November 19, 2016

"Ann, can you link to a post by you where you were heavy critical of the President-elect when he was doing his whole Birther shtick?"

"Yeah, I didn't think so," snarks Once written, twice in the comments to "Mike Pence goes to see the musical 'Hamilton'...."

That "Yeah, I didn't think so" is such cheap humor. And using the search box, you could easily find this from April 7, 2011:
Let's talk about Trump.
He's second only to Mitt in a recent poll. But there's no way he can be the nominee. What's going on? Name recognition? An early-in-the-game spirit of fun? I don't know, but he's in it now enough that he'll be listened to and included in the debates, and he can say whatever he wants until the moment arrives when he throws his support over to some realistic candidate. Meanwhile, we've got him stirring up the old birther issue, going where candidates who must coddle their credibility dare not go.

101 comments:

Freder Frederson said...

Yeah right, that's "heavily critical".

Michelle Dulak Thomson said...

It seems so to me. What more do you want, Freder?

Will Cate said...

I swear, there's just no pleasing some people. Folks be lazy.

A college friend flying down to Charlotte for a memorial service Monday for another friend, texted me to ask "how far is it from the airport to the Funeral Home?" even though this information is easily obtainable from Google Maps. And he's not a technically-challenged person. He just wanted me to do that work for him.

Bad Lieutenant said...

Michelle Dulak Thomson said...
It seems so to me. What more do you want, Freder?

11/19/16, 3:16 PM

Profanity, obscenity, remote psych evaluations, death threats, threats of hellfire...

Karen of Texas said...

Why should she have been *heavily critical*? She saw Trump as in it for the fun of it, not serious. The birther issue was just one more thing that was being thrown into the pot. There have been more than a few issues raised with no satisfactory answer - the social security number and never producing his college transcript should give anyone with half a brain just a bit of a pause. Trump was saying what a lot of people were thinking but we're not voicing because - racist!!

rcocean said...

"Judas Priest, this country really is in toilet when people think Trump would be a good POTUS."

Haha. My comment from the 2011 Trump thread.

Rick said...

Even the professor's feeding the trolls now.

Karen of Texas said...

*were stupid autocorrect

Rick said...

Michelle Dulak Thomson said...
It seems so to me. What more do you want, Freder?


There was no name calling so Freder couldn't understand it was negative.

Fabi said...

Ann dismantles a trollish comment and Freder wants to whine about adjectival purity.

Michael K said...

Interesting to see what was said before he was a serious candidate.

not over the "birther" stuff, which is, after all, Obama's own doing for refusing to release the documents that would make the entire thing go away.

The "long form" and "COLB" are interesting and some day we may find out the truth. It might be religion or some other issue.

It's a matter for history now, like the Obama speech at the Rashid Khalidi dinner that the LA Times is hiding or "The Path to 9/11" which Disney has been hiding since it payed once on TV.

The loser lefties like "once written " are trying to get the spotlight off the smooth development of the Trump Administration.

Once written, twice... said...

LOL!

Ann, that is soooo "heavily critical" of Trump.

Trump's birther movement against President Obama was incredibly ugly, but that is best you can pull out of the archives of you being critical of him. "It might hurt him politically if he decides to run for president." Unfortunately for our nation it did not.

Bill, Republic of Texas said...

I am sick and tired of the birther bullshit as assuming racial animosity. This stuff started with:

1. Obama lying on his author bio that he was born in Kenya;
2. Hillary's hatchetman spread the story in 2008.

Trump raised the issue and got Obama to release his birth certificate. As far as I know Trump accepted that and moved on.

That one act by Trump probably propelled him to the presidency. It signalled to his early supports he'll listen to their concerns and get results. Even if he has to take fire from the Dems, media and GOPe (but I repeat myself).

Birkel said...

Admitting error is difficult.

But with practice even collectivists can learn how.

campy said...

But with practice even collectivists can learn how.

They certainly excel at making errors.

Once written, twice... said...

Trump will be a stain on American history and the Republican Party for generations to come.

readering said...

I wonder if Cruz had any inkling in 2011 that birtherism could have such legs?

Sprezzatura said...

So, do we retire the civility bs tag for the DJT years?

(Unless, obviously, it helps shelter DJT from accountability?

Carry on.

Ken B said...

