Bob Cesca

From our nation's capital, it's The Bob Cesca Show - today with Jody Hamilton.

Leading off with 45* giving us an amazing demo of the ultimate in The DumFux News Effect - insisting that he's right even while admitting he's wrong.

This is Gas-Lighting at a level beyond the imaginings of Poe and Hitchcock.

On Secrecy And Security

...and good government.

JFK, American Newspaper Publishers Association, April 27, 1961:

"We decided long ago that the dangers of unwarranted and excessive concealment of pertinent facts far outweigh the dangers which are cited to justify it."

"Even today, there is little value in opposing the threat of a closed society by imitating its arbitrary restrictions."

"Even today, there is little value in ensuring the survival of our nation if our traditions do not survive with it."

"And there is grave danger in an announced need for increased security will be seized upon by those anxious to expand its meaning to the very limits of official censorship and concealment."

This was mostly about trying to have a conversation about where to draw the line.

And drawing lines is what the whole thing is about to begin with - because compromise; you don't get everything you want; checks and balances, ya big dope.

An awful lot of our little experiment in self-government depends on the honor of the people we put in office.

We fuck it up sometimes, and we elect Huey Long; Dick Nixon; Warren G Harding; Joe McCarthy; Rob Blagojevich; Tom Price; Billy Tauzin - the list goes on forever - but we turn it around and we get it back on track, and the way we do that is by taking our responsibilities seriously enough to insist on making the system of Checks and Balances work, and to hold ourselves accountable for it.

In a democratic republic, the quality of our government is only as good as the work we're willing to put into it.

A Town Hall - VA05

Tom Garrett is a Daddy State clown of the highest order.

Follow him on Twitter. Listen to his speeches. Watch the YouTube videos. And then troll the fuck out of him.  Nobody deserves a good old-fashioned slagging more than this guy.

My comment at YouTube:

(and you might have to hurry - no telling how long his media people will allow criticism to stay in place)

Your "logic" is that banning bump stocks wouldn't save all that many lives, so why bother? Because - long guns? Well, what's the number, Mr Garrett? How many Americans do you need to see murdered before you get up off your ass and do something? 50? 500? How many? 

Then you turn around and say we have to spend enormous amounts of time and energy and money to solve the problem of immigrants involved in 3% of traffic deaths. 

You're an ideologue. You insist on taking every circumstance and smashing-fitting it into your narrow preconceptions. And the kicker is that you insist on using the most obviously ham-handed debate tactics, most often heard in a middle school cafeteria:

eg: "As someone who respects the Bill of Rights..." - what grade are you in now? 

Everybody respects the Bill of Rights, dopey - nobody is saying anything about tearing it up except you, when you're using it as a false premise. 

There is no honor in your outlook, or in your intellectually lazy presentation, or in your blatant attempts to impose your Daddy State agenda on us. 

You need to go.

Today's Tweet

And the message is clear.

There are no words for how much i rate this 😂😂 pic.twitter.com/Pyw5cNCdHh #IWD2018 #WomensDay #8march #8marzo

— Cinzia Pellegrino (@cnzpll) March 11, 2018

The clitterati. How great is that?

Milbank Gets One Right

Dana Milbank, WaPo:

It was the eve of the biggest economic collapse since the Great Depression. Many on Wall Street worried that a recession loomed and that the housing bubble was bursting.

And then there was Larry Kudlow, the man President Trump just tapped to be his top economic adviser.

“Despite all the doom and gloom from the economic pessimistas, the resilient U.S. economy continues moving ahead,” Kudlow wrote on Dec. 7, 2007, in National Review, predicting that gloomy forecasters would “wind up with egg on their faces.” Kudlow, who previously derided as “bubbleheads” those who warned about a housing bubble, now wrote that “very positive” news in housing should “cushion” falling home sales and prices.
Some of Mr Kudlow's Greatest Hits:

1993: Kudlow proclaims in a speech: “There is no question that President Clinton’s across-the-board tax increases on labor, capital and energy will throw a wet blanket over the recovery and depress the economy’s long-run potential.” The economy goes into an eight-year expansion and adds 21 million jobs.

2001: Kudlow writes in National Review about the George W. Bush tax cuts: “Faster economic growth and more profitable productivity returns will generate higher tax revenues at the new lower tax-rate levels. Future budget surpluses will rise, not fall.” Tax revenue falls, and the budget goes from surplus into deep deficits.

2002: Kudlow, arguing for war in Iraq, writes in National Review: “The shock therapy of decisive war will elevate the stock market by a couple-thousand points.” The market falls and the Dow Jones doesn’t get that couple-thousand-point elevation for years.

2009: Kudlow says in an interview: “President Obama is waging war on investors. He’s waging war against businesses.” In a piece in the Washington Times he warns that inflation could “ratchet higher.” The stock market and corporate profits climb to records, while inflation remains historically low.

