The debt ceiling bill, by also removing the threat to shut down the government through refusing to pass a budget or a continuing resolution, has essentially eviscerated any Republican ability to hold the nation hostage through the end of Biden's first term. It is a massive win for Biden and for all of us.
It is not an exaggeration to say that Biden, quietly, has saved, not just the US, but democracies around the world from a crippling economic catastrophe. The losers are autocrats, and wannabe autocrats everywhere--especially Putin, who undoubtedly was hoping the disruption would weaken US international leadership and Western support for Ukraine.
I very much agree! People fault Biden for having less charisma than some candidates, but he stands strong and quietly achieves his goal. It would be a disaster for the U.S. and for much of the world if we had a "charismatic" (read: extremist) president instead of a wise one.
We need to run and win locally and we need a Blue Congress to shore up our democratic institutions in 2024. The fascist run at our government from the inside has exposed too many weaknesses. Things we took for granted, by believing that we would not stray so far off the path of working towards what’s best in us
I no more then posted this comment, when minutes later in comes an email from a champion of democracy, David Pepper!! 🤩
“But as I shared with Morning Joe last week, the damage done by uncontested races in state after state, for legislative districts in particular—the very places where the most extreme attacks on democracy and rights are happening—is enormous. It’s fueling so much of the downward spiral taking place all around us.
I wonder though. If Biden continues to develop cheap, clean energy, will the Pipeline stay profitable long? Think about trump boosting coal--didn't do any good; there is little market for coal. Could we be looking at "what if you built a pipeline and nobody came?"
Nice analysis - supply and demand are eventually undefeated. Sometimes, it just takes a lot longer than you think it should. Not sure how many WV jobs he saved/created there, but it can't be a lot, and it won't be for long.
I was a Eugene McCarthy voter and living in CA. The night of the primary, it looked like RFK was about to win big. So I went to bed. The next morning I woke up to the radio going on about the distress and despair of the Kennedy forces. For a brief moment I thought the impossible had happened: McCarthy won. But no: Sirhan Sirhan happened.
Thanks for the reasons to hope. I intensely dislike that my daughters have less rights than I had at their ages. I never thought I would see it in America.
My daughters will be old enough to vote in 2024. I've been taking them to the polls with me and explaining why we vote for Democrats since they were five years old. They are ready!
I have a question about voter suppression. Voter suppression is one of my worries as we head in to the 2024 election cycle. Organizations such as Elias Law Group (Democracy Docket), NAACP, ACLU and others are actively fighting voter suppression laws in states such as Florida, Texas, Ohio and other red states. These organizations need to raise a great deal of money (and I contribute to one of the groups) to fight these voter protection cases. What is the role of the Civil Rights Division of the DOJ? Why isn't the Civil Rights Division much more actively involved in these cases. Here is their charter: "...works to uphold the civil and constitutional rights of all persons in the United States, particularly some of the most vulnerable members of our society. The Division enforces federal statutes prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, and gender identity), disability, religion, familial status, national origin, and citizenship status". Is this division so poorly funded and staffed that it is simply impossible for them to handle the workload? Thank you. I was happy to upgrade my subscription this morning. You explain everything so clearly for all of us who did not become attorneys!
It’s an excellent question deserving of a much longer response. The Department’s prior mission was to pre-approve any changes in jurisdictions with a history of vote suppression. But the Supreme Court gutted Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act in the Shelby Country decision, and they further weakened the power of the courts to intervene after the Brnovitch case struck at section 2. The Justice Department could intervene, but it needs a really strong basis to do so, because otherwise they’re just cementing in more bad law. It’s a very difficult position.
I *think* he meant George McGovern, who lost badly to Nixon in '72. McCarthy ran left of RFK and Humphrey in '68 (and was my choice, had I been old enough to vote), but did not win the nomination.
A lot of this rides on everyone playing by the rules. But lately, one team refuses to do so. How likely are we to see all this affected by "cheating," through pseudo-legal means (SCOTUS) or otherwise?
I think we will see more outrageous, illegal or quasi-legal moves. The system is very broken and skewed, and that is the playing field we are on, unfortunately.
I was going to comment on a few things, but reading through the existing comments I see that everything I was going to say has already been covered. So, I'll just say Thank You for this.
The debt ceiling bill, by also removing the threat to shut down the government through refusing to pass a budget or a continuing resolution, has essentially eviscerated any Republican ability to hold the nation hostage through the end of Biden's first term. It is a massive win for Biden and for all of us.
It is not an exaggeration to say that Biden, quietly, has saved, not just the US, but democracies around the world from a crippling economic catastrophe. The losers are autocrats, and wannabe autocrats everywhere--especially Putin, who undoubtedly was hoping the disruption would weaken US international leadership and Western support for Ukraine.
I very much agree! People fault Biden for having less charisma than some candidates, but he stands strong and quietly achieves his goal. It would be a disaster for the U.S. and for much of the world if we had a "charismatic" (read: extremist) president instead of a wise one.
The first time I've read a political column and come out at the end more oxygenated and smiling a bit!
It WILL take all hands on deck for "us" to win. We can not be complacent in thinking the GOP did badly the last election cycle. Too much is at stake!!
We need to run and win locally and we need a Blue Congress to shore up our democratic institutions in 2024. The fascist run at our government from the inside has exposed too many weaknesses. Things we took for granted, by believing that we would not stray so far off the path of working towards what’s best in us
The House we can take. It will be tougher to keep the Senate, sadly.
