Althouse: "Wisconsin has a nearly unbroken modern-day record of voting for party front-runners in its presidential primary."

April 3, 2016

"Wisconsin has a nearly unbroken modern-day record of voting for party front-runners in its presidential primary."

And apparently we're about to throw that distinction away. Why?

111 comments:

Heartless Aztec said...: In this "over under sideways down" election who in the hell knows?; 4/3/16, 9:11 AM
Phil 314 said...: Gee, it sounds like I'm a Wisconsin Republican, or at least a SE WI one.

My vote didn't count in AZ (2 weeks before primary by mail and for Rubio who dropped out before actual primary).

Can I vote in the WI primary? It sounds like Republican votes mean something in Presidential politics there.; 4/3/16, 9:13 AM
bleh said...: Maybe because the nomination is usually locked up by the time Wisconsin votes?; 4/3/16, 9:15 AM
Qwerty Smith said...: If Wisconsin votes for Cruz and Sanders, it will still have a "nearly" unbroken record. The weasel-word exception that keeps the streak going despite Gary Hart in 1984 can presumably be used more than once.

This kind of streak-talk reminds me of the 20 year presidential death rule: presidents elected in years divisible by 20 (Harrison, Lincoln, Garfield, McKinley, Harding, FDR, Kennedy) have all died in office, except for those who did not (Jefferson, Monroe, Reagan, W).; 4/3/16, 9:19 AM
tola'at sfarim said...: Nearly unbroken=broken. Exception that proves the rule, small sample size, unusually contested primary- who knows; 4/3/16, 9:22 AM
David Begley said...: Wisconsin may well save the GOP from a Trump disaster.

Thank you Badgers.; 4/3/16, 9:24 AM
Paul said...: "Wisconsin may well save the GOP from a Trump disaster.

Thank you Badgers."

In exchange for the Clinton disaster likely to replace it.

Way to go Badgers.; 4/3/16, 9:34 AM
David Begley said...: Paul

Cruz beats Hillary easily. Joe Biden will be tougher to beat.; 4/3/16, 9:36 AM
Mark said...: Really David? I only saw one outlier this week which was contradicted by two other polls that same day.; 4/3/16, 9:45 AM
pm317 said...: Cruz.. not if the other shoe drops from the bible thumping adulterer.; 4/3/16, 9:46 AM
mccullough said...: Reagan won Wisconsin in 1984, the last GOP candidate to do so. It is not a purple state at the Presidential level. If the gubernatorial election were held in the presidential election years then Wisconsin would always have a Dem governor. Johnson is going to lose his Senate seat since this is a presidential election year, just like Baldwin beat Thompson in 2012.

So the race between Sanders and Clinton is the important one. I'd recommend the suburbanites in Wisconsin vote in the Dem primary if they want some say on who the next president is.; 4/3/16, 9:50 AM
traditionalguy said...: Ryan for President is the back up plan to Drop out Walker.

A Cruz vote is a Ryan vote for the third ballot rigged by Priebus.

What could go wrong with that.; 4/3/16, 9:50 AM
mccullough said...: Cruz would win maybe 10 states in the general election. He's even less likeable than Hillary, is unattractive, and is an incompetent campaigner. No one wants to see that d-bag on TV for the next 4 years. He makes Nixon look like Cary Grant; 4/3/16, 9:53 AM
James Pawlak said...: Perhaps the GOP's members in Wisconsin:
1. Remember that Hitler was put into power by a plurality of voters;
2. That they, repeatedly, supported Governor Walker---Who was grossly insulted by Trump;
3. That Wisconsin's citizens are well know to have an above-average, but not high enough, ability to recognize "Con Men" AND other criminals.; 4/3/16, 9:55 AM
Anonymous said...: Save you from Donald, Begley? If the voters are thwarted, you're not going to have a GOP. I might vote Dem just to burn your little club to the ground, and I'm not alone. You think this will all just end if you can stop Trump.

That will just be the beginning. We will rip your party to shreds, and LOVE it.; 4/3/16, 9:57 AM
mccullough said...: If Paul Ryan runs for President he will also run for his house seat again like he did when he ran for VP in 2012. Politics is a drug to him. 18 years of useless ideas or ones that have been proven wrong several times over. Ryan said the 2013 tax hikes would cause a recession and would lead to higher unemployment. Does anyone call him on his bullshit? The guy is supposed to be a budget guru but numbers always add up when you use bullshit assumptions.; 4/3/16, 9:59 AM
Sebastian said...: Maybe WI GOPers have been reading transcripts of Trump speeches and interviews.; 4/3/16, 10:04 AM
Birkel said...: TCom and his ilk:

A plan to "Burn it Down" has never worked well in all of history. The misery associated with your 35% candidate hissy fit will be plain enough.

Good luck.; 4/3/16, 10:15 AM
Mr. D said...: 1) It's a meaningless distinction. Who cares?
2) The frontrunners for both parties are horrible people. Neither should be president.; 4/3/16, 10:15 AM
Heartless Aztec said...: @Mr.D: Complete concurrence. If either one wins I'm moving out of the country. Somewhere where I can enjoy hypocrisy and criminal behavior in a pure and undiluted form. Russia maybe...; 4/3/16, 10:24 AM
Phil 314 said...: "Cruz.. not if the other shoe drops from the bible thumping adulterer."

As opposed to the Bible stumped adulterer?; 4/3/16, 10:26 AM
JAORE said...: The frontrunners for both parties are horrible people. Neither should be president.

Mr. D for the win.; 4/3/16, 10:30 AM
Carol said...: A plan to "Burn it Down" has never worked well in all of history.

This. Because it is beyond lazy and irresponsible. Assignment: Dr. Zhivago or Gulag Archipelago, case studies for those who think it can't get any worse.; 4/3/16, 10:32 AM
pm317 said...: Cruz is the one running and thumping bible this time. Not Trump.; 4/3/16, 10:34 AM
Phunctor said...: Anne wages a lonely battle for the soul of the Democratic party; I believe she has some insight into us sold-out former Republicans. Would that she'd accept an operating system upgrade; she's still operating on MLK antiracism, today's reality is BLM weisenhass. So the thought that white men have legitimate interests as a group gets force-fitted with a pointy hood and dismissed.

