204 replies to this topic

[LFC]

Liz Warren tells Faux News to go pound sand. YES! Don't give them a fig leaf of respectability.

Quote

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) has turned down the offer to participate in a town hall on Fox News, saying she’d take a “hard pass” of the “hate-for-profit racket.”

[LFC]

Tomasky follows up on the Democrats' failure to fight effectively. He describes something he calls "learned helplessness" from previous losses though he does say they Dems aren't as bad as they were in the 90s. He also gives a few suggestions of attacks they can start on now.

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Here are three things off the top of my head they could do right now:

1. Have a hearing, next week, in which they bring up as many Republican political operatives and campaign officials, and even former Republican elected officials, as they can who will be willing to say to a House committee: “No, the president is wrong. I never have and never would do something like that. I would go directly to the FBI.” Depending on who agreed to do this, this could generate a lot of coverage and ratchet up the pressure on congressional Republicans to say what’s true, or at least make them look worse if they don’t.

2. Those 1,000-plus prosecutors who signed that letter saying Trump obstructed justice? Get a parade of them up there testifying. Especially the Republicans. A lot of Republicans signed that letter, so presumably they’d be willing to get up there and talk. This too could have great PR benefits.

3. Given that a healthy percentage of Americans may not know what’s in the Mueller Report, why not have a week’s worth of hearings simply telling the American people what’s in the report? This is just a matter of skillfully staged theater with the right witnesses. It won’t change the world, but drip drip drip.

There are a dozen other things like this they could do. A quick daily press conference aimed at McConnell. Try to get ex-Trump officials up to testify. Kirstjen Nielsen, who once said she saw “no evidence” the Russians were trying to help the Republicans? Where is she? Experts on foreign interference in our elections. How about five or six of them? Kellyanne Conway won’t leave even after the the Office of Special Counsel recommended removing her Thursday for her repeated violations of the House Act? Don’t move on, hold hearings and spotlight the corruption.

[andydp]

It was refreshing to see two takedowns by Democrats today. The GOP hasn't figured out these new kids on the block aren’t taking any crap and will respond in kind

First Kelly Anne "Distraction Becky" Conway gets told off:

Democratic Rep. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts laid into White House counselor Kellyanne Conway on Twitter after Conway made remarks about her and her progressive colleagues.

"Major Meow Mashup with [House Speaker Nancy Pelosi] brushing back anti-humanitarian border aid fresh-women [Democratic Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Ayanna Pressley, and Rashida Tlaib]," Conway said on Twitter.
Pressley responded with a negative nickname for Conway and made note of the Trump administration's previous policy of separating undocumented migrants' children from their parents
"[Conway], oh hi Distraction Becky," Pressley tweeted. "Remember that time your boss tore babies from their mothers' arms and threw them in cages? Yeah take a seat and keep my name out of your lying mouth."

https://www.msn.com/...ocid=spartandhp


Not to be outdone Rep Oman laid into Tucker Carlson

Ilhan Omar slammed Fox host Tucker Carlson as 'a racist fool' after he called her 'living proof' of immigration's dangers

Congresswoman Ilhan Omar clapped back at Fox News host Tucker Carlson for a segment on his show Tuesday night that called her "living proof" of the dangers of immigration.
In the Tuesday night segment, Carlson said, "So be grateful for Ilhan Omar, annoying as she is. She's a living fire alarm, a warning to the rest of us. We better change our immigration system immediately or else.
"Not gonna lie, it's kinda fun watching a racist fool like this weeping about my presence in Congress," Omar tweeted.
She added: "No lies will stamp out my love for this country or my resolve to make our union more perfect. They will just have to get used to calling me Congresswoman!"

https://www.business...mmigrant-2019-7

[D. C. Sessions]

Not too bad, but AOC really should give an in-service on Twitter management.

[andydp]

More on the Omar Carlson war of words/intellect.

