American Politics XIV: The Dawning of the Age of the Pumpkin

[Detestable Tory]

Special elections in state legislatures and Congress. Democrats have equaled or outperformed number from 2020. That's not what you'd be seeing if there was a red wave coming.

How bold of you to assume that voters actually care about special elections...

Alaska went blue. ALASkA. If you think that isn't indicative of the red wave being far weaker than originally thought you are absolutely kidding yourself.

[The Two Jerseys]

How bold of you to assume that voters actually care about special elections...

Alaska went blue. ALASkA. If you think that isn't indicative of the red wave being far weaker than originally thought you are absolutely kidding yourself.

So explain Texas 34.

[Major-Tom]

I'm most surprised the Ohio Senate Race is still even.

Florida and NC are also getting tighter. Republicans should be really worried.

And there’s a chance however slight that Abrams could be dragged across the finish line by Warnock voters

Hate to say it, but I smell fools gold. In every cycle since 2014, Dems have seen decent polls out of FL and NC and always ended up despondent on election night. If there were ever a year to break that pattern, I don't think it would be 2022.

[Detestable Tory]

Alaska went blue. ALASkA. If you think that isn't indicative of the red wave being far weaker than originally thought you are absolutely kidding yourself.

So explain Texas 34.

Latino votes have been turning red since Obama was president, that's nothing new. Unlike Alaska electing a Democrat for the first time in decades.

[Shrillland]

Alaska went blue. ALASkA. If you think that isn't indicative of the red wave being far weaker than originally thought you are absolutely kidding yourself.

So explain Texas 34.

That has to do with a lot of Latinos being social conservatives who do want sterner immigration policies on top of the glum attitude towards the President and the impatience over rampant inflation.

[The Black Forrest]

Your right, he will probably weasel his way out of this. Again.

Politicians at his level hardly ever face any consequences. Add to that being rich. So many layers of protection from consequences. If a Scooter Libby doesn't emerge then there's the possibility that the final outcome is little more than a slap on the wrist.

If he declares after the midterms to try and derail the investigation...oh why am I saying 'if'...

I guess the foolish hope is if he does that the courts will go, "yeahno. You can't just grab a base and say "safe", over a year away from the first primary, no other announced candidates. You get to stand trial because there's a decent chance that on the other end of it you're no longer eligible for office.

Indeed. Still…..this is one of those rare areas where politics, wealth and fame are hopefully not a get out of jail card. I say hopefully because these days….there are two Americas for justice. In the America the politicians like to discuss, he could very well get a “hand slap” if he promises not to run. In the other America; if I had done what he did…..I would have been taken away in handcuffs and been labeled a spy.

From what we have seen; Trump is guilty.

He knowing took classified intelligence with the intent of the very least trading for the Russia Investigation materials. Worse to trade and sell for favors. This was not a mistake as it was shown they lied about the contents (ie press clippings) and the fact he has TS-SCI and special program files. You just don’t get to take them anywhere. When the archives got the materials found what they had; they immediately moved them to a secured area for review.

Trump, his followers, conservatives and republicans have declared he declassified them. In government, there is always a paper trail. The President does have broad powers to declassify. They are not absolute. He may say he wants this Top Secret page declassified. It is not simply taken from the envelope and handed off to the press for public consumption as much as has been implied.

He signs something to being the process of review. After it is reviewed and potential damage access it is declassified. It could happen in a week. It could happen in ten years.

My opinion; I am sure Trump would like to trade Putin or Xie for favors if we had possible assets in their governments. Again, my opinion as I find Trump to be an odious person.

We don’t know the full damage Trump may have caused. I doubt we will ever be told. The empty envelopes are concerning as in my day; if one was found; a whole bunch of paperwork followed as you had to find what was in it, where it went, etc.

A side note that may be a coincidence. I remember a news story where it was said foreign assets were being arrested and or killed if not turned. Could be related and it simply might be a result of bad management, funding, etc.

Will Trump be tried and convicted? I hope so. What he did was wrong. I would say the same for Clinton, Bush, Obama and Biden if they did the same.

I am leaning toward my cynical view of a back room deal will be made where he “decides” not to run again and at most have to wear an ankle bracelet and be “forced” to stay on the grounds of his home.

[Farnhamia]

Until the end of the year. The new Congress gets sworn in in early January.

Once they're lame duck he'll just declare them illegitimate. This dude is so squirmy I'll be holding my applause until he actually takes the stage.

He's already declared them illegitimate, so ... Will he issue arrest warrants dated for late January, 2025?

[The Two Jerseys]

So explain Texas 34.

That has to do with a lot of Latinos being social conservatives who do want sterner immigration policies on top of the glum attitude towards the President and the impatience over rampant inflation.

And Alaska going Democrat is because people don't like Sarah Palin.

So again, they really didn't prove anything.

[Dimetrodon Empire]

I doubt the U.S. legal system is even capable of preventing him from running again, regardless of the supposed legal threats.

