I don't have a dog in this fight, but...

[Sundae]

I thought Newt was one of the saner candidates. But I'm reading The Gay Metropolis by Charles Kaiser, which is technically a history of gay people in New York from the 1940s onwards, but is further ranging and quite fascinating. 'Cept I have to stop and keep looking up people and places which it is assumed I know about. Anita Bryant, Fire Island et al.

Anyway, I know Republicans are the anti-gay party (not Republican Dwellars, but that's what comes across from the party) but I didn't realise how far back Gingrich's homophobia was adversely affecting gay lives.

Still, it's all education - live and learn.

[fargon]

Vote for Ralph, or Fluffy whomever your heart desires.

[xoxoxoBruce]

Or go with the majority and don't vote at all.

[Undertoad]

Thaddeus McCotter was awesome, but lost his congressional job in 2012 due to arcane ballot access matters*. It should not have happened, I'm certain it was his staffers' fault as was alleged, and he deserved better. But in any case, it's unlikely that he will ever again be in politics.





*trust me: i know about arcane ballot access matters. i devoted several years of my life to arcane ballot access matters...

[Lamplighter]

Originally Posted by Undertoad

Thaddeus McCotter was awesome, but lost his congressional job in 2012
due to arcane ballot access matters*. It should not have happened,
I'm certain it was his staffers' fault as was alleged, and he deserved better.
But in any case, it's unlikely that he will ever again be in politics....

I followed up on your post about Mr McCotter in our Book of all Truths, Wikipedia,
and it does appear as tho it was his staff that were responsible for his political demise.
Several members of his staff were found guilty and served jail time for forging (my phrase)
signatures on ballot nomination forms which resulting in the signatures being removed.

But I'm not seeing what you mean by "arcane ballot access matters"
Was it only a problem with the numbers, or do you suggest there were other political games being played ?

At this point of my readings, I would put the events in the same category as
what seems to be going on with Chris Christy and the Washington Bridge business.
Christy denies all "knowledge or involvement", but some of his staff appear to be deeply involved.

But as with the military's chain of command, the boss "knew or should have known",
what the staff is doing. And if not he/she is still complicit because he/she should have
trained or otherwise shown subordinates the legal or appropriate ways to run their shop.

[Undertoad]

Ah I see, it didn't go down exactly as I'd heard: his staffers faked the signatures.

It's a common thing, where the candidates are unaware of how critical it is to meet the requirements. And they only had to collect 1,000 signatures. That's only $500 and a weekend with the right group, at the going rate of $2 per.

[xoxoxoBruce]

Do the signers show ID, or do the collectors just accept their word? If the signer is annoyed, feeling trapped because they can't bring themselves to say no but really don't want to, they could give false information getting both the collector and candidate in trouble.

[Undertoad]

It's nearly impossible to get anyone to sign anything in this day, so you can't ask for anything more than the signing. You just have to take people's word for it, and over-collect.

What was I thinking $500, it's $2000 for 1000 signatures at $2 per.

[xoxoxoBruce]

I find it strange after serving since 2003 he had to get nominating petition signatures for the 2012 primary. Guess the party wanted him out.

[Lamplighter]

I can imagine one dilemma that Representatives (of both parties) must face when running for the Presidency
... their re-election as Representative is every 2 years, and so always coincides with the term of the President.
OTOH, sometimes Senators luck out when their term does not, and they are simply remaining in office as they run for President.

Michigan may or may not be like other states in requiring candidates to declare if they are running for both offices... I don't know.

In any case, it may well be the staff was negligent in not fulfilling the state's election law requirements in a timely manner.

[Sundae]

I'm white and from a Christian background. I will be honest and say I never want to go to Birmingham (West Midlands, England) in my life again.

Moslems?
Forget the bloody Muslims (more common pronunciation here)
On the way from Leeds to Oxford over Christmas I believed I was being helped onto the right coach at our Birmingham interchange. Look up various photos here, I was the pink haired black faced lady with no glasses and very compromised eyesight.
Miserable bloody white Geordie driver didn't let us know that those of us travelling on to Oxford NEEDED TO CHANGE COACH. I was not the only person who was horrified to find myself in Plymouth. And that had nothing to do with Moslems either.

On the way home to the nuthouse, it was evil weather that gave me an enforced stay in a very cold Birmingham coach station. I refused to pay for the toilet, as I should have been on a coach with a free one at that point. They eventually let me pee for free.
My tears didn't move them re a free drink though. No water available (bet they were lying) only what could be bought from the concourse, and that was run by concessions, so they couldn't make them give us food or drink, no matter how long we were held up.

I wish Brum Coach Station was run by Muslims. Real ones, not perverse murderers. Hospitality is one of the tenets of Islam. They'd have got me a glass of water and a few tissues.

[Griff]

Just an aside on "no go" areas. Don't most cities have a few blocks that have special rules? There are places in little Binghamton where the city cops never roll fewer than three cars.

[Lamplighter]

Western Samoan, and many other South Pacific Islands are sad, but Jeb Bush and all the other GOP presidential candidates are happy.

Mitt Romney has bowed out of the 2016 GOP Presidential race.

And besides all that: The pundits are saying this gives Jeb Bush a leg up.
But Scott Walker is hiding the the bushes ready to jump out and run
across the finish line without having legged the entire marathon.

And too, Donald Trump is saying exactly what is expected of The Frump...

[Lamplighter]

Today is the day Scooter's poo hit the rotating blades

SW: Oh, excuse me. It was just a typo

SW: Oh, excuse me. It was just a misunderstanding by their staff

SW: Oh, excuse me. It was just a misunderstanding by my staff

SW: Oh, excuse me. Uh .... I mean.... uh... Oh, Well... uh....

[Lamplighter]

The NY Times has seen fit to write an entire editorial about The Scooter.
Here is the gist, for those of you who are not just interested in $ and budgets...


NY Times (Editorial Board) 2/6/15
Gov. Walker’s ‘Drafting Error’

It was not enough for Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin suddenly to propose
a destructive 13 percent cut in state support for the University of Wisconsin’s widely respected system.
His biennial budget plan, released Tuesday, reached gratuitously into the university’s
hallowed 111-year-old mission statement to delete a bedrock principle:
“Basic to every purpose of the system is the search for truth.”

The budget — patently tailored for the governor’s conservative
campaign for the Republican presidential nomination
— inserted language that the university should be more narrowly concerned with meeting
“the state’s work force needs.”

Brazenly deleted as well from the mission statement, which is
nationally appreciated in education circles as the Wisconsin Idea,
were the far from controversial goals
“to educate people and improve the human condition” and “serve and stimulate society.”
It was as if a trade school agenda were substituted for the idea of a university.

But Mr. Walker badly miscalculated — <snip><snip><snip>

If nothing else, Mr. Walker is sharpening the debate within the Republican Party
about whether it can win despite its own extremists.

Besides all that: It looks as tho I do have a dog in this fight.


.