Joe Donnelly says he has minority staffers, 'but' they've done well

[Jose Garcia]

Last edited Wed Oct 31, 2018, 06:58 PM - Edit history (3)

Source: CNN

Washington (CNN) Democratic Sen. Joe Donnelly from Indiana awkwardly touted minority staff members during a debate Tuesday night, seeming to suggest they succeeded despite their race or ethnicity.

"Our state director is Indian-American, but he does an amazing job," he said. "Our director of all constituent services, she's African-American, but she does an even more incredible job than you can ever imagine."

Donnelly is one of the Senate's most endangered incumbents. He is facing Republican challenger Mike Braun in next week's midterm election.

His comment Tuesday night came in the context of a question about diversity.

Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2018/10/31/politics/joe-donnelly-but-awkward-moment-diversity/index.html

[3catwoman3]

1. "But?"

But what?

[The Mouth]

2. WTF?

[pazzyanne]

3. Joe just shot himself in the foot, methinks.

[marble falls]

4. But, but, but - he can stick his head up his butt.

[DRoseDARs]

5. If he'd been smart, he wouldn't have made the comment at all, "but" he did so he should have said...

"These members of my staff have done well, despite the roadblocks their communities and others face based solely on the color of their skin they encounter their entire lives. It is inexcusable that, in 2018, they should be the exception when so many of their brethren continue to face the continued burden of others' racial prejudices, both individual and institutional."



That would have been the smart thing to say. He would have picked up quite a few minority votes and lost a couple of trash Human votes. Instead he needlessly blundered into "I have black friends." territory.

[Chellee]

7. But he isn't smart.

He barely, BARELY, is better than Manchin.

He was just lucky last time that he was running against Richard "Rape is something God wanted to happen" Murdock.

He has bragged (WTF?!?) about how he's voted with, WITH! Trump 62% of the time.

If we had anyone, anyone at all better, he'd be toast. As it is, if he wins, it will be because he managed to surf this blue wave to victory. We need him simply because of the D after his name. But in future, we have to do better. He needs to be primaried.

[Adrahil]

9. I live in Indiana... do you?

I doubt anyone to the left of Donelly can win statewide in this state.

[Chellee]

13. I do, actually.

And frankly, I'm sick of being told Donnelly is the best we can do. It wouldn't take much to be to the left of Donnelly. Maybe we could get someone who only votes with theRepublicans 50% of the time, instead of 62%. Is that asking too much?

[radical noodle]

15. I lived in Indiana for 65 years...

I was born there. I can't imagine anyone left of Donnelly winning in a general election right now. I imagine someone to his left winning a primary... maybe... but not a general. Those folks are deeply Republican.

[karynnj]

16. Sad, as someone a few years older who left the state after graduating IU,

that matches what I hear from my family. It is sad remembering that Birch Bayh and Vance Hartke were the senators back then. My family is from Lake county - one of the few Democratic areas and the only other area I lived in was Bloomington.

[Progressive Jones]

30. Much of Lake County is now a suburb of Chicago. nt

[murielm99]

31. I remember those great Democrats, too.

I went to school in Indiana - Valparaiso University.

[radical noodle]

32. We had some really good Democratic governors too

Bloomington tends toward Democrats because of IU, but the natives there are mostly right wing. The effects of the KKK in Indiana for so long still shows throughout the state. There are also pockets of Democrats around Indianapolis.

Remember when we had Richard Lugar, a Republican but a moderate one? He was trounced by the Tea Party in a primary. The only reason Donnelly won in the first place is because Mourdock made a stupid statement about rape being God's will.

[Chellee]

17. Maybe we could try for the 42% of eligible Hoosiers that don't bother to vote.

The ones that see their choices as horrible, and slightly less horrible.

I agree that the Republicans in Indiana are deeply Republican. There are no moderate Republicans here, all the moderation is on the Democratic side. We can not turn any Republicans. We need to go after non-voters. Get them excited. Get them registered. Get them to vote. We do that by giving them better choices.

