They have just called the election for Joe Biden. For some this will be a reason for joy, for others a day of sadness. I understand. Believe me, I do.
For many years, especially the last four, I have watched my country being torn apart by division. Some of this real and some fabricated by those who felt it was to their advantage. And even as I write that sentence I know that it will mean different things to different people.
But I want to remind everyone what has happened in the past, what should be avoided at all costs, and what should be done to heal our wounds. So I tip my hat to those who opposed my candidate, Joe Biden, honorably. For those who have not behaved with integrity and would appeal to the worst of our natures, I would remind them that this is a democratic country and as such everyone has a right to be heard. Listen, closely.
On a lighter note, I send this out to my country, because I now have hope that we might move forward to a better day. And these kids are just so cute!
Congratulations, America!
Congratulations, Joe & Kamala!
282 comments:
1 – 200 of 282 Newer› Newest»Joe Biden, accompanied by Kamala Harris, is scheduled to address the nation tonight at 8:00 pm CST.
I don't know if Harris will speak as well (my guess is 'yes', but that's just a guess), but she will be there with him.
typo correction: …8:00 pm EST
Crowds of people all over the country are celebrating Joe Biden's win. Fox News is busy gathering anyone who would support Trump's contention of voter fraud. All of those dead people voting...
I think I prefer to spend my time with my country. It's out there in the streets relieved that it still exists.
It sounds like Kamala Harris will speak first.
Lynnette and Lee,
Do either of you have siblings? If so, how many and do they have a preference for one political party?
I have seven siblings. Sadly, one passed away some years ago. But of the six remaining, three have a personality structure that is more conservative and three more liberal. That doesn't mean they always vote Republican or Democrat, but they usually do.
For example, my oldest sister is conservative by nature (personality, see Jonathan Haidt and others). She and her husband vote Republican. They have four children, all four of them grown now with their own children. All four of them are doctors, one of them a surgeon. The children also are generally conservative. These are all very smart and successful people, contributing a lot to our country. I'm not sure, but I'd say close to all of them voted for Trump. Are they "fine people"? Are they "deplorables"? How do you view very intelligent, successful people who voted for Trump? They are NOT brainwashed. Their values are just different. More traditional, more wary.
Okay, my youngest sister is married to an African American and they also have four children. Both her and her husband are very wealthy businesspeople. My sister has her MBA from NYU Stern and my brother-in-law from Wharton. Their children are still young. They vote Democrat, but in personality they exhibit both liberal and conservative tendencies.
Each member of my family varies in the range of their personality structures (and I could tell you the stories of my other four siblings and their families to illustrate further), but politics in the US these days has tapped into a basic contrast of in-group and out-group orientation. These elections are close between because the voting cleaves a very basic divide in human nature.
Because of my antipathy to all politics, in my family I stand outside the liberal and conservative circles. They know this, of course. They know that it's useless to engage me in Team Red and Team Blue discussion.
Also, because I stand outside, I can see the value conflicts more clearly than they can. Their value structures and hierarchies and built into the way they view the community and society around them.
Lynnette, with your focus on healing, you have a classic liberal personality (again, see Jonathan Haidt and Ezra Klein and others). But I would also predict that you also exhibit conservative tendencies. Lee, my guess is that you are a contrarian by nature. You live in a Red State and therefore go Blue. On deeper issues, you might be liberal or conservative. It's hard to say because you're NOT open about yourself and very wary of outsiders (a conservative value, by the way, and often necessary).
So if you guys are interested in a far deeper discussion of the current situation in the US, one that is more psychological than political (which just skims the surface), let's start.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
I don't recall any dancing in the streets when Trump was elected (Obama either for that matter, although it's been long enough my memory may just need further time for the archive search).
I'll mention this again I think, not too long in the future. (Laying the prediction down for the archives just now.)
President-elect Joe Biden has so far received a congratulatory message from precisely one (1) current Republican Senator. (Not surprisingly perhaps, it was Mitt Romney, not Susan Collins, nor Lisa Murkowski, not any other Republican Senator, not even the ones who'd served served along side him during his years in the U.S. Senate)
"I stand outside the liberal and conservative circles…because I
stand outside, I can see the value conflicts more clearly…"
Petes was a natural born pompous ass, but he got nothin' on this ↑↑ fool.
Lee,
You can stay on the surface, at the sports competition level, or you can join me at a deeper level. It's your choice.
Let's give it a try. Here's a YouTube comment posted yesterday:
I was a Democrat for 26 years..This was the 1st time I've voted for a Republican president. After Obama..I just couldn't anymore. I simply cannot stomach what the Dem party has become. And when I look deeper at myself (maybe it's getting older and even more mature) I align wholeheartedly with Conservative values. I am a woman, Black American, and was a Democrat...So yeah, they're losing.
Again, I follow neither the Democrat nor Republican parties. I am interested in the values of people who lean one way or the other and why those values may change over time. I imagine your own values have changed as you've aged.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
"…or you can join me at a deeper level…"
Had to mark that one down for future reference. May not be relevant later (considering you've been warned), but there's a good chance we'll wanna laugh at this one again later.
Lee,
Okay, got it. You've decided to remain at Team Blue sports jersey level.
Rah-rah.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
"Okay, got it."
No, you don't. You are freakin' clueless.
You have missed the significance of the evening. Biden made his first big speech all about healing and unity. But he's only received one (1) message of congratulations from any of the 53 sitting Republican Senators.
I made note of that precisely because I'm not on "Team Blue" and have no particular interest in supporting that "team" in the face of a contrary reality. Biden's already making his first big mistake. McConnell and "team red" (to borrow your parlance) have absolutely no interest in reconciliation.
Sooner Biden figures that out, or Harris, or whomever, the better it'll be for the nation. They're not playing for a win in the next election. They're playing for keeps, permanent--this time for all the marbles for keeps this time. That's their game. Biden needs to figure that out. If he can't then the rest of us damn well better.
Lee,
So what motivates McConnell and his group?
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Well, McConnell has said, on the record, that he doesn't do policy, he only does politics. I'll take him at his word on that.
And I will also note in passing that you immediately began to look for an angle that might lead you to defense of Mitch McConnell. (Never occurred to you, so far as I can recall, to look to defend Trump, but you're immediately looking for an avenue for a defense of McConnell. You have "tells". You know what a "tell" is? You got 'em, so you need to learn the significance if you don't know already.)
Lee,
Let me try again. So what do you think McConnell et al. want? Why do you think they are dangerous? And to use your child's game metaphor, what would holding all the "marbles" look like?
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Lee,
I don't know anything about McConnell. That's why I'm asking you.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Or, better yet, why don't you just address the real issue head on?
Why don't you tell us of the other sitting Republican Senators who've sent messages of congratulations to Joe Biden today? (Before the news was leaked that there was only just the one, in case I've missed one that suddenly figured belatedly that it looks like it looks.)
Yes, I know, you don't follow American politics. It's entirely coincidental that you just happen to be plugged into the right-wing info circle--for instance you get John Yoo's writings as soon as he's published on FoxNews, but that's just entirely coincidental.
Yeah, right.
Lee,
I don't know any Democratic or Republican senators. I mean, I've heard a name like Pelosi, but I don't follow politics at all and never read about politics.
So I'm asking just to explain what you think these Republican senators are trying to do that is different from what the Democratic senators do. What does "playing for all the marbles" mean?
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
So, let's us just skip the John Yoo story and Mitch McConnell's motivations, and instead you'll tell us all about the other sitting Republican Senators who've contacted the Biden campaign to congratulate him on his win (a traditional American pleasantry even if they didn't mean it), and/or to offer to work with the Biden administration for the recovery and unification of these United States.
Whom among the sitting Republican Senators would it be that've actually even bothered to make that traditional gesture towards unification and good will going forward?
Tell me now. Whom?
You damn well know the immediately partisan writings of John Yoo (a man who's unknown to folks don't follow politics). You damn well know the rest of it.
So…
♫♪ …I say now, 'Whoodoo!'… ♪♫
♫♪ Who do ya think you're foolin'? ♪♫
Lee,
I found that link in a left-wing rag. I was pretty happy I found it.
I don't even know a single name of a Republican senator, so how the hell am I supposed to give you a name?
I do know the name of a Democratic senator. Cuomo, right? I saw a short clip of him speaking in New York about the coronavirus. But I think that's the only name I know. Oh, and now McConnell since you mentioned him. So right now, I know three names: Pelosi, Cuomo, and McConnell.
Here's something funny. I didn't even know who the Senate Majority Leader was until you brought up McConnell.
Remember, I haven't lived in the US for eight years and I don't follow politics (nothing is more boring, to my mind, than politics).
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
"…and I don't follow politics…"
You think anybody's gonna believe that after you've tried to work the angles for, well, gotta be weeks now.
You really believe you can sell that one? How stupid do you think they are?
Lee,
...that traditional gesture towards unification and good will going forward
Oh Lord, that's funny. Is that how you play marbles?
Listen, both Democrats and Republicans play for all the marbles (to use your Manichean Marble Game). There is NO DIFFERENCE between them and their goals. Get all the marbles.
