Tag: Pres. Biden

Biden/Trump Economic Outlook

College of Political Knowledge

The election is churning and we seem to have our two candidates, Biden and Trump, so why not take a look at what the economy would look like under each of them.

American voters have a lot on their minds ahead of the November presidential election.

For starters, inflation is keeping the cost of living high in many US cities, and astronomical home prices are preventing aspiring homeowners from buying. Issues like abortion access and tax policy are also a key consideration for many voters.

With the election six months away, Business Insider looked at President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump’s plans for eight major economic categories that affect Americans’ daily lives: domestic manufacturing, higher education, healthcare, housing, labor, taxes, tariffs, and trade.

“President Biden is going to keep fighting for working families — lowering the costs of prescription drugs, housing, and childcare; investing in our future; supporting workers and small businesses; and making sure big corporations and the wealthy to pay their fair share,” Lael Brainard, the director of the National Economic Council, told BI in a statement.

Business Insider reached out to Trump’s campaign team but didn’t receive a response.

The analysis is based on the candidates’ past records as president and their promises on the 2024 campaign trail.

Jump to a category: Domestic manufacturing | Higher education | Healthcare | Housing | Labor | Taxes | Tariffs | Trade

Biden plans to do what is doing now……which is as little as possible to keep us peasants in line……Trump would not submit any ideas because he has none….so what do you think about the economy in the coming years?

There is something that I thi8nki deserves looking at…..we could use a new economic model this one is not working for anyone but the wealthy.

But we must also reassess the second belief—that taxes and transfers alone can address the vast inequalities that have brought American democracy to such a perilous juncture. Doing so will lead us towards a more fundamental rethink of our economic institutions, and the values that guide them.

This is partly a pragmatic response to economic reality. The massive increase in inequality since the 1980s in America was mostly driven not by a reduction in redistribution, but by the growing gap in earnings between low skill workers, whose wages have suffered an unprecedented period of stagnation, and college-educated professionals whose salaries have continued to soar. And while inequality has increased in most advanced economies, that it is so much higher in the U.S. compared to Europe is mostly the result of bigger gaps in earnings than lower levels of redistribution. In other words, even if America were to increase the generosity of the welfare state to European levels it would still be much more unequal.

But the need to look beyond redistribution is about more than economics, it is about resisting the narrow focus on money that dominates most debates about inequality, and the tendency to reduce our interests as citizens to those of consumers. While government transfers are essential for making sure that everyone can meet their basic needs, simply topping up people’s incomes fails to recognize the importance of work as a source of independence, identity, and community, and does nothing to address the insecurity faced by gig-economy workers, or the constant surveillance of employees in Amazon warehouses.

https://time.com/6977602/6977602/

We do need a new economic model but there is enough cash flowing into Congress to keep the status quo.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Biden Needs A New Plan

The 2024 election looms large on the horizon and unfortunately Biden is basically playing second fiddle to Donald the Orange…..his rhetoric is just not motivating the masses to his visions.

Maybe he should think outside the box (I do not believe that he is capable of this simple task) to win this election.

I recently read an article about another contentious election from our history and it is thinking outside that proverbial box…..

According to some polls, Joe Biden and the Democrats may be heading towards a grim outcome in November. Not only does the Senate map favor Republicans, the President’s approval ratings are dismal. There’s some indication the Biden team knows it, too. In an effort to change course, they’ve coined and sold “Bidenonomics” with little success, hit reset on the Biden campaign, and are reportedly in the process of unleashing “Darth Brandon” by letting the President go on the attack. The hope is that a more aggressive Biden like the one Americans saw during the State of the Union address may counteract concerns about his age.

Given the stakes of the election, recent polling, and the apparent desperation of the Biden camp, here’s a novel idea: How about resetting their coalition by appealing to disaffected Republicans in the name of national unity? As a token of their seriousness, they should even think about changing their name.

As out-of-left-field as it sounds, it wouldn’t be the first time a major party changed its name in advance of a make-or-break election. Indeed, it was this move that just might have saved President Abraham Lincoln’s re-election and the nation from collapse.

In the election of 1864, with the Civil War still far from over, Lincoln’s re-election was in doubt. As that long year began, he wasn’t sure he would win his party’s nomination, much less the Presidency.

