The Biden Cabinet

[BradInATX 9,208]

6 minutes ago, Texaspython said:

we’ve got progressives clamoring to increase marginal tax rates on ordinary income. 

Who told you that? Everything I've seen put forth as serious policy only taxes the top 1-2%. Which I, not a progressive, fully support.

Edited December 2, 2020 by BradInATX

[henrygandorf 29,223]

1 minute ago, BradInATX said:

Putting them on your platform on your website doesn't do anything for me.

right, but isn't it better than leaving them off?

[BradInATX 9,208]

3 minutes ago, henrygandorf said:

right, but isn't it better than leaving them off?

Of course, but python was trying to hold them up as if they're some sort of proof that Biden and the old guard Democrats are totally champions for the poor and the working class when their early moves appear to be sending us down the path of more corporatism and cronyism.

Edited December 2, 2020 by BradInATX

[washparkhorn 9,967]

2 hours ago, HOOKEM4 said:

Show the graph from 2014 to 2020. Then explain how we are better off now. Don't forget to include the results from the  "china flu" inaction. Thanks 

What metric shows we are "better off" under the non-ideology of the Trump One-Term Regime? They all look negative to me. He didn't solve what ailed us in 2016. His cult made it worse. 

• Spoiler

   

  • We had nihilism under Trump - with no one in power able to shake off the rust and actually . . . govern in accordance with any known American ideology. That was not political science.He could not stop Congress from acting. They just didn't govern as a governing body. They refused the ball. That has to change. That inaction is a red flag of a failing government. 
  • But the question is no longer - shall we govern? That went down to a rousing defeat under Trump. We know now Americans benefit from social infrastructure. That's hardly surprising, since larger status organizations recognize the efficiency gains of treating employees as assets. Thanks capitalism for the pointers on how to make constituents more optimistic. We are on the precipice of good governance acquiring a genuine meaning - thanks to AI. Best to come up with lists so we can measure the effects. Science for a better living.
  • The question has become - how shall we govern. We took a vacation from ideology under Trump - very libertarian of him and look who got richer.
  • Follow the money - always. Our neoliberal economic system is getting its ass kicked - holistically - when considering the near future. We need to adapt to inflate. We inflate or die as an economy. Econ 101.
  • What do we need to do to catch up to the rest of the modern world to compete? Where are all the social gains paid for by efficiency cuts? 
  • We continue to be laggards as a nation. We have sector gains but the nation's economy as a whole is stripped down to the copper - and that goes next. 

   

   

Edited December 2, 2020 by washparkhorn

[washparkhorn 9,967]

2 hours ago, henrygandorf said:

this page is devoted to urban meyer, neoliberals, neera tanden, and brunch.

That is the purpose of this thread. We knew this is where the progressive v. corporate dems ideology would split. And still fuck no on Tanden at OMB. We don't need a corporate welfare queen preaching austerity at OMB.

She is a walking and talking contradiction - kind of like Trump.

[Anastasis 23,700]

Have they found a place for a defense contractor on the cabinet yet, or is that still working its way out?

[washparkhorn 9,967]

Not an efficient use of political capital by Biden. 

Neera is no friend to the American people. She is a one-stop shop for private interests seeking to dominate governance of the People. Biden should be focused on Covid and Economic Recovery, not getting Neera through the Senate. Poor decision by Biden's team. 

But we are all together through Georgia right?

[MaybeACoordinator 8,350]

Biden steady setting course for a 2022 midterm wipeout. Times are going to be hard in the next couple of years, and in hard times, people will and have voted for the chance at concrete solutions, a la the New Deal. But if concrete, easy to understand solutions to problems like health care and the myriad issues spiraling out of income equality are not on offer from the so-called party of the people, the people will spite vote for hate and vindictiveness, as we saw all those years ago in Ger--.

Oh, you thought I was going the play the Hitler card. No, I mean here, in 2016. And the 2010 midterms. And the '94 midterms.

