Democrats openly talk about replacing Biden

[ellipses84]

Ahhh I hate this! We had these debates prior to the primaries - and we knew this would be a 2024 problem in 2020. At this point we need to stick to the plan and have party unity, knowing Harris can / will step in eventually.

I’ve run through so many scenarios in my head and the only thing that really matters is how the swing states will vote. I think Biden is still our best bet for that. While I think Harris will attract a lot of “anyone but two old guys” voters, I don’t underestimate subtle misogyny and racism from the media or from swing state voters who aren’t blindly voting Republican anymore. Recent press has been pretty good for her but for the past 3 years a lot of it was either vile or non-existent. Biden has the sitting president advantage, the past 4 years have been much less chaotic than the previous 4 and the infrastructure bill and being pro-union are seen as positive things he’s done. A lot of other credit / criticism they’ve shared in equally and there’s no policy difference. How many swing state voters do you think would vote for Harris and not vote for Biden (even if that means not voting), knowing Biden is old and she could replace him?

[livinitup]

Jul 18, 2024 22:24:57 GMT -5 sent said:

Jul 18, 2024 16:52:39 GMT -5 elleblue said:

It's money. The deep pockets that help fund their campaigns are nervous and/don't like Biden's attitudes (promised taxes) for the super wealthy.

As a small business owner in a blue state, I feel like all I do is pay taxes. Those taxes helped fund the big road renovation on my commute that fixed a lot of traffic headaches. The state taxes allow my employees to have paid leaves up to 3 months for a temporary disability or caring for a sick family member. They pay for FEMA to aid in rebuilding the community when we have a flood every few years so the town doesn't look all run down because the mostly average people couldn't afford to raise their houses. Etc. 

Why do they hate taxes so much when they have more than enough? Rhetorical question. We have a nice and cushy high standard of living because of our taxes, minus the healthcare problems. UGH.

THIS. Also this and please reread THIS.

Why can’t we do some effective god damn messaging around paying taxes that points out it’s good and helpful and makes your life great? There is so much we can say! It’s not even a stretch or reaching or a pivot or a lie. It was THE EIGHTIES when republicans fed us the lie of supply side economics that slashed corporate taxes because “government spending was bad” and giving all the money to wealth people was good, good, good because they know how to spend it to benefit everyone so much better than the big, bad government. It’s not!! They paid themselves, they kept the money. We can prove it!

We can REALLY prove it in the swing states.

[underwaterrhymes]

This is long video from AOC. She rambles a bit, but it’s a great watch if you have the time.


ETA - In fact, I suggest you make the time. She lays out all of the reasons why it’s a bad idea to try and replace Biden from an insider’s perspective.


www.instagram.com/reel/C9l41vgOAGj/?igsh=d2NnYjhwenM3ZjJ0

ETA - Someone on Twitter (Peter Stern) took the time to write out her main points. Comments in spoiler tags because they’re long and unformatted.

