Has a conservative government ever done anything for the betterment of its country's citizens? anywhere? ever?

"Mike from Florida" is great framing. Whatever consultant advised Tim Walz to drop the "weird" description for Republicans --- keep that guy far, far away from El-Sayed.

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 5h ago

El-Sayed: "If all Mike Rogers got is that 'his name is Abdul, and my name is Mike,' you're gonna be surprised how many people are like, 'Yeah, but that's the Abdul who wants to bring down the price of my groceries and make sure I got healthcare. So yeah, I like Abdul over your Mike from Florida.'"

I remember when MTV had to be arm-twisted into showing Michael Jackson videos. MTV said, "oh, *we're* not racist, but our audience is". That's what the "electability" argument sounds like to me.

Far right: criminal corruption, trampling on the constitution, racism, state kidnappings without due process, covering up sex trafficking, approval of spousal abuse. Far left: pronouns, trans people, progressive taxation, health care access to all. Legacy media: both extremes are bad.

If you voted for Stevens over El-Sayed because you legitimately liked her better, fine. Power to you. If you voted for Stevens over El-Sayed because you were worried about "electability", you're projecting your own prejudices. Nobody was less "electable" than Donald Trump.

How hard did he pray before he sexually harassed these ladies?

Tim Williams Art@timwilliamsart.bsky.social · 8h ago

MAGA NC congressman Chuck Edwards announces that "after much prayer" he has decided to not seek reelection... Of course this has nothing to do with the likelihood that an ethics investigation over sexual harassment claims lodged by two female staffers was coming. Can't comb over that, Chuck. 😎

Whether women "need" sports is irrelevant. If women WANT sports, that's good enough for me.

Jess Piper@piperformissouri.bsky.social · 8h ago

The Heritage Foundation asserts that women never needed sports in the first place. To prove that Title IX has become a tool of “feminist social engineering.” To demonstrate that women don’t need sports and that “clubs, intramurals, and exercise classes” is enough. open.substack.com/pub/jesspipe...

Stolen valor is a big, big deal with the right. But they'll let this one slide. Guaranteed.

MeidasTouch@meidastouch.com · 22h ago

Stolen valor from Mr. Bone Spurs. An insult to every man and woman who has worn the uniform.

El-Sayed can win the general, certainly. But the pool of voters is different. Primary-voting Dems are less likely to be swayed by shallow ad blitzes than the electorate at large. Abdul needs to adjust to that.

Khashoggi's Ghost@urocklive1.bsky.social · 18h ago

While money isn't everything, it helps. But people seem very ready for progressive change right now.

Funny how "beating China" isn't much of a priority when it comes to, say, renewable energy.

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 17h ago

Trump: "I think any community that turns down AI is making a big mistake ... data centers, if you look at the state, everything is good around them"

Happy 60th birthday to the original alt-rock album. George rose to the standard set by his bandmates, contributing three fine songs, including this delightful piece about getting tongue-tied at the most inopportune situations. The lead guitar riff is one of his most inspired.

I Want To Tell You (Remastered 2009)

YouTube video by The Beatles - Topic

youtu.be

The dem leadership doesn't even care if these coming elections are clean. Rolling over to the most criminal administration in US history. Gee, I wonder why voters are turning to outsider candidates.

Brian Beutler@brianbeutler.bsky.social · yesterday

I was appalled (though not surprised) when I learned Sunday that Senate Dems intend to help Republicans fund the government through the election, with one minimal concession that has nothing to do with election subversion or ongoing Trump theft of federal dollars from blue states. And I remain so.

If the Great Flood was meant to cleanse all sinful, non-righteous people from the world (everybody but Noah and his family), why did sin come back after that? Where did it come from?

"This is Kansas, not NYC. We need to kiss up to Republicans to have a chance!" Hmmm...

Corey Rayburn Yung@coreyryung.bsky.social · 19h ago

While centrists continue to think Dems need to moderate on abortion, Kansas overwhelmingly rejected a collateral attack on the right to choose via an amendment (which would have switched to elected justices) after overwhelmingly rejecting an amendment to directly ban the right to choose in 2022.

