#fiscal conservative

[missing-wires]

still you shouldnt have made fun of his tiddies like that

Geezus, you’re still on about that? I didn’t even make fun of his titties. Actually, they look very jiggly and cuddly, if you’re into that sort of thing. Im more so concerned about the future burden they will have on the U.S. healthcare system. I don’t want the good, hard working people of this country to subsidize those titties, we’re 32 trillion in debt.

Like do you even Steven Crowder, bro? Look, I’m sure Jeremy is a nice guy who has a great daddy and everything. I’m just thinking bigger picture, respectfully.

[quillsword]

Georgia: Why Republicans Hate Their Base

Georgia: Why Republicans Hate Their Base

This is actually nothing new. Originally – at least in this party system – the Republicans were the party of the rich, the elite, the businessman and the fiscal conservative. In the Seventies, this began to shift as fewer middle class and virtually the entire South felt betrayed by the heretofore working class/middle class representative Democrats. That bit about the South is included because it…

[oracularities]

More on the "Rand" thing

Back in regard to the same July 2020 article where Rand Paul was ranting at Fauci (first of several times) ...

-- original reply

No, you are conflating an unpleasant and anti-intellectual strain of "Libertarianism" with the whole of the political philosophy. The right to be an indifferent a-hole is not Libertarianism. That natural right is "free will."

I'm not saying that there is such a thing as a Libertarian government, because such a thing doesn't exist in a pure form, and no one would sanely argue that it could exist, or that people could coexist without government. Libertarian society is a hypothetical.

I think many if not all Libertarians who have their heads screwed on straight (who are probably at least the people who can pronounce and spell "Libertarian") realize that it takes a certain amount of mental and moral faculty, and contemplation, to choose one's own path in a way that comports with the philosophy. But everyday life requires that too.

The practical form of Libertarianism back in the day, which wasn't that long ago (the 90s), was "fiscal conservative, social liberal." There was a place in politics for that platform then, just as there was a place for "fiscal liberal, social conservative" (hello, anti-abortion anti-gay pro school prayer high-spending Democrat, which was a majority at times).

But there's no place for that now. There's no collection of axes now; there's a one-dimensional litmus test so extreme that you are on the black is white or white is black side of every issue.

So, no, I don't agree with you at all that "considering other people is a burden" is a characteristic of Libertarianism. Considering other people is an obligation. In fact, both left- and right-wing political systems attempt to remove the choice of that consideration from you. The government never makes you consider other people. Government requires that you do things and performs acts upon you. Government reduces your ability to act upon your consideration of other people. Which is not inherently a bad thing, as anarchy is definitely a bad thing, but government can constrain you to do things that negatively affect others just as it can constrain you to do things that positively affect others.

[capitalism-and-analytics]

[lenbryant]

Dump this cult and get serious people for a change.

[dontmean2bepoliticalbut]

[arellas]

these tags r so funny to me.. you hate the guy for.. being fatshamey.. in a fox show that aired in 2004. thats called historical accuracy ‼️‼️ are we gonna cancel mr darcy for classism next

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

In March, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s colleagues laughed as the California Republican mocked President Joe Biden’s age, saying he would bring Biden “soft food” so they could negotiate over the debt ceiling.

But McCarthy apparently did not bring Biden anything to eat during their talks, and the President chewed up the GOP’s debt limit proposal instead. Republicans aren’t laughing anymore.

“Republicans got outsmarted by a President who can’t find his pants,” Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) tweeted on Tuesday, making clear she opposed the compromise legislation that came out of Biden and McCarthy’s negotiations.

Biden, 80, is the oldest person to serve as President of the U.S., and his age and alleged senility have been a constant focus of Republicans and right-wing commentators, despite assurances from his doctors that there’s nothing wrong with his mind. Polls have also shown that voters have concerns about Biden’s age.

During the debt limit standoff, McCarthy repeatedly said that by refusing to negotiate with Republicans, Biden was “bumbling” the U.S. toward a potentially catastrophic default. Even some Democrats criticized the President for not publicly engaging as much as McCarthy has in recent weeks. But as of Wednesday, default seemed unlikely, and the outlines of the deal appeared favorable to Democrats.

Asked if Biden had gotten the better of McCarthy, Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), replied, “Yeah, I think that’s a fair assumption.”

Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), meanwhile, said he believed McCarthy had simply been “misled.” He didn’t say by whom.

Even McCarthy conceded that he had been impressed with Biden’s negotiating team during the talks, calling them “very professional, very smart” and “very tough at the same time.”

But the Speaker has denied that he was outsmarted, touting the bill’s reductions to government spending and stricter “work requirements” for federal food benefits that Democrats opposed. The legislation would reduce the deficit by $1.5 trillion over the next 10 years, in large part due to cuts to non-defense programs, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

“How were we outsmarted? The largest cut in the history of Congress. The biggest ability to pull money back,” McCarthy told ABC News on Tuesday. “We’ve got work requirements for welfare where the Democrats said was a red line.”