In the spring of 1864, several more radical Republicans moved to replace him with Secretary of the Treasury Salmon Chase. The argument was that Lincoln had moved too slowly on emancipation and had been too conciliatory toward the South when it came to using the full breadth of federal power. Chase, the leader of the radicals, had also been angling for the Presidency from the very start of the war.

https://time.com/6960904/biden-campaign-civil-war-strategy/

I say what has Biden got to lose by changing strategy?

I know this will not happen for the money few will not want to change anything within the Biden camp for they have too much influence and the people are just irritants to be tolerated.

If Biden does not change his idiotic ways he will lose this election and give us 4 more years of utter stupidity.

Just a thought.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Is Rafah The Line?

Hell no but Biden thumped his chest when BiBi said he would attack Rafah…..did Biden a line in the sand (HAHAHAHA) not a goddamn chance.

But he talks tough….

A planned shipment from the US to Israel that was to include 1,800 2,000-pound bombs and 1,700 500-pound bombs was paused last week due to concerns that Israel was planning to defy US wishes and invade Rafah, launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city in a major expansion of Israel’s military operation there. That’s according to senior US administration officials who spoke to outlets including the Washington Post, the Guardian, and the AP. A key quote from one senior official specifically references the 2,000-pound bombs that are already, per the Post, “controversial.” The AP notes such bombs have been used “frequently” by Israel in its seven-month-old war against Hamas, while the US only used them “sparingly” while fighting the Islamic State.

  • “Israel should not launch a major ground operation in Rafah, where more than a million people are sheltering with nowhere else to go,” said the senior administration official. “We are especially focused on the end-use of the 2,000-pound bombs and the impact they could have in dense urban settings as we have seen in other parts of Gaza.”

This is the first known time the US has paused an arms transfer to Israel since the Israel-Hamas war started in October, and a second official calls it a “shot across the bow” meant to illustrate to Israel how deeply the US is concerned about the situation in Rafah. The officials say the White House began reviewing future arms transfers in April, and that no decision has yet been made about whether to proceed with the paused delivery at a future date. However, one official also says the Israeli military already has enough weapons to conduct the Rafah operation regardless of the pause, should it choose to.

Seriously?

This was nothing but a political ploy….after all polls show that Americans are getting weary of Israel’s assault on Gaza….there is an election about 6 months away and he is trying to calm the peasants.

Then it was BiBi’s turn to thump his aged chest…..and responds to Biden’s idle threat.

Benjamin Netanyahu is responding with defiance to a warning from President Biden about an expected invasion of Rafah. After Biden said the US would halt the shipment of offensive weapons to Israel should it go ahead with the ground invasion, Netanyahu issued a video message:

  • “If we have to stand alone, we will stand alone,” said the Israeli prime minister, per the Washington Post. “If we need to, we will fight with our fingernails. But we have much more than fingernails.”
  • All set? Meanwhile, a spokesman for the Israeli military said Israel already has the necessary weaponry for the invasion, reports the AP. “The army has munitions for the missions it plans, and for the missions in Rafah too—we have what we need,” said Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari. However, it’s likely the US move would force Israel to shift strategy to some extent—”it’s possible we’ll have to economize the way we use our arms and hit more targets without precision bombs,” former national security adviser Jacob Nagel tells the New York Times.
  • Low point: Alon Pinkas, a former Israeli consul general in New York, tells CNN he thinks this is one of the lowest moments in history for US-Israel relations. “I do think this is a very low point—could the relationship survive this? Yes. Could it do so while Netanyahu is in power? No.”
  • Analysis: This is indeed a “moment of crisis” in US-Israel relations, writes Adam Rasgon in the New York Times. And it’s one that could result in domestic blowback against Netanyahu. “The United States provides Israel with a steel dome—it’s not only military support; it’s strategic and political; it’s at the United Nations, the international court, and so on,” Amos Gilead, a former senior Israeli defense official, tells the newspaper. “If we lose the United States with the unbelievable friendship of President Biden, it won’t be forgiven.”

Really?

Israel exist because the US stood by them for decades and I do not think this problem would be happening if there had been more diplomacy and less US ass kissing.

But Biden’s threat is a moot point…..why?

The Israeli military said Thursday that it has enough munitions for its planned operation in Rafah, comments that came a day after President Biden said he would withhold the shipment of heavy bombs to Israel if it proceeds with a major attack on the city’s “population centers.”

