President Biden and US politics catchall

[Rhubarb & Custard]

If he wins votes on the day declare the win and hope to address postal ballots through the Supreme Court. Though you've got to wonder if any judges would go along with a plan to deny even a pretence at democracy.

[MungoMan]

It's Canada I feel sorry for. The instability south of the border will be such that yer Canucks will need to interrupt their winter sport-watching and journey down to burn the White House. Again.

[Kiwias]

I mean, this is a little more newsworthy:

I'd interpret that as him bragging that he'll win rather than threatening to hold on if he loses.

That is the most obvious interpretation.

[Guy Smiley]

Posted in the pics thread but...

[Slick]

If he wins votes on the day declare the win and hope to address postal ballots through the Supreme Court. Though you've got to wonder if any judges would go along with a plan to deny even a pretence at democracy.

Yes, they might be “conservative” judges but you would think they have enough independence not to follow the Trump path

[Ted.]

I mean, this is a little more newsworthy:

I'd interpret that as him bragging that he'll win rather than threatening to hold on if he loses.

That is the most obvious interpretation.

So on that basis Kiwias, you would dismiss any talk of Trump starting a ruckus in order to stay in power?

[eldanielfire]

It's Canada I feel sorry for. The instability south of the border will be such that yer Canucks will need to interrupt their winter sport-watching and journey down to burn the White House. Again.

Perhaps that's the best course of action anyway.

[JM2K6]

I mean, this is a little more newsworthy:

I'd interpret that as him bragging that he'll win rather than threatening to hold on if he loses.

That is the most obvious interpretation.

The most obvious interpretation of the pull quote maybe, but there's no way you can listen to him talking about the ballots and insinuating election fraud and still think that

[Rinkals]

"I've been complaining very strongly about the ballots, and the ballots are a disaster.... We wanna have... get rid of the ballots and there won't be a transfer, there'll be a continuation."

Does he mean elections as a whole, or mailed-in ballots?

I think that this is what he was elected to do in 2016, namely drive the US forward as CEO rather than an elected official.

That's what those who voted for him wanted; a businessman from outside the political establishment to make decisions as CEO from a business standpoint rather than pandering to political pressures.

Well, they got that, in spades!

But still, as any non-Trump supporter will tell you, Biden's worse.

[Ted.]

It's a shame he's not really a businessman per se and definitely a not a CEO who is looking out for the shareholders. To the contrary, a conman, a snake oil salesman, a bawdy, keystone cops salesman at that, is what he is. A bit too thick for, what should be, hos own good, too.
It takes a special kind of forgiveness to overlook what Trump is. Fortunately for him, there are, seemingly, an abundance of special people in the US.

[Fangle]

My personal experience with mail-in ballots this year:

My wife and I both wrote in asking for absentee ballots, and we got the forms which we filled in and sent off.
Then there were the run-off elections for a county judge. My wife got sent her form, but I didn’t get mine.
So I have to say that I don’t completely trust them.

[Rinkals]

My personal experience with mail-in ballots this year:

My wife and I both wrote in asking for absentee ballots, and we got the forms which we filled in and sent off.
Then there were the run-off elections for a county judge. My wife got sent her form, but I didn’t get mine.
So I have to say that I don’t completely trust them.

Okay.

So President Trump is right that the ability of the USPS to deliver voting forms is due to the inherent vulnerability of mail-in ballots to massive fraud.

I was under the mistaken impression that Louis DeJoy's changes to the postal system might have had some impact.

The changes were clearly aimed at “voter disenfranchisement”, given the increased role USPS will play in this year’s presidential election, the US district judge Stanley Bastian wrote in his ruling.

“It is easy to conclude that the recent Postal Services’ changes is an intentional effort on the part the current Administration to disrupt and challenge the legitimacy of upcoming local, state, and federal elections,” Bastian wrote.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/202 ... ouis-dejoy

[JM2K6]

[SaintK]

Fucking hell

[tabascoboy]

DJT needs a better Presidential Press Aide


How prescient was that last sentence

[sockwithaticket]

Fucking hell

Extracting babies prior to the 9th month sounds unecessarily risky and costly...

What on earth was the context for that little ramble? I assume it was a mangled attempt at claiming some states allow abortion in the 9th month that actually came out as condemning natural birth.

[Sinkers]

https://apnews.com/article/billings-mon ... rl7y4uJ5I0

And I guess this is the fella in charge of all the federal land that’s on fire at the moment - allegedly because of somebody else’s bad mgmt.

[Kiwias]

That is the most obvious interpretation.

So on that basis Kiwias, you would dismiss any talk of Trump starting a ruckus in order to stay in power?

No, I believe he is actually trying to create chaos and conflict all the time, in line with his divide and conquer style, but I read that particular comment as meaning he thinks he will win re-election.

[Raggs]

That is the most obvious interpretation.

So on that basis Kiwias, you would dismiss any talk of Trump starting a ruckus in order to stay in power?

No, I believe he is actually trying to create chaos and conflict all the time, in line with his divide and conquer style, but I read that particular comment as meaning he thinks he will win re-election.

