4964

Yeah, was a bit of a rollercoaster there.

4965
4966

Yeesh, free housing for the homeless and suddenly you’re Hitler.

4967
4968

The new news cycle is: Administration announces a new, awful policy. Media get into a frenzy, speculate about ways it could be even worse. Administration publicly admonishes the media for overreacting, privately rubs their hands together in glee, having just been handed their next newer more awful policy.

4969

Wonder what his pals at the diner think.

4970

Here is the conundrum. While, yes, he is foolish for thinking Donald would help, the reality is that what he wants is fundamentally impossible.

He wants manufacturing jobs to return to his area. Thing is, that can’t happen.

See this chart? This chart shows that US manufacturing, in real economic terms, is higher than ever.

It also shows that, post 2007, we barely managed to increase jobs above the nadir, even as manufacturing output recovered fully. The flat reality is that US manufacturing is simply able to produce more with fewer workers due to automation. There is no governmental policy, short of banning automation and making domestic production completely uncompetitive globally, that can ever return manufacturing jobs back to their levels in the 60’s and 70’s.

It can’t be done.

And when Dem politicians are honest about this and propose other solutions for those communities, such as Hillary did with proposing job training programs to transition manufacturing workers into other careers, people revolted.

Thing is this is literally the only solution for those communities. Evolve, or die. That coal mining town? Learn to code, medical or computer even, or be perpetually unemployed. Even if that mine came back to full glory (and if it is Appalachia it isn’t happening as fields in Idaho and Wyoming are so much more productive per dollar input) it would never employ more than a fraction of the people it did.

Those jobs are never coming back, and it isn’t because of China or Mexico, its because of automation.

So when told the truth, they get angry and run to someone lying to them. And when the lie is exposed, then what? Do you think they’ll accept the truth? When, in 4 years, those manufacturing jobs remain gone and all they have from Democrats is offers to help them get new careers they don’t want? Then what?

These people are deluding themselves, and accept not the truth, and are disillusioned by the lie. They will forever vacillate between parties as neither can give them truly what they want.

Which is infuriating.

4971

Absolutely correct, and I agree it’s infuriating. Imagine falling for the lies and bullshit of this particularly moronic demagogue, a bullshitter who clearly didn’t, and doesn’t, give a flying fuck about these people. The ones who are still buying his line of shit deserve everything coming to them.

4972
4973

The most depressing thing about this administration (after the family separation policies) is the appointments of political lackeys and completely incompetent people at EPA and other scientific advisory committees. And maybe being incompetent would have been a lesser issue, compared to being openly hostile to the very dept you will be leading. It’s really hard to stomach.

I was listening to a PBS investigating news program on “Scuttling Science”. It’s at https://www.kqed.org/radio/program/reveal (Check the Sep 14 link). At about 35 minute into the program, a political appointee at EPA comes in. It must be so hard for academics and professionals to work under this type of environment.

4974

Lucky for DJT he has ‘94% approval with republicans’. Of course, like everything else, that is a lie.

4975

Chao is also, of course, Mitch McConnell’s wife.

4976

What was the name the crazy dude running against McConnel call her? China lady or something?

4977

I’m assuming there are about 5,000 investigations into various Trump officials and none of them will actually ever end in tangible consequences.

4978

There was a volunteer at a liberal political advocacy group in Kentucky who posted a Tweet for the group that suggested jokingly that McConnnell was shipping jobs to China at the behest of his wife. The group immediately apologized and terminated its affiliation with the volunteer. And then McConnell, sneeringly cognizant of the choking irony, blasted liberals for race baiting during the campaign.

Also, Republican Massey Energy exec Don Blankenship, when he was running for Senate in West Virginia, called her father a “Chinaperson.” Needless to say, McConnell basically ignored this.

4979

Blankenship was so nuts.

4980

I know, another subpoena, yawn. But this one is a little different.

  • The subpoena was issued to an accountant, not the IRS
  • The accountant promised to comply
  • It was issued under NY law, so the federal government can’t intervene
  • It is part of a grand jury investigation, so it will be very hard for Trump’s personal lawyers to quash
  • Unless the case moves to trial, the returns can’t be made public
4981
4982

Easy job.

4983

Imagine that. We’re completely fucked.