JaneAusten

Durbin is one of my senators and he's not running again. Cowards.

Who said the military is in lockstep? We don't really know what will happen there. REmember how many of our military are people from underserved communities. And honestly how many of these people would be willing to turn against their own people. I'd say ICE is more likely to turn than the actual military. But we'll see. There is a reason these people are wearing masks and it's not because they know what they are doing is legal.

I am in good company I guess. It was a ripoff anyway and I should have done it sooner.

I did my little bit and finally dumped my Hulu account. Wasn't doing much with it, so it was the reason I needed. Hulu is owned by Disney.

Oh I realize all that. And I am no fan of Le Pen and I agree with all of this. My question is more about prosecuting Le Pen as if she alone is the problem. I do worry for Europe by the way. France in particular. And I fear Germany is getting one last shot before people get more frustrated and go all AfP. I hope not. But I think we're dealing in times with many problems not easy to solve. And I wonder if we have anyone who wants to solve problems. Canada if Carney becomes permanent PM is a glimmer of hope. I've stayed away from so much of the news, I'm not up to date on so many things.

I am not defending Le Pen by any means, but do we really think prosecuting her is going to end any of this. i think I am closer to the belief that not addressing peoples real concerns is something so many of these leaders have ignored. I can't speak for the French or other European countries, but part of the problem here is just that. Of course that's not all it is, it's also a lot of propaganda and ignorance on the part of the population.

I have basically tuned out but have been paying some attention. Murphy at least seems to know where the real danger is. I'd love to know why the leadership has been so flatfooted. I know you have to pick your battles and Murphy is right, so much of this is distraction, but I wonder had there not finally been pressure put on these folks by organized activists, if the leadership would have done anything. At least Jeffries had demanded all his members have regular townhalls to communicate to their constituents. I have believed for a long time that Amy Klobuchar would make a better Senate Leader than Schumer and don't get me started on Dick Durbin my own senator.

I'm on spoutible and Bluesky(just setup account on bluesky yesterday). I never really post much on social media, but your welcome to follow and I'll do the same. Spoutible @crosswordkathy BlueSky @crosswordkate I usually go by Kate but there are those who call me Kathy. So dual identity lol.

@vee I feel for you. I feel a lot of what you do. I tend to be a glass half full person but this is two elections. And I am remembering that Biden in 2020 did not win in a landslide despite the overall vote totals. I had the same feeling some here did(especially Carl) deep down but I wouldn't allow myself to feel it. The right has captured new tech and these people are puppet masters controlling our propaganda even more. I don't believe they have competent people outside of the Heritage people who know the mechanisms of gvmt, so the damage - who knows. We'll see how far they really go. The mass deportations are horrible, but then I remember even an effective administration under Eisenhower bungled it. So it's going to be a mess and MANY people will be hurt. The racial resentment that has been fueled is a bit more complex because Gen Z is much more diverse. But maybe that in effect is a sign that that's not what it's entirelt about. I do think that a lot of people are seeing our gvmt having failed average people for so long. It's been hard for me to come to terms with that, especially since I see a lot of these same people with their expensive coffees, iphones, etc., but I have to realize that's that's not all it. It's resentment of the establishment. The GOP has somewhat more effectively turned against it or should I say is pretending to. Donald Trump is a tool those powerful have used to stoke more resentment. But I do believe many of the followers are not hateful people, just unknowing that they are being used. I look at a state like Missouri which is ruby red yet voted for a very progressive abortion referendum, minimum wage increase, and a start to affordable outside the home childcare system by making these places exempt from property tax. Those all won substantially. So there is something there besides resentment. I'm so disappointed in the democratic party at this juncture. But not us. But we have to see what the severe flaws are in our party. And admit to some extent this party has been so flooded with money, many democrats are even blind to their own greed. Citizens United has definitely been a cancer to our system but then I don't hear politicians talking much about overturning it anymore especially on the right, but it is democrats. And telling people that the Parlementarian is the main reason legislation could not pass, why the federal minimum wage could not be raised, is not something most people understand. The Child tax credit was mega popular and yet. I did say this once before. You have to make people believe you are fighting for them. And that's not something Biden did effectively. Not blaming him, it's just who he is. I do think the democratic party needs to be wiped clean of all consultants and operatives. Does the party have the guts to do it or do they really care about people are are willing to do the serious work. I have my doubts. I too have had health issues this year, but am much better, but all this has made me realize how important self care is. At some point you have to allow those whose future this is - the young people - step in, but I fear they are already too propagandized. But what do I know. I have been wrong about so much. Lastly, I am convinced VP Harris was a sacrifice. I now feel it was "throw the black woman to the wolves" was the tactic after President Biden stepped aside. Did she know it? Not sure. It's hard now to have hope, but I have faith in humanity. We'll see if we even have a planet, much less country, to save. And my thanks to all of you. This is a great group of intelligent people. Let's focus on the things we can change. Our own well being. You have been a thoughtful poster. Please take care of yourself. All of this has been a gut punch, that's for sure. Stay sane and safe.