Israeli Defense Forces spokesman Daniel Hagari said, “The IDF has armaments for the missions it is planning, including missions in Rafah. We have what we need.” US officials have also said that Israel has enough bombs to attack Rafah.

Israel started its operation in Rafah on Monday by capturing the border crossing that connects to Egypt and launching strikes across the city. The US has said these steps are “limited” and that it’s only opposed to a major invasion of the city. But the situation continues to escalate, and satellite images show that the IDF is expanding ground operations in the city.

(antiwar.com)

The White House has said that a major Israeli operation would not defeat Hamas, reflecting the overall US position that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s goal to “eradicate” Hamas is unrealistic. “Smashing into Rafah, in his [Biden’s] view, will not advance that objective,” White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said.

So basically this was all theater for the idiots that blindly follow crap.  When it comes to Israel the US is a toothless tiger.

This game is becoming more and more disgusting and Biden keeps playing it.

Peace Out

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Biden’s Speech–Pure Fecal Matter

I am sure that this most recent speech by6 Biden is to placate AIPAC and their money. He went before the audience and spewed crap.

Biden in an effort to keep money flowing made what has been called his ‘antisemitism’ speech.

President Biden on Tuesday condemned what he called “a ferocious surge of antisemitism in America and around the world.” His speech at a DC ceremony remembered victims of the Holocaust and referenced the ongoing pro-Palestinian protests at college campuses:

  • Ancient hatred: “We’re at risk of people not knowing the truth,” Biden said of the Holocaust, per the AP. “This hatred continues to lie deep in the hearts of too many people in the world.” He asked Americans to push back against an “ancient desire to wipe out the Jewish people off the face of the Earth.”
    Hamas: “People are already forgetting, are already forgetting that Hamas unleashed this terror,” Biden said of the Oct. 7 attack on Israel. “It was Hamas that brutalized Israelis. It was Hamas that took and continues to hold hostages. I have not forgotten.”
  • Campuses: “On college campuses, Jewish students [have been] blocked, harassed, attacked, while walking to class,” Biden said, per Politico. “Antisemitism, antisemitic posters, slogans calling for the annihilation of Israel, the world’s only Jewish state. Too many people denying, downplaying, rationalizing, ignoring the horrors of the Holocaust and Oct. 7. … It is absolutely despicable, and it must stop.”
  • Campuses, II: “I understand people have strong beliefs and deep convictions about the world and America,” the president said, per the New York Times. But “there is no place on any campus in America, any place in America, for antisemitism or hate speech or threats of violence of any kind.”
  • Israel: “To the Jewish community, I want you to know: I see your fear, your hurt and your pain. Let me reassure you as your president, you’re not alone. You belong. You always have, and you always will. My commitment to the safety of the Jewish people, the security of Israel, and its right to exist as an independent Jewish state is ironclad, even when we disagree.”

Point one….yes there are some silly people that hate the Jews….I am nbot saying there is NO antisemitism just he is trying to link any action to the current situation on college campuses.

Point two….Yews HAMAS attacked Israel….but is that any different from the wandering bands of armed Israeli settlers that intimidate, destroy crops and homes and kill average West Bank Palestinians? (Of course not to worry the MSM will seldom report on these actions)

Point three….I am sure somewhere there has been some neo-Nazis that have harassed Jewish students….but if that is a wide occurrence where has the media been?   Where is Biden when students of color are harassed?

Point four….Not much to say other than electioneering plain simple.

Point five….Keep the money flowing and we will keep the support alive.

Biden’s uttering was pure bullshit…..he will say whatever AIPAC the money tells him to say…..keep in mind that Biden since 1999 has taken $4.2 million dollars from AIPAC….I would say it is money well spent.

This is nothing more that a made up ‘scare’….

I’ve been watching and thinking about the nationwide campus antiwar demonstrations in support of the suffering Palestinians of Gaza, and the appalling reaction to and “coverage” of those events. Something important needs to be addressed.

I won’t be concerned here with the violence committed by anyone, including the police, or by lesser misconduct, such as occupying and damaging buildings and other violations of university rules. It’s also irrelevant whether the demonstrations stand any chance of ending Israel’s onslaught or ending U.S. and university complicity in it, or whether most of the pro-peace demonstrators share a libertarian orientation. (Not likely.) All that is for another time.

