reggieandlee
reggieandlee's JournalBTRTN: "McConnellism"... Power, Party, and the Death of Good Faith
Born To Run The Numbers provides its view on the deaf Republican ears and blind Republican eyes at the Senate impeachment trial:
http://www.borntorunthenumbers.com/2020/01/btrtn-mcconnellism-power-party-and.html
Excerpts: "It is a downward spiral of circular logic: Republicans want to clear Donald Trump of abuse of power by essentially acknowledging that he successfully obstructed Congress by refusing to allow witnesses to testify, so there are no direct witnesses to his abuse of power. But, uh, he also isn't guilty of obstructing Congress. Go figure...
"Is what we are witnessing merely the latest chapter in history of people in power scheming and bending the rules to preserve their power? Is it just a torqued-up, steroids-era, 21st century version of 'the ends justify the means?' Or are we witnessing something entirely new… something that would make Machiavelli himself shudder in awe?...
"What, exactly, is McConnellism? (1) the belief that loyalty to party – and maintaining the party’s power -- is more important than loyalty to country. (2) the belief that time is better spent destroying the opposition party and denying it any accomplishments than to actually accomplish anything. (3) It is a rarified hyper-hypocrisy that shamelessly applies different standards to the actions of one party than to one’s own, and stubbornly refuses to apply the same standards to comparable actions taken by both parties. (4) It is a parasite that lives and thrives by sucking off the lies of others, be it Fox News or the President of the United States...
"The signature philosophy of McConnellism was laid down in Barack Obama’s first term, when Mitch McConnell announced his intent and purpose as Senate Majority Leader: 'The single most important thing we want to achieve is for President Obama to be a one-term President.' The particular aorta that Mitch McConnell severed the day he uttered those words cut the flow of blood to a particularly American notion of public conduct… to act in good faith..."
BTRTN: "McConnellism"... Power, Party, and the Death of Good Faith
Born To Run The Numbers provides its view on the deaf Republican ears and blind Republican eyes at the Senate impeachment trial:
http://www.borntorunthenumbers.com/2020/01/btrtn-mcconnellism-power-party-and.html
Excerpts: "It is a downward spiral of circular logic: Republicans want to clear Donald Trump of abuse of power by essentially acknowledging that he successfully obstructed Congress by refusing to allow witnesses to testify, so there are no direct witnesses to his abuse of power. But, uh, he also isn't guilty of obstructing Congress. Go figure...
"Is what we are witnessing merely the latest chapter in history of people in power scheming and bending the rules to preserve their power? Is it just a torqued-up, steroids-era, 21st century version of 'the ends justify the means?' Or are we witnessing something entirely new… something that would make Machiavelli himself shudder in awe?...
"What, exactly, is McConnellism? (1) the belief that loyalty to party – and maintaining the party’s power -- is more important than loyalty to country. (2) the belief that time is better spent destroying the opposition party and denying it any accomplishments than to actually accomplish anything. (3) It is a rarified hyper-hypocrisy that shamelessly applies different standards to the actions of one party than to one’s own, and stubbornly refuses to apply the same standards to comparable actions taken by both parties. (4) It is a parasite that lives and thrives by sucking off the lies of others, be it Fox News or the President of the United States...
"The signature philosophy of McConnellism was laid down in Barack Obama’s first term, when Mitch McConnell announced his intent and purpose as Senate Majority Leader: 'The single most important thing we want to achieve is for President Obama to be a one-term President.' The particular aorta that Mitch McConnell severed the day he uttered those words cut the flow of blood to a particularly American notion of public conduct… to act in good faith..."
