Topic: Typhoid Trump: the not-smart, corrupt, coward, loser, thread

[ericthered10]

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/zPTzcu8_F3k?fs=1" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/zPTzcu8_F3k?fs=1</a>
A bigger joke than even Trump if that is possible 'Bobby' Jindal...

You know your party is just fucked when professional asshole and reality TV star Trump is entirely more credible as a candidate, and more populist, than a number of your "real" politicians like Jindal, Huckabee, Cruz, and Walker the empty suit shill.

[Twelfth Man]

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/XNU2t1Q4bkQ?fs=1" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/XNU2t1Q4bkQ?fs=1</a>

[Antics]

Anyone watch Biden on the Late Show? Didn't give any indictation of whether he'd run but was still a very honest and emotional interview.

[Ray K]

Anyone watch Biden on the Late Show? Didn't give any indictation of whether he'd run but was still a very honest and emotional interview.

Wonderfully human and full of empathy, which isn't something you often get with DC politicians.

 Part 1
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/opVaEC_WxWs" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/opVaEC_WxWs</a>

Part 2
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/XwmMPytjrK4" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/XwmMPytjrK4</a>

[Twelfth Man]

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/ztUsKhkcjp4?fs=1" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/ztUsKhkcjp4?fs=1</a>

[ShayGuevara]

Wonderfully human and full of empathy, which isn't something you often get with DC politicians.

 Part 1
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/opVaEC_WxWs" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/opVaEC_WxWs</a>

Part 2
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/XwmMPytjrK4" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/XwmMPytjrK4</a>

Another puppet though, supports TTIP. If it falls apart for Hillary, really hope Biden doesn't step into the Democratic race. Sanders is a breath of fresh air.

[skipper757]

Rick Perry suspends his campaign.

The field now shrinks to 942.

[Redcap]

Another puppet though, supports TTIP. If it falls apart for Hillary, really hope Biden doesn't step into the Democratic race. Sanders is a breath of fresh air.

I just don't know why you'd think Sanders stands a chance in the general election though. Breath or fresh air or no, I just can't see a self-confessed socialist winning the election in the US. It's great that he's in the race and speaking his mind, but the best way to avoid the worst possible scenario right now appears to be Biden. I think I'm an optimist, but Bernie Sanders would be a bona fide miracle to restore my faith in humanity many times over. It's about as likely to happen as Real and Barca simultaneously collapsing and Levante establishing itself as the major power of Spanish football.

Loved the Biden interview. I still suspect he won't run. There's a part of me that hopes he won't, just because I'd be immediately suspicious of the undoubted boost to his image dealing with this tragedy he's received. But at the same time, I can't help liking him and wanting him to fly the progressive flag in the general election. He's no Obama, but he's no Kerry (circa 04') or Hillary (any era) either.

[Twelfth Man]

I think I'm an optimist, but Bernie Sanders would be a bona fide miracle to restore my faith in humanity many times over. It's about as likely to happen as Real and Barca simultaneously collapsing and Levante establishing itself as the major power of Spanish football.

Recall how Obama was a rank outsider at this stage? Then, using one of the greatest ground campaigns in political history, he won the nomination and Presidency. Momentum was the key thing, I recall. Bernie has it to. Social media has changed things up quite a bit. As we have witnessed in the Labour party leadership contest. I agree mate, it will be beyond a miracle. But you know what, these days, if you have the right message, that strikes a cord, you can circumnavigate traditional media and still have an effective voice that reaches millions. Grass-roots campaigns are now so much more effective. You are right, but I live in hope. I think he's great, just what we need right now.

[Romeo Sensini]

The problematic part of Biden is his relation to credit cards companies and banks. Delaware, his home state, houses close to 70 of them (random fact: the film/book, Fight Club was set in Delaware). He has been received donations both from banks and bankruptcy lawyers. One of his sons was a lobbyist for MBNA, a bank based in Delaware, and a past campaign supporter. A flaw often pointed out about Hillary has been her ties to banks, and Biden is probably just as bad if not worse. The main difference between the two, is Biden is more personable. For example, a national reporter admitted to being afraid of asking Clinton questions fearing she would cut the interview off and days later Biden is on the brink of tears talking about the passing of his son.

