2020 Presidential Election Thread (4 Viewers)

[whoknew]

Good stuff from Cory Booker - 

The War on Drugs has been a war on people, tearing families apart, ruining lives, and disproportionately affecting people of color and low-income individuals — all without making us safer.

When it comes to restoring justice, we can’t be timid.

As president, I will act immediately to right these wrongs, starting by initiating a clemency process for thousands of nonviolent drug offenders who have been handed unjust sentences by their government. Granting clemency won’t repair all the damage that has been done by the War on Drugs and our broken criminal justice system, but it will help our country confront this injustice and begin to heal.

 

[The General]

Democratic presidential candidate Michael Bennet is calling for a constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United, a lifetime ban on members of Congress becoming lobbyists, a prohibition on political gerrymandering and a push for ranked choice voting.

https://www.politico.com/story/2019/06/20/michael-bennet-political-reforms-1372580?nname=playbook-pm&nid=0000015a-dd3e-d536-a37b-dd7fd8af0000&nrid=0000014e-f0fe-dd93-ad7f-f8ff7e290000&nlid=964328

This guy is always good when I hear him.

Needs to get more airtime. 

 

[Widbil83]

Imagine being Corey Bookers campaign manager and hearing him not just quickly say no to this question. Oof 

Asked whether he would be willing to meet with Farrakhan, the 2020 presidential hopeful replied: “I don’t feel like I need to do that, but I’m not one of these people who says I wouldn’t sit down with anybody to hear what they have to say.”

“I am very familiar with Minister Farrakhan and his beliefs,” Booker continued, noting that Nation of Islam literature is popular in Newark, where he used to serve as mayor.

The Southern Poverty Law Center considers the Nation of Islam a hate group because of its anti-Semitic rhetoric and black nationalist ideology.

https://dailycaller.com/2019/06/22/booker-louis-farrakhan-biden/

 

[timschochet]

Imagine being Corey Bookers campaign manager and hearing him not just quickly say no to this question. Oof 

https://dailycaller.com/2019/06/22/booker-louis-farrakhan-biden/

I can’t stand Farrakhan, but your criticism here seems odd coming as it does from a supporter of a President who goes out of his way to praise mass murderers all over the planet. 

 

[Widbil83]

I can’t stand Farrakhan, but your criticism here seems odd coming as it does from a supporter of a President who goes out of his way to praise mass murderers all over the planet. 

Because it’s totally the same thing.  

 

[wikkidpissah]

awful lotta people 'round here who like the game HELLA more than the result...

 

[squistion]

AOC: "I really do think this was a breakaway night," she said. "I think Elizabeth Warren really distinguished herself, I think Julian Castro really distinguished himself. I think Cory Booker did a great job in talking about criminal justice."

https://www.axios.com/democratic-debate-aoc-on-breakaway-candidates-81b7cf08-eb49-4607-a32f-7d1b9a0757ce.html?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=onhrs

 

[lod001]

Which one of these wannabes wants to uncap Social Security taxes so that all income is taxed. You will get my vote. That's an issue where I side on the D's since I know the Rs will not go for that. I'm not talking about the scam where you restart collecting taxes at $400000 so that those in congress still get the sweet deal, that one definitely doesn't get my vote cause I see what he/she's trying to pull.

 

[squistion]

Kamala Harris:

"I know predators, and we have a predator living in the White House."

https://www.politico.com/story/2019/07/03/kamala-harris-predator-donald-trump-1398852

I would pay to see Harris debate Trump.

 

[squistion]

Pete Buttigieg has proposed a major expansion of voluntary public service programs, like AmeriCorps and the Peace Corps, and the addition of new orgs focused on combating climate change, treating mental health, and providing caregiving for older people.

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/03/us/politics/buttigieg-national-service.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share

 

[squistion]

Per Dave Weigel with the WaPo:

NEW:

Elizabeth Warren raised $19.1 million in Q2, more than tripling her Q1 number, and pushing past Bernie Sanders and Kamala Harris.

 

[timschochet]

Per Dave Weigel with the WaPo:

NEW:

Elizabeth Warren raised $19.1 million in Q2, more than tripling her Q1 number, and pushing past Bernie Sanders and Kamala Harris.

Mostly before the debate though. Look for Harris' numbers to rise.

Sanders though is in real trouble IMO.

 

[squistion]

Rep. Eric Swalwell:

"Today ends our presidential campaign, but it is the beginning of an opportunity in Congress."

Via ABC

https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/1148324707499937792

 

[adonis]

Rep. Eric Swalwell:

"Today ends our presidential campaign, but it is the beginning of an opportunity in Congress."