All that aside, she's delightfully Socratic.; 4/3/16, 10:34 AM
mccullough said...: Hillary is going to be president and she is going to win Wisconsin in the fall. Not enough people vote for the GOP in national elections anymore. They can't even win heavily white states like Wisconsin and Minnesota and New Hampshire and Maine and Vermont. The GOP will be lucky to hold North Carolina and Georgia. Virginia and Colorado and Nevada are now permanent blue states at the presidential level.

The cult is dying. No one believes in the bullshit anymore. Just going to have to be content with watching the left eat itself like it is doing on college campuses and in Hollywood/. Entertainment and amusement are important parts of life.; 4/3/16, 10:38 AM
Achilles said...: Cruz supporters better live it up now. Pennsylvania and New York are not going to be such fertile ground. Wisconsin is isolated and quirky politically and the only place outside of DC where Ryan is popular. Wisconsin doesn't have daily stories of violent crimes committed by a certain demographic.

Cruz is making a mistake sucking up to the establishment and teaming up with SJW's. That won't fly anywhere else and I think he knows the establishment is just going to screw him in the end.

Cruz is going to have to team up with Trump if he wants to be on a ballot in November.; 4/3/16, 10:43 AM
mccullough said...: No one is burning anything down. The GOP agenda of tax cuts for the rich to create jobs in China, endless wars in Muslims countries that GOP leases would never personally fight in, much less their coddled spoiled children, and endless deficits isn't a winning hand. And not enough people give a shit about abortion or gay marriage or transgender bathrooms since their economic prospects aren't good. For Christ sakes, a good chunk of evangelicals are voting for Trump. That would be like blacks voting for Mitt Romney.

Refusing to keep people in power who pretend to want to help them but who actually despise them is not burning anything down. It's just telling those jagoffs that they will not be in power any more and let the people who openly and honestly tell them they don't give a shit about them rule the roost since the effect is the same to them anyway.

I can see why the handful of people who benefit in the short term from GOP bullshit are mad that Trump has exposed the GOP leaders as frauds. No one likes to lay 10% more in taxes. But suck it up. You live in nice suburbs and hang out with suburban progressives anyway. So you might have to sell the summer house and your sons might have to go to the bathroom with girls and other. Big fucking deal. You want your kids to make money and be safe. And they will make money and be safe or safe enough. It's not like they're going to join the Baltimore Police. The chance of getting killed by terrorism is ridiculously low.; 4/3/16, 10:54 AM
Achilles said...: Birkel said...
TCom and his ilk:

"A plan to "Burn it Down" has never worked well in all of history. The misery associated with your 35% candidate hissy fit will be plain enough.

Good luck."

We are not going to become serfs.

Get hillary elected and see how it turns out for you. Trump's campaign policies are the best we have had available in a candidate in decades and he is handing Republicans a chance to unite conservatives and working class voters again like Reagan did.

But conservatives are in a dream world where the GoPe is honest and Cruz has the charisma necessary to deal with the forces now attacking Trump. Cruz will whither if he is the nominee. He needs Trump to get him in the white house not just for the working class voters he will bring. Cruz would have been out of the race by now without Trump.; 4/3/16, 11:01 AM
Michael K said...: "Cruz beats Hillary easily. Joe Biden will be tougher to beat."

Cruz is not a general election winner. Trump might be. The combination of them would be the best ticket but I don't know id that is still possible. Cruz knows the GOPe hates him as much as they hate Trump.

He might start thinking about this after New York, which I expect Trump to win big.

The FBI report will leak by June and turn the Democrats upside down.; 4/3/16, 11:07 AM
Paul said...: Without the republicans united they will probably lose. Cruz is a creep show and will never win a general election. Ryan or Romney are simply not acceptable to the huge numbers of anti GOPe voters. Only the democrats can win with a totally unlikable or even unpopular candidate as they are united by decades of Frankfurt School emotional brainwashing.

Trump, for all his flaws, is America's last chance to reverse demographic suicide. It's a done deal in Europe and we're hurtling down the same path. All the pet interests of the conservatives simply are of secondary importance next to this truely existential crisis, but like the left they too live in a bubble and lack perspective.; 4/3/16, 11:17 AM
Mark said...: With Garage gone, Michael K has taken up his endless beating of the John Doe drum but repainted it with Hillary instead of Walker.

It sounds like a different tune but when I looked in the DSM it was the same indictment delusion as the John Doe outbreak in Wisconsin a few years back.; 4/3/16, 11:18 AM
Sebastian said...: "Trump, for all his flaws, is America's last chance to reverse demographic suicide." How's that? He favors touchback amnesty, has "changed" with regard to H1B visas, has no clue about actual immigration law, and generally seems to favor letting in "good ones."; 4/3/16, 11:23 AM
The Cracker Emcee Refulgent said...: "The FBI report will leak by June and turn the Democrats upside down."

Please. It could be reported in banner headlines in the NYT and not one of the 46 million Americans receiving food stamps would change their vote. Hillary is a criminal piece of shit but it's delusional to think the election is significantly influenced by that fact. It isn't the 1950's and it is discouraging to see how many Republicans/conservatives have not yet woken to that reality. Democrats simply do not care about integrity. At all. Not even a teensy-weensy bit. Ever.; 4/3/16, 11:28 AM
Birkel said...: Achilles:
There is no evidence a Trump candidacy will win a general election. Be the first to find some.

mccullough:
You are a better than average moby.; 4/3/16, 11:31 AM
Anonymous said...: I see there will be a whole bunch of very dissapointed folks when the indictment they're so looking forward to doesn't happen.; 4/3/16, 11:32 AM
Michael K said...: "Michael K has taken up his endless beating of the John Doe drum but repainted it with Hillary instead of Walker."

So, national security is not an issue for you. I get that.

"when the indictment they're so looking forward to doesn't happen."

I don't expect an indictment from Lynch. What I expect is a leaked FBI report.