SPOILER: Click to show

In IG Live, @aoc says she doesn't know what's going to happen with Biden.
@aoc @aoc says that she doesn't want to question or attack the motives of people who feel that Biden should step down.
@aoc But AOC also says that she believes that the political class (pundits, media, donors, organization leaders) started to waver after the debate and started to say we need to jump ship based on polling.
AOC says that if the political class was concerned about Biden's age and capability, they should have had this discussion a year ago – instead of supporting Biden back then.
AOC says that if Democrats swap out Biden, the GOP will bring legal challenges based on the Ohio law.
AOC says she has been very upset to see lots of Democrats giving anonymous quotes to journalists attacking Biden. "That's bullshit," she says. "If you have an opinion, say it with your chest and say it in public."
AOC says she's not calling out the people who have publicly called for Biden to resign but the ones who are too cowardly to say what they believe publicly but are happy to talk to journalists anonymously.
AOC on IG Live: "If you think there is consensus among people who want Joe Biden to leave, and they will support Kamala, you are mistaken...a lot of them are not just interested in removing the president, they are interested in removing the old ticket."
AOC: "If you think that is going to be an easy transition, I'm here to tell you that a huge amount of the donor class and these elites who are pushing for the president not to be the nominee also do not want to see the VP be the nominee."
AOC: "I have stood up in rooms with all of these people and I have said, 'game out your actual plan for me.' What are the risks of this going to the Supreme Court? And no one had an answer for me...I'm talking about the lawyers. I'm talking about the legislators."
AOC: While I understand the case some folks may be making from a theoretical perspective or a polling perspective, I'm here as a person who is responsible for executing decisions and not just opining on them, I have not seen the plan.
AOC: When a convention is in 4ish weeks, when Michigan has to finalize their ballot 2 days after the convention concludes...the legal problems start to mount, I am concerned about the lack of thought I have seen from the individuals who would be responsible for executing on this.
AOC: There is no safe option...I have not seen an alternative scenario that I feel does not set us up for enormous peril based on what I'm noticing privately and what I see publicly.
AOC: I have not seen what I need to see to substantiate an alternative (to Biden). What I will say is what upsets me is people saying we will lose. For me, to a certain extent, I don't care what name is on there. We are losing. My community does not have the option to lose.
AOC: My community does not have the luxury of accepting loss in July in an election year. My people are the first ones deported. They're the first ones put in Rikers...We need to make decisions in the conditions we have before us, even if they're ugly, even if they're hard.
AOC: I do think that people underestimate Biden's performance. I think that's how he became president, through people underestimating his performance.
AOC: In my 4 primary elections, my vote share has only gone up since I first won election, even with disinformation campaigns targeting me from the right and from the left.
AOC: What I'm seeing here in terms of how this decision is being made through a litigation among a certain class is disturbing to me. The mechanisms by which this decision is being made is concerning me.
AOC: When I'm talking to people in rooms, I'm hearing "my donor this, my donor that" not "my voters this, my voters that." ... I could give two damns what a bunch of rich people think. What I care about is what the working class thinks and what people not on social media think.
AOC: Joe Biden actually stomps among old people, who are hard for Democrats to win. Those are not people who are on Twitter but they vote more than any other bracket. You can't assume those voters will transfer to any other candidate.
AOC: People say I'm a neolib sell-out careerist. If I were here to sell out, there are much more lucrative ways!
AOC: I think there are certain things about Joe Biden as a candidate and as a person that people often conflate. The debate had no audience. Then people went the next day and saw that he did amazing at a rally. It went super well. Joe Biden needs the energy of people around him.
AOC: You can totally rake me over the coals. Trust me, if I were trying to do something that I thought was calculatingly the best for me, I would not be on this Live right now. But I'm doing this because I care deeply about the outcome of this election.
AOC: I would regret not raising some of these matters that I feel are not getting appropriate consideration. It bums me out when I see how many people and perspectives are being left out of the conversations about this decision.
AOC: I'm not here to have a debate. I'm not here to argue. I'm not here to say anyone is wrong. What I'm humbly trying to do is just contribute some of these concerns because it's real & what I think is a risk.
AOC: Maybe I'm wrong, but one thing I get very concerned about is Clarence Thomas and the Supreme Court deciding this election. It's already happened before. That's how George W. Bush became president.
AOC: Maybe I'm taking a big L. But I think that there are just real concerns. It's annoying me how this is being litigated on CNN. A lot of people are just not on the ground.
AOC: I've been on the left, I am on the left, and I've seen the left be really wrong before electorally. I've seen the left be very right electorally.

President Biden has very strong union support, and that's not something that just goes automatically to any Democrat.
AOC: The theory of how labor aligns itself politically versus the reality and process of it – it's not easy, and it's really hard-earned. I was elected as a democratic socialist. Did that mean that unions automatically supported me? No! I had to work for years and years.
AOC: I just want people to come to their conclusions eyes wide open.