MN will keep Amy Klobuchar in the Senate!
I no more then posted this comment, when minutes later in comes an email from a champion of democracy, David Pepper!! 🤩
“But as I shared with Morning Joe last week, the damage done by uncontested races in state after state, for legislative districts in particular—the very places where the most extreme attacks on democracy and rights are happening—is enormous. It’s fueling so much of the downward spiral taking place all around us.
We can no longer allow this to happen.“
Check him out and spread his words/thoughts
That is the correct approach. Elect more Democrats!
Great piece, as always. Thank you. I only wish Biden hadn’t given in on Mountain Valley Pipeline. But all things considered we did really well.
I think that compromise may have halted any desire by Manchin to run as a No Labels candidate...
How much more money, strokes, power, and pacifying does Manchin need to be happy?
Yeah, really. I mean, I'm glad if he decides not to run, but at what cost to the rest of us? Sigh.
Better than the alternatives there.
There is no greater cost than Trump being re-elected!
Exactly what I thought.
I wonder though. If Biden continues to develop cheap, clean energy, will the Pipeline stay profitable long? Think about trump boosting coal--didn't do any good; there is little market for coal. Could we be looking at "what if you built a pipeline and nobody came?"
Nice analysis - supply and demand are eventually undefeated. Sometimes, it just takes a lot longer than you think it should. Not sure how many WV jobs he saved/created there, but it can't be a lot, and it won't be for long.
Eugene McCarthy / George McGovern. Yes, I’m that old and I remember.
Yes, I got about 20 emails about it! Very embarrassing brain fart.
No worries. I rather liked the conflation.
I was a Eugene McCarthy voter and living in CA. The night of the primary, it looked like RFK was about to win big. So I went to bed. The next morning I woke up to the radio going on about the distress and despair of the Kennedy forces. For a brief moment I thought the impossible had happened: McCarthy won. But no: Sirhan Sirhan happened.
Thanks for the reasons to hope. I intensely dislike that my daughters have less rights than I had at their ages. I never thought I would see it in America.
My daughters will be old enough to vote in 2024. I've been taking them to the polls with me and explaining why we vote for Democrats since they were five years old. They are ready!
Good for all of you! I did the same. Both of my daughters actively vote.
I have a question about voter suppression. Voter suppression is one of my worries as we head in to the 2024 election cycle. Organizations such as Elias Law Group (Democracy Docket), NAACP, ACLU and others are actively fighting voter suppression laws in states such as Florida, Texas, Ohio and other red states. These organizations need to raise a great deal of money (and I contribute to one of the groups) to fight these voter protection cases. What is the role of the Civil Rights Division of the DOJ? Why isn't the Civil Rights Division much more actively involved in these cases. Here is their charter: "...works to uphold the civil and constitutional rights of all persons in the United States, particularly some of the most vulnerable members of our society. The Division enforces federal statutes prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, and gender identity), disability, religion, familial status, national origin, and citizenship status". Is this division so poorly funded and staffed that it is simply impossible for them to handle the workload? Thank you. I was happy to upgrade my subscription this morning. You explain everything so clearly for all of us who did not become attorneys!
It’s an excellent question deserving of a much longer response. The Department’s prior mission was to pre-approve any changes in jurisdictions with a history of vote suppression. But the Supreme Court gutted Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act in the Shelby Country decision, and they further weakened the power of the courts to intervene after the Brnovitch case struck at section 2. The Justice Department could intervene, but it needs a really strong basis to do so, because otherwise they’re just cementing in more bad law. It’s a very difficult position.
Thank you so much for your reply. I'm grateful.
Thank you for the space to breathe and envision! It really helped.
The conduct of the Grand Old Party is beginning to resemble that of a cornered bobcat.
"DeSantis is Trump without the charisma..." I am sorry.... Trump has charisma? Why wasn't I told? WHERE is that memo? ;-)
My aunt, a life-long Democrat, sent it. She almost got sucked in by it. :-(
I believe you meant to say Eugene McCarthy, not Eugene McGovern.
I *think* he meant George McGovern, who lost badly to Nixon in '72. McCarthy ran left of RFK and Humphrey in '68 (and was my choice, had I been old enough to vote), but did not win the nomination.
My first presidential vote.
Definitely!
I don’t think our winning margin was 10 million votes in 2020.
Biden won 81,283,098 votes, or 51.3 percent of the votes cast. Trump won 74,222,958 votes, or 46.8 percent of the votes cast.
So the winning margin was 7,060,940.
Yes, this was my brain subtracting 74 from 81 and somehow getting 10! Corrected.
10 million more people voted for tfg in 2020 then 2016. Maybe that 10 million number was in Jay's mind?
A lot of this rides on everyone playing by the rules. But lately, one team refuses to do so. How likely are we to see all this affected by "cheating," through pseudo-legal means (SCOTUS) or otherwise?
I think we will see more outrageous, illegal or quasi-legal moves. The system is very broken and skewed, and that is the playing field we are on, unfortunately.
I was going to comment on a few things, but reading through the existing comments I see that everything I was going to say has already been covered. So, I'll just say Thank You for this.
Deep breath. Your optimism is praiseworthy Jay. Thank you for that. But remember, to paraphrase Frank Herbert, "Complacency is the mind killer." VOTE.