Hello TODable TODbots.
WH Presser has already concluded today. 😦 for the failure on my part for not posting it Live. I will post the Video as soon as they upload ot.
Congrats to all the Gold ⭐ winners since last Evening, starting with this post.
Thanks, NW for your gracious hard work at TOD.
{{{{ ❤ Chips ❤ }}}}
FLOTUS almost made me tear up when she became emotional while thanking all of the staff who work at the White House. Thanks NW for posting this touching video ❤
I was in a big Trump Funk the past few days, but I’m stronger today. Partly from commiserating with a fellow Dem client last night and partly from CEB’s wonderful pep talk from the earlier thread. I was kind of sad watching this video last night, thinking about how I didn’t get to visit the White House under its greatest President and First Lady. Then I remembered that I will be able to visit the Library!! PBO and FLOTUS Michelle will always be my beacon of light. Sec Clinton ain’t down for the count either. And Nancy Smash is coming back for another round. Trump got elected by 27% of Americans. There are still more of us than of them. There is an Italian saying, “L’unione fa la forza” it translates as “Union makes strength” or “Stronger Together”! Long live the coalition!
Long live the coalition. I have often thought about the story of exodus for some reason and now its in my mind a lot. Some elements of the story really fit right now. When the powers that be clamped down on the Israelite slaves instead of freeing them because of Moses’ confrontation with the ruler, many of oppressed caved in their support for Moses. I think we are seeing some of that kind of reaction right now. But what really seems parallel to me are the plagues. During the Bush years we really had several very painful outcomes from his corrupt and foolish administration. We were brought out of those plagues, years of war, loss of our auto industry, housing crises, near depression, etc. by the President and his team. Now the powers that be are riding after us, chasing us into the Red Sea so to speak, because they didn’t learn anything. I know how the story ends and its not good for the transgressors, power abusers and the entitled.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (Calif.) on Wednesday won the race to lead the Democratic caucus for an eighth term, prevailing in a contest that became a vote of confidence in her continued stewardship and an early proxy battle over the future of the Democratic Party.
Pelosi easily toppled Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio), a seven-term lawmaker who launched an upstart bid to lead House Democrats two weeks ago in response to the party’s disappointing November election results and concerns that Democrats have become out of touch with working class voters in key swing states like Pennsylvania, Michigan and Ohio.
But Pelosi’s margin of victory, 134 votes to 63 for Ryan, signaled a large degree of discontent with her continued leadership after 14 years atop the caucus and, more broadly, with the Democratic policy agenda that many lawmakers say has grown stale.
Yay! Nancy Smash! Ha! 134 to 63 = more than double the votes = “large degree of discontent”!?! Please! If that vote had been reversed they would have called it “an overwhelming victory”. Same sh*t, different day…
Go Nancy! She will do all she can to protect the ACA, Medicare, SSec!
Offline most of the morning, but @cbsradionews said that Nancy Pelosi was facing a challenge from her left (meaning, I think, Tim Ryan) — which is completely contrary to what I’ve seen before today — it sounded to me that Nancy was facing a challenge from the Midwest, meaning more whining from those who promote #WhiteIdentity, which is how #WhiteSupremacists are selling themselves now.
Glad to see that Nancy (speaker-for-life) Pelosi prevailed — she knows how to get things done, unlike her Senate counterpart, who seems intent on undermining Dems as much as possible 😦 .
Agree Arapaho, I heard Tim Ryan being interviewed and he was decidedly NOT left of Nancy Pelosi. He came with that typical Blue Dogish disdain for her “coastal elite” sensibilities or some such nonsense. He could have been a Repub, the way he was talking (or at least a Repub from back in the day when they weren’t all talking so cray cray).
Anybody have any ideas on the best address to send a letter to PBO?
I would like to write an actual paper letter to thank the President and First Lady for everything they did for/meant to us over the last 8 years and express my support/solidarity going forward. I know that letters have to go through a long security process before they can even possibly reach the President, so I am not sure if I should address it to the White House, since there will be a new POTUS moving in before long (and who knows if that one will even live there.. SMDH).
Should I send a letter to PBO to the White House address or does anyone have an alternative?
Maybe you could address it to President Barack Obama…that way they could forward it to him and not think its for what’s his face. WOuld be nice if they forwarded it…he’d probably have personal time to read it:) I may do that too…a thank you note, of sorts. Great idea:)
Yeah, I would definitely address it to PBO. My concern is if anyone might just toss it out rather than bother to forward in the midst of all the transition work. Was wondering if I should send now or wait for the next address, just to be sure. I kind of feel like he needs it now, but maybe he wouldn’t have time to read it anyway (of course, I know that only a small percentage ever reach him, but, just in case 🙂 )
🙂 Thank you so much for your efforts a4alice! My dilemma was whether I should send to White House now or wait for their new contact info, just in case it might not get forwarded in the transition. Was hoping there would already be an alternative available.
“You want to call that identity politics? Go right ahead. I don’t give a damn. In fact, I am proud to vote my identity as a gay, brown working American. I am proud that I cast my vote twice for a black man who has been a better president than any white dude in the last half century, and I am proud that I cast my vote for the woman who paid attention, created plans, listened to us and won the popular vote”.
In defense of identity politics: The soul of the Democratic Party will not sit down and shut up https://t.co/08XKpfXxom
I have been deeply offended by all of this referring to “Identity Politics” lately. It’s not even a thinly veiled put-down of anyone who isn’t white and male; it’s outright and its ugly. If people are willing to show themselves so blatantly now, I for one am not going to be coy about calling them out.
November 2012. President Obama poses in front of the 368-foot tall Shwedagon pagoda in Burma (Myanmar). To some, this may seem just a snapshot. But to me it evokes what our trip to Burma was all about. Here is the President of the United States, shoes and socks off in respect, posing like a Western tourist in front of the oldest pagoda in the world in a country that no American President had ever been able to visit. — Pete Souza.
More news from the Orange Hate Administration: (this is the first I’m hearing of this)
sheri –
There are multiple reports swirling around the internet that Sarah Palin is under consideration to become the next Secretary of Veterans Affairs in Donald Trump’s cabinet, and that the two have discussed the possibility.
