February 23, 2022

"When you were asked, 'What's the biggest geopolitical threat facing America,' you said 'Russia.' Not al Qaeda; you said Russia. And, the 1980s are now calling to ask for their foreign policy back, because the Cold War's been over for 20 years."

Said Barack Obama, in the third presidential debate in 2012, quoted by Chris Cillizza in "It's time to admit it: Mitt Romney was right about Russia" (CNN). 

So many people took the cue and laughed at Romney, who had been focusing attention on what Obama had said to then-Russian President Dmitry Medvedev earlier that year: "This is my last election. And after my election, I have more flexibility." 

Obama's joke — "the 1980s are now calling..." — overshadowed Romney's statement, which was: "Russia is not a friendly character on the world stage. And for this President to be looking for greater flexibility, where he doesn't have to answer to the American people in his relations with Russia, is very, very troubling, very alarming." 

Now, Cillizza says: "What looked like a major flub during the 2012 campaign -- and was used as a political cudgel by Obama -- now looks very, very different. It should serve as a reminder that history is not written in the moment -- and that what something looks like in that moment is not a guarantee of what it will always look like."

How about telling us what you actually said at the time? Because you, Chris Cillizza, were part of the "political cudgel" that — passive voice — "was used." You had the ability at the time to be more than semi-conscious, and as a writer at The Washington Post, you had a responsibility to do more than cheer-lead for Obama, something more than glance "in the moment" and say "what something looks like." 

It was time at the time to say who was right and wrong! And here's what you said at the time:

 

Oh, the superciliousness of "methinks"! It looks so awful now — that supercillizziousness...

Here's The Week celebrating Obama and Cillizza's wit at the time:

4. The '80s called....

After Obama noted that, earlier this year, Romney had called Russia, not Al Qaeda, our greatest geopolitical threat, the president unleashed his other zinger of the night: "The 1980's are now calling to ask for their foreign policy back — because the Cold War has been over for 20 years. But governor, when it comes to our foreign policy, you seem to want to import the foreign policies of the 1980s, just like the social policy of the 1950s, and the economic policies of the 1920s." Boom, "that '1980s called' line was the best line of the 3 debates methinks," tweeted The Washington Post's Chris Cillizza.

Yeah, "boom" yourself. I'm sure the zinger amused Putin.

144 comments:

gilbar said...

as a writer for the wapo, wasn't cheerleading for O'Bama, his Entire job?

tim maguire said...

Most of what Obama said was wrong. In part because he wasn’t held to a higher standard by journalists like Chris Cillizza. President Obama was a petty man and a lazy thinker puffed up to greatness by sycophants with bylines.

mezzrow said...

Cillizza embodies the kind of wisdom that got us to exactly where we are today.

I hope Bismarck is still correct. It may be our only hope.

Rusty said...

That's funny because Obamas proxy is going to get us in a shooting war with somebody.

Earth2PowerGirl said...

There's an ongoing tendency of modern journalism to cause massive human failures and yet never admit to it.

These people are lucky Nick Sandmann wasn't murdered.

On the other hand, yesterday's jokes led to today's invasion of Ukraine. In a just world, Cillizza would be shamed out of his profession.

Captain BillieBob said...

Our betters know nothing and learn nothing.
Said somebody some where some time ago.

Ann Althouse said...

In case you're trying to remember, the "Seinfeld" episode with "The jerk store called, they're running out of you" was in 1997.

That was 15 years before Obama got credit for his zinger of the night!!!

Mr. Majestyk said...

You just know it had to be one Obama's debate coaches who came up with the "80's are calling" line. Teleprompter Barack was never quick witted enough to come up with something like that in the moment.

John Borell said...

Chris Cillizza, like many of our professed “betters”, is an unserious person.

Our institutions are failing us. All of them.

Maybe our betters simply represent us, maybe we’re an unserious people.

Ann Althouse said...

The "Seinfeld" episode was "The Comeback," summarized here:

"Jerry, Elaine and Kramer did not think 'jerk store' was a good comeback mainly because "there are no jerk stores." Elaine suggests, "Your cranium called. It's got some space to rent." Jerry suggests, "The zoo called. You're due back by six." Kramer finally thinks George should just tell Reilly that he slept with his wife.

"After discovering that Reilly was let go from the Yankees and now works for Firestone, George flies to Akron, Ohio just to try the jerkstore line. When he says it, however, Reilly responds, "What's the difference? You're their all-time best seller." George, unprepared for this, ends up using Kramer's line. He's then told that Reilly's wife is in a coma.

"During the credits, George thinks up a new line: "Oh, yeah? Well, the life support machine called!" This is while he is driving back home after arriving in New York from Ohio. Promptly, he makes a U-turn and heads back towards the airport, yelling out, "You're meat, Reilly! You just screwed yourself!""

I would have thought that henceforward no one would do an "X called" joke, but 15 years later, Obama got fawning credit for one, as if he were the wittiest man in the world.

Anonymous said...

These guys are morons, as is their fellowing moron traveler Ben Rhodes, former Obama driver and then Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communications and Speechwriting, who said of reporters: "The average reporter we talk to is 27 years old, and their only reporting experience consists of being around political campaigns. That's a sea change. They literally know nothing."

MayBee said...

Romney had to be made fun of, because Obama had been caught saying something to Medvedev he couldn't (or didn't want to) explain. And the press didn't want him to have to explain, because it might have made him look bad. The press never willingly put Obama in that position.

So what Romney said didn't need to be praised or seen as correct, but it could have been considered. But not Republican against a Democratic candidate can ever be considered. They can only be destroyed. That is our modern press. In the meantime, people will still go on about the horribleness of Trump, and the perfection of Obama, even though Trump kept Russia in check and Obama saw Russia gain territory.

rehajm said...

A quick Cillizza tag search…give credit to Ann for never buying what Cillizza is selling, despite his being a voice in WaPo…

Mitt may be the voice of McCain’s ghost but he’s no dummy…

rehajm said...

Seinfeld is so last generation. Here’s where today’s liberal think tanks will get their material…

chirps

David Begley said...

Obama’s zinger was certainly planned, focus group tested and probably planted with the reporter.

Back in the last century when I was a Dem, I met the campaign consultants for Lloyd Benson.The “you’re no Jack Kennedy” line was prepared by them and well in advance of the debate.

Enigma said...

The US/USSR Cold War was an anomaly in human history. Prior historical eras were often characterized by several "Great Powers" with similar economic and technological potential. UK, France, Germany, China, Spain, Russia, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire, etc.

