First, a few facts: As Eugene Robertson put it, “At this point, the Republican Party really ought to change its name. It’s not a coherent political party anymore. To comply with truth-in-advertising standards, it should call itself the Republican Hot Mess. And yes, this is an election year, and the Hot Mess could take control of one or even both houses of Congress. At a time of overlapping crises at home and abroad, that is a gamble the nation should not take — and an outcome Democrats and independents must do everything in their power to prevent.”
Once again history and current events tell us the Dems can't organize a goddamned one car funeral. They should be running 24/7 commercials on what the r thugs are doing. Ya, know going on the fucking offensive. This is why I gave up being a Democrat for x number of years ( but still have never voted republican in my life and never missed an election starting in 1974, she humble bragged). And what just happened: 193 fucking republicans in the House voted AGAINST lowering insulin prices. They are fucking bottom feeders of the worse kind, cleary hate, no despise anyone who doesn't line their pockets. They are oligarchs, autocrats, fascists and should be dragged and quartered, then tarred and feathered in the town square. Fuck them all.
Totally 1000% on it TC. And I am an NPA. So I’m hauling anyone’s ass with me to the polls that understands what voting for democracy is. And there are SO MANY NPA (No Party Affiliation) voters in the past month that have quit their nonsense and see that voting Republican is voting for nothing except tyranny. Ukraine has changed a lot of things, including mindset.
They won't just go after Biden, they'll take us back a century and seek retribution against every Democrat left standing and then lock in laws that will keep them sucking this country dry for decades. For me they are the Putrid Putin Party.
Readers of this and HCR's newsletters are mostly talking to themselves. We should be posting (not "sharing") messages on the Fox so-called News website, also writing/calling/whatever our Democratic representatives with the message being touted here: that they have to get the word out to the public. When the Republicans entered the 2020 election campaign with no party platform, that was an occasion (missed, as usual) for a Democratic advertising blitz saying that the Republicans failed to have a platform for fear that the electorate would hate what they want to do. Sen. Rick Scott's "Plan to Rescue America" is another golden opportunity to skewer the Republicans. I have written my Congressman (James McGovern) several times with essentially the same message, but have only gotten form letters (at best) in reply ("thank you for sharing your thoughts," or something like that).
I don't understand why the DNC doesn't hire a competent PR firm take charge of messaging.
How difficult can it be for Mr. Biden to fire up the base with good vs evil rhetoric from the bully pulpit?
Trumpism is Nazism! Qanon is a hollow-eyed, satin worshipping, mindless zombie cult! Tucker is a sleeper KGB agent! (Not NKVD or whatever it is this week. That would just confuse the good folks.) It's not a big stretch. Shout it from the rooftops!
Give us something to hate. That's the only thing that seems to work these days. Our democracy, our freedom, mom and pie are being destroyed by the Trumpistas. Only the good Ds can save the Republic!
I agree with you about Rick Wilson (and the Lincoln Project). Some of your very targeted wordings, I’m going to borrow for my messaging. Honestly, Democratic leadership seems to blow every single opportunity to capitalize on Republican actions and statements. It’s a five alarm fire they don’t even squirt gun much less use a hose on. Right now, the best Dem messaging effort I read is coming from Wisconsin. My heart was filled with joy at hearing the good news about the successful attempt to unionize one Amazon in NYC. A bit of happy. ❤️🤍💙👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
speaking only for myself, I'm not sure this old body and its accoutrements can make through another four years of TFF. and it's kind of dicey as to whether it will tolerate a completely gridlocked government again. I actually find myself wishing pretty often that I could--like several old friends have managed--successfully avoid the "news," but I can't. this whole situation really does suck, and yeah, you're absolutely right, Biden just cannot seem to adjust to this take-no- prisoners political environment. possibly he knows too many of these wretched ex-colleagues too personally and in too friendly a way to comprehend the extent to which they have become (assuming they ever other than) partisan hacks whose preoccupations have entirely to do with money and hanging on to what they perceive to be "power." I might be wrong insofar as that "power" might only amount to the power to continue getting more money, making the motivation only money. there's plenty to attack, god knows, and there's no bipartisanship possible with a bunch of people who could turn Judge Jackson's appointment into what will be almost completely (this is assuming that the ever-disappointing, profoundly stupid Susan Collins actually votes yes) party-line vote, almost as if those horrifying, bogus attacks had something behind them. why do some of us (including me) get so exercised when preaching to the choir?
