Nov 2023 Mod notice:
There may be other, more specific, threads about some aspects of US politics, but this one tends to act as a hub for all sorts of related news and information, so it's usually one of the busiest OTC threads.
If you're new to OTC, it's worth reading the Introduction to On-Topic Conversations
and the On-Topic Conversations debate guidelines before posting here.
Rumor-based, fear-mongering and/or inflammatory statements that damage the quality of the thread will be thumped. Off-topic posts will also be thumped. Repeat offenders may be suspended.
If time spent moderating this thread remains a distraction from moderation of the wiki itself, the thread will need to be locked. We want to avoid that, so please follow the forum rules when posting here.
In line with the general forum rules, 'gravedancing' is prohibited here. If you're celebrating someone's death or hoping that they die, your post will get thumped. This rule applies regardless of what the person you're discussing has said or done.
Edited by Mrph1 on Nov 30th 2023 at 11:03:59 AM
First: US foreign policy is not exclusively the province of the President. Congress can and does set things such as budgets, ratifies treaties, and in general gives the President a framework to work within.
Second: Israel meddling in US politics is old news. Israel most certainly uses America's lobbying system for its own benefit, to the extent that the tail's wagging the dog.
Third, that norm you've stated about "don't try to maneuver someone else's national politics into a favorable configuration" was never a very strong norm to begin with. Israel's entanglement in domestic US politics is just of much longer standing than most such examples (to the point where it's seen as a fact of life inside the Beltway on both parties, and the foreign policy inner circle in Congress and the State Department both want to keep the issue as far away from the public as possible).
While compulsory voting isn't necessarily needed, it does bring results - according to the voting turnout site linked before, Australia has a fairly consistent 90-95% turnout, and while donkey voting is obviously a thing, it's really only roughly 5% at most. That's a dramatic improvement from the US's abysmal voting turnouts (even the presidental elections have been getting worse turnouts, shockingly). It's certainly one proven way of doing it that works.
We also have preferential voting, which does wonders for actually giving minor parties and independents some power (especially the Greens), it's partly the reason why we have a diverse senate.
edited 29th Jan '15 4:01:23 AM by Cronosonic
Sinful Saint
I wish we could have preferential voting here. Isn't there a state in New England that's trying it out? New Hampshire or Vermont? As a Southerner, they're all basically the same to me.
The problem is that Republicans aren't stupid and don't want higher voter turnouts, since statistically when there's a greater than ~30% voter turnout Dems win. They want to keep it at ~25% for every election.
If you meet me have some courtesy, have some sympathy, have some taste. Use all your well-learned politesse or I'll lay your soul to waste.
Fuck you, Fascist sympathizers
25% is basically an oligarchy. Hideously unrepresentative.
A nice butterfly
So hey. Cuba is gunna demand Guantanamo Bay to be returned to talk about the relation thing. What'd be the response to that?
It has always been the prerogative of children and half-wits to point out that the emperor has no clothes
HGW XX/7
"Do one, cnuts."
Schild und Schwert der Partei
Various Politicians going "We'd never let Cuba annex a part our proud and great nation" is about what I'd expect.
Fuck you, Fascist sympathizers
Ugh, they gotta make this difficult.
A nice butterfly
Get ready for that scheisskrieg then cuz' apparently Cuba is going for it :P
It has always been the prerogative of children and half-wits to point out that the emperor has no clothes
Palin's basically been denounced as too crazy even for Republicans at this point.
And if anyone has their heads roll, it's probably going to be Rob Dermer, the Israeli envoy to the United States. Basically this could potentially end up resulting in him being Persona non Grata.
(He's fired as a spokesman and director of issues analsysis, but he's still a talking head radio show host for the AFA)
Blowout soon fellow Stalker
Heads better roll over that Israel thing. The sooner we leave them out to dry the better.
Oh really when?
Persona non grata is unlikely and not the proper answer.
Admittedly, the proper answer would be for Obama to signal to the Democrats that, in the next round of budgetary wheeling-and-dealing, he wants to reduce Israel's aid. That particular lever hasn't been pressed yet in part because Congress wasn't in any shape to pass a budget, but now might be the time to offer "spending cuts" in that area.
NOT THE BEES
So, cutting funding and giving carte blanche to inevitably redirect even more of what's left into sports. Fantastic.
Fuck you, Fascist sympathizers
That depends on if the state was standing n the way of athletics or not.
Esquire's politics blog: Is Art Pope trying to take over the UNC university system?
I really hope he isn't, he's done enough damage to this state as it is.
He probably is. This is par for course with the current breed of Republicans.
Some of which if memory serves are Republican. But basically even the insurance companies don't want this to go away (not now that they're making hand over fist.)
Fuck you, Fascist sympathizers
I have full confidence in this one. As i've said here before, if Roberts could cook up his peculiar rationale for saving the ACA before, this should be a slam dunk, especially given that it props up certain notions that the other side should be in favor of, such as states' rights (one backlash to Burwell v King, if decided in favor of the challengers, would be that it would be much easier in the future for federal programs to screw over states in ways that are not immediately apparent)
To kind of jump on the Netanyahu snafu, a big part of it is that, for Netanyahu, it was right near election-time in Israel, and (supposedly) US policy is that we don't host foreign heads of state during that window to keep from looking biased.
Republicans inviting Netanyahu in spite of this policy is a pretty clear indicator that they favor his rhetoric, and the fact that neither side involved Obama in the discussion is a pretty clear slap in the face.
Now the question of what, if anything, should be done in response to it is completely beyond me, as I'm not fully familiar with how much of a breach in diplomatic protocol this is.
edited 29th Jan '15 1:25:49 PM by ironballs16
"Why would I inflict myself on somebody else?"