He is pretty standard with the Democrats of the past decade or so. Pander for votes, talk about evolving from old views (Iraq/gay marriage), and being 10 years behind the curve of the progressive population.

[Trada]

Just watching the latest Joe Biden speech live.

Amazing how much he sounds like Jeremy Corbyn and he has 6,000 people there plus a 2,000 over flow

[Redcap]

The problematic part of Biden is his relation to credit cards companies and banks. Delaware, his home state, houses close to 70 of them (random fact: the film/book, Fight Club was set in Delaware). He has been received donations both from banks and bankruptcy lawyers. One of his sons was a lobbyist for MBNA, a bank based in Delaware, and a past campaign supporter. A flaw often pointed out about Hillary has been her ties to banks, and Biden is probably just as bad if not worse. The main difference between the two, is Biden is more personable. For example, a national reporter admitted to being afraid of asking Clinton questions fearing she would cut the interview off and days later Biden is on the brink of tears talking about the passing of his son.

He is pretty standard with the Democrats of the past decade or so. Pander for votes, talk about evolving from old views (Iraq/gay marriage), and being 10 years behind the curve of the progressive population.

Do you think connections to banks really mean anything in this day and age? Serious question. I can't remember the last time being connected to business was fatal to a candidate's chances. It gets talked about a lot, but in practice I'm afraid people just aren't as bothered about it as they should be.

[Romeo Sensini]

Do you think connections to banks really mean anything in this day and age? Serious question. I can't remember the last time being connected to business was fatal to a candidate's chances. It gets talked about a lot, but in practice I'm afraid people just aren't as bothered about it as they should be.

I doubt it would too. The topic of his relations to credit cards/banks gets brought up every cycle anyway, and hardly anyone blinks. I only point it out because I've seen others on the left make a deal about it with Hillary. If people are going to make it a sticking point with Clinton, the same should be done with Biden.

[Redcap]

I doubt it would too. The topic of his relations to credit cards/banks gets brought up every cycle anyway, and hardly anyone blinks. I only point it out because I've seen others on the left make a deal about it with Hillary. If people are going to make it a sticking point with Clinton, the same should be done with Biden.

Hillary is on a whole different level of connectedness than Biden though. I mean, she represents 'Washington' and the status quo more than Biden, and Biden is the Veep.

[zabadoh]

Personable demeanor and sympathetic family story or no, Biden is every bit the mainstream Establishment candidate as Hillary is.

Delaware credit cards?  Of course I know that from mailing my credit card payments!

Credit cards are to Delaware as Wall Street is to New York or peaches to Georgia, i.e. Any political candidate would have to interface with their state's major industry/money maker.

Next thing you know, they'll be saying Biden's got ties to George Washington (who famously crossed the Delaware River, albeit between New York and New Jersey).

[Red Beret]

Just watching the latest Joe Biden speech live.

Amazing how much he sounds like Jeremy Corbyn and he has 6,000 people there plus a 2,000 over flow

And seemingly has about as much chance of being elected as Corbyn.

[bigbonedrawky]

And seemingly has about as much chance of being elected as Corbyn.

Would that be 150- 1 

[ShayGuevara]

<a href="http://youtu.be/gfaGNPP0m4g" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">http://youtu.be/gfaGNPP0m4g</a>

Bernie letting the US know who really pulls the strings in the US.

Corbyn in the UK and now Sanders in the US, if if these two fail to be elected they've woke a lot of people up with their honesty.

[Mouth]

Wall Street's latest panic: Trump could win

With Bush and Clinton taking their lumps, financial executives face populist critics in both parties.

NEW YORK — Wall Street is growing increasingly terrified that Donald Trump — once viewed as an amusing summertime distraction — could actually win the Republican nomination for president.

