President Trump

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JimHow
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Re: President Trump

Post by JimHow »

Sigh… Did I ever tell you guys about the time I was alone in a room with a young(er) Hillary Clinton and she kept touching my knee/thigh every time she made a point about education? Seems like yesterday.
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JimHow
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Re: President Trump

Post by JimHow »

This debate will be a little under the radar.
I've been as hard on Hillary as anyone over the years.
(Although, I supported her over Obama in '08.)
I must say, though, I thought she was VERY strong tonight.
I can definitely see her taking on whomever the Republicans have to offer.
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Re: President Trump

Post by JimHow »

john King says Hillary's team is "ecstatic." I think that would be true.
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Re: President Trump

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To me this may be the night Hillary crossed the threshold. for the first time, I think she can win.
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RDD
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Re: President Trump

Post by RDD »

What a group of bores.
Was not one solid idea from the whole lot.
Not that the Reps are any better.
Last edited by RDD on Wed Oct 14, 2015 4:34 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: President Trump

Post by RDD »

Sanders used the S word. Done.
Chaffee too goofy.
Ward can handle the complicated issues ? Right. He can't explain a simple issue given 60 minutes.
O'Malley "My administration would call for 100 percent of our energy to come from renewable sources by 2050." Right. Go enroll in a physics class.
Clinton Smiles a lot.
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Re: President Trump

Post by DavidG »

No offense taken Jim. O"Malley isn't anywhere near to the same league as the others. I don't know why they even bothered to invite him.
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Re: President Trump

Post by Gerry M. »

As improbable as it sounds, The Donald is actually coming to my sleepy little town of Tyngsboro MA for a campaign rally at the local elementary school. The place only holds 300 people. All the locals I talk to who are going are doing so not to support him but just to witness the spectacle and get a good laugh. I live only a mile from the place and plan on being as far away as possible.
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Re: President Trump

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My niece Samantha is a Democrat but she and her mother, who is in TV advertising, somehow got invited to the Ernie Boch event a month or two ago in Mass., they were up close to him.
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Re: President Trump

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So, did Hillary wrap up the Democratic nomination with that debate performance? I didn't watch it, but everything I've read has praised her to the heavens for the debate (which by the way, I read this news first here on BWE's live debate blog!). Biden may have waited too long if we has serious about entering the race.

Hillary needs to fire her campaign staff ASAP. The biggest issue she has with Democrats, I think, is her style -- she is so robotic, stiff, seemingly insincere, boring on the campaign trail. This not only makes her less likeable, but it makes us wonder why she is running and what she would really be like if elected. worse, it also makes her seem very vulnerable for the general election... Then she goes on SNL, appears in a debate, has an unguarded moment on the campaign trail, and suddenly we get to see through the veneer, the control. And most Dems really like what they see. So either her staff is keeping her too under wraps or they aren't pushing her enough to open up, but either way they are failing her badly IMHO.
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Re: President Trump

Post by JimHow »

Agreed.
She was really on top of her game the other night at the debate: Likable, funny, completely comfortable in her skin, completely in control on the issues.
That was the best I've ever seen her.
Hound is right that the demographics ultimately favor the Democrats strongly in national elections, but the other night was the first time in a long time that I could really envision her as president.
Bernie was good too, but she was better.
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Re: President Trump

Post by JimHow »

And you're right about her staff. If we're gonna have to put up with Weiner's wife for the next 4-8 years that's reason enough to vote against her. Yuck. Just the type of hack that Washington needs to send packing. I still say watch out for Marco.
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Re: President Trump

Post by Jay Winton »

I predict following the Florida primary, Jeb or Mario will be basically toast. Of course, they're currently way behind the Donald in the polls. Speaking of the Donald, the Washington Post had an interesting story of his cozy relations with the mob as he built his empire. I don't think he can blow this off.
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Re: President Trump

Post by JimHow »

It didn't hurt JFK.
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Jay Winton
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Re: President Trump

Post by Jay Winton »

JimHow wrote:It didn't hurt JFK.
social media!
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Re: President Trump

