Feb 26, 2016

Can't wait until 4 years from now when the GOP debates are 10 wacky Republican celebrities bust yo' mama jokes and Mike Huckabee and Rick Santorum.

 

Sep 19, 2015

I'm a political junkie but 3 hrs for that debate was excruciating

I watched the kiddie table debate and it was mostly a waste of time. Jindal is so d--- embarrassing, he seems to be hitting all the best G spots for the Republican base and yet still struggles to even get 1% in the polls because he seems like such a manufactured phony. Pataki is a joke. I feel bad for Santorum in a way for being such an afterthought after performing so well last time, but he isn't a good candidate and never was - he only succeeded in 2012 because of process of elimination (literally the GOP's last non-Romney option after everyone else imploded). It's not that he's a terrible debater, he can be eloquent - but he always comes off as so angry and bitter. Not a winning message. The only worthwhile performance here was Lindsay Graham. After a horribly underwhelming performance the first time around, he really rebounded here - funny, human, energetic. However, the conventional wisdom seems to suggest that there was only one ticket from the small stage to the big one, and Carly Fiorina got it. I tend to agree. The field is just too crowded - a good debate performance won't be enough for Graham. He will need multiple others in the field to implode to gain any sort of traction.

The main event, of course, was far more interesting. Trump has proven he isn't a particularly good debater. He talks in circles and is (predictably, I guess) totally undisciplined. It's entertaining to have him there, but also tiresome to have him at the center of every question. Jeb Bush was significantly improved from last time. He still isn't a brilliant debater, but he defended himself a lot more articulately than he did in August. His newfound dose of energy was welcome. Ben Carson...I just...don't get the appeal here. He says the type of outlandish things that wouldn't feel out of place in a Donald Trump speech, but delivers them as if he's taking a nap. He's totally unqualified to be president and he doesn't impress on the debate stage (although his "he's an okay doctor" line was a great moment). The consensus seems to be that Carly Fiorina won - I guess I'd probably agree, although I thought she was stronger in last month's debate (perhaps because she was debating weaker opponents). I thought she got the best of Trump in the "look at that face" exchange, but I don't think she was able to shut down his questions about her experience at HP, not by a long shot, and I'm not sure how she can (which is why I am still convinced there will never, ever be a President Fiorina). Her lie about the Planned Parenthood video was pretty glaring too. So, she did herself some good but I don't think she set the world on fire. Ted Cruz was just...Ted Cruz. I can't take the guy seriously because he's so full of s---. The way he bashes Bush for choosing John Roberts, who he strongly supported, is a perfect example of that.

Rubio remains perhaps the best communicator on the stage. I thought he was easily the best in August, and I think he was still certainly top 2-3 this week. I have always feared him most as a general election candidate, and I still feel that way. Kasich did fine, but again, perhaps not as well as last month. I like him quite a bit, and there's no doubt he's doing well in NH, but I can't help but wonder what his strategy is beyond that state - is he this cycle's Huntsman? I can't imagine him being well liked by the base, so how does he expand beyond that state? His debate performance deepened that perception for me; he has appeal to someone like me because he feels so much more moderate than the others, but that's clearly not what the GOP is looking for. Huckabee is barely a factor in this race so I don't feel like analyzing his performance in depth, he should just go back to Fox News. His answers on Kim Davis and SCOTUS are so deeply embarrassing for our country. I thought Rand Paul was moderately improved from last time - he's smart to embrace his libertarian leanings, because if he's going to last he's going to have to differentiate himself from this enormous field. His campaign will still fail, but he may be able to buy himself some time. Scott Walker is a total disaster lol, he's basically 2016's equivalent of Rick Perry - a governor beloved by the base who enters the field late to huge expectations, and proves pretty quickly that he's not ready for primetime. His answers were a bit better than his sleepy August debate performance, but he still feels way out of his depth. Chris Christie is probably doomed, but I always figured he'd be a d--- good debater, and I think he's delivering on that front. Unfortunately for him I think his time has probably passed, but I think he was easily one of the most impressive on the stage.

 

Mar 4, 2016

Last night I watched a US Presidential debate where a 70 year old orange man with the world's most extreme comb over desperately told everyone he didn't have a small d-ck.

 

Feb 26, 2016

The 2020 Republican field will be Gary Busey, Clint Eastwood's chair from the 2012 GOP convention, a piece of toast in the shape of Reagan, and George Pataki

 

Feb 26, 2016

watched the last two-thirds of the debate last night. we say this louder every election cycle, but this is genuinely a shitshow and has fully moved into the realm of the ridiculous. that wide shot of rubio --> trump --> cruz talking over one another was just...wow.

those three are all off the deep end in their own special way. the prevailing theme is "omg can you believe trump is still here?? i guess this is what america deserves!!" but aside from the racist rhetoric, he's probably less extreme than rubio, and certainly less than cruz.

 

Aug 7, 2015

"TimmyT likes this"

 

Jul 23, 2015

The support for Trump honestly caught me off guard. Like, I literally regressed in the hope I had for this country. People would literally elect a racist a------ and say it's okay because he can run the government like a good business. Which is a flawed argument by itself.

