From commentor Wade S:
This is Boo. She should be good for a moment’s relief.
Boo looks like she has dug herself a ‘safe space’ and intends to stay there for a while. I think we can all sympathize with Boo’s impulse…
Apart from wanting to lie low, what’s on the agenda for the day?
lollipopguild
What are you looking at?
raven
Pupster!
opiejeanne
It’s 2am on the West Coast. Can’t sleep. Have avoided the news for a couple of days, including Twitter & Facebook.
Sweet doggie, I think you’re pretty safe there in your sofa fort.
David ?Canadian Anchor Baby? Koch
David ?Canadian Anchor Baby? Koch
Zinsky
I’ve got a real boring accounting conference I need to sit through today in downtown Minneapolis, but at least the food is good! By the way, my company announced the job cuts yesterday that I had posted about two weeks ago, and I survived! So, I guess I can retire on my own terms in two to three years, which is nice.
Trump’s response to the Orlando carnage was not only bigoted and self-focused but also incredibly stupid – Ban all Muslim immigrants, when the shooter was a native born American? This is a really, really stupid man!
David ?Canadian Anchor Baby? Koch
Baud
Puppy is hiding from Donald Trump.
J R in WV
Good morning, rikyrah!
I don’t beat you to the blogosphere very often. And I plan to go back to bed to try for a couple more hours, I have errands t run in town and it’s going to be 92+. Fortunately I can take the smaller newer vehicle with effective AC as opposed to the old F150 with barely adequate for summertime AC.
Life goes on, and we’re out of cooking oil, used the last for popcorn… I’m going to the farmer’s market to see what’s in now, and the grocery store for provisions in general. And maybe the hardware store, we’ll see how much endurance I have.
I love the map of The Donald’s birthday residence and dumass gayhater’s birthday residence, what, just a handful of miles apart!!
OzarkHillbilly
My son’s long time best buddy, an Australian Shepard named Harvey, died yesterday morning. Was fine when Bob left for work but was dead when he came home for lunch. Bob was thinking maybe it was the heat that killed him. I said, “Bob, maybe it was just his time to go.”
Took him up the the confluence of the Missouri and the Mississippi where they had spent more than a little time together and buried him there.
sm*t cl*de
I can has pillow fort?
satby
My last little bird, Valentina, leaves the nest in 1/2 an hour to start her long journey home. She’s having a last dish of ice cream before the sun comes up to finish her breakfast, and I’m having my third cup of coffee. The suitcases are in the car, and we’re just having some quiet last moments before we leave for the airport.
raven
@OzarkHillbilly: Aw man.
satby
@OzarkHillbilly: aww, so sad for your son. Condolences to him on his loss, and remind him that a dog who is well loved has been given doggie heaven on earth.
EZSmirkz
YA interesting read,
Off to listen to the Kinks “Destroyer”
No one mention Egypt Air while I’m gone.
Randy P
Went to a vigil in a local Episcopal church last night. Meditative music, readings from Christian and Moslem traditions, Quaker-style silence and speaking when so moved. It was healing. And gratifying to see how many people turned out on a Monday night with no notice.
#notallchristians
satby
And Wade, your Boo is adorable! Thanks for sharing her today.
Baud
@OzarkHillbilly: Man, that sucks. So sorry.
rikyrah
Good Morning ?, Everyone ?
David ?Canadian Anchor Baby? Koch
rikyrah
Boo is too cute ?
Amir Khalid
@OzarkHillbilly:
I’m so sorry about Harvey.
David ?Canadian Anchor Baby? Koch
@rikyrah: ??
David ?Canadian Anchor Baby? Koch
@OzarkHillbilly: ? ?
raven
Joe goin full Murrow.
NotMax
Will. Resist. Temptation. To. Link. To. The. Lobo. Song.
Must resist.
Resist…
geg6
@OzarkHillbilly:
Hugs to your son.
Boo is too cute. Lovey likes to burrow into our couch, too.
EZSmirkzz
Would you prefer Lola?
NotMax
@satby
Quite a hectic year for you.
Tomorrow, sleep in late.
Tom
@opiejeanne: I can’t sleep either, but then I’ve had chronic insomnia since I was a kid (fifty-mumble years ago).
I could grade some papers, do some QA on a software architecture course I developed, work on the re-write for the secure programming course I’m developing now or do research on the C# programming class I’ll be re-writing in a month or two.
Or I could get into the recliner with the kitties and watch the Apple keynote from yesterday on my tablet.
As a side note, I want to thank the folks who recommended the Hamilton soundtrack. I found it on Apple Music and before I was done listening, I had purchased and downloaded it. It’s amazing. At more than one point I wept and I’m a 57 year old white guy who’s still trying to shake off his small town, Midwestern roots.
Even if you haven’t seen the show, the music is amazing.
Also, for those of you like me who are missing quality TV now that The Americans is on hiatus, I’ve started a re-watch of Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles. Some of the best scripted television in years, particularly in season 2. (Season 1 is only 9 episodes due to the 2007 writer’s strike.)
David ?Canadian Anchor Baby? Koch
Central Planning
I saw a car (relatively new Nissan) with a “Reagan-Bush ’84” bumper sticker on it yesterday.
What’s that mean besides they want a return to the Reagan years? Is there something special about the 1984 election vs. ’80 or even ’88?
ETA – From gop.com: Throwback to the days of strong, principled leadership in the White House with an official Reagan-Bush ’84 Vintage Tee. Featuring the classic Reagan-Bush ’84 logo, these American-made vintage t-shirts are available in red and blue.
Splitting Image
The same thing that’s on the agenda every day, Pinky. Beating the hell out of Donald Trump.
TriassicSands
Depressing trip to the grocery store today.
I was in the checkout line with one person behind me. He opened with a lament about “self-checkout” lanes. I agreed and said I refused to use them. From there we got to the campaign and both the man and the checker, a middle-aged woman, said they thing Trump is terrible. But they aren’t going to vote for Clinton. I did my best in the very limited amount of time I had, but they both just kept shaking their heads. The guy started out by saying, “Bill Clinton…” I quickly pointed out that Bill Clinton isn’t running for president and no matter how sleazy he (the guy) thinks Bill is, Hillary can’t be blamed for Bill’s behavior. It turns out she can. His problem with her is that she stayed with Bill, which is something that probably bothers a lot of people.