Still, Biden got plenty of wins in the bill, which cuts federal spending far less than Republicans initially hoped. And in a twist, the CBO said the work requirements won’t reduce spending or enrollment in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

The program supports 20 million households and already limits benefits for unemployed adults without children or disabilities who are between the ages of 18 and 49, unless they work or perform some other qualifying activity for 20 hours a week. Republicans proposed expanding the work requirement to people in their early 50s, as well as restricting states’ discretion to exempt some recipients. The CBO estimated the Republican proposal would have saved $11 billion and reduced SNAP enrollment by 275,000.

Biden signaled early on that he was open to stricter work requirements for SNAP, just not “anything of any consequence” — a statement that drew mocking laughter from McCarthy and his colleagues as someone, apparently a lawmaker behind the Speaker, shouted, “Loser!”

Sure enough, Biden agreed to expand SNAP’s work rules to people as old as 54 — but the White House also won changes that render the net impact of the bill inconsequential, at least from a budget perspective. The CBO said that, thanks to brand-new work requirement exemptions for veterans and homeless people, the bill would actually increase SNAP enrollment by a small amount and boost federal spending by $2 billion.

The analysis was not a surprise to the White House; a senior administration official said Sunday that “we expect that the number of people subject to SNAP work requirements will stay roughly the same under this agreement.”

The deal also preserves key Democratic priorities like student loan debt relief, climate change funding, and the bulk of investments aimed at making sure the wealthy pay their taxes.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) likened the bill to a “shit sandwich” that Republicans would have to eat — a sentiment shared by other Republicans planning to support the bill in a vote on Wednesday.

That doesn’t mean Democrats don’t have concerns about the legislation. Progressives, in particular, are furious that Biden was forced to negotiate over the debt limit at all, warning that he set a precedent Republicans will exploit time and time again if the debt limit isn’t abolished.

“It rewards the hostage-taking that the Republicans have gotten so damn good at,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) said Tuesday.

Still, Democrats maintain the GOP has underestimated Biden at every turn, pointing to his many legislative accomplishments in the last Congress, including bipartisan investments in infrastructure and semiconductor research, and his signing of a historic climate change bill.

“If you haven’t figured out by now that our president is in the top 1% of negotiators, you haven’t been paying attention the last two and a half years,” Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) told HuffPost.

[gen-is-gone]

hrgh every time I think I've come close to forgiving lance fucking parkin I skim the gallifrey chronicles. and then I remember the Horrors.

[daenystheedreamer]

Hey that post about *makes u cum, reblogs pics of knights* reminded me, where does Brienne fit into KuwtB? something something Renly's beard for the gym?

i never figured out what i wanted her to do!!! maybe she's renly's bodyguard i like pete buttigieg style fiscally conservative socially liberal #gay#loveislove#noh8 politician renly its really funny to me so he can have bodyguard brienne.

but anyway she and jaime go on a blind date (set up by renly, its his fault) that goes SOOOO bad and she hates him but they meet again and she takes pity on him. maybe he gets into a car crash and she happens to be there that would be so cute for them... she's just minding her own business maybe went to a bar but only women would hit on her and she has to be like im so sorry im straight 💔 and then jaime drunk driving crashes his car into a pole across the street and she calls the ambulance and stays in hospital with him cos cersei and tywin wont visit (tyrion is on a phones-off corporate/rehab retreat in the summer isles and doesnt find out till he comes back, it kinda ruins his summer vibes tbh)

[parcai]

i b saying things like socially liberal, fiscally conservative just 2 fuck w ppl

[uchiha-gaeshi]

People who voted for Trump because they thought he was gonna fix the economy are falling for the stupid American stereotype there I said it.

[compacflt]

okay "normie median Biden voter ice" got me. That's funny. But also so true! It prob took him a bit to vote dem too (though I believe that Ice would have never voted for Trump). Would love to hear more thoughts on Ice and Mav's politics. Also the list of who they would have voted for if you're willing to share.

i do worry that posting my extremely in-depth headcanons about some of this stuff will have the JKR “wizard shit” effect on my writing and ruin it a little, but ask and ye shall receive

copy-pasted straight from my list of “unhinged compacflt!top gun headcanons” that ive been keeping since september: on ice & mav's politics

16. Since their friendship began, Ice has always told Maverick who to vote for, since Maverick doesn't care enough to pay attention to national politics. They are begrudging ConservaDems (conservative political views, would vote conservative every election if Republicans weren’t actively sending them to war/actively promoting fascism). Ice’s voting record (and after 1988, Mav’s too) 1980-2020—note that he has always considered himself an “educated moderate”: 1980: Reagan. 1984: Reagan. 1988: Bush. 1992: Bush. 1996: Clinton (reaction to aftermath of PGW. Doesn’t care that Clinton enacted DADT because “I’m not [redacted], so it doesn’t apply to me”). 2000: Gore (refusal to vote for another Bush). 2004: Kerry (Mav votes Bush this year out of spite as he and Ice are going through their break-up). 2008: McCain (Navy loyalty). 2012: Obama (liked him as a person/worked closely with him, didn’t like his policies so much). 2016: Clinton (no other alternative). 2020: Biden (actually liked/previously worked with Biden, and now actively married to another man and therefore had to make some liberal concessions). 2024-onwards they will vote for any Democrat as long as they aren’t a “socialist.”