[Zilam]

Meanwhile, the #1 issue for Americans is still the economy, and the last inflation report before the elections shows that inflation rose again from August to September. Are people going to care about Trump's subpoena when

Gas is up 18%, electricity is up 15%, groceries are up 13%, baby food up 12% and earnings are down 3%


I doubt it.

Thankfully, Republicans will strengthen the economy by banning books about gay people and forcing the woke communists heading up megacorporations to pay less taxes.

Oh i have no hope of the GOP actually doing anything. Hence why they don't get my precious swing state votes. But most Americans think in the mindset of this or that, so if they see this side doing things poorly, they will automatically go to that side for help and soon be disappointed because no one in washington cares or is competent to run the country in an effective manner.

[San Lumen]

I doubt the U.S. legal system is even capable of preventing him from running again, regardless of the supposed legal threats.

Technically he could be nominated from from prison and still run. It’s happened before.

[Farnhamia]

I doubt the U.S. legal system is even capable of preventing him from running again, regardless of the supposed legal threats.

Perhaps. Eugene V. Debs won 913,693 votes in the 1920 presidential election and he was in jail at the time.

[Dimetrodon Empire]

I doubt the U.S. legal system is even capable of preventing him from running again, regardless of the supposed legal threats.

Perhaps. Eugene V. Debs won 913,693 votes in the 1920 presidential election and he was in jail at the time.

Indeed, and I wonder if it is technically legal for a president to pardon themselves. The only restriction is that it doesn't apply to impeachment, but that system is a joke as well.

[Zilam]

So explain Texas 34.

Latino votes have been turning red since Obama was president, that's nothing new. Unlike Alaska electing a Democrat for the first time in decades.

Latinos are the second largest demographic in the US. So them voting more and more red probably is more important than a weird election in a state that no one really cares about. A district that has been voting 60+% democratic since its creation in 2012 going Red is a lot more telling than the hot mess that is Sarah Palin losing another election.

[Shrillland]

That has to do with a lot of Latinos being social conservatives who do want sterner immigration policies on top of the glum attitude towards the President and the impatience over rampant inflation.

And Alaska going Democrat is because people don't like Sarah Palin.

So again, they really didn't prove anything.

No, but the fact that, over the 2022 byelections, the net change has been zero does tell us that the electorate is more adrift that usual. It must also be remembered that the swing towards Democrats was larger in two races where Republicans won, one in New York and the other in Nebraska, which should never have been anywhere close to being as close as it was.

[The Black Forrest]

I doubt the U.S. legal system is even capable of preventing him from running again, regardless of the supposed legal threats.

The bar to run for President is pretty low. A conviction doesn’t prevent you from running. Lyndon Larousse was punished for defrauding the IRS and he ran several times.

About the only thing they could get him on is the 14th bit about supporting an insurrection, etc. Still; unlikely…..

[Gravlen]

Latino votes have been turning red since Obama was president, that's nothing new. Unlike Alaska electing a Democrat for the first time in decades.

Latinos are the second largest demographic in the US. So them voting more and more red probably is more important than a weird election in a state that no one really cares about. A district that has been voting 60+% democratic since its creation in 2012 going Red is a lot more telling than the hot mess that is Sarah Palin losing another election.

The Great Replacement going exactly as planned! ...somehow...

[Dimetrodon Empire]

I doubt the U.S. legal system is even capable of preventing him from running again, regardless of the supposed legal threats.

The bar to run for President is pretty low. A conviction doesn’t prevent you from running. Lyndon Larousse was punished for defrauding the IRS and he ran several times.

About the only thing they could get him on is the 14th bit about supporting an insurrection, etc. Still; unlikely…..

The legal loopholes need to be patched with the broken political system while the broken political system needs to be patched with the broken legal system.

Historical events are often slow, but this is the end of our republic.

[Zilam]

Latinos are the second largest demographic in the US. So them voting more and more red probably is more important than a weird election in a state that no one really cares about. A district that has been voting 60+% democratic since its creation in 2012 going Red is a lot more telling than the hot mess that is Sarah Palin losing another election.

The Great Replacement going exactly as planned! ...somehow...

I am doing my part! I am teaching my biracial children to be ready to pillage all the good, god-fearing, white folk!

[American Legionaries]

The bar to run for President is pretty low. A conviction doesn’t prevent you from running. Lyndon Larousse was punished for defrauding the IRS and he ran several times.

About the only thing they could get him on is the 14th bit about supporting an insurrection, etc. Still; unlikely…..

The legal loopholes need to be patched with the broken political system while the broken political system needs to be patched with the broken legal system.

Historical events are often slow, but this is the end of our republic.

Don't do it... Don't give me hope...

[Gravlen]

The Great Replacement going exactly as planned! ...somehow...

I am doing my part! I am teaching my biracial children to be ready to pillage all the good, god-fearing, white folk!

Sounds like CRT to me!!!!!

[Gravlen]

Meanwhile, at SCOTUS:

Prospective jurors were asked their views of interracial marriage and procreation on a multiple-choice form, and several of them said they disapproved.

One prospective juror indicated that he was vigorously opposed and that he was “not afraid to say so.” He added: “I don’t believe God intended for this.”