I don’t know that either one will vote, but they made it pretty clear they won’t be voting for Clinton, no matter how bad Trump is.
NotMax
@Central Planning
Unwhitewashable Alzheimer’s?
geg6
@TriassicSands:
The good news is maybe they’ll just stay home.
geg6
Today starts the first of our freshman orientation sessions for fall. I alway look forward to and dread these days in equal measure.
Baud
@TriassicSands:
Sorry, I’m putting that in the “excuse” rather than the “reason” column.
Baud
@geg6: This.
Tissue Thin Pseudonym
I’ll spend most of the day asleep. Right now, I’m at the same Red Lobster I was at last Monday night/Tuesday morning. The guys who clean the hood actually showed up this week, arriving around 3am and leaving about 5am. So, all told, they’re paying me to sit here for 22 hours, @ $14.50 each plus whatever my employer gets as a cut, in order to get two hours of cleaning done.
OzarkHillbilly
@Central Planning: I’ve seen that too.
US gunmaker shares soar after Pulse nightclub massacre
Shares in two biggest gun manufacturers, Smith & Wesson and Sturm Ruger & Co, rose by 10% and 9% amid fears US will impose tougher gun control measures
Just in case you didn’t know how sick our society really is.
bemused
Tuned into Morning Joe for the first time in months. My, my, how the tune changes. They, Joe, Mika, Barnicle and Nicole, started off with Trump’s terror speech, Trump implicating Obama, Trump saying people can figure out what he meant. Joe says emphatically that Trump is bad news. Nicole said Trump refuses to shut up. Then it was on to the AR15.
Late, very late, to the ugly truths.
TriassicSands
@Baud:
When I wrote “a lot of people,” I was thinking mostly of religious people. I don’t know if it was an excuse or a reason, but if it keeps a potential voter from supporting Clinton it isn’t good news.
@geg6:
Somehow I have a feeling we won’t be setting any turnout records this year. In the end I think most Republicans will turn out for Trump. Their leadership puts their “principles” on display every day, but they also give the rank and file permission to junk the principles and just vote for power.
Both of the people I referred to should be natural Democratic voters.
OzarkHillbilly
@TriassicSands:
I learned a long time ago, never judge another persons marriage. You just don’t know what it’s like.
Baud
@TriassicSands: How do you know that some random people in the checkout line are natural Democratic voters?
Religious voters in particular would normally praise rather than condemn a wife for staying with her husband.
Randy P
FYWP just ate my comment. Not moderated, just gone.
So I’ll summarize: Saw a car yesterday with two pro-Trump bumper stickers. But it also had two pro-farting bumper stickers, which I didn’t even realize was a thing. And those were the only stickers on the car.
So what does that mean? Are the Trump stickers ironic? Or has Trump won the support of the fartists, a slient (but deadly) minority of unknown size?
Baud
@Randy P: Who would be anti-farting? That’s like being anti-breathing.
TriassicSands
@OzarkHillbilly:
I couldn’t agree more and that was exactly what I told him. He just kept shaking his head and said if he’d done that to his wife she would have thrown him out in a second.
I repeated that we simply can’t judge other people’s relationships. Apparently, he can.
OzarkHillbilly
@Randy P: Reading between the lines, I think the owner is saying pro Trump is equal to pro fart, they amount to about the same thing.
Patricia Kayden
@OzarkHillbilly: Sorry for your son’s loss.
@bemused: Why did they only figure out now that Trump was bad news? He hasn’t changed.
Randy P
@Baud: Well, we all support our own. But object to everyone else’s. There’s something fundamentally Republican about that.
Baud
@Patricia Kayden: Before they wanted ratings. Now they want to avoid being blamed.
TriassicSands
@Baud:
From what they both said about things before we got to discussing Clinton. Especially the checker fell into that category.
Yes, some might praise Hillary for staying with Bill, but others would find Bill so distasteful that they wouldn’t support her staying.
Baud
@Randy P: Equal farts under law, I say.
NotMax
@Triassic Sands
Ah, but you’ve planted the seed, which still has months to blossom into a vote (however reluctant).
Peale
@Central Planning: Mondale won two states. of course they like that election.
Baud
@TriassicSands: Well, whatever. Can’t change the past. This year, like in every prior election year, a large majority of eligible voters will not vote for the Democratic nominee. We just have to do better than the other guy.
Patricia Kayden
@TriassicSands: Bill Clinton was a great President regardless of his personal issues. The economy was booming during his time in office. He left with high ratings. Hopefully, people can separate his private failings from the great job he did.
Secretary Clinton’s decision to stay with him is her own personal issue which has zero bearing on how she will function as President. Surprised that that would be held against her.
TriassicSands
@NotMax:
And I know where the checker is. We’ve exchanged pleasantries before, so I think I can raise the subject again without incurring her wrath. I won’t push it too hard — maybe she’ll get there on her own.
Patricia Kayden
@Baud: Also Trump has attacked Joe and the show.
NotMax
@Baud
Baud/Le Pétomane ’20.
It’s never too early…
bemused
@Patricia Kayden:
Exactly! They are media and in on what is said off the record by legislators, staffers, political consultants and insiders. None of bad news about Trump and other issues are not sudden revelations to them.
Amir Khalid
@Patricia Kayden:
It’s a rationalisation for refusing to vote for her — or, if you will, for having had one’s mind poisoned against her by 25 years of hostile propaganda.
OzarkHillbilly
@Patricia Kayden:
I’m not, considering how many people will vote for someone because they’d like to have a beer with them. By and large, people are not rational.
bemused
@Amir Khalid:
Yes. Any excuse to “justify” what he wasn’t going to do in the first place.
Baud
@OzarkHillbilly: I don’t know. First time in human history a woman is condemned for staying married. We’re breaking new ground here.
