#look at what is happening in the world look at desantis running for president look at dont say gay

[theculturedmarxist]

A few minutes earlier, Walz had been onstage in Washington at a Center for American Progress event, chiding a crowd of engaged but worried Democrats, “Everybody who says, ‘I wish he was younger.’ I wish I was skinnier! [Florida Gov. Ron] DeSantis wishes he was more likable! It’s not going to happen. … There’s a responsibility for us not to buy into that.”

STOP EXPECTING THINGS OF US!

Or as Pennsylvania Rep. Brendan Boyle told CNN more bluntly, “People should shut the hell up.”

STOP DEMANDING WE DO ANY BETTER!

“I deal in the real world,” said the Philadelphia-area Democrat, who has been proudly supporting Biden for years. “He is going to be the nominee, regardless of whether people think they can construct on paper a more attractive nominee or not.”

IT'S NOT GONNA HAPPEN!!!

“Every time Democrats go on TV and say, ‘The president’s done a great job, but he’s 80 years old,’ all they’re doing is feeding this appetite out there by some for a third-party run,” said Missouri Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, a Kansas City-area Democrat. “And that could be the worst thing that happens in a century.”

WE LIVE IN THE BEST OF ALL POSSIBLE WORLDS DON'T LOOK FOR ALTERNATIVES AND RUIN EVERYTHING NOW!

“Joe Biden is on the freedom, democracy and opportunity agenda that beat MAGA Republicans in 2020, in 2022, and will win again in 2024,” Ben Wikler, the Democratic party chair in the top battleground state of Wisconsin, told CNN. “Every hour that someone spends fantasizing about some other ticket is an hour they could have spent calling voters or raising money to help reelect President Biden and Vice President Harris.”

WE'RE GREAT! WE'RE DOING SUCH A GREAT JOB!! OUR POSITION IS COMPLETELY UNASSAILABLE AND WE'RE DEFINITELY GOING TO WIN EVEN THOUGH WE INSPIRE NO CONFIDENCE IN OURSELVES OR OUR SUPPORTERS.

“All these pundits will talk about polling, polling, polling — OK, fine, let’s talk about that,” Harris said, drawing an enthusiastic standing ovation during the DNC meeting in St. Louis. “What we did on the climate crisis: I think 80% popularity. Lowering the cost of prescription drugs to $35 a month, I think everyone loves that. $2,000 a year for seniors for prescription medication, hallelujah. Fighting for relief of student loan debt. 800,000 new manufacturing jobs. Popular, popular, popular.”

Delusional, delusional, delusional.

“That which doesn’t kill him,” the congressman said hopefully, “makes him stronger.”

lol, lmao

[lesbiangummybearmafia]

This needs to said, Ron DeSantis is worse then Trump. Now I personally hate Trump with every fiber of my being, I hate everything he stands for, which I believe is mostly lies. However if we take look at what Ron DeSantis has been doing in Florida as governor from the Don't say gay bill, to Stop the Woke act, bill banning transgender minors receiving gender affirming care, bill to ban gender studies, now there moving to expand teaching ban on sexual orientation and gender identity k-12.

That is just the tip of the ice berg. If he's doing this on a state level imagine the horror that could be unleashed on the whole country if he does decide to run for President! If he does I know personally I'll do everything in my power to make sure he loses! Because we can not have Authoritarian mad man in the most powerful position in the world. Our Civil Rights are already being diminished in States all over our country even as I write this we do not need it to happen on the federal level. May it be Women's rights, lgbtqia+ rights, people of color rights their once again trying to silence our voices. Bit by bit the Republican law makes all over the US are gerrymanagering state maps as to basically cheat, by making it harder for everyone to vote, especially people of color, disabled people, working people. I don't want to them basically cheat they can get Ron DeSantis in a position where he can do so much damage to the whole if our country.

Because America belongs to all of us not just a select group of Evangelical Right Wing Republican Christians. Who the misconception that the whole of the country should be like them. That is not what America is about, that is not our values, it will never be our values. If they feel that's what America should be about they obviously misunderstood want the Constitution and Declaration of Independence said.

The second paragraph of the United States Declaration of Independence starts: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.

That not just for one group of people who are under the misconception their right and everyone else is wrong. That's exactly what Ron DeSantis is doing in Florida. Deciding his prejudice, bigoted, homophobic, transphobic ideals are correct than making laws, educational changes based on that. He's dangerous, he doesn't care who he hurts by these laws and changes because he has a very us and them mentality. That only allows him to see people different to him as the other, he lacks empathy, kindness, simple basic human understanding this not what we need nor want in a President. I'm sorry but we, all of us in the US need to be paying attention. What happens over the next few year could decide the path America goes down. It's still not to late to turn from what our government is becoming but we have to fight against it.

[straightedgecrf]

Why I’m Voting For Donald Trump In The 2024 Election

If you said 3 years ago that I’d be voting for Donald Trump,I’d say that you were crazy.I was a Democrat since I was a kid when it was Bill Clinton vs. George H.W. Bush where I was convinced that Bill Clinton was the better choice to where I was rooting for him,Al Gore and John Kerry.Then I voted for Barack Obama,Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden although Obama was the only one I voted for on my own since I really wanted Bernie Sanders instead of Clinton & Biden.After Joe Biden won and everything that my friends warned me about would happen if Biden won did happen,I regretted my vote and wished that I voted for Trump.This caused me to look at the conservative side and started watching people like Arielle Scarcella,Gothix,Jericho Greem,Officer Tatum,and Ruined Leon that caused me to see the world in a different way.I then wished I voted for Trump after finding out that Biden was everything that Trump was accused of.He said to someone that you ain’t black if you don’t vote for him,that poor kids are just as bright & intelligent as white kids,doesn’t think that not all black people know how to get online,didn’t want his kids to grow up in a racial jungle and much other racist stuff.Since Biden has been our President,prices have gone up,crime has gone up,and our country has become more divided.Drag queens are now in schools,kids are reading porn,men can be allowed to compete in women’s sports along with showering with women in their locker rooms as long as they refer to themselves as women without the consent of the biological women,there really is no boarder since illegal immigrants continue to come our country,and homeless veterans are being kicked out of hotels to make room for the illegal immigrants.This is going on and yet there are people who still plan on voting for Biden just because he’s not Trump.Why?Trump put America first while Biden has put America last.Biden sent our money to help continue supporting a war instead of trying to end it.He even asked if having lower gas prices here in America is more important than having Putin’s iron fist in Europe.That’s like you could be on a better budget,but someone you’re living with would rather help pay your neighbor’s bills instead of you spending all of your money to where you have to starve just to pay your own bills.If you’re saying that you’re voting for Joe Biden because of all the charges against Trump are making you think that he’s not fit to be president or think he’s going to jail,then you’re falling for everything the media is making you believe what they want you to believe since they’re the ones who control the people who just use the media as their sources when it turns out that the media has been bias all of this time.Especially with the negative ads towards people like Donald Trump,Ron DeSantis,and Tudor Dixon while trying to make people like Joe Biden & Gretchen Whitmer look good.Plus imagine if Mitt Romney won in 2012 and this all happened to Obama when he planned on running for president again in 2016.Romney having the FBI raid his place for documents,being charged for stuff that he didn’t do.Democrats would be saying the attacks on Obama were election interference.So to everyone who is all “vote blue no matter who”,”orange man bad”,and everything else that cause the election results to backfire,I just want you to remember that if you complain about how things are and yet vote for Joe Biden again just because he’s not Trump,then you deserve this.Sometimes you have to believe that you have to swallow your pride and vote for the person based on how they run the country instead of how you feel about them.Vote Trump in 2024 to save America because it’s a disaster right now and Biden will become a dictator if you let him stay president.Please put your country before your personal feelings.

[mightyflamethrower]

News

Newt Gingrich is convinced Biden wants Harris to lose, and he thinks he knows why…......

2024 is shaping up to be one of the most bizarre elections we’ve ever seen. From Biden being ousted in a “soft coup” by his own party, to President Trump teaming up with RFK Jr. and Elon Musk, and Kamala Harris basically hijacking her precious “democracy” to try to steal the White House—it’s been a wild ride. But one of the most interesting aspects of this campaign has been Joe Biden’s reaction to it all. It’s starting to look like Biden is actively sabotaging Kamala Harris. I mean, he actually put on a MAGA hat the day after Kamala’s debate with President Trump. Then he stood in front of the White House press corps and said he and Harris were “singing from the same song sheet” at a time when Team Harris was desperately trying to distance themselves from Biden’s—and Kamala’s—failures.

And if that wasn’t enough, while Kamala was trying to score political points by attacking Governor DeSantis during Hurricane Milton, Biden was praising the Florida Governor. So what’s really going on? Well, Newt Gingrich thinks he knows. He believes Joe and Jill have teamed up to undercut Harris—and he thinks he knows exactly why.

2WAY:

“We’re in the early stages of watching her collapse,” says @newtgingrich of Kamala Harris. “It’s just my hunch …. that sometime in the last two weeks, Joe and Jill looked at each other and thought, you know, wouldn’t it be a great legacy if Joe’s the only guy ever to beat Trump? And I think the stuff he’s done to undermine her in the last ten days is pretty amazing.”

