Presidential race 2016

[Maggot]

That was a really good speech by Trump.

Let us look at the situation right here in Milwaukee, a city run by Democrats for decade after decade. Last year, killings in this city increased by 69 percent, plus another 634 victims of non-fatal shootings. 18-29-year-olds accounted for nearly half of the homicide victims. The poverty rate here is nearly double the national average. Almost 4 in 10 African-American men in Milwaukee between the ages of 25-54 do not have a job. Nearly four in 10 single mother households are living in poverty. 55 public schools in this city have been rated as failing to meet expectations, despite ten thousand dollars in funding per-pupil. There is only a 60% graduation rate, and it’s one of the worst public school systems in the country.

[pyropappy]

That was a really good speech by Trump.

Let us look at the situation right here in Milwaukee, a city run by Democrats for decade after decade. Last year, killings in this city increased by 69 percent, plus another 634 victims of non-fatal shootings. 18-29-year-olds accounted for nearly half of the homicide victims. The poverty rate here is nearly double the national average. Almost 4 in 10 African-American men in Milwaukee between the ages of 25-54 do not have a job. Nearly four in 10 single mother households are living in poverty. 55 public schools in this city have been rated as failing to meet expectations, despite ten thousand dollars in funding per-pupil. There is only a 60% graduation rate, and it’s one of the worst public school systems in the country.

[Duchess]

Does anyone reading this believe that the election could be rigged?

[HairOfTheDog]

I think our system needs some improvement, but I do not think the election could be rigged. That would involve a huge conspiracy which would be very difficult to carry out and very risky for all involved. I remember people declaring the election was rigged after Al Gore won the public vote but lost the electoral vote to George W.

It's only happened a few times where the popular vote and the electoral college vote had different winners. That doesn't mean those elections were rigged; it's a result of the process intentionally put in place by the founding fathers (and revising the Constitution to do away with the electoral college has been a source of heated debate for decades).

The Democrats have long been accusing the Republicans of voter suppression in minority communities (with courts recently ruling in the Democrats' favor), while Republicans claim voter I.D. fraud. Nothing new there either.

Anyway, I don't think Trump has a chance of winning either the popular or electoral votes at this time, and that has nothing to do with a 'rigged' system and everything to do with the candidate and his campaign to date.

[Duchess]

I think our system needs some improvement, but I do not think the election could be rigged.

Agreed. I've asked quite a few people that question and they feel like we do. I'd like to talk to those who believe it could be rigged. I'm interested in knowing why they think that. I know those people are out there, I just haven't come across any yet.

[HairOfTheDog]

I think ^ that meme is mostly accurate.

Then again, so is this one, which is broader ranging.



The fact check methodology shows that 93% of the poorest 100 counties in the country are Republican-run.

http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/...ed-states/

[Maggot]

junk cars and everything.

[Duchess]

Why would Chris Christie veto bills that would have made it easier for state residents to cast a ballot? I used to really like that fat fuck, not so much anymore.

[Duchess]

Tonight's Trump rally lineup is - Trump, Farage & Sessions. <-------Bannon's vision. I don't think Kellyanne would agree to that but I'm not a campaign manager either so...

[HairOfTheDog]

Did you catch the dueling speeches by Trump then Clinton today, Duchess?

I think he's getting much better at delivering scripted speeches and a couple of his points are valid ones (not many, but a couple). I'm not sure if matters at this point. People aren't as simple minded as he appears to believe, in my opinion, and he can't erase what he's already said repeatedly in contrast to his current rhetoric. More people have been paying attention early in the campaign cycle than in past elections and don't just believe the latest rhetoric, but consider the history of his proposals.

When it comes to immigration, he seems to me like a brittle wishbone. I think the extremists on his campaign staff are at odds with the more centrist members on the issue. He doesn't know what to do -- keep reiterating his original promise to round up all the undocumented/illegal immigrants and their American children and boot 'em out at once, or follow Obama's lead of being aggressive on the criminals and measured on the productive ones who contribute. Try to win more voters or risk losing his Brietbart-based fan club? What to do, what to do.

In my view, hiring Bannon did nothing for Trump but solidify his penchant for bullshit, discrimination, and conspiracy theories, which I think Clinton did a good job of laying out clearly with examples in her speech.