BTRTN 2020 Vision: Wide, Wide Open...Four Way Tie in Iowa with Billionaires Ready Down the Road
Born To Run The Numbers with their brand new (just posted this morning) summary of the status of the 2020 Presidential campaign race, with detailed analysis and all the latest polls both nationally and in the early primary states.
http://www.borntorunthenumbers.com/2020/01/btrtn-2020-vision-wide-wide-openfour.html
Excerpts:"The Iowa caucuses are, for all intents and purposes, a four-way dead heat. With just three weeks to go, Elizabeth Warren slightly lags behind Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders and Pete Buttigieg, who are in a virtual tie for the lead. The Democratic field narrowed to 12, and with the latest departures – Cory Booker, Julian Castro and Marianne Williamson – gone went the diversity that had characterized the Democratic field of nominees (if never the leaderboard)...
"The debate on Tuesday night in Des Moines was widely viewed as a non-event, a rather cautious affair given the stakes, with none of the expected fireworks materializing, especially between Sanders and Warren (though there were some sharp words on stage after the debate ended)...
"In general, Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders are on an upward swing... Biden’s jump back into winning contention in Iowa raises the possibility that if he performs well there and in New Hampshire, he could take a commanding lead heading into better terrain for him: Nevada, South Carolina and Super Tuesday. Sanders won the fourth quarter money stakes, and is built to last, having totally re-invigorated his campaign, against all odds, after his heart attack...
"But watch out for the billionaires…Tom Steyer is suddenly polling well in both Nevada and South Carolina, and Mike Bloomberg is obliterating the airwaves in Super Tuesday states with more than $200 million in ad spending to date, about three-quarters of what the rest of the field has spent (mostly by Steyer at about $140 million)...
BTRTN: Warren Had the TV Moment, but the Debate's Real Winner May Have Been Bloomberg
Born To Run The Numbers provides its analysis of last night's Democratic debate:
http://www.borntorunthenumbers.com/2020/01/btrtn-warren-had-tv-moment-but-debates.html
Excerpts: "Elizabeth Warren clearly had the most impactful soundbyte of last night’s debate, but it did not appear than any of the six candidates sustained a decisive, break-out performance for the full evening. So if last night amounted to a draw in which few minds were changed, it is entirely possible that the Iowa caucuses themselves will be a very close affair with no candidate emerging with a turbo-charge of momentum. If that is indeed true, then the real beneficiary of last night’s debate may have been the guy who decided to stand on the sidelines...
"It’s likely that Elizabeth Warren picked up some ground on Bernie Sanders in their zero-sum contest to lead the progressive wing of the party. And all that does is put the two them back at even with each other. It is the worst case scenario for the progressives: Sanders and Warren remain deadlocked, preventing either from leveraging the full power of the progressive wing. It is mutually assured destruction.
"In the centrist lane, Biden, Buttigieg, and Klobuchar each did enough to hold their own supporters, but no one seemed to be taking the risks you need to take to break out...
"The bottom line: there simply will not be much movement in the polls based on this debate. And which campaign is going to benefit the most from that? Somewhere in a high rise in Manhattan, Michael Bloomberg was watching this debate, seeing no one break out from the pack. And if indeed no candidate breaks out decisively in these early races, it will have the effect of diminishing the entire field. The conclusion will not be that the five major candidates are equally good, it will be that none of them is good enough...
And who stands to gain in that scenario?"
BTRTN: Forget "Wag the Dog." "Fail Safe" is the Telling Movie Parable for Trump's Iran Gamble
Born To Run The Numbers thinks that the pundits who invoke "Wag The Dog" to criticize Trump's decision to assassinate Soleimani are worried about the wrong movie. 1964's nuclear terror "Fail Safe" provides the more terrifying analogy:
http://www.borntorunthenumbers.com/2020/01/btrtn-forget-wag-dog-fail-safe-is.html
Excerpts: "Donald Trump threw the Middle East and, by extension, the world, into an incredibly dangerous moment when for 72 hours, the stability of the region and the world became the responsibility of a rogue, economically-ostracized state that sponsors terrorism. He created the circumstances in which the fate of the Middle East was contingent on Iran being the grown-up in the room.