The US is, as I've explained above, divided by the nature of their personality orientations. Half of the population voted for Biden, and half for Trump. Liberal views and values contrasted with conservative views and values. Neither Biden nor Trump would be able to bridge those differences. The tension between the two, in fact, necessary for a functioning society. We need the best from both personality types.
You're lost in some insider-politics game of marbles. Grow up.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Lee,
How stupid do I think you are?
Are you sure you want me to answer that?
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
"Is that how you play marbles?
***
"You're lost in some insider-politics game of marbles."
Ain't 'bout me. Fool Jeffrey just can't get that through his head; I ain't sufficiently distracted by his personal attacks. Usually that works for him I'd reckon it. He can't seem to understand why it's not working now. Just gotta step over that shit for now I reckon; 'til he learns, if he's capable of learning.
So, getting back to the matter at hand.
"Biden's already making his first big mistake. McConnell and
'team red' (to borrow Jeffrey's parlance) have absolutely no
interest in reconciliation.
"Sooner Biden figures that out, or Harris, or whomever, the
better it'll be for the nation. They're not playing for a win in
the next election. They're playing for keeps, permanent--this
time for all the marbles for keeps this time. That's their game.
Biden needs to figure that out. If he can't then the rest of us
damn well better."
Lee,
All right.
So can you now explain what victory means for McConnell et al. in your MANICHEAN MARBLES GAME?
Is it control of the Senate (kind of mundane, right?) or something far more nefarious?
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
"in your MANICHEAN MARBLES GAME"
I was a bit surprised that you didn't go for all caps in your earlier shot. To wit:
"Your Own Private Oklahoma."
Jeffrey @ Sat Nov 07, 01:15 am
So, I see you've corrected that lapse now.
Think it'll work better with all caps now that you've remembered? If that's what you think, you're wrong again.
Let me repeat, in case it'll eventually sink in with you, foolish as you are. "Ain't 'bout me."
Lee,
Is it control of the Senate (kind of mundane, right?) or something far more nefarious?
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Oh, yeah, and I missed one…
"How stupid do I think you are?
"Are you sure you want me to answer that?"
Jeffrey @ Sun Nov 08, 12:16 am
Well, that wasn't the question, but it that's the one you want to answer…
Yeah, sure, why the hell not? Go for it.
"…but if that's the one you want to answer…"
Lee,
Feichang ben.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
That's all ya got?
Well then, ciao for now.
I'm down for the evening.
Yep.
Later. I'm jumping on the bike.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Okay, he's gone (maybe). We'll have peace for a few minutes.
I'll make a final note then.
If the Trumpkins are thinking anything like Jeffrey's thinking… (And I don't have to answer that one for you.)
Does Biden really have a snowball's chance in hell of making peace with that?
Lee,
Haha. Good one. I rode far southeast of the city and snapped some great photos. The rice fields are nearing harvest time now, and the air has a bit of autumn crispness.
Back toward home, I went to -- believe it or not -- a Mexican restaurant (run by Chinese, of course) near the Nottingham University campus. A beef burrito! Excellent.
Hey, I'm cool with Biden. Listen, he could turn out to be an okay president. I just hope he doesn't cave in to China. I know the Chinese and if he's a wimp they're going to steal his lunch money without him even knowing it.
Over 70 millions Americans voted for Trump, right? Okay, I haven't lived in the US for eight years. How am I supposed to know what they're thinking?
I only know the Trump voters in my family and they just go about their lives as usual. I'm sure they're not happy, but they're very busy with their careers and families. They don't have time for Insider Manichean Marble Game stuff like you. Oh, same goes for the Biden voters in my family. One of my sisters, I should add, really hated Trump, so she's ecstatic.
About a month ago, I read about Trump for the first time. I'll probably do the same with Biden, a few months before 2024 -- if he lives that long, of course.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Lee and Lynnette,
Here's a response to the election from an African American.
U.S. Elections.
I don't know. Do you think he's a Trumpkin?
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Okay, show of computer handles, only one click necessary to make a showing (kinda like the old "show of hands" from school days)…
Who out there believes that Jeffrey's been in China, teaching English and therefore not hidden in a hermit's cave, for all of the many state meetings and reciprocal snipings between Trump and Xi, and Jeffrey's just this last month "read about Trump for the first time"?
Anybody wanna buy into that on the record? Anybody here sucker enough to believe that?
(Hint for Jeffrey: It's Sunday morning in America. I got a Southern fried preacher selling Protestant Prosperity Gospel on TV here--God gonna make me rich if I just pre-pay 10% to the preacher--mailing address readily available in the running stringer at the bottom of the TV screen. You gonna havta step up your game. He's much more interesting than you are today.)
Lee,
No one visits this blog except you. Sometimes Marcus and Petes and sometimes me. I think I've gone a couple years without stopping by. But with coronavirus I started to stop by to see what you guys were saying.
So asking for a show of hands is just delusional.
I surely don't watch Chinese TV. I have a screen in my room, but I've never turned it on.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Lee,
By the way, aren't you curious how I located you in Oklahoma?
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
You haven't located me in Oklahoma. Why would I be curious 'bout that which hasn't happened?
"Sometimes Marcus and Petes…"
Along with Lynnette that makes three possibles. How many clicks you reckon to get outta the three?
Lee,
You're the one asking for clicks, not me.
Has your memory suddenly become Bidenized?
Most likely, right now it's just you and me. So why are you asking for clicks? Weird.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
I'm reckonin' the page will still be here for them to click on when I'm off watching FoxNewsSunday to make sure that Trump's still a lame-duck President (and to kill a little time while waiting for the football game I'm actually interested in).
Meantime, it's a beautiful day and even the Southern fried Protestant Prosperity Preacher is more interesting than you're managing to be. So, I'm gonna wander on and leave the page here for them to click on at their leisure.
Ciao for now Jeffrey.
Lee,
All right. I watched the highlights of the Iowa Hawkeyes win over Michigan State yesterday. Whoa, what's happened to Michigan State. Hard times.
Oh, and Michigan lost again. To Indiana? Yep. Dang. Harbaugh is gonna be in trouble.
What? Maryland beat Penn State? What the heck is going on in the Big Ten?
Which pro game you interested in?
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
This is probably the last nice weekend before the weather changes for the worse and stays that way for some months. I have been spending time gathering, mulching and sucking up bags of leaves. I just finished what will probably be my last mowing for the season and will spend a little time sitting on the deck enjoying the last nice day.
Jeffrey, I have one brother and one sister. Neither one of them liked Trump. My two nieces and their husbands possibly all voted for Trump in 2016. I don't know about 2020.
I think there are many reasons people voted for Trump. But what all of them seemed to not see was the danger in his tearing apart our trust in the democratic process. As far as I am concerned for that alone he did not deserve a second term.
Former President Bush has phoned both Biden and Harris to offer his congratulations on his win. He has also made a point of stating that he believed it was a fair election.
I always thought he had more character than people gave him credit for. This proves it.
I had a lot of complaints about Dubya's administration. His own personal "character" was seldom among them. (It's hard to hold on ones honor and be a successful politician in today's American political climate. John McCain and both of the George Bush's were better at it than most. As is Joe Biden.)
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Breitbart headline: Backlash Against Fox News Explodes
In the article Breitbart describes FoxNews as "disgraced". Granted, one expects some competitive shouldering among competing companies, but this is a direct shot, not some shouldering for position, but an attempt at a crippling shot against a rival.
I think this is important because of the role FoxNews has played for years in maintaining, and especially in maintaining unity of vision in, the alternate reality in which the Republican voter has been isolated and which has protected the Republican voter from confrontation with the hard truths of the real world.
That unity, the maintenance of a single, internally unchallenged, "storyline" is increasingly threatened these days.
For years now FoxNews has handled the "messaging" for the Republican Party, to the point that the Party is now obliged to adhere to the message that makes the most money for FoxNews. I've mentioned this problem before.
Obviously, if the Republican Party can no longer keep their story straight in the alternate reality they maintain for their voting "base" to believe in, then actual reality is increasingly likely to intrude on their oblivion. That's gonna make it hard for them to keep their voter "base" together in the future.
And Trump's return to citizen status (perhaps to felon status before too long) is gonna make that harder still.
Looks to me like their alternate reality is starting to come apart already. Definitely showing cracks.
Lynnette,
But what all of them seemed to not see was the danger in his tearing apart our trust in the democratic process.
No, they simply have different values than you. As I've said above, their temperament is just more conservative than you. What YOU see is not what THEY see. It's that simple.
Again, just to be clear, we need both liberal and conservative personality orientations and we need to maintain that tension.
Gotta run to class.
More later.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
I think what Jeffrey's saying there (↑↑) is that they do indeed see the damage Trump is doing to democracy in America. They understand completely that he's undermining trust in the institutions of democracy. But they're okay with that.
He calls this a "conservative" temperament.
I'd call it something else entirely.
Lynnette and Lee,
If either of you are interested in why half the country voted for Trump and why the other half of the country voted for Biden, I recommend three books that offer a much deeper level of analysis than you'll find in daily journalism.
Jonathan Haidt, The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided by Politics and Religion, (2012)
Ezra Klein, Why We're Polarized, (2020)
John R. Hibbing et al., Predisposed: Liberals, Conservatives, and the Biology of Political Differences, (2013).