I want to examine the overwhelming depiction of the demonstrations as nothing more than rank antisemitism – the blind hatred of all Jewish people because and only because they are – by birth, blood, belief, or practice – Jewish.

https://original.antiwar.com/srichman/2024/05/06/another-bogus-antisemitism-scare/

The media has help set up this bogus depiction.

Despite all the coverage of the protests over Israel’s war in Gaza, it can be remarkably difficult to understand what the players are actually saying. On social media, partisans on both sides cherry-pick extreme comments or incidents as a way to suggest that their opponents are comprehensively rotten. Others invoke broadly held values—free speech, peaceful protest, human rights—without explaining how they apply in specific circumstances. And many of the media stories have only worsened the confusion, by employing imprecise and euphemistic language that obscures more than it illuminates.

As a result, the American public remains badly informed about both the war itself and the movement against it, a dynamic that has steadily grown worse as campus protests—and the rate of (sometimes violent) arrests—has intensified. This lack of clarity may be especially damaging to people who both oppose Israel’s actions in Gaza and want to see long-term peace—a group long marginalized by Israel hawks and expansionists—but who may also find themselves surprised and troubled by the stated objectives of many of the groups leading the protests. And there is a growing risk, as the backlash to the protests grows both more violent and more litigious, that the extreme claims, demands for ideological purity, and rejection of nonviolence advanced by some of the protest leaders will undermine a movement that many liberals agree is morally urgent.

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2024/05/israel-gaza-war-protest-movement/678303/

Is there antisemitism?

Of course there is and there is plenty of anti-black or Asian or pick a race and there will be some misinformed dullard that will hate them…..but the media and especially the president does not need to feed crap to the American people.

Enough said.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Have Candidates Ever Been Disliked More?

College of Political Knowledge

2024 Election Series

2024 is an election that has two candidates that few voters seem to like and in some cases hate.

I will admit that I would not vote for Trump on threat of death and Biden to me is just a spineless tool of big business….I will not vote for either of these candidates and will most likely look elsewhere to put my vote…..just so I can get the endless trash talk about my choice.

All this said has there ever been two more disliked candidates in recent memory?

No there has not and ABC covers the subject…..

Shocking news: Americans are not jazzed about their choices in the 2024 presidential election. According to 538’s averages,* only 43 percent of Americans have a favorable opinion of former President Donald Trump, while 53 percent have an unfavorable opinion. And only 40 percent of Americans have a favorable opinion of President Joe Biden; 55 percent have an unfavorable one.

It’s historically unusual for any major-party nominee to be this unpopular — let alone both of them. Using 538’s current polling-average methodology, we went back and calculated retroactive favorability averages for every Democratic and Republican presidential nominee since 1980.** By late October before the election, only seven of the 22 candidates had negative net favorability ratings.

If Trump’s and Biden’s net favorability ratings remain underwater through Election Day, 2024 will be only the second presidential election since at least 1980 in which Americans had a negative view of both candidates. The first was in 2016 — which also happens to be the only recent presidential election in which the two candidates were, on average, more disliked than Trump and Biden are now.

It’s possible that, with most Americans entrenched in their partisan camps and believing that the country is on the wrong track, we’ve entered an era of perpetually unpopular presidential candidates. Before 2016, no presidential nominee in at least 36 years was more than 9 percentage points underwater; since then, five of the six have been.

https://abcnews.go.com/538/americans-hated-candidates-biden-trump/story

I also read that another batch of ‘people’ are calling it quits for 2024 because their popularity was not there….I am talking about the ‘centrist’ attempt to field candidates “No Labels’……

After running up a series of high-profile rejections from potential candidates, No Labels is abandoning its efforts to field a 2024 presidential ticket, reports the Wall Street Journal. The centrist group announced the decision on Thursday after being rebuffed by contenders including Chris Christie, Nikki Haley, Joe Manchin, and former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan. The group had raised $60 million with the intention of fielding a candidate should Donald Trump and President Biden end up as their parties’ nominees, per the New York Times.

“Today, No Labels is ending our effort to put forth a Unity ticket in the 2024 presidential election,” Nancy Jacobson, the group’s leader, said in a statement. “Americans remain more open to an independent presidential run and hungrier for unifying national leadership than ever before. But No Labels has always said we would only offer our ballot line to a ticket if we could identify candidates with a credible path to winning the White House. No such candidates emerged, so the responsible course of action is for us to stand down.” The move also comes after the death of the group’s founding chair, Joe Lieberman.