By the way anyone still watching or following the Main Stream Media needs to disconnect. They are one of the main reasons we are here and deserve NO support - not one of them. There are reliable journalists out there, but they certainly don't reside in the Beltway or work for the NYT Political Desk

Take care of yourself. Hopefully over the next several days the two of you will be in a better place. Germany, I hope of all places, remembers. And you have a different system than we do. Remember we basically have 2 parties and the GOP has never been an honest or moral broker for as long as I can remember. They were headed into the dust bin after Romney's loss, so they were easy pickings for a cretin like Trump. Anyway, self care is important. And do what you think is best for your own well being.

SSDD Democrats always believe the GOP has some good people. They insisted those 20 percent of Haley voters would be gettable. But this should show that never happens. They end up back at the GOP. Their "principles" never allow them to vote for a democrat.

We have to wait to see all the votes cast. We won't know that until California is finished counting which stupidly will take 3 more weeks. But point is correct. Trump will have performed about the same numbers wise, maybe a tad lower. Did he gain in those constituencies across the country or was the turnout for Harris the real problem. Maybe both.

I wish many of the democrats today would realize that. There are an awful lot of them who still think they are friends off the floor where it's all showmanship for the cameras. I feel like the Clintons, who most of the party seems to despise at this point, are the only ones who know this and who battled them like they were the enemy. And Bill Clinton left office more popular than ever. People do deserve what they voted for but those who didn't do not. Black people by the way voted the same in 2024 as in 2020, so this BS about Trump attracting black voters is BS. Anyone who wants to know what a mass deportation of "illegals" will look like only needs to go back and look at the Eisenhower Administration and OPERATION WETBACK and the disaster that turned out to be. If Latinos who voted in much higher numbers honestly believe this administration will give a damn if legal latino residents are caught in the "round up" of "illegals" they are fooling themselves. Anyone can look at what happened during that deportation program under Eisenhower. The US also deported legal Mexican American citizens born in the US to Mexico during the depression.

Can we agree the party leadership needs a shakeup and fresh blood? I am looking at numbers in my own state where democrats usually win by double digits. It's right now with over 90% of the vote in, less than 5%. And places like New York, Virginia, and even California, has also seen a shift in the popular vote to the right, which is helping Trump build a popular vote lead he's never had.

If you want to win you have to deliver. And learn how to talk to people again. For example, you make promises when you run(they all do this I know), like a public option for the ACA and increasing the minimum wage and then you don't deliver because of - the Parliamentarian. How many people hear that and actually understand it. All they know is it was promised and not fulfilled. There are accomplishments you have as a president(Biden) and there is how to communicate this. The democrats SUCK at the later plus you have a media that refuses to cover any of it,

So then why was Biden pushed out and why VP Harris then? I think the problem is bigger than one person. It's an institutional problem with the democratic party. Same as there is one with the GOP also. Except they just won another election with a buffoon at the helm that the democratic party has lost to twice.

If that in fact is true, they had to know. I am not sure how to react to that.

I'm not sure. So much of his original election was resentment of President Obama. I remember people saying when Obama was elected how we had turned a page and then watching his presidency for 8 years before Trump, we know this was not true. Not even when he was re-elected. No one can say this is not who this country is. The ugliness is exactly who we are. I don't know what to say about the US. This country has been a beacon of light for so many for so many years, but we've allowed this man again. We can;t make excuses any more. This has shaken me up so much more than 2016. And my fellow women. After I have witnessed so many fighting especially the past 2 years and abortion referendums passed all over this country outside of Florida tonight also. I need to somehow make sense of that. Lets face it people of all walks of life voted for this. It's a rejection of std American politics and he gained in demographics I never thought possible, I'm not even sure what now if you oppose what he represents. I'm not angry at Harris - she gave this her all - but part of he feels she was made the sacrificial lamb. Will any democrat in Washington serving suffer? I'm not sure. One thing is the consulting class needs to go. We have people from Apartheid South Africa now as the puppet masters in the United States. Make that make sense. Oh and the only thing I can say is that the only demographic Trump did not gain with was college educated women.

