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November 07, 2014 06:39 AM UTC

Friday Open Thread

  • 40 Comments
  • by: Colorado Pols

"Your circumstance is not your outcome."

–Anita R. Sneed-Carter

Comments

40 thoughts on “Friday Open Thread

  1. It's time for the Democratic Wing of the Democratic Party to step up.  

    If jobs, wages, housing and the economy are the primary issues, then why are they not the centerpiece of your messaging.

    If the Republican Party is the party of the oligarchy, and Democrats the party of the middle class, then pretending there isn't a class war is just plain stupid. They're going to call you a socialist, even if you are middle-of-the road like Hickenlooper, right-wing on deficit spending like Romanoff and Udall, or implementing the Republican health care plan like Obama.

    Udall's campaign was correct that women's issues are important, but missed out on the fact that jobs, wages, housing and the economy are at the core of women's issues. (Also men's, of course).

    I predict that the Republican Party will drop talk of personhood, abortion, gay rights, and then those social issues will no longer be a candidate differentiator … Oh wait, maybe some Republicans have already learned that lesson. Social issues are important, but as a litmus test they do not trump standing up for basic liberal economic values.

    I blame the Democratic loss this season on its long tradition of Conservative messaging coming from the right-wing of the Party, primarily the emphasis on right-wing economic rhetoric.

    1. Yup.

      Do we "accept" the fact the CO is "purple" and never try to move the needle on critical issues? Do our electeds in DC forever have to veer right and steer clear of their own shadows? Do we fear the money of the Koch Bros. and their Minimum Waged Minions until the D-demographic has been born free? 

      No. Elected D's need to get their asses in gear and do their fucking jobs, off year or not. Popular president who passed a popular law they have difficulty standing up for…….or not.

    2. Hear, hear … it's the middle class, stupid. 

      Middle class values:

      decent and fair wages,

      healthcare,

      good and safe public schools,

      safe communities,

      a tax code that encourages small business and not mega-corporations,

      a tax code that is not tilted to the 1% at the expense of the middle class,

      security and dignity in retirement

      a budget that isn't dominated by military spending,

      freedom – the freedom to be who you are and not be threatened or marginalized for it.

      In a nutshell – take the focus off the 1% and return it to the middle class. 

       

        1. That's my point, AC – Dems decided to go centrist, I suppose in large part because they looked at 2014 map and thought that's the message they needed to win and running from Obama would help. Of course, when 4 red states pass minimum wage bills, you come to realize they miscalculated BIG TIME.

          It was going to be a bad year for Dems regardless, but when you look at the silver linings for Dems in 2014, you see that they were put there by progressive messages, values and candidates.

          If the GOP were smart, and they are, they'd figure out a way to brand themselves as progressive – I'm guessing a focus on small business by cutting lose big business/Wall St, could be the right message for a dark horse, outside the beltway candidate, and that should scare the crap out of Dems because if a GOPer can do that – all the social issues come in tow, behind a big happy Morning in America message … and maybe, smile. 

          1. Problem is, Dems are afraid to run on those things no matter how many polls show they're winners. It's as if they've just given up, conceded that GOTP messaging is so superior they can't compete no matter what the polls say so they don't even try.That's why you can have, as just one of many examples, Dems massively losing to Rs in a state whose voters passed a minimum wage raise even though they should know those Rs they elected are adamant enemies of the policy they support. That's why progressive  policies on the various state ballots did so well, conservative ones like personhood were defeated soundly while Dem pols, who shared all those positions (not just on abortion rights) with their electorates, did so poorly.

            That's not the fault of Rs lying. That's the Dem's fault for not having the balls to strut their stuff and take full advantage. If there isn't a major change within the Dem political  organization and leadership and in the strategies worshipped by supposed expert Dem ops, this is going to keep right on happening. Dems will have the winning policy positions and still lose.

    3. I predict that the Republican Party will drop talk of personhood, abortion, gay rights, and then those social issues will no longer be a candidate differentiator … Oh wait, maybe some Republicans have already learned that lesson.

      Keep Dreaming:

      Abortion-Rights Advocates Preparing for a New Surge of Federal and State Attacks

      But the wider Republican gains in the states are likely to add to the rush of abortion restrictions, from two-day waiting periods to bans at 20 weeks after conception to costly building requirements, that have been adopted in the last several years.

      As in 2010, when Republicans made large gains, social issues like abortion were not a major factor in the campaigns. But once in office, the newly dominant Republican legislators passed scores of new abortion restrictions.