I dunno. More or less stating a candidate has little credibility seems critical to me.
This is the thing I find about Trump haters: they insist you not only hate Trump but hate him for their reasons. I had friends get very angry because, while I did not support Trump, my objections to him were not some fantasy that he's the new Hitler.

Once written, twice... said...

Ann's unwillingness to be critical of Trump's gross behavior and actions as a way to suck up to her Althouse Hillbillies is, and will always be, a stain on her.

Once written, twice... said...

Ann, remind us of the most critical thing you have written about Trump on your blog?

Birkel said...

Ann's unwillingness to be critical of Obama's gross mismanagement and lawlessness -- as a way to suck up to her Althouse Collectivists -- is, and will always be, a stain on her.

This is a fun game.

Once written, twice... said...

He's yours Ann. You own him. Let's see where he leads the United States. Where ever that is, you did your little part in getting us there.

Wilbur said...

"( ) will be a stain on American history and the Republican Party for generations to come."

Fill in the blank. Lincoln, Garfield, McKinley, TR, Coolidge, Reagan ... this - and much worse - has been said about all of them.

Is the "stain" insult supposed to resonate with anyone here? It's really a pretty simple-minded. Why not call him "Old Droopy Drawers"? It's on about the same level.

Once written, twice... said...

Ann has been constantly critical of Barack Obama in a way she has not been of Trump.

chuck said...

Psst... Beware, Once written, those who rouse the Kraken seldom survive.

Virgil Hilts said...

Once written twice. . . said.
Quick look at your past comments (calling Ann a boob, praising her retirement, among other clever snarks), calling republicans hillbillies, racist pandering coming home to roost, etc. All of it quite enlightening, persuasive and effective. If only more people on the left would take the time and effort to argue in this fashion. Hopefully, you and your friends will double down next time when Michelle, Warren or West runs. Keep up the good work!

The Cracker Emcee Refulgent said...

Actually, Althouse was harshly critical of Trump over the whole pussy tape thing. Then, like so many Americans, she remembered he was running against Hillary Clinton.

rhhardin said...

Trump's thing is destroying political correctness as a moral high-ground stance.

Why would anybody who's not PC be critical.

When I'm critical of Trump, it's on policy, not PC.

Rick said...

See what happens when you feed the troll?

Once written, twice... said...

Ann is a phony. She knows that Trump, and what he represents, is a dark force enveloping our civic life. But she thinks she is being cool being nonchalant towards it, And she is more than happy to throw red meat to her Althouse Hillbillies.

rhhardin said...

Women are always PC, of course. It comes from feelings.

gadfly said...

A funny thing happened on the way to the Forum. The term "birther' was redefined by progressives to be those extremists who believe that Barack Obama was not born in Honolulu. And everyone knows that here is plenty of proof to support his place of birth.

But the issues has been far more complex. Most conservative commentators have bought into the idea that Obama was not born outside the United States. However as Jim Geraghity pointed out in NRO, "one could argue that he would not meet the legal definition of natural-born citizen under because U.S. law at the time of his birth required his natural-born parent (his mother) to have resided in the United States for “ten years, at least five of which had to be after the age of 16.” She was 18 at the time of his birth.

No one has taken the "natural-born citizen" phrase before the courts to end this controversy, but what remains is the obvious scam that every birth certificate published online, including the long-form certificate of live birth (that suddenly became available in 2011) were electronic fakes. Amazingly, the Whitehouse failed to flatten the PDF on their website displaying multiple layers showing alterations made. Other more sophisticated experts looked even deeper into less-obvious alterations. Take a ride on YouTube.

rhhardin said...

Ann is a phony. She knows that Trump, and what he represents, is a dark force enveloping our civic life. But she thinks she is being cool being nonchalant towards it, And she is more than happy to throw red meat to her Althouse Hillbillies.

Forces don't envelop, unless you use them to push the envelope.

Karen of Texas said...

Hahahaha!!! "Dark force enveloping our civic life" ... Those rioting couldn't be reached for comment.

Hilarious.

The Cracker Emcee Refulgent said...

"She knows that Trump, and what he represents, is a dark force enveloping our civic life. "

Lucky bastard. I've always wanted to be a dark force.

rhhardin said...

Who hasn't wondered what planet Obama was born on.

YoungHegelian said...

I have an even better idea: Can anyone search the Althouse archives & find a time when Once Bitten actually made a reasoned, articulate argument against another commentator's opinion?

"Can you say null set, kidz?"

Gahrie said...