These aren’t fly-by-night sources: it’s ABC and NBC News leading the charge.
It goes without saying that this is a complete non-starter for veterans, military family members, and those who support them. Not only was she a failed governor who quit her job early, but she is on the record in favor of a plan that will turn veterans health care into a voucher program.
If this happens, we need to be fast and forceful in our opposition, and do it in a way that elevates the voices of veterans above the partisan fray. Help us get to work:
Make a $3 contribution to VoteVets right now as a way to help us elevate the voices of veterans in the campaign to stop Sarah Palin from becoming the next Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
Trump has made a number of terrible cabinet picks already — many that fly in the face of populist pledges he made on the campaign trail. But this one … Sarah Palin … could be the worst yet. Certainly for veterans who depend on the government for care and benefits we earned in service.
All my best,
Jon Soltz
Iraq War Veteran and Chairman
VoteVets
But Bernie Sanders and the media told us that the election of Trump had nothing to do with racism, and was all about white working class economic distress.
Hillary Clinton lead continues to widen … she is now WINNING by 2,389,851 VOTES … nothing like this has ever happened before …. sure hope that this was the topic during Senator Reid’s dinner with President Obama and VP Biden …
Why doesn’t he do that? What is he doing? Will say that I read a lot of comments on his Facebook post last night about joining OFA and the path forward. I had to stop because 99% of the comments were questioning him…..why not doing anything about Standing Rock, why not doing anything about Russia’s interference and on and on and on and on. Most had to do with Standing Rock. People saying they regretted voting for him. Etc., etc. as much as I love him and respect him, I found myself agreeing with some of the people. Guess I am just SO down………😰😰😰😰😰😰😰💔💔💔💔
Fuck you! I tried for eight long fucking years to get shit done, it was like pulling teeth with you sons of bitches. I had members of my own party bitch and moan about every goddamn thing I tried to do. You motherfuckers wouldn’t even help me to close Gitmo.
What Don Said, on behalf of B. DANG!!! If only he could find that magic wand, that Imperial Clobbering Tool, that Superpower to Make Things Happen. I would like those people to contact their senators and congresspeople, especially the horrible ones they allowed to be RE ELECTED with a continuing MAJORITY IN BOTH HOUSES, and discuss these issues with them.. They are the congress. They have huge powers. POTUS has what he has and has used it with incredible strength and power. I trust him and I know that he is doing many things that we will never ever know about because that is how things happen. He has never grandstanded nor glory-grabbed and I know he is present and accounted for in every means that he can use. This is not on him — this is on us; and with so many sorry outfits allowing the bad one to come to power with both Senate and House in his corner, it is not likely he can do much now from his position. TOD peeps and so many good people did what we could do, but so many people who should know better could not be bothered to vote or made the WRONG decision in one of 3 ways. Republicans GET how things work, they have for decades, and they have played the long game. We are still letting things go by except in PREZ election years and even THEN not doing much, and then shocked and mad that it’s not a matter of pounding an Iron Dictator Fist to get things done. We could learn so much from them — we are right but we do it wrong, again and again and again.
Thanks for that, Nancie and Don. I know I have GOT to move on and stop making this “all about me.” As I said before, much about this is harder than when we lost Walker. This time, I am angry, very angry. My husband was angry at God for months. That’s what led him to hiking. I was never angry. This grief is so different than any I’ve experienced. All y’all, please keep me “talked down” and on the straight and narrow. 😉
it is okay to make it “all about me” sometimes because some of us having a tougher time about this election and have no one to talk to about it.
some come here to vent, others to console and plan but we are all useful and at different stages of this mess.
you have no idea how often I just burst out crying in the middle of doing something …
during the course of 1 day I may start shaking uncontrollably, … then I really holler out loud, … then I cuss, …. then I pray, ….. then I shout, ….. then I smile, ….. then I plan, …then I send an insult to the Twitter account of the demagogue;
we will eventually adjust but some us may never get there and it takes different time for different people;
please continue sharing your feelings and we can lift each other up;
Love to you and please see me right there beside you on the same path. It is twisting and turning around; I don’t stay in any one place, attitude, mood, very long, and right now that is a good thing! You have endured such deep grief already and it is so hard and seems so wrong that there is more. But here we are. Coming to TOD helps me get back to where I need to be right now. We are richly blessed to have this place. Take good care today.
Love from NC!
I so appreciated CEB’s pep talk. I felt a little better and like I could move forward. My problem is that nothing lasts long enough. I hear another appointment or who he’s thinking of for something and I ‘crash’ all over again. I don’t know if I will ever feel better or optimistic. To make it worse, I can no longer share my feelings with my husband. Long story that I won’t go into, but I am really struggling!!!! I hate the thought of living my life like this, but ????????? Honestly, this is close to being as bad as when we lost our grandson. Some things about it are worse. At least with that, I could lean on my husband and know he was suffering just like me. What to do? Thankful for Chips who started this sanctuary and for NW for keeping us going and for each and every one of you.
Thank all of you. Know we have to push forward–together. 💔😰
I think you have to recognize we’re going through the various stages of grief, and time WILL heal. We would have been grieving under any circumstances with the Obamas leaving the WH, and now it is compounded by the fact that many of his accomplishments may be undone. I feel so very bad for those staffers, they are young and worked so hard. In his carelessness (not willing to grant him that it may be policy), DT has put the Cuba relationship at risk with his tweets, knowledgeable folks have said that they won’t be taken lightly in Cuba. And of course, China is waiting in the wings ready to move in on this relationship as well. Those staffers who got this done had worked on it for two years in advance of the time the deal was announced.
But I think it helps if you recognize it for what it is, call it that, and acknowledge that healing is not a straight line. There will be good days and bad, and I expect that to get worse the closer we get to January 20th. And it helps to find some distraction. This may not be the place for that. I am finding it difficult to simply focus on all the good things in the past, just a reminder of how very much we are losing. So I am off doing other things. And it is making things more bearable. So just hang in there! You’re not alone.
