patrick.net

It will be hilarious to hear mark levine lose it and pull a donald sterling lol

Many tea party supported guys are already congressmen and senators.

Of course they were elected after Obamacare was sneaked through without a single Republican vote for it. What could be expected after the fact?

But have no doubt, the excess of Obamacare and other outrages helped them get elected.

clambo says

But have no doubt, the excess of Obamacare and other outrages helped them get elected.

Given that they were elected in 2012, and Obamacare took effect in 2014, I'm having trouble constructing a connection.

More reactionary congressmen may well lie their way into office by spinning further yarns about Obamacare, or even by pointing out its actual flaws, but those are only becoming apparent as it goes into effect.

Or is this like Ruby Ridge, which happened under Bush I, but reflects poorly on Bill Clinton?

Iosef V HydroCabron says

Given that they were elected in 2012, and Obamacare took effect in 2014, I'm
having trouble constructing a connection.

Uh dude - Obamacare passed congress in March 2010.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patient_Protection_and_Affordable_Care_Act

Democrats got shellacked in the midterms in 8 months later. Remember?

And since Obama has delayed all of the most painful and costly portions of Obamacare to get past the 2012 election (employer mandate), it is nothing but shit sandwhiches from here on out until 2016. All the people who benefited from Obamacare have already benefited. Everyone else (majority of the country) will now have to pay the bills.

Even the liberal fanboys in the Media won't be able hide the fact of millions of people getting higher premium notices in the mail, losing their doctors and networks over the next 2 years.

socal2 says

Even the liberal fanboys in the Media won't be able hide the fact of millions of people getting higher premium notices in the mail, losing their doctors and networks over the next 2 years.

It is a disaster, yes.

Pestilence and mourning have spread across our lands. Most of the bodies were burned my men in hazmat suits, who came in the black helicopters.

Nothing but a few burning piles of rubble here and there. Orphans scavenge scraps of tree bark, or the husk of a dead cockroach to gnaw on.

Sometimes a dog barks

Iosef V HydroCabron says

It is a disaster, yes.

Yes, retreat into sarcasm - but people really don't like losing their doctors, networks AND paying higher premiums at the same time. Go figure!

We learned just this week that the VA system really is a "disaster" with secret wait lists, corruption and people committing sucide waiting for care - despite massive bipartisan increases in budgets over the years. If the government can fuck up the VA system for such a small population, just wait until they are dealing with hundreds of millions of people.

The Nov. 2010 election put many "tea party" people in office in the house.

Obamacare was one reason for it.

clambo says

The Nov. 2010 election put many "tea party" people in office in the house.

Obamacare was one reason for it.

And what a difference 4 years makes. Basically 2010 was the Tea Party's one and only hurrah. Ever since then the only thing they have succeeded in doing is to distract the GOP by creating inner-party turmoil. This basically diluted the GOP's primary platform.

What 2014 shows is that the majority of Americans do not have the stomach for extreme right wing politics or ideology. Some of the Tea Party politicians who got elected should be grateful they managed to get in via a one-trick pony movement because some of them take the term stupidity to an entirely different level.

Like I said: The Tea Party is nothing more than a front for back room financing and now that its clear that the movement has failed in its objectives that the money will pull out sooner than later. Its even recently been pointed out many of the tea party movement groups funded by lobbys and outside interests are already having some major financial issues.

The way I look at it is the sooner the tea party becomes a has-been the better it will be not only for Republicans but Democrats alike.

edvard2 says

The Tea Party is nothing more than a front for back room financing and now that its clear that the movement has failed in its objectives that the money will pull out sooner than later. Its even recently been pointed out many of the tea party movement groups funded by lobbys and outside interests are already having some major financial issues.

I'd say the opposite: the Tea Party started at the time of bank bailouts as a grass root movement opposed to croony capitalism in Washington. It was financed in good part by ideologue millionaires more than companies/special interests lobbies.

Granted there were too many stupid people, and I disagree with what it was trying to do, but I'll say it's a shame there are not more movements like that. (occupy WS was the only other one, and it disappeared having never really tried to organize politically).

Its failure just means we are going back to lobby funded republicans, croony capitalism, business as usual.