The US misread the end of the Cold War as the end of the USSR/Russian threat, and focused on the so-called "Peace Dividend" during the Clinton administration. This idea was proven wrong, as the world slowly then all at once shifted to multi-polar competition. We now have the US, China, and Russia as traditional Great Powers. Furthermore, India has the population to be a power while several small countries have nuclear weapons and thereby can deter everyone else.

We've have prostrate and passive husks in the EU, Japan, and UK since WW2. The EU and Japan have long atoned for their sins, but that must surely end at some point. At least when their elderly populations fade away. Russia cutting Germany's gas supply should signal a rise of the EU's will to compete. The EU must now take care of its own security and energy needs, unless they somehow get apathetic or hostile outsiders (e.g., US, China) to save them.

rehajm said...

…and I’ve been told no. That is not Julie Bowen…

Ann Althouse said...

"A quick Cillizza tag search…give credit to Ann for never buying what Cillizza is selling...."

A search of this blog in general would probably show that most of the time I'm linking to things in order to object to something. I'm pretty much the opposite of Instapundit. No one wants an Altlanche.

wendybar said...

What HAVEN"T Progressives been wrong about??

wendybar said...

MayBee said...
Romney had to be made fun of, because Obama had been caught saying something to Medvedev he couldn't (or didn't want to) explain. And the press didn't want him to have to explain, because it might have made him look bad. The press never willingly put Obama in that position.

That was : “This is my last election ... After my election I have more flexibility,” Obama said, expressing confidence that he would win a second term.

“I will transmit this information to Vladimir,” said Medvedev, Putin’s protégé and long considered number two in Moscow’s power structure.

We all know Obama did have that flexibility. WHAT did he give them??? We will never know because we don't have a media...we have propaganda.

Rollo said...

Applauding politicians when they adopt catch phrases from popular culture is the sign of a hack.

Lost in the uproar: China was and is our major strategic rival. Romney was wrong about Russia. It makes trouble, but its power and reach are limited. Obama managed to replace al Quaeda with ISIS. Not exactly a win for him or us.

wendybar said...

Just imagine if TRUMP said that to Medvedev?? The media would have definitely pushed that he was a Russian asset. Looks like it was Obama and Biden that are.

David Begley said...

“No one wants an Altlanche.”

Good zinger.

rehajm said...

Я все еще хозяин своего домена

Tina Trent said...

The mainstream media has soiled its diapers to the point that the odor itself can lead us to the real facts. So thanks, Chris. Keep it up.

Mr Wibble said...


Back in the last century when I was a Dem, I met the campaign consultants for Lloyd Benson.The “you’re no Jack Kennedy” line was prepared by them and well in advance of the debate.


This is why Trump was so popular: he could fire back quickly which neutralized a lot of this crap. Romney and other GOP establishment politicians could only start like deer in the headlights, or sputter indignantly. How dare they mock me! Can't they see I'm a serious statesman?!

Mike (MJB Wolf) said...

So what did happen after the 2012 election that demonstrated Obama’s “flexibility” anyway? Russia took Crimea and the only price Putin paid was to endure a smooth insincere tongue lashing from Barack and tough-guy Romney. Rollo is correct that China is our primary strategic rival but Romney’s statement was true then and true today: Russia presents continual strategic threats to US and our allies by projecting power and seizing territory. Two world wars were ignited over less provocation. That Biden spent his first year as POTUS enriching Putin and endorsing his ability to control petroleum prices has not helped the stability of the EU nor the world in general.

Amadeus 48 said...

Obama--over-rated. Romney--over-rated. Trudeau--over-rated. Putin--under-rated (remember when Obama mocked him as a sulky teenager in the last row?).

Joe Biden--a man who never disappoints. Joe is always Joe--a stupid, blustering, vicious hack.

Mike (MJB Wolf) said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Mike (MJB Wolf) said...

So what did happen after the 2012 election that demonstrated Obama’s “flexibility” anyway? Russia took Crimea and the only price Putin paid was to endure a smooth insincere tongue lashing from Barack and tough-guy Biden. Rollo is correct that China is our primary strategic rival but Romney’s statement was true then and true today: Russia presents continual strategic threats to US and our allies by projecting power and seizing territory. Two world wars were ignited over less provocation. That Biden spent his first year as POTUS enriching Putin and endorsing his ability to control petroleum prices has not helped the stability of the EU nor the world in general.
(Reposted with correction)

Howard said...

Putin might be ambitious and ruthless but he's not crazy.

After praising Putins brilliant invasion of the Russian part of Ukraine, Trump is now encouraging China to invade Taiwan.

Fucking Traitor. String him up

Tina Trent said...

What Obama gave Putin was our independence on oil and a promise to not reveal Biden and Biden Jr's bribes. So there went fracking here and a new need for European dependence on Russia's oil oligarchs.

Obama always was in over his head with foreign policy. I'd love to know the schools that rejected him before Occidental picked him up. Intellectual lightweight. That's when Putin was laughing.

Tina Trent said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
God of the Sea People said...

Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
The Jerk Store called,
You're their all time best seller

Humperdink said...

@Howard. Do you really think Xi Jinjing Pong needs anyone's encouragement to invade Taiwan? Biden has already sent that signal.

Why is it that anyone who disagrees with libs are labelled traitors?

Amadeus 48 said...

Howard-- Isn't Trump a has-been?

Are you trying to change the subject? We have to deal with Biden now. He is the one that ended US oil independence and drove up the price of petroleum. Trump, when he was president, allowed the world price of petroleum to fall through increased US production.

Whose side is Biden on? He has made Russia rich. I don't see anyone dealing with Xi well. I guess if Dennis Rodman was our pipeline to Little Rocket Man, Lebron can be our envoy to Xi, but I wish Lebron had finished high school.

Curious George said...

"So what did happen after the 2012 election that demonstrated Obama’s “flexibility” anyway?"

Abandoning the building of a missile defense system in Europe.

MikeR said...

Point taken, but... I think they were right then, and the furor now is overblown. Russia is a problem, it is true, but it isn't the Soviet Union, that massive existential threat to the free world. We can safely leave Russia to France and Germany to deal with.
But I don't remember what Romney actually said. Did he think it was Soviet Union II, or just a new important issue? Could be they slandered him, as they did so often and so successfully.

Left Bank of the Charles said...

“How about telling us what you actually said at the time?”