The real estate billionaire, who took another populist shot on Sunday by ripping into lavish executive pay, continues to rise in the polls. Would-be Wall Street saviors like Jeb Bush are languishing in single digits. The belief that Trump's candidacy would quickly fade is now evaporating in a wave of fear.

“I held four lunches for investors in August and at the first one everyone assumed Trump would implode,” said Byron Wien, vice chairman of Blackstone Advisory Partners and a senior figure on Wall Street. “By the fourth one everyone was taking him very seriously. He taps into frustrations that are very real and he is a master manipulator of the media.”

The CEO of one large Wall Street firm, who declined to be identified by name criticizing the GOP front-runner, said the assumption in the financial industry remains that something will eventually knock Trump off and send voters toward a more establishment candidate. But that assumption is no longer held with strong conviction. And a dozen Wall Street executives interviewed for this article could not say what might dent Trump's appeal or when it might happen.

"I don't know anyone who is a Donald Trump supporter. I don’t know anyone who knows anyone who is a Donald Trump supporter. They are like this huge mystery group,” the CEO said. "So it's a combination of shock and bewilderment. No one really knows why this is happening. But my own belief is that the laws of gravity will apply and those who are prepared to run the marathon will benefit when Trump drops out at mile 22. Right now people think Trump is pretty hilarious but the longer it goes on the more frightening it gets."

The latest frightening broadside for the Wall Street class came on Sunday when Trump said on CBS’s “Face the Nation” that executive pay in America is “a complete joke” and promised to raise taxes on “the hedge fund guys.” In a statement sent to POLITICO on Monday from his campaign, Trump relished in the attacks from Wall Street, singling out both Bush and Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton, another favorite on Wall Street.

"Jeb Bush and Hillary Clinton will continue to let Wall Street and the 'hedge fund guys' rip off the people by paying no or very little in taxes," Trump said. "They have total and complete control of Hillary, Jeb and others running. My campaign is self- funded. The only people that have control of me are the people of the United States."

The comments on Wall Street were relatively tame in comparison with his fiery rhetoric about deporting 11 million undocumented immigrants within two years and building a giant border wall with Mexico. The billionaire also recently ripped former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina’s looks, saying they would make her unelectable.

But Trump’s skill at tapping into populist discontent with all major U.S. institutions — including Wall Street — has financial executives increasingly dismayed at the GOP front-runner’s staying power and long-term impact on the party even if he doesn’t get the nomination.

“I don’t think Trump is going to win, but I do worry about all the damage being done to Republicans among Hispanics and women by him being such an idiot,” said a senior executive and major GOP fundraiser at a large bank who also declined to be identified by name. “Everyone thinks he is a buffoon and a bombastic loudmouth who won’t be around at the end. But the concern is that he is still at 30 in the polls and he is going to hang around for a while and do a great deal of damage.”

So far there is no organized effort on Wall Street to mount a “stop Trump” campaign.

Mostly such efforts entail funneling even more money to Bush, whose super PAC, Right to Rise, raised more than $100 million through the first six months of the year. To a lesser extent, Wall Street money continues to flow to Rubio, Ohio Gov. John Kasich and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, though Walker is largely viewed as increasingly marginalized in the race.

Supporters of Bush say they still believe that the former Florida governor’s numbers will begin to move when the campaign starts deploying some of its huge war chest to run television ads in Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, and other early primary and caucus states. And while they say Bush needs a strong performance at Wednesday night’s debate, they don’t expect Bush to throw haymakers Trump’s way.

“Yes I’m a little worried about how poorly Jeb is doing,” said a second Wall Street CEO who is backing the former Florida governor but would not speak on the record. “Hopefully it will get better over time. But there is no point trading insults with Trump. There is a saying that you don’t wrestle with pigs because you just get dirty and the pig loves it.”

Part of the reason Wall Street executives won’t go on the record about Trump is that they believe criticizing him will only drive his numbers higher. Americans continue to hold big banks in low regard following the financial crisis. And Trump’s momentum is built on a generalized hostility to the political and corporate establishment.

