The Many Faces of US Politics...

[AZOffaly]

Will you stop. I'm agreeing with all that. What I'm saying is that by coming across as so smug and terribly smart, they are alienating people who then end up voting for the knob. Did you not learn anything from that last election? You have to play the electorate, you have to speak to them, not preach to them. Colbert and the other lads were preaching. Trump was speaking to them. He was talking absolute unmitigated bullshit, but he knew what he was doing.

Trump listened to them got elected and is now betraying them. It is very sad.

No argument. And if they realise he betrayed them, it's going to be a very difficult time in American politics. If Trump continues the way he is going, you might see a very low turnout the next time around. OR else it will open the field to completely different, maybe independent, type of candidate. Ross Perot mark III anyone?

[J70]

I agree with that. I loved spitting image and scrap saturday etc. Satire is great. Some of this stuff was OTT though. They never left it alone. And I think one of the things is the humour also seemed to poke fun at those they thought were going to vote for him.

I think they genuinely thought he was a soft target, and that if they alienated his voters, so what? I think that materially affected the election.

If you think that voters weren't swayed towards Trump by the media and 'commentators' such as this, then a) I think you are wrong and b) If you are right, then America is truly fucked.

I just don't think it was a significant factor. Anyone who would be offended would never have voted for Trump anyway, especially with such a poor Democratic candidate opposing him. Anyone who would be offended would likely be an avid consumer of Fox News, talk radio, Breitbart etc. and would be fed a steady diet of anti-Hillary/immigrant/science/LGTBQ/"elite"/gun control invective which would be far more significant in their thinking.

America does have big problems, but so does the rest of the world. People can now embrace only that media which agrees with and reinforces their prejudices. They can tune all else out if they choose. It's apparently even affecting where Americans live now, with people increasingly choosing communities in which to live which suit their personal political outlook. Polarization is going to be the norm.

[sid waddell]

I agree with that. I loved spitting image and scrap saturday etc. Satire is great. Some of this stuff was OTT though. They never left it alone. And I think one of the things is the humour also seemed to poke fun at those they thought were going to vote for him.

I think they genuinely thought he was a soft target, and that if they alienated his voters, so what? I think that materially affected the election.

If you think that voters weren't swayed towards Trump by the media and 'commentators' such as this, then a) I think you are wrong and b) If you are right, then America is truly fucked.

A satirist's job is not to shut their mouth because they think it might alienate some voters.

It's to savage people, and especially to savage idiocy.

The moaning from Trump and his supporters about the criticism and mocking of them, is, like pretty much everything else they say, deeply hypocritical.

They are attempting to shut down free speech.

It's snowflakeism taken to the extreme.

Everybody is free to be an idiot, but idiocy should be mocked mercilessly at every turn. Trump and his supporters, not least on this thread, are idiots.

[AZOffaly]

If your satire helps the person you are satirising to be elected, should you do it?

AS for the rest, I'm in violent agreement.

[sid waddell]

If your satire helps the person you are satirising to be elected, should you do it?

AS for the rest, I'm in violent agreement.

Yes

[AZOffaly]

If your satire helps the person you are satirising to be elected, should you do it?

AS for the rest, I'm in violent agreement.

Yes

That's where I'd disagree I suppose. I'd prefer the dope to not get elected, rather than my satire actually helping him get elected. To be honest I don't think that was a conscious decision they made at the time. I don't think they believed he had the support, and so he was a safe, easy and oh-so fertile target.

Now that he's in, I'd be trying to find another way to convince the electorate to not let him in again. That's my biggest fear. That centre/left and centre/right people wouldn't learn from the last election, and leave the door open for another Trump type candidate or Trump himself for Term 2. Shudder.

[playwiththewind1st]

Trump won't be getting a second term. He'll not see out the summer, once the Great Leader, Kim Jong-un, stops pussy footing around & deals with him, once and for all.

The White House is going up in smoke, once our N. Korean friends replicate the British attack in 1812.

Just a case of getting those nukes tweaked a bit, bit of a test near Guam, then bang.

[Oraisteach]

For the voter-suppression deniers:  The Indianapolis Star reports that after Obama won Indiana in 2008, early voting was nixed in heavily-black Marion County (Indianapolis) but was added to a nearby heavily-Republican county. 

[seafoid]

Now Trump is atacking McConnell. The Kochs won't be happy

[AZOffaly]

Now Trump is atacking McConnell. The Kochs won't be happy

Shower of dicks.

[stew]

Will you stop. I'm agreeing with all that. What I'm saying is that by coming across as so smug and terribly smart, they are alienating people who then end up voting for the knob. Did you not learn anything from that last election? You have to play the electorate, you have to speak to them, not preach to them. Colbert and the other lads were preaching. Trump was speaking to them. He was talking absolute unmitigated bullshit, but he knew what he was doing.

Trump listened to them got elected and is now betraying them. It is very sad.

Its awful isnt it.

Of course the dems have never ever ever ever ever done that to their constituents.

[Gabriel_Hurl]

Some nice Republican senators they have in Wisconsin

Republican Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin suggested in a radio interview that colleague John McCain's cancer and the very late hour might have played a role in McCain's dramatic and decisive vote last month against a GOP bill to roll back Obamacare.

Johnson was asked on "Chicago's Morning Answer" Tuesday about the vote McCain took that effectively ended a Republican push this summer to repeal Obamacare.

"I am not going to speak for John McCain. You know, he has a brain tumor right now. That vote occurred at 1:30 in the morning. Some of that might have factored in," Johnson said on AM-560 in Chicago in comments first reported Wednesday by CNN.

"Really?" asked co-host Amy Jacobson, referring to McCain's surgery for a blood clot and subsequent flight to Washington for the late July Senate health care debate. It was McCain's surgery that revealed the presence of brain cancer.

"You really think that that played a factor in his judgment call?" she asked Johnson.

"Again, I don't know exactly what — we really thought that — again I don't want to speak for any senator," said Johnson. "I really thought John was going to vote yes to send that to conference at 10:30 at night. By about 1 or 1:30 (in the morning), he voted no. You'd really have to talk to John about what was on his mind."

McCain spokeswoman Julie Tarallo responded Wednesday:

"It is bizarre and deeply unfortunate that Senator Johnson would question the judgment of a colleague and friend. Senator McCain has been very open and clear about the reasons for his vote."

[punt kick]

Trump is locked and loaded.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-40901746

[screenexile]

For some reason this song keeps popping into my head ever since this N. Korea nonsense. . .

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1mlCPMYtPk

[seafoid]

Trump is locked and loaded.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-40901746

Malcolm Nance
1. Trump says we are "Locked and Loaded"? We haven't even made basic preparations for war fighting that will happen if our B1s & SSBNs fire.

@MalcolmNance
2. NK could launch massive snap attacks within minutes of an attack. Pacific command logistics, amphibious ships & Marines NOT at ready.

                         @MalcolmNance

3. National ammunition logistics train NOT READY. Army/Marine alerts NOT READY. USAF air bridge NOT READY. Medical mobilization NOT READY.


@MalcolmNance
4. We are NOT READY for even a small action size of Libya much less Korean War 2.0. This talk of Locked & Loaded is irresponsible madness.