Hanaguma

Never said otherwise, of course it is Fetterman's decision. But the machinations and manipulations were disgusting. Not sure why you are trying to insert the various abortion related euphemisms into the discussion, unless that is all you have to use.

That seems to be a rather.......fascist.......attitude. "The ends justify the means" and all that. What import is one man's health in comparison to the bigger prize of political power? You didn't know whether Fetterman could recover because the truth of his condition was hidden from the public, with the active and enthusiastic participation of the media. Remember the reporter who dared question Fetterman's condition after an interview? She was ridiculed and accused for her troubles. Wonder when she can expect an apology from her attackers?

Perhaps, and also perhaps he was not getting good advice from his team. Sound medical advice would have been to quit running and take the time to recover as fully as was possible. It is certain that the truth about the severity of both his stroke and his condition afterwards were hidden from the public. For some reason, I think a GOP candidate who suffered a "nearly fatal stroke" (to quote the New York Times) would have faced much more pressure to drop out of the race.

No doubt. It says a lot about both the doctor and his campaign that he couldn't get the job done. Always is a gamble when you go for "celebrity" candidates.

...which seems like it was the plan all along. Control of the Senate was hanging in the balance and the Dems couldn't take the chance of switching candidates in mid campaign. So they used the sympathy vote and a remarkably compliant media to help Fetterman stagger across the finish line. Now he has done his job, he can be jettisoned for a new senator, chosen by the Democratic governor. I only hope he hasn't permanently damaged his health in the process. A remarkably craven and effective political strategy.

The thing is, we were not told any of this during the election. The media message was "move on, nothing to see". Reporters who dared to notice his obvious cognitive impairment were excoriated and labelled as able-ist. The tune has changed. Not even the New York Times admits it. They term his original stroke as "near fatal"- wow, never heard that before! And also write that. But his adjustment to serving in the Senate has been made vastly more difficult by the strains of his recovery, which left him with a physical impairment and serious mental health challenges that have rendered the transition extraordinarily challenging — even with the accommodations that have been made to help him adapt... https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/10/us/politics/john-fetterman-senate-stroke.html I wish him nothing but the best on a human level, but he should NEVER have been allowed to continue his campaign. Shame on those around him who are putting his life and health at risk.

This is a good thing. Wean Europe off Putin's blood oil and get them instead to import their energy from friendly nations. Nothing wrong with that.

I am kind of torn on this one. Part of me wishes that New York still had capital punishment. A fitting end for this kind of crime. Plus, he wouldn't stay in the public eye and get undeserved publicity for the rest of his life. Just die unwanted and be forgotten. Another part wishes for a long and unpleasant stretch of prison time. With inmates who are less than impressed with him. But realistically, once in prison he will probably be protected by OTHER idiot neo-nazis and be a hero to them. That feeds his ego and makes him a figure of admiration. Tough call.

I am no fan of The Ann, but.... she was one of the first people back in 2016 to predict that Trump would win the GOP nomination. It was on Bill Maher and was greeted with laughter. Who's laughing now.

...except that it didn't. The inauguration took place as scheduled, Congress ratified the vote in a timely manner. The courts rightly threw out his challenges. How was the transfer of power delayed? Refusing to acknowledge defeat is standard in politics on both sides.

Like the article said, there is a lot of confusion among people. Only about 1 in 4 favor completely unrestricted abortion, and that number would probably fall if you drilled down a bit. Given another year plus things hopefully will become more settled. States can have referenda, vote, whatever they want.

...and it all failed, didn't it? That should tell you something. The Constitution is strong and has faced bigger challenges than Trump. The system of checks and balances proved tough.

I agree completely. The timing to cancel Roe was terrible, and too many eager legislators at the state level made it even worse. But that won't be the case in 2024. The messaging has to be much better, and also the pro life side has to pin down the pro abortion people on exactly what they are in favor of. Because a majority of Americans DO in fact favor some restrictions.

Her position is moderate because very few Americans either favor 100% restrictions or 100% availability. A restriction at the 20 week mark, as was done in her state, is quite common. Most Americans actually didn't understand either Roe v Wade, or the ramifications of it being struck down. Lots of fearmongering made low information voters assume that it meant the complete outlawing of abortion, which was not true. So as I said, once the details get hammered out at the state level, it will be a lot clearer.

By 2024 most states will have figured out their positions on it, so there won't be the fear factor that there was last year. Her position is relatively moderate, and if she can "out" democrats as being radical pr0-abortionists then I don't think it will matter so much.

I don't think there will be quite as many candidates this time around. Perhaps 7 or 8 at most. I could see Christie, Sununu (for sure), Pompeo, perhaps Noem. DeSantis I have mixed feelings about. Personally I think he needs a bit more seasoning before taking his shot, but his poll numbers must be making it awful tempting...

I've done worse myself. No problem! But I do think she brings some good things to the table. Executive experience from being governor, international from being at the UN, solid family background. No hint of personal scandal (that would be refreshing).

Because it is not true. See above.

This is not true. Haley was governor until 2017. As governor, she signed a law limiting abortion after 19 weeks. Which as I am sure you know is a very mainstream position on the issue. Not radical in the slightest. The measure you are talking about was passed YEARS after she left the governorship.

You are really living in a surreal fantasy. If Trump were to win in 2024, the world would not end. Neither would "American democracy", whatever you mean by that. Trump is term limited. His own party would react rather negatively if he were to try and keep power. You actually believe that the country would sit back and acquiese to Emperor Donald the First? Sorry but the system is far stronger than that. Unless you mean something else by "fatal blow to American democracy". Care to elaborate?

There is also the more cynical/practical reason. If you get in the race and appear that you will lose, you can throw your support behind another candidate- perhaps in return for a prime position down the road. It is often done that way on both sides.

What do you mean by "clown car"? The candidates we are discussing are all more than qualified for the job, with executive experience either in the public or private sectors. It's not as if we were proposing to have, for example, a person with not even a full term in the Senate as nominee or VP nominee...

How many would be sufficient in your opinion for me to have a valid opinion? This is a ridiculous argument really.

What's wrong with Mike? He has a tremendous CV, speaks libertarian, and has experience on the world stage.

The GOP tried that strategy with Mitt Romney. He checks a lot of the same boxes. Didn't work out so well. He was about as morally unimpeachable as they come and still got demonized in the press. This is a guy who shut down his entire firm to look for the missing teenage daughter of one of the partners in another state. And thankfully found her within days. Yet instead he was portrayed as an out of touch fuddy duddy.