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You are here: Home / Politics / Activist Judges! / We Have a Winner in the GOP Senatorial Runoff in Alabama

We Have a Winner in the GOP Senatorial Runoff in Alabama

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Here he is:

Ooops, sorry, that’s Mike TeaVee from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.

Here he is:

Your Alabama GOP senatorial runoff winner is cowboy cosplayer and teeny weeny wheel gun aficionado Judge Roy Moore – the Last Law West of Ashkelon.

PEW! PEW! PEW!

Open thread!

Reader Interactions

132Comments

  1. 1.

    Wag

    I personally cannot wait for the Dems to take the Alabama senate seat by running a sane moderate against Judge Moore.

    A guy can hallucinate, can’t he?

  3. 3.

    Frankensteinbeck

    I feel so wonderfully relaxed. I knew from the moment Skinny Repeal died that Graham was tilting at windmills with his desire to push his own bill. The votes were not there. They were never there. Hell, Graham himself was confident he might get 48 votes, as if that was a winning margin.

    Knowing that did not help. Watching the process was harrowing. I’m able to smile again now that McConnell has pulled the plug.

  4. 4.

    Omnes Omnibus

    Wheel guns don’t jam. OTOH, if he is going with an pistol of that size a Bat Masterson-type bowler would have been a better hat choice.

  8. 8.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Omnes Omnibus: Actually they can. If a bullet pulls forward from the crimp on the casing because of recoil, or if you have a slightly out of spec seating of bullet to casing in regard to over all length, it can jam the cylinder in place and prevent it from advancing.

    Also, I wasn’t making fun of wheel guns. I was making fun of Moore showing off an itty bitty one while cowboy cosplaying. A Ruger Redhawk with a 5 inch or greater barrel or an Smith & Wesson N frame would have been more appropriate given the outfit.

  16. 16.

    GregB

    I wonder if this theocratic fascist criminal is a bridge to far, even for Goatfuckistan?

    Meanwhile in NH, the Democrat just flipped the 4th most Republican seat in the NH House in a special election. Dems have won the 3 special elections so farZ

  28. 28.

    Adam L Silverman

    This happened today too!


    Ladies prepare, in ten months, to start your engines!

    This is an artist’s rendering of what this change will look like:

  30. 30.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Ruckus: Okay. I’ve just heard these hagiographic stories about the wonder that was the Colt revolver in Colt’s hey day.

  35. 35.

    Mike J

    First day with decent wind in two weeks. Whitecaps on the lake when I left singlehanded in a boat best handled by two or three. Beat up to the VMAC and ran back. Pull up to the dock and our maintenance guy is there. “Beautiful day for a sail,” says he. I agree. So we grab the 27′ keelboat and go out and bury the rail until almost sundown. A nice two boat day.

  36. 36.

    Ruckus

    @Adam L Silverman:
    It was the operator not the tool. Both of my friends who became cops could not shoot anywhere near a well as I could, with my weapon or theirs. It used to cause me no end of merriment. Now I can’t even remember who I sold that to.

  50. 50.

    BBA

    @boatboy_srq: Remember Terri Schiavo? If anyone can pass a bill by emergency unanimous consent without a quorum and still call it the will of the American people with a straight face, McConnell can.

  51. 51.

    Shalimar

    @Brachiator: Moore is the nut who fires his little pop gun indiscriminately at everyone, mostly McConnell. Horrible person, but maybe the best you can hope for from a Republican these days.

  53. 53.

    No Drought No More

    Forget Mississippi. Tonight Nina Simone would have sang, “Alabama, Goddamn”.. What the hell is wrong with those people?

  58. 58.

    efgoldman

    @Mike in NC:

    shocked, I say, that a racist asshole gets elected in fucking Alabama.

    It is, after all, the seat formerly held by one Jefferson Beaueregard Sessions, the Evil Leprechaun. Once a racist scum, always a racist scum.

  59. 59.

    James Powell

    @boatboy_srq:

    I’m waiting for Turtle to attempt to pass bills through the Senate by plurality vote.