The relative lack of enthusiasm for Hillary and the enthusiasm at Bernie rallies are both signs of trouble for the felon.; 4/3/16, 11:36 AM
Anonymous said...: Achilles obviously thinks every single poll of the last several months have all been outliers. Trump does the worst against Sanders and Clinton out of any of the Republican candidates. More and more people are jumping the Trump ship, it's sinking.; 4/3/16, 11:44 AM
Michael K said...: Joe Scarborough seems to understand what is going on.

Even as the Manhattan billionaire is enduring his most dreadful period of the campaign, attacks against Trump have reached new heights, with commentators focusing their withering criticism on supporters, ignoring the fact that many of those same voters helped make Ronald Reagan president, Newt Gingrich speaker of the House and Marco Rubio a U.S. senator.

But now these voters, formerly called common-sense conservatives, are considered drug-addled losers who are too stupid to determine what is in their best interest. The left-wing’s “What’s the Matter With Kansas?” is now the GOP establishment’s “What the Hell’s Up With Upstate New York?”

It is interesting.; 4/3/16, 11:47 AM
Limited blogger said...: Being a proud 'upstate New Yorker', I'm really looking forward to casting my vote for Trump in 2 weeks.

Soon after, I'm confident Trump and Cruz will have worked out an accommodation, and we can move confidently towards the general.; 4/3/16, 12:05 PM
David said...: Doesn't count. Trump and Sanders are not "party" front runners.; 4/3/16, 12:15 PM
Anonymous said...: Birkel: "A plan to "Burn it Down" has never worked well in all of history. The misery associated with your 35% candidate hissy fit will be plain enough.

Wouldn't say being chronically incompetent or impotent enough to to provoke a "burn it down" attitude in a significant percentage of voters is much of a plan, either.

Achilles: Cruz would have been out of the race by now without Trump.

True, and a point worth pondering by anybody but people who would have been perfectly happy with ¡Jeb!. (Not that most of 'em will ever admit it, though.); 4/3/16, 12:18 PM
Big Mike said...: It's pretty simple: early in the primary season Donald Trump seemed like a breath of fresh air. Now he seems more like a breath of Rio de Janeiro air.; 4/3/16, 12:27 PM
Brando said...: "Cruz is going to have to team up with Trump if he wants to be on a ballot in November."

And what better way to get a guy to team up with you than to repeatedly call him a liar and then tweet a nasty picture of his wife? I must have missed that chapter in "Art of the Deal" where this was described as a brilliant teambuilding technique.

"We are not going to become serfs."

And yet here you are trying to elect a guy that wants to be Tsar.; 4/3/16, 12:32 PM
Achilles said...: Birkel said...
"Achilles:
There is no evidence a Trump candidacy will win a general election. Be the first to find some."

Through the first 12 primaries the republican party had 17 million voters. Through the first 12 the democrats had 11. I could find more updated information to include the most recent if you want.

If Hillary gets 100% of the Bernie voters to show up and gets the 10-15% OF GOPe Rubio supporters and Trump gets 80% of the Cruz voters to show up Trump wins. I have talked to bernie voters. They are not all going to show up for Hillary. In fact they were not supportive of Trump on policy but they were glad he was shaking things up.

I will trade the small chunk of GOPe that want a Romney/Ryan sellout for half the Bernie voters that want an honest candidate. Cruz will avoid getting screwed by the GOPe and be on the Trump ticket. The Reagan coalition will be back together again without Bush WASP sellouts.; 4/3/16, 12:37 PM
Achilles said...: Amanda said...
"Achilles obviously thinks every single poll of the last several months have all been outliers. Trump does the worst against Sanders and Clinton out of any of the Republican candidates. More and more people are jumping the Trump ship, it's sinking."

You believe Hillary is going to win the presidency and be president. You think Hillary is a decent human being even though she trashed, attacked, and intimidated Bill's numerous rape and assault victims.

I had a TS/SCI clearance. You are fine with Hillary not going to jail for crimes she obviously committed that would have me in jail for life. The only reason you want her treated differently than me is because she is rich, powerful, and politically connected.

You have no soul. Neither does the media that puts out those polls. At the end of the month Pennsylvania and New York will go to Trump handily. Trump/Cruz will roll through November and Hillary will not be able to pardon herself.; 4/3/16, 12:47 PM
Brando said...: "Through the first 12 primaries the republican party had 17 million voters. Through the first 12 the democrats had 11."

This is the go-to reason Trump fans say he will beat Hillary in November, but keep in mind that the GOP primaries have had a lot more voters because (a) they had a lot more candidates on the ballot and (b) they have a much tighter contest than the Dems, who are for the most part having a coronation. A lot of Democrats aren't too excited about Hillary but think Bernie is too far to the left, and a lot have accepted the conclusion that Hillary is getting nominated no matter what (helped in part by a compliant press that never took Sanders seriously as a threat at any point in this campaign). Obviously the GOP race is going to get a lot more excitement, and people eligible to vote in either party's primary will choose to vote in the one that seems it could come down to the wire.

But unless the vast majority of polls taken since last year have been wildly wrong (which of course is conceivable, but I haven't seen anyone do an analysis suggesting why they are wrong) it still remains that Hillary has a hefty lead over Trump, even while Cruz holds a slight lead over her. Trump's support is almost completely compartamentalized within the GOP and to date a lot of GOP voters are still repelled by him.

This can change (a lot of those voters will hold their nose and vote for him) but with the info we have now there's no reason to see him beating her.; 4/3/16, 12:52 PM
Achilles said...: Brando said...
"Cruz is going to have to team up with Trump if he wants to be on a ballot in November."

And what better way to get a guy to team up with you than to repeatedly call him a liar and then tweet a nasty picture of his wife? I must have missed that chapter in "Art of the Deal" where this was described as a brilliant team building technique."

You missed the part where Cruz repeatedly lied about Donald's positions I guess. They both know it is part of the game. Cruz deep down knows that his side started it with the wives. Cruz will choose Trump over the SJW's in the end.

"We are not going to become serfs."

"And yet here you are trying to elect a guy that wants to be Tsar."

This is your projection. Just like your projections about Trumps policy positions. All you have right now are projections. Pennsylvania and New York are going to put Trump ahead by far too much for Cruz to overcome.

