Tag: Republican Candidates

Closing Thought–22Sep20

“War–What’s It Good for?”

My regulars here on IST know and understand that I am an antiwar voter and have been his 1970….and every election I am disappointed in the lack of an actual antiwar candidate or platform or anything that would say the we are against our endless wars.

And the election of 2020 is NO different…..neither Biden or Trump is what I would call antiwar…the rhetoric is not even there anymore.

It use to be that both major parties had an antiwar wing….but sadly those days are gone…gone….gone…..

Elect Joe Biden, former (Republican) Secretary of State Colin Powell said in his Democratic National Convention appearance Tuesday night, and he’ll “restore America’s leadership in the world.”

Powell’s comments were followed by a video touting Biden’s friendship with the late Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), another heavyweight GOP hawk. Meanwhile, there’s a pro-Biden super PAC of George W. Bush administration alumni, and Biden has racked up support from a who’s who of neoconservatives (Bill Kristol, Max Boot, David Frum, Jennifer Rubin), as commentators left and right have observed.

These alignments highlight an increasingly undeniable fact of American politics in 2020: The anti-war wing of both major parties is dead. Your presidential choice is between war and war. There’s no faction of Republicans or Democrats which combines real power with a durable, principled interest in turning American foreign policy away from global empire.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/anti-war-wing-both-parties-195532097.html

I am still an antiwar voter….I do not subscribe to the slogan that anybody but Trump….that sadly lacks any direction for this country.

Since I am still antiwar I will have to look elsewhere for a candidate…..and that means that I will be blamed for Biden’s loss….not to worry I am use to it.

Learn Stuff!

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Onto 2024?

Closing Thought–06Jul20

I know we do not even have a good idea of what to expect for 2020…..but never mind the racist little shits are already looking to 2024 for a replacement of Trump at the head of a ticket of racist bullsh*t.

Who you may ask.

His name is Tucker Carlson….FOX propagandist.

The 2020 election is still months away, but it’s evidently not too early to start the speculation about 2024. And in this case, the speculation centers on Tucker Carlson of Fox News, who is the subject of multiple stories—most notably at Politico and Business Insider—that explain why he makes sense as the GOP candidate in the next election. Coverage:

  • The buzz: A story by Alex Thompson at Politico says party strategists are “buzzing” about the 51-year-old Carlson as a 2024 candidate, and a consensus is emerging that he would be an immediate frontrunner after the 2020 dust clears. “He’s a talented communicator with a massive platform. I think if he runs he’d be formidable,” says Luke Thompson, a strategist who worked for Jeb Bush’s 2016 super PAC. In all, 16 party bigwigs interviewed voice the same sentiment.
  • Ditto: Tom LoBianco at Business Insider reports that “a small group of New York donors also began talking at the start of June about running him for president in 2024.” He quotes conservative activist Jon Schweppe to explain the momentum: Carlson is “taking a moment when the GOP is lacking vision or any sort of moral clarity—and he’s providing it,” says Schweppe. “Naturally, his following is growing. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen. I hope the president is watching.”
  • The ideology: Think Trumpism, but without President Trump himself. Politico’s Thompson describes it as “a blend of anti-immigrant nationalism, economic populism and America First isolationism that he articulates unapologetically and with some snark.” And Carlson goes after the president publicly when he thinks Trump isn’t adhering to the vision.
  • The audience: Big, and growing. As Poynter notes, the latest TV ratings show that Carlson didn’t just lead all shows in the quarter, his Tucker Carlson Tonight “had the best viewership in the history of cable news.” Carlson drew a staggering 4.33 million viewers in the quarter, and that’s despite big-name advertiser boycotts over Carlson’s comments on the George Floyd protests. An example: “This may be a lot of things, this moment we are living through,” Carlson said. “But it is definitely not about black lives and remember that when they come for you, and at this rate, they will.” The Poynter piece also takes note of Carlson’s “flip-flopping” on the coronavirus response during this ratings period.
  • The clout: In a story about Trump at Vanity Fair, Gabriel Sherman reports that the president called Carlson late last week amid sinking polls and generally bad news and said: “What do I do? What do I do?” And the analyses above suggest that Carlson’s growing audience shows that more and more people are looking to him for a sense of where the party is headed. A piece at OutKick by Bobby Burack notes that Carlson’s audience is growing among all age groups.
  • Will he? Carlson “has not seriously broached” the idea of running, writes LoBianco, citing several sources. And Carlson has publicly dissed the idea of running for office previously. But some think he appears to be positioning himself for a run, as when he formally cut ties with the conservative Daily Caller, which he started. Yes, this talk of a 2024 candidacy may be “pure fantasy,” writes Seth Cohen at Forbes. “But if we have learned anything over the past several years, it is that, for better or for worse, sometimes television can become reality.” Carlson currently “has the ability to shift the perception of millions of Americans every day,” he notes. “The question is, in four years, would he want to move from being the shaper of that reality to the leader of it?”

