2024 US Elections

[dense rover]

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/joe-biden-drops-out-of-2024-race-exit-comes-amid-growing-pressure-from-top-dems/ar-BB1qmZzl?ocid=winp2fptaskbar&cvid=3e1e65643b1d436c91019a6108643c09&ei=7&sc=shoreline

[drifting marten]

its joever

[fervent ferry]

is this a good or bad thing

[tranquil zephyr]

its joever gang

we're falling out of the coconut tree

[dense rover]

Can’t know until the election has happened but it could be good

All it means now is the Democratic Party has to nominate someone else

[balmy harbor]

i take it that they hadn't settled on a candidate yet, right?

[gritty gazelle]

i would think it’s harris right

[topaz umbra]

My guess is it would be Harris

[dense rover]

There won’t be an official nominee until the democratic national convention, but Harris has most of the mainstream party support and Biden endorsed her

[gritty gazelle]

yeah that’s what i was thinking

DNC is in august or something right

[dense rover]

August 19-22

28 days

Since Biden has all of the delegates from the primaries and he dropped out, it’s gonna be an open convention unless they do some lightning round of primaries or some shit but I doubt it

[simple kraken]

its joever

[dense rover]

You’re too late

Got beat to it

[simple kraken]

oh lucas did it

at least I changed my pfp

[gritty gazelle]

i definitely like this crop of potential candidates

i think there are a few great choices

although from what i’m gathering it sounds like whitmer and newsom don’t even want to run

i wonder if that’s actually true or if they’re just saying that

[frosty ledge]

i’d much rather whitmer over newsom

[gritty gazelle]

you're the one who lives in california so i'm inclined to trust your opinion

what's wrong with newsom though

[dense rover]

I honestly don't get what some people dislike about Newsom. I just hear people say they do

[gritty gazelle]

i hear that centrists and moderates think california is like "too progressive" or something

which could be why

idk

not sure of the dynamic there

[cosmic arrow]

if they cant complain about old men, what are they gonna complain about

[gritty gazelle]

i definitely like these potential candidates more than like

biden/warren/sanders though

[cosmic arrow]

I freaking love bernie

[gritty gazelle]

well just because biden/warren/sanders are all old as shit

[cosmic arrow]

I wish he was much younger but I would vote for him

[gritty gazelle]

harris is 59, whitmer is 52, newsom is 56

much better

[cosmic arrow]

honestly doesn't feel like harris is that old

[dense rover]

Yeah I mostly mean why people who don't lean to the right dislike him. Usually seems like people who either are already republicans/conservatives or kids whose parents are

The latter mostly because even if they hold different views they still are coming of age while seeing the dude only ever portrayed in a negative light at home so it becomes disliking them jsut based on vibes

[frosty ledge]

during covid, him and his family would be out doing things he told all of us not to do

that was really fucking annoying

[dense rover]

Yeah I remember that

[frosty ledge]

his kids got to go to school, his family got to go shopping, he got to go to work, while the rest of us are stuck inside

and then he’s sending out videos the next day telling us we can’t do the same?

[gritty gazelle]

i'd never heard of that

that's dumb

[dense rover]

It was pretty dumb and I think of it pretty much every time I see him, I guess it just doesn't seem like a priority over policy

[frosty ledge]

also he’s the guy who pushed for california communities to restrict certain dog breeds

i do not fw that

i guess my reasons are pretty minor

but i’m not as much of a fan of his as i am gretchen whitmer

[gritty gazelle]

i don't even think whitmer wants to run though right

like i had said

[dense rover]

Not openly right now I don't think

[gritty gazelle]

who else could possibly contest harris honestly

i don't think anyone like buttigieg is running this time

[dense rover]

I think for both Newsom and Whitmer it's more of a case where people want them to run, they haven't said there's a chance they will or anything

[gritty gazelle]

yeah

i guess there's like

marianne williamson but yeah that's not happening

[lucid zephyr]

Wait so Biden dropped out of the election right also Trump so that means we are going to have to vote for a new president in 2025

[dense rover]

Newsom and Whitmer are really popular and not a part of the old guard D leadership that holds onto the status quo

[dense rover]

Trump didn't drop out of anything

[lucid zephyr]

Oh no 😯

[dense rover]

Biden dropping out just means he won't be the Democratic candidate on the ballot

[lucid zephyr]

We are fuck

[dense rover]

This November

They have to pick a new one

Trump isn't running unopposed

Read the link up top please

[lucid zephyr]

Ah okok thanks

[dense rover]

It sounds like you're saying all this without knowing any election context so start there

[gritty gazelle]

yeah this is why party conventions are held

[drifting marten]

i dont like any of these people except jb pritzker and gretchen whitmer

[gritty gazelle]

to pick the presidential candidates

[gritty gazelle]

you don't like harris?

[drifting marten]

shes fine

i mean i dont really like anyone in american politics im a marxist but there is a degree to which i like some politicians more

some are closer to democratic socialists than others

(and social democrats)

if we were a normal country we would have an actual social democracy party like pretty much every european country

[gritty gazelle]

even with my being an anarchist i'm past the point of being like "these candidates aren't extremely far left so i automatically dislike them"

[drifting marten]

i dont like them ill still vote for them

[gritty gazelle]

with US democracy quite literally being at stake i think that's a dumb take

[drifting marten]

i never said i wont vote for them

i will

[gritty gazelle]

yeah

[drifting marten]

my top 3 picks would be jb pritzker gretchen whitmer and andy beshear

[dense rover]

Why Pritzker over Newsom

[frosty ledge]

is he a pritzker like hyatt hotels pritzker

[drifting marten]

i think pritzker has done a better job helping the unhoused population and not ceding to certain neoliberal policies in a lot of cases

and i just like pritzker more

as a person

hes a big funny guy

[drifting marten]

yes

[frosty ledge]

i love funny presidents

[lucid zephyr]

Same here

[drifting marten]

jb pritzker has also been more pro union than newsom

[gritty gazelle]

might be a bit out there but do you think pritzker's "big business" image could help to sway more moderate voters as well

[drifting marten]

maybe?

not sure

i dont think he'll be picked but thats just one of my top choices lol

[gritty gazelle]

would he be a likely candidate for VP or no

[drifting marten]

i dont think so

idk

[gritty gazelle]

i've heard josh shapiro floated around as the candidate for VP

[drifting marten]

i read a leak that the Harris VP shortlist is Mark Kelly, Andy Beshear, and Roy Cooper

[gritty gazelle]

would help the democrat vote in pennsylvania

oh interesting

kelly would help the dems in arizona

so that's not a bad pick

[drifting marten]

i have connections with mark kelly's staff...

i would have connections with the VP

[gritty gazelle]

beshear is from kentucky, that would be a smart pick too honestly

[drifting marten]

ehhh idk

kentucky is not really in play

like the dems are not gonna win kentucky

[gritty gazelle]

i guess not

[drifting marten]

i think the only reason andy beshear is governor is because his dad was also governor

[gritty gazelle]

the fact that there are states that vote red federally but have democratic governors confuses me to no end

yeah that makes sense

[dense rover]

Gubernatorial elections often don't line up with presidential elections

Turnout can be way different

[gritty gazelle]

ok yeah that's true as well

[dense rover]

And also democratic governors might not align fully with the national party

[gritty gazelle]

same thing happens in canada, my district always votes liberal federally but conservative provincially

or no i think it's the other way around

[dense rover]

John Bel Edwards was governor of Louisiana, a democrat, but he only held that position because he was pretty conservative and anti-abortion

[gritty gazelle]

i'd have to see

[gritty gazelle]

oh yeah

[dense rover]

State governor elections just do their own thing really. A lot of registered republicans voted to reelect Beshear

And Vermont has a republican governor that is pretty popular

Vermont is not a conservative state

But neither is their republican governor

Kind harkens back to the old system of parties having liberal and conservative wings that vary more regionally than along party lines like now, like I was talking about earlier

[gritty gazelle]

that also makes sense

[dense rover]

They're also not given the importance and media dominance that federal elections get, so it can maybe be a little less heated

[gritty gazelle]

this for sure happens in canada

the ontario conservative party has a different platform than the alberta conservatives, alberta conservatives even have a different party name

ontario liberals also differ a lot from federal liberals

so it makes sense

of course i'm not very familiar with US politics at state levels

[dense rover]

Yeah every state has its own parties that are just affiliated with the federal ones, like that

The governor of Minnesota is a member of the Minnesota DFL party

The Democratic-Farmer-Labor party

But they’re affiliated with the Democratic Party nationally

And is also a bit more left leaning than the national party

[gritty gazelle]

yeah i've read about that

very interesting

i think in alberta their conservative party is the UCP

united conservative party

in ontario it's the PC party

progressive conservatives

and actually alberta doesn't have a liberal party at all, of course that's the other "main" party in canadian politics

their last election was between the UCP and NDP, which is the third most popular party in canada

[drifting marten]

https://x.com/zavalaa/status/1815102377659449751?s=46

Ashley Zavala (@ZavalaA) on X

JUST IN: Gov. Newsom cancels his appearance at U.S. Ninth Circuit judicial conference scheduled in Sacramento tomorrow.

