The Future of the Republican Party

[Dr. Medulla]

I have to admire the owner for putting his principles ahead of profits.

Glass half-full. Glass half-empty, it's promo to appeal to people who hate Trump. Lose some money for a week, get a lot more in the long run. I'd lean to the principle thing if he did it quietly.

I agree with you that there's two sides to it, but I'm pleased that people are speaking out against Trump and his supporters, I wish more people would.

I think a lot of people are swayed in their rationalization that it's OK to vote for him because, "heck, everybody else seems to be". The reality is it's cult mentality, I've never seen nor do I ever expect to see people dressed up like fools to support Biden, flying Biden flags, trading cards etc...

We live in a pretty conservative, somewhat MAGA town, I don't hesitate to speak up when I hear my neighbors blaming every thing on "the dems" and repeating the Trumpy false narrative, a couple of fact checks just shuts them down like magic.

I'm cautiously optimistic that the fever is breaking somewhat. The proof is still months away, but there's evidence that there are more Republicans who won't be voting the ticket. It helps that so far Trump has made no effort to appeal to Haley's supporters. So, sure, he's got an iron grip on the party machinery, but so far he's bring his patented incompetency to that as well. One thing about cults, they don't tolerate being losers forever—they go off to something else.

I'd settle for them having a Kool-Aid party.

If he could get them all to name him sole heir, Trump wouldn't hesitate to encourage a mass suicide.

[Dr. Medulla]

https://www.axios.com/2024/03/23/house- ... ion-vacate

The degree of chaos within the House Republican caucus would amuse even European Communists.

[Sparky]

No Labels announces they have abandoned their 2024 Presidential hope for backing a 3rd party candidate. Call me cynical, but in the back of my mind I suspect RFJ Jr was secretly receiving support from both them as well as the Trump campaign or RNC.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/202 ... l-election

[Flex]

No Labels announces they have abandoned their 2024 Presidential hope for backing a 3rd party candidate. Call me cynical, but in the back of my mind I suspect RFJ Jr was secretly receiving support from both them as well as the Trump campaign or RNC.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/202 ... l-election

I'd have to track down the source, but iirc the single largest donor to the RFK Jr. campaign is also a Trump mega-donor.

[Sparky]

No Labels announces they have abandoned their 2024 Presidential hope for backing a 3rd party candidate. Call me cynical, but in the back of my mind I suspect RFJ Jr was secretly receiving support from both them as well as the Trump campaign or RNC.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/202 ... l-election

I'd have to track down the source, but iirc the single largest donor to the RFK Jr. campaign is also a Trump mega-donor.

Thanks, I don't doubt it for 1 minute.

[Flex]

Thanks, I don't doubt it for 1 minute.

Yeah, here we go, NYT profile of the RFK JR. campaign:

This is a paradox of the Kennedy campaign. Many Democratic and Republican insiders view Kennedy as a danger to Biden’s re-election. Timothy Mellon, the top donor to the Trump super PAC Make America Great Again Inc., is also the top donor to the Kennedy super PAC American Values 2024, suggesting he thinks Kennedy will help Trump. The Democratic National Committee, meanwhile, has recently formed a unit, including veteran Democratic operative Lis Smith, devoted to battling third-party candidates, and Kennedy is getting most of its attention.

But on the ground, I haven’t met many Kennedy-curious voters for whom Biden is a second choice. Instead, Kennedy attracts many of the same sort of alienated political eccentrics who in the past have gravitated to Trump. “They keep saying that he’s pulling from Biden, but most of our people are actually coming from the right,” said Leigh Merinoff, volunteer chair of the finance committee of American Values.

Anecdotes aren’t the same thing as data, and people who go to rallies and volunteer for campaigns aren’t necessarily representative of the electorate, which is full of people who are much more disengaged. Nevertheless, there’s a gap between both Democratic and Republican assumptions about Kennedy’s appeal and the character of his real-life movement. He’s much more of a wild card than left-wing third-party candidates like Stein and Cornel West. There’s something distinctly Trumpy in his campaign’s mix of New Age individualism, social media-fueled paranoia and intense, aching nostalgia for the optimistic America of the early 1960s, when Kennedy’s uncle John F. Kennedy was president and his father, Robert F. Kennedy, served as attorney general. It’s not surprising that some otherwise Trump-leaning voters are picking up on it.

Full article: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/04/opin ... trump.html

I agree with Goldberg that the polling data and experiences on the ground aren't matching up here. Polls are giving RFK Jr. like 12% of the vote which is insane and won't be happening in this reality. He MIGHT break 3% (if that, he's not even on the ballot in most states!), I think this RFK Jr candidacy is a ratfucking campaign designed to peel off Biden voters but is gonna backfire and get majority MAGA types.