2009: Kudlow says in an interview: “President Obama is waging war on investors. He’s waging war against businesses.” In a piece in the Washington Times he warns that inflation could “ratchet higher.” The stock market and corporate profits climb to records, while inflation remains historically low.
I'll admit I don't know everything Kudlow's ever predicted, so I could be stuck in the Argument From Ignorance logical fallacy. But I'll do a little prase-poaching and say this:

Those who can, do. Those who can't, go on TV and jaw-jack about it.

And then, if 45* thinks they look good enough on camera, they go to work in the White House, whether they know what the fuck they're doing or not.

Samantha Bee

Full Frontal - TBS, Wednesday nights at 10:30 Eastern - Samantha Bee

And Still

The weather vane previously known as George Will:

Iceland must be pleased that it is close to success in its program of genocide, but before congratulating that nation on its final solution to the Down syndrome problem, perhaps it might answer a question: What is this problem? To help understand why some people might ask this question, meet two children. One is Agusta, age 8, a citizen of Iceland. The other is Lucas, age 1, an American citizen in Dalton, Ga., who recently was selected to be 2018 “Spokesbaby” for the Gerber baby food company. They are two examples of the problem.

Now, before Iceland becomes snippy about the description of what it is doing, let us all try to think calmly about genocide, without getting judgmental about it. It is simply the deliberate, systematic attempt to erase a category of people. So, what one thinks about a genocide depends on what one thinks about the category involved. In Iceland’s case, the category is people with Down syndrome.

I have no idea what prompted this thinly-veiled screed against a woman's right to make her own decisions - could be as simple as Mr Will auditioning for a better slot on the Wingnut Welfare circuit.

But with the prospect of a President Mike Pence looming as a real possibility - plus the Blue Wave - the passions of the Pinched-Face Knee-Jerking American Taliban need to be whipped into a rich creamy lather again so the GOP faithful are motivated to get out there and vote.

Or maybe he had a deadline to submit 400 words, and he just had to pull something out of the files (or his ass, which seems just as likely these days).

Anyway.

Once again, let's review:

• Caterpillars ain't butterflies
• Tadpoles ain't frogs
• Ain't nothin' goin' on in my daughter's uterus that's any of your goddamned business

So fuck off, George.

Bless You, Charlie Pierce

Charlie Pierce - Esquire:

Remember that old saw about a lawyer who defends himself having a fool for a client? Well, the reverse is true, too. A client who becomes his own lawyer has a fool for a lawyer.

The court has been merciless toward Kobach and toward his prime witnesses, including the notorious Hans von Spakovsky, who has been a vital member of the posse in pursuit of the franchise ever since the Republicans dreamed it up. For his part, Kobach has evinced all the legal skills of a marmoset. His feet haven’t touched the bottom of the pool since he entered the court. The federal district judge, a patient woman named Julie Robinson, is completely fed up with having to preside over a trial while filling in the gaps in Kobach’s legal education, as this story from The Kansas City Star explains:

U.S. District Judge Julie Robinson has repeatedly warned Kobach’s team about trying to introduce evidence that has not been shared with the plaintiffs during the first three days of the high stakes trial, which will determine whether thousands can vote in Kansas this November. Kobach complained that the parties in the case “are relying on numbers that are stale” after the judge blocked a line of questioning to Bryan Caskey, the state director of elections, on data that had not been provided to the American Civil Liberties Union, which is representing the plaintiffs in the case before the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Kan.

This triggered a rebuke from Robinson after three days of polite warnings on the rules of legal procedure in the face of multiple hiccups from Kobach’s team. “We're not going to have a trial by ambush here... You're stuck with what you provided to them by the deadline,” Robinson said. "No, no. That's not how trials are conducted," she told Kobach during the exchange. Sue Becker, an attorney on Kobach’s team, tried to interject. “Let me finish,” the judge said as she continued on with her admonishment.
And it gets better from there.

May the Lord Zalmoxis keep you and protect you, Charlie.

Today's Brain Teaser

If I didn't do anything the entire 8 years I was in office, what exactly is Trump reversing?

Today's Cheapshot

Dr Gail Saltz:

Because my great big Anterior Cingulate Gyrus can beat up your puny little Right Amygdala.

Please note: the ACG is kind of an upper brain thingie (suggesting higher evolutionary status) while the amygdala is in the lower brain - the part that hasn't changed much since we were living in trees and sifting thru buffalo shit looking for a few undigested seeds to eat.

Just sayin'.

And if you watched that whole video, you know most of what you just read is bullshit.

But if you've been to my little blog with any frequency - well, you knew that goin' in.

Anyway, good to have new information on how to get those idiot conservatives to stop being such bullheaded whiny-butt Proto-Apes and listen to my perfectly-reasoned and superior arguments.

