US Politics XVII: Yes, squid pro row

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Given all the jokes about Florida people like to make, I'm not sure if that's something he should be proud of :p.
:giggle:
[emoji18]
There are a bunch of exceptions. :)


Seriously, though, if he wants to hide out there for the rest of his life, he can feel free to do that any time.
YES! Unfortunately more details seem to say he doesn't intend to move out of NYC until after his presidency. I am cry. :sad:

The little stunt with the boxes is even more shitty considering it was just a year ago that we had that pipe bomber going around mailing packages to legislators. Remember that?

To say nothing of the fact that they clearly don't seem to get that pulling these kinds of dumbass stunts doesn't exactly help prove Trump's innocence. It just further indicates there must be something to hide. The truly innocent don't behave like this.

But that's fine, Republicans. You want to act like obnoxious brats and want to openly say on camera that you're all going to stick with Trump. Okay, then. We'll remember that in 2020. And history books will remember that, too.
This!

Now that you mention it, yeah, those creepy mailings. :angry:
 
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Bye Beto [emoji112]

For all those polling at or below Beto, please see his example of a rational, logical person that wants to see a a stronger and more productive primary. Clearing the way for more productive fundraising for a final nominee.

or as Chuck Rhodes says in Billions - Leave your credentials at the door, and GET THE FUCK OUT!
 
Also, this is very interesting and should send a chill through the WH.

Republican approval of Trump :

July - 87%
October - 74%

That's pretty huge. Keep this in the lens of how the Senate will react. When they see numbers going under 80% for a sitting president, that is not good.

Also saw a poll from TX showing that 13% of Republicans support the impeachment inquiry, and 12% support impeachment in general.

If he's losing 13% of repubs in red states and over a 26% nationwide. That is a big and consequential shift.
 
WaPo is reporting that a good number of R Senators now considering admitting there was quid pro quo but arguing that still doesn't rise to level of impeachment.

Profiles in courage.
 
13% of republicans in Texas is not a notable number, though. Not 13% of the electorate. 13% of ~60%. It’s Cruz v Beto all over again.
 
WaPo is reporting that a good number of R Senators now considering admitting there was quid pro quo but arguing that still doesn't rise to level of impeachment.

Profiles in courage.




This will be the argument.

It’s plainly not nearly as bad as lying under oath about a consensual relationship during a civil trial.
 
This will be the argument.

It’s plainly not nearly as bad as lying under oath about a consensual relationship during a civil trial.

I thought that Trump's directive was to go out and defend him on the substance of his "perfect" phone call.
 
13% of republicans in Texas is not a notable number, though. Not 13% of the electorate. 13% of ~60%. It’s Cruz v Beto all over again.

Not sure how that isn't significant. This number in a red state with seats being vacated all the time.
Ok, maybe it would have been better to show the numbers of republicans that opposed impeachment and inquiry.
In that poll 79% of Republicans said that Trump has not committed impeachable offenses. 78% said they don't support the inquiry.

So in a red state. Trumps solid base of support is down below 80%. That isn't a good sign. This is before the public testimony starts.

As for the TX electorate. That stands at 46% for the inquiry, 42% against.

Now a new WaPo poll just came out showing Republican disapproval of Trump has hit 18% nationally. I really think that the number that scares McConnell and repubs is when support drops below 80% in the party nationally and in swing states.

Again, this is before any public hearing has been aired.
 
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Not sure how that isn't significant. This number in a red state with seats being vacated all the time.
Ok, maybe it would have been better to show the numbers of republicans that opposed impeachment and inquiry.
In that poll 79% of Republicans said that Trump has not committed impeachable offenses. 78% said they don't support the inquiry.

So in a red state. Trumps solid base of support is down below 80%. That isn't a good sign. This is before the public testimony starts.

As for the TX electorate. That stands at 46% for the inquiry, 42% against.

Now a new WaPo poll just came out showing Republican disapproval of Trump has hit 18% nationally. I really think that the number that scares McConnell and repubs is when support drops below 80% in the party nationally and in swing states.

Again, this is before any public hearing has been aired.


It’s not significant because the amount of republicans in Texas is very high, and this isn’t a notable amount of republicans who oppose the president. This is the Texan status quo.
 
It’s not significant because the amount of republicans in Texas is very high, and this isn’t a notable amount of republicans who oppose the president. This is the Texan status quo.

So in a state that is overwhelmingly republican, the support for impeachment inquiry is 46 to 41...
 
I tried to read about that Jeff Stein stuff to educate myself about whatever you're talking about, but I could only find a WaPo article that I couldn't read because it's behind a paywall. I did, however, find that leaked video/audio of her at some meeting with union reps that has been pushed, particularly by Bernie backers, as her "backing away" from M4A. Despite this labeling, I didn't really see anything in the video that indicated a change in her position. It was probably a little too vague for my liking, but it wasn't a positional change imo - to me she was only indicating a desire to let unions and the working class have a voice at the table. If she'd been inviting the insurance and pharma lobbies to the table, I'd have a bigger problem.



