2017 Elections

[Vrede too]

Petition to Speaker Paul Ryan:

"Exercise your power and authority as Speaker of the House and within the Republican Party to keep Greg Gianforte, who violently assaulted a journalist, out of the House of Representatives."

Not gonna happen, but it's fun to annoy Ryan.

[rstrong]

The Guardian: GOP candidate Greg Gianforte has financial ties to US-sanctioned Russian companies

According to a financial disclosure filed with the clerk of the House of Representatives, the Montana tech mogul owns almost $150,000 worth of shares in VanEck Vectors Russia ETF and $92,400 in the IShares MSCF Russia ETF fund. Both are indexed to the Russian equities market and have significant holdings in companies such as Gazprom and Rosneft that came under US sanctions in the aftermath of the Russian invasion of the Crimea

Who could have predicted it.

[homerfobe]

What hath we wrought?

[Vrede too]

Press groups urge congressional probe on assault of reporter

How Greg Gianforte's body slam might save a Democratic Senate seat in Montana

[O Really]

Trump endorsed May, then insulted the London Mayor (and Brits in general), May drops a 25 point lead, may not get a majority...
http://www.salon.com/2017/06/08/u-k-sna ... arliament/
Opps.

[Vrede too]

... It’s possible that Donald Trump’s surprise election in the U.S., and his scandal-plagued administration since then, have served as a chilling warning to voters in Europe.

After receiving Trump’s endorsement earlier this year, far-right populist Marine Le Pen went on to lose France’s presidential election by 32 points. On Thursday, May watched as her 25-point lead in opinion polls all but evaporated following Trump’s endorsement.

I'm surprised we have that much impact. Obama opposing Brexit didn't seem to help.

[k9nanny]

... It’s possible that Donald Trump’s surprise election in the U.S., and his scandal-plagued administration since then, have served as a chilling warning to voters in Europe.

After receiving Trump’s endorsement earlier this year, far-right populist Marine Le Pen went on to lose France’s presidential election by 32 points. On Thursday, May watched as her 25-point lead in opinion polls all but evaporated following Trump’s endorsement.

I'm surprised we have that much impact. Obama opposing Brexit didn't seem to help.

Trump is a trailblazer.

[Vrede too]

Further analysis:

Where it went wrong for Theresa May

[Boatrocker]

... It’s possible that Donald Trump’s surprise election in the U.S., and his scandal-plagued administration since then, have served as a chilling warning to voters in Europe.

After receiving Trump’s endorsement earlier this year, far-right populist Marine Le Pen went on to lose France’s presidential election by 32 points. On Thursday, May watched as her 25-point lead in opinion polls all but evaporated following Trump’s endorsement.

I'm surprised we have that much impact. Obama opposing Brexit didn't seem to help.

There's a big gulf between a thoughtful leader expressing an opinion on the business of an allied nation, and a newly elected toddler-in-chief providing- on a daily basis- glaring, alarming examples of ignorance, idiocy and unfitness in real time, with real, measurable results. Add to that the likely fact that deeply right-leaning voters anywhere are pretty much the same ill-informed, fact-averse dullards with short attention spans that we have in the US.

[rstrong]

On the other hand, Lord Buckethead won 249 votes.

[rstrong]

[rstrong]

[Vrede too]

Progressive Group Calls Ralph Northam 'Racist,' Sparking Intra-Party Feud Ahead Of Big (Virginia Gov.) Election

Interesting, Democracy For America is not some flaky fringe group. I don't care enough to research further, but it's a dramatic step by a lefty group right before a close election vs. a horrible Repug. I have no problem with principled stands as long as the benefits and risks are well thought out.

RCP Poll Average: Northam +1.2.

[JTA]

Well, looks like the Democratic candidate won in VA. Immediately after Gillespie lost, Trump threw him under the bus on Twitter.

[Vrede too]

Congrats on the end of the Christie ear. It was, ummm, interesting.

Well, looks like the Democratic candidate won in VA. Immediately after Gillespie lost, Trump threw him under the bus on Twitter.

54-45, smackdown. I'm glad that Democracy For America righteously spanked him and that he won anyhow.

Virginia Elects Its First Openly Transgender State Lawmaker



Democrat Danica Roem defeated Virginia Del. Bob Marshall (R) on Tuesday, becoming the first openly transgender state lawmaker in Virginia....

Roem’s historic victory, which was called about an hour after polls closed, elated LGBTQ advocates. The outcome was that much sweeter because Marshall co-sponsored a 2006 Virginia constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage that prompted LGBTQ activists to dub him “Bigot Bob.” Marshall, who once referred to himself as Virginia’s “chief homophobe,” also introduced the bill that would have banned transgender public school students from using the bathrooms of their choice.