TriassicSands
@Patricia Kayden:
I wasn’t surprised that someone would hold that against Clinton, because I’ve heard before (2008). As was offered above maybe it’s just an excuse, but it’s not like it’s that difficult to come up with a reason to not vote for an American politician.
I think it is wrong to judge Hillary based on Bill — either his performance as president, which not everyone agrees was without serious problems, or his failings as a husband, which were certainly out there for everyone to see. I’m not worried at all about HRC being under the sway of her husband. She’s much too strong for that.
Others would understand that Hillary would stay with Bill for Chelsea’s sake. She was a 12-year-old when Bill won in ’92. She’s 36 today. Eek! That’s horrifying. Again, I simply don’t pretend I can judge other people’s intimate relationships.
Mary G
Trump has banned so many media outlets that by next week it’ll just be the one guy from Breitbart all alone in the pen at the rallies.
OzarkHillbilly
@Patricia Kayden: I guess Trump isn’t all bad after all.
TriassicSands
@Baud:
Hardly the first time. It just depends on what people think they need to prove. The nature of the Clinton presidency, which engulfed HRC in phony scandals, as well, meant that Hillary could be criticized no matter what she chose to do. We see the same thing with Obama. The Republicans turn on a dime if he embraces something like the PPACA with roots in conservative think tanks.
Another Holocene Human
@satby: May you both have a nice trip.
Baud
@TriassicSands: True dat.
Another Holocene Human
@EZSmirkz: Filed under “Duh”
Another Holocene Human
@David ?Canadian Anchor Baby? Koch: Damn, that sounds like what GOP says about Hilary as SOS. Ugly.
Another Holocene Human
@Central Planning: College Republican Hipster gear. Probably weren’t even born in 84.
OzarkHillbilly
@Baud:
Criticizing a Clinton for anything, no matter how novel, is not breaking new ground. It’s just another day in America.
Lounger
@TriassicSands: My wife had a co-worker who was also a “natural Democratic voter” — i.e., a working-class, African-American, single mom — who still wasn’t sure whether she could vote for Hillary. My wife’s argument was that you’re not just voting for a person, you’re voting for a team — all the people making and enforcing the laws, the Supreme Court, etc. — so what matters isn’t which person you like but which team you like. Her co-worker was like, “Wow! I’ve never thought of it that way!”
I have to say I’m very proud of my wife for this. I would’ve just been storming out of the room holding my head.
bemused
@Mary G:
LOL.
At this point, I think Trump must have compiled over decades a long list of people, groups of people, that he has wanted to offend, ban, extract retribution from, punish and create general havoc checking off his list with his gold Sharpie.
Baud
@Lounger: Nice.
Another Holocene Human
@Baud: I heard it at the time (late 1990s) in the Northeast Corridor. Adultery is one of the few “legit” excuses for an annulment; maybe that’s what colors the good peoples’ (snicker) attitudes.
Mustang Bobby
Sorry to be late to the morning kaffe-klatch. I got a phone call yesterday evening that could be a huge career advancement for me… and ten minutes later found out my nephew has checked himself into a hospital on suicide watch.
Baud
@Another Holocene Human: She could have divorced him and I wouldn’t hold it against her. But the notion that she should be condemned for not divorcing him is bizarre.
Tissue Thin Pseudonym
@TriassicSands:
Or, maybe, they just love each other. I’ve read stories about how play off of each other and how they, especially Bill, become grouchy and difficult to deal with if they’ve been separated for too long, which happens in the careers they’ve chosen.
Baud
@Mustang Bobby: hope it all works out on both fronts.
Matt McIrvin
@TriassicSands: I think many people blame Hillary for Bill’s cheating in the first place. It’s the way that patriarchal attitudes suddenly frame men as unreasoning beasts when it comes to sexual behavior. Men, they just can’t help themselves, but a woman who can’t please her man to the extent that he cheats is inexcusable.
JPL
Trump gave a speech indicating that the Muslim community was made up of racist pigs, who want to do us harm.
That’s a theme that he’s familiar with.
@OzarkHillbilly: That’s so sad! rip puppy
Mustang Bobby
@Baud: Thanks.
OzarkHillbilly
@bemused: All of them Katie.
LAO
Last night before bed, I made the mistake of reading Rod Dreher’s take on Orlando, including the comments. Apparently, right thinking Christians will never vote for Clinton because of religious liberty. How f*cking hypocritical. They will support the candidate that wants to ban a religion because of their perceived right to intolerance. I’m still fuming.
Here’s the link but I don’t recommend reading it. http://www.theamericanconservative.com/dreher/christian-scapegoating-orlando-religious-liberty/#post-comments
OzarkHillbilly
@Mustang Bobby: Oooofff…
bemused
@Lounger:
Wow. I would have thought voting for the team on my side, not just the president who can’t simply wave a magic wand, would have been a no-brainer but I guess not. Glad your wife thought of a simple way to get her point across.
Matt McIrvin
@JPL: The theme of Trump, champion of the Jews against antisemitism, particularly makes me ill, given the way Trump’s candidacy has brought out the Stormfront Nazi crowd to rant and preen like nothing else in history. Trump won’t even say anything to discourage them.
Kay
I got a call from a retired common pleas judge yesterday. He’s really excited about Clinton. He was the county judge for a while a long time ago and he’s a Democrat. He’s not that popular a figure in the local Party because once he was elected he never again did anything for the local Party. ANYhoo! I’m shallow and they need help so I was nice to him and hit him up for the (prospective) headquarters rent. I personally think he should pay all of it :)
TriassicSands
Since I was in college I’ve always voted several times. By that I mean I cast my vote, but I also have worked very hard to get undecided, sometimes even hostile voters to cast ballots that they wouldn’t have cast without weeks, sometimes months of gentle persuasion on my part. Every year I could count three to five successes.
In the late nineties and past the turn of the century, I taught ESL to a large group of mostly Mexican immigrants. It wasn’t through any school, I simply volunteered my time (I am credentialed in ESL.). I not only made lifelong friends, but I worked very hard to help them understand that it was their responsibility (once they became citizens) to participate. Of course, as a group they are natural Democrats, but the problem is not who they’d prefer, but making sure they get to the polls (or now in our case mail in our ballots), which is a major problem among many Hispanic immigrants.