I’m also an NPA who has never voted R but I despise the DNC. Looking forward to voting early … wishing I could vote often as well 🥴. I’m taking heart in the loss of R voters during Covid… polls mean nothing. This move by MSNBC to hire a trumplican GQP… and then admit they did it to increase their “numbers” is sickening but also fairly describes the rest of the media. I don’t think most people really think Biden is doing an awful job, except for messaging… or unless they’re Q people with their own set of alternative facts and beliefs. You know what’s fucked up? Persons with felonies who can’t vote but a felon can run for President. Wtf is that about?
‘It’s A-OK to scare the shit out of voters when they should be!!!'
‘Democrats cannot be shy about shining a bright light on the invasive, cruel and tyrannical measures Republicans are pushing at the state level,..’ (SUCK IT UP BUTTERCUP)
What do you think about the proposals of two Democrats that John Cassidy, staff writer at The New Yorker, recently reported?
'How Should Democrats Respond to Rising Inflation and High Gas Prices?’
'As the midterms approach, some prominent members of the Party are calling for a suspension of the federal gasoline tax and for a windfall tax on the profits of energy companies'.
‘Rising prices—particularly the prices of some highly visible items in the family budget—are now at the root of people’s economic concerns. Sixty-eight per cent of respondents to the Associated Press/NORC poll said that they are “Extremely concerned/Very concerned” about high gas prices impacting their family finances, and fifty-nine per cent gave the same response for groceries. As the cost of gasoline has risen by about forty per cent in the past twelve months, and the cost of meat, poultry, fish, and eggs has risen by thirteen per cent, these concerns are comprehensible.’
‘Evidently, large numbers of Americans recognize that, with the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine, we are living through extraordinary times, which have had some adverse economic consequences that can’t be entirely, or even largely, blamed on Biden. At the same time, though, negative perceptions about the economy and inflation are a definite drag on the President’s rating.’
‘…supported by many progressive Democrats, is to introduce a windfall tax on energy companies, and then use the proceeds to provide financial relief to hard-pressed taxpayers. Under a piece of legislation that Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, of Rhode Island, has put forward, the federal government would impose a tax on each barrel of oil that big energy companies produce or import. The new tax would be set at half the difference between the current oil price and the average price in the years from 2015 to 2019, before the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine. At an oil price of a hundred and twenty dollars a barrel, such a tax could raise about forty-five billion dollars, Whitehouse claims, enough to issue federal rebates of around two hundred and forty dollars a year to single filers who earn less than seventy-five thousand dollars and around three hundred and sixty dollars to joint filers who earn less than a hundred and fifty thousand dollars.’
‘Last week, Senator Bernie Sanders, of Vermont, called for a much larger windfall tax, which would target any big corporation that is making supra-normal profits. Under this proposal, the federal government would impose a levy of up to ninety-five per cent on the “windfall profits corporations have made that are above and beyond what they made during the five years that preceded the pandemic,” according to a fact sheet issued by Sanders’s office. “Because the tax is on profit and not revenue, companies that raise prices for legitimate reasons related to rising expenses would not be penalized.'
‘So far, the White House hasn’t commented on any of these proposals. The new budget proposal that it released on Monday didn’t include them, but the Washington Post’s Jeff Stein has reported that Administration officials are holding internal discussions about “potential ideas for bringing relief to consumers” of energy.’
‘From an economic perspective, taxing windfall profits during extraordinary circumstances and focussing financial assistance on the most needy both make eminent sense. As Sanders pointed out, the U.S. government introduced these types of taxes during the Second World War, the Korean War, and again in the nineteen-eighties, in response to the second OPEC oil-price crisis. It’s not clear, however, which, if any, of the options that have been touted could make it through Congress in short order.’
Some Democrats are not satisfied with Americans emptying their pockets if the government can help.
TC’s, SUCK IT UP BUTTERCUP!, could also have been titled BUCKLE UP BUTTERCUP; IT’S GOING BE A BUMPY RIDE! As he praised President Biden’s achievements, TC, took apart his weaknesses as a salesman.
Okay, TC, how is Biden going to deal with immigration? The Republicans keep getting touchdowns on that field. How is he going to attract working-class voters? Might Biden and the Democrats make good use of this?
