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PoliGAF 2011: Of Weiners, Boehners, Santorum, and Teabags

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SomeDude said:
Why can;t we just break this country up into about 6 parts?
Texas secedes in 2014.

In 2016, Tension between Texas and it's neighboring country Mexico heats up dramatically when Texas Army shoots 24 supposed border crossers from Mexico in El Paso. Turns out those people were legal immigrants, and Mexico recalls it's Texas ambassadors and posts it's Army near the border. On 25th August, the Texas Mexico border is officially closed.

Two days later, Mexico spots some Texas army rangers crossing the desert in the cover of the night. Mexican soldiers fire at the rangers, but gets shot back. 2 Mexican soldiers are killed and 4 more are injured. Texas denies any involvement. The second Texan-Mexican war begins.

By early 2017, Texas requests assistance from US in the form of NATO intervention. US declines any form of intervention and says both sides should cease hostilities immediately.

By mid 2017 after a long stalemate, Mexican army finally breaks through and captures the border town of El Paso. US alarmed by the rapid turn of events and posts national guard near the New Mexico border.

Late 2017, most of Texas is annexed by Mexico. President Rick Perry found to have fled Texas to an unknown location after US refused to grant him visa.
 

besada

Banned
Cyan said:
Is Texas generally considered part of the South? I've never really thought of it that way.

Only when we want to be, but since our imbecilic governor has led much of this talk recently, it seemed appropriate. The state doesn't change the fact that in each and every one of the southern states, blacks are a minority. That would also be true of Mississippi and Alabama. Same with hispanics, although in Texas it's a close contest.

40% of Louisiana voted for a Obama. 42% in Mississippi. 47% in Georgia.
 
RustyNails said:
By early 2017, Texas requests assistance from US in the form of NATO intervention. US declines any form of intervention and says both sides should cease hostilities immediately.
The civilians of Texas don't need protecting?

Sorry, couldn't resist.
 

Cyan

Banned
besada said:
Only when we want to be, but since our imbecilic governor has led much of this talk recently, it seemed appropriate.
Ah, interesting. ;)

Invisible_Insane said:
The civilians of Texas don't need protecting?

Sorry, couldn't resist.
Well there's oil there, so yes. The US would totally intervene.
 

Chichikov

Member
mckmas8808 said:
How do you know that? We don't know what the deal is, if there will be one.
I was commenting on the theoretical scenario Aaron Strife was talking about.

SomeDude said:
Why can;t we just break this country up into about 6 parts?
Why do you hate America so much?
I just really wanted to say it on the internet and mean it.
Which I do.
Kinda.

Edit: wait, are we having a serious discussion about secession now?
Or are we still just taking a piss at the whole silliness of it?
 
Invisible_Insane said:
The civilians of Texas don't need protecting?

Sorry, couldn't resist.
US was actually very distressed by the whole Texas secession of 2014. The non intervention was actually political karma for US. Texas you seceded, now don't come crawling back to US for help every time you shoot some illegal immigrant! *snicker*
 

GhaleonEB

Member
Jackson50 said:
According to ADP, private-sector employment increased by 157,000 in June. This is closer to February, March, and April's private-sector growth data. Hopefully, May was a blip as I posited. The BLS will release June's employment report tomorrow.
Yup, I'm expecting more than the median forecast of 110k. Both the ISM and non-manufacturing ISM employment indexes increased over last month, which did not show a dip. I'm also expecting upward revisions to the past two months.
 

Loudninja

Member
GhaleonEB said:
Yup, I'm expecting more than the median forecast of 110k. Both the ISM and non-manufacturing ISM employment indexes increased over last month, which did not show a dip. I'm also expecting upward revisions to the past two months.
Good news.
 

mckmas8808

Mckmaster uses MasterCard to buy Slave drives
Jackson50 said:
According to ADP, private-sector employment increased by 157,000 in June. This is closer to February, March, and April's private-sector growth data. Hopefully, May was a blip as I posited. The BLS will release June's employment report tomorrow.


People in America (cable news mostly) really under estimate just how much Japan's earthquake screwed things up in our economy.

I think that and oil prices had most to do with slow hiring last month (May 2011).
 