Each of these books will help you understand how both differences in personality and differences in values explain the current cultural and political landscape in the United States -- and how these differences function in all groups of humans.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
"I recommend three books…"
I live right in amongst the dedicated Trumpkins (and a fair sprinkling of political Christers). I understand them right fine. I don't need help from cultural anthropologists. In fact I could probably tell them some of what they got wrong if they were to bother to ask me.
The General Services Administration (a usually low profile federal agency) is refusing to give office space or even access to the Biden transition team. It appears that they're not going to allow Biden to start the complicated government "transition" process to the new Biden administration until Trump gives his own personal permission for process to begin. link
Lee,
Thanks. That's was a perfect response.
It illuminates your personality with a very bright light.
A tip of the hat to you, Lee.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
And you display the common, I might even say traditional, professor's logical failing (self-serving of course) of confusing "scholarship" with actual learning.
Lee,
One question. Are you an atheist?
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
How's your memory Jeffrey?
Lee,
All three books are written for a general audience. They are not scholarly texts.
But I surely understand your point. Sometimes the in-fighting among researchers and scholars brings much heat but little light to the topics at hand. Kind of like political contests.
Haidt is a social psychologist (and professor), Klein is a journalist (but one I can respect), and Hibbing and his co-authors are political scientists (yes, all professors). No cultural anthropologists, but they do reference the work of cultural anthropologists in their books.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Jason Chaffetz, one time Republican congressman and now a contributor to FoxNews has penned their first declaration of "resistance" to the Biden administration.
"Americans will not be silent. Instead, we will take the wins
President Trump left us and use them to defend against a
leftist agenda we believe undermines the very core of
American values."
FoxNewsNetwork
If you read it closely it turns out that what they're "resisting" at this stage are any efforts to replace "lies, hate, chaos, and confusion" as important "American values" and instruments of Republican public policy. (In Chaffetz' defense, he probably didn't mean for that to be discernible, probably meant to conceal that better than he did.)
In any case, the Republican "resistance" has begun.
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Scholarship and "scholarly texts" are not the same thing. You confuse yourself again.
Speaking of Ezra Klein, he's arguing that Trump is attempting nothing less than a coup against the American democracy, perpetrated "in plain sight" (his words) and the the Republican Party is going along with it, hoping he'll pull it off, but keeping sufficiently out of the way in case he doesn't succeed and they eventually have to disavow him. Vox
And he says the danger is still with us, maybe even growing--Trump managed to squelch the redistricting census this year while most people weren't paying attention.
It's a fairly chilling read for those who value American democracy, and not too long. I'll recommend it.
And, a final note before I go down for the night.
"I recommend three books that offer a much deeper level
of analysis than you'll find in daily journalism."
Jeffrey @ Sun Nov 08, 10:56 pm ↑↑
Ain't a tinker's chance in Hell that Jeffrey's read any of those books. The Chinese aren't going to allow them, or anything like them, into China, even via the internet--ain't happenin'.
Lee,
I purchased a VPN account before arriving in China (to get around the Great Firewall), as all foreigners do here. And I have an Amazon Kindle account. I'll cut and paste a few quotes for you from each of the books. Very easy since they're on my Kindle for PC as well as Kindle reader.
Yes,Ezra Klein writes for Vox. Thanks for the link. His book is worth reading, if you can get it.
Now Lee, you mentioned these "dedicated Trumpkins" many times, but who exactly are they? Anyone who voted for Donald Trump in 2016 and President Trump in 2020?
Are Lynnette's nieces DTs (for short) because they voted for him?
Or are there in fact "regular Trumpkins" and "dedicated Trumpkins"? Are there, so to speak, RTs and DTs?
Because your neologism echoes "bumpkin," is this also a slur against rural people? Are Trumpkins mostly rural? You write about being surrounded by Trumpkins in your rural area. I guess this fuels the heat in your animus. Have you ever thought of simply moving to a city and living among Woke liberals?
The rural-urban divide is real, of course. City folk mostly vote Democrat and rural folk mostly Republican. I say "mostly" because in many rural areas, like my home county, Delaware County in Iowa, Democrats and Republicans live mixed together with each other. In Delaware County, the final vote was 6,666 votes for Trump and 3,157 for Biden. So the majority voted for Trump, but a large minority voted for Biden. Relatives, neighbors, and friends all mixed together.
So could you define what a "dedicated Trumpkin" is?
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
From Predisposd, Hibbing et al.
Ultimately, what divides Athenian and Spartan, Imperialist and Republican, Roundhead and Cavalier, Federalist and anti-Federalist, monarchist and revolutionary, Bolshevik and Menshevik, partisan and Fascist, Alcove No. 1 and Alcove No. 2, Buckley and Vidal, Sarah Palin and Hillary Clinton, Jean-Marie Le Pen and François Hollande, Western democrats and Islamists seeking a new Caliphate are different perspectives on the proper way to design, structure, and maintain society. The underlying tectonic plates may go by different names, but the fault lines between them are uncannily similar.
Hibbing et al. are here arguing that the differences between liberals and conservatives align with very basic differences in how humans view the best way to maintain their own communities. That's why Trump going on about the wall was so resonant among conservatives. They believe keeping tight borders is important, while liberals believe we should welcome everyone with open arms. Which way is better?
Further, where they discuss the issue of variance in political orientation:
The argument is that societies with a mix of political types would be better able to adapt to changing environments because they would have some members who were more attendant to defending the in-group and others more eager to engage with out-groups; they would have some members who were more willing to try novel approaches and others more eager to stick up for the old ways. What would be the big downside of this sort of mix? Well, groups such as these would have many political disagreements to resolve and might not be very good at resolving them—in other words, they would look like us.
Dang. Pretty much on the nose.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
"I'll cut and paste a few quotes for you from each of the
books"
And they'll all be quotes we can find on the internet. You won't be putting up any quotes that aren't currently publicly available as excerpts and promotional materials. For instance: here is the blurb which is the source of the long quote you just used from Hibbing's book.
(I am aware of the VPN dodge and was aware of it when I wrote that comment. And I note that you have not denied the charge; you've just talked around it I will repeat it; you haven't read any of those books. You are a liar and a fraud.)
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Reuters: Trump is planning more campaign rallies in the coming weeks to drum up dedicated Trumpkin frenzy in support of his claim that he "won" the November 3rd election, "BY A LOT!" (caps by Trump).
As we have learned, Trump uses these rallies to judge the limits of what his dedicated Trumpkins will support. He will use the rallies to determine whether or not they will support him staying in office--election be damned.
(I'm more than a little curious about that as well.)
Lee and Lynnette,
By my personality profile, I'm a classic liberal. I'm always open to new experience, as is evidenced by many years living all over the world.
On Five Factor Model tests, I score very high on Trait Openness. I share this with other siblings. However, there are other siblings who score low on Trait Openness (they're wary of new experience -- new food, new places, new people)
But here's the key. With this mix of personality types (differenct scores on Trait Openness), the vitality of the family is increased.
The traditional siblings provide stability (like a spine) while I bring new ideas in from outside (like muscle flexibility).
All spine, inability to move, death. All muscle and flexibility, drop to the ground, death.
See what I mean? We need both stability and flexibility, spine and muscles. Conservatives and liberals (in the widest sense).
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Takin' a pass on that discussion now, as we can readily see.
Well, no point in holding back then. Here is the blurb for the second long quote.
Still not gonna engage with that? Need more time to create a response? Well, okay, moving right along then…
"WASHINGTON — President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr. prepared
on Sunday to start building his administration, even as
Republican leaders and scores of party lawmakers refrained
from acknowledging his victory out of apparent deference to
President Trump, who continued to refuse to concede.
***
"…more than 24 hours after his election had been declared,
the vast majority of Republicans declined to offer the
customary statements of good will for the victor that have
been standard after American presidential contests, as Mr.
Trump defied the results and vowed to forge ahead with
long-shot lawsuits to try to overturn them."
NewYorkTimes
And, as we have learned from Reuters, Trump is even now making plans to hold rallies of his dedicated Trumpkins to gauge their support for his continued defiance of the November election.
"May you live in interesting times."
Alternately ascribed to either Irish or Chinese historical sources
Lee,
Stop being a fucking idiot. Why in God's name would I lie about reading three books? It makes no sense.
Okay. Let's get this over with. I've opened up all three books on my Kindle for PC. What do you want? First sentence of a chapter? Your choice.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Lee,
And could you tell us what the hell you mean by "dedicated Trumpkins"?
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Ah, so now we've discovered how long it takes to complete an online purchase and download to your Kindle through the VPN around the Chinese firewall. 5:54 to 6:33--'bout a half hour.
(You really expect people to believe it is just an amazing coincidence that you unfortunately happened to settle upon two quotes that were already available in the promotional pages to use as your first excerpts? You think you can sell that, do ya? Nah, that ain't gonna sell. You panicked and just bought the Kindle downloads is what happened. How much did I just cost you?)
"Why in God's name would I lie about reading three books?"
