Don't buy the propoganda coming from the DLC lately

[Harmony Blue]

Instead of rallying the Democratic base they are trying to cast guilt on other people for their own shortcomings or unpopular money grabs against the common citizen. As the summer approaches, the Democratic party needs to be rallied for the mid terms..but when you have the recent events unfolding it makes the current administration look like they are out of touch with the current paradigm of our socio-economic reality. Government is supposed to be helping the common average citizen not tearing them down with tolls on federal highways which our taxes already go for. It is bad enough that Nestle has a permit from the state of Florida to sell drinking water already paid for by the taxpayers...why do we need an online ID when we have static IP addresses in the U.S. as far as I know, and we have driver licenses that is already in the homeland security database? Net neutrality is becoming a fading reality and the DC elite in their bubble of glory don't see anything wrong with this?

[Lasher]

1. They'll blame liberals for not showing up.

We failed to inspire ourselves or something. Couldn't be their fault.

[L0oniX]

4. They never loved us anyway.

http://billmoyers.com/2014/05/01/on-the-money-political-mad-men/

Outside political groups’ spending soars in 2014 elections –> Super PACs, trade associations, unions and other groups that are independent of candidates, have already spent four times more on the 2014 congressional races than they had by this point in the 2010 midterms, according to Wall Street Journal reporter Brody Mullins. In hard numbers, that’s $60 million, compared with $15 million over the same period in 2010. “What makes those figures even more remarkable,” writes Mullins, “is that they don’t include the millions of dollars spent this election by the biggest outside group…” — the Koch brothers’ Americans for Prosperity. AFP, he writes, doesn’t have to disclose its spending on TV ads if they are, as it claims, about “issues,” and not designed to influence elections.

How 2014 is shaping up to be the darkest money election to date –> In this week’s senate committee hearing, Dollars and Sense: How Undisclosed Money and Post-McCutcheon Campaign Finance Will Affect 2014 and Beyond, Senator Angus King (I-ME) held up a chart reflecting the explosion of secret funding, or “dark money,” spent in recent elections. To see that graph up close, read Robert Maguire’s report on OpenSecrets.org. He writes that the 2014 midterms are on track to be the darkest election in modern history. As an example of what that means for individual races, he describes an ad campaign run by Freedom Partners targeting Democratic Rep. Bruce Braley, a contender in Iowa’s US senate race. Freedom Partners (a funding hub for the Koch Brothers and their friends) is a 501(c)(6) trade association that isn’t required to disclose its donors to the public. So when Freedom Partners produces ads falsely accused Braley of taking “tens of thousands from his friends in the health insurance industry” who “stand to make billions” from Obamacare, viewers have no way to know who is actually bankrolling the lies.

<snipe>

Wall Street Republicans’ dark secret: Hillary Clinton 2016 –> Politico’s Ben White and Maggie Haberman polled two dozen GOP donors, financial executives and their Washington lobbyists to determine who they would back for president in 2016. While few have lined up for a candidate on the record, White and Haberman found many are waiting to see whether Jeb Bush will save the Republican establishment from tea party populists. But if Bush doesn’t throw his hat in the ring, the reporters learned that there is a “consistent – and unusual – consolation candidate” in Hillary Clinton. Her moderate track record on taxation and financial regulation as a New York senator make her an unthreatening alternative to the likes of Rand Paul or Ted Cruz.

[KoKo]

8. recommend... It is the plan..and they have no shame about it.

Sort of: "in your face, buddy" and "what the hell do you think you are going to do about it, suckers."

[2banon]

33. ^^^This! 1000+!^^^

[bvar22]

28. You mean that Hillary could be Bill's 5th term?

I believe I have had enough 3rd Way (DLC) "Centrism".
I've never met a 3rd Way Democrat who didn't want to Privatize everything.
The problem I have with "Centrists" is that they agree with Republicans too damned much.

Koch Industries gave funding to the DLC and served on its Executive Council
http://americablog.com/2010/08/koch-industries-gave-funding-to-the-dlc-and-served-on-its-executive-council.html

[Fuddnik]

6. A poll I saw last night

I think it was ABC/WaPo, said only 23% of voters under 30 planned on voting this fall.

If you don't give people a better reason than "The lesser of two evils", they don't show up.

Welcome to Teabag Nation.

[Lasher]

15. In February I got a fundraising letter from one of my US Senators.

And wouldn't you like to know what the theme of that email was? Compromise!

We need people willing to get beyond the nonstop partisan fights that have done nothing but damage to our economy and families. We need people who don’t think that “compromise” is a four-letter word.