[HairOfTheDog]

Anyway, just a couple of months until the election and a few weeks until the debates. I'm past ready to see the contenders debate it out on stage. It's not looking like Johnson will be able to pull the 15% polling support to make it into the debates at this point.

Trump said in his speech today that his poll numbers are looking very strong, very strong. I don't know where he's getting his information, but that's not what I'm seeing.


Here are the latest national poll standings, Thursday, August 25.
General Election: Trump vs. Clinton vs. Johnson vs. Stein
Quinnipiac Clinton 45, Trump 38, Johnson 10, Stein 4 Clinton +7

General Election: Trump vs. Clinton
Quinnipiac Clinton 51, Trump 41 Clinton +10

General Election: Trump vs. Clinton vs. Johnson vs. Stein
Rasmussen Reports Clinton 42, Trump 38, Johnson 9, Stein 2 Clinton +4

General Election: Trump vs. Clinton vs. Johnson vs. Stein
Reuters/Ipsos Clinton 39, Trump 36, Johnson 7, Stein 3 Clinton +3

General Election: Trump vs. Clinton
Reuters/Ipsos Clinton 42, Trump 35 Clinton +7

Michigan: Trump vs. Clinton vs. Johnson vs. Stein
Suffolk University 44, Trump 37, Johnson 5, Stein 3 Clinton +7

[Duchess]

Did you catch the dueling speeches by Trump then Clinton today, Duchess?

I sure did! I appreciated her calm, measured tone. I watched one last week and she was almost hollering, I don't like that in her. I LOVED the way she stated Breitbart headlines verbatim. Aha! I also really liked when she mentioned Dole, McCain, Bush. I thought that was a nice touch. Donald's campaign gives her a wealth of material and her and her staff use it brilliantly. Only my opinion, of course.

Trump looks ridiculous. He sounds ridiculous. Blacks, Muslims, Asians, etc., have got to be viewing him as a joke. Sometimes I feel a tiny bit embarrassed for him, he doesn't have enough sense to feel any for himself. He straight up lies. (I hear the Hillary haters after reading that, I'm just acknowledging you. )

I still don't understand those Republicans who support him, Paul Ryan and that crew. I've read and heard it's because they are trying to protect the down ballot people. I think that's bullshit. If I were a power player in DC I would never be able to respect someone who didn't stand up for their convictions. It astounds me when Republicans in Washington say they don't agree nor approve of Trump yet they say they are voting for him. Paul Ryan said some of Trump's comments were "textbook definition of a racist" and then went on to say he supported him. That just disgusts me to no end.

[HairOfTheDog]

I still don't understand those Republicans who support him, Paul Ryan and that crew. I've read and heard it's because they are trying to protect the down ballot people. I think that's bullshit. If I were a power player in DC I would never be able to respect someone who didn't stand up for their convictions. It astounds me when Republicans in Washington say they don't agree nor approve of Trump yet they say they are voting for him. Paul Ryan said some of Trump's comments were "textbook definition of a racist" and then went on to say he supported him. That just disgusts me to no end.

I caught Lawrence O'Donnell interviewing Glenn Beck last night, which I thought was an odd pairing but turned out be a very good and informative exchange.

Beck feels the same way as you do. He's disgusted by Republicans who've compromised everything they've been claiming to stand for their whole careers by (even if reluctantly) supporting Trump. He no longer calls himself a "conservative" because he says it's no longer clear what that means for several reasons, including Trump's proposals for large government.

He also talked about Bannon's self-proclaimed dedication to Leninism and the promotion of it and how dangerous it is for people to let Trump bring the Breitbart propoganda into the mainstream and not speak out against the white nationalism that it entails.

Beck's no fan of LBJ, or Clinton, or Obama and several past Republican presidents who he feels propagated the false promises of progressivism either...but he at least admits that they weren't/aren't off their rockers and dangerous like he perceives Trump to be.

[HairOfTheDog]

I appreciated her calm, measured tone. I watched one last week and she was almost hollering, I don't like that in her. I LOVED the way she stated Breitbart headlines verbatim.

I kept getting calls during her speech, and just watched the video. Clinton's tone and delivery was very good today. I thought the content was too.

I'd previously missed her comment about how Trump's latest conspiracy theory surrounding her alleged poor health. "Dream on, Donald," she said, which made me laugh.