Well said. And it’s good to know none of us are alone.
Never would I criticize anyone for being where they are in this mixture of feelings and thoughts and renewed actions. I’m a bit back into it, a little more each day, because – like you – it didn’t feel right just to “focus on all the good things in the past.” Not to make light of where some people rightfully are, but – unfortunately – life in America these days isn’t just a daily trip to “Everything Obama” on Pinterest. I found that out, too. For me, it’s a mixed bag of “doing other things,” as you said; appreciating these last eight years with total gusto, and starting down the eventual path we’ll all need to be on, to fight back and – more importantly – fight FOR what we still believe in. Pretty sure that’s what President Obama hopes we’ll all land up doing, right along with him.
This is important. Getting an education in prison reduces recidivism by 43%. And that would be higher w/o such profound job discrimination. https://t.co/neokO6eziq
I absolutely ADORE Loretta Lynch — everything about her, her fierceness, and warm, soothing, yet undeniably firm voice, her backstory — she is absolutely remarkable, and my hunch is that she, along with PBO and his team will throw as many hurdles as possible in front of the chaotic #realityTV mess that is DJT.
The great thing about the “obstruction” by PBO and team is that they’ll be busy enacting change AND governing, in contrast to McTurtle et.al.’s obstruction.
I really like the idea of having a school district for inmates, many of whom had scarce opportunities before their convictions.
Nothing but bad news about DJT’s cabinet nominees, but McTurtle’s wife as DOT secretary is stomach-churning. Imagine how much self-enrichment and corporate welfare will be going on when this country actually begins repairing our aging infrastructure. Taxpayers will be lining the pockets of the a**hole who blocked the sweetest judge in the world a well-deserved seat on SCOTUS, etc.
Just horrendous.
GOP Family Values: Mitch McConnell’s In-Laws Caught Smuggling 90 Pounds of Cocaine on Their Cargo Vessel: https://t.co/cxNzYMk6bM
This was my favorite tweet, though all the ones captured in the article were great.
“Ain’t nobody cooler than you.” (Samuel L Jackson to PBO. 😀 )
Help America say goodbye to one cool Muhf****ka in Chief! Watch Love & Happiness An Obama Celebration 11/15 on BET/CENTRIC 9pm/8pm CT. pic.twitter.com/ji9PvoZpiM
This is what we need to take note of and remind people of…they will NOT rewrite history or otherwise “forget” what this man has done for the people of this country.
In the freeze frame of the video of FLOTUS in front of the Christmas tree, I see what President Sasha Obama would look like!!! (A girl can wish, can’t she???)
They need to be told that they were betrayed by the con man…used as pawns to win election, then dumped to die. Dumpster is a fraud, an now they will pay dearly. Maybe with their own life.
NerdyWonka, thankful for you every day. You keep on keeping on and it means the world. Thank you for this ongoing generous powerful life-saving world-rocking gift of your time and energy and smarts and expertise.
Me too, J’OB! I am mad at the Democrats, and especially the DNC and Congressional Democrats, for not being out there loudly challenging the legitimacy of Donald Trump. No one who loses the popular vote by more than 2.5 million votes deserves to be President. More importantly, Trump has no mandate from the majority of the American people to destroy everything President Obama has accomplished. President was elected twice by the majority of Americans, but that did not stop Republicans from obstructing everything he tried to do for the good of all the people in America- including the people who didn’t vote for him. Something is terribly wrong with us Democrats! This election, once again, proved that we are the majority, despite the betrayal of the “holier than thou purity progressives.” Yet a great many of our elected officials are throwing in the towel instead of standing up to fight this monster! I hope We the People mobilize to say NO the evil policies of this monster who represents the minority of Americans.
Hillary Clinton has crashed the thickest glass ceiling in America.
If millions of women march to their respective State Houses and demand their Electors chose Hillary Clinton over that incompetent, misogynistic bigot it might work.
Hillary Clinton got the job done. She is nearing a 2% margin and the spread between her and Trump has steadily increased since 8 Nov 2016.
We must stop the travesty from happening; we must stop the profound destruction Trump displays, every day, he is preparing to do to America and the world.
I have no doubt that if women decide to mass and exert their profound power the outcome on 20 Jan 2017 could well be what it should be – the Inauguration of America’s First Woman President.
ok, World Press just “ate” my comment. let me try this again;
No doubt that when a message is repeatedly shared on social media, it may eventually break through.
I have two suggestions
(a) most comments I have seen are ready to defend Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security. This is as it should be. But I do not see the same demand for Obamacare. It seems as though a number of people think that scrapping it is inevitable. Could we add defending the ACA to the priorities? My daily contribution will be to demand that gop #DoNotRepealObamacare.
(b) all the serious discussion I have heard and read is that the only legally acceptable resolution of the demagogue’s conflict-of-interest is to divest from ALL his companies. My daily contribution will be to send him messages demanding that #TrumpMustDivest.
A real populist uprising might have gone after the greedy thieves whose crimes went unpunished instead of elevating a reality-show fraudster with narcissistic personality disorder and dozens of petty scores to settle.
But Trump at least gave the middle finger to an establishment that enabled the housing crisis and looked the other way as families and factories were destroyed over the last several decades.
Even this isn’t good enough to prevent the the return of the robber barons, though. Not when former Goldman Sachs partner Steven Mnuchin is going to be Trump’s Secretary of the Treasury and Goldman Sachs President Gary Cohn is in line to be his director of the Office of Management and Budget.
………………………
And what about Mnuchin?
Critics have raised many questions about Mnuchin’s financial dealings, from a lawsuit over pocketing profits in the Bernie Madoff case to his suspiciously quiet exit from the Hollywood production company Relativity Media just before it took huge losses and filed for bankruptcy. Just his association with “vampire squid” Goldman Sachs has motivated some anger. But another part of Mnuchin’s history is more relevant: his chairmanship of OneWest Bank, a major cog in America’s relentless foreclosure machine.
Even among the many bad actors in the national foreclosure crisis, OneWest stood out. It routinely jumped to foreclosure rather than pursue options to keep borrowers in their homes; used fabricated and “robo-signed” documents to secure the evictions; and had a particular talent for dispossessing the homes of senior citizens and people of color.