Help me support folks like that. This is how we’ll secure the future for West Virginians and Americans everywhere. You don’t have to give much, but if you give something – even $25 – you’ll make a difference.

WTF, what kind of a rallying cry is that? "Hell yeah, just send us your money and we'll compromise!" That's supposed to energize the base?

[FiveGoodMen]

23. Exactly!

The Democratic Party seems intent on fleecing its own members before handing EVERYTHING to the 1%.

We've been SO ROYALLY FUCKING HAD!

[homegirl]

26. Make your own choices on supporting candidates

I stopped donating to the DNC, and any organized Democratic fund raising organization many election cycles ago. Instead I choose candidate(s) I want in office and make contributions directly to their campaigns.

If the DNC would support a candidate 100% against Darell Issa I believe we could run Issa out of Washington. Last election cycle Issa's Democratic opponent had a campaign expenditure of $6664., and Issa had $2.093. The fact that the DNC and the California Democratic Party did not support our candidate is a disgrace.

source: govtrack.us Voting Record

[truedelphi]

54. ^^^^^^^ Yes! n/t

[rwsanders]

22. Saw an article somewhere entitled "the myth of the american center"...

it claims that in most elections only about 6% of people (on either side) will shift parties. The biggest difference is in HOW MANY PEOPLE SHOW UP.
So this drift to the right is actually destroying the democratic party, not building it.

[Laelth]

43. Hear, hear!

I have been arguing the same for some time. This is from 2010:

The idea that independents and so-called "centrist" voters are the keys to winning elections is a MYTH that has been killing the Democratic Party for years. The myth would be true if 100% of eligible voters voted in every election, but they don't. Fewer than 50% of Americans will vote in the 2010 mid-terms.

As the Republicans have shown, the way to win elections when there's a 50% turn-out is to mobilize your base. The Party needs to fight for its base's values, give them something to cheer about, smear the opposition (not flatter them), fight for legislation that the base wants, get the base excited, and that, in sum, will get the base out to vote.

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/Laelth/41

But will the party listen? Doubt it.

-Laelth

[truedelphi]

55. But party leaders do not care.

They get their sinecures, their honorariums, and the secret payouts.

No longer are politicians having to sit in a car in a deserted alley and wait for that sack of cash to get delivered. Now it is payoffs in terms of jobs, like when Chelsea Clinton ends up having this hedge fund manager position selected for her, perhaps in return for her dad signing the Bank Reform and Modernization Act?

And since Obama has delivered so nicely for the One Percent in terms of BP catastrophe, the continuing investment in nuclear power, the diversion and heist of middle-incomed Americans' wealth over to the Biggest Bankers, and the rather remarkable way that the ACA catered to Big Pharma and Big Insurers, well, his honorariums at the Corporate podium will probably garner twice what they paid Bill Clinton.

[MADem]

52. They'll figure it out, when they get something to really cry about...!

That passive stuff will work out real well for 'em. Not really.

Us older folks won't be around to have to deal with it....it's their world, and the world they will hand off to their children, the bottom line is that they abdicate their duty at the ballot box at their OWN peril.

I don't feel sorry for them, they need to get off their behinds and Be The Change ... or go back to playing video games and stop complaining when they don't get what they want.

[JI7]

58. who is lesser than 2 Evils ? Wendy Davis ? was Russ Feingold lesser than 2 evils ?

maybe we need more like Mary Landrieu because she is doing pretty well in the polls.

[TBF]

2. "Don't buy the propoganda coming from the DLC"

There. Fixed it for you.

[KittyWampus]

3. What gibberish. Highway tolls are a revenue source. We already have extremely cheap gas.

It seems a group of DU'ers have lost their grip this morning.

[Fuddnik]

7. We already paid for those highways, and continue to pay for maintenance.

Once they get away with gouging us for more, they'll never stop.

[brentspeak]

74. Revenue source for whom, brain-stem?

The private companies who will purchase privatized toll contracts?

Are they a "revenue source" for the barely-making-ends-meet average Americans who will see their wallets shrink from brand-new toll charges?

[Dragonfli]

5. You are supposed to be grateful for the Social Issues alone, you ingrate you

Didn't you get the memo? On financial issues, the Republicans have it all worked out and the only sane thing to do is adopt all off those policies and implement them for them or the party will die or something.

We don't need an even break, cloths, housing, even food is somewhat optional, all we need is to know in our hearts the Democrats don't hate us for being gay, or women, or anything else they can help us with. They correctly hate us for not being wealthy of course, but can you blame them? We go around in rags stinking up the place, they should not have to deal with that given their elevated financial status.