Post by AlohaArtakaHoundsong »

JimHow wrote:It didn't hurt JFK.
Oliver Stone said otherwise.
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Re: President Trump

Post by JimHow »

Oh Canada!
Is this a harbinger of things to come in the US?
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Re: President Trump

Post by AlohaArtakaHoundsong »

Great photobomb btw
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JimHow
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Re: President Trump

Post by JimHow »

Let me tell you something about Joe Biden.
There was a point in the fall of 2012 after the first presidential debate.
Obama had come into that debate thoroughly unprepared, as incumbents often do.
And Romney spanked him. Hard.
And then there was a break in time between debates.
Like 2-3 weeks. An eternity in politics.
And suddenly old Barack seemed very vulnerable. (Even though he probably wasn't: The numbers were solid in places like PA, MI, WI, IA, OH, etc.)
Still, it was getting a little dicey.
The next presidential debate wasn't for another 3 weeks.
But…
In between was a Veep debate:
Uncle Joe versus The Kid.
Oh baby, if you were a Dem, it was beautiful.
Laughing. Smirking. Scoffing every word the little puke had to say.
Joe was at his best that night….
Blustery. Your uncle at the Thanksgiving table. Bullying the Kid.
And he won hands down. And righted the ship.
And all was well.
Obama rebounded strong in the next debate, and the third.
Uncle Joe:
For me, politically, that was his greatest moment, when he perhaps righted the keeling Obama ship.
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Re: President Trump

Post by dstgolf »

An oldy but goody with name changed to Trump:

Donald Trump was
invited to address a major gathering of the American Indian
Nation two weeks ago in upstate New York



He spoke for almost an hour about his plans for increasing
every Native American's present standard of living. He
referred to how he had supported every Native American issue
that came to the news media.



Although Mr Trump was vague about the details of his plans,
he seemed most enthusiastic and spoke eloquently about his
ideas for helping his "red sisters and brothers."



At the conclusion of his speech, the Tribes presented him
with a plaque inscribed with his new Indian name,
"Walking Eagle."



The proud Mr Trump accepted the plaque and then departed in
his motorcade to a fundraiser, waving to the crowds.



A news reporter later asked the group of chiefs how they
came to select the new name they had given to the Donald.



They explained that "Walking Eagle" is the name
given to a bird so full of shit it can no longer
fly.
  
 
Danny
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stefan
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Re: President Trump

Post by stefan »

Great story, Danny!
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Blanquito
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Re: President Trump

Post by Blanquito »

JimHow wrote:Let me tell you something about Joe Biden.
There was a point in the fall of 2012 after the first presidential debate.
Obama had come into that debate thoroughly unprepared, as incumbents often do.
And Romney spanked him. Hard.
And then there was a break in time between debates.
Like 2-3 weeks. An eternity in politics.
And suddenly old Barack seemed very vulnerable. (Even though he probably wasn't: The numbers were solid in places like PA, MI, WI, IA, OH, etc.)
Still, it was getting a little dicey.
The next presidential debate wasn't for another 3 weeks.
But…
In between was a Veep debate:
Uncle Joe versus The Kid.
Oh baby, if you were a Dem, it was beautiful.
Laughing. Smirking. Scoffing every word the little puke had to say.
Joe was at his best that night….
Blustery. Your uncle at the Thanksgiving table. Bullying the Kid.
And he won hands down. And righted the ship.
And all was well.
Obama rebounded strong in the next debate, and the third.
Uncle Joe:
For me, politically, that was his greatest moment, when he perhaps righted the keeling Obama ship.
I watched both of those debates, and things were scary for the Dems after Obama slept-walked through the first debate. I was pretty appalled at the way Obama let Romney walk all over him (and the facts). And Uncle Joe did right the ship and showed Obama how it is done in a big way. He made Paul Ryan seem shallow and meek and negative, to my (admittedly biased) eye. I am a proud Democrat, but the thing that drives me crazy about my party is the whimp factor, and Joe came out smilin' and swingin' and put a little spring back in the party's step.