Trump's birther movement against President Obama was incredibly ugly

How ugly was Hillary's birther movement, seeing as how her campaign brought it up first?

Gahrie said...

Ann has been constantly critical of Barack Obama in a way she has not been of Trump

Funny how that happens when one man is the president and the other a private citizen........

Michael K said...

Trump will be a stain on American history and the Republican Party for generations to come.

Buttercup, why can't you grow up ?

I doubt you even know any American history.

Ann Althouse said...

"Ann has been constantly critical of Barack Obama in a way she has not been of Trump."

You need to read about confirmation bias and get a better understanding of your own mind.

Darrell said...

Trump will explode the myth that one has to be a Harvard/Yale-educated lawyer to be POTUS. The Founding Fathers would be proud. Once written, twice shit on the sidewalk will never understand that.

Ann Althouse said...

I'll bet there are a lot of conservatives here who think I've been incredibly nice to Obama.

buwaya said...

Obama has a lot of mysteries about him.
Not that he is somehow unqualified constitutionally, but the secrecy and ambiguity about many matters hints at some embarassing truths hiding out there.
One day an intrepid biographer, or several probably, will write some interesting books.

Unknown said...

Ann, you have been incredibly nice to Obama. Way too nice, even.

But see, Once Bitten is a leftist, and for them, you always, always, always have to be doing whatever it is they demand right now. No matter how much you've put into the "cause" if you falter at one hurdle, you are worse than Hitler. And they'll turn on you on a dime.

Let's say Ellison becomes head of the DNC and, true to his Islamic roots, decides that using the gays to bludgeon Christians is done and that gays are holding the Party back when what they really need is more Islamic Sharia law.

Overnight, you'll find out that no one ever was in favor of gay rights except Barney Frank. And anyone foolish enough to not notice will be called the worst names imaginable.

1984, after all, is the Instruction manual for the left.

-Vance.

Deb said...

I love it when Professor Althouse strikes back. I can actually here -and almost feel - the smack from here.

Deb said...

"Hear"

Once written, twice... said...

"I'll bet there are a lot of conservatives here who think I've been incredibly nice to Obama."

Of course your Althouse Hillbillies think you have been too nice to him. For them, saying anything short of him being a foreign-born American-hating Muslim, is being too nice to him.

MayBee said...

Not that he is somehow unqualified constitutionally, but the secrecy and ambiguity about many matters hints at some embarassing truths hiding out there.

Yes.
He had a carefully crafted biography that had some weird holes in it.
Even the way he handled his birth certificate was very weird. I suspect it's because he himself wasn't quite sure what he would say. I never thought he was born in Kenya, but I did half wonder if he was born in Washington State. He never mentions his mother moving there with him, even though it must have been very challenging for a teen with a new baby to live so far away from home just a few weeks after giving birth.

Dr Weevil said...

Until today, we hadn't heard from our Hillbilly-hating troll for three days, since I posted the following comment on this thread:
"Is anyone else beginning to suspect that 'Once bitten' has personal reasons for hating 'hillbillies'? I'm beginning to think he's a goateed opera-loving pajama boy with a PhD whose wife ran off with her studly high-school-educated Appalachian-accented bluegrass-banjo-playing auto mechanic, and that she's very happy now with her new lover, who also makes more money than 'Once bitten'."
So, how accurate was my guess? Care to enlighten us, Hillbilly-hater? Some of us 'Mountain Williams' are still wondering, and your three-day silence suggests I hit a nerve.

MayBee said...

Althouse seems to be very personally fond of Obama. She feels love from him. She finds him charming. Early on, she was very defensive of him. But I don't think she has always cared for his policy or the way he has handled the office.

Trump, on the other hand, is not someone Althouse seems to feel any affection for. It seems to me it is her contrarian nature that made her compelled to start writing about him so much. He wasn't a typical politician, and there was a narrative out there that what he said was very bad. The contrarian in her made her want to examine him vs. the way he was being presented to us.

But, Once Bitten.....you may recall Althouse thought everyone else needed to get out of the GOP race so Rubio could take on Trump and beat him.

This has been an odd election year. I was wrong every step of the way. I still can't believe Trump is going to be president.
But now I believe, as Althouse does, that he wants to be a great president.
And he doesn't have all the political baggage other Presidents have had, and I like that.

Bad Lieutenant said...

Once written, twice... said...
He's yours Ann. You own him.

