2020 Presidential Election

[Martina]

Hickenlooper's out. I liked him. I gave him a couple bucks early on. He wouldn't have been bad.

Beto made a weird speech. Instead of going to the Iowa State Fair, because there's probably no point, he's going to Mississippi to talk about the immigration raids. His weirdly phrased explanation: "Where Donald Trump has been terrorizing and terrifying and demeaning our fellow Americans, that’s where you will find me in this campaign."

It sounded like some cartoon superhero proclaiming his mission. Underdog O'Rourke to the rescue.

[cathexis]

Originally Posted by Martina

Hickenlooper's out. I liked him. I gave him a couple bucks early on. He wouldn't have been bad.

Beto made a weird speech. Instead of going to the Iowa State Fair, because there's probably no point, he's going to Mississippi to talk about the immigration raids. His weirdly phrased explanation: "Where Donald Trump has been terrorizing and terrifying and demeaning our fellow Americans, that’s where you will find me in this campaign."

It sounded like some cartoon superhero proclaiming his mission. Underdog O'Rourke to the rescue.

Beto's speech made sense to me right off. The joy and fun of a fair is inappropriate for a politician when his home state is in mourning. That's how it would be perceived by people who aren't thinking politics.

As for the fairly unknown candidates, I like Bennet (probable sp). Yeah, he's pretty centrist, but I think he's a honest and hard working politician who truly cares about our country. Anybody else hear how this quiet guy stood up against Cruz about flooding in Colorado? In chambers, he rose and paced, obviously upset. Apparently, Cruz had said something negative about money for flood victims. Bennet spoke of the farmers, ranchers, and small businesses destroyed by the flood. Sounded like he truly cared about his constituents.

[easygoingfemme]

I'm enjoying following Andy Yang. He was one of my brother's closest friends growing up and he was a regular at our dinner table. We are friends on facebook and I get to see pictures of him doing goofy things with his family and keeping it real. Not saying he has my vote, but, he's a good guy and I like his approach. Pretty sure my mom is going to vote for him because we know my brother would have.

[dark_crystal]

Originally Posted by Martina

Hickenlooper's out. I liked him. I gave him a couple bucks early on. He wouldn't have been bad.

Beto made a weird speech. Instead of going to the Iowa State Fair, because there's probably no point, he's going to Mississippi to talk about the immigration raids. His weirdly phrased explanation: "Where Donald Trump has been terrorizing and terrifying and demeaning our fellow Americans, that’s where you will find me in this campaign."

It sounded like some cartoon superhero proclaiming his mission. Underdog O'Rourke to the rescue.

He's trying to make himself into "the immigration guy" and it is frustrating bc Castro is one step ahead of him always but gets no coverage

[dark_crystal]

Originally Posted by easygoingfemme

I'm enjoying following Andy Yang. He was one of my brother's closest friends growing up and he was a regular at our dinner table. We are friends on facebook and I get to see pictures of him doing goofy things with his family and keeping it real. Not saying he has my vote, but, he's a good guy and I like his approach. Pretty sure my mom is going to vote for him because we know my brother would have.

One of my staff is ALL IN for Yang but she quit listening at "a thousand bucks a month for everyone"

The thing about Yang is he has most of the right beliefs, but that thousand bucks is also his entire climate change plan. You're supposed to use the money to "move to higher ground."

I do think planning for an orderly mass migration should be on the table. We SHOULD change our behavior in an effort to keep more places inhabitable, but humans are famous for leaving projects until the night before they are due

[Martina]

https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-ne...-19/index.html

CNN seems to think Biden will keep his lead. Honestly no one knows anything, IMO, until the voting starts. Sadly, Kamala has dropped back. She's a good candidate. I have to think her campaign might not be being run well. I don't know though.

I don't want Biden to take it with all these decent candidates available. But he might. And age and gaffes and Obama-taint notwithstanding, he probably can beat Trump. So there's that.

[Kätzchen]

Former District Attorney for the Southern District of New York Preet Bharara is the Executive Vice President of Some Spider Studios and host of "Stay Tuned With Preet" on the Café channel at YouTube. I enjoy listening to his program, where people ask Preet timely questions about current day events in politics or in other venues.

