USCE 2023: Please let them shove a camera up your butt

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Leon Trotsky 2012: Aug 27, 2009; YOU CAN TRUST ME!*

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Mitt Romney just announced that he is ending his political career and will retire from the Senate after one term.

There were no declared Republican candidates for his seat as of today, but there will likely be a series of announcements in the next week.

quote:

Mitt Romney says he will not seek a second term in the Senate

Sen. Mitt Romney, the Republican presidential nominee in 2012 and the only member of his party to twice vote to convict former president Donald Trump in politically charged impeachment trials, announced Wednesday that he will not seek a second term in the Senate representing Utah, saying in an interview that it is time for a new generation to �step up� and �shape the world they�re going to live in.�

Romney, 76, said his decision not to run again was heavily influenced by his belief that a second term, which would take him into his 80s, probably would be less productive and less satisfying than the current term has been. He blamed that both on the disarray he sees among House Republicans and on his own lack of confidence in the leadership of President Biden and Trump.

�It�s very difficult for the House to operate, from what I can tell,� he said in a lengthy telephone interview previewing his formal announcement, �and two, and perhaps more importantly, we�re probably going to have either Trump or Biden as our next president. And Biden is unable to lead on important matters and Trump is unwilling to lead on important matters.�

Romney, elected to the Senate in 2018 with 63 percent of the vote, said he will serve out the duration of his term, which ends in January 2025. His decision not to seek reelection next year is likely to mark the end of a political career that has been notable, especially in the Trump era, for independence and a willingness to stand up against the base of his party that has shifted dramatically in Trump�s direction in the decade since Romney was its standard-bearer.

From the time Trump first became a candidate until today, Romney has been among his most outspoken critics, and nothing about his departure is expected to change that. In the weeks before Trump�s 2017 inauguration, Romney publicly acquiesced, expressing hope for the president-elect�s leadership while he was under consideration to be secretary of state. But his turnabout was short-lived.

Romney was the only Republican to vote to convict Trump in the 2020 impeachment trial, which involved Trump�s efforts to persuade Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to dig up dirt on Biden ahead of the 2020 presidential campaign and withholding aid to that country. Romney was one of seven Republican senators to vote to convict in the second trial, which came weeks after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.

Both votes, but especially the first, cost Romney politically, at home in Utah and more broadly within a party that Trump has come to dominate. He acknowledged the damage he had sustained, but said, �If there were no cost to doing what�s right, there�d be no such thing as courage. � I think it�s fair to say that the support I get in Utah is because people respect someone who does what they believe is right, even if they disagree with me.�

Republicans have speculated that because of his opposition to Trump, Romney could face a difficult battle to win a second term if he decided to run again. But the senator said fear of losing had nothing to do with his decision. In fact, he said, he was confident that, had he decided to run again, he would prevail. He pointed to a recent poll in Utah that showed his approval rebounding to 56 percent, a sharp rise from the 40 percent recorded in May and numbers showing him well ahead of potential rivals.

The highest-achieving Mormon politician of his time, Romney twice sought the presidency and served as governor of Massachusetts before moving to Utah and being elected to the Senate. His father, George, was a governor of Michigan, ran unsuccessfully for president in 1968 and served as secretary of Housing and Urban Development under President Richard M. Nixon.

Asked about the 2024 presidential election, Romney said he would have liked to help someone other than Trump become the nominee, but �that apparently isn�t going to happen.� He added, �I doubt my support will mean anything positive to any of the candidates at the finish line. I�m not looking to get involved in that.�

He noted that three of the contenders for the nomination � Trump, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy � all speak the language of the MAGA (�Make America Great Again�) wing of the party and together account for the overwhelming majority of support, with Trump far ahead of the others.

Candidates toward whom he is more disposed � he mentioned former New Jersey governor Chris Christie, former South Carolina governor and former United Nations ambassador Nikki Haley and Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina � continue to struggle. �It�s pretty clear that the party is inclined to a populist demagogue message,� he said.

Asked how he sees a general election rematch between Biden and Trump, Romney said, �Today I�d say 50-50. If I had to bet, I�d say it could go either way. So much can happen between now and then.� He also said that talk by the centrist group No Labels of mounting an independent candidacy in 2024 was a mistake and would only help to reelect Trump. He said he has spoken �many times� to Sen. Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.), who is flirting with such a bid. �I lobby continuously that it would only elect Trump.�

Romney said he doubted that the criminal charges pending against Trump � a total of 91 felony counts in four cases and jurisdictions � would have much political effect one way or the other. So far, the indictments have appeared to strengthen Trump in the nomination contest.

�People respond to new news,� Romney said. �They don�t respond to old news. I mean, January 6th is old news. The documents, it�s old news. The call to Raffensberger , it�s old news.� He was referring to the charge that Trump illegally retained classified documents at Mar-a-Lago and to his call to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensberger, in which he encouraged him to �find� enough votes to change the 2020 election results in that state.

