Kevin Koster commented on Trumper Rep. Biggs Calls Impeachment Hearing A 'Dud,’ Suggests Trump Has Already Won
2019-11-15 02:57:01 -0500
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It’s interesting that Fox News is so frantic to tell their viewers the impeachment inquiry is a “dud” that they are devoting hour after hour to repeating that line and discussing the hearings. One would think that if the hearings really were a “dud”, there would be no need for Fox News to spend any time at all on them. Instead, we keep seeing these breathless faces desperately shouting about how these hearings are such a disaster, etc. One might conclude that the lady doth protest too much.
Kevin Koster commented on Newt Gingrich Wants Us To Think Trump’s Ukraine Extortion Was Only Because He Cares So Much About Corruption And Truth
2019-11-12 21:11:46 -0500
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How about the simpler answer? That the Pence White House is terrified of the Dem candidates, particularly Joe Biden, and figured they could get away with gooning it up in this matter.
Kevin Koster commented on Watch Fox & Friends Turn A Weather Report Into A Trump Commercial
2019-11-10 14:36:49 -0500
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This is part of Fox News’ strategy to try to discourage Dems from working to win Florida in 2020. Kind of a heavy lift for the GOP, as they only carried the state in 2016 and 2018 due to Dem voter apathy. If the Dems show up in 2020, particularly the Puerto Ricans who were forced to move to Florida after the Pence White House abandoned them, we may see a very different result.
Kevin Koster commented on Fox News Personalities Thumb Their Noses At Network Order Not To Name Whistleblower
2019-11-10 14:33:46 -0500
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No surprise here. Of course the Pence White House and its sycophants in Right Wing media want some harm to come to the person who has had the temerity to force them to deal with this discussion at all. And presumably this show of force (and whatever unfortunate ramifications happen for the whistleblower) will serve to discourage anyone else from making the mistake this guy did.
Just as the Right Wing viciously attacked Professor Ford last year for having the temerity to publicly state what Brett Kavanaugh did to her. The Right Wing played that situation as one where Kavanaugh was somehow the victim rather than the perpetrator and where Ford was somehow a terrible person. In the end, Kavanaugh was given his political reward and now unjustly holds one of the highest judicial seats in the nation in spite of his bias and partisanship. And Professor Ford lives in fear of her life and has been forced to move multiple times and is unable to resume the teaching that had been her occupation. In other words, her life has been destroyed. Is it any wonder that nobody else wants to come forward to discuss Brett Kavanaugh?
Just as the Right Wing viciously attacked Professor Ford last year for having the temerity to publicly state what Brett Kavanaugh did to her. The Right Wing played that situation as one where Kavanaugh was somehow the victim rather than the perpetrator and where Ford was somehow a terrible person. In the end, Kavanaugh was given his political reward and now unjustly holds one of the highest judicial seats in the nation in spite of his bias and partisanship. And Professor Ford lives in fear of her life and has been forced to move multiple times and is unable to resume the teaching that had been her occupation. In other words, her life has been destroyed. Is it any wonder that nobody else wants to come forward to discuss Brett Kavanaugh?
Kevin Koster commented on Hannity Melts Down After He Is Implicated In Ukraine Impeachment Scandal
2019-11-06 15:28:26 -0500
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If anything, this latest tantrum just shows that Hannity is beginning to openly panic about 2020. He’s fully aware that most of the country is fed up with the viciousness, and he has no answer for the now voluminous and appropriate criticisms of how the Right Wing has comported itself for the past decade.
Regarding Burisma and the Bidens, Hannity and the Right Wing have deliberately obfuscated the actual facts of the matter. Burisma was indeed a shady company and was linked with corruption in Ukraine – but this was during several years before Hunter Biden was ever asked to join their board. While that corruption was going on, the Ukrainian prosecutor Shokin was noted for his unwillingness to handle it. Shokin was frankly a part of the corruption. At some point late in the Obama presidency and years after the company had committed its various and sundry actions, Burisma contracted with Hunter Biden to become a highly paid member of their board. By pretty much all accounts, Hunter Biden was paid a lot to do practically nothing for them. I’m fairly sure that they thought this appointment would be seen by the Obama presidency as a “good faith” gesture, and that presumably Joe Biden would be influenced by it. Instead, the Obama White House sided with the international community and demanded that the corruption in Ukraine be examined – and part of this involved dumping an obviously corrupt prosecutor who was refusing to investigate companies like Burisma. Biden’s trip to tell the Ukrainians this message was ordered by President Obama, who in turn was working in cooperation with a lot of other countries – essentially telling Ukraine to clean up their act or risk losing their funding. When Biden told the Ukrainians to do this, they tried to laugh him off, as he discussed in the clip Fox keeps playing of him. They figured he’d never do this and figured that he had no power to tell them anything. Biden of course told them to call Obama if they doubted him and gave them a deadline to fire the corrupt prosecutor. The Ukrainians thought twice and backed down, firing Shokin and installing an actual prosecutor.