If you're falling out of a coconut tree, god bless you. If you're riding with the president, god bless you. I'm not an open convention person. I think that's crazy.
AOC: My opinion is to not get your opinion from whatever's on CNN. Look at the facts of it. It's kind of crazy to me that people are talking about this without talking about how this would actually go down.
AOC: I'm a polling skeptic. My first election, polls had me down by 35 points. I won by 13. This year, I had a primary election. My own private polling had me down by double digits from where I ended up performing.
AOC: I don't want to be a data denialist either. But I think that's also what's contributing to the complexity of the situation. The argument that many Democrats are polling ahead of the president – that's not necessarily a bad thing in certain places.
AOC: People are saying it's cope or whatever. It's not cope. This is a moment of ambiguity. I'm not like a Biden campaign co-chair. I go out and I campaign for the president and I stump for the president, and I have done that because he is our Democratic nominee.
AOC: There are also a lot of things that have happened that I don't agree with and that I find morally horrific. Complexity is the job.
AOC: If you think a lot of the folks who are in charge of swaying this position are defaulting to the VP, you are mistaken. That is not something to be taken for granted. That would have to be a fight too. So all you folks who are coconut-pilled in the comments, buckle up!

[erbear]

Jul 19, 2024 3:56:07 GMT -5 livinitup said:

Jul 18, 2024 22:24:57 GMT -5 sent said:

As a small business owner in a blue state, I feel like all I do is pay taxes. Those taxes helped fund the big road renovation on my commute that fixed a lot of traffic headaches. The state taxes allow my employees to have paid leaves up to 3 months for a temporary disability or caring for a sick family member. They pay for FEMA to aid in rebuilding the community when we have a flood every few years so the town doesn't look all run down because the mostly average people couldn't afford to raise their houses. Etc. 

Why do they hate taxes so much when they have more than enough? Rhetorical question. We have a nice and cushy high standard of living because of our taxes, minus the healthcare problems. UGH.

THIS. Also this and please reread THIS.

Why can’t we do some effective god damn messaging around paying taxes that points out it’s good and helpful and makes your life great? There is so much we can say! It’s not even a stretch or reaching or a pivot or a lie. It was THE EIGHTIES when republicans fed us the lie of supply side economics that slashed corporate taxes because “government spending was bad” and giving all the money to wealth people was good, good, good because they know how to spend it to benefit everyone so much better than the big, bad government. It’s not!! They paid themselves, they kept the money. We can prove it!

We can REALLY prove it in the swing states.

This is what I cannot understand. TAXES HELP PEOPLE WHO ARE VOTING REPUBLICANS. It's why all of these assholes are campaigning on infrastructure improvements to their districts -- people love them! Why aren't their opponents and the news reminding folks that these asses voted against the bill that they are now taking credit for? It's maddening.

I was in Denmark earlier this summer and asking about the tax system. Everyone I talked to said they didn't mind how high their taxes were because 1) they never saw the money anyway, 2) they thought that's how a community functions -- you take care of everyone, and 3) they see the fucking benefits of free school, free college, free healthcare, affordable housing, elder care and on and on and on. They are baffled by Americans.

[erbear]

Also, again, if the non-white, female, more progressive wing of the party is calling for Biden to stay in the race, I am listening to them.

[mrsd2006]

What do you think about this?

www.nbcnews.com/politics/joe-biden/bidens-family-starts-discussing-exit-plan-2024-race-rcna162658

WASHINGTON — Members of President Joe Biden’s family have discussed what an exit from his campaign might look like, according to two people familiar with the discussions.

The overall tone of the conversations has been that any exit plan — should Biden decide to take that step, as some of his closest allies increasingly believe he will — should put the party in the best position to beat former President Donald Trump while also being worthy of the more than five decades he has served the country in elected office, these people said.

Biden’s family members have specifically discussed how he would want to end his re-election bid on his own timing and with a carefully calculated plan in place. Considerations about the impact of the campaign on his health, his family and the stability of the country are among those at the forefront of the discussions, the people familiar with those discussions said.