Oh Goodie

WaPo:

Larry Kudlow on Wednesday accepted an offer from President Trump to head the White House’s National Economic Council, according to three people familiar with the decision.

Kudlow had been seen as the front-runner, but Trump formally offered Kudlow the job Wednesday to replace former Goldman Sachs executive Gary Cohn, who resigned last week, largely over a fight over imposing tariffs that he lost.

Kudlow, 70, is described by White House officials as someone who connects with the president personally and politically. Kudlow, born and raised in New Jersey, shares with Trump a hard-charging personality and a fondness for being a media figure and both have hosted television programs. Kudlow has also been an informal Trump adviser over the past year.
Larry fucking Kudlow.  45* loves the guy because Kudlow is good TV - fake lord have mercy.

Get ready for some Baghdad Bob-level happy talk about 5 or 6% GDP growth - which won't happen, which will be used as "evidence" to rationalize more tax cuts and deregulation.

PA18

Some of the Poodles are baying loudly about everything they've been trained to bay about, while missing the seemingly obvious point that the GOP has become whatever is a few orders of magnitude worse than a cess pool.

James Hohmann, WaPo:

THE BIG IDEA: National Republicans threw the kitchen sink to hold a House seat in Pennsylvania that President Trump won by 20 points. But while the special election remains too close to call, Democrat Conor Lamb clings to a narrow lead and declared victory early this morning.

The media will focus today on what an embarrassment it is for Trump to lose in the heart of his geographic base of support. He went to Pittsburgh twice in the closing weeks to boost Republican Rick Saccone, including on Saturday, and tweeted his support again on Tuesday. The White House also deployedDon Jr., Ivanka, Kellyanne Conway, Mike Pence and even Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke to help.

The bigger reason that the savviest GOP operatives in town are freaking out right now, though, is that the results underscore the degree to which the party has been unable to hone in on a message that can reliably win races in this environment.
Yeah - you bet - it's the message. Like it was Hillary's message. 

It's not the fucking message.

I'm not saying propaganda doesn't work - it should be clear that it does, because it's been working for quite a while.

But eventually, we start to catch on. We start to see how little there is behind the slogans and bumperstickers.

And also too

Call me silly and old-fashioned and nerdy, but the message is directly dependent on the issues and the policy proposals. 

When the words in your message are empty, you get a jagoff like Saccone trying to close the deal yesterday with, "...they hate you; they hate this country, and they hate god."

GOP has no message because they're upside down and backwards on practically every issue that matters to people, while believing they can always count on the formula of God Gays Guns and Gynecology. 

Their message sucks because it's all style and no substance - and people are gettin' wise to it.

And also too - this is what PA18 looks like right now.

Gerrymander much? No wonder the courts spanked 'em.

Today's Tweet

Sometimes, god is quite the marksman

Lightening Striking A Moving Car!! pic.twitter.com/Ce4FLPZGqh

— EPL Bible (@EPLBibIe) March 13, 2018

 

About That TheoCon Thing

It's a long one, but you have to admit - the graphic's pretty good.

Michael Gerson, The Atlantic:

One of the most extraordinary things about our current politics—really, one of the most extraordinary developments of recent political history—is the loyal adherence of religious conservatives to Donald Trump. The president won four-fifths of the votes of white evangelical Christians. This was a higher level of support than either Ronald Reagan or George W. Bush, an outspoken evangelical himself, ever received.

Trump’s background and beliefs could hardly be more incompatible with traditional Christian models of life and leadership. Trump’s past political stances (he once supported the right to partial-birth abortion), his character (he has bragged about sexually assaulting women), and even his language (he introduced the words pussy and shithole into presidential discourse) would more naturally lead religious conservatives toward exorcism than alliance. This is a man who has cruelly publicized his infidelities, made disturbing sexual comments about his elder daughter, and boasted about the size of his penis on the debate stage. His lawyer reportedly arranged a $130,000 payment to a porn star to dissuade her from disclosing an alleged affair. Yet religious conservatives who once blanched at PG-13 public standards now yawn at such NC-17 maneuvers. We are a long way from The Book of Virtues.
Remember though:

This is Michael Gerson - who helped create the monster.  

It reads as pretty critical, but (to me) it ends up being more of an Apologetic than a Critique.

ie: He tries to say otherwise near the end, but it gets to the usual attempt to blame it all on the product while ignoring the process (and the management of the process) that gave us that product. 

And as always always always, there's the standard passive voice bullshit: "We're all to blame for this horrible mess, so let's call it even and start fresh". 

No. There's one side of this where many many good people (Christian and otherwise) are turning away - because on the other side there's a buncha fuckin' maniacs called Republicans.

There are not "very fine people" on both sides of this shit.

Gotta get used to looking for the razor blade in these apples (hat tip = driftglass).

BTW: There's a sound cloud file embedded in the piece that makes it quite a bit easier.

Today's Pix

(click it)