Money belongs to the wealthy and peasants that complain are the reason the trickle down isn't working. You also have to realize that we need war, and a more secure police state to make sure we don't ask for more, when peasants start thinking they have a right to more than slavery or indentured servitude all kinds of unpleasantness ensues and we can't have that getting in the way of a prosperous (for the few that matter) Nation.

Get with he program already, sheesh.

[corkhead]

17. You are not taking into account the destruction of our public school system

by moving to teaching to tests instead of wasting a bunch of time nurturing the ability to employ critical thinking, which is no longer a necessity for us peasants in the 21st century.

[bvar22]

31. ..not JUST "Teaching to the Test",

..but diverting Tax Payer Money dedicated to our Public Schools
into the "private" pockets of the Charter Schools.

See: Arne Duncan and Rahm Emmanuel

[Populist_Prole]

30. Pretty much the gist of what they're saying

An attempt to hide that they're corporatists. I've been noticing some of them here on DU as well.

But then, that's pretty much the third-way's manifesto anyhow isn't it?

[truedelphi]

59. Finding your post hilarious.

My day was super pleasant, otherwise I wouldn't be able to laugh at everything you said.

In any case, you nailed it.

On the one hand, all we have heard for the last six years is that our DLC leaders had to sell us out, on account of how powerful the mean nasty and totally disgusting "R"s are.

Then every four years, we are told we have to vote for the DLC candidates, because they are the only thing saving us from the Republicans.

So which is it? I give up!

[abelenkpe]

9. Also don't give a damn about offshoring or privatization

Of our public schools.

[truedelphi]

56. No nothing they have done indicates they care about those things.

And coming soon to our "High Tech" nation: trucks that are driven by AI, so that drivers are obsolete.

More unemployed to be thrown to the wolves.

[hatrack]

10. Are you talking about the Democratic Leadership Council? They don't exist any more.

On February 7, 2011, Politico reported that the DLC would dissolve, and would do so as early as the following week.[4] On July 5 of that year, DLC founder Al From announced in a statement on the organization's website that the historical records of the DLC have been purchased by the Clinton Foundation.[5] The DLC's last chairman was former Representative Harold Ford of Tennessee, and its vice chair was Senator Thomas R. Carper of Delaware. Its CEO was Bruce Reed.

EDIT

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_Leadership_Council

[Dragonfli]

11. The PPI is still their active policy arm, and the rebranding to "Third Way" after the Koch

ties became common knowledge has worked splendidly!

[bvar22]

34. "The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled....

...was convincing the World he didn't exist."
---Verbal Kent

The Organizing Structure founded and funded to channel "Big Business" Money into the Democratic Party
to replace Democrats with conservative Business Friendly "Centrists" and diminish the voice of Organized LABOR may no longer exist BECAUSE it was 100% successful at placing its people at the very head of the Democratic Party:
[font size=5]
The DLC New Team
[/font]
(Screen Capped from the DLC Website)


Like all reptiles, the DLC shed it skin when it's name recognition became a negative,
but it has NOT just gone away.
It continues to use its money and influence daily INSIDE the Democratic Party under several new disguises
forcing the direction of the Democratic Party ever further to the Conservative Right.

The Koch Brothers helped get Bill Clinton elected.
"Koch Industries gave funding to the DLC and served on its Executive Council"
http://americablog.com/2010/08/koch-industries-gave-funding-to-the-dlc-and-served-on-its-executive-council.html

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

65. +1 (* infinity) nt

[nationalize the fed]

12. huge k/r tell it like it is

we have static IP addresses in the U.S. as far as I know

Off topic but because I like throwing monkey wrenches in the machine - changing IP addresses just takes a few clicks if you have a router

Go to "LAN setup" >MAC address
Change the last HEX letter to another HEX letter and voila- a new IP

At least that works on my ISP

[woo me with science]

13. [phone] The incessant propaganda machine

The incessant propaganda machine is just one more example of how corrupt, manipulative, and turned against the Americans they are supposed to represent our political machines have become.

Corporate rule does not represent citizens. It markets to them.

[Recursion]

14. You have a static IP only if you pay for it. And, anyways, that's not what Secure ID is about.

Secure ID is a way to take identity management out of the hands of corporations like Amazon and Facebook and put them somewhere at least slightly accountable. It's also a way to make it somewhat harder for the Russian mob to steal your credit card number.

And, yes, apparently paying for roads is now fascism. Or something.

[JoeyT]

25. Because when I think "Accountability" I think "US government".

You know, the folks that haven't prosecuted torturers, war criminals, bankers, or any other law breakers, and more importantly to this discussion, will just claim anything objectionable that makes them look bad is double super secret information that you peasantry have no right to see. You know, like they do everything else.