At first I sat with many of them and explained the ballot, the issues (as fairly as I could), and tried to make sure they didn’t cast invalid ballots. In the end, I let then fill out their ballots in private — I never saw the choices they made, but I know them, so I wasn’t worried. Now, I stop by or we talk on the phone and I make sure they understand their ballots, especially the initiatives which can be confusing.
To this day I don’t know how they voted on the Death with Dignity initiative that brought physician assisted relief to terminally ill patients. Their Catholic religion is important to them, but they have minds of their own. All I know is that they heard more than the usual scare stories from people who are sure, or claim to be, that the laws will be used to kill the elderly and disabled.
Lounger
From the NYT’s lead article today:
Of course, if you substituted “Republican Party” or “conservative movement” for “Islamic State” you could easily write the same paragraph about the Colo. Springs Planned Parenthood shooter, Dylann Roof, et al. And actually in those cases you could leave out the “may have been at least partly” weasel words.
bemused
@OzarkHillbilly:
He does excel in one thing, being a one man wrecking crew.
TriassicSands
@Tissue Thin Pseudonym:
I’ll stick with my conviction that I simply can’t judge other people’s private relationships. (But you may be right.)
@Matt McIrvin:
Sad, but true. We men are not, simply can’t be, to blame.
OzarkHillbilly
Ahhh America, don’t it grate?
Business as usual.
TriassicSands
It’s 4:30 here. Night all.
Matt McIrvin
@bemused: US political talk, especially the kind that aspires to be highbrow, tends to disparage partisanship as mindless,arbitrary rah-rah behavior, like supporting a football team, and it drives a lot of highly-educated people particularly to say they “vote the person, not the party”. Obviously the character of the person is important–this year, that should be clearer than ever. But I tell people that in practice the party is usually what you get, so it makes sense to take that into account.
NotMax
@Another Holocene Human
Reminded of this anti-NSA snooping photo.
Lounger
@bemused: Right. My wife follows politics only casually which I guess helps her not take for granted things that seem obvious to us geeks.
bemused
@Matt McIrvin:
Yes and we should take care to emphasize that when talking with people who only casually follow politics.
I'mNotSureWhoIWantToBeYet
@satby: It was so good of you to share your heart and your home with both of them. I’m sure they will never forget your generosity.
Enjoy the memories!
Cheers,
Scott.
Matt McIrvin
@Central Planning:
’84 was the biggest, most crushing landslide election. Reagan won handily in ’80 but he annihilated Mondale in ’84. For Republicans I imagine it’s an event of mythic significance–it certainly is for me, just the other way around.
(In the popular vote, ’72 was actually a bigger landslide for the Republicans, but Nixon is still under a cloud even to them, whether they’ll admit it or not.)
Baud
@Matt McIrvin: Plus Nixon was America’s last liberal president, so that’s a negative in their book.
NorthLeft12
I guess the Donald is going all in on Obama’s “malfeasance”. He wants him to resign in disgrace, rather than just resign quietly.
Baud
@Lounger: Right. I think it’s difficult for a lot of us who follow this stuff daily to distinguish between the bullshitters and the victims of the bullshit.
I'mNotSureWhoIWantToBeYet
@TriassicSands: It’s still very early. People have a lot of time to think about the present and the future rather than dwell on the past.
She’s got time to make the sale.
Cheers,
Scott.
Iowa Old Lady
I realize this means I’m the deluded one, but it kind of amazes me that even Trump can look at Obama and then at himself and come to the conclusion that he’d be the better president.
ETA: Maybe this is why it feels like Trump doesn’t really want to be president. I don’t believe he thinks beyond election day when he proves himself to be a winner.
rikyrah
@Baud:
In a country with a 50 percent divorce rate, Hillary gets slammed for sticking with her marriage vows. ???
debbie
@TriassicSands:
When I hear that line of thinking, I point out that while Republicans are quick to attack blow jobs, they’re silent when it’s shown that pedophiles are in their midst.
I'mNotSureWhoIWantToBeYet
@OzarkHillbilly: “Soared 10%” sounds like more of a blip to me – kind of a desperate ploy for the NRA and the gun lobby to show that people really love them still.
Maybe most of the gun lovers already have enough?
:-/
Cheers,
Scott.
Matt McIrvin
@bemused: Of course, this year it might be counterproductive to emphasize the importance of party, since we’re also trying to peel partisan Republicans away from Trump.
I think that if I were very true-believer conservative I’d be seriously torn, and it would be difficult to pull the eject lever: even they can recognize that Trump is a horrible person who would be dangerous in office, and he’s not even particularly conservative in his instincts; but this year, whoever wins the presidential election determines ideological control of the Supreme Court probably for the next 20 years. The impulse to say “well, he’ll hire smart conservatives to tell him what to do, and the good Republicans in Congress will keep him in check when he goes off script” is, I imagine, powerful. We hate those guys too so it doesn’t work on us.
Iowa Old Lady
@debbie: And note that these prospective voters were debating whether to vote for Clinton or Trump. So they prefer his record on marriage?
Baud
@Matt McIrvin: The Supreme Court should be driving our turnout too. Hopefully it will by election day. I seen too many Salon articles arguing why it doesn’t matter. smh.
debbie
@Iowa Old Lady:
Low information as in zero!
Matt McIrvin
@Iowa Old Lady: Perhaps they were debating whether to vote for Clinton or stay home/leave the oval blank/vote third party.
Cat48
A Congress Critter was on TV Mon. & said he didn’t know how strongly he supported Isis bc he had also mentioned he was aligned with Hezbollah & al Nusra at some point. The 3 groups are bitter enemies of each other. I tried to find that myself but I havent yet.
Maybe it was in Intel he received.?
Extremely disturbed & violent for sure.
Weird if he kept trying out new terror groups.
I'mNotSureWhoIWantToBeYet
@OzarkHillbilly: Especially since by then W gave up drinking and wouldn’t be having a beer with anyone… :-/
The framing of our politics has been part of the reason why Democrats have had such a tough time the last 35+ years. We need a good sloganeer as well as having good, sensible people running for office.