      Dems: Make insurance companies offer abortion rider

      LANSING – Many Democrats would simply like to repeal a law that requires women to purchase an additional rider to their insurance polices if they want abortion coverage…

      …Michigan Right to Life spearheaded a petition drive and gathered enough signatures to put the issue directly to the Legislature after Gov. Rick Snyder vetoed a similar piece of legislation in 2012. The law prohibits insurance companies from including abortion coverage in health care plans, instead requiring women to purchase an additional rider.

      Republicans who have co-opted over the counter oral contraceptives as some fig leaf to hide their deeply misogynistic views will be found out as soon as votes start being cast.  Repugnants will abandon anti-choice legislation when their case does, meaning never.  They will simply get better at lying about it.

      1. Bring it on!!!   smiley

        I want the Repubs in Congress to bring anti-choice legislation to the floor.  I want to see our new senator squirm over it.  Pols, break out your pic of little Cory shaped like a pretzel, you're going to need it!

        And should it actually clear the Senate (remember, Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski are pro-choice; Mark Kirk and Kelly Ayotte need to run in 2 years in IL and NH), then here's hoping Obama vetos with a big photo op!

        Did on guns!  Here's hoping newly minted U.S. Rep Ken Buck introduces the Second Amendment Protection Act of 2015 which overrides all state legislation regulating guns!  This one actually has a better chance of getting on Obama's desk and another veto ceremony photo op!

         

         

  2. Good Governance is Good Politics

    Something to consider: Maybe if you are the party of expanding government you might consider it important to be competent at what government already does?

    Good governance is good politics for incumbents.

    How is that working out?  We could go through a list, but today's news of Obama phone waste, fraud, abuse and corruption plays into the narrative.

    http://denver.cbslocal.com/2014/11/06/governments-free-phone-program-riddled-with-abuse-fraud/

    1. First, what percentage of the phones handed out are done so in a fraudulent way? Yes, any fraud is bad, but if it is on a very limited basis, it's not indicative of being "riddled with fraud."

      Second, from TFA article, violations are punished with fines and other means. This doesn't happen unchecked.

      Third, it's private providers handing out the phones. Good of you to knock the government program instead of the private companies gaming the system for more money. 

      Fourth, Jon Caldara is your voice of opposition? When looking for a reasoned response, best not to call on the guy who basically doesn't think government should exist at all. 

      1. OF,  What is the check on the abuse of the system?  The government.

        Are they doing a good job at it? No.

        How hard would it be to audit the food stamp numbers submitted to ensure that not more than one number was used per application before it is approved?  

        In the private sector it would be easy.

        1. since 2012, it has fined its vendors more than $95 million for the kind of shenanigans uncovered in the CBS4 Investigation.

          Looks to me like they're checking they system. 

          But you're right, in the private sector there would just write it off as some kind of expense and get a tax break for their work. 

    2. The GOP needs to refocus it's aim on government from abolishing government, to making it work better. 

      Abolishing government is a value within the John Birch Society wing of the GOP.

      Focusing on waste, fraud and abuse is a worthy objective, if it is indeed the primary objective and not simply a cloak to "drown the government in the bathtub" under the guise of trying to make government more efficient. 

    3. Oh please, AC. Everything has improved since the horrors and failures and economic disasters of the Cheney/Bush administration. Look at Kansas for the perfect example of how your party's unfetterd policies work. Look at Wisconsin compard to Minnesota.  Look at  all the states where progressive policies on the ballot won even as Dems lost. Your party's policies suck in practice.  My party's  going along too much with your party's policies sucks in practice.You're just lucky Dems are still too afraid of Rs to even try to get that message across.

      For the rest of us, for the struggling middle class mired for decades while all the gain goes to a few at the top and social mobility is pathetic where it once was the world's best, the whole thing sucks. Not nearly as badly as if Rs had been in complete control the last  6 years  turning the entire country into failed Kansas, but still sucks.

       

      1. As Senator [elect] Spearhead showed, lying is a winning election strategery . . . 

        "But if Republicans have been so completely wrong about everything, why did voters give them such a big victory?

        Part of the answer is that leading Republicans managed to mask their true positions. Perhaps most notably, Senator Mitch McConnell, the incoming majority leader, managed to convey the completely false impression that Kentucky could retain its impressive gains in health coverage even if Obamacare were repealed.

        CONTINUE READING THE MAIN STORY759COMMENTS

        But the biggest secret of the Republican triumph surely lies in the discovery that obstructionism bordering on sabotage is a winning political strategy. From Day 1 of the Obama administration, Mr. McConnell and his colleagues have done everything they could to undermine effective policy, in particular blocking every effort to do the obvious thing — boost infrastructure spending — in a time of low interest rates and high unemployment.

