May 15, 2019

"He made particularly disparaging comments about President Obama. And as the Republican nominee for president, I just couldn't subscribe to that in a federal judge. This was not a matter of qualifications or politics. This was something specifically to that issue as a former nominee of our party."

Said the U.S. Senator who refers to himself as "the Republican nominee for President" because, I guess, there's some idea of forefronting your highest or most elite accomplishment, and Mitt Romney was the Republican nominee for President. He's a Senator now, elected by the people of a state, but he was a nominee for a higher office, and that's apparently more important, even though he didn't win, and he's not even the party's "standard bearer" (not the most recent nominee). But Romney is apparently proud of his distinction, and there's only one other person on the face of the earth whose highest level was Republican nominee for President (and he's 95 years old). Maybe the idea is that Trump is illegitimate, so exclude him, and that leaves Romney as the leader of his party.

But he didn't beat Obama. He showed he could beat Obama if he wanted. He came on strong in the first debate. But he stood down in the second debate, and his party lost. Now, he's voted against one of Trump's judicial nominees, and he was the only Republican Senator who voted no, and he voted no because the person, Michael Truncale, once called Obama an "un-American impostor." Truncale testified that he was "merely expressing frustration by what I perceived as a lack of overt patriotism on behalf of President Obama" and did not mean to suggest that Obama was not a natural born citizen.

I'm reading about this in Politico, where the text is he "believed Obama was born in Hawaii and did not subscribe to 'birtherism,' a racist theory that the president was not an American citizen." The Politico text is shocking for 2 reasons. First, the question under the Constitution wasn't whether Obama was an American citizen. Citizenship isn't enough to qualify a person to be President. He must be born a citizen. Big difference. Second, a news organization shouldn't casually toss in the opinion that this suspicion about Obama is a "racist theory." That's not decent journalism. I accept the use of the term "birtherism" because I think Truncale used it in testifying. If Truncale himself called birtherism "a racist theory," it would be good journalism to quote him, but you can see that it's not in quotes.

I actually don't have a problem with Romney's voting against Truncale. But Romney's stated reason — if this is all he said — is inarticulate. He could have said that he lacked sufficient confidence in Truncale's judicial temperament. There were other things about Truncale that were disturbing, and not just the one thing Romney is quoted as citing — "disparaging comments about President Obama." I'm seeing in The Salt Lake Tribune that Truncale was quoted as saying "With regard to immigration, we must not continue to have the maggots coming in" and later that the word was not "maggots" but "magnets." I can see not bringing that up, because of confusion over whether Truncale said "maggots" (though I note that in immigration discussions, the word "magnet" is applied not to the immigrants but to the United States (for example, candidate Trump said he wanted to "turn off the jobs and benefits magnet")).

By citing only the "disparaging comments about President Obama" and stressing his own status as the one-time Republican Party nominee, Romney elevated himself. He's special.

ADDED: On rereading, I question my assertion that "Romney's stated reason... is inarticulate." I was assuming that Romney looked at everything about Truncale and formed the opinion that he didn't have what it takes to be a judge — that he was too political and intemperate. There are clearer ways to say that. But the statement Romney did make was, I think, rather revealing of his psychology and his plans for himself as a Senator. It's more revealing perhaps, than he intended to be. I wouldn't call that inarticulate, because "inarticulate" connotes that he meant to say something and couldn't come up with the right words, and I don't think Romney meant to reveal that much. What then is the right word? Maybe — ironically — it's "intemperate."

IN THE COMMENTS: Nobody points to a Slate article correcting the FALSE assertion that Truncale  said "maggots." The video there — at 1:25 — shows him saying "we've got to stop the magnet that draws people over." Not only is it clear that he's saying "magnet" not "maggots," he's using the word "magnet" in the standard context, referring to government benefits. He's not calling the immigrants "magnets." He's saying they are drawn to the metaphorical magnet that is welfare benefits. The "maggots" slur is truly evil. Shame on The Salt Lake Tribune.

ALSO: I wrote this in the comments but I want to frontpage it:
Making up racial hatred is truly evil.

I was careful to write, in the original post, " I'm seeing in The Salt Lake Tribune that Truncale was quoted as saying..." Was quoted. I avoided saying that he said it, because how do I know? I only said what I knew, that the SL Tribute presented that statement as a quote.

But with the video there and available for weeks, there's no excuse for passing along the "maggots" quote.

It reminds me of the continued reporting that Trump said Nazis were "fine people." The corrective material is available and plain, and there are some horrible journalists and politicians who want to make people feel that there's some deep ugliness out there -- want people to feel hurt and diminished and afraid. It's disgusting to have a personal stake in doing that to people.

171 comments:

Paco Wové said...

"there's some idea of forefronting your highest or most elite accomplishment"

Sort of like putting that you'd failed out of Oxford on your business cards.

Paco Wové said...

"That's not decent journalism."

Of course not; it's Politico! <rimshot>

rhhardin said...

Romney's underwear is too tight.

Paco Wové said...

Thank you, thank you. I'll be here 'till the regular crew shows up. Try the veal!

TJM said...

Romney is a real soreloserman, cut in the mold of Al Gore. He should just shut up so people don't realize what a fool and a knave he is.

rhhardin said...

I myself have said that Obama was a piece of shit. I don't let it influence my legal opinions though.

wendybar said...

Meh....he wasn't wrong.

Wince said...

Instead of Times Square, this New Years I'm headed to Utah to see if Mitt Romney's testicles descend.

Who would be surprised to discover Obama didn't spy on Mitt Romney simply because he didn't have to?

Drago said...

Althouse: "But he stood down in the second debate,..."

Thats a more sanitized characterization of a globally televised surrender to a CNN lefty hack "journalist".

LLRChuck's proudest "republican" moment ever as it secured Romney's loser goal. Only Kasich could have surrendered to the dems more effectively by endorsing Ibama on live TV.

Romney deigned to run for Senate on the assumption that all thedem/left/LLR-left lies about collusion were true and he was hoping to play a historic role in voting to oust Trump via impeachment that he was convinced would be coming.

Now?

He has to make do with these contrived shenanigans.

Craig Howard said...

I've heard of the term "magnet" referring to, say, a child born of a Mexican on American soil. As an American citizen, the child-magnet can now serve as the justification for other relatives to gain legal entrance.

tim in vermont said...

I don’t trust any quote of a Republican provided by news media, who hear what they expect to hear before they hear the actual words. “Maggots” just isn’t a word that makes sense in the context of immigration, even for a racist, I wouldn’t think, but “magnets” is used all the time, as in “Welfare Magnet” a term that Romney knows well from his Massachusetts days, since it was constantly bandied about there. Remember the Dukakis administration and their use of “simulated SS numbers” in benefits apps?

I Callahan said...

Thats a more sanitized characterization of a globally televised surrender to a CNN lefty hack "journalist".

Remember the primaries? Romney was brutal with Newt Gingrich. I distinctly remember that. After the conventions, I don't even remember an ad where Romney was directly critical of Obama in particular.

Darrell said...

Romney's underwear is too tight.

Romney's MAGIC underwear is too tight.

Darrell said...

You should hear what he says about Trump.

zipity said...


I'm ashamed to admit I voted for Romney.

I should have stayed home.

iowan2 said...