The prospect of Biden’s considering stepping aside, much less that his family is gaming out a possible exit plan, is an extraordinary development that comes after he has repeatedly said he would not relinquish his position as the presumptive nominee of the party.

[TR]

I'm so over the "according to sources" or "according to people close to the family" bullshit that is accompanied by a headline treating it like known fact. Feels a lot like "A lot of people are saying..."

[pixy0stix]

According to sources Biden was promising only 1 term.

At this point, I don't think anyone knows what's going to happen until they announce it.

[hermione]

Complete side note: at work, Hillbilly Elegy has 136 holds across all formats. Last week it had 0.

[underwaterrhymes]

Jul 19, 2024 10:26:21 GMT -5 TR said:

I'm so over the "according to sources" or "according to people close to the family" bullshit that is accompanied by a headline treating it like known fact. Feels a lot like "A lot of people are saying..."

I think exactly what AOC thinks. These anonymous reports are a bunch of cowardly bullshit.

[TR]

Jul 19, 2024 10:37:40 GMT -5 hermione said:

Complete side note: at work, Hillbilly Elegy has 136 holds across all formats. Last week it had 0.

Oh I'm sure. I will once again recommend the Hillbilly Elegy episode of the If Books Could Kill podcast.

[wawa]

Jul 19, 2024 10:41:21 GMT -5 TR said:

Jul 19, 2024 10:37:40 GMT -5 hermione said:

Complete side note: at work, Hillbilly Elegy has 136 holds across all formats. Last week it had 0.

Oh I'm sure. I will once again recommend the Hillbilly Elegy episode of the If Books Could Kill podcast.

I get things from the library when I want to Hate-Read them (rather than buying)  So...hoping that's the case with a lot of those. (no idea if that's actually a reasonable thing to do, but it feels better to me to just borrow it when I don't actually want to support the author but I really want to know what they're saying)

[underwaterrhymes]

Also, “anonymous sources” had stated Hakeem Jeffries had concerns about Biden staying in the race, but he’s expressed none of this on social media, and this morning gave a full-throated statement of his support of Biden/Harris.

I’d be very cautious of trusting ANYthing that isn’t straight from the person themself.

[sequins]

Jul 19, 2024 8:17:24 GMT -5 underwaterrhymes said:

This is long video from AOC. She rambles a bit, but it’s a great watch if you have the time.


ETA - In fact, I suggest you make the time. She lays out all of the reasons why it’s a bad idea to try and replace Biden from an insider’s perspective.


www.instagram.com/reel/C9l41vgOAGj/?igsh=d2NnYjhwenM3ZjJ0

ETA - Someone on Twitter (Peter Stern) took the time to write out her main points. Comments in spoiler tags because they’re long and unformatted.

