Presidential Race 2016

Scuzz · 2016-02-01T10:17:44.000Z

triggercut:

Sometimes I think I type in invisible pixels. ;) I doubt it will be Warner. He likes the Senate, and I don’t think the DNC will be thrilled about risking his safe seat.

When I typed that I meant Sen. Warren. My bad.

Incendiary_Lemon · 2016-02-01T10:33:11.000Z

MrGrumpy:

Apparently he’s had quite a few of them. I withdraw his name from consideration!

I don’t follow Massachusetts politics much anymore, but I did read something about off budget accounts and travel junkets.

rah rah Milton Academy?

triggercut:

Photo

That’s a spectacularly unfortunate image.

ArmandoPenblade · 2016-02-01T10:50:44.000Z

Warren would be a reasonable pick from Clinton insofar as bolstering her heavily tarnished progressive credibility, but I’m not actually sure either would be particularly thrilled with such a pairing, and I can’t imagine the DNC thinks America’s ready for a two-woman ticket (at least given the widespread, rapturous fervor for the hate-politics of the right lingering throughout the country).

Maybe some of the speculation about Americans wanting someone of particular testicular fortitude and manly-man machismo is correct. Then, it’s obvious: the correct choice is Bill.

Miramon · 2016-02-01T10:51:44.000Z

I don’t think Deval Patrick had any serious scandals. Minor ones, sure. Still I doubt he’s a likely choice because no one knows him outside MA and they have MA locked down already. Someone from a purple state, or someone who at least can appeal to purple-state voters.

Alstein · 2016-02-01T10:59:33.000Z

Jim Webb- though I see him as more of a Bernie VP pick.

Incendiary_Lemon · 2016-02-01T11:21:35.000Z

Alstein:

Jim Webb- though I see him as more of a Bernie VP pick.

He believes politics is an obligation, and he pursued it insofar as he felt he could help his country.

So with that said, I don’t think he would be interested in running for VP. It would be all the pomp and circumstance that he finds pointless, and none of the actual legislating that he values.

charmtrap · 2016-02-01T11:26:50.000Z

MrGrumpy:

Apparently he’s had quite a few of them. I withdraw his name from consideration!

I’d be interested to know what they were. There were certainly the usual right-wing grumblings, but nothing I ever read about coming close to sticking to him.

Mike_O_Malley · 2016-02-01T12:38:00.000Z

triggercut:

O’Malley seems pretty limp.

The water was freezing cold, dammit.

Scuzz · 2016-02-01T13:20:40.000Z

Mike O'Malley:

The water was freezing cold, dammit.

shrinkage?

wahoo · 2016-02-01T13:49:57.000Z

triggercut:

The sadly inescapable conclusion is “It’s the color of his skin. No more, no less. Period.”

What is also of great interest is that these are all folks who were, at least ostensibly throughout the 2008 primary campaign, Democrats. Independents too, I’m sure, but many Democrats. And the conclusions are so easy to draw. There is a segment of the American voting population, perhaps not big, but statistically significant, who are appalled by the idea of anyone not of European-American upbringing running the country. And their nativist sentiment is all in on Donald Trump.

Unfortunately I think that may be part of it. But I think that is too easy of a complete explanation.

We’ve had essentially a lost decade of growth. Sub 3% every year, which is shocking to the US. (Euros are used to having slow growth. We’re not.)

I think there are a couple of fissures in the body politic that make me question its sustainability. We’re having some extremely fast culture changes. We’ve split sharply along not only partisan lines but metropolis vs everyone else lines.

A lot of the anger you are seeing are people who are not better off than they were ten years ago. That’s a far different cry from the Inside the beltway, NYC folks, highly educated. A lot of the Trump supporters are the big losers in globalization. Globalization is a huge force of good and overall beneficial to the US. But not so much to non-college educated blue collar workers. These are the traditional Reagan democrats that are now left without either party: The R orthodoxy of supply side tax cuts/entitlement cuts (which I support) doesn’t help them. And white blue collar Dems don’t really exist anymore as a coalition.