Just what the country needs…..another liar and purveyor of BS labelled as news.

Something to think about as you prepare to vote in 2020.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

GOP Is Cowardly As Well

I have written many times just how cowardly I think the DNC/DCCC has become…it tries to pick the candidates for the voter with the help of the MSM…..and now the GOP has joined into the undemocratic practice.

They are choosing the candidates for the voter……trying to head off any embarrassment for “you know who”……

Four states are poised to cancel their 2020 GOP presidential primaries and caucuses, a move that would cut off oxygen to Donald Trump’s long-shot primary challengers.

Republican parties in South Carolina, Nevada, Arizona and Kansas are expected to finalize the cancellations in meetings this weekend, according to three GOP officials who are familiar with the plans.

The moves are the latest illustration of Trump’s takeover of the entire Republican Party apparatus. They underscore the extent to which his allies are determined to snuff out any potential nuisance en route to his renomination — or even to deny Republican critics a platform to embarrass him.

https://www.politico.com/story/2019/09/06/republicans-cancel-primaries-trump-challengers-1483126

This means the newest challenger to Trump will face a steeper hill to navigate……

President Trump just picked up another opponent in the Republican primaries: Mark Sanford, the former South Carolina governor and congressman, has decided to launch a longshot challenge to the current occupant of the Oval Office, reports the AP. “I am here to tell you now that I am going to get in,” Sanford said in an interview on Fox News Sunday. When asked why he was taking on an incumbent who’s popular within the party, Sanford said: “I think we need to have a conversation on what it means to be a Republican. I think that as the Republican Party, we have lost our way.”

The 59-year-old Sanford has long been an outspoken critic of Trump’s. He frequently questioned Trump’s motivations and qualifications during the run-up to the 2016 presidential election and called Trump’s candidacy “a particularly tough pill to swallow.”

That makes 3 challengers to Trump’s candidacy……

Tell me what you think….should the party decide who should represent the people and take it out of the hands of the voter?  Or should the voter be lead around by the nose?

“Lego Ergo Scribo”

Trump Has A Challenger

Closing Thought–26Aug19

Not much news on the Right from the GOP other than what insults and one liners the president and the GOP can sling at the Dems……

The sad part is that the Dems are the biggest circus in town until the news came out the Trump would face a challenger in Rep. Joe Walsh….

Former congressman Joe Walsh wrote an op-ed in the New York Times saying President Trump should face a conservative challenger in the primary. Now, it appears, Walsh has found just the guy: himself. Both the Times and Politico report that Walsh, who calls Trump “absolutely unfit” for office, is poised to announce his candidacy as early as this weekend. Details and developments:

  • Who’s Walsh? He served one term in the House after being elected in Illinois as a Tea Party conservative in 2010. Walsh, who now hosts a radio show, initially supported Trump but now is a vocal critic.
  • His chances: Pretty much non-existent, with a caveat. Walsh has “virtually no chance” of beating Trump, per the Times, and Politico agrees he has “little chance of posing a genuine threat.” However, Walsh could expose Trump’s weaknesses on the right, which could hurt the president in a general election.
  • His rationale: Walsh calls Trump, among other things, a “racial arsonist,” in his op-ed. And he tells the Times, referring to Trump’s trip to Finland last year: “He lost me for good in Helsinki, when he stood in front of the world and said, ‘I believe Putin and I don’t believe my fellow Americans.'”
  • His own rhetoric: Axios notes that Walsh has no shortage of controversial comments on his own record and rounds up examples, including a tweet from 2016 in which he wrote, “I think Obama is Muslim. I think in his head and in his heart he has always been.” Walsh acknowledged as much in his op-ed, saying he regretted how he has “expressed hate” for his rivals. “We now see where this can lead.”
  • The problem: “Walsh’s history of divisive rhetoric and previous support for Trump won’t help distinguish him in the eyes of Never Trump Republicans who want to see the president ousted,” writes Ursula Perano of Axios. “And even if it did, Trump continues to maintain a near-90% approval rating within the GOP.”
  • Trump’s reaction: Nothing, yet. But campaign spokesman Tim Murtaugh is succinct on Walsh’s expected run: “Certain failure.”
  • Prominent backer: Bill Kristol of the now-defunct conservative magazine the Weekly Standard is behind Walsh’s move and thinks he makes a “good David” in a David-and-Goliath way. At Breitbart, Joel Pollack see this as an “odd pairing” and also views Walsh’s past rhetoric as a liability in regard to being a Trump alternative. “Yet to Kristol, and the Times, who have struggled to understand the conservative movement and Trump’s political base, he seems good enough.”
  • No. 2: The Hill notes that Walsh would join former Massachusetts Gov. Bill Weld as the only other Republican to officially declare a primary challenge to Trump. Walsh is to the right of Weld, however, notes T.LaDuke of Red State, who nevertheless sees Walsh’s move as a “political suicide attempt or a vanity exercise.”

Cannot wait to see what verbal insults Trump throws at these people….what cutsey names he has or the lies he can spread….

If he hangs in there he could help lessen the support for Daddy Trump and help the Dems out……

Wishful thinking, huh?

Be Smart!

Learn Stuff!

VOTE!

“Lego Ergo Scribo”

 

Fear An Old Foe!

Closing Thought–09May19

Is it 1950?

No?

Then why am I having to listen to yet another mental midget whip up fear from 60 years ago?

The Commies are coming! The Commies are coming!

It seems that the art of lying is rubbing off on all those Congressional enablers of Donald Trump…..just recently the chants of the Commies are coming could be heard from a rally of GOPer Matt Shea of Washington…..

Washington state Republican representative Matt Shea and several associates regaled an audience with conspiracy theories, separatist visions, and exhortations for listeners to arm themselves ahead of a looming civil war, at a gathering at a remote north-eastern religious compound last year.

In recordings obtained by the Guardian, Shea and Jack Robertson, also known as radio personality John Jacob Schmidt, invoked their visions and fears of a violent leftist revolt in speeches at the 2018 God and Country event in Marble.

The Guardian last week published leaked chat records in which Shea and Robertson were revealed to have discussed the use of surveillance, “psyops” and violence against liberal and leftist activists.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/may/01/republican-matt-shea-rightwing-rally-guns
 
Are there truly still those so goddamn ignorant that they will believe this lie?
 
There must be for I hear it repeated (in various forms) almost daily….and not all from the GOP…..even the corporate Dems have a version of this meme……
 
Of course it is bullshit but that never stopped a politician from voicing such crap…..I will have more to say on this as the election draws nearer……
 
That is it from me for the day…..have a day…..

What About 9/11?

Closing Thought–15Apr19

I am sick of these “people”(I use the term reluctantly) that are all over the Omar thing are the ones that use 9/11 as a political weapon……like the newest toad from Texas, and they have many……Rep. Crenshaw…

This from Shareblue Media…..*****I post most of the article because I have some readers that read the title and maybe the first couple of sentences and think they have a grip on what I may post about……my apologies to the American Independent******

Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-TX) reportedly told a New York City firefighter who survived the 9/11 attacks that he was too busy to listen to concerns about helping victims of the worst terrorist attack in American history.

“He really didn’t want to talk to us,” Rob Serra, told the NY Daily News about his encounter with the recently elected Republican. The firefighter told the paper Crenshaw said he was “too busy” to speak.

When Serra approached Crenshaw about renewing the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund during a visit to Capitol Hill in March, “He said he didn’t have any information and that his staff would take care of it.”

The compensation fund has recently had to cut its payouts to first responders and others who were hurt in the attacks, and needs Congress to authorize more money for its ongoing operation.

A total of 81,404 Americans rely on the fund, including 375 Texas residents.

Despite his callous stance, Crenshaw recently tried to use 9/11 as a political weapon.