SPOILER: Click to show

In IG Live, @aoc says she doesn't know what's going to happen with Biden.
@aoc @aoc says that she doesn't want to question or attack the motives of people who feel that Biden should step down.
@aoc But AOC also says that she believes that the political class (pundits, media, donors, organization leaders) started to waver after the debate and started to say we need to jump ship based on polling.
AOC says that if the political class was concerned about Biden's age and capability, they should have had this discussion a year ago – instead of supporting Biden back then.
AOC says that if Democrats swap out Biden, the GOP will bring legal challenges based on the Ohio law.
AOC says she has been very upset to see lots of Democrats giving anonymous quotes to journalists attacking Biden. "That's bullshit," she says. "If you have an opinion, say it with your chest and say it in public."
AOC says she's not calling out the people who have publicly called for Biden to resign but the ones who are too cowardly to say what they believe publicly but are happy to talk to journalists anonymously.
AOC on IG Live: "If you think there is consensus among people who want Joe Biden to leave, and they will support Kamala, you are mistaken...a lot of them are not just interested in removing the president, they are interested in removing the old ticket."
AOC: "If you think that is going to be an easy transition, I'm here to tell you that a huge amount of the donor class and these elites who are pushing for the president not to be the nominee also do not want to see the VP be the nominee."
AOC: "I have stood up in rooms with all of these people and I have said, 'game out your actual plan for me.' What are the risks of this going to the Supreme Court? And no one had an answer for me...I'm talking about the lawyers. I'm talking about the legislators."
AOC: While I understand the case some folks may be making from a theoretical perspective or a polling perspective, I'm here as a person who is responsible for executing decisions and not just opining on them, I have not seen the plan.
AOC: When a convention is in 4ish weeks, when Michigan has to finalize their ballot 2 days after the convention concludes...the legal problems start to mount, I am concerned about the lack of thought I have seen from the individuals who would be responsible for executing on this.
AOC: There is no safe option...I have not seen an alternative scenario that I feel does not set us up for enormous peril based on what I'm noticing privately and what I see publicly.
AOC: I have not seen what I need to see to substantiate an alternative (to Biden). What I will say is what upsets me is people saying we will lose. For me, to a certain extent, I don't care what name is on there. We are losing. My community does not have the option to lose.
AOC: My community does not have the luxury of accepting loss in July in an election year. My people are the first ones deported. They're the first ones put in Rikers...We need to make decisions in the conditions we have before us, even if they're ugly, even if they're hard.
AOC: I do think that people underestimate Biden's performance. I think that's how he became president, through people underestimating his performance.
AOC: In my 4 primary elections, my vote share has only gone up since I first won election, even with disinformation campaigns targeting me from the right and from the left.
AOC: What I'm seeing here in terms of how this decision is being made through a litigation among a certain class is disturbing to me. The mechanisms by which this decision is being made is concerning me.
AOC: When I'm talking to people in rooms, I'm hearing "my donor this, my donor that" not "my voters this, my voters that." ... I could give two damns what a bunch of rich people think. What I care about is what the working class thinks and what people not on social media think.
AOC: Joe Biden actually stomps among old people, who are hard for Democrats to win. Those are not people who are on Twitter but they vote more than any other bracket. You can't assume those voters will transfer to any other candidate.
AOC: People say I'm a neolib sell-out careerist. If I were here to sell out, there are much more lucrative ways!
AOC: I think there are certain things about Joe Biden as a candidate and as a person that people often conflate. The debate had no audience. Then people went the next day and saw that he did amazing at a rally. It went super well. Joe Biden needs the energy of people around him.
AOC: You can totally rake me over the coals. Trust me, if I were trying to do something that I thought was calculatingly the best for me, I would not be on this Live right now. But I'm doing this because I care deeply about the outcome of this election.
AOC: I would regret not raising some of these matters that I feel are not getting appropriate consideration. It bums me out when I see how many people and perspectives are being left out of the conversations about this decision.
AOC: I'm not here to have a debate. I'm not here to argue. I'm not here to say anyone is wrong. What I'm humbly trying to do is just contribute some of these concerns because it's real & what I think is a risk.
AOC: Maybe I'm wrong, but one thing I get very concerned about is Clarence Thomas and the Supreme Court deciding this election. It's already happened before. That's how George W. Bush became president.
AOC: Maybe I'm taking a big L. But I think that there are just real concerns. It's annoying me how this is being litigated on CNN. A lot of people are just not on the ground.
AOC: I've been on the left, I am on the left, and I've seen the left be really wrong before electorally. I've seen the left be very right electorally.

President Biden has very strong union support, and that's not something that just goes automatically to any Democrat.
AOC: The theory of how labor aligns itself politically versus the reality and process of it – it's not easy, and it's really hard-earned. I was elected as a democratic socialist. Did that mean that unions automatically supported me? No! I had to work for years and years.
AOC: I just want people to come to their conclusions eyes wide open.