That gets rid of one group of ‘centrists’ now if we can keep this flow going then this country may have a chance.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

What Can Biden Do?

Get ready for a little history.

Last week I posted on the high cost of food and a loyal reader and commenter Grouchy Farmer, https://grouchyfarmer.com/ and I had conversation on how these prices could be controlled a bit…..I brought up that Nixon had done something in 1973 with the Executive Order process.

Nixon’s Executive Order 11723 states….

SECTION 1. Effective 9:00 p.m., e.s.t., June 13, 1973, no seller may charge to any class of purchaser and no purchaser may pay a price for any commodity or service which exceeds the freeze price charged for the same or a similar commodity or service in transactions with the same class of purchaser during the freeze base period. This order shall be effective for a maximum period of 60 days from the date hereof, until 11:59 p.m., e.s.t., August 12, 1973. It is not unlawful to charge or pay a price less than the freeze price and lower prices are encouraged.

SEC. 2. Each seller shall prepare a list of freeze prices for all commodities and services which he sells and shall maintain a copy of that list available for public inspection, during normal business hours, at each place of business where such commodities or services are offered for sale. In addition, the calculations and supporting data upon which the list is based shall be maintained by the seller at the location where the pricing decisions reflected on the list are ordinarily made and shall be made available on request to representatives of the Economic Stabilization Program.

SEC. 3. The provisions of this order shall not extend to the prices charged for raw agricultural products. The prices of processed agricultural products, however, are subject to the provisions of this order. For those agricultural products which are sold for ultimate consumption in their original unprocessed form, this provision applies after the first sale.

SEC. 4. The provisions of this order do not extend to (a) wages and salaries, which continue to be subject to the program established pursuant to Executive Order 11695 (b) interest and dividends, which continue to be subject to the program established by the Committee on Interest and Dividends and (c) rents which continue to be subject to controls only to the limited extent provided in Executive Order 11695.

SEC. 5. The Cost of Living Council shall develop and recommend to the President policies, mechanisms and procedures to achieve and maintain stability of prices and costs in a growing economy after the expiration of this freeze. To this end, it shall consult with representatives of agriculture, industry, labor, consumers and the public.

Read more on Nixon’s efforts…. Executive Order 11723

While I was no fan of Nixon at least he was doing something for the people of this nation….what is Biden doing?

I have said a few times….we cannot eat words and task force is a waste of time that will be soon forgotten in 2025 and then there is Congress the most corrupted lay-abouts that has ever been.

Granted 1973 was a different age and the special interests were not as liberal with the cash payouts as they are today and agribusiness was nothing but a far off thought.

I have no love for Biden but he could do more if so inclined….but that is a joke….he will do nothing but talk.

In my opinion price controls will do the job….if only for a short time….

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Cash In–Crap Out

It is 2024 and election looms so by crap I mean idle promises, trash talk, insulting garbage and hate speak….now to the meat of this post….

Over the weekend Biden had a good run with donations to his campaign….

President Biden’s campaign reported Saturday that it raised $90 million in March, widening his financial lead over Donald Trump. For the quarter, that lifted Biden to a total of $187 million, per the Hill. His campaign now has $192 million in cash on hand, which it said is a record high for a Democratic candidate at this point of the presidential race. Two days last month stood out: a New York City appearance with former Presidents Obama and Clinton brought in $26 million, and $10 million poured in during the 24 hours after Biden delivered his State of the Union address.

The cash gap between the Biden and Trump campaigns widened. Trump’s collected about $66 million in March and reported now having $93.1 million in cash. Biden campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez described the fundraising as historic, Politico reports, calling it “a stark contrast to Trump’s cash-strapped operation that is funneling the limited and billionaire-reliant funds it has to pay off his various legal fees.” For the quarter, the Democratic campaign said, 96% of the donations made were less than $200.