Hey Newt, we agree and also believe Joe is out to sabotage Ms. Harris, too. As a matter of fact, we’ve been covering this story from all angles.

Revolver:

But it goes way beyond just a dislike of Kamala Harris. So, we went on the hunt for a theory about the hat that goes a bit deeper, and we happened upon a good one that really seems to have a ring of truth to it. It’s about mass revenge for the old guy. Let’s face it, Joe might be a mental midget suffering from senility, but he still has enough political savvy to know exactly what he’s doing for the 2024 election. This wasn’t a mistake. As Julie Kelly so artfully put it, Joe’s on a mission to prove that all the coup operators who tossed him aside like yesterday’s trash were dead wrong. That’s Joe’s top priority right now, and that Trump 2024 hat symbolized it perfectly.

That theory lines up pretty well with Newt’s. After all, despite Biden’s senility, he’s still a career politician, and his pettiness practically runs on autopilot at this point.

And, in what might be the most fitting label ever pinned on a politician, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich called Kamala Harris the “first doofus nominated for president”—though, to be fair, she wasn’t actually “nominated,” was she? Not technically, anyway.

Here’s the exchange between Newt and Sean Hannity:

SEAN HANNITY: What’s your analysis? NEWT GINGRICH: Well, look, she has three really big problems. First, she’s just not very competent. I mean, you’re watching somebody who ought to be, like, in a high school play, and she’s on the national TV as a candidate. She just can’t move at the speed and with the knowledge you expect. Second, we’re in a world that’s dangerous. It’s dangerous with hurricanes. It’s dangerous with the war in the Middle East. It’s dangerous in Ukraine. It’s dangerous with Venezuelan criminal gangs coming to the U.S. And that kind of a dangerous environment, people want someone strong. I thought DeSantis, for example, if you compare his press conference with her normal experience, DeSantis looks like he’s competent. He looks like he knows what he’s doing. And so her very being hurts her. And then third, she has this huge crisis. Everything her base believes in, the country hates. And so she has to be for men, for example, competing with women. The country’s totally opposed to that. She can’t be for school choice. The teachers’ unions won’t let her. And you go to a whole series of issues. So she does this dance because if she’s really clear, one of two things will happen. The country will wipe her out or her base will rebel. And so she can never be honest about who she is. Those three things are all coming together in what I think is maybe the most disastrous TV series ever done by a presidential candidate. SEAN HANNITY: If Donald Trump would just say in every appearance that maybe some of you don’t like me, but I will secure the border, I will fix the economy, and I will make the world safer, I think that would resonate. Am I wrong? NEWT GINGRICH: No, you’re right, but he didn’t have to say the first part. I mean, just relax. The country is going to make a decision. You know, they’re not asking him to go out on a date. They’re asking him to be commander-in-chief. They’re asking him to be president. They’re asking him to solve problems. The fact that he might not be the guy… Now, personally, I think it would be fun to have him over for an evening, but he might not be the guy that some people want to have over for the evening. But they sure as heck will prefer him keeping them safe to her being just a total… She’s a doofus. I mean, this is the first doofus nominated for president, at least in my lifetime, and that’s the best way to understand it.

Well said, Newt. You haven’t lost your touch or your observational skills, that’s for darn sure.

All joking aside, what Newt said about Biden’s revenge plot and Kamala’s ineptitude is spot-on. We’re seeing the signs of Biden’s vengefulness at every turn. Sure, he might have a raging case of dementia, but that doesn’t change who he is at his core—and you can bet Jill, his number one nursemaid, is right there guiding him on what to say and do. It’s no secret she’s the commanding force in the marriage, and likely in his political career, too. And as for Kamala, it’s clear she’s out of her league. So far out, she’d need Google Maps and a search-and-rescue team to find her way back. Watching Harris and Tampon Tim is like being at an awkward high school play, where you’re just praying for the show to end so you can stop cringing and go home. Speaking of Harris cringe, we’ll leave you with this little gem.

[scretladyspider]

CALL YOUR REPRESENTATIVES TO TELL THEM YOU OPPOSE THE RESTRICT ACT.

This is not a “tiktok ban”. This is a bill that directly impacts internet censorship. It impacts everyone, whether you use tiktok or not.

We are actively fighting a growing movement of fascism. Hardcore conservatives are trying to literally outlaw the existence of queer people— and they wont stop there. Ron Desantis is likely to run for president and if you want to know why that’s bad, look at the legislation he’s passing in Florida. From the Dont Say Gay bill to the Stop Woke Act, Florida is a test for what that man and his supporters want for the whole country.

Even beyond that, this is terrifying and way too much power for either political party to have. The person in the position deciding who what would get banned wouldn’t even be elected and the bill says they’d be able to meet behind closed doors. No oversight by the people— so even less accountability than there is now, but regarding what media we consume and how we communicate in this case.

Imagine a world where the only news we consume is dictated by the political party in control and you have no access to direct sources of who was there when a thing happened. Remember 2020, how news outlets kept reporting things as if the cops were in the right and people in the wrong? That’s just a taste of what this bill could result in.

Dressing it up as a “TikTok ban” is intentional misdirection to get people to see this as just being about a silly little app. Contact your representatives. Boost this & other posts about the RESTRICT Act. This is about how we talk to each other and learn new information about current events from people directly, not just approved outlets, as we actively fight a growing movement of fascism.

Contact your representatives as soon as possible. Here’s a website that will help walk you through it.

Because this isn’t about tiktok. It’s about everything we say and do online still being free instead of being dictated by whichever political party is in charge. And again, we are already actively fighting the roots of fascism that are setting in. We have to use every channel we have available, including fighting the RESTRICT act.

Actually incredibly concerning and scary how much I am NOT seeing people talk about the RESTRICT outside of TikTok because they're being successfully distracted by our politicians framing this as just a TikTok ban. If you have not read this bill yet I am begging you to do so and then contact your representatives about it. This is a gross overreach by our government and clearly violates the first amendment in this country. If this bill passes it will give our government free reign to censor or ban any internet service with over a million users -- including things like video games, not just apps like TikTok -- with NO OVERSIGHT AT ALL. Punishments for trying to get around these bans and censors can be up to a million dollars or UP TO 20 YEARS IN PRISON.

Seriously, read this bill, spread information to your circles, and HARASS YOUR REPS ABOUT THIS. Call them up and tell them if they support this bill you will actively campaign for their competition in the next election. If you don't like phone calls, email them. If you don't like typing emails then get ChatGPT to make one up for you and all you have to do is send it. This is TIME SENSITIVE. We need to make as much noise about this as possible ASAP. This bill is a direct attack on the first amendment and on FOIA, the Freedom of Information Act. This is SCARY.

This is a bipartisan issue that will affect all of us. It doesn't matter what political party you stand for, both Dems and Repubs are supporting this violation of our rights and censorship of the internet. Meta is hardcore lobbying for this bill and politicians on both sides are happily taking their bribes to fuck us over. Make noise about it, please.

[dumbestthingiveeverheard]

Dumbest Thing I've Ever Heard: 8/14/2023

Fifth Place: Dean Phillips

Another day, another Democrat trying to push for somebody--anybody--to come out and primary President Biden for reasons that never make any fucking sense. Of course, Phillips is a "moderate Democrat" (read: Republican) who clearly wants Biden out of the way because of how progressive the President is--and honestly, I think Biden should welcome the hatred of people like this. I also cannot believe we live in a world where Joe Biden of all people is too progressive for some Democrats, but here we are.

Mind you, Biden is much more well liked not just among the insiders of the Democratic Party but also among the rank and file members who actually would vote in a primary. Meaning any chance of a primary against him is unlikely to be successful, but the fact that these idiots keep trying to run to Biden's right while assuming that's what the Democratic voter base wants (a large chunk of Democrats are too the left of Biden) is just sad. And that's not even getting into how Biden is seen as some sign of the status quo by these people--while they constantly want alternatives who are too his right and would more than likely continue the status quo, albeit with a younger face.

Of course, this fear about Biden being old is a totally manufactured concern by the political class. The average voter doesn't care how old a politician is--in fact, back in 2016 and 2020 the youngest voters went for Bernie Sanders, who is even older than Biden. This is all just bullshit designed to scare Biden into not running for re-election, and I am very happy he has not fallen for it.

Fourth Place: Kurt Schlichter

Speaking of primary challengers that have no chance of going anywhere, Ron DeSantis is still running for President--and Kurt over at Townhall firmly believes he'll be the nomination. You see, according to Kurt, the real reason why DeSantis isn't leading in the polls is because nobody has heard of him yet:

Remember, this is a primary race, not a Twitter popularity race. The simple fact is that the polls in July 2023 do not reflect the real situation on the ground in 2023, much less 2024 when the actual voting happens. You know who are active right now? The activists. And those aren’t polls of activists. Those are polls of regular people living regular lives who think “Yeah, I like Trump and Trump’s getting a raw deal from the scumbag prosecutors, and he’s the only guy I really know about, so I’m going to put his name down.” They haven’t had to think hard about it yet. They haven’t had to weigh the facts. They haven’t really looked at Ron DeSantis’s record – if they’re looking at Twitter, they’re going to think that he parties with Paul Ryan over at George Soros’s crash pad. That kind of dumb lie is easy to dispel, and when people see that they’ve been lied to, they’re going to look deeper to find the truth. 

