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THE MAGA PARTY!,,, the GOP is dead, republicans are going down with the dems,, get ready for THE MAGA PARTY lefty's
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2021-04-17 at 2:46 PM UTC
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2021-04-17 at 5:36 PM UTCThe Hill
GOP acknowledges struggle to bring down Biden
Jordain Carney
Republicans are struggling to land attacks against President Biden as they grapple with how to win back power in Washington next year.
Biden is proving to be an elusive cipher for Republicans to successfully message against nearly 100 days into his administration, keeping a relatively low profile and refusing to engage in the day-to-day verbal sparring that has consumed Washington in recent years.
It presents a challenge that, GOP senators acknowledge, they aren't hitting the mark on.
"We need to get better at it. I don't think sometimes our messaging is as sharp as it should be because a lot of the things they're doing are things that are popular-when you're spending money, you're popular," Sen. John Thune (S.D.), the No. 2 Senate Republican, said about Republicans' success in defining Biden.
Asked how his party was doing, Sen. Mike Braun (R-Ind.) replied: "Poorly."
"I don't think we've done a very good job because he's getting away with defining himself and rolling out this stuff that we're borrowing every penny for it, and the public is buying it," Braun said. "We've got to find ways to articulate and scuffle in a better way, and I don't know that we've found that."
Biden has spent decades building his reputation as an affable dealmaker who came up through the party's centrist wing. During the 2020 campaign, he talked up his relationship with Republicans and hoped that after former President Trump left office that the "fever" would break.
The bipartisan rhetoric has continued in the White House, with the administration reaching out to GOP lawmakers through private phone calls and publicly disclosed Oval Office meetings.
"His tone is moderate and he's an affable person, he's a likeable individual and a lot of us know him, have relationships with him and it's probably harder to attack somebody who is relatable and likeable," Thune said.
Republicans were quick to back new sanctions the administration announced against Russia. And his speech at the memorial for a Capitol Police officer killed this month earned him praise from Fox News, where host Harris Faulkner called him "iconic" for delivering "kindness and empathy."
GOP senators have acknowledged that, politics aside, they largely like Biden, with many knowing him for years if not decades.
Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.), in a recent stop in Kentucky, accused Biden of leading a "left-wing administration" but added that he was a "first-rate person."
"I like him personally, I mean, we've been friends for a long time," McConnell said.
GOP senators say Biden's "nice guy" reputation and moderate tone have helped insulate him politically.
"It's always harder to fight against a nice person because usually people will sort of give him the benefit of the doubt," he added.
Biden's approval ratings have largely held steady in the low-to-mid 50s since taking office in late January, according to averages compiled by tracking website FiveThirtyEight. That's higher than Trump got during his four years in the White House.
A Pew Research Center poll released on Thursday put Biden's approval at 59 percent, up from 54 percent in their March survey. Forty-six percent of Americans also said they liked how Biden "conducts himself as president," compared to 27 percent who don't. Forty-four percent says he's improved the political debate.
But Cornyn garnered fierce backlash this week for a tweet thread where he quoted a Politico article that detailed Biden's less-is-more media strategy. He followed that up with another tweet asking who is "really in charge," sparking criticism that he was elevating those questions. The GOP senator described the experience as being "carpet bombed," but stood by his tweet.
"I think it's a good question. When the 10 Republicans went over to talk about the COVID-19 relief bill, they were apparently having a really nice meeting with the president and Ron Klain was shaking his head ... so I think it's a fair question," he said, referring to Biden's chief of staff.
But Senate Republicans have largely stayed away from personal attacks on Biden, arguing that the best way to win politically against him in the long-run is on policy.
"I don't enter into that kind of conversation. I'm more worried about nuts and bolts in what they're doing on policy," Braun said.
Polling shows that Biden's ideas are popular with a majority of Americans. Pew found that 67 percent of Americans approve the $1.9 trillion coronavirus package. Fifty-seven percent of Americans back his infrastructure plan, according to a Morning Consult-Politico poll.
Braun credited Biden with picking issues that are on-the-surface widely popular, even if Democrats then stretch the actual legislation to go much further.