Trump can rip into executive compensation in part because he built his own empire and brand and his Trump Organization is privately held, so he can’t be accused of using shareholders' money to enrich himself, a cudgel often used to attack high executive pay at public companies. And establishment attacks would likely just make him stronger.

“Most people in the New York business community don’t really like to speak publicly about politicians and especially not Trump, because he will just jump ugly all over them,” said Kathryn Wylde, president and CEO of the New York City Partnership, a group that includes many of the city’s top business leaders. “Trump has never really been part of the New York City business community or particularly engaged with the real estate community. There’s certainly no close set of relations there. He’s really a lone wolf. And a lot of these people thought Jeb Bush was a shoo-in and they are upset now because they have already thrown in with him and he is looking a little wilted.”

Trump is not entirely without Wall Street support.

He has regularly praised Carl Icahn and said he would make the billionaire investor his first Treasury secretary. Icahn tweeted recently that he would accept the post. He did not respond to a request for comment on Trump.
The frustration on Wall Street goes beyond just Trump’s rise and staying power. The industry’s other preferred candidate, Clinton, is also suffering under the populist wave, losing ground to independent Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, a self-described socialist and outspoken Wall Street critic.

The industry began this election cycle confident that a GOP candidate like Bush would win, and offer some reprieve from populist anger. And if that didn’t happen they would at least get Clinton, who has long and deep ties to the industry and is viewed as largely moderate on financial regulation.

Both Bush and Clinton have tacked populist with pledges to increase taxes on some wealthy investors. But they are still both establishment-friendly, with policies on trade, immigration and other issues that line up closely with elite opinion. And Wall Street does not view either candidate as likely to use the office to further stoke populist resentments.

“Neither of them are doing very well right now,” said one Wall Street Democrat of Bush and Clinton. “Both Trump and Sanders have done a pretty great job tapping into this sense of frustration not just with Wall Street but with all of the establishment.”

One person who might benefit from Trump’s rise and Bush’s current stagnation is Kasich, who worked for seven years at Lehman Brothers — though in an Ohio office — and is viewed as something of an establishment-populist hybrid given his folksy demeanor and heartland background.

“Kasich is a true businessman in contrast to Trump. He is the businessman candidate and he’s pretty compelling in part because Jeb has taken such a beating,” said Wylde. “I’ve set up a meet- and -greet with Governor Kasich and I’ve already got a sellout crowd.”

http://www.politico.com/story/2015/09/donald-trump-2016-wall-street-reaction-213614

Seen it commented that his actual downfall might be his business dealings. Given that he has done so much building work in New York for a lot of years, that given the nature of the construction business there, he will have had to have had dealings with some not so good family men. There could be some pretty big skeletons in his closet waiting to fall out at the right time.

[Red Beret]

"Jeb Bush and Hillary Clinton will continue to let Wall Street and the 'hedge fund guys' rip off the people by paying no or very little in taxes," Trump said. "They have total and complete control of Hillary, Jeb and others running. My campaign is self- funded. The only people that have control of me are the people of the United States."

That is terrifying in its common sense.  No wonder Wall Street have started to crap their pants.

I'm kinda hoping Trump loses the nomination and runs as an independent, splitting the GOP vote and letting Bernie Sanders in by the back door.

[jambutty]

Trump: The Art of the Bluff by JOHN FUND   September 11, 2015 4:00 AM

 “I don’t like to analyze myself because I might not like what I see.” — Donald Trump, in an interview for Never Enough: Donald Trump and the Pursuit of Success, by business journalist Michael D’Antonio. “Trump was willing to say and do almost anything to satisfy his craving for attention. But he also possessed a sixth sense that kept him from going too far.” — D’Antonio’s conclusion to the book. One often-underappreciated virtue of U.S. presidential campaigns is that their extreme length makes it very difficult to conceal what makes a candidate tick. (Barack Obama in 2008 was an exception, and he had help from an actively complicit media.) This reality is finally catching up to Donald Trump.

