Quoth the Voters, Never Moore

[LDAHL]

I see Roy Moore has gone down in defeat, although he refuses to concede until the absentee ballots from the cherubim and seraphim are counted. I understand he also refuses to accept the results of the Civil War.

Overall, I would say that was the optimal outcome for both the country at large and the GOP. Kicked off a high court twice for winging it on the legal stuff. Apparently something of an advocate for the joys of slavery. More accusations of sexual predation than the combined management and on-air personalities of Public Broadcasting. If you wrote a villain like that into a TV script, people would laugh at you.

Mitch McConnell must be breathing a sigh of relief.

[Alan]

Mitch McConnell must be breathing a sigh of relief.
Maybe, but then again, maybe not.

I've thought these past several weeks that Mitch and crew hoped for a Moore victory so that they could then proceed with plans to oust him from the Senate, thereby showing the appropriate moral fortitude while maintaining control of the seat by having Alabama's governor re-appoint Luther Strange.

I think that's how Tom Clancy would have written it.

[Chicken lady]

I’m with Alan. Not on the Tom Clancy part, as I don’t read his books and wouldn’t know. But I would like to believe that the vote wouldn’t have been so close if there weren’t a lot of republicans who believed that the senate would do the right thing but they would get to keep the seat.

because if you are a republican, right now you probably trust the senate.

also, I believe many replubicans are basically good people. I have several republican friends. ;) (i’m not sure what “fellowshipping” is, so i’ll get back to you on that.)

[LDAHL]

I miss Tom Clancy. Sometimes I even miss the Cold War.

[Rogar]

I was surprised at how many actually voted for Moore. Alabama must have some vastly different demographics from my realm of reality.

I suspect there are plots within plots these days (if they haven't always existed). I haven't read Clancy, but can imagine Mitch had his spin prepared and the Dems had their spin on Mitch's spin. My simple cold war comparison would be a non-violent Mad Magazine's spy vs. spy

[iris lilies]

Maybe, but then again, maybe not.

I've thought these past several weeks that Mitch and crew hoped for a Moore victory so that they could then proceed with plans to oust him from the Senate, thereby showing the appropriate moral fortitude while maintaining control of the seat by having Alabama's governor re-appoint Luther Strange.

I think that's how Tom Clancy would have written it.

That is how the Dems did it with Franken.

[Williamsmith]

Roy Moore is a vapid caricature of a politician with an abysmal record as a human being. His defeat won’t be mourned by Republicans. As my dad would have said, “He don’t have the brains enough to come in out of the rain.” When he whipped out that shiny revolver to prove his undying love for the 2nd amendment, it showed how truly screwy his notion of politics is. Around here, if you carry a firearm concealed, you are welcome to visit a gun store but you better damn well keep it concealed or someone might make you into Swiss cheese for brandishing it unnecessarily. He can ride off into the sunset with his cowboy hat and I’ll be the first one to kick his horse in its ass. Steve Bannon included.

[catherine]

Very clever thread title, LDAHL.

[Alan]

That is how the Dems did it with Franken.
Franken is an interesting case. His party abandoned him in order to take the moral high ground, and he's showing resistance. His promise to resign at a date to be named later tells me that he's unwilling to go quietly and hoping to find a way to portray himself as a sacrificial lamb while accusations against others are treated differently. If it just weren't for that damn photo.

[Williamsmith]

Franken is an interesting case. His party abandoned him in order to take the moral high ground, and he's showing resistance. His promise to resign at a date to be named later tells me that he's unwilling to go quietly and hoping to find a way to portray himself as a sacrificial lamb while accusations against others are treated differently. If it just weren't for that damn photo.

Deny, deny, deny.......unless you have a photo. You do? Dang!

[LDAHL]

Franken is an interesting case. His party abandoned him in order to take the moral high ground, and he's showing resistance. His promise to resign at a date to be named later tells me that he's unwilling to go quietly and hoping to find a way to portray himself as a sacrificial lamb while accusations against others are treated differently. If it just weren't for that damn photo.

It sort of reminded me of the old jokes about the Clinton stages of denial:

1 I didn't do it.

2 You can't prove I did it.

3 That depends on what "it" means.

4 One of my staff did it.

5 Everybody does it.

6 At this point, it really doesn't matter anyway.

Repeat as necessary.

[CathyA]

I've wondered about Franken's photo. I remember seeing this in some comedies, where a man would pretend to touch a woman's clothed breast and act like they were knobs on a radio and then they'd say "come in Tokyo". And everyone would laugh. If that was his only crime........but then she was sleeping, which made it worse.......and then supposedly he continued at other times to go a little further. I hope he doesn't quit the senate. I think he has done good there. This is all very weird.

[JaneV2.0]

The Franken thing has always seemed way overblown to me. That staged picture taken in a roomful of people was stupid, but harmless, IMO. In the rush to prove party purity, female Democrats threw him under the bus, cutting off their nose to spite their face. Writer Tina DuPuy complained that she had a picture taken with Franken once, and he put his arm around her waist and squeezed it twice? Really? Sounds like an affectionate gesture your grandfather might perform. And the whole female cast of SNL said he was a choirboy in contrast to other male comics. He's no Harvey Weinstein or Donald Trump. And he was a dedicated, hard-working public servant.