Wow, Ann! You own a President. I suggest you have him go down on you. I bet he eats pussy like a champ. Don't thank me, thank Once a test, always a twat.

Birkel said...

Of course your Althouse Collectivists think you have been too mean to him. For them, saying anything short of him being the Best President of All-Time, is being too mean to him.

Yep. Fun game.

Fabi said...

I'll never grow tired of watching the lefties foam at the mouth! I find it's actually picking up momentum -- no end in sight.

Anonymous said...

They all own him. And when the time is right they'll be reminded of the disaster they heaped upon all our heads. There will be retribution.

tim maguire said...

Once bitten seems so much like the performance art posters the professor used to get. The relentless unreasonable insults coupled with an insistence that Republicans are the ones darkening discourse. She can't be serious. And yet she seems to be.

tim maguire said...

Unknown, I really appreciate all the hard work Clinton voters are doing right now convincing America that it made the right choice. It's selfless and I admire you for it.

Fabi said...

I eagerly await "retribution" from a bunch of cowardly progs.

Anonymous said...

Tim, you won't know for a while yet how disastrous this fool you voted for will eventually be for the country. Your "correct choice" will be a disaster for this country, I hope she survives. Absolutely nothing you morons have to say will excuse you from your extremely bad choice. Trump will get insults and obstruction in spades, for the next four years, if he lasts that long. I predict impeachment before the first year is over.

Birkel said...

UnknownInga, you won't know for a while yet how disastrous this fool you voted for, Obama, will eventually be for the country. Your "correct choice" has been a disaster for this country, I hope we all survive. Absolutely nothing you Collectivists have to say will excuse you from your extremely bad choice. Obama got insults and obstruction in spades, these last eight years, and neither domestic nor foreign relations have ever been worse. I predict history will treat him as roughly as he has treated the Constitution.

MikeD said...

Outside of enjoying the Professor's well tho't/stated posts (enjoyment is not predicated on agreement) I enjoy all the pro/con any issue commenters who, seemingly, know her better than Meade does w/o ever having met her. As Taranto of WSJ's BoTW would say, "diagram that sentence".

Dr Weevil said...

Unknown, fortunately we will never know just how disastrous the criminal lying drunken fool whom you voted for would eventually be for the country if she had won. Works both ways.

Anonymous said...

Obama has an approval rating of 57%, lol, you idiot.

sane_voter said...

So unknown (profile 17471997389820055655) says Trump impeachment during 2017. Since you can see the future, you should bet in Vegas. It is 6/1 he gets impeached before 2020, so free money! Bet $100,000. Borrow as much as you can and bet it, it is a sure thing!

JAORE said...

"I predict impeachment before the first year is over."

Oh the money to be made if Unknown were a betting person and were the type you could trust to pay up.

Gahrie said...

Trump will get insults and obstruction in spades, for the next four years,

How'd that work out for you during the election?

Fabi said...

We know how accurate polls are! 57%? Lulz

Birkel said...

Donald Trump cannot be president. The polls command it.

Birkel said...

Donald Trump is president. The proles willed it.

David said...

"But there's no way he can be the nominee."

So thought most of us. This is why life is so interesting.

Mike Sylwester said...

Donald Trump established the political precedent that Presidential candidates should act to provide the government's best evidence about their birth circumstances when the issue arises. The US Constitution includes a birth requirement for US Presidents.

Barack Obama and our country's Scientific Progressives argued zealously that Presidential candidates do not have to provide the government's best evidence. In particular, they argued that Obama did not have to provide his original long-form birth certificate. They argues that the electorate was racist if it did not accept an anonymous government clerk's summary of Obama's long-form birth certificate.

The government's best evidence was a one-page state-government's civil-registry record from the year 1961. The Scientific Progressives screamed hysterically that the electorate's reasonable request to see the actual document was racist.

After four years -- because Trump made a stink -- Obama belatedly released the one-page state-government civil-registry record from the year 1961.

The same Scientific Progressives who called this reasonable request "racist" are the same Scientific Progressives who demand to see a decade of income-tax forms from every Presidential candidate.

David said...

Once written, twice... said...
Trump will be a stain on American history and the Republican Party for generations to come.


A mark on the Blue Dress of History, you might say.

Anonymous said...

More like a shit stain on America's tightie whities.

Birkel said...

The wit of UnknownInga is unrivaled!