I apologize for the tone, it probably wasn't fair.

I'll take your word that your view hasn't changed. I've just, in general, seen a lot of Bernie backers turn the volume up on their anti-Warren rhetoric since she's gone up in the polls. I'm just tired of their need to label anything that isn't Bernie "faux" or "fake" or "corporate". I guess I lumped you into that, which wasn't fair, so I apologize.
I'm not sure that she's "backing away," as I don't think she was ever really for it. Many (if not most) Democrats recognize that Medicare-for-All is very popular, and are willing to say they are for it, even if they are not. "Medicare for All" is good marketing; people who don't actually believe in single-payer can say it and score political points. Warren's plan, in a number of ways, falls well short of what really needs to be done.

It's not particularly fair to you because your response occurred before the specifics came out, but she released her plan since then and the plan is bad. She constructed a plan that doesn't work at all because she wanted to duck the "increase in taxes" criticism, which is impossible if you are actually interested in fixing healthcare and improving people's lives.

My hope is that as more of the specifics of her plan are bandied about, that people are willing to reconcile with how decidedly not single-payer her plan is. Unfortunately, I assume criticisms of her healthcare plan are going to be accused of being "purity tests" and dismissed without a second thought.

And I would argue that the volume on the Warren criticism has only been turned up in direct response to the narratives that have been pushed, that she is close enough to Bernie that everyone who supports him should just go along with the more "realistic, viable" candidate. Which fundamentally misunderstands the major differences between the two, while also completely inventing a definition of "electability," a concept that long since should have gone the way of the dodo.
 
The Daily Mail is utter trash, but we should not let the Epstein story die just because he did.

Everyone who played a role needs to be brought out into the sunshine.
The "joke" question in the Trevor Noah interview with Clinton was fucking gross.

What a shame that that the Epstein story is going away in most media. It's almost as if, by killing Epstein, his co-conspirators are getting exactly what they wanted.
 
So in a state that is overwhelmingly republican, the support for impeachment inquiry is 46 to 41...



You’re bringing up a statistical different argument entirely. Yes, the number/share of republicans has decreased in Texas, thanks to booming urban populations.

Donald Trump having an approval rating of 87% amongst republicans in Texas is absolutely nothing new (yes, support for trump right now is akin to support for impeachment).
 
I will also say I am cautiously optimistic about Sanders' chances to take both Iowa and New Hampshire. His ground game is impressive, and he always underwhelms in the polls because of how poorly represented the youth and typical non-voter tend to be in those.
 
So in a state that is overwhelmingly republican, the support for impeachment inquiry is 46 to 41...



You’re bringing up a statistical different argument entirely. Yes, the number/share of republicans has decreased in Texas, thanks to booming urban populations.

Donald Trump having an approval rating of 87% amongst republicans in Texas is absolutely nothing new (yes, support for trump right now is akin to support for impeachment).
 
M4A may have polled well in the beginning of the year, but it has become increasingly unpopular, probably because 10 months ago most Americans didn’t understand what it actually meant — expressly banning private insurance plans that compete with the government. That, as it turns out, is actually rather unpopular, and lost Democrats support an expansion of the ACA with the availability of a public option, which is closer to the truest vision of the ACA.

Americans want access to government insurance, but they don’t want to be forced to use it.

Polling on this issue is highly sensitive to how questions are phrased, but the clear trend is that the more Americans learn about what is entailed in a M4A plan, the less popular it becomes.
 
My parents are liberal. They don’t and won’t vote GOP

But they like Pete.

m4a scares them

They still want private insurance option

Right or wrong (and i think they’re wrong) this is how a majority of people in Midwest and their age (65/66) think.

Let’s see how it plays out
 
M4A may have polled well in the beginning of the year, but it has become increasingly unpopular, probably because 10 months ago most Americans didn’t understand what it actually meant — expressly banning private insurance plans that compete with the government. That, as it turns out, is actually rather unpopular, and lost Democrats support an expansion of the ACA with the availability of a public option, which is closer to the truest vision of the ACA.

Americans want access to government insurance, but they don’t want to be forced to use it.

Polling on this issue is highly sensitive to how questions are phrased, but the clear trend is that the more Americans learn about what is entailed in a M4A plan, the less popular it becomes.



This notion of a public and a private option is a heaping waste of money that republicans and democrats alike can agree sucks if they actually understand what it implies. You can’t have a “public option” that is meaningful in a government healthcare system. The debate is purely healthcare versus health insurance. A “public option” is nothing more than a tax-based insurance where the intention would be to take money away from wealthier people who are covered by their employers or have enough money and subsequently giving it to people who can’t afford healthcare.

