Octopus Overlords

Posted: **Thu Jul 30, 2020 6:34 pm**

El Guapo wrote: ↑Thu Jul 30, 2020 10:11 am I don't worry that much about him delaying the election, so much as using a call for a delay to undermine the fairness of the election in other ways. The reality is that he almost certainly can't change the election date - it's clearly provided for in a current statute, so he would need Congress to pass a bill delaying the election, which the House wouldn't go along with. He could try to invoke some nebulous inherent constitutional authority to delay the election, but that sort of naked defiance of a clear statute is not the kind of thing that the SCOTUS has gone along with.

I don't think it is a matter of how they'll rule. It'd be how *fast* would they rule if he say declared an emergency last minute. He just needs the chaos potentially to disrupt the election.

What I do worry about is, in addition to his pre-labeling the election result fraudulent, is this chain of events:

TRUMP / GOP: Coronavirus is terrible! We need to delay the election!
DEMOCRATS: NO, but let's do X, Y, and Z to make voting safe.
TRUMP / GOP: Nope! But now everything's going to be all messed up in voting because you won't reschedule!
TRUMP (A week before the election): Because Democrats refused to allow the election date to be moved, we need to implement the following restrictions on voting (to be selectively applied in Democratic areas)...

This is possible. Other things would be to shut down the postal service 'temporarily'. Sue every state that relied on mail-in voting maybe even just as the election approaches so it isn't some 'sore loser' action. There are many other emergencies that the administration can cook up on top. It is looking pretty scary at the moment. That the 'very serious people' are chirping should tell you something is up.

Posted: **Thu Jul 30, 2020 6:35 pm**

Will Hurd announced last year that he's not running for re-election.

Posted: **Thu Jul 30, 2020 6:38 pm**

Isgrimnur wrote: ↑Thu Jul 30, 2020 6:35 pm Will Hurd announced last year that he's not running for re-election.

But somehow he doesn't know if he'll vote for Trump or not. He isn't 100% out of the party apparently. Not that it works that way as he'll find out.

Posted: **Fri Jul 31, 2020 4:09 pm**

Isgrimnur wrote: ↑Thu Jul 30, 2020 6:35 pm Will Hurd announced last year that he's not running for re-election.

I take some credit for that. I worked very, very hard to unseat him in 2018. The PAC my boss chaired maxed out to his opponent, spent a ton of money on an independent campaign for her, and I was embedded in her campaign for almost all of October 2018. She lost by less about 1,000 votes in 2018, but she'll cruise to victory this year. Gina Ortiz Jones. She's going to be a great congresswoman.

Posted: **Fri Jul 31, 2020 4:12 pm**

Help me get rid of Burgess.

Posted: **Fri Jul 31, 2020 4:40 pm**

Thanks, Fireball. While we watch from the sidelines, you have the chance to have an impact. Hope things get much better.

My biggest impact was in the Obama era getting a progressive Democratic 501(c)(4) set up in Utah. Now it’s mostly local city stuff and walking people through stupid Republican tax policy.

Posted: **Fri Jul 31, 2020 9:35 pm**

Finally McConnell realizes he fucked up. Hopefully it is too late.

Posted: **Fri Jul 31, 2020 9:56 pm**

I swear we've heard that before and before and before.

Posted: **Fri Jul 31, 2020 10:47 pm**

This is great.

Posted: **Sun Aug 02, 2020 11:42 pm**

Posted: **Sun Aug 02, 2020 11:56 pm**

El Guapo wrote: ↑Fri Jul 31, 2020 10:47 pm This is great.

Fuck Mike Lee. He is an asshole of the very highest possible order.

Posted: **Mon Aug 03, 2020 8:58 am**

I got polled 3x over the weekend. The first poll was fully automated and about the SC presidential and Senate races and was fine until the three "statements" at the end that I had to agree or disagree with. There were three and all started with some version of "It is completely irresponsible that..." The second poll was also fully automated but very short - just who I was intending to vote for for president and Senate. The third one was the worst - it was clearly intended for someone living in Wisconsin and even though I clearly stated three times that I didn't live there, they went ahead and took the answers anyway and just marked "undecided" for the questions I didn't know about or couldn't answer (I didn't know anything about their Senate race nor could I answer if I would vote in person or by mail since mail is not an option in my state - though I would if I could).

Posted: **Mon Aug 03, 2020 3:15 pm**

Isgrimnur wrote: ↑Fri Jul 31, 2020 4:12 pm Help me get rid of Burgess.

I'll sign that petition.

Posted: **Wed Aug 05, 2020 1:02 pm**

CBS News

Congressman Roger Marshall fended off 10 challengers, including former Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, to win the Republican Senate primary in Kansas. He will now face state Senator Barbara Bollier, who won the Democratic contest on Tuesday, in the general election.