Heraclitusstudent says

I'd say the opposite: the Tea Party started at the time of bank bailouts as a grass root movement opposed to croony capitalism in Washington.

I agree that is the way the movement started and had it remained more or less on that course I would have been ok with it. But that's not what it stayed like for long. Basically the movement was co-opted by conservative billionaires and numerous right-leaning umbrella groups which contained numerous lobbies all in industries that tend to oppose things like environmental regulation, government controlled insurance, and so on. If you were to go on to most any tea party site that has financial backing their stories read like a playbook: All of the articles and proposals all revolve around trying to either stop or to oppose the very pieces of legislation that would directly benefit the industries they are financed by.

The ironic thing is that one of the most in-debth, well-documented explanations in regards to the inner-workings and background of the Tea Party's financial is a documentary film from Australia I saw last year.

I suppose the worst part about the movement is that it takes a very basic idea which is to stick people into camps and have them blame each other ( liberals and conservatives) so that they will in turn ignore what's really going on behind them. Its an old trick but it works well.

There is actually no tea party political party.

The word TEA=Taxed Enough Already.

The grass roots movement was a rejection of the growth of government, more government debt, more govt. spending, more taxes to pay for the previous, Obamacare which is an intrusion into your personal business, and other things depending on the group.

Taxes have gone up, Obamacare is a growing abomination, govt. still thinks they know more than you, Michelle wants to tell us what to EAT, etc. etc.

But as long as the economy sucks, growth of govt. will be popular, since people want to have their needs met somehow by someone. If not themselves, their parents, or daddy Government.

clambo says

The grass roots movement was a rejection of the growth of government, more government debt, more govt. spending, more taxes to pay for the previous, Obamacare which is an intrusion into your personal business, and other things depending on the group.

I thought the Tea Party groups were all public service organizations, and therefore not subject to taxation?

clambo says

Michelle wants to tell us what to EAT

I'm having trouble seeing how restricting commercial beverage advertising in public schools is a throttling hand of government around our necks.

You must really hate Reagan then, because Nancy told us not to take drugs.

clambo says

Michelle wants to tell us what to EAT, etc. etc

The idea is for schools to provide better meals than current ones that lead to diabetes/heart desease. If parents choose to be infantile, they are "free" to make their own lunch with hot dogs that contain 100% sodium/saturated fat on the daily, supplement it with mountain dew on the side and poison their own kids. Free country man!

APOCALYPSEFUCKisShostikovitch says

Iosef V HydroCabron says

You must really hate Reagan then, because Nancy told us not to take drugs.

Yeah, but you have to remember she blew Frank Sinatra.

Who hasn't? Blowing old blue eyes is a privilege.

clambo says

The grass roots movement was a rejection of the growth of government, more government debt, more govt. spending, more taxes to pay for the previous, Obamacare which is an intrusion into your personal business, and other things depending on the group.

Of course that is the "official" slogan the movement uses. Remember that there are two parts of this astroturf movement: the "front end" of the organization with a main goal of distracting potential followers to go along with the slogan as well as to use the other diatribes tossed in aimed at placing all of the blame not only on government, but liberals. That's the front end.

The back end consists of the business component: various institutions, lobby affiliates, industrial concerns, billionaires with ties to industries affected by future regulations, and other businesses whom hide behind said movement, tell people one thing and then in the back room create ways in which to manipulate the political system for their causes.

The tea party is nothing more than a fake astroturf organization with profits in mind at the expense of people who eagerly lap up the made-up-crap they're told so they can be distracted from what's really going on, which is to say they eagerly then vote against or for proposals that in turn goes against their self interests and enriches the outside interest groups who used them effectively for that purpose.

clambo says

Many tea party supported guys are already congressmen and senators.

Many more are not who spoiled the normal candidate's chances. Baggers are having difficulty coalescing around ideas, now that blind partisan rage doesn't work any longer.

They might have had normal democratic intentions, but turned into a fucking joke. I don't agree with the original baggers, but I welcome the debate and embrace their right to do so.

Whereas Occupy suffered from a lack of centrality, the Baggers were co-opted easily.