As good as his “sixth sense” may be, Trump seems unlikely to avoid “going too far” in the long four-month stretch between now and the Iowa caucuses in February. On Wednesday night, it came to light that Trump had made fun of rival candidate Carly Fiorina’s looks to a Rolling Stone reporter. “Look at that face,” he was overheard to say. “Would anyone vote for that? Can you imagine that, the face of our next president?” Trump now claims he wasn’t talking about Fiorina’s appearance, but her “persona.”

Before the news of his Fiorina remark broke, Trump spoke at an afternoon rally protesting President Obama’s nuclear deal with Iran, and blasted Obama for failing to secure the release of four Americans jailed in the Islamic Republic. Then he misapplied a lesson from history: “If I win the presidency, I guarantee you that those four prisoners are back in our country before I ever take office. I guarantee that. They will be back before I ever take office, because [the Iranians] know what has to happen, okay?” Trump no doubt remembers that Iran released the hostages it had held for 444 days at the U.S. Embassy in Tehran on the day Ronald Reagan was sworn in for his first term as president. But foreign policy experts I’ve spoken to say that for Trump to “guarantee” a similar outcome for the four Americans imprisoned there today will likely lead to one of two disappointing outcomes: a) the Iranians stubbornly refuse to lose face by appearing to knuckle under to Trump; or b) Trump will feel pressure to use military force against Iran after he is sworn in so he won’t lose face.

 The Words Trump Doesn’t Use “Reagan was careful not to comment on the hostages before he became president,” Martin Anderson, his late policy advisor, once told me. “That allowed him to exploit a vacuum and helped bring them home.” In addition to the nationalistic fervor he can’t help whipping up, much of Trump’s support is predicated on his self-proclaimed genius in business deals. But National Journal reported this week that his business instincts are greatly exaggerated: If he’d invested the $200 million that Forbes magazine determined he was worth in 1982 into (a mutual fund of S&P 500 stocks), it would have grown to more than $8 billion today. . . . That a purely unmanaged index fund’s return could outperform Trump’s hands-on wheeling and dealing call into question one of Trump’s chief selling points on the campaign trail: his business acumen. Then there is the matter of Trump’s net worth itself. In June, Trump announced his presidential bid brandishing a document that claimed he was worth more than $8.7 billion. By August, when he filed reports with the Federal Election Commission, the number had ballooned to $10 billion.

The game of hide-and-seek Trump plays with his “billions” was described by Tim O’Brien, a former New York Times reporter, in his 2005 book TrumpNation. The book quoted sources close to Trump as claiming he “was not remotely close to being a billionaire.” Trump promptly sued O’Brien for $5 billion in damages. ‘The secret to bluffing is knowing when not to bluff. Some people don’t know when to stop, and they always regret it.’ During the resultant litigation, O’Brien’s lawyers deposed Trump for two days in 2007. “Among the documents discussed was a Deutsche Bank assessment that pegged Donald’s net worth at $788 million in 2005,” O’Brien recalled in a Bloomberg View article this past July. “At the time, Donald was telling his bankers and casino regulators that he was worth $3.6 billion; he was telling me he was worth $5 billion to $6 billion.” When Trump was asked about the wide discrepancy between his claimed net worth and the various independent estimates of his wealth, he revealed how his mind works. As D’Antonio reports in the excellent new Never Enough, “[Trump] explained the wide swings as a function of market conditions, and his own sense of the value of his name. This brand valuation — [Trump] estimated it was worth $6 billion.” Trump said in the deposition that the value of his brand “goes up and down with markets and with attitudes and with feelings, even my own feelings.” He then added some thoughts about his net worth: [Wealth] can change when somebody writes a vicious article like O’Brien. I mean, I didn’t feel so great about myself when I read that article. I would have said that — after reading that article I would have said that this psychologically hurt me. Trump is perfectly suited for the current media age. He provides enough outrageous quotes and distractions to remain such a source of endless fascination that the press has trouble catching up with his contradictions. D’Antonio says Trump “understood that in the media age, the frontier that might challenge a man or woman was found, not in the wilderness, but in the media. The boundary of this wilderness was marked by propriety, which was an elastic concept.”