Instead, Romney said, the investigation of Hunter Biden is newer news and therefore has the potential for political impact that could harm the president, although he said he would �be surprised� if the president had benefited personally financially from his son�s business dealings abroad. Asked whether he was equating Trump�s legal cases with the Hunter Biden investigation, he said, �No, no, no. I�m just looking at the political impact of them.� Romney has said Trump deserves the presumption of innocence but has called him unfit to serve as president.

He spoke as House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) directed House committees to begin an impeachment inquiry into the president. Romney said he had no doubt that McCarthy was acting under pressure from members of the hard-right Freedom Caucus. �This is not an impeachment,� he said. �This is an inquiry, and I have heard no allegations that rise to the high-crimes-and-misdemeanors standard of the Constitution.�

Instead of involving himself in the presidential campaign, Romney said he will remain as active as he can be in the Senate through the end of next year. �I�m not going out on a farewell tour,� he said. �I�m not leaving the party, not retiring.� Even after he leaves the Senate, he said, �You cannot expect me to hit the beach. I�m going to be as productive as I possibly can be.�

Romney said that he sees three overriding challenges for the country and that they require presidential leadership. Senators can do only so much, he said, adding that because he doubts either Trump or Biden is prepared to take on some of these issues, �I don�t think the next seven and a half years in the Senate would be productive.�

One issue, he said, is the need for a comprehensive strategy to deal with the authoritarian leaders abroad, specifically Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping. A second is the lack of a strategy to deal with global climate change, �not just feel-good things here in the U.S.� The third is dealing with the nation�s fiscal issues � debts and deficits. �You�ve got both Biden and Trump saying we won�t touch entitlements,� he said. �I think, �How irresponsible is that!��

Romney was born in Michigan, where his father was chief executive of American Motors Corp. before serving as governor. He settled in Boston, becoming wealthy through work in private equity as a co-founder of Bain Capital. He began his political career in 1994 in an unsuccessful effort to defeat then-Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.). After helping to rescue the 2002 Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City, he was elected as governor of Massachusetts in 2002.

Romney stepped down after one term to seek his party�s presidential nomination in 2008. That campaign ended in failure, but he won the nomination four years later, ultimately losing to then-President Barack Obama in a campaign that many around him believed he would win. He returned to the business world but got the itch to return to politics, briefly exploring a third presidential run in 2016 and seeking the Senate seat in his adoptive state of Utah in 2018. He said he had been told that as a former governor, he would be frustrated with life in the Senate. �The reality is my expectations were vastly exceeded, and perhaps I got spoiled,� he said.

Romney said he was proud of the work he has been able to do as a senator and pointed to a long list of items as evidence, including bipartisan work on a covid-19 relief bill when Trump and then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) were far apart and on infrastructure during the Biden administration. He also cited provisions for religious liberty that were attached to a bill mandating federal recognition of same-sex marriages and the reworking of the Electoral Count Act.

Romney, a traditional conservative, acknowledged that the Republican Party of 2023 is quite different from the party that nominated him for president in 2012. He said his wing of the party is now �very, very small� in comparison with the Trump wing. But he declined to call the GOP irretrievably broken. �If it can change in the direction of a populist,� he said, �it can change back in the direction of my wing of the Republican Party.�

He said he has been asked by many people how he can continue to remain in the party. �Well,� he said, �because I want to get it back.� The party could realign again, he said, but only if Republicans learned to compete for and attract young voters, who today side heavily with Democrats. Romney himself struggled to win over young voters in his 2012 campaign. �Young people care about climate change,� he said. �They care about things that the MAGA Republicans� don�t care about.�

In the 2024 presidential race, former vice president Mike Pence has appealed to traditional conservatism. Romney said that Pence has no chance to win but discounted Pence�s prospects as a true test of sentiment on traditional conservatism vs. Trumpian populism. �I don�t think he has � any delusions that he�s going to become the nominee,� he said. �I think he�s running for other reasons, one to repair his legacy. � What he�s saying is important to be said. � I�m glad he�s running and saying those things. I respect that.�

What leverage do those like Romney have in a party so dominated by Trump? �I think we have the leverage of being right,� he said, �and in the final analysis, right will prevail.�

Romney said he is alarmed by some of what he sees in the party concerning foreign policy. �I listen to some of the people in the Trump wing � talk about how we should be ready to, you know, to just push against China in the Taiwan Strait, and I ask, �Are you really willing to go to war with China�� while opposing sending more aid to Ukraine in their war against Russian aggression?

Romney was early in pinpointing Putin�s Russia as a major threat to U.S. security during his 2012 campaign, and gave credit to Trump for instituting a tougher approach to China. But in contrast to many in his party, he was not sharply critical of recent efforts by Biden administration officials to engage with China.

