If indeed Paxton wins the primary, Thune will be Mike Johnson for the next six months, acting at the whims of a posse of free agents who can derail anything. From Thune's reaction to the Paxton endorsement, I think he knows.
Thanks, Tom. Great wrap-up! To the extent I'm laughing, it's through my tears. I called Thune's and Tillis's offices yesterday, just to pass along my incindiary rage over everything, but the final straw especially - the sweet deal that bent AG arranged over the IRS. I know it was a waste of my time, but dammit! I had to get it out there.
I truly can’t understand why they can’t see what we can see, that the fallout from attaching oneself to Trump is career ending for so many. Are they blind or stupid or both? And those who diminish themselves, like a Lyndsay Graham, are so ridiculed by the, okay, liberal press and Democratic leaning electorate, that they are made the butt of jokes and disdain.
Yes, he keeps finding lackeys to follow him, but hopefully the numbers will keep getting smaller along with his abysmal, but still too high approval ratings.
What liberal press? The mainstream media has debased themselves and their credibility in their feverish attempt to sane-wash trump’s friends and family robbing this country blind and destroying our democracy and standing in the world. I blame them for being in this horrible situation too.
I think Trump forgot the lessons of the 2018 and 2022 midterms - an endorsement by Trump in the GOP primary can make an effective repellent for independent voters leading to losses in the general election!
If Paxton wins the GOP runoff next week, Talarico's campaign ads (or at least of the Democratic PACs supporting him) will practically write themselves! And it will probably also give Talarico a boost in his fundraising numbers.
Ilene, I think it was Sinclair Lewis (someone correct me if I'm wrong) who said, "It's hard to get a man to understand something when his paycheck depends on him NOT understanding it." Never were those words more applicable.
Graham has always been a sidekick, looking for his Batman. When Alan Simpson and Orrin Hatch were around, Graham at least had decent people to hang around. When Graham chose Teump, he proved how desperate he was to have someone, anyone, be his friend.
Like Mitch McConnell, Tillis/Cassidy/Cornyn appear to believe that they can repair their historical reputations by opposing Trump when there are no stakes. Thats not “finding your conscience”. Thats ass-covering, and no different than certain SCOTUS justices who doth protest too much when they are tagged as political actors.
It’s kind of like what we were saying back in the 90s. The Religious Right didn’t buy the Republican Party because of any sense of shared values; they bought it because it was *for sale*.
Dog willing, Trump will destroy the GOP, or reduce it to a rump party of dead-enders who will eventually go the way of the Whigs. It will be interesting to see what happens if Cornyn loses his primary, though. (And somebody needs to tell that guy to use a darker background in his head shot. That almost white thing makes him look even paler and sicklier than he does already. He kind of blends into it. But at least he’s not sparky painting himself orange to hide it.
The rise of the new right began in the late 70’s and was responsible for the election of Reagan. Like the Temperance movement in the first decades of the 20th century, it was largely lead and scaled by women. They both used moral objectives as the foundation for legislation and corrupt politicians and oligarchs quickly capitalized on the fact that they could win and break those rules and never be held accountable to those standards.
100%. And in the end, he will likely destroy the GOP for the foreseeable future. Trump is a corrupt authoritarian strongman, and his shameless, un American, lawless power grab will appeal only to the truist of believers in his cult. Toxic, repellent, and unsustainable will hopefully be his reign, as he retreats into his bunker and unleashes increasingly horrific statements and acts as he heads toward an unrepentant end. The worst president in American history and a tough time for clear-eyed decent Americans of all political stripes. No one who cow-towed to him will end up looking good, and the next president and Democratic Congress must hold this criminal regime accountable.
Was anyone else on the NC Voter protection call last night?
Thinks are heating up and there are lots of ways to volunteer! I summarized the highlights of my takeaways in a couple of Substack notes this morning:
https://substack.com/@cj277/note/c-262117925
https://substack.com/@cj277/note/c-262118674
https://substack.com/@cj277/note/c-262126776
If indeed Paxton wins the primary, Thune will be Mike Johnson for the next six months, acting at the whims of a posse of free agents who can derail anything. From Thune's reaction to the Paxton endorsement, I think he knows.