The best possible thing that could happen for Biden is for enough of these idiotic polls to overeestimate RFK support and actually get him qualified to a debate. Then low-info dem-ish voters who maybe know his last name and are just starting to tune in can actually hear him talk for a bit (both his content and, fair or not, his actual voice) and realize he's a complete joke.

(Faux Addendum: as usual with partisan election commentary, this is not an endorsement of any candidate or necessarily advice to vote at all, etc. etc. Do what feels right for you and so on)

[Sparky]

Thanks, I don't doubt it for 1 minute.

Yeah, here we go, NYT profile of the RFK JR. campaign:

This is a paradox of the Kennedy campaign. Many Democratic and Republican insiders view Kennedy as a danger to Biden’s re-election. Timothy Mellon, the top donor to the Trump super PAC Make America Great Again Inc., is also the top donor to the Kennedy super PAC American Values 2024, suggesting he thinks Kennedy will help Trump. The Democratic National Committee, meanwhile, has recently formed a unit, including veteran Democratic operative Lis Smith, devoted to battling third-party candidates, and Kennedy is getting most of its attention.

But on the ground, I haven’t met many Kennedy-curious voters for whom Biden is a second choice. Instead, Kennedy attracts many of the same sort of alienated political eccentrics who in the past have gravitated to Trump. “They keep saying that he’s pulling from Biden, but most of our people are actually coming from the right,” said Leigh Merinoff, volunteer chair of the finance committee of American Values.

Anecdotes aren’t the same thing as data, and people who go to rallies and volunteer for campaigns aren’t necessarily representative of the electorate, which is full of people who are much more disengaged. Nevertheless, there’s a gap between both Democratic and Republican assumptions about Kennedy’s appeal and the character of his real-life movement. He’s much more of a wild card than left-wing third-party candidates like Stein and Cornel West. There’s something distinctly Trumpy in his campaign’s mix of New Age individualism, social media-fueled paranoia and intense, aching nostalgia for the optimistic America of the early 1960s, when Kennedy’s uncle John F. Kennedy was president and his father, Robert F. Kennedy, served as attorney general. It’s not surprising that some otherwise Trump-leaning voters are picking up on it.

Full article: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/04/opin ... trump.html

I agree with Goldberg that the polling data and experiences on the ground aren't matching up here. Polls are giving RFK Jr. like 12% of the vote which is insane and won't be happening in this reality. He MIGHT break 3% (if that, he's not even on the ballot in most states!), I think this RFK Jr candidacy is a ratfucking campaign designed to peel off Biden voters but is gonna backfire and get majority MAGA types.

The best possible thing that could happen for Biden is for enough of these idiotic polls to overeestimate RFK support and actually get him qualified to a debate. Then low-info dem-ish voters who maybe know his last name and are just starting to tune in can actually hear him talk for a bit (both his content and, fair or not, his actual voice) and realize he's a complete joke.

(Faux Addendum: as usual with partisan election commentary, this is not an endorsement of any candidate or necessarily advice to vote at all, etc. etc. Do what feels right for you and so on)

Interesting....thanks for the share.

[Dr. Medulla]

Yeah, I am utterly baffled by the notion that Jr. will siphon off Biden votes other than Jr. was once a Democrat (as were his father and uncle). Which is flimsy reasoning. His constituency are conspiracy weirdos who regard America as in need of burning down. Or, to put it more kindly, the disillusioned bloc. That's Trump's turf. So to those who are turned off Trump because of … lots of things … there's a different candidate to tell you "they" are out to get you.

[Dr. Medulla]

https://slate.com/culture/2024/04/curb- ... itics.html

So conservatives thought Larry David was one of them?

[revbob]

https://slate.com/culture/2024/04/curb- ... itics.html

So conservatives thought Larry David was one of them?

This is like Paul Ryan being a RATM fan. Curb is hardly subtle. The article doesn't even mention the Chaz Bono character.

[Dr. Medulla]

https://slate.com/culture/2024/04/curb- ... itics.html

So conservatives thought Larry David was one of them?

This is like Paul Ryan being a RATM fan. Curb is hardly subtle. The article doesn't even mention the Chaz Bono character.

Like the conservatives who suddenly realized that Homelander is not even remotely heroic, it's suggestive of stillborn critical reading/viewing skills.

[Kory]

These people can't hold more than one thought in their head at a time. It makes critical viewing impossible.

[Dr. Medulla]

These people can't hold more than one thought in their head at a time. It makes critical viewing impossible.

I disagree; they hold two thoughts. *They* hate and want to destroy me; I hate and want to destroy *them.*

[Dr. Medulla]

Goddammit, Flex, I'm starting to think you're surrounded by morons: https://coloradosun.com/2024/04/11/colo ... on-wilson/

[Flex]

Goddammit, Flex, I'm starting to think you're surrounded by morons: https://coloradosun.com/2024/04/11/colo ... on-wilson/

I'm DEFINITELY surrounded by morons