Two other prospective jurors indicated that they opposed people of different races marrying or having children but that they tried to keep their feelings to themselves. One said: “I think we should stay with our blood line.”

Mr. Thomas’s lawyers did not use peremptory challenges to strike the jurors, and they did not ask the judge to remove them for cause. All three jurors were seated.

During the penalty phase of the trial, a prosecutor asked the jury to consider the danger Mr. Thomas might pose if he were not executed. “Are you going to take the risk about him asking your daughter out or your granddaughter out?” the prosecutor asked the jury.

The all-white jury found him guilty and sentenced the Black man to death for killing his white wife. SCOTUS decided, 6-3, to not hear the case.

The dissent:

“By failing to challenge, or even question, jurors who were hostile to interracial marriage in a capital case involving that explosive topic, Thomas’s counsel performed well below an objective standard of reasonableness,” Justice Sotomayor wrote. “This deficient performance prejudiced Thomas by depriving him of a fair trial.”

The courts had also failed, she wrote.

“It is ultimately the duty of the courts ‘to confront racial animus in the justice system,’” she wrote, quoting an earlier decision. “That responsibility requires courts, including this one, vigilantly to safeguard the fairness of criminal trials by ensuring that jurors do not harbor, or at the very least could put aside, racially biased sentiments.”

[Austria-Bohemia-Hungary]

Meanwhile, at SCOTUS:

Prospective jurors were asked their views of interracial marriage and procreation on a multiple-choice form, and several of them said they disapproved.

One prospective juror indicated that he was vigorously opposed and that he was “not afraid to say so.” He added: “I don’t believe God intended for this.”

Two other prospective jurors indicated that they opposed people of different races marrying or having children but that they tried to keep their feelings to themselves. One said: “I think we should stay with our blood line.”

Mr. Thomas’s lawyers did not use peremptory challenges to strike the jurors, and they did not ask the judge to remove them for cause. All three jurors were seated.

During the penalty phase of the trial, a prosecutor asked the jury to consider the danger Mr. Thomas might pose if he were not executed. “Are you going to take the risk about him asking your daughter out or your granddaughter out?” the prosecutor asked the jury.

The all-white jury found him guilty and sentenced the Black man to death for killing his white wife. SCOTUS decided, 6-3, to not hear the case.

The dissent:

“By failing to challenge, or even question, jurors who were hostile to interracial marriage in a capital case involving that explosive topic, Thomas’s counsel performed well below an objective standard of reasonableness,” Justice Sotomayor wrote. “This deficient performance prejudiced Thomas by depriving him of a fair trial.”

The courts had also failed, she wrote.

“It is ultimately the duty of the courts ‘to confront racial animus in the justice system,’” she wrote, quoting an earlier decision. “That responsibility requires courts, including this one, vigilantly to safeguard the fairness of criminal trials by ensuring that jurors do not harbor, or at the very least could put aside, racially biased sentiments.”

PRC: "Write that down write that down"

[Bovad]

Meanwhile, at SCOTUS:

Prospective jurors were asked their views of interracial marriage and procreation on a multiple-choice form, and several of them said they disapproved.

One prospective juror indicated that he was vigorously opposed and that he was “not afraid to say so.” He added: “I don’t believe God intended for this.”

Two other prospective jurors indicated that they opposed people of different races marrying or having children but that they tried to keep their feelings to themselves. One said: “I think we should stay with our blood line.”

Mr. Thomas’s lawyers did not use peremptory challenges to strike the jurors, and they did not ask the judge to remove them for cause. All three jurors were seated.

During the penalty phase of the trial, a prosecutor asked the jury to consider the danger Mr. Thomas might pose if he were not executed. “Are you going to take the risk about him asking your daughter out or your granddaughter out?” the prosecutor asked the jury.

The all-white jury found him guilty and sentenced the Black man to death for killing his white wife. SCOTUS decided, 6-3, to not hear the case.

The dissent:

“By failing to challenge, or even question, jurors who were hostile to interracial marriage in a capital case involving that explosive topic, Thomas’s counsel performed well below an objective standard of reasonableness,” Justice Sotomayor wrote. “This deficient performance prejudiced Thomas by depriving him of a fair trial.”

The courts had also failed, she wrote.

“It is ultimately the duty of the courts ‘to confront racial animus in the justice system,’” she wrote, quoting an earlier decision. “That responsibility requires courts, including this one, vigilantly to safeguard the fairness of criminal trials by ensuring that jurors do not harbor, or at the very least could put aside, racially biased sentiments.”

PRC: "Write that down write that down"

What the hell does china have to do with this.

[Sordhau]

The bar to run for President is pretty low. A conviction doesn’t prevent you from running. Lyndon Larousse was punished for defrauding the IRS and he ran several times.

About the only thing they could get him on is the 14th bit about supporting an insurrection, etc. Still; unlikely…..

The legal loopholes need to be patched with the broken political system while the broken political system needs to be patched with the broken legal system.

Historical events are often slow, but this is the end of our republic.

God willing.