No reason provided by organizers of the event, waiting to hear back from his office.

Twitter · Jul 21, 2024, 7:11 PM

[gritty gazelle]

what does this mean

not the tweet

but like is there a larger impact to his doing that

[drifting marten]

Idk

Like why did he cancel

[gritty gazelle]

yeah

[dense rover]

The timing of it

That’s why it’s newsworthy

Biden drops and Newsom cancels his appearance at a speaking event? Probably a coincidence, might not be, may as well report on it

[gritty gazelle]

maybe it's so he can make an in person statement about biden dropping

i know he already said something on twitter

but idk

[steel vale]

So does this mean he’s not going to be in the 2024 elections in November?

[dense rover]

That’s right

[gritty gazelle]

so @dense rover do you think michigan goes red or blue this election

[dense rover]

Sadly close but I think now with Biden out it will be clue

[drifting marten]

https://x.com/cnn/status/1815160597232632091?s=46 lmao

CNN (@CNN) on X

Sen. Joe Manchin, a West Virginia independent, says he's considering re-registering as a Democrat and running for president, sources say.

Follow live updates: https://t.co/s22ZA3d9WM

Twitter · Jul 21, 2024, 11:03 PM

[dense rover]

Jesus christ fuck no

Hate him

[drifting marten]

I think the Democratic Party generally hates him as well

[gritty gazelle]

i was talking to someone else from michigan and they seem to think it's pretty much locked up as red

so i wanted another opinion

[dense rover]

Definitely not locked up

Curious what that's based on

[drifting marten]

depends what Harris says on Israel
Harris is not AS ardent on Israel compared to Biden

[gritty gazelle]

said something about if michigan doesn't change its stance on palestine they're solidly red

or something

[dense rover]

New definition of solid

[gritty gazelle]

apparently so

i was making my own projection for the election

but i'm not sure about some states

[dense rover]

That's why I think Biden dropping will make it more likely Michigan stays blue

[gritty gazelle]

i think with my limited knowledge it's too early to tell

[dense rover]

The voting base definitely is

See: every statewide elected office and majority of congresspeople

But they need more of the Dearborn vote for sure

But I think they're making the right moves for that

The whole situation is they need to get Michigan voters to show up and they haven't wanted to show up for Biden

[drifting marten]

Biden dropping objectively helps Michigan go blue

[dense rover]

Yep

[gritty gazelle]

this is a projection that my sibling made, a lot of this is based on assumptions from how 2020 went with a few changes

this is if the ticket turns out to be specifically harris-shapiro, hence the dems winning in PA

[simple kraken]

If he is an indepedent ofc the party that he left is gonna hate him

smae thing happened with rfk

[drifting marten]

I don’t think Georgia will be blue

[dense rover]

Needed to happen for Michigan and I think we'll see a big difference in the polls. But the only poll that matters is november and I think people ultimately vote blue here

[drifting marten]

No it’s because he’s an idiot

[dense rover]

They hated him before he left

[drifting marten]

Bernie sanders is an independent but he’s actually good so we like him

[gritty gazelle]

after they made it we both agreed that it probably won't be

that's the first amendment to our projection

we thought because georgia was blue in 2020 it may have carried over even with the slim margin

[simple kraken]

yeah Because he always stood up for his values as a person

[gritty gazelle]

i think if harris does some decent campaigning in georgia they could get the number up

[drifting marten]

He has bad values

[simple kraken]

thats subjective

[dense rover]

If by values you mean by the fossil fuel lobby's money in his pocket

He belongs with the republican party if he wants to be with one so bad

[simple kraken]

thats like saying joe biden is the most homophobic person on earth

[dense rover]

That makes no sense

[simple kraken]

yeah thats the point

[drifting marten]

What

Your comparison makes no sense

[dense rover]

Just stop talking if you want an unproductive conversation, I'm not having it

[simple kraken]

What do you guys think of Mark Kelly?

[drifting marten]

He's my senator

[simple kraken]

same

[drifting marten]

I met with his staff the other day

[simple kraken]

I knew someone who knew him

[drifting marten]

I think he's a nice guy

Even if i dont agree with him on everything

[simple kraken]

yeah he is definently a moderate

[gritty gazelle]

omw to vote for the prohibition party

[simple kraken]

lol

I heard about that lmao

no one would vote to take alchoal away

besides priests and 50 year old minor threat fans who have X tatooed on them and only consume green smoothies

[gritty gazelle]

looking at american third parties is very funny

the no labels party

even though that party no longer exists

the niche single-issue parties like the prohibition party are by far the funniest

the "legal marijuana now" party is another great one

[simple kraken]

yeah Definently the funniest

we need a race between the legal marijuana party and prohibition party

[gritty gazelle]

canada has a couple of single issue parties

animal protection party, marijuana party

[simple kraken]

I guess the green party is kind of a single issue party

[gritty gazelle]

there's also "free party canada" which runs on a platform of vaccine hesitancy

[simple kraken]

but they have more policy stances

[simple kraken]

Yeah Justin Trudeau is doing porly in Canada

[gritty gazelle]

everyone hates trudeau equally pretty much

[simple kraken]

like extremley porly so I wonder what weird party will take his place

[gritty gazelle]

conservatives will win in a landslide

[simple kraken]

are you candian

[gritty gazelle]

that has been projected for like two years now

i am indeed canadian

which is why i brought up their single issue parties

[simple kraken]

yeah all the candians I know dont like Trudeau

[gritty gazelle]

left wing, right wing

everyone hates trudeau

[simple kraken]

yeah one of them is from BC and hates trudeau

[gritty gazelle]

the only people that like him are people who don't care enough about politics to have an informed opinion

liberal voters dislike trudeau

projection for the 2025 canadian election, 172 seats required for a majority

cpc is canada's conservative party obviously

[simple kraken]

yeah I predicted that

Im honestly suprised bro still in power after 9 years

or however long

[gritty gazelle]

canada's conservatives are nowhere near as batshit insane as US republicans but still not anywhere close to an ideal outcome

NDP victory would be the best but NDP has never won a federal election in its history

[simple kraken]

candian conservatives and liberals are diffrent from the american ones

[gritty gazelle]

BQ is a quebec separatist party and they're only on the ballot in quebec

so they don't really count

but quebec always has a majority BQ vote

[simple kraken]

lol

[gritty gazelle]

and then of course green party is in last

[simple kraken]

what province you from

[gritty gazelle]

ontario

[simple kraken]

lol thats the most populus so that makes sense

do people in Yukon,NWT and Nunuvut vote?