“Tonight voters chose a smart, solutions-oriented trans leader over a divisive anti-LGBTQ demagogue – sending a powerful message to anti-trans legislators all across the nation,” Aisha Moodie-Mills, president of the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund, said in a statement. “Danica defeated ‘Bigot Bob’ Marshall not because she is transgender, but because she presented a positive vision for her constituents that will improve their lives.” ...

Bigot Bob got beat up by a girl.

[JTA]

Congrats on the end of the Christie ear. It was, ummm, interesting.

Well, looks like the Democratic candidate won in VA. Immediately after Gillespie lost, Trump threw him under the bus on Twitter.

54-45, smackdown. I'm glad that Democracy For America righteously spanked him and that he won anyhow.

Virginia Elects Its First Openly Transgender State Lawmaker



Democrat Danica Roem defeated Virginia Del. Bob Marshall (R) on Tuesday, becoming the first openly transgender state lawmaker in Virginia....

Roem’s historic victory, which was called about an hour after polls closed, elated LGBTQ advocates. The outcome was that much sweeter because Marshall co-sponsored a 2006 Virginia constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage that prompted LGBTQ activists to dub him “Bigot Bob.” Marshall, who once referred to himself as Virginia’s “chief homophobe,” also introduced the bill that would have banned transgender public school students from using the bathrooms of their choice.

“Tonight voters chose a smart, solutions-oriented trans leader over a divisive anti-LGBTQ demagogue – sending a powerful message to anti-trans legislators all across the nation,” Aisha Moodie-Mills, president of the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund, said in a statement. “Danica defeated ‘Bigot Bob’ Marshall not because she is transgender, but because she presented a positive vision for her constituents that will improve their lives.” ...

Bigot Bob got beat up by a girl.

Maybe Trump is to blame for the huge upset. Me, personally, while "right" on some issues, don't foresee myself ever voting GOP again for the foreseeable future. I wonder of others feel the same?

[Vrede too]

Maybe Trump is to blame for the huge upset. Me, personally, while "right" on some issues, don't foresee myself ever voting GOP again for the foreseeable future. I wonder of others feel the same?

I don't think that either the VA or NJ Gov. wins can be called upsets. Otoh, Dems did well nationwide and the Dems annihilated a 32! member GOP margin in the VA House. Recounts will determine the new majority. This wasn't just about Gillespie. It was a referendum on Dolt .45 and the GOP and their allies, the Charlottesville Nahtzi/Klan. Exiting voters were clear about that. Of course, the lifelong cowardly Chickenhawk in Chief runs shrieking from all responsibility.

Donald J. Trump
@realDonaldTrump

Ed Gillespie worked hard but did not embrace me or what I stand for. Don’t forget, Republicans won 4 out of 4 House seats, and with the economy doing record numbers, we will continue to win, even bigger than before!
8:40 PM - Nov 7, 2017

Those 4 House seats were all safe GOP states vacated by Dolt .45 appointees, and he neglected to mention a CA Dem special election win in the US House.

Michael Steele
(Former Republican National Committee chairman)
@MichaelSteele

Did YOU win Virginia?
9:58 PM - Nov 7, 2017

POSPOTUS lost Virginia in the 2016 presidential election by a little more than five points.

[Vrede too]

It was also a big day for blacks, other transgenders, women, Sikhs, Latinas, Vietnamese and Liberian refugees, lesbians and Medicaid expansion.

Here's A List Of Historic Victories Democrats Had On Election Day

Dems also swept all of the statewide VA offices.

[JTA]

Yeah. Trump is a POS. The resurgent (well, maybe it was always there, but it's becoming less taboo) really bothers me. Boehner even said something about there representatives in the house with Nazi beliefs. It's kind of shocking how many millenials also hold such beliefs. Browse Reddit or 4chan. The alt-right/red-pill types of dudes are more prevalent than you'd think.

When I was listening to Richard Spencer speak, I thought to myself "man all this bullshit he's saying sounds incredibly familiar". Oh yeah, its the same talking points I've heard spouted by a few people I know in real life.

[Vrede too]

Yeah. Trump is a POS. The resurgent (well, maybe it was always there, but it's becoming less taboo) really bothers me. Boehner even said something about there representatives in the house with Nazi beliefs.

viewtopic.php?f=3&t=31&p=80569&hilit=Boehner#p80569

It's kind of shocking how many millenials also hold such beliefs. Browse Reddit or 4chan. The alt-right/red-pill types of dudes are more prevalent than you'd think.

When I was listening to Richard Spencer speak, I thought to myself "man all this bullshit he's saying sounds incredibly familiar". Oh yeah, its the same talking points I've heard spouted by a few people I know in real life.

I wish that it was possible to quantify how much of that is Russians, bots and sock puppets. We do know that it's widespread.