Romney is indefinable to me.Republican Governor of Massachusetts. Romeny care health plan. At the state level, nothing wrong with that. Romney failed to explain federalism when he foes tried to push him into a corner. That tells me a lot. LLR that overlaps Democrat a lot on a Ven diagram. Businessman. A plus, but unlike President Trump he apologizes for, or hides what he did. Bought up failing business for less than the sum of their assets, sold off those assets and made a profit. Like a car junk yard. Romney's group provided a service. Nothing evil about it. He saw value where the owners did not.
Hard to tell what he is passionate about. Likable enough, until he does something like this that just comes across as sanctimony.
Everyone laments President Trump not being nuanced enough in his words sometimes. Well Romney is supposed to be the Dean of Political Speak, and this is a failure on all levels.

Jeff Brokaw said...

Shorter version: Romney is a self-regarding douche.

Trump’s election was like flipping on a light switch and watching the cockroaches scurry. Very instructive.

tim in vermont said...

I think that Obama was born a citizen due to his mother’s undeniable status as a citizen, despite his claim in his marketing material for his book, and you tell me that a kid fresh out of college with a book deal never looks at the marketing material, but I do think he is “un-American.” For one thing, he was largely raised overseas.

Ann Althouse said...

" “Maggots” just isn’t a word that makes sense in the context of immigration, even for a racist, I wouldn’t think, but “magnets” is used all the time, as in “Welfare Magnet” a term that Romney knows well from his Massachusetts days, since it was constantly bandied about there."

Yes, that's my point. The "welfare magnet" expression refers to the U.S. or a particular state having welfare benefits that attract people into the state. The people aren't the magnet, the place with the welfare benefits is the magnet.

Limited blogger said...

zipity beat me to it. I'm going to contact the Board of Elections to try and have my 2012 vote for Romney voided.

tim in vermont said...

I gave Romney money, but I think we dodged a bullet when Obama won. For one thing, the boy emperor was not very good at getting things done legislatively, so his pen and phone stuff was all easy to undo.

tim in vermont said...

The people aren't the magnet, the place with the welfare benefits is the magnet.

A child born in the US to illegals is a “magnet” that can bring in the whole extended family, and under some interpretations and/or proposals, the whole village. As noted above.

Jersey Fled said...

I'm guessing the good people of Utah will make Romney the "former Republican Senator" in about 5 years.

tim in vermont said...

“With regard to immigration, we must not continue to have the maggots coming in,” he once said, though later argued he used the word “magnets.”

I notice there is no link to that one quote, while links are provided for all of the others.

Fen said...

“Maggots” just isn’t a word that makes sense in the context of immigration

The Lefty game is to associate him with the word "maggot". He didn't say it, he doesn't believe they are maggots, but his position is still marginalized and will be dismissed by the Left's base who will parrot "racist Republicans regard latinos as maggots".

And it will take you 3 paragraphs to explain why they are wrong, only to have them call you a maggot because "you deserve it for defending a guy who calls people maggots".

This was not an error made in good faith, these people are evil and will lie cheat and steal in service to what they see as the "greater good" of their Shining Path.

We keep making the mistake of assuming these people are just the flip side of our side of the coin. They are not.

Shouting Thomas said...

Overbearing sanctimony is a common trait among Mormon men.

Not attacking Mormonism.

Hagar said...

Trucale's quoted comments make him a dubious choice for a Federal judgeship for their personal nature regardless of the degree to which you may agree or disagree with their factual basis, but what about Romney?

What was Romney's basis for having himself elected senator from Utah and exactly how was that done?

Dust Bunny Queen said...

What then is the right word?

Self aggrandizing weasel.

Yah. More than one word but since I'm not German I couldn't come up with one of their fabulous portmanteau type of wording.

Hagar said...

It can be argued that Obama and Romney are both American impostors.

Fen said...

“With regard to immigration, we must not continue to have the maggots coming in,” he once said, though later argued he used the word “magnets.”

A Democrat would have gotten this attrib instead:

“With regard to immigration, we must not continue to have the magnets coming in,” he once said, though later others wrongly argued he used the word “maggots.”

See the difference on how the wording shades your subconscious? The first attrib conveys the feeling that he originally slipped and called them maggots and did he try to save it by pretending he was misquoted? The second attrib instead directs your attention to those who apparently tried to unfairly put words in his mouth.

M Jordan said...

I voted for Romney but regret it. I now wonder what is in this plastic man’s soul? He has made me lose respect for Mormons in general, perhaps not fair but he is the highest figure they have produced politically.

Dust Bunny Queen said...

A child born in the US to illegals is a “magnet”

That is why they are called Anchor Babies. Think of them like those grappling hooks that criminals use to climb into the balconies of buildings that they are planning to pillage and loot.

Throw the grappling hook. Drop the baby on the US side of the border. Ta Dah! Now you have a hook into the juiciest free ride in the world. The anchor is set. Bring in ALL the relatives and get on the gravy train/welfare magnet. Everything in the apartment is now yours!

narayanan said...

EDH said... Instead of Times Square, this New Years I'm headed to Utah to see if Mitt Romney's testicles descend.


YOU DON'T BELIEVE IN SCIENCE!!!

They scrunch up higher and tighter in the cold of UTAH

MadisonMan said...

I just can't get too excited about remarks made by a Senator justifying a vote. Outrage has peaked.

Subbing in maggots for magnets, though, is SOP for the Lefty Press.

Big Mike said...

But he didn't beat Obama. He showed he could beat Obama if he wanted. He came on strong in the first debate. But he stood down in the second debate, and his party lost.

I assumed that someone had something on him, “Take a dive or all this gets on the front page in ever city, not to mention CNN.”

Tim said...

Romney = open borders turd

Fen said...

Overbearing sanctimony is a common trait among Mormon men. Not attacking Mormonism.

I have begun to. I've been close to 5 Mormons in my life and always held them in the highest regard. Until the 2016 election.

They simply would not support him, even to stop Hillary, because of his character defects. It became a point of religious principle with them. I tried to argue Churchill - Winston was a chauvinist sexist and a drunk, but without him Hitler would have incinerated another 6 million jews, probably millions more. Would they have walked away from Churchill and let that happen?

YES they would.

They did not want to stain their soul by supporting a fallen man, even in a fight against the Devil. We have well-versed Christians on this blog, so correct me on my Bible, maybe I'm getting it from CS Lewis and not the New Testament, but I thought there was an admonition to not forsake this world for the next, ie. don't enable human suffering because you are more worried about the sanctity of your soul and your place in Heaven. That's not how this works.

They would look on as millions suffered in this world because they hold that the overall goal of this world is to get into the next one.

I was so disgusted I threw them out of my life. Good people but worthless and useless. And I've never trusted a Mormon since. Like the Ents of Tolkien, they will not fight. Might stain their souls.

MBunge said...

Romney is yet more proof of how stupid our elites are.

When McCain lost the GOP nomination to Bush the Younger, he ran around kissing the behind of all the people who had stuck the knife in him during the primaries. It was kind of disgusting but it was cold political calculation. McCain only went back to pleasing liberals after Trump won and he knew he had no future in the GOP.

Romney is just the opposite. So maybe he'll turn into a real culture warrior after Nikki Haley gets the nod to follow Trump in 2024.

Mike

tim in vermont said...