I think we’re getting there, but man has it been a tough slog.
Cheers,
Scott.
Splitting Image
@Baud:
This is exactly right. Every time a Christian terrorist takes out an abortion clinic, there is a massive rush to disown the mentally ill lone wolf by the media figures who constantly call abortion providers murderers and call for their assassination. Even with the actual shooter in Orlando, the cries of “he was a registered Democrat” began almost immediately.
It’s going to be a bit harder to paint Trump as a registered Democrat, seeing as he’s the Republican nominee and all.
That said, in the unlikely event he does win, the media narrative will be that he couldn’t have done it without crossover votes from dissatisfied Bernie-or-Busters, so the blame for each nuclear war Trump begins will fall on the Social*st left and on the warmonger Hillary Clinton for failing to inspire them.
Baud
@I’mNotSureWhoIWantToBeYet:
I tried, man. I tried
OzarkHillbilly
@I’mNotSureWhoIWantToBeYet: after every one of these massacres gun sales go up because the nutters are just certain sure that this time the 2nd Amendment will succumb> Investors know this and buy the stock to get in on some of those short term profits. They don’t seem to care that it is blood money.
bemused
@Iowa Old Lady:
I agree. I can’t imagine he is eager to really live in the White House which is a big deal but I doubt the WH can compare to the lush living he is used to. It would not even be close to the pampered life he is accustomed to and I think he would go even more nuts than he is now.
Ultraviolet Thunder
Today? Looking forward to the WaPo making Trump look like a small time grifter megalomaniac, every day for the next 5 months. Trump thinks he’s got the upper hand with the media but he’s about to get the back of the Post’s hand across his face.
Over and over and over and…
Amir Khalid
@bemused:
Can POTUS decline to live in the White House, because it’s not deluxe enough? I’d almost like to see President Trump try to justify that one to the American people.
OzarkHillbilly
@Matt McIrvin:
Not me. Fvck them. They are the party of Trump. They built it, they can have it. If they don’t like it, tuff sh!t. Besides, everything you said after this is dead on. They didn’t learn a damn thing from Bush who had a cabinet full of “adults” to help him.
JGabriel
@Tom:
Also known as: River Tam and Cersei Lannister Kick Everyone’s Ass.
El Caganer
@Amir Khalid: You haven’t read about the plans for Trump Towers Pennsylvania Avenue?
I'mNotSureWhoIWantToBeYet
@OzarkHillbilly: It’s hard. Condolences to you and Bob.
Cheers,
Scott.
Schlemazel Khan
@I’mNotSureWhoIWantToBeYet:
It has been known for some time now that fewer and fewer Americans own guns but the number of guns per owner is continuing to climb. I find those fact to be chilling as it seems the nutballs really are stockpiling for Armageddon.
I'mNotSureWhoIWantToBeYet
@Mustang Bobby: As Baud said, best wishes on both. We’re hoping for the best.
Cheers,
Scott.
Cat48
@Amir Khalid:
Probably if its not gold enough?? :)
bemused
@Amir Khalid:
That did cross my mind too. If anyone would do that, it would be Trump.
Matt McIrvin
@Iowa Old Lady: Trump obviously doesn’t want to do the job of a President; that’s why even his campaign people have been floating the idea of appointing an august “COO” to do the day-to-day work. But he surely does want to be elected President, and to become the winningest, most powerful and feared man in the world.
Tissue Thin Pseudonym
@Baud:
He said, “sloganeer,” not, “buccaneer.”
Schlemazel Khan
@Mustang Bobby:
Good luck to both of you.
It makes it hard to celebrate the good news with a serious situation like that going on. It is a very good sign he went on his own though.
JGabriel
@Central Planning:
Reagan won every state but Minnesota in 1984. It was horrible. Anyway, Republicans want to bask in the nostalgic piss-colored glow of their 1984 Electoral College dominance, and whine about all the people who – remembering what the 80’s and early 00’s were like – don’t want to ever see a Republican dominated government again.
gvg
Remembering the Lewinsky media frenzy, I’ve always thought it would have been almost impossible for Hillary to react like anybody else to the adultery. Can you imagine the attacks on her at that time if she had sought a divorce? I think the public scrutiny must have put pressure on both to depend only on each other and develop an us against the world attitude. Her situation was not at all like say my aunt’s when she found out her husband had cheated. I’ll add that my aunt stayed married and their have apparently not been any more problems, but I didn’t think I would have. The generation can influence too. Her daughter did divorce years later and husband cheating was a factor. It’s none of my business, nor anybody else’s unless abuse if a possibility.
LAO
@Amir Khalid: Mayor Michael Bloomberg choose to remain in his home rather than live in Gracie Mansion, the official mayoral residence. So, maybe?
Baud
@Amir Khalid: The big issue would be security if he decided to live somewhere else.
piratedan
ahh the travails of being on the road… woke up to Moaning Joe. watched Brokaw bloviate about a national day of mourning and that transitioned to Newtown and one of the panel indicated that yes, there was 80% support for an national background check and nothing happened. At no time, did anyone say, who was in charge of Congress at this moment. Who blocked the president’s initiatives… just a side step that gun control lege has to be bipartisan but no mention of which fucking party is blocking it.
Christ, glad I packed my bp meds….
NotMax
@Amir Khalid
There is no requirement that a president live in the White House. Regardless, it would still be the official residence of the president, whether occupied or not.
Amir Khalid
@LAO:
@Baud:
Does the Donald have a house in DC? Maybe. One the Secret Service could secure like they do the White House? Probably not.
LAO
@Amir Khalid: Don’t know. Would rather ensure he never has the opportunity to live or reject living in the White House. ?
NotMax
@Baud
All that free maintenance, upkeep and upgrades to Trump Tower and the aging Florida property he would get – without laying out a dime.