[gritty gazelle]

yes

obviously

[simple kraken]

yeah its more apart of canada

while us territories are lslands like guam and puerto rico

[gritty gazelle]

yeah the canadian territories don't have any sovereignty but still have representation in federal government

nunavut, yukon and NWT have one senator each

and one seat each in the house

the entire territory counts as one district, so all of nunavut is only one district

whereas ontario has considerably more

[simple kraken]

yeah bro Nunuvut has less people than probaly town in ontario that ive never herd of

[gritty gazelle]

this dude is arguing that a third party vote in this election is not a wasted vote

and it's making my head hurt

keeps going on about how "you're rejecting the system"

by voting for a third party

when there is no room to be doing that in this election

[simple kraken]

who

[gritty gazelle]

well they're from another server

so i didn't want to say anything about the specific person here

[simple kraken]

can I speak to him

[gritty gazelle]

no

i'm not letting you do that

i can't let you in to the server

it's specifically for something involved with my university and anyone who doesn't go to the school isn't allowed in for privacy reasons

[simple kraken]

oh makes sense

I wish I could talk to him

he seems based

[gritty gazelle]

also this person is saying project 2025 doesn't matter because the US is "already fascist"

i want to punch something

how are people this fucking stupid

[drifting marten]

Newsom endorsed Kamala

I wish a 3rd party vote was an actual competitive vote

[gritty gazelle]

oh this person is also using israel-palestine as their single issue for this election

holy fuck man

not voting for dems because they also support israel

get your head out of your ass like holy shit

so annoying

why is a conflict on the other side of the world more important than domestic issues

[gritty gazelle]

and now they're saying a third party has more chance of winning the election than democrats do

what a giant waste of time

that made it obvious they were just trolling

[drifting marten]

I’m not gonna comment on this bc im just gonna make everyone mad

I am optimistic about Harris making at least some changes to Israel policy though

Hopefully

[dense rover]

Choose your battles

[gritty gazelle]

you are at least more level-headed than the other person i was talking to

and i respect your opinion a lot more because you have significantly less tunnel vision about it

[simple kraken]

Harris served under governor Jerry Brown

the same Jerry brown from California Uber Alles by the Dead Kennedeys

[cosmic arrow]

holy hell

[gritty gazelle]

yeah they're one of those people

[gritty gazelle]

then more people joined the conversation to attack me for saying that doing this is dumb

you can care about that as well as caring about domestic policy

which is why a dem vote is better

it is very easy to understand

[dense rover]

He served as governor two different times really far apart

Interesting California political history

[simple kraken]

yeah its weird

[gritty gazelle]

would israel-palestine be considered a top issue in the coming election

i would have to say for the majority of voters, probably not, right

let's face it i don't actually think the majority of white voters care enough to say it's a top issue

and that's the largest demographic

[drifting marten]

Enough to lose Michigan

[gritty gazelle]

talking to someone who has family in dearborn it sounds like they're not really sure

that they will likely vote blue but they can't say for certain

would losing michigan cost them the election though

if shapiro is VP they have pennsylvania

and tbh i think they take georgia too

dems have had a lot of momentum in GA over the past few years, won a lot of municipal elections

and they did turn out blue in 2020 so there's that precedent

[simple kraken]

all my family in michigan is blue besides one person

[cosmic arrow]

complete opposite of my fam except the only blue person is me

but in different states

[simple kraken]

yeah one of the only two who isnt pro blue

I dont look at CNN

[gritty gazelle]

CNN sucks donkey dick anyway

didn’t they get bought out by some republican bootlicker

[cosmic arrow]

probably. I dont keep up with any of that media

[dense rover]

CNN is owned by Warner Discovery, giant media conglomerate

Founded by Ted Turner who is not a republican but he's not really involved anymore

[topaz umbra]

I don’t watch the news

[dense rover]

CNN is just part of a massive media group and pushes whatever stories and narratives will make the most money under the facade of being liberal/moderate leaning

Or at least they continue to pull that off by not being batshit insane like fox

[gritty gazelle]

yeah i know of ted turner, i thought i read that CNN was bought out by some other dude

i can’t find a source on it now since it was some reddit comment

[dense rover]

Their parent company has gone through multiple mergers with other giant media corps in the last decade but CNN hadn't been bought by anyone

They've been owned by Warner for like 40 years

[gritty gazelle]

i see

they also could have been talking about the president of the network specifically or something

i’m not sure

[dense rover]

I think they're probably just misinformed

[drifting marten]

No I heard something like this too

I forget the details

[dense rover]

I'm fine with hating on networks but let's use facts with sources to do it

[drifting marten]

I'm just saying I definitely read about this as well from reliable sources like a year ago

[dense rover]

As of right now it makes no sense to me with what I can read online about CNN's corporate structure

[drifting marten]

It was this, when Warner Bros. discovery got a new owner who wanted an overhaul https://www.vox.com/2022/8/26/23322761/cnn-john-malone-david-zaslav-chris-licht-brian-stelter-fox-peter-kafka-column

Idk the details

Don’t get mad at me if its a bad article

Anyway, it looks like Andy Beshear will NOT be VP https://x.com/newswire_us/status/1815561299734003853?s=46

NewsWire (@NewsWire_US) on X

Harris campaign requests vetting materials from potential running mates, including Cooper (NC), Kelly (AZ), Shapiro (PA), Whitmer (MI), Walz (MN) and Pritzker (IL) - Beshear (KY) not included - WSJ reporter, citing sources

Twitter · Jul 23, 2024, 1:35 AM

[idle rune]

i think itd be cool for the US to finally have a female president

[dense rover]

Oh someone on the board of directors

[cosmic arrow]

honestly will be amazing

[gritty gazelle]

yeah that was what i was talking about

my brain was just not working

john malone, that's who it was

[gritty gazelle]

i hope it's shapiro

[drifting marten]

I hope not

I hope it’s Beshear but unfortunately I don’t think it will be

Based on the news I’ve seen

https://x.com/newswire_us/status/1815760854408626491?s=46

NewsWire (@NewsWire_US) on X

Gov. Josh Shapiro (D-PA) and Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) are said to be leading VP candidates for Harris - ABC News

Twitter · Jul 23, 2024, 2:48 PM

[steel vale]

Anyone else kinda find it weird that we haven’t heard a word from him ever since he dropped out?

[dense rover]

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/joe-biden-drops-out-oval-office-speech/

[steel vale]

I stand corrected

[drifting marten]

It’s not gonna be Shapiro https://x.com/isaiah_bb/status/1815898400631710162?s=46

Isi Breen (@isaiah_bb) on X

Did not know about this until today but it seems like exactly the kind of thing you wouldn’t want to be floating around while you talk about how Donald Trump is a rapist.

Twitter · Jul 23, 2024, 11:54 PM

[gritty gazelle]

womp womp

is it gonna be kelly then

i really don't know

[drifting marten]

i dont think so, he's getting hammered rn and the unions arent endorsing a ticket with Kelly because he was one of the only democratic senators to not sponsor the PRO act (Protecting the right to organize)

i think its going to be ANDY BESHEAR and I AM HAPPY WITH THAT

FINAL ANSWER

(or roy cooper but beshear is cooler)

[gritty gazelle]

harris/beshear also just flows well as a campaign ticket

which means nothing but is something i like to think about

dole/kemp was a great one

bush/cheney is a classic

[drifting marten]

My choices from best to worst:

Beshear
Walz
Pritzker
Cooper
Kelly
Shapiro

Hopefully im not missing anyone

[simple kraken]

I hope its kelly cause astronaunts are cool

[simple kraken]

shapiro and kelly are best fron her strategy

north carolina could go blue with cooper but thats a big gamble for the dems and wont be a gurantee

pennslyvania has more electoral votes but kelly has high moderate appeal and has a low amount of things to hate on as a politician

[drifting marten]

Beshear

im telling you

he has that southern appeal

that makes him look like a centrist dem while actually being super progressive

shapiro will make her lose michigan

undoubtedly

Kelly doesnt have Union backing

[simple kraken]

I think the dems would be better trying to get the rust belt and the two swing states our west

[simple kraken]

Eh kentucky will go red anways so they shouldnt waste there time and that will only slightly boost georgia and north carolina votes

[dense rover]

Beshear probably does more good as the democratic governor of Kentucky than he would as VP

Not that I’d be against him at all he’s great, I’m just hesitant on pulling him away from the really important role he already plays

[drifting marten]

I mean i think all the governors on this list are great except for Shapiro

[drifting marten]

this is what I mean man https://x.com/_austinhorn/status/1816126942208311543?s=46

Austin Horn (@_AustinHorn) on X

Beshear was the most popular among Democrats (93%) and Republicans (54%) of any Democratic governor.

Among GOP voters, he led the second-closest, Laura Kelly of Kansas, by 11 points.

https://t.co/9cQGQL6cJD

Twitter · Jul 24, 2024, 3:02 PM

[tranquil zephyr]

https://youtu.be/BL56ypy2Vn0

[gritty gazelle]

i know it doesn’t mean anything right now but 👀

[tranquil zephyr]

crazy coming from fox news

[cosmic arrow]

I feel very confident. but all you need to VOTE. we need every single vote

make sure you are registered

[idle rune]

nuh uh

[dense rover]

Please don’t troll this channel

[idle rune]

troll?

ight

[tranquil zephyr]

ill be able to vote this year by like 1.5ish months

[balmy harbor]

How excited r u

[tranquil zephyr]

uhhh idk

[gritty gazelle]

people should be excited to vote

[balmy harbor]

I was so excited to vote for the first time in the U.K. GE in 2019

[dense rover]

Voting rules, I love directly participating in politics and government

[balmy harbor]

Don't forget to also get involved in local politics

Vote for your council

Advocate for candidates working on issues in your area

[dense rover]

I don't have a council but yes

[balmy harbor]

Whatever the equivalent is

[slow pumice]

my immediate reaction was 'letting the media tell you what to do is terrible' but I see how fd the Rs are now. Nice on them to spend 4y demonizing age and not considering the possibility that Joe would drop out.