A Buddhist, a Hindu and a Minuteman walk into a bar voting booth...
It's open primary season in California. Will you vote for a reasonable opposition candidate just to make November a little more interesting (not that anyone stands a chance against Brown). As it is now, the Tea Party candidate is in second place.

clambo says

The word TEA=Taxed Enough Already.

A common misconception.

It's actually The Executive's African, that being their major objection to the current leadership in DC.

Iosef V HydroCabron says

clambo says

The word TEA=Taxed Enough Already.

A common misconception.

It's actually The Executive's African, that being their major objection to the current leadership in DC.

Thought it was "Terribly Educated Assholes"?

edvard2 says

Looks like the tea party is done

they been saying that since 2010....

but really what else would a Liberal Rag paper say otherwise....

EBGuy says

As it is now, the Tea Party candidate is in second place.

"Donnelly also has three times as much support among Latino voters as Kashkari, despite Donnelly's role in founding the California Minutemen, a self-styled border patrol dedicated to fighting illegal immigration."

and some of you from Emeryville were crying that Latinos and other minorities were never voting for Republicans....

CL says

Whereas Occupy suffered from a lack of centrality, the Baggers were co-opted easily.

How is the smell from a Occupy movement going.. are you loving it?

thomaswong.1986 says

and some of you from Emeryville were crying that Latinos and other minorities were never voting for Republicans....

Huh? Tripling minority support gets you a total of three. The issue isn't who can get the most of a small slice, it's how they stack up against a Dem.thomaswong.1986 says

How is the smell from a Occupy movement going.. are you loving it?

I am. More people than ever understand wealth and income inequality and its deleterious effects. More than ever refer to the "1%".

Baggers have popularized ball-licking and transvaginal ultrasounds.

But Barry Soetoro is not African. His sperm donor was African, his mother a loony 17 year old chick, so Barry is mulatto.

Michelle wants to tell people what to eat, although her ass is huge and she eats whatever she chooses. Obama smokes but he wants to control your access to doctors.

The various "Tea parties" held here and there were a response to the absurd growth of govt. and everyone knows taxes must rise to pay for it.

Taxes and regulations and govt. intrusion HAVE gone up.

My tea party in-laws visited us last night and spent the night.

thomaswong.1986 says

they been saying that since 2010....

but really what else would a Liberal Rag paper say otherwise....

This isn't about "liberal rags" or whatever. The fact of the matter is that the whole purpose the tea party was engineered by billionaires and commercial interests failed big time. It failed to stop Obamacare. It has now failed to make a repeat of 2010 by having all of their candidates for this fall soundly defeated by establishment Republicans.

The only thing the tea party succeeded at was to get a few Americans to gullibly believe that it is a "real" movement when in fact they're simply being used as political pawns.clambo says

The various "Tea parties" held here and there were a response to the absurd growth of govt. and everyone knows taxes must rise to pay for it.

I am so damned tired of reading shit like that. It means absolutely nothing. Its simply a big cliche' that the GOP has run into the ground and yet they can't even back it up because they too spend money like its water and so too do the fake tea party politicians.

Lastly, there needs to be a real emphasis on educating Americans about finance. There seems to be this totally unrealistic expectation Amongst some on the right who think that somehow we can have this gigantic military, 8-lane wide freeways, sparking-clean schools with teachers who will get their kids straight-A's and yet somehow we can do it all with zero taxes and that even when the cost of living and all the items attached to that also go up in price that we can never-ever raise taxes in conjunction with those costs. I'm not even talking about special programs either. I'm talking about the basics of running a country because like it or not it costs money to do so and with that comes.... drum roll... taxes. I fail to see how starving the government out of funds to do its job helps anyone. Personally I like going to national parks, driving on roads not full of pot holes, or maybe even getting social security someday. I'm also willing to pay taxes in order to have those things.

So now that sarah palin is six year dated news, and the tea party is dead and gone, what does that leave democrats to talk about?

errc says

So now that sarah palin is six year dated news, and the tea party is dead and
gone, what does that leave democrats to talk about?

They still have plenty of issues. All they need to do is screech about:

- Raaacism
- War on women!
- H8ing on science and gheys!

You know, Democrats will focus on all these massively important issues that face America and humanity.

