Thursday Open Thread

7 thoughts on “Thursday Open Thread”

1. OK, Liz Cheney, yes the daughter of Darth Vader himself, has just endorsed Kamala. Not a super-big surprise really, but her message took a little extra dig at the vote-wasters:

   “It is crucially important for people to recognize — not only is what I’ve just said about the danger Trump poses something that should prevent people from voting for him, but I don’t believe we have the luxury of writing in candidates’ names, particularly in swing states.”

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2.  Colorado Secretary of State put out the regular monthly report on Voter Registrations.  August gains in Active Registrations that were over 1,000 and the new totals:  (numbers won’t add up due to other minor party registrations)

    
   PARTY ….. ….. AUGUST GAIN ….. TOTAL
   Democrats ….. ….. 10,504 ….. 1,008,115
   No Labels ….. ….. 1,686 ….. 12,293
   Republicans ….. 5,023 ….. 901,749
   Unaffiliated ….. ….. 20,776 ….. 1,883,376
   Total ….. ….. ….. 38,350 ….. 3,872,161

   Context is that after January 6, 2021, Republicans took a dip in comparison to Democrats, and since then, have been close to equivalent (and slowly getting enough to offset the dip).   There seems to be a surge in enthusiasm for the Democrats.

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   1. Wow, even by my C- level math ability, it looks like UAFs have almost caught up with Ds and Rs combined!

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      1. My limited imagination struggles to comprehend the volume of mailers unaffiliated must get during elections. 

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   2. Why anyone is registered to a party is beyond me.
      You only get 1/2 the primary ballots.

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3. Painting the US as a Mad Max Dystopia. Heather Cox-Richardson

   Russian disinfo campaign paid right-wing (TP USA) agitators, and helped increase their audience.

   I've had a couple of "whatabout" conversations regarding Venezualan gangs taking over an apartment complex in Aurora, and then a motorcycle gang going out there to umm, "something-something-something". It didn't make much sense to me, does anyone know anything about it?

   For his part, Trump has doubled down on the idea that the United States is a failing nation. For the past week he has been telling a story about a residential building in Colorado taken over by a gang from Venezuela. But it appears the story is entirely made up. Similarly, Trump on Friday said at a right-wing Moms for Liberty event that public schools in America kidnap children and operate on them to change their sex. This is bonkers, but it is bonkers in a way that deliberately demonizes Trump’s opponents.

   Trump’s vision of the United States is one of darkness and carnage. As Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Walz said today, “It is a deliberate effort by some people to make them believe that our political system is broken. To make them believe that things are pessimistic. My God, every time I hear Donald Trump give a speech, it’s like the next screenplay for Mad Max or something. They are rooting against America.”

   That bleak version of the United States, it turns out, echoes the talking points Russian handlers gave to their operatives working in the U.S. in an effort “to steer the U.S. public opinion in the right direction.” The Russians directed their U.S. employees to emphasize the following “campaign topics”: “Encroaching universal poverty. Record inflation. Halting of economic growth. Unaffordable prices for food and essential goods”; “Risk of job loss for white Americans”; “Privileges for people of color, perverts, and disabled”; “Constant lies of the [Democratic] administration about the real situation in the country”; “Threat of crime coming from people of color and immigrants”; “Overspending on foreign policy and at the interests of white US citizens”; “Constant lies to the voters by [Democrats] in power.” 

   The target audience of the campaign was “[Republican] voters,” [Trump] supporters, “Supporters of traditional family values,” and “White Americans, representing the lower-middle and middle class.” The focus was in particular on “[r]esidents of "swing states whose voting results impact the outcomes of the elections more than other states. 

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   1. Republican scare stories are inevitably between 90% and 110% fabricated BS.

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