Before we think Mr Carslon has an advantage because of his show, a repeat of Michael Avenatti's comment to Carlson is needed:

"How can you be so stupid and have your own show ?"


Carlson responds to Omar: It's not about race

"They didn't rebut our points, or even acknowledge them. They just tried to silence us. That's how they operate. And of course they called us racist. On one level, that's amusing, given how absurd the charge is," Carlson said Wednesday night, referring to renewed calls for advertisers to pull out of Fox News segments.

Once again, "follow the money".

Omar told reporters Wednesday morning she believes Carlson is a "racist fool." She later joined Bend the Arc, a progressive Jewish group, in calling out advertisers who enable a "nightly platform to white supremacist rhetoric."

https://www.msn.com/...ocid=spartanntp

[LFC]

andydp, on 11 July 2019 - 08:10 AM, said:

"They didn't rebut our points, or even acknowledge them."

Sorry, Tucker, but that's how you get treated when you work for the Ministry of Propaganda. You threw away any shred of credibility you might have had long ago. There's no longer any reason to acknowledge any point of your's other than the one that is on the top of your white hood or your head.

[Practical Girl]

D. C. Sessions, on 10 July 2019 - 01:48 PM, said:

Not too bad, but AOC really should give an in-service on Twitter management.

"NOT GOING TO BE POPULAR" ALERT:

Her social media accounts may have a good following, but the reality is that she is but one freshman Rep out of 435. She and her Squad aren't making friends, but enemies, within their own party/caucus. Quite frankly, I am a bit tired (already/again) of AOC an The Squad. In a closed door meeting, the Speake of the House- duly elected leader of the Democrat Reps- spoke to them about trashing their fellow Dems on Twitter.

All hell breaks loose, and of course- the race card! Pelosi is targeting women/people of color. And then The Squad starts babbling segregationist etc. O. M. G.

Listen up, Squad- if you want to be Mean Girls on the Internet/operate differently, at least be factual. And I have three question's for y'all:

1. With 89 Democratic Reps that are women and- yikes- maybe white, why is it that you haven't offered any of them a seat at your table? Lotta flaming liberals in that number

2. If Twitter Government with a nasty twinge is bad from Trump, them WTF, ladies?

3. Did you get elected for change, or just to build your own social media platforms?

I'm not the only one out there. Was listening to Julie Mason (Press Pool- Sirius) today. A listener tweeted the most hilarious question:

What will the Squad do next- try to make "Fetch" happen? Mr. and I laughed so hard I thought we should pull over.

See- that's a young person reference to the movie "Mean Girls". The Squad gets it...

[D. C. Sessions]

Practical Girl, on 11 July 2019 - 03:58 PM, said:

"NOT GOING TO BE POPULAR" ALERT:

Her social media accounts may have a good following, but the reality is that she is but one freshman Rep out of 435. She and her Squad aren't making friends, but enemies, within their own party/caucus. Quite frankly, I am a bit tired (already/again) of AOC an The Squad. In a closed door meeting, the Speake of the House- duly elected leader of the Democrat Reps- spoke to them about trashing their fellow Dems on Twitter.

Granting all that, she handles the media with skill. It is a skill that is worth transmitting.

[Practical Girl]

D. C. Sessions, on 11 July 2019 - 04:55 PM, said:

Granting all that, she handles the media with skill. It is a skill that is worth transmitting.

Then let her go get a job as a media trainer. In the US Congress, we, um, need something more.

[HockeyDon]

We totally need less Democrats making waves and more that are complete pushovers.

[LFC]

HockeyDon, on 12 July 2019 - 09:59 AM, said:

We totally need less Democrats making waves and more that are complete pushovers.

I agree. They just need to understand who the most important targets are ... unlike some of the Berniebots.

[JackD]

AOC's use of the race card was obnoxious and betrayed her lack of principles. Or maybe just her sheer inexperience at working with others.

[HockeyDon]

LFC, on 12 July 2019 - 10:14 AM, said:

I agree. They just need to understand who the most important targets are ... unlike some of the Berniebots.