While President Trump had not endorsed Kobach in this race, Mr. Trump had backed him in his 2018 gubernatorial race.

Posted: **Wed Aug 05, 2020 3:07 pm**

I had heard that Democrats were really pulling for Kobach in order to give them the best chance at a win.

Posted: **Wed Aug 05, 2020 3:12 pm**

Cori Bush of St. Louis defeated the incumbent who, between himself and his father, had held the seat for ~50 years. She is a much more progressive candidate and has been a leader in organizing BLM protests and the response to the killing of Michael Brown in Ferguson. She will become the first Black woman to represent Missouri in Congress. Pretty exciting!

Posted: **Wed Aug 05, 2020 3:25 pm**

Paingod wrote: ↑Wed Aug 05, 2020 3:07 pm I had heard that Democrats were really pulling for Kobach in order to give them the best chance at a win.

According to this 538 article, a D-aligned Super PAC spent $5.3M trying to get Kobach the nomination.

Posted: **Wed Aug 05, 2020 3:32 pm**

I've been in isolation and I'm not happy. I didn't know yesterday was primary day. I am now on the state absentee ballot list and I did not get an absentee ballot. I don't know if that breakdown is with me or the state.

Posted: **Thu Aug 06, 2020 8:02 am**

LordMortis wrote: ↑Wed Aug 05, 2020 3:32 pm I've been in isolation and I'm not happy. I didn't know yesterday was primary day. I am now on the state absentee ballot list and I did not get an absentee ballot. I don't know if that breakdown is with me or the state.

If on Wednesday you tried to get an absentee ballot for Tuesday's primary, that one's on you.

At least that's how your post reads.

Posted: **Thu Aug 06, 2020 8:11 am**

pr0ner wrote: ↑Thu Aug 06, 2020 8:02 am
LordMortis wrote: ↑Wed Aug 05, 2020 3:32 pm I've been in isolation and I'm not happy. I didn't know yesterday was primary day. I am now on the state absentee ballot list and I did not get an absentee ballot. I don't know if that breakdown is with me or the state.
If on Wednesday you tried to get an absentee ballot for Tuesday's primary, that one's on you.

At least that's how your post reads.

It's on me that I didn't know Tuesday was primary day. I was relying on receiving my ballot to let me know when the primaries were. I signed up for absentee ballots I don't know how many months ago. Literally on the day our SOS made sign ups available.

Posted: **Thu Aug 06, 2020 1:14 pm**

Pence just doubled down on Trumpism. He threw Roberts under the bus for cheap political points. It might be good electoral politics as red meat for the base but still is incredibly inappropriate.

Posted: **Thu Aug 06, 2020 1:36 pm**

Remember if you aren't reliably getting in line with the GOP as defined by the current administration, you aren't conservative. If you aren't pro-life as defined by Pence "modest" Christiandom, you aren't a principled conservative.

Whenever he speaks he reminds me of what a true piece of shit he is and why the GOP needs to be dismantled. If Trump dies, this is his replacement.

Posted: **Thu Aug 06, 2020 1:38 pm**

Let him gatekeep his way to destroying the party. I'm fine with it.

Posted: **Thu Aug 06, 2020 1:50 pm**

LordMortis wrote: ↑Thu Aug 06, 2020 8:11 am
pr0ner wrote: ↑Thu Aug 06, 2020 8:02 am
LordMortis wrote: ↑Wed Aug 05, 2020 3:32 pm I've been in isolation and I'm not happy. I didn't know yesterday was primary day. I am now on the state absentee ballot list and I did not get an absentee ballot. I don't know if that breakdown is with me or the state.
If on Wednesday you tried to get an absentee ballot for Tuesday's primary, that one's on you.

At least that's how your post reads.
It's on me that I didn't know Tuesday was primary day. I was relying on receiving my ballot to let me know when the primaries were. I signed up for absentee ballots I don't know how many months ago. Literally on the day our SOS made sign ups available.

Maybe it's a good reminder to check and make sure that you are still on their absentee ballot list? Well, or you may get your ballot next week because the post office is so backed up...

Posted: **Thu Aug 06, 2020 1:56 pm**

gilraen wrote: ↑Thu Aug 06, 2020 1:50 pm Maybe it's a good reminder to check and make sure that you are still on their absentee ballot list? Well, or you may get your ballot next week because the post office is so backed up...

The good news for me is it looks like the voting went my way even if I didn't participate (though turnout was weak) and I also learned that if I don't get my ballot in time for November, I can still go to the polls and that will void my absentee ballot.

That bad news is I am bit in the dark as to why I never got a ballot and I don't know how to check "their absentee ballot list". I'm going to have to spend some time on the SOS website doing research.