Jackson50

Member
GhaleonEB said:
Yup, I'm expecting more than the median forecast of 110k. Both the ISM and non-manufacturing ISM employment indexes increased over last month, which did not show a dip. I'm also expecting upward revisions to the past two months.
Precisely. The ISM Manufacturing Index decidedly exceeded forecasts. Personally, this indicates that the supply chain disruptions were as pronounced as some purported. If we can at least return to the employment growth of the previous months, then output should increase robustly for the second half of the year.
mckmas8808 said:
People in America (cable news mostly) really under estimate just how much Japan's earthquake screwed things up in our economy.

I think that and oil prices had most to do with slow hiring last month (May 2011).
Additionally, there were disruptions in the Eurozone. It has been a tumultuous periord for the global economy.
 

Cyan

Banned
Chichikov said:
Edit: wait, are we having a serious discussion about secession now?
Nah. besada got a little miffed at people saying the South is useless. Which I can understand. It's irritating when people do the "lol, I hope California breaks into the ocean and we don't have to deal with the fruits and nuts" routine too.
 

Loudninja

Member
U.S. now believes Qaeda leader Kashmiri is dead
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. counter-terrorism agencies have concluded that a senior al Qaeda leader implicated in terrorist plots in South Asia and Europe is dead, a U.S. official said, following weeks of conflicting reports on his fate.

Pakistani officials said last month that Ilyas Kashmiri, an alleged leader of both al Qaeda and one of its Pakistan-based affiliates, had been killed by a drone-borne U.S. missile strike on a target in northwestern Pakistan.

Media reports quoted a commander of Harakat-ul Jihad Islami (HUJI), the local group with which Kashmiri allegedly was affiliated, confirming his death.
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/2011/07/us_now_believes_qaeda_leader_kashmiri_is_dead.php

Obama To Speak Soon
Today's White House meeting of congressional leaders and the President on a debt deal has wrapped up, and Obama is expected to appear in the White House briefing room shortly to make a statement
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/2011/07/watch_live_white_house_press_briefing_5.php
 

GaimeGuy

Volunteer Deputy Campaign Director, Obama for America '16
There are also two big structural problems with Congress that in my opinion need to be addressed (both constitutionally)

#1: The entire House of Representatives is up for election once every 2 years. This is way too frequent. Make it 4 or 6 years or something like that.

#2: The Senate gives each state equal representation. This distorts the balance of power in the country based on arbitrary geographical boundaries towards the regions with low population. Each state controls 2% of the senate, and the house and senate effectively have veto power over one another. A state like Wyoming, which has 0.183% of the population of the 50 states, controls 2% of the senate and 0.23% of the house.
 

Cyan

Banned
PantherLotus said:
Well this will be exciting. If I don't see some truly upset liberals, I won't know what to do with myself.
Oh, I'm sure we can all find something to concern troll about.
 
PantherLotus said:
Well this will be exciting. If I don't see some truly upset liberals, I won't know what to do with myself.
Debt deal is reached, bush cuts set to expire
Tomorrow greatly improved job numbers are released

Diablos/PD merge into a singular existence
 

GaimeGuy

Volunteer Deputy Campaign Director, Obama for America '16
RustyNails said:
Debt deal is reached, bush cuts set to expire
Tomorrow greatly improved job numbers are released

Diablos/PD merge into a singular existence
:O

PhoenixDiablos?
 

Cyan

Banned
SolKane said:
There's a statute of Jefferson Davis outside the capitol.
u9mMo.jpg
 

besada

Banned
eznark said:
No shit. It's nuts to think there is a statue of a democrat in Texas.
We have plenty of statues of Democrats who held office before 1964. After that, it gets kinda sparse.

You know, Thad Cochran still sits behind Davis's desk in the Senate.

There were two Davis statues in the park where we spread my father's ashes.
 

GhaleonEB

Member
Apparently Pelosi was blindsided by Obama's Social Security cut proposal (which is very, very stupid). Given all Pelosi has done for Obama's agenda - hello healthcare bill - that strikes me as very unwise, and poor form.

Also, this reader at TPM lines up closely with my thinking on this current period of time. I'd said before that this was the desperate flailings of a doomed group, and I think that will prove out over time.