    Or maybe by a majority of Republicans because Suck it Libtards! you lost!

  60. 60.

    Mike in NC

    @Cheryl Rofer: Trump has one thumb in his mouth and the other up his ass, and waited for General Kelly to tell him when to switch, as a high school teacher once said.

  62. 62.

    James Powell

    I know I’m dreaming but Moore winning what is effectively the real election for senator should convince the tote-baggers, the wanna get along independents, and the allergic to partisanship dickheads that there is no talking to, no compromising with, and no accepting of the RW supremacists who are the 21st century Republican Party.

  66. 66.

    Mike J

    @Ruckus: We bought a 80s vintage Catalina 27 for club members to take cruising in Puget Sound (Friday Harbor and back with two or three stops along the way is popular.) Paid about 10k, and of course the outboard died on the way from the owner’s slip to the dock.where we got the bottom done. She’s very roomy for her size, but kind of a pig in anything less than 10. Doesn’t really handle great then either, but at least she’ll move.

    Our Ranger 24′ feels half as big below deck, but she handles waves a lot better and weighs 3000lbs less, so it doesn’t take a gale to get her going. We also have a symetrical and an asym spinnaker for the 24, where the 27 doesn’t even have the fittings.

    Old boats might not have the bells and whistles, but they can still be fun.

  68. 68.

    TriassicSands

    The Democrats don’t always come up with inspiring candidates for office, but it is the Republicans who are uniquely able to find the scum under the sludge at the bottom of the barrel. In Alabama, they have now gone at least two strata deeper in nominating Roy Moore. No matter who your choice for worst candidate ever — and that includes Trump — Roy Moore could at least give all of them a credible run for the title. This is a man who will be effectively perjuring himself when he swears to protect and defend the Constitution. “God’s Law” always supersedes the Constitution and other human-made laws. The Ten Commandments take precedence over the Bill of Rights (except perhaps the Second Amendment, which probably has equal status with Biblical rules) and Moore, if given the chance, will undoubtedly violate his oath of office repeatedly should he become the newest senator from Alabama.

    With Trump in the White House and Moore headed for the senate (?), we will have the two worst elected federal officials in our history.

  69. 69.

    boatboy_srq

    @BBA: I’m not likely to forget that. I was a caregiver for the A.P. at the time. That case gave me nightmares for years. But that was more on HEB?’s head than Turtles, and Shrub lobbied for it as a favor for Big Bro, so I don’t give Turtle many points for that.

  70. 70.

    boatboy_srq

    @Ruckus: I heard something about boats wanna be doing something, too…

    /s

    Honestly, this pResidential moment makes Shrub’s “how many is a Brazilian?” comment look positively intelligent and informed.

  71. 71.

    Brachiator

    @Mike in NC:

    ..Shocked, just shocked, I say, that a racist asshole gets elected in fucking Alabama.

    You left out that he also appears to be seriously, deeply anti-gay.

  72. 72.

    efgoldman

    @boatboy_srq:

    But that was more on HEB?’s head than Turtles, and Shrub lobbied for it as a favor for Big Bro

    Wasn’t Big Brave Wonder boy Marco part of that mess, too, in the Florida leg?

  73. 73.

    Another Scott

    laclan on Twitter points us to VOX:

    Jeff Stein
    Some right-wing conservatives think Sharia law is a danger to America — do you?

    Roy Moore
    There are communities under Sharia law right now in our country. Up in Illinois. Christian communities; I don’t know if they may be Muslim communities.

    But Sharia law is a little different from American law. It is founded on religious concepts.

    Jeff Stein
    Which American communities are under Sharia law? When did they fall under Sharia law?

    Roy Moore
    Well, there’s Sharia law, as I understand it, in Illinois, Indiana — up there. I don’t know.

    Jeff Stein
    That seems like an amazing claim for a Senate candidate to make.

    Roy Moore
    Well, let me just put it this way — if they are, they are; if they’re not, they’re not.