[Williamsmith]

The Franken thing has always seemed way overblown to me. That staged picture taken in a roomful of people was stupid, but harmless, IMO. In the rush to prove party purity, female Democrats threw him under the bus, cutting off their nose to spite their face. Writer Tina DuPuy complained that she had a picture taken with Franken once, and he put his arm around her waist and squeezed it twice? Really? Sounds like an affectionate gesture your grandfather might perform. And the whole female cast of SNL said he was a choirboy in contrast to other male comics. He's no Harvey Weinstein or Donald Trump. And he was a dedicated, hard-working public servant.

I never really minded all the-accusations of groping and deep tongue thrusts but the dedicated hard working public servant stuff was the last straw.

[catherine]

The Franken thing has always seemed way overblown to me. That staged picture taken in a roomful of people was stupid, but harmless, IMO. In the rush to prove party purity, female Democrats threw him under the bus, cutting off their nose to spite their face. Writer Tina DuPuy complained that she had a picture taken with Franken once, and he put his arm around her waist and squeezed it twice? Really? Sounds like an affectionate gesture your grandfather might perform. And the whole female cast of SNL said he was a choirboy in contrast to other male comics. He's no Harvey Weinstein or Donald Trump. And he was a dedicated, hard-working public servant.

That's my sense, too. I have no strong opinion about his efficacy as a Senator, but on the spectrum of benign to disgusting behavior, I think his shortcomings are more on the benign side, especially compared to many of his political and entertainment peers. Plus, for the most part, he's good enough, he's smart enough, and, gosh darn it, people like him.

[Yppej]

What a contrast between Jones, who prosecuted the killers of four girls, and Moore who molested girls. Jones carried both the parents of children under 18 demographic and the county where he was banned from the mall, the latter by a very large margin.

[Alan]

And he was a dedicated, hard-working public servant.Maybe, but he's got several strikes against him.

1. He can't deny impropriety because of the photo.
2. His party must virtue signal their concern as long as it doesn't hurt them.
3. His state has a reliably Democratic Governor who has pledged to replace him with a female Democrat.
4. Party inaction after forcing John Conyers to resign would open them up to charges of racism as, lets face it, in the Democratic Party race and gender trump everything.

All things considered, I think he's toast.

[catherine]

Maybe, but he's got several strikes against him.

1. He can't deny impropriety because of the photo.
2. His party must virtue signal their concern as long as it doesn't hurt them.
3. His state has a reliably Democratic Governor who has pledged to replace him with a female Democrat.
4. Party inaction after forcing John Conyers to resign would open them up to charges of racism as, lets face it, in the Democratic Party race and gender trump everything.

All things considered, I think he's toast.

Yeah, but milk toast compared to the burnt toast of some of the others.

[Yppej]

Franken: "It's my right as an entertainer."

Trump: "When you're a star they let you do it."

Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. If Franken's offenses are somehow lesser, could it because he has simply had less power than Trump?

[catherine]

Franken: "It's my right as an entertainer."

Trump: "When you're a star they let you do it."

Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. If Franken's offenses are somehow lesser, could it because he has simply had less power than Trump?

Yeah, could be. Also, context. If Franken had stuck with a career as a comedian this would be no big deal. If Trump had remained simply king of his Trump dynasty, it would be no big deal. But get all kinds of political vested interests involved and anything the media can dig up goeth before a fall.

"What is the sound of a man with little hands clapping?"

[flowerseverywhere]

the current scandals are the result of people putting party before reason, or being manipulated, or giving excuses to people who should not be excused. I know many people who still attend a Roman Catholic Church and give them money and there were numerous pedophiles the church passed around to new victims, knowingly abetting the most despicable and illegal behavior. Truly disgusting and deplorable. jFK was no saint. Bill “I did not have sex with that woman” Clinton was reported to be quite the charismatic womanizer. And what about these female teachers who have sex with their students? Surely many of these things did not exist in a vacuum.
Almost every woman I know can report instances where they were shamed, inappropriately touched or worse. Some as children, the worst crime, but many as teens and young adults. And some men have come out as well.

The unfortunate things about Moore were his disregard for the rule of law, besides the sex stuff, yet 49%of the vote went to him. I just don’t get it.

[boss mare]

Roy Moore is a vapid caricature of a politician with an abysmal record as a human being. His defeat won’t be mourned by Republicans. As my dad would have said, “He don’t have the brains enough to come in out of the rain.” When he whipped out that shiny revolver to prove his undying love for the 2nd amendment, it showed how truly screwy his notion of politics is. Around here, if you carry a firearm concealed, you are welcome to visit a gun store but you better damn well keep it concealed or someone might make you into Swiss cheese for brandishing it unnecessarily. He can ride off into the sunset with his cowboy hat and I’ll be the first one to kick his horse in its ass. Steve Bannon included.



He can't ride well ... He needs to be riding the Walmart "Quarter Horse" !Splat!