Here's an hour long video of his latest "Ask Preet" pod-cast program, where he interviews Colorado's Senator Michael Bennet, who apparently is running for POTUS. The interview begins at about the 14 minute mark. I thought I'd leave it here, in this thread for the 2020 Presidential election.

I had no idea that Senator Bennet was running for president. See what you think of Preet's interview of Senator Michael Bennet. I thought it was an amazing interview.

[Apocalipstic]

It occurred to me yesterday, as I watched all the negative things Trump is enacting every day, that maybe he knows he won't win again.

I sure hope not!

[theoddz]

Originally Posted by Martina

https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-ne...-19/index.html

CNN seems to think Biden will keep his lead. Honestly no one knows anything, IMO, until the voting starts. Sadly, Kamala has dropped back. She's a good candidate. I have to think her campaign might not be being run well. I don't know though.

I don't want Biden to take it with all these decent candidates available. But he might. And age and gaffes and Obama-taint notwithstanding, he probably can beat Trump. So there's that.

I don't know. Biden probably will be the one to get the nomination. For some reason, historically, the Democratic party can't seem to muster the chutzpah to just go all the way into embracing progressivism. They can't seem to gather much courage to fight the boldness of the GOP and its willingness to just go whole hog with their agenda, either. I guess it's too busy trying to "make nice" and not offend anyone, especially the so-called "moderates". It's sure given the Democrats a reputation for a weak backbone and after a while, their entire modus operendi is just tiresome and self defeating.

I keep wondering if this election cycle will be the one where Democrats will finally pull up its big boy/girl drawers and engage the GOP with an equal but opposite amount of vigorous energy and F-I-G-H-T for what it stands for. Quit the fuck "making nice" and go in it to WIN. Fuck these dimwits who are afraid to wipe their own noses or throw a punch!! We can still fight for what we believe and do it with dignity and class.....but we need to DO IT. The DNC needs to quit going with the usual suspects and grow a damned spine!!! Quit with this "gentle polite tugging" to the left and let's give it a big SHOVE. Dammit.



~Theo~

[Orema]

I hope Trump doesn’t take on Nikki Haley as VP. I’m not sure Trump needs Pence for the Evangelical voters anymore. Trump will get those votes, I think, based on the judges he’s already put in place—they know they can count on Trump. But, Trump needs someone whispering in his ear and if it’s not Pence for the Evangelical voters, then I wonder who would/could fill those shoes.

I imagine Haley would be seen as a voice of reason appealing to Republican and Democratic women.

Whether it’s Haley or Pence, I think we’re gonna have four more years of this.

[kittygrrl]

i dig the vibe of Castro and Yang...a grrl can dream

[Orema]

Originally Posted by Orema

I hope Trump doesn’t take on Nikki Haley as VP. I’m not sure Trump needs Pence for the Evangelical voters anymore. Trump will get those votes, I think, based on the judges he’s already put in place—they know they can count on Trump. But, Trump needs someone whispering in his ear and if it’s not Pence for the Evangelical voters, then I wonder who would/could fill those shoes.

I imagine Haley would be seen as a voice of reason appealing to Republican and Democratic women.

Whether it’s Haley or Pence, I think we’re gonna have four more years of this.

The more I think about Haley the more I can see it happening.

A Trump/Haley win in 2020 could set up Haley to run and win in 2024 as POTUS. I think Republicans would sacrifice Pence as VP in 2020 if they thought they could pull this off. Not only would they be the party to put forth the first woman of color as VP, but also as POTUS.

Haley could win in 2024 with Republican and Democratic women voters and without “the base.” Trump needs “the base” because there are Republican and Democratic voters who won’t vote for him. I think Haley would get those votes, plus more, and could ignore the demands of the base. Well, some demands.

I image resistance to this in and out of the the White House, but I think this is one way the Republicans can have control for 8 more years.

The Democrats? I’ll vote in the primary and the nominee will get my vote. That’s the best I can say about the Dems.