I read you piece today on the Democrats failure of the political aspect of politics this morning. I think you need to take a step back and look at the larger picture. Nate Silver's piece today makes clear that the terms conservative and Republican are converging with everyone else favoring the Democrats. In this scenario, turnout composition explained the results in 2008 and 2010 more than population realignment.

I bring this up because I think we will look back at this moment as the chaotic time that the old order turned to the new. In my opinion, we are seeing the remants of the soon-to-be old power structure see their grip on power slip with the predictable response of ever greater efforts to hold power through cohesion, projections of power, and inflexibility. I would change the term pollsters use here from enthusiasm to desperation or fear. The end is coming. The demographics are clear. Majority minority is marching closer every day. Their team is the long-term loser, the horse and buggy to the Model T. We are now in the Battle of the Bulge phase of this transition. I don't think the transition will be smooth nor do I think that Democrats can't lose elections, but the behavior seems to fit to me. Democrats will compromise because the future is theirs while Republicans have to hold on to every vestige of their order remaining as though their lives depend on it...because it does. Tomorrow is not bright for them.​
 

PantherLotus

Professional Schmuck
I don't believe Pelosi was blind-sided by anything. I think she has to say that to maintain her strategic position as the liberal lioness, as well as providing cover for Obama as Mr. Centrist.
 

mckmas8808

Mckmaster uses MasterCard to buy Slave drives
PantherLotus said:
I don't believe Pelosi was blind-sided by anything. I think she has to say that to maintain her strategic position as the liberal lioness, as well as providing cover for Obama as Mr. Centrist.


Believe. I agree with you. But I don't mind her saying what she said either. The DEMs need to have some people that are considered liberal lioness as you put it.
 

Averon

Member
No way do I believe Pelosi was blindsided. Obama is a lot of things, but he wouldn't just screw her over like that without at least a heads up. It's political posturing.
 

Zero Hero

Member
GhaleonEB said:
I bring this up because I think we will look back at this moment as the chaotic time that the old order turned to the new. In my opinion, we are seeing the remants of the soon-to-be old power structure see their grip on power slip with the predictable response of ever greater efforts to hold power through cohesion, projections of power, and inflexibility. I would change the term pollsters use here from enthusiasm to desperation or fear. The end is coming. The demographics are clear. Majority minority is marching closer every day. Their team is the long-term loser, the horse and buggy to the Model T. We are now in the Battle of the Bulge phase of this transition. I don't think the transition will be smooth nor do I think that Democrats can't lose elections, but the behavior seems to fit to me. Democrats will compromise because the future is theirs while Republicans have to hold on to every vestige of their order remaining as though their lives depend on it...because it does. Tomorrow is not bright for them.[/INDENT]

That has been pretty obvious since conservatives finally realized that they weren't going to be able to put another repub into office to succeed G W Bush in the final year of his presidency. It's not a surprise everything shit the bed in 2008.
 

besada

Banned
T-Paw, flailing to find his place.
http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/...is-favorite-lady-gaga-songs-video.php?ref=fpb
After they listed their favorites, Pawlenty discussed his own, showing off his Gaga knowledge. "Well you know, in terms of the beat, I like 'Bad Romance,'" Pawlenty said. "I gotta say, even though she's a little unusual, 'Born this Way' has got some appeal. Now, she's actually very talented. If you go to the end of the HBO special, the Lady Gaga HBO special, and you watch her sing a cappella, 'Born This Way,' she can sing. She can definitely sing -- she's talented -- and she does it a cappella.

"So, you know, interesting, talented -- a little weird. But you know, if you had to limit your artistic choices to just conservatives, we wouldn't have a lot of choices. You've gotta be willing to tolerate different politics."
 

Cyan

Banned
This is actually really interesting: http://fivethirtyeight.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/07/07/why-the-g-o-p-cannot-compromise/.

Especially this part:
Imagine that Ms. Bachmann has won the Iowa caucuses while Mr. Romney has taken the New Hampshire primary, and the nomination is essentially up for grabs between them. As the contest shifts to a key state like Ohio or Pennsylvania, suppose that conservative Republicans split 60-30 in Ms. Bachmann’s favor (with a few voters opting for a hanger-on like Ron Paul), while moderate Republicans go 80-15 for Mr. Romney. Who is going to win?