And what did Althouse say at the time? Nothing that I could find. She’s the George Constanza on this one, almost 10 years later. OK, she did say this, apparently missing Candy Crowley:

‘8:14: Romney: "Attacking me is not an agenda." He corrects Obama about Russia. He certainly wouldn't say to Putin he'll have flexibility after the election. Now, there's a lot of overtalking about Iraq. Obama gains control and talks about being "clear" about foreign policy. The moderator is not intervening, so the topics are allowed to be completely mixed up.‘

It’s a good counter-historical question whether we would have been better off with Mitt Romney as President for 8 years rather than Donald Trump for 4 (and perhaps 4 more). But would Trump have run against Mitt Romney in 2016? And what of Obama still being out there with 1 term left on his term limit?

Browndog said...

Abandoning the building of a missile defense system in Europe.

His first week in office, Obama pulled the missile defenses in Poland.

Temujin said...

I remember thinking at that time that it was so obvious that Romney was right at that time. The charlatans who pose as foreign policy experts in the press and around Obama never did have a grasp on the world at large. And they still don't because today, even as Russia goes into Ukraine, clearly the most important and ominous geopolitical threat is not Russia. It is China.

Cillizza is now, and has always been, chasing the news. He and his fellow Journalists! are nothing more than professional group-thinkers. They wait for texts from a Democratic White House or Senate office before 'knowing' what to think.

It was Russia back then. It's China now, clear and present. The only thing Russia has going for it (and Ukraine as well) is that both of them have paid the Biden family and both of them can keep Joe busy for a year. In the meantime, Russia is doing China a favor by keeping them off of Joe's staff's radar. (it's not a wide ranging radar)

But, hey...we've got Kamala to jump in at a moment's notice. Elections do have consequences. Cillizza will get that as well some day.

narciso said...

The huntress predicted putin would invade ukraine in 2008, they all dismissed her,

They needed Russia for the compact with the mullahs

Kevin said...

“I mean, let’s really take a moment to understand the significance of what we’re talking about,” the veep went on. “It’s been over 70 years. And through those 70 years … there has been peace and security. We are talking about the real possibility of war in Europe.”

It’s time to recognize facts. These weren’t Kamala’s own thoughts.

It’s word for word how her handlers had to brief her.

Michael said...

Should Putin take a small part of the Ukraine we will think about next steps. And thus did Biden invite Putin to come on in. What a fool.

tim maguire said...

The worst part about the "zinger" is how childish it is. If Romney had any backbone, he would have thrown it right back, "Are you kidding me!? The 80's called!? Is this high school? Are you going to tell me how fat my mother is next?"

But no, Romney took it, freeing Obama's press lackeys to crow about his brilliant zinger.

Howard said...

Amadeus 48: Trump is still the reigning titular head of the Republican Party. I agree that the Biden administration is a shit show. Therefore it's even more important for an ex-President to at least appear helpful against our aggressive superpower opponents. Instead, he is actively cheering them on in their aggression towards our allies.

Not only is his behavior treasonous, he is actively encouraging his fans to root for the ChiComs and the Oligarchy inorder for him to score domestic political points.

Fortunately, many of his supporters here on the blog have grown tired of him, which is a good sign that his actual influence may be a mile wide, but only an inch deep.

rhhardin said...

The structural issue is that neither side is particularly right and the debates are garbage.

narciso said...

Obama let al queda seize property in north africa down to the bend river (boko haram)
The original franchises were still growing in the levant aa well aa afghanistan

Patrick Henry was right! said...

A quick Cillizza tag search…give credit to Ann for never buying what Cillizza is selling, despite his being a voice in WaPo…

Mitt may be the voice of McCain’s ghost but he’s no dummy…

Excuse me?????? Our hostess bought all of the Obama shtick, hook, line and sinker, including his decision to make Biden, the dimmest bulb in the chandelier, Vice President of the frickin United States of America.
She gets no free pass now!

Blair said...

Romney was wrong then, and he's still wrong. The greatest threat to world peace today is the People's Republic of China. C.H.I.N.A.

Then, as now, Putin should be a US ally, not the enemy that Romney and the Deep State want him to be. Obama's quip was entirely correct: so many people are stuck inan '80s mindset when it comes to Russia. It was one of the few points in those debates where I thought he was in the right of the argument.

narciso said...

Romneys vizier was at the time cofer black who would later join the board of burisma cementing thd relationship with the oligarch he had made as at large ambassador and black water vp

narciso said...

Obama was busy funny nih funds to wuhan at that time

narciso said...

Funneling, ignoring the traffic in ukrainian boosters to north korea

Browndog said...

1) Romney was wrong. China was then, and is now, our greatest Geo-poliitical threat.

2) The media does what the media does:

CBS News

The U.S. economy has been hit with increased gas prices, inflation, and supply-chain issues due to the Ukraine crisis.
9:30 PM · Feb 22, 2022


3) This didn't happen in a vacuum. The idiots in the West Wing forced Putin's hand. Why do you think they sent Kamala to "negotiate"? The US ambassador to Germany just arrived at her post last Thursday. The day after Kamala arrived, she was sent home.
Who was part of Kamala's negotiating team?

You're not going to believe this

Achilles said...

Howard said...

Putin might be ambitious and ruthless but he's not crazy.

After praising Putins brilliant invasion of the Russian part of Ukraine, Trump is now encouraging China to invade Taiwan.

Fucking Traitor. String him up


One thing fascist pieces of shit like to do is blame their political opponents for their failings.

And then persecute them for it.

Howard is just a terrible person.

iowan2 said...

rehajm said...

Seinfeld is so last generation. Here’s where today’s liberal think tanks will get their material…

chirps


Thanks for nothing rahajm, I am now 45 minutes behind on my morning schedule.

holdfast said...

Gillis w is still a stupid, partisan simp.

https://www.cnn.com/2021/06/16/politics/vladimir-putin-joe-biden-summit/index.html

Humperdink said...

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba: “Ukraine abandoned the third-largest nuclear arsenal in the world” for “security guarantees” promised by the U.S.” He was, of course, referring to the 1994 Budapest Memorandum, where Ukraine agreed to join the nuclear nonproliferation agreement in exchange for western protection from future Russian aggression." (Via Hotair)

tim maguire said...

Blair said...Romney was wrong then, and he's still wrong. The greatest threat to world peace today is the People's Republic of China. C.H.I.N.A.

It's debatable which was the bigger threat at the time. What isn't debatable is that we did not get a debate because Obama couldn't muster better than a schoolyard taunt and the media made sure no better was asked of him.

Achilles said...

Russia taking these provinces was a deal that was made by Joe Biden over a month ago.

Biden said the quiet part out loud.

"It's one thing if it's a minor incursion and then we end up having a fight about what to do and not do, there are differences in NATO as to what countries are willing to do depending on what happens."