In turn that means that those people pay twice. Once for their employment benefit and another time via a tax. Stupid. Nobody wants that. Not to mention all of the obvious negatives that come with insurance - lack of network coverage that can still make you liable, a premium based system where your fear and wealth determines how well covered you are, etc etc

A single payer system eliminates all of this. Private insurance can still exist for those who want private care covered. Nobody pays twice. Everybody is covered. Nobody is at extreme risks from uncontrollable means. End this, now.
 
I think that it boils down to this. A single payer plan is inevitable at some point in the US.
The issue is how to implement a single payer plan, and how do you get it passed in a divided government.

The problem I see right now in the Dem field is how this is being messaged. Bernie and Warren both make it sound like - BAM, we are going to put M4A in place instantly.
Problem is, people don't want BAM. What people want to is a path that would give them choices, would evolve to a system over a period of time, etc...
And I think now more than ever, the electorate is SO exhausted of chaos and change from day to day with Trump, that what they are truly yearning for, is calm and security and normalcy.

I am not an expert on the inner workings of every candidates plans. But I know the basic premise of them. I think that puts me at about where a good chunk of the voters are or a little more in tune.

I would like a single payer system, but I also know that I have good healthcare through my employer. But having had medical issues in our family every few years for the past decade , I would love to not have that sort of unexpected financial burden, on top of premiums, copays, etc...

I actually, for the first time, in an interview, heard Sanders talk about how he would phase in his plan by age over a number of years. That's the sort of thing that voters need to hear about in debates and speeches, not just if someone starts to dig in during an interview and press him on specifics. It's a huge deal, people want specifics.

I think a hybrid of mayor Pete's plan, that would then eventually phase into a full single payer system, say, over five to ten years would be my preference. I think it would be almost unanimously supported by Dems, most independents, And I think would be something that republicans would actually be forced to support as political pressure from their constituents would push them.
 
This notion of a public and a private option is a heaping waste of money that republicans and democrats alike can agree sucks if they actually understand what it implies. You can’t have a “public option” that is meaningful in a government healthcare system. The debate is purely healthcare versus health insurance. A “public option” is nothing more than a tax-based insurance where the intention would be to take money away from wealthier people who are covered by their employers or have enough money and subsequently giving it to people who can’t afford healthcare.

In turn that means that those people pay twice. Once for their employment benefit and another time via a tax. Stupid. Nobody wants that. Not to mention all of the obvious negatives that come with insurance - lack of network coverage that can still make you liable, a premium based system where your fear and wealth determines how well covered you are, etc etc

A single payer system eliminates all of this. Private insurance can still exist for those who want private care covered. Nobody pays twice. Everybody is covered. Nobody is at extreme risks from uncontrollable means. End this, now.




Great. Very convincing. Go run for office on this platform.

I’m not attacking the merits of M4A. I am attacking the idea that it’s a popular idea, and that it’s secretly what everyone really wants. The truth is that the more is discussed, the less popular it becomes.
 
Well you don’t have to be condescending with your answer.

I know what you’re discussing, and all I have to say to that is that the whole point of fighting for it on a campaign is to inform people. Peoples opinions are the way they are because there’s a large amount of misinformation, disinformation, and general lack of understanding.
 
https://twitter.com/transequality/status/1190302271344648192?s=21


https://twitter.com/transequality/status/1190302272124833794?s=21

This is why I’ll vote blue no matter what. If my savior doesn’t get the nomination I’m not going to pack up or protest because there’s more at stake than how things affect me or how i want the world to be.

And let's get real. The biggest issues are getting the senate back and start rebuilding the courts, including the SCOTUS.
The house isn't going back to red for while. We need to flip those 4 senate seats.
 
Well you don’t have to be condescending with your answer.

I know what you’re discussing, and all I have to say to that is that the whole point of fighting for it on a campaign is to inform people. Peoples opinions are the way they are because there’s a large amount of misinformation, disinformation, and general lack of understanding.




I’m sorry if they came off condescending.

You’ve given a better pitch than either Bernie or Warren.
 
Oh, gee, who could've possibly seen this coming:

https://news.yahoo.com/smugglers-reportedly-cutting-holes-trump-135108809.html

Smuggling gangs in Mexico are reportedly using power tools to cut large holes in walls at the southern US-Mexico border, according to a new report from The Washington Post.

The steel-and-concrete portions of the walls, which President Donald Trump has touted as the solution to the flow of undocumented immigrants coming across the US-Mexico border, can be sawed apart with at least one commercially available cordless tool that retails for less than $100, according to the Post, which cites US border officials with knowledge of the damage.

In addition to cutting through the walls, officials told the Post that smugglers have also repeatedly scaled and climbed over the walls with makeshift ladders, particularly in areas near San Diego.

The report comes as the first and most detailed description of such breaches and says that the lack of government reporting means it is unclear how many times they have occurred. US Customs and Border Protection reportedly declined to provide further information about the number of wall breaches to the Post and had not yet fulfilled a Freedom of Information Act request seeking such data at the time of the report.

It's almost like a wall doesn't solve the problem or something. Who knew?
 
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