"I think that he's defined himself and that's resonating with the public that he's after bipartisanship and unity and they've picked topics-who's against COVID relief? But then it's only 10 percent. Who is against infrastructure? And it's only six percent, which is roads and bridges," Braun said.The following users say it would be alright if the author of this post didn't die in a fire! -
2021-04-17 at 5:50 PM UTCMake
American
Gulags
Again
The Hill
There was Trump-Russia collusion — and Trump pardoned the colluder
Marik von Rennenkampff
It's official: The Trump campaign colluded with Russia.
In an explosive development, the Biden administration confirmed that a Russian government agent with close connections to Donald Trump's top 2016 campaign official "provided the Russian Intelligence Services with sensitive information on polling and [Trump] campaign strategy."
This revelation demolishes, once and for all, Trump's ceaseless claims that he was the victim of the "greatest witch hunt in the history of our country." (Recall that a Trump appointee directed Robert Mueller to investigate "any links and/or coordination between the Russian government and individuals associated with the campaign of President Donald Trump.")
But just how valuable was the polling and campaign strategy data that Paul Manafort, Trump's campaign chairman, gave to a Russian agent?
According to Brad Parscale, Trump's election data guru, the information that Manafort handed directly to Russian intelligence was of critical importance, determining "98 percent" of the campaign's resource allocations (such as spending on TV, radio and social media ads, rallies, field operations, and so on).
Indeed, the data was so important that Parscale kept a visualization of the information on his iPad at all times, allowing him to tell then-candidate Trump where to conduct his next rally at a moment's notice.
According to the then-Republican-led Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, the ultrasensitive campaign information that Manafort passed to a Russian spy "identified voter bases in blue-collar, democratic-leaning states which Trump could swing," including in "Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and Minnesota."
Moreover, the Russian intelligence officer who received the information "was capable of comprehending the complex polling data."
That leaves a lot of unanswered questions as to what Russia's spies did with the information.
Perhaps worse, Trump ultimately pardoned Manafort. Trump's potential political rivals would be wise to remember that he handed the ultimate political favor to the man who colluded with Russia amid Moscow's campaign to undermine American democracy.
But Manafort's malfeasance fits a broader pattern.
As former Trump adviser Steve Bannon - indicted on fraud charges - aptly noted, top Trump officials engaged in a "treasonous" meeting with a former Russian counterintelligence officer and a woman with "extensive and concerning" links to Russian intelligence services.
At the same time, the then-GOP-led Senate committee made clear that Trump knew of and discussed the release of tens of thousands of Russian-hacked documents and emails pilfered from the Democratic National Committee.
Indeed, Trump may have instructed a close confidant, Roger Stone, to orchestrate the leak of Russian-stolen documents as a political distraction at a make-or-break moment during the 2016 campaign.
But it gets worse. According to former Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates, in surreptitious conversations with a top Russian official, Trump's soon-to-be national security adviser Michael Flynn was "neutering" American sanctions designed to punish Moscow for interfering in the 2016 election on Trump's behalf.
At the time, Flynn's previous links to Russia made him the target of a counterintelligence probe, thoroughly justifying the FBI's investigation into his collusive calls with a senior Russian government official.
Perhaps worst of all, Trump's political allies released sensitive document after sensitive document in a desperate - and ill-fated - bid to score cheap political points for their boss.
Among other damaging revelations, these selective, politically driven leaks of once highly classified information gave America's adversaries an intimate look into how America's secretive spy catchers conduct their work. The long-term damage to national security and to America's counterintelligence efforts will be debated for years to come.
Ultimately, it took five years to finally learn that the Trump campaign colluded with Russia.
While the Republicans and conservative media outlets that peddled falsehood after falsehood are dealt a decisive blow, one must wonder what other revelations will come to light in the months and years to come.The following users say it would be alright if the author of this post didn't die in a fire! -
2021-04-17 at 6 PM UTC
Originally posted by stl1 The Hill
GOP acknowledges struggle to bring down Biden
Jordain Carney
Republicans are struggling to land attacks against President Biden as they grapple with how to win back power in Washington next year.
Are you accusing politicians of engaging in politics?