You mean four years of the media shoving him down our throats hasn't been enough time for the average person to know his record? And none of this is even getting into the stupidity of assuming that people who are political enough to vote in the Republican primary also haven't taken the time to know who DeSantis is.

Mind you, more exposure to DeSantis does not seem to be helping him--if anything, the opposite seems to be the case. Remember two years ago when DeSantis was seen as the 2024 frontrunner? Some were even predicting that he'd replace Donald Trump as head of the Republican Party by the midterm elections--and that never happened. That is because people saw exactly who Ron DeSantis was, and they didn't like it.

Third Place: Ron DeSantis

A short follow up on my last entry, it seems like Ron has trouble keeping the attention of the people who already know of him. Here's some reporting from Mediaite:

Donald Trump literally overshadowed Ron DeSantis — with planes – at the Iowa State Fair on Saturday, flying over the event and prompting the throngs of GOP voters to chant “we want Trump!” while the Florida governor was flipping burgers and trying to woo support.

This man seriously thinks people want him to be President.

Second Place: Karl Lake

The former Arizona candidate for Governor challenged somebody to "milk a bull" in order to prove that there are only two genders. Of course, given people aren't steer--and people assigned male at birth can produce milk if they have enough estrogen in their system, by the way--this comparison was seen as really dumb, because it is.

Winner: Merrick Garland

I talked Friday about Merrick's choice to create a special council to investigate Hunter Biden, which was little more than an attempt to appease Republicans--and said attempt has failed as many Republicans, including ones who asked for the exact special prosecutor Garland picked, are still upset with him.

So Garland has lost all Biden supporters and Biden critics--this is the most Merrick Garland move of all time.

Merrick Garland, you've done the dumbest thing I've ever heard.

[theyoungturks]

Ron DeSantis responded to a reporter asking about all of the insults and comments Trump as made about the Florida Governor. Ana Kasparian discusses on The Young Turks. Watch TYT LIVE on weekdays 6-8 pm ET. http://youtube.com/theyoungturks/live Read more HERE: https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/desantis-finally-fires-back-trump-190213865.html "After being the target of Donald Trump’s taunts for weeks, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis shot back with a simple retort: just look at the “scoreboard.” His remarks—at a Tuesday press conference—mark the first time DeSantis, who has left the door open to running for president in 2024, has publicly responded to the personal jabs made by Trump and his allies. “Well, you know, one of the things I’ve learned, like learn in this job is when you’re do, when you're leading, when you’re getting, getting things done, yeah, you take incoming fire,” he said. “And it’s constantly attacking and this is just what's happened. I don't think any governor got attacked more, particularly by corporate media, than me over my four-year term.” *** The largest online progressive news show in the world. Hosted by Cenk Uygur and Ana Kasparian. LIVE weekdays 6-8 pm ET. Help support our mission and get perks. Membership protects TYT's independence from corporate ownership and allows us to provide free live shows that speak truth to power for people around the world. See Perks: ▶ https://www.youtube.com/TheYoungTurks/join SUBSCRIBE on YOUTUBE: ☞ http://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=theyoungturks FACEBOOK: ☞ http://www.facebook.com/TheYoungTurks TWITTER: ☞ http://www.twitter.com/TheYoungTurks INSTAGRAM: ☞ http://www.instagram.com/TheYoungTurks TWITCH: ☞ http://www.twitch.com/tyt 👕 Merch: http://shoptyt.com ❤ Donate: http://www.tyt.com/go 🔗 Website: https://www.tyt.com 📱App: http://www.tyt.com/app 📬 Newsletters: https://www.tyt.com/newsletters/ If you want to watch more videos from TYT, consider subscribing to other channels in our network: The Watchlist https://www.youtube.com/watchlisttyt Indisputable with Dr. Rashad Richey https://www.youtube.com/indisputabletyt Unbossed with Nina Turner https://www.youtube.com/unbossedtyt The Damage Report ▶ https://www.youtube.com/thedamagereport TYT Sports ▶ https://www.youtube.com/tytsports The Conversation ▶ https://www.youtube.com/tytconversation Rebel HQ ▶ https://www.youtube.com/rebelhq TYT Investigates ▶ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwNJt9PYyN1uyw2XhNIQMMA #TYT #TheYoungTurks #BreakingNews 221116__TB04_Checkout_The_Scoreboard by The Young Turks

[deanwasalwaysbi]

okay - i am seeing the rumblings on Carlos and the trope about promiscuous bi characters - I see you.

but I also - am trusting this week.

I am trusting Robbie and I am therefore trusting that the nuance will come - Carlos is set up to be pinning after Mary tbh - to turn into the overlook best friend trope I think.

The problems come when there are only single representations, and there are not a plethora of bisexual men on television, we never GET explicit bisexual representation that's not exploitative for the male gaze. On Buffy they wanted to make a prominent bisexual character but felt lucky to have permission to instead have a gay one. Rep is few and far between and complete and nuanced representation really requires more prominence on television, a variety of portrayals.

You cannot portray a rainbow using only a single color.

So clearly. The proper solution is to have more bi main characters on television. #MakeMaryBisexual2022 #CanonBiMary

[qedmirage]

The american system is a "first past the post" one. Under those systems, "The democrats" are not a singular entity but are a broad coalition - Rashida Talib and Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez are not of the same mindset as Joe Manchin. But they're more similar than they are with the other guys. Inside the realm of electoral politics, the way minority interests who want to push for change get results is by pressuring the coalition closest to their cause, and especially by running members who take seats for it. If they refuse to participate, or vote third party, what can happen is the the coalition they don't like wins power. See: Donald Trump's entire political career inside the GOP and the election of George W. Bush.

To deny this is to deny the air you breathe.

"When the liberals adopt the same stance just 4 to 8 years later" what on earth are you smoking. Where have you been the past 20 years. In what world do the Biden tax plans look anything like the handouts to the wealthy Trump passed. I think the student debt one is telling, though. Biden's student debt relief program was announced...and it has been blocked, at every turn, by republicans, exploiting as many levers of policy and procedure to stop it. Republicans are denying you this. Why does Biden deserve the blame for their intransigence? He's not the Green Lantern, he can't just will his policies into being. Even as we speak the Biden admin pursues their own procedural counterplays to the GOP blockade of them, and many people are getting 20,000$ back. That's not nothing!

I really don't have any patience for these kind of doomposting cynics though. There are so many more things on which that approach is fundamentally wrong, but look. The last GOP president led an attempted coup to overthrow the government and instill himself in power despite being elected out. If that guy gets the boot (Don't count on it, he appointed some of the judges now judging him), then the 2nd and 4th leading figures in republican primary polls (DeSantis, Ramaswamy) are people who think that coup attempt was Cool Actually and should be encouraged.

When people say not to let those bozos anywhere near the levers of state power, they have a damn good reason for it!

They won’t call it by name but they’re referring to Project 2025, the Heritage Foundation’s plan to fill thousands of governor positions with obedient Trump loyalists. The goal of course is to have an army of RepubliKKKan drones that will do anything Trump, or another potential Republican president, asks for no matter how illegal. The end result is a fascist state and the end of all our freedoms and the beginning of the Purge against us.

[somethingusefulfromflorida]

13 Keys to the White House: 2024 prediction (as of August 15, 2021)

Midterm gains: false, the Republicans are going to sweep the House

No primary challenge: probably true, no Democrat with a future would dare to challenge Biden or Harris

Incumbent seeking re-election: probably true, Biden has indicated he's going to run again even though he'll be 82 at the time

No third party: too soon to tell, we won't know how the Libertarians/Greens fare until 2023 at the earliest

Strong short-term economy: too soon to tell, who knows if we'll be in recession in 2024?

Strong long/term economy: probably false, inflation is rising and Republicans are threatening to let us default on our national debt, so things are looking bad going forward

Major policy change: false, Biden hasn't done shit, and if he doesn't do shit NOW he won't be able to do shit after the Republican dominated midterms

No social unrest: too soon to tell, it will depend on how bad things get between now and 2024

No scandal: too soon to tell, all eyes are on Biden, but there's no telling what he'll do

No foreign/military failure: FALSE, Afghanistan is going down in flames, tens or hundreds of thousands of civilians are going to die when the Taliban takes over, it'll be the worst humanitarian crisis in the planet

Foreign/military success: probably false, withdrawing from Afghanistan was supposed to be a huge success, but the last 20 years have been pointless.

Charismatic incumbent: false, Biden wasn't charismatic in 2020, he's not gonna magically gain 20 or 30 percent more approval going into 2024

Uncharismatic challenger: true, none of the Republican challengers resonate with anyone outside their base, Trump or DeSantis or Cruz or Cotton or anyone else

Democrats need 8 true to hold power

Republicans need 6 false to retake power

1 is definitely true

2 are probably true

4 are too soon to tell

2 are probably false

4 are definitely false

Republicans are almost certainly going to win in 2024 unless Biden pulls a rabbit out of his ass and magically reverses course in the next 15 months; things are in flux now, but come November 2022 they will be set in stone.

