Quo Vadis GOP?

[Admiral Yi]

His girl friend is real First Lady material. 

[The Larch]

His girl friend is real First Lady material. 

The crossfitter? That's his wife, they married earlier this year (he'sapparently an advocate for people to get married young), although they just announced they're getting divorced already.

[garbon]

I can't believe it has been a year.

[Syt]

"At least it served as a wake up call for the GOP who have since taken great steps towards reforming and shedding themselves of the radical elements and those among them who supported the storming of the Capitol."


... is what I would write if we were living in a better timeline.

[Valmy]

They know they need the radical elements to win. Got to love the two party system.

[Razgovory]

Trump was going to give a speech today but canceled it.  Not surprisingly, everyone told him it was a terrible fucking idea.  Trump blamed his cancelation on the House Select Committee which he calls the "Unselect committee" something he probably thinks is very clever.  I get the impression that Trump is very, very scared of the committee and is demanding that everyone in the GOP do everything they can to impede it or else.  Or else he start a new party and send the whole of the GOP crashing into a fiery pit.

I think there is a real chance to two things happening.  Donald Trump being subpoenaed and finding himself at the mercy of people who hate him.  And 2, Donald Trump is prosecuted for attempting to disrupt congress.

Stuff like this doesn't look good for Former President Trump.

Trump did not want to tweet 'stay peaceful' during January 6 riot, key former aide says

(CNN)A former Trump White House official said then-President Donald Trump initially refused to tweet the words "stay peaceful" as the attack on the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, was escalating.

As a violent pro-Trump mob stormed the Capitol and sent lawmakers scrambling for their lives, Trump tweeted at 2:38 p.m. ET that day: "Please support our Capitol Police and Law Enforcement. They are truly on the side of our Country. Stay peaceful!" The tweet came 20 minutes after Trump supporters were smashing through windows and evacuations of lawmakers had begun.
The former official, who was working in the West Wing and was close to White House messaging during the insurrection, said Trump did not want to include the words "stay peaceful" and was "very reluctant to put out anything when it was unfolding." Trump was "letting it play out," the official said of the violence at the Capitol.
Top Trump aides -- including the then-President's daughter, Ivanka, and former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows -- were pleading with Trump to call off the mob, the ex-aide said. Those officials eventually convinced Trump to include the "stay peaceful" message in the tweet about the Capitol Police, the former aide added.
A Trump spokesperson denied that Trump resisted including the "stay peaceful" message in the tweet.
The former staffer's account that Trump was resisting the "stay peaceful" portion of the tweet runs counter to excuses given by Trump allies that the then-President was urging his supporters to avoid violent acts in their protest of the January 6 certification of Joe Biden's victory. Trump's reluctance to issue a forceful message was an indication he understood the impact that his Twitter account had on his supporters, the ex-aide said.

The former official, who relayed the account to the House select committee investigating January 6,, says congressional investigators are requesting specific information from Trump staffers who are cooperating with the probe.
Aides are being asked about the days leading up to the insurrection at the Capitol, conversations among key officials, and minute-by-minute details about what was happening behind closed doors at the White House, the ex-official added.
The former official, who declined to be named out of fear of retaliation, described January 6 as "one of the darkest days in our nation's history."
Other Trump staffers described the then-President as enjoying the mob violence as he watched live TV coverage of the insurrection at the Capitol. Trump was "loving" it, a separate former senior White House official said.
Former White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham, who was working as the chief of staff to the first lady on January 6, 2021, told CNN Thursday that Trump was "gleefully" watching television coverage of the riot.
Trump's actions and inactions during the Capitol attack have become a major line of inquiry for the January 6 select committee.
Rep. Liz Cheney, the committee's top Republican, has said the panel already has obtained testimony establishing that senior Trump aides attempted to prod the then-President to do more.
"He could have told them to stand down. He could have told them to go home, and he failed to do so," Cheney said of Trump.
"We have firsthand testimony that his daughter Ivanka went in at least twice to ask him to please stop this violence," she continued.
That "stay peaceful" tweet was posted 14 minutes following a separate Trump tweet assailing then-Vice President Mike Pence for refusing to overturn the 2020 election results.
"Mike Pence didn't have the courage to do what should have been done to protect our Country and our Constitution, giving States a chance to certify a corrected set of facts, not the fraudulent or inaccurate ones which they were asked to previously certify. USA demands the truth!" Trump tweeted from his @realDonaldTrump account, which has since been permanently suspended by Twitter.