'Amazon workers vote to join a union in New York in historic move'
'NEW YORK — Workers voted Friday to unionize an Amazon Staten Island warehouse, a historic decision that marks the first successful U.S. organizing effort at the e-commerce giant and a major victory for the domestic labor movement.'
'Amazon, the country’s second-largest private employer, has long fended off attempts to unionize workers at its warehouse — a highly prized target among traditional labor groups who have seen membership wane in recent years.'
'But a small, upstart independent union led by a former employee of the Staten Island warehouse mounted the first successful campaign to unionize Amazon workers, breaking many of the traditional organizing rules and relying on workers‘ momentum.'
'The vote could start a cascading effect on other Amazon warehouses, labor experts say, encouraging others to consider unionizing. That could transform the way the e-commerce giant conducts business and prioritizes the treatment of workers.' (Washington Post)
Were you too quick with a ‘Letter from an American’ subscriber who was placing his hope in Judge Mark E. Walker of the Federal District Court in Tallahassee, Florida, decision in striking down much of the new elections law passed by the Florida legislature after the 2020 election?
Steve Branz
Wonderful summary of the history and (often unstated) intent behind voter suppression laws in Florida. -- Let's hope that this ruling holds up on appeal.
TCinLA
'I wouldn't hold my breath if I were you. Read up on the 11th Circuit and remember the author of Shelby County is Chief Justice of a 6-3 traitor majority in the Supreme Court.'
“This case is about our sacred right to vote,” Walker wrote, “won at great cost in blood and treasure. Courts have long recognized that, because “the right to exercise the franchise in a free and unimpaired manner is preservative of other basic civil and political rights, any alleged infringement of the right of citizens to vote must be carefully and meticulously scrutinized.” (HCR’s Letter)
What if it is repealed? There is a great deal of material in it to trash the Republicans with. It is a treasure trove from which to make fabulously dramatic, humorous, and civics campaign ads.
“Think of it like viewing a pointillist painting, such as Georges Seurat’s A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte,” Walker wrote. “One dot of paint on the canvas is meaningless, but when thousands of dots are viewed together, they create something recognizable. So too here, one piece of evidence says little, but when all of the evidence is viewed together, a coherent picture emerges.’ (the Letter)
Hey, TC, what about painting by numbers ads to tell true stories about the GOP?
Point out to the younger generations that mid terms is their opportunity to get old fogies out of office.
Once again history and current events tell us the Dems can't organize a goddamned one car funeral. They should be running 24/7 commercials on what the r thugs are doing. Ya, know going on the fucking offensive. This is why I gave up being a Democrat for x number of years ( but still have never voted republican in my life and never missed an election starting in 1974, she humble bragged). And what just happened: 193 fucking republicans in the House voted AGAINST lowering insulin prices. They are fucking bottom feeders of the worse kind, cleary hate, no despise anyone who doesn't line their pockets. They are oligarchs, autocrats, fascists and should be dragged and quartered, then tarred and feathered in the town square. Fuck them all.
Totally 1000% on it TC. And I am an NPA. So I’m hauling anyone’s ass with me to the polls that understands what voting for democracy is. And there are SO MANY NPA (No Party Affiliation) voters in the past month that have quit their nonsense and see that voting Republican is voting for nothing except tyranny. Ukraine has changed a lot of things, including mindset.
Worked for Truman in ‘48. Against a far less crazed GOP.
They won't just go after Biden, they'll take us back a century and seek retribution against every Democrat left standing and then lock in laws that will keep them sucking this country dry for decades. For me they are the Putrid Putin Party.
Got the message, TC; Will do!
Readers of this and HCR's newsletters are mostly talking to themselves. We should be posting (not "sharing") messages on the Fox so-called News website, also writing/calling/whatever our Democratic representatives with the message being touted here: that they have to get the word out to the public. When the Republicans entered the 2020 election campaign with no party platform, that was an occasion (missed, as usual) for a Democratic advertising blitz saying that the Republicans failed to have a platform for fear that the electorate would hate what they want to do. Sen. Rick Scott's "Plan to Rescue America" is another golden opportunity to skewer the Republicans. I have written my Congressman (James McGovern) several times with essentially the same message, but have only gotten form letters (at best) in reply ("thank you for sharing your thoughts," or something like that).
I don't understand why the DNC doesn't hire a competent PR firm take charge of messaging.