Cruz knows that if the GOPe is willing to push Donald aside after the first ballot there is no way the insiders are going to let him get the nomination. He also knows he needs Trumps supporters to actually win in November. Both sides are going to have to come down off their high horses.; 4/3/16, 12:53 PM
Brando said...: "You believe Hillary is going to win the presidency and be president. You think Hillary is a decent human being even though she trashed, attacked, and intimidated Bill's numerous rape and assault victims."

I thought Amanda was a Sanders fan? I haven't actually seen any genuine Hillary fans on this site. Though Trump is probably the only person the GOP can nominate that would make a lot of Hillary haters hold their noses and vote for her.

A very large chunk of the electorate on both sides will be voting for people they cannot stand only because they have greater fear of someone else they cannot stand. Not a great way for either of them to start a presidency.; 4/3/16, 12:55 PM
Achilles said...: Brando said...

"This is the go-to reason Trump fans say he will beat Hillary in November, but keep in mind that the GOP primaries have had a lot more voters because (a) they had a lot more candidates on the ballot and (b) they have a much tighter contest than the Dems, who are for the most part having a coronation."

I don't think you get out much.

The democrats are even more split now than the republicans. You need to talk to some Bernie supporters. Bernie just won a bunch of western states including mine with 70+% of the vote. They think Hillary is evil and disgusting just like we do. The young women hear what Bill did and do not like it one bit. When they describe what Hillary did to his rape victims they are incensed.

They also think Cruz is the devil. Just saying.; 4/3/16, 12:58 PM
Brando said...: "You missed the part where Cruz repeatedly lied about Donald's positions I guess. They both know it is part of the game."

Does it matter? What matters is they've trashed each other so badly it's hard for anything nice they might say about each other to seem sincere. This isn't like Bush calling Reaganomics "voodoo economics"--these guys have gone after each other's character. And I know if it was my wife being treated with such cruelty I'd never make up with a person like that. I can't speak for everyone else though.

"This is your projection. Just like your projections about Trumps policy positions. All you have right now are projections."

That's all anyone has right now. And Trump has given us plenty of signals for those of us with libertarian leanings to fear what he would do with power.; 4/3/16, 12:58 PM
Brando said...: "I don't think you get out much."

Well, it is crappy outside which is why I'm online right now.

"The democrats are even more split now than the republicans. You need to talk to some Bernie supporters. Bernie just won a bunch of western states including mine with 70+% of the vote. They think Hillary is evil and disgusting just like we do. The young women hear what Bill did and do not like it one bit. When they describe what Hillary did to his rape victims they are incensed."

I know that, and I've said as much before--most Dems don't care much for Hillary, and a sizable minority prefers Sanders, and when she gets nominated it will be only a fear of the GOP candidate that will get them to the polls for her. They prefer the devil they know, just as a lot of Republicans do. But that doesn't address my point above, which is that the higher GOP primary vote numbers has to do with a far more competitive race than the Dems have. It doesn't translate to general election voters who are far more numerous than primary voters.

"They also think Cruz is the devil. Just saying."

They do--Cruz would have his work cut out for him if he were the nominee.; 4/3/16, 1:03 PM
Anonymous said...: No soul? Achilles, you are so closed minded, so indoctrinated, it's pathetic. You see others who have a different opinion than yours as "soulless". Seriously what does that say about your own humanity?

It's not only the "media" who is putting out these polls. Get out of your bubble. Stop with the epistemic closure. There is a whole world of ideas and philosophies out there. Stop being so frightened by ideas. Stop with the silly overblown predictions of "serfdom", or risk being mocked.

2016 Presidential Polls; 4/3/16, 1:14 PM
Anonymous said...: Yes Brando, I do support Sanders. I will however vote for Hillary if she is the nominee, considering the alternative.; 4/3/16, 1:25 PM
Anonymous said...: "Through the first 12 primaries the republican party had 17 million voters. Through the first 12 the democrats had 11."

Things are changing.

DonaldTrump is motivating Democrats in Huge way.; 4/3/16, 1:37 PM
Michael K said...: "You missed the part where Cruz repeatedly lied about Donald's positions I guess. They both know it is part of the game. Cruz deep down knows that his side started it with the wives. Cruz will choose Trump over the SJW's in the end."

I agree although I wish the pissing match had not been so enthusiastic.; 4/3/16, 1:39 PM
Anonymous said...: Democrats are increasing their edge in US Party affiliation. This has happened since last fall. Before that party affiliation was basically equal.; 4/3/16, 1:43 PM
Birkel said...: What wonderful things, based on past performance, will a Hillary presidency rain (or is it reign?) down on we lumpen proletariat, Amanda?

Enthusiasm for America's downfall is, domestically, at an all-time high.; 4/3/16, 1:46 PM
Birkel said...: I like that Cruz is responsible for anything anti-Trump.

And Trump is decidedly not responsible for the things Donald Trump has said on video.

It's an odd thing to watch otherwise reasonable people choose a side so damned hard. I have criticized Cruz, for example in the post about joking about running over Trump in reverse. A bit more self-reflection would do some of you a lot of good.; 4/3/16, 1:51 PM
Anonymous said...: Birkel,
What wonderful things, based on past performance, will a President Cruz make happen for Liberty Loving Americans? Oh I know, another government shutdown, whoopee! Maybe our credit rating can be downgraded!; 4/3/16, 1:53 PM
Brando said...: "Yes Brando, I do support Sanders. I will however vote for Hillary if she is the nominee, considering the alternative."

That seems to be the sentiment among my left-leaning friends, including my parents--they either don't care much for Hillary, or genuinely loathe her but if the choice is her or Trump they will absolutely make it to the polls to stop Trump.

I don't know if they'd have done that with a different Republican on the ballot. I remember in '92 my father (a lifelong Democrat who'd never voted for a Republican before) voted for Bush (even though he'd voted Dukakis four years earlier) simply because he couldn't trust Clinton.; 4/3/16, 1:55 PM
Anonymous said...: Brando, I would consider voting for Kasich, if he were to be the nominee, against Hillary. Cruz and especially Trump, absolutely no.; 4/3/16, 1:59 PM
mccullough said...: Amanda,

Lean dem and lean GOP mean that these people actually don't identify with either party. Self identified GOP are 25% of voters and self identified Dem are 29%. Expect a very low turnout election as most people don't identify with either cult. In 2012, 57% of the voting eligible voted. 43% of Americans don't give a fuck about either party. Expect that number to approach 50%.

it's interesting that in all the stats you pull up you never mention the percentage of the VEP who vote. Most people don't care. Never have and never will.