It's fucking hard to hand elections over to a party whose stance on core issues year after year is supported by 25-30 percent of the electorate, but by standing for nothing save nagging people about prejudice, the Dems manage to pull it off time and time again. I used to think they were stupid. I don't think that anymore -- they know full well what they are doing: pretending to care about the middle and working class while dancing to the tune of the other set of billionaires that run this country. The Dems paint pretty pictures in pastel shades of hope and better tomorrows, but haven't done a damn thing but out Republican the Republicans on issues like crime, trade, defense, and it looks increasingly likely that Medicare and Social Security will be next. 

Malcolm X was on the record saying he preferred the over racism of the South over the devious variety practiced in the north, because at least Southern racism was honest.

The GOP is the South in this analogy. Yes, they cloak their rapaciousness in multiple levels of fear and hate, but their voters don't expect them really to have their personal interests at heart. They know it's more about sticking it to their perceived enemies -- the libs. It's a lie when they say they are for the little guy, but their voters are in on that lie. That's why they vote for them time after time. 

As for the Dems, they make feeble promises toward limited goals, and then fail to accomplish most of those, all while spouting things like "Breaking up the big Wall Street banks won't end racism" as if A had a fucking thing in the world to do with B. When she sent the bootlicking corporate Dem media into a tizzy with that entirelu stupid yet fiendishly clever non sequitur, what goals did Hillary have in mind that would end racism? Has any society on earth actually ended racism, or is that goal on a par with the GOP's fake promise to end abortions, on some date perpetually after the perpetually next election?

Tl;dr. Fuck both parties, Viva a new People's Party. 

 

[Js1 86,945]

Wow fuck both sides. What a revolutionary take. Thank you for that! 

[washparkhorn 9,967]

18 minutes ago, Js1 said:

Wow fuck both sides. What a revolutionary take. Thank you for that! 

Progressives and liberals came to defeat a greater foe. Thank you to all who pitched in. Trump is done. The truce held for the duration, which is fantastic work by all who honored the truce. Now that he is on his way out, we leave as friends. Natural allies. Like libertarians to conservatives. It's the natural order. 

The future is speeding up. Time to catch up. 

Edited December 2, 2020 by washparkhorn

[washparkhorn 9,967]

There are two ways to be fooled. One is to believe what isn't true; the other is to refuse to believe what is true.  ~Kierkegaard

[elfenix 34,658]

3 hours ago, BradInATX said:

infrastructure is a both sides thing.

oh is it infrastructure week already?

Edited December 2, 2020 by elfenix

[HOOKEM4 5,152]

7 hours ago, washparkhorn said:

What metric shows we are "better off" under the non-ideology of the Trump One-Term Regime? They all look negative to me. He didn't solve what ailed us in 2016. His cult made it worse. 

•   Reveal hidden contents

   

  • We had nihilism under Trump - with no one in power able to shake off the rust and actually . . . govern in accordance with any known American ideology. That was not political science.He could not stop Congress from acting. They just didn't govern as a governing body. They refused the ball. That has to change. That inaction is a red flag of a failing government. 
  • But the question is no longer - shall we govern? That went down to a rousing defeat under Trump. We know now Americans benefit from social infrastructure. That's hardly surprising, since larger status organizations recognize the efficiency gains of treating employees as assets. Thanks capitalism for the pointers on how to make constituents more optimistic. We are on the precipice of good governance acquiring a genuine meaning - thanks to AI. Best to come up with lists so we can measure the effects. Science for a better living.
  • The question has become - how shall we govern. We took a vacation from ideology under Trump - very libertarian of him and look who got richer.
  • Follow the money - always. Our neoliberal economic system is getting its ass kicked - holistically - when considering the near future. We need to adapt to inflate. We inflate or die as an economy. Econ 101.
  • What do we need to do to catch up to the rest of the modern world to compete? Where are all the social gains paid for by efficiency cuts? 
  • We continue to be laggards as a nation. We have sector gains but the nation's economy as a whole is stripped down to the copper - and that goes next. 

   

   

I agree and misunderstood your point. I thought you were asserting it was better under the drump regime.

[Anastasis 23,700]

Fire up the Special Counsel...lol

Edited December 2, 2020 by Anastasis

[bad_teammate 13,481]

9 hours ago, henrygandorf said:

right, but isn't it better than leaving them off?