Update, April 19, 2018, at 3:45 p.m.: Andrew Hudson, a spokesman for the Department of Justice, contacted me after this post went up and explained that Truncale actually said “with regard to immigration, we must not continue to have the magnets coming in,” not “with regard to immigration, we must not continue to have the maggots coming in.” According to Hudson, Truncale—who was discussing immigration at a 2012 candidate forum—was “referring to entitlement programs available to illegal aliens that would draw them here and give them a reason to stay.” Hudson also pointed to a different video in which Truncale, in speaking about immigration, clearly uses the word magnet:. - Slate

https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2018/04/trump-judicial-nominee-michael-truncale-called-immigrants-maggots.html

Sorry to drop a hammer on such a fun discussion, but when you’ve lost Slate...

Lucien said...

But as the Republican nominee, just imagine how hard he will go after someone who makes disparaging remarks about President Trump!

tim in vermont said...

So not only did he later claim to have used the word “magnets” but there exists video proof that he said “magnets” in other settings discussing the same issue.

Like I said, I never trust a quote provided by the MSM of a conservative. It’s long experience that has led to this sad state of affairs.

Big Mike said...

To the extent that one illegal immigrant makes it easier for relatives and friends from the old village to come here, then “magnets” is appropriate.

Meanwhile, does Utah have recall?

Michael K said...


A child born in the US to illegals is a “magnet” that can bring in the whole extended family, and under some interpretations and/or proposals, the whole village.


This is what happened to Britain. They had chain migration of whole villages from Pakistan. It has changed the country.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Thanks, Utah. Suckers.

Tank said...

Romney doesn't know which team he's supposed to be on.

A sanctimonious useful idiot.

M Jordan said...

“but I thought there was an admonition to not forsake this world for the next.”

Jesus said don’t worry about tomorrow because there’s enough evil today to deal with. He also said lay up your treasures in heaven, not earth, where moth and rust won’t corrupt and thieves can’t steal them. So it’s a mixed bag on this point.

Fen said...

I voted for Romney but regret it.

I campaigned for him. He fooled me.

I hope he runs again. Because my credentials are still good enough to get me back on his campaign. Once there, I will show the traitor what it means to be betrayed. I think I'll start off by giving the NYTs a live mic in his office, maybe a few buddy-buddy memos to local KKK chapters on campaign lettterhead, maybe switch his teleprompter out with the english translation lifed from Mein Kampf.

Fricken weasel.

Kevin said...

How many Democrat judges will be unfit for promotion because they stated support for the idea that Trump was a Russian Agent who committed treason?

Show me one Democrat Senator who will vote no on that basis.

Kevin said...

"I could have been President" is a bad look for a man.

Or a woman.

n.n said...

And the trial progresses.

“With regard to immigration, we must not continue to have the magnets coming in,” he once said, though later others wrongly argued he used the word “maggots.”

Semantic games, and people, for some reason, insist on playing by their rules. Anyway, this is reminiscent of the diversity racket fund raising event that exploited conflation of "black hole" and "black whore" by a paid activist, the abortion field and other violence perpetrated by the "anti fascists", or using technical terms of art to label a human baby in order to deny her humanity, her right to bear arms (legs, etc), and right to life.

Francisco D said...

Republicans have more to worry about with Romney in the Senate than they do with Schumer and Durbin.

MD Greene said...

"Decent journalism" ended a long time ago. I've largely stopped paying attention, and I don't think I'm the only one.

There are reasons not to like Obama, most of which involve his weaponizing the deep state to attack his political enemies. Since he was untouchable he got away with it, and it seemed clear that the prospective first woman president was expecting the same political cover. This is dangerous for a democracy, to say the least.

There are lots of things not to like about Donald Trump, but one of the big things that I do like about him is this: His own party will turn on him immediately if he oversteps his legal mandate. Romney of course will try to lead the charge, which is fine, but if it comes to that, he will be more likely to prevail if he has kept his powder dry and not sweated the small stuff.

Prof. Althouse is right. In this case, Romney should have voted against the judge and said something like, "I think there are better candidates out there." He views himself as a classy, respected Important Man; why pick nitty little fights and seek Politico's approval over this?

Fen said...

Romney is yet more proof of how stupid our elites are. When McCain lost the GOP nomination to Bush the Younger, he ran around kissing the behind of all the people who had stuck the knife in him during the primaries.

I'm glad you brought that up. McCain spent a decade throwing his people under the bus to curry favor with the MSM. The Maverick Moderate! Sacrificing us and our issues in exchange for being treated fairly by the media once he ran for President.

It didn't work. No one likes a traitor, even the country he betrays his own for. Soon as he announced his candidacy the media no longer had a use for him and the knives came out.

Romney witnessed all this, and somehow thinks he can do the same and expect a different outcome. That right there shows he is too stupid to serve as our leader.

Kevin said...

He's a Senator now, elected by the people of a state, but he was a nominee for a higher office, and that's apparently more important, even though he didn't win, and he's not even the party's "standard bearer" (not the most recent nominee).

He's made particularly disparaging remarks about the leader of his own party.

I doubt he believes that makes him ineligible to serve as a judge, should he be so nominated.

stevew said...

Let's rename him: Coulda-Woulda-Shoulda Romney.

Romney's reasoning for voting against the nominee deserves the Civility Bullshit tag.

This from the guy that said "binders full of women" when running for POTUS.

tim in vermont said...

Since Slate has printed a retraction of the “maggots” quote, the Salt Lake Tribune should do so as well.

Fen said...

Winston was a chauvinist sexist and a drunk, but without him Hitler would have incinerated another 6 million jews, probably millions more. Would they have walked away from Churchill and let that happen?

YES they would.


That's what they actually said. Sorry, I left that out. I'm not answering for them, the two Mormons actually said they would not have supported Churchill because of his character defects, even if it meant preventing the deaths of millions.

Fen said...

He's made particularly disparaging remarks about the leader of his own party.

Ouch. Good point. At his next townhall, someone should remind him of that and ask him if he has the principles to step down.

Fen said...

I think that Obama was born a citizen due to his mother’s undeniable status as a citizen, despite his claim in his marketing material for his book,

I honestly thought he was born in Kenya, still do. But I never got on the Birther bandwagon. It seemed pointless, like arguing a refs bad call the day after the football game. What? Do you really think they are going to go back and give your team 6 points on the board? It's over.

chuck said...

> He's special.

Indeed. The fact that he didn't get elected shows the good judgement of the electorate.

Ray - SoCal said...

I’m surprised at Romney’s poor political judgement.

rehajm said...

Yes, we can all make fun of Mitt and for good reason but if he's been caught misspeaking or being inarticulate it would be quite rare. The issue tends to lie with the listener and the interpretation...

I think I'll have to revisit that second debate at some point as I recall he was right and his overall performance on substance was very good. The usual Mittisms made for good Democrat sound bites but he still won on points. A coordinated leftie narrative was woven around Mitt and Candy back when many of us still believed leftie MSM narratives were a figment of Republicans imagination. I don't think they could get away with it today...

Like I said I may have to go re-watch...

rehajm said...

I’m surprised at Romney’s poor political judgement.

Me too. It's downright goofy...

William said...

Intemperate criticism of the President is now deemed sufficient to deny someone a seat on the bench. I can see how this precedent will play out to Republican advantage. I have yet to hear any temperate criticism directed against Trump by a Democrat. Sadly, many Democrats are now disqualified for judicial careers.