    Heh. Who can argue with that??!

    :-/

    (via LOLGOP on Twitter)

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  76. 76.

    efgoldman

    @Brachiator:

    he also appears to be seriously, deeply anti-gay.

    Not “appears”. He’s anti anything that is’t white, fake christofascist, “straight”, gun totin’ hypocrite.
    He did, after all, let himself get bounced off the state supreme court bench in Alabama, rather than acknowledge the primacy of the constitution.

  77. 77.

    Adam L Silverman

    Give this a read from one of the GOP campaign consultants involved in the Alabama race.
    medium.com/@jmgehrke/alabama-senate-memo-return-of-the-civil-war-and-the-fall-of-mitch-mcconnell-27c…

    I’ll leave you with this last bit, which, if accurate, augurs the eventual election (2018?) of a completely incoherent and unable to be lead GOP caucus in the Senate:

    McConnell failed to repeal ObamaCare again yesterday. Tonight, Alabama voters have handed him a stunning defeat. There is blood in the water now, and more conservative candidates who are hostile to the establishment are primed to step forward.

    Republicans now have a choice: 2018 will either be a successful year with the GOP focused on picking up Democratic seats and passing a conservative agenda, or it will be a bloody Civil War with Mitch McConnell at the center, desperately clinging to power, forcing incumbent Senators to walk the plank out of loyalty to him.

    If Mitch McConnell cares about the Republican Party, he should resign now.

    If not, out of self preservation alone, the Senate GOP Conference should tell Mitch McConnell, “You’re fired.”

  79. 79.

    efgoldman

    @Adam L Silverman:

    which, if accurate, augurs the eventual election (2018?) of a completely incoherent and unable to be lead GOP caucus in the Senate

    So it will be just like Granny Starver’s house then.

  80. 80.

    efgoldman

    @Redshift:

    It’s Alabama. That will let the totebaggers easily avoid learning that lesson.

    How many totebaggers are there in Alabama? A couple dozen? A few hundred?

  82. 82.

    Ruckus

    @Mike J:
    Owned a 1980 O’Day 30. A lot of room, sailed pretty nice, some details on the cheap side. Lots of fun till you get a poleless spinnaker wrapped just before lowering, while single handing and heading for the beach.

  84. 84.

    Corner Stone

    Mark-Anthony Bailey‏ @MostMuscle
    Replying to @TheRickWilson @thedailybeast

    Rick, do you not believe that the Southern Strategy is a big deal, setting the stage for present day? Surely more than “hyperventilation”.

    Rick Wilson is another asshole, not an ally, who can not be trusted about any damn thing.

  87. 87.

    smedley the uncertain

    @Ruckus: I’m sailing a 1971 Grampian 26 on Lake Erie and have been for almost 20 years. A good old boat but like it’s aging owner requires occasional maintenance and attention. I also have a 1972 Columbia 30 which I sailed for a number of years until recently out of La Paz, MX on the Sea of Cortez. Another solid good old boat.
    Designed by Bill Trip for the ’72 Transpac. It’s fin keel and spade rudder are not a cruisers friend but boy she’s fast. Easily reaches hull speed in the lightest of winds. Neither of these vessels severely damaged the discretionary budget of this Federal retiree. The operative phrases here are maintenance and attention. Nothing structural has been required. Both hulls are still sound, rigging needs occasional replacement and you can always use a new sail. I can do most of the Home Shop level stuff and have access to fellow sailors who know how to get the bigger things done. NB: the mexican boat lives in a Mexican boat yard… If they can’t fix it it can’t be done. A friendly and informative reference is Good Old Boat Magazine.
    Cheers and fair winds

  88. 88.

    Adam L Silverman

    @CaseyL: He’s not going to give up that gavel unless forced to. I fully expect he’d tried to hang on to it if the Democrats won a majority in 2018 by claiming the GOP senators represent more land on the map or something.

  89. 89.