Amir Khalid
@NotMax:
But as I recall, since the White House was built no POTUS has refused to live in it, right? Aside from when it was being repaired after the British torched it, that is.
satby
@TriassicSands: @Patricia Kayden: Tl;dr but I have heard that objection to Hillary Clinton numerous times: that if she was ethical she would have left him, and she didn’t because she’s a power mad b#tch. Fucking crazy, but I consider it an excuse too.
magurakurin
@rikyrah:
No. She’s getting slammed for what she did. It doesn’t matter what she did or does she will be slammed for it. If she had divorced Bill those very same people who are slamming her for staying with him would be saying, “I can’t believe she left him and didn’t stick with him and her marriage vows.” Whatever she does…they’re against it. It’s the Groucho Marx Theory of politics.
Baud
@efgoldman: Clearly, we need to ban all U.S. citizens from entering this country.
OzarkHillbilly
@efgoldman: But but but…. 911!!!!!!
satby
@Mustang Bobby: Best wishes to you both. It’s promising that he realized he was in trouble, so I hope he gets his balance back.
Schlemazel Khan
@efgoldman:
No, thats OK, I’ll make special exceptions for the good people on BJ!
bemused
@efgoldman:
It would be less tiring to list how many are/were US citizens but not born in this country.
PurpleGirl
Boo is adorable. The picture is really great… Wade, how long did it take you to get that picture?
NotMax
@Amir Khalid
Refused? No. Moved elsewhere for a time? Yes.
For example, Lincoln decamped during the summer months to a relatively cooler spot in D.C. at the nearby Rock Creek neighborhood to escape some of the stifling heat of swampy Washington.
(So far as repairs go, Truman moved to Blair House, across the street, for a long stint when the White House was gutted for total reconstruction.)
David ?Canadian Anchor Baby? Koch
Roll tide, roll
rikyrah
@efgoldman:
I have no questions and just a hearty AMEN to what you wrote.
JMG
Hillary Clinton is loathed by a significant percentage of white men and a smaller percentage of white women because of her status as an equal in a two-career marriage and because she’s been the boss of men, and that was true long before anybody heard of Monica Lewinsky. If there’s one very faintly positive thing coming out of this election, it’s that our national psychoses are becoming too blatant to be lied or rationalized away — even by the “go back to sleep and buy some more stuff” media.
satby
@efgoldman: just copied that in full and put it on FB with attribution. Perfect summary.
rikyrah
@OzarkHillbilly:
Absolutely on point. They own that muthaphucka lock, stock and barrel.
Peale
@NorthLeft12: trump should call for Congress to impeach the Muslim loving weakling immediately. Please Donald. The country demands it. Call Paul and Mitch and yet at them as long as it takes….please. Call Mitch and yell at him.
D58826
@JGabriel: And just a note of warning to the Bernie folks who think there is a huge progressive wave out there just waiting to be tapped by the correct, i.e. Bernie, leader.
rikyrah
@Matt McIrvin:
This should be pointed out.
My eyes blinked when I first read that from his campaign.
Someone putting out, that a candidate FOR PRESIDENT…
doesn’t really actually want to do THE WORK of the President.
They just want ‘ TO BE’ President.
Wow.
White Privilege 101.
How could anyone BUT a White man put that out in the universe and not be run out of town as unqualified.
NotMax
@D58826
Bernie who?
;)
germy
@rikyrah:
But that’s running government like a business. It’s every corporation I’ve ever worked for. Layers and layers of lower, middle and upper managers, a top manager who dozes in his office. And yet they complain about government wastefulness…
OzarkHillbilly
Kevin Drum:
Ian
@Amir Khalid:
I came to the same realization when I argue with the anti-Clinton voters and the best they can do is say “emails”.
Baud
@OzarkHillbilly:
Is it the press or the Village media?
Ian
@LAO:
When they say religious freedom, read “Christian freedom”. This has been apparent for some time as they sued Obamacare for religious freedom while calling for a ban on an Islamic learning center.
Immanentize
@OzarkHillbilly: things we know to be true can still be depressing….
aimai
@rikyrah: But you see–it makes him superqualified! Because he can delegate. Trump’s world is one in which leaders don’t do any work. They order work to be done. They are visionaries. (Actually, I think this is little discussed when it comes to Trump. Trump took an ordinary, unglamorous, entirely boring field (real estate) and turned it into a glamorous, high stakes, visionary activity while the real moneyw as going to be made in tech by a completely different kind of person with a completely different skill set. However the idea that Trump was a good businessman, a visionary, a money maker, and a good deal maker is completely illusory. He was just a flim flam man selling images and ripping off his own team. I remember reading a long article about him in the Times about his “favorite” deal which was to buy some important old building in NYC. He managed to buy it for much more than it was worth, and lose it in a fire sale five years later, but he brags about it to the Times like he is some kind of genius because other people lost money too. He tells the Times he loved the building so much he “had to have it” and then he manages it so badly he “has to sell it” and he overpays, and sells for less money than he paid, and he still pretends (and the Times does too) that this is some sign of visionary genius.)
gene108
@David ?Canadian Anchor Baby? Koch: @David ?Canadian Anchor Baby? Koch:
Trump is the Republican base, over the last 8 years, distilled into a politician.
Why is the media surprised?
The MSM ignored every time a Republican dodged answering a question about where President Obama was born, gave free airtime to Birthers, and politicians who stoked hatred ((cough**Sarah Palin**cough)) by either back handedly saying he’s different or not smacking down Fox News, when they made Obama’s “unAmericanness” “news” has led to this candidate, Donald J. Trump.
The media should not be shocked. They helped create this atmosphere, where Donald Trump can thrive.
bemused
@efgoldman:
I thought of those two but can’t think of any others.
Gin & Tonic
Quick question for attorneys. I was talking with a financial guy recently, and he recommended that I research a revocable living trust as opposed to a will. I’m married with three grown children, and we own real estate in two different states. That latter is why he was suggesting the trust. Is he off base?
TriassicSands
Arrgh. Not sleeping.
@debbie:
Well, the kids probably lured the men into doing something they otherwise never would have done. But Hillary, we all know exactly why Hillary does everything she does.
