Why is it the responsibility of Democrats to help Republicans lie to their primary voters? The ad against Gibbs isn't "couched as an attack ad," it *is* an attack ad. It's exactly how the Democrats will run against him if he wins the primary. And, it's all fact and defensible opinion. It's not the fault of Democrats that a plurality of Republican voters are insane, nor is it their responsibility to try and protect someone who will be voting for Kevin McCarthy to be Speaker next year. It's recognition that "having him in Congress" and "not spending the next two years living through a groundless Biden impeachment" are mutually exclusive results.
I understand that incremental change is not flashy. I also understand that some wrongs scream out against incremental changes attempting to address them.
However, if the option is to try something or do nothing, then doing nothing is usually going to be the worse option. If the best we can do right now is to patch a crack in the dike, then let's do it.
I agree in principle that D's running ads to help MAGA idiots win races is wrong. FUL STOP.
I also realize/accept that current politics is 180 degrees away from being principled. In a normal world the R's with spines would be taking care of the MAGA idiots, but they refuse to do anything that is principled so the D's are left to fight for Democracy on their own.
It is not ideal, but until there are more than 2 (Cheney and Kinzinger) principled R's fighting to save this government, the D's are doing what needs to be done.
Elias is a classic case of letting the perfect be the enemy of the good!
There’s no way a large voting reform act is making it through Congress with one of the 50 democratic senators being Joe Manchin. He’s kryptonite to any legislation that needs a change to the filibuster.
It may be stupid and cynical of Democrats to run, what are for all intents and purposes, negative ads in Republican primaries. However, this is really on Republican primary voters and party operatives not Democrats or their voters in the end. Only in an upside down world like ours are negative ads seen as “boosting”. This strategy only works if their are insane voters.
In a sort of defense of Marc Elias's objections, I'd just note that the idea of "Let's make coup's illegal" has a bit of a conceptual problem if you think about it.
If enough irresponsible actors who have no respect for the rule of law control the means of power, then it doesn't really matter what the law says.
There's a reason you have to swear an oath to defend and protect the constitution. It's because it can't and won't defend itself.
At the end of the day, laws and even the constitution itself are really just words on paper. If enough bad-faith actors are determined to turn the US into an autocracy, I promise you that some words on paper and the rule of law aren't going to stop them.
Maybe ECA Reform is still worth doing, but this exploitation of the ECA was a crackpot legal theory to begin with. If R's have power and want to end democracy, they'll just come up with another crackpot legal theory, or just ignore the law entirely, as they've already shown they're willing to do.
It seems to me that the Democrats aren't so much promoting the Trump backed candidates as much as painting ALL Republicans with the same brush. In effect they ay are saying, "look at this Republican running for election. He supports Trump, therefore, all Republicans REALLY support Trump even if they say they don't." So it's not so much they want the Trump supported candidate to win, it's more that all Republicans are loyal to Trump first. You have to admit it would be hard to find a traditional Republican in office who did not vote against impeachment. Most Republicams in office have put Trump before country, and they will again. They have no spine.
How in the world is calling someone "too conservative for Michigan" helping him? You guys can't have this both ways. Either Dems need a better messaging strategy that defines their MAGA opponents and turns the election into a referendum on them; or they shouldn't be calling dangerous candidates crazy for being crazy, lest their crazy supporters actually buy the product.
It's two sides of the same coin! They're right to define the crazies as such. If the voters buy it in the primary, and then support it again in the general, then they get the government they deserve. Alternatively, Dems could use "too conservative for Michigan" as a cudgel against MAGA, in both the primary and the general: the latter to force their opponents to abandon the crazy, and the former to force their opponents to abandon the crazy.
I'm really sick of this particular hobby horse. JVL has this right. This isn't Democrats misrepresenting who these people are. It's providing the civic service of making more people aware of exactly what they stand for.
If you view that as some kind of nefarious trick, you're example #1,256,309 of removing agency from Republican voters.