Last week I noted something Steve Bannon told Kimberly Strassel.
I never went on TV one time during the campaign. Not once. You know why? Because politics is war. General Sherman would never have gone on TV to tell everyone his plans. I’d never tip my hand to the other side. And right now we’ve got work to do.
That was part of my argument for how Bannon thinks he is out-smarting liberals by inciting them to chase after inflammatory statements while he maneuvers strategically behind the scenes. It raised my curiosity about who this man really is, what he is trying to accomplish and how he plans to do that. Based on what we’ve seen from Bannon so far, I’d propose that he sees himself as the mastermind puppeteer who plans to chart the course for Trump’s presidency in much the same way that Karl Rove did for George W. Bush. Only Bannon isn’t simply interested in political power, he envisions leading a global nationalist movement.
My curiosity about Bannon was further aroused when, in response to the charge that he is a white supremacist, he told Strassel, “we are going to bring capitalism to the inner cities.” What does that mean?
Some of these questions were answered when I watched a documentary Bannon made with David Bossie (from Citizens United) in 2010 titled “Generation Zero.”
………………..
But to understand what Bannon was referring to when he talked about bringing capitalism back to the inner cities, it is helpful to note how the film portrays one of the contributors to the housing crisis. For Bannon and Bosie it all goes back to the 1977 Community Reinvestment Act. Here is how it is discussed in the film:
This policy that led to the subprime crisis and so forth came out of the fact that the civil rights movement had claimed that blacks were being red-lined. Banks then didn’t want to lend money to them. Here is another source of black victimization. Here’s another place where this fundamentally racist society is keeping blacks down. Since the mid- sixties, white Americans have been in a position where they constantly have to prove that they are not racist. It is that phenomenon of white guilt is what pressures people in the government to say things like, ‘Everybody has a right to a house,’ and unfortunately capitalism doesn’t work that way…
When Bill Clinton became president he made turbocharging the Community Reinvestment Act one of his priorities. He got the Justice Department to go after mortgage lenders to say that if these lenders were not making proportionate loans they can be accused of racism. So this had the effect of corroding lending standards. This is what created the explosion of subprime lending during the Clinton years and the Bush administration years.
Notice first of all that they say that the civil rights movement “claimed” that blacks were being red-lined. With all of the focus on the 1960’s it is interesting to note that this is the first time (and only time) that the civil rights movement was mentioned. Doing so would have stepped on the whole idea that the era was simply about spoiled narcissistic Woodstock kids. But redlining went far beyond a claim made by that movement. It was a documented fact that kept African Americans from being able to participate in one of the foundational parts of the American dream – home ownership.
There is video of GWB telling people that his administration is “getting rid of all that red tape and paperwork” preventing people from buying a home, not just any home, but a nice home in nice neighborhoods. Then you see some yahoo taking a power saw to a mound of paper. This is when working people, non-working people, anyone getting loans for homes they could not afford normally. I bought my condo during the GHWB era in 1991. I almost didn’t get a mortgage because I was a single female, new job, but I had good credit rating and no debt. In 1993 yes Clinton eased regulations a bit but it was GWB that eliminated loan regulations. Mortgage companies & Banks were loaning to people who had part time jobs, “stated income” just state what you make and that was all you needed. This did not happen under Clinton. Clinton eased regulations but you still had to qualify for the loan with a job, credit, income verification. There was NO income verification under GWB. A lot of people were hounded to buy more house than they could afford, take out loans on there homes and use them as ATMS. It is already starting again. I get numerous calls all day long for home improvement, credit card applications, they are getting ready to fleece homeowners again.
Having worked as a county coordinator for ACORN perhaps gives me some unique perspective on how Voter ID laws are likely to play out in real life. But if I know firsthand, the designers of these laws have known from strategic, psychological, statistical and practical points of view that the laws would cause lower turnout in poor urban neighborhoods. In other words, the laws are designed to do the exact opposite of what I was trying to do with ACORN.
Though it’s difficult to quantify the effect of voter suppression in 50 states, Hajnal reports in a new study that after Texas implemented a strict voter-ID law, Latino turnout dropped sharply between 2010 and 2014, and the gap between white and Latino turnout increased by 9.2 percentage points. In the rest of the country, the gap between white and Latino turnout decreased over the same period.
Wisconsin adopted a tough photo-ID law, and in Milwaukee, where a large number of African Americans don’t drive or have licenses, turnout declined in 2016 by 41,000 compared with 2012, a 15 percent drop. Turnout was significantly lower than in 2004 and 2008 as well. The dropoff was steepest in the poorest precincts.
“No matter how hard one tries to attribute this to lower voter interest in this election, the stark drop must be attributable to impact of the photo-ID rule,” argues Kristen Clarke, head of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.
Obama White House.gov
The Obama Diary 
Wow, am I first? Thanks for the post, NW. I love FLOTUS’s dress and her remarks. Let’s savor this last Obama WH Christmas!
SENDING MY LAST CARD TO THE WH TOMORROW….
Buon Giorno, Amici!
Thank you, Nerdy – hope you are well. Love ya!
❤️🌹🙏🏻👏🏼🌹❤️
G’morning Nerdy & TOD! 🙂 Happy Wednesday everyone.
First, I sent a “#ThanksObama” reply, then added:
Hello TODable TODbots.
WH Presser has already concluded today. 😦 for the failure on my part for not posting it Live. I will post the Video as soon as they upload ot.
Congrats to all the Gold ⭐ winners since last Evening, starting with this post.
Thanks, NW for your gracious hard work at TOD.
{{{{ ❤ Chips ❤ }}}}
FLOTUS almost made me tear up when she became emotional while thanking all of the staff who work at the White House. Thanks NW for posting this touching video ❤
I watched it last night. I noticed that too, GGail.
Love FLOTUS and will miss her and her family.
Oh for sure annieb.
MSoph, I’ve been holding up pretty well so far…until I saw this video. It’s getting tough.