Then there was the fundraiser that Trump held overt the weekend….

ormer President Trump’s campaign said it raised $50.5 million on Saturday, reports the AP, a staggering reported haul as his campaign works to catch up to the fundraising juggernaut of President Biden and the Democratic Party. The reported haul from the event with major donors at the home in Palm Beach, Florida, of billionaire investor John Paulson sets a new single-event fundraising record and is almost double the $26 million that Biden’s campaign raised recently at a gathering with former Presidents Clinton and Obama at Radio City Music Hall. “This has been some incredible evening before it even starts because people—they wanted to contribute to a cause of making America great again, and that’s what’s happened,” Trump said to reporters as he arrived with wife Melania.

The event, billed as the “Inaugural Leadership Dinner,” sends a signal of a resurgence of Trump and the Republican Party’s fundraising, which has lagged behind Biden. Trump and the GOP announced earlier in the week that they raised more than $65.6 million in March and closed out the month with $93.1 million. Biden and the Democrats announced Saturday that they took in more than $90 million last month and had $192 million-plus on hand. Trump initially struggled to attract big donors in particular when he launched his campaign and some lined up to support the other Republicans in the primary. But as Trump racked up easy wins and became the party’s presumptive nominee, the GOP has solidified behind him.

Saturday’s high-dollar event hosted about 100 guests, including more than a few billionaires. Contributions to the event will go toward the Trump 47 Committee, a joint fundraising agreement with the Republican National Committee, state Republican parties, and Save America, a PAC that pays the bulk of Trump’s legal bills. In an unusual arrangement, the fundraising agreement directs donations to first pay the maximum allowed under law to his campaign and Save America before the RNC or state parties get a cut.

It is a shame that these high dollar slugs will not use their extra cash to help the nation’s struggling population.

So after these begging session for money nothing will change and we will get the same crap that we have been plagued with of decades.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Which Economy Is Better?

It is election time and most voters will most likely vote with the wallets or what they perceive is a better economy.

Will it be the Biden economy? Or will Trump take the prize?

The facts are clear: Biden has overseen a stronger economy than Trump did. That reality should dominate his reelection campaign.

I’m going to tell you something that I’m pretty sure you don’t know—and that you probably won’t even believe. Ready? Real wages are now growing in the United States at a pace faster than the spike in the cost of living since the pandemic. More than that: For the first time in decades, wage growth is consistently stronger in the middle and at the bottom than at the top.

See, I told you that you wouldn’t believe it. But it’s right there in a recent study by David Autor, Arindrajit Dube, and Annie McGrew, three well-known economists. Dube just wrote up the results at Project Syndicate, emphasizing: “Importantly, the real wages of the middle quintile are not only higher today than they were before the pandemic, but slightly higher than we would expect based on 2015-19 trends. In other words, the typical American worker’s purchasing power has grown at least as much as it likely would have in the absence of the global challenges posed by the pandemic and geopolitical conflicts.”

https://newrepublic.com/article/180093/biden-trump-economy-election-not-even-close

So if you are voting with your wallet then the Biden economy should be your choice….

The real truth is the economy does much better under a Dem president…..

A study published by the Economic Policy Institute on Tuesday finds that the U.S. economy does better when a Democrat is in the White House than when a Republican is in charge.

The study looked at GDP growth, job growth, inflation-adjusted wage growth, the unemployment rate, and more. It found that Democrats have had an economic advantage since at least 1949.

“This Democratic advantage is across the board in all variables we measure but strongest in private-sector outcomes—notably, business investment, job growth, and the growth of market-based incomes,” it says.

The study shows there is a “pronounced Democratic advantage in nearly every measure of macroeconomic performance.” Despite this, the study notes that Republicans are typically seen as better at managing the economy in opinion polls.

“It is difficult to tell what respondents to opinion polls have in mind when they are asked about ‘the economy.’ For example, respondents often rate the Republican party higher as economic managers yet rate the Democratic party more highly on issues related to healthcare,” the study says. “But healthcare is, by far, the single largest sector of the U.S. economy, affecting economic outcomes of households, businesses, and governments in significant ways.”

https://www.commondreams.org/news/us-economy-better-democrats

If your criteria for voting is your wallet then the obvious choice is the Democrats….but we know how successful misinformation is at getting voters to cast their vote against their best interests….so this post will probably mean nothing to the unwashed stupid.

The best thing to do is “pay attention”!

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

We Have Our Candidates!

Why am I not surprised?

It’s official after yesterday’s primaries the positions for presidential candidates has been filled.

There has not a lot of drama in the recent primaries….not a surprise at all….

First as expected Trump won big yesterday.