Koot Katmandu said...

Regret voting for Mitt more and more every time he opens is mouth now. When Mitt lost we probably dodged a bullet as a country. As bad as Obama was his policies lead to PDT and exposed all the Rs who are really just Ds in sheep's clothing.

Krumhorn said...

I voted for Romney. Had no choice. His single biggest flaw as a candidate was that he failed to defend the economics of wealth. He was incessantly attacked for his work as a banker. And yet not once did he use his many opportunities to explain how the acquisition of wealth is not a zero sum game and that the deployment of disposable income as seed money and venture capital builds massive wealth and employment for others. Government cannot do that through taxation. Government does not put the assets of rich people to productive use. Rather, it gets spent on pork rinds and beer and cigarettes.

Romney was and is a sniveling weasel as Dust Bunny said. This is why Trump was elected. Whatever else Trump may be, he’s not a sniveling weasel.

- Krumhorn

tim in vermont said...

Thanks you for frontpaging that Slate retraction.

buwaya said...

We like to think we can suss out the reasons for this or that political act.
But we, the public, lack information.
We don't know, and may never know, the true nature of the games being played.
We can only know for certain that a great deal that matters is obscure.
That there are players behind the scenes, factors behind the scenes, and goals they are playing for that are not apparent.

We can and should suspect. That is only prudent if we properly understand our ignorance.

This is by the way a big difference between large and small countries. A small place is simpler, has less scope for hidden players and hidden agendas. Even in a dictatorship, in a small country there are fewer real secrets.

As with Romney effectively throwing the election of 2012. There is a reason, and some people know it. Maybe someday someone will spill the beans. One thing one learns from a study of history is that this spilling of the beans long afterwards, long after it makes no difference to public opinion, is the usual way of it.

Ann Althouse said...

Making up racial hatred is truly evil.

I was careful to write, in the original post, " I'm seeing in The Salt Lake Tribune that Truncale was quoted as saying..." Was quoted. I avoided saying that he said it, because how do I know? I only said what I knew, that the SL Tribute presented that statement as a quote.

But with the video there and available for weeks, there's no excuse for passing along the "maggots" quote.

It reminds me of the continued reporting that Trump said Nazis were "fine people." The corrective material is available and plain, and there are some horrible journalists and politicians who want to make people feel that there's some deep ugliness out there -- want people to feel hurt and diminished and afraid. It's disgusting to have a personal stake in doing that to people.

SDaly said...

I voted for Romney but regret it. I now wonder what is in this plastic man’s soul? He has made me lose respect for Mormons in general, perhaps not fair but he is the highest figure they have produced politically.

"How could you forget about me?" - Harry Reid.

SeanF said...

Big Mike: Meanwhile, does Utah have recall?

No member of Congress has ever been recalled in the history of the US. The Constitution doesn't allow for it.

I would bet money that SCOTUS would overrule if a state tried to recall a Senator or Representative.

narciso said...

Romney hires Dennis jones the one behind the memo that threw Palin under the bus and madden another whisperer, the previous time they through an election to obama.

Previously he hired Jonathan Gruber and Gina McCarthy, and he threw our current ambassador to Germany richard grenell under the bus.

iowan2 said...

I honestly thought he was born in Kenya, still do. But I never got on the Birther bandwagon.
His mother is American. So that boat has sailed.

I have always had several issues. What did Obama's mother put on the birth certificate. Did she claim he was Kenyan? Remember these were Anti American hippies. They were not proud to be Americans. Even then, they wanted to bring America down, because they thought her riches were unfair, and should belong to the world, not just Americans. They saw themselves more as citizens of the world.
What did Obama put on his college application? Kenyan? That's my guess. A Black foreigner, a big get for the emerging diversity claque on campuses. Does not change the Fact that Obama is a natural born citizen and meets the qualification to serve as President, but politically, a bridge too far for a lot of Dems in flyover country that wear their Americanism loud and proud.
Finally, the Constitutional requirement exists for what reason? America has a unique culture. Something that has generated volumes of study. Yes we, as Americans, are different because of our culture. Our President needs to steep in that culture. Obama never had any of that. I am fully aware Hawaii is a state. The Culture of Hawaii is Hawaiian, distinct from the mainland. Obama does not "get" America

JAORE said...

Perhaps he should use the label "Failed Nominee for the Presidency". Accuracy being important. (Like failure to check out a quote from MSM.)

What then is the right word? Maybe — ironically — it's "intemperate." Or butt hurt.

buwaya said...

Making up hatred is normal. This is the nature of propaganda, deployed as a weapon in a real conflict, this is the game.
This has always been the game.

The only thing that has ever kept the game "honest", to any degree, is when there is an effective counter-propaganda, an opposing machine.

narciso said...

And let us not forget that Romney threw Reagan under the bus in the debate with teddy Kennedy, actual Soviet fellows travellers, yet he still buried him.

Andrew said...

1) I've asked this before on a different thread, but it seems appropriate to ask it here: what is the likelihood that President Obama and government agencies under his direction spied on Romney's campaign? It seems possible that Trump wasn't the first to be targeted. Actually, I wouldn't be surprised if it were standard operating procedure. Remember "Filegate"?

2) I live in Ohio. Early in the 2012 campaign, Obama came out with devastating TV ads against Romney, focusing on his work at Bain, stripping companies and selling them for profit, screwing the workers, and outsourcing jobs. (Ironically, the substance could have been from the Trump campaign years later. It was a similar critique.) Romney never even answered those ads. I knew it was over when Romney didn't fight back.

3) If Trump needs a nickname for Romney, how about "Dog Torturer Romney"? One of the funniest aspects of 2012 was the "Dogs against Romney" parody ads. Trump could also call upon Congress to ban the "Romney Box" so no more dogs suffer from evil, cold-hearted owners.

gspencer said...

The good news - Michael Truncale was confirmed, 49-46.

Mittens, a POS all his life, continues in that designation.

Mike Sylwester said...

'birtherism,' a racist theory that the president was not an American citizen

Not only is birtherism not racist, it also is not a theory.

A theory is a system of ideas intended to explain something, especially one based on general principles. For example, there are theories of evolution, of plate tectonics or of global warning.

An explanation of the circumstances of Barack Obama's birth in relation to his natural-born status is not an exalted theory.

narciso said...

No need for invective, when the real life Gordon gecko's actions give him away. Of course his major patron Paul singer originally funded fusion through kristols son in law continetti, even though fusion had gone after vanderslip and probably Adelson in the last cyclem

tim in vermont said...

Buwaya is right, as per usual. It seems clear to me that the reason that they declined to provide a link for that one quote, the most inflammatory quote of the bunch, while linking all of the others, was that it would lead to the retraction. It smelled funny because it stank.

Michael K said...

It reminds me of the continued reporting that Trump said Nazis were "fine people."

Another example is the "Proud Boys" marching chanting "You will not replace us," which has been quoted as "Jews will not..."

I have listened to that video multiple times. It is a protest against the war on white men and has nothing to do with Jews.

narciso said...

Romney was like the previous opposition candidate in Venezuela capriles he was robbed of his office, but he didnt put up much of a fuss, didn't support the civil dissobedience.

Krumhorn said...

