News US Republican candidates 2016 discussion

Paul Ryan rebukes Trump’s remarks on KKK, David Duke

“This party does not prey on people’s prejudices,” Ryan told reporters at the weekly House GOP leadership news conference."

Oh really Paul, sounds like revisionist history to me....

I had to read that sentence twice before I found something wrong with it. In the wake of Trump, the rest of the Republicans honestly almost look reasonable. Today I found myself nodding along to a speech Mitt Romney was giving about how awful Trump is. What the hell is going on here!?
 
  • Like
Reactions: Naturebound1
I had to read that sentence twice before I found something wrong with it. In the wake of Trump, the rest of the Republicans honestly almost look reasonable. Today I found myself nodding along to a speech Mitt Romney was giving about how awful Trump is. What the hell is going on here!?

The Republicans misjudged Obama: they believed he would govern from the far left. Instead, he is a moderate - which, in turn has pushed the Right even farther right. (Because they decided that they must oppose everything he proposes.) Now the opposite is happening: Trump has doubled-down on the 'go hard right' strategy of the Tea Party and has pushed them so far off the map that the establishment Republicans are now trying to bring things back to a moderate position.

It's glorious to see them falling apart like this. I find myself enjoying Trump's success - because he is literally destroying the Republican party right before our eyes.
 
The Republicans misjudged Obama: they believed he would govern from the far left. Instead, he is a moderate - which, in turn has pushed the Right even farther right. (Because they decided that they must oppose everything he proposes.) Now the opposite is happening: Trump has doubled-down on the 'go hard right' strategy of the Tea Party and has pushed them so far off the map that the establishment Republicans are now trying to bring things back to a moderate position.

It's glorious to see them falling apart like this. I find myself enjoying Trump's success - because he is literally destroying the Republican party right before our eyes.
That's what is so sad about politics today. Instead of being opponents, fellow US citizens, the other party becomes an enemy to watch implode with glee. Doesn't matter if the country is destroyed in the process.
 
Last edited:
  • Disagree
Reactions: FortyTwo
That's what is so sad about politics today. Instead of being opponents, fellow US citizens, the other party becomes an enemy to watch implode with glee. Doesn't matter if the country is destroyed in the process.

Oh please. A certain party's policies have become so extreme that they, in of themselves threaten to to destroy the country. No apologies. I'm happy that bigotry, sexism, discrimination, hateful rhetoric, mean-spiritness, racism, homoph0bicness, immaturity, the inclusion of religious doctrine into political agendas, lack of legitimate governing and an inability to compromise in order to find common ground are LOSING. They all can go **** themselves and implode as far as I'm concerned. Their ideologies, their principles - all of it. I celebrate when these things are defeated and put down. They have no place in our government or country.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Amy SF
Maybe my reading comprehension isn't so great today, but I thought ledboots was at least partly agreeing with Dedalus.
 
No. I was being scolded for experiencing schadenfreude.

That's how I read it also.

I think it's difficult to not experience some degree of schadenfreude, after the complete obstructionism displayed by the GOP during the last eight years.

On the bright side, this may be the beginning of a multi-party system here in the U.S., perhaps? I don't see how the GOP can emerge from this unsplintered, whether Trump is the nominee or the GOP establishment somehow manages to do an end run around him. And if the GOP splinters into two or more parties, the same thing may happen to the Democrats.
 
Instead of likely Democratic voters threatening to sit out an election because they don't like the behavior of establishment Democrats, I wish they'd all switch to the Green Party and make it a real political party with actual influence in politics at all levels. What's the point of having a political party in this country if nobody knows about it? Having thousands or even millions of disaffected voters affiliate with your party would give it the notice it deserves. Much better for democracy than refusing to vote because you don't like either of the country's two biggest parties. Voters in other countries would be appalled at the idea of staying home on Election Day because you don't like just two of a whole lineup of parties.

List of political parties in the United States - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 
Oh please. A certain party's policies have become so extreme that they, in of themselves threaten to to destroy the country. No apologies. I'm happy that bigotry, sexism, discrimination, hateful rhetoric, mean-spiritness, racism, homoph0bicness, immaturity, the inclusion of religious doctrine into political agendas, lack of legitimate governing and an inability to compromise in order to find common ground are LOSING. They all can go **** themselves and implode as far as I'm concerned. Their ideologies, their principles - all of it. I celebrate when these things are defeated and put down. They have no place in our government or country.

Yes. The Republican Party deserves to fall apart. The only ruination of the country I'm worried about is what would occur if they won at this point, especially if Trump won.