Birkel,

Your comments here have always been below the Mendoza line. You're here to make conservatives look ignorant and petty. But you're not fooling any of us.; 4/3/16, 2:14 PM
Big Mike said...: If I was running a 103 degree fever I would still climb out of my sickbed and walk five miles (actual distance to my poling place is only half that!) through chest-deep snow to vote against Hillary Clinton, I don't care who the Republican is.

I think anyone who would vote for a corruptocrat like Hillary Clinton is morally deficient.; 4/3/16, 2:24 PM
mccullough said...: Amanda,

Kasich is for trickle down economics and more war and $1 trillion deficits. And Jesus told him this is the best way to do shit. Didn't realize you were a fan. You must have voted for W twice because that's the same bullshit Kasich is slinging. Compassionate conservatism can work at the state level. Doesn't work at the federal level. It leads to sclerosis, high deficits, and dead soldiers.

Not much different than Hillary is selling either so can see why you'd choose Kasich over Hillary. Your support of Sanders shows you're white and an economic imbecile like Bernie. No one with any sense would vote for Sanders. He is by far the worst candidate and would ruin the US within 5 years. He is that fucking ignorant about human behavior. Every person who votes for him is a fucking moron.; 4/3/16, 2:25 PM
Achilles said...: Amanda said...
"No soul? Achilles, you are so closed minded, so indoctrinated, it's pathetic. You see others who have a different opinion than yours as "soulless". Seriously what does that say about your own humanity? "

Hillary stood on the coffins of dead veterans, lied about why they died, and lied to their parents. I saw how that could have easily been my parents and they might have believed her.

Ambassador Stevens literally died in a fire because she ignored his pleas for more security. Then she tried to blame republican budget cuts.

Hillary attacked and intimidated Bill's rape/assault victims.

Yes anyone who votes for Hillary knowing all of this has no soul.; 4/3/16, 2:27 PM
Paco Wové said...: "The frontrunners for both parties are horrible people."

And all the main parties' candidates will probably make bad Presidents.; 4/3/16, 2:35 PM
Birkel said...: Amanda:

Eight years of Obama will have netted the country a minimum of $9,000,000,000,000 worth of new debt. That's $30,000 for every man, woman and child.

And you complain about a temporary shutdown? The seed corn is gone.

mccullough:

Moby away. As a Democrat, you can never be expected to be an honest broker. Perhaps if you help suppress turnout enough you can celebrate a Hillary presidency.; 4/3/16, 2:37 PM
David Begley said...: Big Mike:

Could not agree more but the shocker to me is that right now about 40% of our fellow citizens - especially in key states- will vote for her.; 4/3/16, 2:42 PM
cacimbo said...: @mccullough
You are several decades behind in your assessment of who votes Republican. As a retired police officer I can say that most police have been voting Republican for decades.

Today's Democrat party primarily consists of a super rich white ruling class kept in power by a very poor black and brown voting class. Republican party voters are mostly the white (including white hispanics) middle classes in between. Middle class blacks have been ripe for transfer to the Republican party. Obama stalled that natural progression. Now Trump threatens to cut into the black vote - that has Democrats petrified.; 4/3/16, 2:52 PM
Brando said...: "Could not agree more but the shocker to me is that right now about 40% of our fellow citizens - especially in key states- will vote for her."

40%? In the general election she's likely to break 55%. But it says less about anyone's liking of her (her unfavorable ratings are above 50%) than it does about what the GOP is deciding to put up against her. They never waste an opportunity to waste an opportunity.; 4/3/16, 2:55 PM
SweatBee said...: What wonderful things, based on past performance, will a President Cruz make happen for Liberty Loving Americans? Oh I know, another government shutdown, whoopee!

For "Liberty-Loving Americans," a government shutdown isn't scary or bad. That's only a bad thing if you're a statist.

But since you asked, do you enjoy the ability you have to avoid being price-gouged on specialty items (things like caskets or contact lenses, dental devices, and other medical devices) because of recently-lowered barriers to competition? Have you ever bought wine online? Have you ever bought a car online (I have)?

If so, you can thank Ted Cruz. Those are all things he worked to achieve during his tenure fighting cronyism and government barriers to competition when he was director of the FTC’s Office of Policy Planning.; 4/3/16, 2:59 PM
mccullough said...: Cacimbo,

There are 800,000 cops in the US and another 500,00 retired. It is best for them and their beneficiaries to vote for whichever party
will bailout their underfunded pension plans. My guess is that the Dems in DC would do it, and maybe the GOP but probably not.

I doubt any of the retirees will turn down the federal bailout checks. Everyone is for big federal government when it helps them. A principled conservative would say I'm sorry your local or state government failed you but it is not the responsibility of federal tax payers or the federal government to rescue local or state pensioners from the consequences of poor local leaders.; 4/3/16, 3:25 PM
mccullough said...: Ted Cruz, like Paul Ryan, has spent almost his entire adult life working for government. Scott Walker, too. These guys can't cut it in the private sector; 4/3/16, 3:29 PM
Birkel said...: We can agree to hate attorneys but working in the private sector as an attorney still counts as private sector, mccullough's protestations notwithstanding. Ted Cruz worked as a private sector attorney.

As for cops and unfunded retirement plans, you can thank Democrats for that, too. Democrats didn't want fully funded retirement plans because that would have meant fewer (back then) dollars to tax. So Democrats changed the accounting rules back in the late 70s and early 80s and got their higher tax revenues. And pensions are underfunded, creating a crisis that mccullough and his party will not let go to waste.

After the trillions wasted by Obama, anybody who thinks Democrats will bail out a pension with money America doesn't have is delusional, a Democrat or both. Cue mccullough, the moby.; 4/3/16, 3:54 PM
Bleach Drinkers Curing Coronavirus Together said...: Your support of Sanders shows you're white and an economic imbecile like Bernie. No one with any sense would vote for Sanders.