Donald Trump has tested the media’s limits of propriety for three decades, and he’s usually succeeded in expanding them. We will learn in the next four months just how far Trump can expand the equivalent political limits. As much as he may have mastered many of the lessons of the Robert Ringer classic Winning Through Intimidation, he might have forgotten a key one. “The secret to bluffing is knowing when not to bluff,” Ringer told me. “Some people don’t know when to stop, and they always regret it.” — John Fund is national-affairs columnist for National Review.

http://www.nationalreview.com/article/423865/donald-trump-bluffing-iran-net-worth

[fowlermagic]

Do we really need 18 plus months of a build up to the next election as the media has been harping on about this for nearly 6 months already? Call an election 6 weeks prior to the voting day, let the cronies fight it out for a short period but still filling any room they enter with hot gas but the rest of the world can get on with what is important.

[ericthered10]

Ya know, it's be quite nice to put the billions earmarked to be spent on this election to actual tangibly good use rather than just pissing it down the drain. Another example of the hypocrisy of our oligarchy as superPACs spend hundreds of millions on individual candidates while those same candidates are decrying the relative pittance of public funding that goes to planned parenthood, something that actually benefits American citizens. As Bernie has noted time and again, elections need to be shorter by at least half, and paid for by public funding in order to curtail the vast waste of funds, to make elections more fair and about the issues, and most importantly, to get the dirty money that gives us puppet politicians out of the system

[Twelfth Man]

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/tZ-O2wHTZDM?fs=1" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/tZ-O2wHTZDM?fs=1</a>

[zabadoh]

Ya know, it's be quite nice to put the billions earmarked to be spent on this election to actual tangibly good use rather than just pissing it down the drain. Another example of the hypocrisy of our oligarchy as superPACs spend hundreds of millions on individual candidates while those same candidates are decrying the relative pittance of public funding that goes to planned parenthood, something that actually benefits American citizens. As Bernie has noted time and again, elections need to be shorter by at least half, and paid for by public funding in order to curtail the vast waste of funds, to make elections more fair and about the issues, and most importantly, to get the dirty money that gives us puppet politicians out of the system

Bernies right about public funding of campaigns, but...

That's hardly going to happen after the disastrous Citizens United ruling allows unlimited "independent advocacy speech" is it?

Any donation limits to the candidates' own campaigns now just mean that additional money will roll over to the Super PACs/independent expenditure committees.

The US system is funcked.

[Commie Bobbie]

Think I'm going to be watching the Young Turks coverage of this overnight - have found their coverage so far of the GOP race to be concise and to the point. As for who's going to be running, can see Trump winning the ticket but with a GOP grandees as VP.

[roblfc13]

Think there are murmurs of a Trump/Cruz ticket,  especially after they came together at that Washington rally against the Iran deal.

[Lone Star Red]

Think there are murmurs of a Trump/Cruz ticket,  especially after they came together at that Washington rally against the Iran deal.

That is a scary potential ticket, and not in a good way.

[Lone Star Red]

