monitoring Trump and relevant contemporary events

@edgarblythe,

Quote:

You want us to believe nobody in those states has any common sense

Right off the bat, don't tell me what "I want you to believe".

I know that a sizeable minority of southerners consistently vote for Democrats. But it's a minority. Do I have to explain that to you? So how do you propose that progressives win in states where the clear majority holds positions which are incompatible with what we normally accept as a liberal political philosophy?

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There was a bit of hopeful news for the future of Alabama. College-degreed white women doubled their support for a non-Republican candidate (only 15% had voted for Obama - yesterday, 30% went with Jones) so the solid white Republican block isn’t quite as formidable as previous.

But the story wasn’t the sex allegations, obviously. Black Alabama was paying attention to (or tipped off by robo-calls about) Moore’s pretty heinous racial comments. That should have been enough without the sex allegations in any state—and glad it was.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2017/politics/alabama-exit-polls/?utm_term=.6081d86f9d09

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Quote:

Lindsey Graham‏Verified account
@LindseyGrahamSC
If we nominate Trump, we will get destroyed.......and we will deserve it.
2:03 PM - 3 May 2016

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@hightor,

You actually engage the people there instead of writing them off automatically. Only a small proportion of eligible voters in a state like Texas bothers to vote. The only energized voters are the Republicans.

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@edgarblythe,

Quote:

Only a small proportion of eligible voters in a state like Texas bothers to vote. The only energized voters are the Republicans.

I know you said you don't read my post, accepted, but do you have statistics or data to back up your statement?

On the whole though, I agree, there are young people in the south who are not energized but do hold different views than even their parents who are in the 40's and 50's. At least my girls (adult daughters) friends have more liberal views than their parents do.

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Footage shows Trump with some accusers after he claimed he ‘never met’ women

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Trump’s chutzpah-laden Alabama debacle

Quote:

Put simply: Trump set himself up to look like a political amateur, and that's exactly what happened. If Trump truly believes that things he and Sanders have said about how his election win vindicated everything he did, he might want to reevaluate himself and start seeking better advice.

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@revelette1,

I don't have any stats, but I believe that Edgar is correct.

The Democrats have ceded the entire state to Republicans and Libertarians. In West Texas there aren't even Democrats listed on the ballot for local offices.

Even if Texas Democrats wanted to vote for Democrats, they can't. If someone does want to run for local office, then they have to be a member of the Republican party. If you want a say in who actually represents you locally, you have to vote in the Republican primary.

It completely skews the numbers, since Dems only come out to vote in national elections.

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@DrewDad,

Well, that seems completely screwed up. Edgar's right, democrats need to do more work in outreach of democrats outside of coastal states (except Texas and other coastal states). What can Texas democrats and DNC do to remedy that situation?

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@revelette1,

But see, reaching out costs money and Edgar hates money in politics. It’s convenient for him because now he can complain about both problems

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@maporsche,

It's clear it is something the DNC and democrat local people (don't know how to word it) need to finds ways and means to work on this problem. A lot people who used to live in the urban states seem to be moving to more rural states so this problem should be a priority as well as any other issue.

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@revelette1,

IMO, the first step is to just get people on the damn ballots.

It's an indication to those voters that the Dems just don't care about them. If the Dems don't care enough to run someone for a local office, how much will they care if they're elected to congress, or the senate, or the presidency?

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@DrewDad,

Can anyone say they're a Democrat and run locally?

It is interesting to watch for sure. In Canada, municipal/local politicians don't have / don't reveal any party affiliations. They are all considered to be independents.

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@ehBeth,

I just looked it up: in local/district elections we had had here nine different parties; in the last state election, it were 23 parties; last federal election 34 parties.
Independents are sometimes in local or district elections, usually without any chance.

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@hightor,

Quote:

But if your man is really innocent, what’s the worry?

It is wrong for the Democrats to sabotage the Trump Administration by tying them down with baseless charges.

Also, the Democrats have shown that they are happy to convict innocent people in their savage witch hunts.

Firing Mueller is the wrong thing to do though. Just issue blanket pardons to everyone.

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Quote:

Republicans members of Congress and conservative media are united in blaming one person for their party’s loss in the deep red state of Alabama Tuesday night: Steve Bannon.

In a scathing editorial published late Tuesday evening, the Wall Street Journal ignited the revolt, declaring that “Bannon is for losers.”

“The Alabama result shows that Mr. Bannon cares less about conservative policy victories than he does personal king-making,” the editorial board wrote. “He wants to depose Mitch McConnell as Majority Leader even if it costs Republicans Senate control. GOP voters, take note: Mr. Bannon is for losers.”

TPM

The use of "loser" there isn't accidental, of course. They, like the rest of us, understand that this is one of Trump's big buttons. They are trying to get him to fly straight. But Trump won't because of the deep flaws in his personality. And because Hannity and the rest of the Fox crowd are motivated to continue the style and content of their propaganda which is what is keeeping audience levels where they are.

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And here's Hannity

Quote:

While some Republicans went after Steve Bannon for backing the ultra-conservative Moore, Fox News host Sean Hannity took aim at Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY).

“I think Mitch McConnell has a lot of culpability in all of this. I was a Mo Brooks supporter from day one,” Hannity said Tuesday night before the networks called the race for Democrat Doug Jones. “And I thought he would be great candidate.”

“The person who came out strongest against Mo Brooks, Matt, was Mitch McConnell,” Hannity continued, talking to GOP strategist Matt Schlapp. “Mitch McConnell literally put himself in the middle of the race time and again, it didn’t work out well for him.”

TPM

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Quote:

Adam Goldman‏Verified account
@adamgoldmanNYT

Breaking news: Rod Rosenstein tells Congress says he hasn't seen "good cause" to fire Mueller.

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http://www.businessinsider.com/ap-the-latest-minnesota-lt-gov-smith-to-fill-franken-seat-2017-12

Quote:

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton appointed Lt. Gov. Tina Smith on Wednesday to replace Sen. Al Franken until a special election in November, setting up his long-time and trusted adviser for a potentially bruising 2018 election.

Smith was widely seen as Dayton’s top choice from the moment Franken announced his resignation last week, and she is expected to run in the November special election to complete Franken’s term through 2020.

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Re the conversation above on southern states, this chart showing the shift from Dems' almost total control of southern politics to solid Republican control tells us pretty much everything we need to know about why this happened. NYT

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