If you're falling out of a coconut tree, god bless you. If you're riding with the president, god bless you. I'm not an open convention person. I think that's crazy.
AOC: My opinion is to not get your opinion from whatever's on CNN. Look at the facts of it. It's kind of crazy to me that people are talking about this without talking about how this would actually go down.
AOC: I'm a polling skeptic. My first election, polls had me down by 35 points. I won by 13. This year, I had a primary election. My own private polling had me down by double digits from where I ended up performing.
AOC: I don't want to be a data denialist either. But I think that's also what's contributing to the complexity of the situation. The argument that many Democrats are polling ahead of the president – that's not necessarily a bad thing in certain places.
AOC: People are saying it's cope or whatever. It's not cope. This is a moment of ambiguity. I'm not like a Biden campaign co-chair. I go out and I campaign for the president and I stump for the president, and I have done that because he is our Democratic nominee.
AOC: There are also a lot of things that have happened that I don't agree with and that I find morally horrific. Complexity is the job.
AOC: If you think a lot of the folks who are in charge of swaying this position are defaulting to the VP, you are mistaken. That is not something to be taken for granted. That would have to be a fight too. So all you folks who are coconut-pilled in the comments, buckle up!

Yeah, I'll say watch the whole thing even if just to see how "firebrand" eloquent people can still ramble on and on and go on tangents. 

100% with her on her message though. She is right that we are in a legal gray zone and the election will end up being decided by the SC if we don't have lawyers working overtime on any alternate plans. Lawyers, not pollsters and pundits. She made a lot of other points that are important but this bit is crucial and not enough people are talking about it.

[elleblue]

I can't believe anyone who lived through Gore v Bush in 2000 can actually say with a straight face that they trust the courts to reach a fair decision. Not to mention all of the delays and shenanigans happening with the various cases being brought against Trump. Not all judges will care about what's actually "fair play" and require states to allow a new candidate on the ballot. Seems like a mighty big gamble at this point.

I really feel like I'm taking crazy pills when I see the amount of optimism some seem to have in regards to changing the ticket this late in the game. I guess what trust and belief in our guardrails and systems, as scant as it once was, has been completely torched in the past 20+ years.

[fernweh]

Jul 19, 2024 11:03:08 GMT -5 wawa said:

Jul 19, 2024 10:41:21 GMT -5 TR said:

Oh I'm sure. I will once again recommend the Hillbilly Elegy episode of the If Books Could Kill podcast.

I get things from the library when I want to Hate-Read them (rather than buying)  So...hoping that's the case with a lot of those. (no idea if that's actually a reasonable thing to do, but it feels better to me to just borrow it when I don't actually want to support the author but I really want to know what they're saying)

I have done this too in a case that I’m curious but don’t want to financially support. The only negative I can see is at least at my library if the wait list is too long (I don’t know if they have a threshold) the library will buy additional copies, so I guess it could in a round about way still give financial support.

[cville]

Biden wasn't my 1st, 2nd, or 3rd choice in 2020. He's my only choice TODAY, just over 100 days to a election where Project 2025 is the alternative.

People need to shut up and stop making the perfect the enemy of the good. We're living in reality. I'd like Jed Bartlett-style wholesomeness and dedication to liberty carry the day, too, but this is about the actual west wing, not The West Wing.

I hate the GOP, but one thing they get right is coalescing around a candidate. A depraved, felonious, rapist, bankrupt, self promoting, soulless hateful shell of a person candidate.

At goddamned minimum we should be able to speak with one unified voice in support of THE SITTING PRESIDENT WHO HAS DONE GREAT THINGS. Not only great things. But a shitton more than 45 ever did--which was 0 great things and a billion terrible ones.

I'm livid. I'm sad. I am burning with indignation at everyone in leadership who saw fit to open their mouths publicly or privately against Biden in tbe past 2 months. The time for this discussion was 18 months ago. SHUT UP.

[underwaterrhymes]

Jul 19, 2024 13:11:27 GMT -5 cville said:

Biden wasn't my 1st, 2nd, or 3rd choice in 2020. He's my only choice TODAY, just over 100 days to a election where Project 2025 is the alternative.

