TVTropes Now available in the app store!
Open

Follow TV Tropes

Following

The General US Politics Thread

Go To

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

Fourthspartan56 from Georgia, US Since: Oct, 2016 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
#258676: Oct 24th 2018 at 1:36:51 PM

"The GOP is just as human as you are"? Well, they sure don't act like it. They act like they think they're superior to a lot of us.

I would say the problem is that the Republican are excessively human.

Ignorance, willful delusion, and vicious prejudice are all very human traits. Obviously not the only human traits, tolerance and altruism are both more than possible but sadly they aren't behaving in an inhuman fashion. If they were then their policies would probably have less support.

Edited by Fourthspartan56 on Oct 24th 2018 at 4:40:06 AM

"Einstein would turn over in his grave. Not only does God play dice, the dice are loaded." -Chairman Sheng-Ji Yang
3of4 Just a harmless giant from a foreign land. from Five Seconds in the Future. Since: Jan, 2010 Relationship Status: GAR for Archer
Just a harmless giant from a foreign land.
#258677: Oct 24th 2018 at 1:37:06 PM

@Cat

I think it was said often enough that those kind of jokes, or worse non-jokes, are not welcome.

Edited by 3of4 on Oct 24th 2018 at 10:37:29 AM

"You can reply to this Message!"
Rationalinsanity from Halifax, Canada Since: Aug, 2010 Relationship Status: It's complicated
#258678: Oct 24th 2018 at 1:38:58 PM

Man, I hope the police respond quickly and that their lucky streak holds....

Politics is the skilled use of blunt objects.
CookingCat Since: Jul, 2018
#258679: Oct 24th 2018 at 1:39:40 PM

Self-thumped.

Edited by CookingCat on Oct 24th 2018 at 1:40:35 AM

BearyScary Since: Sep, 2010 Relationship Status: You spin me right round, baby
#258680: Oct 24th 2018 at 1:40:52 PM

Knock it off, Cat. I would holler your posts, but the damned holler button doesn't seem to be working.

Do not obey in advance.
Fourthspartan56 from Georgia, US Since: Oct, 2016 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
#258681: Oct 24th 2018 at 1:41:05 PM

I have some wonderful news about elections in Georiga.

ACLU: judge issues temporary restraining order blocking election officials in Georgia from throwing out absentee ballots or applications for signature mismatch without giving the voter an opportunity to contest the determination and confirm identity.

This is a very real victory for our democracy and it's nice to have some hope in regards to the future of my home state.

Edited by Fourthspartan56 on Oct 24th 2018 at 4:57:38 AM

"Einstein would turn over in his grave. Not only does God play dice, the dice are loaded." -Chairman Sheng-Ji Yang
Friendperson Since: May, 2018
#258682: Oct 24th 2018 at 2:52:06 PM

Georgia leadership has disenfranchised an estimated over a million voters.

sgamer82 Since: Jan, 2001
#258683: Oct 24th 2018 at 2:52:12 PM

https://whatthefuckjusthappenedtoday.com/2018/10/24/day-643/

Day 643: Despicable acts.

1/ The Secret Service intercepted packages containing "potential explosive devices" addressed to Obama and Hillary Clinton, similar to the one found at the home of George Soros on Monday. All three devices are of similar pipe-bomb-style construction. The Secret Service said "the packages were immediately identified during routine mail screening procedures as potential explosive devices and were appropriately handled as such." Contrary to reports, a suspicious package was not sent to the White House. (New York Times / Washington Post / ABC News / NBC News / CNBC / Associated Press)

https://apnews.com/e0ce67492cd843659d09b56c93cfeb35

📌 The Re-up: Day 642. An explosive device was found in a mailbox outside a home of billionaire George Soros in Westchester County, New York. The bomb was "proactively detonated" by the bomb squad. The case has been turned over to the FBI. (The Hill / New York Times)

https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/412674-explosive-device-found-at-george-soross-home

2/ A similar device was sent to CNN's headquarter in New York, addressed to former CIA Director John Brennan. The package contained a white powder. Brennan doesn't work for CNN, but is a national security and intelligence analyst for NBC News and MSNBC. CNN's New York bureau in the Time Warner Center was evacuated. (NBC News / CNN / Washington Post)

https://www.cnn.com/2018/10/24/politics/bill-clinton-hillary-clinton-chappaqua/index.html

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio called the live explosive package sent to the Time Warner Center in New York City an "act of terror." (CNBC)

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/10/24/new-york-city-mayor-bill-de-blasio.html