I was employing teh sarcasm. The more I hear comments like "know your place" and "shut up and follow our lead" the more I think of the age-old Democratic strategy of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.

[Traveler]

HockeyDon, on 12 July 2019 - 11:16 AM, said:

I was employing teh sarcasm. The more I hear comments like "know your place" and "shut up and follow our lead" the more I think of the age-old Democratic strategy of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.

Yeah, all well and good. Agree about pushovers. But that chirping was totally unproductive. They need to keep their guns trained on the real problems.

[golden_valley]

JackD, on 12 July 2019 - 10:36 AM, said:

AOC's use of the race card was obnoxious and betrayed her lack of principles. Or maybe just her sheer inexperience at working with others.

Ah youth! AOC and Omar are from districts that revel in the stuff they put out. But moderate Democrats from districts with a narrow Dem majority or a moderate Dem district cannot behave the way they do. These newbies need to understand that they cannot accomplish anything without those moderates...time for team work...or they will end up with nothing. Changing the system only works if they convince a large number of Congress people to go along with them. Majority still rules.

[LFC]

YES! I'm putting two stories here because they show that at least a few of the Democrats have the spine to forcefully stand up against bullshit and lies. There's not explanations required here. There's not analysis required. Rebuke for these lies has to be immediate, firm, final. AOC has actually been doing a pretty good job of it. Time for the rest of the Dems to figure it out and if they need to then practice it in front of a mirror. Repeat after Joe: "You're a damn liar, man." No yelling. No screaming. Just a well deserved smackdown.

Here's Joe putting a liar in his place. The article title says "blows up." Right-wing reactions said he "lost it." I watched the whole thing and he did no such thing. A man challenged him with a long debunked lie and Biden called him out on it. We need more of that. We need sooooo much more of that. Maybe if the media had the guts to do the same we wouldn't be where we are today in our national politics.

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2020 Democratic candidate Joe Biden attacked a voter during a town hall in Iowa on Thursday after he brought up Biden’s age and his son Hunter’s ties to the Ukrainian gas company Burisma.

The unidentified voter, who said he was not a Republican, told 77-year-old Biden he had “two problems” with him as a candidate; the first one being his age, and the other being Hunter Biden’s involvement with Burisma, a Ukrainian gas the former veep’s son previously worked for.

The man acknowledged President Donald Trump’s scheme to pressure Ukraine into announcing an investigation into Biden, but he accused Biden of similarly abusing his power as vice president in Ukraine (there is no evidence Biden nor his son have done anything wrong).

“You’re selling access to the President just like he is,” the voter said.

“You’re a damn liar, man,” Biden snapped. “That’s not true. And no one has ever said that, no one has proved that.”

“I’ve seen it on the TV,” the voter responded.

“You’ve seen it on the TV,” Biden retorted. “No, I know you do. And by the way, that’s why I’m not sedentary.”

[LFC]

In this exchange a "journalist" (from Sinclair whic, of course, is another propaganda outlet of the Republican Fascist States of America) asked Pelosi a bullshit question that anybody concerned with the truth rather than sensationalism would never have asked. Pelosi put him in his place and hard. Good! Another reasonable response would have been to just say "Are you joking?" and just stare at him. Every time somebody treats obvious lies as being worth examinatino they must be put in their place. Could it simply end in a shouting match? Sure, but what's the option? Allow lies to appear as valid viewpoints and try to treat them seriously? Dems have tried that for decades and it clearly doesn't work.

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On the heels of her directive to House Democrats to proceed on articles of impeachment, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) grew heated when a reporter asked if she hates President Trump.

The question was tossed out by Sinclair Broadcasting Group reporter James Rosen as Pelosi was exiting the press conference. Rosen clarified that he wanted to question Pelosi about assertions made by Republicans involved in the impeachment inquiry about Democrats’ motivation for the probe.