"Ordering the assassination of Soleimani was the equivalent of the sending bombers toward Moscow in 'Fail Safe.' Once the bombers were en route, the ability to calmly manage a chaotic, rapidly unfolding, unpredictable situation is radically reduced. Intentionally triggering such chaos dramatically increases the likelihood of misinterpretation, mistrust, and pre-emptive aggression...
"My second point: the long-term implications of this action are far from understood...Here are the likely bets
1)Tehran will race to build nuclear bombs, (2) Iran will will now be united in its hatred of the United States, (3) the murder of Soleimani will only embolden Iran to continue his legacy of proxy wars and state-sponsored terrorism. Hey, we can hope I am wrong. Maybe Iranians will see a whole different way to retaliate. Maybe instead of overtly fighting Trump, they will realize how easily he can be manipulated into serving their goals, and follow the model of Kim Jong-un… who has been sucking up to Trump for television cameras as he buys time to fully ramp up a world-class nuclear weapons arsenal. Maybe Iran will contact Trump and offer to help him by interfering on his behalf in the 2020 elections. Iranians may realize – like Putin before them – that it is far easier to get what you want out of Trump if you’ve got kompromat on him..."
BTRTN: Forget "Wag the Dog." "Fail Safe" is the Telling Movie Parable for Trump's Iran Gamble
Born To Run The Numbers thinks that the pundits who invoke "Wag The Dog" to criticize Trump's decision to assassinate Soleimani are worried about the wrong movie. 1964's nuclear terror "Fail Safe" provides the more terrifying analogy:
http://www.borntorunthenumbers.com/2020/01/btrtn-forget-wag-dog-fail-safe-is.html
Excerpts: "Donald Trump threw the Middle East and, by extension, the world, into an incredibly dangerous moment when for 72 hours, the stability of the region and the world became the responsibility of a rogue, economically-ostracized state that sponsors terrorism. He created the circumstances in which the fate of the Middle East was contingent on Iran being the grown-up in the room.
"Ordering the assassination of Soleimani was the equivalent of the sending bombers toward Moscow in 'Fail Safe.' Once the bombers were en route, the ability to calmly manage a chaotic, rapidly unfolding, unpredictable situation is radically reduced. Intentionally triggering such chaos dramatically increases the likelihood of misinterpretation, mistrust, and pre-emptive aggression...
"My second point: the long-term implications of this action are far from understood...Here are the likely bets 1)Tehran will race to build nuclear bombs, (2) Iran will will now be united in its hatred of the United States, (3) the murder of Soleimani will only embolden Iran to continue his legacy of proxy wars and state-sponsored terrorism. Hey, we can hope I am wrong. Maybe Iranians will see a whole different way to retaliate. Maybe instead of overtly fighting Trump, they will realize how easily he can be manipulated into serving their goals, and follow the model of Kim Jong-un… who has been sucking up to Trump for television cameras as he buys time to fully ramp up a world-class nuclear weapons arsenal. Maybe Iran will contact Trump and offer to help him by interfering on his behalf in the 2020 elections. Iranians may realize – like Putin before them – that it is far easier to get what you want out of Trump if you’ve got kompromat on him..."
BTRTN: What You Can Do TODAY to Help Defeat Trump in November
Born To Run The Numbers provides readers concrete actions that can be undertaken today to help defeat Donald Trump in November:
http://www.borntorunthenumbers.com/2020/01/btrtn-what-you-can-do-today-to-help.html
Excerpts:
"This is the game plan that Democrats across the country must follow to consign Donald Trump to the junk heap of history this coming November 3rd:
1) Find the best candidate, the one most likely to defeat Trump in the general election
2) Unify behind the eventual nominee, whoever that is
3) Work for that nominee -- as passionately as if the nominee had been your first choice candidate – to get out the vote
4) Contribute financially to the nominee’s campaign if you can
5) Vote!!!
But we can all do something today that will benefit the Democratic nominee, no matter who it is. And that is: you can help register Democratic voters in swing states. In such an emotional election, when most minds are made up along partisan lines, the absolute key is turnout: getting out the vote. And that means registering every possible Democratic voter we can."Swing Left" offers an excellent platform for registering voters..."
