Mr.TaterSalad

Sandy Berger, Clinton's former National Security Adviser, went to jail over stealing classified documents from the National Archives. I wonder if Trump is in a similar boat as Berger was.

Extra butter on mine please!

Thank you Brandon. The inflation numbers and gas prices are still a net negative for Democrats and the Biden Administration overall from a political perspective. But as gas prices continue to fall and if we can get another improved inflation number in September and October, right before people go to the polls or are actually voting, that will put a crimp in the Republican strategy and messaging. There lot of work needs to be done between now and where we need to be overall. Inflation and the debate around it should have been the perfect time for Biden to take a bolder, more progressive approach as a Warren or Sanders would. Even if Warren and Sanders lost in the primary, their solutions to the long-term economic challenges we are facing are still generally the ones that would work best for people over the long term and reign in the corporate, oligarchic power that has taken control of our lives. We need to start having the real conversations about things like nationalizing healthcare, the energy industry and airlines. We need to discuss breaking up big corporate conglomerates, ending corporate monopoly power in a host of industries from banking to finance to food supply to healthcare. We need real federal price controls and mandates to protect consumers from corporate and business price gouging at the gas station, grocery store, doctors office, pharmacy, and so on. We need stricter regulatory measures across almost every industry to reign in the power of corporations and big business, ensuring everyday people get put first. We'll continue to struggle and suffer, facing economic shock after economic shock, as long as we have half baked measures that nibble around the edges and still let the capitalist system run roughshod over consumers, workers, families, etc. For now though, this is good news for Brandon and his merry band of socalistas right before the midterms.

I've been as knee jerk negative as they get with this team over the years and I can see the complete transformation of this roster occurring and them getting better. Ridiculous formula, whatever it is, being used by ESPN. This is especially true with the growth and development of their Oline. I think we have a real shot at having a top 10-top 5 Oline this season given that they all have another year together now.

I have the same belief about Santa Claus that she does about January 6. No one can convince that the name "mom" written on the from line of the gift tag isn't actually Santa in disguise. Somehow though, since I was about 8 or 9, I noticed that when I wake up on Christmas morning, the milk and cookies are still there untouched. Maybe Santa doesn't like them anymore?

He's at the point in the campaign where he is criticizing Oz's choice in jeans and I love it!!!

That's the trouble with me, you know, I got the wrong doctor. You know my doctor, Dr. Vinnie Boombatz.

Wouldn't he be the next Kurt Warner since it's the Rams?

All I'm saying is that I don't think we should be holding up Manchin and Sinema for doing the right thing on this when it's clear they had nefarious motives for killing and doing the wrong thing on prior, much more impactful legislation. If I have a loaves of bread and can feed 100 people and prevent them from starving to death, but I selfishly choose to feed only 20 and let the other 80 die, I'm not a good person for having fed the 20 that I did, I'm still a bad person for letting the other 80 perish. Sure, I fed 20 people, but you can't hold me up as a beacon of good by forgetting about the other 80 who starved and died. That's what Manchin and Sinema did here. They watered down and killed the most impactful climate and social welfare legislation since the Great Society all to protect the coal industry, mega donors to their campaigns, and the filthy rich. There isn't nobility in what they did and they should still be criticized. Furthermore, saying this is "the biggest climate bill ever" completely negates the argument as to whether or not it actually goes far enough in addressing the immediate climate emergency that we are in. A bad politician can't be let off the hook for their sins just for doing the right thing once in a while.

That's a bullshit argument and not one people should be making. Sanders helped author the biggest climate and social welfare legislation since LBJ and the Great Society but because Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema care more about protecting the coal industry, mega donors, and the filibuster we couldn't get it passed. So a rotten and corrupted individual does the right thing once in a while, we're supposed to ignore their sins and give them credit. Tony Soprano liked ducks, that doesn't make him a good person or worthy of being exalted with high praise.

This. Her decision was made for her by mega donors and corporate-affiliated Super PACs. Sad that she used to be a radical leftist and now she exemplifies everything wrong with DC politics.

Fuck her for taking out the Carried Interest loophole. This is better than nothing, but still fuck her for opposing it. The woman is the definition of bought and paid for.