Obama does not "get" America

I completely agree. I’ve never had the feeling that Our Savior identified as an American. He was a citizen of the world. Remember that speech in Berlin shortly after his inauguration how he was going to slow the rise of the oceans and heal the earth?

When you look at where and how he was raised...not to mention the crusty protein stains on his underwear...and Hussein!...he was a carefully cultivated greenhouse leftie designed for doing things like the Paris Accords and the apology tour.

Still, Romney is and was a sniveling weasel. It was a terrible choice to have to make.

- Krumhorn

-

CWJ said...

"Subbing in maggots for magnets, though, is SOP for the Lefty Press."

"jews" for "you."

rightguy said...

So its pretty clear that had Romney been elected President, then he would not have appointed level headed, plain-spoken people like Truncale to federal court. Because why ? This vote epitomizes Romney and why he was (and is) a loser -and would have been a weak POTUS. BTW, Truncale was right about Obama- BHO was the least patriotic President we've ever had.

madAsHell said...

He came on strong in the first debate. But he stood down in the second debate, and his party lost.

The Candy Crowley moment. Go back, and look at FISA warrants from this same time.

TrespassersW said...

Fen said...
Like the Ents of Tolkien, they will not fight.

Correction: It was Jackson's ents who would not fight until they were shown that Saruman was directly attacking them. (Which was pretty lame; how is it that Treebeard (who also bore the name Fangorn) was utterly unaware of what had happened to such a large chunk of Fangorn Forest?)

Tolkein's ents were slow to go to war, but they did fight.

tim in vermont said...

Was Birtherism racist when they used it against Chester A Arthur, who showed up at a Vermont orphanage a couple days hike from the border? I doubt that it would have been possible to prove he was a natural born citizen, BTW.

How about John McCain who was born in the Canal Zone?

Ted Cruz, born in Canada, IIRC, but his mother was American.

How about when they claimed that Cheney was really a Texan, not from Wyoming and therefore not eligible to run with another Texan?

Mike Sylwester said...

The issue is not whether Barack Obama was born a citizen.

Rather, the Constitutional requirement is that he had to be a natural-born citizen. The issue might involve his birth location, his mother's age and his father's citizenship.

Ultimately, a Presidential candidate's qualification as a natural-born citizen is judged by the electorate. There is no legal mechanism for a candidate's qualification to be judged by the judiciary.

Voters who judge that a Presidential candidate is not a natural-born citizen -- as they themselves define the expression -- have good cause to vote against him on that issue alone.

Because the electorate -- not the judiciary -- judges this qualification, the electorate should be provided with the government's best evidence about a candidate's birth circumstances. In the 2008 election, the issue arose because of controversies about his birth circumstances. However, the electorate was provided with only a summary of Obama's birth certificate -- a summary written by an unidentified government clerk.

Obama was happy that the provision of his original long-form birth certificate was prevented, because he was happy to frustrate his political opponents.

Thanks to Donald Trump, however, Obama was compelled to provide the long-form birth certificate before the 2012 election. Trump compelled Obama to establish, belatedly, a good precedent for all future Presidential elections.

In all future Presidential elections, when the issue arises, candidates will feel compelled by this 2012 precedent to provide the government's best evidence about their birth circumstances. No longer will summaries written by unidentified clerks be accepted as adequate.

stevew said...

"The good news - Michael Truncale was confirmed, 49-46."

Which tells me Romney's no vote, when he knew the nominee would confirmed, was on principle, aka: virtue signaling and posturing.

Skeptical Voter said...

Eh Mitt, time to replay the Al Campanis moment--you lack the "intangibles" to be President.

Campanis got canned by the Dodgers years ago for making that observation about whether black baseball players could become baseball managers. Campanis was wrong--see Roberts, Dave as the current Dodger manager.

But I think that the observation is still true about Romney. Nice guy, but no killer instinct when the chips are down, and a knife in the back when they are not. But Mitt shouldn't bother to show up in next year's Republican primaries.

grackle said...

I'm guessing the good people of Utah will make Romney the "former Republican Senator" in about 5 years.

Sadly, there’s little chance for that, the state of Utah politics being what they are. No, Romney will be a senator for as long as he wants the job.

But he is picking a fight with Trump. Romney is throwing Romney’s sissified version of trash talk at Trump – who just happens to be the current world champion of trash talk. If Romney is not careful Romney will end up becoming a laughing stock.

I think maybe being a senator isn’t much fun if you are being made to look ridiculous. You can get elected by the good citizens in Utah forever but that doesn’t matter if the rest of America is laughing at you.

Birkel said...

All of you surprised people: Just stop!
You were suckers.
Don't be suckers again.

Although I could have voted going well back before Bush, I never voted for one.
Or Romney.
Or McCain.

There were Chamber of Commerce bought and paid for Republicans, to a man.
The CoC has been fine with hollowing out manufacturing and shipping them to China.
So all that middle class stagnation is largely laid at their feet.

You can't blame Democratics as they have made their hatred of blue collar workers patent.
The Democratics are the honest brokers, compared to Mitt Romney.

BamaBadgOR said...

St. Mittens strikes again. What a pompous SOB.

Unknown said...

SuperCuck will block anyone with balls.

The societal ratchet only screws left.

Martin said...

Romney brought a squirt gun to a gun fight in 2012, and he thinks that makes him honorable and better than other people, so he will keep rubbing his erstwhile supporters' noses in it.

People keep saying he is a wonderful guy. I don't see it, at least in his chosen field of endeavor, politics; not at all. A good and honorable person does not make promises and commitments to gain supporters, then take their money and emotions, and at the end leave them in the ditch. He made a commitment to them, he benefited from their support, and he didn't do what he had committed to do, which was a serious, all-out effort. I just see a mope with a big ego and a cheering section that feeds at the same trough. Typical political grifter.

He is just another GOPe puke.

That's a large part of how we got Trump and he should admit to his huge role in that; had he won in 2012, obviously no Trump in 2016. But even a narrow loss after a good fight would not have destroyed the credibility of everyone else in the GOP establishment. Jeb Bush or Marco Rubio or even Ted Cruz might have been sincere in 2015-16, but after Romney-2012 nobody believed it. Not his loss, per se, but the way he lost (not even trying lest his perfect hair and ego get mussed) was a real turning point.

Not that he ever will admit it, because, as I said, he has no honor, just undeserved self-regard.

tim in vermont said...

Obviously the Salt Lake Tribune has Rommey’s back.

Unknown said...

> Overbearing sanctimony is a common trait among Mormon men.

Oh, COMEY is a Mormon!

Mike Sylwester said...

Based on the Constitutional requirement that a US President be "a natural-born citizen" (not "born a citizen") Donald Trump disputed the qualifications of two politicians -- Barack Obama and Ted Cruz.

Of course, neither dispute was "a racist theory" -- an expression used by journalists who are blatantly stupid.

In the case of Cruz, Trump disputed his qualification during the Republican Party's primary elections. At that stage of an election race, there is no legal mechanism for our judiciary to judge the issue. Furthermore, there never is such a legal mechanism before a new President has been inaugurated.

Trump's dispute of Cruz's qualifications on that issue was proper and justifiable. The issue was in the jurisdiction -- not of the judiciary -- of the electorate.

As events developed, Cruz soon lost in the primary elections anyway. If Cruz had not lost soon, however, then Cruz would have had to address the issue.