We should keep in mind that had there been any actual legal malfeasance by Hunter Biden or even Joe Biden with Burisma and the Ukrainians, the actual investigation that was done by the new prosecutor would have uncovered it fairly quickly. The Ukrainians would have been motivated to embarrass Biden if they could for having the temerity to challenge them. But the new prosecutor found instead that there was nothing illegal or inethical in what happened with Burisma and Hunter Biden. He did find that Burisma had a prior history of corruption, but that they were behaving themselves when Biden was on the board. (He noted that the last illegal acts had happened two years before Biden was recruited). In the aftermath of all this, the fired prosecuctor, Shokin, began making noises to any Right Winger who would listen that he was somehow fired for trying to investigate Burisma rather than the truth, which was directly the reverse of his statements. Various angry Right Wingers in the US began to listen to nonsense like Shokin’s, and began trying to foment nonsensical conspiracy theories about Ukraine as a way of distracting from the very real hacking done of the DNC by Wikileaks and their Russian sources. And various gullible (and frankly stupid) Right Wing hosts like Hannity and Glenn Beck fell for these ruses, as did cranks like Rudy Giuliani, and began peddling them in turn to their audiences – who were in turn fairly gullible about conspiracy theories like these. And the most prominent audience these guys have is Mike Pence’s childish spokesman, who was stupid enough to have Giuliani run around Europe trying to find the Fools’ Gold of this stuff. Part of that process involved “getting tough” with Ukraine – meaning that now they would try to withhold aid in the service of the conspiracy theory and on behalf of the criminals who had previously been ousted, like Shokin.
Again, let’s remember – the Obama White House was working to FIGHT corruption, and their instruction to Ukraine was intended to clean out the bad actors. The Pence White House was working to ENCOURAGE corruption, in the hopes that they could blackmail Ukrainian officials into helping them smear the Bidens. It appears that some criminal acts were committed as part of the Pence White House’s dark work here – including the exposed impeachable offenses around that phone call, and other undisclosed fraud committed by the Ukrainians around Giuliani. And let’s note that after those Ukrainians were arrested (in the process of trying to flee the US), at least one has come forward to say he will roll over on the others – which could take the investigation right back into Giuliani if not all the way into the Pence White House. So the criminal behavior was committed by the guys working with the Pence White House, and they’re frantically trying to smear the guys before them who were trying to stamp out the corruption and criminality. That’s while they’re trying in vain to make this about “process” when the House committee hearings are completely constitutional and appropriate (and attended by the very Republicans they say are being left out), or about the identity of a whistleblower (when that information is irrelevant after we’ve already had it corroborated and when it’s obvious their intention is to have that person physically attacked or worse). These guys can sing all day long about their distractions. It will not change the facts.
Finally, regarding the Bidens and Ukraine. There’s frankly nothing illegal or even unethical in Hunter Biden accepting a Board seat on a company. I would agree that we can discuss the MORALITY of accepting a giant paycheck from a company like Burisma, but that’s irrelevant as far as criminality goes. And we’ve seen that this Board seat and paycheck did nothing to save either Burisma or the corrupt prosecutor Shokin from being dealt with. All we have is a possible discussion about whether the son of a Vice President should think before accepting a Board seat and a paycheck. And in the greater scheme of things, that discussion is pretty small potatoes. Certainly the Right Wing has no issues with the relations of White House figureheads getting all kinds of perks, or they would not have allowed any of the Trumps, the Reagans or the Bushes to get away with all the goodies they received.
Regarding Burisma and the Bidens, Hannity and the Right Wing have deliberately obfuscated the actual facts of the matter. Burisma was indeed a shady company and was linked with corruption in Ukraine – but this was during several years before Hunter Biden was ever asked to join their board. While that corruption was going on, the Ukrainian prosecutor Shokin was noted for his unwillingness to handle it. Shokin was frankly a part of the corruption. At some point late in the Obama presidency and years after the company had committed its various and sundry actions, Burisma contracted with Hunter Biden to become a highly paid member of their board. By pretty much all accounts, Hunter Biden was paid a lot to do practically nothing for them. I’m fairly sure that they thought this appointment would be seen by the Obama presidency as a “good faith” gesture, and that presumably Joe Biden would be influenced by it. Instead, the Obama White House sided with the international community and demanded that the corruption in Ukraine be examined – and part of this involved dumping an obviously corrupt prosecutor who was refusing to investigate companies like Burisma. Biden’s trip to tell the Ukrainians this message was ordered by President Obama, who in turn was working in cooperation with a lot of other countries – essentially telling Ukraine to clean up their act or risk losing their funding. When Biden told the Ukrainians to do this, they tried to laugh him off, as he discussed in the clip Fox keeps playing of him. They figured he’d never do this and figured that he had no power to tell them anything. Biden of course told them to call Obama if they doubted him and gave them a deadline to fire the corrupt prosecutor. The Ukrainians thought twice and backed down, firing Shokin and installing an actual prosecutor.
We should keep in mind that had there been any actual legal malfeasance by Hunter Biden or even Joe Biden with Burisma and the Ukrainians, the actual investigation that was done by the new prosecutor would have uncovered it fairly quickly. The Ukrainians would have been motivated to embarrass Biden if they could for having the temerity to challenge them. But the new prosecutor found instead that there was nothing illegal or inethical in what happened with Burisma and Hunter Biden. He did find that Burisma had a prior history of corruption, but that they were behaving themselves when Biden was on the board. (He noted that the last illegal acts had happened two years before Biden was recruited). In the aftermath of all this, the fired prosecuctor, Shokin, began making noises to any Right Winger who would listen that he was somehow fired for trying to investigate Burisma rather than the truth, which was directly the reverse of his statements. Various angry Right Wingers in the US began to listen to nonsense like Shokin’s, and began trying to foment nonsensical conspiracy theories about Ukraine as a way of distracting from the very real hacking done of the DNC by Wikileaks and their Russian sources. And various gullible (and frankly stupid) Right Wing hosts like Hannity and Glenn Beck fell for these ruses, as did cranks like Rudy Giuliani, and began peddling them in turn to their audiences – who were in turn fairly gullible about conspiracy theories like these. And the most prominent audience these guys have is Mike Pence’s childish spokesman, who was stupid enough to have Giuliani run around Europe trying to find the Fools’ Gold of this stuff. Part of that process involved “getting tough” with Ukraine – meaning that now they would try to withhold aid in the service of the conspiracy theory and on behalf of the criminals who had previously been ousted, like Shokin.