Is this sarcasm? I need to know quickly because the garage is filling up with exhaust and I've only got 15 minutes left for the Naxolone I have on standby.

This "we'll pay you in exposure!" logic might be the end of my life.

[wildcat09 29,559]

Not exactly the cabinet, but:

 

This party is so fucking stupid.

[Js1 86,945]

That's a pretty big if. 

[bad_teammate 13,481]

Any minute now we're going to see some progressives with a history of shooting for major changes.

Any second now.

It's all gonna come up for 'Ole Progressive Gil real soon!

[G650 14,422]

18 minutes ago, wildcat09 said:

Not exactly the cabinet, but:

 

This party is so fucking stupid.

You think Chris Wray isn't going to relentlessly strike back at Trump and the GOP after all he has been through? lol.

[wildcat09 29,559]

Just now, G650 said:

You think Chris Wray isn't going to relentlessly strike back at Trump and the GOP after all he has been through? lol.

No, I don’t think a lifelong Republican is going to suddenly turn into a Democrat.

[G650 14,422]

2 minutes ago, wildcat09 said:

No, I don’t think a lifelong Republican is going to suddenly turn into a Democrat.

I don't either. But that's not what I said.

[Js1 86,945]

NBC News WH Correspondent:

• Health Team could be announced next week - HHS, CDC and COVID Czar
  • Leading choices for HHS are former Surgeon General Vivek Murthy and Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo
  • Michelle Lujan Grisham no longer a top contender
• Education Secretary
  • Sonja Santelises - CEO of Baltimore City Public Schools
  • Linda Darling Hammond, Stanford Education prof.
  • Also on the list: Lily Eskelsen Garcia and Randi Weingarten
• Keisha Lance Bottoms top pick to lead Small Business Admin. - would likely be elevated to Cabinet-level position
• CBC is pressuring for a "top 4" Cabinet post to go to an African American - so AG or Defense is all that's left

[henrygandorf 29,223]

1 hour ago, wildcat09 said:

Not exactly the cabinet, but:

 

This party is so fucking stupid.

i would think "getting fired by trump for not doing his bidding" would actually be an attractive entry on your resume.

[henrygandorf 29,223]

1 hour ago, bad_teammate said:

Any minute now we're going to see some progressives with a history of shooting for major changes.

Any second now.

It's all gonna come up for 'Ole Progressive Gil real soon!

is gil a progressive meme on social media?  because if he isn't, he should be.  and if he is, i think that is content i would enjoy.

[wildcat09 29,559]

4 minutes ago, henrygandorf said:

i would think "getting fired by trump for not doing his bidding" would actually be an attractive entry on your resume.

If, after everything that has happened, the Democratic party still hasn't learned not to treat Republicans like good faith partners in governance, we are completely fucked.

[henrygandorf 29,223]

5 hours ago, bad_teammate said:

Is this sarcasm? I need to know quickly because the garage is filling up with exhaust and I've only got 15 minutes left for the Naxolone I have on standby.

This "we'll pay you in exposure!" logic might be the end of my life.

wasn't sarcasm as much as me trying to communicate to brad that if he's expecting anything more than declared objectives on a website on december 1st, he's setting himself up for disappointment and frustration.  there will be plenty of time for that down the road (the disappointment and frustration, not the objectives).

[Dutchrudder 11,228]

So is he gonna make Hillary the Attorney General or what?

Edited December 2, 2020 by Dutchrudder

[henrygandorf 29,223]

1 minute ago, wildcat09 said:

If, after everything that has happened, the Democratic party still hasn't learned not to treat Republicans like good faith partners in governance, we are completely fucked.

i don't know that much of wray's background, but he hasn't seemed to be as much of a trump stooge.  it would be great to go back to the days of depoliticizing roles like "fbi director" but i agree, those days are likely all behind us.

[wildcat09 29,559]

Just now, henrygandorf said:

i don't know that much of wray's background, but he hasn't seemed to be as much of a trump stooge.  it would be great to go back to the days of depoliticizing roles like "fbi director" but i agree, those days are likely all behind us.