[gritty gazelle]

something funny i saw is that republicans don’t really have an answer if you just call trump weird

he paints himself orange, that’s weird

he elected a couch fucker as his VP, that’s weird

[slow pumice]

i fucking love this

[gritty gazelle]

he told christians they won’t have to vote anymore, that’s weird

trolling biden for his age but the man can’t complete a full sentence, that’s weird

he has so many odd quirks and mannerisms

[slow pumice]

i love that Harris & her surrogates are just being fucking honest about how weird all of the GOP is. I'd add 'creepy' but calling a spade a spade works.

[slow pumice]

there is something seriously wrong with that man's brain

[gritty gazelle]

the “threat to democracy” stuff isn’t gonna work on them, they don’t care about that

but who wants to vote for the VP that was 100% the weird kid in school

they wanna be on the winning side

ego boost and all that

if you plant the seed that trump is weird and unsettling they’ll have doubts

[slow pumice]

their whole shtick is being Strong & Tough - and yet they're so pathetic that they can't handled being laughed at. Too bad this was not figured out in 2016.

[gritty gazelle]

republicans spend more time drilling people about where they go to the bathroom than their own party platform, that’s weird

i could go on and on

[slow pumice]

and there have to be Fox viewers who see Buttigieg say 'He's a liar and I don't believe him' who respect the honesty

[gritty gazelle]

governor of minnesota just straight up called trump and vance weird and it’s gaining so much traction

[slow pumice]

100%. They're the dogs who finally caught the delivery truck and dunno what to do next

[gritty gazelle]

this strategy works best in the midwest where being anything other than normal is the biggest sin of all

[slow pumice]

i didnt know jack about him (i'm Murican, after all) but he seems like he might be a good Veep

[gritty gazelle]

also saying “he’s not from here” about vance who claims to be from the hills of kentucky but wrote that awful book about “hillbillies” and now has zero popularity in appalachia

that goes a long way

[slow pumice]

i also love 'We're Not Going Back,' that's something people can get behind because, again, it's truth. Way better than 'No malarkey' 🙄

[gritty gazelle]

small things like this may actually make the difference over saying trump is a threat to the safety of every american or whatever doomsday stuff you can come up with

because it’s true but again conservatives don’t give a single fuck

[slow pumice]

Vance read his own book for the audiobook and HE PRONOUNCES APPALACHIA WRONG. Everyone in appalachia who knows he exists is aware that he's an outsider.

[gritty gazelle]

and that’s an area that may have had strong trump support

sounds like it may be dwindling

i think the republicans may already be resting on their laurels, dems need to hit em where it hurts

[slow pumice]

it's like crying wolf at this point, democracy was gonna end in 2020 if Joe didn't win, that aint gonna work again. Especially not with the media 100% pro-fascism

[gritty gazelle]

the whole “they go low we go high” is too soft of an approach and i’m glad the dems are shifting from that

[slow pumice]

Joe was too nice, I love the brutal honesty in the messaging since Harris took over.

'He's old & weird' is much, much more effective than 'Vote for SCOTUS' or somesuch

[gritty gazelle]

basically the strategy is to just point and laugh

[slow pumice]

(as an informed voter 'vote for SCOTUS' works for me but I'm not the one who needs convincing)

[slow pumice]

i will laugh at them until the cows come home.

which is, like, forever because i dont own any cows

[gritty gazelle]

they’re all spineless and pathetic, who do you think is gonna stand up to putin

harris? or the guy who’s been sucking putin’s dick for ages

that one can work on moderate republicans that don’t support russia but i think those might be few and far between

vance can’t do shit to anyone either, that guy would lose to a fifth grader in a sparring match

what’s he gonna do

[slow pumice]

i honestly think they planned Joe dropping out after Vance was picked. Trump will never, ever admit he's wrong so he won't take Vance off the ticket. But I can totally see him hiring a hitman to 'force Vance off the ticket'

[dense rover]

He also basically can't take vance off the ticket

Technically can but ballot deadlines loom

[slow pumice]

and it's awesome that his dumb-ass kids convinced him to pick Vance. I love how confident they are despite being dumb af.

[dense rover]

And it would be a massive blow to momentum to have a ballot shakeup after the convention

[gritty gazelle]

showing people vance’s comments about trump from 2016 is a good one too

that guy has zero backbone

[slow pumice]

until Joe dropped out I was feeling very pessimistic. now i'm thinking we have a chance to right the ship.

(however I still want to move to Europe)

[gritty gazelle]

i’m not even american but i’ve never been so invested in any election as i am with this one

[dense rover]

Also addressing a bit of an old comment but I don't think voting blue no matter who to stop trump and republican party is doing what the media tells you, you don't need the media to realize that

It's not a baseless narrative

If anything voting for trump would be that sort of thing

[slow pumice]

that's how we know you're not american, because you understand the stakes. Most of us americans are too busy watching TV & tiktok to realize how close democracy is to ending.

[dense rover]

People are growing more conscious of it though. The messaging is getting to be effective, there's a reason why Trump is "distancing" himself from project 2025

And I'm pretty sure the director of it stepping aside to day is manufactured too because they know it's unpopular

[slow pumice]

People overreact to 'being told what to do.' Sometimes it's the right thing to do no matter who the hell is telling you.

[gritty gazelle]

even trying to distance himself from project 2025 he said “i wish them luck in everything they do”

and notice they never mention the heritage foundation part of it

[dense rover]

It's not being told what to do it's being presented with facts and the right choice is obvious when you consider the reality of the situation

[dense rover]

Yep

Because the heritage foundation is their policymaker

[slow pumice]

nice try from the Chump but Harris & co are not gonna let that old weirdo distance himself

[dense rover]

The heritage foundation basically wrote the republican party platform, they're so deeply connected they don't even try to lie and say they aren't which is impressive for the republicans

[slow pumice]

i wonder how magats would feel if they knew all the shit they were supporting was all from the Heritage Foundation. Then again, their cognitive dissonance is off the charts.

[dense rover]

I'm sure they'd be fine with it

[gritty gazelle]

even as far back as reagan it’s entirely been the construction of the heritage foundation

[dense rover]

The republican party just doesn't want to have to try and distance themselves

That's why it doesn't get mentioned

[slow pumice]

more proof you're not american 😆

[dense rover]

It's way easier to scapegoat the project 2025 label as if that's at all an independent thing

[slow pumice]

true dat

[dense rover]

Buzzword

[gritty gazelle]

i hope democrats don’t start resting on their laurels thinking they’ve done all they need to

the pressure needs to be sustained all the way to election day

i really don’t know what republicans can come back with at this point

also trump backing out of debates? weird as hell

spineless

harris should totally go even if he doesn’t

power move

[dense rover]

Yeah like Jon Ossoff did in the Georgia senate race in 2020

Solo debate

Basically a roast of who he was running to unseat

[gritty gazelle]

i can’t wait to see vance try and debate someone too

he’ll back out of course

but i can only imagine

[slow pumice]

i hope some of the old guard retire, all of the ones who wouldn't do stuff like investigate the GOP because they don't have the numbers to pass anything. Getting the truth out matters.

[slow pumice]

i bet he does worse than Dan Quayle.