Much more importantly to this discussion, they're also the folks in charge of the clusterfuck known as the TSA and TWIC cards, which is one of the biggest messes I've ever had the misfortune of dealing with. A bunch of people that can deny you the ability to travel or the ability to work with little more than answers that amount to "Because fuck you. That's why.".

Besides, they'll end up passing it off to a private contractor anyway. If I don't trust Amazon or Facebook, I sure as shit don't trust Raytheon or Haliburton.

[imthevicar]

16. I threw in the

Towel when B.O. signed the NDAA. Now the Internet will go the way of the DODO. when the OWS was stamped out by the coordinated efforts of Bankers, Police, and Father land Oops I Mean Homeland Security, if that wasn't the most telling of all you are either stuuuuupid or Blind. I'll throw in My efforts and My Money with http://www.wolf-pac.com/ and the TYT after that, I'm a firm believer in the 2ed. After all what do I have to look forward to in "16" Hillery!? She sold the left out years ago. With the CFR and the bankers. The Propaganda to get this nation into a war is thick and heavy. I was right about it before, I'll be right once again. Till then you can all Hate me and when you realize I'm right again, Then you can despise me. I welcome it.
"The Game is rigged, My friend the Table is tilted. there's a club out there and you ain't in it. It the same one they use on you when you step out of line."-G. Carlin

[jeff47]

18. So much wrong in one post.

It's actually quite impressive.

but when you have the recent events unfolding it makes the current administration look like they are out of touch with the current paradigm of our socio-economic reality.

Damn them for trying to raise the minimum wage!!!!!!

Oh wait....

Government is supposed to be helping the common average citizen not tearing them down with tolls on federal highways which our taxes already go for.

More money needs to be raised in order to pay for road maintenance. The House won't pass any tax increases, and gerrymandering means Republicans have little to fear about that stand. Potholes need to be filled now, not after 2022.

What, specifically, should they do instead? Keep in mind your proposal must pass the House.

It is bad enough that Nestle has a permit from the state of Florida to sell drinking water already paid for by the taxpayers

This example of horrible DLCers is actions of a Republican legislature and Republican governor.

Why, exactly, is this the fault of Democrats?

why do we need an online ID when we have static IP addresses in the U.S. as far as I know

Because we don't have static IP addresses. Static IPs are generally not available on consumer-grade Internet service. You either have to pay an extra fee, or buy commercial-grade Internet service for a static IP.

But let's pretend you do have a static IP at home. How does that identify you when you use the Internet from somewhere other than home? A password? Pretty easy to steal via keylogger...or post-it note stuck to your desk.

Fixing that is expensive. Companies pay a lot of money to hand out tokens like these. The idea behind an online ID is to do something similar but make it available to everyone instead of just the companies that can afford to pay RSA or DigiPass a large pile of cash.

and we have driver licenses that is already in the homeland security database?

Thanks to Republican paranoia, there is no national driver's license database. There are 50 state databases.

In addition, a document that shows you can drive a car really isn't useful for identifying yourself on the Internet.

Net neutrality is becoming a fading reality and the DC elite in their bubble of glory don't see anything wrong with this?

The court ruling gives the FCC only two options: Common carrier or no net neutrality. Common carrier does a lot more than just net neutrality. If the FCC declares ISPs to be common carriers, you can guarantee our Internet service will be upgraded as fast as our home phone service - which goes about 40 years without a significant upgrade.

What the FCC needs is new law that gives the FCC a new category that ensures net neutrality without the baggage that comes with common carrier. But until such a law passes, their choice is either cripple all Internet speeds, or limit the damage of losing net neutrality.

[Recursion]

19. Either Netflix or Comcast has to cost more

To put the common carrier fight in simple terms...

[jeff47]

29. No, that isn't accurate either.

The effects depend on the speed of the connection and the limit.

IIRC, the proposed FCC regs set the throttling limit to 80%.

If you have a 15Mbps cable Internet connection, you will not notice if the speed of Netflix is limited to 12Mbps (80% of 15Mbps).

The main fear is this opens the door to throttling, and the 80% line will not hold.

[Spazito]

20. Excellent rebuttal, provides facts which disprove the disinformation in the OP...

well done.

[FSogol]

24. +1. Plus the DLC closed its doors in February 2011.

The fear of a defunct organization reminds me of the GOP's continuing fear of Acorn.

[bvar22]

35. Yep. They closed the doors,

and ALL those "Business Friendly" people and ALL that Big Money just Went Away!!

[font size=5]
The DLC New Team
Progressives Need NOT Apply
[/font]
(Screen Capped from the DLC Website)


"The best trick the devil ever pulled
was convincing the World he didn't exist."
--Verbal Kent


Koch Bros and The DLC
http://americablog.com/2010/08/koch-industries-gave-funding-to-the-dlc-and-served-on-its-executive-council.html

[woo me with science]

45. [phone]

The propaganda embarrasses itself.

