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Open Threads

You are here: Home / Archives for Open Threads

Thursday Morning Open Thread: What A Difference A Day Makes

by Anne Laurie|  January 21, 20216:00 am| 54 Comments

This post is in: Biden-Harris 2020, Open Threads, Proud to Be A Democrat, Readership Capture

"Democracy has prevailed"

In his inaugural address as the 46th president of the United States, Joe Biden said it was a "day of history and hope"https://t.co/qE9s2zYjqO pic.twitter.com/rQHyIMLInC

— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) January 20, 2021

As Lady Gaga sang the national anthem, the sky opened up and sunlight reflected off of the Capitol, illuminating the flag.

— Olivia Nuzzi (@Olivianuzzi) January 20, 2021

The Bidens share a moment right before they entered the White House after the #InaugurationDay ceremony https://t.co/iIbwhzEsVk pic.twitter.com/ertv4K78XE

— Reuters (@Reuters) January 21, 2021

It's an honor to be your Vice President. pic.twitter.com/iM3BxJzz6E

— Vice President Kamala Harris (@VP) January 20, 2021

Eugene Goodman, a Capitol Police officer who was hailed as a hero for facing down members of the mob that breached the Capitol on Jan. 6, is serving as an escort to Vice President-elect Kamala Harris as she is sworn into the U.S.’s second-highest office. https://t.co/yuPtZTtEZj

— The New York Times (@nytimes) January 20, 2021

??: In a sign of the covid times — a fist bump between Joe Biden and his former boss, Barack Obama #InaugurationDay https://t.co/1j6ZJcRBZT pic.twitter.com/WSq9ya4s3x

— Bloomberg (@business) January 20, 2021

Harris swears in Sens. Warnock, Ossoff and Padilla as Democrats take control of the Senate, cementing party’s power in Washington https://t.co/mpVnhSOJOb

— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) January 20, 2021

Thanks to American voters, we are back in the #ParisAgreement. America is once again poised to lead the world on climate action, working with our allies to build a better future for us all. Time to get back to work!

— Al Gore (@algore) January 20, 2021

Now the real work begins, folks. Follow along at @POTUS as we build back better. pic.twitter.com/fHViqSqwp2

— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) January 20, 2021

Spotted at the White House: Ron Klain, the White House chief of staff, sporting a unity mask. It’s the message of the day. pic.twitter.com/n1r3DPCGW5

— Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) January 20, 2021

and I mean like hundreds of people all bringing their a-game all the time, for joe. these things don’t just happen. it’s window dressing but it indicates the stuff that matters will get the same treatment.

— kilgore trout, brad r’s brother (@KT_So_It_Goes) January 21, 2021

The inauguration security barriers will start coming down on Wednesday night, and take 36 hours to be completely removed. https://t.co/OoqFXbjLa9 pic.twitter.com/4NgLJJS9PM

— DCist (@DCist) January 21, 2021

Asian stocks jumped to record highs as investors bet the new U.S. administration under President Joe Biden could mean bigger stimulus spending https://t.co/mHHVL9IQBf pic.twitter.com/HeYh9FMqSH

— Reuters (@Reuters) January 21, 2021

Thursday Morning Open Thread: What A Difference A Day MakesPost + Comments (54)

Here Comes The Sun

by WaterGirl|  January 20, 202110:55 pm| 115 Comments

This post is in: Open Threads

Here Comes The Sun.

Start at the beginning and watch the whole thing.  Here Comes The Sun starts at 16:12.

National Youth Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman’s full inauguration speech.

She’s brilliant. Chills…pic.twitter.com/6yl4wnVPNo

— Rex Chapman🏇🏼 (@RexChapman) January 20, 2021

If Amanda Gorman doesn’t give you hope for the future, nothing will.  She’s amazing.

Here Comes The SunPost + Comments (115)

Inauguration Night Open Thread

by John Cole|  January 20, 20216:53 pm| 446 Comments

This post is in: Open Threads

I had a lovely time today watching the inauguration festivities- up until my phone died and I had to rush off and get a new one. It was 5-6 years old and several models back, so I suppose it was time, but still irritating. Once I got that done, I got home and thought I would take a quick nap while the new phone updated.

Three hours later I woke up, and it was pitch black outside, and it was one of those naps where I had no idea if it was 6am or 6pm. The kind of deep, dreamless slumber where you wake up with no memory from your sleep- the kind where you think “That must be what it is like when you die- just nothingness.”

I think all of America feels that way. We got a zoom meeting tonight?

Inauguration Night Open ThreadPost + Comments (446)

(Literal) Housekeeping (At the White House) Open Thread

by Anne Laurie|  January 20, 20216:13 pm| 102 Comments

This post is in: Biden-Harris 2020, Open Threads, Readership Capture

The time has finally come for President Trump to find a space at Mar-a-Lago for his $50,000 room-size golf simulator, his collection of Brioni suits and the first lady’s matching Louis Vuitton luggage she has hauled around the globe. @anniekarni https://t.co/LG0mwgAsDb

— Eric Lipton (@EricLiptonNYT) January 19, 2021

… By Wednesday at 12:01 p.m., hours after Mr. Trump himself plans to leave Washington, all the first family’s stuff will have followed him out the White House door, en route to his new home in Palm Beach, Fla. And by the end of the day Joseph R. Biden Jr. and his wife, Jill, will arrive to a deep-cleaned living quarters where their bags will be unpacked, their furniture arranged and their favorite foods stocked in the fridge.