A package addressed to Rep. Maxine Waters was intercepted at a Congressional mail facility. (New York Times)

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/24/nyregion/clinton-obama-explosive-device.html

Suspicious packages were found outside the San Diego Union-Tribune. The building and nearby businesses were briefly evacuated. The boxes were filled with everyday items that included children's books and a football. (San Diego Union-Tribune)

http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/public-safety/sd-me-suspicious-package-ut-20181024-story.html

3/ The return address on the packages addressed to Soros, CNN, Obama, and the Clintons listed Rep Debbie Wasserman Schultz, who currently serves as a representative for Florida's 23rd congressional district and is the former chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee. Wasserman Schultz's office was also evacuated after a suspicious package was discovered. It was misaddressed to Eric Holder and returned to Wasserman Schultz's office, because that was the return address on the package. (CBS New York / Miami Herald / CNN)

https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/clintons-obama-suspicious-packages/h_b215a0b31750a9f48e8bcf3ef4ad884f

4/ Trump and the White House condemned the "attempted violent attacks," calling them "despicable acts." He added that "threats of political violence of any kind have no place in the United States of America." In a statement, Sarah Huckabee Sanders denounced the "terrorizing acts" against Obama, the Clintons and "other public figures." Pence tweeted that the "attempted attacks" are "cowardly" and "despicable." Trump retweeted Pence's statement, adding: "I agree wholeheartedly!" (Politico / Associated Press / The Hill / CNBC)

https://apnews.com/5c93ac06309c4ce88e8cd5023f89feca

Pro-Trump groups called the bomb threats merely a "false flag" operation and a convenient political stunt set up by Democrats two weeks before Election Day. (Daily Beast)

https://www.thedailybeast.com/pro-trump-media-insists-bomb-threats-against-clinton-obama-cnn-are-pure-bs-a-false-flag

5/ Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman called the killing of Jamal Khashoggi a "heinous crime that cannot be justified." He maintained his innocence, however, calling Khashoggi's murder "really painful to all Saudis" and to "every human being in the world." He accused unidentified critics of trying to use the case to "drive a wedge" between Saudi Arabia and Turkey. (Politico / New York Times / Washington Post)

https://www.politico.com/story/2018/10/24/saudi-prince-khashoggi-death-935446

6/ Trump called the murder of Jamal Khashoggi "a total fiasco," saying Saudi Arabia should never have thought about killing Khashoggi in the first place because "everything else they did was bad too." (Associated Press)

https://apnews.com/9c79116125c740d084eaf3576d8958a8

poll/ 56% of Americans think Trump has been too soft on Saudi Arabia in response to the killing of Khashoggi. 78% of Democrats, 55% of independents, and 37% of Republicans said Trump's response to the killing was "not tough enough." 56% of Republicans think Trump's response is "about right." (Survey Monkey)

https://www.axios.com/most-americans-think-trump-too-soft-on-saudi-arabia-ff7aeb5e-6fbf-4c28-948b-7a43d4fcef93.html

poll/ 35% of voters said Brett Kavanaugh's confirmation made them more likely to vote for a Democratic congressional candidate, compared to 27% who said it made them more likely to vote for a Republican congressional candidate, and 37% of voters said the confirmation wouldn't affect their vote. (USA Today)

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2018/10/24/brett-kavanaugh-effect-democrats-republicans-midterms-usa-today-suffolk-poll/1739876002/

Notables.

Jeff Flake said he didn't believe Brett Kavanaugh, but voted for him anyway. Asked on "The View" if he believed if Christine Blasey Ford was telling the truth during her testimony, Flake responded: "I don't know. I don't know if I believed him either." (Huff Post)

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/jeff-flake-the-view-brett-kavanaugh-doubts_us_5bcf8503e4b0a8f17ef1a571

The acting EPA administrator told the oil and gas industry that the "new EPA" is "removing regulatory barriers and leveling the playing field for American companies." Andrew Wheeler, who replaced Scott Pruitt, said that the EPA has initiated 28 "major deregulatory actions" and is developing 49 more. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

http://www.post-gazette.com/business/powersource/2018/10/24/Andrew-Wheeler-oil-and-gas-industry-EPA-Marcellus-Shale-Coalition/stories/201810240110

The EPA said small amounts of a herbicide found in breakfast cereals is not a health risk. The World Health Organization, however, listed glyphosate as a "probable carcinogen" in 2015. (ABC News)

https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/trace-amount-herbicide-breakfast-cereals-concern/story?id=58697973