You're right Jim, that was undoubtedly Joe's best moment.
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Re: President Trump

Post by JimHow »

Another Rubio-is-inevitable prediction:

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/25/opini ... eft-region
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Re: President Trump

Post by Blanquito »

I saw Rubio on the Daily Show 2-3 years ago, and I thought "watch out for that guy, he's a comer".
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Re: President Trump

Post by JimHow »

Yeah the problem is his normal looks, soft-spoken style, and rags-to-riches family story mask a tea party arch-conservativism that is very dangerous. He could easily carry Florida and Ohio in a general election and eek out a Dubya-like victory.
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Blanquito
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Re: President Trump

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One thing that gives the Dems hope, the Blue Wall.

To wit: "Aside from Florida, Ohio and Virginia, there were only four other states which the president won by fewer than six percentage points in 2012: Colorado, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire and Iowa. To win a close election, the GOP is going to have to pick off at least one of these states, in addition to pulling off the Florida-Ohio-Virginia (or “FLOHVA”) hat trick, to reclaim the White House next year."

So, the GOP needs Virginia AND one of those other 4 states AND both Ohio and Florida to win, based on voting trends in the last 4-5 presidential elections. Not insurmountable, but without a big red bounce, it is hard to see that. Really, Virginia has become the Dems Rubicon- hold that and they probably hold the White House.
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Re: President Trump

Post by JimHow »

Yes the demographics are really in favor of the Dems.
And in another decade or so, when Texas falls, the Republican Party as we know it will not exist.
If the Democrats can just win this election and secure another 2-4 supreme court seats, we should be okay.
And hopefully after the next census we can do something about the gerrymandering damage done in the House.
In the last House races the Democrats received a million more votes than the Republicans but lost the House by a wide margin.
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Re: President Trump

Post by Blanquito »

JimHow wrote:In the last House races the Democrats received a million more votes than the Republicans but lost the House by a wide margin.
There are few sentences that sum up the sickness in America's democracy more than this one. People of all political strips should be against this, and you know if the tables were turned, that the Republicans would be howling mad and advocating sedition by ignoring legislation they don't like coming from the House.
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Re: President Trump

Post by DavidG »

I'll put more faith in demographics than in 2012 results. In political time, 4 years might as well be a century.

At dinner last night, conversation at the adjacent tables was all about Hillary and how they hate her and all the damning stuff the Republicans would bring out against her in the general election campaign. One thing the Clintons have been very good at is counter-punching. Hillary got steamrollered in 2008 by the media/Oprah/Obama express. If the only thing standing in her way this time is the Republican machine, I like her chances. Then again, even one year in political time might as well be a century.
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Re: President Trump

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Blanquito wrote:
JimHow wrote:In the last House races the Democrats received a million more votes than the Republicans but lost the House by a wide margin.
There are few sentences that sum up the sickness in America's democracy more than this one. People of all political strips should be against this, and you know if the tables were turned, that the Republicans would be howling mad and advocating sedition by ignoring legislation they don't like coming from the House.
I can accept that folks don't understand the Electoral College, but suggesting national polling for local elections seems a bit over the top.
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Re: President Trump

Post by Jay Winton »

Hey BD, what's up with the Lewiston mayoral race? The WP reported it's pretty ugly.
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Re: President Trump

Post by JimHow »

Yeah another ugly little episode here in the mayor's race that again makes national news. Damn we've got some screwed up people up here.
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Re: President Trump

Post by AlohaArtakaHoundsong »

Just a thought here but wouldn't it be cheaper overall just to bus surplus democrats from solid blue states to key battleground states, set them up with housing and a stipend, get em registered and have them vote in the next election rather than to spend all that money on polling and advertising? Can't see how it would cost more.
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Re: President Trump

Post by Blanquito »

Tom In DC wrote:
Blanquito wrote:
JimHow wrote:In the last House races the Democrats received a million more votes than the Republicans but lost the House by a wide margin.
There are few sentences that sum up the sickness in America's democracy more than this one. People of all political strips should be against this, and you know if the tables were turned, that the Republicans would be howling mad and advocating sedition by ignoring legislation they don't like coming from the House.
I can accept that folks don't understand the Electoral College, but suggesting national polling for local elections seems a bit over the top.
Tom, Jim and I understand the Electoral College just fine. It seems maybe it's you who doesn't understand what gerrymandering is, which occurs on the state level and has nothing to do with the electoral college (which elects the President). The national tally of the effects of skew in the total votes cast for the House of Representatives -- to which Jim and I refer -- is just the symptom.

