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[B-Dubs]

You don't need to apologize! It's just the latest in a long line of stress I've had to deal with over this past year.

I know from stress, not quite that bad though.

It could be worse. You could be a Dexter fangirl.

I can only imagine the pain. I heard the ending was total bullshit.

 

[PhoenixDark]

well that was quick

McConnell Shoots Down Ted Cruz's Plan To Risk Shutdown Over Obamacare

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) broke with Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) on Monday, revealing that he won't filibuster legislation to fund the government in service of conservative goals to defund Obamacare.

The Republican leader's decision is a major blow to the push by Cruz and powerful conservative activist groups, who wanted Republicans to unite and filibuster a continuing resolution until Democrats caved agreed to gut funding for the Affordable Care Act.

"Senator McConnell supports the House Republicans' bill and will not vote to block it, since it defunds Obamacare and funds the government without increasing spending by a penny," McConnell spokesman Don Stewart told TPM in an email Monday. "He will also vote against any amendment that attempts to add Obamacare funding back into the House Republicans' bill."

The decision clears a path for Democrats to pass a continuing resolution that funds Obamacare. Procedurally, Democrats need 60 votes (they have 54 members) to advance the House-passed continuing resolution. But Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) can strike the language defunding Obamacare with 51 votes, which frees up McConnell and every other Republican to vote against such an amendment. This way he never has to actually vote to fund Obamacare but doesn't force a shutdown over an unachievable goal.

"If and when the Majority Leader goes down that path," Stewart said, "Washington Democrats will have to decide -- without hiding behind a procedural vote -- whether or not to split with their leadership and join Republicans and their constituents in opposing the re-insertion of Obamacare funding into the House-passed bill."

The move also signals how badly McConnell wants to avoid a government shutdown, which observers across the political spectrum agree would harm the GOP. He's facing re-election in 2014 and fending off a conservative challenger, Matt Bevin, who is demanding he get tougher on Obamacare. A shutdown would also harm McConnell's ultimate goal of becoming majority leader after the mid-term elections.

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/dc/mcc...d-cruz-s-plan-to-risk-shutdown-over-obamacare

From a senate republican perspective, Cruz is attempting to prevent them from voting to debate a CR they support (the House bill, which defunds Obamacare), and later to vote against a CR they oppose (ie once Reid adds Obamacare back).

 

[Hitokage]

Don't worry, I have daddy issues too.

Me too. Not really helping the trend here.

 

[Karakand]

Don't worry, I have daddy issues too. My parents are getting divorced and my dad's being a huge dick to my mom and sister. Last week he cut off the utilities at the house where they live, and when my mom texted him asking if he paid the utility bill, he responded, "Sell the house, asshole."

And that's only the most recent thing he's done.

Know this song and dance all too well, sorry to hear.

 

[Mike M]

Man, I love my dad. He's great, we get along awesome, and he's over the moon about my daughter enough that he works from home every Monday so he and my mom can babysit her.

 

[zero shift]

The response is broad, so I'm not quite sure what you were originally looking for.

Just superficially, it's contrasting the economic policies of say Keynesianism in the PRC (keeping input costs low instead of keeping the supply of capital as unfettered as possible) vs. its descendant in use in the US (neoclassical synthesis).

So basically they want to keep a products cost low to force that to be the price people will pay for it so other items don't depreciate in value?

 

[Tamanon]

PD, this one's for you.

http://gawker.com/obama-i-havent-smoked-in-six-years-because-im-scare-1374151798

President Obama was caught on a live microphone today telling U.N. official Maina Kiai that he hasn't smoked in six years because he's "scared of my wife." Cue your crazy right-wing uncle's next chain email: "NOBAMA ADMITS HE'S AFRAID OF A WOMAN, JUST LIKE ALL MALE LIBTARDS! GUESS WE KNOW WHO WEARS THE PANTS IN THE WHITE HOUSE!"

 

[Jooney]

"If Obama can't stand up to his wife, how is he going to stand up to Putin?"