    PST

    Just saw a tweet from my son that amused me: “Now that the bill has been pulled and the dust is clearing, can we admit that Graham Cassidy is a pretty good name for a Western/Noir protagonist? Like, he’s a Pinkerton who’s come to a small town to solve a gruesome murder and it all goes deeper than anyone could have suspected.”

  94. 94.

    Another Scott

    @Adam L Silverman: He’s one of Bannon’s groupies, isn’t he? Not exactly a disinterested observer (and I note you didn’t say he was).

    WaPo from 9/16:

    To counter the onslaught against Moore, the conservative advocacy group Great America Alliance, which is now overseen by Bannon protege and former deputy White House political strategist Andy Surabian, released a digital ad Tuesday featuring a montage of grainy photos of McConnell and Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) that argues over a rock-n-roll score that Strange was “appointed by the swamp.”

    The group and its allies do not intend to match the volume of anti-Moore ads on television, but there are plans for a bus tour of the state by conservative activists in the next couple of weeks to support the Moore campaign, culminating in a major rally before the election. Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, who has endorsed Moore, is expected to travel to Alabama to appear as part of the tour.

    And Moore allies have hope that their side will see an infusion of big money, too. Great America and its sister super PAC have new links to Bannon and his political patrons, the wealthy Mercer family. The former White House strategist does not have a formal role with the organizations, but he helped install Surabian as the top strategist at the advocacy group, according to a person familiar with his role.

    Ed Rollins, the veteran GOP strategist who leads Great America PAC, said he has recently “exchanged some ideas” with Bannon, for whom he said he has “great respect.” And he has also been in talks with the Mercers, influential but idiosyncratic donors who often buck the GOP party establishment.

    “We are having discussions but no formal ties at this point,” Rollins said of the family. “The more we can get going in the same direction, the better. We certainly have had some conversations.”

    If they decide to put serious sums into groups taking on establishment candidates, hedge fund magnate Robert Mercer and his middle daughter, Rebekah, could help fuel the GOP’s latest internecine battles. Before supporting Trump in the 2016 presidential campaign, they gave $13.5 million to a super PAC that backed Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, Trump’s longest-lasting challenger for the nomination.

    Etc.

    I saw somewhere today that the Mercers want control over the GOP even if it’s a much smaller party than it is right now. They’re perfectly fine with fratricide if it helps them get control.

    They’re dangerous – the whole lot of them. We have to fight them every single day.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  96. 96.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    Why is some Easterner pretending to be a cowboy? Alabama is no more the West than New York City.

  97. 97.

    Redshift

    @Adam L Silverman:

    If Mitch McConnell cares about the Republican Party, he should resign now.

    Translation: “The only thing wrong with this clown car is that there isn’t a clown driving it!”

    I hope they take his advice. Getting rid of the leader who actually knew how the institution worked turned out so well in the House…

  102. 102.

    Ladyraxterinok

    @No Drought No More: White Evangelicals believe America was founded as a Christian nation (David Barton is their favored historian). For decades, they believe, America has been turning away from God; ‘we’ must turn back to God – 10 commandments, traditional defination of marriage, etc. And Moore is the ‘poster child’ for that view.

  103. 103.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    @Redshift:

    It’s Alabama. That will let the totebaggers easily avoid learning that lesson.

    Plus Fienstien is from San Francisco, so ignore the irony andwe all know the line “both sides do it, it being what ever it is”

  104. 104.

    Corner Stone

    @Adam L Silverman: He calls Trump a lot of funny curse words and that’s fine. But his stream is mainly a lot of chest thumping, “I’m with you brother!” type machismo bullshit. “Oh, ho, ho! Come visit me anytime for a beating!”
    The second Trump is out of office. The fucking micro-second, Wilson will be race baiting again for a Republican candidate. Wilson also does alot of that very mysterious, “Very Bad Things Are Coming” and I am warning you about them but I refuse to tell anyone what they are or how they might appear because now I can claim credit for any fucking scandal or misstep the Trump admin makes but don’t have to say how I played a part in it.
    His analysis is garbage. You want an analysis on the current state of the Republican Party? They are all fucking racists.
    Done.