Via ABC

https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/1148324707499937792

I like the guy, but he wasn't a great candidate.  Doesn't have the instincts or personality/disposition for the run, at least right now.  He's an asset in congress though.  Smart guy, good thoughts.

 

[Leroy Hoard]

Which one of these wannabes wants to uncap Social Security taxes so that all income is taxed. You will get my vote. That's an issue where I side on the D's since I know the Rs will not go for that. I'm not talking about the scam where you restart collecting taxes at $400000 so that those in congress still get the sweet deal, that one definitely doesn't get my vote cause I see what he/she's trying to pull.

Good post.

 

[GoBirds]

Rep. Eric Swalwell:

"Today ends our presidential campaign, but it is the beginning of an opportunity in Congress."

Via ABC

https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/1148324707499937792

Not sure what he was thinking, the way he acted was amusing though.  

 

[squistion]

Kamala and AOC working together. That should make heads explode around here. 

Kamala Harris and @AOC will introduce legislation to help people with criminal records fairly obtain housing.

The bill pledges to change eviction and screening policies in housing so people with a criminal history can apply for federal housing assistance

https://www.cnn.com/2019/07/10/politics/kamala-harris-alexandria-ocasio-cortez-housing-bill/index.html?utm_medium=social&utm_term=image&utm_content=2019-07-10T14%3A06%3A10&utm_source=twCNNp

 

[jonessed]

Kamala and AOC working together. That should make heads explode around here. 

Kamala Harris and @AOC will introduce legislation to help people with criminal records fairly obtain housing.

The bill pledges to change eviction and screening policies in housing so people with a criminal history can apply for federal housing assistance

https://www.cnn.com/2019/07/10/politics/kamala-harris-alexandria-ocasio-cortez-housing-bill/index.html?utm_medium=social&utm_term=image&utm_content=2019-07-10T14%3A06%3A10&utm_source=twCNNp

Why would heads explode?  Seems like they agree on enough policy stuff to co-sponsor legislation.

This obviously has no chance in passing though.

 

[squistion]

Why would heads explode?  Seems like they agree on enough policy stuff to co-sponsor legislation.

This obviously has no chance in passing though.

Check out the two AOC related threads. Jon_mx and friends practically go apoplectic at her every tweet and quote. Add Kamala to the mix and boom goes the dynamite.  

 

[SoBeDad]

Florida governor DiSantis and the GOP made it more difficult for "former" felons to get their voting rights restored by passing legislation  that requires payment of court fees, fines, and restitution to victims, in addition to completing "all terms of sentence including parole or probation", which was the language in Amendment 4. The GOP legislation is being challenged in court, but may not be settled in time for the 2020 election. Of the 1.4 to 1.8 million former felons eligible to vote under Amendment 4,  an estimated 40% or more might not be able to pay court fees, fines or restitution. I've seen higher estimates that this - it's hard to get that data. 

Since Florida could determine our president in 2020, Tom Steyer could put his money to better use by paying Florida's new poll tax on disenfranchised felons.

 

[squistion]

Elizabeth Warren is calling for the reinstatement of a modern Glass-Steagall Act:

Walling off commercial from investment banks, placing new restrictions on the private equity industry, & taking action to tie bank execs' pay to their companies' performance.

https://www.cnn.com/2019/07/18/politics/elizabeth-warren-wall-street-plan/index.html

 

[squistion]

Kamala Harris (at the debate tonight):

"I will tell you: We have a predator living in the White House. And I'm going to tell you something. Donald Trump has a predatory nature and predatory instincts ... Predators are cowards."

 

[lazyike]

https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2019/08/15/2020-democrat-will-get-my-vote-never-trump-ex-republican-column/2013614001/

Some great lines in this op ed from a Never Trump Republican 

“I can live with policies I hate

Compulsive lying, fantastic and easily refuted claims, base insults and bizarre public meltdowns, however, are indeed signs of serious emotional problems. Trump has never been a reasonable man, but for two years, he has gotten worse. He literally cannot tell the truth from a lie, he often seems completely unable to comprehend even basic information, and he flies off the handle in ways that would make most of us take our children to a pediatrician for evaluation.”

 

[rockaction]

Three in this sample group is kind of incredible.

Not really. It tells you how out there the PSF is, which is what Joe tries to tell everybody all the time, and yet they refuse to listen. It's funny watching everybody lack the self-awareness so sorely needed on this board. I'm not better in terms of radicalism, but I know how radical I am. I don't think that's a given here. 

 

[rockaction]

I enjoyed the John Anderson exchange between wik and Tobias, two of my favorite leftists ever. 

 

[identikit]

I enjoyed the John Anderson exchange between wik and Tobias, two of my favorite leftists ever. 