One of my lawyers once told me that there were three categories of people I should expect to lie on the stand under oath. Police, preachers, and professors. You don't really want to hear the explanation in detail, especially the part about the professors.
Lee,
You do realize that you're seriously demented, right? Why would I lie about reading three books? I've read thousands of books in my lifetime. These are just three that are connected to this current topic. I don't even understand why you would question that.
Although I have taught at universities in New York and have been given the administrative title "professor," I don't consider myself a professor. I'm a veteran teacher, with around thirty years of classroom experience, teaching both ESL/EFL classes and writing and research classes. I'm a teacher, not a tenured nor tenure-track professor.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
We now have a second Republican Senator who's finally broken with the herd and "accepted" the November election. Called Biden to congratulate him. Not surprisingly, it was Lisa Murkowski (who was once denied the Republican nomination, losing to a "tea party" challenger; she then ran as an independent, write-in candidate and beat him in the general election, and then was accepted back into the Republican caucus).
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
So, you're gonna stick with that "incredible coincidence" story on those quotes, are ya? It ain't gonna sell. You ought to be able to know that much at least. (I do also note that you claimed to be a professor just yesterday, claim not to be one today--I did get a real laugh out of that one.)
Lee,
Show me where I said I was a professor. I don't recall doing that.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Lee,
Oh, I should add that my career is teaching, of course, but right now I'm just a student here at Zhejiang Wanli Xueyuan. I considered also teaching here while studying, but the pay wa too low. I decided to take a break and focus on learning Chinese, playing tennis, riding my bike, and snapping photos.
So currently you can call me a student. I've got a student visa in my passport, not a work visa as a teacher. Professor? Nope.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China.
*
I stand corrected; it says "(yes, all professors)", but it didn't explicitly include you this time. And I did specify "yesterday" so the earlier instances won't help me there.
So: Congratulations--I got a good laugh at your expense and then had to give it back.
Oh well, small matter.
Lynnette, Lee, Marcus, and Petes,
I can't remember if I passed on this photo essay or not. Anyway, here's the piece.
The V Sign in Asia.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Lee,
All right.
I once considered entering the tenure track hell, but it's filled with politics and PC monitoring just like in your world of Manichean Marbles. Nope, not for me. I teach in the classroom and stay away from administration as much as possible. I've worked under really good and really bad administrators. Quite a difference.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
I hate to have belabor what should be obvious, and probably is to everybody except you, but the lawyer was thinkin' he was giving me a clever and pithy quote there, not an all-inclusive edict fit for carving in whatever medium lawyers carve for their lawyerly edicts. For instance "Police" would include the sheriff's deputy we were discussing at the time, and "preacher" would include a Priest, and "professor" would include you.
Lee,
For You.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
I seem to consistently have to tell you when your audience is over. You don't catch on otherwise. So….
Good bye Jeffrey.
Lee,
Hey, make sure you check under your bed tonight for a hiding Trumpkin, especially now that dedicated Trumpkins are fanning out across the land under orders from the Big Trumpkin.
Haha. Too funny.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Lee:
” Who out there believes that Jeffrey's been in China, teaching English and therefore not hidden in a hermit's cave, for all of the many state meetings and reciprocal snipings between Trump and Xi, and Jeffrey's just this last month "read about Trump for the first time"?”
I believe Jeffrey is in China teaching. For one he made that long entry to a travel blog that was insightful and detailed and I don’t really see him posting that as some sort of clever plot months in advance to make a false claim on his whereabouts.
But I kinda, sorta, think his professed ignorance on US politics is false. In my experience friends who are expats in Asia are usually pretty tuned in with the goings on back home. They seem to get even more into western politics while residing there. If Jeffrey is completely tuned out he’d be a strange exception. Plus it just doesn’t seem to fit his character.
Btw Jeffrey, about the V sign, do you know where it really originates? People tend to answer V for Victory but that’s not the case.
It was in the Middle Ages at one of those many battles between the British and the French. (I forget which one and am not inclined to look it up) The French nobility favored horse attack with lance and their foot soldiers carried the new invention that was the crossbow. The English still relied heavily on the long bow.
Now the French nobility detested the long bow because they saw it as fighting without valor, valor being a popular French theme at the time. So if they caught any bowmen they would cut off their bow fingers, which happen to be the fingers used for the V sign.
Well, in this particular battle the French were lured into attacking into a gulley which was rather swampy. Their heavy horse struggled and their crossbow men could only fire one bolt say every minute. While the English longbow men fired up to 10 arrows a minute. The French got mowed down and as a sign of taunting the english bowmen cheered and held up their hands with their bow fingers intact - in the V sign.
It’s alleged anyway. But maybe I just like that tale and wish it’s true.
And related to that, you must have come across the possibly mot usual hand gesture in South East Asia at least by pretty girls which is an index finger to the cheek, where the dimple is or would’ve been if she had a dimple. They pose like that every time a camera is raised.
Jeffrey, I re read your earlier travel blog post about China where you commented on the flurry of new construction. Now, I’ve only been in china once, in Guangzhou, but I remember being awed by the massive amount of new construction there. It was literally tens of thousands of cranes in thousands of new developments just between the airport and our hotel in city center.
But while I was put in a 5 star hotel and everything looked real nice on the surface I couldn’t help noticing that in the shower the water didn’t just run into the sink, a corner in the shower was lower and a pool of water was always sitting there. This is a serious fault and will cause a problem with time. And everywhere I looked I started to see more of this shoddy craftsmanship that will make seemingly high end constructions a hell to upkeep in the long run.
Thanks for the book recommendations, Jeffrey. As you know I am always looking for reading material. I am still working on Woodward's books, "Fear & Rage" and a number of racial history books. I also have have been meaning to look up that book about China's debt you mentioned. *sigh* Not enough time in the day. But I will add these to my every growing list.
The General Services Administration (a usually low profile federal agency) is refusing to give office space or even access to the Biden transition team.
I saw that earlier. In fact I was going to mention it, but you beat me to it. Biden should have no problem raising money from private donors if necessary. That is what Bush had to do when that election was still up in the air.
But it is just another annoying consequence of Trump's childish behavior.
Money's a separate thing. The bulk of transition funding is always raised by private donations. Access and office space are the important elements that Trump's locking down.
Hibbing et al. are here arguing that the differences between liberals and conservatives align with very basic differences in how humans view the best way to maintain their own communities.
What I find interesting is the tendency of those who have fled their home countries because of political beliefs to bring along, so to speak, some of the same mindset. That is they are willing to exclude the "other", pull up the ladder and not let anyone else in. Or there are those who tend to denigrate others from another country that they have had dealings with, such as a couple people I knew from Ethiopa who did not like Somalis.
Yet they have chosen to flee to, what is supposed to be anyway, a country of freedom for and equal rights for all. It's like they have made that leap, but they can't quite actually put the values into practice yet.
It's also interesting that Donald Trump can read people's motivations to the extent that he can play so easily on their fears. Such as those who have fled socialist regimes and don't want to vote for anyone who Trump likens to a socialist in the making. Yet they can't see beyond Trump and his followers propaganda.
Access and office space are the important elements that Trump's locking down.
Access is probably the most critical. There needs to be a smooth transition of knowledge too.
He will use the rallies to determine whether or not they will support him staying in office--election be damned.
(I'm more than a little curious about that as well.)
Indeed. That is a path we don't want to go down. As my post reminded people.
[Jeffrey} The traditional siblings provide stability (like a spine) while I bring new ideas in from outside (like muscle flexibility).
That can be applied to age groups too. The young need the old to learn from and provide stability. The old need the young to bring in fresh ideas and energy.
"…more than 24 hours after his election had been declared,
the vast majority of Republicans declined to offer the
customary statements of good will for the victor that have
been standard after American presidential contests, as Mr.
Trump defied the results and vowed to forge ahead with
long-shot lawsuits to try to overturn them."
I think the Times made it clear what they thought of Mr. Trump's position.
"Yet they can't see beyond Trump and his followers propaganda."
I think you underestimate them on that account. Or, maybe you just Americanize them (usage akin to "anthropomorphize") They fled socialist dictatorships because they were on the losing side, not necessarily because they were aghast at autocracy. If they'd been on the winning side they'd still be in their haciendas in Cuba and Venezuelan, happily persecuting the socialists, who'd be the ones who fled. Their countries have long histories of "caudillo" rulers. They're accustomed to autocracy; they're not confused by what they see when they see Trump practicing it here. They just preferred the right-wing military type to the left-wing military type. Trump is offering what they know and once loved. He's not offering them democracy; that's not particularly familiar to their politcal culture at any rate.
[Jeffrey] I teach in the classroom and stay away from administration as much as possible.
Somehow that doesn't surprise me. Do you remember that movie "Dead Poets Society" with Robin Williams? For some reason that makes me think of you.
Maybe it has something to do with your blogging years.
Trump is offering what they know and once loved. He's not offering them democracy; that's not particularly familiar to their politcal culture at any rate.
Sad, and probably true.
Well, keep your chin up. Trump is still only getting about 30-35% I think it is of the Latino-American vote, even in Florida.