That's what is so sad about politics today. Instead of being opponents, fellow US citizens, the other party becomes an enemy to watch implode with glee. Doesn't matter if the country is destroyed in the process.

I mean, the Republicans have taken steps toward destruction of the country, like that stunt they pulled shutting the government down.

Also: politics has literally always been about cheering the downfall of the other party. Remember when Jefferson created an entire party just to oppose the Federalists? When an entire political party was created to target the Masons in specific? Our two-party system has seen its fair share of opposed binaries, and usually one or the other is eventually eliminated.

If someone is an enemy of what's right then I hope they face obstacles, I hope they lose. Same way I was pleased as punch when Scalia bit the dust. If the wicked get what's coming to them, I'm not going to pretend to be sad about it for the sake of respectability. Maybe that's noble, but it's dishonest and frankly it's counter-productive.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dedalus
I am wondering if the Republicans have gone a little too far to the right and will suffer a surprisingly heavy defeat leading to reform and movement of the party back towards the centre. Or maybe it's just wishful thinking on my part.
 
Louis C.K. has a new TV show. Louis C.K. sells each episode on his website for, like, $3. He sends out an email each week when a new episode is ready for viewing. This week's email included a lot more words:

P.S. Please stop it with voting for Trump. It was funny for a little while. But the guy is Hitler. And by that I mean that we are being Germany in the 30s. Do you think they saw the **** coming? Hitler was just some hilarious and refreshing dude with a weird comb over who would say anything at all.

And I'm not advocating for Hillary or Bernie. I like them both but frankly I wish the next president was a conservative only because we had Obama for eight years and we need balance. And not because I particularly enjoy the conservative agenda. I just think the government should reflect the people. And we are about 40 percent conservative and 40 percent liberal. When I was growing up and when I was a younger man, liberals and conservatives were friends with differences. They weren’t enemies. And it always made sense that everyone gets a president they like for a while and then hates the president for a while. But it only works if the conservatives put up a good candidate. A good smart conservative to face the liberal candidate so they can have a good argument and the country can decide which way to go this time.

Trump is not that. He's an insane bigot. He is dangerous.

He already said he would expand libel laws to sue anyone who "writes a negative hit piece" about him. He says "I would open up the libel laws so we can sue them and win lots of money. Not like now. These guys are totally protected." He said that. He has promised to decimate the first amendment. (If you think he’s going to keep the second amendment intact you’re delusional.) And he said that Paul Ryan, speaker of the house will "pay" for criticizing him. So I'm saying this now because if he gets in there we won't be able to criticize him anymore.

Please pick someone else. Like John Kasich. I mean that guy seems okay. I don't like any of them myself but if you're that kind of voter please go for a guy like that. It feels like between him and either democrat we'd have a decent choice. It feels like a healthier choice. We shouldn't have to vote for someone because they're not a shocking cunt billionaire liar.

We should choose based on what direction the country should go.

I get that all these people sound like ******** soft criminal opportunists. The whole game feels rigged and it's not going anywhere but down anymore. I feel that way sometimes.

And that voting for Trump is a way of saying "**** it. **** them all". I really get it. It's a version of national Suicide. Or it's like a big hit off of a crack pipe. Somehow we can't help it. Or we know that if we vote for Trump our phones will be a reliable source of dopamine for the next four years. I mean I can't wait to read about Trump every day. It's a rush. But you have to know this is not healthy.

If you are a true conservative. Don't vote for Trump. He is not one of you. He is one of him. Everything you have heard him say that you liked, if you look hard enough you will see that he one day said the exact opposite. He is playing you.

In fact, if you do vote for Trump, at least look at him very carefully first. You owe that to the rest of us. Know and understand who he is. Spend one hour on google and just read it all. I don’t mean listen to me or listen to liberals who put him down. Listen to your own people. Listen to John Mccain. Go look at what he just said about Trump. "At a time when our world has never been more complex or more in danger... I want Republican voters to pay close attention to what our party's most respected and knowledgeable leaders and national security experts are saying about Mr. Trump, and to think long and hard about who they want to be our next Commander-in-Chief and leader of the free world.”

When Trump was told what he said, Trump said "Oh, he did? Well, that's not nice," he told CBS News' chief White House correspondent Major Garrett. "He has to be very careful."

When pressed on why, Trump tacked on: "He'll find out.”

(I cut and pasted that from CBS news)

Do you really want a guy to be president who threatens John McCain? Because John McCain cautiously and intelligently asked for people to be thoughtful before voting for him? He didn’t even insult Trump. He just asked you to take a good look. And Trump told him to look out.