I think the disturbing part in all of this is I honestly believed based on the special elections since DOBBS this was going to be a huge factor across the country. I''m not going to blame any minority for the fact that again Trump performed better than I expected. I have to acknowledge that there are a ton of women who just don't seem to care or know these bans will never impact them because they have the latitude to go anywhere. In addition, this country is broken. Seriously broken. Unfortunately we don't have a real reformer running. That's not a dig on Harris. It's just a fact. The part I do know is that if Trump had Biden's numbers after 4 years, he'd win in a landslide because as broken as the media is, they appear to still have influence.

Not white man but men. In 2008, when Hillary and Obama were running in the primary, there was a very thoughtful column in one of the Chicago papers about the primary written by a very well respected retired journalist in Chicago. It was about the primary and she indicated that it would be harder for a woman to get elected than a black man. It wasn't racist or misogynistic in it's analysis, it just layed out the potential handicaps for each. Now whether she was correct at that time(2008 was not 2016), and would Hilary have won, who knows. It certainly would have been more likely in 2008 than in 2016, due to the financial collapse on GWB's watch. I was reading something on the NBC site also about the fact that some exit polls in Milwaukee is showing that Trump increased his margins with male black voters. Now don't take that as an overall increase, it was an observation, but if that turns out to be the case, it's going to be time for some serious analysis by the democrats whether Harris wins or not.

In Georgia there have been bomb threats in Dekalb and Fulton counties where they had to evacuate precincts. That's why voting times in those counties have been extended.

The funniest part about Pitchbot is that no Beltway publication or reporter likes him. That should say it all.

Apparently what people are missing in the Seltzer poll is this II like everyone else has been cautious. I still am, but I know what women OF ALL AGES who are independents and republicans have been telling people on the phone banks I have been doing for NARAL since 2022 .Some here, LIKE THE MEDIA choose to ignore us. I get it.2016 was heartbreaking but it's not 2016 and Harris is not Clinton, who had 25 years of propaganda by the same media thrown at her even more than her husband. I'm not going to make any predictions because I am still cautious, yet I would not be at all surprised to see Harris win ALL female demographics this year. There is a big reason women in the agegroup below are voting this way. They were young women and teens when there was no Roe. They remember. I think the story Sally Field told was true for many. A close male friend of my older brother told him just 2 months ago how he was voting. He's a republican and just turned 65. He told him a story about coming home to find his mother collapsed on the floor of their kitchen bleeding and unconscious. She almost died from an abortion she had. Not from a medical professional. It wasn't legal then. Turns out his dad was part of it. Why did they decide to risk it? Because they already had 4 children. You can figure it out because it's the same reason many married women choose to do it today. By the way married women are the highest percentage of abortions today. So while I respect those who are panicked(as I said I have my moments even this year) but what I am hearing phonebanking doesn't match the stats. We'll see. You should also pay attention to the percentage of men below. There are still a lot of older men who remember this also and know.

This is honestly horsecrap. Rather than figure out how to adjust their models based on the reasons for the disparity in the past 2 elections, they do this? And this proves I was right. So with that plus being wrong in 2022, they just throw up their hands and ignore their own data analysis. Couple that with the right wing polling that was flooded into their models in 2022 and even more this year. It's a double whammy. And with the time people have obsessed over them. And I have to ask another question. What about Biden? He was pushed out. I'm sorry to say, I think this was done purposely to push a narrative our propaganda filled media wanted. I'll admit initially I did not want Biden to run for re-election - this was before he announced. Not due to capabilities, but yes his age. The presidency takes a toll on you. But then Trump announced before Biden did and I was fine with Biden announcing after that. Harris has picked up the mantel and I don't care what those fools on The Young Turks say(who take credit by the way for pushing Biden out), Harris has been phenomenal when one considers the amount of time she's had. Of course the speed at which the news cycles move helped that also.