Key 1 is a lost cause because of partisan gerrymandering; the Republicans will take the House by force, though they'll likely lose the nationwide popular vote

Key 2 is probably safe because it would require a challenger to get 33% of the vote, and I just don't see that happening against a sitting president

Key 3 is true as of right now, but could easily flip false for any number of reasons. Biden ran on the unspoken promise that he was a transitional president and would step down in 2024, but Kamala Harris isn't more popular than he is (in fact, she's less popular), so the Democrats have painted themselves into a corner; either it's an old old old man or Hillary Clinton 2.0

Key 4 is beyond Biden's control; over the last century, third party candidates have gained traction about every 10 years, once every 2 or 3 election cycles. They did well in 1968, 1980, 1992, 1996, 2000, and 2016, so 2024 is up in the air.

Key 5 could go either way, I don't know enough about economics to make any informed predictions

Key 6 is more nuanced; the creator of the 13 Keys defines it as "real per capita economic growth during the term equals or exceeds mean growth during the previous two terms." The economy grew under Obama's second term, and tanked under Trump's first, so the average of the last two terms is either zero net growth or very slight shrinkage. If Biden can grow the economy at all, even a little, this key could flip in his favor. If he continues to do nothing, he's as good as gone.

Key 7 is a nonstarter; W turned the US into a police state, Obama slightly improved healthcare, Trump changed taxes from the ground up (and dismantled liberal democracy through a rigged judiciary and disintegration of federal authority over the states), but Biden and the Democrats have pretty much wasted the last 8 months, accomplishing zero of their campaign promises. They passed a neutered stimulus package, and might pass a neutered infrastructure deal, both of which gave major concessions to the Republicans even though they supported neither. Biden is Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, and George H.W. Bush rolled into one.

Key 8 could very well lead us into another 2020 situation; not only have zero communities defunded the police, many of them have actually INCREASED funding. Republicans continue to dismantle our democracy by passing voter suppression laws, and are going to gerrymander their House into an unbreakable conservative majority despite only making up about 40-45% of the population. I expect to see major protests against Republican legislatures across the country, which will be quelled by both state and federal forces because Democrats never support active protests, only passive peaceful ones (ones that fail, but look polite on TV)

Key 9 could be real or invented; no matter what Biden does, whether he's squeaky clean or rotten to the core, the Republicans are going to impeach him in 2023. Hell, they'll almost certainly run in 2022 on the platform of "we will impeach Biden if we win." He'll be acquitted of course, but Republicans will control the narrative and gain popular support going into 2024. They might wait to impeach him until the election starts, or impeach him and hold a long protracted trial throughout the primaries and well past the national conventions. If they win the House, they'll almost certainly win the Senate too, which means they have all the power, even if they can't remove him.

Key 10 is a lost cause; there's no coming back from this, Afghanistan is an absolute failure, full stop.

Key 11 is very closely tied to key 10, so I don't see it flipping true because Biden doesn't really have any other major foreign policy objectives within his grasp.

Key 12 is a doubly lost cause because both Biden and his chosen successor are terrible candidates. Biden was picked by the establishment as a milquetoast "civility" candidate in opposition to Trump's extremism, and Harris is so unpopular she dropped out of the presidential race due to lack of enthusiasm before a single vote was cast. Biden was the lesser of two evils, and Harris is a lying centrist cop pretending to be a progressive. As I said in Key 3, the Democrats painted themselves into a corner; Biden/Harris is Carter/Mondale all over again.

Key 13 is safe now and forever because no candidate will ever have national appeal again. The creator of the 13 Keys gave examples like Lincoln, the Roosevelts, and Kennedy, as well as controversial picks like Reagan and Obama in 2008 (though not in 2012). Love them or hate them, these candidates resonated with the entire country in their day, but America has become too polarized for a member of one party to gain support from the other.

This is a disaster waiting to happen. It's unfolding before our eyes in slow motion, and we're unable to stop it. I feel trapped all the time, trapped in the world, trapped in the system, no agency,m, no control, no hope. I don't know what to do, because the powers that be are FUCKING EVERYTHING UP ROYALLY! This party is a laughingstock, and the alternatives are either pure evil or insignificant; I'd be a Green if they stood a snowball's chance in hell, but they don't, not even in a single district, neither federal nor state.

The system has to collapse in my lifetime, it's not tenable as is.

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

September 30, 2020

Heather Cox Richardson

So what was happening while we were distracted by Trump’s debate performance?

First of all, his tax returns, publicized by the New York Times since Sunday, have taken a back seat to his support for the white supremacist gang the Proud Boys and his attacks on a peaceful election.

Second, coronavirus news is not getting the airtime it should. More than a million people around the world have died of Covid-19, including more than 205,000 Americans. Florida is seeing a surge in new cases since Governor Ron DeSantis signed an executive order allowing restaurants and bars to reopen. The Midwest is also in a surge, with record numbers of new cases in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Kansas. Wisconsin hospitals are nearing capacity and South Dakota has the highest rate of spread in the country. Experts worry about a dramatic rise in cases as cold weather settles in.

Third, Brad Parscale, Trump’s former campaign manager, left the Trump campaign today after his involuntary hospitalization for psychiatric evaluation over the weekend after threats to self-harm. He cited his need “to focus on my family and get help dealing with the overwhelming stress.” Parscale knows the secrets of the Trump campaign since the heady days of 2016, and the family is reportedly worried he will begin to cooperate with law enforcement about possible campaign finance violations. Campaign staff is scrubbing his presence from the campaign's website.

These three big stories are on the back burner because last night Trump told white supremacist thugs to “Stand Back and Stand By” before saying that “somebody's got to do something about antifa and the left," a statement observers note sounds much like a precursor to calling them to action against those he perceives to be enemies.

He also called for “poll watchers” to prevent fraudulent ballots and warned that Democrats are going to steal the election from him. He said he expects the election results will take “months” as the campaign challenges mail-in ballots, and that he hopes the case will end up in the Supreme Court.

Today, it feels like Trump’s embrace of white supremacist gangs and his open declaration that he is planning an assault on our democratic process was a turning point for the campaign, and for the nation.

The president reportedly is happy with the way the evening went, believing his supporters love to see him go on the attack. Today he has complained that he “was debating two people last night,” but that he had won and it was “fun.”

Trump’s team is dutifully echoing his talking points. Campaign spokeswoman Thea McDonald told the Washington Post that “Poll watchers are critical to ensuring the fairness of any election, and President Trump’s volunteer poll watchers will be trained to ensure all rules are applied equally, all valid ballots are counted, and all Democrat rule breaking is called out…. And if fouls are called, the Trump campaign will go to court to enforce the laws, as rightfully written by state legislatures, to protect every voter’s right to vote. President Trump and his team will be ready to make sure polls are run correctly, securely, and transparently as we work to deliver the free and fair election Americans deserve.”

This high-minded language is a weird echo of the language white supremacists used in the American South after the Civil War, as they drove Black voters and white Republicans from the polls and turned the region into a one-party state for generations.

Neo-Nazis and right-wing thugs are thrilled they have a fellow traveler in the White House. “I got shivers,” Andrew Anglin, the founder of the neo-Nazi website the Daily Stormer, wrote Wednesday. “I still have shivers. He is telling the people to stand by. As in: Get ready for war.”

But not everyone was thrilled with Trump’s performance. Focus groups of women were turned off by his bullying, and his male supporters thought he interrupted too much. An adviser called it “a disaster.” Politico’s chief political correspondent Tim Alberta thought Trump looked exhausted and “behaved like cornered prey.” The Commission on Presidential Debates is reworking its rules to try to prevent another spectacle like last night. Foreign observers were “aghast,” according to an AP report; Kenyan commentator Patrick Gathara wrote: “This debate would be sheer comedy if it wasn’t such a pitiful and tragic advertisement for U.S. dysfunction.”

Even within the White House people were dismayed. “It’s nuts…” “total lunacy,” an official and a staffer told Vanity Fair’s Gabriel Sherman. A prominent Republican added: “Trump didn’t win over any voters, and he pissed off a lot of people.”

Trump’s people are trying to walk back Trump’s support for the Proud Boys. They are also trying to convince him to temper his future performances. Dana Bash from CNN reported today that “A source familiar with the president’s debate prep tells CNN that they wanted him to be aggressive, but not act like Jason from Friday the 13th.” Republican lawmakers were largely silent today about Trump’s performance, although Susan Collins (R-ME) agreed that Trump should have condemned white supremacist gangs after she first tried to blame both sides for the debacle.

At his rally tonight in Minnesota, Trump said Biden is cancelling the next two debates, although Biden has said he’ll be there. Trump is also talking about getting rid of a term limit on the presidency and serving another 8, 12, or 16 years.

Americans who care about our electoral process are now trying to prepare for crisis at the polls. “This is a blatant attempt at voter intimidation,” said Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey, a Democrat. “It’s very important to be clear about that. It’s illegal. It is a crime to engage in voter intimidation or election interference.” Several state attorneys general say they will arrest anyone who tries to intimidate voters.