I'd love to discuss this some. What policies of his are scary to you, and what policies do you think would not work here? It's so odd to me in general that we had a major recession caused by a number of factors merely 7 years ago that we're still recovering from and listening to the candidates its as if everyone has forgotten the why's and how's of it except Bernie. I was just talking about this with a friend last night actually...Republicans (of which I know you are one) seem to think that all liberals or Dems want to increase the size of government when its definitely not necessarily true. I don't think we need more govt bloat or even to raise taxes, I think we need to rid the govt entirely of the cronyism that renders it ineffectual in many senses to be the appropriate check and balance for the supranational corporate class. The revolving door of industry to govt to industry where the henhouse is being guarded by wolves needs to end. We need to diminish the failed experiment with private contractors getting sweetheart deals and public-private partnerships that almost never create a good ROI for the taxpayers given the outlay. Military waste (F35 anyone) is rife and needs overhaul. The off the books black budget for DOD and NSA is absurd and there is absolutely no oversight whatsoever, just a secret money pit. There are plenty of opportunities to tweak the govt that will not grow its size and stature, merely make it more effectual and efficient, more liberty driven and beholden to the people, and it only takes a budgetary reshuffle and some intelligent policies that I think Bernie has a grip on. The way we elect people and the insane money existing in politics only serves to entrench the problems and that's another area that Bernie addresses. I for one am weary of the oligarchy we have fashioned for ourselves and capitalism that's run amok to the point where it only works for the few. Bernie will not turn this country socialist, I can guarantee you that, he just understands that at the moment money and business have entirely co-opted the founding purpose and functionality of our govt, and proposes solutions that, each in isolation, will solve specific problems and regain parity within the public/private relations.

About to leave work and then am leaving for out of town for the long holiday weekend. Will happily address this early next week, just wanted to make sure it didn't seem like I am evading the question. I think his $15 minimum wage proposal is silly, his tax all the rich to make the poor richer stance using Scandinavia as an example is a farce, and his oft-repeated rhetoric that all the successful people are selfish, self-serving and the reason why we have a bunch of homeless and starving children is off base. Sure sounds good at a rally though.

I'm certainly not against everything he says, and there is a part of me that would laugh happily if he somehow defeated Clinton and/or Biden.

By the way, I'm not a Republican. Registered independent and while I've voted for the two Republican candidates the last two presidential elections, I do not tie myself to one party.

Sure thing, I'll be indisposed myself starting tomorrow anyway. Sorry for calling you Republican, registered independent with conservative leanings maybe? Libertarian? Labels don't really matter tho, policy does, I look forward to tossing some ideas around.

OK, sorry for the later than 'anticipated' response. Sometimes life gets in the way of RAWK, ya know? 

I am in agreement with you that not all Democrats want a huge government and yes, cronyism in politics is a terrible thing and the main thing that has turned me off so much from when I was more idealistic about the political process. So yeah, Bernie doing as well as he is doing without the usual big money donations is something to be admired, no doubt. And the fact that he just went and spoke to students at Liberty University, one of, if not the most conservative school in the country, is also something to be applauded. I believe he said something to the effect of "it's important to have civil conversations with those that you disagree with" to the students and attendees there. You rarely hear that kind of thing in politics today and if I thought he had any idea what to do when it comes to economic decisions, he's the kinda guy I could see myself getting attached to as a voter.

But while not all Democrats believe in making the government bigger and more involved, Bernie Sanders is not one of them.

He wants to introduce a single-payer healthcare system for the entire country. Do you know that his home state of Vermont tried to do that a few years ago (which Bernie was very much in support of as a US Senator)? It completely and utterly flopped. Why? Because when the numbers were run, it was going to cost the people of Vermont incredible amounts of money (on top of a 10% increase in taxes to Vermonters) to fund it. Single-payer healthcare, scrapped in Vermont, a place where you Euros would probably look to as the bastion of all light and hope in this country.

His proposal to raise the national minimum wage to $15/hr would kill jobs. Sure, that hourly wage MIGHT work in places like NYC, Seattle or San Francisco. But to all the workers in non urban areas where the cost of living is much lower? Millions and millions would feel the effect, and it wouldn't be a good one. On top of that, companies would have to cut jobs to make up for the increased wages to pay. Managers and longer tenured employees currently making $10-$15/hour, what happens to them when brand new employees are making the same or more in wages?

While his plans to tax the hell out of the rich and corporations is fine and dandy, there's absolutely no way it pays for the healthcare system along with the other things that Bernie wants to expand (free college education, roads and bridges, increase of social security benefits, youth jobs initiatives, etc.). And if the rich can't pay for it all and the corporations can't pay for it all, where does the remaining money come from? I'm guessing the middle class, the same middle class that Bernie is trying to "save".

