The contemporary New York Times isn't even good fishwrap. Too often, it really is an "enemy of the people" due to the way it both-sides things and generally gets important facts wrong or left out, as with the article on Biden's budget.
The NYT provides balance coverage which does not always sit well but they also have broken many stories and brought light to darkness. We need a free press
We certainly need one, whether we have one or not is the question. At one point the governing ethos at the Times was "All the news that's fit to print", but that seems to have gone by the wayside when they start treating obvious lies as honest statements and performative actions like McCarthy's pseudo budget bill as honorable political acts.
I agree. The Times is an important source of reporting. I don't like some of the editorials. But that's OK because we should never have a public square where we agree with everything the speaker says. Stephens and Douthat often make my skin crawl. As does Brooks on occasion. But there is an essential core of integrity and compassion that the three share. I despise their political postures. But it's important to listen.
I think the biggest complaint I have with the NY Times is misleading headlines. Click bait that proves to be speculation or a reflection of a popular notion - just give me the facts, please. Also, the latest controversy about their coverage of trans issues is disturbing.
But there are much worse places to get our news. And the Times can correct itself. That's a big something.
They USED to do all that, and more. But the days of Tad Szulc, and David Halberstam and Neil Sheehan, et al, and the Pentagon Papers Case, is not today, alas.
Just a note: Reporters don’t write the headlines. Much of NYT’s coverage is simplistic or takes the easy and obvious ourselves, but it is still our most prominent and often pre-eminent news source.
The NYTs would do it's Republican and Independent readers a great service by pointing out the terrorist tactics McCarthy and the MAGA right are using to destroy America as we know it rather than playing the "what aboutism" card to appear "reportorial".
I do agree with you on the headlines issue. I found it to be very off putting. However, the NYT does publish deeply investigative articles and has breaking news stories that are of importance. I don’t like the “both sides” narrative. That is and has not ever been the case, we see that now. It’s an ugly bunch of lying bottom feeders that control the House. I would like the Times to look into any representative lying on their resumes.
Speaking of investigative articles is it not perplexing the Times can uncover criminal behavior that one may think the FBI would have discovered. The FBI has agents in the field with contacts and history going back decades. For example three generations of FBI had information on the Murdaugh clan in South Carolina. According to a retired FBI agent the Murdaugh men were known as crooked for decades. Finally the latest family head my be headed to prison.
The NYT is badly biased on immigration. During the '10s, I wrote to five different ombudspeople for the NYT. Two of them wrote back, saying they were strongly considering writing about the issues I raised. Both were gone within six weeks.
The NYT never writes about issues that suggest that mass immigration is a problem. For example, that mass immigration really does take jobs from Americn workers. For example, in 1980, meat packers were Black, and they earned good middle class wages. By that decade's end, they were immigrants, toiling for barely over minimum wage, under atrocious conditions. (See Back of the Hiring Line: A 200-Year History of Immigration Surges, Employer Bias, and Depression of Black Wealth, by Roy Beck (a book which the NYT did not review.
Nor do they ever question the environmental impact of adding 68 million (three and a half NY State equivalents) to the US population over the next 40 years, at a time when--as per reporting in the NYT Mag--millions of Americans will become climate refugees.
This bias appeared when Sulzberger Jr. took over from his father.
the bad reporting on Biden, the lousy headlines, etc., are what worry me the most, since without Democracy we have nothing. But the one-sided immigration reporting, of which NPR is also guilty, is a major problem.
There are just a few topics in which I have deep expertise (Public Health is one.) I’ve been troubled by frequent errors in articles on these few topics that others might not see. So if there is sloppy editorial checking in these topics, what about others? It has certainly sowed doubt for me, forcing me to take all controversial articles in NYT with a grain of salt. Of course, many (most?) other journals are worse.
To me, there's a difference between balanced coverage and gloom and doom. At times NYT does provide
balanced coverage and they have broken some great stories and done great reports. BUT, for the most part, especially of late, it's a lot of gloom and doom.
We as a country both politically and domestically have a lot of challenges and the important thing is our recognising we have these issues and doing something about it.