Fuck you, Fascist sympathizers
Aside from rounding up embassy staff and shooting them or nationalizing foreign-owned businesses, there's little you can do diplomatically to warrant more than a strongly-worded letter at least in terms of "immediate consequences."
What this does mean is that Dormer may be "persona non grata" in fact rather than by law, in that he'll rapidly lose all influence with the administration, and possibly with Democratic-aligned groups like J Street. This will become problematic if Netanyahu wins the elections and a Democrat takes the whitehouse in 2016. It is certainly problematic if Netanyahu wins and Netanyahu has to worry about the next two years of U.S. relations while Palestine's running around drumming up all the foreign support it can muster. Israel's not going to lose its big foreign policy friend completely, but maybe we'll be that much less willing to shift our weight for them.
The Israeli opposition must be calling foul as well, with foreign politicians using their opponent a political boost using diplomatic channels. Democracies aren't supposed to pull that (on each other).
Politics is the skilled use of blunt objects.
V
Air Force picks Boeing 747-8 to replace Air Force One
The decision comes a month after Boeing said it would slow production of the four-engine 747-8 aircraft to 1.3 a month from 1.5 a month because of declining orders.
"The Boeing 747-8 is the only aircraft manufactured in the United States (that) when fully missionized meets the necessary capabilities established to execute the presidential support mission," said Air Force Secretary Deborah James in a statement.
Boeing welcomed the Air Force's decision to skip a competition and opt for the 747-8, citing its 50-year history of building presidential aircraft.
The Air Force said it intended to award a sole source contract to Boeing, but they must still negotiate a contract and the modifications needed to adapt the jet for presidential use.
The 747-8 is the only four-engine commercial jet Boeing makes, providing an extra margin of flight safety over the more standard twin-engine planes.
But the Air Force order for a few 747s might not extend the life of the 747 program, which has failed to capture much business in recent years.
Another US contract with no competition...
edited 29th Jan '15 11:38:02 PM by Greenmantle
Keep Rolling On
The Cosmopolitan Fictioneer
Texas lawmaker under fire for Facebook post on Muslim Capitol Day.
The event, Texas Muslim Capitol Day, was organized by the Texas chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.
"Today is Texas Muslim Capital [sic] Day in Austin," Molly White, a House Republican, wrote on her Facebook page Thursday. "The House is in recess until Monday. Most Members including myself are back in District. I did leave an Israeli flag on the reception desk in my office with instructions to staff to ask representatives from the Muslim community to renounce Islamic terrorist groups and publicly announce allegiance to America and our laws. We will see how long they stay in my office."
The post followed a similar Facebook message that was posted along with a report from the "Right Wing News" website about a Dallas community creating a voluntary sharia court to dispense Islamic justice.
"Remember, in the Koran, it is ok to lie for the purpose of advancing Islam," she wrote. "Texans must never allow fringe groups of people to come here so that they can advance their own culture instead of becoming an American and assimilating into the American way of life. That, I can assure is not the intent of most Muslims who move to America."
The posts drew immediate criticism from many Facebook users.
"You can't seriously be this clueless," Fatima Ahmed wrote. "Not very 'Christian' of you. We should organize a group to come visit you and shower you with love in return for your hate. That's would Jesus (Peace Be Upon Him) would do. But what would you know about that. #Islamophobia #Bigotry #Molly White #TAKEONHATE."
"Just like the extremist groups hiding under the Muslim label, it looks like we've got an extremist here hiding under the label of Christianity," Kelly Pfeiffer wrote.
"Next can you ask all white people visiting the capitol [to] denounce the KKK?" Laura Wright asked. "When you do, please ask your staff to make a youtube video! I’d watch it!"
"I came here to call you a bigot, but I see everyone else beat me to it," John Glover wrote.
"This is a gross misuse of a political office," James Propes wrote.
But White, a 56-year-old anti-abortion conservative from Belton, Texas, dismissed the criticism.
"I do not apologize for my comments above," she wrote. "If you love America, obey our laws and condemn Islamic terrorism then I embrace you as a fellow American. If not, then I do not."
(...)
Thursday's event drew several dozen protesters, who gathered outside the Texas state capitol holding signs ("Radical Islam Is the New Nazi," one read) and shouting "Go home!"
The annual gathering of Texas Muslims began in 2003. Organizers told the Texas Tribune that this the first year there have been protests.
I think I just caused the back of my skull to achieve escape velocity by facepalming through my head.
O there is. It's a massive breach of international relations protocol. They effectively subverted the role of the execute (foregion relations) for domestic political gain. Now for the Republicans it's pretty much just a dick move, for the Isralies it's a lot more than that. The Israli goverment is tending to (blatantly) meddle in domestic US politics, which from an International Realtions perspective is an out and out breach of US sovreignty and shows huge disrespect to the US goverment.
Now the double headed monstrosity of US goverment makes it more complicated then in some cases, but foregion policy is done by the executive, which means that another state is meant to deal only with the executive or people it chooses to delegate to, ignoring that is a big breach of diplomatic protacole.
Goverment policy is meant to be goverment policy, in IR you're ment to deal with the goverment that exists, not try and influence domestic events so as to change the goverment to a more favourable one. The nightmare scenario is that if one entity can be delt with by a foregion goverment than so could any, say some border areas wanted to jump to Mexico they could start dealing with the Mexican goverment directly.
Now that's a never gonna happen nightmare scenario, but the system exists to prevent such sceneries and the rules are meant to be, if not followed, given lip service, the Isralies have been publicly spitting on US sovreignty by subverting the White House. For an ally to do that, and do it so blatently is huge.
edited 29th Jan '15 1:26:42 AM by Silasw
“And the Bunny nails it!” ~ Gabrael “If the UN can get through a day without everyone strangling everyone else so can we.” ~ Cyran