[gritty gazelle]

mark kelly would be a nice VP candidate

him being a former astronaut and navy captain should definitely score him some points compared to vance

[dense rover]

Mark Kelly would get all the straight white dude points

[cosmic arrow]

I hope it's either mark kelly, pete, or shapiro

[dense rover]

I wish I could but I don't have faith in a black woman and gay man ticket

[gritty gazelle]

yeah the straight white dude vote is still important

there’s even a campaign called white dudes for harris

which is pretty funny

and much needed

[slow pumice]

this is the sad truth

[cosmic arrow]

that's something I was curious. ok take pete off for now, maybe next time

[slow pumice]

very much so! and they got suspended by Qlon for unspecified 'policy violations' which is nonsense

[gritty gazelle]

elon is a piss baby

[slow pumice]

that might be generous

[gritty gazelle]

free speech but only for maga idiots

[cosmic arrow]

Is there anything bad about shapiro? from what I've seen, he's really good at speeches (I dont know anything about him)

[gritty gazelle]

i think some people don’t like his stance on israel palestine or something

also i think there was something involving a sexual assault scandal with his adviser

or something like that

trying to not sound certain about any of that because i don’t know off the top of my head

[cosmic arrow]

that might be something maga would use to attack probably

[gritty gazelle]

they can’t really fight either of those, anyone can just whip out any of trump’s sexual assault scandals

and their stance on israel palestine is “israel should finish the job”

i think kelly is the best choice all around

i thought shapiro before but no i think it should be kelly

[cosmic arrow]

I know but I'm thinking more that they will say "well you can't blame trump for SA when your VP pick is also"

yeah kelly seems like a good pick

[gritty gazelle]

i was more thinking if they went after shapiro first then dems could be like “look at your own presidential candidate”

i don’t really think that would swing anyone’s opinion though

honestly

the situation seems to have been resolved

and it wasn’t even shapiro himself

[cosmic arrow]

yeah that's true. I can't wait to find out which one she picks

the suspense

[slow pumice]

i don't think they care. They're all fascists so people imposing their will on someone else is to be expected, which is why they need to not simply be defeated but ground into dust

if they attack Shapiro the response be simple stuff like 'he's not old & weird like Trump' and just put them on the defensive

[gritty gazelle]

they’re used to pushing people around all the time so they can dish it but not take it

keep them on the back foot

[cosmic arrow]

https://tenor.com/view/i-got-to-say-its-weird-colin-jost-saturday-night-live-its-strange-its-unusual-gif-21183179

[drifting marten]

Kelly and Shapiro are the two i want the least

And i even have connections with Kelly

But

It should be Beshear or Walz

Kelly would also open up a senate seat in a swing state which wouldn’t be good

[gritty gazelle]

well i guess

[drifting marten]

Kelly or Shapiro would kill all the progressive momentum they have rn

[gritty gazelle]

if you’re looking at it from every angle then perhaps not

[drifting marten]

There’s so much young progressive momentum for Kamala rn

That I haven’t seen in so long

[gritty gazelle]

they do need to bring in the moderate vote though

[drifting marten]

Since like Bernie

Walz and beshear (especially Beshear) appeal to that white moderate vote just by the way they act

Idk how to explain it

But like Beshear is a devout Christian

Who won in Kentucky

[gritty gazelle]

looking at keeping the progressive momentum how are they different than the other two

kelly’s positions seem fine

[drifting marten]

But VP picks don’t usually change things that much

[gritty gazelle]

he’s not a conservative democrat

[drifting marten]

Kelly is way more of a moderate

He refused to vote for the PRO act on the principle that he wouldn’t vote for anything that didn’t have bipartisan support

(Protecting the right to organize)

Even though pretty much every Democrat except Sinema and manchin voted for it

[gritty gazelle]

oh that’s strange

[drifting marten]

He is regarded as one of the more centrist democrats

[gritty gazelle]

i get it in a way but still

[drifting marten]

Which makes sense being from Arizona

[gritty gazelle]

what about shapiro

he seems more progressive

[drifting marten]

He is more than Kelly but still not great. He is in support of school choice and has been an advocate for charter and private schools, among other bad policies. My friend from Pennsylvania who worked on his campaign has told me he’s been a disappointment

(Also this isn’t even mentioning how he compared Palestine protestors to the KKK and said many other horrible things about Palestine)

[gritty gazelle]

i wasn’t aware of all of that

[drifting marten]

Again VP picks usually don’t matter unless they’re astonishingly bad (like JD Vance) which is another reason why I think she should pick someone progressive

[gritty gazelle]

that sucks

[gritty gazelle]

and yeah this is true

school choice is such a god awful position to hold

[drifting marten]

Also Josh Shapiro covered up sexual harassment in his office which is why I don’t think she’ll pick him

[gritty gazelle]

and yeah the palestine comments are way too extreme

[drifting marten]

That’s a scandal waiting to blow up

Especially when ur running against trump

Kelly would be best for my career prospects because of my connections with his office but I still don’t want him 😆

I also don’t think he has enough experience

He’s only been a senator for a couple years

I read that Kamala said she is looking for someone who knows how to govern and with experience

A governor would balance out Kamala’s senator experience

[gritty gazelle]

that’s a good point

i feel like beshear would be a great pick in that case

even researching shapiro and kelly i didn’t really find anything bad about either of them

so that’s interesting

[drifting marten]

https://x.com/thehill/status/1818339791668211820?s=46

The Hill (@thehill) on X

Progressives urge Harris to consider Andy Beshear, Tim Walz for VP, not Josh Shapiro https://t.co/VtcuOANXun

Twitter · Jul 30, 2024, 5:36 PM

[drifting marten]

https://x.com/newswire_us/status/1818446265652310112?s=46 it’s fucking joever

NewsWire (@NewsWire_US) on X

Harris to hold first rally with running mate on Tuesday in Philadelphia: Politico

Twitter · Jul 31, 2024, 12:39 AM

But a campaign aide has cautioned reading too much into it

[drifting marten]

https://x.com/newswire_us/status/1818612602739495180?s=46 kellymaniacs…did we just lose?

NewsWire (@NewsWire_US) on X

Harris campaign presses Wall Street donors to cut their checks ASAP, citing financial rule that bars contributions to tickets featuring a sitting governor - Axios

Twitter · Jul 31, 2024, 11:40 AM

[drifting marten]

https://x.com/taxnotes/status/1818693142796698053?s=46 more bad shit from Shapiro

Tax Notes (@TaxNotes) on X

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (@GovernorShapiro) reaffirmed support for business tax cuts when asked whether they contradict the Biden administration’s efforts to raise corporate taxes.

Read more from @alexrifaat: https://t.co/9VNhHBuw7s

Twitter · Jul 31, 2024, 5:00 PM

[gritty gazelle]

boooo

yeah he can suck it for that

[slow pumice]

That's some bullshit, unless they are specifically talking about small businesses.

I suspect it's gonna be the MN governor, he has been killing it every time he's on tv

[gritty gazelle]

loving how much republicans are melting down over being called weird

it's working

[dense rover]

Finally people are speaking their language

AKA using fewer big words

[cosmic arrow]

we are tired and they are weird

[gritty gazelle]

harris is officially named the democratic presidential candidate

[balmy harbor]

Good for her

[gritty gazelle]

https://www.cnn.com/2024/08/02/politics/kamala-harris-democratic-nomination-election/index.html

[dense rover]

Well

She's not officially the democratic party nominee yet

[balmy harbor]

When will the cinematic trailer for her election campaign drop that's what I wanna know

[dense rover]

But unless something changes she'll have the delegates to get the nomination at the convention

[gritty gazelle]

even still

highly unlikely anything will change

who would possibly challenge now

[dense rover]

I'm just saying she's the presumptive nominee

You said she was officially named the democratic presidential candidate

[gritty gazelle]

yeah i misunderstood

what the thing was saying

[drifting marten]

Joe Biden

[cosmic arrow]

I'm excited for her to become president. even though she's not my first pick, she has done so well since biden dropped out to bring the energy we needed

[gritty gazelle]

i just sincerely hope that they keep pressuring the republicans all the way to the election

and people need to remember the election isn't a foregone conclusion

gotta vote like harris is down 5 points

don't want a 2016 repeat

[dense rover]

The Harris campaign is fucking killing it right now

[cosmic arrow]

one good difference from 2016 is there isn't "but her emails!"

they dont have anything on kamala right now and their comments are backfiring on them

[cosmic arrow]

[gritty gazelle]

apparently the VP pool has narrowed to shapiro and walz

i saw someone say that they’re gonna pick shapiro because the dems are the masters of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory

and i really really hope that’s not the case

because honestly they had a point but idk

[balmy harbor]

How do they pick

Is it a vote between the big democrats

[gritty gazelle]

i’m not sure actually

i think the candidate picks their own VP though

i saw something about harris interviewing people at her house

[balmy harbor]

Bingo ball roller but it's a VP selection

[dense rover]

They just pick

The presidential candidate/their campaign

Chooses a person

Normally, under precedented circumstances, we have a primary process where we the people vote to choose a nominee for president. But VP is never really a vote they just make that choice on their own once they're the presumptive nominee

[drifting marten]

It is down to Shapiro and Walz

https://x.com/markinpolitics/status/1820567933036495247?s=46

Mark 🥥🌴🗽 (@MarkInPolitics) on X

Live on CNN, Jeff Zeleny is saying Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz was loved by the Harris-vetting team, and that Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro impresses them with his “fighter” attitude.