Gerrymandering skews the effects of democracy on a state by state level. Here's an example:
"In Pennsylvania in 2014, one state in which the GOP drew the congressional districts in a brazenly partisan way, Democratic candidates collected 44 percent of the vote [cast for candidates for the House], yet Democratic candidates won only 5 House seats out of 18. In other words, Democrats secured only 27 percent of Pennsylvania’s congressional seats despite winning nearly half of the votes."
http://billmoyers.com/2014/11/05/gerrym ... advantage/

How is this remotely democratic? Neutral, (mostly) conservative observers like the Economist magazine call gerrymandering one of the biggest threats to American democracy, whether conservation, centrist or liberal.

This is all perfectly legal based on laws written over 200 years ago and both parties have done it before, but the GOP with an explicit strategy -- supported with semi-anonymous 'dark money' -- took gerrymandering to a new low after the 2010 census. Unfortunately this strategy leaves others will little choice but to mimic the practice, short of statewide efforts to take drawing election districts out if the politician's hands (which a few states have done, pending lawsuits by right wing groups resisting efforts to overturn the existing rigable system).

Just because the GOP has become a rump, minority party doesn't mean we shouldn't hold onto higher ideals of democracy. Gerrymandering, blatant voter suppression and who knows what else are terrible for the democratic process, and we should all agreed with that no matter our political leanings.
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Re: President Trump

Post by Tom In DC »

Maryland, with all its recipients of federal money (directly employed, contractors, or otherwise) is as blue as blue gets.

Take a peek at MD in the 70's and 80's:
Maryland 1970.png
Maryland 1970.png (195.99 KiB) Viewed 12788 times
Looks pretty normal, District 3 is a little scraggly, and District 8 (where the money is) is a Republican stronghold but always a RINO (...in name only.)

1990-2000 rolls around and the Dems decide to get more clout (committee chairs, minority whip, etc.) so we get:
Maryland 1992.gif
Maryland 1992.gif (65.71 KiB) Viewed 12786 times
Now Districts 3 and 4 look like diseased amoeba, and the two long-time Republican seats are handed to Dems.

The current map is so bizarre that everyone, red and blue, wonders what drugs the planners were on:
Maryland 2012.jpg
Maryland 2012.jpg (181.22 KiB) Viewed 12788 times
Gerrymandering is not a Republican monopoly...
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Tom In DC
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Re: President Trump

Post by Tom In DC »

And you missed my point completely that was actually directed at your earlier comment. You and Jim seem to think it's some sort of travesty that "In the last House races the Democrats received a million more votes than the Republicans but lost the House by a wide margin." So the Dems win big in a few places and the Repubs win a bunch of close races. How is this a crime? Why would the Republicans cry over this if it went the other way?

Overall, I think the trends are leaning heavily in the Democrats favor (just look at Jim's quote.)
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Re: President Trump

Post by JimHow »

The Republican debate tonight:
Will the other candidates be able to stop the Marco Rubio train?
I say no. I don't think any of them have the mettle to do so.
It is so scary, this guy is the one who seems the most "normal" up there but the reality is that he is the most "crazy."
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Re: President Trump

Post by JimHow »

The candidates are on the stage.
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Re: President Trump

Post by JimHow »

And Rubio gets the wildest applause in the introductions.
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Re: President Trump

Post by JimHow »

I'll try to give RMP scores as much as possible.

First question re $15 min wage.

Trump: 79
Carson: 79

Question switches to giveaways:
Rubio: God I despise this lightweight. But I'll try to score based on how I think he'll resonate: 85
"We need more welders and less philosophers."
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