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It isn’t incompetence that keeps the democrats from fully realizing their political power. The terrible truth is that they prefer horse trading over the issues of importance to their donor class than they do meeting the needs of the people...
They are always on the side of their donor class and that is why the national leadership aren’t very concerned when republicans control state capitals. They will actually take a dive and then use their own corruption as a fundraising tool, pointing fingers at the republicans they have declared villains while secretly hoping they have to share power with them...
Warnock should have been further ahead but close races are guaranteed when there is no minimum wage increase while inflation runs rampant...
Why are margins so close in the House and the Senate when the people prefer what democrats claim to offer? The democrats are the ultimate cynics. They know what the people want and campaign accordingly, but once in office use the senate parliamentarian, arcane rules, or the bad cops among them to say that their hands are tied.
Just another day...
(Score: 4, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 15 2022, @12:43AM (6 children)
Yes, indeed. Just another day...for a fusty journal to poop some more all over the shit show. Too bad about that red wave you were hoping for. I imagine Putin is not really pleased with your efforts right now. No Christmas bonus for you!
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 15 2022, @01:57AM (3 children)
I disagree with fusty a lot of the time, but his criticism isn't entirely wrong. My issue is primarily that he appears to absolve Republicans of responsibility for the problems Americans face. Most of the blame is on Republicans, but Democrats could have done more. An issue that really annoys me is student loan forgiveness. I am citing https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/nov/11/young-voters-blocked-the-red-wave-biden-must-deliver-on-student-debt-cancellation [theguardian.com]:
I don't agree with Fusty's desire to abolish the filibuster, because that can easily backfire. However, there's a lot more Democrats could do about issues like student debt, as this article points out. Where Fusty goes very wrong is that he seems to let Republicans off the hook when, in fact, they deserve a ton of criticism.
(Score: 5, Interesting) by DeathMonkey on Tuesday November 15 2022, @08:26PM (1 child)
Biden DID forgive the debt.
Republicans actively sued to block it and a Trump appointed judge did so. It will likely land at the Supreme Court where Republican appointed judges will uphold the ban.
And Fusty wants you to believe this is the Democrats' fault!
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday November 16 2022, @02:23AM
I have federal student loan debt. I was eligible to have my debt forgiven, and I applied when the form was in beta. My debt was not forgiven. Biden created a program to allow federal student loan debt to be forgiven. However, judges appointed by Republicans blocked the program before any actual debt was forgiven. Your post suggests that Biden forgave the student loan debt, but it was reinstated by the courts. That is not what happened. Biden could have invoked either this the HEROES Act of 2003 or the Higher Education Act of 1965, the latter of which seems to give clearer authority to the president to cancel student loan debt.
The premise of the article is that Biden structured the program in a way that made it easier for it to be struck down in court. Perhaps it doesn't matter, and judges might ignore the law [msnbc.com] and issue flawed rulings anyway.
In a functioning government, Congress would actually debate the student loan issue. Democrats might want to forgive $50,000 per borrower. Republicans might oppose this but support restrictions to prevent this problem in the future. The result would be a compromise, perhaps where debt gets forgiven at a lower amount, and reforms are made to prevent the issue in the future. The bill might even replace much of the federal student loan system with need-based grants, which was quite common prior to the 1980s. None of this happens because Republicans have zero interest in trying to solve this problem. They'll happily give tax cuts to the wealthy and to large corporations, which increases the debt considerably more than Biden's student loan forgiveness program. The Republicans who are fighting against Biden's student loan forgiveness are the same Republicans who give these massive tax breaks to the wealthiest Americans.
The article's criticism of Democrats is valid. However, the criticism is only relevant because Republicans are dealing in bad faith. If Republicans dealt in good faith, Democrats wouldn't have to consider extraordinary measures to help the American people. That's the part Fusty conveniently and repeatedly ignores.
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday November 19 2022, @04:06PM
This is such a stupid point that's repeated far too often.
For one, in most countries, if you attain a majority you can pass policy, and if people don't like that policy, they can vote you back out. That's how it should work. And as we've seen, the vast majority of Republican policies are deeply unpopular.
Two, Republicans could have gotten rid of the filibuster when they had a trifecta after Trump was elected. They didn't, even though Trump wanted them to. Was that because they're principled? Obviously not. It's because they know that the filibuster harms Democrats far more than it harms Republicans. Democratic policy is more complicated and harder to pass under reconciliation. Republicans just want to cut taxes for the rich, pack the courts with fascist Federalist Society lunatics, and obstruct, which the filibuster does not prevent them from doing. So if Democrats got rid of the filibuster, Republicans would try to pass garbage policy, but as the ACA repeal attempt shows, their policies are deeply unpopular and they would either fail or be punished at the polls.