People need to shut up and stop making the perfect the enemy of the good. We're living in reality. I'd like Jed Bartlett-style wholesomeness and dedication to liberty carry the day, too, but this is about the actual west wing, not The West Wing.

I hate the GOP, but one thing they get right is coalescing around a candidate. A depraved, felonious, rapist, bankrupt, self promoting, soulless hateful shell of a person candidate.

At goddamned minimum we should be able to speak with one unified voice in support of THE SITTING PRESIDENT WHO HAS DONE GREAT THINGS.

I'm livid. I'm sad. I am burning with indignation at everyone in leadership who saw fit to open their mouths publicly or privately against Biden in tbe past 2 months. The time for this discussion was 18 months ago. SHUT UP.

👏👏👏👏👏

[ellipses84]

Jul 19, 2024 10:08:44 GMT -5 erbear said:

Jul 19, 2024 3:56:07 GMT -5 livinitup said:

THIS. Also this and please reread THIS.

Why can’t we do some effective god damn messaging around paying taxes that points out it’s good and helpful and makes your life great? There is so much we can say! It’s not even a stretch or reaching or a pivot or a lie. It was THE EIGHTIES when republicans fed us the lie of supply side economics that slashed corporate taxes because “government spending was bad” and giving all the money to wealth people was good, good, good because they know how to spend it to benefit everyone so much better than the big, bad government. It’s not!! They paid themselves, they kept the money. We can prove it!

We can REALLY prove it in the swing states.

This is what I cannot understand. TAXES HELP PEOPLE WHO ARE VOTING REPUBLICANS. It's why all of these assholes are campaigning on infrastructure improvements to their districts -- people love them! Why aren't their opponents and the news reminding folks that these asses voted against the bill that they are now taking credit for? It's maddening.

I was in Denmark earlier this summer and asking about the tax system. Everyone I talked to said they didn't mind how high their taxes were because 1) they never saw the money anyway, 2) they thought that's how a community functions -- you take care of everyone, and 3) they see the fucking benefits of free school, free college, free healthcare, affordable housing, elder care and on and on and on. They are baffled by Americans.

They live in this fantasy world that taxes go to help people other than them and they don’t want to pay for it. They are the same people who bitch about bad roads with potholes and homeless encampments making cities dangerous even though they probably rarely venture out of their suburban residential areas to downtown. Meanwhile tons of our taxes are actually going to the military and law enforcement.

[mcppalmbeach]

Jul 19, 2024 13:11:27 GMT -5 cville said:

Biden wasn't my 1st, 2nd, or 3rd choice in 2020. He's my only choice TODAY, just over 100 days to a election where Project 2025 is the alternative.

People need to shut up and stop making the perfect the enemy of the good. We're living in reality. I'd like Jed Bartlett-style wholesomeness and dedication to liberty carry the day, too, but this is about the actual west wing, not The West Wing.

I hate the GOP, but one thing they get right is coalescing around a candidate. A depraved, felonious, rapist, bankrupt, self promoting, soulless hateful shell of a person candidate.

At goddamned minimum we should be able to speak with one unified voice in support of THE SITTING PRESIDENT WHO HAS DONE GREAT THINGS. Not only great things. But a shitton more than 45 ever did--which was 0 great things and a billion terrible ones.

I'm livid. I'm sad. I am burning with indignation at everyone in leadership who saw fit to open their mouths publicly or privately against Biden in tbe past 2 months. The time for this discussion was 18 months ago. SHUT UP.

1000 percent agree. Harris was my primary choice, but I think right now our best chance to win is Biden. God please prove me wrong if they end up taking him off the ticket, but I think the Dems played this so badly.

[RoxMonster]

I watched AOC's live on IG and another point/reminder she made is that the election is not really ~100 days/3.5 months away. Early voting starts in many locations by late Sept. Vote by mail ballots start going out during that time too in several locations. So in just over two months, people are voting. We are on an even shorter time frame than thinking of November.