[Adrahil]

19. If you think....

A more Progressive candidate is going to awaken some latent support, I think you are kiddng yourself.

[radical noodle]

33. Yep!

Indiana went for Nixon over JFK. The only Democrats I remember winning the Indiana electoral votes are LBJ over Goldwater and Obama over McCain. LBJ was never popular to the masses there, nor was Obama.

[JI7]

36. 2008 had more to do with the economic disaster

we were in .

but the state didn't vote for him again even after he got us on a better path away from that mess.

[radical noodle]

39. It did

That and the Iraq War that by that time was pretty unpopular. It was basically backlash against Dubya

[Adrahil]

18. Right now, the ONLY thing I care about....

is getting. Demicrat to control the Senate. If that means we live with the Manchins and Donellys then so be it.

[Chellee]

20. I agree. Which is why I voted for Donnelly.

We need him. But we need him to be better. So I'm hoping and praying that I spend the next 6 years encouraging Donnelly to be better than he has been in the past. And if he can't do that, a primary in 2024 might make him understand that his brand of barely there democratic views don't fit the nation's needs any more.

[angrychair]

22. So when is enough, enough?

Donnelly says we must fund trump’s wall

He says minorities can still be good even though they are people of color

He supports ICE and arresting illegal immigrants

He calls us “radical leftist” and says we need to be stopped

He votes with trump over 60% of the time

If it walks like a racist...talks like a racist....


I’m sure immigrants will understand when Donnelly is voting for indefinite detention for 4 year old Hispanics and we paying $50 billion dollars for a fucking wall that does absolutely nothing...

[Chellee]

25. When there's another choice.

Because in 2018, there isn't. No one challenged Donnelly. He's what we've got.

And by the way, if you think Donnelly is bad, and I agree, he is, let me introduce you to Mike Braun, a walking nightmare. He'll vote with Trump 100% of the time. Enthusiastically. He'll think up even worse, and introduce it.

Braun's so dishonest he probably wouldn't even have won the Republican primary if it weren't for the fact that his two challengers were so busy savaging each other that he squeaked by. Honestly, I don't feel sorry for them, but the Republican's choices this time were bad, equally bad, and also incredibly bad, even from their viewpoint. From my view, these were jaw-dropingly horrible people. At the time, all I was trying to determine was who would be the easiest to beat, and that's probably Braun, because Rokita and Messer had better name recognition. But their primary was so heated, that that might be gone by the wayside.

So to your points:

The wall - Yes, he does. Probably because he thinks it will win him Hoosier independents, and it might. Hoosier Independents are other states' Republicans.

Minorities - He doesn't think that, he's just really bad at talking.

ICE - See 'the wall'

Leftist - Yeah, he's a right leaning moderate, he does think we're "radical" I'll continue being "radical," and he can just suck it.

Mr. 62% - He's what we've got (at the moment)

Racism - Not racist, just dumb.

Call me a hopeless pragmatist, but I'm not actually willing to give up someone who votes with us 38% of the time for someone who votes with us 0% of the time. When my choices are bad and horrific, I'll take bad. And I'll continue to work for better choices in the future. And in the meantime, I'll continue to try to convince Donnelly to make better choices.

[JonLP24]

43. He's pandering to racists if he is not a racist

That's what I take from his support for a wall and open to ending birthright citizenship. They can either be part of the problem or the solution but the problem with politics is a lot of things start becoming negotiable including xenophobia.

[iluvtennis]

24. +++ agree

[Demsrule86]

44. You get a GOP who votes with us zero percent of the time.

Donnelly is the best we can do at the moment, and we need him if we are to have a chance at the Senate.

[Andy823]

6. tried to check out your link

Doesn't work. Maybe you need to fix it.

[Jose Garcia]

11. Fixed

[Docreed2003]

8. WTF!!!

I suppose this highlights the fact that even some Dems have a long way to go in regards to their beliefs about race.

