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Posts posted by The Dog
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Transcript:
SpoilerMy name is David French, and I’m an opinion columnist at “The New York Times.” I’ve been a conservative since the moment I started being interested in politics. I was a Cold War Reagan conservative. I came of age in the 1980s, and that was my political identity.
And for a long time, it also was my professional identity. I was a free speech lawyer for many years. I was a pro-life litigator for many years. I was a Romney delegate to the 2012 Republican National Convention. So I was deeply embedded both in the conservative legal movement and in the Republican Party itself before the rise of Donald Trump.
But I am, for the first time in my adult life, going to vote for a Democrat for president in 2024. I’m going to vote for Kamala Harris. Some people say I can’t vote for Kamala Harris because I’m pro-life and a Christian. But in fact, I believe Donald Trump is harming the pro-life movement in a profound way.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
I’m often asked if I’m still conservative. The answer is I’m voting against Trump precisely because I’m conservative. That’s why I’m doing it. I was a Reagan Republican because of the commitment of the parties to certain conservative principles. The current Republican Party is not the Reagan Republican Party in its policies, and it is certainly absolutely not the Reagan Republican Party when it comes to its commitment or understanding of the importance of character.
Now, with the rise of the MAGA Republican Party, the party has transformed itself. And so therefore, if I’m a Republican because of a commitment to character and a specific kind of conservatism, and it’s no longer committed to those things, then it has no claims on my loyalty at all.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
I had never voted for Donald Trump. I like to say I have voted for Mitt Romney for president more than any other person alive, including probably Mitt Romney. So I’ve written in Mitt Romney, for example. But I had not affirmatively cast a vote for the Democratic candidate. And I will tell you when this really began to change.
It wasn’t just January 6, although January 6 elevated the stakes dramatically. It was the one-two punch of January 6 and seeing how far Trump himself and MAGA had strayed from its commitment to the American rule of law. It was also, then, that Russian attack on Ukraine and the response of the Biden-Harris administration to that contrasted with the MAGA response. What I’ve seen is this administration was on the right side of those issues. And Kamala Harris has doubled down on those commitments to be on the right side of those issues.
I’m an evangelical Christian, and I’ve been pro-life for reasons related both to my faith and to my understanding of science and justice. And it was one of the primary reasons why I continued my affiliation with the Republican Party, because of the Republican Party’s consistent commitment to a pro-life position.
But with the rise of Donald Trump, I was very, very concerned about his effect. Abortions went up under his presidency, and since the Dobbs decision, the pro-life movement has been in a state of political collapse. It’s not even been able to win a referendum in a red state. Trump was the very first president since Carter to end his presidency with a higher abortion rate and ratio and tens of thousands of more abortions.
So you’re beginning to have a world with more abortions, decreased support for the pro-life movement, and then Donald Trump himself and the MAGA movement fundamentally changes the Republican Party platform to the point where it was no longer recognizably pro-life. And it was the most watered down platform on abortion in 40 years.
And so it strikes me as bizarre if people make the argument that as an evangelical Christian, you have to support the man who watered down the pro-life platform in the Republican Party, the man who oversaw the first increase in abortions in decades, the man who has been found liable for sexually abusing a woman, and a man who’s bragged — bragged — about his sexual exploits. That that’s the person that Christians have to support or they’re not. being faithful strikes me as not just destructive, but also laughably ridiculous.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
It’s a mistake to think of voting for somebody as endorsing all aspects of their coming presidency. No, it’s an endorsement of the things I like, [LAUGHS]: and it’s not an endorsement of the things that I don’t like. And it’s definitely a repudiation of the other side.
Here’s the way I would put it. I think there are ample opportunities for the pro-life movement to work with a Harris administration to enact policies that will make abortion less appealing as an alternative for women. So, for example, I have long supported the Biden administration’s efforts to create an expanded child tax credit. I do think that there are policies that are aimed at improving the lives of young mothers that pro-life people can work with the Harris administration on.
Also, I’m not naive. There are things that I would oppose. So, for example, if she is wanting to repeal the Hyde amendment, which is prohibiting direct federal funding of abortion, I would oppose that. If she was wanting to enact a federal law codifying Roe, I would oppose that.
But I would also note that pro-life folks can block some of those policies with their votes down ballot. The president is not — she would not be queen of America.
[laughs]
She would the votes in the House and the Senate to enact national change. So this idea that everything depends on the vote for the president is just completely wrong.
And right now, I think there’s an appetite for a return to a more normal American politics and a more calm America. And I think you see that through her candidacy, not through the candidacy of Donald Trump.
Money quotes:
QuoteBut with the rise of Donald Trump, I was very, very concerned about his effect. Abortions went up under his presidency, and since the Dobbs decision, the pro-life movement has been in a state of political collapse. It’s not even been able to win a referendum in a red state. Trump was the very first president since Carter to end his presidency with a higher abortion rate and ratio and tens of thousands of more abortions.
QuoteHere’s the way I would put it. I think there are ample opportunities for the pro-life movement to work with a Harris administration to enact policies that will make abortion less appealing as an alternative for women. So, for example, I have long supported the Biden administration’s efforts to create an expanded child tax credit. I do think that there are policies that are aimed at improving the lives of young mothers that pro-life people can work with the Harris administration on.
How novel! Decrease abortions by enacting ACTUAL "pro family" policies!
This would require a pretty big shift in how the GOP views things, unfortunately.
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1 hour ago, MissingInAction said:I've been to the battlefield. The union troops were trying to advance up a 40 degree incline with cannons pointed down at them. An absolute meat grinder. Tablets cover the area marking where entire companies were obliterated.