It's all part of the same bit though. The ballots are bad, they're rigged, do away with the ballots and there'll be no conflicts.

[JM2K6]

That is the most obvious interpretation.

So on that basis Kiwias, you would dismiss any talk of Trump starting a ruckus in order to stay in power?

No, I believe he is actually trying to create chaos and conflict all the time, in line with his divide and conquer style, but I read that particular comment as meaning he thinks he will win re-election.

Did you watch the video or just read the quote though

[Kiwias]

I'd interpret that as him bragging that he'll win rather than threatening to hold on if he loses.

That is the most obvious interpretation.

The most obvious interpretation of the pull quote maybe, but there's no way you can listen to him talking about the ballots and insinuating election fraud and still think that

He is going to do his absolute best to fuck up the election but that “continuation” is basically him saying that he expects to win.

[Raggs]

He is going to do his absolute best to fuck up the election but that “continuation” is basically him saying that he expects to win.

No. The continuation comment was quite literally immediately after saying if we got rid of the ballots, there would just be a continuation. Literally, do away with democracy and yes, Trump would still be president.

[JM2K6]

That is the most obvious interpretation.

The most obvious interpretation of the pull quote maybe, but there's no way you can listen to him talking about the ballots and insinuating election fraud and still think that

He is going to do his absolute best to fuck up the election but that “continuation” is basically him saying that he expects to win.

Did you watch the whole video

[Slick]

He is going to do his absolute best to fuck up the election but that “continuation” is basically him saying that he expects to win.

No. The continuation comment was quite literally immediately after saying if we got rid of the ballots, there would just be a continuation. Literally, do away with democracy and yes, Trump would still be president.

I’m with Kiwias on this

[Raggs]

I struggle to believe you've listened to it then. I just double checked and he's explicitly saying if they got rid of the ballots there'd be a continuation. That's not confidence in winning, that's getting rid of democracy.

[Fangle]

I struggle to believe you've listened to it then. I just double checked and he's explicitly saying if they got rid of the ballots there'd be a continuation. That's not confidence in winning, that's getting rid of democracy.

If a there is no result due to any reason by January 20th, the speaker of the house becomes president. There is no way Trump can get past that, no matter what he says.

[Kiwias]

I struggle to believe you've listened to it then. I just double checked and he's explicitly saying if they got rid of the ballots there'd be a continuation. That's not confidence in winning, that's getting rid of democracy.

I have listened to it several times. My interpretation of his comments is that he believes that a majority of mail-in ballots (which is what he means by ballots) will go to the Democrats so by his logic, stopping mail-in voting would enable him to win re-election, his "continuation".

[Slick]

I struggle to believe you've listened to it then. I just double checked and he's explicitly saying if they got rid of the ballots there'd be a continuation. That's not confidence in winning, that's getting rid of democracy.

I think you are forgetting how fucking stupid he is

[Fangle]

I struggle to believe you've listened to it then. I just double checked and he's explicitly saying if they got rid of the ballots there'd be a continuation. That's not confidence in winning, that's getting rid of democracy.

I think you are forgetting how fucking stupid he is

And yet managed to prevent them uncovering his Russian collusion to steal an election.


In seriousness, this morning ABC says that Biden is leading by 10 points in the recent polls, suggesting that it is virtually impossible for him to lose.

[Kiwias]

I struggle to believe you've listened to it then. I just double checked and he's explicitly saying if they got rid of the ballots there'd be a continuation. That's not confidence in winning, that's getting rid of democracy.

I think you are forgetting how fucking stupid he is

And yet managed to prevent them uncovering his Russian collusion to steal an election.


In seriousness, this morning ABC says that Biden is leading by 10 points in the recent polls, suggesting that it is virtually impossible for him to lose.

Polls had HRC leading by more than that reasonably close to the election too.

[Rhubarb & Custard]

I struggle to believe you've listened to it then. I just double checked and he's explicitly saying if they got rid of the ballots there'd be a continuation. That's not confidence in winning, that's getting rid of democracy.

I have listened to it several times. My interpretation of his comments is that he believes that a majority of mail-in ballots (which is what he means by ballots) will go to the Democrats so by his logic, stopping mail-in voting would enable him to win re-election, his "continuation".

Seems about right, but surely him saying if only the votes from his supporters are counted is confirming it's an alarming commentary for a democracy?

[Rhubarb & Custard]

I think you are forgetting how fucking stupid he is

And yet managed to prevent them uncovering his Russian collusion to steal an election.


In seriousness, this morning ABC says that Biden is leading by 10 points in the recent polls, suggesting that it is virtually impossible for him to lose.

Polls had HRC leading by more than that reasonably close to the election too.

Clinton had a much smaller lead in the polls than Biden has. That said it doesn't mean the polls correctly reflect what the final outcome will be, and Trump won seemingly against the odds last time around. What might prove similarly important is a late boost to the Trump campaign, last time around James Comey and the FBI provided a huge boost to Trump, not that Trump proved exactly grateful for the assistance (intended or otherwise) that Comey granted him, it's hardly inconceivable in 2020 another big event could transpire.