Perhaps most important today was the news that the FBI’s Dallas Field Office yesterday released an intelligence report warning that a “violent extremist threat” is imminent, and that the period between now and the inauguration next January is a “potential flashpoint.” That threat comes not from the “left,” as Trump charges, but from the right-wing gangs that Trump is encouraging, including the Boogaloos, a staunchly anti-government group that is working to bring about a race war to speed up the collapse of the government. The report, which was obtained exclusively by The Nation, is titled “Boogaloo Adherents Likely Increasing Anti-Government Violent Rhetoric and Activities, Increasing Domestic Violent Extremist Threat in the FBI Dallas Area of Responsibility.” The report warns that there is “increased ‘patrolling’ or attendance at events” that serve the Boogaloo’s cause, including “otherwise peaceful and lawful protests.”

Today a federal judge in Montana rejected the attempts of the Trump campaign to stop the state from expanding mail-in voting. He permitted the new system to go into place, and called the idea of widespread voter fraud “fiction.”

—-

[LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN]

Heather Cox Richardson

[patriotsnet]

Are The Republicans Caucusing In Iowa

New Post has been published on https://www.patriotsnet.com/are-the-republicans-caucusing-in-iowa/

Are The Republicans Caucusing In Iowa

Winners Of The Iowa Caucus Since 2000

The 2020 Iowa caucuses, explained

Highlighted names became the partys presidential nominee.

Democrats

Our reporters provided real-time updates from the ground in Iowa.

Trip Gabriel, reporting from Des Moines Feb. 9, 2020

The Iowa Democrats released a new delegate count, but The AP hasnt called the race and the Sanders team says it will request a recanvass. Read more »

Trip Gabriel, reporting from Des Moines Feb. 8, 2020

Theyre still not done counting in Iowa. The state party says it will re-examine 95 precincts after receiving evidence of inconsistencies. Read more »

Reid Epstein, reporting from Manchester, N.H. Feb. 7, 2020

Buttigieg has taken 13 pledged delegates out of Iowa, and Sanders has won 12, according to AP. But theres one left to be allocated. Read more »

Maggie Astor, in New York Feb. 6, 2020

The Associated Press is unable to declare a winner, it now says. We could know the winner of New Hampshire before we know the winner of Iowa.

Reid Epstein, reporting from Manchester, N.H. Feb. 6, 2020

After DNC chair calls for a recanvass in Iowa, the Iowa Democratic Party chair says theyll conduct an audit if a campaign requests it. Read more »

Sydney Ember, in New York Feb. 6, 2020

Sanders declares a very strong victory based on the popular initial vote. Buttigieg has declared victory as well. Read more in our live updates »

Reid Epstein, reporting from Manchester, N.H. Feb. 6, 2020

Jennifer Medina, in Los Angeles Feb. 6, 2020

Lisa Lerer, on a flight to New Hampshire Feb. 6, 2020

Where Are The Caucuses Held

A caucus is usually held at a school or other public building in a precinct, depending on expected turnout. Churches, union halls, fire stations, businesses and private homes also serve as caucus sites.

Find your polling place through the Iowa Democratic Party;or the;Republican Party of Iowa.

Look up Republican caucus locations at the Republican Party of Iowa website

Some locations will host caucuses for multiple precincts on caucus night, so it will;be helpful;to know your precinct number so that you caucus with the right group.;

To find your precinct, go to the Secretary of States website:

Both parties recommend arriving 30 to 45 minutes early. The Democratic Party specifies;that you must be;signed in or in line by 7 p.m. to participate.

Iowa Caucus : Live Results And Analysis

The Iowa caucuses are kind of like neighborhood meetings where people get together and out in the open, with no secret ballot try to win over their friends, family and neighbors to support their preferred candidate.

The caucuses start a months-long process that eventually leads to the selection of 41 delegates, who will vote for a candidate at the party’s national convention. It’s a complex, unique and exhausting process that might go a little differently if done in a place that was temperamentally unlike Iowa.

The caucuses quadrennially come under fire for being overwhelmingly white and not representative of the country, let alone the Democratic Party. But the candidates have spent millions there and over the past 40 years, and it has been very predictive of who becomes the Democratic nominee.

Let’s break down how all this works.

What time do the caucuses take place?

They begin at 7 p.m. CT and are expected to last roughly an hour. The Iowa Democratic Party is trying to expedite the process this year with just two rounds of caucusing, so they may very well be wrapped up in less than an hour.

Who can vote?

The caucuses are “open.” In other words, any registered voter in the state can participate.

But for as much attention as the caucuses get, not many Iowans actually participate. In 2016, for example, fewer than 16% of people eligible to vote actually caucused.

Where do the caucuses happen?

How will we know who wins?

the statewide preference after the first alignment;

Don’t Miss: Republican Flag Pins

Tips For Caucusing With Kids

Yes, it can get heated. I remember seeing a friend of mine with one baby in a carrier, and two girls on each of her hands. She proudly stood in her candidates corner and stood back to listen to the process. She chimed in when she wanted, and her kids watched her the entire time. They were seeing their mother stand for what she believes in.

Changes In The 2020 Democratic Caucus

Two counts: In previous cycles, caucusgoers could realign multiple times. Starting this year, there is only one realignment and people who supported a viable candidate cannot vote again.

Satellite caucuses: For the first time in 2020, Democrats have allowed caucuses at;dozens of satellite locations, both in Iowa and in other states and three other countries, to allow people who could not caucus at 7 p.m. at their assigned precinct in Iowa to participate. Some of those satellite caucuses start earlier or later than 7 p.m. and some require preregistration.

Reporting results: Democrats will make public the raw vote numbers from the first and second alignments, as well as the delegate strength candidates have. In previous years, the party;reported only the delegate strength.;

View the final delegate totals as well as the first and second alignment vote numbers at DesMoinesRegister.com on Feb. 3.

Recommended Reading: How Many Republicans In Congress

A Wild Card For 202: The Trump Factor

Even as potential candidates begin making early moves in Iowa, Trumps shadow looms.

At the Conservative Political Action Conference in February, he continued to falsely claim he won the 2020 election and teased a 2024 campaign, saying I may even decide to beat them for a third time.

Trump remains popular among Iowa Republicans, who voted to send him back to the White House by an 8 percentage point margin. According to a , 89% of Iowa Republicans view him favorably.

And at CPAC in February, a straw poll showed him dominating a field of potential candidates. Trump won easily, earning 55% of the vote. At 21%, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was the only other Republican to crack into double digits.

But Kaufmann said he doesnt believe politicians run the risk of alienating Trump or his supporters simply by showing up in Iowa.

In my conversations with many of these leaders and I’ve had conversations with many of them not one time, not one time did I hear one of these national leaders or a member of their team actually say anything negative or even imply anything negative towards the former president,” he said. “So no, I don’t think there’s any risk whatsoever.

But some Republicans say theyre ready to move on from Trump. Longtime Iowa operative Doug Gross said in January after the U.S. Capitol attack on Jan. 6;that he would personally try to block Trumps rise in Iowa if he were to run again.

It Might Just Be Game Over For The Iowa Caucuses

The states with the most privileged places on the presidential primary calendar are finding their roles more threatened than ever before.

Link Copied

The siege of Iowa and New Hampshire has begun.

The two states with privileged places on the presidential primary calendar are finding their roles more threatened than ever before most recently in the form of a bill introduced in Nevada this week to move that states nominating contest to the front of the line in 2024.

On its own, the Nevada encroachment would mean little. For years, Iowa and New Hampshire have successfully defended their one-two position from states eager to jump ahead. But the combination of Iowas botched 2020 caucus and increasing diversity in the Democratic Partys ranks has made the whiteness of Iowa and New Hampshire all the more conspicuous, putting the two states on their heels and throwing the 2024 calendar into turmoil.

Theres no reason in the world that those states should go forward so early, because theyre not representative of what 90 percent of the countrys all about, said former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Nevada Democrat who remains influential in party politics. America looks different than it did 50 years ago, when these traditions were put in place, and the Democratic electorate looks really different.

He added, Its no longer palatable, as far as Im concerned, for those states to take precedence over states like South Carolina and Nevada.

Filed Under:

Read Also: Are There Republicans Running For President

The 2024 Iowa Caucus Campaign Has Already Begun

Trump’s preeminence in the Republican Party isn’t stopping would-be successors from campaigning and recruiting supporters in Iowa.

06/28/2021 04:30 AM EDT

Link Copied

WEST DES MOINES, Iowa Former President Donald Trump would be the overwhelming frontrunner for the Republican Partys nomination should he wage a 2024 comeback bid. But thats not stopping his would-be GOP successors from barreling into Iowa.

Only months after Trumps election defeat, Republicans are laying the groundwork for the all-important, first-in-the-nation presidential caucuses. Potential candidates are hopscotching across the state to fundraise, campaign for midterm hopefuls and appear at traditional party dinners that mark the start of caucus season.

And behind the scenes, Republicans are making overtures to influential activists, meeting with party leaders and hiring operatives with deep experience in Iowa, which is still expected to be the first 2024 contest for Republicans even though Democrats are grappling with whether to change their nominating calendar.

The burst of early activity which is set to accelerate over the summer months illustrates how Republicans are maneuvering with an eye toward succeeding Trump. A Trump bid would likely extinguish their hopes of becoming the partys nominee, and at least one candidate has said they won’t run if if Trump does. But would-be contenders are wasting no time preparing for the possibility of an open nominating contest.