Again, let’s remember – the Obama White House was working to FIGHT corruption, and their instruction to Ukraine was intended to clean out the bad actors. The Pence White House was working to ENCOURAGE corruption, in the hopes that they could blackmail Ukrainian officials into helping them smear the Bidens. It appears that some criminal acts were committed as part of the Pence White House’s dark work here – including the exposed impeachable offenses around that phone call, and other undisclosed fraud committed by the Ukrainians around Giuliani. And let’s note that after those Ukrainians were arrested (in the process of trying to flee the US), at least one has come forward to say he will roll over on the others – which could take the investigation right back into Giuliani if not all the way into the Pence White House. So the criminal behavior was committed by the guys working with the Pence White House, and they’re frantically trying to smear the guys before them who were trying to stamp out the corruption and criminality. That’s while they’re trying in vain to make this about “process” when the House committee hearings are completely constitutional and appropriate (and attended by the very Republicans they say are being left out), or about the identity of a whistleblower (when that information is irrelevant after we’ve already had it corroborated and when it’s obvious their intention is to have that person physically attacked or worse). These guys can sing all day long about their distractions. It will not change the facts.
Finally, regarding the Bidens and Ukraine. There’s frankly nothing illegal or even unethical in Hunter Biden accepting a Board seat on a company. I would agree that we can discuss the MORALITY of accepting a giant paycheck from a company like Burisma, but that’s irrelevant as far as criminality goes. And we’ve seen that this Board seat and paycheck did nothing to save either Burisma or the corrupt prosecutor Shokin from being dealt with. All we have is a possible discussion about whether the son of a Vice President should think before accepting a Board seat and a paycheck. And in the greater scheme of things, that discussion is pretty small potatoes. Certainly the Right Wing has no issues with the relations of White House figureheads getting all kinds of perks, or they would not have allowed any of the Trumps, the Reagans or the Bushes to get away with all the goodies they received.
Kevin Koster commented on Trump Most Active On Twitter While Watching Fox News
2019-11-04 19:31:12 -0500
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This is not surprising. We’ve already been aware that Trump essentially spends his day watching TV (mostly these Fox News shows), Tweeting about the TV shows he’s watched, and making incoherent public statements where he tries to throw his weight around and usually embarrasses himself.
I wouldn’t be too concerned about whether he receives his daily briefing, given that he isn’t doing the actual job of the President anyway. That work is done by Mike Pence, who only accepted this gig when he’d previously been a Ted Cruz supporter because of the terms that Trump’s kids were offering anyone who would take it – that the VP would get to set all the domestic policy and all the foreign policy. In other words, the VP would get to do all the actual work of the Presidency. When John Kasich was presented with this offer, he famously asked what the heck Trump would be doing. And was told “He’ll be out making America great again.”
Anyone who actually follows policy work in DC will tell you that the actual policy decisions in the White House since early 2017 have been handled pretty much by Mike Pence. Trump has given himself the easier task of just Tweeting and watching TV and finding other ways to occupy his time. Which is why I’ve referred to Trump by his actual position – that of being Pence’s childish spokesman. It’s true that Trump occasionally blunders into the middle of Pence’s work, as he has with the disastrous choices Rudy Giuliani conned him into making re Ukraine. But the vast majority of policy work and appointments go through Pence’s office. Which also means that even if we removed Trump from the figurehead position, there would be no change in the actual policies, as the same man would still be driving them.
If we wish to see real change at the White House, it will only come if people show up to vote next November.
I wouldn’t be too concerned about whether he receives his daily briefing, given that he isn’t doing the actual job of the President anyway. That work is done by Mike Pence, who only accepted this gig when he’d previously been a Ted Cruz supporter because of the terms that Trump’s kids were offering anyone who would take it – that the VP would get to set all the domestic policy and all the foreign policy. In other words, the VP would get to do all the actual work of the Presidency. When John Kasich was presented with this offer, he famously asked what the heck Trump would be doing. And was told “He’ll be out making America great again.”
Anyone who actually follows policy work in DC will tell you that the actual policy decisions in the White House since early 2017 have been handled pretty much by Mike Pence. Trump has given himself the easier task of just Tweeting and watching TV and finding other ways to occupy his time. Which is why I’ve referred to Trump by his actual position – that of being Pence’s childish spokesman. It’s true that Trump occasionally blunders into the middle of Pence’s work, as he has with the disastrous choices Rudy Giuliani conned him into making re Ukraine. But the vast majority of policy work and appointments go through Pence’s office. Which also means that even if we removed Trump from the figurehead position, there would be no change in the actual policies, as the same man would still be driving them.
If we wish to see real change at the White House, it will only come if people show up to vote next November.