Biden clearly sold that part of Ukraine off. People giving him shit for being stupid are wrong.

Biden pushed gas prices up and made Russia a lot of money. Russia used that money to buy Biden off.

It has been a win win for Biden. Gas prices are up punishing his political enemies and despots have more cash to give to him.

narciso said...

Cilizza was?? journolist, and yet one of the dimmest of their bulbs,

Temujin said...

Oh my God.

Chirps?

wendybar said...

Humperdink said...
@Howard. Do you really think Xi Jinjing Pong needs anyone's encouragement to invade Taiwan? Biden has already sent that signal.

Why is it that anyone who disagrees with libs are labelled traitors?

2/23/22, 7:17 Am


^^^This^^^ Xi is watching how Joe is flailing around, and what Putin is getting away with and saying to himself, NOW is the time to get whatever we want, because WHO is afraid of the delusional Biden??

farmgirl said...


“Amadeus 48: Trump is still the reigning titular head of the Republican Party.”

A friend asked me this- isn’t Trump your main guy- head of the party? Idk what that even means. Does it mean Trump is the end all and be all to Republicans or whoever the true conservatives are? The answer…

No.

Narayanan said...

Mitt went quickly
- from Russia is the threat
- to Trump is the greatest threat in very short order .

DanTheMan said...

>>In case you're trying to remember, the "Seinfeld" episode with "The jerk store called, they're running out of you" was in 1997.

I always thought Obama was stealing from David Spade on SNL... "Hey Jackson Browne... 1973 called and they want their hair back."

narciso said...

https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/chinese-government-agency-that-works-with-canadians-is-involved-in-espionage-federal-court-affirms

Bob Boyd said...

You [Chris] had the ability at the time to be more than semi-conscious...

To be fair, Cillizza was hopelessly twitterpated in those days. So many of our "serious, professionals" were crushing hard on the dreamy Obama for years. Many still haven't gotten over him. He was the bestest boyfriend they ever hoped to have.

And when you have a huge crush like that, you can’t think straight, you laugh at the silliest things, you get that ‘hero’ instinct and you start helping and being protective towards the object of your desire.

Judging by his debate performance even Romney wasn't immune to Obama's charms and was discombobulated by a shameful tingling whenever Obama was near.

Iman said...

Democracy Dies in Dung-encrusted Doughboy Disinformation

MadisonMan said...

The “you’re no Jack Kennedy” line was prepared by them and well in advance of the debate.
Which is why I thought Quayle was such a shallow person for even mentioning the comparison. Such a comparison was in the air, and the scripted comeback should have been anticipated, or there should have been a scripted comeback for the comeback. But no...

Skeptical Voter said...

A tag team of Sheila Jackson Lee and Kamala Harris as foreign policy negotiators. What could possibly go wrong?

Michael K said...

Not only is his behavior treasonous, he is actively encouraging his fans to root for the ChiComs and the Oligarchy inorder for him to score domestic political points.

Lefties sure are quick with "treason" accusations. First Trudeau and his Nazi #2, now Howard.

Joe Smith said...

It's China, but whatever...

Earnest Prole said...

Oh fer fuck’s sake. Obama’s response can simultaneously be the best line from the 2012 debates and deeply wrong too. Politics is the art of telling people the lies they want to hear.

Amadeus 48 said...

"Instead, he is actively cheering them on in their aggression towards our allies."

See Althouse's post at 8:22.

Sebastian said...

"What looked like a major flub during the 2012 campaign -- and was used as a political cudgel by Obama -- now looks very, very different."

It looked very, very different right then and there. The cudgel was Barry BS.

Prog foreign policy opinion is strictly situational, always focused on whatever serves their domestic pursuit of power. One year, it's reset, a few years later Russians are conspiring with Trump, then it's reset again, until--well, until reality intervenes.

From a prog standpoint, which is worse-- Russian "election interference" or the "minor" invasion of Ukraine?

Just asking questions (Jaq) said...

Remember when Obama got caught on a hot mic colluding with Putin for help in his re-election? Good times... good times.

"Ukraine agreed to join the nuclear nonproliferation agreement in exchange for western protection from future Russian aggression"

Really? Have you read it? Because it doesn't really say that. Nor is it ratified by the Senate as a treaty.

Just asking questions (Jaq) said...

"Howard is just a terrible person."

No, his education didn't prepare him for the propaganda to which he has been exposed, and he has fallen into its scaly grasp. He can't look at things as they truly are outside the domain of his training because if he can't risk losing his daily frisson of superiority (that's the thing that all bigots live for) by finding out he is wrong about Trump.

Bigotry doesn't make the bigot feel low and mean, it makes the bigot feel elevated. It's what made Archie Bunker feel superior to Lamont, who was sort of like a prince among men. It's that sensation that the propagandists exploit to keep chumps like Howard in their thrall. Howard can't risk losing it anymore than a junky can risk his next fix.

Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...

It's actually China.

Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...

The LeBron sell-out left will never admit that China is the world's nasty bitch.

because $$$$$$$$

Bill Maher explains.

Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...

Bill Maher - direct link.

Aggie said...

@Howard said: " I agree that the Biden administration is a shit show. Therefore it's even more important for an ex-President to at least appear helpful against our aggressive superpower opponents."

Logic test: Did you think that the Trump Administration was a full-time "shit show" too? I think we all know that answer, don't we? We have your running diatribe to prove that. Can you give us any examples from those years of when you exhorted Obama and Joe and the rest to 'at least appear helpful' to the Trump presidency? Your arguments are made of wet cardboard, mate. You are your own best counter-argument.

rcocean said...

Romney is an idiot. He and Miss Lindsey are calling Putin names, threatening war, and getting hysterical. Just like they got hysterical on Jan 6th. Miss Lindsey demanded the Police use their guns and shoot down the protesters like dogs, Mitten blubbered like a little girl, and praised the police for "saving his life".

But both of them love wars, and talking tough and hating Russia. From their comfy seats in the USA. What is it about Americans? Why do they have this weird Imperialist/Crusader feeling that the WHOLE WORLD is somehow our responsibility? And we should telling everyone what to do, and how to do it?

The elites in the USA care more about Ukraine and Putin then the Germans and French, from what I can tell. Shouldn't they be the ones upset? Not us, we're 5,000 miles away. We're not in Europe.

And as an old guy, I can remember that no one prior to the mid-90s cared about Ukrainian indpendence. Wilson and allies in 1919 were upset that the Germans had detached the Ukraine and given its independence. That was seen as a devasting dastardly thing to do to Russia. Did FDR or Reagan care about the Ukraine? Not that i can remember.