No, they haven't been a viable option in eons. When they support people like Haberman covering up TFG's crimes for click bait and selling books. Or maybe you enjoy the op-eds they have about hating Jewish people, or the ones where they hate Black people. Or wait, maybe it's the ones bashing the LGBTQ+ community, or the guns. Yes maybe it's the guns you like. FFS, the NYTs, WSJ, etc. have all become mouth pieces for the right. Or perhaps you're forgetting about the millions and millions in free publicity they gave TFG in 2016, while solely bashing HRC.
The NYT is not perfect but it’s good journalism and tries to provide multiple views. Friedman, Blow, Brooks, Goldberg, Dowd and Krugman give you honest opinions. We don’t always agree with what they print and they have guests who provide the other side.
If we were to have a ceremonial meal during which we asked questions, here are the four questions I would ask:
1. What is happening to the New York Times that it forgets so quickly and easily that Joe Biden submitted a budget in March?
2. At a time when fabulist JW Majewski was soundly defeated by old pro Marcy Kaptur (OH 09), will the people of NY 03, FL 13, and TN 05 dispose of George Santos, Anna Paulina Luna (whatever her name is), and Andy Ogles in 2024?
3. Will Jack Smith and other prosecutors finally rid us of the moral stain of Donald Trump?
4. Will the dam break and a slew of Supreme Court Justices resign or must we (can we win thoroughly enough in 2024) add seats to the Supreme Court?
The song for your post should be “ dream along with me”. We will be rid of the Trump stain but because it has permeated so deep into,our government unattended it will take time to be eliminated
I am still livid about Amy Klobuchar's public whine that President Biden needs to sit down with McCarthy. Such a scummy way to test the waters for her possible run at the presidency once more.
I constantly think of the 13 year old girl (allegedly) raped by Trump and Epstein whose moment in court never happened because of threats.
The other day there was a post on LinkedIn regarding a missing young teen girl in Arizona and some buzzard posted that 'the lefties' allow their children to drink and smoke and.... When are there going to be actual truths that can penetrate that misinformation sodden brains of millions of Ugly Americans?
The gross moral turpitude and evil that encrusts the U.S. must have always been there, but that a piece of filth who has trials for rape, for theft, for plotting to overthrow our government can run once again for the highest office in the land...
Some people can’t deal with the truth and you will never penetrate their bias and prejudice and they have always been there and we have exploited them with media like Fox. David Brooks was right that Biden is a decent individual who speaks the truth and that is why people need to vote for him. We need to bring back decency
Ahhh. Yes. I risk daily with my pushbacks via social media and LinkedIn. Both on their lying son of a bitch posts and those that I create. Creepy guys in camouflage always want to connect.
I took her comment differently. Biden SHOULD sit down with the Speaker of the House. Despite the fact that McCarthy is somewhere between a shape shifting lizard and an elephant turd...he is second in line for the Presidency. And he will need to produce a future budget. That is his primary responsibility as leader of the House.
Biden should meet with McCarthy to hammer out a budget that will fund the government into the future.
At the same meeting, Biden can remind the speaker that there will be NO negotiation about the debt ceiling. None. Nada. Pass a clean bill to do what every Congress has always done. Allow the government to honor its debts - to pay for bills already passed - maintain the integrity of the dollar. Tell McCarthy that history will hang him high if he doesn't.
Joe has offered to sit down with Qevin to talk about the budget, many times. What he will not do—and should not do—is to discuss the (unconstitutional) debt ceiling. Nothing to discuss there.
Biden has done all that and more. It is crystal clear to me that the R reps have no clue what they are supposed to be doing and don't give a damn - clearly they are working for someone/thing other than their constituents. Their motto seems to be keep them poor Whyte and uneducated.
Perhaps Biden should meet with McC but how does one talk actual details with McC who has already shown his cards and is paying his debt to the Radical Religious Right.
It would be appropriate for every reader of Today’s Edition to write The NY Times to point to their failure to write of Biden’s budget and plans therein to reduce the deficit. Honestly, the absence of this point while they concurrently point to pressure on the President to negotiate represent a lack of good faith journalism or editorial authorship.