Posted: **Thu Aug 06, 2020 1:57 pm**

LordMortis wrote: ↑Thu Aug 06, 2020 1:56 pm
gilraen wrote: ↑Thu Aug 06, 2020 1:50 pm Maybe it's a good reminder to check and make sure that you are still on their absentee ballot list? Well, or you may get your ballot next week because the post office is so backed up...
The good news for me is it looks like the voting went my way even if I didn't participate (though turnout was weak) and I also learned that if I don't get my ballot in time for November, I can still go to the polls and that will void my absentee ballot.

That bad news is I am bit in the dark as to why I never got a ballot and I don't know how to check "their absentee ballot list". I'm going to have to spend some time on the SOS website doing research.

Your state should have a site you can go to and check the status of your ballot. In WA it's votewa.gov

Posted: **Thu Aug 06, 2020 2:10 pm**

Ever since the Meijer family decided they are running a candidate who is openly a Trumpist and attacked the guy they previously backed for getting in line (Amash), I pretty much quit shopping there for the most part. I have to say more Aldi has really been working out for me and today I discovered that Aldi 45 cent canned beans for making chili are as good as Meijer 59 cent on sale canned beans. They don't have the variety but still my chili is just as good and now about a buck cheaper to make.

It's an adjustment being both WallMart free and now being 95+% Meijer free. I really liked one stop shopping.

Posted: **Thu Aug 06, 2020 2:20 pm**

I can't help but continue to worry about the democrat's GOTV machine being parked in the garage due to the pandemic while the GOP will not worry about such restrictions. Typically this is an area that the dems have an edge on, but this cycle?

Donald Trump’s campaign says it knocked on over 1 million doors in the past week alone.

Joe Biden’s campaign says it knocked on zero.

The Republican and Democratic parties — from the presidential candidates on down — are taking polar opposite approaches to door-to-door canvassing this fall. The competing bets on the value of face-to-face campaigning during a pandemic has no modern precedent, making it a potential wild card in November, especially in close races.

Biden and the Democratic National Committee aren’t sending volunteers or staffers to talk with voters at home, and don’t anticipate doing anything more than dropping off literature unless the crisis abates. The campaign and the Democratic National Committee think they can compensate for the lack of in-person canvassing with phone calls, texts, new forms of digital organizing, and virtual meet-ups with voters.

“At first I was nervous, but our response rates on phone calls and texts are much higher and people are not necessarily wanting someone to go up to their door right now,” said Jenn Ridder, Biden’s national states director. “You get to throw a lot of the rule book out the window and try out new things.”

Trump and the Republican National Committee, in contrast, started deploying mask-wearing field staffers and volunteers to the streets in June. The GOP quickly ramped up and now claims more than a million doors a week despite Covid-19 surges across the country, including in swing states like Arizona.

Republicans say their door-knocking dominance could make a difference in November, since in-person conversations have long been considered the most effective type of voter contact.

“From now to Election Day, voters may only see one campaign at their doors,” Elliott Echols, the RNC's national field director. “If this were Barack Obama running, Democrats would want to be out there knocking doors. They don’t have enthusiasm or a strong field operation, so it is a convenient excuse. We can do this safely for President Trump and Republicans up and down the ballot.”

Posted: **Thu Aug 06, 2020 7:33 pm**

Get the fainting couch out! I can't believe that Kanye is secret #MAGA. Shockingly there are reports that a Trump campaign lawyer is spearheading the effort to get Kanye on the Wisconsin ballot.

Posted: **Thu Aug 06, 2020 7:36 pm**

malchior wrote: ↑Thu Aug 06, 2020 7:33 pm Get the fainting couch out! I can't believe that Kanye is secret #MAGA. Shockingly there are reports that a Trump campaign lawyer is spearheading the effort to get Kanye on the Wisconsin ballot.

This isn't just politics, and it isn't even just traditional ratfucking.

According to Kim K herself Kanye is bipolar, and it's shameful that's he's being managed and manipulated like this.

Posted: **Thu Aug 06, 2020 7:47 pm**

Holman wrote: ↑Thu Aug 06, 2020 7:36 pm
malchior wrote: ↑Thu Aug 06, 2020 7:33 pm Get the fainting couch out! I can't believe that Kanye is secret #MAGA. Shockingly there are reports that a Trump campaign lawyer is spearheading the effort to get Kanye on the Wisconsin ballot.
This isn't just politics, and it isn't even just traditional ratfucking.

According to Kim K herself Kanye is bipolar, and it's shameful that's he's being managed and manipulated like this.

Yeah don't get me wrong. This is more about Trump than Kanye. He and his people are evil scum abusing a sick man to help themselves out.

Posted: **Thu Aug 06, 2020 7:52 pm**

malchior wrote: ↑Thu Aug 06, 2020 7:47 pm Yeah don't get me wrong. This is more about Trump than Kanye. He and his people are evil scum abusing a sick man to help themselves out.

Oh, I know.