Donald Trump on Tuesday won enough delegates to clinch the Republican nomination for president for the third straight time, winning Republican primaries in Georgia, Mississippi, and Washington state, the AP reports. Before Tuesday’s votes, the president was 126 delegates short of the 1,215 needed. Hawaii’s Republican caucuses are also Tuesday and will finish at 2am Eastern. President Biden secured the Democratic nomination with a win in Georgia but the math was a little more complicated for Trump. From the AP:

  • In Georgia and Washington, a candidate can win all of a district’s delegates by winning a vote majority in that district. In Mississippi, a candidate can win all 12 district delegates by winning a statewide vote majority. In all three states, if a candidate doesn’t meet the required vote-majority threshold, the district delegates are allocated in proportion to the vote in that district. Hawaii allocates its six district delegates proportionally according to caucus results, regardless of whether a candidate receives a vote majority.
  • Georgia, Mississippi, and Washington account for 142 delegates. Trump needed to, and did, win all but five of them in order to clinch the nomination before Hawaii finished caucusing.
  • Nikki Haley, meanwhile, had as of this writing won 22% of the vote in Washington state and 13% in Georgia, despite having ended her presidential campaign.

Then there are those pesky Dem primaries with very little drama there as well….

President Biden, facing no serious opposition, clinched the Democratic nomination Tuesday with a victory in Georgia’s primary. The AP called the race for Biden soon after polls closed at 7pm Eastern. CBS News projects that the state’s delegates will give the president the 1,968 delegates needed to make him the presumptive nominee. Biden also won the primaries in Mississippi and Washington state later Tuesday. In a statement, Biden celebrated clinching the nomination and described Donald Trump, who secured the GOP nomination later Tuesday, as a threat to democracy.

Trump is “running a campaign of resentment, revenge, and retribution that threatens the very idea of America,” Biden said, per the AP. “I am honored that the broad coalition of voters representing the rich diversity of the Democratic Party across the country have put their faith in me once again to lead our party—and our country—in a moment when the threat Trump poses is greater than ever.” As of this writing, “uncommitted” had 7.5% of the Democratic vote in Washington state.

If these are the nominees then blow off the rest of the primary BS and go straight into the conventions and get this silliness done with as soon as possible.

One bit of good news….one of the Freedom Caucus will not be around in the next session of Congress.

Republican Rep. Ken Buck announced Tuesday that he’s leaving Congress at the end of next week, further narrowing the GOP’s slender House majority. Buck, a member of the hardline conservative House Freedom Caucus, said in November that he wouldn’t seek re-election in Colorado’s 4th District but the Tuesday announcement surprised colleagues including House Speaker Mike Johnson, the Washington Post reports. In recent months, Buck bucked his party on issues including efforts to impeach President Biden and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

  • Narrowed majority. After Buck’s departure next week, there will be 218 Republicans and 213 Democrats in the House, with four vacancies, meaning that Johnson can only afford to lose two GOP votes in party-line votes if all members are present, the Hill reports.
  • Why he’s leaving early. “It is the worst year of the nine years and three months that I’ve been in Congress and having talked to former members, it’s the worst year in 40, 50 years to be in Congress,” he told CNN. “This place has just devolved into this bickering and nonsense and not really doing the job for the American people.”
  • Next steps. Buck, who has repeatedly criticized his party’s handling of Donald Trump, said the system of choosing candidates is “broken” and he hears from a lot of people who aren’t happy with Trump or President Biden. “I am going to find the right organization to join and I’m going to start working on that issue. We have to have better candidates up and down the ballot.”
  • Special election. A special election will be held to replace Buck for the rest of his term, but it’s not clear whether it will happen before the June 25 Republican primary, the AP reports. Rep. Lauren Boebert, who currently represents Colorado’s 3rd District, is among several candidates in the 4th District GOP primary.

I find it humorous his reason for leaving….the Freedom Caucus is one of the major thorns in democracy’s side….but somehow he cannot take the heat.

I will say good-bye to him with a smile.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

State Of The Union–2024

It is that magical time again when the president steps up to a joint session of Congress and thumps his chest over his many achievements and desires for the future….most of which are mostly delusional.

Since it is an election year I would expect it to be more electioneering than accurate…..and I was not disappointed….old Uncle Joe did what I expected making this an opportunity to campaign from the speech.