“I don’t hate anybody,” she said, “I was raised in a Catholic house, and I don’t hate anybody, not anybody in the world. Don’t accuse me–”

“I did not accuse you, I asked a question,” said Rosen, who previously worked for Fox News. “Representative Collins suggested yesterday that the Democrats are doing this simply because they don’t like the guy. I think it’s an important point.”

“Let me just–” she said, returning to the podium, “I think the President is a coward when it comes to helping our kids who are afraid of gun violence. I think he is cruel when he doesn’t deal with helping our dreamers of which we are very proud. I think he is in denial about the climate crisis. However, that is about the election. Take it up in the election. This is about Constitution of the United States and the facts that lead to the President’s violation of his oath of office.”

“And as a Catholic, I resent your using the word hate in a sentence that addresses me,” she continued. “I don’t hate anyone. I was raised in a way that is a heart full of love and I always pray for the President. And I still pray for the President. I pray for the President all the time. So don’t mess with me when it comes to words like that.”

CNN asked Pelosi during the press conference how impeachment might impact some of her more vulnerable members, but the speaker immediately shut down the question, reiterating that impeachment was not about politics.

“It isn’t about politics, partisanship, Democrats and Republicans. That is totally insignificant. It is about the Constitution of the United States, the oath of office we take to protect and defend the Constitution from all enemies foreign and domestic,” she said. “It is about the President not honoring his oath of office. So no, I’m not concerned.”

Rosen and Sinclair did not immediately return TPM’s request for comment, but Rosen retweeted a Fox News Radio broadcaster who came to his defense on Twitter.

[LFC]

Schiff has taken the same aggressive stance. Excellent! The Democrats need to project strength.

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House Intelligence Chair Adam Schiff (D-CA) didn’t mince words when summing up his position on President Trump in an interview published by The New Yorker Friday.

When asked by New Yorker staffer Susan Glasser on what he thought had been the most memorable testimony in the impeachment hearings, Schiff brought up diplomat David Holmes overhearing EU Ambassador Gordon Sondland’s phone call with Trump where the President asked if Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky would dig up dirt on his political rivals.

Schiff told Glasser that he agreed with Holmes testifying that Trump does not “give a shit about Ukraine” and that he only cares about “the big stuff.”

“That says it all,” Schiff told Glasser. “The President doesn’t give a shit about what’s good for our country, what’s good for Ukraine. It’s all about what’s in it for him personally and for his reelection campaign.”

[LFC]

Oh for f***'s sake. If a Dem can't fight at this point then you're worthless.

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This evening I turned on MSNBC and watched Sen. Ben Cardin of Maryland express deep concern about whether his Republican colleagues were going to keep an open mind as jurors in the Senate trial of the President. At one point he went as far as to say that Mitch McConnell had “raise[d] serious questions whether he will be objective in carrying out the responsibilities of the Senate or whether he’s going to try to stack the deck in favor of the president.”
My point here is not to pick on Ben Cardin. This is one example of rhetoric you can hear from many Democrats and most Senate Democrats. It’s just the example that is ready at hand. But it is terrible and completely pathetic.

It is grievously irresponsible to be expressing “concerns” that Republicans may not do their job and uphold their responsibility as Senators. Republicans have made crystal clear that they understand the nature of the President’s abuses of power and that they will not only protect him from the consequences of his actions but, in an effort to do so, bend reality to pretend that it is in fact fine and even admirable for a President to use extortion to force a foreign power to intervene in a US election. To see Republicans do this in the open and not state that fact clearly is a total abdication of responsibility.

[pnwguy]

LFC, on 16 December 2019 - 12:01 PM, said:

Oh for f***'s sake. If a Dem can't fight at this point then you're worthless.

Congressional Democrats long for the historical outlook of the Republicans as opponents but fellow citizens. The Republicans have adopted the mindset of Nazi warfare, with Democrats as enemies to be jackbooted and shot as traitors whenever possible.