Yet, all this hysteria. While OUR southern border is open and out of control.

LA_Bob said...

2012 called. It wants its election done over.

Yancey Ward said...

Cillizza is doing the same thing Chait did last week- not coming clean in an explicit way. They are both hoping no one will go back and lift their old writings on the topic where they have apparently changed their minds.

Ficta said...

Romney got trapped. There were a few obvious answers.

1. Islamists - probably not the right answer, but a popular one
2. China - probably the right answer
3. North Korea - They're awfully small, but with big potential to get nukes.
4. Iran - A perennial favorite monster. And they are monsters. Close to nukes. But maybe Obama would have used the same zinger with them.
5. Unchecked illegal immigration from third to first world countries with a lack of assimilation once they get there. - This is an even better answer than China, IMO, and probably the one Trump would have given.
6. Russia - bigger than China? Eh. And it set up the zinger that had been engineered by the debate hosts in collusion with Obama's team.

But Romney tried to please people who were never going to vote for him anyway by answering 6: 1-5 are not white, so he was trying to avoid being called a raaacissst. What a maroon. Trump wouldn't have stepped in that trap.

rcocean said...

Yeah, the line was stolen from Seinfeld. Who knows obama speechwriter may have seen a rerun while he was thinking up zingers for Obama.

Romney was robot in the 2012 debates. I went back recently and skimmed through the transcript, since I didn't watch the debates, and I was suprised how boring and lifeless he was. He could attack Obama and score some points, but couldn't defend himself or offer a positive vision for the USA. His foreign policy was just moronic truculence.

It was basically elect Mittens, and I'll be a good government manager and do the same thing Obama is doing. only better and for less money. And maybe start a few wars.

Dagwood said...

How nice of our resident Quisling (Howard) to lecture us on treason.

robother said...

18 months after Obama's zinger, Russians occupied Crimea. How uncool was that of Putin? (Of course, if Romney had the guts to stand up to a Candy Crowley, he might've pointed that out in 2014. But down deep, Mitt just wanted to fit in with the cool kids, too.)

Christopher B said...

Always worth posting ...

So is it fair to ask if Biden is on the payroll of Putin? As Walter Russell Mead wrote in 2017:

If Trump were the Manchurian candidate that people keep wanting to believe that he is, here are some of the things he’d be doing:

Limiting fracking as much as he possibly could
Blocking oil and gas pipelines
Opening negotiations for major nuclear arms reductions
Cutting U.S. military spending
Trying to tamp down tensions with Russia’s ally Iran.

“Yep,” Glenn added in late 2019. “You know who did do these things? Obama. You know who supports these things now? Democrats.”


And now Biden is doing the same.

rcocean said...

IRC, what set George off was the line "George: The ocean called, it wants its shrimp back". Because George had been scarffing down all the shrimp.

Seinfeld line about the Zoo is funnier.

RonF said...

Enigma said:
"We've have prostrate and passive husks in the EU, Japan, and UK since WW2. The EU and Japan have long atoned for their sins, but that must surely end at some point. At least when their elderly populations fade away."

The citizens (or are they subjects?) of the E.U. and to a lesser extent the U.K. decided that they would rather have their governments support them with extensive social services than strive to be self-supporting and have their governments protect their rights. It's an old story, a very old one, but it has been of great profit to socialists and the left in general to discredit religion in general and Christianity and Judaism in particular to ensure people don't hear it:

Genesis 25:29-33

Once when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came in from the open country, famished. He said to Jacob, “Quick, let me have some of that red stew! I’m famished!” (That is why he was also called Edom. ) Jacob replied, “First sell me your birthright.” “Look, I am about to die,” Esau said. “What good is the birthright to me?” But Jacob said, “Swear to me first.” So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright to Jacob.

Moondawggie said...

Humperdink said:

"...the 1994 Budapest Memorandum, where Ukraine agreed to join the nuclear nonproliferation agreement in exchange for western protection from future Russian aggression."

Wow! Who would have thought that a promise made by Bill Clinton might not be honored later on?

If Ukraine had kept about 20-50 nukes out of the thousands they inherited, they wouldn't be in this mess now.

As the South Vietnamese learned decades ago, as the Afghans learned a few months ago, and the Ukrainians are learning now: Any security promise from a US Democrat administration isn't worth the paper it's printed on.

I suspect Taiwan is carefully rethinking its security plans right now. Wouldn't be too hard for them and Japan to develop credible nuclear weapons programs.

Wince said...

It should serve as a reminder that history is not written in the moment -- and that what something looks like in that moment is not a guarantee of what it will always look like."

"You can't come back with a comeback after eight seconds. You got three seconds. Five, tops. It's called a quip, not a sloooowwwwp."

mikee said...

Russia? Al Queda? China's Communist Party is the correct answer.

Andrew said...

"No one wants an Altlanche."

I do! I do!

I just don't have a website or a blog. But someday...

Regarding the Romney-Obama debate, I agree with the above commenters that already, by that time, China was a greater threat than Russia.

I also think that Romney doesn't deserve credit for his answer, because after Obama's snarky response, Romney didn't follow up. There are many ways he could have punched back that would have shut Obama's mouth. But Romney chose to be the foil for Obama, rather than a rival. He lacked the killer instinct. As did McCain. And then Trump came along.

PM said...

I worry that any mention of His Smugness might encourage his return from Lanikai.

Ceciliahere said...

Obama is now where he always wanted to be…rubbing shoulders with the Hollywood elite. Obama envisioned himself as another Denzel Washington, but he didn’t have the acting ability and wasn’t as good-looking. So, he became president instead.

He is an invention of the behind-the-scenes Democrat financial backers who wanted a Black man to run and be the first Black president. How he came from nowhere in such a short period of time to be the nominee shows that he was “chosen” not for any expertise, or political know-how, but just because he was what Joe Biden thought and said out loud at the time. “I mean you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice looking guy.” I mean, that’s a storybook, man”

Yes, storybook. And all the guilty white people thought it would be great to have a Black president. Now, they could feel good about themselves after voting for Obama.

The Clinton camp thought that at this point in his political career, Obama should be bringing them coffee. Hillary was swept aside for Obama.

As a president, I felt that Obama was playing a role. He loved the perks of being able to have concerts at the White House, play golf at exclusive clubs, invite celebrities to state dinners, etc. His presidency was like Bud Lite. What he did was try to walk the middle line and not do anything too damaging but still enforce the progressive liberal philosophy. And just think about the money that would be made after he left office. Obama should ask himself what he asked the 1%, “when is it enough.”