I was in a big Trump Funk the past few days, but I’m stronger today. Partly from commiserating with a fellow Dem client last night and partly from CEB’s wonderful pep talk from the earlier thread. I was kind of sad watching this video last night, thinking about how I didn’t get to visit the White House under its greatest President and First Lady. Then I remembered that I will be able to visit the Library!! PBO and FLOTUS Michelle will always be my beacon of light. Sec Clinton ain’t down for the count either. And Nancy Smash is coming back for another round. Trump got elected by 27% of Americans. There are still more of us than of them. There is an Italian saying, “L’unione fa la forza” it translates as “Union makes strength” or “Stronger Together”! Long live the coalition!
Long live the coalition. I have often thought about the story of exodus for some reason and now its in my mind a lot. Some elements of the story really fit right now. When the powers that be clamped down on the Israelite slaves instead of freeing them because of Moses’ confrontation with the ruler, many of oppressed caved in their support for Moses. I think we are seeing some of that kind of reaction right now. But what really seems parallel to me are the plagues. During the Bush years we really had several very painful outcomes from his corrupt and foolish administration. We were brought out of those plagues, years of war, loss of our auto industry, housing crises, near depression, etc. by the President and his team. Now the powers that be are riding after us, chasing us into the Red Sea so to speak, because they didn’t learn anything. I know how the story ends and its not good for the transgressors, power abusers and the entitled.
WATCHING THE SWAMP FILL WITH MORE SLUDGE…THE LEECHES ARE LINING UP…THANKFUL FOR MY GLOCK..I WON’T BE STICKING AROUND FOR THIS STEWPOT TO BOIL!
Nancy Pelosi – Chosen Again!
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/wp/2016/11/30/nancy-pelosis-biggest-leadership-challenge-might-be-beating-expectations/?utm_term=.15f7ced8499b
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (Calif.) on Wednesday won the race to lead the Democratic caucus for an eighth term, prevailing in a contest that became a vote of confidence in her continued stewardship and an early proxy battle over the future of the Democratic Party.
Pelosi easily toppled Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio), a seven-term lawmaker who launched an upstart bid to lead House Democrats two weeks ago in response to the party’s disappointing November election results and concerns that Democrats have become out of touch with working class voters in key swing states like Pennsylvania, Michigan and Ohio.
But Pelosi’s margin of victory, 134 votes to 63 for Ryan, signaled a large degree of discontent with her continued leadership after 14 years atop the caucus and, more broadly, with the Democratic policy agenda that many lawmakers say has grown stale.
Yay! Nancy Smash! Ha! 134 to 63 = more than double the votes = “large degree of discontent”!?! Please! If that vote had been reversed they would have called it “an overwhelming victory”. Same sh*t, different day…
Go Nancy! She will do all she can to protect the ACA, Medicare, SSec!
HA! I thought the same thing MSoph!
GA GGail.
Offline most of the morning, but @cbsradionews said that Nancy Pelosi was facing a challenge from her left (meaning, I think, Tim Ryan) — which is completely contrary to what I’ve seen before today — it sounded to me that Nancy was facing a challenge from the Midwest, meaning more whining from those who promote #WhiteIdentity, which is how #WhiteSupremacists are selling themselves now.
Glad to see that Nancy (speaker-for-life) Pelosi prevailed — she knows how to get things done, unlike her Senate counterpart, who seems intent on undermining Dems as much as possible 😦 .
We will appreciate Nancy Smash and all of her valiant efforts forever!
Agree Arapaho, I heard Tim Ryan being interviewed and he was decidedly NOT left of Nancy Pelosi. He came with that typical Blue Dogish disdain for her “coastal elite” sensibilities or some such nonsense. He could have been a Repub, the way he was talking (or at least a Repub from back in the day when they weren’t all talking so cray cray).
Wonderful news!!! I am so happy.
So very, very happy!
Incredibly dangerous is the PERFECT description of him.
YES, he is! I live in KS.
Hey TODers, I have a question.
Anybody have any ideas on the best address to send a letter to PBO?
I would like to write an actual paper letter to thank the President and First Lady for everything they did for/meant to us over the last 8 years and express my support/solidarity going forward. I know that letters have to go through a long security process before they can even possibly reach the President, so I am not sure if I should address it to the White House, since there will be a new POTUS moving in before long (and who knows if that one will even live there.. SMDH).
Should I send a letter to PBO to the White House address or does anyone have an alternative?
Maybe you could address it to President Barack Obama…that way they could forward it to him and not think its for what’s his face. WOuld be nice if they forwarded it…he’d probably have personal time to read it:) I may do that too…a thank you note, of sorts. Great idea:)
Yeah, I would definitely address it to PBO. My concern is if anyone might just toss it out rather than bother to forward in the midst of all the transition work. Was wondering if I should send now or wait for the next address, just to be sure. I kind of feel like he needs it now, but maybe he wouldn’t have time to read it anyway (of course, I know that only a small percentage ever reach him, but, just in case 🙂 )
I just checked their website and they have an address for writing. I THINK I got a copy of it. But if this didn’t work, check out the link:
https://www.whitehouse.gov/contact
oh wah. that didn’t work but the address is on that link – sorry! 😝
[IMG]http://i67.tinypic.com/2e0qrg5.jpg[/IMG]
nope. ok I give up.
🙂 Thank you so much for your efforts a4alice! My dilemma was whether I should send to White House now or wait for their new contact info, just in case it might not get forwarded in the transition. Was hoping there would already be an alternative available.
“You want to call that identity politics? Go right ahead. I don’t give a damn. In fact, I am proud to vote my identity as a gay, brown working American. I am proud that I cast my vote twice for a black man who has been a better president than any white dude in the last half century, and I am proud that I cast my vote for the woman who paid attention, created plans, listened to us and won the popular vote”.
Bless Spandan
Yes, PF. On my way to read this now.
I have been deeply offended by all of this referring to “Identity Politics” lately. It’s not even a thinly veiled put-down of anyone who isn’t white and male; it’s outright and its ugly. If people are willing to show themselves so blatantly now, I for one am not going to be coy about calling them out.