[dark_crystal]

Originally Posted by theoddz

I don't know. Biden probably will be the one to get the nomination. For some reason, historically, the Democratic party can't seem to muster the chutzpah to just go all the way into embracing progressivism. They can't seem to gather much courage to fight the boldness of the GOP and its willingness to just go whole hog with their agenda, either. I guess it's too busy trying to "make nice" and not offend anyone, especially the so-called "moderates". It's sure given the Democrats a reputation for a weak backbone and after a while, their entire modus operendi is just tiresome and self defeating.

I keep wondering if this election cycle will be the one where Democrats will finally pull up its big boy/girl drawers and engage the GOP with an equal but opposite amount of vigorous energy and F-I-G-H-T for what it stands for. Quit the fuck "making nice" and go in it to WIN. Fuck these dimwits who are afraid to wipe their own noses or throw a punch!! We can still fight for what we believe and do it with dignity and class.....but we need to DO IT. The DNC needs to quit going with the usual suspects and grow a damned spine!!! Quit with this "gentle polite tugging" to the left and let's give it a big SHOVE. Dammit.



~Theo~

They are not afraid. They are capitalism's backup plan.

The Democrats as they currently exist are allowed to diverge from the Republicans only to the degree which leaves the flow of wealth intact. The flow can narrow within certain margins if it has to, but it cannot be redistributed.

(As much as i have ranted against the idea in other threads, I'm not obtuse, I know that this is what Chapo Traphouse is talking about when they call identity issues a distraction. It is true that there can be huge differences in how the two parties treat minorities without any real threat to most industries' profits.)

As long as social stratification is preserved, capital ultimately doesn't care about the identities inside those strata. The GOP sees that it's easiest and most profitable to just preserve traditional race and gender stratification, while the Democrats are able to look progressive in their willingness to let identities mix within strata, or to sacrifice a variably-sized slice of still-healthy profits to keep people in the lowest strata alive.

Capital does not want to accommodate this sacrifice, but it can easily survive it. The GOP way is more profitable, and therefore preferable, but if they should happen to go too far and fall from grace for awhile, their Democratic replacements will be tolerable. A backup plan.

The thing is, capitalism is not going to survive the things humans are going to have to do to survive on this planet. We keep trying to find ways around that by using tax credits to reward capital for certain sacrifices, but it was already too late for that in 2008.

We are going to fight capital every step of the way and at the end? When what's left of us are eking out our survival down in the caves or whatever?

It's going to be socialist as heck down there.

[Apocalipstic]

I think it all depends on how bad the economy is and if the shit hits the fan. Because there is....shit.

I was thinking he might try to run Ivanka as VP.

Trying to have positive thoughts and manifest him being out of office. Remembering that even Nixon got elected to a second term before it all went down in flames.

If indeed Trump were president and were deposed/died/whetever gets him out of office, I would rather be left with NH than Pence.

[dark_crystal]

Small local controversy here in Houston following the debate-- Beto rented a craft brewery for a rally and that brewery was in the suburb of Katy, where there are a lot of Republicans.

The brewery posted a statement on their facebook page which said "the brewery can be rented by anyone."

I went to the post and the comments were MESSED UP, many of them along the lines of this one:

"the issue with Beto in particular is he's advocating a policy, which if implemented, would result in massive massive violence. If No Label is going to enforce this [rental] policy blindly, then i presume they won't turn away the klan or black lives matter or antifa... as long as they're not violent inside the brewery"

Coupla things: i see here the seeds of a rhetoric which would label anyone who wants any kind of ban as a terrorist (by claiming that Beto is advocating for "massive massive violence") and also holds up Black Lives Matter as basically the POC equivalent of the Klan.

There were several comments that used that comparison, each time joining the Klan to Black Lives Matter-- an organization which was born in response to white supremacist violence is now cast as the equivalent to the original embodiment of white supremacist violence, and can thus be used to excuse the Klan's continued existence.

If this is a preview of the rhetoric that is going to be deployed around anyone who supports a ban on assault weapons, it is very insidious.

Basically what it looks like to me is the real domestic terrorists trying to broaden the definition of terrorism so that it splashes over onto those trying to fight domestic terrorism.