His ‘80s quip in the debate was a rehearsed line. And Romney was too polite to call him out on a lame joke and should have told him how naive and unprepared for the problems facing the world he was at the time.

Now we have Obama’s sidekick. Another unserious person who doesn’t know what to do as president and so we find ourselves in this situation with Russia that was years in the making. We are, essentially, leaderless. Putin/Xi are not afraid of Joe and do not respect him. They know what we all now: Joe is a Putz.

The Democrats are playing to their base with their woke B.S. while our enemies are taking advantage and moving the chess pieces across the world. But hey, we got transgender swimmers, 5 year olds wearing masks, BLM investing in their real estate portfolio, and Americans scared to go downtown because the career criminals are running the joint, people are afraid to use public transportation but they can’t afford gas for their cars.
Job well-done!

cubanbob said...

Humperdink said...
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba: “Ukraine abandoned the third-largest nuclear arsenal in the world” for “security guarantees” promised by the U.S.” He was, of course, referring to the 1994 Budapest Memorandum, where Ukraine agreed to join the nuclear nonproliferation agreement in exchange for western protection from future Russian aggression." (Via Hotair)"

The poison of the Clinton Administration still continues having its effect today.

I see upthread some stupid comments that Russia was no threat during the Obama Administration and that China is the real threat. Any nation that has the capability of annihilating the United States is always a major threat.

Greg The Class Traitor said...

How about telling us what you actually said at the time? Because you, Chris Cillizza, were part of the "political cudgel" that — passive voice — "was used." You had the ability at the time to be more than semi-conscious, and as a writer at The Washington Post, you had a responsibility to do more than cheer-lead for Obama, something more than glance "in the moment" and say "what something looks like."

No, as an employee of WaPo his sole job was to the a cheerleader for whatever Democrat the editors wanted cheered.

It's been a long time, if ever, since the NYT or WaPo employed anyone for the purpose of honestly informing readers what was happening in the world

Greg The Class Traitor said...

Ann Althouse said...
I would have thought that henceforward no one would do an "X called" joke, but 15 years later, Obama got fawning credit for one, as if he were the wittiest man in the world.

Obama is a midwit, propped up by the midwits because he's 1: A Democrat and 2: Black

Obama got nothing but fawning credit from the press, his entire time in politics.

It's part of what made him such an incompetent buffoon: never being expected to actually do anything

Greg The Class Traitor said...

Enigma said...
The US/USSR Cold War was an anomaly in human history. Prior historical eras were often characterized by several "Great Powers" with similar economic and technological potential. UK, France, Germany, China, Spain, Russia, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire, etc.

The US misread the end of the Cold War as the end of the USSR/Russian threat


No.

By the time of the collapse of the USSR, the Democrat Party was run by people who were pro-communist, pro-USSR, and anti-America (Bill probably wasn't anti-America. But every advisor he had, was).

They didn't destroy US power because they thought it wasn't needed, they destroyed US power because they hated the US having power

Greg The Class Traitor said...

Ceciliahere said...
His ‘80s quip in the debate was a rehearsed line. And Romney was too polite to call him out on a lame joke and should have told him how naive and unprepared for the problems facing the world he was at the time.

Yes, Romney was, and is, a Republican loser, which is to say a "Republican" who'd rather lose than be "impolite" to the Left.

Trump is a Republican winner. It's why all teh losers like Romney hate him so, because he shows them up for the pathetic hacks that they are

Critter said...

Althouse, you forget that being a liberal means never having to say (or admit) you’re sorry.

Jupiter said...

Except that, like a stopped clock, Obama was right. US hostility to the Soviet Union in the 80's was entirely rational, given the Communist ideology of that regime, as well as the fact that the KGB was pumping poison into the veins of our nation. And of course, Ted Kennedy tried to collude with them to steal the 1980 election. But at this point, the Soviet Union is no longer, and the project of destroying America has been taken over by the Democratic Party. Or, in fairness, maybe it's the other way round; the Democratic Party has been taken over by the project of destroying America. Either way, Russia, Poland and Hungary appear to be the only European nations left whose policy does not include replacing their citizens with criminals imported from Third World shitholes.

Ann Althouse said...

“ OK, she did say this, apparently missing Candy Crowley:”

CC was the first debate. This was the third debate!

Look up what I said about the first debate…

Jeez

Ann Althouse said...

I mean, Crowley was the second debate, the one where Romney stood down after being strong in the first debate.

Here’s my live-blog of it: https://althouse.blogspot.com/2012/10/live-blogging-second-obama-vs-romney.html

Ann Althouse said...

“ 9:19: Romney, in command, questions Obama about what he said the day after the attack in the Rose Garden. "You said it was an act of terror?" Romney asks twice. After the first time, Obama says "That's what I said." After the second time, Romney gives him a penetrating look. There's a pause. Romney raises his eyebrows in a way that seems to repeat the question again. "It was not a spontaneous demonstration? Is that what you're saying?" Obama bows his head. His eyes are closed. Obama looks up and with a little smile says: "Please proceed Governor." Romney gestures with his hand. "I wanted to make sure we get that for the record, because it took the President 14 days before he called the attack in Benghazi and act of terror." Obama says "Get the transcript," and Crowley helps Obama by saying "He did in fact, sir... He did in fact call it an act of terror. It did as well take 2 weeks or so for the whole idea of there being a riot out there about this tape to come out, you're correct about that." Jeez, Crowley is way overparticipating! And the audience applauds her!

9:20: Romney got tripped up on a little detail there, so his theatrical presentation fizzled in the end. He stuttered a bit. He should have had the preparation for that moment nailed. Obama lucked out. [ADDED: We're checking the transcript on the Rose Garden speech and the word "terror" (or "terrorist" or "terrorism") is not in it! Am I wrong? That really tripped up Romney, so if he wasn't wrong, I condemn Crowley.][AND: He said "outrageous attack," but certainly nothing like "act of terror."][ALSO: The word "terror" does appear in the full transcript of the remarks, as opposed to the written statement, but not in the context of characterizing the attack in Benghazi, in a more general reference, quoted at 10:21 below. The answer to Romney's question "You said it was an act of terror?" was clearly no, and when Obama bowed his head and looked down, I think he knew he was being deceitful. I imagine he thought: This is what I have to say.]”

Ann Althouse said...

