PUMA 2 Electric Boogaloo

I have enough DC brain to know that if Bernie wins things are going to get... interesting.

The Art of the Hissy Fit

It's nothing new and yet Serious Politics Knowers at our elite publications pretend (or don't pretend, I have no idea) not to be aware.

Not as if Lindsey or Susan are going to be winning any Oscars anytime soon. These reporters must get tricked by their own 5-year-olds constantly.

Kayfabe

The dumbest fucking people in the universe work for the New York Times.

Republicans are VERY angry about Schiff’s decision to reference that CBS “head on a pike” report. Murkowski says “that’s where he lost me.” Barrasso says “whatever gains he may have made, he lost all of it — plus some — tonight.”

— Emily Cochrane (@ESCochrane) January 25, 2020

Imagine taking seriously the argument that they thought about stopping the president from doing crimes but the democrats were mean so they had no choice but to let the president keep doing crimes.

Imagine being paid lots of money to be a Serious Politics Knower for the New York Times and not getting that the Hissy Fit is the go to Republican play.

Fake Outrage

Every single time the Republicans manufacture a fake outrage to distract from the malfeasance and while I'd like to say that reporters just pretend to believe them I honestly think some of these brain worms reporters actually do believe them.

ADAM SCHIFF WORE A BLUE TIE INTO THE SENATE! THIS OUTRAGE WILL NOT STAND.

Most of the time the "outrages" don't even make any sense, and even when they occasionally do... this is Trump's Republican party we are talking about. They are not allowed to take to the fainting couch because somebody said a bad word or similar.

Friday Happy Hour

Get happy

Crimeing Outside The Lines

Without getting into who wins the Presidential Crime Olympics, I think it's fair to say that Trump crimes like I color. You do your crimes inside the "okay to do crimes" zone that has been set up for presidents, or shift the boundaries about a bit. You do not start stabbing outside the lines with a big crayon.

Security

Forget the details of the recording, are the "but her emails" reporters ever going to actually acknowledge the fact that there is literally no security around Trump's communications?

A recording reviewed by ABC News appears to capture President Donald Trump telling associates he wanted the then-U.S. ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch fired while speaking at a small gathering that included Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman -- two former business associates of Trump’s personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani who have since been indicted in New York.

The recording appears to contradict statements by President Trump and support the narrative that has been offered by Parnas during broadcast interviews in recent days. Sources familiar with the recording said the recording was made during an intimate April 30, 2018, dinner at the Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C.

Trump has said repeatedly he does not know Parnas, a Soviet-born American who has emerged as a wild card in Trump’s impeachment trial, especially in the days since Trump was impeached.

Aren't there people who are supposed to take care of this stuff?

But as for what was said...

"Get rid of her!" is what the voice that appears to be President Trump’s is heard saying. "Get her out tomorrow. I don't care. Get her out tomorrow. Take her out. Okay? Do it."

Not sure who here could fire her? So, um, ...

Friday, Friday

Fresh thread.

Ladies And Gentlemen Of The Jury

Sure my client killed someone, but that was in the papers LAST YEAR. I move to dismiss!

G’morning. I wnated to highlight a few things from Playbook this morning.

The main takeaway by Rs from the House presentation has been nothing new.

Nothing new about a series of charges that have been the subject of many hours of hearings, newspaper stories, cable coverage. pic.twitter.com/eLPhMW1WvN

— Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) January 23, 2020

Reporters who exist to do nothing but transmit transparent bullshit from Republicans and embrace every second of it...

The Anglosphere

One thing people in the UK and the US share is a weird belief that people in other countries give a shit what we think about them. Obviously the US matters in the sense that it is powerful and we like to blow people up but otherwise...

A Conservative MP has called for Brexit to be marked next week with a firework display that can be seen from France and a huge banner hanging from the White Cliffs of Dover.

Natalie Elphicke, the MP for Dover, has urged the UK to celebrate its exit from the European Union by hanging a banner displaying the words “We love the UK” on 31 January.


The newly elected Conservative has suggested the banner should replace a rival 150 sq m “We still love EU” banner which is being crowdfunded by Liberal Democrat MEP Antony Hook.

“Sadly, we can’t stop Brexit now, but we can send a strong message to the world that we still love Europe,” Mr Hook said in a statement announcing the proposal.

Late Night

Rock on.

Speaking Of

And Sekulow isn't even the youngest generation. I'm not one to knock The Kids Today, generally, but the GOP Kids Today...

Related from Pareene. Maybe not more evil, but certainly more openly racist.

The Downward Spiral

The GOP's only going to get worse. We saw signs of this when they sent the Heritage Kids to run Iraq, and now those Heritage Kids are running this country. A generation of Great Leaders who really do live inside the "Fox bubble" and genuinely believe CNN is the Communist News Network.

Maybe not more evil, but a bit more stupid. Failsons of failsons.

But, sure, Joe Biden, tell us about your good friends in the Senate who will work with you.

Karen Called The Manager

Her act is so hilarious.

Just spoke to Sen. Collins, who confirmed that she wrote a note to Roberts wee-hours Wednesday.

"I did write a note raising the issue of whether there’d been a violation of the rules" of impugning another senator https://t.co/HfkOUmInOe

(CNN reported on the note late Weds)

— Burgess Everett (@burgessev) January 23, 2020

Everybody's Gotta Eat

Everybody's a "Democratic strategist" now, and everybody is talking their book. At best you can say that their meal tickets are perfectly aligned with their honest preferences, but careers will be made or broken during this primary.

America's Worst Network News Organization

CBS

Shining City On A Hill

The Kids Today won't remember of course, but too many people who should know better have just chosen to not remember. Once upon a time the Bush administration decided Torture Was Good. The very silly opinion from the types of people who opposed the Iraq War thought Torture Was Bad, but they thought lots of silly things. The Very Serious Moderate Position was that Torture Was Bad, but if you don't call it torture and did it for a good reason, then whatever it is we're not calling torture is, well, regrettable, but they made us do it, you see. Weirdly that was pretty much the position of Don Rumsfeld!

The March 6 memo, prepared for Mr Rumsfeld explained that what may look like torture is not really torture at all. It states that: if someone "knows that severe pain will result from his actions, if causing such harm is not his objective, he lacks the requisite specific intent even though the defendant did not act in good faith".

What this means in understandable English is that if a parent, in his anxiety to know where his son goes after choir practice, does something that will cause severe pain to his son, it is only "torture" if the causing of that severe pain is his objective. If his objective is something else - such as finding out where his son goes after choir practice - then it is not torture.

Mr Rumsfeld's memo goes on: "a defendant" (by which he means a concerned parent) "is guilty of torture only if he acts with the express purpose of inflicting severe pain or suffering on a person within his control".

Couldn't be clearer. If your intention is to extract information, you cannot be accused of torture.

Is Pence President Yet

Busy morning then maybe a normal return to blogging! No promises. hassles hassles hassles

Midnight Thread

Happy Hour Thread

Evil hobbitses keeping me from blogging.

Where's Rusty

I know he's still around but it's a bit odd living in a world where he seems like the least important wingnut media figure.

Lunch Thread

enjoy