Filed Under:

What Is The Iowa Caucus

Iowa caucus: Republicans make presence known at Democrat events

The Iowa Caucus system begins with a group of 1,679 precinct caucuses that start the four-part presidential and midterm electoral process for both Democratic and Republican parties in Iowa. Precinct caucuses are party member meetings held in schools, libraries, churches and similar venues.

Can I participate?

Anyone who is an Iowa resident and of voting age can attend. Those not yet registered to vote, are able to complete registration before going in. If a potential participants registration is for a different party, party registration can be switched at the door. Meeting leaders are chosen, sometimes presidential candidates or candidate representatives briefly speak, the caucus participants discuss the candidates, and voteRepublicans on paper, Democrats with their feet. By the close of the caucus, delegates have been selected to go on to each partys county, district and state conventions.

Don’t Miss: Are There Any Republicans Challenging Trump

Meet Trumps Gop Opposition

Suffice it to say, neither Walsh nor Weld has much chance against Trump. Walsh has already announced that he will not be on the ballot in his home state of Illinois, citing a lack of resources and the need to focus on Iowa and New Hampshire. Ive contacted Weld and Walsh for comment and will update if and when I hear back.

Part of it is that we have to convince a lot of the Republican donors that there is a viable option and theyre going to want to see results before they put money into our organization, a spokesperson told the Chicago Sun-Times. And while Weld has polled well in New Hampshire, his numbers are far outmatched by Trumps.

But victory isnt necessarily the point of either mans long-shot bid for the White House. Rather, their campaigns are intended as signals to Trump-skeptical Republicans that theyre not alone in their opposition to the president.

For Weld, his focus is on restoring normalcy to the Republican Party as a real Republican. When I spoke with the former governor back in August and asked him about Trumps considerable popularity with the GOP, he told me, Im not willing to concede your premise. I will concede that Im a normal Republican, and the implication of that is that Mr. Trump is a Republican in name only.

He believes Republican voters are looking for fiscal conservatism and a small-government ethos from a presidential candidate willing to stand up for the taxpayer.

Weld has a lengthy political history, as I detailed last year:

Chaos As Democratic Party Blames Iowa Caucus Delays On ‘inconsistencies’ As It Happened

Help us cover the critical issues of 2020. Consider making a contribution

Joan E Greve in Des Moines

Tue 4 Feb 2020 07.27;GMT First published on Mon 3 Feb 2020 23.17;GMT

Elizabeth Warren, who had to be in Washington earlier today for the Senate impeachment trial, appeared at a Des Moines caucus site to deliver her campaign pitch in person.

Jess Bidgood

Warren speaks at Roosevelt High School caucus site in Des Moines. Layout of the room means shes making her unity pitch right in front of the Bernie corner. Opposing chants of warren! Warren! And Bernie beats trump as she leaves

Sam Levine

Eighteen Iowans made history Tuesday evening as they became the first people to participate in a caucus hosted entirely in American Sign Language in Des Moines.

Elizabeth Warren, Joe Biden and Pete Buttigieg were the three viable candidates after the first round of voting. Warren ultimately earned two delegates while Biden and Buttigieg earned one each.

But for many who attended, the significance of the event extended beyond choosing a nominee. It was the first time many had caucused, since the process can be so exclusionary towards deaf people.

Ive been paying my taxes for several years … We should be able to be involved in the political process, but due to communication, not being able to hear, it was a barrier before, August Cordero said.

Sam Levine

Recommended Reading: Why Is The Media Against Republicans

What To Know About The Iowa Caucuses

After months of campaigning, debating, polling, fundraising and eating fried food, Democratic presidential candidates face their first real-world test on Feb. 3, when Iowa voters have their say in the states caucuses. Heres a rundown of important things to know about Iowa and its first-in-the-nation vote.

What is;a caucus, and how is it different from a primary?

While primaries are run much like general elections lots of polling places, a secret ballot, many hours to vote Iowas caucuses are more like neighborhood meetings. Starting at 7 p.m. in each of the states 1,678 voting precincts , Democratic voters will gather, debate issues and candidates with each other, and eventually cluster in preference groups to elect delegates to their county conventions. The precinct caucuses kick off a process which, several months from now, will result in 41 delegates being chosen to represent Iowa at the Democratic National Convention. The whole caucus process, which can take more than an hour, is nicely illustrated here.

Iowas Democratic caucuses are open only to registered party members, not unaffiliated voters or those registered as Republicans or with other parties. However, people can register or change their party affiliation on caucus night if they want to participate.

How many people turn out for the caucuses?

How will we know who wins?

How reliably do the Iowa caucuses predict the ultimate nominee?

How many other states and territories use caucuses?

Republican V Democratic Caucuses

The Republican and Democratic caucus processes are very different. The Republican caucus is conducted by a vote, usually on sheets of paper. I have been to caucuses for both parties. The Republican caucus is often in a lecture hall as it is more conducive for sitting.

The Democratic caucus is a bit more complicated. It is an exciting visual demonstration of democracy. The Democratic caucus-goers congregate in a room based on which candidate they support. Some may be undecided, and they often sit in the middle of the room. Then, the caucus-goers try to sway their peers toward one candidate or another. Ive never been to a caucus with food, but Ive heard a plate of desserts has been known to decide a race.

Recommended Reading: Who Is Better Republicans Or Democrats

‘it’s Absolutely Earlier Than Before’

After breakfast with the Westside Conservatives Club, Pompeo planned;a meeting with the Bull Moose Club in downtown Des Moines with Terry Branstad, the former Iowa governor and former U.S. ambassador to China. The day before, Pompeo met with the Pottawattamie County Republicans at an event in Council Bluffs.;

Pompeo, who was a U.S. representative for the state of Kansas and the director of the Central Intelligence Agency before becoming secretary of state, previously was in Iowa last summer to speak at the Family Leadership Summit hosted by the Family Leader, a Christian conservative advocacy group.

Hes among a handful of Republicans who found reasons to travel to Iowa last year, including Tim Scott, Haley, Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas and South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem. Former Vice President Mike Pence was also a frequent visitor to Iowa while serving in the Trump administration.

Rick Scott, who is also the chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, will be in Cedar Rapids April 1 for an event organized by the Republican Party of Iowa. And Tim Scott will return to speak at a party event in Davenport April 15.

Kaufmann said the presidential activity is beginning sooner than it has in past years.

It is absolutely earlier than before, he said. No doubt about it.

Would-be candidates followed a similar schedule at the outset of the 2016 cycle, as Republicans made;their first visits to the state in May of 2013.;

Iowa Gop Chair Predicts State Will Keep First

JAMES Q. LYNCH

Republican presidential candidate Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, arrives for a caucus night rally Monday in Des Moines. Cruz sealed a victory in the Republican Iowa caucuses.

Save

Its getting harder for Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel to say its too soon to know whether Iowa will again host the first-in-the-nation presidential caucuses.

Thats because her handpicked chairman of the panel that will set the GOPs national nomination calendar for 2024 keeps telling Iowa Republicans they will kick off the quadrennial process of choosing a nominee.

I’m in Iowa, so weve got to talk about it, but I don’t like getting ahead of my committee, McDaniel said when asked about Republican Party of Iowa Chairman Jeff Kaufmann saying matter-of-factly that Iowa will retain its leadoff status in the coming presidential election cycle.

The final decision, McDaniel said, will be up to the 168 RNC members representing Republicans in the United States and its territories.

I have to remain neutral, McDaniel said, adding that shes not hearing chatter within the party to change the nomination calendar.

Kaufmann feels no such obligation to remain neutral. And hes chattering plenty.

I do have an opinion about where Iowa should be in the nomination process, he said while introducing the chairwoman Aug. 28 to about 700 people at 1st District U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinsons BBQ Bash.

Also Check: Who Has More Billionaires Democrats Or Republicans

[orbemnews]