OK, so now we know no one needs to take mccullough seriously.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a9xSVzdUNqo

As for Kasich, he can be as much a Republican as he wants to be. (Even though he isn't, and he moderates and cooperates much better than the rest of the jihadists running his party). But no matter. What he does have, and what is most important in a candidate, especially this year, is the proper temperament for the presidency. Someone who doesn't just shoot from the hip and excite himself/herself on the prospect of firing or killing or punching every American who doesn't agree with him/her.; 4/3/16, 3:55 PM
Michael K said...: "Being a proud 'upstate New Yorker',"

Where in upstate NY ? I'm going to be there in June looking at graveyards for ancestors. My great great grandfather is buried in Bombay NY. Way up by the St Lawrence River.

A close friend used to live in Cazenovia. He is now in Florida but may still own the house in Cazenovia.; 4/3/16, 3:59 PM
mccullough said...: R&B,

You know nothing of behaviorism economics or even less than your Master Old White Guy if you think a country with a diverse population is going to pay for a bunch of whiners to go to college for free or shed 10 million jobs in 6 months with a $15 an hour minimum wage. Do you really think Sanders knows shit about economics? Was that $15 an hour wage arrived at after careful study and an exhaustive review of all economic literature? Do you really think the profit margins in 99.9% of businesses that employ people at jobs that pay less than $15 an hour is anything more than 5% at most?

Just because you want to ruin society with your good intentions doesn't mean decent hard working low income people should watch their jobs disappear. The minimum wage in this country is $0. At least 10,000,000 are earning that. Sanders will make it 20 million.

And a guy with a fucking degree from the University of Chicago who was too fucking selfish to get an actual paying job to support his illegitimate son so that the hardworking people who already take care of their own kids could support his is not someone with integrity. He's a fucking bum. And you are a moron for supporting his utopian bullshit.; 4/3/16, 4:38 PM
SweatBee said...: But no matter. What he does have, and what is most important in a candidate, especially this year, is the proper temperament for the presidency.

I'm not convinced that he does. The nice Grandpa Kasich act looks like fakery to anybody who paid attention to Kasich during the 90's, which was the time of my life that I was the most actively involved in politics.; 4/3/16, 4:50 PM
mccullough said...: Birkel,

Kansas and Alabama are among the top 5 most unfunded government pension states per capita. Do you really think that was the result of Democrats?

Have you seen how Sam. Brownback has so fucked up Kansas with his stupid policies agreed to by a GOP legislature. The cultists are in denial. These policies don't fucking work. They never have.

It's bipartisan bullshit and always has been. The cults aren't worth following. Start thinking to yourself and quit reading the stupid suit from Natioanl Review and the Weekly Standard.

And Cruz has worked most of his life in the public sector. Please stop trying to refute shit I didn't say. That's cult bullshit like R&B and Amanda suffer from; 4/3/16, 4:52 PM
mccullough said...: Kasich is a total fake with his pious act. He's as annoying as Cuomo. Im tired of hearing how his old man was a mailman. Kasich voted to ship jobs to Mexico and China and then had a no show bullshit Wall Street job just like the rest of the assholes who sold out their fellow Americans. And he can shove his Jesus told me to expand Medicaid bullshit up his ass. Did Jesus tell tell him to vote to send good paying American jobs to Mexico and China, too? Jesus tell him to work for an investment bank? Jesus tell him when to take a shit? When to brush his teeth?; 4/3/16, 5:00 PM
Bleach Drinkers Curing Coronavirus Together said...: Keep up that anger, Burpel. Who are you supporting... Crooze? Hilarious. That guy can't even get a majority OR PLURALITY! in his own lumpen party. But you think it's Bernie Sanders who has the ideas that poll poorly and that people hate him - with all that impotent anger and rage you display toward him - nearly as much as they despise Cruz. That's laughable. Sanders' only real opposition is the Clintons. I'd say that's a more noble choice of enemies than Crooze's enemies. Keep on trying to portray him as selfish, though. I think that will go over really well. You say fuck the poor, fuck the American people, but Bernie's the bad guy for caring about them and actually listening to economists. Which of course you think is wrong because, hey, you're your own armchair expert on everything. He can bring up any number and it wouldn't matter because you probably even oppose all those mainstream economists who want to go with a $10.10 minimum wage. How could they ever know more than you, and your utopian belief in billionaire corporatism? Keep the faith, Burpel.; 4/3/16, 5:05 PM
Bleach Drinkers Curing Coronavirus Together said...: I'm not convinced that he does. The nice Grandpa Kasich act looks like fakery to anybody who paid attention to Kasich during the 90's, which was the time of my life that I was the most actively involved in politics.

Maybe Kasich learned from then, maybe he didn't. But he absolutely learned as governor when to stop going to war against the people, unlike what his buddies in MI and WI have done. There's a time for everything. And I don't care if he means it when he says that it's important not to be a douchebag to the people out there struggling. The fact is that he occasionally practices it and he understands that defensible politics demands it. That's good enough for me. I'll gladly take the Republican who at least has enough of a brain to know when to pay lip service to decent treatment of your citizens, over the Republican whose brain is paid for by Koch and loves wasting our time and our money by going to war against the poor and the least connected. I realize that most Republicans hate their fellow citizens - esp. if they're doing badly. I can't change that. But at least I can support the ones that fake it till they make it over the ones who froth at the mouth with excitement over how they intend to replace the safety net with a trap door.; 4/3/16, 5:12 PM
Michael K said...: Amusing to see the lefties arguing about who is the biggest asshole.

"the Republican whose brain is paid for by Koch"

Hilarious delusions.; 4/3/16, 5:25 PM
Bleach Drinkers Curing Coronavirus Together said...: Amusing to see the lefties arguing about who is the biggest asshole.

Amusing? No one harbors more class-based hatred than you do - the kind that's tearing the country apart. What's amusing is how blind you are to it.

"the Republican whose brain is paid for by Koch"

Hilarious delusions.