Echoing right-wing media outlets like Fox News, Crenshaw falsely alleged that Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) had insulted the memory of 9/11. Omar was pointing out that Muslims had unfairly come under fire after the attack, thanks to religious bigotry. But conservatives twisted her words — as they repeatedly have.

“First Member of Congress to ever describe terrorists who killed thousands of Americans on 9/11 as ‘some people who did something.’ Unbelievable,” Crenshaw wrote, smearing the congresswoman.

Noting his disingenuous attack and the manner in which he dismissed 9/11 survivors, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) called out Crenshaw.

“You refuse to cosponsor the 9/11 Victim’s Compensation Fund, yet have the audacity to drum resentment towards Ilhan w/completely out-of-context quotes,” she wrote. “In 2018, right-wing extremists were behind almost ALL US domestic terrorist killings. Why don’t you go do something about that?”

The compensation fund has recently had to cut its payouts to first responders and others who were hurt in the attacks, and needs Congress to authorize more money for its ongoing operation.

https://shareblue.com/gop-congressman-dan-crenshaw-too-busy-9-11-firefighter/

I dislike hypocrites but our government is made of these cowards…..

The GOP has tried to use the attacks on 9/11 as political props……and their actions show they could care less….all talk and no action….the credo of the American politician.

As despicable as I find this “person”….there is someone who is more despicable…..a person that promises support then renigs…..

In the wake of the controversy involving President Donald Trump sharing an edited video disparaging a Muslim lawmaker’s remarks about the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, it’s important to note that there’s still no indication that Trump himself fulfilled promises to donate to charities aimed at helping rescue workers who responded to those attacks

Less than a month after the attacks occurred, Trump appeared on “The Howard Stern Show” and made a promise to donate $10,000 to the Twin Towers Fund. Yet if Trump did give, there’s no record to indicate that he has done so, leading many to conclude that the promise has yet to be fulfilled nearly 18 years after the attacks.

https://hillreporter.com/trump-failed-to-make-pledged-9-11-donation-to-the-twin-towers-fund-in-year-after-the-attacks-30979

Yet another Repub that is in a class of cowards that the country can do without….and hopefully we will.

Closing Thought–18Oct18

We had yet another round of the sexual assault of someone in the government or wants to be in the government…..

I found a Repub candidate that is the best example of the Party today, the party of ignorant old white men……

This guy thinks rape can be prevented by educating women……

When Senate Republicans voted this weekend to confirm alleged sexual predator Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, they proved once again that the GOP is the party of rape.

And just in case you thought that was a fluke, Republican congressional candidate Denver Riggleman stepped in on Monday to claim that rape and sexual assault can be prevented by “educating females.”

During the fifth debate in Virginia’s 5th Congressional District between Riggleman and his Democratic opponent, veteran journalist Leslie Cockburn, an audience member asked both candidates how they proposed to reduce incidences of rape and sexual assault.

https://shareblue.com/gop-nominee-denver-riggleman-we-can-stop-rape-by-educating-females/

Seriously?  Once again it is a woman’s fault that she is raped…the man is an innocent by-stander according to the GOP and its nominees…..

Have you heard anything so fucking ignorant in your life?

And then I did…….

former Indiana state lawmaker, who once proudly identified himself as the most “conservative member” of the legislature in the state that gave the country Vice President Mike Pence, used a passage in the Bible to dismiss women who claim they have been raped.

“Only fools or fanatics or feminists (but then I repeat myself) say that all female sexual accusations against men should be believed. Period,” Boys wrote, before adding, “A false accusation can destroy a man’s family, finances, and future. All sexual assaults should be seriously looked at and any rapist should be executed as in bygone years and any false accuser should be branded with an L on her forehead and horse-whipped out of town (figuratively).”

But Boys added a caveat by citing a few choice passages from the Bible.

“Some common sense definitions are necessary regarding this accusation,” he explained. “Rape is having sex with a woman while she screams for help. No scream, no rape according to Deuteronomy 22:23-24. Ford says Kavanaugh held his hand over her mouth so did she scream for help when his hand was elsewhere?”

(rawstory.com)

Wow!  Only if the woman screams?  Wow!

Just wait another GOPer will open his mouth and insert both feet…..I have confidence in my prediction.