�Our posture relative to China has been significantly strengthened by Russia�s weakness in Ukraine and the support we�ve given Ukraine and also by strengthening of NATO,� he said. To dissuade China from its current course, he said, requires the United States and other nations to stand together, adding �I have a lot of confidence in [Secretary of State] Tony Blinken. I believe he understands that and is endeavoring to do that.�

Romney said he remains worried about the state of democracy in the United States. �I think it�s of paramount importance to maintain our commitment to the Constitution and the liberal constitutional order,� he said. �And I know that there are some in MAGA world who would like Republican rule, or authoritarian rule by Donald Trump. But I think they may be forgetting that the majority of people in America would not be voting for Donald J. Trump. The majority would probably be voting for the Democrats.�

Among his parting thoughts at the end of the interview was an affirmation of his believe in America�s resilience. �I do believe that our institutions, while under constant barrage, are strong,� he said, �that our court system is strong and that fundamentally the American people stand by the Constitution and the constitutional norms.�

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/09/13/mitt-romney-senate-reelection/?utm_campaign=wp_main&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter

# ? Sep 13, 2023 18:45

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# ? May 27, 2024 06:26

zoux: Apr 28, 2006

https://twitter.com/PhilipRucker/status/1702014451866628177

Mitt's retiring from public life. Normally I'd cynically say something about "guess those internals are real bad" but I also think that Romney can win any Utah election he wants so I'm inclined to believe him when he says it's because he's sick of the bullshit. Also, his style of Republican doesn't really have a constituency anymore.

# ? Sep 13, 2023 18:45

selec: Sep 6, 2003

Josef bugman posted:

War criminals shouldn't get column inches in major periodicals no matter how "rare" their interventions are.

That�s what Netflix deals are for!

# ? Sep 13, 2023 18:48

RBA Starblade: Apr 28, 2008; Going Home.

Games Idiot Court Jester

selec posted:

That�s what Netflix deals are for!

That's struck work at the moment I think.

# ? Sep 13, 2023 18:52

Leon Trotsky 2012: Aug 27, 2009; YOU CAN TRUST ME!*

_{*Israeli Government-affiliated poster}

Gotta give it to Romney and that Mormon clean livin'. He still looks very good for someone pushing 80.

That full head of hair has to be plugs or some miraculous genes.

# ? Sep 13, 2023 18:52

Judgy Fucker: Mar 24, 2006

Probably an egregiously stupid question, at the least considering Mittens just announced his retirement, but just thinking:

Let�s say Mitt wants to get one more shot in at Trump by running for President as an independent. Does Mitt get a plurality of the vote in Utah? Trump, Biden?

# ? Sep 13, 2023 18:55

Leon Trotsky 2012: Aug 27, 2009; YOU CAN TRUST ME!*

_{*Israeli Government-affiliated poster}

Judgy Fucker posted:

Probably an egregiously stupid question, at the least considering Mittens just announced his retirement, but just thinking:

Let�s say Mitt wants to get one more shot in at trump by running for President as an independent. Does Mitt get a plurality of the vote in Utah? Trump, Biden?

Evan McMullen got 21% of the vote in 2016. I would expect Romney to do better than that in Utah, but I doubt he would get a plurality or win.

He is retiring from public life, so not likely to be running for President again. Unless this is an incredible fake-out to build hype for his secret campaign.

# ? Sep 13, 2023 18:57

Name Change: Oct 9, 2005

Republicans appear to be beginning their own pressure against Tommy Tuberville's military promotion blockade, since it's (A) stupid and (B) a political loser.

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/13/us/politics/military-promotions-tuberville.html

The practical effects of the blocks are that military families can't do family planning because they don't know when they're moving, people with prospects outside of the military and a full pension will just start leaving, and acting heads are apparently quite limited on what kind of policy they can enact.

quote:

Even as criticism of the delays grows louder � including from the Republican Senate leader, Mitch McConnell, who on Tuesday called the holds a �mistake� � Mr. Tuberville has refused to back down. He denies that the holds are hurting the military and insists that Democrats could put each job to a vote on the Senate floor, a process that would take hours per nomination.

But with the abortion issue proving to be a loser for Republicans, Democrats in the Senate have little political incentive to negotiate. Democratic leaders say that making an exception, even for General Brown, would set a damaging precedent.

Unless Republican leaders somehow lean on the freshman senator to lift his hold, the fight could drag on for months, and perhaps all the way through the presidential election next year.

# ? Sep 13, 2023 18:58

Sax Mortar: Aug 24, 2004

Is one of Mitt's 5 sons gonna just try to slide into that seat now? One of them is named "Matt" so it's close enough to just be a typo.

Though Tagg would continue the "are we electing baseball?" thoughts.

# ? Sep 13, 2023 18:59

Normy: Jul 1, 2004; Do I Krushchev?

Leon Trotsky 2012 posted:

lol

I love that they only thing they categorically deny is vaping.

"Yes, she was threatening staff, yelling, taking flash photography during a performance, singing during the performance, threatened to get staff fired, refused to leave until police came, and screamed 'Do you know who I am?' multiple times. But, she would never vape in public."