I think the man has some good intentions but I also think he is completely and utterly detached from reality on the things I've listed. He absolutely wants to increase government involvement in our day to day lives and I do not want any part of that. This government has f'ed up too many things already and continues to do so at an alarming rate.

He may just win the nomination over Hilary or Delaware Joe, but there's a long way to go and a lot more people on the Democratic side to win over with his far-left leanings.

Edit: Yes, I'm a independent with conservative leanings, I'm guessing part of that having to do with my faith.

And at the end of the day, this is my OPINION of Bernie Sanders. He's a democratic socialist and I don't want someone of that political persuasion running this country. I absolutely get it if you Euros think he's the best thing since sliced bread, and that's all fine and dandy. We live in two very different parts of the world.

[Romeo Sensini]

With the 2nd GOP debate tonight, I can see some of the stragglers going double down on some derp. I would imagine Christie is one.

[zabadoh]

You've thrown out a whole bunch of "scary stuff" that red staters like to use in their arguments, and the only real way to refute them is to go over them topic by topic, which I don't have time for, but I'll be happy to take you on this one:

He wants to introduce a single-payer healthcare system for the entire country. Do you know that his home state of Vermont tried to do that a few years ago (which Bernie was very much in support of as a US Senator)? It completely and utterly flopped. Why? Because when the numbers were run, it was going to cost the people of Vermont incredible amounts of money (on top of a 10% increase in taxes to Vermonters) to fund it. Single-payer healthcare, scrapped in Vermont, a place where you Euros would probably look to as the bastion of all light and hope in this country.

My monthly unsubsidized Obamacare bill is about $800 per month.  Let's say that's what it costs me in pre-OCare "regular" health insurance.  My annual tax bill is about $3500.

If it costs me an additional 10% tax of $350 to replace $800 x 12 = $9600 in health insurance premiums, that's damned right what I'm voting for.

Of course, I just make a middle class income of about $50,000.  What we're really talking about is taxing the wealthy One Percenters to subsidize health insurance for middle class and lower people like me.

I'm sure that's really scary for them!  But with income disparity in the US being what it is, the numbers work out to a 10% tax hike for everyone to save the vast majority the 20% of their income that currently goes towards health insurance.

And it's not just individuals.  Businesses such as corporations all the way down to mom and pop shops, that have to subsidize their employees' health insurance would be able to drop that huge expense when their employees go on single payer. 

Which would add to their profitability immediately, not to mention the administrative headache and cost of dealing with that particular employee benefit.

There's plenty in it for everyone.  The "OOOh Scary" 10% tax increase isn't so scary after all. 

Except for health insurance companies.

[Twelfth Man]

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/P_Ns1oyr0pk?fs=1" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/P_Ns1oyr0pk?fs=1</a>

[Mutton Geoff]

After Jez we can won here in the U.K. , i think i will support Bernie in the U.S,

[ericthered10]

Lone Star Red, thanks for your piece, I'll post my thoughts when I get some spare time soon.

[skipper757]

GOP debate.

Clown car in motion.

[zabadoh]

Live stream of the Republican debate #2 free on CNN.  Seems to be nice and smooth so far.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/09/16/politics/republican-presidential-debate-live-updates/index.html?sr=sl091615debateliveblogsmartlink

[skipper757]

Trump:  "I don't even know why Rand Paul is on the stage.  He's #11 and polling at 1%."

Trump, on Rand Paul's accusations of Trump attacking people for their appearance:  "I've never attacked your appearance but there's plenty of subject matter right there."

Shots fired.

[Romeo Sensini]

One hour in and only discussion of war.

[rafathegaffa83]

Do they have any air conditioning on the flanks? Christie and Walker are sweating buckets. Trump is laughable as a front-runner. He would be a disaster. Jeb Bush and Rand Paul are looking some of the few reasonable individuals in this set of Republican candidates.

[Geppvindh's]

I'll cut taxes!
ISIS!
Obama sucks!
Benghazi!
Iran!
Repeal Obamacare!
Ronald Reagan!
'Murica!