 

[Videoneon]

Ah conservative family members, gotta love 'em.

None of my family members are xplicitly conservative, though some of them take conservative positions. =\ None are really following politics

I agree with much of this, but fundamentally, I think we're much more likely to see a leftward shift within the Democratic Party than a meaningful rise of the Greens, for the same reasons as before. (Although empty vessel's point about the movement nature of politics is well taken.) And note that I've voted for Greens multiple times -- for state positions in California. I just think that none of them have built the resume and record necessary for national office, even leaving aside the party backing.

Ahh, well, duty noted, including everything else in that post.

well that was quick

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/dc/mcc...d-cruz-s-plan-to-risk-shutdown-over-obamacare

:lol McConnell. Just not a good place for him.

Don't worry, I have daddy issues too. My parents are getting divorced and my dad's being a huge dick to my mom and sister. Last week he cut off the utilities at the house where they live, and when my mom texted him asking if he paid the utility bill, he responded, "Sell the house, asshole."

Condolences.

 

[Drakeon]

Didn't the NRA help neuter the ATF several years ago?

I know they helped kill funding for research into gun violence, but seem to recall something about the ATF too. Or maybe it was some other agency?

Oh they've definitely been neutered. But my point was, there doesn't need to be a new agency, we just need to fund the agency we already have.

 

[Drakeon]

Wow, I got really high with Dems and Green.

95% Democrats
on economic, healthcare, science, environmental, social, and immigration issues
90% Green Party
on science, healthcare, environmental, economic, social, and immigration issues
68% Socialist
on healthcare, environmental, immigration, and social issues
9% Libertarians
on immigration issues
4% Republicans
no major issues

Edit: I need to stop double posting, my bad.

 

[The Librarian]

Beutler and Chait are killing it on Twitter.

My sides.

 

[B-Dubs]

Oh that's good stuff.

 

[FLEABttn]

I side with Democrats on most political issues.
Parties you side with...

90% Democrats
on economic, social, domestic policy, environmental, healthcare, science, and immigration issues

85% Green Party
on economic, social, environmental, healthcare, science, foreign policy, and immigration issues

74% Socialist
on economic, social, healthcare, and immigration issues

13% Libertarians
on foreign policy and immigration issues

1% Republicans
no major issues

 

[CHEEZMO™]

Yall might be interested in this thread http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=684765

 

[zero shift]

Yall might be interested in this thread http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=684765

I stopped taking the "unions kill everything" people seriously when Texas bans school unions and has by the worst education in the nation (despite being pretty well off economically).

 

[East Lake]

I know organized labor is a threat to executives and such so union busting makes sense for them, but how does the average joe reconcile his union hate? Like these millionaires in waiting are sitting around hoping their union is going to get dismantled. Exercise that freedom hard on and fucking quit you loser. You don't have to work for a unionized business.

 

[ClassyPenguin]

Two words: Union Dues.

 

[Gotchaye]

I know organized labor is a threat to executives and such so union busting makes sense for them, but how does the average joe reconcile his union hate? Like these millionaires in waiting are sitting around hoping their union is going to get dismantled. Exercise that freedom hard on and fucking quit you loser. You don't have to work for a unionized business.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/False_consciousness

 

[Oblivion]

Yeah seriously. Ultimately if she was a better politician than Obama she wouldn't have lost to Obama. In fact I see no reason to believe that Clinton 08 would have been much different than Clinton 92, who had similar majorities as Obama in his first two years and had little to show for it. Clinton's big first-term initiative, healthcare reform, was very publicly defeated and after the Democrats lost Congress, all major legislation focused on right-wing pet issues while being softened enough to be acceptable for Democrats. While Obama did lose the House, he DID get healthcare reform, a big stimulus package, and worked to undo some of the problems Clinton caused (DADT repeal, toughening financial regulations), while dealing with monstrous deficits, a severe recession, and two wars left behind by his predecessor.