[Glamrock]

29. Yeah he sucks and he's my Senator!

I want a Feingold, or a Sherrod Brown, or a Bernie. But alas, I'm a goddamn hoosier. Better him than the jackass that's running agin him though.

[Honeycombe8]

10. What?!?

"Pick up foot, and insert into mouth." But I give him a break on this. It's hard when you're out there, talking almost 24/7. Yu get tired, you say stupid things.

If having minority staffers is new for him, he may really think of them this way ("since they're minorities, they may not do the good job I'm used to...but hey! They ARE doing a good job." )

So at least he's saying that his erroneous preconception has been proven wrong. They ARE doing a good job. He's learned something. And that's something.

(Please don't let him say, "There's Bobby...my Indian." )

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

12. What a not so smart thing to say... though it should be clear what he meant to say.

IOW, minorities on his staff are kickin' azz despite the unfair, bigoted barriers to entry erected in a failed attempt to keep them from having succeeded.

[Power 2 the People]

14. Ughhh

[LovingA2andMI]

21. He's Going To Lose....

And We Need A Pick Up Somewhere Else. #SupportHeidiHeitkamp

[Glamrock]

28. Last I saw he was ahead in the polls

But way to support the Dem candidate!

[forthemiddle]

41. I live in the Fort Wayne area

But I am pretty new to the area (moved from Wisconsin), and from what I understand, we are pretty red.
Talking to people, it seems that they generally like Donelley, and want to keep him, but they will be voting party over person this time. Although they would like a more moderate Senator, like Donelley, they are more worried about leadership. I hope I’m wrong.
BTW, our Mayor, Ed Henry, a Democrat is very popular, so there is hope.

[tavernier]

42. I've spent 3 months in the rural area south of Indy

and the folks I’ve talked to here are tending to go person over party this year. Pissed over the tariff crap.

I can’t vote here being a Florida resident, but I do think the ad campaigns on both sides haven’t helped either candidate. They are both equally ugly and air 24/7 ad nauseum. I’ve even heard a few say that they aren’t voting because they HAVE HAD IT with the commercials.

[Chellee]

45. Tom Henry is the mayor.

Ed Henry is a Fox News host.

But otherwise, completely correct. Welcome to Indiana.

[Marcuse]

23. He is open to ending birthright citizenship too. I'm for pragmatism over purity.

[link:https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/joe-donnelly-trump-birthright-citizenship_us_5bd9cf6ae4b019a7ab5960a5|

[JI7]

37. if democrats control the Senate that wont even be brought up

[BlueWI]

26. Well...

He's focused enough to eek out a win, or he isn't.

Better off with him than a Republican. He hasn't deployed military forces against political asylum seekers yet.

Cringeworthy, but I still hope he wins.

[dawg day]

27. I was watching the debate, and noticed the same thing.

Sigh.

He also said today that birthright citizenship should be reconsidered.

I shot him a very angry email saying that I'd vote for him NOW because I want a Dem senate, but in his next primary? Nada.

It's hard to be a Dem in a red state, but it's not like any Trumpers are likely to vote for him when they have the Troglodyte Mike Braun.
He could just be a conservative Democrat, no problem.
No conservative Democrat would even flirt with the notion that Trump could change the constitution with his whim.


But yeah, we make our concessions. I'll vote straight Dem, and that means also for him.

He did vote against Kavanaugh at least.

[underthematrix]

34. I'm African American and I have only

two questions. Has Donnelly ever voted to repeal Obamacare? Does he support protecting people with pre-existing conditions?

As to birthright citizenship. This is an easy fix. Simply report on HIS family's immigrant history.

[LittleGirl]

35. I grew up in Indiana but left years ago

and he's been a complete disaster for Dems. I would only vote for the dude to get a Blue Senate but he's got to go.
He went to Notre Dame so he should be smart enough not to step in it like that.
sheesh.

[Glimmer of Hope]

38. What the hell.

[Jokerman]

40. Great. I still have to vote for this clown.

Don't want to support him, but I will.