It’s the awkward pas de deux performed every four or eight years when one family moves in and another moves out, an undertaking carried out by the 90-person White House residence staff in about five hours. A complicated, highly choreographed process is done on a tight schedule that often requires boxing up whatever has been left unpacked — some outgoing presidents are more prepared to leave the executive mansion than others.

This year, people involved in the process said, moving day also involves additional cleaning and safety precautions because of the coronavirus…

The Bidens were never invited to meet the residence staff, or canvass the second floor of the White House, which has 16 rooms and six bathrooms and will now be their home. Michelle Obama, by contrast, had been through the White House twice at the invitation of Mrs. Bush before her husband’s 2009 inauguration.

“Mrs. Trump should have invited Dr. Biden in for the traditional coffee,” said Capricia Marshall, who served as White House social secretary in the Clinton administration and oversaw that president’s departure in 2001, referring to Melania Trump, the first lady. “Typically, she would come prepared with questions, she’ll meet and talk to the chef, the full time residence staff and have an opportunity for them to break the ice. It’s a courtesy, but logistically it’s incredibly helpful. That didn’t happen.”…

“The good news is there’s a process, there’s a checklist,” Ms. McBride said. “The staff knows what they need to do. And the Bidens know the building, they know the people. They’ve been there plenty.”

Theme for the (first) Biden Administration: No panic, we’ve done this before.

show full post on front page

White House cleaning crews are scrubbing the press secretary’s office to prep for the arrival of @jrpsaki. The cleaners are all over the West Wing and residence this morning, Inauguration Day. Some Trump aides left notes behind for the new staffers. pic.twitter.com/H1VLXPJvTb

— Jennifer Jacobs (@JenniferJJacobs) January 20, 2021

An interesting revelation in this @CNN piece, which confirms something we've heard about the Trumps. This re the deep, deep clean that's going down at the White House to free it of germs, given that it has been a COVID hotspot thanks to the Trumps. https://t.co/u7tRC1r3lj pic.twitter.com/zyCTa0rUnF

— Joy WE VOTED!! WEAR A MASK!! Reid ??) (@JoyAnnReid) January 18, 2021

classless trash to the end https://t.co/rnoACjltee

— kilgore trout, brad r’s brother (@KT_So_It_Goes) January 20, 2021

(Literal) Housekeeping (At the White House) Open ThreadPost + Comments (102)

Guest Post: Defeat Them

by John Cole|  January 20, 20214:11 pm| 170 Comments

This post is in: Guest Posts, Open Threads

One more guest post now – and then we’ll take a break on the guest posts until later this evening or tomorrow.

I’ll be adding links to all of these posts in the Inauguration area in the sidebar so you can revisit them, or catch them for the first time in the coming days. ~WaterGirl

*Reminder: Inauguration Zoom starts in about an hour.  It’s not to late to send me info asking for the zoom info.

William, long-time lurker:

Thoughts on Trump/Biden transition

I knocked on doors for Elizabeth Warren and was disappointed that the glass ceiling remained intact. That being said, it is hard for me to imagine anyone but Joe Biden as the best fit for this moment.  Everytime I hear him speak, introducing his cabinet or talking about his plans, I feel is a calming refreshing salve for the rough spots in my soul rubbed raw by four years of Trump’s inflammatory bullshit – sore spots I didn’t consciously realize I had until now.  I don’t think Warren (or Bernie) would have this soothing effect. Perhaps America’s multiple crises require something more, but it sure feels good now.

The optimist in me is very much looking forward to a President who cares about the Constitution and to doing his job, to government agency heads who actually believe in the mission of their agencies — indeed simply to people who fundamentally recognize the need for government to solve various collective action problems.  In my opinion the Covid pandemic is the biggest short-term problem, and climate change in the biggest long-term problem. I am hopeful that Biden has learned from the accomplishments and mistakes of previous presidents (especially Obama), and that he will make a good-faith effort to listen to and balance the progressive and centrist wings of the Democratic Party in marshalling the federal government to address these problems.

I also have some –some– hope that the January 6 insurrection will continue to be an anvil dragging down the extreme right-wing movement in this country – that it will be investigated and that more people will see the dangers of the white supremacist movement and respond accordingly (including ridicule).

The pessimist in me foresees minor gaffes and mis-steps by Biden etc. being blown way out of proportion by Republicans and right-wing media, with mainstream media attempting to “balance” things by minimizing Trump’s record and maximizing Democratic goofs. I foresee a flood of bad-faith arguments about deficit spending and corruption and cancel culture aimed at Democrats/liberals by people who didn’t give a rat’s ass about them as long as their side benefited.