Would Hillary have taken it in stride the way Obama has? Probably not.

This is why I'm not as ecstatic as everyone else is at the prospect of a Hilldawg presidency. Obviously, she's infinitely better than whatever Republican she'll be facing, but she's much more of a corporate democrat than Obama is. She doesn't seem that different from her husband, who seemed totally fine with "triangulating" towards the Republican congress.

 

[smokeandmirrors]

Literally cannot understand how you can say college is more affordable now than ever, even when staring at data that says college 20 years ago was half the cost today. Or how paying 10k+ out of pocket every year is feasible for everyone.

College is too expensive but apparently prices aren't too expensive now, somehow?

 

[Aaron Strife]

This is why I'm not as ecstatic as everyone else is at the prospect of a Hilldawg presidency. Obviously, she's infinitely better than whatever Republican she'll be facing, but she's much more of a corporate democrat than Obama is. She doesn't seem that different from her husband, who seemed totally fine with "triangulating" towards the Republican congress.

I do like Hillary, but I admit Obama excites me more. She'll likely be able to coast on a good economy and have a better Congress than Obama's had to deal with since 2011. Although I'm still hoping (perhaps against hope) that Democrats will win big in 2014 and we'll get immigration and cap & trade before Hillary.

 

[GhaleonEB]

Democrats 86%
on economic, healthcare, domestic policy, science, and environmental issues

Green Party 74%
on domestic policy, healthcare, and science issues

Socialist 68%
on healthcare and science issues

Libertarians 10%
on immigration issues

Republicans 2%
no major issues

Looks about right. I appreciated that after I selected the option to see the full list of responses, eventually the site realized I'd do that to all of them and just offered them up each time.

 

[platypotamus]

My dad is a conservative, and votes republican, but about 90% of the time when we talk about politics he'll agree with everything I say (and then say something like "but if you listened to the guys I listen to on talk radio you'd see, I just can't remember all the good information to argue back") or just say "when you get older you'll come around". Then he agrees with me that it's a fallacy that people actually become more conservative as they age.

I honestly think he's just been voting conservative for so long he's too stubborn to change his ways

 

[Oblivion]

Can someone please tweet this dipshit and remind him that his "correction" doesn't correct the fact that Warren Buffett was never against Obamacare:

http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/warren-buffett-scrap-obamacare-and-start-over_756302.html

I'd do it myself but I'm at work, and they don't let us go on the Twitters. #ObamasAmerica

 

[zero shift]

I know organized labor is a threat to executives and such so union busting makes sense for them, but how does the average joe reconcile his union hate? Like these millionaires in waiting are sitting around hoping their union is going to get dismantled. Exercise that freedom hard on and fucking quit you loser. You don't have to work for a unionized business.

They don't like that unions make more money than they do. The average Joe is struggling and sees union members doing fine and gets jealous.

Literally cannot understand how you can say college is more affordable now than ever, even when staring at data that says college 20 years ago was half the cost today. Or how paying 10k+ out of pocket every year is feasible for everyone.

College is too expensive but apparently prices aren't too expensive now, somehow?

Look at the post history of the poster(s) that you are referring to.

 

[Avon Barksdale]

 

[Jooney]

I know organized labor is a threat to executives and such so union busting makes sense for them, but how does the average joe reconcile his union hate? Like these millionaires in waiting are sitting around hoping their union is going to get dismantled. Exercise that freedom hard on and fucking quit you loser. You don't have to work for a unionized business.

Two words: Union Dues.

People love Union benefits but don't want to pay for them. Sounds exactly like the conservative opposition to Obamacare.

 

[Aaron]

I've spoken with MA Republicans. Moderate isn't a word I'd use to describe them. Even the ones that don't throw in with the Tea Party are Fox News acolytes. There's just not enough of them to sway an election.

 

[East Lake]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/False_consciousness

Every time I click a Marx link I get lost staring at his beard for a few minutes.

 

[Black Mamba]

lol ted cruz's plan blowing up in his face.