Kevin Koster commented on Tucker Carlson's Very Creepy Smear Of Adam Schiff: Impeachment In ‘Steamy, Unhinged Letters Using His Own Body Fluids’
2019-11-01 21:19:23 -0400
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John, we would be out in traffic, chasing cars, biting tires, running around like wild people.
I’ll just second the warning Ellen is making here – the outing of the man that angry Right Wingers SAY is one of the whistleblowers (and we don’t know that their assumptions are correct at this point) is clearly intended to generate real danger for him.
(And we should remember that it’s irrelevant who the whistleblower is – as Ellen notes, the actual complaint has been repeatedly verified from multiple sources. Just as it’s irrelevant whether the first whistleblower was on the actual call – since they were getting identical accounts of the call from multiple staffers who were concerned – and now that we have the verifications, the issue is about the conduct itself, not the person who originally mentioned it.)
The obvious intention of Rush Limbaugh and disgraced predator Bill O’Reilly is to dox the man – so that he can be repeatedly harassed and likely attacked in every form, including physically, as a warning to anyone else who dares step forward and reveal the uncomfortable truths of the goon behavior of the Pence White House.
This was the same approach taken with Dr. Blasey Ford from last year, where she has repeatedly been harassed with death threats and forced to live away from home, thanks to all the angry Right Wingers who have persecuted her for having the temerity to tell the truth about Brett Kavanaugh. And in the case of Dr. Ford, that approach has helped to discourage anyone else from coming forward – as was of course their intention.
I have a very real concern that the more unhinged among the Right Wing listeners of Limbaugh and his ilk and viewers of gargoyles like Carlson may take matters farther in their own hands. If we hear of anything happening to this man, we’ll have a replay of what happened to George Tiller. And I note that predator O’Reilly has repeated his conduct with this new target. I remind everyone that O’Reilly has never apologized or taken even one iota of responsibility for what happened to Tiller. I expect neither he nor Carlson will take any responsibility if something happens to the man these guys are now targeting.
I’ll just second the warning Ellen is making here – the outing of the man that angry Right Wingers SAY is one of the whistleblowers (and we don’t know that their assumptions are correct at this point) is clearly intended to generate real danger for him.
(And we should remember that it’s irrelevant who the whistleblower is – as Ellen notes, the actual complaint has been repeatedly verified from multiple sources. Just as it’s irrelevant whether the first whistleblower was on the actual call – since they were getting identical accounts of the call from multiple staffers who were concerned – and now that we have the verifications, the issue is about the conduct itself, not the person who originally mentioned it.)
The obvious intention of Rush Limbaugh and disgraced predator Bill O’Reilly is to dox the man – so that he can be repeatedly harassed and likely attacked in every form, including physically, as a warning to anyone else who dares step forward and reveal the uncomfortable truths of the goon behavior of the Pence White House.
This was the same approach taken with Dr. Blasey Ford from last year, where she has repeatedly been harassed with death threats and forced to live away from home, thanks to all the angry Right Wingers who have persecuted her for having the temerity to tell the truth about Brett Kavanaugh. And in the case of Dr. Ford, that approach has helped to discourage anyone else from coming forward – as was of course their intention.
I have a very real concern that the more unhinged among the Right Wing listeners of Limbaugh and his ilk and viewers of gargoyles like Carlson may take matters farther in their own hands. If we hear of anything happening to this man, we’ll have a replay of what happened to George Tiller. And I note that predator O’Reilly has repeated his conduct with this new target. I remind everyone that O’Reilly has never apologized or taken even one iota of responsibility for what happened to Tiller. I expect neither he nor Carlson will take any responsibility if something happens to the man these guys are now targeting.
Kevin Koster commented on Stephanie Grisham Seems Clueless About WH Impeachment Strategy: “I Don't Think The Messaging Changes'
2019-11-01 12:34:18 -0400
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Based on their behavior over the past two weeks, it appears that the Pence White House, the childish spokesman, and the various Right Wing propaganda groups are all panicking over the upcoming impeachment proceedings. Looking past their desperate projection, it’s fairly clear that they are terrified that some Republicans will not support the goon behavior of both Pence and the infant on Twitter. So the false bravado they’re projecting is interesting but paper thin. Let’s see how they deal with the upcoming House proceedings – I’m betting we see meltdowns on a daily and even an hourly basis.
My favorite part of the Right Wing responses we’ve seen so far has been the angry blowhard pose – that those darn Democrats better not try to vote on anything or somehow all of America will be REALLY MAD AT THEM. Riiiiight. As though the Right Wing was ever anything but REALLY MAD at everyone else. Translation: The Right Wing is terrified that Trump will get the same asterisk as Bill Clinton, only with an actual series of criminal actions – and ones that may not be pardoned after he’s out of office. And that doesn’t even get into the Right Wing’s growing panic about how next year’s election could play out.
My favorite part of the Right Wing responses we’ve seen so far has been the angry blowhard pose – that those darn Democrats better not try to vote on anything or somehow all of America will be REALLY MAD AT THEM. Riiiiight. As though the Right Wing was ever anything but REALLY MAD at everyone else. Translation: The Right Wing is terrified that Trump will get the same asterisk as Bill Clinton, only with an actual series of criminal actions – and ones that may not be pardoned after he’s out of office. And that doesn’t even get into the Right Wing’s growing panic about how next year’s election could play out.