Analysis: Trump's Republicans assault democracy while Biden gets down to work The contrast in approaches between the White House and the GOP encapsulates the risky bet that each has adopted at what is beginning to look like a tumultuous and potentially decisive turning point in the political history of the early 21st century. In the country’s relentless march through the next biennial election cycle, each side is making choices now that will provide the foundation of their strategies in 2022 and 2024 elections in which Trumpism and Bidenism will again be on the ballot in some form. But he chose a traditional backdrop, an aging bridge, to argue for tax raises on corporations and the wealthiest Americans to fund vital projects — a centerpiece of his plan. He also offered some flexibility on the scale of a hike to corporate rates — as he tries to get GOP senators on board — hinting he may settle for a 25% ceiling instead of his initial bid for 28%. “I’m not ready to have another period where America has another infrastructure month, and doesn���t change a damn thing,” Biden said at a highway bridge that carries I-10 in Lake Charles. “The truth is, across the country, we have failed — we have failed to properly invest in infrastructure for half a century.” Biden also spent the week working on the core task of his presidency — ending the pandemic and repairing the economy. He announced a new target to convince wary Americans to get vaccinated. He made a decision to back waiving patents on Covid-19 vaccines, which reverberated around the world and could help save millions of lives in poorer nations. Biden also highlighted a restaurant rescue plan that is typical of his approach — in that it uses a gusher of government money to safeguard a vital economic sector. The plan is an apt symbol of a presidency rooted in fixing problems that makes a bet that after a murderous pandemic, Americans have arrived at one of the periodic moments in history when they are willing to endorse the sweeping use of government power to ease social and economic deprivation. The strategy requires Biden to open a narrow path through tiny Democratic majorities in the House and Senate — which isn’t guaranteed. And if he has misjudged the public mood, he could risk a public backlash that could benefit Republicans next year. Republicans fixated on personality cult loyalty tests Ironically, one of the Republicans who has made one of the most targeted attacks on Biden’s big government approach is Rep. Liz Cheney. But the Wyoming lawmaker, who’s the No. 3 House Republican, may no longer have a leadership platform to make those arguments. She is set to be toppled as conference chair simply because she tells the truth, repeatedly, about the ex-President’s lies about election fraud, points out that he whipped up an insurrection designed to overthrow Biden’s victory and punctures his personality cult. The fact that her likely replacement, New York Rep. Elise Stefanik, who has become a fiercely pro-Trump lawmaker and promotes his falsehoods, is far less conservative than Cheney, offers an eloquent picture of the modern GOP’s priorities. Seeking to ease concerns among fiscal conservatives about her record, Stefanik played her, literal, Trump card, underscoring the power of the former President’s aura in her party. “My vision is to run with support from the (ex) President and his coalition of voters,” Stefanik said on Steve Bannon’s radio show Thursday. Illinois Rep. Adam Kinzinger, one of the small band of Republican House members willing to stand with Cheney in opposing Trump, refuted Stefanik’s claims that she was a unifying figure. “I’m gonna just go ahead and say this ain’t unity. It’s capitulation to crazy,” Kinzinger tweeted. The total embrace of Trump by House Republicans represents a counter-wager on the scale of the President’s belief that Americans want a multi-trillion dollar overhaul of society designed to make the economy more equitable for working class Americans. Given the popularity of Trump among GOP base voters and their willingness to buy into the false reality he created over last year’s election, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy’s strategy could work, as he seeks to wrest control of the House next year in midterm elections that may be decided by whichever party manages to excite their core voters. Yet Trump’s appeal is limited — he never reached a 50% approval rating as president in the Gallup poll. He alienated crucial suburban voters and led House Republicans to defeat in the 2018 midterm elections and lost the White House in 2020 and two subsequent Senate runoffs. It’s far from clear that devotion to the disgraced former President is a viable path for Republicans if Biden makes a success of his presidency and the economy is doing well as voters cast ballots in 2022 and 2024. McConnell launches his own maneuvers On the Senate side of the Capitol, meanwhile, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell appeared to signal a characteristic policy of obstruction when he said this week that 100% of his focus was on stopping the current administration. The Kentucky Republican’s comments raised the question of whether a GOP counter-proposal to Biden on infrastructure and negotiations currently taking place with the White House is nothing more than political posturing. McConnell’s attitude recalled a similar stance he took against former President Barack Obama’s presidency. It may also reflect insight from Biden — a longtime sparring partner — about the gravity of the current political moment. While Republicans in the House are almost exclusively positioning for the midterms already, McConnell, with his chamber’s institutional capacity to serve as a roadblock, is also concentrating on shorter-term efforts to thwart Biden’s transformational aspirations. But McConnell may also have offered the President an opening to argue that Washington Republicans spurned his offer of compromise on key issues like infrastructure and his plans targeting American jobs and families. His remarks also immediately trained attention back on West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, a moderate Democrat who is a bulwark against the power of progressives in the party and wants compromise with minority Republicans on big Biden agenda items. Manchin said on CNN’s “Cuomo Prime Time” on Wednesday night that he didn’t know what McConnell’s reasoning was but insisted “there are Republicans working with Democrats who want to make something happen.” Building on Trump’s election fraud lies Outside Washington, Republican state lawmakers continued to build on the ex-President’s lies about election fraud to make it more difficult for Americans to vote. In Arizona, state Senate Republicans pressed ahead with a sham partisan recount of general election votes in Maricopa County after Biden’s win was repeatedly verified by courts and election officials. The Texas state House, meanwhile, debated a Republican bill that would limit extended early voting hours, give partisan poll watchers more authority and make it tougher to cast a vote in city areas where Democratic voters live. And Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law the Sunshine State’s new restrictive voting measures. Had the goal been to bolster public confidence in the electoral system he might have held a public event. But exposing the partisanship behind the move, he signed it into law on “Fox and Friends” in a stunt that excluded journalists other than those on one of Trump’s favorite mouthpiece networks. The fact that DeSantis is so willing to use the electoral system — the core of US political freedoms — as a prop to advance his own political career shows why some pundits believe he has the brazenness needed to serve as an heir to Trump — a figure whose power still looms over Washington despite his departure for Florida more than three months ago. Source link Orbem News #Analysis #Assault #Biden #Democracy #Politics #Republicans #Trump'sRepublicansassaultdemocracywhileBidengetsdowntowork-CNNPolitics #Trumps #Work

[dipulb3]

Analysis: Trump's Republicans assault democracy while Biden gets down to work

New Post has been published on https://appradab.com/analysis-trumps-republicans-assault-democracy-while-biden-gets-down-to-work/

Analysis: Trump's Republicans assault democracy while Biden gets down to work

The contrast in approaches between the White House and the GOP encapsulates the risky bet that each has adopted at what is beginning to look like a tumultuous and potentially decisive turning point in the political history of the early 21st century.

In the country’s relentless march through the next biennial election cycle, each side is making choices now that will provide the foundation of their strategies in 2022 and 2024 elections in which Trumpism and Bidenism will again be on the ballot in some form.

But he chose a traditional backdrop, an aging bridge, to argue for tax raises on corporations and the wealthiest Americans to fund vital projects — a centerpiece of his plan. He also offered some flexibility on the scale of a hike to corporate rates — as he tries to get GOP senators on board — hinting he may settle for a 25% ceiling instead of his initial bid for 28%.

“I’m not ready to have another period where America has another infrastructure month, and doesn’t change a damn thing,” Biden said at a highway bridge that carries I-10 in Lake Charles.

“The truth is, across the country, we have failed — we have failed to properly invest in infrastructure for half a century.”

Biden also spent the week working on the core task of his presidency — ending the pandemic and repairing the economy. He announced a new target to convince wary Americans to get vaccinated. He made a decision to back waiving patents on Covid-19 vaccines, which reverberated around the world and could help save millions of lives in poorer nations. Biden also highlighted a restaurant rescue plan that is typical of his approach — in that it uses a gusher of government money to safeguard a vital economic sector.

The plan is an apt symbol of a presidency rooted in fixing problems that makes a bet that after a murderous pandemic, Americans have arrived at one of the periodic moments in history when they are willing to endorse the sweeping use of government power to ease social and economic deprivation.

The strategy requires Biden to open a narrow path through tiny Democratic majorities in the House and Senate — which isn’t guaranteed. And if he has misjudged the public mood, he could risk a public backlash that could benefit Republicans next year.

Republicans fixated on personality cult loyalty tests

Ironically, one of the Republicans who has made one of the most targeted attacks on Biden’s big government approach is Rep. Liz Cheney. But the Wyoming lawmaker, who’s the No. 3 House Republican, may no longer have a leadership platform to make those arguments. She is set to be toppled as conference chair simply because she tells the truth, repeatedly, about the ex-President’s lies about election fraud, points out that he whipped up an insurrection designed to overthrow Biden’s victory and punctures his personality cult.

The fact that her likely replacement, New York Rep. Elise Stefanik, who has become a fiercely pro-Trump lawmaker and promotes his falsehoods, is far less conservative than Cheney, offers an eloquent picture of the modern GOP’s priorities.

Seeking to ease concerns among fiscal conservatives about her record, Stefanik played her, literal, Trump card, underscoring the power of the former President’s aura in her party. “My vision is to run with support from the (ex) President and his coalition of voters,” Stefanik said on Steve Bannon’s radio show Thursday. Illinois Rep. Adam Kinzinger, one of the small band of Republican House members willing to stand with Cheney in opposing Trump, refuted Stefanik’s claims that she was a unifying figure.

“I’m gonna just go ahead and say this ain’t unity. It’s capitulation to crazy,” Kinzinger tweeted.

The total embrace of Trump by House Republicans represents a counter-wager on the scale of the President’s belief that Americans want a multi-trillion dollar overhaul of society designed to make the economy more equitable for working class Americans.

Given the popularity of Trump among GOP base voters and their willingness to buy into the false reality he created over last year’s election, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy’s strategy could work, as he seeks to wrest control of the House next year in midterm elections that may be decided by whichever party manages to excite their core voters.

Yet Trump’s appeal is limited — he never reached a 50% approval rating as president in the Gallup poll. He alienated crucial suburban voters and led House Republicans to defeat in the 2018 midterm elections and lost the White House in 2020 and two subsequent Senate runoffs. It’s far from clear that devotion to the disgraced former President is a viable path for Republicans if Biden makes a success of his presidency and the economy is doing well as voters cast ballots in 2022 and 2024.