My optimism on Ohio is that Ryan is running a campaign targeting working-class and rural economic issues, not falling into the defund the police political traps, and has a uniquely bad opponent to run against. As we've seen from prior elections, wedge and cultural issues work. JD Vance being an out of touch, San Francisco elite who carpet bagged his way back to Ohio to run for Senate is indeed a wedge issue, we'll see how effective it is. If Republicans were to lose all of Arizona, Georgia, New Hampshire, Ohio, and Pennsylvania in one Senate cycle, that would be be a huge political blow for them.

I don't know that it will work as Ohio has burned Democrats time and again with the false hope of winning. That said, Tim Ryan is hammering Vance as an out of touch, elite, billionaire who helicoptered back into Ohio from San Francisco to run for Senate. He's taking a similar, aggressive, offense-based approach that John Fetterman's campaign is using in PA against Dr. Oz. He's using an old Republican tactic by hammering Vance with a culture war, wedge issue as a San Francisco billionaire.

Still the very best follow on Twitter . . .

Nah, Putin can't run that fast, he's belly's too fat.

Maybe Don Jr. will do to his dad what Michael did to Fredo.

Trump wants to execute drug dealers now . . . after his own god damn criminal justice reform bill worked to create shorter sentences for convicted dealers.

Someone did a mildly amusing spoof of those old Tom Emanski training video TV ads with kickball instead of baseball.

Vice had an interview with him. https://www.vice.com/en/article/z3n3m8/guy-reffitt-capitol-rioter-family-torn-apart

I suppose it is better than a longer or full season suspension, but it feels like their season is over with Jacoby Brissett starting out of the gate and not Watson. There are worse QBs than Jacoby Brissett that you could have as a backup, we have two of them, but you're not generally winning with your backup QB. Unless of course you're Matt Flynn and you play the Lions. The Browns are @Panthers, Jets, Steelers, @Falcons, Chargers, Pats to start the first 6 games of the season. I could see the Browns though being 2-4 or 1-5 to start the season, thus being eliminated from the playoffs by the time Watson comes back.

It takes a set of balls for the GOP to tweet that. Iraq, January 6th, right-wing violence in general that never gets condemned by high-ranking Republicans.

I don't think I've been this excited for a season to start since 2012 when I thought this team would build off their 2011 success. I am legit excited for the Lions.

The 538 generic ballot average is R+.3. The Real Clear Politics generic ballot average is R+.9. Fox News had a poll just two weeks ago that was R+3, Emerson R+1. So R's are still ahead in the generic ballot averages. Maybe that will change with time. Additionally, Fox News had a poll and it asked voters what are the most important issues and who trust the most to handle them and Democrats were getting crushed in that. Overall, 41% say inflation will be most important to their vote for Congress. That’s about four times as many as say guns (12%) and abortion (10%). Next, it’s border security (7%), followed by climate change and crime (5% each), election integrity and voting rights (4% each), coronavirus (3%), and foreign policy (1%). The Republican issue advantages are larger and, importantly, on the top issue. They are preferred on inflation (R+19 points), border security (R+19), crime (R+13), and foreign policy (R+8). A Monmouth Poll from the beginning of the month told a similar story. Nearly half of the public names either inflation (33%) or gas prices (15%) as the biggest concern facing their family right now. The economy in general (9%) and paying everyday bills (6%) are among other financial concerns mentioned. Abortion, which has registered less than 1% on this question in prior Monmouth polls going back to 2015, is currently named by 5% That to me shows that voters don't care about January 6th all that much, and only moderately care about abortion rights and guns. As James Carville correctly stated: "It's the economy, stupid." Note, I am not calling you stupid, just pointing out that people care about economics far and above anything else. People vote with their wallets and for the economic wellbeing of themselves and their families. If gas and inflation stay high, Democrats will pay the political price if the Fox News and Monmouth data are any indicators. It partially explains why a candidates like Tim Ryan can overperform in polling in Ohio and candidates like Sherrod Brown can win there. Same goes with Tammy Baldwin in Wisconsin and (potentially) Fetterman in Pennsylvania. Fetterman and Ryan run as an economic progressive populists, like Baldwin and Brown do. Their messaging and way of campaigning separates them from the standard Democratic candidates.