Back on the polls if the odds in the last election ran around 3 to 1 against For Trump they've moved out to say 4 to 1 against now.

[Rinkals]

The more I think about it, the more I feel that Trump has everything to gain and Biden everything to lose in the upcoming debates.

Biden's speech impediment make him sound like he slurs, and, if his performance in the Q&A the other night is anything to go by, he'll be very prone to be distracted.

Trump is Trump: I doubt there'll be any surprises from his performance, but Biden will need to perform exceptionally well to get anything positive out of it.

[Rhubarb & Custard]

The more I think about it, the more I feel that Trump has everything to gain and Biden everything to lose in the upcoming debates.

Biden's speech impediment make him sound like he slurs, and, if his performance in the Q&A the other night is anything to go by, he'll be very prone to be distracted.

Trump is Trump: I doubt there'll be any surprises from his performance, but Biden will need to perform exceptionally well to get anything positive out of it.

Maybe, but Trump has set a very low bar for Biden with all his Sleepy Joe banter. And there don't seem to be many swing voters up for grabs anymore, the big thing is how difficult will voting be given the GOP support for the rise of an autocracy alongside their fervent belief in a kleptocracy? Unless something we haven't seen yet comes along this one is down to have problematic the suppression proves

[Fangle]

I have had a number of forms sent to me to apply for absentee ballots to both my name and resident at this address. And in my district, if not the whole state, multiple polling drop boxes will be placed over the whole area, making the need for using the PO unnecessary. So, there should be no place to complain about voter suppression. And extra polling stations will be opened.

My concern is more at the counting offices. Probably they will have to employ temporary workers to check that absentee ballots are legitimate by checking signatures etc, giving a lot of room for human error.

[Hal Jordan]

I see the mooted Supreme Court nominee is anti gay marriage, pro people with criminal records being allowed guns because 2nd Amendment (I wonder what she thinks about their right to vote), anti LGBT and oh, was part of the team that helped Bush win Florida.

[Rinkals]

I see the mooted Supreme Court nominee is anti gay marriage, pro people with criminal records being allowed guns because 2nd Amendment (I wonder what she thinks about their right to vote), anti LGBT and oh, was part of the team that helped Bush win Florida.

Here in South Africa, we have an independent judiciary which is able to make judgements based on the rule of law rather than political affiliation.

It seems extraordinary that the US does not.

[Rhubarb & Custard]

I have had a number of forms sent to me to apply for absentee ballots to both my name and resident at this address. And in my district, if not the whole state, multiple polling drop boxes will be placed over the whole area, making the need for using the PO unnecessary. So, there should be no place to complain about voter suppression. And extra polling stations will be opened.

My concern is more at the counting offices. Probably they will have to employ temporary workers to check that absentee ballots are legitimate by checking signatures etc, giving a lot of room for human error.

More polling stations than for a normal general election? And whilst there should be a lot of drop boxes there are already moves in place to curb those numbers, which is just barking even before there's a pandemic.

Checking the signatures might be problematic but one assumes there's more than one set of eyes on the ballots so at minimum they're double checked?

[Fangle]

I have had a number of forms sent to me to apply for absentee ballots to both my name and resident at this address. And in my district, if not the whole state, multiple polling drop boxes will be placed over the whole area, making the need for using the PO unnecessary. So, there should be no place to complain about voter suppression. And extra polling stations will be opened.

My concern is more at the counting offices. Probably they will have to employ temporary workers to check that absentee ballots are legitimate by checking signatures etc, giving a lot of room for human error.

More polling stations than for a normal general election? And whilst there should be a lot of drop boxes there are already moves in place to curb those numbers, which is just barking even before there's a pandemic.

Checking the signatures might be problematic but one assumes there's more than one set of eyes on the ballots so at minimum they're double checked?

A lot of extra polling stations have been proposed (I seem to remember the number of 40)as well as multiple temporary drop boxes for absentee ballots only. That at least is what is happening in the Atlanta area. I must assume that every district is making their own arrangements.

And naturally it has not happened before as these are unique conditions.

[Rhubarb & Custard]

I have had a number of forms sent to me to apply for absentee ballots to both my name and resident at this address. And in my district, if not the whole state, multiple polling drop boxes will be placed over the whole area, making the need for using the PO unnecessary. So, there should be no place to complain about voter suppression. And extra polling stations will be opened.

My concern is more at the counting offices. Probably they will have to employ temporary workers to check that absentee ballots are legitimate by checking signatures etc, giving a lot of room for human error.

More polling stations than for a normal general election? And whilst there should be a lot of drop boxes there are already moves in place to curb those numbers, which is just barking even before there's a pandemic.

Checking the signatures might be problematic but one assumes there's more than one set of eyes on the ballots so at minimum they're double checked?

A lot of extra polling stations have been proposed (I seem to remember the number of 40)as well as multiple temporary drop boxes for absentee ballots only. That at least is what is happening in the Atlanta area. I must assume that every district is making their own arrangements.

And naturally it has not happened before as these are unique conditions.

Drop in boxes have happened before. And they are under pressure in some areas, oddly and I'm sure without coincidence within some GOP run localities