Active Users:780 Time:23/12/2024 07:16:35 AM
I think what separates us is less policy than belief in the health of the Republican Party fionwe1987 Send a noteboard - 19/07/2022 03:44:01 PM

View original post

Ah but what if it passes both Houses?


I'd be ecstatic and I'll take the win. But why would it? I can't quite see how a party that is nominating election deniers, passing laws to cut mail ballot drop boxes, or the host of other measures you see at the state level, would ever do this.

Part of the problem for the GOP is that they claim their issue is fraud, but all their actions point to other goals. When you have that kind of mismatch, a broader goal that incidentally deals with fraud while maximally enabling voting is not going to fly. I'd be glad to be proved wrong, but can't see what logical sequence of events lead to it, unless something fundamental changes.



One never knows, does one?

Ummm, if one fails to keep track of the legislation being passed around the country, sure. But with that knowledge, its not particularly hard to answer my question, which is why I posed it.

Bah, when you and I actually agree on a list of important things, it gives this cynical old man hope that just maybe this country can work things out.


But I've never doubted we agree on a lot of things. We have certainly had shared views before. I guarantee you if I list my top 10 priorities for what needs to happen in this country, we're very unlikely to disagree too much on most of them.
And that is broadly true of the country as a whole. Any number of measures that are broadly popular are blocked from legislation. Fuck passing, they don't even come up for debate.

Where we may disagree is perhaps on the solutions. I want the filibuster removed, or, better, altered so all 40 dissenting Senators have to be on the floor, and have to make their case. Pocket filibusters must die.

Along the same line, the Speaker of the House and the Majority Leader in the Senate do NOT get to set what bills come to the floor. Any bill with 30-40% support (I'm movable on the number) must be brought forth to the floor for debate, regardless of the priorities and political considerations of Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer, Mitch McConnell and Kevin McCarthy. You don't, as a Senator or Congressperson, get the right to silently oppose shit. You're the people's representative. Openly vote no on stuff you disagree with, and face the consequences. I loathe the ways the US Congress is built to insulate it's members from public scrutiny.

Nothing like this will happen, of course, because such a staggeringly large portion of the GOP agenda is so deeply unpopular that anything that increases democratic control and public taking of stances on these issues is going to get torpedoed. And till Republican voters realize they're fenced into the political positions and strategies used by their leadership to continue staying in power, nothing will change.

On the Dem end, there's some realization of all this, but total failure to take bold measures to combat it. There's a nostalgia for a former time when Congress functioned better, without any deep understanding of why it functioned better, and what it's blind spots and failures were in the past.

So we have sniveling weasels being take on by geriatric pandas unable to do much more than weakly chew at some bamboo shoots.


Also, I'm sipping a Bombay Sapphire G&T thinking, why hasn't this excellent spirit been renamed Mumbai Sapphire?

I don't. I grew up in Bombay. Mumbai just doesn't seem to fit the place. I get why the city got renamed, though the people doing the renaming weren't far different from the GOP, and basically did it to use their supposed patriotic fervor to cover for their completely cluelessness on how to actually govern.

The Brits who make Bombay Sapphire are probably blissfully unaware of all of that.

Reply to message
Prosecute Trump? - 14/07/2022 09:18:24 PM 474 Views
I would be surprised, but not shocked if there was an indictment. - 14/07/2022 09:26:45 PM 156 Views
There is no way he's not running again in 2024. - 14/07/2022 09:45:28 PM 169 Views
There's no way he agrees to not run - 14/07/2022 09:46:55 PM 162 Views
I fear you are right. - 14/07/2022 10:17:40 PM 147 Views
Let me sum up the case. - 14/07/2022 09:44:20 PM 180 Views
Word vomit that is completely false and full of irrelevant asides is not a summary - 14/07/2022 09:57:30 PM 150 Views
Lol parody account, you live in a dream world. - 15/07/2022 02:20:09 PM 153 Views
Sure - 15/07/2022 02:48:19 PM 173 Views
Parody account: face reality edition - 15/07/2022 03:09:48 PM 155 Views
Broken record. Try another track. - 15/07/2022 09:59:22 PM 146 Views
Take your own advice, parody account - 16/07/2022 02:17:34 AM 144 Views
The Secret Service deleted texts from 6th Jan..now I wonder why... - 19/07/2022 08:20:26 PM 168 Views
As part of a device replacement program. - 19/07/2022 10:12:31 PM 172 Views
It's like you're on a sugar high - 20/07/2022 04:50:29 AM 168 Views
This is an excellent point. - 20/07/2022 05:05:27 AM 154 Views
Thanks! - 20/07/2022 07:42:09 PM 160 Views
Re: It's like you're on a sugar high - 21/07/2022 02:32:47 PM 175 Views
Take your own advice, parody account - 16/07/2022 02:17:34 AM 160 Views
Ugh - 14/07/2022 10:21:00 PM 168 Views
It's Trump's party, like it or not. - 15/07/2022 02:12:02 PM 171 Views
No. It isn't. - 15/07/2022 05:04:36 PM 146 Views
LOL okay. - 15/07/2022 09:10:36 PM 159 Views
You are missing the entire fucking point. - 16/07/2022 12:53:59 AM 154 Views
No, you are. - 16/07/2022 02:13:57 AM 155 Views
As will the fact that being Italian born and living in Canada means you have no dog in this hunt. *NM* - 16/07/2022 02:40:09 AM 84 Views
Live in the US now son. - 16/07/2022 01:42:41 PM 146 Views
Agreed with Dragonsoul - 16/07/2022 07:39:57 PM 156 Views
Re: Agreed with Dragonsoul - 17/07/2022 05:43:21 AM 163 Views
Re: Agreed with Dragonsoul - 17/07/2022 05:43:23 AM 155 Views
That's not entirely fair - 15/07/2022 01:10:25 PM 147 Views
Yeah, it's a tough one. - 14/07/2022 10:22:06 PM 179 Views
Yeah exactly - 15/07/2022 12:12:19 AM 149 Views
Why are they calling it an insurrection, not a riot ? - 15/07/2022 09:43:09 AM 151 Views
Because there was a plan of action and they're laying out that evidence. - 15/07/2022 02:41:42 PM 157 Views
Regarding the elections... - 15/07/2022 07:28:07 PM 191 Views
as always, - 15/07/2022 08:34:45 PM 169 Views
Voter ID - 15/07/2022 10:10:24 PM 173 Views
- 16/07/2022 12:32:06 AM 162 Views
Oh please! - 16/07/2022 01:16:43 AM 160 Views
Ha! - 16/07/2022 01:51:08 AM 150 Views
I think what separates us is less policy than belief in the health of the Republican Party - 19/07/2022 03:44:01 PM 140 Views
Have you read the "Stop the Steal" article from the NYT magazine? - 19/07/2022 06:57:24 PM 156 Views
I'd saved it for later. Half way through it now... - 20/07/2022 07:40:48 PM 149 Views
I derive some comfort from the fact that I have never voted for Trump. - 21/07/2022 08:57:33 PM 141 Views
You think Trump should have been removed from office over Ukraine? - 21/07/2022 02:44:40 PM 140 Views
I share your concerns around indicting Trump - 21/07/2022 08:44:20 PM 129 Views
To Go Baroque here - 15/07/2022 07:32:27 PM 152 Views
One last thing - 15/07/2022 07:38:04 PM 135 Views

Reply to Message