Remember that Trump entered this race by saying that McCain is not a war hero. A guy who was shot down, body broken and kept in a POW camp for years. Trump said “I prefer the guys who don’t get caught.” Why did he say that? Not because he meant it or because it was important to say. He said it because he’s a bully and every bully knows that when you enter a new school yard, you go to the toughest most respected guy on the yard and you punch him in the nose. If you are still standing after, you’re the new boss. If Trump is president, he’s not going to change. He’s not going to do anything for you. He’s going to do everything for himself and leave you in the dust.

So please listen to fellow conservatives. But more importantly, listen to Trump. Listen to all of it. Everything he says. If you liked when he said that “torture works” then go look at where he took it back the next day. He’s a ******* liar.

A vote for Trump is so clearly a gut-vote, and again I get it. But add a little brain to it and look the guy up. Because if you vote for him because of how you feel right now, the minute he's president, you're going to regret it. You're going to regret it even more when he gives the job to his son. Because American democracy is broken enough that a guy like that could really **** things up. That's how Hitler got there. He was voted into power by a fatigued nation and when he got inside, he did all his Hitler things and no one could stop him.

Again, I’m not saying vote democrat or vote for anyone else. If Hilary ends up president it should be because she faced the best person you have and you and I both chose her or him or whoever. Trump is not your best. He’s the worst of all of us. He’s a symptom to a problem that is very real. But don’t vote for your own cancer. You’re better than that.

That's just my view. At least right now. I know I’m not qualified or particularly educated and I'm not right instead of you. I’m an idiot and I'm sure a bunch of you are very annoyed by this. ******* celebrity with an opinion. I swear this isn’t really a political opinion. You don’t want to know my political opinions. (And I know that I’m only bringing myself trouble with this ****.) Trump has nothing to do with politics or ideology. He has to do with himself. And really I don't mean to insult anyone. Except Trump. I mean to insult him very much. And really I’m not saying he’s evil or a monster. In fact I don’t think Hitler was. The problem with saying that guys like that are monsters is that we don’t see them coming when they turn out to be human, which they all are. Everyone is. Trump is a messed up guy with a hole in his heart that he tries to fill with money and attention. He can never ever have enough of either and he’ll never stop trying. He’s sick. Which makes him really really interesting. And he pulls you towards him which somehow feels good or fascinatingly bad. He’s not a monster. He’s a sad man. But all this makes him horribly dangerous if he becomes president. Give him another TV show. Let him pay to put his name on buildings. But please stop voting for him. And please watch Horace and Pete.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Andy_T
Louis C.K. has a new TV show. Louis C.K. sells each episode on his website for, like, $3. He sends out an email each week when a new episode is ready for viewing. This week, his email included a lot more words:

P.S. Please stop it with voting for Trump. It was funny for a little while. But the guy is Hitler. And by that I mean that we are being Germany in the 30s. Do you think they saw the **** coming? Hitler was just some hilarious and refreshing dude with a weird comb over who would say anything at all.

And I'm not advocating for Hillary or Bernie. I like them both but frankly I wish the next president was a conservative only because we had Obama for eight years and we need balance. And not because I particularly enjoy the conservative agenda. I just think the government should reflect the people. And we are about 40 percent conservative and 40 percent liberal. When I was growing up and when I was a younger man, liberals and conservatives were friends with differences. They weren’t enemies. And it always made sense that everyone gets a president they like for a while and then hates the president for a while. But it only works if the conservatives put up a good candidate. A good smart conservative to face the liberal candidate so they can have a good argument and the country can decide which way to go this time.

Trump is not that. He's an insane bigot. He is dangerous.

He already said he would expand libel laws to sue anyone who "writes a negative hit piece" about him. He says "I would open up the libel laws so we can sue them and win lots of money. Not like now. These guys are totally protected." He said that. He has promised to decimate the first amendment. (If you think he’s going to keep the second amendment intact you’re delusional.) And he said that Paul Ryan, speaker of the house will "pay" for criticizing him. So I'm saying this now because if he gets in there we won't be able to criticize him anymore.

Please pick someone else. Like John Kasich. I mean that guy seems okay. I don't like any of them myself but if you're that kind of voter please go for a guy like that. It feels like between him and either democrat we'd have a decent choice. It feels like a healthier choice. We shouldn't have to vote for someone because they're not a shocking **** billionaire liar.

We should choose based on what direction the country should go.

I get that all these people sound like ******** soft criminal opportunists. The whole game feels rigged and it's not going anywhere but down anymore. I feel that way sometimes.