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"However, the Russian government and state-affiliated businessmen are opposed to mobilization, as it would deplete the economy of its remaining labor resources."
Shit is hitting the fan in Moscow if true.
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23 minutes ago, Tuco said:
I could be wrong, but I don’t think it was intended to be a slogan. It was a line from an early speech, the crowd started chanting it, and the campaign realized they hit a nerve.It wasn't - it's become a rallying cry and it was totally organic. Never seen anything like it.
I think the "we're not going back" thing is a good pushback to the GOP. It's a chance to flip the narrative from the GOP being able to say "we can make it better" to the Democrats being able to say "no, they will make it worse - and they wrote a book on how they will do it (Project 2025)." The GOP wrote down exactly how they plan to govern and a lot of it is very unpopular.
That said, wet blanket time for the Democrats:
The Democrats have a lot of momentum right now, but inflation and a tighter job market still loom large over everyone's lives.
Yes, gouging is a thing and so is corporate greed, but all the average person knows is things are more expensive and it's harder to find a job. Inflation has slowed, but things are still more expensive and wages haven't kept up. Those are facts and voters need someone to blame. The Democrats were in the White House as that occurred and there isn't an easy counter like there is on immigration with Trump killing the border bill.
The good news for the Democrats is that Trump and many of the GOP candidates are terrible and can't stay on message to save their lives - and it's easy to pull them offsides with psyops like filling their convention arena on the night of the "official" nomination.
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37 minutes ago, Js1 said:
Oh those poor janitors at MAL
FAKE NEWS! I HAD ONE THOUSAND TIMES AS MANY VIEWERS MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! - Trump, probably
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word is that the Neris release was about money - he was close to triggering his $9 million guarantee for next year and the Cubs didn't want to pay that so they cut their losses.
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17 minutes ago, 'stache said:
If most people still don't know about it, how do you reach them? It's been blasted repeatedly for at least the last two months.
only for those of us wonks who get into this stuff.
What I'd do:
1. Highlight the worst parts of it that they are most likely to implement;
2. Attach Trump to it (his name is ALL over that document in spite of him lying about not knowing anything about it) - he's also on record as saying he was going to do many of the things documented in it;
3. Blast that all over media until election day.
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16 minutes ago, Wulaw Horn said:
Hector Neris had just fine numbers for us last season. It was all smoke and mirrors and a merry go round on the bases. Never got the fascination with the idea of bringing either him or Maton back. No idea where Maton is or how he's doing. Probably will cost me an immaculate grid square some day.
Maton signed with TB, was crap, then traded to the Mets where he's been a lot better.
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Keep in mind that most don't know jack shit about this atrocity. If it's already that far under water with Independents then this thing is DOA - which is why the Democrats' smart play is to make the GOP own it.
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7 minutes ago, troph said:
and the reality is - the border will only become a bigger and bigger issue with climate change. I like the Dems approach and think Trump is a raging authoritarian, fascist, piece of shit, but the Dems need to flip the script and be tough on illegal immigration while having a humane and sustainable policy on asylum, dreamers, those already here, worker program, etc. AND own the public narrative on the issue. The Republicans are dead ass wrong on this and they are dead ass wrong on targeting repro rights, but if/when they win again, it will almost certainly be on the border. That issue simply isn't going away in our lifetime.
and it never will.
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11 minutes ago, austingirl said:
I'm glad she's officially supporting Harris, but I will always harbor some animosity towards most Trump officials. If I'm being generous, I can get why some of them signed on in the beginning, when there was still lingering hope that Trump would listen to his advisors and stop acting crazy. But by Jan 6, he had shown his true colors over and over again.
remember that they had the votes to 25th amendment him but Pence refused to sign off.
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29 minutes ago, Chopper said:
Harris and her team were not happy with Biden for putting her in charge of the S America border task force. There definitely were some hard feelings within the Administration over that.
6 minutes ago, InkaUtexas said:I think she shoudl have embraced it and run with it. 1- Gain support from Latinos here in the US. 2- Broaden international standings in the Hemisphere. 3- The solution is not AT the border, it is on both sides of the border.
Fortunately they have an out with Trump killing the border bill.
"We managed to stem the tide in spite of Trump killing the bill that would have made our jobs easier."
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1 hour ago, GopherRock said:
Nancy was leaning hard on Joe, but she absolutely did not anticipate either the timing of the decision or the rapid consolidation of the rank-and-file around Kamala. I think she was envisioning a freewheeling brawl on the floor of the United Center.
Turns out the following were the opinions of most Democrats:
- Willing but unimpressed to slog out a joyless campaign with Joe at the helm
- The decision to withdraw is Joe's and Joe's alone
- In the event he withdraws, VP Harris is the only way forward
The speed at which the party rallied around Harris is stunning. The replacement process was all over in about 3 hours, and completed with an amount of energy that I haven't seen in the Democratic base since 2008. I didn't think that the Democratic Party was capable of such a thing.
The "circular firing squad" is why I and others didn't want Biden to drop out.
I have no doubt that part of Biden's agreement to drop out was that the party rally around Harris.
And the Democrats FINALLY did something the Republicans always do - THEY FELL IN LINE.
People had to set their ambitions aside for this to work and as others have said - they "understood the assignment."
That's the biggest reason this transition has succeeded whether she wins in November or not.
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2024 Presidential Election Thread - Let's keep the party going.
in Cloak Room
Posted
could also be that he's got enough signatures to be on the ballot in AZ.