Kevin Koster commented on Catherine Herridge Leaves Fox News For CBS News
2019-11-01 12:26:52 -0400
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Eyes is probably correct that CBS is trying to see if they can get some viewers from the Trump base by hiring someone as completely compromised as Herridge. If I were to guess as to the outcome here, I’d expect to see a flameout along the lines of what happened with Megyn Kelly. I strongly doubt that Herridge can comport herself in any manner that would work for actual journalists in the real world.
It’s truly unfortunate to see CBS caving in like this – the appropriate way to deal with someone who has committed so many journalistic transgressions would be to simply shun her. As it is, there is no reason to believe anything she says – given that she has so actively worked to mislead her viewers for so long.
It’s truly unfortunate to see CBS caving in like this – the appropriate way to deal with someone who has committed so many journalistic transgressions would be to simply shun her. As it is, there is no reason to believe anything she says – given that she has so actively worked to mislead her viewers for so long.
Kevin Koster commented on Laura Ingraham: Trump Getting Booed At World Series Would Be A Great Campaign Commercial
2019-10-30 11:59:35 -0400
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This segment would have been spit-take funny if it were not for the problem that the deplorables will believe it to be true.
The constant chyron of “The Swamp Boos America” is just silly. The reality was that most of the American citizens in the stands for the baseball game were not fans of the Pence White House and they made that known loudly. When President Obama was booed by conservatives, flacks like Ingraham would regularly cheer it on. It’s only when Pence’s childish spokesman gets a catcall that somehow everyone must immediately clutch their pearls.
Luntz rattled off a list of baldfaced lies about the Dems supposedly not doing anything in the House – when in fact, they have passed dozens of bills and sent them to Mitch McConnell, who has promised to kill them and has refused to allow any to be voted upon. (Kind of the reverse of what was happening with the angry Right Wingers in the House and Harry Reid in the Senate 8 years ago…)
Ingraham seems to be in a bubble of happy news about the Pence White House, and seems to be in complete denial about how the viciousness of this bunch has been received by the rest of the country.
Luntz also blatantly lied about what Hillary Clinton said about the Trump voter base. She did NOT say that “half of America are deplorables”. She said that Trump’s base included, among his supporters a “basket of deplorables” – because that was and is true. And if we’ve learned anything since 2016, it’s that more and more Republicans have inadvertently revealed themselves to be deplorables – by acting in openly bigoted and racist ways.
Interesting to hear York fumbling to come up with a brand new justification for why Trump’s inaugural crowd was so sparse and why President Obama’s was so much larger – except that the Right Wing scream about that for the past 2 1/2 years has been to insist that Trump’s was somehow larger anyway, or the time of the photos wasn’t comparable, or whatever. Someone should get York on the same page as the rest of the Right Wing, one things.
And York’s final comment was another vicious lie – the point of having principled citizens confront the deplorables and the supporters of bigotry isn’t about “harassing anyone who supports Trump”. It’s about making it clear that it is not okay for the bigots to behave the way they have, and it’s not okay to attack the rest of America, and it’s not okay to lie about what’s going on an try to bully the rest of the country while doing so.
The constant chyron of “The Swamp Boos America” is just silly. The reality was that most of the American citizens in the stands for the baseball game were not fans of the Pence White House and they made that known loudly. When President Obama was booed by conservatives, flacks like Ingraham would regularly cheer it on. It’s only when Pence’s childish spokesman gets a catcall that somehow everyone must immediately clutch their pearls.
Luntz rattled off a list of baldfaced lies about the Dems supposedly not doing anything in the House – when in fact, they have passed dozens of bills and sent them to Mitch McConnell, who has promised to kill them and has refused to allow any to be voted upon. (Kind of the reverse of what was happening with the angry Right Wingers in the House and Harry Reid in the Senate 8 years ago…)
Ingraham seems to be in a bubble of happy news about the Pence White House, and seems to be in complete denial about how the viciousness of this bunch has been received by the rest of the country.
Luntz also blatantly lied about what Hillary Clinton said about the Trump voter base. She did NOT say that “half of America are deplorables”. She said that Trump’s base included, among his supporters a “basket of deplorables” – because that was and is true. And if we’ve learned anything since 2016, it’s that more and more Republicans have inadvertently revealed themselves to be deplorables – by acting in openly bigoted and racist ways.
Interesting to hear York fumbling to come up with a brand new justification for why Trump’s inaugural crowd was so sparse and why President Obama’s was so much larger – except that the Right Wing scream about that for the past 2 1/2 years has been to insist that Trump’s was somehow larger anyway, or the time of the photos wasn’t comparable, or whatever. Someone should get York on the same page as the rest of the Right Wing, one things.
And York’s final comment was another vicious lie – the point of having principled citizens confront the deplorables and the supporters of bigotry isn’t about “harassing anyone who supports Trump”. It’s about making it clear that it is not okay for the bigots to behave the way they have, and it’s not okay to attack the rest of America, and it’s not okay to lie about what’s going on an try to bully the rest of the country while doing so.
Kevin Koster commented on To Attack Warren Wealth Tax Plan, Fox Guest Calls $50 Million ‘Not As Big As You Think’
2019-10-23 05:43:23 -0400
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The super-wealthy have done EXTREMELY well for themselves while the Pence White House has been in business. The Tax Transfer alone from the end of 2017, but massive numbers in their pockets, while simultaneously skyrocketing federal taxes on Middle Class employees in Blue States.