Yesterday, Pence said it's "inconceivable that there are not people of Middle Eastern descent" in the caravan. Pence did not offer evidence to support Trump's claim that people from the Middle East were traveling with the caravan. (The Hill)

https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/412746-pence-its-inconceivable-there-are-not-people-of-middle-eastern

Trump admitted that there is "no proof" of "Middle Easterners" in the caravan of Central American migrants traveling through Mexico toward the U.S. border. He said he has "very good information" that "there could very well be" people from the Middle East in the caravan. (ABC News)

https://abcnews.go.com/US/trump-admits-proof-middle-easterners-caravan/story?id=58686056

A federal court ruled that part of Trump's executive order to end federal grant funding for sanctuary cities is unconstitutional. The ruling follows a U.S. appeals court decision in August that also found Trump's executive order unconstitutional. (The Hill)

https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/413000-federal-court-rules-part-of-trump-order-on-sanctuary-city-funding-is

China plans to wean off U.S. soybeans in response to a soybean shortage stemming from the ongoing trade dispute between the two countries. China is the biggest buyer of soybeans in the world and uses them as a source of protein for its livestock. More than a third of China's soybeans currently come from the United States. (CNN)

https://www.cnn.com/2018/10/24/economy/china-soybeans-trade-war/index.html

A federal court blocked Georgia from throwing out absentee ballots and applications because of signature mismatches. Voters who had their absentee ballots rejected can now contest the state's initial determination and confirm their identity. (USA Today)

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2018/10/24/federal-court-georgia-voters-can-affirm-absentee-ballot-signatures/1753415002/

Trump is expected to sign opioids legislation into law. More than 72,000 Americans died of drug-overdose deaths in 2017 – up nearly 7% from 2016. (CNN)

https://www.cnn.com/2018/10/24/politics/donald-trump-opioid-crisis-one-year-later-event/index.html

Congress postponed a closed-door interview with Rod Rosenstein, saying the time allotted for the session was too short. The House Judiciary and Oversight committees will be rescheduled and could become a public hearing rather than a closed-door interview. (Reuters)

https://www.reuters.com/article/usa-congress-rosenstein/congress-postpones-questioning-u-s-justice-official-on-trump-russia-probe-idUSKCN1MY01P

Trump directly accused Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell of endangering the U.S. economy by raising interest rates. "Every time we do something great, he raises the interest rates," Trump said, adding that Powell "almost looks like he’s happy raising interest rates." (Wall Street Journal / CNBC)

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/10/24/interest-rates-trump-attacks-fed-chairman-powell-wsj-reports.html

The S&P 500 and Dow erased all of their gains for 2018. The Dow has dropped 7.1% in October and the S&P 500 has pulled back 8.9%. The Nasdaq, meanwhile, has dropped 11.7%. (Bloomberg / CNBC)

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/10/24/dow-poised-for-triple-digit-losses-at-the-open-after-tuesdays-500-point-recovery.html

Fourthspartan56 from Georgia, US Since: Oct, 2016 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
#258684: Oct 24th 2018 at 2:55:45 PM

Georgia leadership has disenfranchised an estimated over a million voters.

This addresses my post... how?

The people who have been wrongfully denied a vote are being given a chance to solve it.

"Einstein would turn over in his grave. Not only does God play dice, the dice are loaded." -Chairman Sheng-Ji Yang
Silasw A procrastination in of itself from A handcart to hell (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: And they all lived happily ever after <3
A procrastination in of itself
#258685: Oct 24th 2018 at 3:03:57 PM

Just on a silly note, I saw on Colbert that Trump’s caravan stuff has gotten extra absurd, with him claiming that border patrol have intercepted people “from South America, and from other parts, further south”.

“And the Bunny nails it!” ~ Gabrael “If the UN can get through a day without everyone strangling everyone else so can we.” ~ Cyran
TechPriest90 Servant of the Omnissiah from Collegia Titanica, Mars, Sol System Since: Sep, 2015 Relationship Status: Above such petty unnecessities
Servant of the Omnissiah
#258686: Oct 24th 2018 at 3:06:03 PM

Pro-Trump groups called the bomb threats merely a "false flag" operation and a convenient political stunt set up by Democrats two weeks before Election Day. (Daily Beast)

https://www.thedailybeast.com/pro-trump-media-insists-bomb-threats-against-clinton-obama-cnn-are-pure-bs-a-false-flag

I don't know why I'm so surprised.