Because of the precedent that Trump compelled Barack Obama to establish before the 2012 election, the electorate should have been provided with the government's best evidence about his birth circumstances. In Cruz's case, the US Government should have obtained also the Canadian Government's best evidence.

In the 2008 election, the electorate was not provided with the government's best evidence. Rather, the electorate was provided only with a summary of the best evidence, written by an unidentified clerk.

Birkel said...

And for all the free traders: the long-term, Pareto-optimal solution is wages across countries will also be normalized.

That means the US position of greater prosperity will eventually fall as Bangladesh's rises under the ideal parameters of a free market espoused by free traders.

(Forget for a moment that free people and free markets is an historical anomaly.)

Is that what we want?
Wage parity?

Fen said...

Roy: Tolkein's ents were slow to go to war, but they did fight

Ah, thanks for the correction. Last thing I need right now is to piss off the Ents! :)

Seriously though, thanks I had forgotten that.

narciso said...

Birtherism was a weak argument for those he didnt want to challenges Obama's philosophical unfitness for office.
https://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2019/05/mike-pompeo-a-foreign-policy-from-the-founding.php

Matt said...

Truncale may have insulted Obama. I can think of a handful of people who should care, all in Obama's immediate family. Obama's a politician; politicians insult each other and are insulted. Anybody other than Obama's family who says they are offended on Obama's behalf is either stupid or disingenuous. Romney may be both.

Michael K said...

Thanks to Donald Trump, however, Obama was compelled to provide the long-form birth certificate before the 2012 election. Trump compelled Obama to establish, belatedly, a good precedent for all future Presidential elections.

But not the original. I can still get a copy of my original from the 1930s. Why was Obama's not original?

Speculation, which will probably be found some day, Maybe the father ? Who knows.

His grades were long ago shredded.

Fen said...

but it seems appropriate to ask it here: what is the likelihood that President Obama and government agencies under his direction spied on Romney's campaign?

I think it's very likely. When I discover someone being careless in their deceptions, it makes me suspect they are complacent because they've been getting away with for so long.

Like a cheating husband. First time he has an affair, he swings by the gym to shower, borrows a buddy's shirt and tie, combs the passenger seat for stray blonde hairs, punctures his own tire so he can present the tow truck receipt to his wife as proof of why he was out so late.

Afterwards, slowly, he lowers the time and energy he spends on his deceptions. Her radar is operating at Level 3, so why go crazy keeping his counter-measures at level 11?

Ladies, if you walk in on him with another women in your bed, because you came home 30 minutes before you habitually do, it's not the first time.

Kevin said...

Making up racial hatred is truly evil.

Worse than racism.

When we finally understand that as a country, we’ll start coming back together again.

mockturtle said...

There is a time for a figurehead type of President, e.g., Ike after WWII. And there is a time for a kick-ass President, like Trump. You don't send a dwarf to defeat a dragon [usually]. Romney is not only not equipped to stand up to the Deep State, he is an integral part of it.

Fen said...

But not the original. I can still get a copy of my original from the 1930s. Why was Obama's not original?

And what interests me is more time and energy was spent vilifying people who asked those kinds of questions than it would have taken to get a copy of the original. Curious.

Fen said...

All of you surprised people: Just stop! You were suckers. Don't be suckers again.

Haha. When I get cocky, please don't hesitate to remind me how naive I was.

Sam L. said...

I have no faith in nor respect for Mitt.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Unfair treatment and false allegations towards conservatives is now the norm.

The Colorado school shooter - who shot and killed Kendrick Castillo to death - HE IS A LEFTWING CHRISTIAN HATING BIGOT. News media NOT interested.

But it's OK for any major leftwing news outfits like ABC's Brian Ross to speculate that the Aurora theater shooter was a guy who affiliated with a conservative group. Even though it 100% total unsubstantiated lie.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Ann said...
It reminds me of the continued reporting that Trump said Nazis were "fine people." The corrective material is available and plain, and there are some horrible journalists and politicians who want to make people feel that there's some deep ugliness out there -- want people to feel hurt and diminished and afraid. It's disgusting to have a personal stake in doing that to people.

Chuck said...

I expect that if Romney had been the deciding vote, that he might have voted “Yes” on the nomination. Still, this was just a District Court seat. Not exactly the highest of judicial/political stakes. Although we should all take every lifetime appointment to the federal judiciary seriously. Romney did, no doubt. But there was room for Romney to make a statement.

And one hell of a lot more temperate, and more articulate, than Trump’s idiotic references to “so called judges” and a “Mexican judges.”

gahrie said...

Making up racial hatred is truly evil.

Now go the next step and identify the people doing this and why they are doing it. Which you refuse to do because it reflects badly on the Left.

walter said...

"the Republican nominee for President"
Reads better than "Loser"
Fair Weather "Republican" who is now shitting in his corner to stay relevant.

gahrie said...

And what interests me is more time and energy was spent vilifying people who asked those kinds of questions than it would have taken to get a copy of the original. Curious.

I think it was all about distracting people from wanting to see Obama's college records.

tim in vermont said...

OMG, Chuck, right up there frontpaged is a dissing of The Bulwark!

I can only think of “Of Mice and Men” when I wrote that, where Lenny says “Tell me again about the rabbits George."

Yancey Ward said...

The funny thing about the "quote" in the newspaper is that there is no link supporting that "quote", whereas the actual Obama one does have a link. Had I read that article before reading this blog post, I would have immediately understood that the "quote" was a lie, and that the writer knew they were lying. I see this all the time- it is one of the things I always am looking for in on-line articles- selective support for "quotes".

bagoh20 said...

Eight years of being told that any criticism of Obama was racist, so birtherism being racist is no surprise. Remember there was also some birtherism aimed at John McCain. Isn't it pure racism to assume so often that White people are racist just becuase they are White? That is undeniably the most common form of racism in our society today, followed by the racism of low expectations.


Sincerely,
Bagoh20 - Class President - 6th Grade - 1969 and
Manager of the Class Science Locker

Yancey Ward said...

And Nobody caught the exact same suspicious lack of links.

bagoh20 said...

"Ladies, if you walk in on him with another women in your bed, because you came home 30 minutes before you habitually do, it's not the first time."


"But, but, Honey, it IS the first time. You know how bad my luck is with the ladies."

Left Bank of the Charles said...

"He showed he could beat Obama if he wanted."

"All the federales say
They could have had him any day
They only let him slip away
Out of kindness I suppose"

I find myself singing the refrain of that song when I turn on Rachel Maddow these days and so in the interests of fair play I will sing it today for Ann Althouse.

Mitt is getting the treatment Althouse usually reserves for Hillary. It is bemusing how Althouse treats the candidates for President that she voted for but who lost anyway.

As far as Romney's reference to himself as "the Republican nominee for president" throwing some shade that Trump is illegitimate, he did in a subsequent sentence qualify that to "a former nominee of our party". But to the Althouse hoax reading, Romney could be saying he was the "last Republican nominee for president" - the idea being that Trump is not a Republican even though he was the nominee of the Republican Party. He didn't say that though.

DKWalser said...

I believe people are not putting Romney's explanation in the proper context. At the time Romney's presidential campaign, Truncale was running for Congress as a Republican. Truncale made some disparaging remarks about Obama and Romney asked Truncale to back off. Truncale refused. It was this interaction between the two men that caused Romney to believe Truncale lacked the proper demeanor to be a federal judge.