So you're saying that you're against Republicans doing what the donors who fund their campaigns pay them to do? Or you just believe that what their donors want is unimportant to them? Either way, clarify the humor you find in this supposed delusion of graft. Post your thesis on how political campaign contribution money has now suddenly become the first financial disincentive in the history of human economic behavior. I guess Republicans are just too good to do what their donors want. What a coincidence that their agendas align so neatly. You must have a lot of experience with all the money you got for doing the opposite of what you were paid to do. The only person I know who thought like this and thought he could get away with it is Bernie Madoff, but maybe you're more clever about it.; 4/3/16, 5:47 PM
Guildofcannonballs said...: All I know is if I were posting on Althouse circa 2008 there would be no Obama.

This humbles me, to know I could have prevented Obama yet only through the power of Althouse.

We, one garment with many stands of individual textile material, are more than the sum of all of our strings considered in chaos or separate; we maximize utility morally by being as one.

Time to Spread The Truth friendos!; 4/3/16, 5:55 PM
Guildofcannonballs said...: Taking a break for a few days, I noticed a certain hosts 3d perspective in this 2d world of ours.

You see, it all boils back down to Laslo. And his pappy, a certain Kaufmann, Andy. Or maybe it was Zmuda, who the hell can tell anymore 'sides DNA?

But the important thing is Men v. Women, and only Andy has had the courage to wrestle REAL women, chosen for their virility. Through this lens, Cruz and his slithery mannerisms appear to be the clear choice for the Staunchest of Staunch Conservative Standard Bearers.

Trump has shown with Megyn his wrastlin' skills against women are sub-par.; 4/3/16, 6:01 PM
Guildofcannonballs said...: LESSON: You might want to think "shit just got real" after reading the following:

http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2016/04/02/trailer-park-boys-actor-arrested-in-los-angeles-419042328/

But don't. Do not think that. This "real" isn't really real you see, do don't be thinking "shit just got real."

Not today, NOT TODAY.

Rush is old and past his prime, the gracious and ever nonbesmirchfull host could tell ya that here by God. So now it is time you listen to me. You focus on me. Try and impress/please ME.

Capiche?; 4/3/16, 6:16 PM
Michael K said...: "Either way, clarify the humor you find in this supposed delusion of graft. "

OK but it will be over your head. Such as it is.

Trump is showing how out of touch the GOP and the donors are. Lyndon Johnson once said. "In my country when we buy a politician, he stays bought."

Trump can't be bought. Today, on Fox, there was talk of how the delegates are professional pols and have their own agenda and will be likely to abandon Trump and Cruz after the first ballot. That is why I think Cruz, if he is wise and I'm not sure he is, will join Trump before the convention and present a done deal.

Personally, I think Trump began this as a lark and was surprised at how people responded to his two big issues, illegal immigration and Muslim animosity to us. I think that is why he is not well prepared fo the "gotcha" questions like those of Matthews.

He is a pretty quick study and has added trade to his issues.

I am not really a Trump supporter and wish one of my favored candidates had taken one of his issues, like immigration. Nobody did.

"Post your thesis on how political campaign contribution money has now suddenly become the first financial disincentive in the history of human economic behavior. "

OK. I am taking you more seriously than I think you deserve but once in a while you make sense.

Professional politicians like Paul Ryan, do not understand how angry the voters are.

Neither does Hillary and I think she is not going to be the nominee unless the Democrats have a death wish.

I think that Obama was running for VP in 2008 and realized that she was vulnerable. He was unprepared and doctrinaire enough that he could not learn on the job as Bill Clinton did.

Bernie is starting to realize the same thing but he is even more doctrinaire. He does not understand the first thing about governing.

I think it is all amusing because I am retired and my income is almost all tax exempt. I do worry about my grandchildren.

Other than that, it is spectator sport to me.

I'm reading Margaret Thatcher's biography now and enjoying life.; 4/3/16, 6:18 PM
Paul said...: Why throw away that 'distinction'? Cause it stinks.; 4/3/16, 6:27 PM
Birkel said...: mccullough:

I am correct about unfunded pensions. Your moby act is getting tired. Catch some shut eye and try again tomorrow.

The only respite possible is fewer laws.; 4/3/16, 6:28 PM
pm317 said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 4/3/16, 6:36 PM
pm317 said...: Senate insider on Cruz. The insider is one smart guy who silenced a taunting and mocking Kelly with his serious responses..; 4/3/16, 6:41 PM
Guildofcannonballs said...: ha·bil·i·ment (hə-bĭl′ə-mənt)
n. often habiliments
Clothing, especially the clothing associated with a special occasion or office: "shrouded from head to foot in the habiliments of the grave" (Edgar Allan Poe).
[Middle English habilement, from Old French habillement, from habiller, to clothe, alteration (influenced by habit, clothing) of abiller, to prepare, strip a tree of its branches : a-, toward (from Latin ad-; see ad-) + bille, log; see billet2.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.; 4/3/16, 6:47 PM
Bleach Drinkers Curing Coronavirus Together said...: A lot (15) of more or less single-sentence paragraphs to say that only a candidate too rich to be bought, can't be bought. But I was somehow hilariously delusional to point out the obvious fact of why this exception to the norm, was not in fact the norm.

I think I have a better understanding now of your need to constantly proclaim yourself smarter than me.; 4/3/16, 6:52 PM
Guildofcannonballs said...: "We, habilimently ..."

You see what I am talking about, this Althouse power?

"Habilimently" is genius, our shared genius natch.

Then consider Bill Clinton and the original:

ha·bil·i·ment; 4/3/16, 7:27 PM
Michael K said...: "I think I have a better understanding now of your need to constantly proclaim yourself smarter than me."

Then maybe you are smarter than you seem.

It's not a need. Just an observation.; 4/3/16, 8:19 PM
mccullough said...: Birkel,

You don't know shit about pensions or really anything other than blustering. The information is out there. But the cognitive dissonance would break the cult spell you need to live under. The Weekly Standard and National Review won't tell you this shit because they are just Pravda for Team Red. No one who has looked at the state and municipal pension issues could conclude anything other than its bipartisan bullshit, just like the national debt and the Wall Street bailout and the housing meltdown. Your masters fingers are all over the bullshit just as much as R&B and Amanda's masters.