“ 10:21: The phrase "acts of terror" does appear in the Rose Garden remarks at one point: "No acts of terror will ever shake the resolve of this great nation, alter that character, or eclipse the light of the values that we stand for." But as Patrick Brennan says at NRO: "One could take that as a reference to acts which include the tragedy in Benghazi, obviously, but there was clearly no effort made to label it an act of terrorism. One reason why this might be: According to U.S. law, acts of terrorism are premeditated. The Obama administration’s line for days following Obama’s Rose Garden statement suggested that the attack wasn’t premeditated." Obama's supporters may want to say this is enough. I don't think so. But what is certainly plain is that Crowley's manipulation of the event was unjustifiable. The bias from the moderator tonight was disgusting. But I'm sure it was worth it to her to squander her reputation to help Obama out of what was a very uncomfortable jam.

10:27: Here's the transcript. Sorry I didn't write anything about the immigration discussion. It's all there in the transcript.

10:37: Even though Romney's big moment got deflated, I think the focus now will be on what exactly is in that transcript, and hair-splitting about "No acts of terror will ever shake" isn't likely to sound compelling, especially as it becomes an occasion for focusing on the 2 weeks of lies/nonsense about the nonexistent demonstrations and the "Innocence of Muslims" video. There's a controversy over what Obama said, and even if there is one way to wriggle out of it, it forces us to spend time on the statements made about the attack, and this should hurt Obama. Whoever "wins" the debate, there's the post-debate discourse, and that must be won too.”

Ann Althouse said...

A major apology is owed to me.

Static Ping said...

Obama is one of those people who is very good at getting elected but has very few useful skills to actually lead once he gets there. He has a high opinion of himself and he is very capable of convincing other people to have a high opinion of himself - not that the media needed much convincing given they salivate over an obviously senile Biden - but his results are mediocre to poor. However, he was and is so good at it that none of his failures stuck to him in any meaningful way unless you were paying attention.

Biden is basically Obama if Obama was a complete idiot.

Robert Cook said...

"Any nation that has the capability of annihilating the United States is always a major threat."

The do not have the capability of annihilating the U.S. without us annihilating them, and they know that.

I do not believe either China or Russia have ever had the intent of annihilating the U.S. However, it is necessary for the U.S. to continue claiming this in order to justify our own imperial behavior in the world (and the concomitant never-ceasing budget increases to the military, a great parasite on the people's wealth).

rehajm said...

Thanks for nothing rahajm, I am now 45 minutes behind on my morning schedule.

My bad. All seasons are on Hulu if that’s what yer abooot…

Michael K said...

He is an invention of the behind-the-scenes Democrat financial backers who wanted a Black man to run and be the first Black president. How he came from nowhere in such a short period of time to be the nominee shows that he was “chosen” not for any expertise, or political know-how, but just because he was what Joe Biden thought and said out loud at the time. “I mean you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice looking guy.” I mean, that’s a storybook, man”

I agree with this completely. I have always wondered who was running Obama. Bill Ayres ? I used to wonder about the Saudis but he stabbed them in the back with Iran.

Jupiter said...

"I do not believe either China or Russia have ever had the intent of annihilating the U.S. However, it is necessary for the U.S. to continue claiming this in order to justify our own imperial behavior in the world (and the concomitant never-ceasing budget increases to the military, a great parasite on the people's wealth)"

In the military, they say that you evaluate capabilities, not intentions. I think the Soviets would have if they thought they could without getting smashed themselves. But the Soviets are gone, and while Putin has territorial aspirations in his own backyard, the Chinese are developing clients throughout Asia, Africa and South America, testing hypersonic missiles, flooding the US with fentanyl, and subverting American elites. The Chinese one-child policy of the last century has left them with a vast surplus of males. Societies with surplus males are warlike.

Ceciliahere said...

Robert Cook:

(And the concomitant never-ceasing budget increases to the military, a great parasite on the people’s wealth.)

This is not a country attached to a welfare state. Although, I get the impression you would like it to be. The parasites are the people who live here and contribute nothing but suck the blood out of the hard working American who is trying to make a living and support his/her family. Plus the fact even if wasteful, building weapons of any sort creates jobs.
The people who do not belong in this country, 30 million at last count, according to research done at Yale University, are the parasites. They get paid under the table, do not pay taxes, steal social security numbers, send their kids to our schools, use our health care systems, go on food stamps, etc. etc. Then send money back to their home countries to support family left behind. And commit crimes against law abiding Americans.
Tthe Russians and Chinese can win without firing a shot. They will bring us down through economics. Having to spend much of our budget on energy from foreign countries, (Russia, Mid-East). We will be starved for energy to run the country. Remember the lines at gas stations in the early ‘70s? Carter wearing a sweater in front of his fireplace?

Then they will start the cyber attacks crippling our financial systems, electrical grids, etc.

Eventually, China will surpass us as the world’s largest economy with the world’s largest military.

So, it is essential that we invest in our military (not conventional) but high-tech weapons to combat whatever our enemies have in store for us. We must keep up one step ahead of their technology in order to deter them and threaten to shut down their systems before they shut down ours.

The job of the government is to protect and defend our country. Not to hand out freebies to parasite illegals or people who refuse to work and contribute to the country. You can always donate to your favorite charity if you want to support the underprivileged parasites.

Jack Klompus said...

Howard, as always, shows what a petty little indignant excuse for a man he is.

Cookie never ceases to entertain with his "more radical than thou" act. By the way, he lives in New York in case you didn't know!

Jack Klompus said...

I do not believe either China or Russia have ever had the intent of annihilating the U.S.

I do not believe you've ever entertained an original thought and live off a hilariously predictable and scripted "Radical 101" belief system that most children grow out of when they've listened to enough punk rock and stop hating their parents. But you keep raging against that machine, dissident New Yorker.

boatbuilder said...

"Ted Nugent called. He wants his [foreign policy] back."

It works, too.

rehajm said...

have always wondered who was running Obama. Bill Ayres ? I used to wonder about the Saudis but he stabbed them in the back with Iran.

I’ve assumed the Ayers wing of the party has been in control for some time. They didn’t much care if it was Hillary or whoever as the figurehead- all same in their eyes.

Dagwood said...

Ann Althouse said...

A major apology is owed to me.


Are we channeling Bruno Kirby from "Good Morning Vietnam"?

Jon Burack said...

Cillizza and the rest deserve nothing but scorn for what they did to Romney and for Obama. However, Romney was not right then and is LESS right now. China is a vastly more important problem, danger, threat to the US and the West generally. If we are to come to Romney's defense, people like Cillizza and all the rest need to grapple with the VASTLY more disgusting and politically destructive remark Biden made to the NAACP about Romney -- to wit, "they gonna put y'all back in chains." So I say to Cillizza, unless you and your gang are going to cry copious tears for this disgrace, "take away the rag from your face, now ain't the time for your tears."

