Traitor Watch - The 45 & 47 Thread
- Thread starter Wheelimus
- Start date
Who could have expected that gatekeeping discourse, silencing nuance and punishing good-faith disagreement would backfire?
FWIW, I found Threads (Meta's would-be Twitter-substitute) to be far worse, and far more quickly. I stopped using it because within only a week or two, my feed was flooded with left-wing political commentary. While Bluesky (in my experience, of course) definitely leans leftward, I find discussion is MUCH more varied, and I can read and talk about stuff that has little to do with politics.
I'm pretty sure I know most of those words, but in a line like they are... I don't know what you just said.
I didn't even bother with Threads. After disassociating myself from Facebook and only rarely interacting with Instagram, I wasn't about to tack on another Meta project.
As for talking about non-political topics on Bluesky, I've curated a series of lists that helps with that.
Dealmaster strikes again.
Well, he found another way to create the same trap for himself by combining all of his little legislative proposals into a single bill that so far is an embarrassing spectacle.
Trump signs controversial spending bill during White House 4th of July celebrations
President Donald Trump celebrated the Fourth of July by signing his massive spending bill that narrowly passed in Congress this week.
abcnews.go.com
I shouldn't be surprised at this point, but I am. They did not have the votes in the House. I did not know that Mike Johnson could just hold the vote open forever.
the GOP and the House in particular are precisely that soulless.
newrepublic.com
Trump Won Over Republican Budget Rebels With Some Lousy Free Merch
Donald Trump persuaded some House Republicans to vote for his terrible budget with crappy merch.
newrepublic.com
I guess those signed golf balls are more popular than I thought.
The level of punishment that this will drop on Trump supporting states and counties cannot be ignored. I know every GOP member is freaking out, even here in Red Kansas, about how this will affect their reelection campaigns. This hurts and will be an albatross around their necks.
Provided, of course, we're allowed real elections again in the future.
Provided, of course, we're allowed real elections again in the future.
Did you get into Wonko’s supply of hopium? ;p
We’ll see. While national sources show increased negativity to Trump and his policies…I’m seeing precious little PRACTICAL change in the political persuasions where I work in southern Oklahoma (a region that WILL be impacted by the fallout from this bill). And if that punishment doesn’t manifest in tangible terms by the next round of elections…too many will chalk it up to “fear mongering by Democrats”.
Even then…the indoctrination is strong here. Maybe there is no hope for places like Oklahoma…
We’ll see. While national sources show increased negativity to Trump and his policies…I’m seeing precious little PRACTICAL change in the political persuasions where I work in southern Oklahoma (a region that WILL be impacted by the fallout from this bill). And if that punishment doesn’t manifest in tangible terms by the next round of elections…too many will chalk it up to “fear mongering by Democrats”.
Even then…the indoctrination is strong here. Maybe there is no hope for places like Oklahoma…
No, but I've been watching the local politicians give interviews and talk. It's all desperate scrabbles and obfuscating language. They know the hammer is dropping and they did nothing to stop it. Soon as it hits, they're done and they know it.
Trump gutting social programmes relied upon by so many people in (poorer) red states… Reminds me of Starmer zealously gutting social assistance that voters of the “red wall” in the north of England use in large numbers. Same huge strategic error. Same disregard for large scale human suffering of their own population. Dreadful.
If there wasn't going to be midterm elections: republicans wouldn't be panicking about the midterms.
And there is still the question of HOW MUCH this will affect things by the midterms: and it'll be surprisingly little; most of the worst stuff does not start in until late in 2026 anyway. They knew what they wanted when they crafter the timing on this jive.
And there is still the question of HOW MUCH this will affect things by the midterms: and it'll be surprisingly little; most of the worst stuff does not start in until late in 2026 anyway. They knew what they wanted when they crafter the timing on this jive.
That’s what I thought I had heard about the bill. So what will probably happen is this:
Midterm impact will be limited because Republicans can run on the “See? We passed the big bill and nothing bad happened!” lie.
Assuming people even realize how bad it is by the time of the 2028 election, we might get a Democrat elected, but like the last time, Republicans will twist the narrative and maintain enough of Congress to limit any damage control.
Democrats will piss around for 4 years trying to “rebuild ties” and accomplish VERY little beyond meager damage control on the worse the administration does (and still won’t address the long term damage to the loss of personnel experience and reputation).
Republicans will twist that as “The democrats did NOTHING” and get some conservative crackpot back in the Oval Office, continuing the goals of Project 2025 and dismantling the American Democratic System.
Republicans have “taken off the mask” and have shown how awful they are, both personal and politically. And from what I’m seeing, it’s not mattering a damn. And it won’t until people start suffering en masse and that won’t happen for AT LEAST a couple more years. A couple more years of Conservatives having their damn way with the entire Government.
AND I CAN’T EVEN TURN TO TOYS OR GAMES BECAUSE THEIR BULLSHIT IS RAISING PRICES IN THAT SECTOR TOO!
The biggest tell of republican damage will be the immediate crises caused by catastrophic weather and trumps government refusing to do anything about it. That's whats going to hurt them the most. Hurricane, tornado, and forest fire seasons have only just begun. It's going to be a long year.