Just a few things….

Whether this will be President Biden’s final State of the Union address remains to be seen, but in his third such address to the nation Thursday night, he made his case for a second term in a 67-minute address. Standout details:

  • He opened with a joke: Amid the lengthy claps and cheers that greeted him he quipped, “If I were smart, I’d go home now!”
  • He went straight to Ukraine: Biden quickly described freedom and democracy as under attack both at home and overseas. He cited Russia, saying Putin certainly won’t stop with Ukraine, but that Putin could be stopped if the US provides Ukraine with the weapons it seeks. He said assistance is being blocked by those who “want to walk away from our world leadership. … We will not bow down. I will not bow down!”
  • A much used-phrase: Biden said “History is watching” repeatedly, at one point saying it’s “not hyperbole” to say that.
  • One absent word: Trump. Biden did not utter his name though many references to the former president (whom Biden referred to as “my predecessor”) were made. Biden also brought up the Jan. 6 insurrection. “You can’t love your country only when you win,” said Biden, to lengthy applause.
  • Highlight on accomplishments: He talked about “America’s comeback” in the wake of the pandemic. He said the vaccines that saved us from COVID are now being used to fight cancer, turning “setback to comeback.” He cited millions of new jobs, unemployment at record lows, and inflation’s drop from 9% to 3%.
  • Calls for action: Biden pushed for action on IVF, calling for a nationwide guarantee to access to it. He advocated for the restoration of Roe v. Wade and the right to choose. He said he was ending the “wrong” reality that sees Americans pay more for prescription drugs than anywhere in the world. He addressed interest rates, saying he wanted to provide a two-year tax break of $400 a month for first-time buyers or homeowners seeking more space. He said he wanted to give public school teachers a raise.
  • Calls for action, II: “Folks at home, does anyone think the tax code is fair?” he asked, saying big corporations need to begin paying their fair share and that the corporate minimum tax should be raised to 21%. If anyone tries to raise the retirement age or cut Social Security, “I will stop you,” said Biden.
  • Calls for action, III: As for border security, “get this bill done,” he said of the failed bipartisan border deal. “We need to act now.” He brought up the Israel-Hamas war, saying he would not rest until all the hostages are home. He said Israel has a fundamental responsibility to protect innocent citizens in Gaza and said that while no US boots will be on the ground, the US will erect a temporary pier on the Gaza coast so that more aid can be delivered to Gaza.
  • His standout reference to Trump: “I know it may not look like it, but I’ve been around awhile. … My lifetime has taught me to embrace freedom and democracy. A future based on core values that have defined America: honesty, decency, dignity, equality. To respect everyone. To give everyone a fair shot. To give hate no safe harbor. Now other people my age see a different story: an American story of resentment, revenge, and retribution. That’s not me.”
  • More: “In my career I’ve been told I’m too young and I’m too old. Whether young or old, I’ve always known our North Star. … That we are all created equal and deserve to be treated equally throughout our lives. We’ve never fully lived up to that idea, but we’ve never walked away from it either. And I won’t walk away from it now. My fellow Americans the issue facing our nation isn’t how old we are it’s how old our ideas are? Hate, anger, revenge, retribution are among the oldest of ideas. But you can’t lead America with ancient ideas that only take us back. To lead America, the land of possibilities, you need a vision for the future of what America can and should be.”
  • The stakes: The AP predicted the speech would be “something of an on-the-job interview,” with voters watching to see if the 81-year-old delivered the address with “vigor and command.”
  • Working for the middle class: From CNN: “The entire speech has a populist strain, going back to working for the middle class. The White House wants people to walk away from speech believing Biden understands their issues, cares about what they care about, and is actively working to make their lives better.”

There you have the major points of the speech….

MY take is a feisty Joe was trying to say that a dude old as dirt is still punching for you. (I do not buy the hype)

The joke was lame.  Ukraine should not have been the big opening.  IVF and abortion…what will he do?  He has not done sh*t so far.  Working for the Middle Class….and how has that worked out for us?

Then there is a piece written by Rev. Dr. Barber about the true state of the union…I believe it is more accurate than anything Uncle Joe had to offer….

https://www.thenation.com/article/society/the-true-state-of-the-union/

There you have it ….I gave you what I call ‘Fantasy and Fact’ on the State of the Union.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”