He also confirms that Sen. Mark Kelly is more or less out of the final picture here.

Twitter · Aug 5, 2024, 9:09 PM

Well i mean its not down to anyone anymore

She has chosen

We just don’t know who it is yet

But it’s either Shapiro or Walz

I’m ALL IN on Walz

[gritty gazelle]

yeah i had said that just above the message you replied to

i am also all in on walz

ballz to the walz

book it

[cosmic arrow]

it's either shalz or wapiro

[drifting marten]

@gritty gazelle WE WON https://x.com/moreperfectus/status/1820806416816591218?s=46

More Perfect Union (@MorePerfectUS) on X

BREAKING: Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz will be the Democratic VP candidate, alongside Kamala Harris.

Walz forged a reputation as a Governor who makes good policy happen.

Last year he signed a law guaranteeing free breakfast and lunch for all Minnesota students. And that's not all 🧵

Twitter · Aug 6, 2024, 12:57 PM

[drifting marten]

Sources are saying that a main concern with Shapiro is his personal ambitions and career goals and how they feel he could try to upstage/override Kamala

[gritty gazelle]

let’s goooo

[simple kraken]

Horrible Choice

for Kamala

will hurt her campaign

[dense rover]

What's your logic

[simple kraken]

she should of choose moderate mark kelly

to win over AZ and probaly nevada and have way more moderate appeal

[dense rover]

I mean maybe missing out on potential bonuses but I don't see how it would hurt her campaign. Shapiro seemed like the only one that would bring damage with the dirt on him

Also, taking Mark Kelly from Arizona opens up his seat to potentially lose to a republican halfway through her term

I'd argue the potential fallout from that is more damaging than a VP pick, when there isn't much statistical evidence to support VP picks bringing more/fewer votes in certain states

[simple kraken]

yeah its like whoever she works best with thats the VP

thats what its spposed to be for

but people do picks to win election like trump picking pence to win the evangelical vote

[dense rover]

They always have that logic with it yeah, the evidence just isn't there to say that it actually makes a difference with trying to win over a certain state or demographic etc. https://www.cbsnews.com/minnesota/news/does-the-vice-presidential-pick-matter-to-the-election/

[simple kraken]

yeah the main logic is people from that state voted that canidate in

[dense rover]

tl;dr the quality that has been observed to actually have an impact on voters is the experience level of the VP pick, while historically it hasn't made a difference with wining votes in home states or target demographics like evangelicals, moderates

[simple kraken]

yeah thats why kelly would be the best

[dense rover]

It seems like you're misunderstanding what I'm saying then

Home state and demographics are the things that don't have the most impact on winning votes

Experience does

Mark Kelly has less than 4 years of experience serving as an elected official, at any level

Walz was in the house for 12 years and has been governor of Minnesota for 5

Walz also doesn't come with the whole senate seat thing

[simple kraken]

Vance was in for 2 years

lol

[dense rover]

Yeah exactly

[simple kraken]

so he still has more which could help him beat trump if he was kamalas vp

[dense rover]

Terrible pick

Okay and then Walz has way more experience over Kelly, without leaving a senate seat open

[simple kraken]

he is too similar to trump

[dense rover]

Walz is?

[simple kraken]

no vance

[dense rover]

If you ignore the senate seat Kelly wasn't a bad pick but history says Walz was the better option. Throw in the senate seat and it's pretty clear why in the end she wasn't even considering Kelly against him

[simple kraken]

how does waltz lean

[dense rover]

Yeah JD Vance is all around a horrible pick and only got it because Trump wants that Peter Thiel support

[simple kraken]

like as a donor?

[dense rover]

Walz is pretty progressive with a legislating/governing track record to back it up

And that latter point is the biggest strength in picking him IMO

[dense rover]

Yeah pretty much

Same reason why Trump flip flopped on EVs recently, to have that Musk money

[simple kraken]

yeah musk actually supports trump

because if he has more to gain from biden with the EVs

maybe not anymore

[dense rover]

Musk can convince either side to push for EV adoption if he needed to, dems support it with or without him and Trump does whatever someone wants if they give him a little candy

Musk wants Trump to win and the republican party overall because he makes the most money that way from tax cuts and lack of labor protections

Plus just being a bigoted shithead

[simple kraken]

he voted biden in 2020

[dense rover]

That was apparently a lie https://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-didnt-vote-biden-trump-president-2020-general-election-2023-9

He does want the EV subsidies and generally follows the money, the Biden admin hasn't been friendly to Tesla

[simple kraken]

yeah makes sense some people dont vote in states like cali because they know its a waste and that dosent mean he wasnt in favor of biden

[dense rover]

I think that Musk has largely always been a dumb bigoted piece of shit but dems have always been pro-EV pretty much so he went with that. The Biden admin hasn't been lenient though and there was a Tesla recall and investigations into their business practices by the justice dept

Musk wants EV subsidies but also looser regulations

Combine that with his shitty culture war opinions and yeah that's how you get pro-Trump pro-Republican Musk in 2024

[cosmic arrow]

Walz to the ballz

[drifting marten]

Walz is literally getting the support of everyone from Manchin to AOC

People love him

Even moderates love him

[dense rover]

Seriously it feels like there's nothing to really criticize him for, while also not being 2016 Tim Kaine in the process

[simple kraken]

the culture war is stupid overall

[dense rover]

Of course it is

[simple kraken]

and that like apart of american politcs know which is kind of goofy

[drifting marten]

lmao https://x.com/selinawangtv/status/1820923493166223754?s=46

Selina Wang (@selinawangtv) on X

This morning when Harris called Governor Walz to share the news, he didn’t answer at first because it said no caller ID, a source tells me. So Harris had to call again. The second time Walz picked up the phone call.

Twitter · Aug 6, 2024, 8:42 PM

[drifting marten]

https://x.com/newswire_us/status/1820955036458881036?s=46 😭

NewsWire (@NewsWire_US) on X

Tim Walz on JD Vance: "I gotta tell you, I can't wait to debate the guy... if he's willing to get off the couch and show up."

Twitter · Aug 6, 2024, 10:48 PM

[gritty gazelle]

i really hope they actually have the spines to debate harris and walz at some point because oh lord

they are going to get eviscerated and i am here for it

i love the stupid little nicknames he has for everyone

Cryin’ Chuck Schumer

[drifting marten]

Barack HUSSEIN Obama

https://x.com/mayerlingwaltz/status/1820949265327255842?s=46

𝐿🫗 (@mayerlingwaltz) on X

19th century trump: william TECUMSEH sherman

Twitter · Aug 6, 2024, 10:25 PM

[azure sage]

he had to fit the names in huh

[dense rover]

2024 US Elections

[gritty gazelle]

yeah that's a better title for it

[tranquil zephyr]

someone said tim walz looks like BERTRAM from jessie helppppp

it’s so real

[simple kraken]

JD Vance and Waltz both wilm definently agree to a debate

[dense rover]

Walz will, not sure about Vance

[cosmic arrow]

it's gonna be exciting

[gritty gazelle]

harris-walz rally in arizona had 20k people

they legit had to turn people away because the venue was at capacity

encouraging sign for sure

also walz saying that it was the largest political gathering in arizona’s history or whatever

taking shots at trump and i love it

[cosmic arrow]

Its so goood. Trump is raging

[simple kraken]

vance will

[gritty gazelle]

i doubt it

too busy fucking his couch 😭

[simple kraken]

lmao

[simple kraken]

btw I was somewhat wrong

He is still kind of more left to distance from moderate voters for voting blue but he as a person could have a lot of appeal

[gritty gazelle]

i think moderates are more likely to vote harris than trump

moderate voters are fed up with trump at this point

he's making a complete ass of himself, i don't know how anybody can seriously consider voting for him

there's a frankly annoying sect of leftists that are withholding votes over israel-palestine, but thankfully i don't think that will have much of an effect on the election result

harris is still leading in michigan polls, where israel-palestine is one of the larger issues for voters there

[dense rover]

Walz being a turnoff for moderates is a complete myth

Harris is already moderate as hell and she’s gonna be the one actually doing anything, and anyone even considering the VP pick in their decision (tiny amount of people) knows that

Plus I find it hard to believe that moderates would vote for Trump because Walz supports free school lunch