  106. 106.

    Redshift

    @JaneSays:

    Granny Starver was actually able to get his Trumpcare abomination passed with very little difficulty.

    It unexpectedly failed the first time because his leadership team is apparently incapable of counting votes, and it passed with 217 votes out of 240 Republicans after an arm-twisting campaign that relied heavily on the argument that it didn’t matter what was in it because the Senate was going to rewrite it. If the House and Senate had gone in reverse order, I’m not convinced ZEGS would have gotten it passed, and certainly not easily.

  107. 107.

    FlipYrWhig

    If I were Luther Strange I’d immediately start voting against everything Trump wanted, just for spite and revenge. You don’t want me around, eh? You let your scummy posse run wild and you personally make me look like a chump? You haven’t even BEGUN to hate me the way you will before I’m through. I might even start caucusing with the Democrats.

  110. 110.

    Repatriated

    @Another Scott:

    I saw somewhere today that the Mercers want control over the GOP even if it’s a much smaller party than it is right now. They’re perfectly fine with fratricide if it helps them get control.

    Think in terms of a blocking coalition.
    Since the alliance of wealthy GOP donors couldn’t advance their agenda of tax cuts and ACA repeal (which are largely the same thing), they may be retrenching to a holding action. Owning the GOP means that if the Dems get back into power, the Mercers might be able to ensure that they’re the ox left un-gored when it comes time to raise taxes (steering the increases toward the oil and real estate sectors, and away from hedge fund exemptions).

  111. 111.

    Corner Stone

    @FlipYrWhig: I’m just wondering how long until a few R Senators get together and say, “Fuck this nonsense. Luther did everything we asked him to and he got trampled. Let’s take the D’s up on their offer and pass a bunch of shit.”

  112. 112.

    Frankensteinbeck

    @JaneSays:
    Like @Redshift says, I don’t recall ‘very little difficulty.’ I recall ‘just barely managed to get enough votes to pass a bill that everybody knew would be completely rewritten by the Senate, specifically by stressing that it was a meaningless sheet of paper whose only purpose was to pass the buck.’ Ryan is a shitty, shitty Speaker. Granted he’s slightly better at the job than Boehner.

    EDIT – Interestingly, McConnell ended up having to try the exact same thing, and failed largely because not all of his senators believed Skinny Repeal would be rewritten.

  114. 114.

    Fair Economist

    @Brachiator:

    So, is Moore the crazy Republican, or is the other guy the crazy Republican?

    Strange is the crazy Republican.

    Moore is the crazier Republican. Moore crazy, you might say.

  115. 115.

    FlipYrWhig

    @Corner Stone: Exactly! I mean most of them are quite obviously terrible human beings but AT A MINIMUM they could be like, “we just created the Cockblock Caucus, Donnie.”

  116. 116.

    jl

    The Alabama Cowboy is an American icon. Like the California cranberry farmer and the Maine Hollywood starlet.
    I’d think twice about makin’ fun of ol’ Roy, in his cowboy duds.

    Edit: Yeesh. I guess I need to check the internet on every little thing before I comment on anything. Looks like there is an Alabama cowboy reality show of some kind on. Is it still on? Has anyone heard about it? Called ‘The Cowboy Way’.

  117. 117.

    🌷 Martin

    I think the election of Roy Moore is unsurprising when you acknowledge that Alabama has more reported snake handlers than Catholics or Lutherans, let alone Jews or Muslims.

  125. 125.

    sm*t cl*de

    @Adam L Silverman:

    A Ruger Redhawk with a 5 inch or greater barrel or an Smith & Wesson N frame would have been more appropriate

    How can he be a proper Republican if he doesn’t own a Tokarev?

  130. 130.

    Ruckus

    @Amir Khalid:
    I thought she had more leadership ability in a toenail clipping than drumpf has in his whole body. That toenail clipping is for sure smarter than he is.

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