As a regular reader of The Times, I found this piece unbalanced and lacking in authenticity. Why? Are they simply seeking profits rather than speaking to the failure of Kevin McCarthy’s Republicans to clearly address their budget goals?
It has always been a legitimate position to offer tax options to reduce deficits in view of the fact that every Republican president in recent history has increased our debt with greater deficits due to tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations while concurrently attempting to ignore the need for responsible regulations to capitalist’s failure to take actions in regard to some of the country’s most obvious needs from climate to childhood poverty to a major opioid crisis.
We must make our voices heard loud and clear. We are engaged citizens. We are democracy. Let’s speak truth to power.
Letters@nytimes.com. It’s easy. Some people do it daily, although they have a 60-day rule—you won’t get a letter published within 60 days of having one appear.
Thanks Robert, you are right that the soul of this nation is the issue of 2024. What thing that confuses me is how can people not like Joe Biden. How can 35 percent of the country worship trump. This is frightening.
Being an American 1st and a Montanan 2nd I would request that you keep alive the GOP in Montana trying to silence Zooey Zephyr. She is following her Constitutional rights of free speech, as were the people in the gallery. Please help keep this issue alive. It's not over.
I do find it interesting that in the GOP's attempt to silence her she has been raised to a national and international platform (BBC).
She has expressed herself well. Hopefully, she will get on some talk shows.
While I do not know her personally, it's MISSOULA...1 degree of separation, she is my neighbor and she represents my neighbors in Missoula.
the letters to The MISSOULIAN, our local paper, are mounting in favor of support of Zooey. I just wrote my own letter to the editor in support.
Another note: If they, the Republicans in Helena, are calling this an insurrection that is tantamount to admitting that they concur that January 6th is/was an insurrection.
Apr 28, 2023·edited Apr 28, 2023Liked by Robert B. Hubbell
"The media is already falling into the trap of treating McCarthy’s proposal as serious."
"Trump has normalized depravity to the point that his party is not fazed by..." ANYthing! apparently.
"Trump has also normalized lying about education, experience, and credentials."
From the MSNBC piece "...nearly 10% of new House GOP members are alleged fabulists." and "This is lying on an industrial scale..."
"...two disparate visions of America...moral leadership and moral disintegration."
And it's only Friday. 🤯 On the other hand, E Jean Carroll is having her day in court - go, girl, for all of us! Democratic state representatives are holding their own, and the rest of us with them. Freshmen Democrats in the House of Representatives are using their credentials (not lying about them) to get the hard work done, for all of us. We must persist.
Reading Today’s Edition Newsletter is an example of how we are all overwhelmed by the sheer volume of events from alleged rape trials to several federal investigations to ethics of the Supreme Court. It’s some days it’s too much to comprehend and process. What concerns me greatly is we are losing focus on the real challenges to our Democracy and that is how Republicans in gerrymandered states are rushing to pass laws that are not wanted or desired by a majority of Americans. The reality is there are very few House of Representative seats that are competitive and until we change that dynamic we will continue the hand to hand combat in the trenches with Republicans. That has to be our focus in 2024 and ask yourself how I can help get just one house seat flipped in my state. That is where the focus has to be.
Top of my government wish list would be a reform of how states elect Representatives to the House. Rather than having districts (gerrymandered and unrepresentative) elect Reps at Large. If a state warrants 4 Reps by virtue of the census, let the entire state vote for the top four in an open election that is structured using Ranked Choice Voting. That would be a truer form of democracy, wouldn't it? Like in majority rule?
You would the have a lot of states with all Democrats or all Republicans. Would that be a good thing. I’m dubious, although my state, Massachusetts, has all Democrats.
For all his bluster, McCarthy seems to have no clue about how to actually govern, and we'll all suffer for it. President Biden should not blink on his insistence that the debt ceiling should be raised without conditions. Clawbacks, budget revisions, and appropriations are different matters altogether. That McCarthy has conflated them with the debt we've already incurred betrays his thorough and utter ignorance.
Thanks for gifting the NYT article. I read it and the comments and posted this in the comment section.
No to negotiating with Republicans who are holding our economy hostage in order to get what they want.