Let us not forget about confusing a symptom (wealth inequality) as a problem, and therefore misdiagnosing a cure (higher income taxes) as a solution.

Big corps and big money are squashing the little guy! Labor is so undervalued!
We need to raise income taxes (on labor)

Is it any surprise that only this confused bunch of miscreants could have done the bidding of the evil corporations, and confused fixing our broken health care system, with pushing heritage foundationcare on us, that does little more than raise taxes, empower evil corporations, and make the citizenry less healthy than they were before.

What a bunch of simple simon motherfuckers

socal2 says

wog says

Yes because as we all know, Obamacare is about government hospitals.

But aren't all the liberals who are faced with the total failure of Obamacare now saying that just wanted a "single payer" system all along?

Even if that were true, single payer isn't about government hospitals either. It's about medicare for all. We would pay tax to a single health insurance company, run by the government and not for profit.

Medicare already exists for the part of life when health care gets expensive for most people, so making the transition to this would be relatively easy and not all that costly.

The only problem was the power of the insurance industry lobby.

marcus says

Even if that were true, single payer isn't about government hospitals either.
It's about medicare for all. We would pa a tax to a single health insurance
company, run by the government and not for profit.

Doesn't the UK have single payer?

Doesn't the UK government run NHS?

socal2 says

But aren't all the liberals who are faced with the total failure of Obamacare now saying that just wanted a "single payer" system all along?

Yeah... except it hasn't failed.

marcus says

The only problem was the power of the insurance industry lobby.

I wish it was that simple.

Insurance profits are about $.05 cents on the dollar. Insurance profits are large in volume, but the margins are some of the lowest of US industries.

You really believe that the bloated, corrupt, and innefficient unionzed US government bureaucracy could run ANYTHING for $.05 cents on the dollar? If so, which government agency or department?

Look at the corruption in the VA scandal where the government bureaucracy was manipulating wait lists so their reports could look good and still receieve bonuses while people died waiting.

edvard2 says

Yeah... except it hasn't failed.

Based on what metric?

Based on 2 of their biggest promises, it sure as shit has failed:

- Failed to reduce average premiums by $2,500
- If you like your doctor/plan you can keep your doctor/plan?

And since all of the cost pain was unilaterally delayed by Obama to get past the elections (employer mandate etc.) the financial pain and loss of choices is only going to get worse and worse each year.

It is just basic logic, you simply can't massively increase the safety net and require more expansive coverage for everyone without it costing alot more money.

socal2 says

Doesn't the UK have single payer?

Doesn't the UK government run NHS?

You really don't know what single payer means, do you.

socal2 says

You really believe that the bloated, corrupt, and innefficient unionzed US government bureaucracy could run ANYTHING for $.05 cents on the dollar? If so, which government agency or department?

I don't know how efficient the employees at medicare are, but the leverage of being the only one paying doctors (except for supplemental policies), and setting the rates for what they will pay for each service far far FAR outweighs the exaggerated inefficiency your dogma says exists for all government workers.

Medicare already exists and pays for a huge part of our healthcare.

marcus says

You really don't know what single payer means, do you.

Think you need to google UK's NHS and get back with me.

socal2 says

Based on what metric?

Based on 2 of their biggest promises, it sure as shit has failed:

- Failed to reduce average premiums by $2,500

- If you like your doctor/plan you can keep your doctor/plan?

Based on the fact that now versus then you can now get insurance if you have a pre-existing condition. Based on the millions of Americans who couldn't afford insurance but now can. Based on the plan having to date saved consumers over 3 billion dollars.

But anyway, like I said- the tea party and the GOP's primary goal was to stop Obamacare and protect their corporate backers. They lost. Read that again: LOST. Its over. So no matter how many sill right-wing cliche's are mentioned it won't do a damned thing. They lost. too bad, so sad...

errc aked: what does that leave democrats to talk about?
Well, in the CA open primaries (especially the Bay Area), you have "business" Dems running against "labor" Dems. The elephant in the room is public employee pensions. The CA assembly started to address the issue by throwing the millenials under the bus with a two tier system a couple of years back, but more reform is needed on the "unvested" (not year earned) portions of existing public employees pensions.

Sorry ebguy, I should have been more specific. On the national stage,,,,