They do mock Republicans a bit so I imagine that's why she was acting up

# ? Sep 13, 2023 18:59

bird food bathtub: Aug 9, 2003; College Slice

zoux posted:

https://twitter.com/PhilipRucker/status/1702014451866628177

Mitt's retiring from public life. Normally I'd cynically say something about "guess those internals are real bad" but I also think that Romney can win any Utah election he wants so I'm inclined to believe him when he says it's because he's sick of the bullshit. Also, his style of Republican doesn't really have a constituency anymore.

I just hear Lex Luthor saying "Do you have any idea how much power I'd have to give up to be president?" Guy is what, a tens-millionaire, hundred millionaire from his time being a vulture capitalist? He's got connections and $STUPID in his bank account. He can buy the any outcome he wants from US politics.

# ? Sep 13, 2023 18:59

Leon Trotsky 2012: Aug 27, 2009; YOU CAN TRUST ME!*

_{*Israeli Government-affiliated poster}

Sax Mortar posted:

Is one of Mitt's 5 sons gonna just try to slide into that seat now? One of them is named "Matt" so it's close enough to just be a typo.

Though Tagg would continue the "are we electing baseball?" thoughts.

The Attorney General of Utah (Sean Reyes) was rumored to be considering trying to primary Romney, but he hasn't announced anything. If he was considering it, then he will probably jump in soon.

# ? Sep 13, 2023 19:01

zoux: Apr 28, 2006

I hear some guy named Pierre Delecto is considering a run

# ? Sep 13, 2023 19:01

Push El Burrito: May 9, 2006; Soiled Meat

Romney was the only Republican to vote for Trump's removal. He probably sees how things are going and rightfully wants off the insanity train same as Boehner.

# ? Sep 13, 2023 19:05

Leon Trotsky 2012: Aug 27, 2009; YOU CAN TRUST ME!*

_{*Israeli Government-affiliated poster}

Actually, according to ABC news, there is one random nobody who is the Mayor of a small town that is already in the race.

quote:

Riverton Mayor Trent Staggs is the only Republican officially in the race so far, though state House Speaker Brad Wilson has launched a Senate exploratory committee, former Rep. Jason Chaffetz is weighing a campaign and state Attorney General Sean Reyes is thought to be considering a bid, too. (Reyes declined to comment.)

The Utah state House Speaker, former Rep. Jason Chaffetz, and the Attorney General of Utah are all considering running.

I'm only familiar with Chaffetz, but he is a generic bad Republican. I'm guessing the other two are likely similar.

Whoever replaces Romney will probably be technically worse because they won't periodically vote to confirm a Democratic nominee or oppose Trump. I doubt any of the replacements would have voted to convict Trump during the impeachment.

But, overall, it probably won't make a huge difference one way or the other.

https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/mitt-romney-face-dogfight-republicans-2024-trump-criticism/story?id=102058347

# ? Sep 13, 2023 19:06

Leon Trotsky 2012: Aug 27, 2009; YOU CAN TRUST ME!*

_{*Israeli Government-affiliated poster}

zoux posted:

I hear some guy named Pierre Delecto is considering a run

Sam Stein beat you to this joke by just three minutes!

https://twitter.com/samstein/status/1702018841675448548

# ? Sep 13, 2023 19:08

James Garfield: May 5, 2012; Am I a manipulative abuser in real life, or do I just roleplay one on the Internet for fun? You decide!

bird food bathtub posted:

I just hear Lex Luthor saying "Do you have any idea how much power I'd have to give up to be president?" Guy is what, a tens-millionaire, hundred millionaire from his time being a vulture capitalist? He's got connections and $STUPID in his bank account. He can buy the any outcome he wants from US politics.

Tell that to Michael Bloomberg.

# ? Sep 13, 2023 19:10

haveblue: Aug 15, 2005; Toilet Rascal

bird food bathtub posted:

I just hear Lex Luthor saying "Do you have any idea how much power I'd have to give up to be president?" Guy is what, a tens-millionaire, hundred millionaire from his time being a vulture capitalist? He's got connections and $STUPID in his bank account. He can buy the any outcome he wants from US politics.

Mitt Romney is currently worth ~$300 million

And I'm not sure that's actually true, seeing as Michael Bloomberg ($96 billion and the 11th richest person in the world) didn't have much of an effect on the 2020 presidential elections

# ? Sep 13, 2023 19:10

zoux: Apr 28, 2006

Leon Trotsky 2012 posted:

Sam Stein beat you to this joke by just three minutes!

https://twitter.com/samstein/status/1702018841675448548

gently caress!!!

https://twitter.com/mattbruenig/status/1702007379292766230?s=46&t=A_iY-gupVf13dcIJPetZhQ

This is legit dark Brandon poo poo, actually arresting a mom and pop for violating the board�s ruling. Be like if that North Texas hair salon owner was arrested for defying mitigation ordinances instead of her using that as a springboard to launch a statehouse campaign

# ? Sep 13, 2023 19:12

Leon Trotsky 2012: Aug 27, 2009; YOU CAN TRUST ME!*

_{*Israeli Government-affiliated poster}

haveblue posted:

Mitt Romney is currently worth ~$300 million

And I'm not sure that's actually true, seeing as Michael Bloomberg ($96 billion and the 11th richest person in the world) didn't have much of an effect on the 2020 presidential elections

The largest part of Mitt Romney's wealth comes from Bain capital buying Dominos when it was going bankrupt in 1999, telling them to soak their crust in garlic butter and use better ingredients for the dough, then run an ad campaign saying "Dominos used to be lovely, but we aren't anymore!" That took Dominos from a $190 million company to a $13 billion company.

