Pic Of The Moment: Incoming! 2016 GOP Contenders Damn Chris Christie With Faint Praise

[EarlG]

GOP rivals begin dishing on Christie

Rush uncorks on major Republican 'betrayal' (warning: link goes to World Net Daily)

Sean Hannity to Chris Christie: Say President Obama lied

Follow @demunderground

[QuestForSense]

1. Divide and conquer.

Still works like a charm.

[SleeplessinSoCal]

15. Never forget! Reagan won every state save Minnesotta (barely) in 84.

Christie will appeal to the unemployed in mass numbers. Wealthy minorities will stump for him. This is seriously dangerous considering his entire system of beliefs.

[QuestForSense]

23. For a Koch Bros. protege, Christie carries a lot of baggage.

Yet this puzzles me:

Actually, Democrats appear to be going out of their way to help the governor rack up the kind of landslide with the kind of support from non-white voters that made Bush's nomination inevitable. In unison, it seems, Democrats are refusing to call out how Christie's failed policies that favor the rich, while bullying workers and women, have resulted in an 8.5 percent unemployment rate -- tied with Mississippi and Tennessee for 41st in the nation -- along with little improvement to the state's miserable bond rating.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jason-sattler/chris-christie-george-w-bush_b_4213702.html

[SleeplessinSoCal]

24. I see only the independents deciding elections these days. And if you're an independent . . .

you don't pay attention to facts or the news. Therefore Christie has a shot.

[QuestForSense]

40. Just read this, thought you might find it to be of interest:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024006552

[Kahuna]

2. LOL! NJ is the new (wink..wink).."San Francisco."

[Dopers_Greed]

3. The wingnuts may hate him now

But if he gets the nomination, they will just hold their noses and vote for him anyway. Remember how McCain and McBain were considered "liberals" during the primaries, but worshiped as gods by the repukes during the generals.

[mdbl]

4. Most of the time.....

that emperor has no clothes. Just because he acts like a normal politician should once in a while doesn't make him a good one.

[MADem]

31. Now THAT's a visual....

Arrrrgggggh!

[question everything]

5. I like the nickname that the Romney VP search gave him - Pufferfish

Perhaps we can start referring to him as Governor Pufferfish..

[mainstreetonce]

6. Please don't

conjure up images of him without any clothes.


Thanks

[Jamaal510]

8. Maybe Romney was implying that

Chris Christie was Mrs.Puff's (from Spongebob) long lost lover--Mr.Puff.

[Brewinblue]

10. A Spongebob reference!

Love it!

[Ganja Ninja]

7. "He can win in New Jersey"

Hillary would wipe the floor with him in Jersey. Rubio couldn't win Florida against her either.

[The Wizard]

9. Just because he didn't

use Republican code for ni66er when talking about the president does not make him a moderate. Check his record.

[lark]

11. He's a conservative Repug through and through.

There is no moderate in Christie. He's just not fireplug stupid like the teahadists and maybe actually gives a small damn about the people in his state. He's still anti-union, anti-gay rights, anti-worker and VERY MUCH Pro-1%. That's his main thing, he's for big money and against workers. Dems who vote for him are stupid or are not really Dem at all.

[LittleGirl]

12. Christy

is just today's headline. Come 2016, it will be Jeb Bush. He's laying low to keep from getting 'Bush' fatigue.

[stevenleser]

18. You're looking at this from your perspective instead of the GOP's and Teabaggers.

Jeb Bush is thought of as having the same problems as Christie. Too moderate and too establishment. He has zero chance in Iowa and New Hampshire and the Carolinas.

[LittleGirl]

27. I don't for a minute think he could take

those states, but I'm sure that the PTB (powers that be) may think otherwise. Eventually. I hope the GOP loses the next couple of Presidential elections.

[MannyGoldstein]

13. But Democrats are full of praise.

Perhaps Christie should switch parties.

[athenasatanjesus]

14. It's false rage designed to create the illusion that he's a moderate.

The MSM will use the fact that he didn't spit on Obama and piss in his drink as evidence that he's a moderate,all the while the MSM will do everything in their power to make it look like some of the most moderate democrats are extreme liberals.

[hibbing]

17. +1

Hey,
Yes the corporate media always skews shit like this.

Peace

[SleeplessinSoCal]

16. Also think Romey's rejection of Christie favors Christie.

99% v 1%. Only the 99% champions the 1% in Christie's case.

Very dangerous.

[ballaratocker]

19. The contrast between the faint praise is obvious

The first two guys actually are running for office while the other two are running a mailing list. Paul and Rubio are interested in getting cash via elected office. Limbaugh and Hannity want to make money by appealing to the knuckledraggers. The first two can lose their ability to make cash by being voted out. The second two will never get voted out by their constituents.

[Blue Owl]

20. Is he Christie the Clown or Sideshow Blob?

n/t

[WCLinolVir]

21. I don't think Christie can hide who he really is for long. He's arrogant,

snide, sexist to the point of misogyny, and a blow hard. I don't think he is going to play very well on the national stage.