GOP is choke full of angry old men and the sooner they die off the better off the country will be…..a bit harsh I know….but as they say….the truth hurts!

Closing Thought–28Sep18

Obama’s Fault!

These days the comedians in the Trump GOP are still blaming everything that goes wrong on Obama.

There is an Arizona GOP candidate that is such a dick that even his family will not vote for him and even went so far as to make an ad against his candidacy….

Arizona Congressman Paul Gosar admitted to being hurt by the political attack ad that featured six of his siblings saying they were voting for his opponent and blamed the tactic on former President Barack Obama.

During a radio interview on The Mike Broomhead Show Monday, Gosar explained to host Mike Broomhead that on a personal level it did “sting” to see his siblings in the advertisement. “Blood is supposed to be thicker than water,” he explained.

Gosar shared that his son is named after his brother, Gaston, who appeared in the ad, and that it’s taken a toll on him. However, the congressman chalked it up to the old saying, “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.”

https://www.newsweek.com/arizona-congressman-paul-gosar-says-ads-featuring-siblings-stings-claims-its-1138279

You gotta love it when the brothers and sisters of a candidate think he is such a bad choice that they make campaign ads against his/her candidacy…..

It is a Friday and the beginning of a weekend….enjoy your time….chuq

Ten Paces Turn and Fire

There is a duel being fought in the media between Our Dear Leader and the uber rich Koch Brothers……for now it is a war of words….but things could spiral into a full fledged political war…….

Amid a morning flurry of tweets, President Trump took aim at two powerful figures on the right: brothers David and Charles Koch. “The globalist Koch Brothers, who have become a total joke in real Republican circles, are against Strong Borders and Powerful Trade,” the president tweeted. “I never sought their support because I don’t need their money or bad ideas,” he continued, adding, “Their network is highly overrated.” His comments, however, come after the Kochs lobbed an attack of their own at a weekend forum in Colorado. Coverage:

  • Kochs’ criticism: At a Koch network gathering in Colorado Springs, Charles Koch criticized Trump’s tariffs and protectionist trade policies and suggested he’s open to supporting Democratic candidates who are more in line with the Kochs’ free-trade and libertarian views, reports the National Review. “I don’t care what initials are in front or after somebody’s name,” he told the group.
  • Turning point? A video during the forum showed businesses supposedly shuttered because of retaliatory tariffs, notes Politico, which says “the open hostilities at this weekend’s conference came as something of a surprise.” At Vanity Fair, Tina Nguyen sounds a familiar note: “The Kochs’ hostility toward Trump isn’t new, though their rhetoric seems to mark a turning point.”
  • Another shot: The president of the Charles Koch Foundation was even more cutting over the weekend: “The divisiveness of this White House is causing long-term damage,” said Brian Hooks, per CNN. “When in order to win on an issue someone else has to lose, it makes it very difficult to unite people and solve the problems in this country. You see that on trade: In order to get to a good place on trade, convince the American people that trade is bad.”
  • Telltale race: The Koch network also has defied the White House in the Senate race in North Dakota pitting vulnerable Democratic incumbent Heidi Heitkamp against GOP challenger Kevin Cramer, reports the Washington Post. Trump has personally campaigned for Cramer, but the Kochs say they can’t support him because he’s not fiscally conservative enough, citing, for example, his support of Trump’s trillion-dollar spending package, per the Hill.
  • Familiar face: The Kochs’ criticism of the White House and their reticence to back the entire GOP ballot caused former Trump adviser Steve Bannon to lash out. “What they have to do is shut up and get with the program, OK?” Bannon told Politico. “And here’s the program: Ground game to support Trump’s presidency and program, [and] victory on Nov. 6.” Trump’s tweets, however, suggest he doesn’t want their help now.
  • The choice: In an analysis at the Atlantic, Reihan Salam susses all this out and frames it in general terms with this question: “Will the GOP be the party of Donald Trump or the party of Charles Koch?” The Kochs helped shape the GOP agenda during the Obama years, but the party’s populist turn under Trump has them worried, he writes. However, this new split with the GOP may ultimately backfire for the brothers, he warns.

Under normal circumstances I would be delighted to see the GOP in disarray…..but this president is destroying a once proud political party piece by piece and the elected reps from this party are enabling the party’s demise.