(Born to Run the Numbers goes on to provide specific direction on how to sign up with "Swing Left" and get to work...)
BTRTN: What Is Pelosi Up To With Her Impeachment Stall?
Born To Run The Numbers provides its monthly review of December, 2019, focusing on how Nancy Pelosi is handling the impeachment Tom's take provides an interesting "point/counterpoint" to the piece posted by Steve on December 31 on the impeachment process:
http://www.borntorunthenumbers.com/2020/01/btrtn-what-is-pelosi-up-to-with-her.html
Excerpts: "Nancy Pelosi is a master of three-dimensional chess. Her decision to hold off on transmitting the articles of impeachment to the Senate is a classic case. Pelosi sized up the state of the Senate trial and saw that it was a sham. Mitch McConnell was cool to Chuck Schumer’s call for witnesses, and publicly cozied up to Trump team to organize the rules of the trial. Pelosi’s quick calculus was that McConnell had erred. He clearly should have taken greater pains to give the appearance of taking the high road in conducting a fair trial, and not been so public in his White House partnership. And the truth is, a trial without witnesses is not a good look. Americans – even a plurality of Republicans -- clearly want to see witnesses...
"There are any number of GOP Senators to whom the notion of witnesses may appeal, with varying motives. Mitt Romney has been a thorn in Trump’s side and is virtually untouchable in Utah. Susan Collins of Maine is in a daunting re-election battle, as is Cory Gardner of Colorado and Thom Tillis of North Carolina. Ben Sasse of Nebraska can be a gadfly, and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska has already expressed discomfort with the McConnell approach...
"Might Pelosi simply hold on to the articles, perhaps forever? That seems far-fetched, but she clearly is a better chess player than Trump. But even if she gives in relatively soon, she has accomplished a few important objectives, casting doubt on McConnell’s trial and calling attention to the latest Ukraine revelations. But the pressure will ratchet up next week. A low-risk move in December becomes a high-stakes gamble in January."
BTRTN: What Is Pelosi Up To With Her Impeachment Stall?
Born To Run The Numbers provides its monthly review of December, 2019, focusing on how Nancy Pelosi is handling the impeachment Tom's take provides an interesting "point/counterpoint" to the piece posted by Steve on December 31 on the impeachment process:
http://www.borntorunthenumbers.com/2020/01/btrtn-what-is-pelosi-up-to-with-her.html
Excerpts: "Nancy Pelosi is a master of three-dimensional chess. Her decision to hold off on transmitting the articles of impeachment to the Senate is a classic case. Pelosi sized up the state of the Senate trial and saw that it was a sham. Mitch McConnell was cool to Chuck Schumer’s call for witnesses, and publicly cozied up to Trump team to organize the rules of the trial. Pelosi’s quick calculus was that McConnell had erred. He clearly should have taken greater pains to give the appearance of taking the high road in conducting a fair trial, and not been so public in his White House partnership. And the truth is, a trial without witnesses is not a good look. Americans – even a plurality of Republicans -- clearly want to see witnesses...
"There are any number of GOP Senators to whom the notion of witnesses may appeal, with varying motives. Mitt Romney has been a thorn in Trump’s side and is virtually untouchable in Utah. Susan Collins of Maine is in a daunting re-election battle, as is Cory Gardner of Colorado and Thom Tillis of North Carolina. Ben Sasse of Nebraska can be a gadfly, and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska has already expressed discomfort with the McConnell approach...
"Might Pelosi simply hold on to the articles, perhaps forever? That seems far-fetched, but she clearly is a better chess player than Trump. But even if she gives in relatively soon, she has accomplished a few important objectives, casting doubt on McConnell’s trial and calling attention to the latest Ukraine revelations. But the pressure will ratchet up next week. A low-risk move in December becomes a high-stakes gamble in January."
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