(The first thing one would hope that an actual majority Dem Congress of both houses and a Dem White House will do is correct that Tax Transfer and take the boot off the neck of the Middle Class taxpayers who got vindictively targeted by the Right.)
We must also note that the wealthy DID NOT return their money from abroad like the Right Wingers said they would. Instead, they took their windfall and kept it offshore. The big companies just did stock buybacks, while a few of them did small bonuses for their employees so it wouldn’t look completely craven. Most companies didn’t do anything different for their employees.
And the employees mostly saw only a negligible effect, in that they may have found an extra 10 to 20 bucks in their paycheck each week, which was then offset by much higher healthcare costs. Employees who made enough to see tax refunds every April got a big surprise with the whacked withholding – where they suddenly discovered that they not only didn’t get a refund in April but now OWED THOUSANDS.
I fervently hope that Middle Class people remember the tax burn they felt this year (and will feel next year) when it comes time to vote next November.
(The first thing one would hope that an actual majority Dem Congress of both houses and a Dem White House will do is correct that Tax Transfer and take the boot off the neck of the Middle Class taxpayers who got vindictively targeted by the Right.)
We must also note that the wealthy DID NOT return their money from abroad like the Right Wingers said they would. Instead, they took their windfall and kept it offshore. The big companies just did stock buybacks, while a few of them did small bonuses for their employees so it wouldn’t look completely craven. Most companies didn’t do anything different for their employees.
And the employees mostly saw only a negligible effect, in that they may have found an extra 10 to 20 bucks in their paycheck each week, which was then offset by much higher healthcare costs. Employees who made enough to see tax refunds every April got a big surprise with the whacked withholding – where they suddenly discovered that they not only didn’t get a refund in April but now OWED THOUSANDS.
I fervently hope that Middle Class people remember the tax burn they felt this year (and will feel next year) when it comes time to vote next November.
Kevin Koster commented on Trump Defends Ukraine Call: Hannity ‘Experts’ Say ‘I Have An Obligation To Do That’
2019-10-23 05:34:15 -0400
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This is actually spit-take funny.
The Pence White House was under “an obligation” to try to blackmail a foreign president into manufacturing dirt on Joe Biden? Pence was under “an obligation” to try to cover it up? Pence was under “an obligation” to send Rudy Giuliani running around Europe trying to get anyone he could to participate in political mud smears?
Who was this obligation to?
Unless we acknowledge that Pence and his childish spokesman were obligated to THEMSELVES to try to get away with whatever they could and then to try and paper it over with their deplorable base.
The Pence White House was under “an obligation” to try to blackmail a foreign president into manufacturing dirt on Joe Biden? Pence was under “an obligation” to try to cover it up? Pence was under “an obligation” to send Rudy Giuliani running around Europe trying to get anyone he could to participate in political mud smears?
Who was this obligation to?
Unless we acknowledge that Pence and his childish spokesman were obligated to THEMSELVES to try to get away with whatever they could and then to try and paper it over with their deplorable base.
Kevin Koster commented on Mark Levin: ‘There Hasn’t Even Been A Hint Of Scandal’ While Trump In Office
2019-10-23 05:31:09 -0400
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Why does anyone care what Levin thinks about anything? He’s an unimportant, puffed up blowhard. And he’s openly, blatantly lying.
If he really thinks what he’s spouting, he should talk to the judges who sentenced Flynn, Manafort, Papadopoulos, Cohen. He should talk to the multiple Pence White House cabinet members who resigned in disgrace after their grafting was revealed. He should talk to Rudy Giuliani, whose buddies just got indicted.
But he’s hoping you won’t notice any of that, and that you’ll just listen to him jumping up and down and waving his arms. I’d just leave him in his corner and let him rant by himself, like Alex Jones.
If he really thinks what he’s spouting, he should talk to the judges who sentenced Flynn, Manafort, Papadopoulos, Cohen. He should talk to the multiple Pence White House cabinet members who resigned in disgrace after their grafting was revealed. He should talk to Rudy Giuliani, whose buddies just got indicted.
But he’s hoping you won’t notice any of that, and that you’ll just listen to him jumping up and down and waving his arms. I’d just leave him in his corner and let him rant by himself, like Alex Jones.
Kevin Koster commented on Two Days After Murdoch Meets With Barr, Shepard Smith Abruptly Resigns
2019-10-12 08:43:09 -0400
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I’m sure Smith will be just fine. He was being paid MILLIONS to endure his work at Fox News. He doesn’t strike me as the extravagant type, so he could simply retire if he’d like, and he’d have no problem.
I don’t have sympathy for him, or for Cameron, or for Chris Wallace, for that matter. They knew where they were working and they took the paychecks. Nobody forced them to take millions of dollars to compromise their principles.
Smith could possibly find work at another network at some point, I’m sure – but the stench of the Right Wing propaganda tends to make this difficult for anyone to get a straight job after leaving that building. And frankly, it should. I realize these guys want to be redeemed, but it’s a little late for that. Just as the angry Right Wingers who have supported the Pence White House will find out, there’s no walking back this kind of thing. One just has to live with their shame and understand that it’s a consequence of taking that money.
Re Cavuto, he’s already so completely compromised that I can’t see him leaving. Jon Stewart had him correctly pegged when he coined the term “Cavuto Mark”. Which indicates “just asking” a nonsense propaganda “question” and pretending that it could have any journalistic legitimacy.