How difficult can it be for Mr. Biden to fire up the base with good vs evil rhetoric from the bully pulpit?
Trumpism is Nazism! Qanon is a hollow-eyed, satin worshipping, mindless zombie cult! Tucker is a sleeper KGB agent! (Not NKVD or whatever it is this week. That would just confuse the good folks.) It's not a big stretch. Shout it from the rooftops!
Give us something to hate. That's the only thing that seems to work these days. Our democracy, our freedom, mom and pie are being destroyed by the Trumpistas. Only the good Ds can save the Republic!
How hard can it be?
I agree with you about Rick Wilson (and the Lincoln Project). Some of your very targeted wordings, I’m going to borrow for my messaging. Honestly, Democratic leadership seems to blow every single opportunity to capitalize on Republican actions and statements. It’s a five alarm fire they don’t even squirt gun much less use a hose on. Right now, the best Dem messaging effort I read is coming from Wisconsin. My heart was filled with joy at hearing the good news about the successful attempt to unionize one Amazon in NYC. A bit of happy. ❤️🤍💙👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
speaking only for myself, I'm not sure this old body and its accoutrements can make through another four years of TFF. and it's kind of dicey as to whether it will tolerate a completely gridlocked government again. I actually find myself wishing pretty often that I could--like several old friends have managed--successfully avoid the "news," but I can't. this whole situation really does suck, and yeah, you're absolutely right, Biden just cannot seem to adjust to this take-no- prisoners political environment. possibly he knows too many of these wretched ex-colleagues too personally and in too friendly a way to comprehend the extent to which they have become (assuming they ever other than) partisan hacks whose preoccupations have entirely to do with money and hanging on to what they perceive to be "power." I might be wrong insofar as that "power" might only amount to the power to continue getting more money, making the motivation only money. there's plenty to attack, god knows, and there's no bipartisanship possible with a bunch of people who could turn Judge Jackson's appointment into what will be almost completely (this is assuming that the ever-disappointing, profoundly stupid Susan Collins actually votes yes) party-line vote, almost as if those horrifying, bogus attacks had something behind them. why do some of us (including me) get so exercised when preaching to the choir?
I’m also an NPA who has never voted R but I despise the DNC. Looking forward to voting early … wishing I could vote often as well 🥴. I’m taking heart in the loss of R voters during Covid… polls mean nothing. This move by MSNBC to hire a trumplican GQP… and then admit they did it to increase their “numbers” is sickening but also fairly describes the rest of the media. I don’t think most people really think Biden is doing an awful job, except for messaging… or unless they’re Q people with their own set of alternative facts and beliefs. You know what’s fucked up? Persons with felonies who can’t vote but a felon can run for President. Wtf is that about?
‘It’s A-OK to scare the shit out of voters when they should be!!!'
‘Democrats cannot be shy about shining a bright light on the invasive, cruel and tyrannical measures Republicans are pushing at the state level,..’ (SUCK IT UP BUTTERCUP)
What do you think about the proposals of two Democrats that John Cassidy, staff writer at The New Yorker, recently reported?
'How Should Democrats Respond to Rising Inflation and High Gas Prices?’
'As the midterms approach, some prominent members of the Party are calling for a suspension of the federal gasoline tax and for a windfall tax on the profits of energy companies'.
‘Rising prices—particularly the prices of some highly visible items in the family budget—are now at the root of people’s economic concerns. Sixty-eight per cent of respondents to the Associated Press/NORC poll said that they are “Extremely concerned/Very concerned” about high gas prices impacting their family finances, and fifty-nine per cent gave the same response for groceries. As the cost of gasoline has risen by about forty per cent in the past twelve months, and the cost of meat, poultry, fish, and eggs has risen by thirteen per cent, these concerns are comprehensible.’
‘Evidently, large numbers of Americans recognize that, with the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine, we are living through extraordinary times, which have had some adverse economic consequences that can’t be entirely, or even largely, blamed on Biden. At the same time, though, negative perceptions about the economy and inflation are a definite drag on the President’s rating.’