Man, Tahoe is fucking beautiful, I gotta say.

 

[B-Dubs]

lol ted cruz's plan blowing up in his face.

Man, Tahoe is fucking beautiful, I gotta say.

It couldn't have happened to a dumber guy.

 

[Black Mamba]

It couldn't have happened to a dumber guy.

Ted Cruz ain't dumb. That's partially why he scares me. Bachman is crazy too, but she's obviously a fucking moron. Same with Palin and King and others.

But Cruz seems like what morons think a smart person sounds like (and America has no shortage of morons). He knows he's bullshitting and he knows how to try to make the bullshit stick on someone else.

That's why I take joy out of his plan really blowing up in his face. He needs to be exposed for the snake oil salesmen he is before it's too late.

 

[zero shift]

Instead of focusing on unions to put pressure on employers why not just invest in government jobs that hire almost anybody and have high wages as well as invest in cooperatives?

 

[ClassyPenguin]

Instead of focusing on unions to put pressure on employers why not just invest in government jobs that hire almost anybody and have high wages as well as invest in cooperatives?

Well, reality gets in the way. Not everyone in govt feels the same way and so come committees and fees and budgets.

With contracts, the problem is mitigated. I do want for a job guarantee and a living wage but those can only come with baggage. Private business should be able to compete, but in times of economic stress the govt should be there. For industries and for the people. GM has done a good job of turning around. That's the kind of pragmatic thinking that should go around.

 

[PhoenixDark]

Cruz is very smart by all accounts. However his recent behavior seems to contradict his previous comments on the senate. He entered office bashing republicans for focusing on gimmicks and votes that don't matter, including the Obamacare defunding votes. Yet here he is demanding republicans take up a blatantly empty battle, and he's wasting political capital for it. I get that he's self centered and he knows this fight is doomed, but he's making himself look like a fool even to true believers now.

He seems to admire Obama's 2008 run and truly thinks he can replicate it on the grassroots level. Good luck. I'm sure there are GOP operatives just waiting to torpedo his campaign with ugly leaks. A guy who used to walk around dorm halls in a bathrobe to annoy female classmates almost certainly has dirty laundry.

 

[ClassyPenguin]

Cruz can do damage, especially with the Latino voters. I think he's conflicted with what he wants to say and what he feels obligated. He can manipulate that, the self-raised immigrant, small-business owner, but the GOP has a message and that overrides him.

 

[zero shift]

Well, reality gets in the way. Not everyone in govt feels the same way and so come committees and fees and budgets.

I'm talking about the actual practice. Sure Americans may hate the idea of universal health care. Doesn't change the fact that it works.

With contracts, the problem is mitigated. I do want for a job guarantee and a living wage but those can only come with baggage.

What baggage?

GM has done a good job of turning around. That's the kind of pragmatic thinking that should go around.

What's the point if GM jobs still pay like poo-poo?

 

[ClassyPenguin]

Practice and reality is everything. It's why we have Obamacare instead of universal care.

GM jobs are going to continue and even that is a victory.
I think if you take everything for granted, then you have nothing left.

 

[zero shift]

Practice and reality is everything. It's why we have Obamacare instead of universal care.

GM jobs are going to continue and even that is a victory.
I think if you take everything for granted, then you have nothing left.

I don't understand where you are going with this post.

 

[GhaleonEB]

He seems to admire Obama's 2008 run and truly thinks he can replicate it on the grassroots level. Good luck. I'm sure there are GOP operatives just waiting to torpedo his campaign with ugly leaks. A guy who used to walk around dorm halls in a bathrobe to annoy female classmates almost certainly has dirty laundry.

Yup. And even setting aside dirty laundry, Cruz has probably made a lot of enemies on the way to where he is (and seems to be making more by the day). Some people step on toes on the way up, but Cruz makes a point to step on them and then laugh at the entrainment. There's no way that doesn't come back to bite him if he tries to take his schtick to the presidential primary.