Still one of the funniest things about Mitt Romney.

Leon Trotsky 2012 fucked around with this message at 19:20 on Sep 13, 2023

# ? Sep 13, 2023 19:15

Byzantine: Sep 1, 2007

Name Change posted:

Republicans appear to be beginning their own pressure against Tommy Tuberville's military promotion blockade, since it's (A) stupid and (B) a political loser.

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/13/us/politics/military-promotions-tuberville.html

The practical effects of the blocks are that military families can't do family planning because they don't know when they're moving, people with prospects outside of the military and a full pension will just start leaving, and acting heads are apparently quite limited on what kind of policy they can enact.

It's nice to see them having to rage uselessly at a manchin, not gonna lie.

# ? Sep 13, 2023 19:21

Leon Trotsky 2012: Aug 27, 2009; YOU CAN TRUST ME!*

_{*Israeli Government-affiliated poster}

Byzantine posted:

It's nice to see them having to rage uselessly at a manchin, not gonna lie.

Unfortunately, this isn't really stifling any GOP policy priorities. They are just worried it is making them look bad because about 600 members of the military are not getting their raises or sold their home/broke a lease to transfer for a promotion and now are stuck in limbo spending a bunch of money to wait it out.

# ? Sep 13, 2023 19:28

haveblue: Aug 15, 2005; Toilet Rascal

A functioning military used to be a GOP priority but I guess that's less important than culture war bullshit nowadays

# ? Sep 13, 2023 19:30

Leon Trotsky 2012: Aug 27, 2009; YOU CAN TRUST ME!*

_{*Israeli Government-affiliated poster}

haveblue posted:

A functioning military used to be a GOP priority but I guess that's less important than culture war bullshit nowadays

To be fair to Tuberville, he is right that it isn't actually hampering the ability of the government to function right now. It will when the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and about a hundred commissioned officers are forced to retire by law in a few weeks and they legally can't replace them. But, right now, it is just financially hurting about 600 random people who are getting their raises withheld and have to figure out what to do about their housing for [???] more months when they were supposed to move in July

# ? Sep 13, 2023 19:35

Leon Trotsky 2012: Aug 27, 2009; YOU CAN TRUST ME!*

_{*Israeli Government-affiliated poster}

The NYT has a decent summary of how this has been playing out for the last six months and how it is going to really start spiraling to affect thousands of people if it is still going on after October 1st.

The earliest holds have been in place for 6 months, so there are people who sold their houses or broke their lease because they were supposed to move in March that are still in limbo. They also haven't been receiving their raises for the last 6 months.

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/13/us/politics/military-promotions-tuberville.html

quote:

For more than six months, Senator Tommy Tuberville, Republican of Alabama, has held up military nominations in protest of a Pentagon policy created to ensure that service members have access to abortions and other reproductive medical care. Hundreds of promotions have now been delayed in a battle that has it all.

It is a showdown between a white former football coach and the country�s first Black defense secretary, two Alabama men, both with deep roots at Auburn University. It is a preview of just how much of an albatross the Supreme Court�s overturning of Roe v. Wade might be on Republicans in elections next year. And it is a political game of chicken in which the country�s national security is at stake.

Caught in the middle is the Pentagon and the people picked by the military and the White House to fill top positions: the Army and Air Force chiefs of staff; the chief of naval operations and the Marine Corps commandant; the head of the Missile Defense Agency; the under secretary of defense � the Pentagon�s top policy post � who helps manage the American response to a surging Chinese military and the war in Ukraine and everything in between.

And many more.

The problem will be on sharp display in coming weeks when General Milley retires. In May, President Biden nominated Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. of the Air Force to become the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. But the vice chairman, Adm. Christopher Grady of the Navy, will serve as acting chairman until the blockade is lifted.

Many of the other senior positions will also be filled on an �acting� basis. But acting officials are transition figures � like substitute teachers in grade school. They cannot hire people to staff their new positions. They cannot move into the quarters that come with the job. They cannot impose any long-term vision on the military.

The holds are cutting deep at a time when the military is struggling to meet recruiting goals that would keep the number of active-duty service members at 1.4 million, the strength that planners say is necessary to protect Americans at home and American national security interests abroad. The Pentagon had hoped to offset lackluster recruiting by retaining more people.

Mr. Tuberville�s holds make that almost impossible.

quote:

The U.S. military is an all-volunteer force. The officers most affected by the holds are top performers who could easily find more lucrative jobs in the private sector � captains, majors, colonels and generals who have already met the 20-year service requirement that allows them to retire with a full military pension. The military manages to keep many of these people by promoting them to more senior and challenging positions.

