s use of influencers, Gambashidze wrote: “We need influencers! A lot of them and everywhere. We are ready to wine and dine them.” Though no links have been confirmed, hours before the Doppelganger affidavit dropped on Wednesday, Tenet Media, an organization that features a slate of right-wing commentators, was alleged in an unsealed Department of Justice indictment to have been largely funded by Russian state-backed news network RT.

The Social Design Agency operation appeared to be extremely well-run and well-resourced. There is a “project office” consisting of four teams that include one entire group dedicated to monitoring the social media posts from GOP lawmakers in order to generate ideas for topics to cover.

Including, of course, "US Lawmakers". I think we have a pretty good idea who some of them are...

[Unagi]

We'll soon learn that one of the rules of being on the payroll is to buy certain Trump merchandise, etc. I assume this is how Russia funnels money to, and takes possession of assets in, the U.S..

[waitingtoconnect]

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/art ... ala-harris

“As citizens, we each have a duty to put country above partisanship to defend our constitution. That is why I will be casting my vote for Vice-President Kamala Harris.”

So we have one Republican vice president (Cheney) endorsing Harris, another who told Pence not to hold up the election (Quayle) and Pence himself saying he won’t endorse Trump.

[em2nought]

Liz Cheney announced in a speech at Duke University she will be voting for Kamala Harris.

And apparently, her father - Darth Vader - is also going to be voting for Harris:


https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-e ... rcna169979

I think he's just angling to get Kamala to go hunting with him.

[hepcat]

Hunting the Trumps? I mean, they probably should. Kamala and Walz have wounded them. Best to just put those animals out of our misery.

Oh, did I slip up and say “our”? I meant “their”.

[Unagi]

I just want to say, "Thanks, Dick!"

[Zarathud]

Does "reclaiming the party" mean stuffing the reactionary shit back in the closet but still relying on it? I don't think Trump voters will settle for that.

Part of the reason MAGA likes Trump is they’ve been teased for years by the GOP and they’ll happily let shit burn just for the chance of getting their reactionary views.

They’re not getting back in the closet.

They’re here, they’re (anti-)queer
Get used to it (dictating GOP policies)

They’ll be less organized, and eat each other without the Great Orange One’s ego to align them.

[Kraken]

The GOP’s internal power struggle after trump fever breaks might lead to a split as the culture warriors and the economic conservatives find one another irreconcilable. But ultimately a functional center-right party calling itself Republican will come out on top if they want to win national elections again.

[dfs]

The notion that there are a group of "good" republicans just waiting to take over the party once Trump is on the outs is a peculiar liberal fantasy. I have no faith that such creatures exist.

[Kraken]

The notion that there are a group of "good" republicans just waiting to take over the party once Trump is on the outs is a peculiar liberal fantasy. I have no faith that such creatures exist.

Maybe it’s a New England thing. We have a long history of socially liberal/fiscally conservative Republicans who have merely gone underground.

[Holman]

The GOP’s internal power struggle after trump fever breaks might lead to a split as the culture warriors and the economic conservatives find one another irreconcilable. But ultimately a functional center-right party calling itself Republican will come out on top if they want to win national elections again.

I'm not sure a center-right party can win elections without the support of racist revanchists.

If they can get past Trump's reactionary lunge towards fascism, I hope the right-centrists can understand that they'll need to negotiate for their goals rather than trying to ride the tiger of authoritarianism.

[Kraken]

The GOP’s internal power struggle after trump fever breaks might lead to a split as the culture warriors and the economic conservatives find one another irreconcilable. But ultimately a functional center-right party calling itself Republican will come out on top if they want to win national elections again.

I'm not sure a center-right party can win elections without the support of racist revanchists.

If they can get past Trump's reactionary lunge towards fascism, I hope the right-centrists can understand that they'll need to negotiate for their goals rather than trying to ride the tiger of authoritarianism.

Despite being progressive/socialist myself, I believe most Americans are socially liberal and fiscally conservative, and neither party represents them.

[Unagi]

fiscally conservative has never been defined enough for me to understand what the person saying it *really means.

I certainly don't believe in trickle-down economics, or "lets try to do all of this stuff without any rich people or corporations paying for it" - which is pretty much all that it's ever meant in my lifetime.

[LordMortis]

fiscally conservative has never been defined enough for me to understand what the person saying it *really means.

They would prefer less government service/programs and less taxation, generally speaking. When you get in to the weeds that's different things for different people. The same goes for a fiscally progressive statement.