Are you actually that fucking dumb? -
2021-04-17 at 9:10 PM UTC
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2021-04-17 at 9:13 PM UTC
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2021-04-17 at 9:14 PM UTC
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2021-04-18 at 12:21 PM UTC
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2021-04-18 at 4:20 PM UTC
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2021-04-18 at 4:21 PM UTCMaking
America
Goofy
Again
The Hill
Boehner: 'America First Caucus is one of the nuttiest things I've ever seen'
John Bowden
Former Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) on Sunday derided plans reportedly spearheaded by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) to form a nativist anti-immigration America First Caucus in the House.
Speaking on NBC's "Meet the Press," Boehner said the plan, which Greene reportedly abandoned after a document outlining the group's goals sparked criticism after it was published by Punchbowl News, was "one of the nuttiest things I've ever seen."
"I wouldn't call it mainstream in our party, but I can tell you that this so-called America First Caucus is one of the nuttiest things I've ever seen," the Ohio Republican said.
"Listen, America is a land of immigration. We've been the world's giant melting pot for the last 200 years. And we've got to celebrate that we're this giant melting pot," he continued, adding that it was "the silliest thing" he's ever seen, and that members of the GOP should "denounce it."
Boehner went on to add in the interview that his "greatest regret" as speaker was not reaching a deal with former President Obama to reform the U.S. immigration system.
Greene, a first-term GOP member from Georgia, has been the center of controversy since before her election to the House due to her past support for the anti-Semitic "QAnon" conspiracy theory, which alleges that top Democrats are conspiring with a cabal of satanic pedophiles.
Reps. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) and Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), who is currently under a federal sex trafficking investigation, reportedly considered joining the now-abandoned caucus idea.The following users say it would be alright if the author of this post didn't die in a fire! -
2021-04-18 at 4:23 PM UTC
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2021-04-18 at 6:56 PM UTCCNN
Boehner on Trump, McConnell and GOP 'knuckleheads'
Former House Speaker Rep. John Boehner tells CNN's Dana Bash that "Republicans have to go back to being Republicans."
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/boehner-on-trump-mcconnell-and-gop-knuckleheads/vi-BB1fMH4X?ocid=msedgdhp -
2021-04-18 at 6:59 PM UTC
stl1 is totally bought in on the US political WWE, and believes the public pronouncements he reads in the moron media is indicative of reality. -
2021-04-18 at 7:03 PM UTC
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2021-04-18 at 7:13 PM UTCMaking
America
Gullible
Again
The Hill
Media complicity in rise of the 'zombie president' conspiracy
Joe Ferullo
A new twist on birtherism is out there - another one of those stories the media knows isn't true but, eager for ratings and readers, just can't resist.
Headline this latest fable as "Is Joe Biden really in charge of anything, including himself?"
It's a persistent conspiracy canard that demonstrates how some journalists and Republicans continue to play by Donald Trump's media rules, long after they should have been discarded.
Trump, of course, promoted the original birtherism - the notion that Barack Obama was not a legitimate president because he wasn't really born in the United States. Trump championed this fringe fabrication for years by abusing an age-old understanding between politicians and the press.
That understanding plays out most clearly on television panel shows, and it goes like this: A senator, say, appears on a program, filled with finely calculated outrage about some topic. Deficits, taxes, or a small malfeasance by a mid-level administration official usually work best. The senator doesn't really believe his own outrage, and the interviewer knows the senator doesn't - but everyone goes along.
It's a bit of political theater benefiting both sides: The senator racks up another 15 minutes of fame; the host gets a slice of good television.
Trump both revealed the coziness of this game and elevated it to an art form. He crusaded for birtherism long after Obama released both his short-form Hawaii birth certificate in 2008 and the long-form, more detailed document in 2011. Trump, intoxicated as always by the spotlight, kept the pseudo-controversy alive. Every troubling step of the way, the media fed him the oxygen he needed, knowing full well it was a lie.
On respected national platforms such as CNN in 2012, ABC News in 2013 and the National Press Club in 2014, Trump continued to justify birtherism. The news world winked, nudged each other and then locked arms with Trump because he was ratings gold.
However, unlike earlier versions of this media game, birtherism was, in the end, no game at all. It was an irrational issue that launched Trump as a national political figure and helped mold parts of his base, particularly those conspiracy-minded elements unaccepting of a Black man with a Muslim-sounding name as their president.