I don’t have sympathy for him, or for Cameron, or for Chris Wallace, for that matter. They knew where they were working and they took the paychecks. Nobody forced them to take millions of dollars to compromise their principles.
Smith could possibly find work at another network at some point, I’m sure – but the stench of the Right Wing propaganda tends to make this difficult for anyone to get a straight job after leaving that building. And frankly, it should. I realize these guys want to be redeemed, but it’s a little late for that. Just as the angry Right Wingers who have supported the Pence White House will find out, there’s no walking back this kind of thing. One just has to live with their shame and understand that it’s a consequence of taking that money.
Re Cavuto, he’s already so completely compromised that I can’t see him leaving. Jon Stewart had him correctly pegged when he coined the term “Cavuto Mark”. Which indicates “just asking” a nonsense propaganda “question” and pretending that it could have any journalistic legitimacy.
Kevin Koster commented on Sen. Graham Blasts Trump’s Syria Withdrawal But Doesn’t Mention It’s A Gift To Russia
2019-10-08 10:05:54 -0400
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Is anyone else seeing this for the nonsensical Wag the Dog move that it is?
Kevin Koster commented on After Slamming Trump’s Ukraine Call In Print, Tucker Carlson Tells Fox Viewers It ‘Doesn’t Seem Very Shocking’
2019-10-06 06:35:06 -0400
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Carlson’s approach here is consistent, if you look at his actual goal – he’s trying to do “limited, hang-out mode” in acknowledging that Pence’s childish spokesman crossed the line in making those phone calls. This is not intended to admit criminal fault – just to say “yeah, he shouldn’t have made the calls”. Which then allows him to go to his main point – “BUT it’s too much to impeach him for it.” And that’s likely the fall-back that various Right Wingers will go to over the next few weeks.
Some angry Right Wingers, particularly the more uninformed ones like Limbaugh, disgraced former host O’Reilly and and the looney Glenn Beck, will continue to triple and quadruple down on the notion that the Pence White House is totally above reproach and that everyone should just go with their conspiracy theories about Biden and the Democratic Party.
This secondary approach is likely to be the one that prevails on Fox News, regardless of Carlson’s attempt to hedge. Partly because Fox News takes its cues from Limbaugh, and partly because all involved know that this is an electoral strategy.
The most likely result we could see from this situation is sadly not a trial in the US Senate, and the Democratic congresspeople are fully aware of that. Instead, there may or may not be a vote to impeach in the House, which will go through almost completely on party lines – maybe one or two Red State Dems staying out of it. The GOP will try to maintain a wall of unity against it. Then Mitch McConnell will snicker that he’d said he would be forced to have that trial – but he never said WHEN. And then he’ll opine that this matter should be left to the American people to decide at the ballot box in a year. The Dems will then campaign through the year on the injustice of it all, hoping to win the Senate as well as the White House. The Right Wing will also campaign through 2020 on it, saying that “YOUR PRESIDENT” is under attack and everyone must vote to save him – in addition to continuing to throw around lies about the Bidens. And it will all come down to who shows up to vote in November 2020. Which is frankly the way this was always going to go anyway.
Some angry Right Wingers, particularly the more uninformed ones like Limbaugh, disgraced former host O’Reilly and and the looney Glenn Beck, will continue to triple and quadruple down on the notion that the Pence White House is totally above reproach and that everyone should just go with their conspiracy theories about Biden and the Democratic Party.
This secondary approach is likely to be the one that prevails on Fox News, regardless of Carlson’s attempt to hedge. Partly because Fox News takes its cues from Limbaugh, and partly because all involved know that this is an electoral strategy.
The most likely result we could see from this situation is sadly not a trial in the US Senate, and the Democratic congresspeople are fully aware of that. Instead, there may or may not be a vote to impeach in the House, which will go through almost completely on party lines – maybe one or two Red State Dems staying out of it. The GOP will try to maintain a wall of unity against it. Then Mitch McConnell will snicker that he’d said he would be forced to have that trial – but he never said WHEN. And then he’ll opine that this matter should be left to the American people to decide at the ballot box in a year. The Dems will then campaign through the year on the injustice of it all, hoping to win the Senate as well as the White House. The Right Wing will also campaign through 2020 on it, saying that “YOUR PRESIDENT” is under attack and everyone must vote to save him – in addition to continuing to throw around lies about the Bidens. And it will all come down to who shows up to vote in November 2020. Which is frankly the way this was always going to go anyway.
Kevin Koster commented on Three Hours Before Blasting Trump’s Ukraine Call, Tucker Carlson Called It A Made Up Story
2019-10-04 19:25:02 -0400
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Republicans and Right Wingers in general are DELIGHTED that they were able to impeach Bill Clinton back in the late 90s. They’re pleased with what they did – that they were able to get that asterisk onto his presidency. And they’re frankly terrified that the same thing could happen to their precious spokesman for the Pence White House.
It’s frankly spectacular to hear Right Wing pundits try to play this card about somehow “regretting” having done that impeachment. They didn’t face any consequences – they actually were able to finesse their way into the White House two years later.
If Right Wingers could impeach Bill Clinton again, they’d do it every day of the week – and twice on Sundays.
It’s frankly spectacular to hear Right Wing pundits try to play this card about somehow “regretting” having done that impeachment. They didn’t face any consequences – they actually were able to finesse their way into the White House two years later.