It's like watching Sunni and Shia's argue over true Islam. It's total bullshit that only the indoctrinated could believe; 4/3/16, 8:43 PM
JAORE said...: "Kansas and Alabama are among the top 5 most unfunded government pension states per capita. Do you really think that was the result of Democrats?"

Dunno about Kansas, but in Alabama a hue driving force is military retirements. A disproportionate number of military men and women hail from the south, and we're proud of it. LOTS of guys came through Maxwell AFB (and other bases) in Alabama. It's nice here. Cost of living is low. Property tax is minuscule. Federal and State pensions are free of State taxes and the military is still honored. Want an educated population? Try Huntsville. Bright, white sand beaches? Got it, the Redneck Riviera.

Or, on second thought, don't. All full up here. No room at the Inn.; 4/3/16, 9:44 PM
Birkel said...: Keep mobying. If I read NR or WS, maybe any of what you typed would apply. Alas and alack, your disinformation and talk of cults is worthless.

Pro tip: when comparing two things, have two things to reference. You should have typed Pravda and Izvestia. Yep, I know nothing.

Moby gotta moby.; 4/3/16, 9:48 PM
Birkel said...: Did moby mccullough really act like Alabama has historically been Republican? Legislature flipped when, moby? Birmingham bankruptcy under what party?

Dumb ass.; 4/3/16, 9:51 PM
jg said...: Michael K - loved what you wrote about the power of the obvious "deferred corporate compensation" issue (or in case of the Clinton foundation, not even deferred). Quoted on FB.

I'd also prefer an even more serious demeanor from Trump, but I support him (really, anyone but HRC). He's not bad in this recent WI rally - skip to the end if you want to see where he got the crowd (who admittedly are fans), but i thought the whole thing was worth a listen.; 4/3/16, 9:53 PM
Birkel said...: And Kansas? Non-government jobs up. Government jobs (and thereby pensions) down. Farm jobs up. 4% unemployment.

I guess Slate is better for a moby than the BLS numbers.

Damned right wing Pravda BLS.; 4/3/16, 10:09 PM
jg said...: R&B and Birkel seem reasonably intelligent+informed, but they do bring the bluster. Why not tone the ego down and offer something useful beyond this bickering? It's not even clever.; 4/3/16, 10:12 PM
mccullough said...: Birkel,

Over the last 30 years, the Alabama governor has been a republican for 24 of those years. Signed off on all the bullshit. And the Alabama legislature is all GOP since 2010. What has the Alabama legislature and governor done the last 6 years to fix the abysmal pension problem GOP governors helped to create? Nothing.

As for Kansas, almost 20% of the employed work for local, state or federal government, well above the national average. Kansas has a lower percentage of manufacturing jobs than the national average and a lower percentage of construction jobs than the national average. So it doesn't have the money to fund its pensions. And Kansas economic growth is lower than national average. How is this possible with such low unemployment? Looks like you can't create a vibrant economy from government workers and fast food and retail workers. Kansas is bankrupt. Idiotic policies by idiotic GOP governor and legislature.

You need to quit the cult. Even the Republicans in Kansas don't support the bullshit policies anymore.; 4/3/16, 11:30 PM
mccullough said...: Birkel,

Pro-tip. When you review BLS numbers, look at government jobs and then divide that number by the total number employed. Also, when you see trade, dig into retail trade vs. wholesale trade. Also, manufacturing and construction jobs pay more than retail and fast food jobs. So when you take the number of manufacturing jobs and divide it by total jobs and the number is below 12.5%, that's below the national average. The national average for construction is 6.5%. So when you take the number of construction jobs and divide it by the number of total jobs and it is below 6.5%, the state is below the national average.

Kansas pension plan is funded at 56%, one of the worst in the nation. Kansas is facing a $190 million budget deficit. This is not a well run state. Only a cultist would defend it.; 4/3/16, 11:53 PM
Michael K said...: Public employee unions are the principle cause of pension underfunding. They support politicians who raise salaries and promise benefits but not the taxes to pay for them. This goes on all over the country regardless of the governing party. Democrats are worse but Republicans get rolled, too. The national economy is in the toilet, which wrecks the economies of states as well.

"Only a cultist would defend it."

Only a fool makes statements like this.; 4/4/16, 12:36 AM
Achilles said...: The underfunded pensions are not really a thing now. They will be a thing when us plebes decide to stop paying taxes. That is when the fun really begins.; 4/4/16, 3:20 AM
Birkel said...: So you can pretend everything before 2010, since Reconstruction, should have been solved in six years by a Republican legislature? Damn it but you do assume that Democrat "cult" is blameless, moby. It's pathetic that you take everybody here to be so wildly uninformed but I guess that plays elsewhere.

And you think Kansas should have more manufacturing and construction? Well since Kansas City is a Democrat basket case and the rest of the state is largely agriculture, I guess if somebody has never been there your argument might move the needle. In other words, your deflection aimed at at defending a previous deflection is pathetic.; 4/4/16, 6:34 AM
RAH said...: Maybe the winner of the GOP race in Wisconsin is the eventual nominee. I love all the certainty in these races. Cruz can't win against the Democrat nominee. Hillary is certain to win

All of these certainties seem uncertain to me; 4/4/16, 8:51 AM
Anonymous said...: Your pTb is the second Blue Collar Billionaire, George Washington the first, the largest landowner in the infant U.S. Andrew Jackson a close third, also a traitor to his class as an unusually gentle and beneficent slave-owner, preparing the way for Lincoln by closing the door on secession. Interesting history y'all have. Pity it's not taught in your schools anymore. Someday you'll gain the instant memory and talent pills that Piers Anthony – or was it RH?, a migrant from my side of the crater wrote about. Saves a lot of time, confusion and argument when all have the same basis in fact for forming opinions. Not that we don't argue, the Almighty gave us a free-will too, though it appears your progressives are well along to sacrificing theirs to their royalty and regulators, as your pTB said, it's all about 2ndCorinthians. Without free will, there can be no salvation, just lab rats running someone else's maze. A pity, since y'all had so much potential.; 4/4/16, 10:08 AM