American Politics the 2016 edition

I also remembered the GOP is still deeply fractured, now even more so with both the mainstream and tea party generally opposed to Trumpism. So really alot will depend on how they all manage to get along. 

Sadly a large number of people don't use any media anymore! I can get on cam and say Clinton eats babies I saw it, and it'd become a trending story. 

Fairly surprising: 63 House Democrats (1/3 of them all) voted against her. 

This really is a pretty surprising result, and the articles implies behind the positive words and confidence, the vote was pretty distressing. The vote was secret, but judging by the names mentioned throughout...I'm guessing the 63 votes were a combo of progressives and blue dogs. Tim Ryan himself is a working class, anti trade bill Democrat who's district voted for Trump. This is something I think we should embrace, or risk being the minority for a long long time.

Personally, I love Peosi, huge fan but 13 years (and counting) is a long time in a leadership role, and given our terrible results in 2010, 14 and 16..maybe some turnover, some young fresh faces, would've been wise. 

I agree, except that it's not just the proverbial masses but even well educated people in comfortable jobs who are somehow terribly susceptible to propaganda.  For instance, the eugenics movement had a frightening amount of public support.  We had our own eugenic back in the 70s, one Mr Sanjay Gandhi, who forced sterilisation on the masses and a lot of people in my section of society, i.e educated middle class white collar, think he was right. If the dumb masses don't stop breeding like rabbits, the state's gotta intervene for the greater good (of who?), right?  A college education does not educate people in compassion and humanity.  It only teaches us to be smart and/or articulate so that we can get better paying jobs than the ones who didn't study...and that's it.  If something purporting to be news or coming from a supposedly authoritative source propounds views that conform with those that we may hold privately (but perhaps be afraid to voice), we may be easily swayed into believing it.  I agree fully with what Blacksword just said in the other thread.  Over the last few years, I have come to really dislike politicians.  They are worse than despotic emperors with whom at least there was no pretense as to who they were.  But politicians have zero accountability for the most part and mislead people over and over just to win elections at great cost to the very people who voted them to power.  At this point, my faith in democracy has worn thin but since I don't know what the alternative is , I'd better hold on to hope, if nothing else.  

He could've played hardball and threatened to end the Pentagon's contracts with their defense contractor parent company like I've been hearing conservatives claim he did, but no. He rolled over and promised million dollar tax cuts that are unneeded and undeserved. Now Carrier can get away with outsourcing another 700 jobs from another Indiana plant while they and Trump can keep up a facade of "saving jobs". It's ridiculous.

Trump, on the campaign trail, had a rare moment of clarity where he realised that incentives have never kept companies from outsourcing. Makes a lot of sense when you remember that there is a small resurgence of manufacturing from smaller companies, yet major corporations that barely pay any taxes just can't bother to pay living wages to their workers. Of course, we already knew that Trump is a liar, hypocrite, oathbreaker, con-man who only cares about making the rich richer.

Well, touchdown Trump PR.

Art of The Deal my ass.

It turns out that 800 jobs will be saved (not 1100...300 of the jobs Trump touted were not slated to go overseas it turns out) at a cost of $7 million over 10 years in tax breaks. Now in terms of dollars and cents, the deal actually isn't a bad one BUT about 1000 jobs are still being sent overseas, and my biggest issue with this:

This is literally crony capitalism. This is the government saying to one, specific, company "Hey, I'll give you $ for keeping some jobs here". I read that Trump supposedly softened his stance on tariffs for AC imports...pretty darn convenient for the AC company who's still sending jobs to Mexico They are getting tax breaks, can still profit on the jobs they do ship away, in exchange for keeping 800 jobs here. There is indeed the issue of Carrier and gov contracts....

Collusion/crony capitalism whatever you'd like to call it at its finest. 

"Where'd you get your PhD? Trump University?" 

I mean, I agree

But really, I get there are so many variables, and who knows what factors would've arisen in a different scenario that we just cant know, but I think his popularity would've tipped it. I mean that's basically what this election was, an (un)popularity contest. I'll take the guy who was actually fairly popular over Trump!

And yeah, I laughed whenever people said Bernie would've been too soft...he couldn't have ran against Trump etc etc I asked if they've ever seen the guy Just like how I saw more than a few Democrats say he would've been unprepared and Congress would've ran him over, stuff like that. Pffffft I recall some relatively unknown guy who was just a 4 year Senator who ran a "vague" campaign that was criticized as fluff and etc

He turned out to be a pretty darn good President! Sad my fellow Democrats have gotten so enamored with party politics their minds are shutting down

 

*In good conscience, Steve, I must say that the ultimate outcome is yet to be determined, and even if it turns out well economically, it begs to ask the question, at what cost will it to be to us socially? This move towards nationalism on the American side of the pond has unearthed every form of degenerate that rallies in the name of nationalism. As I've said, this form of nationalistic "politician" needs a limousine to deposit him to his park bench at the end of the day. Again, I must ask the question, what will be the cost?

 

*Edit: In good conscience.

I guess people are naturally conservative in nature, even those who may be liberal in politics, so understandable it takes an overall rightward swing. And now that immigration and muslims have gotten into the picture....

In a very real way, we're repeating history. The world rejected "laissez faire" before. Be it socialism or fascism, or moderate capitalism, most of the Earth gave a finger to it. I know we're not laissez-faire today, but neoliberalism has still brought the same results. Left and right rejections of it, loss of faith in the establishment, a turn inward...rejecting global society, immigrants, embrace of authoritarian rhetoric.