[bobduca]

47. They assume everyone here

is a fucking idiot, apparently.

[FSogol]

50. Wow, a 3.5 year old article. I guess that disproves my point that they closed shop 3 years ago

[bvar22]

76. Reading is your friend.

"They closed the doors, and ALL those "Business Friendly" people and ALL that Big Money just Went Away!! "
/sarcasm


AND, I'll raise you one because your premise is absurd:


Like all reptiles, the DLC shed its skin when its name recognition and brand became a negative,
a popular Big Corporate deception. It has evolved into the "New Democrats" and now The 3rd Way Democrats.
Their mission remains the same,
their people remain in high office inside the Party,
their loyalty to their funding source remains consistent,
and until we can rid ourselves of this cancer,
the once great "Party of the Working Class" will keep carrying water for the 1%.

[Harmony Blue]

27. Taking my points out of context does no one any good

1. There are many ways to raise money for road maintenance. You are arguing that is the best way and only way to do so? Really? What about the small mom and pop shops that are located on these highways? I guess it is okay to see more Walmarts, Walgreens and CVS stores move in instead? What about those that commute to long drives to work like here in Florida? Sun Pass is at toll we have but if it was expanded all over the interstates in Florida it would be catastrophic as we do not have a strong rail, subway or bus transportation options. Even the colleges here have a large student body that is made up of commuters because the cost of living on campus is sky high. There are more and more children living at home till they graduate or even beyond that with their parents so they commute to school.

As for the political angle, the Democrats have the power to push for this but they choose not to use this power. You can't argue the Republicans have all this power because our government is designed to have checks and balanced by default. If the Democratic party needs complete control to accomplish anything then they need to hand in their resignation letters right now!

2. Nestle started decades ago but no one in the Democratic party had the courage to stand up against this. This time we not only have very few Democrats standing up against these crazy double dip ideas but now there is an administration supporting this. Why? Where is our tax money going for infrastructure? These tolls will be outsourced to private corporations which will cost the tax payer more in the long run... P.S. I hate Sun Pass and the Veterans Expressway.

3. Most U.S. residents have static IP addresses. There are many drawbacks to having a static IP address which is why I envy those that live over seas. And online ID is simply a bad idea because the government websites are fairly easy to hack.

4. People don't want to be identified on the internet..and if you obtained a driver's license recently or renewed you are part of the nation-wide database that the homeland security has created despite the resistance of some of the states in the union. They have already done it without our permission (constructed a national database).

5. The FCC is utterly useless. Look no further than the shenanigans going on with high-frequency trading.

The DLC, third way, etc they are still relevant and real. They haven't gone away they just re-branded themselves. The Tea party is the re-branding of Libertarian ideas as well..... so a turd even when polished is still a turd!

[jeff47]

32. I love it when exact quotes are miraculously "out of context".

ETA: You can't take something out of context when the original post is still right up there, for all to see.

There are many ways to raise money for road maintenance. You are arguing that is the best way and only way to do so?

If there were so many other ways that can pass the House, how come you didn't manage to mention one?

Gas tax increase? Not gonna happen. Cuts to DoD? Not gonna happen. Cuts to welfare programs? Would pass the house, but not a trade-off we want to make.

You can't argue the Republicans have all this power because our government is designed to have checks and balanced by default. If the Democratic party needs complete control to accomplish anything then they need to hand in their resignation letters right now!

How, specifically, do you get your proposal past the House?

No hand waving bullshit like "push for it!". What, specifically, do the Democrats do that will cause Eric Cantor to allow the bill to come to a vote? What, specifically, do the Democrats do so that the bill gets 218 votes?

"Push for it?" Republicans in the House have no reason to fear Democrats, thanks to gerrymandering. Their fear is of Teabaggers.

Nestle started decades ago but no one in the Democratic party had the courage to stand up against this.

And since Democrats were not in control of the legislature, they should have done................?

Most U.S. residents have static IP addresses.

Utterly and completely false.

Internet providers hand out addresses with DHCP. When the DHCP lease expires, you are likely to get the same address again. But not always. In fact, most of them will routinely hand out new addresses on a schedule to ensure you pay them more money for a static IP.

But don't just listen to me, listen to the ISPs themselves. Or these folks. Or these folks.

And online ID is simply a bad idea because the government websites are fairly easy to hack.

Yeah, that's why we keep hearing about the hacks at Target, RSA, Microsoft, Amazon, and all those other government websites.