Walz being “too progressive” is basically a made up issue by the right

He’s a salt of the earth white guy with a ton of experience

So yeah what Jake said. Michigan is the biggest concern when it comes to the Israel-Palestine voters (😒) and as long as the voters turn out that’s a settled issue at this rate

I understand what fun guy is saying, but there isn’t really evidence to support it

[gritty gazelle]

also sounds like a lot of people are just threatening to withhold a vote

and not that they really will

[dense rover]

Kinda done giving them attention on that

[gritty gazelle]

true that

on another note, JD vance held a speech today that like a hundred people showed up to

[dense rover]

Least is inspiring VP pick in living memory

And he’s up against Mike Pence on that lol

[gritty gazelle]

it's just so funny how much of a loser vance is

like he's just weird

and gives off such a bad vibe

he could have identical views to me and i'd still think he's a fuck nugget

[dense rover]

I love that he's a drag queen

Or an ex-drag queen

Something the republican party has deemed their enemy

[cosmic arrow]

also the way trump was slurring the whole time during that conversation with elon, something is up with that lol

he thought it would help him but it backfired

[gritty gazelle]

dentures were slipping out

[dense rover]

Old as hell with dementia

[balmy harbor]

is there a plan (at least known to the public) if a presidential candidate passes away in the build up to an election or the day-of

bc right now

[dense rover]

Their party would have to pick a new candidate. If the deadlines to get on the states ballots have already passed, they're probably just fucked and the VP candidate would become the presidential candidate if I had to guess

[balmy harbor]

good to know

[dense rover]

Here https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2024/07/17/presidential-candidate-death-during-campaign/74402360007/

[simple kraken]

What do you guys thnk of the DNC

[cosmic arrow]

I skipped to different parts of it but it seemed good (I was too bored to watch too much though lol). loved when biden came out after his daughter and was tearing up

and walz looked like he was too

[cosmic arrow]

so about that DNC

https://tenor.com/view/dancing-in-the-rain-kamala-harris-joe-biden-biden-harris-dancing-gif-18885550

[slow pumice]

https://tenor.com/view/lil-jon-yeah-gif-12803006

Lil Jon ftw!

[slow pumice]

dope AF. It's about fucking time that the Dems stopped listening to their corporate PR advisors and spoke plainly, meaningfully, and threw Chump & the GOP's shit right back at them.

It was transcendant, joyful, and energizing.

[gritty gazelle]

i'm hearing more and more about people in deep red states switching to support for harris

promising sign

i've also read a lot of things about there not being as many trump flags/signs this time

compared to 2016 or even 2020

[cosmic arrow]

I also know people who are going to sit out this time as republicans which I guess is still better than them giving a vote to trump

[gritty gazelle]

i don’t know how anyone can dislike harris

to warrant sitting out of the election entirely

[drifting marten]

ill vote for her but her speech the other day was really not good for progressives it felt like a biden speech. im hoping she'll govern differently than she's talking right now

It's important to demand more from our leaders and criticize them, not falling into blind loyalty to either party

[gritty gazelle]

considering i don’t live in the US there’s not really anything worthwhile for me to say

at the very least harris is decidedly not trump and that’s kind of all that matters to me right now

[gritty gazelle]

obviously this is a good point and not something i disagree with, for the record

but this election is just so dire that i’m more willing to not criticize harris as much as i normally might criticize the democrats

i’m holding my criticism until after the election basically

[cosmic arrow]

these are people who would never be seen voting for a democrat. they just want trump and this maga stuff to be gone. I know it's not the best decision but it's something

[slow pumice]

Realizing one is ‘bad weird’ is sobering when their entire shtick was thinking they were cool & winners. Now Chump is showing weakness and even the blatant pro-conservative nonsense from the NYT & WaPo isn’t landing.

[slow pumice]

Someone counted the phrase ‘aesthetic left’ to describe people who are into revolution but not into the actual work of politics (how to build coalitions, how to whip votes, how to pass laws, et al). It’s an immature stance, very similar to the self-centered immaturity of libertarians.

[slow pumice]

People hear what they want to hear. What’s happening right now is incredible. While it’s impossible to please everybody but the fact that the Dems are finally not pussyfooting around with their messaging is YUGE. I’ve been a political nerd since ‘86 (my best friend in high school used to play a Commodore 64 game called ‘President Elect’) and I’ve been disappointed for years at how pathetic the Dems hands been at calling out lies & other bullshit. And wasting energy by trying to focus on swing votes instead of proudly standing for something (the latter was also a messaging problem).

It is hard to trust the Dems when the GOP has run circles around them for years. The messaging is finally on point - inspiring but also calling out the lies & fascism.

We can’t pass any progressive policies without being in control and there’s a small chance this election will be a landslide.

I just saw that Swifties for Harris is a thing and that might well be the death knell for the modern GOP.

I’m just enjoying this moment because Harris has unshackled the party from lame ass messaging that only worked for nerds like me.

[gritty gazelle]

sucks that electoral reform will never be a part of either party’s platform

if there’s one change i would want to see in the american political system, it’s that the electoral college has to go

[slow pumice]

I think that might be possible. The first step is adding DC & PR as states.

I’m less convinced that we’ll get ranked choice voting everywhere.

[balmy harbor]

How would that work

How does a state become a state

[gritty gazelle]

usually how it goes is like

a territory can hold a referendum to gauge the population's opinion on statehood -> if the majority is in favor, congress can grant the territory approval to draft a state constitution -> if/when a constitution is accepted by the people of the territory, congress holds a majority vote to admit the new state

if i'm not mistaken

[balmy harbor]

I see

Has there in history ever been a proposed state denied statehood

Bc you know we have the likes of Hawaii

They became a state but maybe less so at the will of the people

[gritty gazelle]

i mean puerto rico has been denied statehood a good few times

[dense rover]

Puerto Rico passed a referendum for statehood in 2020

They are yet to be admitted to the union

[gritty gazelle]

here's an interesting tidbit: "In July 2024, Governor Pedro Pierluisi called a plebiscite on the status of Puerto Rico in November 2024, for the first time the island's current status as a U.S. territory will not be an option during the non-binding plebiscite. The executive order follows the U.S. House of Representatives' 2022 approval of a bill to help Puerto Rico move toward a change in territorial status. Voters are given the choice of statehood, independence, or independence with free association, the terms of which would be negotiated regarding foreign affairs, U.S. citizenship, and use of the U.S. dollar."

[balmy harbor]

Is it just a closed door to them

[dense rover]

It needs to pass both houses of congress for them to be admitted as a state

And such a bill would require a filibuster-proof majority in the senate which the democrats have not had since 2009

So they'd need enough republcian support as well to pass it

They haven't had that

[gritty gazelle]

yeah that is also true

idk i'm curious to see how this one shakes out

it would just be cool to see a state admitted to the US in my lifetime

[dense rover]

It would also be very very good for puerto rico

[cosmic arrow]

I love learning new things here

[slow pumice]

the GOP have blocked them because they know that PR & DC = 4 democrat senators.

"McConnell, the Senate Republican leader, warned that without the filibuster a Democratic majority could grant statehood to the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, which, McConnell said, would ensure “four new Democratic senators in perpetuity, which significantly disables our side, my side.”

https://news.yahoo.com/news/mcconnell-says-gop-control-u-220704434.html

my hope now is that with Harris leading the way that the change in messaging is just the beginning and that the Dems finally play Machiavellian hardball like the GOP has done for decades.

There are a lot of unwritten rules that the GOP broke and the Dems just sat on their hands wondering wtf to do. Harris seems to know wtf to do.

[gritty gazelle]

harris saying she’ll keep building the border wall is not great news

i think she’s trying to go hard on border security to attract right wing voters

i disagree with that policy though

[drifting marten]

i HOPE that they’re only doing this to attract voters and when they get into office they’ll change, but knowing the democrats i believe they will likely concede to the right…my research paper last semester was on democratic concessions to the right and it has been happening for so long…

[gritty gazelle]

democrats try to compromise with republicans, but republicans never try to compromise with democrats

i've been watching this series of videos called "the alt-right playbook" recently where they go in depth about that

[slow pumice]

A border wall is the dumbest fucking idea ever. I’ll give her a pass because that message is meant for dumbasses but actually supporting an idea dreamed up by a moron is so stupid.

[slow pumice]

My hope is she changes that. The GOP has run circles around the Dems for years and finally seeing the messaging change with her is so gratifying. The Dems have pussyfooted around everything for too, too long.

[slow pumice]

I remember thinking that in ‘91 when they stupidly confirmed Thomas, and again when they confirmed Alito. Most of the time it seemed like they were just negotiating against themselves and not with the republicans.