Thanks, Tom. Great wrap-up! To the extent I'm laughing, it's through my tears. I called Thune's and Tillis's offices yesterday, just to pass along my incindiary rage over everything, but the final straw especially - the sweet deal that bent AG arranged over the IRS. I know it was a waste of my time, but dammit! I had to get it out there.
I call often. They don’t care but it makes me
Feel better too!
Lindsey Graham was right about that one thing. Trump has destroyed what was left of the Republican Party. RIP GOP. Hail Trump.
I truly can’t understand why they can’t see what we can see, that the fallout from attaching oneself to Trump is career ending for so many. Are they blind or stupid or both? And those who diminish themselves, like a Lyndsay Graham, are so ridiculed by the, okay, liberal press and Democratic leaning electorate, that they are made the butt of jokes and disdain.
Yes, he keeps finding lackeys to follow him, but hopefully the numbers will keep getting smaller along with his abysmal, but still too high approval ratings.
What liberal press? The mainstream media has debased themselves and their credibility in their feverish attempt to sane-wash trump’s friends and family robbing this country blind and destroying our democracy and standing in the world. I blame them for being in this horrible situation too.
I think Trump forgot the lessons of the 2018 and 2022 midterms - an endorsement by Trump in the GOP primary can make an effective repellent for independent voters leading to losses in the general election!
And the latest poll should have Republicans running scared. See this note: https://substack.com/@cj277/note/c-262158464
If Paxton wins the GOP runoff next week, Talarico's campaign ads (or at least of the Democratic PACs supporting him) will practically write themselves! And it will probably also give Talarico a boost in his fundraising numbers.
Ilene, I think it was Sinclair Lewis (someone correct me if I'm wrong) who said, "It's hard to get a man to understand something when his paycheck depends on him NOT understanding it." Never were those words more applicable.
Graham has always been a sidekick, looking for his Batman. When Alan Simpson and Orrin Hatch were around, Graham at least had decent people to hang around. When Graham chose Teump, he proved how desperate he was to have someone, anyone, be his friend.
When he's gone, he'll make the subject of a fascinating and sad biography.
Like Mitch McConnell, Tillis/Cassidy/Cornyn appear to believe that they can repair their historical reputations by opposing Trump when there are no stakes. Thats not “finding your conscience”. Thats ass-covering, and no different than certain SCOTUS justices who doth protest too much when they are tagged as political actors.
It’s kind of like what we were saying back in the 90s. The Religious Right didn’t buy the Republican Party because of any sense of shared values; they bought it because it was *for sale*.
Dog willing, Trump will destroy the GOP, or reduce it to a rump party of dead-enders who will eventually go the way of the Whigs. It will be interesting to see what happens if Cornyn loses his primary, though. (And somebody needs to tell that guy to use a darker background in his head shot. That almost white thing makes him look even paler and sicklier than he does already. He kind of blends into it. But at least he’s not sparky painting himself orange to hide it.
The rise of the new right began in the late 70’s and was responsible for the election of Reagan. Like the Temperance movement in the first decades of the 20th century, it was largely lead and scaled by women. They both used moral objectives as the foundation for legislation and corrupt politicians and oligarchs quickly capitalized on the fact that they could win and break those rules and never be held accountable to those standards.
100%. And in the end, he will likely destroy the GOP for the foreseeable future. Trump is a corrupt authoritarian strongman, and his shameless, un American, lawless power grab will appeal only to the truist of believers in his cult. Toxic, repellent, and unsustainable will hopefully be his reign, as he retreats into his bunker and unleashes increasingly horrific statements and acts as he heads toward an unrepentant end. The worst president in American history and a tough time for clear-eyed decent Americans of all political stripes. No one who cow-towed to him will end up looking good, and the next president and Democratic Congress must hold this criminal regime accountable.