Donald Trump will be president in January 20, 2017.

HT said...

I think Pence is really a ghost.

Michael McNeil said...

I predict impeachment before the first year is over.

Even if that occurs we're all still much better off than if Clinton had been elected — where no matter what she did, the Democrats in Congress would never under any circumstances have voted to impeach and convict — and without any such assistance from Democrats, no such effort could succeed. The situation is very different with Trump, as the establishments of both parties loathe him. If he misbehaves in any significant way, there are plenty of Republicans and Democrats in Congress would would be more than happy voting to impeach and convict.

HT said...

I hoped for impeachment watching the Republican debate in Detroit, but now, the Republicans having come so close to the brink, no way will they impeach.

Anonymous said...

HT,
What happens if it can be proven he colluded with Putin to interfere in our American election? What charge would that be?

Birkel said...

UnknownInga:

What happens if you shit a diamond mine? What would that be?

The game of the Collectivists is easy to play.

Karen of Texas said...

You mean colluded like President "After my election I have more flexibility", Unknown?

Anonymous said...

No Karen. I mean like "Hey Puti honey, how about you hack into the DNC and give me some really good juicy info that will help me win."

Birkel said...

No, UnknownInga. I mean like "Inga, honey, how about you hack into your soul and spout ponderous, juicy nonsense to help the other side win an election."

Collectivists are stupid enough to believe in collectivism.

Steven said...

Mote, beam, guys.

Why scream about Ann, rather than demand the blood of progressive pundits that openly supported Trump's candidacy earlier this year? Like, oh, Jonathan Chait, Jamelle Bouie, Paul Krugman, Matt Yglesias, Eugene Robinson, Robert Borosage, Amanda Marcotte, and Bill Maher?

When you've driven them from the media for helping elect Trump, then maybe your complaints about Ann won't come off as sad and pathetic.

Mick said...

"Birther Schtick"

Yeah OK. Obama has not proven ANYTHING by the "release" (this and that are always "released" to prove that an event happened after the fact, but that "release" more often than not proves NOTHING) of a layered and fraudulent "document", signed by U.K Lele (as in played like a Ukelele). The "document" (except by "Fact Check"-- by 2 young non experts) was not examined nor was the supposed "raised seal" (the "seal appears to be INCISED in violation of the standards set forth in Hawaii statutes), which supposedly would bestow "full faith and credit" to the production of the "document" to the state of Hawaii. It was quickly whisked away, without Obama even touching it, to be "posted" on the internet-- like a posting on the internet is proof of anything (can you go to the Post Office and show them a pic of your Birth Cert. on a laptop, and get a passport?). Yet this is deemed "Proof" that Obama was born in Hawaii. Incidentally, the woman who represented the state of Hawaii, Loretta Fuddy, a SOBUD cult adherent like Obama's supposed mother, soon later died of mysterious circumstances, after an emergency plane landing in the ocean. So yeah, everything about the Birth Certificate affair reeks of FAKE, FAKE Fakeness.

Besides that, the fact is that even if Obama was born on the Oval Office desk, he would not be eligible due to birth to a foreign father.

"The Constitution does not, in words, say who shall be natural-born citizens. Resort must be had elsewhere to ascertain that. At common-law, with the nomenclature of which the framers of the Constitution were familiar, it was never doubted that all children born in a country of parents who were its citizens became themselves, upon their birth, citizens also. These were natives, or natural-born citizens, as distinguished from aliens or foreigners". Minor v. Happersett, 88 US 162, 167 ((1898)

The law prof still refuses to address the Minor v. Happersett HOLDING for the meaning of "natural born Citizen" or the Federalist 68 description of an "improper ascendant" (the improper foreign influence of a foreign father), because she is part of the Ivory Tower of Academia that has protected Obama all along (especially Harvard, which sullied its reputation as any kind of real academic institution with the publication of 2 papers "defining" natural born Citizen--one written by none other than Neal Katyal--- Obama's Solicitor Gen. ---no conflict there/) that are so full of shit as to be laughable, and an embarrassment to Harvard U. IT NEVER MENTIONS MINOR V. HAPPERSETT--- just like the "law prof". BOTH are FRAUDS.

I believe that Trump decided to run for POTUS after he was invited to the WH Press dinner in 2011, after the "release" of the BC, by ABC execs. (they set him up) and was ambushed and ridiculed by Obama and Seth Meyers. He decided right then that he would run, and win, and undo all of the Usurper's "legacy". Trump knows full well that the WH was invaded by a Usurper, and I bet that you have not heard the end of the "Birth Certificate".