Now the media finds itself knee-deep in another mud pile. Lately, it seems, the best way to win TV face time is to parrot politically motivated allegations that Biden doesn't control his own presidency - and may not even be in control of his own faculties.
Once again, Trump was the chief proponent. During the campaign, he called Biden "mentally weak" and asserted that he might need "drugs" to prepare for debates. Even after Biden's victory, some Republicans - having learned from the master - simply kept going. Articles noted GOP contentions that White House chief of staff Ron Klain was really "pulling the strings." When Biden called Kamala Harris "President Harris" during his news conference, that was cited as proof of his decline.
A fresh example cropped up just last week. Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) wrote on Twitter that Biden doesn't do a lot of press and that his tweets were "unimaginably conventional." Cornyn asked, "Is he really in charge?"
Cornyn's tweet was picked up throughout the media universe, often accompanied by heavy journalistic tsk-tsking. But, as with birtherism, real victory comes from continuing to win airtime for the accusations, no matter the finger-wagging.
And, just as with birtherism, the news media know this is phony outrage. From his earliest years on the political stage, reporters have dubbed Biden a "gaffe machine." More than that, since Biden began speaking openly about his stuttering issue, journalists have better understood the reality behind his sometimes-hesitant public speaking style and persona. While some Democrats also voiced concern about Biden during the primaries, now even centrist Republican senators who've met with the president say he's clearly in control.
None of that stops news organizations from airing charges regarding the president's aptitude. As media players well understand, this has a cumulative effect. Denials and explanations are brushed aside; the sheer volume of accusations begins to sink in. One result: A poll in February showed 33 percent of respondents are "dissatisfied" with the president's "mental sharpness."
Birtherism, the rise of Trump and all that followed should have demonstrated to journalists the dangerous possibilities of this long-running media game. Sometimes you lose control. Sometimes people outside the Beltway actually take it seriously, don't understand it's just political theater and run with it in ways you can't manage.
The Biden "mental health" gambit shows that no one is anxious to explore how to change the game when it drifts into a kind of political vandalism.
But look: The window hasn't closed. Joe Biden has been president a mere 88 days. It's not too late to fix things.
And make no mistake, this thing needs fixing. -
2021-04-18 at 7:18 PM UTC
Originally posted by stl1 abusing an age-old understanding between politicians and the press.
That understanding plays out most clearly on television panel shows, and it goes like this: A senator, say, appears on a program, filled with finely calculated outrage about some topic. Deficits, taxes, or a small malfeasance by a mid-level administration official usually work best. The senator doesn't really believe his own outrage, and the interviewer knows the senator doesn't - but everyone goes along.
It's a bit of political theater benefiting both sides: The senator racks up another 15 minutes of fame; the host gets a slice of good television.
Trump both revealed the coziness of this game and elevated it to an art form.
That article you just posted points out how dumb and easily manipulated people like you are.
You believed the Afghan bounty atrocity propaganda for instance.
And you talk about gullible? -
2021-04-18 at 7:19 PM UTCThe best things Trump did were on his first and last days in office by tearing up the TPP and pardoning Kodak Black. Everything in between was kinda meh
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2021-04-18 at 7:38 PM UTC
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2021-04-18 at 7:56 PM UTC
Originally posted by Donald Trump That article you just posted points out how dumb and easily manipulated people like you are.
You believed the Afghan bounty atrocity propaganda for instance.
And you talk about gullible?
That afghan bounty thing SEEMS fake as fuck just on face value. I don't know of it being confirmed as 100% fake but the premise itself seems suspect and only believed by people who know very little about the country -
2021-04-18 at 8:13 PM UTC
Originally posted by Sudo That afghan bounty thing SEEMS fake as fuck just on face value. I don't know of it being confirmed as 100% fake but the premise itself seems suspect and only believed by people who know very little about the country
The thing that astonishes me is that people make this sort of shit up, maliciously, and the media spreads it, either irresponsibly or maliciously.
That's scary.
Although it's nothing new. The Maine exploded due to a coal bunker fire, the Lusitania was packed with munitions, and there were no North Vietnamese boats present during the Gulf of Tonkin incident. Iraq didn't have weapons of mass destruction either.