I see a real frustrated group who accurately feel like things aren’t as good as they used to be and they may not be for them. Thus a lot of anger at the establishment. Remember a lot of these same people were as angry at John Boehnor as Barrack Obama. Take a loot at the celebrations when Boehnor had to resign. That anger is also driving Trump and that anger at Cantor, Boehnor, McConnell cuts across racial lines.

arrendek · 2016-02-01T13:53:56.000Z

There really aren’t any popular democratic politicians in Florida right now except maybe:
Bill Nelson (a senator for more than a decade)
Alex Sink (who pulled out of life a little bit when her husband died 4 years ago, sadly, or else she could have gone for Governor against Rick Scott… for the second time)
Charlie Crist (who is a bit snakelike and won’t get tapped for anything)

There are some more local people that are well-liked, but I don’t think of anyone else when I think “known throughout all of Florida”

wahoo · 2016-02-01T13:58:46.000Z

arrendek:

There really aren’t any popular democratic politicians in Florida right now except maybe:
"

Scratch the word Florida and you could replace it with probably 35+ states. The Dems have been crushed at the state level in many states. In Ohio, the Dems have 2 folks who can run statewide. Brown and former Gov Ted Strickland who will be 75 on election day. They have been wiped out in Ohio.

Except for Virginia, Dems have been hit hard in many states and this will have a real repercussion in 2020 and beyond as their talent bench will be thin. Of course this assumes the traditional rules of politics holds! Who knows?

arrendek · 2016-02-01T14:06:44.000Z

wahoo:

Except for Virginia, Dems have been hit hard in many states and this will have a real repercussion in 2020 and beyond as their talent bench will be thin. Of course this assumes the traditional rules of politics holds! Who knows?

Youtube personalities will start running then, it’ll be OK. :P

Pyperkub · 2016-02-01T14:22:46.000Z

arrendek:

Youtube personalities will start running then, it’ll be OK. :P

Max Headroom FTW!

Charlatan · 2016-02-01T15:12:39.000Z

arrendek:

Youtube personalities will start running then, it’ll be OK. :P

So Clinton – PewDiePie?

Kill me now!!

Papageno · 2016-02-01T15:25:37.000Z

Timex:

What’s so funny is that Obama is clearly of European-American upbringing. His ethnicity is seemingly non-existent.

He trots it out occasionally (singing Al Green, etc.) but yeah, he’s pretty much on the Wayne Brady end of the “Scary Black Man” spectrum.

But the members of that core racist contingency will swear up, down and sideways that they’re not racist, no sir.

Timex · 2016-02-01T15:50:32.000Z

Papageno:

He trots it out occasionally (singing Al Green, etc.) but yeah, he’s pretty much on the Wayne Brady end of the “Scary Black Man” spectrum.

But the members of that core racist contingency will swear up, down and sideways that they’re not racist, no sir.

Papageno · 2016-02-01T16:07:47.000Z

Classic Chappelle’s Show episode.

EDIT: I guess it’s spelled with two Ps.

Scuzz · 2016-02-01T16:28:40.000Z

wahoo:

Unfortunately I think that may be part of it. But I think that is too easy of a complete explanation.

We’ve had essentially a lost decade of growth. Sub 3% every year, which is shocking to the US. (Euros are used to having slow growth. We’re not.)

I think there are a couple of fissures in the body politic that make me question its sustainability. We’re having some extremely fast culture changes. We’ve split sharply along not only partisan lines but metropolis vs everyone else lines.

A lot of the anger you are seeing are people who are not better off than they were ten years ago. That’s a far different cry from the Inside the beltway, NYC folks, highly educated. A lot of the Trump supporters are the big losers in globalization. Globalization is a huge force of good and overall beneficial to the US. But not so much to non-college educated blue collar workers. These are the traditional Reagan democrats that are now left without either party: The R orthodoxy of supply side tax cuts/entitlement cuts (which I support) doesn’t help them. And white blue collar Dems don’t really exist anymore as a coalition.

I see a real frustrated group who accurately feel like things aren’t as good as they used to be and they may not be for them. Thus a lot of anger at the establishment. Remember a lot of these same people were as angry at John Boehnor as Barrack Obama. Take a loot at the celebrations when Boehnor had to resign. That anger is also driving Trump and that anger at Cantor, Boehnor, McConnell cuts across racial lines.

It is those who felt Boehner was as much at fault as Obama (for whatever) that now make up the Trump and Cruz contingents. Cruz made his reputation speaking in the senate against things Boehner was trying to do.

John_Reynolds · 2016-02-01T16:29:42.000Z

Chapelle lives like 15 minutes from me, met him three years ago at a local sports event (MMA). He actually spoke for a few minutes, very friendly, but ended up having to leave the event about 30 minutes later as more and more people realized a ‘celebrity’ was present and gathered around his seats.