This is why every gay republican deserves to be publicly outed. Even if it ruins his life. ESPECIALLY if it ruins his life. They've ruined plenty of others.

Jack Hopkins-The Original@therealjackhopkins.bsky.social · 22h ago

The fuss so many Republicans in D.C. make about the LGBTQ community is resentment. They resent people brave enough to live openly…while they keep their own desires hidden, terrified of what colleagues and constituents would do if they knew. Republicans…you KNOW who you are. We do, too.

Miller is a drowning man circling the drain, given that even Tapper felt comfortable being hard on him.

Angry@angrystaffer.bsky.social · 20h ago

Whoever advised Max Miller to go on to Jake Tapper’s show secretly hates him. What a catastrophic interview

Any senator who votes to confirm Blanche is a child-rape advocate.

Which means they have votes so Susan can act on her "concern".

Angry@angrystaffer.bsky.social · 22h ago

👀👀👀👀

A craven coward like this is the last person I'd want next to me in a life-or-death situation.

Critical Bill.@criticalbill76.bsky.social · 24h ago

You could have voted to impeach in January 2000. Instead, you voted for no witnesses and no documents to be allowed at trial. You are a failed person, Cornyn.

"Making the electability argument" = "projecting your own prejudices onto the voters as a group".

Vote blue no matter who cuts both ways. I've voted for centrist dems I wasn't particularly thrilled about, because I see the forest for the trees. It's the centrists' turn to live up to their slogan. Will they?

David Dayen@ddayen.bsky.social · yesterday

It's election day in Michigan, and I'm struck by how the centrists have run to win an electibility argument and the progressives have run to win the race they're actually running in. Almost like mobilizing support and speaking to the needs of voters matters! prospect.org/2026/08/04/m...

Creatures like Rollins also oppose living wages. The kinds of wages that allow workers to afford food. They want slavery. That's what they're working towards.

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · yesterday

Rollins: "For those who love work and celebrate work and want people to work and not be on food stamps, it's a pretty big win when we've moved 5 million people off food stamps, y'all."

Ankle bracelets are the new yellow stars.

Columbus Underground@colsunderground.bsky.social · yesterday

“Haitians in Ohio lost their work permits when TPS expired on Monday. More than 1,000 children born in Springfield with American citizenship have Haitian parents.” MORE: columbusunderground.com/ohioans-prep...

Has anyone checked up on Kirsti Noem yet and that new job of hers?

Republicans are the weakest organisms on earth.

𝕊𝕦𝕟𝕕𝕒𝕖 𝔾𝕦𝕣𝕝@sundaedivine.lol · yesterday

Congress: “We’ve tried nothing and we’re fresh out of ideas.”

Who the hell is this "Maher" guy and why are his opinions on what he calls socialism something a candidate needs to respond to?

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · yesterday

Francesca Hong was asked last night by Kaitlin Collins if she still believes Thanksgiving should be canceled. Her answer was not 'no.'

Every dem needs to be asked, "what's more important to you, stopping fascism or complaining about the left?"

Democrats, at their best, are really, really good at calling out republicans in congressional hearings. Seriously. The problem is that (a) nobody besides political nerds watches these hearings and (b) the dems don't carry this energy and passion to the general public.

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · yesterday

🔥 Here's Whitehouse's entire remarkable speech opposing Blanche: "What's left of this committee when we don't demand straight answers? How many times has DOJ been asked what became of the $50k that the FBI reported it handed to Homan? ... our R colleagues see no evil, hear no evil, & speak no evil."

Are "moderate" dems more interested in stopping fascism, or are they more interested in retaining control of a party that has grown increasingly irrelevant under their leadership?

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · yesterday

New in PN: Moderate Democrats have a choice to make "They can spend the next three months reinforcing Republican messaging about their party & making it less likely Dems take power. Or they can put the 'battle for the soul of the party' off for a while and do what they can to help their party win."

Bluesky is such a liberal bubble. That's a big big problem!

@gm0rk.bsky.social · 2d ago

"But do you feel your bar is* too* safe for women? Without attracting a certain number of rapists, aren't you worried that it will simply be an echo chamber for anti-rape sentiment?"