[cosmic arrow]

agree. is she just trying to compromise with republicans or appeal to them?

I can understand compromising on some things

[dense rover]

Unless they get a filibuster proof, majority in the Senate, compromise is required or they will get nothing done. It sucks to make concessions, but that’s just a fact of negotiation

[balmy harbor]

What is filibuster proof in this context

[dense rover]

It would mean Republicans can’t block it from being voted on in the Senate

They would need 60 votes, whether that Democrats and Republicans or just Democrats

They won’t have 60 Democrats in the Senate anytime soon

So it’s more likely than not that they have to make concessions in order to get any Republicans to vote on bills

Except for I think budgetary bills, which you can’t filibuster

[balmy harbor]

Okay I see

[slow pumice]

I figure anything involving a wall at the border is meant for voters and not politicians. That’s the messaging they’ve been primed for, even if it is not realistic. ‘The Wall’ is like moronic shorthand for ‘immigration’.

[drifting marten]

The idea of a Wall is also proven to not even be effective at stopping drug trafficking

[slow pumice]

https://tenor.com/view/jeff-goldblum-jeff-goldblum-life-finds-a-way-gif-8405245

[limber gazelle]

Voted today

[balmy harbor]

How's that go

[limber gazelle]

It went great, voted blue across the ballot

[azure sage]

🇼

[gritty gazelle]

my election map prediction

not sure how accurate this is but that's what i think is gonna happen

it'll be really close

[dense rover]

I made a thread for these if you wanna put it there too

[gritty gazelle]

oh cool

[drifting marten]

https://x.com/tweetsbyluke/status/1853553517061181497?s=46

Luke (@TweetsByLuke) on X

Words I need to hear from @SteveKornacki

“These are devastating numbers if you’re the Trump campaign”

“I would much rather be the Harris campaign right now”

“Trump is underperforming in [insert rural county]”

“Harris is building an insurmountable lead in [swing state].”

Twitter · Nov 4, 2024, 9:42 PM

[dense rover]

God please talky zoomy map guy

[azure sage]

🙏

[tranquil zephyr]

how come north dakota doesn’t have voter registration?

like actual question lol

doesn’t require*

[drifting marten]

Walking out of my 3rd polling station today

[dense rover]

They do what the whole country should do, all residents are automatically registered

[tranquil zephyr]

hmm

[dense rover]

It’s not quite there because they require presenting a drivers license or state ID to vote, which still creates barriers, but the automatic registration for residents is definitely the right move for the whole country

[azure sage]

hell yeah

[dense rover]

Reminder to completely ignore what Donald Trump and Fox News have to say about who is ahead or who has won the election, they’ll try to start shit (probably early on tonight after polls close) especially if it’s not going well for him and you’re only gonna waste your time energy and health. The only thing that matters is the vote count.

Trump is gonna declare victory tonight no matter what, Fox News will probably call a state or two for him that he’s not winning, ignore it

Completely

[drifting marten]

Wrong post

@dense rover https://fixupx.com/dylanbyers/status/1853894380299681864?s=46

Can they still be verified another way or something

[dense rover]

The signature on a Nevada voter’s mail-in ballot envelope is matched with a signature in a voter database. If there is a problem matching the signatures, voters can take steps to fix, or “cure,” rejected ballots through Nov. 12 in Nevada.

From the article linked there

[gritty gazelle]

bro someone showed me a map of the republicans being ahead like 268-something and i’m like

it’s not even 5:00 yet

[dense rover]

Please reserve memes for #random @jolly kestrel @tranquil zephyr

[gritty gazelle]

women outvoting men by 10% in iowa rn

it was 4% in 2020 and iowa was really close then

👀

[dense rover]

Link where you’re seeing this

Im assuming exit polls but can’t find

@gritty gazelle

[gritty gazelle]

oh sorry i was unintentionally spreading misinformation

i think what the tweet meant was

iowa’s polls are tied going into election day

and it looks like women are outvoting men by 10% nationwide

it was the ann selzer poll i think

[dense rover]

Oh

[gritty gazelle]

yes that was my bad

[versed cipher]

gulp

[dense rover]

Don't forget rural and suburban counties will finish counting first due to lower population, and they'll probably favor trump. It's most likely gonna look like Trump is doing better than Harris at first, but the last votes being counted will likely be mostly in her favor

So don't get too scared if it's not looking so good at first

[gritty gazelle]

yeah i’m seeing people panicking over georgia but there’s no reason to worry

not yet anyway

[dense rover]

Atlanta hasn't reported at all

We don't know shit without atlanta

Yeah nothing out of Fulton county

And it looks like he's underperforming in the suburbs that have reported

[versed cipher]

more polls closing now

[topaz umbra]

Trump won North Carolina

[drifting marten]

https://x.com/FoxNews/status/1854053479234289853

Fox News (@FoxNews) on X

The FOX News Decision Desk projects former President Donald Trump will be the 47th president, defeating Vice President Kamala Harris. Trump makes history with a political comeback, becoming the first president since Grover Cleveland in the 1800s to return to office after a defeat

Twitter · Nov 6, 2024, 6:49 AM

[balmy harbor]

Question

This is a bit silly but

If he's not a physically new person

How could he be the 47th

Does his time in the white house being split between another candidate's mean technically he's the 47th because there was a 46th before him

[cosmic arrow]

This is awful

Im so glad we have green day to get us through this

[drifting marten]

Yes

[balmy harbor]

That's wild

[azure sage]

are we screwed

[north pewter]

well shit

[azure sage]

so should we be concerned about how trumps gonna handle the current wars going on

[limber gazelle]

I just want to say I've lost all faith in this country and I'm considering a move

[dense rover]

Yep

[sterile marten]

Time to relisten to American Idiot

[azure sage]

i cant believe how selfish people are

[dense rover]

At least 15 million democrats didn’t vote yesterday

Record early voting turnout, abysmal Election Day turnout

[azure sage]

maybe we should have required voting like europe does

[dense rover]

Yes we should

[topaz umbra]

Compulsory voting should exist

[balmy harbor]

I don't get how you guys can just drop your votes in a lil mail box

And the lack of ID

[dense rover]

Except for the states with voter ID laws, which is a barrier for access and shouldn't be a thing

[balmy harbor]

So it then depends on your state

15m not voting so silly

[dense rover]

Fuck those people

[cosmic arrow]

I didn't vote in 2016. we were comfortable with obama, no one thought trump would win (I didnt really know who he was yet at that point). you would think people would've learned in the years after that... there is no excuses this time

[drifting marten]

https://theonion.com/election-alert-still-too-early-to-know-which-minority-to-scapegoat/

lmao

[dense rover]

I already decided

[rotund lodge]

Trump voters /j

[idle rune]

can i say i hope the orange man dies here or

[rotund lodge]

I’m not gonna stop you

[dense rover]

I would advise against directly saying it

[idle rune]

well, i hope he who shall not be named does

waste of a human being

[simple kraken]

thats stupid people have the right to not vote

[timber lava]

absolutely

[dense rover]

They can turn in blank ballots

If they wanna not vote so bad

But people can't just skip the polls

It's irresponsible to a degree that is harmful for the country

[simple kraken]

yeah they can turn the ballots blank

[dense rover]

Voting is the bare minimum duty as a citizen, that and taxes

[acoustic delta]

friend and i were talking about RFK running healthcare stuff, it's ok if they engage in another purging of their own voterbase through wreckless decisions and negligence

[undone marten]

or maybe 21st

[jolly kestrel]

dumping these here
hope you all are taking care of yourselves. reach out to your community members. unfortunately kamala could not seperate herself from Biden or appeal to those who begged her for a ceasefire. now is time for collective action. remember our queer/black/lgbtq/disabled/etc ancestors have been through far far worse and we are the voice of this generation!

Lots of my social media is filled with people wondering how this could happen. A fascist system will always win until the oppressed come together & fight against the system that is oppressing them.

[drifting marten]

Except for Palestine is a great book

[drifting marten]

First time voter turnout: 63% Trump

Cooked

[dense rover]

Yeah it's starting to look less like the "15 million didn't show up" thing

[drifting marten]

To a lot of people the democrats were seen as the establishment and the republicans were seen as anti that in this election

[drifting marten]

Tim Ryan --> loss

Tim Kaine --> loss

Tim Walz --> loss

Clear message from voters. No more Tims.

[drifting marten]

Just doing a little networking before bed