The Democrats have already proposed an actual budget bill. Republicans need to do the same, then actual negotiations can begin, separate from the obligation to raise the debt limit.
The thing is, Trump has no moral or intellectual center. His next utterance is a reconstitution of the latest thing he has been told. He chose, or Jared and Don jr. chose, his next level down counselors who screened and reinterpreted everything that came into the Oval Office. It is they who are especially responsible for the depravity of the Trump years. Bannon, Navarro, Miller, etc. would right run over the Secretaries of Defense, State, Homeland Security, Treasury etc.
Regarding "The analyst, Ken Block of Simpatico Software Systems, forwarded his conclusions to the Trump campaign in late 2020. Trump continued to claim that the election was marred by massive fraud despite being told by two data analysis firms that there was no fraud."
The thing is: Trump doesn't read! The results of this firm's analysis was run through the mix-master of Stephen Miller, Peter Navarro, Don Jr., Eric, someone else. It was them, not DJ Trump, who were selective, specious, or in denial. Remember, Trump doesn't read. Everything he has ever said is because he was told something.
The contemporary New York Times isn't even good fishwrap. Too often, it really is an "enemy of the people" due to the way it both-sides things and generally gets important facts wrong or left out, as with the article on Biden's budget.
The NYT provides balance coverage which does not always sit well but they also have broken many stories and brought light to darkness. We need a free press
We certainly need one, whether we have one or not is the question. At one point the governing ethos at the Times was "All the news that's fit to print", but that seems to have gone by the wayside when they start treating obvious lies as honest statements and performative actions like McCarthy's pseudo budget bill as honorable political acts.
I agree. The Times is an important source of reporting. I don't like some of the editorials. But that's OK because we should never have a public square where we agree with everything the speaker says. Stephens and Douthat often make my skin crawl. As does Brooks on occasion. But there is an essential core of integrity and compassion that the three share. I despise their political postures. But it's important to listen.
I think the biggest complaint I have with the NY Times is misleading headlines. Click bait that proves to be speculation or a reflection of a popular notion - just give me the facts, please. Also, the latest controversy about their coverage of trans issues is disturbing.
But there are much worse places to get our news. And the Times can correct itself. That's a big something.
They USED to do all that, and more. But the days of Tad Szulc, and David Halberstam and Neil Sheehan, et al, and the Pentagon Papers Case, is not today, alas.
Just a note: Reporters don’t write the headlines. Much of NYT’s coverage is simplistic or takes the easy and obvious ourselves, but it is still our most prominent and often pre-eminent news source.
The NYTs would do it's Republican and Independent readers a great service by pointing out the terrorist tactics McCarthy and the MAGA right are using to destroy America as we know it rather than playing the "what aboutism" card to appear "reportorial".
I do agree with you on the headlines issue. I found it to be very off putting. However, the NYT does publish deeply investigative articles and has breaking news stories that are of importance. I don’t like the “both sides” narrative. That is and has not ever been the case, we see that now. It’s an ugly bunch of lying bottom feeders that control the House. I would like the Times to look into any representative lying on their resumes.
Speaking of investigative articles is it not perplexing the Times can uncover criminal behavior that one may think the FBI would have discovered. The FBI has agents in the field with contacts and history going back decades. For example three generations of FBI had information on the Murdaugh clan in South Carolina. According to a retired FBI agent the Murdaugh men were known as crooked for decades. Finally the latest family head my be headed to prison.
The NYT is badly biased on immigration. During the '10s, I wrote to five different ombudspeople for the NYT. Two of them wrote back, saying they were strongly considering writing about the issues I raised. Both were gone within six weeks.
The NYT never writes about issues that suggest that mass immigration is a problem. For example, that mass immigration really does take jobs from Americn workers. For example, in 1980, meat packers were Black, and they earned good middle class wages. By that decade's end, they were immigrants, toiling for barely over minimum wage, under atrocious conditions. (See Back of the Hiring Line: A 200-Year History of Immigration Surges, Employer Bias, and Depression of Black Wealth, by Roy Beck (a book which the NYT did not review.