17. Also, Maverick didn’t vote in 2016. Partially because in my universe the TGM mission takes place that November, very near the election, and he has bigger fish to fry (something Ice will later take him to task for), and partially because I genuinely think he wouldn’t be able to stomach either mainstream candidate and probably would’ve voted for Libertarian Gary Johnson, which might have torn his relationship with Ice to shreds a few days before schedule. “Are you fucking kidding me? Johnson? Pete, this moron’s moronic party wants to abolish the driver’s license—” / “—Yeah, and then I could ride your sweet wheels with no problem whatsoever—maybe he’ll abolish pilots’ licenses, too, I’d like to see that—” / “If you vote for Gary fucking Johnson, I will very happily stop footing the bill for your piece-of-shit airplane, and you can see how useful your pilot’s license is then—” / So Mav didn’t vote in 2016. 

35. In terms of what he Tweets: I do foresee, post-retirement, Ice basically becoming a neoliberal military intellectual type on Twitter a la Mark Hertling (look him up on Twitter). Bio: “Retired @SECNAV. Advisor @WhiteHouse and @VoteVets. Contributing writer @TheAtlantic. Interested in geopolitics & modern warfare. Aviator, husband, Padres fan. [American flag emoji]” Only posts pictures of himself and Maverick at three specific annual events: 1. their wedding anniversary (“36 years with this fool and he’s still surprised to find out that I like the F-5 better than the A-4 #happyanniversary”), 2. every EAA Airventure (huge airplane convention), 3. San Francisco’s Fleet Week (which of course they MUST attend, they even headline it in 2018). Informative, analytical, highly-respected. Maybe goes on CNN or NBC all the time to talk about civil-military relations shit (aversion to FOX since the start of the Iraq War). Gonna say he had like four really viral threads about Russia and Ukraine in April or May and so has 300k followers or something like that. He has a personal website that links back to his Twitter and every essay he writes for international publications, with a pretty braggadocious bio (something along the lines of “Tom Kazansky has directly almost started global nuclear war twice in his life, and in the thirty-year gap in between, sold the Swiss half their entire goddamn Air Force and directed an entire Fleet during the Iraq War”). Lots of tweets like “Military aviation hot take: Compared to the F-22, the F-35 is a waste of money. Source: husband with 400+ hours of F-35 experience.” / “[Quote tweet of Russian Foreign Minister boasting about Su-57 production lines] Oh, so you guys finally figured out how to make more than one every other year?” / “Analysis of the failure of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet in Ukraine, from an ex-US Pacific Fleet Commander’s perspective: a short [thread emoji] [This thread gets 26k likes and 4k retweets]” / “This weekend my husband & I flew in to @EAA Oshkosh #OSH19 & took home first place for best P-51. Not to brag, but.” (A reply to this tweet: “Sir, you really know how to bury the lede that your husband is Adm. Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell. I had to look it up on Wikipedia.” / @TKazansky: “What, was it not obvious? Who else could it have been?”) Also, I see him writing a whole bunch of op-eds for international political magazines a la Tom Nichols (look him up on Twitter too). Writing analyses of recent geopolitical/military events for the New York Times, the New Yorker, the Bulwark, the Navy Times, the Atlantic, Bellingcat, etc. Not so much focused on domestic issues (but VoteVets [socially progressive vets’ group] board member, and ardently pro-democracy, yay!). He’s a smart guy.

37. This is not a headcanon, just kind of a… a real-life implication. My Ice was Deputy Commander of Third Fleet in 2003, meaning he’d have been there in command of the USS Abraham Lincoln when President Bush gave his “Mission Accomplished” speech aboard that ship in May less than 2 months after the initial American invasion of Iraq. Very premature & embarrassing. Ice would’ve been in direct contact with Bush/Cheney/NSC bureaucrats many, many times during the war. I genuinely believe this is what pushed him over the edge into firm liberal territory.

[capitalism-and-analytics]

[jewishbarbies]

republicans sure like to call jews greedy and money hungry for people who refuse to support spending a dime of tax payer money on something that doesn’t 100% directly benefit them

[madamshogunassassin]