In essence, Romney is saying that, while he was the Republican candidate for President, a candidate for a lesser office was saying things that Romney felt were making Romney's own candidacy more difficult. He asked, as leader of the Republican party, for the other candidate to play ball. The other candidate refused. Romney saw this as evidence of a lack of character on the part of the other candidate. (Others might see Romney's vote as evidence of his holding a grudge.) But, Romney's poorly worded explanation shouldn't be understood as claiming to currently be the leader of the Republican party.

Chuck said...

DK Walser;

A superb comment that I wish I had written.

Fen said...

Excellent post, but...

"He asked, as leader of the Republican party, for the other candidate to play ball"

I don't see where Romney gets off, considering:

"On March 3, 2016, U.S. Republican politician Mitt Romney delivered a major speech for the Hinckley Institute of Politics at the Libby Gardner Hall in the University of Utah. In that speech, he denounced Donald Trump, who was then the front-runner in the 2016 Republican Party presidential primaries. He urged citizens to use tactical voting in the remaining primaries and caucuses to maximize the chance of denying Trump a delegate majority."

Fen said...

"I find myself singing the refrain of that song."

And there's the part where no one knows where Lefty got the cash to relocatw to Ohio :)

JAORE said...

After President Trump's time is over it will be a miracle if the Republicans don't turn to a Mitt-like candidate.

But, one can hope.

dreams said...

Yeah, but the democrats have to keep the blacks agitated so they can get their votes, it's all about politics. I think it's evil, I think the democrats are evil.

Chuck said...

To Nobody in particular,

Althouse didn’t “diss” The Bulwark.

Althouse, like Scott Adams, has never taken on the arguments of Robert Tracinski (Bulwark contributor) about “The Charlottesville Hoax” hoax. Never even acknowledged the argument.

Althouse, like Adams, only wants to deal with a shallow, one-dimensional group of media strawmen. The question isn’t whether, in the course of four different rambling, ambiguous statements about Charlottesville, did Trump condemn the neo-Nazis and white supremacists. He did do that, once. That’s the simplistic story. The boring story. The question that Robert Tracinski asked and which neither Althouse nor Scott Adams can answer is whether the totality of Trump’s remarks display a real ignorance and negligent, ignorant ambiguity on the part of Trump that speaks to some other defect in Trump’s thinking.

Read more here:

https://thebulwark.com/the-charlottesville-hoax-hoax/

tim in vermont said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Bilwick said...

I guess calling Red Diaper Barry "Red Diaper Barry" would be strictly out of the question, then?

tim in vermont said...

OMG Chuck, the last time you posted that we completely demolished it.

Here is one thread among others: https://althouse.blogspot.com/2019/05/loving-someone-with-whom-you-disagree.html

If you want to have any credibility, you could comeback with your steel trap logic, honed by years of legal practice, I’m sure, and demonstrate why it wasn’t demolished, or you could apologize and move on.

My bet? You do neither, but continue to post that discredited link.

tim in vermont said...

The question that Robert Tracinski asked and which neither Althouse nor Scott Adams can answer is whether the totality of Trump’s remarks display a real ignorance and negligent, ignorant ambiguity on the part of Trump that speaks to some other defect in Trump’s thinking.

If you call that poorly constructed argument glued together with motivated reasoning anything other than somebody’s opinion, that’s pretty sad. You guys not only assume what you are trying to prove, you take what you are trying to prove as an article of faith.

Robert Tracinkski made multiple factual and logical errors in that piece, for instance his declaration that there were no people who shared his belief that the the statue shouldn’t be removed who were not either Nazis or White Supremacists there because he wasn’t there.

tim in vermont said...

Incidently, the error I cited in my last paragraph was both a logical and factual error. Logical based on, well, logic, and factual, as rebutted by the New York Times article cited in the other thread.

tim in vermont said...

that speaks to some other defect in Trump’s thinking.

How do we prove a negative?

How does one prove that somebody’s opinion about the state of mind of another person is wrong?

It was no Gettysburg Address, nor was it any kind of a dogwhistle to racists and crypto support for some pretty sick people. Your problem Chuck is that you see AntiFa as an ally and so it gets your back up when anybody criticizes a group, Antifa, that spent a year causing violence at Trump rallies, the way the Brownshirts used to do. Not only were there “very fine people on both sides” there were very sick people on both sides, and Trump’s real crime was calling out allies of the left at the same time he called out the Nazis and the White Supremacists.

tim in vermont said...

Props on the “Nobody in particular” line though, that was funny.

Big Mike said...

It's disgusting to have a personal stake in doing that to people.

A question for you to ask yourself, Althouse. When you found yourself in a group of liberals (which in Madison in general and UW in particular must have accounted for 3/4 of your waking hours, if not more) and someone intoned that “the end justified the means,” did you (1) nod your head in agreement, or (2) push back against the speaker, or (3) not say anything because it’s simply obvious? Because you realize that that’s how we got to where we’re at, or do I hope.

Drago said...

Far left commenter LLR Chuck once again reintroduces previously debunked commentary from a far left hack at the far left The Bulwark which is funded by a far left billionaire and only linked to by far left political activists....like LLR Chuck.

The far left circle is complete..

Drago said...

Adam Schiff-ty "republican" and Proud Self-admitted Smear Merchant Chuck: "Althouse, like Adams, only wants to deal with a shallow, one-dimensional group of media strawmen."

Yes, established liar and racist poster Chuck wrote that.

Just now.

Without irony.

Unexpectedly.

Chuck said...

Fuck you, “Nobody.” I’ve never written one single word of support for “Antifa.” I don’t like them; don’t support them, and I never have.

How many Antifa-supporting Republicans do you know of? I know of about a hundred Trump-hating Republicans by name off the top of my head.

Where the fuck do you step off with a comment like that, telling people how much you think I support a group/cause like Antifa?

Drago said...

Noted Self-Admitted Smear Merchant Chuck: "F*** you, “Nobody.” I’ve never written one single word of support for “Antifa.” I don’t like them; don’t support them, and I never have."

LOL

Most Smear Merchants, and proud self-admitted ones even more so, usually arent very good at the faux How Dare You schtick.

When it comes to fakery and faux outrage, I would give LLR Chuck's laughable faux outrage comment 8 out of 10 "LLR Chucks" and 3 out of 5 "The Bulwarks".

Ahoy!

Drago said...

Durbin Cuckholster Chuck: "I know of about a hundred Trump-hating Republicans by name off the top of my head."

LOL

We dont require your assistance in identifying these fake republicans.

They have already self-identified by coming out strongly for the far left and dems in the last several elections!

But thanks for your help Matey!!

Ahoy!

Drago said...

I have to say I am particularly enjoying the LLR Chuck-lefty flop sweat over what Barr appears to be doing at DOJ.

There are lots of lefties like Chuck in a full panic over the mere possibility the totality of their corruption will be exposed!

Sam L. said...

I don't consider Politico a trustworthy source.

tim in vermont said...

Where the fuck do you step off with a comment like that, telling people how much you think I support a group/cause like Antifa?

Sorry Chuck if I offended you, but I was trying to think of. *some* kind of explanation for the fact that you are so upset that Trump criticized Antifa at the same time as he criticized the Nazis and the White Supremacist “bad people.”