The Democrats are merely surprised there were that many of the "losers" from the Cuba and Venezuela conflicts still holding to their traditional allegiances. The Democrats would not be surprised if they'd been paying attention. And the exiles went right to what they once loved when they saw it again here. That should have been no surprise either.
And it was still only 35% or so, so the offer of democracy got a better reception than Trump's offer.
"Somehow that doesn't surprise me."
I'm pretty sure "the administration" has made it pretty clear to him what are the limits are to his participation in the administration as well as general Chinese society. They will also have made clear what the consequences can be should he not respect those limits. He'd be the unusual case otherwise.
Trump has Tweet-fired Secretary of Defense Mark Esper, effective immidiately. No surprise there. Little bit of last minute score settling for Esper displaying even a modicum of independence on the issue of naming modern military facilities after conspicuous Confederate generals.
And now Susan Collins has decided to offer congratulations to Biden for his "apparent victory", leaving her room to plead to rejoin the Republican consensus should Trump try to put down more permanent roots in the White House.
Tomorrow the Supreme Trumpkins will hear the fourth (I think it's the fourth) case to come before them seeking the repeal of the Affordable Care Act (a/k/a "Obamacare"). Three times the Republicans have sought to reimpose their Darwinian Solution to the problem of poverty in America; three times they've failed.
The Trump administration supports the lawsuit.
The conventional wisdom is that the Supreme Trumpkins will be too cautious to outright cancel the insurance of upwards of 20,000,000 citizens this early into their reign. (And, most importantly, just two months before the runoff election in Georgia which will decide whether or not Biden can get a Democratic Senate majority and thereby threaten their own seizure of political power), but I'm not going with the conventional wisdom on this one.
I think there's a good chance they'll strike it down. Consequences be damned.
We can add Ben Sasse of Nebraska as another Republican Senator to publicly accept the results of the November 3rd Presidential election. That makes four (4), counting Susan Collins' provisional statement of acceptance as one of the four. (So, maybe we should just count it as 3½.)
(And Biden thinks those guys are gonna work with him after he's sworn in--I'm 'fraid he's in for a rude awakening 'fore too long.)
Marcus,
Right now I'm just a student at a university in Ningbo. I taught, however, for three years in a city a couple hours west of here called Jinhua. I'm closing in on finishing a book about teaching in the International Program of that gaozhong, an academic high school.
No, I really don't follow politics, and this goes all the way back to my undergraduate days when one of my best friends and I would argue about literature. He was a history major and my double major was English Literature and Classics (Latin and Ancient Greek). He believed that there was a political angle in all literature while I argued that literature was a separate realm of expression and experience. I believed, ans still believe, that only focusing on politics coarsens one's view of life. Literature, in contrast, deepens one's way of experiencing life.
So I never follow politics. Yes, I can recognize a few names, but I really only watched the first video clips of Trump just a few weeks ago, just to see what Lynnette and Lee and you were talking about.
Yesterday, for example, I saw a couple references to AOC. I wondered what the hell that is. A company? Some organization? No, it turns out it's a person. Alexandria Something Something. From what I picked up, she's in the House, I think, a young woman, kind of a leftist (I think). Do you know her?
So the last couple months, mainly to antagonize Lee, yes, I've taken a few peaks at the political turmoil in the US. But for me literature, linguistics, philosophy, sociology, and anthropology are my main areas of interest. Politics, especially at the level of Lee's Manichean Marbles Game, doesn't appeal to me at all.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Marcus,
That story of the origin of the V-sign is great. I hope it's true. Nothing better than French and English antipathy.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Marcus,
And related to that, you must have come across the possibly mot usual hand gesture in South East Asia at least by pretty girls which is an index finger to the cheek, where the dimple is or would’ve been if she had a dimple. They pose like that every time a camera is raised.
Yes, I do have photos of women using that gesture.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
"So the last couple months, mainly to antagonize Lee…"
And yet when I catch you pulling quotes off the internet and pretending you actually have the book they came from you're the one who goes ape-shit and can't let go of it.
Seems clear your plan has backfired on ya rather spectacularly.
Lynnette,
That can be applied to age groups too. The young need the old to learn from and provide stability. The old need the young to bring in fresh ideas and energy.
Absolutely. Good extension of that idea.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Marcus,
But while I was put in a 5 star hotel and everything looked real nice on the surface I couldn’t help noticing that in the shower the water didn’t just run into the sink, a corner in the shower was lower and a pool of water was always sitting there. This is a serious fault and will cause a problem with time. And everywhere I looked I started to see more of this shoddy craftsmanship that will make seemingly high end constructions a hell to upkeep in the long run.
Oh man, I could tell you stories. Chinese build quickly with zero interest in quality of construction. Buildings begin to fall apart as soon as they're finished -- and often even before they're finished. The buildings go up fast and come down fast.
Like you say, Chinese build to make it look good from a distance, but as soon as you take a closer look, the crap construction becomes obvious. A low level of workmanship that would never be accepted in the West.
Here's the odd thing. The Chinese don't mind the crap construction. They just tear down the buildings falling apart and build another one that will soon fall apart. It's how they roll here. Everyone gets a job, either in demolition or slap-dash construction. The sound of China is the sound of jackhammers.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
The "V" sign was created during WWII in support of the Allied efforts and the "V" was for "Victory".
It was appropriated by the hippies in the 60's and re-purposed as a "peace" sign.
Couple of different claimants to the honor of being the first to use it, but it's pretty clear it first showed up in the 1940's.
There is a similar hand gesture--hand turned the other way, palm in instead of out, and often accompanied by an upward swing of the arm that is older. Marcus may have confused the two.
Wikipedia
I'da let Marcus believe what he wanted, but since you're so easy to aggravate and you wished it to be otherwise, I figured I'd just amuse myself for a minute on a small matter.
Lynnette,
Somehow that doesn't surprise me. Do you remember that movie "Dead Poets Society" with Robin Williams? For some reason that makes me think of you.
Yep, I remember watching that movie when it came out. Excellent.
Well, in the Chinese classroom, I did not stand on top of my desk and recite Walt Whitman. No Captain, my Captain stuff.
But I did teach novels in the class, the first ones they had ever read (in English or Chinese). I taught, for example, John Steinbeck's The Pearl and William Golding's Lord of the Flies.
For each chapter in those books, I would read selected scenes out loud to them so they could hear the rhythm of spoken English in the text. They really loved that. It was the first time anyone had ever presented them with real literature and not just memorizing answers for multiple-choice exams.
Both novels have lots of great scenes, and I did read them as dramatically as possible -- not at the level of Robin Williams in Dead Poets Society, but not far off. But I was standing in front of the classroom, not on top of my desk (I should add again).
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Lynnette,
Hey, since you referred to IBC, I was just looking through my archives and found this comment that you left after my final post back in 2009:
*
A lovely last post, Jeffrey. I know that in the weeks to come I will be going back and reading links to posts I may have missed in the past. And I have already started comparing your book list to mine, to see what I have missed.
I wish you, CMAR II, Mister Ghost, RhusLancia, and D.C. well, and good fortune in whatever you pursue next. (One thing, though, I wouldn't be caught dead biking around in New York City traffic!)
*raises glass*
Cheers!
Hey, did anyone bring chips and salsa...?
Lynnette in Minnesota | 05.01.09 - 1:19 pm | #
________________________________________
*
How cool is that?
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
And my reply:
*
Lynnette,
I thought you might pop in today. You've always been one of my favorite commenters. How you keep your cool is beyond me. I love it.
Chips and salsa? Of course, but we also have lots of other good food, too, so dig in.
*
Jeffrey -- New York | Homepage | 05.01.09 - 1:32 pm | #
*
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
You guys remember Touta?
Here was my reply to her on the final post:
*
Touta,
Yeah, it was like I had a Devil and an Angel on each shoulder. The Devil kept saying, "Hey, roast those bastards! Who do they think they are?!" On the other shoulder, however, my Angel just shook her head and smiled sweetly and said, "Jeffrey, these people are no different than you. Why use such bad words? I mean, think of your mother."
Aw crap, those two were always on my case. Sometimes I listened to my Angel, but on bad days I high-fived the Devil and let 'er rip.
*
Jeffrey -- New York | Homepage | 05.01.09 - 8:01 pm | #
*
Yep, Devil and Angel still on my shoulders.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Lee,
And I found this in an exchange with you in 2007:
You're not unintelligent, Lee, but your hillbilly shtick restricts your lexicon, reduces the flexibility of your sentences, and narrows your tonal choices down to a nasal twang.
Man, that's still accurate.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Lee,
Remember?
Wasn't shootin’ for that. Was shootin’ for an end to your sorry ass whinin’.
And the fuck off ain't to get them to magically disappear; figure it more as an incentive towards the realization that they'll have better luck drawin’ a fuss outta somebody else. Go “troll somebody else for awhile; I'm not interested” type of thing.
That's the hillbilly shtick to which I was referring. I'm curious. Why did you decide to use that persona?
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Remember Bruno?
For fun, here's my final exchange with him:
*
I see that Jeffrey somehow managed to uncover my plot to corner the Betamax market! Blast it. Although, not all is lost: as the warmongers have shown, there's nothing that one can't achieve with a big enough barrage of propaganda and misinformation ...