        This was, it turned out, bad for America but good for Republicans. Most voters don’t know much about policy details, nor do they understand the legislative process. So all they saw was that the man in the White House wasn’t delivering prosperity — and they punished his party."

        . . . at least for getting electing.  For the rest of humanity, not so much.

        Triumph of Wrong

        http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/07/opinion/paul-krugman-triumph-of-the-wrong.html?_r=0

         

         

        1. If that's all they saw it's the Dems fault. Period. There is no law of the universe that says Dems can't get an aggressive message machine going, that they have to be at the mercy of GOTP spin.. But it's hard to tout your President's and your party's achievements when you're too busy running scared from any association with your president or with being too much of a Dem. It 's been a long , ongoing and thoroughly pathetic spectacle.

    4. Thank you for bringing to our attention another example of how the privatized delivery of public services leads to private profiteering and excess government costs.

      Can I count on you to help lead the charge against privatization?  Where shall we start–eliminating educational vouchers?  How about getting rid of the abomination that is Obamacare and going to a single-payer system?

       

  3. Charlie Pierce on What Mark Udall Should Do and Why He Won't:

    Mark Udall lost his seat on Tuesday to a smiling, well-camouflaged ball of nuts named Cory Gardner, who already has demonstrated his affection for compromise and reasoned debate by declaring himself to be "the tip of the spear." ("Oh, Cory. You are so…rugged!") This was a particularly unpleasant result for me for a number of reasons, the primary one being that, nearly 40 years ago, I was standing outside of the old Allis Chalmers plant in Milwaukee as a February dawn congealed over Lake Michigan, trying to get Mark Udall's father elected president. By any reasonable measure, Mark Udall upheld as a senator the same level of honor and decency in public service that his father had brought to it.

    One way he did that was to be one of the loudest and most stubborn voices in Congress on behalf of representative self-government against the malignant power of the deep state, an issue that too many of his colleagues –and, I would argue, the president of the United States and his administration  — were tragically loath to touch. Specifically, Udall agitated relentlessly for the release of the CIA report on how the previous administration committed itself to a wide-ranging program of torturing people, reversing two centuries of American policy, shredding this country's moral authority, and turning the United States government into a stench in the nostrils of the world. In April of 2013, for example, Udallpointedly celebrated the 25th anniversary of Ronald Reagan's signing of the International Convention Against Torture treaty by calling on the administration to release the report, both to demonstrate to the American people what was done in their name, and also to submarine the efforts of the former members of the Avignon Presidency, who were running around saying how sorry they were that they had to become barbarians in order to keep the country safe. Last March, he wrote a letter to the White House, hinting that the CIA had taken "unprecedented action" against the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.

    There's little question that Udall believes that the report should be shared with the people on whose behalf the torturers and their enablers did their work, and from whose tax dollars the torturers and their enablers drew their salaries. Now that Udall already has lost his bid for re-election, an interesting proposal popped up in the Guardian It was suggested that Udall use his lame-duck status to read into the Congressional Record the entire report, without redaction. There seems little question that he could do it without being penalized or prosecuted. Members of Congress have a constitutional guarantee of immunity concerning whatever they say on the floor of the House or the Senate. The precedent cited is Mike Gravel's heroic attempt to read the entire texts of the Pentagon Papers on the floor of the Senate in 1972. Gravel eventually collapsed from exhaustion, but he got the entire collection of documents into the record. Prior to that, however, a federal grand jury subpoenaed one of Gravel's aides to testify as to his role in obtaining the archive for Gravel. Gravel fought the subpoena and, in 1971, the Supreme Court ruled that the subpoena violated the Constitution's free speech and debate clause, and also ruled that the clause protected the work of aides and of staffers because, as the Court said, those aides functioned as the legislator's "alter egos." So Udall and his staff are covered, legally at least. I'd like to see him do this. I understand completely why he probably won't.

    Who would have the guy's back?

    Many here would have his back. Alas, it was one of the few positives we could applaud form Mark. I think there are a few Senators with the guts to stand up for the release. Udall probably isn't one of them and probably thinks he's served his purpose as a U.S. Senator. How sad. 

    Would his co-CO Senator support such a move? No. Bennet has shown us his mettle, and the only ones who are impressed are his Republican foes in the Senate. God Save the Queen.

    1. Enough ot this, Zappatero!  Can't you see that the only way forward is the *Third Way*?  No Labels, man!  "The Center Is The Place To Be," as Joe Klein wrote for Time following a Dem landslide that installed the first woman Speaker.  Now that the Republicans have gotten rid of pesky "liberals" like Mark Udall, we can now wallow happily in our Bipartisan Paradise, where the sun always shines and Great Consensus-y Things emerge from Congress and the Preznit.

