2020 Presidential Election

[RoseMorninStar]

Oh.. I have words.. words I cannot speak here.

But of course he is a Walker appointee.. and Walker is a politician in the Trump mold. Nothing stands in their way to get their way.

[Voronwë the Faithful]

I'm going to put this here, with the caveat that I am doubtful that this book will actually happen before the election. But if it does, Cohen certainly is in a position to provide some very telling information about Mr. Trump.

Michael Cohen writing tell-all book about Trump: report

[RoseMorninStar]

I'm going to put this here, with the caveat that I am doubtful that this book will actually happen before the election. But if it does, Cohen certainly is in a position to provide some very telling information about Mr. Trump.

Michael Cohen writing tell-all book about Trump: report

Tony Schwartz should ghost-write it in reparation for the damage done from 'Art of the Deal'.

[Voronwë the Faithful]

Well, Schwartz has certainly done lots of penance for that misstep.

[RoseMorninStar]

True, but the unintended consequences have been enormous, yes?

[Túrin Turambar]

Because I don't think we've paid any attention to the minor parties so far, I just wanted to point out that this man has won two Libertarian primaries (MA and NH).

220px-Vermin_Supreme_August_2019.jpg (25.51 KiB) Viewed 4811 times

[RoseMorninStar]

What? Do you think there is something odd about that? As compared to ..
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[Voronwë the Faithful]

I'm going to put this here, with the caveat that I am doubtful that this book will actually happen before the election. But if it does, Cohen certainly is in a position to provide some very telling information about Mr. Trump.

Michael Cohen writing tell-all book about Trump: report

Cohen's early release has been rescinded with no explanation, days after the Trump Organization's attorney sent a letter warning him not to publish the tell-all book.

[RoseMorninStar]

Trump is quite good at silencing people it seems.

[Túrin Turambar]

I was going through the papers this morning and found two articles discussing the challenges the Tara Reade allegations against Joe Biden pose for the Democrats and the progressive movement (may be paywalled):

Democrats' downplaying of the Biden allegations will damage #MeToo (The Guardian)
The Allegation Is Against Joe Biden, but the Burden Is on Women (NYT)

Which leads me to wonder how big this will end up getting. The challenge the Democrats face is that the allegations against Biden are arguably better-supported than the allegations against Brett Kavanaugh.

[elengil]

Which leads me to wonder how big this will end up getting. The challenge the Democrats face is that the allegations against Biden are arguably better-supported than the allegations against Brett Kavanaugh.

I really, really, really want the DNC to say that Biden cannot be the nominee. I would actually prefer they bring Warren back and give it to her. That would basically show the voters, look - it isn't just when it's the other person. We'll hold our own accountable, too.

[Voronwë the Faithful]

the allegations against Biden are arguably better-supported than the allegations against Brett Kavanaugh.

I so completely disagree with that. None of the so-called corroborating witnesses are credible, and Reade very suspiciously suddenly changed her story from "Biden touched my shoulder and it made me uncomfortable" to "Biden penetrated me with his finger" just after Biden surprisingly took the lead back from the candidate that she supported to the exclusion of all others (Sanders). As someone who represents people who make valid complaints of sexual harassment and sexual assault, I am particularly offended by what seems very apparent to be a false or extremely exaggerated allegation.

But as elengil's reaction shows, it is working.

[elengil]

But as elengil's reaction shows, it is working.

To be fair, I've never liked Biden and think this is yet another weakness as a candidate.

[yovargas]

My personal feeling, as it was with Kavanaugh and others, is that decades-old accusations of misbehavior are largely irrelevant to me and how I view a person unless the allegations are of the very most severe, serious nature.

[Voronwë the Faithful]

If I thought that there was a reasonably chance -- even a small chance -- that what she is now saying is true, it would definitely matter to me, even though it happened so long ago. If what she now says happened really happened, that would disqualify Biden in my mind as viable candidate (even though there is highly credible evidence that Trump did worse, much more often. But there is so much that makes her story non credible. Here are a couple of articles that detail some of the reasons why I believe that.

Why I'm skeptical about Reade's sexual assault claim against Biden: Ex-prosecutor

Tara Reade revisited

elengil, Biden was far from my first choice. I voted for Warren and think she would have been the best candidate and president of the people running for the Democratic nomination. But Biden is the presumptive nominee, fair and square. He is a decent man with some serious warts. And he so infinitely better than the current president that it can't even be expressed. If people allow a spurious allegation to derail his candidacy, the result will be another four years of Donald Trump.

[elengil]

And he so infinitely better than the current president that it can't even be expressed. If people allow a spurious allegation to derail his candidacy, the result will be another four years of Donald Trump.

There is a difference between wishing there was a different candidate and voting for the incumbent, (or not voting at all). Yes, I will rather bitterly vote for Biden because Trump is infinitely worse, no matter how much I dislike Biden. But that does not mean that if the DNC refused to back him (yes, it is excessively unlikely) and put forth Warren instead that it would necessarily result in Trumps re-election.

[Voronwë the Faithful]

But that does not mean that if the DNC refused to back him (yes, it is excessively unlikely) and put forth Warren instead ...

How undemocratic would that be? Back to the days of smoky rooms where the party bosses chose the nominee and the people had no say.

[elengil]

But that does not mean that if the DNC refused to back him (yes, it is excessively unlikely) and put forth Warren instead ...

How undemocratic would that be? Back to the days of smoky rooms where the party bosses chose the nominee and the people had no say.

the DNC is not democracy. I don't mean to be pedantic but the parties are *not* democracies, they don't need to function as democracies. How much would it have been better if the RNC had chosen someone other than Trump because you back candidates that are sufficiently representative of your values and party platform?

IF the accusations gain weight or more come forward, then the DNC should absolutely say that this candidate is not representative of the party and a different candidate should run as the DNC nominee. We should, in essence, hold our own to the same standard as we hold others.

[River]

the allegations against Biden are arguably better-supported than the allegations against Brett Kavanaugh.

I so completely disagree with that. None of the so-called corroborating witnesses are credible, and Reade very suspiciously suddenly changed her story from "Biden touched my shoulder and it made me uncomfortable" to "Biden penetrated me with his finger" just after Biden surprisingly took the lead back from the candidate that she supported to the exclusion of all others (Sanders). As someone who represents people who make valid complaints of sexual harassment and sexual assault, I am particularly offended by what seems very apparent to be a false or extremely exaggerated allegation.

But as elengil's reaction shows, it is working.

At one ppint the story was she felt bullied by fellow staffers. Then it was Biden made her uncomfortable. Then Biden assaulted her.
And now the story's switching back to "He made me feel uncomfortable" and she cancelled a scheduled Sunday morning interview with Chris Wallace after Biden requested any relevant records to be located and released. And the neighbor supposedly corroborating the tale has walked back her statements.

All in all, I suspect there was some really bad behavior in the office and Biden's behavior left something to be desired but Reade herself is not acting in good faith.

Meanwhile, Trump's got over three dozen people accusing him, one of whom believes she has DNA evidence. Lovely, no?

[elengil]

Lovely, no?

Did I mention the RNC should have dumped Trump?