Wow! Just finished that and forwarded it to F&F. Standing and clapping for Spandon here! That was well said and exactly what I’ve been feeling.
Wow – Possible tornado in Metro Atlanta – stay safe, everyone in that area!
November 2012. President Obama poses in front of the 368-foot tall Shwedagon pagoda in Burma (Myanmar). To some, this may seem just a snapshot. But to me it evokes what our trip to Burma was all about. Here is the President of the United States, shoes and socks off in respect, posing like a Western tourist in front of the oldest pagoda in the world in a country that no American President had ever been able to visit. — Pete Souza.
Pete tells a very important story. And JER posts it – just at the right time for us to doubly appreciate its significance. ❤
how beautiful
More news from the Orange Hate Administration: (this is the first I’m hearing of this)
sheri –
There are multiple reports swirling around the internet that Sarah Palin is under consideration to become the next Secretary of Veterans Affairs in Donald Trump’s cabinet, and that the two have discussed the possibility.
These aren’t fly-by-night sources: it’s ABC and NBC News leading the charge.
It goes without saying that this is a complete non-starter for veterans, military family members, and those who support them. Not only was she a failed governor who quit her job early, but she is on the record in favor of a plan that will turn veterans health care into a voucher program.
If this happens, we need to be fast and forceful in our opposition, and do it in a way that elevates the voices of veterans above the partisan fray. Help us get to work:
Make a $3 contribution to VoteVets right now as a way to help us elevate the voices of veterans in the campaign to stop Sarah Palin from becoming the next Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
Trump has made a number of terrible cabinet picks already — many that fly in the face of populist pledges he made on the campaign trail. But this one … Sarah Palin … could be the worst yet. Certainly for veterans who depend on the government for care and benefits we earned in service.
All my best,
Jon Soltz
Iraq War Veteran and Chairman
VoteVets
Happy Birthday, Sherijr. Hope it’s been a good one.
Also thanks for this info.
lol, it’s not my birthday, but thank you anyway Marilyn 🙂 it was in October
Sorry, I got the wrong info, hope you still had a great day.
thank you, no great days since the election for me. I hope your day has been good though 🙂
I agree. Especially no good nights. Not much sleep. We must stay together.
with you there 🙂
As someone who is in business for myself and not rich, my standard of living has definitely improved…
But Bernie Sanders and the media told us that the election of Trump had nothing to do with racism, and was all about white working class economic distress.
Hillary Clinton lead continues to widen … she is now WINNING by 2,389,851 VOTES … nothing like this has ever happened before …. sure hope that this was the topic during Senator Reid’s dinner with President Obama and VP Biden …
Why doesn’t he do that? What is he doing? Will say that I read a lot of comments on his Facebook post last night about joining OFA and the path forward. I had to stop because 99% of the comments were questioning him…..why not doing anything about Standing Rock, why not doing anything about Russia’s interference and on and on and on and on. Most had to do with Standing Rock. People saying they regretted voting for him. Etc., etc. as much as I love him and respect him, I found myself agreeing with some of the people. Guess I am just SO down………😰😰😰😰😰😰😰💔💔💔💔
Dear Senate Democrats,
Fuck you! I tried for eight long fucking years to get shit done, it was like pulling teeth with you sons of bitches. I had members of my own party bitch and moan about every goddamn thing I tried to do. You motherfuckers wouldn’t even help me to close Gitmo.
Yours truly, B
What Don Said, on behalf of B. DANG!!! If only he could find that magic wand, that Imperial Clobbering Tool, that Superpower to Make Things Happen. I would like those people to contact their senators and congresspeople, especially the horrible ones they allowed to be RE ELECTED with a continuing MAJORITY IN BOTH HOUSES, and discuss these issues with them.. They are the congress. They have huge powers. POTUS has what he has and has used it with incredible strength and power. I trust him and I know that he is doing many things that we will never ever know about because that is how things happen. He has never grandstanded nor glory-grabbed and I know he is present and accounted for in every means that he can use. This is not on him — this is on us; and with so many sorry outfits allowing the bad one to come to power with both Senate and House in his corner, it is not likely he can do much now from his position. TOD peeps and so many good people did what we could do, but so many people who should know better could not be bothered to vote or made the WRONG decision in one of 3 ways. Republicans GET how things work, they have for decades, and they have played the long game. We are still letting things go by except in PREZ election years and even THEN not doing much, and then shocked and mad that it’s not a matter of pounding an Iron Dictator Fist to get things done. We could learn so much from them — we are right but we do it wrong, again and again and again.
Thanks for that, Nancie and Don. I know I have GOT to move on and stop making this “all about me.” As I said before, much about this is harder than when we lost Walker. This time, I am angry, very angry. My husband was angry at God for months. That’s what led him to hiking. I was never angry. This grief is so different than any I’ve experienced. All y’all, please keep me “talked down” and on the straight and narrow. 😉
it is okay to make it “all about me” sometimes because some of us having a tougher time about this election and have no one to talk to about it.
some come here to vent, others to console and plan but we are all useful and at different stages of this mess.
you have no idea how often I just burst out crying in the middle of doing something …
during the course of 1 day I may start shaking uncontrollably, … then I really holler out loud, … then I cuss, …. then I pray, ….. then I shout, ….. then I smile, ….. then I plan, …then I send an insult to the Twitter account of the demagogue;
we will eventually adjust but some us may never get there and it takes different time for different people;
please continue sharing your feelings and we can lift each other up;
peace!
Love to you and please see me right there beside you on the same path. It is twisting and turning around; I don’t stay in any one place, attitude, mood, very long, and right now that is a good thing! You have endured such deep grief already and it is so hard and seems so wrong that there is more. But here we are. Coming to TOD helps me get back to where I need to be right now. We are richly blessed to have this place. Take good care today.
Love from NC!