Three, the filibuster allows grifter politicians on both sides to virtue signal about how they totally support some policy position or another, but because the filibuster doesn't allow anything to come up for an actual vote, they're not forced to vote on these issues. This means they can hide behind the filibuster and never catch any flack from voters for voting against something popular, or for voting for something unpopular.
Four, for those who care about bipartisanship: the filibuster actually decreases - not increases - bipartisanship. If you have 50 Democrats and 8 Republicans who support a bill, it can't pass because of the filibuster. That means there is quite a lot of bipartisan legislation that the filibuster ends of blocking.
Supporting the filibuster makes zero sense.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday November 16 2022, @12:04AM (1 child)
Fusty takes on the Gordian Knot with the Sword of Damocles, and reaps the whirlwind of knot-seas. Jousting at Windmills. Cutting down the largest tree in the forest, with a Herring! Having fun storming the
castleCapitol Building.(Score: -1, Offtopic) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday November 16 2022, @03:59AM
Say goodnight, DB
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 15 2022, @01:07AM (1 child)
I don't quite agree. I somewhat appreciate where you're coming from; a friend of mine noted many times that no matter whoever you vote to become President, you seem to get the foreign policy of John McCain. It does seem like no matter which party is in power, the wealthy benefit while the poor and middle class get screwed over. Where I disagree is that the almost even split in Congress is a necessity. Historically speaking, the nearly even split in Congress is an anomaly [wikipedia.org]. The past 30 years is atypical compared with representation in Congress since the Civil War. It's been quite unusual to go this long without either party having a larger majority in Congress. The issue you're objecting to isn't unique to the past 30 years, so I reject that it's due to the nearly even split in Congress. It's also false to say that this is just a problem with Democrats. Republicans might say the same thing, that there's always someone in the Senate like John McCain who will block them from doing things like repealing Obamacare. They even use the term RINO as a pejorative for people who deviate from their agenda.
Republicans really are villains here. Just look at the hypocrisy over student loan forgiveness, which was targeted at the poor and middle class. Many Republicans got PPP loans and then got them forgiven. Worse yet is their criticism that forgiving student loan debt is a handout to the wealthy. Republicans have been happy to give handouts to the wealthy in the form of tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans and for large corporations. The same Republicans who decry student loan forgiveness as a handout for the wealthy all voted for Trump's 2017 tax cuts and would like to cut taxes for the wealthy again. The wealthy get tax cuts repeatedly while the rest of us get screwed over while the gap between the rich and poor gets larger.
Republicans have also abused the advice and consent powers of the Senate. Mitch McConnell refused to hold hearings on many of Obama's judicial nominees, leaving the seats open for a Republican like Trump to fill them. Democrats were in the minority, and McConnell abused his authority. As a result, the judiciary is packed with judges, many of whom are incompetent and issue bizarre rulings, making it harder for Biden to enact his policies.
I share your frustrations that Democrats haven't done more. But Republicans really are the villains here, and I disagree with you letting them off the hook. In regard to the specific issue of student loan forgiveness, Biden took executive action, only to have right wing judges block his plan. Democrats could do more, sure, but nearly all of the blame belongs with Republicans.
(Score: -1, Disagree) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 15 2022, @03:55AM
You need to understand that the democrat/republican relationship is symbiotic, not adversarial. There is no "lesser evil" or "both sides". This "opposition" is pure tribal theatrics to ensure each others' reelection. They worked it beautifully
(Score: 1) by khallow on Tuesday November 15 2022, @02:27AM (5 children)
fusty, is there supposed to be a problem with compromise and gridlock? Neither is corruption which is something you claimed in the past to care about
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 15 2022, @04:56AM (4 children)
Compromise is a good thing. It is the result of good faith bargaining. Unfortunately, the bipartisan variety is nearly extinct in Congress.
What you mistake for compromise is actually brinkmanship. Each side pushes negotiations to the 11th hour, hoping to extract additional concessions from the other side. It is no way to govern, and it is the cause of the gridlock you mention.