[basilosaurus]

Jul 19, 2024 3:56:07 GMT -5 livinitup said:

Jul 18, 2024 22:24:57 GMT -5 sent said:

As a small business owner in a blue state, I feel like all I do is pay taxes. Those taxes helped fund the big road renovation on my commute that fixed a lot of traffic headaches. The state taxes allow my employees to have paid leaves up to 3 months for a temporary disability or caring for a sick family member. They pay for FEMA to aid in rebuilding the community when we have a flood every few years so the town doesn't look all run down because the mostly average people couldn't afford to raise their houses. Etc. 

Why do they hate taxes so much when they have more than enough? Rhetorical question. We have a nice and cushy high standard of living because of our taxes, minus the healthcare problems. UGH.

THIS. Also this and please reread THIS.

Why can’t we do some effective god damn messaging around paying taxes that points out it’s good and helpful and makes your life great? There is so much we can say! It’s not even a stretch or reaching or a pivot or a lie. It was THE EIGHTIES when republicans fed us the lie of supply side economics that slashed corporate taxes because “government spending was bad” and giving all the money to wealth people was good, good, good because they know how to spend it to benefit everyone so much better than the big, bad government. It’s not!! They paid themselves, they kept the money. We can prove it!

We can REALLY prove it in the swing states.

There's never a bad time to blame Reagan!

I distinctly remember my gpa extolling his praises while waxing poetic about the bigger boat he bought when his taxes went down. Yep, that totally trickled down to me in my first post-college barely above minimum wage jobs!

[underwaterrhymes]

Right before she died, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee tweeted that we need to unite behind President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.

[konapoppy]

The dems are seriously stressing me out. Obviously the media has a role too. Just wake me up in 5 years 😭

[underwaterrhymes]

Pete Buttigieg is with Joe and Kamala.

I’m just going to keep posting Democrats who are raising up the President instead of all of the bullshit cowards who are sabotaging our election.

[underwaterrhymes]

Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett is with the President and Vice President.

The Clintons are also with them.

[fivechickens]

Has anyone seen all the craziness going on with Pass The Torch? Dean Phillips, Steve Schmidt (ousted co founder of The Lincoln Project) and Andrew Yang are behind the narrative that Biden step down and the ultimate goal leads to a Trump presidency.

I hope this doesn’t seem conspiracy but the pressure for Biden to step down made no sense to me and it seemed like many of the people saying that were working against our democracy.

Are posting Threads on here okay?

[underwaterrhymes]

Jul 20, 2024 18:03:35 GMT -5 fivechickens said:

Has anyone seen all the craziness going on with Pass The Torch? Dean Phillips, Steve Schmidt (ousted co founder of The Lincoln Project) and Andrew Yang are behind the narrative that Biden step down and the ultimate goal leads to a Trump presidency.

I hope this doesn’t seem conspiracy but the pressure for Biden to step down made no sense to me and it seemed like many of the people saying that were working against our democracy.

Are posting Threads on here okay?

Yes, I have seen this. Honestly, it’s not shocking if true. I’ve been saying all along that billionaires are a big part of this. And I am 100% certain that Russian bots are a part of the disinformation campaign. Anonymous sources my ass.

[underwaterrhymes]

LOL. Evidently in the NYTimes today Aaron Sorkin published an op-ed suggesting that Democrats nominate… wait for it… Mitt Fucking Romney.

🙄🙄🙄 Sure, that will definitely help us win, Aaron. JFC. Stop with the nonsense and unite behind Biden/Harris.

[penguingrrl]

Jul 21, 2024 10:21:46 GMT -5 underwaterrhymes said:

LOL. Evidently in the NYTimes today Aaron Sorkin published an op-ed suggesting that Democrats nominate… wait for it… Mitt Fucking Romney.

🙄🙄🙄 Sure, that will definitely help us win, Aaron. JFC. Stop with the nonsense and unite behind Biden/Harris.

I read that, it was the most absurd thing I’ve ever read! Especially since Romney is also almost 80! But also, we’re trying to ensure democrats turn out, that would keep huge numbers of folks from voting.