If promotions are denied, one frustrated senior officer said in an interview, what is the point of staying if you already qualify for your pension? The most talented will leave first, the officer said, speaking on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the issue publicly.

Moreover, the holds on senior jobs mean the junior jobs that accompany them will remain unfilled too, leaving thousands of military families in limbo, unsure when they will have to move or where they will live in the foreseeable future.

�These are middle-class, working-class families who are saying, �We can�t enroll our child in school because we don�t know when we�re going to move,�� said Kathy Roth-Douquet, the chief executive of Blue Star Families, a nonprofit organization founded in 2009 by military spouses.

Those families may be in purgatory for some time.

Leon Trotsky 2012 fucked around with this message at 19:45 on Sep 13, 2023

# ? Sep 13, 2023 19:41

Not a Children: Oct 9, 2012; Don't need a holster if you never stop shooting.

Dang it's almost like they want to drain the government of its resources and allocate them to the private sector to justify further outsourcing of vital government functions

# ? Sep 13, 2023 19:44

zoux: Apr 28, 2006

Romney also handed McKay Coppins his burn book where he names names

https://twitter.com/jrubinblogger/status/1702030096809291930?s=46&t=A_iY-gupVf13dcIJPetZhQ

# ? Sep 13, 2023 19:44

Nenonen: Oct 22, 2009; Mulla on aina kolkyt donaa taskussa

Judgy Fucker posted:

Let�s say Mitt wants to get one more shot in at Trump by running for President as an independent. Does Mitt get a plurality of the vote in Utah? Trump, Biden?

My eyes and brain are tired, I read this as Mitch and started imagining him at the debates, just blankly staring at audience. And still getting 48-50% of votes probably.

# ? Sep 13, 2023 20:02

Discendo Vox: Mar 21, 2013; Can't post for 9 hours!

Romney and the paleocon part of the party he represents are by no means good, of course, but he's a self-interested oldschool business Republican with a degree of basic sanity, institutional knowledge and competence. Romney and his backing constituency in the LDS business cancer have goals and incentives that align with fundamental ongoing political stability and a slow, grinding harm to public commonweal that can sometimes be manipulated into common cause with actual good policy. His hate for the MAGAs is sincere, and even outside of public office he's likely to continue to try to keep Utah relatively resistant to their influence. I'm not clear on how successful he's going to be.

# ? Sep 13, 2023 20:02

Shrecknet: Jan 2, 2005

Every time someone goes "Mitt Romney is a reasonable, classic Rockefeller Republican; we can work with him!" I think of this photo, of him so pleased with himself and being able to make political hay out of Vilerat's death.

That little smirk as he walks away from the stage, secure in the knowledge that he's dealt a devastating blow to Obama's foreign policy bona fides while Sean's body is still warm.

Psychopaths, all.

Only registered members can see post attachments!

# ? Sep 13, 2023 20:04

Leon Trotsky 2012: Aug 27, 2009; YOU CAN TRUST ME!*

_{*Israeli Government-affiliated poster}

zoux posted:

Romney also handed McKay Coppins his burn book where he names names

https://twitter.com/jrubinblogger/status/1702030096809291930?s=46&t=A_iY-gupVf13dcIJPetZhQ

Here's a preview excerpt from the book:

https://twitter.com/seungminkim/status/1702031318241124788

I haven't read all of yet (it is a very large preview), but the things I've hit so far:

- It is very funny that Romney recounts some wild stories about the shamelessness and cynicism of J.D. Vance, Josh Hawley, and Mitch McConnell and basically says, "I cynically reinvented myself twice and said a ton of stuff I didn't believe, but even I am amazed at the oily shamelessness of these guys!"

- Romney and his staff called him "the turd in the punch bowl" when they first came to D.C. because nobody liked him and wouldn't hang out with him. Republicans didn't want to be seen hanging with someone critical of Trump and Democrats didn't like him. Angus King and Joe Manchin were the only people who were nice to him.

- Several other Senators admitted to him that "there are about 20 senators here who do all the work, and there are about 80 who go along for the ride" and most of the Republican caucus deferred to Mitch McConnell for 90% of things and spent the other 10% trying to get their pet issues money/attention.

- Josh Hawley thought he might actually die on January 6th and was confused as to how it had boiled over into a real riot, but once it became clear that Trump wasn't going to admit fault, Hawley went back to defending him and told his aides to scrap any statements until it was clear where the winds were blowing.

- One Republican Congressman told Romney that he was considering voting for Trump's impeachment, but decided against it because it wouldn't change the outcome and he feared for his family's safety if he did.

- Romney has been paying $5,000 per day for private security after a Trump supporter threatened to kill him.

- Romney had a no guns policy at all of his Utah public appearances because he thought that "there are deranged people among us, and in Utah, people carry guns.� He started to completely lose faith in politics when he didn't even feel safe among Utah Republicans and nobody in the Senate seemed to care.