You know what, forget it. I take back what I said. Feel free to hate them to hell and back. Heck, I'll even join you.

I hold the secrets of the machine.
danime91 Since: Jan, 2012 Relationship Status: Above such petty unnecessities
#258687: Oct 24th 2018 at 3:06:27 PM

[up][up]Damn Antarctic Ice People. Why can't they just stick to their frozen wasteland, that will soon be not-so-frozen due to that climate change that doesn't exist?

Edited by danime91 on Oct 24th 2018 at 3:06:44 AM

TechPriest90 Servant of the Omnissiah from Collegia Titanica, Mars, Sol System Since: Sep, 2015 Relationship Status: Above such petty unnecessities
Servant of the Omnissiah
#258688: Oct 24th 2018 at 3:09:28 PM

[up] And let the Shoggoths dictate social policy and economic policy? Surely you jest.

I hold the secrets of the machine.
Fourthspartan56 from Georgia, US Since: Oct, 2016 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
#258689: Oct 24th 2018 at 3:16:43 PM

And let the Shoggoths dictate social policy and economic policy? Surely you jest.

I don't know... I trust protoplasmic horrors far more then I trust Republicans when it comes to sound policy.

At least they'll eat people without prejudice instead of just eating the poor wink

"Einstein would turn over in his grave. Not only does God play dice, the dice are loaded." -Chairman Sheng-Ji Yang
danime91 Since: Jan, 2012 Relationship Status: Above such petty unnecessities
#258690: Oct 24th 2018 at 3:23:18 PM

Don't Shoggoths require brains or something like that? Dunno if Republicans would taste good.

BearyScary Since: Sep, 2010 Relationship Status: You spin me right round, baby
TobiasDrake (•̀⤙•́) (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Arm chopping is not a love language!
(•̀⤙•́)
#258692: Oct 24th 2018 at 3:27:01 PM

Pro-Trump groups called the bomb threats merely a "false flag" operation and a convenient political stunt set up by Democrats two weeks before Election Day. (Daily Beast)

Eeyup.

My Tumblr. Currently side-by-side liveblogging Digimon Adventure, sub vs dub.
Fourthspartan56 from Georgia, US Since: Oct, 2016 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
#258693: Oct 24th 2018 at 3:27:43 PM

I am disgusted but unsurprised.

Shameful.

"Einstein would turn over in his grave. Not only does God play dice, the dice are loaded." -Chairman Sheng-Ji Yang
RainehDaze Nero Fangirl (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
Nero Fangirl
#258694: Oct 24th 2018 at 3:31:58 PM

Ice-People? No, no, it's penguins. They don't want the penguins in because they're such sharp dressers.

megaeliz Since: Mar, 2017
#258695: Oct 24th 2018 at 3:39:34 PM

[up][up][up] Russian Troll and not accounts are pushing that as well. Now would be a good time to look and report for them, since there’s usually relatively easy to spot.

Edited by megaeliz on Oct 24th 2018 at 6:42:46 AM

Robrecht Your friendly neighbourhood Regent from The Netherlands Since: Jan, 2001 Relationship Status: They can't hide forever. We've got satellites.
Your friendly neighbourhood Regent
#258696: Oct 24th 2018 at 3:54:48 PM

[up][up] Also, they're half black.

Angry gets shit done.
Ultimatum Disasturbator from the Amiga Forest (Old as dirt) Relationship Status: Who needs love when you have waffles?
Disasturbator
#258697: Oct 24th 2018 at 4:39:57 PM

What's next,letting Zebras into the country?

Madness I tell you.

have a listen and have a link to my discord server
megaeliz Since: Mar, 2017
#258698: Oct 24th 2018 at 4:42:05 PM

On a lighter note, apparently the bomber couldn’t spell.

Edited by megaeliz on Oct 24th 2018 at 8:28:35 AM

CookingCat Since: Jul, 2018
#258699: Oct 24th 2018 at 4:51:03 PM

The voting machines in Georgia are being marked for Kemp (the Republican) when people try to select Abrams (the Democrat), and require clearing the selection multiple times before it allows them to vote for Abrams: https://tinyurl.com/ycanprwq

archonspeaks Since: Jun, 2013
#258700: Oct 24th 2018 at 4:59:03 PM

That bomb looks like it's either a "scare" device or assembled by someone who has essentially zero knowledge of bombmaking. I'm wondering what the other devices look like now.

Props to whoever took that picture, if I opened an envelope and something like that came out I'd be hightailing it out of there.

They should have sent a poet.

Total posts: 417,856
Top