Kanye's collaborators and co-creators should push back hard on this. Republicans always complain about Hollywood/media being inappropriately political, but Republicans are the ones being grotesquely cynical here.

Posted: **Thu Aug 06, 2020 9:33 pm**

Holman wrote: ↑Thu Aug 06, 2020 7:36 pm According to Kim K herself Kanye is bipolar, and it's shameful that's he's being managed and manipulated like this.

If she actually wanted to help him, she'd force him to take his meds or at least prevent him from having contact with his GOP "handlers". If Britney Spears can be kept in a conservatorship for 12 years, it can't be that difficult to get a judge to declare West incompetent. But since she is a publicity whore, all she can muster is a Twitter "plea" to take it easy on her useful idiot husband.

Posted: **Thu Aug 06, 2020 10:33 pm**

I'm kind of skeptical that the Kanye thing will make any real dent, though. I know that a small number of votes in key states can swing things (#ThanksElectoralCollege), but I suspect the thought process here on the GOP side hasn't gone beyond "Kanye is black, and so black people will vote for him". When at this point the main things that come to mind when people think of Kanye is "crazy" and "Trump supporter".

Posted: **Fri Aug 07, 2020 7:24 am**

More context also a weird usage of the word "captivating". It could be described that way in the sense of a car crash I suppose.

Posted: **Fri Aug 07, 2020 9:25 am**

There's evidence that Trump's people, following in their normal pattern of incompetence, actually submitted Kanye's application minutes after the deadline in Wisconsin.

Posted: **Fri Aug 07, 2020 9:27 am**

Ralph-Wiggum wrote: ↑Fri Aug 07, 2020 9:25 am There's evidence that Trump's people, following in their normal pattern of incompetence, actually submitted Kanye's application minutes after the deadline in Wisconsin.

Posted: **Fri Aug 07, 2020 9:44 am**

Alefroth wrote: ↑Thu Aug 06, 2020 1:57 pm
LordMortis wrote: ↑Thu Aug 06, 2020 1:56 pm
gilraen wrote: ↑Thu Aug 06, 2020 1:50 pm Maybe it's a good reminder to check and make sure that you are still on their absentee ballot list? Well, or you may get your ballot next week because the post office is so backed up...
The good news for me is it looks like the voting went my way even if I didn't participate (though turnout was weak) and I also learned that if I don't get my ballot in time for November, I can still go to the polls and that will void my absentee ballot.

That bad news is I am bit in the dark as to why I never got a ballot and I don't know how to check "their absentee ballot list". I'm going to have to spend some time on the SOS website doing research.
Your state should have a site you can go to and check the status of your ballot. In WA it's votewa.gov

This got me to check the status of my ballot here in Florida. Our primary is the 18th. Their website says that they received my ballot on the 30th of July, but it hasn't been counted yet. I'm not sure if that's normal or not. I'll have to keep an eye on that as we get closer to primary day.

Posted: **Fri Aug 07, 2020 9:54 am**

malchior wrote: ↑Fri Aug 07, 2020 9:27 am
Ralph-Wiggum wrote: ↑Fri Aug 07, 2020 9:25 am There's evidence that Trump's people, following in their normal pattern of incompetence, actually submitted Kanye's application minutes after the deadline in Wisconsin.

wait... West is a billionaire? how....

Posted: **Fri Aug 07, 2020 11:01 am**

Vorret wrote: ↑Fri Aug 07, 2020 9:54 am
malchior wrote: ↑Fri Aug 07, 2020 9:27 am
Ralph-Wiggum wrote: ↑Fri Aug 07, 2020 9:25 am There's evidence that Trump's people, following in their normal pattern of incompetence, actually submitted Kanye's application minutes after the deadline in Wisconsin.

wait... West is a billionaire? how....

He owns Yeezy which is worth $1.3B itself.

Kanye West is officially a billionaire, according to Forbes.

The declaration was the culmination of a years-long campaign by West to get added to the magazine's annual Billionaires List, Forbes reported Friday. Forbes now says that the rapper and fashion designer is worth $1.3 billion, mostly because of his sole ownership of his brand Yeezy. West reportedly claims that he is worth $3.3 billion.

Bloomberg, which seemingly reviewed the same documents provided to Forbes, acknowledged that West's accountant provided documents showing that he has more than $3 billion worth of assets, but stopped short of explicitly calling West a "billionaire."

Bloomberg also wrote that Bank of America's valuation of Yeezy may no longer be accurate, as it was calculated in 2019, before the coronavirus pandemic took hold in the United States. The crisis sank US apparel, accessories, and footwear sales 79% percent lower in April than they were during the same time in 2019, Bloomberg reported. Bloomberg estimates that Yeezy may be faring above average, however, as it has no retail stores and relies on Adidas for logistics.

Octopus Overlords

Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!

Re: Too Soon To Start Thinking About 2020? No, it's 2020!