The Elias narrative is a reminder of how frustrating it is to be a Democratic voter, knowing that good ideas tend to go to die because too many liberal intellectuals who value their own opinions too much lose sight of the greater good. It is why I did not share fully in the joy some of my colleagues felt when Biden's victory was assured, the House was safe, and the Senate had a tiebreaker majority, saying to myself out of experience, "they'll find ways to screw it up." Yeah, Trump was gone. But after that euphoria died down, as the dog caught up to the mail truck, there came the realization that a fundamental lack of unity would exact a price. There's always a Manchin or a Sinema or an Elias to throw a monkey wrench into things, and always a group among the fragile coalition of interests that will refuse to get on board unless its agenda is specifically represented. The end result inevitably is underachievement, a consistent failure to get something significant done in the quest to have it all and have it now rather than taking what is available and living to fight for more and better another day.
It's more than ironic that the GOP runs on how the Democrats will drag America down with their plan for America when they can't even get their own house in order first on how to do it.
Marc Elias really kinda epitomizes the tendency for Progressives to create circular firing squads. They could avoid that by, you know, just taking a breath and looking honestly at what can be done. But no, no, instead they're going to refuse to repair and reinforce the defenses now because of course there is going to be another attack so why should we fix them? God, our empire for some competence in execution...
There seems never to have been any entreaty aimed at Pence that Short didn't see before or at the same time as Pence. including the Jenna Ellis memo and a meeting with Trump and Eastman in the Oval. And he was indignant from the start--should be a terrific witness.
Why is it the responsibility of Democrats to help Republicans lie to their primary voters? The ad against Gibbs isn't "couched as an attack ad," it *is* an attack ad. It's exactly how the Democrats will run against him if he wins the primary. And, it's all fact and defensible opinion. It's not the fault of Democrats that a plurality of Republican voters are insane, nor is it their responsibility to try and protect someone who will be voting for Kevin McCarthy to be Speaker next year. It's recognition that "having him in Congress" and "not spending the next two years living through a groundless Biden impeachment" are mutually exclusive results.
Personal note to Mark Elias: I have no degree in mathematics. I am not a scientist. But the last time I checked, +1/2 > 0.
I'll take the positive side of zero every time.
I understand that incremental change is not flashy. I also understand that some wrongs scream out against incremental changes attempting to address them.
However, if the option is to try something or do nothing, then doing nothing is usually going to be the worse option. If the best we can do right now is to patch a crack in the dike, then let's do it.
Per the info on moderates, I concur with the concepts laid out...
...but please tell me who are the Republican Moderates?
In checking the most conservative of the U.S. Senate, Collins, Murkowski, Shelby, Lee and Paul are rated the least conservative.
While a case can be made for Collins and Murkowski, the other three being considered Moderate is a joke.
One aspect I would agree with is that Ayn Rand Paul is the #1 performative asshole.
I agree in principle that D's running ads to help MAGA idiots win races is wrong. FUL STOP.
I also realize/accept that current politics is 180 degrees away from being principled. In a normal world the R's with spines would be taking care of the MAGA idiots, but they refuse to do anything that is principled so the D's are left to fight for Democracy on their own.
It is not ideal, but until there are more than 2 (Cheney and Kinzinger) principled R's fighting to save this government, the D's are doing what needs to be done.
Elias is a classic case of letting the perfect be the enemy of the good!
There’s no way a large voting reform act is making it through Congress with one of the 50 democratic senators being Joe Manchin. He’s kryptonite to any legislation that needs a change to the filibuster.
It may be stupid and cynical of Democrats to run, what are for all intents and purposes, negative ads in Republican primaries. However, this is really on Republican primary voters and party operatives not Democrats or their voters in the end. Only in an upside down world like ours are negative ads seen as “boosting”. This strategy only works if their are insane voters.