- Romney felt like a loser for selling out multiple times and having nobody appreciate him or vote for him because of it. He wanted to use his Senate career, and briefly considered running for President in 2020, to try to salvage his reputation and be considered a bold truth teller instead of a phony. He fantasized about telling Trump off in a debate and getting his self-respect back from when he had to beg Trump for an endorsement in 2012.

quote:

Romney relished the idea of running a presidential campaign in which he simply said whatever he thought, without regard for the political consequences. �I must admit, I�d love being on the stage with Donald Trump � and just saying, �That�s stupid. Why are you saying that?� � He nursed a fantasy in which he devoted an entire debate to asking Trump to explain why, in the early weeks of the pandemic, he�d suggested that Americans inject bleach as a treatment for COVID-19.

To Romney, this comment represented the apotheosis of the former president�s idiocy, and it still bothered him that the country had simply laughed at it and moved on. �Every time Donald Trump makes a strong argument, I�d say, �Remind me again about the Clorox,� � Romney told me. �Every now and then, I would cough and go, �Clorox.� �

Romney almost went through with it, this maximally disruptive, personally cathartic primal scream of a presidential campaign. But he abandoned it once he realized that he�d most likely end up siphoning off votes from the Democratic nominee and ensuring a Trump victory.

- Romney approached Manchin about starting a new third party in 2020 that had the slogan "Stop the Stupid" and Manchin turned him down.

- Romney says that nobody in the Senate wants to retire, even if it becomes physically difficult to do the job, because they were used to the routine and feared fading into irrelevance if they retired from public life.

quote:

Job preservation, in this context, became almost existential. Retirement was death. The men and women of the Senate might not need their government salary to survive, but they needed the stimulation, the sense of relevance, the power.

Leon Trotsky 2012 fucked around with this message at 20:24 on Sep 13, 2023

# ? Sep 13, 2023 20:13

Twincityhacker: Feb 18, 2011

If the bits about other GOP members have abouy the safety of themselves and their families is true, there's this very big level of "I never thought the lepords would eat MY face" going on as well.

# ? Sep 13, 2023 20:16

zoux: Apr 28, 2006

https://twitter.com/lpdonovan/status/1702039207986778494?s=46&t=A_iY-gupVf13dcIJPetZhQ

These politicians are sick fucks man

# ? Sep 13, 2023 20:28

bird food bathtub: Aug 9, 2003; College Slice

Not a Children posted:

Dang it's almost like they want to drain the government of its resources and allocate them to the private sector to justify further outsourcing of vital government functions

I want to believe Tuberville is just being a stupid, obstinate rear end in a top hat. And he is being a stupid, obstinate rear end in a top hat. I'm unfortunately not comfortable saying he is "just" doing that. The further (though by no means comfortably far enough) reaches of the right wing nut-o-sphere are currently creaming their jeans at the idea of hollowing out as much of the government as they possibly can and restocking everything with Trump loyalists willing to enact outright "the Democratic party is now illegal" single party rule.

https://www.project2025.org/policy/

Cruise through that for some horrifying goals that would make Steve Bannon proud. This poo poo is bubbling up all over the place in the Republican party. I don't claim to know Tuberville's heart of hearts on this issue, but some poo poo is rhyming between the two and I'm not comfortable saying it's accidental.

# ? Sep 13, 2023 20:28

BiggerBoat: Sep 26, 2007; Don't you tell me my business again.

PostNouveau posted:

Gonna be seeing this one in some campaign ads

https://twitter.com/crampell/status/1701599864667443537

I was thinking about this post today and my head to a weird place.

Child poverty rate was drastically lowered by government action but, well, most people think that caused all this loving inflation (true or not) and that now that all that poo poo is rolled back, the poverty rate went up again. Ok. So doesn't that speak to a couple of things?

1. If giving people enough money to lift themselves out of poverty causes rampant inflation, doesn't that mean that capitalism unapologetically needs poverty stricken people (kids) in order to function?

2. If we're being clearly shown that giving people money directly lifts people out of poverty, isn't that an example of government being able to do something about it?

3. If what the government did about it created rampant inflation, isn't that an argument for price controls and even nationalizing certain parts of the economy? AFIAK, they didn't spend that poo poo on luxury items. The people who didn't need the help rat holed the money (and many poo poo eating swine took advantage of PPP loans that they didn't need) but the people who DID paid their loving rent and bought food.

4. Assuming that this financial help "increased demand" and created "rising prices", what does that tell us, exactly? Because, whatever it is, it seems pretty grim from an income distribution standpoint. I can tell you with 100% accountability that the money I got went to food, child support, gas, bills, etc.

I just can't shake the idea that people being able to afford things makes people unable to afford things is a canary in a coal mine situation. That's a perfect argument for how our supply side, upside down economic system works. Especially given the record profits that companies raked in during the time when the aid was offered. RIght?

I mean, again, one has to assume that "people having too much money spiked inflation" is a true statement and I do not.

