ChiGoose

I am not predicting a Dem pickup in the Senate. It's currently a toss up with a slight edge to the GOP. That's why that part starts with the word "if." How changing the filibuster could impact bipartisanship: Frankly, I just don't think this is sustainable or good for the country: (Source)

I don't dislike the things Trump said and did because Trump said and did them, I dislike them because they were generally bad and/or dumb. If and when Trump actually does something good, I'll acknowledge it. I think Operation Warpspeed was one of the greatest endeavors in the last several decades and lays a blueprint for how we could address crisis in the future. At the start of his presidency, I actually turned on Twitter notification for Trump so I would know what he was up to since he personally managed his account (unlike most politicians). That, more than anything, shaped my thoughts about him. His own words. Not CNN or what reporters said he said, but what he was actually saying and tweeting

Congress, that thing we have from our democracy, passed laws to better our environment. Since congress is a legislative body, they are not in a position to oversee all of the regulations and enforcement. So Congress, that thing we have from our democracy, voted to have an agency enforce the laws that they, congress (that thing we have from our democracy) had passed. In our democracy, we have a congress, which writes the laws, and an executive branch, which executes them. We can debate about how much authority congress should delegate for rulemaking and enforcement, but congress passing laws and the executive branch enforcing them is literally how our democracy works.

Ignorance runs rampant in congress already. Creating incentives for them to actually *do* something might actually make them take measures to address our problems instead of spending all of their time grandstanding for the cameras. I do not understand your point about the cities and the electoral college. Even if they did away with the Electoral College (which they won't), that would just mean everyone gets one vote that counts just as much as everyone else's in presidential elections. The top 100 cities in the country only contain 20% of the population, clearly not enough for whatever the scenario you're outlining is. Part of the reason there was so much hatred from the beginning with Trump is that he's an ####### who acts like a dick and talks absolute nonsense that shows he has little idea about what he's talking about. He was never an outsider savior, he was always a grifting conman. Also, term limits would be the biggest win for the lobbyists you could ever imagine. If you think the biggest problem right now is that big moneyed insiders don't have enough influence in congress, then term limits is the solution for you. Ultimately, what we need is serious electoral reform so that we stop electing morons and #######, and if we do, we can hold them accountable and remove them from office.

Are you... rooting for pollution...?

Trump is an incompetent buffoon. He didn't need any help in screwing up. But he did manage to line his pockets and those of his friends and family, so he's got that going for him. Also, the idea that the party that is so inept that their legislative priorities are now on hold because an 82-year old needs hip surgery (not to mention a certain senator from California who probably doesn't even know who she is anymore) is somehow following a grand plot to destroy the country is laughable.

Typical liberal political correctness BS

Maybe Ginni isn't the only QAnon follower in the Thomas household...

Congress IS full of idiots.

That used to be my argument when friends said they wanted to get rid of the filibuster during the Obama administration. That they would regret it when the GOP took over. But at this point, we are so polarized, so divided into our "us vs them" two party camps, that there is zero incentive for senators of one party to do anything that might benefit the other. You could propose a bill that 80% of Americans support but you'd get few people from the other side to join you and reaching the 60 vote threshold, even on a popular bill, would be next to impossible. Congress doesn't actually legislate on anything important any more. There's just no incentive for them to cooperate. But all the American public sees is those bums in Washington not doing anything for the average American. So do away with the filibuster entirely. It will allow the parties to actually pass meaningful legislation AND it would make it very clear to the American public who is responsible for it. If the Dems somehow manage to pick up two senate seats in the Fall, they should immediately do away with the filibuster and pass the legislation they believe they were elected to enact. And if they overreach or don't do what the public wants, then the GOP will take over in 2024. And then the GOP can pass what it wants to pass with no obstruction from the Dems. And the voters can judge them on that. But in the current environment, so long as the filibuster stands, the senate will obstruct meaningful legislation from either party. And the public will blame everyone instead of those doing the obstruction. It's a recipe for nothing getting done and increasing division. [EDIT] Addendum: Removing the filibuster may actually create an incentive for bipartisanship. If the minority party knows that the majority party can pass any legislation it wants, then the minority party may be incentivized to be involved in the legislation to help shape it in a manner they find more acceptable. Currently, there is no incentive for this as the minority party can just block the legislation outright.

I used to think that too. Now I believe it’s too dangerous to keep the filibuster.

They constantly blabbed about it. They wouldn’t shut up about it, raised $200 million from gullible people on it, and tried to pressure Mike Pence to join in on it.

Good. They should get rid of the filibuster entirely.

Trump’s DoJ investigated 2,000 Miles and found it to be a joke. It also investigated all of the conspiracy claims and found them to be not true. In fact, the leaders of the DoJ and Trump’s Campaign Chair and campaign lawyers are on the record as stating there was no widespread fraud and that Trump lost. Also, it’s not that hard to find voter fraud. For example, if the claims of double scanning ballots in Georgia were true, that would have been discovered in the hand recount. If the mules claim was true, it would have been discovered during the verification process when signatures didn’t match. The independent legislature doctrine is a crazy theory that has no history in our country but would allow states to override the will of the voters.

Lol. SCOTUS changed constitutional law enough this term that the bar exam had to release a statement:

Well, this isn't good... On the independent state legislature theory: Somehow, I'm not optimistic that SCOTUS will end up ruling in a way that's good for democracy...

I'm so tired of the gerontocracy.

I am incredibly skeptical of a blue wave: GOP won the redistricting fight, Dems couldn't even fight to a draw Midterms of a first term presidency Inflation & gas prices Right now, we're going to see things really turn around for the Dems as the bottom drops out for the GOP on suburban women voters, but it's not even July yet. When Roe is five months in the rearview mirror and it still costs $90 to fill their gas tank, I'd expect we'd see things return to the expected GOP wins in the Fall. It might not be as big as it would have been without Roe but I just can't see a Dem win in the midterms, not to mention an actual blue wave.

What's weird about this is that the rule at the heart of this case wasn't even in effect. It had been revoked during the Trump administration. This probably should have been mooted out. But SCOTUS gonna SCOTUS.

Yes, I think we can all agree that Donald Trump, Rudy Giuliani, and John Eastman are idiots. Glad we found this common ground.

Maybe you should look into how prosecutions work… Also, there is currently a grand jury in Georgia looking at this.

Well there’s a grand jury in Georgia looking at it now. But I imagine that professionals would want to make sure they could absolutely prove their case before they make a Durham of themselves…

Here ya go Trump quote from around 51:45: Around 1:01:17: Here's the text of 52 U.S.C. 20511: So we have Trump on the record saying he won by 400,000 votes but asking the Secretary of State of Georgia to just add about 11,000 votes because that's what he needs to win. If Trump truly believed that he won by 400,000 votes, that is a crime.

Right back at ya. Would be really embarrassing for you if there were tapes of Trump committing a crime. Oh wait...

The Ray Epps stuff is dumb as ***** because even if it was true, Trump would still have committed crimes. It's just a distraction from people drinking from the right wing conspiracy fire hose.