"Deeply Republican Utah" hasn't noticed the drying up of the Great Salt Lake? That's how averse to the truth you have to be to not see climate change.
In a sort of defense of Marc Elias's objections, I'd just note that the idea of "Let's make coup's illegal" has a bit of a conceptual problem if you think about it.
If enough irresponsible actors who have no respect for the rule of law control the means of power, then it doesn't really matter what the law says.
There's a reason you have to swear an oath to defend and protect the constitution. It's because it can't and won't defend itself.
At the end of the day, laws and even the constitution itself are really just words on paper. If enough bad-faith actors are determined to turn the US into an autocracy, I promise you that some words on paper and the rule of law aren't going to stop them.
Maybe ECA Reform is still worth doing, but this exploitation of the ECA was a crackpot legal theory to begin with. If R's have power and want to end democracy, they'll just come up with another crackpot legal theory, or just ignore the law entirely, as they've already shown they're willing to do.
It seems to me that the Democrats aren't so much promoting the Trump backed candidates as much as painting ALL Republicans with the same brush. In effect they ay are saying, "look at this Republican running for election. He supports Trump, therefore, all Republicans REALLY support Trump even if they say they don't." So it's not so much they want the Trump supported candidate to win, it's more that all Republicans are loyal to Trump first. You have to admit it would be hard to find a traditional Republican in office who did not vote against impeachment. Most Republicams in office have put Trump before country, and they will again. They have no spine.
How in the world is calling someone "too conservative for Michigan" helping him? You guys can't have this both ways. Either Dems need a better messaging strategy that defines their MAGA opponents and turns the election into a referendum on them; or they shouldn't be calling dangerous candidates crazy for being crazy, lest their crazy supporters actually buy the product.
It's two sides of the same coin! They're right to define the crazies as such. If the voters buy it in the primary, and then support it again in the general, then they get the government they deserve. Alternatively, Dems could use "too conservative for Michigan" as a cudgel against MAGA, in both the primary and the general: the latter to force their opponents to abandon the crazy, and the former to force their opponents to abandon the crazy.
I'm really sick of this particular hobby horse. JVL has this right. This isn't Democrats misrepresenting who these people are. It's providing the civic service of making more people aware of exactly what they stand for.
If you view that as some kind of nefarious trick, you're example #1,256,309 of removing agency from Republican voters.
The Elias narrative is a reminder of how frustrating it is to be a Democratic voter, knowing that good ideas tend to go to die because too many liberal intellectuals who value their own opinions too much lose sight of the greater good. It is why I did not share fully in the joy some of my colleagues felt when Biden's victory was assured, the House was safe, and the Senate had a tiebreaker majority, saying to myself out of experience, "they'll find ways to screw it up." Yeah, Trump was gone. But after that euphoria died down, as the dog caught up to the mail truck, there came the realization that a fundamental lack of unity would exact a price. There's always a Manchin or a Sinema or an Elias to throw a monkey wrench into things, and always a group among the fragile coalition of interests that will refuse to get on board unless its agenda is specifically represented. The end result inevitably is underachievement, a consistent failure to get something significant done in the quest to have it all and have it now rather than taking what is available and living to fight for more and better another day.
It's more than ironic that the GOP runs on how the Democrats will drag America down with their plan for America when they can't even get their own house in order first on how to do it.
Marc Elias really kinda epitomizes the tendency for Progressives to create circular firing squads. They could avoid that by, you know, just taking a breath and looking honestly at what can be done. But no, no, instead they're going to refuse to repair and reinforce the defenses now because of course there is going to be another attack so why should we fix them? God, our empire for some competence in execution...
Marc Short has eloquently and appropriately tarred-and-feathered a national menace. Marc Short is the hot takes hero of the day.
There seems never to have been any entreaty aimed at Pence that Short didn't see before or at the same time as Pence. including the Jenna Ellis memo and a meeting with Trump and Eastman in the Oval. And he was indignant from the start--should be a terrific witness.