Miscellaneous And Off Topic Subjects

[The Oracle]

Just like Ent said upthread, the primaries are even worse when they try to be as dumbasfucked right as humanly possible.

Good to know all we gotta do is spend more on military and keep Muslims out to beat ISIS. Thrilling expertise by those guys.

[Mike]

We will beat them by defeating them! Victory through winning!!

MIKE 2016!!

[Mike]

We will beat them by defeating them! Victory through winning!!

MIKE 2016!!

[Ghengis Jon]

Coincidentally, I'm wearing my Stephen Colbert In 2012 tee shirt today. He'd be a better prez than any of the clowns currently on either side.

Idiocracy was a documentary, not a comedy.

[Hannibal]

There's nothing wrong with expressing your ideology during the primary season to capture your base. The problem on the Republican side is that the only candidates expressing that ideology are people like Donald Trump and Ben Carson. Except for maybe Cruz. In all the time that I have been following politics I have never seen one of the parties with its leadership so out of touch with its base.

[entropy]

Hannibal... agree. I've been surprised that Trump has controlled the messaging and people like Bush and Christie have been muted. Partly, I wonder if that is more about the press loving a train wreck. Carson, imo, has been influenced by trump in a bad way. Initially, while religious, he was more about compassion and finding alternatives to business as usual. Seem like the more he closed the gap the further right he danced.

Equally, I'm really surprised the republicans have been the voters signaling "business as usual" is not acceptable. Dem's are voting for someone who sees power as a right or even a passion. Lot of favors owed and paid for being in DC that long..

[hack]

I'm a bit mystified by the enduring support for Carson. His candidacy is basically based on a personal narrative of belief, achievement and ethics, and he's lied about almost all of it. You'd think his candidacy would have blown up basically the minute it all started to unravel.

[entropy]

I think he's lost steam. I don't think people cared about the scholarship vs military pays for everyone "confusion"... frankly, he had letters that had the word scholarship in it... I think his lack of understanding in the ME and some of his comments about using drones to protect our borders hurt him more.

[The Oracle]

Isn't it about time for that clown show to be cut down to about 3 or 4 legitimate candidates, or is that the problem. Every time I turn those things on same 10 idiots are looking at me.

Why is Christie not getting more support, not far enough right? Is that Obama photo still haunting him from 4 years ago? In my untrained eye, he seems the most sane to me.

[entropy]

good question Oracle... probably because he's just right of center. The extremes control the primaries, especially in the republican party

[hack]

I'm certainly looking forward to getting this over with sooner rather than later, and seeing whomever it is tack back to the center. It's been particularly damaging this go-round with Trump looking to see how far he can go with this schtick. It can return to being amusing if it's Trump suddenly going moderate.

[Da Geezer]

Well, Hack, I was expecting Obama to tack to the middle after he was elected, but that didn't happen. I wouldn't wait for Trump either. His positions are far more liberal that the average Republican.

Why is Christie not getting more support, not far enough right? Is that Obama photo still haunting him from 4 years ago? In my untrained eye, he seems the most sane to me.

I think it is because he is from the East Coast. In 2010, the Republicans had a wave election. Everything was set up for another wave against Obamacare in 2012. Then the Rs nominate the only guy in the country who had overseen the passage of government-paid health care, and there goes that issue and the election.

The Ds have a lock on the electoral college, and the R nominee has to be able to take his own state. That is how Kasich stays in the race; his state is a key swing state. If the Rs are faced with winning with Christie or losing with Trump, I actually believe they will choose Trump in the same way they chose Romney and McCain. Romney from MA, McCain from Washington DC.

IMO, the Republicans are a profoundly stupid party

[hack]

I agree that the actual Trump is more liberal than most Republicans, but the Trump we're getting now in presidential candidate form is not.

[lineygoblue]

I still have a gut feeling that Trump is not a serious candidate. I think he's going to bail out after he has a poor showing on Super Tuesday.

[Jeff Buchanan]

Was listening to Bill O'reilly on GMA this morning being interviewed on the debates. He said don't be surprised if Donald Trump takes the R Nomination.

Since I started being interested in politics in the early 60s, I don't think there has been a weaker group of Rs seeking the party's presidential nomination...... and weak is mild descriptive term here.

My view is that the Republican party has lost its way having been coopted by the religious right. The party and its leading candidates are as far away from core conservatives - what used to be their base - than I have ever seen it. It is not my party anymore.

Since the Clintons came to power when Bill was elected, the Dems have very skillfully negotiated the political terrain, exploiting the idiocy of the Rs and essentially controlling the moderate dialogue, shaping East Coast Liberalism to fit their talking points and appeal to a broad base of Americans.

While I'm not a big fan of Hillary, the Clintons are very well positioned to control the domestic and international agenda for a decade as Republicans are swept from legislative seats in droves come November, 2016. While Republican candidates who are talking up terrorism, immigration, unrestricted gun ownership that appeal to the dullards within the American Citizenry, those guys and girls will be in the bars on November 11th while moderates and eastern liberals nation wide and in the key electoral college states will come out and vote for Hillary.