Bilwick said...

The 1600s called. They want Obama to give his grasp of economics back.

Ann Althouse said...

“>>In case you're trying to remember, the "Seinfeld" episode with "The jerk store called, they're running out of you" was in 1997.

I always thought Obama was stealing from David Spade on SNL... "Hey Jackson Browne... 1973 called and they want their hair back."”

I’m not talking about who said it first but about how it was recognized as a tired joke 15 years before Obama said it.

Ann Althouse said...

“ Yeah, the line was stolen from Seinfeld.”

No, it was a cliché as far back as 1997, and you should have avoided it after Seinfeld essentially demonstrated how suture was.

But when Obama said it he was treated as though he’d said something quite clever.

Andrew said...

Ann Althouse said...
"A major apology is owed to me."

Damn straight!
https://youtu.be/lwfuUyTMpVY

Greg The Class Traitor said...

Robert Cook said...
I do not believe either China or Russia have ever had the intent of annihilating the U.S.

Thank you for letting us know you're a moron, and live your life with your head up your ass

Robert Cook said...

"But when Obama said it he was treated as though he’d said something quite clever."

This, no doubt, is because everyone recognized his reference to SEINFELD, making them feel they were in on the joke. In an earlier era, its equivalent would be an allusion in a written work to a previous written work. Those who recognized the allusion are assured of their literacy.

In the present day, sitcom-"literacy" is about the best we can hope for. Having not watched any of the debates, I was not aware of this at all, and it is a sad example of our illiterate time.

Robert Cook said...

"I’ve assumed the Ayers wing of the party has been in control for some time."

Bwahahahaha! (Imagine a spit take.) There is no "Ayers wing" of the party, most certainly not among those presently in control of the party. Middle-of-the-road Republicans (much less liberal Republicans) of earlier times were far more "to the left" (sic) than any but a bare handful in the Democratic Party today.

Robert Cook said...

"Cookie never ceases to entertain with his "more radical than thou" act. By the way, he lives in New York in case you didn't know!"

You're wrong on two points. I certainly do not see myself as a radical at all.

Robert Cook said...

"The parasites are the people who live here and contribute nothing but suck the blood out of the hard working American who is trying to make a living and support his/her family."

As I said, the armed forces, the War Department, and the ancillary corporate leeches who build and sell (over-priced and often malfunctioning) weapons and weapons systems, and other services that were once performed by enlisted men, plus those in politicians in Washington who are paid off by these various parasites (are there any who are not?).

Robert Cook said...

"The job of the government is to protect and defend our country."

That's not its only job, but, regarding "protect and defend," they haven't done this via the military in almost 80 years.

DanTheMan said...

>>I always thought Obama was stealing from David Spade on SNL... "Hey Jackson Browne... 1973 called and they want their hair back."”

>>I’m not talking about who said it first but about how it was recognized as a tired joke 15 years before Obama said it.

Nor was I. I was saying that Obama's statement more closely resembled Spade's joke (Year called and they want X back) than the Seinfeld line about a jerk store.

DanTheMan said...

>>I do not believe either China or Russia have ever had the intent of annihilating the U.S.

"History is on our side. We will bury you!" - Nikita Khrushchev

Of course, lefties like to pretend he didn't say what he said...

Chris Lopes said...

"There is no "Ayers wing" of the party, most certainly not among those presently in control of the party."

The "no true Scotsman" fallacy is a time honored rhetorical device for denying the existence of the left. The "true" leftist is apparently a mythological creature much like Bigfoot or the Loch Ness monster. The folks who brought us the purges of Stalin, the killing fields of Pol Pot, and the cultural revolution of China were actually right wing monsters, not creatures of the left. No true leftist would do such a thing

robother said...

The odds of an Altlanche occurring are much higher than seeing a major apology come Althouse's way.

farmgirl said...

https://youtu.be/ivROLiLmnro

Russell Brand
Interesting…

Michael K said...


Blogger Robert Cook said...

"I’ve assumed the Ayers wing of the party has been in control for some time."

Bwahahahaha! (Imagine a spit take.) There is no "Ayers wing" of the party, most certainly not among those presently in control of the party. Middle-of-the-road Republicans (much less liberal Republicans) of earlier times were far more "to the left" (sic) than any but a bare handful in the Democratic Party today.


Cook, you often sound sane if leftist. This is insane. The present Democrat Party is in the hands of far left faculty club types who have never built anything or run a large organization successfully.

Few successful businessmen are interested in politics. They see what slimy creatures most politicians are. Nowadays we have society divided into the "Virtual" types and the "Physical types." The physical types do stuff with real things and real people. The Virtual types are the laptop class, many of whom have made large fortunes manipulating money, especially the imaginary money the Fed creates these days.

Trump was able to communicate across the divide between rich and poor because he has built things. He was required to deal with real people in construction.

The political left, of which you are a member, do not make anything. You live in a fantasy world where good intentions are enough.

farmgirl said...

https://youtu.be/jdkca09EHRI

VDH
Even better…

Ann Althouse said...

“ how suture was. ”

Don’t remember what I was trying to type that got autocorrected into “suture.”

Must have been something like “how stale it was.”

Sorry. It’s hard to see the tiny print on my iPad.

Dave said...

An earthquake shakes the foundations of a structure, and when an Altquake happens to a blog post, the underpinnings of the post are shaken all the way down to the very definitions of words.

I don't think anyone wants to be subjected to that kind of stress.

By the same token, there is the Manalysis. An example use would be: Althouse put up another post about women, and Hardin subjected it to a rigorous Manalysis.

:)

Kev said...

I'm pretty much the opposite of Instapundit. No one wants an Altlanche.

And that's why I love reading both blogs!

Robert Cook said...

“‘I do not believe either China or Russia have ever had the intent of annihilating the U.S.’

‘History is on our side. We will bury you!" - Nikita Khrushchev’

“Of course, lefties like to pretend he didn't say what he said...


No one denies he said it. You simply don’t understand his meaning. He meant in the fullness of time, they would survive and thrive and we would decline and become a failed power through historical inevitability, as has happened with so many powerful nations and empires. Our decline, in his meaning, would happen without their having to defeat us militarily.

As it happened, the fate he predicted for us befell the Soviet Union. It will happen to us eventually.

Chris Lopes said...

" He meant in the fullness of time, they would survive and thrive and we would decline and become a failed power through historical inevitability, as has happened with so many powerful nations and empires. "

Not only can you read minds, you can do it across time and space. Truly awesome.