You are posting about how terrible the Democrats are for "the little people", but you're thrilled to ensure only the rich can protect themselves from identity theft.

People don't want to be identified on the internet

Yeah, that's why everything asks for a username and password......oh wait, that makes no sense.

Again, the idea is to prevent identity theft. You don't want someone else logging in to your bank's web site and transferring all the money out.

Fixing that requires going beyond "something you know" security, such as passwords. That requires handing out tokens or similar devices and setting up the back-end infrastructure to implement them. That costs a lot of money. So instead of it not being affordable, the government does it.

Would a site like DU use that government ID? Probably not. Stealing your DU account is pretty meaningless. But I'd really like my bank to use such a system.

The FCC is utterly useless. Look no further than the shenanigans going on with high-frequency trading.

The Federal Communications Commission has nothing to do with the stock market. That's regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

[Vattel]

60. So you think the dems should just cave on the toll road issue?

I would need some convincing on that one.

[jeff47]

71. Again, you are welcome to propose how they can increase road spending

You're free to propose how you get a bill through the House that increases road spending.

The only way I see getting it through is to attach it to something awful, like cuts to food stamps, a balanced budget amendment, or repealing the ACA.

We need more road maintenance now. Gerrymandering means House Republicans do not fear losing to a Democrat, they fear losing to someone even further to the right. That can not be fixed until after the 2020 census.

Back in the day, these kinds of bills passed through earmarks - Give a few key Republicans some pet projects, and buy their vote. The House banned earmarks, so ideology is the only factor now.

[Vattel]

73. You need to do better than that.

How do you know that no other bill adequate to our roads needs can pass in this Congress or in any Congress until after 2020? You don't know that. You are just bullshitting.

[jeff47]

77. Seriously?

The House voted to repeal the ACA more than 30 times.

The House cut veterans spending. Half of the House Republicans voted to cut DoD spending to balance the budget.

The House shut down the entire government, because nobody else would cut spending enough to satisfy them.

The House would not spend $1 million to help stop child prostitution.
You may remember this:


You are arguing that the House would spend billions a year on road maintenance without an offset. That scent of bullshit is coming from you.

[Vattel]

78. The House votes to spend billions on all sorts of things,

including things like economic foreign aid. Why do you think they will definitely draw the line in the sand on maintaining highways? Also, why do you think billions in increases are needed to do essential maintenance on highways?

[jeff47]

79. BECAUSE THEY ALREADY DREW THAT LINE.

You think this is the first year there has ever been a transportation bill? That the sequester and other Republican bills have not included spending cuts for Interstates?

Also, why do you think billions in increases are needed to do essential maintenance on highways?

Because balanced budget fever has meant we have been not spending enough money for a long time.

[Vattel]

81. I am not convinced that we should cave--at least not yet.

If we keep letting the Republicans hold hostages until we give them what we want, we only encourage more hostage-taking. The Republicans might yield once the interstates start to show enough deterioration.

[jeff47]

83. So how many sinkholes do we need first?

How many more bridge collapses do we need?

How many more years of Republicans not doing it will it take for you to stop pretending reasonable republicans exist?

The Republicans might yield once the interstates start to show enough deterioration.

Just as soon as they're all utterly impassible, Republicans will....do jack shit.

[Vattel]

84. So let's just cave anytime the republicans oppose us because they will never be reasonable?

Not a good idea in my opinion.

[jeff47]

85. Again, this has been going on for years.

Democrats have been trying to find reasonable Republicans for years so that a bill could be passed.

The fact that you are just learning about it does not mean it is new.

[Vattel]

86. And yet somehow the interstates have survived.

I realize that dems have been pushing for improving infrastructure of various sorts for years only to meet with republican obstruction. But I guess you and I will just have to agree to disagree over whether it is now time to cave to the republicans on this issue.

[uponit7771]

38. The static IP address was the tip off... had to reread the whole thing myself. Common GOP meme is to

... blame democrats for what the GOP is doing

[lunasun]

66. reads like a GOP rant wannabe

current administration look like they are out of touch, DC Elite ......
There are problems but this OP is about divide divide divide

toll roads are one of the few plan 'B's available due to repugs refusing $$ for roads but let's not mention that

toll roads as a big issue seems to be working well for them in the scare dept IMO

duhvide duhvide duhvide

""they are trying to cast guilt on other people for their own shortcomings or unpopular money grabs against the common citizen"" WTF?
yeah you would not want to point that out or be against it

[Number23]

48. This place is so full of paranoid crazy lately. I don't understand what the hell is going on

Some people around here are more "concerned" with the DLC, Third Way and other DEMOCRATS than they are with Republicans.