[vadermike]

22. christie

We underestimate him at our own peril.. my very liberal step-mom doesn't vote repub and my dad who doesn't vote repub "like" him even though they know he is anti union etc.. they call him very plain spoken and more like a "real" person who doesn't care what the extreme right thinks of him and they like that and I think a lot of people do, if I didn't know what his record was , I would "like" him too.. I think he will be tough beat if he gets the nomination , regardless if we have Hillary or not, IMO.... just my .02.. It may be the REpubs ticket to win in 2016.. I know a lot of us say he will never get the nomination, but the baggers held their nose and voted for McCain and Romeny, and I love it how they say never again, but they vote for the "moderate" every time... at least recently.. I guess you can say the last time the base voted for a more right leaning so-called true conservative was Reagan, because at that time he was considered way to the right in the GOP.......

[Kahuna]

26. I agree with this. nt

[DonCoquixote]

25. Do not be fooled

If they think that they need CC to beat Hillary, all the elephants will fall into lockstepGoosetep, just like they did for W.

[Loudly]

28. "Feigned" praise. Not "faint" praise. It means pretending to praise.

While actually subtly criticizing or insulting.

[MADem]

30. No--Earl is correct, you got that wrong. The term IS "Damn with FAINT praise."

In other words, the praise is there, but it's unenthusiastic, and the unenthusiasm of it is damning. You can ask Alexander Pope if you disbelieve me.

Here--for you; there's an entire WIKI on the subject:

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

Damning with faint praise is an English idiom for words that effectively condemn by seeming to offer praise which is too moderate or marginal to be considered praise at all.[1] In other words, this phrase identifies the act of expressing a compliment so feeble that it amounts to no compliment at all, or even implies a kind of condemnation.[2]

The concept can be found in the work of the Hellenistic sophist and philosopher, Favorinus (c. 110 AD), who observed that faint and half-hearted praise was more harmful than loud and persistent abuse.[3]

The explicit phrasing of the modern English idiomic expression was first published by Alexander Pope in his 1734 poem, "Epistle to Dr Arbuthnot" in Prologue to the Satires.[4]

Damn with faint praise, assent with civil leer,
And without sneering, teach the rest to sneer;
Willing to wound, and yet afraid to strike,
Just hint a fault, and hesitate dislike.

[Loudly]

32. What would you say about the compliment "It doesn't suck" ?

Would you call that weak praise? Or would you call it criticism disguised as a compliment?

[MADem]

33. It doesn't matter what I would say. The term is "Damn with FAINT praise," not damn with "feigned"

praise.

You could dig up Alexander Pope and argue the point with him, I suppose, but it doesn't change the fact that the expression uses the word 'faint,' not 'feigned.' A quick trip around the Google will show you that I'm right on this one.

In fact, if one is to parse it out, the praise Christie got most certainly was not "feigned" -- that sort of praise is usually fulsome, but said insincerely (e.g. Isn't that WONderful, said with all due snark)--it is, indeed, faint, as in weak, feeble, not very enthusiastic or boisterous--sort of like your example of "It doesn't suck."

It's one of those not-uncommon errors, along the lines of "for all intensive purposes" instead of the proper "for all intents and purposes."

[Loudly]

34. Rubio and Rand Paul were saying this:

Congratulations to Chris Christie for being a shitty conservative, because that's what it takes to win as a Republican in New Jersey.

Feigned praise.

i.e., not praise at all.

Doesn't fall on any weak-strong scale whatsoever.

[MADem]

35. I'm sorry; you're just digging a big hole, and if you keep on, you won't be able to get out.

Feigned praise would be "Oh gee, thanks Chris--you're doing just what the party needs! Everyone knows that triangulation is the way to go, because we want to be just like Bill Clinton! Thanks, CC--onward to victory with you! Great job!"

Calling someone who touts the conservative aspects of their worldview a "shitty conservative" isn't praise at all--it's an insult.

In any event, the term is "faint praise" and "feigned praise" is a misheard idea in your head.

It's not a term of conversation--it's a term of poor hearing, maybe.

[Loudly]

36. Of course they didn't call him a "shitty conservative." Not overtly.

Rather, they did it obliquely.

You cited other phrases whose misuse can become parlance. This is just another example of that.

The Alexander Pope quote appears to be describing toadyism.

Do you think Rubio and Paul were trying to suck up to Christie?

Of course not. They were telling their own followers that, despite Christie's win, he is not their kind of guy.

And they did it through their use of the technique of feigned praise.

[MADem]

37. It doesn't matter what they were "trying" to do, they were "damning him with faint praise."

Not "feigned" praise, or "fanged" praise or even "flamed" praise.

The term IS "faint praise," and it has been since Pope wrote it.

This isn't news.

[Loudly]

38. Pope was not using it the way it is being used in the OP.

[MADem]

39. Sorry--you're wrong. All the YOUTUBE clips in the world

won't make EarlG's use of the term inaccurate, and your misheard phrase accurate.

It's "Damn with faint praise." Not "feigned."

[Loudly]

41. Sorry I couldn't convince you.

There's nothing more I can do for you.

Your condition is hopeless.

[MADem]

42. Your mirror has something to say to you.

Your rudeness won't make you right. You've damned yourself with those insults--faint or otherwise.

They'll catch up with you soon enough. Bet on it.

[Loudly]

43. Is there still time for you to self delete your bullying post?

The reason I ask is that it upsets me.

[MADem]

44. Apparently, you don't quite understand the meaning of that word either.

If you don't want to be upset, then stop with the uncivil conduct.

Loudly
43. Is there still time for you to self delete your bullying post?
View profile
The reason I ask is that it upsets me.

[MADem]

29. A true gentleman, EarlG is!

Hee hee...warning: link goes to World Nut Daily....!

How considerate, after all, some people might be having a meal while they peruse DU!!