Nor do they ever question the environmental impact of adding 68 million (three and a half NY State equivalents) to the US population over the next 40 years, at a time when--as per reporting in the NYT Mag--millions of Americans will become climate refugees.
This bias appeared when Sulzberger Jr. took over from his father.
https://www.propublica.org/article/climate-change-will-force-a-new-american-migration
the bad reporting on Biden, the lousy headlines, etc., are what worry me the most, since without Democracy we have nothing. But the one-sided immigration reporting, of which NPR is also guilty, is a major problem.
There are just a few topics in which I have deep expertise (Public Health is one.) I’ve been troubled by frequent errors in articles on these few topics that others might not see. So if there is sloppy editorial checking in these topics, what about others? It has certainly sowed doubt for me, forcing me to take all controversial articles in NYT with a grain of salt. Of course, many (most?) other journals are worse.
To me, there's a difference between balanced coverage and gloom and doom. At times NYT does provide
balanced coverage and they have broken some great stories and done great reports. BUT, for the most part, especially of late, it's a lot of gloom and doom.
We as a country both politically and domestically have a lot of challenges and the important thing is our recognising we have these issues and doing something about it.
No, they haven't been a viable option in eons. When they support people like Haberman covering up TFG's crimes for click bait and selling books. Or maybe you enjoy the op-eds they have about hating Jewish people, or the ones where they hate Black people. Or wait, maybe it's the ones bashing the LGBTQ+ community, or the guns. Yes maybe it's the guns you like. FFS, the NYTs, WSJ, etc. have all become mouth pieces for the right. Or perhaps you're forgetting about the millions and millions in free publicity they gave TFG in 2016, while solely bashing HRC.
The NYT is not perfect but it’s good journalism and tries to provide multiple views. Friedman, Blow, Brooks, Goldberg, Dowd and Krugman give you honest opinions. We don’t always agree with what they print and they have guests who provide the other side.
Those WHITE men have been horrible for years.
From Denialad: donbialostosky.substack.com
In Sum
Pence testified Friday to the grand jury;
The Proud Boys trial’s in the hands of their jury.
Under cross-exam E. Jean Carroll shot
Back, “He raped me whether I screamed or not.”
Bob Hubbell sums up Trump in this short list:
“Coup-plotting rapist white supremacist.”
If we were to have a ceremonial meal during which we asked questions, here are the four questions I would ask:
1. What is happening to the New York Times that it forgets so quickly and easily that Joe Biden submitted a budget in March?
2. At a time when fabulist JW Majewski was soundly defeated by old pro Marcy Kaptur (OH 09), will the people of NY 03, FL 13, and TN 05 dispose of George Santos, Anna Paulina Luna (whatever her name is), and Andy Ogles in 2024?
3. Will Jack Smith and other prosecutors finally rid us of the moral stain of Donald Trump?
4. Will the dam break and a slew of Supreme Court Justices resign or must we (can we win thoroughly enough in 2024) add seats to the Supreme Court?
The song for your post should be “ dream along with me”. We will be rid of the Trump stain but because it has permeated so deep into,our government unattended it will take time to be eliminated
Good questions Leonard. I'd cheerfully serve that dinner just to hear the answers.
Why does the American polity depend on prosecutors to expose and excise Trump? A healthy society would itself be excising Trump and others like him.
Troubling.
I am still livid about Amy Klobuchar's public whine that President Biden needs to sit down with McCarthy. Such a scummy way to test the waters for her possible run at the presidency once more.
I constantly think of the 13 year old girl (allegedly) raped by Trump and Epstein whose moment in court never happened because of threats.
https://twitter.com/GeorgeTakei/status/1651296664412356626?s=20
The other day there was a post on LinkedIn regarding a missing young teen girl in Arizona and some buzzard posted that 'the lefties' allow their children to drink and smoke and.... When are there going to be actual truths that can penetrate that misinformation sodden brains of millions of Ugly Americans?
The gross moral turpitude and evil that encrusts the U.S. must have always been there, but that a piece of filth who has trials for rape, for theft, for plotting to overthrow our government can run once again for the highest office in the land...