And I'm sure it's a coincidence of the first order that the main ones screaming about DEMOCRATIC "propaganda" (ON A F*CKING DEMOCRATIC PARTY SUPPORTING WEB SITE) are also the main ones hollering that there is no difference between Repubs and Dems. As if that is not classic libertarian propaganda itself.

[giftedgirl77]

53. They are the same collective few that regularly

tout all the doom & gloom that is about to come because of this evil administration that never pans out. Coincidence I think not.

[uponit7771]

67. Yeap, then they expect people to take them seriously on their next "sky is falling" meme

[Number23]

68. You are absolutely right. And I have had a gut full of this transparent idiocy.

[JoePhilly]

75. +1

[GoneFishin]

21. K & R

[me b zola]

36. K&R

[Laelth]

37. Classic DLC Triangulation

1) Find a problem.
2) Find the Republican solution.
3) Advance the Republican solution (this will infuriate liberals--a plus for DLC types--but the bill will pass with nearly all Republicans voting for it and with a few conservative Democrats joining them).
4) Claim victory. After all, something is better than nothing, right?

No, my friends. No. Something is not always better than nothing, especially when "something" is the Republican solution to a problem. If I wanted Republican solutions, I would vote for Republicans!

-Laelth

[rusty fender]

39. Plus 1

[woo me with science]

42. Excellent post.

[bvar22]

46. Exactly.

We can't let the "perfect" be the enemy of Republican Policy!!!!


That is what I hate about "Moderates", "Centrists" and "3r Way Democrats.
They agree with Republicans too damned much.

[truedelphi]

87. And yet again, another reason why so many young people will not be

A) either bothering to vote
or

B) voting for Democrats.

BTW, your excellent wording made the issue crystal clear, and it was very concise as well.

[Laelth]

90. Thanks for the kind words and for the response. n/t

-Laelth

[hobbit709]

40. I never bought their BS to start with.

[woo me with science]

41. kick

[dreamnightwind]

44. K & R

I rec'd because I agree largely with the points you are making.

Most people have dynamic IP addresses, by far. Most offices have probably have static ones, the business pays the extra money to have a static one that can be registered to their domain name.

Toll roads, no thanks. Take the money from the oil profiteers, or die trying. You may lose the vote (would be blocked by Republicans) but such losses can give a party a real issue to campaign on, reclaim our party's soul, retake the house, hold the Senate, then you can pass the correct funding mechanisms for infrastructure, along with many other needed reforms.

The arguments that a toll tax or even a gas tax are appropriate carbon taxes are misguided. Carbon taxes need to target carbon extractors/refiners/retailers. For one thing, they are making record profits, the poor people on the roads are mostly struggling to survive. For another, these industries use a portion of their considerable profits to influence public policy in favor of a fossil-fuel economy rather than transitioning to a renewable fuel economy.

[Savannahmann]

49. I don't know where to begin

I couldn't agree more, and I would even deign to take it further. One moment it's how wonderful everything is going under President Obama. The next day, it's how awful things are because of the Rethugs. If politically astute and active people wonder why the average citizen isn't interested in politics or voting, the perpetually changing propaganda is a big part of it.

Unemployment dropping is awesome and all because of President Obama and the Democrats. Let's jump and cheer. Then the Republicans refusal to extend unemployment benefits past 99 weeks shows how little they care about people who have been hurting for a long time.

The greatest economic recovery in the history of history as demonstrated by record Dow Jones Industrial numbers is all because of President Obama and the Democrats.

The income inequality where rich fat cat Wall Street types get billions while the workers get pennies is all because of the Republicans.

I could go on, and on, and on. We get tons of fluff pieces about how the nation is moving left, and then we get told that we are going to nominate Hillary because she's more moderate and will win the election against any Rethug challenger. If the country is moving left, why aren't we nominating an actually lefty instead of a moderate.

As I said, I can go on and on and on. I honestly wonder about every article I read. I can't trust any of it to tell me the truth. As an example, this thread talks about polling that clearly shows the nation moving left. One of the questions is support for unions. Yet, every time the unions are put to a vote, the actual voters say no, see Volkswagen a couple months ago. We don't want to deal with the reality, that we have to work to convert people and convince people. Instead we pat each other on the back and talk about how we're winning when the actual votes come in, we lose. See Florida special election where Alex Sink lost. How many threads here are bemoaning the Democratic Party not funding Wendy Davis who is trailing by 15 points? Realistically that campaign is not lost, but it will be by this time tomorrow.