Karen of Texas said...

Mick, I read an article in Buzzfeed that gave an account of that dinner and various other 'incidents' in Trump's life - a mea culpa by Coppins on his and others' roles in 'creating' Trump and basically goading him to run. When I read his telling of the dinner... well, my thought was that those assholes better hope Trump doesn't like to punch down like their favored WH occupant does. They've given him a lot of reasons to do so - if he decides to retaliate outside the twitterverse.

Karen of Texas said...

Where in Unknown completely disregards the content of the emails - regardless of the source of the hack.

Remember Hillary selling Russia a huge chunk of our uranium? Remember Hillary's reset? Whoever hacked, that information combined with Hillary's own ineptitude and the mood of a "had enough" electorate kept that hack out of the Whitehouse.

Get out of your bubble.

tim in vermont said...

What is funny about the "Reset" button is that it really read "Overcharge" in Russian. And when she personally took tens of millions of dollars from Putin's cronies, it was clear that she probably knew exactly what it said. That she was telling Putin how it was going to be. And I am sure Putin smiled.

I think we should "Coexist" with Russia, as the bumper sticker says. What is it about the Democrats and the war drums? We can't stop every bad thing that happens in the world, and after what Hillary and Obama did to Libya, we should mind out own business in matters that do not affect us or our bosom allies directly.

tim in vermont said...

Trump is Hillary's creation, she thought he would be easy to beat and encouraged her friends in the media to promote him, and oh yeah, I am betting in that famous Bill Clinton - Donny Trump meeting, Bill probably told him exactly how to win.

Mick said...

Karen of Texas said...
Mick, I read an article in Buzzfeed that gave an account of that dinner and various other 'incidents' in Trump's life - a mea culpa by Coppins on his and others' roles in 'creating' Trump and basically goading him to run. When I read his telling of the dinner... well, my thought was that those assholes better hope Trump doesn't like to punch down like their favored WH occupant does. They've given him a lot of reasons to do so - if he decides to retaliate outside the twitterverse.

He took the abuse, knew he was set up by ABC, and said to himself, "just wait, you Usurper piece of shit, I am coming for your 'legacy'". They are playing checkers with a chess champion. Now who has the last laugh. You could tell the enmity that Trump has for the Usurper at the recent WH meeting, despite the kind words. The Art of War.

tim in vermont said...

What happens if it can be proven he colluded with Putin to interfere in our American election? What charge would that be? - Unknown

I don't know, maybe the same charge that would be laid against Hillary for taking foreign money for her political operation. You know, "The Clinton Foundation"?

If we do it case by case, then it will be subjective. We would look at who the donor is and what foreign entity they are registered for. In judging whether to take the money, we would consider the relationship between that country and the United States, its relationship to the State Department during Hillary's time as Secretary, and its relationship, if any, to the Foundation. In judging the individual, we would look at their history of support for political candidates generally and Hillary's past campaigns specifically. Put simply, we would use the same criteria we use for lobbyists, except with a somewhat more stringent screen. As a legal matter, I am not saying we have to do this - we can decide to simply ban foreign registrants entirely. I'm just offering this up as a middle ground. - Marc Elias to Robby Mook

Take the money!! Sent from my iPhone On Apr 16, 2015, at 9:44 PM, Robby Mook to [re47@hillaryclinton.com] wrote: Marc made a convincing case to me this am that these sorts of restrictions don't really get you anything...that Obama actually got judged MORE harshly as a result. He convinced me. So...in a complete U-turn, I'm ok just taking the money and dealing with any attacks. - Robby Mook to HRC.

So I would like to hear more about Unknown's concern about foreign influence on US elections.


Oh yeah, and about Hillary and Trump:

The Clinton campaign tried to reschedule the Illinois presidential primary to a month later, so as to make it less likely that a moderate Republican would get a boost following the Super Tuesday primaries.

"The Clintons won't forget what their friends have done for them," future Clinton campaign manager Robby Mook wrote in the November 2014 email to Mr Podesta.


As the Clintons like to say, "Politics ain't beanbag," right. And as Obama liked to say "elections have consequences."

tim in vermont said...