 

[Diablos]

He seems to admire Obama's 2008 run and truly thinks he can replicate it on the grassroots level. Good luck. I'm sure there are GOP operatives just waiting to torpedo his campaign with ugly leaks. A guy who used to walk around dorm halls in a bathrobe to annoy female classmates almost certainly has dirty laundry.

lol wut

 

[Averon]

So, what's Cruz's end game in all this?

How is splitting the GOP, pissing off the 'old guard', and upsetting the Tea Party help his 2016 run?

 

[Diablos]

That is our wet dream. We want the GOP and Tea Party to split. Oh that would be glorious. But I think no one will let it get to that point sadly.

 

[PhoenixDark]

lol wut

He had his staff read The Audacity To Win and other books about Obama's 2007/2008 run, specifically how he managed to overwhelm the system with a grassroots based campaign. I'd imagine that one day a republican candidate will pull that off but I'd doubt it'll be Cruz. Rand Paul seems far more popular among young voters and he already has an online presense thanks to his dad.

Obama also didn't piss anyone off in the senate or at Harvard; his enemies were the small politicians he crushed in Illinois. Obama also had the senate majority leader telling him to run, the former senate minority leaders's staff at his disposal, and the senate majority whip as his mentor. I'm not questioning Obama's underdog status but he had friends in very high places, whereas Cruz seems to have have enemies in those positions.

(Meanwhile Rand Paul has muscled a mutual relationship with the senate minority leader and seems to be calming down his antics.)

 

[cartoon_soldier]

So, what's Cruz's end game in all this?

How is splitting the GOP, pissing off the 'old guard', and upsetting the Tea Party help his 2016 run?

You are mistaken to think Cruz has thought to that far out.

 

[Avon Barksdale]

He had his staff read The Audacity To Win and other books about Obama's 2007/2008 run, specifically how he managed to overwhelm the system with a grassroots based campaign. I'd imagine that one day a republican candidate will pull that off but I'd doubt it'll be Cruz. Rand Paul seems far more popular among young voters and he already has an online presense thanks to his dad.

Obama also didn't piss anyone off in the senate or at Harvard; his enemies were the small politicians he crushed in Illinois. Obama also had the senate majority leader telling him to run, the former senate minority leaders's staff at his disposal, and the senate majority whip as his mentor. I'm not questioning Obama's underdog status but he had friends in very high places, whereas Cruz seems to have have enemies in those positions.

(Meanwhile Rand Paul has muscled a mutual relationship with the senate minority leader and seems to be calming down his antics.)

Ron Paul supporters don't like Rand at all.

 

[Diablos]

Ron Paul supporters don't like Rand at all.

Hillary supporters don't like Obama at all.

Oh, wait.

 

[Aaron Strife]

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/poll-capito-leads-tennant-by-double-digits

Rep. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) leads Secretary of State Natalie Tennant by double digits in the Senate race for outgoing Sen. Jay Rockefeller's (D-WV) seat, according to a new poll.

The Public Policy Polling survey released Tuesday found Capito leading Tennant 50 percent to 36 percent among West Virginia voters.

 

[shadowsdarknes]

Ted Cruz ain't dumb. That's partially why he scares me. Bachman is crazy too, but she's obviously a fucking moron. Same with Palin and King and others.

But Cruz seems like what morons think a smart person sounds like (and America has no shortage of morons). He knows he's bullshitting and he knows how to try to make the bullshit stick on someone else.

That's why I take joy out of his plan really blowing up in his face. He needs to be exposed for the snake oil salesmen he is before it's too late.

Agreed. Cruz is far from dumb. And that's whats scary. He excels at being disingenuous.
I think he's too abrasive to become President.

But I don't think there is any way to actually win this battle he's fighting.
Obama is playing this the right way. We do not negotiate over the debt ceiling. If the Repubs choose not to raise the debt ceiling, its entirely on them.

Trying to politicize this and tie in Obamacare into the issue of the debt ceiling isn't going to win. Cruz has no leverage.