Jeffrey, though you know I've got little patience with what you stand for, nor your methods, I will acknowledge your persistence and tenacity. Cheers.
Bruno | Homepage | 05.11.09 - 10:33 am | #
________________________________________
Bruno,
Thanks indeed. We dug that hole for five years straight. China was just our first stop. Now the IBC crew is collapsed and dirty, our shovels at our sides. One good thing about digging holes: we didn't need passports. You should have seen the faces of those monks in Tibet when we popped our heads out of the ground and looked around. We spent a few days there. They got a kick out of CMAR II's cowboy hat, but they didn't care much for my coonskin cap. Well, the tail really was pretty dusty by then.
*
Jeffrey -- New York | Homepage | 05.11.09 - 2:05 pm | #
*
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Yep, Devil and Angel still on my shoulders.
lol! Yes, that describes it perfectly.
That was an intense period, even if for us it was only over the internet. Do you ever hear from any of them?
I do remember Touta and many of the other Iraqis. I often wonder where they are now, if they managed to get out of Iraq before ISIS descended. I hope so. I so hope so.
Both Zeyad and The Kid came to the States and Anarki went to Sweden. Caesar stopped by here once and at that time I believe he was still in Iraq.
Bruno actually stopped in here briefly too after the blog was first set up.
That seems like a lifetime ago.
Back to the present...
Anthony Scaramucci was on CNN and what he had to say is worth mentioning, I think.
Basically he made the claim that the fund raising for Trump's "legal defense fund" also has another purpose. He's saying they are just grifting to pay off campaign debt. Do they really need $60 million for lawsuits? Quite a few of which have already been dismissed? He still gets emails from them for fund raising purposes and in fine print on the bottom they say the money can also be used for campaign debt.
He also believes that "Trumpism" died on November 3, that what we are seeing is only the last embers. He thinks that once Trump leaves office he is finished. And that a lot of people are going to wake up and wonder what on earth were they thinking?
Lynnette,
Oh yeah, that was an intense five years.
Both of us saw the beginning of the decline of the blogopshere. We traded comments about it, as we saw the rise of social media. Neither of us liked it. I still believe blogs are superior -- and now podcasts.
Hey, one question. I hear that one thing important to Trump was bringing back all the troops and being against getting entangled in foreign wars. Do you give him credit for that? He may even have called both Bush and Obama warmongers. Is that right? Anyway, what's your take on his foreign policy record?
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Lynnette,
This may go on my tombstone:
Sometimes he listened to his Angel, but on bad days he high-fived the Devil and let 'er rip.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Attorney General Bill Barr has broken with history and tradition and authorized federal criminal investigations into Trump's many unfounded allegations of election fraud before the votes are counted and certified. The head of the DoJ's "Elections Crimes Branch" promptly resigned rather than become an accomplice to that. (A copy of the e-mail he sent to his colleagues in the Justice Department--modestly redacted--has been posted on Twitter)
WashingtonPost: Trump's loss to Joe Biden has been accompanied by a week long silence from the wannabe intenet prophet known as "Q", of QAnon fame. Apparently this has some of the faithful a little shaken. They're thinking that perhaps Trump isn't ready to lead "The Storm" against the Democrats' cannibal pedophile pizza conspiracy.
Anyway, what's your take on his foreign policy record?
Overall, poor. His withdrawal of troops from Syria was a betrayal to our Kurdish allies. He has alienated our traditional allies. He has cozied up to one of our most serious adversaries, Vladimir Putin. He has enabled Iran to resume its quest for a nuclear weapon.
The one good thing was the peace accords between Israel and the UAE, Bahrain and Sudan.
Trump's loss to Joe Biden has been accompanied by a week long silence from the wannabe intenet prophet known as "Q", of QAnon fame.
Probably has Covid. It seems like a lot of Trump's enablers do.
Attorney General Bill Barr has broken with history and tradition and authorized federal criminal investigations into Trump's many unfounded allegations of election fraud before the votes are counted and certified.
Not only has he broken with history and tradition, he has broken with reality and integrity.
Reviews of this morning's arguments before the Supreme Trumpkins indicate the news reporters think their predictions were correct and the Affordable Care Act will nonetheless survive this encounter with The Court, as is has survived all prior encounters.
According to a new Politico/MorningConsult Poll, 70% of Republicans believe, or claim to believe, that the November 3rd election was somehow rigged. Up 35%, doubled, from before the election.
And Biden thinks he's gonna reconcile with these people.
According to a new Politico/MorningConsult Poll, 70% of Republicans believe, or claim to believe, that the November 3rd election was somehow rigged.
Propaganda works for those who are already willing to believe.
Reviews of this morning's arguments before the Supreme Trumpkins indicate the news reporters think their predictions were correct and the Affordable Care Act will nonetheless survive this encounter with The Court, as is has survived all prior encounters.
Justice Roberts has made it clear that he doesn't think it is the Supreme Court's job, but Congresses to legislate.
I hope that is the case and they throw out this case too.
"Justice Roberts has made it clear that he doesn't think
it is the Supreme Court's job…to legislate."
Yeah, well, he's proven to be "flexible" on that subject. Changing his beliefs as the needs of the moment might incline him.
I see that Trump has filed lawsuits in both Michigan and Pennsylvania seeking to block "certification" of the election results. This could delay the selection of the slate of electors from those states. I should not need to remind folks that it was the supposedly terrifying spectre of "delay" which served as the rationale for the Supreme Court's intervention in the Florida recount in 2000, where they forbade the recount from continuing and awarded the Presidency to George W. Bush by a vote of 5 to 4.
Lee,
I know you see "dedicated Trumpkins" all around you (even under your bed), and "Supreme Trumpkins" sitting in the highest court of the land in Washington, so are there any "regular Trumpkins"? Is there such a thing as an Average Joe Trumpkin?
I wonder if Lynnette's nieces are "dedicated Trumpkins."
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
"I know you see "dedicated Trumpkins" all around you (even under your bed)"
What makes you think you know that? They have no need to cluster around me nor lurk near my bed; this is solid Trump country; they're needed in their full AR-15 armed glory in Philadelphia and Phoenix. Try to be not-stupid here.
(And, if you're already trying, then try harder.)
Lynnette,
His withdrawal of troops from Syria was a betrayal to our Kurdish allies.
Okay, I'll check this out. Sadly, I can't stop by Kurdo's Wild West Saloon to see what he'd have to say. Did Trump's lead help defeat ISIS? I think I heard that, but I could be wrong.
He has alienated our traditional allies.
You mean like UK and Australia? Or strategic allies like Japan?
He has cozied up to one of our most serious adversaries, Vladimir Putin.
I never heard of that. Well, I can tell you he hasn't cozied up to the Chinese, certainly a serious adversary. The Chinese here are hoping that Biden is sworn in come January.
He has enabled Iran to resume its quest for a nuclear weapon.
Is that true? Okay, I'll check that out, too.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Lee,
Definition of terms is step one in debate, as you know.
So the first question is whether your term "dedicated Trumpkin" refers to anyone who simply voted for Trump in either the 2016 and/or 2020 elections, or is this a special category of Republican voter.
Yes, I concede that a Trumpkin who hides under your bed would have to be dedicated.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
"Definition of terms is step one in debate, as you know."
Oxygen is actually heavier than carbon.
The Kenosha, Wisconsin vigilante who killed two protesters and maimed a third has received donations in excess of $2 million so far.
That's probably more money than he was gonna earn in his lifetime. May be a long time before that matters to him though--ain't a lot ways to enjoy your money within the Wisconsin prison system. And, right now his lawyer claims to have "control" over the money, so I'm guessin' a lot of it's gonna go into a spirited leave-no-stone-uncovered legal defense that'll quite possibly eat up all of it.
Lee,
Oxygen is actually heavier than carbon.
Hm. Even in "Trumpkin Country"?
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
You claim to have family in Iowa. Seems you'd already know the answer to that question.
Lee,
You mean my siblings in Iowa who voted for Trump are not just registered Republicans but "Trumpkins"?
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
[Jeffrey] Did Trump's lead help defeat ISIS? I think I heard that, but I could be wrong.
Trump has a tendency to take credit for the work of others. If I had to pick one entity that was instrumental in pushing back ISIS it was the Kurds.
[Lynnette] He has alienated our traditional allies.
[Jeffrey] You mean like UK and Australia? Or strategic allies like Japan?
Everyone, Jeffrey, everyone. The crowds of Americans cheering in the streets after word of Biden's win came out weren't the only one's who were relieved that the world would see an end to Trump. Of course, until he actually departs the White House and Joe Biden is sworn in I won't be completely satisfied that we have seen his back.
[Lynnette] He has cozied up to one of our most serious adversaries, Vladimir Putin.
If there is one person he won't criticize or even take to task it's Putin. Everyone is speculating on what Putin has on him.
[Jeffrey] I never heard of that. Well, I can tell you he hasn't cozied up to the Chinese, certainly a serious adversary. The Chinese here are hoping that Biden is sworn in come January.
Well, of course, he couldn't use Russia as a scapegoat for all of our problems. China works because there is truth to their use of every angle imaginable to come out on top economically and militarily.