Some people can’t deal with the truth and you will never penetrate their bias and prejudice and they have always been there and we have exploited them with media like Fox. David Brooks was right that Biden is a decent individual who speaks the truth and that is why people need to vote for him. We need to bring back decency
Can you explain to me please the ¨we have exploited them with media like Fox.¨ Who is the ¨we¨?
The “ we” is all of us that tolerates right wing media and lying racists politicians and we don’t push back because of the fear of retribution
Ahhh. Yes. I risk daily with my pushbacks via social media and LinkedIn. Both on their lying son of a bitch posts and those that I create. Creepy guys in camouflage always want to connect.
I took her comment differently. Biden SHOULD sit down with the Speaker of the House. Despite the fact that McCarthy is somewhere between a shape shifting lizard and an elephant turd...he is second in line for the Presidency. And he will need to produce a future budget. That is his primary responsibility as leader of the House.
Biden should meet with McCarthy to hammer out a budget that will fund the government into the future.
At the same meeting, Biden can remind the speaker that there will be NO negotiation about the debt ceiling. None. Nada. Pass a clean bill to do what every Congress has always done. Allow the government to honor its debts - to pay for bills already passed - maintain the integrity of the dollar. Tell McCarthy that history will hang him high if he doesn't.
Joe has offered to sit down with Qevin to talk about the budget, many times. What he will not do—and should not do—is to discuss the (unconstitutional) debt ceiling. Nothing to discuss there.
Biden has done all that and more. It is crystal clear to me that the R reps have no clue what they are supposed to be doing and don't give a damn - clearly they are working for someone/thing other than their constituents. Their motto seems to be keep them poor Whyte and uneducated.
Perhaps Biden should meet with McC but how does one talk actual details with McC who has already shown his cards and is paying his debt to the Radical Religious Right.
McCarthy did produce his budget the other day. What they barely passed in the house, is not for "today's" debt ceiling. How could it be?
You can't slash spending on
bills that you owe and must be paid; you risk bankruptcy.
All these spending cuts are
a "budget" for the future, just like I have to do with my electric bill and groceries.
"he is second in line for the Presidency" 🤯
I jolted when I read that. Terrifying.
It would be appropriate for every reader of Today’s Edition to write The NY Times to point to their failure to write of Biden’s budget and plans therein to reduce the deficit. Honestly, the absence of this point while they concurrently point to pressure on the President to negotiate represent a lack of good faith journalism or editorial authorship.
As a regular reader of The Times, I found this piece unbalanced and lacking in authenticity. Why? Are they simply seeking profits rather than speaking to the failure of Kevin McCarthy’s Republicans to clearly address their budget goals?
It has always been a legitimate position to offer tax options to reduce deficits in view of the fact that every Republican president in recent history has increased our debt with greater deficits due to tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations while concurrently attempting to ignore the need for responsible regulations to capitalist’s failure to take actions in regard to some of the country’s most obvious needs from climate to childhood poverty to a major opioid crisis.
We must make our voices heard loud and clear. We are engaged citizens. We are democracy. Let’s speak truth to power.
Letters@nytimes.com. It’s easy. Some people do it daily, although they have a 60-day rule—you won’t get a letter published within 60 days of having one appear.
Ah. But are many truly engaged citizens?
Thanks Robert, you are right that the soul of this nation is the issue of 2024. What thing that confuses me is how can people not like Joe Biden. How can 35 percent of the country worship trump. This is frightening.
Being an American 1st and a Montanan 2nd I would request that you keep alive the GOP in Montana trying to silence Zooey Zephyr. She is following her Constitutional rights of free speech, as were the people in the gallery. Please help keep this issue alive. It's not over.
I do find it interesting that in the GOP's attempt to silence her she has been raised to a national and international platform (BBC).
She has expressed herself well. Hopefully, she will get on some talk shows.
While I do not know her personally, it's MISSOULA...1 degree of separation, she is my neighbor and she represents my neighbors in Missoula.
the letters to The MISSOULIAN, our local paper, are mounting in favor of support of Zooey. I just wrote my own letter to the editor in support.
Another note: If they, the Republicans in Helena, are calling this an insurrection that is tantamount to admitting that they concur that January 6th is/was an insurrection.