McConnell launches his own maneuvers

On the Senate side of the Capitol, meanwhile, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell appeared to signal a characteristic policy of obstruction when he said this week that 100% of his focus was on stopping the current administration. The Kentucky Republican’s comments raised the question of whether a GOP counter-proposal to Biden on infrastructure and negotiations currently taking place with the White House is nothing more than political posturing.

McConnell’s attitude recalled a similar stance he took against former President Barack Obama’s presidency. It may also reflect insight from Biden — a longtime sparring partner — about the gravity of the current political moment. While Republicans in the House are almost exclusively positioning for the midterms already, McConnell, with his chamber’s institutional capacity to serve as a roadblock, is also concentrating on shorter-term efforts to thwart Biden’s transformational aspirations.

But McConnell may also have offered the President an opening to argue that Washington Republicans spurned his offer of compromise on key issues like infrastructure and his plans targeting American jobs and families.

His remarks also immediately trained attention back on West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, a moderate Democrat who is a bulwark against the power of progressives in the party and wants compromise with minority Republicans on big Biden agenda items.

Manchin said on Appradab’s “Cuomo Prime Time” on Wednesday night that he didn’t know what McConnell’s reasoning was but insisted “there are Republicans working with Democrats who want to make something happen.”

Building on Trump’s election fraud lies

Outside Washington, Republican state lawmakers continued to build on the ex-President’s lies about election fraud to make it more difficult for Americans to vote. In Arizona, state Senate Republicans pressed ahead with a sham partisan recount of general election votes in Maricopa County after Biden’s win was repeatedly verified by courts and election officials.

The Texas state House, meanwhile, debated a Republican bill that would limit extended early voting hours, give partisan poll watchers more authority and make it tougher to cast a vote in city areas where Democratic voters live.

And Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law the Sunshine State’s new restrictive voting measures. Had the goal been to bolster public confidence in the electoral system he might have held a public event. But exposing the partisanship behind the move, he signed it into law on “Fox and Friends” in a stunt that excluded journalists other than those on one of Trump’s favorite mouthpiece networks.

The fact that DeSantis is so willing to use the electoral system — the core of US political freedoms — as a prop to advance his own political career shows why some pundits believe he has the brazenness needed to serve as an heir to Trump — a figure whose power still looms over Washington despite his departure for Florida more than three months ago.

[theyoungturks]

Conservative elites and media have soured on Trump announcing his run for the white house in 2024. Ana Kasparian and Cenk Uygur discuss on The Young Turks. Watch TYT LIVE on weekdays 6-8 pm ET. http://youtube.com/theyoungturks/live Read more HERE: https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/desantis-finally-fires-back-trump-190213865.html "After being the target of Donald Trump’s taunts for weeks, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis shot back with a simple retort: just look at the “scoreboard.” His remarks—at a Tuesday press conference—mark the first time DeSantis, who has left the door open to running for president in 2024, has publicly responded to the personal jabs made by Trump and his allies. “Well, you know, one of the things I’ve learned, like learn in this job is when you’re doing, when you're leading, when you’re getting, getting things done, yeah, you take incoming fire,” he said. “And it’s constantly attacking and this is just what's happened. I don't think any governor got attacked more, particularly by corporate media, than me over my four-year term.” *** The largest online progressive news show in the world. Hosted by Cenk Uygur and Ana Kasparian. LIVE weekdays 6-8 pm ET. Help support our mission and get perks. Membership protects TYT's independence from corporate ownership and allows us to provide free live shows that speak truth to power for people around the world. See Perks: ▶ https://www.youtube.com/TheYoungTurks/join SUBSCRIBE on YOUTUBE: ☞ http://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=theyoungturks FACEBOOK: ☞ http://www.facebook.com/TheYoungTurks TWITTER: ☞ http://www.twitter.com/TheYoungTurks INSTAGRAM: ☞ http://www.instagram.com/TheYoungTurks TWITCH: ☞ http://www.twitch.com/tyt 👕 Merch: http://shoptyt.com ❤ Donate: http://www.tyt.com/go 🔗 Website: https://www.tyt.com 📱App: http://www.tyt.com/app 📬 Newsletters: https://www.tyt.com/newsletters/ If you want to watch more videos from TYT, consider subscribing to other channels in our network: The Watchlist https://www.youtube.com/watchlisttyt Indisputable with Dr. Rashad Richey https://www.youtube.com/indisputabletyt Unbossed with Nina Turner https://www.youtube.com/unbossedtyt The Damage Report ▶ https://www.youtube.com/thedamagereport TYT Sports ▶ https://www.youtube.com/tytsports The Conversation ▶ https://www.youtube.com/tytconversation Rebel HQ ▶ https://www.youtube.com/rebelhq TYT Investigates ▶ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwNJt9PYyN1uyw2XhNIQMMA #TYT #TheYoungTurks #BreakingNews 221116__TA03_Conservatives_Sour_Trump by The Young Turks

[keywestlou]

COCKTAILS AT 5

Not my usual Cocktails at 7 friday nights with friend Cathy in Seattle. Yesterday was boys’ night out. Four of us at Guy deBoer’s home for drinks.

A terrific two hours.

Guy deBoer had set up the event at his home so Fred and I could meet. Fred is a labor lawyer from New York City. He has a home in Key West, also. There is a connection between Fred and I. He too writes a blog. Friday Night with Fred. Read it. You will enjoy. www.gothamnetworking.com/blogs.

Fred is a labor lawyer closing in on retirement. Seventy nine at the moment.

Fred and I have communicated via e-mail a few times. It was Guy who brought us together.

Last night was our first face to face meeting. Fred’s friend David Berger was with us also. Berger a mere 65 and already retired. A Long Island doctor. Anesthesia his specialty.

He too has a home in Key west.

Fred a Syracuse graduate. He was wearing s Syracuse T shirt last night. We were at Syracuse a brief time together. One year. Fred was an undergraduate University freshman and I a senior in the law school. We never met back then.

A lot of Syracuse talk ensued. Some of Fred’s fraternity brothers were football and basketball players. Like Ernie Davis and Dave Bing.

We spoke of Joe Biden. Another Syracuse alumnus. The law school.

David had spent some time in Syracuse as a student. Although Upstate Medical is not a part of the University, it sits right next to the campus. Doctors to be and for real ones staff the facility.

Guy’s race came up. Time was spent discussing the race. I am ashamed to admit I did not know it was such a big deal.

Called the Golden Globe Race. Not run every year. The first was 1968, the last 2018.

Guy’s race is labeled Golden Globe 2022. The race begins September 27, 2021. Ends 530 days later in 2022. The race begins somewhere in the Canary Islands. It is the longest and loneliest race in the world. Each boat is piloted by one person. No one else on the boat for company or to help.

Guy solo! All alone by the telephone as Irving Berlin once wrote. I’m not sure if even telephone service is available, however.

Buy’s boat the Tashiba. Thirty six feet long

The trip non-stop.

I thought 412 days of self-quarantine was difficult. Guy is going to do 530 on the high seas which probably will have its moments for concern.

Guy, I think you’re crazy. I wish you well, however.

Do not plan crossing the Seven Mile Bridge saturday from 6-9 in the morning. The Annual Seven Mile Bridge run will be taking place. A thousand plus will be making the run.

Read an article this morning that Trump’s donors are flocking to Florida Governor DeSantis. Now I am convinced Trump’s supporters were and are crazy.

I have for the past year pointed out how incompetent and inept DeSantis is. He is a lousy Governor, he would make a worse President. Trump constantly referred to DeSantis as the best governor in America. No wonder, DeSantis did everything the President suggested.

The title of the article referred to is “A Nicer Version of Trump.” We can do without DeSantis.

Insanity prevails in the Halls of Congress. Especially the Senate.

I cannot understand how some Senators think.

Josh Hawley was an open supporter of January 6 before it even began. Ted Cruz for all his intelligence and experience has lost it. He probably thinks his conduct will buy him the Republican Presidential nomination in 2024. Will he be surprised!

Whatever, both are targeting Major League Baseball for its position re the new Georgia voting laws. Both want Major League Baseball “to pay.” Their voices in unison with Trump who said, “I would say boycott baseball.”

Not what is happening in this country. What has happened in this country?

Ivanka Trump in the news in a good way. She got her first vaccine shot yesterday.

She reacted like most others who have or are getting their shots. Thrilled! She told the world on Twitter. Again on Instagram with a photograph of her receiving the shot.

She said in Twitter and Instagram, “I got the shot. I hope you do too.”

Republican donors and fans are upset. They view her as a turn-coat.

Virginia Torrelino and I are Facebook friends. Have been so for quite a while. She lives in the Philippines.

Loves music! Says “music is my stress removal friend.”

Recall the Three Tenors. What great singing!

A couple of weeks ago, I came across a 3 person group who sang like the Three Tenors. In fact, held themselves out as  Three Tenors. Ages between 30 and 40.

I saw their video on the internet. Decided a few days later, I wanted to share it with everyone who reads my blog. The three sang that well.

When I went find it, I could not. Knowing how Virginia feels about music, I asked her to look. She is. In the meantime, Virginia sent me a video of the original Three Tenors Luciano Pavarotte, Placido Domingo, and Jose Carreras. A performance they gave in Italy in 1994.

Moving!

Enjoy your day!

  COCKTAILS AT 5 was originally published on Key West Lou