In the same way that Obama was "the real racist," gun control activists will be labeled as "the real terrorists."

Beto is not advocating violence, he is advocating a policy to which the right has declared they will respond with violence. By continuing to advocate for a ban in light of this threat, Beto therefore becomes responsible for the illegal violence the right has promised-- it is out of their hands!

In the same way, the right claims racism was "fixed" until Obama supposedly brought it back with his "divisiveness". If it was really fixed, electing a POC would have been a non-event. Since it was most emphatically NOT a non-event, and instead caused the white folks to lose their minds, the white people made their reaction Obama's fault.

The white folks' message is "we are violent, and if you do not let the threat of that violence silence you, you are inviting that violence and therefore our violence is your fault"

[Apocalipstic]

Originally Posted by dark_crystal

Small local controversy here in Houston following the debate-- Beto rented a craft brewery for a rally and that brewery was in the suburb of Katy, where there are a lot of Republicans.

The brewery posted a statement on their facebook page which said "the brewery can be rented by anyone."

I went to the post and the comments were MESSED UP, many of them along the lines of this one:

"the issue with Beto in particular is he's advocating a policy, which if implemented, would result in massive massive violence. If No Label is going to enforce this [rental] policy blindly, then i presume they won't turn away the klan or black lives matter or antifa... as long as they're not violent inside the brewery"

Coupla things: i see here the seeds of a rhetoric which would label anyone who wants any kind of ban as a terrorist (by claiming that Beto is advocating for "massive massive violence") and also holds up Black Lives Matter as basically the POC equivalent of the Klan.

There were several comments that used that comparison, each time joining the Klan to Black Lives Matter-- an organization which was born in response to white supremacist violence is now cast as the equivalent to the original embodiment of white supremacist violence, and can thus be used to excuse the Klan's continued existence.

If this is a preview of the rhetoric that is going to be deployed around anyone who supports a ban on assault weapons, it is very insidious.

Basically what it looks like to me is the real domestic terrorists trying to broaden the definition of terrorism so that it splashes over onto those trying to fight domestic terrorism.

In the same way that Obama was "the real racist," gun control activists will be labeled as "the real terrorists."

Beto is not advocating violence, he is advocating a policy to which the right has declared they will respond with violence. By continuing to advocate for a ban in light of this threat, Beto therefore becomes responsible for the illegal violence the right has promised-- it is out of their hands!

In the same way, the right claims racism was "fixed" until Obama supposedly brought it back with his "divisiveness". If it was really fixed, electing a POC would have been a non-event. Since it was most emphatically NOT a non-event, and instead caused the white folks to lose their minds, the white people made their reaction Obama's fault.

The white folks' message is "we are violent, and if you do not let the threat of that violence silence you, you are inviting that violence and therefore our violence is your fault"

What a great post!~

I think no matter what happens, there will be continued violence. The pot is already stirred.

As those of us who have lived in the US for a while know, racism has always been present and if we allow one group of perceived extremists the right to protest, we must give the other side's perceived extremists the same right.

I remember as a teenager, being so aghast that the klan was allowed to have rallys. But being able to complain about the government and rally is part of our civil liberty...and the right of all US citizens.

We have to hunker down and try to make sure everyone we know votes. We need to have a strong landslide so that there is no question the cheeto must go, then when he refuses, he can be removed.

People lie and blame the other side. I see no way to stop that.

[Kätzchen]

I keep hearing positive news reports about Senator Elizabeth Warren's bid for the POTUS, and how she's been talking about policy regarding Ethics, and policy regarding Health Care. I don't know much about any position she might advocate and build policy around, concerning Labor, but I imagine she has a strong stand on these and other policy issues, which stand on the precipice of being annihilated by the horrible GOP & that infernal "Can't and Won't Tell The Truth" ~~~>>>>> T^^^P.