Thank you for the reminder about President Biden’s budget! It is a talking point that I’m sure to be using.
"The media is already falling into the trap of treating McCarthy’s proposal as serious."
"Trump has normalized depravity to the point that his party is not fazed by..." ANYthing! apparently.
"Trump has also normalized lying about education, experience, and credentials."
From the MSNBC piece "...nearly 10% of new House GOP members are alleged fabulists." and "This is lying on an industrial scale..."
"...two disparate visions of America...moral leadership and moral disintegration."
And it's only Friday. 🤯 On the other hand, E Jean Carroll is having her day in court - go, girl, for all of us! Democratic state representatives are holding their own, and the rest of us with them. Freshmen Democrats in the House of Representatives are using their credentials (not lying about them) to get the hard work done, for all of us. We must persist.
Reading Today’s Edition Newsletter is an example of how we are all overwhelmed by the sheer volume of events from alleged rape trials to several federal investigations to ethics of the Supreme Court. It’s some days it’s too much to comprehend and process. What concerns me greatly is we are losing focus on the real challenges to our Democracy and that is how Republicans in gerrymandered states are rushing to pass laws that are not wanted or desired by a majority of Americans. The reality is there are very few House of Representative seats that are competitive and until we change that dynamic we will continue the hand to hand combat in the trenches with Republicans. That has to be our focus in 2024 and ask yourself how I can help get just one house seat flipped in my state. That is where the focus has to be.
Top of my government wish list would be a reform of how states elect Representatives to the House. Rather than having districts (gerrymandered and unrepresentative) elect Reps at Large. If a state warrants 4 Reps by virtue of the census, let the entire state vote for the top four in an open election that is structured using Ranked Choice Voting. That would be a truer form of democracy, wouldn't it? Like in majority rule?
You would the have a lot of states with all Democrats or all Republicans. Would that be a good thing. I’m dubious, although my state, Massachusetts, has all Democrats.
Good point. I take it back.
Isn't it great to live in a state like MA? I feel safe and I am proud our politicians - most of them. Love the Gov so far!
My state, Montana, would overwhelmingly go Red.
Here's a link to talking points about Biden's 2024 Budget proposal: https://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/briefing-room/2023/03/09/fact-sheet-the-presidents-budget-for-fiscal-year-2024/
For all his bluster, McCarthy seems to have no clue about how to actually govern, and we'll all suffer for it. President Biden should not blink on his insistence that the debt ceiling should be raised without conditions. Clawbacks, budget revisions, and appropriations are different matters altogether. That McCarthy has conflated them with the debt we've already incurred betrays his thorough and utter ignorance.
Thanks for gifting the NYT article. I read it and the comments and posted this in the comment section.
No to negotiating with Republicans who are holding our economy hostage in order to get what they want.
The Democrats have already proposed an actual budget bill. Republicans need to do the same, then actual negotiations can begin, separate from the obligation to raise the debt limit.
To Robert Hubbell, Thanks for powerful summaries, especially of Ms Carroll, Mr Smith, and as always positive support. SRGray
The thing is, Trump has no moral or intellectual center. His next utterance is a reconstitution of the latest thing he has been told. He chose, or Jared and Don jr. chose, his next level down counselors who screened and reinterpreted everything that came into the Oval Office. It is they who are especially responsible for the depravity of the Trump years. Bannon, Navarro, Miller, etc. would right run over the Secretaries of Defense, State, Homeland Security, Treasury etc.
Regarding "The analyst, Ken Block of Simpatico Software Systems, forwarded his conclusions to the Trump campaign in late 2020. Trump continued to claim that the election was marred by massive fraud despite being told by two data analysis firms that there was no fraud."
The thing is: Trump doesn't read! The results of this firm's analysis was run through the mix-master of Stephen Miller, Peter Navarro, Don Jr., Eric, someone else. It was them, not DJ Trump, who were selective, specious, or in denial. Remember, Trump doesn't read. Everything he has ever said is because he was told something.
Trump is only 3 yrs younger than Biden… Why is 77 way less old than 80?
Because Trump is a Republican?
That must be it!