August 10, 2017

Discomfort

With Trump in the Oval Office every day feels more and more like we are subjects in some protracted Zimbardo experiment. Squicky.


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August 9, 2017

Note to Trump:

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August 9, 2017

At the end of this scary day...

At the end of this scary day I’m just quietly hoping that the person tasked with handing Trump the nuclear codes was prescient enough to slip in an erroneous digit or two.

August 8, 2017

A chilling thought regarding the threat from North Korea --

Given the current occupant of the Oval Office, the United States lacks the moral credibility to avoid a bloody confrontation.

We need real diplomacy, and neither Trump nor Tillerson are capable of it.

Damn.


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August 8, 2017

A civil town hall? Really??

Joy Reid was covering for Rachel Maddow tonight, and she ended the hour with a couple of snippets of town halls that were, shall we say, a bit contentious. One of those featured Colorado's Republican senator, Cory Gardner trying to weasel out of giving a straight answer on his health care vote; that was last Friday.

Today, Colorado's Democratic senator, Michael Bennet, held an open-to-the-public town hall in Greeley. It was announced in newspapers and on social media, and it was presented in the student center at the University of Northern Colorado.

The Coloradoan, the newspaper from Ft. Collins, provided a live feed; they have now made the video available. The sound is feeble at the beginning, but they eventually fixed it. On background, the area is 38% Republican, the remainder being split between Democrats and unaffiliated voters and a smattering of fringe party voters; the town hall attendees were a mixture.

I'm sharing this because it's a rather stark contrast to what we've been seeing with other town hall events. Dip into the video at any point to see a demonstration of civil conduct between an elected public servant and his constituents. I really hope Cory Gardner was watching from wherever he's currently hiding.


https://www.facebook.com/Coloradoan/videos/10154707420416472/


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August 8, 2017

A civil town hall? Really??

Joy Reid was covering for Rachel Maddow tonight, and she ended the hour with a couple of snippets of town halls that were, shall we say, a bit contentious. One of those featured Colorado's Republican senator, Cory Gardner trying to weasel out of giving a straight answer on his health care vote; that was last Friday.

Today, Colorado's Democratic senator, Michael Bennet, held an open-to-the-public town hall in Greeley. It was announced in newspapers and on social media, and it was presented in the student center at the University of Northern Colorado.

The Coloradoan, the newspaper from Ft. Collins, provided a live feed; they have now made the video available. The sound is feeble at the beginning, but they eventually fixed it. On background, the area is 38% Republican, the remainder being split between Democrats and unaffiliated voters and a smattering of fringe party voters; the town hall attendees were a mixture.

I'm sharing this because it's a rather stark contrast to what we've been seeing with other town hall events. Dip into the video at any point to see a demonstration of civil conduct between an elected public servant and his constituents. I really hope Cory Gardner was watching from wherever he's currently hiding.


https://www.facebook.com/Coloradoan/videos/10154707420416472/


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August 7, 2017

Garrison Keillor on Donald Trump: We will survive this

Garrison Keillor on Donald Trump: We will survive this

So. We have a vulgar, unstable yoyo with a toxic ego and an attention deficit problem in the White House and now we can see that government by Twitter is like trying to steer a ship by firing a pistol at the waves, not really useful, but what does it all add up to? Not that much, if you ask me, which you didn’t, but I’ll say it anyway.

We will survive this. He will do what damage he can, like a man burning books out of anger that he can’t read, but there will still be plenty of books left.

I went to my high school class reunion last week and the gentleman’s name never came up. He’s been front-page for months, every bleat, blurt, yelp, and belch. But among my old classmates, not a word. They spoke with awe and reverence of their grandchildren (we’re the class of 1960), some about travel, plumbing projects, beloved old cars, stories of youth and indiscretion, nothing about death or Trump. After five hours with them, I have no idea whether they lean left or right. Remarkable.

...more

http://www.twincities.com/2017/08/05/garrison-keillor-we-will-survive-this/



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August 6, 2017

President Pickpocket

Is anyone tracking how many millions of taxpayer dollars will go into Trump’s wallet over his 17-day “non-vacation” at his golf course? Is impeachment really the only mechanism for getting his fingers out of our pockets?


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August 4, 2017

Walker Stapleton found a way around donation limits in Colorado's race for governor --

Walker Stapleton found a way around donation limits in Colorado’s race for governor — it’s raising money and eyebrows

Walker Stapleton will inch up to the line of launching his campaign for governor this month at a private fundraiser where tickets cost as much as $10,000 per couple. But the Republican state treasurer won't make it official, and a key reason is money. The longer Stapleton waits before formally announcing his bid for Colorado's top job, the more he can help steer unlimited sums of money toward a super PAC-style group that is expected to provide his artillery during the campaign.

It's a setup that watchdogs said could stretch the limits of Colorado election law, even as it projects Stapleton's fundraising might — particularly toward his rivals in the GOP primary. And it's yet another sign that the 2018 race to replace Gov. John Hickenlooper is likely to surpass spending records in Colorado gubernatorial elections.

The upcoming Aug. 21 fundraiser for Stapleton will be held at the Cherry Hills Village home of Republican booster Greg Maffei, and the host committee is a who's who of the party's money class, notably beer magnate Pete Coors, Broncos legend John Elway and businessman Larry Mizel, according to a copy of the invitation.

http://www.greeleytribune.com/news/local/walker-stapleton-found-a-way-around-donation-limits-in-colorados-race-for-governor-its-raising-money-and-eyebrows/

note: Stapleton is first cousin to George Walker Bush and Neil Bush (of Silverado Savings and Loan scandal).


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August 3, 2017

Enough

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