I take it back, you are not upset because Trump also criticized Antifa at the same time.... so what was your point exactly then?

Big Mike said...

How many Antifa-supporting Republicans do you know of?

Just you, Chuck. Just you.

I know of about a hundred Trump-hating Republicans by name off the top of my head.

So can pretty much any of us, but none that we respect.

tim in vermont said...

I think it is because you believe that Trump needs to “protest too much” about not being a Nazi White Supremacist because he must clearly know that he is one! What if it would never occur to him to think that people with good intentions might take him for a Nazi? Would he still then make sure to say “I am not a Nazi” the way Nixon said “I am not a crook!”

I have to hand it to you lefties though, Chuck, you played Charlottesville perfectly, convincing people who don’t pay attention that Trump is a racist. I hope you guys are proud.

tim in vermont said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
bagoh20 said...

"Althouse, like Scott Adams, has never taken on the arguments of Robert Tracinski (Bulwark contributor) about “The Charlottesville Hoax” hoax. Never even acknowledged the argument."


"What about the Dingle-Norwood bill?"

tim in vermont said...

By also criticizing Antifa, Trump introduced “ambiguitiy” into his condemnation of the Nazis and the White Supremacists. I see it now.

But we can’t take from that the idea that Chuck is upset that Trump criticized Antifa!

Basically Antifa is well defended in the press and any attacks on Antifa are met with barrels of ink and parsecs of pixels. What could not stand was the statement that Antifa and the Nazi/White Supremacists are peas in a pod. And Chuck, the useful idiot, grabs a pine knot torch or a pitchfork and joins the mob in full throated fury.

tim in vermont said...

If you are wrong on this, Chuck, what other cherished beliefs might you have to question?

Drago said...

Bottom line: Robert Tracinski is a liar.

LLR Chuck is a lefty liar.

The Bulwark is a bastion of lefty liars.

That should clear that up.


bagoh20 said...


Had to look up "persiflage", and found an example.


"I could neither laugh with nor at the solemn utterances of men I esteemed ponderous asses; nor could I laugh, nor engage in my old-time lightsome persiflage, with the silly superficial chatterings of women, who, underneath all their silliness and softness, were as primitive, direct, and deadly in their pursuit of biological destiny as the monkeys women were before they shed their furry coats ..."

Dude1394 said...

Screw Romney. What is amazing to me is how horrible the GOP has been in picking candidates. Romney and McCain. Seriously, that’s the best you could do?

Romney is still butthurt.

bagoh20 said...

Like a lot of big towns on both coasts their tax dollars have been gone now for 25 years and nothing's replaced them. And they fell through the Clinton campaign, and the media, and each successive Democrat has said that somehow they would get that Trump and eliminate the feces from the streets, but they have not.

And it's not surprising then they get bitter, they cling to Nazis and collusion or racism or antipathy toward people who aren't like them or anti-American sentiment or anti-capitalism sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations.


bagoh20 said...

The media picked Romney and McCain (an insurance policy, so to speak).

Trump told the media to fuck off, and they couldn't get enough of it like an abused masochistic spouse, so they chose him too, becuase they are weak and have no self-respect.

bagoh20 said...

If the nominee made disparaging remarks about the current President, it would be like Romney voting to confirm himself, which would be so very righteous.

rcocean said...

The Maggots quote is an outright LIE. I love how the SLC news-writer phrased it:

“With regard to immigration, we must not continue to have the maggots coming in,” he once said, though later argued he used the word “magnets.”

That's beautiful. Lie about someone, then say they "argued against it". As in, "Chuck said he would suck Obama's dick, though later he argued he used the words, "like" and "dictation".

rcocean said...

"The media picked Romney and McCain (an insurance policy, so to speak)."

IRC, both McCain and Romney were the NY Times choices in the Republican race, after the obviously Left-wing freaks were pushed out.

rcocean said...

As stated above, why doesn't anyone criticize Trump for calling Antifa "Fine people". These commie assholes beat up and attacked Trump supporters all through the Campaign!

rcocean said...

BTW, Romney is really a piece of shit. A liar, a fool, and a backstabber. I'd bet $1,000 he's dreaming of another POTUS run in 2024.

bagoh20 said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
bagoh20 said...

Blogger rcocean said...
"As stated above, why doesn't anyone criticize Trump for calling Antifa "Fine people". These commie assholes beat up and attacked Trump supporters all through the Campaign!"


Very good point.

It's automatic that nobody bitches about calling violent leftists fine people. The left won't do it of course, and the right just doesn't get it's panties all wound in knots trying to parse out alternative nefarious meanings to common phrases. It's a difference in what the two cultures consider fair play and reasonable.

The truth is that Trump was right on both counts. There were people on both "sides" that were there for reasonable peaceful purposes, or what you might call "fine people". Sensible people get that. Everyone does, actually. Some just like to pretend they don't.

Sebastian said...

Romney may have been inarticulate, but he was very clear.

For the #NeverTrumpers, supporting Trump is worse than spewing fabricated racial smears.

In Romney's case, the condition is aggravated by envy.

Drago said...

No matter how much butthurt Romney feels when obama is attacked for his endless list of failings, it cannot begin to match the butthurt LLR Chuck feels when his "magnificent" obama is criticized.

rcocean said...

Why do people think Romney is a decent man? He lies and backstabs CONSTANTLY.

He pro-choice, oh wait, he's pro-life

He's for amnesty, no -he's against Amnesty, oh wait, he's not running for office - so he's really for it, oh wait, he's running for the Senate - so he's against it. Oh wait, he's now won election, so he's back to being for it.

He loves trump and wants his money. No, he hates Trump - he's a racist. No, he loves Trump - wants his Senator Endorsement. No, he hates Trump - he's now a Senator and can tell the truth.

How many times can a Decent man LIE, before he's no longer decent?

gilbar said...

I know I've said this before,
But isn't it interesting, that some Life Long Liberals always collapse down into potty mouths when their arguments collapse?

rcocean said...

The question that Robert Tracinski asked and which neither Althouse nor Scott Adams can answer is whether the totality of Trump’s remarks display a real ignorance and negligent, ignorant ambiguity on the part of Trump that speaks to some other defect in Trump’s thinking.

What a fucking word salad. What the hell does "a real ignorance and negligent, ignorant ambiguity" mean? I'll tell you, it means - NOTHING.

Trump denounced the Nazis. Trump denounced the violence. Trump denounced the Anitfa. Trump ALSO said there were fine people on both sides - not Nazi's & not Antifa - who supported/opposed Lee's statue. It all there. ON TAPE. The fact that Robert Trankinski - or whatever the fuck his name is - thinks it was *ambiguous* is his fucking problem.

tim in vermont said...

Trump’s remarks display a real ignorance

Trump was “ignorant” of the fact that you don’t criticize Antifa or make any equivalences to Nazis about them, no matter how obvious the parallels with actual Nazis, like the Brownshirts.

It’s like that time when Bill Clinton said that the Trump thought the rules didn’t apply to him. It made zero sense until you realized that Clinton was talking about the *actual* rules as enforced by the deep state, not the ‘rules’ you learned about in high school civics.

rcocean said...

Mitt is a liar and a knave. I wonder if we can trust him on the SCOTUS, or whether he's going to "Flake out" on us. He has a track record of lying about his conservatism
during the campaign and then being a "moderate" after the elections.