2024 Presidential Election Shittastic Shittacular

[viscousmemories]

Yeah, he occasionally says some dumb things. I've caught a few myself in the dozens of hours of interviews I've watched over the past few years. But since I agree with him 95% of the time and I don't expect someone who isn't terminally online to know the political trajectory of every pundit who interviews him, I'm willing to overlook it.

I am a patron of this podcast so I was glad to see him give them an interview:

The Cornel West Interview | The Mau Mau Hour with Pascal Robert - YouTube

[erimir]

Personally, I would refrain from offering effusive praise of someone, especially with no hedges and offering that it has applied "for so long" and demonstrates "consistency" if I'm not actually aware of what the person has been up to for the past 7 years*.

*Of course, West would not have actually disapproved of Greenwald's ratfucking on behalf of Trump in 2016, given that West spent his time campaigning for Jill Stein that year... So make it since 2019 or 2020 or so if you prefer.

[viscousmemories]

I actually think his phrasing could be interpreted as a subtle hedge, since he refers to when Greenwald was writing for the Guardian in the Obama era and says "you were consistent then..." I watched the whole interview and he doesn't offer any more praise than that. But in any case I think it works in his favor when he says complimentary things to people he disagrees with--things like "Brother Trump" when condemning his "neofascist program"--because it puts the Trumpians on their back foot when all they have is a "you just hate Trump" defense.

[LarsMac]

Reading through this list of ReThuglican Hopefuls is educational to a degree.

Who’s in, who’s out: A look at which candidates have qualified for the 1st GOP presidential debate

The only one on the list to whom I would give any attention at all is Former SC governor Nikki Haley.
She is smart, resourceful, well read, and appears to have some scruples. Too bad she's not a Democrat.

I love this bit:

The current front-runner long ago satisfied the polling and donor thresholds. But he is considering boycotting and holding a competing event.

Campaign advisers have said the former president has not made a final decision about the debate. One noted that “it’s pretty clear,” based on Trump’s public and private statements, that he is unlikely to appear with the other candidates.

“If you’re leading by a lot, what’s the purpose of doing it?” Trump asked on Newsmax.

In the meantime, aides have discussed potential alternative programming if Trump opts for a rival event. One option Trump has floated is an interview with former Fox News host Tucker Carlson, who now has a program on X, the site formerly known as Twitter.

[LarsMac]

And then, there's the Democrats:

RFK Jr. says he’s not anti-vaccine. His record shows the opposite. It’s one of many inconsistencies

Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. rose to prominence during the COVID-19 pandemic because of his strident opposition to vaccines. Yet, he insists he’s not anti-vaccine. He has associated with influential people on the far right – including Tucker Carlson, Steve Bannon and Michael Flynn – to raise his profile. Yet, he portrays himself as a true Democrat inheriting the mantle of the Kennedy family.

As he challenges President Joe Biden, the stories he tells on the campaign trail about himself, his life’s work and what he stands for are often the opposite of what his record actually shows.

Though Kennedy’s primary challenge to a sitting president is widely considered a longshot, he’s been sucking up media attention due to his famous name and the possibility that his run could weaken Biden ahead of what is expected to be a close general election in 2024. He’s drawn praise from Republican presidential candidates like Donald Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. Meanwhile, Trump supporters, including his longtime ally Roger Stone, have ginned up interest by floating a Trump-Kennedy unity ticket.

Most of the RFK Jr supporters that I have heard from seem to think he is more of an option to Trump than to Biden. (How weird is that?)

Debra Duvall, 62, who lives in Fort Myers, Florida, and said she serves on the Lee County GOP executive committee, described herself as a longtime Trump supporter, but said she’s torn for 2024.


“I’ll take Trump or RFK. Either one,” she said, explaining that she was drawn to both because she believes they can’t be bought.

[specious_reasons]

If you're into conspiracy theories, Trump was a "better" choice in 2016/2020. I think there was a decent number of people who were nominally Democrats who voted for Trump in both elections, and they'd be happy to vote for RFK Jr.

I think the only reason why RFK Jr. is polling so well (roughly 15%) is because he's the only Democratic candidate up against Biden with any name recognition. I think RFK Jr.'s numbers represent the amount of dissatisfaction with Biden as the candidate - the people who are unhappy enough to actually vote against him.

[Kamilah Hauptmann]

GOP strategist learns he's not enough of a clown for this clown car.

[viscousmemories]

Ed Rollins, who was the national campaign director for former President Ronald Reagan's 1984 presidential campaign, created the "Ready for Ron" political action committee (now known as "Ready to Win") in May 2022 with the express purpose of pushing DeSantis to run for office.

Who would've thought that "his name is Ron" wasn't enough?

[LarsMac]

time to revive an old classic

Spitting Image - Da Do Run Ron - 1984 - YouTube

[Kamilah Hauptmann]

"I don't think it's the campaign's fault at all; it's his. I think he's been a very flawed candidate. I know some of the people around him, and some of them are good, talented people. But every time he opens his mouth, he has a tendency to — shall we say — think out-loud, and he clearly doesn't understand the game," Rollins told Rolling Stone. "When you get into these culture wars the way that he has, the vast majority of people don't understand what they are.

Part of that, the survey found, can likely be attributed to the governor's insistence on fighting "wokeness," as 52 percent of GOP likely voters in the primary election said they'd rather support a candidate who thinks the "government should stay out of deciding what corporations can support"

[Stephen Maturin]

Democratic presidential hopeful and known anti-vaxxer Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said Sunday that he would support a national ban on abortion after the first three months of pregnancy if elected, only to walk back the stance hours later alleging he “misunderstood” repeated questions from NBC News on the topic.

lol

One rarely gets the opportunity for a Running Man reference, and those opportunities are sufficiently scarce that they should always be taken advantage of.

show spoiler

[Kamilah Hauptmann]

MTG and Don Jr. Rage After Fox Denies Them Entry to Spin Room at Republican Debate

[LarsMac]

I paid no attention to the "debate" since its main purpose is to help voters decide which none-Trump Republican might be worth voting for if we have an election next year.

The only one on the list that I would possibly consider worth a vote is Nikki Haley. She is fairly bright and seems to care about people. Her major failing, from my PoV is that she is a Republican.

[Ensign Steve]

Chaos Erupts When Republican Candidates Are Asked if They Believe in Climate Change - The New York Times

[Stephen Maturin]

Vivek Ramaswamy, who vows to pardon PAB and promises 5% annual GDP growth in perpetuity through removing all constraints on fossil fuel development and use, has secured the coveted ex-wife-murdering psychopath demographic.

[Stephen Maturin]

Meatball Ron's Never Back Down superPAC is, well, backing down in Nevada and some Super Tuesday states. The juggernaut continues to roll!

[LarsMac]

Originally Posted by Stephen Maturin

Meatball Ron's Never Back Down superPAC is, well, backing down in Nevada and some Super Tuesday states. The juggernaut continues to roll!

Downhill, of course