I believe in the liberal idealism and principles, and it distresses me greatly that people are wrapping things into those principles to make it look like something it isn't. The difference between the RW and the LW is simple. The RW is always talking to the people and staying on message and using the phrases that work. We bounce back and forth between how awesome we are and how successful to how awful things are because of the Rethugs. I would say at least ten percent of the posts on this board are some little picture or graphic with some pithy saying that is supposed to really wake people up so they see the truth. It is usually followed by a number or rec and a whole bunch of cheering and clapping smilies as people rush to post it to facebook where it will be viewed and approved of by more liberals. They don't need convincing, the liberals are already convinced.

I'm watching the election approaching and I feel we will be exceedingly lucky to hold the Senate by a vote or two. Instead of a national approach, we are spending most of our time as Democrats trying to find the most conservative candidates we can, because you know, the country is moving left. So the country is getting more Liberal, and we're going to respond by nominating a Moderate.

By this time next week, we'll see all sorts of articles about how Charlie Crist the former Republican Governor who was a loyal Republican until they failed to nominate him for the Senate is really going to kick the crap out of Scott the current Republican, who will probably be welcomed into the Democratic Party with open arms in a year or so.

[truedelphi]

57. Unemployment dropping is the same as the "no real inflation"

meme.

Sure, fewer people are totally unemployed these days. But most of us are not caught up anywhere near where we were before the housing debacle of 2006, and the economic crash of 2008.

And additionally, the games that Ben Bernanke played at the Federal Reserve saw to it that the price of gas doubled under his careful manipulations. Yet Obama re-appointed the man.
Not that any of the above matters to those at the top of the Democratic Party.

Have to admit I was totally befuddled on the low inflation that this Administration claims is the case for grocery items. Then someone over at Daily Kos explained that the way they arrive at the low inflation of "food"" is by including the junk food end of things.

Apparently because I can get 124 ounces of Coca Cola for just about the same price as I did 7 years ago, means that the fact that produce and decent cuts of meat have gone sky high - well, the junk food balances it all out. Of course, I only eat about three junk food items a month and my spouse doesn't even indulge that much.

[Savannahmann]

70. Unemployment isn't dropping.

800,000 people left the workforce in April. That is where the Unemployment numbers came from.

http://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LNS11000000?output_view=net_1mth The participation dropped in April, by nearly a million, and that is why the unemployment rate dropped.

Better yet, take a look at these numbers. http://www.bls.gov/webapps/legacy/cpsatab16.htm

Fiddle with it, look at the tables. Nearly 91 million people are not in the workforce. That is nearly a third of our total population. Of eligible workers, it's well over a third. Six million of them are discouraged. More than six million people aren't looking for a job according to the BLS because it's no use.

These are the numbers, the numbers the DLC, DNC, nor anyone else want to talk about. Because you can't claim a good economy when those numbers are being discussed. It's impossible to claim victory for economic recovery.

Unemployment is counted as those receiving unemployment benefits. We don't count those who are actually unemployed, that number would be astronomical. It is much easier to pretend that things are going well, then the majority believe any bad things happening are the exception to the rule, instead of the "new normal".

[truedelphi]

82. So our Democratic Party Leaders are lying?

As someone who grew o in Richard Daley The First's Chicago, I am not surprised.

[quinnox]

51. You'd have to be brain dead to buy what they are selling these days

either that, or a sycophant cheerleader who agrees with anything the powers that be do or propose as a brilliant and wonderful idea.

They are fading fast at this point, as Obama's presidency also winds down..

[Vattel]

61. I won't miss the Obama loyalists. I hope the Clinton loyalists are less pathetic.

[quinnox]

63. I don't think anyone will, mindless cheerleading isn't exactly endearing

2016 can't come soon enough!

[BlindTiresias]

69. The Obama Loyalists

Will likely be as obnoxious under Hillary. If the Republicans do take back the presidency you can expect them to act like they were not aggressively pursuing a war against progressives and act very chummy and concerned with "solidarity".

[840high]

62. k/r

[DonCoquixote]

64. has anyone considered

that the dlc wants the GOp to take the senate because it means they can go back to pretneding they are helpless? After all, what can hillary do with a GOP senate?

[truedelphi]

91. Sssh! Some here do not want

The actual collusionary source of the Dems "helplessness against the Republicans" to be uncovered.

[99Forever]

72. Yep.

I have begun to "unsubscribe" to every gawdamn email trash letter hitting me up for a "contribution to fight the evil blah blah blah." Fuck 'em all, they haven't done squat us nor will they in the future. It's all just Kabuki Theater to distract us while they rob us blind.

[MohRokTah]

80. The DLC disbanded in 2011. eom

[FSogol]

88. ACORN!

[brooklynite]

89. Very few people have static IP addresses

Major ISP's reassign them continually based on need.