There is nothing responsible about gridlock, and it is no way to govern. Let's look past that the gridlock prevents Congress from addressing many important issues, even though that is a valid concern. Recent Congresses have passed significantly fewer bills than in the past. Instead, when Congress is up against a deadline on matters like the budget or the debt ceiling, they tend to address it in the form of a massive omnibus bill that gets passed at the 11th hour. Because the bill is massive and must be passed urgently, members of Congress are usually voting on these bills without actually reading them and reviewing their contents. There is nothing good about members of Congress voting on bills without really knowing what is in those bills, but that's what happens as a result of the gridlock.
Surely you don't think it's good to have members of Congress voting on bills without knowing what they're voting for, now do you? That's what happens when you replace compromise with brinkmanship and gridlock.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Tuesday November 15 2022, @05:05AM (3 children)
No, rather you just invented a narrative. No one made such a mistake.
And yet it's better than the alternatives in such a situation.
(Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 15 2022, @05:30AM (2 children)
There is a legislative process that is supposed to be followed. This involves introducing a bill, sending it to a committee for review and amendment, then bringing the bill to the floor for debate and amendment, and then voting on the bill. When followed, this allows sufficient time for members of Congress to actually understand the bill they're voting on, to conduct good faith bargaining, and to debate the merits of the bill. When massive bills are passed quickly because of brinkmanship and gridlock, much of this process is omitted.
If you consider it compromise to omit large parts of the legislative process and to pass bills hurriedly without members of Congress knowing what is in those bills, you are most certainly mistaken.
Once again, the alternative is to follow the proper legislative process. Introduce a bill, refer it to a committee for review and amendment, bring the bill to the floor for debate and amendment, and then vote on the bill. Expecting members of Congress to pass bills without really knowing what's in those bills is not better than the regular order of how Congress is supposed to work. Here's a refresher on the regular order of Congress that you seem to think is inferior: https://www.npr.org/2017/07/26/539358654/what-is-the-regular-order-john-mccain-longs-to-return-to-on-health-care [npr.org].
You've made no attempt to provide evidence or make arguments to support your position, instead expecting people to simply accept what you're saying as being correct. It's a very strong indicator that what you're saying is incorrect.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 15 2022, @04:35PM
Khallow is a propagandist that cannot be trusted, thank you for detailing why in this case.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Tuesday November 15 2022, @10:28PM
Massive bills wouldn't be passed quickly with genuine gridlock. And massive bills passing quickly predates the modern flavor of brinkmanship and gridlock.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 15 2022, @04:19AM
However, it's easy for the Democratic Party to look like the good guys next to the Republican Party. The People have spoken. Abortion is a 9A right.
Now if there were a party that were willing to appeal to the masses who work for a living, it could really clean house. It could be revolutionary.
(Score: 3, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 15 2022, @06:35AM (3 children)
Although I don't know why I bother, as your political "beliefs" are those of a child.
Nationalizing the political debate, gerrymandering, fixing the size of the House at 435 seats, and two senators per state
That's why margins in Congress are so close.
Not your puerile imaginations of collusion.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 15 2022, @08:32AM (2 children)
Congrats, your country is only half-Nazi.
Never go full Nazi or you'll end up with a Reichstag Fire which almost happened on January 6th, 2021.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 15 2022, @08:26PM (1 child)
No, our Reichstag Fire was September 11th, 2001..
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 15 2022, @09:32PM
It really was, the only meaningful security measure that was made were the locked cockpits. Everything else was security theater to take away our rights.
(Score: 3, Troll) by DannyB on Tuesday November 15 2022, @03:14PM (15 children)
There is an issue you seem to completely ignore.
One party, or at least many people of that party, want to do away with democracy and voting. Or make voting a meaningless ceremony. Jan 6 was just the beginning. To this very day they continue to spout the Big Lie that Trump won the 2020 election. They passionately say there is proof. Yet they never produce this proof. Nothing that could stand up in court. And did not stand up in over 60 court cases. Some laughably thrown out. It is just using the lie to create outrage in the base without any concern to damaging our democracy. They run candidates for office who openly spout the Big Lie. That says it all.
The Jan 6 insurrectionists were there for the purpose of disrupting certification of the election results. Some were there for murder. (I have to believe their own words and actions as representing their intent.)
Some states want to allow the legislature to override the will of the people if they don't like the outcome of an election. That is outright brazenly taking away the will of the voters.
Red party members showing up in body armor with weapons to intimidate voters at polling places. And it goes on. The extremists simply do not want a fair vote because they know they are numerically outnumbered.
If they do manage to destroy democracy, it will be gone forever. We won't get it back. Maybe like the event horizon of a black hole, we might have already crossed that line but just don't realize it quite yet.