[Lynnette] He has enabled Iran to resume its quest for a nuclear weapon.
[Jeffrey] Is that true? Okay, I'll check that out, too.
Trump reneged on the Iran nuclear deal.
"You mean my siblings in Iowa…"
I suppose they'd qualify as "family in Iowa".
(Your family in Iowa that is, not mine.)
Lee,
Back in 2008, in Delaware County, Iowa, Obama defeated McCain 4,669 votes to 4,113.
From your earlier posts, I see you ascribe Trumpkinhood to people living at least two decades ago. They didn't even know they were already Trumpkins. Odd. Anyway, why the heck did Trumpkins avant la lettre vote for Obama?
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
"I see you ascribe Trumpkinhood to people living at least two decades ago.
You're going to have clarify what their age (twenty years of age, minimum) might have to do with whatever the hell it is you're trying to talk about.
Then you can probably move on to trying to explain what the hell you're trying to talk about.
Get back to me when you get that straightened out in your own head.
Talk to Lynnette in the meantime.
Lynnette,
Everyone, Jeffrey, everyone. The crowds of Americans cheering in the streets after word of Biden's win came out weren't the only one's who were relieved that the world would see an end to Trump. Of course, until he actually departs the White House and Joe Biden is sworn in I won't be completely satisfied that we have seen his back.
Now c'mon, Lynnette. You know that's not true. I know you hate the guy, but you can't sidestep the fact that half of the American voters, over 70 million people, voted for Trump.
This relief you feel is personal, and that's fine. One half of the country also feels that relief, but the other half does not.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
You think "the other half" of the country qualifies as "strategic allies" do ya?
Maybe I should not have foisted you off on Lynnette after all. You're babbling nonsense.
(It's okay Lynnette; you don't have to engage with him after all; he's clearly lost it.)
Lynnette and Lee,
I have to say that I'm a bit divided about who I want to take office in January. Trump as president would be fun because you guys would go completely nuts. And if it were done completely legally, well, that would just be fantastic and very funny to watch. Recounts and litigation all in line and in January Trump is sworn in for his second term.
But my God you two are like mewling babies and much better might be shoving the Biden Pacifier in your mouth. The peace and quiet would also be great.
So which do I prefer? Screaming babies or babies contentedly sucking on their Biden Pacifiers?
Tough call.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
I notice that you and Petes share a marked preference for responding with highly personal attacks, directly personal insults, personally demeaning imagery, when your attempts at high-minded arguments run aground. That is, you share that characteristic with one another.
And, then, of course, there's Trump.
Lee,
When I asked Lynnette to point out which of our "traditional allies" Trump has alienated, she replied:
Everyone, Jeffrey, everyone.
I think she means anyone currently breathing on this earth, from residents of windswept Patagonia to the monks chanting in Tibet. All of them suddenly began celebrating. Let the healing begin, right?
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Lee,
And your attacks on "Trumpkins" are all based on cold reason, right?
Funny.
Cue Mr. Swift: It is useless to attempt to reason a man out of a thing he was never reasoned into.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
"…she replied: *** Everyone, Jeffrey, everyone."
I would suggest that you should not have stopped reading there, but should have continued to read at least to the end of the paragraph. Then you might have a clue. Be better I think than your current clueless line of argument.
It's still up there. Try it--read the paragraph this time, and this time try to work on a little competence in English. (I'm sure your Chinese students would appreciate you actually learning English before you attempt to entertain them further.)
Lee,
Here's something funny. You and Trump are a lot alike. Both of you mostly alienate people. I've been looking through old comments pages from the Iraqi blogosphere, and no one alienated as many other commenters as you. You called anyone who disagreed with you stupid. I guess that could be categorized as a personal attack, right?
Yep, Lee and Trump. Pretty much the same.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Trump also leans heavily on that shallow trick--turn around and accuse your accuser of what he's called you out for doing. I remember a classic example you can still find on the internet if you just look---Trump babbling in a debate against Hillary: "Not a puppet, not a puppet; you're the puppet". Totally unhinged, so he went with his knee-jerk instinctive--muscle memory type of thing. It's considered a Trump classic these days.
Your pale imitations, as here, are actually kinda pathetic.
And, just a closing comment. You're gonna wanna think again about to obviously and publicly taking the term "Trumpkin" so personally. It seriously undermines your story 'bout how you don't actually follow American poltics, and that story already ain't sellin'.
Ciao for now Jeffrey.
You audience is over.
You are hereby dismissed for the evening.
Lee,
I'm now starting to understand your antipathy to Trump. Like you're looking in a mirror.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Come now Jeffrey. If you thought I was at all Trumpish you'd view me as somewhat more of a paesan, not the rant target you think you see when your thinking blurs out into that red mist that often overtakes you (way too often, for what it's worth knowing that).
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Also, your habit of doubling down on the personal abuse after you've been called on it, clearly because you've been called on it, very closely resembles the long ingrained bad habits of our Short Fingered Orange Man in the White House. Too obvious to be denied, so, of course, you'll deny it anyway. (If not now, then later, but you'll have to deny it eventually, or at least you'll think you have to.)
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Meanwhile, back at the ranch…. Biden's popular vote margin over Trump is almost 5 million votes now, and looking like a good bet to exceed the 5 million vote count by the time they finish counting.
And in addition to that 5 million vote deficit, I'm beginning to think that Trump's petulance, and the fact that the Senate Republicans (and a couple of wannabe Senate Republicans now looking at runoff elections in Georgia) are seriously compromising the fairly lucky post-positions of the Republican Senate.
The Republicans got to be the odds-on favorite to win those runoff elections in Georgia, but also this dragging shit out has got to be compromising their chances (not with the dedicated Trumpkins, of course, who expect, nay who demand a fight to the death, but with the few still available swing voters in Georgia) in that Georgia runoff due for consummation on the 5th of January (early voting opening on the 14th of December).
Bad editing ↑↑: Let's work on that; should read as:
"…and the fact that the Senate Republicans (and a couple of wannabe Senate Republicans now looking at runoff elections in Georgia) are compelled to wholly and enthusiastically support Trump's petulance…"
Reporting being done says that Trump is worried about being arrested and charged after he loses his presidential immunity. Politico This could give him incentive to use all available means, long shot or not, to remain in power.
Lee,
Man,those dedicated Trumpkins just won't give up.
You know you're insane, right? You go to bed (but first checking under your bed), thinking of Trumpkins, dream of Trumpkins while sleeping (oddly not nightmares but comforting dreams), and then continue thinking of Trumpkins as soon as your eyes open in the morning.
That's TDS taken to a whole new level.
My only explanation for it is the you've realized that your personality is almost an exact match for Trump's, and that recognition now fuels your fitful sleep at night and the constant searching of news websites during the day. Really bizarre.
The blood of recognition just won't wash of your hands. "Trump?" you ask in horror."C'est moi!"
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Everybody wave at Jeffrey. He obviously needs attention this morning. (Another Trump like characteristic.)
Good morning Jeffrey.
Good bye Jeffrey.
Lee,
All right.
Listen, I know you want to share anti-Trump links with Lynnette. That's cool. I get it. You don't really want to be challenged.
But I think Lynnette actually has a job, so you might have to wait until tonight (your time).
So I guess that you'll just have to write to yourself here on Lynnette's blog, as you do most days. Sooner or later, Marcus or Petes may stop by. You never know.
Carry on, Lee, carry on.
Yes, it's a bit strange to see you talking to yourself here at Lynnette's place, but you're an odd cracker, to be sure.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Lee,
Everybody wave at Jeffrey.
Oh, shit, I just saw that.
Lee, Lee, Lee. NO ONE else is here. It's just you and me, you numbskull.
Oh, my God, you're effing lost.
I love it. Never change, Lee.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Hey Lee,
Since it's just you and me here, I have a question. Was my guess that you're a taxidermist close? It seems either you're retired, work at home (thus the taxidermy guess, given your hillbilly background), or live on disability (you don't have to admit that, of course).
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
Hey, I see a light in the window. Let me see who's there.
*opens front door*
Lynnette?
*silence*
Lee?
*silence*
Marcus?
*silence*
Petes?
*silence*
Dang. No one here. I guess Lynnette forgot to lock the door. Well, I'll just pull it shut and be on my way.
*whistling as he walks down the street*
*smell of autumn leaves in the air*
Ah, reminds me of Delaware County, my home on the Great Midwestern Plains.
Those deep blue skies of late October Iowa afternoons, dried leaves scraping along, pushed by the returning winds from the north, accompany me wherever I travel and rest my head.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
*whispers softly to Jeffrey*
Snow, Jeffrey, snow, that's what I see when I look outside my window.
*sigh*
Reporting being done says that Trump is worried about being arrested and charged after he loses his presidential immunity.
Yup, that would have been my guess.
Perhaps others too.
Interesting.
Georgia is going to recount all of its ballots by hand at the request of state officials.
I looked it up, there is no state requirement in Georgia for an automatic recount if an election is close. At this time Joe Biden leads Trump by around 14,000 votes.
"I looked it up, there is no state requirement in Georgia for
an automatic recount if an election is close."