They are playing checkers with a chess champion. - Mick

You know, I am not sure I believe that, but son of a bitch, I can't think of a way to prove it's not true.

Swede said...

Guys, this is just the warm-up act.

Wait until President Trump replaces RBG with Ted Cruz on the SC.

The meltdown and recriminations will be biblical.

And all because Althouse wasn't mean enough to Candidate Trump.

Vile Pliskin said...

Uh, oh, Althouse. Once written has you firmly on the wrong side of history. You're stained. Your scarlet letters are "AA".

Qwinn said...

Unknown,

What charges were pressed against Ted Kennedy for actively colluding with the Soviets to bring down Reagan?

Since the answer is "none", better question: what charges do YOU think should have been brought? If any, why do you think nothing happened?

Unknown said...

Quinn, you dummy, no charges were brought against Kennedy because it never happened. Stop reading conspiracy theory sites.

Unknown said...

http://www.politifact.com/punditfact/statements/2015/mar/13/rush-limbaugh/limbaugh-ted-kennedy-undercut-reagan-back-door-lin/

"Our ruling

In the context of a Republican letter to Iran, Limbaugh said that Kennedy sent a similar letter to Andropov in the 1980s that apologized for Reagan and begged the Soviets not to overreact. There is no evidence there ever was a letter from Kennedy. Limbaugh’s statement rests on a 1983 KGB memo that said there was a verbal overture from a friend of Kennedy's to meet with Andropov. Whether the memo was accurate or a KGB invention is deeply contested. We have a firm denial from the man who allegedly made the overture, and a Soviet archive researcher told us that memos of this sort are not always reliable. So Limbaugh was wrong about the letter, and spoke with great certainty about an event when its authenticity is very much in question.

Overall, we rate the claim False."

Michelle Dulak Thomson said...

Vile Plisken,

I still prefer the one in Peter De Vries' Slouching Towards Kalamazoo, where the teacher nailed for intercourse with a student awarded herself a scarlet A+.

Birkel said...

UnknownInga:

John Kerry met with the Viet Cong while America was at war with them.

Cool by you, right?

Qwinn said...

Unknown lies again. But she's right, I should stop reading "conspiracy websites", and instead rely on that bastion of truth and non-partisanship, Politifact.

Conspiracy theory sites, like Forbes.com.

http://www.forbes.com/2009/08/27/ted-kennedy-soviet-union-ronald-reagan-opinions-columnists-peter-robinson.html


Unknown lies that all the letter did was ask the Soviets not to retaliate. Bullshit.

"Kennedy made Andropov a couple of specific offers.

First he offered to visit Moscow. “The main purpose of the meeting, according to the senator, would be to arm Soviet officials with explanations regarding problems of nuclear disarmament so they may be better prepared and more convincing during appearances in the USA.” Kennedy would help the Soviets deal with Reagan by telling them how to brush up their propaganda.

Then he offered to make it possible for Andropov to sit down for a few interviews on American television. “A direct appeal … to the American people will, without a doubt, attract a great deal of attention and interest in the country. … If the proposal is recognized as worthy, then Kennedy and his friends will bring about suitable steps to have representatives of the largest television companies in the USA contact Y.V. Andropov for an invitation to Moscow for the interviews. … The senator underlined the importance that this initiative should be seen as coming from the American side.

Kennedy would make certain the networks gave Andropov air time–and that they rigged the arrangement to look like honest journalism."


And as for Politifact trying to claim it's fake, or that it was denied, that's also a lie:

“The document,” Kengor continues, “has stood the test of time. I scrutinized it more carefully than anything I’ve ever dealt with as a scholar. I showed the document to numerous authorities who deal with Soviet archival material. No one has debunked the memorandum or shown it to be a forgery. Kennedy’s office did not deny it.”


Also, the letter isn't the only evidence. Corroborated to British intelligence by a reliable Soviet defector.

https://spectator.org/39381_ted-kennedys-kgb-correspondence/

Bilwick said...

Was Trump actually a birther? Asking Obama to prove he was born in the US isn't the same as saying that Obama wasn't born in the US. Obama himself muddied the waters when his literary agency at the time listed his birthplace as "Kenya." They probably didn't just pull "Kenya" out the air when they were filling in the Birthplace spot so under Occam's Razor it's safe they got the information from Obama himself. What Trump did was knock Il Dufe off his high horse: "What? You peasants expect ME to prove I was born in the US? Surely you jest!"