If Right Wingers could impeach Bill Clinton again, they’d do it every day of the week – and twice on Sundays.
Kevin Koster commented on Chris Wallace Warns Against Dismissing Whistleblower’s Ukraine Complaint: ‘There Is Something Here’
2019-09-29 09:38:52 -0400
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Sadly, for all of the public scrutiny, there is still no indication that Mitch McConnell has suddenly changed his position on any of this. The Dems will hold an inquiry hearing or three, and there will certainly be discussion about how terrible the Pence White House’s behavior was here, running throughout the 2020 campaign. But I would not hold my breath waiting for a full impeachment proceeding in the Congress. The Republicans have bought completely into the Pence White House. They’re pot committed now. And Lindsey Graham is already publicly defending this White House’s behavior.
The more likely way to handle these guys will be to encourage everyone in the swing states to VOTE next year and evict the whole sordid lot from office. (Not to mention that once Pence’s childish little spokesman is out of office, he can be indicted by the courts in NY who are awaiting their opening.)
The more likely way to handle these guys will be to encourage everyone in the swing states to VOTE next year and evict the whole sordid lot from office. (Not to mention that once Pence’s childish little spokesman is out of office, he can be indicted by the courts in NY who are awaiting their opening.)
Kevin Koster commented on Fox Reportedly Threatened To Fire Shepard Smith If He Criticizes Tucker Carlson Again
2019-09-29 07:52:00 -0400
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The sad reality for Smith is that by choosing to do his work at Fox News, he’s irrevocably damaged his credibility as a journalist. While it’s possible that a much smaller outlet might take him after he’s fired, it’s also possible, that like so many other former Fox News personalities, he’ll struggle to find another gig.
He seems to be a genuinely decent man trying to report the news, but he made a terrible choice about his workplace. And despite his attempts to call out the nonsense, he still chose to keep working there. The tradeoff is that they’ve paid him well. But there is a price.
We’ll see if Fox News wishes to can him – it sounds like they’re going all-in with the full Pence White House support idea. I really don’t know of any legitimate journalist who would choose to work at Fox News at this point, not even for the money they’d offer. Because that price in long-term career and reputation is simply too high for any decent person to want to pay.
He seems to be a genuinely decent man trying to report the news, but he made a terrible choice about his workplace. And despite his attempts to call out the nonsense, he still chose to keep working there. The tradeoff is that they’ve paid him well. But there is a price.
We’ll see if Fox News wishes to can him – it sounds like they’re going all-in with the full Pence White House support idea. I really don’t know of any legitimate journalist who would choose to work at Fox News at this point, not even for the money they’d offer. Because that price in long-term career and reputation is simply too high for any decent person to want to pay.
Kevin Koster commented on Democrat Kildee Allows Fox Host To Make Trump Ukraine Story About Democrats
2019-09-22 09:59:11 -0400
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Two things:
1. I have repeatedly been stating that people have to be vigilant about the constant attempts by angry Right Wingers to set up false premises in their questions as a way of tricking the listener into inadvertently agreeing with a nonsensical position. (“Do you think the Dept of Education is getting anything done these days, with Betsy DeVos there?” “Uh, no, not really” “GREAT! We on the Right have been saying that for decades! We’ll just eliminate that department right now and you just said you agree with it! Thanks!” “Uhhhh, wait a second…” “Nope! Too late! You already agreed to it! Or are you going to flip flop now?”) So I’d always counter even the premise and make sure that there isn’t an open pitfall or manhole hanging around before agreeing with ANYTHING coming from an angry Right Winger.
2. John is totally correct to note that the people who enabled the Pence White House and cheered on the bigotry will need to be held accountable. My take on it is that they don’t get to walk back their conduct and they’ll simply need to live with their shame. I will never allow a single one of these people to lecture anyone about morality or ethics again. The correct response when any of them complain about the next President cleaning up the mess these deplorables have made will be “NO. YOU SUPPORTED BIGOTRY AND HATRED. YOU TRIED TO BULLY EVERYONE ELSE. YOU CAN SIT DOWN NOW. LIVE WITH YOUR SHAME.”
1. I have repeatedly been stating that people have to be vigilant about the constant attempts by angry Right Wingers to set up false premises in their questions as a way of tricking the listener into inadvertently agreeing with a nonsensical position. (“Do you think the Dept of Education is getting anything done these days, with Betsy DeVos there?” “Uh, no, not really” “GREAT! We on the Right have been saying that for decades! We’ll just eliminate that department right now and you just said you agree with it! Thanks!” “Uhhhh, wait a second…” “Nope! Too late! You already agreed to it! Or are you going to flip flop now?”) So I’d always counter even the premise and make sure that there isn’t an open pitfall or manhole hanging around before agreeing with ANYTHING coming from an angry Right Winger.
2. John is totally correct to note that the people who enabled the Pence White House and cheered on the bigotry will need to be held accountable. My take on it is that they don’t get to walk back their conduct and they’ll simply need to live with their shame. I will never allow a single one of these people to lecture anyone about morality or ethics again. The correct response when any of them complain about the next President cleaning up the mess these deplorables have made will be “NO. YOU SUPPORTED BIGOTRY AND HATRED. YOU TRIED TO BULLY EVERYONE ELSE. YOU CAN SIT DOWN NOW. LIVE WITH YOUR SHAME.”