He may kill Democracy but at least Democracy will kill him.

[Solmyr]

I think there is a real chance to two things happening.  Donald Trump being subpoenaed and finding himself at the mercy of people who hate him.  And 2, Donald Trump is prosecuted for attempting to disrupt congress.

You are assuming that the Republican-dominated Congress will do these things.

[Razgovory]

I think there is a real chance to two things happening.  Donald Trump being subpoenaed and finding himself at the mercy of people who hate him.  And 2, Donald Trump is prosecuted for attempting to disrupt congress.

You are assuming that the Republican-dominated Congress will do these things.

Well, one thing is will have to happen this year and second is beyond the power of Congress.

[viper37]

GOP becoming majority party

[...]
That's what makes the Gallup data so potentially Earth-shattering. Gallup found that partisan identification has shifted by a massive 14 points since early 2021. In the first quarter of 2021, 49 percent of Americans said they were Democrats — defined as solid partisans and Democratic-leaning independents — compared with only 40 percent who said they were Republicans. That lead shrunk in each quarter of the year. By the fourth quarter, the lead shifted to the GOP. As President Biden's job approval dropped into the low 40s, 47 percent of Americans said they were Republicans compared with 42 percent who said they were Democrats.

Gallup notes that the most recent time the GOP led in partisan affiliation by five points was in the first quarter of 1995, right after Republicans secured their first House majority in more than 40 years. The only time the GOP has led by more than five points was right after the stunningly quick victory in the 1991 Persian Gulf War, when President George H.W. Bush's approval ratings soared to as high as 89 percent.

The Gallup poll is only one poll, so Republicans should curb their enthusiasm. But after examining it together with Pew Research Center data, I think it's worth noting that these numbers echo previous increases in GOP affiliation. The Democratic Party lost its lead only four times. Two instances followed a successful war in the Middle East led by a Republican president (1991, 2001-2003). The other two occurred because of the collapse a Democratic president's popularity when his party completely controlled Washington — under Bill Clinton in 1994-1995 and Barack Obama in 2010-2011.
[...]

[Admiral Yi]

Christ

[Oexmelin]

Routine reminder to get involved. Now. Not just at the elections.

[HisMajestyBOB]

It would probably help if the Democrats could deliver on literally anything.
Honestly, it might have been better if the GOP still retained the Senate, because at least then Dem voters would be going into this election with the idea that if we can just win a few more seats, we'll be able to get change. Instead, we got a slim majority and we can't even get protection for voting rights. "Vote for us because we're not authoritarian and we won't make things worse, but we also won't do anything to help or to stop the erosion of democracy" is not a stirring message.

[Oexmelin]

As long as the Democrats think they need to do the least amount of waves anywhere, they'll be scared to propose anything remotely salient everywhere. Pressure needs to be applied to local Democrats, if only to strengthen their resolve - whether on prosecuting ASAP the January 6th insurrection, purging Republican appointees on key positions, putting pressure on Democrat leadership to stop being so fucking deferential to processes and colleagues who will sell them out about 60 seconds into a Trump presidency. Local, small "d" democrats should also get involved as local election personnel / oversight. There will be a lot of tiny fights that will need to be fought and won.  At the very least, you need to start preparing to entrench whatever form of institutional resistance for what may very well come.

Don't succumb to resignation. Don't shrug your shoulders. Don't postpone whatever involvement you think you ought to do.

[Berkut]

Routine reminder to get involved. Now. Not just at the elections.

I've been told by reliable sources that everything is fine - nothing to worry about.

[Admiral Yi]

As long as the Democrats think they need to do the least amount of waves anywhere, they'll be scared to propose anything remotely salient everywhere.

What are you talking about?  Biden proposed over three trillion dollars in new spending.