      My prediction is that the first of these will be the Grand Bargain.  Oh joy.

  4. Apparently, Nancy Pelosi believes the Dems lost because of depressed turnout and not the Dem message.  OMG, it is so obvious that it is quite the opposite.  Message leads to turnout, duh.

    The Dems had a perfect "Morning in America" message to give, but didn't.  I want to know what genius convinced Andrew Romanoff that one of his first commercials should feature him embracing a Balanced Budget constitutional amendment. OMG.  There was a small window a couple of months ago when Udall and Romanoff had the chance to present a proud message of accomplishment juxtaposed against Repug negativism.  There were innumerable ways to even poke fun at the Repugs "No, No, No!" tantrums.  Democrats couldn't win even after being dealt a full house.

    Every business has to establish its brand and convince consumers to use its product.  It's the same in politics.  The Dems had a demonstrably better product compared with the Repugs, yet couldn't sell it.  So, we should fire the media experts they relied upon.  We should also blame the candidates who accepted this flawed media strategy.  I'm sorry Messrs. Udall and Romanoff and Ms. Pelosi, but we volunteers can't magically generate turnout without giving voters a reason to vote.

    Ms. Clinton should take heed.

     

     

      1. Don't kid yourself. The local and Colorado Democratic Party are controlled by the same "DLC" and "Third Way" neo-liberal operatives that control the national party.  It can't be changed.  It's time for the left to leave and start a new party.

        Yes, things will get worse for a while. Perhaps, they must to make wake people up. 

        1. "It's them damn librals in Washington that are the problem.  Con sarn it.  I tell you we have to rid the world of that damn scourge because 'Freedom'.  You can believe me because I know how to fix everything with a wave of my magic 'new party' wand."

    1. Hey itlduso.  Have you been following the Gilpin County Commissioner's race?  The Democratic challenger Linda Isenhart had an eight (8) vote lead over the Republican incumbent Connie McClaine after the unofficial tally Tuesday night (1407 to 1399).  There are 20 ballots that were held up for signature verification and the voters have been notified by the Clerk and Recorder that they have through November 12th to appear at the courthouse and verify their signature so their ballot can be counted.  The race is probably going to be decided by less than ten (10) votes.  The Gilpin Dems. also beat the county Republicans in total ballots cast 912 to 911.

  5. One more great read today . . .

    " . . . David Letterman had the best line of the campaign. “Take a look at this: Gas under $3 a gallon — gas under $3 a gallon! Unemployment under 6 percent — who ever thought? Stock market breaking records every day. No wonder the guy is so unpopular.”

    Democrats would not embrace that record, or even try to explain it as a decent start for a country shaken by two decades of income stagnation. And so they were trounced. Where substance was allowed on Tuesday’s ballot — minimum wage increases in four red states, gun background checks in a blue state — big majorities did what the new Congress never will"

    http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/07/opinion/timothy-egan-the-big-sleep.html

  6. I saw on HP that Ben Carson was going to announce that he is a Presidential Candidate this weekend with a 40 minute ad.  He will bring the nuts out in force.

      1. Don't encourage them Frank.  They will take it as a Divine sign that you are with them.  It's going to be a merry dance of impotence the next two years.  Obama should form a good firewall to stop most of their drivel.
         

      1. The Not-So-Good Doctor presents a veritable cornucopia of opportunities for the Dems.  Imagine the fun we can have tying all Repubs to his wackanut pronouncements:  if done properly, this creates one of two outcomes.  1.  Repubs completely disavow and shun Chaps even more than they already have; 2.  Chaps becomes the face of the Republican Party in Colorado.

  7. Dems–nationally–should have been doing two things.  The positive message was low unemployment, gas prices, and we're out of Afghanistan and Iraq.  However, a booming stock market is not a Democratic value.  And, there should have been a national platform of raising the minimum wage.

    The second thing is that they should have also had a negative message–attack Republican candidates as Tea Party stooges.  Democrats win against RWNJs, but not if the electorate doesn't know when a slick bag of slime like Gardner is a RWNJ.

  8. A Common Refrain: Obama and Udall and Bennet and Pelosi and Corporate Dems everywhere carrying water for the 1% and, of course, their Republican Friends across the aisle. Deep State stuff. And even smarty pants like AC, tho he believes he's above it, and if he's a bored Bill K or Jon C in the hills above then he is, are victims of this sad game that only Democrats can extract us from at this point. No, that sad infant Rand Paul cannot possbily have an effect. 

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