2020 Elections

[writingprof]

Very good piece in the Washington Post about the reaction of QAnon folks to the end of the Trump presidency.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2021/01/20/qanon-trump-era-ends/

[pgher]

I wasn't sure if it would happen. In a way, I'm still waiting for the other shoe to drop.

I said the same to a friend. Her response? "PTSD." Maybe not quite that, but living with constant stress and fear takes a toll.

[Sun_Worshiper]

My blood pressure mysteriously feels way down today

[sprout]

I'm gradually getting used to the idea that I can listen to the news now without having to throttle back rage and despair.  It's weird.

[marshwiggle]

I'm gradually getting used to the idea that I can listen to the news now without having to throttle back rage and despair.  It's weird.

This terrifies the news media. Their ad revenues are going to crash after the windfall of the last 4 years.

[writingprof]

I'm gradually getting used to the idea that I can listen to the news now without having to throttle back rage and despair.  It's weird.

This terrifies the news media. Their ad revenues are going to crash after the windfall of the last 4 years.

No, they're just going to keep talking about Trump. If he dies, it will be like Black Tuesday. News directors will be jumping from high windows.

[dismalist]

I have long said that the Democrats have an interest in continuing to talk about Trump, for he is the best they have.

[If Trump were to die, that could be kept secret. :-)]

This can't be all wrong, for this thread is still going!

[mahagonny]

I have long said that the Democrats have an interest in continuing to talk about Trump, for he is the best they have.

[If Trump were to die, that could be kept secret. :-)]

This can't be all wrong, for this thread is still going!

With Trump gone what will Stephen Colbert talk about, and how will we understand what he's talking about?

[lightning]

I'm gradually getting used to the idea that I can listen to the news now without having to throttle back rage and despair.  It's weird.

This terrifies the news media. Their ad revenues are going to crash after the windfall of the last 4 years.

Hardly. Trump and his entourage of idiots have left a treasure trove of material to discuss and analyze for years to come.

I'm gradually getting used to the idea that I can listen to the news now without having to throttle back rage and despair.  It's weird.

This terrifies the news media. Their ad revenues are going to crash after the windfall of the last 4 years.

No, they're just going to keep talking about Trump. If he dies, it will be like Black Tuesday. News directors will be jumping from high windows.

Almost. They're not going to talk about Trump. They're going to laugh about Trump, along with members of his idiot entourage. And when Trump dies, they'll cover his idiot entourage in a never-ending comedy. It will be the lighter entertainment section that goes along with the normal news coverage. Schadenfreude sells.

I have long said that the Democrats have an interest in continuing to talk about Trump, for he is the best they have.

[If Trump were to die, that could be kept secret. :-)]

This can't be all wrong, for this thread is still going!

Yes. And I noticed that the last four posts before mine were the same group that were not really sanguine about Biden. The thread was two days dead, before you four brought it back with vigor and vinegar. So, it's not just the Democrats that are keeping this thread going. Those that were not thrilled about the outcome of the election will also be continuing the 2020/2021 election coverage into the future, as well.

I have long said that the Democrats have an interest in continuing to talk about Trump, for he is the best they have.

[If Trump were to die, that could be kept secret. :-)]

This can't be all wrong, for this thread is still going!

With Trump gone what will Stephen Colbert talk about, and how will we understand what he's talking about?

That's easy. Colbert will talk about the morons that supported Trump. He was doing that before 2016.

[dismalist]

Sits deep.

[mahagonny]

DJT outs himself for lying, latest communication:

'This has been yet another phase of the greatest witch hunt in the history of our country. No president has ever gone through anything like it, and it continues because our opponents cannot forget the almost 75 million people, the largest number ever for a sitting president, who voted for us just a few short months ago.'

Whereas, his version of events has been 'we won by a landslide.' And that the votes are counted incorrectly.
But now he believes it.

[mahagonny]

Capitol Police, DHS goons nowhere to be seen. Looks like zero security. Stupid stupid stupid.

From a Twitter feed:

"Police tear gassed peaceful Democratic protestors so that Trump could hold a Bible for the cameras. But pro-Trump protestors have successfully breached the US Capitol building without so much as a single pepper ball. Funny how that works out."

It turns out we were lied to about that by CNN, NPR and most of the media. That's now what happened.

Inspector General's Report:

https://doioig.opengov.ibmcloud.com/sites/doioig.gov/files/Final%20Statement_0.pdf

So I take back some of what I thought of DJT.

[Ruralguy]

I don't, though I do accept that some reporting on him was probably inaccurate.

[Parasaurolophus]

That's not quite what this summary of the report says. It says:

The evidence we reviewed showed that the USPP cleared the park to allow a contractor to safely install antiscale fencing in response to destruction of Federal property and injury to officers that occurred on May 30 and May 31. Moreover, the evidence established that relevant USPP officials had made those decisions and had begun implementing the operational plan several hours before they knew of a potential Presidential visit to the park, which occurred later that day. As such, we determined that the evidence did not support a finding that the USPP cleared the park on June 1, 2020, so that then President Trump could enter the park.

We also found weaknesses with the operation to clear the park, including the U.S. Secret Service's deployment before the USPP had begun its dispersal warnings and the USPP's failure to provide dispersal warnings that were loud enough for everyone to hear and that told protesters where to exit before the clearing operation began.

I would want to see the actual report--with the actual details--to better understand how they understand the causal chain and just how exculpatory it is (e.g. what consitutes "begun implementing the operational plan", vs. when did they get serious about it?).

But regardless, the fact remains that peaceful protestors were gassed days before terrorist gang attempted a coup, and were met with virtually no resistance. The bad optics of the photo op--and whether the intentions behind it all really were as malicious as it looked--are an irrelevant distraction.

[mahagonny]

The phrase 'peaceful protesters' piques my interest. One or two of them could have been not so peaceful, more like lazy protesters, leaving the destruction of property and mayhem to their more energetic friends.