As a liberal Democrat, I have a secret. I believe in the two-party system, and hence yearn for a rational Republican Party that competes for my vote by running candidates of character and policies that help the country. Not a party that competes by running on Trumpist MAGA themes and suppressing the vote.  Don’t know how to achieve that, other than defeating them for several presidential elections in a row.

Thank you, William, for sending this in!  Lurk less, comment more.  (WG)

 

Guest Post: Defeat ThemPost + Comments (170)

Guest Post: I Believe In My Fellow Americans

by John Cole|  January 20, 20213:04 pm| 80 Comments

This post is in: Guest Posts, Open Threads

Nicole:

I was diagnosed with breast cancer on Halloween before the 2016 election.  It wasn’t the most surprising diagnosis; my mother had breast cancer, but it was terrifying, because my mother died at 35, barely 2 years after her diagnosis.  I had no idea how far the cancer had progressed, or how aggressive it was, or how much time I still had left.

On the bright side, I thought on the day I was diagnosed, no matter how bad this turns out to be, at least I lived to see the first woman President.

Yeah.  About that…

The day after the election, someone posted online from Germaine Greer’s The Female Eunuch, “Women have very little idea of how much men hate them.”  On November 9, 2016, I started to get an idea.  And I realized how very naïve I had been until this point, believing in the lie we are told that America is a land of equality (people who aren’t white could have told me this was a lie long ago- heck, they probably tried; I just wasn’t able to hear them, caught up as I was in my faith in the ideal of what I had been taught my whole life America is).  I’m not going to be so naïve ever again.

I also have naively believed in the concept of fairness.  I mean, I know life isn’t fair, but the past four years really showed me how effortlessly the powerful avoid consequences for terrible, cruel, immoral actions- tearing apart families, causing unnecessary deaths, destroying the future of the planet and lying and lying and lying and getting away with it all.

And yet… and yet…

Four years (and one cancer recurrence) later, I was one of over 81 million Americans who said, this isn’t what we want. I wasn’t voting for the candidate I had wanted; I was voting for yet another old white guy, but, as bad as the past 4 years have been for me, they have been far worse for people who don’t have my privilege, bad in an immediate way I didn’t experience, and if I have learned anything else from the past 4 years, it’s that it’s not all about me. It’s not about me getting to see a woman in the White House; it’s about taking action to be a better citizen for all of us.  Every person who showed up to vote Trump out of the White House was taking action to be a better citizen.  And my fellow Democratic voters showed how smart they were in the primaries, much smarter than me.  And I trusted their judgment and I’m glad.

And then the Georgia Senate runoffs happened and I saw the effect of all the work so many activists in the state put into getting people to the polls.  I saw the voice of the powerless is so much louder than that of the powerful, when we all speak together.

I’m very hopeful about the next four years.  I know it won’t be everything I want, and there are days I’m going to be furious, but it won’t be every day.  That will be a great change from the past four years.   As to what I hope to see, beyond the immediate solution to the Covid-19 crisis, more than anything, I hope to see the Biden-Harris Administration and Congress expand voting rights, and protect them.  I want to see more economic and racial and gender justice, too, but most of all, I want to see those without power be given access to the power of the ballot box.  Someone said that 2020 showed that Georgia isn’t a red state; it’s a voter suppressed state, and I want to live in a country where that won’t ever be said about another state in the Union.  Trump lost the popular vote twice.  He was never what the majority of America wanted; just what the ones with power wanted.  That, we can change.

On a personal level, it’s my job to keep dialoguing with the people I meet and know; to call out racism and sexism when I hear it; to listen without defensiveness when my own biases are shown to me.  I will keep writing postcards to fellow voters, and try to overcome my shyness and maybe even try phone banking for the next elections (and there are always next elections).   I’ll let my elected politicians know what I think.  I’ll see what’s happening in my local area, and how I can help.

Even as late as November of 2020, I thought I’d never get over my bitterness about 2016.  But now, I’m less certain.  Not because it wasn’t unfair; it was, as we once again saw a brilliantly capable woman get passed over for a promotion by a mediocre white man.  But because bitterness can lead to despair, and despair leads to inaction.   And because, even though I feel like I’ve been lied to about what America stands for, it doesn’t change the fact that those ideals of equality and justice for all should be what America stands for.  It’s on me, on all of us, to get us a little closer.  Will I live to see a woman President? I don’t know.

I’m cancer-free again as of this writing, but who know what the future holds.  If I’m honest with myself, I’m doubtful I will; not because I fear dying soon but because I fear it’s farther away than I’d like it to be.  But I still have a responsibility to work for a future where it will be, even if I’m not around for it.  And the next four years are as good a place to start as any.  There’s so much to do, but I believe in the new Administration, and, for the first time in a while, I also believe in my fellow Americans.  It’s a good place to be.

Nicole, thank you so much for sending this in!  (WG)

Guest Post: I Believe In My Fellow AmericansPost + Comments (80)

Open thread

by Tim F|  January 20, 20211:51 pm| 194 Comments

This post is in: Open Threads

Mood.

Anything else happening today?

Open threadPost + Comments (194)

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