‘…supported by many progressive Democrats, is to introduce a windfall tax on energy companies, and then use the proceeds to provide financial relief to hard-pressed taxpayers. Under a piece of legislation that Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, of Rhode Island, has put forward, the federal government would impose a tax on each barrel of oil that big energy companies produce or import. The new tax would be set at half the difference between the current oil price and the average price in the years from 2015 to 2019, before the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine. At an oil price of a hundred and twenty dollars a barrel, such a tax could raise about forty-five billion dollars, Whitehouse claims, enough to issue federal rebates of around two hundred and forty dollars a year to single filers who earn less than seventy-five thousand dollars and around three hundred and sixty dollars to joint filers who earn less than a hundred and fifty thousand dollars.’
‘Last week, Senator Bernie Sanders, of Vermont, called for a much larger windfall tax, which would target any big corporation that is making supra-normal profits. Under this proposal, the federal government would impose a levy of up to ninety-five per cent on the “windfall profits corporations have made that are above and beyond what they made during the five years that preceded the pandemic,” according to a fact sheet issued by Sanders’s office. “Because the tax is on profit and not revenue, companies that raise prices for legitimate reasons related to rising expenses would not be penalized.'
‘So far, the White House hasn’t commented on any of these proposals. The new budget proposal that it released on Monday didn’t include them, but the Washington Post’s Jeff Stein has reported that Administration officials are holding internal discussions about “potential ideas for bringing relief to consumers” of energy.’
‘From an economic perspective, taxing windfall profits during extraordinary circumstances and focussing financial assistance on the most needy both make eminent sense. As Sanders pointed out, the U.S. government introduced these types of taxes during the Second World War, the Korean War, and again in the nineteen-eighties, in response to the second OPEC oil-price crisis. It’s not clear, however, which, if any, of the options that have been touted could make it through Congress in short order.’
Some Democrats are not satisfied with Americans emptying their pockets if the government can help.
TC’s, SUCK IT UP BUTTERCUP!, could also have been titled BUCKLE UP BUTTERCUP; IT’S GOING BE A BUMPY RIDE! As he praised President Biden’s achievements, TC, took apart his weaknesses as a salesman.
Okay, TC, how is Biden going to deal with immigration? The Republicans keep getting touchdowns on that field. How is he going to attract working-class voters? Might Biden and the Democrats make good use of this?
'Amazon workers vote to join a union in New York in historic move'
'NEW YORK — Workers voted Friday to unionize an Amazon Staten Island warehouse, a historic decision that marks the first successful U.S. organizing effort at the e-commerce giant and a major victory for the domestic labor movement.'
'Amazon, the country’s second-largest private employer, has long fended off attempts to unionize workers at its warehouse — a highly prized target among traditional labor groups who have seen membership wane in recent years.'
'But a small, upstart independent union led by a former employee of the Staten Island warehouse mounted the first successful campaign to unionize Amazon workers, breaking many of the traditional organizing rules and relying on workers‘ momentum.'
'The vote could start a cascading effect on other Amazon warehouses, labor experts say, encouraging others to consider unionizing. That could transform the way the e-commerce giant conducts business and prioritizes the treatment of workers.' (Washington Post)
Were you too quick with a ‘Letter from an American’ subscriber who was placing his hope in Judge Mark E. Walker of the Federal District Court in Tallahassee, Florida, decision in striking down much of the new elections law passed by the Florida legislature after the 2020 election?
Steve Branz
Wonderful summary of the history and (often unstated) intent behind voter suppression laws in Florida. -- Let's hope that this ruling holds up on appeal.
TCinLA
'I wouldn't hold my breath if I were you. Read up on the 11th Circuit and remember the author of Shelby County is Chief Justice of a 6-3 traitor majority in the Supreme Court.'
“This case is about our sacred right to vote,” Walker wrote, “won at great cost in blood and treasure. Courts have long recognized that, because “the right to exercise the franchise in a free and unimpaired manner is preservative of other basic civil and political rights, any alleged infringement of the right of citizens to vote must be carefully and meticulously scrutinized.” (HCR’s Letter)
What if it is repealed? There is a great deal of material in it to trash the Republicans with. It is a treasure trove from which to make fabulously dramatic, humorous, and civics campaign ads.
“Think of it like viewing a pointillist painting, such as Georges Seurat’s A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte,” Walker wrote. “One dot of paint on the canvas is meaningless, but when thousands of dots are viewed together, they create something recognizable. So too here, one piece of evidence says little, but when all of the evidence is viewed together, a coherent picture emerges.’ (the Letter)
Hey, TC, what about painting by numbers ads to tell true stories about the GOP?