I was looking at some post on Facebook about him and expected to go to the comments and see a lot of backlash. Nah, b------s on there talking about how much they hate immigrants and how much they're harming our country.

So apparently they don't even care about that stuff. To vote for a leader with clear prejudice blows my mind.


I used to try to defend the Republican party because I like to keep an open mind, invoke thought, and be able to understand a point of view that I may not agree with. But they're on some next level s--- these days. And the media doesn't really help.

 

Jan 22, 2015

..how'd you vote for Obama over 6 years ago, Charles

 

Feb 26, 2016

@WPG please spend less time talking about Thugger and more time posting in here. Thx.

 

Feb 26, 2016

this is an insane, myopic opinion and one of the major reasons sanders is written off by so many as the candidate of white, upper-middle-class liberal men. i don't mean to get too dramatic here, but peoples' entire lives hang in the balance of the legislative decisions presidents make. there are people alive today who otherwise wouldn't be without the aca. there are women who can't access the healthcare they need. look at flint, look at louisiana. citizens united is a horrifically stupid case and something that absolutely needs to be addressed as soon as possible, but come on.

 

Jan 2, 2016

im sweating a bit more than i was... beading, lets say hah. its still such a large field - my guess today would be once the primaries actually start and the establishment coalesces around an alternative, trump will start to unravel. but ive been wrong about his longevity thus far soo lol.

agreed about cruz btw. hes actually capable as a politician. the tragedy of trump is he validates the rest of them and makes someone like cruz etc seem somehow legit/mainstream

 

Jan 22, 2015

Yeah me neither, this economic growth f---ing sucks

 

Aug 13, 2016

Thank you so much for your support! We will defeat Crooked Hillary this November! We will bring jobs and the middle class back to this great country! And we will honor our veterans with the respect they deserve!

 

Aug 13, 2016

Thanks for the support, everyone! The media is trying so hard to be dishonest about me! Sad! The establishment is running scared! We will make America GREAT and SAFE again after I defeat Crooked Hillary this November!!!!

 

Jul 27, 2016

The thing is, you can't claim some haughty moral high ground about "compromised national security" and then be like "Leak everything! Who cares about the consequences!" The second argument 100 percent undercuts the first.

 

Jul 27, 2016

Lamont: "Wow the Democrats are so corrupt. Favoring one candidate over another is disgusting."
Trump: "I encourage Russia to commit espionage against my political opponent."
Lamont: "This is good IMO"

 

May 6, 2016

I mean...you're scared because the RNC chair is putting on a good face publicly? lol

I'm scared in the sense that this man could potentially, somehow, someway win the White House, absolutely. That's definitely terrifying.

But in terms of his chances to win? They're still pretty f---ing low. The GOP was already in a rough spot demographically. Trump, more than probably anyone else they could have nominated, dramatically exacerbates that problem. How do you improve on Romney's performance when you're going to do far worse with women? How do you improve on Romney's performance when you're going to do far worse than Latinos?

Trump winning Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Minnesota? LOL. Give me a f---ing break. Not going to happen.

I mean, take a look at this: http://www.politico.com/story/2016/05/trump-begins-in-a-massive-hole-222816?cmpid=sf

McHenry outlined some back-of-the-envelope math, starting with a number of assumptions, to outline Trump’s uphill path. First, he assumed 3 in 10 voters this fall are nonwhite — a modest increase from 28 percent in 2012, according to exit polls. He then gave Trump a vote share of 10 percentage points greater than his average favorable rating for a number of demographic groups.

If Trump’s vote share among white women was 50 percent, McHenry said — which would be down from Romney’s 56 percent four years ago — that would mean Trump would have to win about 85 percent of white men to win, an astounding percentage and dramatically better than Romney’s 62-percent share.

Those are estimates of course! But that is a bad, bad, bad, bad place to start for Trump.

I believe in the polls. They are generally right. So when this race naturally tightens (as any presidential race would), I will probably freak out a bit because I can't help myself. But the fundamentals of the race are extremely favorable to the Democrats. Like, "the House is in play" favorable to the Democrats.

 

Feb 26, 2016

these are not abstract scenarios. the history and baggage each world leader (and country as a whole) brings to the table in any negotiation--or critically, each military conflict--would take months or years to be briefed on properly. in that respect, experience can be key, and i don't know how anyone would be better prepared than a secretary of state.

and to be real with you, the "more sober perspective than someone who's fallen into the rhythm of how things are done" bit reads to me like trump-ish sloganeering. let's not diminish how smart and qualified people like clinton are. four years in the state department doesn't turn you into a mindless automaton. i don't want jimmy fallon's hand on the button because he's an "outsider."

 

Feb 26, 2016

Steve Baldwin will lead in the polls for a couple months at least... Victoria Jackson will be the noms veep. Dog the Bounty Hunter could be a sleeper pick to win it.

 

Feb 26, 2016

nah that's something people have been saying, but it's reductive and just not true. sanders is a guy with experience in government and a serious legislative record. his domestic policy proposals all are at least detailed and have working models in other countries.