It has nothing to do with Wray and everything to do with the fact that it reinforces all of the worst fucking ideas that Democrats think and convey to the public about how American politics works. Wray could be fine for the job. He's also a Republican who was appointed by Donald Trump. How the fuck are you going to convince the American people that Republicans are bad for the country when you keep them on in your own fucking administration?

And that's not even getting into the fact that it's repeating a mistake Obama made that came back to bite the party and the country in the ass. 

[Biff Tannen 46,061]

9 minutes ago, wildcat09 said:

It has nothing to do with Wray and everything to do with the fact that it reinforces all of the worst fucking ideas that Democrats think and convey to the public about how American politics works. Wray could be fine for the job. He's also a Republican who was appointed by Donald Trump. How the fuck are you going to convince the American people that Republicans are bad for the country when you keep them on in your own fucking administration?

And that's not even getting into the fact that it's repeating a mistake Obama made that came back to bite the party and the country in the ass. 

Wasn't Wray there in some other position pre-dotard and get "appointed" through the ladder?  I could be wrong.

[wildcat09 29,559]

1 minute ago, Biff Tannen said:

Wasn't Wray there in some other position pre-dotard and get "appointed" through the ladder?  I could be wrong.

No, he was a partner at King & Spalding.

[henrygandorf 29,223]

7 minutes ago, wildcat09 said:

It has nothing to do with Wray and everything to do with the fact that it reinforces all of the worst fucking ideas that Democrats think and convey to the public about how American politics works. Wray could be fine for the job. He's also a Republican who was appointed by Donald Trump. How the fuck are you going to convince the American people that Republicans are bad for the country when you keep them on in your own fucking administration?

And that's not even getting into the fact that it's repeating a mistake Obama made that came back to bite the party and the country in the ass. 

like i said, i agree with you.  i also would love a situation where the fbi director isn't considered part of the president's administration (i get that he's under the ag and the ag is part of the cabinet, but you understand what i mean).

the question is how stubborn biden and those around him will be about returning to the good ole (pre-trump) days.

[bad_teammate 13,481]

*b_t hoping poor people get healthcare and housing*

9 minutes ago, wildcat09 said:

No, he was a partner at King & Spalding.

A powerful duo.

 

[Hugo Stiglitz 23,367]

If Wray is worth a shit, he should resign at the end of Trump’s term.  

[bad_teammate 13,481]

1 hour ago, henrygandorf said:

wasn't sarcasm as much as me trying to communicate to brad that if he's expecting anything more than declared objectives on a website on december 1st, he's setting himself up for disappointment and frustration.  there will be plenty of time for that down the road (the disappointment and frustration, not the objectives).

Is it your contention that Biden's choices thus far do not indicate an abandonment of his proclaimed progressive goals?

Or is it that we just shouldn't whine about it?

[SydneyCarton 49,330]

2 hours ago, wildcat09 said:

No, I don’t think a lifelong Republican is going to suddenly turn into a Democrat.

Why not? I did recently. So did a number of people on this board. A good number. And then there's the whole NeverTrumper movement. And none of us were directly called out of fucked with by that orange piece of shit for doing their jobs. Shit. I wouldn't bet against that guy fucking with him at every turn, particularly if he thinks that Trump has destroyed the party he loves/loved.

[wildcat09 29,559]

3 minutes ago, SydneyCarton said:

Why not? I did recently. So did a number of people on this board. A good number. And then there's the whole NeverTrumper movement. And none of us were directly called out of fucked with by that orange piece of shit for doing their jobs. Shit. I wouldn't bet against that guy fucking with him at every turn, particularly if he thinks that Trump has destroyed the party he loves/loved.

He's free to publicly switch his party registration and publicly and repeatedly denounce the GOP's insane behavior. If he's going to remain a Republican he shouldn't be running anything under a Democratic administration.

[SydneyCarton 49,330]

1 minute ago, wildcat09 said:

He's free to publicly switch his party registration and publicly and repeatedly denounce the GOP's insane behavior. If he's going to remain a Republican he shouldn't be running anything under a Democratic administration.

Yeah, that's fair. Of course, I wish none of these guys had any publicly listed party affiliation. 