We will return to the rule of kings, dictators, tyrants, fascists and dynasties. I'm sure it's what the founding fathers intended. Just like well regulated school shootings.
How often should I have my memory checked? I used to know but...
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 15 2022, @04:31PM
"We are all domestic terrorists."
-CPAC
Seems like a troubling message for a political organization to publish, truly the craziest timeline!
(Score: 4, Insightful) by DannyB on Tuesday November 15 2022, @07:11PM
I should have also pointed out that a violent attack on a political opponent (or her husband) cannot be condemned by any Republican? Because it might upset the base. In that case you ARE on the WRONG side! And it will go down in history. Condemning this attack is not like betraying your party, your principles (at least I hope not), or your policies.
Not only is it not condemned, they make jokes about it. In order to normalize it. So it can happen again and not be as shocking. Just as we get used to the idea that school shootings "just happen". And that our vote doesn't matter, because state legislators know best.
And the fake electors thing? That is a direct assault on democracy.
How often should I have my memory checked? I used to know but...
(Score: -1, Redundant) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday November 16 2022, @01:33AM (12 children)
You're getting really good with the hyperbole, Danny.
Now, which party is it that is trying to create the Ministry of Truth? Huh. Maybe the hyperbole isn't really that very hyper . . . 1984 wasn't supposed to be a blueprint. Or, I didn't think it was supposed to be.
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday November 16 2022, @01:46AM
Runaway is a lying ignorant moran! Only reason he would be afraid of a Ministry of Truth! If you are not a lying rednecked hillbilly Ruskie agent of influence, you have no reason to worry, Runaway. Outside of being a craven coward.
(Score: 0, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday November 16 2022, @02:35AM (6 children)
Which party has passed laws to ban the teaching of critical race theory and related concepts? The next step for the same party fighting to ban critical race theory is to go into school libraries and burn books that they deem are anti-American [time.com]. Perhaps you'll even join in by putting on your white sheet and hood, then arranging books about race into the shape of a cross before you burn them.
(Score: -1, Redundant) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday November 16 2022, @03:13AM (5 children)
Critical race theory is nothing more than propaganda. "Hate Whitey, burn down the establishment, chaos and anarchy rules!" Except, after the revolution, the new establishment always ensures to kill off the anarchists and revolutionaries. Do you read history?
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday November 16 2022, @08:16AM
Critical race theory is not "hate whitey", it is "hate that motherfucker racist Runaway"! That is what it is. We all hate you for being a racist son of a beeswaxer in an X-Ray machine, Runaway, you racist fuck! You will be one of the first to go up against the way, you Redneck Mother, as Jerry Jeff Walker put it so eliquently. Everyone hates you, Runaway. FatPhil hates you. Janrinok can barely stand you. Even khallow does not particularly like you. And the rest of us hate you with a passion.
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday November 16 2022, @08:20AM (1 child)
I fear that if Runaway1956 is not able to spew his anti-semitic vitriol on IRC for much longer, he will go the Full Kanye West and out himself as a real neo-nazi, right on the Front Page. Same for much of the staff and hanger-ons, who are also suffering from IRC deprivation. Makes one wonder is Ncommander is not doing this on purpose, to purge the bile from SoylentNews.
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday November 16 2022, @09:06AM
A troll mod on this comment can only mean one thing: Ncommander is doing it on porpoise!
(Score: -1, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday November 19 2022, @12:17AM (1 child)
To spew such hate filled vitriol . . . .
You might want to spare some consideration for your soul and the effect on it from all the hate fed to you by Fox & Frens.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday November 19 2022, @02:08AM
Odd. You soulless progressives are concerned about someone's soul?
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday November 16 2022, @11:02AM (3 children)
What do we call 50 million dead Runaway1956s? A good start! Ha, ha! Funny, no? Don't you guys get it? 50 million dead Runaways! Ha! Ha! ha! a.
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Friday November 18 2022, @04:41AM (2 children)
I thought it was funny. I'd mod you up, but my account was banned on suspicion of being Aristarchus.
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Friday November 18 2022, @09:52AM (1 child)
Hey! My account was banned, too! Says I can't moderate until January 2102. So here is a +1 Funny, it is the best I can do.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday November 20 2022, @08:55AM
Huh. Imagine that. Have you tried not being a piece of shit?
No need to answer. That was a rhetorical question as the obvious answer is "No" given your ongoing behaviour.