And that voting for Trump is a way of saying "**** it. **** them all". I really get it. It's a version of national Suicide. Or it's like a big hit off of a crack pipe. Somehow we can't help it. Or we know that if we vote for Trump our phones will be a reliable source of dopamine for the next four years. I mean I can't wait to read about Trump every day. It's a rush. But you have to know this is not healthy.

If you are a true conservative. Don't vote for Trump. He is not one of you. He is one of him. Everything you have heard him say that you liked, if you look hard enough you will see that he one day said the exact opposite. He is playing you.

In fact, if you do vote for Trump, at least look at him very carefully first. You owe that to the rest of us. Know and understand who he is. Spend one hour on google and just read it all. I don’t mean listen to me or listen to liberals who put him down. Listen to your own people. Listen to John Mccain. Go look at what he just said about Trump. "At a time when our world has never been more complex or more in danger... I want Republican voters to pay close attention to what our party's most respected and knowledgeable leaders and national security experts are saying about Mr. Trump, and to think long and hard about who they want to be our next Commander-in-Chief and leader of the free world.”

When Trump was told what he said, Trump said "Oh, he did? Well, that's not nice," he told CBS News' chief White House correspondent Major Garrett. "He has to be very careful."

When pressed on why, Trump tacked on: "He'll find out.”

(I cut and pasted that from CBS news)

Do you really want a guy to be president who threatens John McCain? Because John McCain cautiously and intelligently asked for people to be thoughtful before voting for him? He didn’t even insult Trump. He just asked you to take a good look. And Trump told him to look out.

Remember that Trump entered this race by saying that McCain is not a war hero. A guy who was shot down, body broken and kept in a POW camp for years. Trump said “I prefer the guys who don’t get caught.” Why did he say that? Not because he meant it or because it was important to say. He said it because he’s a bully and every bully knows that when you enter a new school yard, you go to the toughest most respected guy on the yard and you punch him in the nose. If you are still standing after, you’re the new boss. If Trump is president, he’s not going to change. He’s not going to do anything for you. He’s going to do everything for himself and leave you in the dust.

So please listen to fellow conservatives. But more importantly, listen to Trump. Listen to all of it. Everything he says. If you liked when he said that “torture works” then go look at where he took it back the next day. He’s a ****ing liar.

A vote for Trump is so clearly a gut-vote, and again I get it. But add a little brain to it and look the guy up. Because if you vote for him because of how you feel right now, the minute he's president, you're going to regret it. You're going to regret it even more when he gives the job to his son. Because American democracy is broken enough that a guy like that could really **** things up. That's how Hitler got there. He was voted into power by a fatigued nation and when he got inside, he did all his Hitler things and no one could stop him.

Again, I’m not saying vote democrat or vote for anyone else. If Hilary ends up president it should be because she faced the best person you have and you and I both chose her or him or whoever. Trump is not your best. He’s the worst of all of us. He’s a symptom to a problem that is very real. But don’t vote for your own cancer. You’re better than that.

That's just my view. At least right now. I know I’m not qualified or particularly educated and I'm not right instead of you. I’m an idiot and I'm sure a bunch of you are very annoyed by this. ****ing celebrity with an opinion. I swear this isn’t really a political opinion. You don’t want to know my political opinions. (And I know that I’m only bringing myself trouble with this ****.) Trump has nothing to do with politics or ideology. He has to do with himself. And really I don't mean to insult anyone. Except Trump. I mean to insult him very much. And really I’m not saying he’s evil or a monster. In fact I don’t think Hitler was. The problem with saying that guys like that are monsters is that we don’t see them coming when they turn out to be human, which they all are. Everyone is. Trump is a messed up guy with a hole in his heart that he tries to fill with money and attention. He can never ever have enough of either and he’ll never stop trying. He’s sick. Which makes him really really interesting. And he pulls you towards him which somehow feels good or fascinatingly bad. He’s not a monster. He’s a sad man. But all this makes him horribly dangerous if he becomes president. Give him another TV show. Let him pay to put his name on buildings. But please stop voting for him. And please watch Horace and Pete.

That is some true wisdom from Louis C.K. Agree 1000%.

I'm going to go watch his show as I think he's pretty funny in general.
 
there definitely is a resemblance to Hitler. The way he screws up his face and starts gesturing with his hands.
 
While I have no love for the Republican party, a one party gov't is far more dangerous in the long run.

If the GOP really implodes (and I don't think it will), we'll be left with one viable party. Nothing good ever comes of that...
 
While I have no love for the Republican party, a one party gov't is far more dangerous in the long run.

If the GOP really implodes (and I don't think it will), we'll be left with one viable party. Nothing good ever comes of that...
I don't think we'd be left with one party. I think we would end up with multiple parties.