Little known fact:

As a high school senior, I went to my state's Republican caucus for two reasons:  extra credit for my US Gov class and my support for John Anderson. 

Everyone in my caucus group pledged for Reagan except for me. Yet, somehow, they thought I'd be a good delegate for the the next step, the district caucus.

In the time between, one lady from my caucus kept calling me to remind/tell me that I was supposed to push Reagan because of their votes.  My US Gov teacher said otherwise.

So I went to the district, pledged for Anderson, and Reagan swept all of the delegate spots for the next stage.

I got my extra credit, still voted for Anderson in 1980, grew up to the point that I voted for Reagan in 1984.

My little political moment in the sun.

 

[roadkill1292]

History will judge you poorly for that Reagan vote, I'm afraid.

 

[Encumbrance]

Little known fact:

As a high school senior, I went to my state's Republican caucus for two reasons:  extra credit for my US Gov class and my support for John Anderson. 

Everyone in my caucus group pledged for Reagan except for me. Yet, somehow, they thought I'd be a good delegate for the the next step, the district caucus.

In the time between, one lady from my caucus kept calling me to remind/tell me that I was supposed to push Reagan because of their votes.  My US Gov teacher said otherwise.

So I went to the district, pledged for Anderson, and Reagan swept all of the delegate spots for the next stage.

I got my extra credit, still voted for Anderson in 1980, grew up to the point that I voted for Reagan in 1984.

My little political moment in the sun.

Third-party candidates are interesting. I find it interesting that you said you "grew up" and voted for Reagan. When I was younger and just of voting age, I supported H. Ross Perot in 1992. I even made up a handmade Perot t-shirt that said "20%" on it. I figured if a third party candidate got twenty percent, that it meant ballot access for the Reform Party, everything.

You know who was in that nascent movement? Yep. The President himself was a Reform Party guy back during that period. As a matter of fact, it would seem that tensions still run high within the Republican Party as Perot garnered nearly 19% of the popular vote in '92 and might have, by most accounts, cost George H.W. Bush the election to William Jefferson Clinton.

 

[identikit]

Third-party candidates are interesting. I find it interesting that you said you "grew up" and voted for Reagan. When I was younger and just of voting age, I supported H. Ross Perot in 1992. I even made up a handmade Perot t-shirt that said "20%" on it. I figured if a third party candidate got twenty percent, that it meant ballot access for the Reform Party, everything.

You know who was in that nascent movement? Yep. The President himself was a Reform Party guy back during that period. As a matter of fact, it would seem that tensions still run high within the Republican Party as Perot garnered nearly 19% of the popular vote in '92 and might have, by most accounts, cost George H.W. Bush the election to William Jefferson Clinton.

I was all in on Perot until he quit (then eventually jumped back in).

It's an arguable point, but I think Bush wins in '92 if Perot hadn't run.

 

[Encumbrance]

History will judge you poorly for that Reagan vote, I'm afraid.

It's funny, though. Unlike today's foreign policy detente with strongmen, Reagan had a hopeful vision for freedom in the world. Now, his domestic policies towards civil rights might not have been satisfactory to the New Left, but he sure gave speech after speech emphasizing the need for a free Eastern Bloc. Dissidents have long come forward to say that his speeches gave them edification in their times of trouble. Tales of spiritual sustenance in jail for people who merely were speaking politically abound. What's funny is the revisionism that goes on with Reagan and what role he played in the fall of the Berlin Wall and the utter collapse of Soviet Russia.

But enough. It seems like the left likes to play their hand of civil rights and freedom all the time while simultaneously agitating for less economic liberty which can only be enforced by the state in the name of justice. It's odd, then, that the party that claims an almost liberation theology needs the threat of incarceration for non-compliance with its economic agenda, an agenda that walks hand in hand with oppressive means by which it is enforced.

Indeed, what's more surprising is that for all the talk of "rights," one simply need travel (if one can) to nations founded upon nebulous conceptions of "economic justice" and see how free the people there are!

 

[fatguyinalittlecoat]

Indeed, what's more surprising is that for all the talk of "rights," one simply need travel (if one can) to nations founded upon nebulous conceptions of "economic justice" and see how free the people there are!

Which countries are you referring to?

 

[Encumbrance]

Which countries are you referring to?

Well, Venezuela for one. I remember not too long ago the Hollywood Left (don't worry, I don't include you) took quite a shine to Hugo Chavez. So did some American journalists, if I recall correctly. They especially liked how he played the foil to George W. Bush's international hopes. That's the country I can think of quickest off of the top of my head.

 

[Encumbrance]

But that's stark -- Venezuela is a political, social, and economic wasteland. It's not declining anymore, it's by all accounts scary and horrendous. Kind of like Haiti but with better infrastructure.