Political Theatre category archive
The Voter Fraud Fraud, Lost in Translation Dept. 0
The Republican gut-out-the-vote effort continues.
The Spanish-language guides said that voters could register up to 15 days before the election, while the English version included the correct deadline, 21 days before the election, as the Daily Kos flagged last week. And while the English guides told voters they could use their passport as a photo ID, the guides in Spanish did not include a passport in the list.
According to the story, Kansas is calling this an “administrative error.”
No There, There 0
Gwynne Dyer tries to visualize a “real” Donald Trump and can’t find one. A snippet:
Trump is so focused on getting their support that he even opposes the traditional Republican policies that have contributed to their marginalization and impoverishment: free trade, low taxes for the rich and deep cuts in welfare programs. And he gets away with it, although no other Republican candidate would.
(snip)
The answer is that there is no real Trump, in terms of policies and principles. He will do anything and say anything to get what he wants . . . .
Read the rest. Her most optimistic take on the results of Trump’s being elected is a hoot.
In related news, here’s a snapshot of Donald Trump’s (and the Republican Party’s) America.
Dreamers 0
I rather get a kick out persons who talk about a “real” Republican Party as if such a thing magically mystically exists on some plane separate and distinct from actual voting Republicans.
My real car is a 2016 Lamborghini. The 13-year old pickup truck is not my real car. It’s just not.
Animal House 2
Der Spiegel takes a look at the campaign for the Republican presidential nomination. What it sees is not pretty. A nugget:
It’s not just the two bullies at the top who are to blame. Their rise was made possible through a decline in values such as decency, honesty, tolerance and fairness — a process that has been hastened by the Republican Party more than anyone else. For too long, it has pursued fiscal, economic and social policies that served only companies and the rich, the financial backers of their election campaigns.
I was wondering this morning whether it would be accurate to suggest that the Republican Party is no longer a political party in any recognizable sense, but, rather, large and unruly cabal.
Just thinking out loud, mind you.
The “Panama Papers” . . . 1
. . . contain no revelation, only confirmation.
If you didn’t already know that the system is crooked, you haven’t been paying attention.
Food for the Ears 0
Harry Shearer interviews David Cay Johnston about Donald Trump and related topics.
Johnston has followed Trump’s careen career for almost four decades. The discussion ranges over Trump’s business dealings, apparent ties with the mob, history of–er–prevarication, and much, much more, with a side trip into business tax law in theory and in practice.
Listen up, y’hear.
The Barnum and Bailey Election 2
At The Guardian, Frankie Boyle takes a blistering look at the U. S. Presidential campaign. A nugget:
Just read it.
One Person, One Person 0
A conservative reactionary attempt to create a class of non-persons* for apportionment purposes fails unanimously in the Supreme Court.
Even Clarence Thomas couldn’t stomach this one.
________________
*One suspects that “3/5s of a person” didn’t play well with the focus groups.
Clarence Page Is an Optimist 2
Clarence Page potters about:
Some Twitter users compared Trump to Voldemort in December after the billionaire developer and TV reality show star proposed a ban on Muslims entering the United States.
“How horrible,” Rowling responded in a tweet of her own. “Voldemort was nowhere near as bad.”
Follow the link to observe Page grasping at a straw: the desperate hope that Paul Ryan just might be the sane one in his insane party.
Economics of Fail 0
At The Roanoke Times, John Winfrey, Emeritus {rofessor of Economics and Public Policy, dissects Tea Bag economic mythology reasoning and exposes its internal contradictions. A snippet:
Unfortunately the Tea Party Ideologues seem oblivious that every Eco 101 text also has a Chapter Two.