The Secretary of State in Georgia is a Republican, which is perhaps all it takes there. I don't know if I'd expect a state sponsored recount if Trump were winning by 14,112 votes (the margin last time I looked).
It's unlikely that a recount will turn it around for Trump, but the statisticians haven't called it yet in Georgia, for reasons I'm not certain about.
"Lee, Lee, Lee. NO ONE else is here."
Jeffrey @ Wed Nov 11, 08:40 am ↑↑
"Marcus or Petes may stop by. You never know."
Jeffrey @ Wed Nov 11, 08:36 am ↑↑
Bit schizophrenic there.
And, Joe Biden's lead in the popular vote has now (semi-officially) exceeded 5 million votes.
The breakdown of the FoxNews' role in unifying the wingnut message for our native right-wingers is suffering further exacerbation at the hands of some non-Breitbart Trumpkins. link Without unified control of the message it could get nasty within the right-winger trenches these next few years.
Off topic:
News reports currently being largely ignored in favor of concentration on the electoral races include information that the right-wingers and dead-ender Trumpkins are moving by the hundreds of thousands, if not yet by the multiple millions, to "alternate" electronic organizing tools. They're abandoning Facebook and Twitter and Instagram for alternates like "Parler" (pronounced as in the French I would assume), "NewsMax", "WeMe", and "Rumble". link
I am reminded of the pamphleteering that went on in backwoods areas I grew up in during the post-Reagan, pre-internet years. There were all sorts of weird-ass right-wing pamphlets circulating, but circulation among the radical reactionaries of the time had never gotten them much in the way of power. Maybe a few crazy-ass congressmen here and there, a Joseph McCarthy now and again, a more durable Barry Goldwater, a few open racists from the Old South. But they never got to breakout momentum. What they needed was a broad audience propaganda devoted media. What they found to fill that need was Radio-Right-Wing and FoxNews.
So I'm wondering, if they go back to that siloed, pre-public media stage, whether or not they can maintain the momentum of the moment? Will they go back to inhabiting their traditional small-faction nutjob underbrush, or can they grow their new electronic comm channels into real broad-reach communications and propaganda networks, something with persistent reach beyond the fanatics?
I suppose only time will tell.
(And, of course, there's gonna be the persistent problem going forward of not having a single unifying voice to command all the crazies into assembling in the same fantasy land. And once they get to arguing amongst themselves….)
Trump's "advisors" (so-called by the news outlets who've been using them as unnamed sources) were saying, up until today, that Trump would concede the election after all his wild-ass, long-shot legal challenges were finally settled against him by a unanimous vote of a united session of the Supreme Trumpkins (or somethin' like that).
New word is that the "advisors" are now discovering that Trump will never concede the election to Biden. Ain't gonna happen.
The good news there is that Trump may forget to try to pardon himself. And, less likely but possible, we may be treated to live-action videos of Trump being hauled out of the White House by the Secret Service, a huge agent hoisting him on each side and Trump's feet kicking air all the way. That'd be fun to watch.
Lynnette,
Snow, Jeffrey, snow, that's what I see when I look outside my window.
Ah yes, winter does come quickly on the northern plains, and lasts a long time. I do remember that, too.
As a kid, though, even on the coldest days we were outside playing -- heavy boots, double socks, two pairs of jeans, multiple sweatshirts, massive gloves, and the three-hole ski mask.
Oh man, but that wind from the north could could cut through all of it. Back home, hands in the sink starting with ice-cold water, slowly, slowly, adding warm water.
Jeffrey -- Ningbo, China
*
As you folks may or may not recall, 21 January 2017, the day after Trump's inauguration featured the largest single protest in the entire history of Washington, D.C. The dedicated Trumpkins, not to be outdone, are now trying to organize a protest march on the capital for Biden's inauguration which they hope will match or exceed the first great public showing of resistance to Trump. Politico Trumpkins Forever!!
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Breitbart takes another shot at FoxNews:
"Anyone who is still watching Fox News is being laughed at by
Fox News, and you’re not just being laughed at by Fox News
because you support Trump, you are being laughed at by Fox
News because you are a sucker who still watches Fox News."
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Questions are going around Trumplandia. Where is Mike Pence? Why is he not on the TV screens defending Trump and joining in the howling about "voter fraud"?
(Note to the residents of Trumplandia: Mike Pence is on "family vacation" where he is absorbing and dealing with the news that the 2024 campaign heir to the legacy of Donald Trump is not going to be Mike Pence after all; it's going to be none other than … … … Donald Trump! Trump can run for office from prison, just in case anybody's curious 'bout that. It has been done before.)
Jeffrey,
“ Here's the odd thing. The Chinese don't mind the crap construction. They just tear down the buildings falling apart and build another one that will soon fall apart. It's how they roll here. Everyone gets a job, either in demolition or slap-dash construction. The sound of China is the sound of jackhammers.”
I don’t doubt you as I’ve seen some of it myself. But one has to wonder, how sustainable is it? And if/when the economy collapse and they have no more means to build anew, how the hell are they gonna upkeep their present construction base?
I mean, they’ve been on a boom for decades now and we all know booms inevitably end in a crash.
Trump himself is getting in on the "trash Fox News" bandwagon. He's retweeted over a dozen of the harshest anti-Fox tweets he can find just this morning.
The Secretary of State in Georgia is a Republican, which is perhaps all it takes there. I don't know if I'd expect a state sponsored recount if Trump were winning by 14,112 votes (the margin last time I looked).
Apparently this is the first year of using the automatic ballot counting machines they have so last year when they were installed there was some kind of law/ruling passed requiring a manual recount of ballots in one of the 2020 elections. They chose to do the Presidential election.
The Georgia Secretary of State, Raffensperger, was on CNN and was closely questioned about the recount. Raffensperger said he doesn't expect there to be any change and when asked if he had seen any voter fraud he said no not on any scale that would overturn the election results. I would guess that if for some reason the results are massively different after a manual recount then he will be again very closely questioned.
Georgia is expected to be done with the recount next Friday, Nov. 20.
I'm still waiting on them to finish the first count.
"Lee, Lee, Lee. NO ONE else is here."
Jeffrey @ Wed Nov 11, 08:40 am ↑↑
Ahhh, Jeffrey, they used to be called "lurkers".
News reports currently being largely ignored in favor of concentration on the electoral races include information that the right-wingers and dead-ender Trumpkins are moving by the hundreds of thousands, if not yet by the multiple millions, to "alternate" electronic organizing tools. They're abandoning Facebook and Twitter and Instagram for alternates like "Parler" (pronounced as in the French I would assume), "NewsMax", "WeMe", and "Rumble". link
Probably because some of their former home platforms are now removing content they want to leave up.
There were all sorts of weird-ass right-wing pamphlets circulating,...
I think I remember seeing something like that here. I threw it away. They're probably still out there.
So I'm wondering, if they go back to that siloed, pre-public media stage, whether or not they can maintain the momentum of the moment?
Good question. It will depend on how many viewers they have on those social media sites, I suppose.
New word is that the "advisors" are now discovering that Trump will never concede the election to Biden. Ain't gonna happen.
I think Mike Pompeo gave the first clue when he said he was preparing for a second Trump 4 years. On national TV no less. He belongs in a cell next to Trump.
The good news there is that Trump may forget to try to pardon himself. And, less likely but possible, we may be treated to live-action videos of Trump being hauled out of the White House by the Secret Service, a huge agent hoisting him on each side and Trump's feet kicking air all the way. That'd be fun to watch.
Yes, actually, it would be. Probably not good for the country, but definitely fun to watch.
It does appear that some Senators are having second thoughts on shutting out Biden totally from information. Even that weasel Lindsey Graham is saying Biden should be kept informed.
Gee, ya think?
[Jeffrey] Oh man, but that wind from the north could could cut through all of it. Back home, hands in the sink starting with ice-cold water, slowly, slowly, adding warm water.
I know what you mean! I think I mentioned this before somewhere, I used to come in, take off my boots and socks, which were usually soaked, and sit with my feet on the heating duct until they thawed.
Snowing again today.
Speaking of Lindsey Graham: A contingent of Republican Pennsylvania state congressmen (near'bouts 20 of 'em) have held a public press event just yesterday wherein they called upon the state General Assembly (Republican dominated) to convene and declare Trump to be the winner in Pennsylvania on account of unspecified "corruption".
When asked what he thought about this Lindsey Graham said, "Everything should be on the table."
(This also explains why I said earlier that we needed more than just 270 electoral votes--we needed three out of the four, Nevada, Arizona, Pennsylvania, and Georgia. We've still only got two of the four--we need that third one, sooner the better.)
Jeffrey,
What do you know about Falon Gong? They seem to be behind The Epoch Times, yet there is speculation on that paper's funding. It seems to have deep pockets.
A contingent of Republican Pennsylvania state congressmen (near'bouts 20 of 'em) have held a public press event just yesterday wherein they called upon the state General Assembly (Republican dominated) to convene and declare Trump to be the winner in Pennsylvania on account of unspecified "corruption".
Whoa, is that even legal?
No. But they don't necessarily expect to be stopped at "legal".
As Lindsey Graham said "EVERYTHING is on the table" (emphasis mine)
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