One of the saddest things I’ve heard about Orlando is that a number of victims were outed by being murdered and appearing in the media. Some of their families are claiming that their sons weren’t gay — there has to be some mistake, because, no, their sons couldn’t have been and weren’t gay. Heartbreaking.
aimai
@Baud: I don’t see Hillayr as avoiding the press–I think she is taking a leaf out of Obama’s campaign and dealing directly with local press and politicians (the kind of people who get some coverage because they are local). I read that she is also taking the bull by the horns and producing her own natural, walking and talking, videos for distribution along her own supply lines instead of waiting for favorable coverage from the mass media.
BillinGlendaleCA
@Amir Khalid: Truman moved to Blair House while the White House underwent extensive repairs(they basically gutted the building and rebuilt the inside on steel frame).
LAO
@Ian: I know but reading the comments and their pledges of loyalty to Trump was sickening. Their reasoning so flawed and hypocritical, I would have thought it was a spoof, if I didn’t know better. RW Christians sense entitlement and belief in their martyrdom knows no bounds.
bemused
@rikyrah:
Rubio reportedly hates being a senator yet ran for president and now he is hinting he may run for office again.
Shell
Add to the list, a Coward! On the morning news they played a greatest hits of his comments yesterday on Obama. His insinuation that somehow , someway, Obama is responsible for these terror attacks. And then when an interviewer tries to nail him down to specifically what he’s alleging , its “Oh no, you have to decide that for yourself….blah-blah…Im not saying that”
It needs to yelled from the roof tops, the man is a coward!
O. Felix Culpa
@Baud: Is there a meaningful difference?
LAO
@Gin & Tonic: ask a CPA, I believe it’s tax based. Disclaimer, criminal defense attorney, relying on vague recollection from law school over 20 years ago.
germy
@bemused:
He really just wants to be rich. Why doesn’t he go somewhere far away and make a lot of money?
aimai
@Lounger: This is an argument I make all the time. Its well worth making. A lot of people, including Democrats, have this hazy idea of what the Presidency is or does and especially if they voted previously for a charismatic figure like Bill or Obama they often never really learn their lesson. They continue to watch what happens when congress blocks their chosen leader and just shake their heads and moan “if only he were stronger, or angrier, or tougher” this wouldn’t be happening. They also don’t understand just how an entire administration changes hands and what that means for administrative law and change in things like the EEOC etc… If you can personalize it, find a specific example, you can usually convince someone who is on the fence about Hillary from a Democratic perspective. But the same argument, in reverse, can make it hard to flip a Republican.
D58826
@Gin & Tonic: Not a lawyer but when set up my estate plan in 2009 the lawyer set up a trust. When it needed a revision in 2015 a different lawyer said no a will was better. So don’t be surprised if you get conflicting answers
Gin & Tonic
@LAO: He said to talk to a lawyer. Maybe one of the more civil-oriented one of your tribe is around. The primary concern, it seemed, was not so much tax-based as probate-avoidance.
TriassicSands
@gene108:
And now that the Frankenstein’s monster they helped create is running amok, they are still clinging to the “both sides do it” mentality that has done so much damage.
How do you fact check a person with no regard whatsoever for the truth? The other day I heard some excerpts read from Trump’s book “The Art of the Deal.” Eerily, it reminded me of Hitler and Mein Kampf, in which Hitler revealed enough of his thinking and plans to frighten any sane person. In Trump’s case, the book is not about politics, per se, but rather explains why he does much of what he does. Everyone covering the election should read that book (no, not as punishment) and it might help them cover a serial liar and exaggerator. Trump admits that exaggerating is the way to get attention. Obviously, many of his exaggerations morph easily into falsehoods, and then outrageous, dangerous lies. The media have only a few months to learn how to cover a man who doesn’t play by the rules, because his only rule is self-aggrandizement. Right now they are being mercilessly manipulated by a truly evil person.
NotMax
@germy
Because he has no skills and even less competence?
Sugar daddies open their purses for only so long when no return on expenditure is forthcoming.
Kay
@David ?Canadian Anchor Baby? Koch:
Yay. I want his poll numbers to drop because we haven’t seen his reaction to that yet. He’ll go crazy. Polls are his whole thing. He’s obsessed with them.
LAO
@Gin & Tonic: that’s interesting. Probate should never be an issue unless there is conflict between heirs. I’d be interested in the “final answer”. As the future executor of both my parents wills, I have warned my brothers, it’s going to be ugly.
germy
@D58826:
To simplify matters I’ve arranged to have all my possessions thrown into my funeral pyre. (It will be a small fire)
El Caganer
@OzarkHillbilly: Jesus Christ. Even if somebody doesn’t agree with her specific prescriptions, she knows what the issues are and has proposals to address them. When it comes to policy, The Donald can’t find his ass with both hands and a GPS.
germy
@NotMax: Competence is not needed if he robotically repeats their talking points to every media outlet who’ll have him.
They need pleasant-looking faces reciting their lines.
(He doesn’t look particularly pleasant to me, but compared to people like sheldon a., he’s a charmer. Sheldon looks like he was illustrated by Ralph Steadman)
D58826
@LAO: Given that the 99% of my asserts are financial and will be handled as beneficiaries, the only assets that would go into probate are the car and the contents of the apartment, the second lawyer said that the trust was overkill.
LAO
@Gin & Tonic: if you can’t get an answer you are comfortable with, I have a good friend who’s practice is solely estate litigation. If you feel comfortable emailing me directly, I can ask Adam to send you my email address and will forward your specific question to my friend.
Gin & Tonic
@LAO: He said it also eases things if one or both of us are medically incapacitated. But it all sounds like a lot more work (i.e. expense.)
Sister Rail Gun of Warm Humanitarianism
@rikyrah:
One of my favorite bits from a Vorkosigan novel: For all the talk of men coveting the emperor’s throne, Ivan had never yet heard anyone speak of coveting his desk.
Shell
When I hear Trump talk about what he’d do in the WH or criticize Clinton about what he thinks she’d do, it gives a real look into how he sees the presidency; a kind of a dictatorship. When he claims Clinton is going to abolish the second amendment, someone needs to point out to him that no president can abolish a constitutional amendment. Or make laws on their own; thats Congress’ job. But he seems to think, once you’re president, its like sitting on the Iron Throne. Just wave your hand and its done.