# ? Sep 13, 2023 21:28

Bel Shazar: Sep 14, 2012

BiggerBoat posted:

I mean, again, one has to assume that "people having too much money spiked inflation" is a true statement and I do not.

People believing they can make more money off of people having more money spiked inflation

# ? Sep 13, 2023 21:41

Herstory Begins Now: Aug 5, 2003; SOME REALLY TEDIOUS DUMB SHIT THAT SUCKS ASS TO READ ->>

astrology is hilarious and owns because it makes a certain kind of really obnoxious guy lose their absolute loving minds about it

# ? Sep 13, 2023 21:45

single-mode fiber: Dec 30, 2012

BiggerBoat posted:

I was thinking about this post today and my head to a weird place.

Child poverty rate was drastically lowered by government action but, well, most people think that caused all this loving inflation (true or not) and that now that all that poo poo is rolled back, the poverty rate went up again. Ok. So doesn't that speak to a couple of things?

1. If giving people enough money to lift themselves out of poverty causes rampant inflation, doesn't that mean that capitalism unapologetically needs poverty stricken people (kids) in order to function?

2. If we're being clearly shown that giving people money directly lifts people out of poverty, isn't that an example of government being able to do something about it?

3. If what the government did about it created rampant inflation, isn't that an argument for price controls and even nationalizing certain parts of the economy? AFIAK, they didn't spend that poo poo on luxury items. The people who didn't need the help rat holed the money (and many poo poo eating swine took advantage of PPP loans that they didn't need) but the people who DID paid their loving rent and bought food.

4. Assuming that this financial help "increased demand" and created "rising prices", what does that tell us, exactly? Because, whatever it is, it seems pretty grim from an income distribution standpoint. I can tell you with 100% accountability that the money I got went to food, child support, gas, bills, etc.

I just can't shake the idea that people being able to afford things makes people unable to afford things is a canary in a coal mine situation. That's a perfect argument for how our supply side, upside down economic system works. Especially given the record profits that companies raked in during the time when the aid was offered. RIght?

I mean, again, one has to assume that "people having too much money spiked inflation" is a true statement and I do not.

https://twitter.com/NewRiverInvest/status/1701697584262418726

# ? Sep 13, 2023 21:54

BiggerBoat: Sep 26, 2007; Don't you tell me my business again.

single-mode fiber posted:

https://twitter.com/NewRiverInvest/status/1701697584262418726

# ? Sep 13, 2023 21:58

Adbot: ADBOT LOVES YOU

# ? May 27, 2024 06:26

Fork of Unknown Origins: Oct 21, 2005; Gotta Herd On?

BiggerBoat posted:

I was thinking about this post today and my head to a weird place.

Child poverty rate was drastically lowered by government action but, well, most people think that caused all this loving inflation (true or not) and that now that all that poo poo is rolled back, the poverty rate went up again. Ok. So doesn't that speak to a couple of things?

1. If giving people enough money to lift themselves out of poverty causes rampant inflation, doesn't that mean that capitalism unapologetically needs poverty stricken people (kids) in order to function?

2. If we're being clearly shown that giving people money directly lifts people out of poverty, isn't that an example of government being able to do something about it?

3. If what the government did about it created rampant inflation, isn't that an argument for price controls and even nationalizing certain parts of the economy? AFIAK, they didn't spend that poo poo on luxury items. The people who didn't need the help rat holed the money (and many poo poo eating swine took advantage of PPP loans that they didn't need) but the people who DID paid their loving rent and bought food.

4. Assuming that this financial help "increased demand" and created "rising prices", what does that tell us, exactly? Because, whatever it is, it seems pretty grim from an income distribution standpoint. I can tell you with 100% accountability that the money I got went to food, child support, gas, bills, etc.

I just can't shake the idea that people being able to afford things makes people unable to afford things is a canary in a coal mine situation. That's a perfect argument for how our supply side, upside down economic system works. Especially given the record profits that companies raked in during the time when the aid was offered. RIght?

I mean, again, one has to assume that "people having too much money spiked inflation" is a true statement and I do not.

1. In a sense but that maybe isn�t the best example of that. Capitalism needs people to have to work to not starve. It probably doesn�t need those people to have kids.

2. Yes, clearly.

3. This is incredibly complicated but the idea that the spending even caused most of the inflation needs to be examined. If megacorporations were still turning record profits while also charging more then the spending wasn�t the problem. There were real actual problems that caused some of it (like the famous expensive eggs) but it seems like most of it just came from corps charging more because they don�t have enough competition. Because mergers and buyouts and uncompetitive practices have led to a huge consolidation of wealth and power.

That�s a reason to do trust-busting the likes of which the country has never seen. Sure, nationalize things like utilities. I don�t know enough to know if price controls would help.

4. It tells you people will spend more money if they have more money. I think this would probably be the case even if there weren�t rampant poverty. But it would go into different sectors.

# ? Sep 13, 2023 22:19

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Debate & Discussion > USCE 2023: Please let them shove a camera up your butt

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