I so appreciated CEB’s pep talk. I felt a little better and like I could move forward. My problem is that nothing lasts long enough. I hear another appointment or who he’s thinking of for something and I ‘crash’ all over again. I don’t know if I will ever feel better or optimistic. To make it worse, I can no longer share my feelings with my husband. Long story that I won’t go into, but I am really struggling!!!! I hate the thought of living my life like this, but ????????? Honestly, this is close to being as bad as when we lost our grandson. Some things about it are worse. At least with that, I could lean on my husband and know he was suffering just like me. What to do? Thankful for Chips who started this sanctuary and for NW for keeping us going and for each and every one of you.
Thank all of you. Know we have to push forward–together. 💔😰
I think you have to recognize we’re going through the various stages of grief, and time WILL heal. We would have been grieving under any circumstances with the Obamas leaving the WH, and now it is compounded by the fact that many of his accomplishments may be undone. I feel so very bad for those staffers, they are young and worked so hard. In his carelessness (not willing to grant him that it may be policy), DT has put the Cuba relationship at risk with his tweets, knowledgeable folks have said that they won’t be taken lightly in Cuba. And of course, China is waiting in the wings ready to move in on this relationship as well. Those staffers who got this done had worked on it for two years in advance of the time the deal was announced.
But I think it helps if you recognize it for what it is, call it that, and acknowledge that healing is not a straight line. There will be good days and bad, and I expect that to get worse the closer we get to January 20th. And it helps to find some distraction. This may not be the place for that. I am finding it difficult to simply focus on all the good things in the past, just a reminder of how very much we are losing. So I am off doing other things. And it is making things more bearable. So just hang in there! You’re not alone.
Well said. And it’s good to know none of us are alone.
Never would I criticize anyone for being where they are in this mixture of feelings and thoughts and renewed actions. I’m a bit back into it, a little more each day, because – like you – it didn’t feel right just to “focus on all the good things in the past.” Not to make light of where some people rightfully are, but – unfortunately – life in America these days isn’t just a daily trip to “Everything Obama” on Pinterest. I found that out, too. For me, it’s a mixed bag of “doing other things,” as you said; appreciating these last eight years with total gusto, and starting down the eventual path we’ll all need to be on, to fight back and – more importantly – fight FOR what we still believe in. Pretty sure that’s what President Obama hopes we’ll all land up doing, right along with him.
Anyway, my two cents.
I can’t wait to visit The Trump Diary to gaze at the many pictures of the 45th President’s face… Someone, please wake me up from this nightmare!
I know you are joking about visiting the Trump Diary, aren’t you.
The Red Room
wow! 🙂
GE PF58.
Great news!
I absolutely ADORE Loretta Lynch — everything about her, her fierceness, and warm, soothing, yet undeniably firm voice, her backstory — she is absolutely remarkable, and my hunch is that she, along with PBO and his team will throw as many hurdles as possible in front of the chaotic #realityTV mess that is DJT.
The great thing about the “obstruction” by PBO and team is that they’ll be busy enacting change AND governing, in contrast to McTurtle et.al.’s obstruction.
I really like the idea of having a school district for inmates, many of whom had scarce opportunities before their convictions.
Nothing but bad news about DJT’s cabinet nominees, but McTurtle’s wife as DOT secretary is stomach-churning. Imagine how much self-enrichment and corporate welfare will be going on when this country actually begins repairing our aging infrastructure. Taxpayers will be lining the pockets of the a**hole who blocked the sweetest judge in the world a well-deserved seat on SCOTUS, etc.
Just horrendous.
Hallway
I’d be SHOCKED! Not
GE DF.
Wasn’t able to catch today’s WHPB, but looks like Josh Earnest was in fine form 🙂 :
We need to have a parade on every street in every town across the land in celebration and thanks …
… of course, I’d faint if I ever saw President Obama on my street in my town, but I’m willing to take the chance! #ThankYouObama
Thanks, JER. GE JO’B.
This was my favorite tweet, though all the ones captured in the article were great.
“Ain’t nobody cooler than you.” (Samuel L Jackson to PBO. 😀 )
It was great!!!
Though this one’s pretty cool too.
Think I’ll post this again in response to GGail. Think it’ll lift her spirits.
Beautiful. Raised my spirits, too!
This is what we need to take note of and remind people of…they will NOT rewrite history or otherwise “forget” what this man has done for the people of this country.
Exactly, DF! We must never allow them to falsify the history of President Obama.
In the freeze frame of the video of FLOTUS in front of the Christmas tree, I see what President Sasha Obama would look like!!! (A girl can wish, can’t she???)
They need to be told that they were betrayed by the con man…used as pawns to win election, then dumped to die. Dumpster is a fraud, an now they will pay dearly. Maybe with their own life.
NerdyWonka, thankful for you every day. You keep on keeping on and it means the world. Thank you for this ongoing generous powerful life-saving world-rocking gift of your time and energy and smarts and expertise.
This kills me.
Me too, J’OB! I am mad at the Democrats, and especially the DNC and Congressional Democrats, for not being out there loudly challenging the legitimacy of Donald Trump. No one who loses the popular vote by more than 2.5 million votes deserves to be President. More importantly, Trump has no mandate from the majority of the American people to destroy everything President Obama has accomplished. President was elected twice by the majority of Americans, but that did not stop Republicans from obstructing everything he tried to do for the good of all the people in America- including the people who didn’t vote for him. Something is terribly wrong with us Democrats! This election, once again, proved that we are the majority, despite the betrayal of the “holier than thou purity progressives.” Yet a great many of our elected officials are throwing in the towel instead of standing up to fight this monster! I hope We the People mobilize to say NO the evil policies of this monster who represents the minority of Americans.
The absolute worst choice was Schumer, at this point in history.
The absolute worst choice was Schumer, at this point in history.
Took a deep breath on that, nath! We will mobilize – already starting in some places!
that took a lot of from Mr. Favs
It sure did!
Hillary Clinton has crashed the thickest glass ceiling in America.
If millions of women march to their respective State Houses and demand their Electors chose Hillary Clinton over that incompetent, misogynistic bigot it might work.
Hillary Clinton got the job done. She is nearing a 2% margin and the spread between her and Trump has steadily increased since 8 Nov 2016.
We must stop the travesty from happening; we must stop the profound destruction Trump displays, every day, he is preparing to do to America and the world.