Gin & Tonic
@LAO: Thanks for the offer. I need to do some research first.
Babette
@Gin & Tonic: If you leave both properties through your Will, your estate will be probated in two states. The out of state property will be subject to what’s known as “ancillary probate” – which in most cases is pretty straightforward. Nevertheless, a living trust is often appropriate when there is real property in multiple states, especially if probate in your state of residence is expensive and/or drawn out. Another option is retitling the out of state property so that it passes directly to your co-owner(s). Yes, it would be a good idea to consult with an estate planning attorney.
NotMax
@germy
Thing is, his skills as a robot aren’t there either
He oozes the old “Nothing can go wrong … go wrong … go wrong” roboticism.
hovercraft
@aimai:
Yes they order their minons to do the work. How the mighty have fallen, back in 2012 everyone was begging Christie to run look at him now.
NotMax
@hovercraft
Stepin Wretchit.
LAO
@Gin & Tonic: no problem. And, what Babette says at #204, makes sense to me.
Tom
@JGabriel: LOL.
We started season 1 last night and I was reminded of how many bad-ass women are in this show.
Gin & Tonic
@Babette: Thanks for the explanation. My one concern in “consulting” with someone is that they have a direct incentive to “recommend” the more costly course of action.
hovercraft
@Kay:
He has already started making excuses, based on last weeks Fox and Rassmussen he says it’s a reverse Bradley effect, people support him but won’t tell pollsters. It doesn’t make sense that all of a sudden people would start lying to pollsters. But if the trend continues he will be pressed I hope.
germy
@hovercraft:
“My supporters are ashamed to admit they support me.”
Ringing endorsement.
Tom
@NotMax: I’d be willing to pay him to stay away from politics.
Gelfling545
@TriassicSands:
Babette
@Gin & Tonic: More costly up front, yes, but not necessarily when you include the costs that come up after your death, to be paid out of your estate. There are several ways to structure your estate. What you choose will depend on your age, health, family, assets, state of residence, plans (if any) to relocate out of state, and a bunch of other factors that an attorney will ask you about. What you should avoid is a lawyer who aggressively pushes living trusts for everyone, because you probably won’t get the in depth counseling that will help you make your decisions, and you probably also won’t get the detailed follow through which is essential once the trust is created.
satby
@Gin & Tonic: My mother left a revocable living trust, and then a will that “swept” any property not specified into the trust. I would consult an estate planning attorney as well, because some of the advice my sister has gotten since she became an executor (not from estate planning attorneys) has been seriously wrong. Fortunately I knew that and steered her in a better direction with advice from botsplainer and BellaQ.
Edited to add: what Babette says too.
hovercraft
@germy:
He seems to think it shows there is a ‘silent majority’ out there just waiting to vote for him. I don’t know what world he’s living in but his fans have not been silent, they are loud, rude, and obnoxious.
Immanentize
@Gin & Tonic: If you get that vibe from an attorney or a financial adviser — run for the hills! A real attorney will only recommend the solution that is best for your situation, regardless of their future involvement (as in probate, etc.)
Ruckus
@Mustang Bobby:
Checking himself in is a good thing. You may be very worried about why he’s in need of doing that but it is a good thing. He made a decision to get help to solve his problems, rather than try to do so on his own.
Matt McIrvin
@germy: I actually think there are a lot of people who support Hillary Clinton but keep quiet about it, not because they’re particularly ashamed but because they know it will start a fight, even with some of their liberal friends. But there would be little reason for them to lie to pollsters.
1,000 Flouncing Lurkers (was fidelioscabinet)
@Central Planning:
A co-worker, who would have been 8 or so in 1980, had very fond memories of Ronald Reagan–all of them based either on the happy excited feelings brought on by the “Morning in America” spiel, or on the fall of the Berlin Wall.
We underestimate what a great salesman for the GOP Reagan was–it was his greatest strength, and the most dangerous thing about him. He made people feel happy about things, without much reflection on the actual policies and incidents of his administration. A lot of people vote based solely on that–and while some of them buy cars and houses and get married the same way, without expending much consideration of anything except how the feel, voting for president seems to be one place otherwise thoughtful people give in to choosing based solely on their feelings.
I think this is one of the main reasons Carter and Mondale, and then Dukakis went down in flames–they didn’t make people feel good the way Reagan did–and in 1988, Reagan’s mantle was still stretched over GHWBush. When Bush went up against Bill Clinton, he looked like a grim stiff, and when Gore went up against GWBush, he, too, looked like a stiff, as did Kerry. McCain, I suspect, gave a lot of these folks a crazy grandpa vibe, while Obama looked young and vigorous and optimistic.
I’ll let the commentariat consider how this works out for Clinton vs. Trump.
Mike R
@Gin & Tonic: We set up a revocable trust. We have some horses that we wanted taken care of if something happened to us. It was a little more expensive than a will, but it serves the purpose to insure that our horses live out their lives in peace. After they expire it converts to basically a will and the remaining assets are divided among the heirs.
Miss Bianca
@Mustang Bobby: Wow. Seconding good wishes on all fronts.
@Kay: Yay!…ish? ; )
Brachiator
@hovercraft:
There was never any such thing as The Bradley Effect. Probably no such thing as a reverse Bradley Effect either.
@germy:
RE: Rubio reportedly hates being a senator yet ran for president and now he is hinting he may run for office again.
Rubio probably could not earn much actually working for a living, but he can rake in big bucks as a senator from well-heeled donors.
Brachiator
@efgoldman:
No questions. You laid it out plain.
PurpleGirl
@Amir Khalid: In the late 1940s the WH was rebuilt from the beams out because it was just about falling apart. And in the 1960s Jacqueline Kennedy did a major overhaul of the decoration and furnishings of the WH. I’ve taken the tour of the WH and it is pretty damn luxurious. There are maids and cleaning people, several chefs and assistants — Melania won’t have to vacuum and clean anything. Gold faucets do not make it luxurious.