Reading off Breitbart headlines and tying that kind of warped thinking to Trump's past statements and Trump's choice to appoint Breitbart's Stephen Bannon as his campaign chairman was a good strategy to push undecided, independent and disgusted Republicans her way, I thought.

The positive reference to high profile Republicans was smart as well.

[HairOfTheDog]

Here are those ^ portions of the Clinton's speech, pulled from the official transcript:

Trump likes to say he only hires the "best people." But he’s had to fire so many campaign managers it’s like an episode of the Apprentice.

The latest shake-up was designed to – quote – "Let Trump be Trump." To do that, he hired Stephen Bannon, the head of a right-wing website called Breitbart.com, as campaign CEO.

To give you a flavor of his work, here are a few headlines they’ve published:

"Birth Control Makes Women Unattractive and Crazy."

"Would You Rather Your Child Had Feminism or Cancer?"

"Gabby Giffords: The Gun Control Movement’s Human Shield"

"Hoist It High And Proud: The Confederate Flag Proclaims A Glorious Heritage."
That one came shortly after the Charleston massacre, when Democrats and Republicans alike were doing everything they could to heal racial divides. Breitbart tried to enflame them further.

Just imagine – Donald Trump reading that and thinking: "this is what I need more of in my campaign."

This is a moment of reckoning for every Republican dismayed that the Party of Lincoln has become the Party of Trump. It’s a moment of reckoning for all of us who love our country and believe that America is better than this.

Twenty years ago, when Bob Dole accepted the Republican nomination, he pointed to the exits and told any racists in the Party to get out.

The week after 9/11, George W. Bush went to a mosque and declared for everyone to hear that Muslims "love America just as much as I do."

In 2008, John McCain told his own supporters they were wrong about the man he was trying to defeat. Senator McCain made sure they knew – Barack Obama is an American citizen and "a decent person."

We need that kind of leadership again.

Every day, more Americans are standing up and saying "enough is enough" – including a lot of Republicans. I’m honored to have their support.

[HairOfTheDog]

The last leg of the election cycle is on. Just over three weeks until the first debate and three months until we elect the next President of the United States.



The Presidential Debates Schedule

September 26, 9:00 to 10:30 pm (ET):
Lester Holt, the anchor of the NBC Nightly News, will lead the first debate, which is set to take place at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York.

October 9, 9:00 to 10:30 pm:
Anderson Cooper of CNN and Martha Raddatz of ABC News will co-moderate the second debate, which will be a town-hall style event at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri.

October 19, 9:00 to 10:30 pm:
Chris Wallace of FOX News will moderate the third and final presidential debate at University of Nevada in Las Vegas.

VP Debate - Kaine vs. Pence, Oct. 4:
The vice presidential debate will be moderated by CBS News' Elaine Quijano at Longwood University in Farmville, Virgina.

The news was announced Friday morning by the Commission on Presidential Debates, the bipartisan committee that has sponsored and produced all the presidential and vice presidential debates since the 1988 campaign. Moderators are chosen based on extensive experience in the job of moderating, and understanding the importance of using expanded time periods effectively.

[Duchess]

I'll try this again.

Will this be a different atmosphere than the primaries? I ask because I recall Trump and the name calling and him flinging water from his water bottle, etc. Can we expect a more adult version or will he be allowed to carry on in a similar fashion?

[HairOfTheDog]

I hope the moderators force Trump to answer the policy questions instead of going into name-calling mode, but I think that will be tough.

[Duchess]

I hope the moderators force Trump to answer the policy questions instead of going into name-calling mode, but I think that will be tough.

That's too bad. I guess I'll have to lower my expectations. I had hoped it would take a more serious tone so that we could all see where both the candidates stand.

I read a little bit about the debate prep. Hillary is going to have to confront every godawful thing in her past, she has to be prepared for anything.

[HairOfTheDog]

I don't really have any expectations of Trump.

High ratings and being adored by his hard-core base seem to be his driving forces, in my view. So, I won't be surprised if he goes over the top with reality show type drama and personal attacks like he did in the primary debates.

But, it's possible that he really wants to win and will go into the debates prepared to address policies like a politician, which is exactly what he is now.

I think the debates are going to be very interesting, in either case.