Turnout would be decisive. If two conservative Republicans cast ballots for every moderate Republican — roughly the ratio in 2008 — Mr. Romney would prevail by a couple of points. But if the turnout looks more like 2010, and there are three conservative Republicans at the polls for every moderate Republican, Ms. Bachmann would win by about six percentage points:
 

eznark

Banned
Averon said:
No way do I believe Pelosi was blindsided. Obama is a lot of things, but he wouldn't just screw her over like that without at least a heads up. It's political posturing.

I honestly don't think Obama is smart or connected enough to blind-side Pelosi, as ludicrous as that might sound. I guaranty that everything that Pelosi knows every single thing that Team Barry is planning. She's a hideously ugly, leather-bound version of Cersei.
 
Cyan said:
You didn't read it, did you.

No, but I just skimmed through it now and see nothing to dispute it. Two months ago Donald Trump was leading in the polls. His overlying point about a conservative beating Romney makes sense, but at the same time the GOP primaries are always determined by power players - the establishment. If a conservative/far right candidate wins, it won't be her. Perry fits that niche and is more electable.
 
The republican war on infrastructure and mass transit continues.

They wont be happy until we go back to the good old days of 1421, where roads where built by real men (bears).


House Transportation Committee Chair John Mica’s proposed transportation reauthorization bill includes $230 billion over six years, a reduction of 33 percent compared to spending levels in the last multi-year bill. The proposal, which he unveiled at a standing-room-only press event in the committee hearing room today, eliminates any federal guarantee (he calls it a “set-aside”) for bicycle and pedestrian programs, as part of his drive to consolidate the federal transportation bureaucracy. Transit will still get a 20 percent share of surface transportation dollars, compared to 80 percent for highways.

...

The bill doesn’t include the proposal to privatize the Northeast Corridor, which has been introduced as a separate piece of legislation (and which Mica admitted was vastly unpopular). It doesn’t include any money explicitly for high-speed rail either.

http://dc.streetsblog.org/2011/07/0...33-eliminates-bike-ped-guarantee/#more-263508



Much of the blame goes to democrats. The last bill ran out under their watch, and they were too busy doing jack shit to pass a new 6 year bill. We've been running on re authorizations of the existing stuff.



Oh and before anybody DARES to say something along the lines of "10trillion in cuts means everything has to be looked at"


The measure would boost the Pentagon's budget by $17 billion for fiscal year 2012 at a time when Congress and the White House are in heated negotiations over the deficit and reining in federal spending. It is the only spending bill to move through the Republican-controlled House that would increase funding over 2011 levels.

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-defense-spending-20110707,0,7947235.story


Oh, and this lovely gem


“Is this House really capable of gutting investments in women’s health care but allowing a $5 million increase in funding for military bands?” she said.

In defending a proposal to keep funding at $325 million, Rep. John Carter (R-Tex.), a co-chairman of the congressional Army Caucus, argued the bands and their many ensembles help in recruiting and “uphold pride and morale through music at funerals, welcome home celebrations, concerts, ceremonies and other espirit-de-corps events.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs...or-first-time/2011/07/07/gIQATXEP2H_blog.html


For crying out loud, this country is spending $325 million on THIS

2011-07-04T232221Z_01_WAS905_RTRIDSP_3_OBAMA.jpg


And a republican is trying to defend that while destroying our bridges, killing the poor and crippling the economy?
 

Clevinger

Member
eznark said:
I honestly don't think Obama is smart or connected enough to blind-side Pelosi, as ludicrous as that might sound. I guaranty that everything that Pelosi knows every single thing that Team Barry is planning. She's a hideously ugly, leather-bound version of Cersei.

Are you drunk?
 
eznark said:
I honestly don't think Obama is smart or connected enough to blind-side Pelosi, as ludicrous as that might sound. I guaranty that everything that Pelosi knows every single thing that Team Barry is planning. She's a hideously ugly, leather-bound version of Cersei.
I'm smarter than Obama.
 
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