[Hugo Stiglitz 23,367]

There is no way Wray should stay FBI director until 2027 all because Trump obstructed justice by firing Comey in 2017.   

[washparkhorn 9,967]

2 hours ago, Js1 said:

Leading choices for HHS are former Surgeon General Vivek Murthy and Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo

Gina Raimondo: 

Spoiler

 

She recalled an exchange with college students not long ago. One of them said: “I get who you are. You’re one of those spineless centrists.” “And I was like, ‘Excuse me?’,” she said. “It takes a lot of spine to be a centrist in America today. You get whacked from the left and whacked from the right. That’s my life. I get whacked.”

Moderate Democrats have certainly had their day and their sway. In fact the passions of the left arise in part from how much compromise there has been — and here we are stuck with Donald Trump. The rage of less moderate Democrats like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is earned and righteous. And Raimondo said precisely that to me.

But Ocasio-Cortez is by no means the whole of the Democratic Party. And is the leftward lurch that she personifies the best and safest bet for 2020? I worry, because there’s no political priority higher than limiting Trump to one term. Raimondo also worries — a lot.

“So many Democrats just assume we’re going to win,” she said. “They underestimate how hard it’s going to be.” And it might be a serious tactical mistake, she added, to nominate any candidate who seems to be at war with capitalism itself or entertains the idea of a guaranteed minimum income.

“We have become the party that is anti-business,” she told me. “We need to be the party of work.”

 

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/26/opinion/sunday/gina-raimondo-2020.html

 

[henrygandorf 29,223]

47 minutes ago, bad_teammate said:

Is it your contention that Biden's choices thus far do not indicate an abandonment of his proclaimed progressive goals?

i do not think his announcements so far have shown any progress towards proclaimed progressive goals.  i think someone around him thinks that diversity = progressive, and while both are important, one does not equal the other.  i think it's reductive to say "we're going to have our administration look like america" and then fill it with diverse looking people who all share the same opinions and goals.

my comment was more about the mini-argument brad was having with python about stated goals and website aspirational bullshit.  the first step in accomplishing some of these goals is to list it publicly so that people can know what to expect and hold you to account.  it's early december and that's the only step he's taken.  it's meaningless, but i'd rather he list the right goals than not list the right goals.

52 minutes ago, bad_teammate said:

Or is it that we just shouldn't whine about it?

you do you, buddy.

[Hank Scorpio 17,924]

There is really only one person who has the pedigree, experience, and wisdom to please all sides as FBI director: James Comey. Please sir save our country one more time. 

[Incredulity 11,861]

Education Secretary

• Sonja Santelises - CEO of Baltimore City

 

 

The Wire; Season4

[Texaspython 231]

7 hours ago, Dutchrudder said:

So is he gonna make Hillary the Attorney General or what?

That would be glorious. The whining from the “progressives” would be pretty entertaining too.

[washparkhorn 9,967]

1 hour ago, Texaspython said:

That would be glorious. The whining from the “progressives” would be pretty entertaining too.

[washparkhorn 9,967]

1 hour ago, Texaspython said:

That would be glorious. The whining from the “progressives” would be pretty entertaining too.

22 hours ago, Anastasis said:

Have they found a place for a defense contractor on the cabinet yet, or is that still working its way out?

Everyon 

[Satchel 6,982]

2 hours ago, Hank Scorpio said:

There is really only one person who has the pedigree, experience, and wisdom to please all sides as FBI director: James Comey. Please sir save our country one more time. 

Too late. He starts a teaching gig at Columbia Law next month.

[Anastasis 23,700]

1 hour ago, washparkhorn said:

Everyon 

[Js1 86,945]

Vivek Murthy is returning as Surgeon General.

Gina Raimondo (RI Gov.) said she will not be serving as HHS Secretary.  I'd guess Biden could be circling back to Michelle Lujan Grisham.  They approached her about Interior but she stated her preference was HHS. 

[wildcat09 29,559]

17 hours ago, Hank Scorpio said:

There is really only one person who has the pedigree, experience, and wisdom to please all sides as FBI director: James Comey. Please sir save our country one more time. 

That shit's not funny.