I dreamed the other night that Senator Warren was elected POTUS by a small percentage of votes, over that horrible person in the WH. It felt like a very scary dream, because no one in the media was quite sure if she won or not. But, in my dream, because of last minute voter reform efforts at ballot stations nation wide, and because news reporter's kept reporting, while being told to not report, by that horrible WH monster and his minions, it finally came to pass, via 'Breaking Headline News', that every single horrible person who had a hand in trying to take over the world (T, et al) were teleported by Star Trek's Vulcan of the hour, Spock, to the Neutron-Eating Star, which spit them out into the Black Hole of the Universe, never to be heard from or seen again. That was the good part of my dream, but omg, my dream scared me so much.

Anyhooooo. I sure do like how things are shaping up concerning Senator Warren's bid for the POTUS. Hopefully, the prevailing winds will carry her over the nomination line and land her in the WH, where she'll hopefully be able to salvage what's left of America and help rebuild policy and help AOC get her Green Policy for Climate Change given top priority.

I heard Naomi Klein on Democracy Now, earlier today on the drive home, and she's got a new book out, concerning Climate Change and she talked about what people can do right now, going forward. I can't remember the name of her book, but her interview was enlightening and the young lady who received the Amnesty International recognition award today, was inspirational. Greta Thunberg. That is her name. If interested in listening to either story about Naomi or Greta, you can find both stories, and accompanying videos, on the home page of: www.democracynow.org.

[MsTinkerbelly]

Did anyone catch Elizabeth Warren on Colbert last night? It is a really interesting interview, kind of a “must see” for anyone thinking of voting for a pusher of “Medicare for all.”

In a nutshell, Colbert asked if “Medicare for all” would raise taxes on the middle class, and he did his best to make her stop avoiding the question.

It really is worth a watch.

**not a fan of political double speak.

[Kelt]

I watched the clip and it was interesting. While I like the utopian concept of Medicare for all it does in fact have to be paid for. I watched the debate a few nights ago and a couple of the candidates were saying things like no premiums, no deductibles, free Medicare.

The money to pay for it will come from tax revenue just as it does now. I think that Warren, couched in doublespeak, acknowledges this in a very backhanded way generally but not in this interview. None of the candidates want to say directly that yes, the middle class and every other class of taxpayer will pay for added services, there’s nowhere else for it to come from.

Medicare isn’t free now, there are premiums and deductibles and co-pays currently. Are they proposing to revamp Medicare to make it free for those already on it and then add a large number of people? What about the doctors? Where are we going to find them? Will they be compelled to accept Medicare payments? Many do not accept Medicare patients now.

I would like to see any candidate answer these questions clearly in some sort of policy document. Not holding my breath.

[Kätzchen]

Here's the latest in how corporate employers hurt the common worker: by taking away their healthcare coverage.

United Auto Workers are striking against GM. Whole Foods just pulled the same stunt as GM.

"Whole Foods is owned by Amazon, whose CEO Jeff Bezos is the richest man in the world, with an estimated net worth of over $114 billion. A new analysis by the consumer watchdog Decision Data finds “Bezos makes more money than the cost of an entire year of benefits for these 1,900 employees in somewhere between 2 to 6 hours.”

LINKS (below):

General Motors Cuts Health Insurance for 50,000 Striking Workers

Whole Foods Cuts Healthcare Benefits to Nearly 2,000 Workers


I am not independently wealthy, nor did my parents die and leave all their assets to me (trust fund or annuity), nor have I ever won any proverbial lottery..... but my mom has been a nurse all her life (52 years of duty, as an 80 year old lady) and even she knows how crooked the medical industry is and the IRS. The only reason she still works 55 hours a week, and is co-owner of a business, is to generate income to pay monthly diabetic expenses for my three brothers who cannot be insured due to how the state of Idaho (run by the GOP) runs the show on who gets to be covered and who pays the most.

Will a Socialized Medicine model be a better productive way to care for people, rather than the American modeled medical industry that is robbing people left and right, no matter where the person is on the spectrum of wealth (poorest to richest, antiquated model)?


In my mind, socialized medicine seems to be working in other countries and while it may not be perfect, at least the socialized model of medical care is not like the rabid monster of care in our country --> which is sterile and cares nothing for people themselves or their wellbeing, but cares only for the money and the money-master it serves.