I have no doubt that if women decide to mass and exert their profound power the outcome on 20 Jan 2017 could well be what it should be – the Inauguration of America’s First Woman President.
These three could catalyze, for sure ….
#OnePersonOneVote
good night TOD ….
ok, World Press just “ate” my comment. let me try this again;
No doubt that when a message is repeatedly shared on social media, it may eventually break through.
I have two suggestions
(a) most comments I have seen are ready to defend Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security. This is as it should be. But I do not see the same demand for Obamacare. It seems as though a number of people think that scrapping it is inevitable. Could we add defending the ACA to the priorities? My daily contribution will be to demand that gop #DoNotRepealObamacare.
(b) all the serious discussion I have heard and read is that the only legally acceptable resolution of the demagogue’s conflict-of-interest is to divest from ALL his companies. My daily contribution will be to send him messages demanding that #TrumpMustDivest.
I would welcome any alternative ideas.
thanks a lot.
Professor Michelle Herron from Colorado call First Lady Michelle Obama monkey face on her facebook page.
Racists bigots are sick bastards.
Michelle Herren, that is the racists bigots name.
And with this sweet thought, I’ll say goodnight, TODville!
Good Morning Everybody.
December 2012. Listening during an impromptu meeting. — Pete Souza
Good morning JER!
Thank you for this photo of our greatest President! I am thankful that he is there today!
My pleasure MadameSoph.
He picks the best people. Morning everyone…beautiful photo of my President:)
More Death to Our Hometowns
by Martin Longman
November 30, 2016 4:06 PM
…………………..
A real populist uprising might have gone after the greedy thieves whose crimes went unpunished instead of elevating a reality-show fraudster with narcissistic personality disorder and dozens of petty scores to settle.
But Trump at least gave the middle finger to an establishment that enabled the housing crisis and looked the other way as families and factories were destroyed over the last several decades.
Even this isn’t good enough to prevent the the return of the robber barons, though. Not when former Goldman Sachs partner Steven Mnuchin is going to be Trump’s Secretary of the Treasury and Goldman Sachs President Gary Cohn is in line to be his director of the Office of Management and Budget.
………………………
And what about Mnuchin?
Critics have raised many questions about Mnuchin’s financial dealings, from a lawsuit over pocketing profits in the Bernie Madoff case to his suspiciously quiet exit from the Hollywood production company Relativity Media just before it took huge losses and filed for bankruptcy. Just his association with “vampire squid” Goldman Sachs has motivated some anger. But another part of Mnuchin’s history is more relevant: his chairmanship of OneWest Bank, a major cog in America’s relentless foreclosure machine.
Even among the many bad actors in the national foreclosure crisis, OneWest stood out. It routinely jumped to foreclosure rather than pursue options to keep borrowers in their homes; used fabricated and “robo-signed” documents to secure the evictions; and had a particular talent for dispossessing the homes of senior citizens and people of color.
Steve Bannon’s White Nationalist Agenda
by Nancy LeTourneau
November 30, 2016 3:17 PM
Last week I noted something Steve Bannon told Kimberly Strassel.
That was part of my argument for how Bannon thinks he is out-smarting liberals by inciting them to chase after inflammatory statements while he maneuvers strategically behind the scenes. It raised my curiosity about who this man really is, what he is trying to accomplish and how he plans to do that. Based on what we’ve seen from Bannon so far, I’d propose that he sees himself as the mastermind puppeteer who plans to chart the course for Trump’s presidency in much the same way that Karl Rove did for George W. Bush. Only Bannon isn’t simply interested in political power, he envisions leading a global nationalist movement.
My curiosity about Bannon was further aroused when, in response to the charge that he is a white supremacist, he told Strassel, “we are going to bring capitalism to the inner cities.” What does that mean?
Some of these questions were answered when I watched a documentary Bannon made with David Bossie (from Citizens United) in 2010 titled “Generation Zero.”
………………..
But to understand what Bannon was referring to when he talked about bringing capitalism back to the inner cities, it is helpful to note how the film portrays one of the contributors to the housing crisis. For Bannon and Bosie it all goes back to the 1977 Community Reinvestment Act. Here is how it is discussed in the film:
Notice first of all that they say that the civil rights movement “claimed” that blacks were being red-lined. With all of the focus on the 1960’s it is interesting to note that this is the first time (and only time) that the civil rights movement was mentioned. Doing so would have stepped on the whole idea that the era was simply about spoiled narcissistic Woodstock kids. But redlining went far beyond a claim made by that movement. It was a documented fact that kept African Americans from being able to participate in one of the foundational parts of the American dream – home ownership.
There is video of GWB telling people that his administration is “getting rid of all that red tape and paperwork” preventing people from buying a home, not just any home, but a nice home in nice neighborhoods. Then you see some yahoo taking a power saw to a mound of paper. This is when working people, non-working people, anyone getting loans for homes they could not afford normally. I bought my condo during the GHWB era in 1991. I almost didn’t get a mortgage because I was a single female, new job, but I had good credit rating and no debt. In 1993 yes Clinton eased regulations a bit but it was GWB that eliminated loan regulations. Mortgage companies & Banks were loaning to people who had part time jobs, “stated income” just state what you make and that was all you needed. This did not happen under Clinton. Clinton eased regulations but you still had to qualify for the loan with a job, credit, income verification. There was NO income verification under GWB. A lot of people were hounded to buy more house than they could afford, take out loans on there homes and use them as ATMS. It is already starting again. I get numerous calls all day long for home improvement, credit card applications, they are getting ready to fleece homeowners again.
When Voter ID Laws Lead to Disenfranchisement
by Martin Longman
November 30, 2016 12:50 PM
Having worked as a county coordinator for ACORN perhaps gives me some unique perspective on how Voter ID laws are likely to play out in real life. But if I know firsthand, the designers of these laws have known from strategic, psychological, statistical and practical points of view that the laws would cause lower turnout in poor urban neighborhoods. In other words, the laws are designed to do the exact opposite of what I was trying to do with ACORN.
New post.
https://theobamadiary.com/2016/12/01/legendary-fist-bumps/