The Republic Is Saved.

[spenser1058]

10 minutes ago, nite owℓ said:

Where was this energy with Betsy DeVos?? Her actions had no snowballing consequences for public education, eh?

Betsy DeVos probably had more impact on education than any secretary in decades.

The fact it was all in the wrong direction is a different matter.

I get the impression you just have issues with Pete apart from competence. Which is certainly your right, but the fact is as someone totally new to presidential politics he was more successful at his first try than about 25 others with more experience. I think we’ll be amazed by what he does.

Edited December 15, 2020 by spenser1058

[spenser1058]

The New York Times notes that transportation and infrastructure issues were an important part of his time as South Bend mayor, helping to restore the city.

It also notes the cabinet post will play an important role in the administration on climate change issues, which Pete emphasized in his presidential run:

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/15/us/politics/biden-picks-pete-buttigieg-for-transportation-secretary.html?referringSource=articleShare

BOOT EDGE EDGE

 

And, yes, it will be wonderful to have an openly gay member of the president’s cabinet (and Chasten, too!). We gay folks are also a part of an administration that “looks like America”.

[orange87]

3 hours ago, spenser1058 said:

OK, Al Gore is a journalist by training. He is nevertheless considered the grand poobah of climate issues. That’s simply impossible, right?

By who? Fifteen years ago he was the most high-profile activist for the climate change movement. But I don't think many in the scientific community would consider him to be exceptionally scholarly on the topic of climate change. According to liberal Snopes (which tried it's best to reframe what he said), Gore claimed that scientists predict that all the Arctic sea ice will be melted by 2013 and there's video of him claiming scientists said Florida will be under water by 2018. Snopes tried to play word games by pointing out that Gore (technically) didn't make the predictions himself, and that he instead (erroneously) claimed (unnamed) "scientists" made those predictions.

Edited December 16, 2020 by orange87

[orange87]

Trump should just concede. No matter what your view of the election is, the result isn't gonna be overturned. I also hope he doesn't run again in 2024. Trump had his moment. Everyone needs to just move on.

[nite owℓ]

3 hours ago, spenser1058 said:

Betsy DeVos probably had more impact on education than any secretary in decades.

The fact it was all in the wrong direction is a different matter.

I get the impression you just have issues with Pete apart from competence. Which is certainly your right, but the fact is as someone totally new to presidential politics he was more successful at his first try than about 25 others with more experience. I think we’ll be amazed by what he does.

That's exactly my point. Both you and Jack relegated a cabinet position as a political hire but my point is that a secretary appointment should also require experience otherwise it can lead to disastrous consequences. Why is having in-depth experience such a foreign concept or written off as frivolous? The WaPo article you linked to stated, "Some transportation experts have raised questions about Buttigieg’s lack of experience in the nitty-gritty, often-dense realm of federal transportation policy." Don't get mad at me for questioning his experience based on the points that were raised.

Before his nomination, I didn't look at Buttigeig and think, oh yeah he's definitely Transportation Secretary material and I doubt you would put him on your short list for the position prior to the announcement as well. Being the Mayor of a city of 100k does not mean that one knows the ins and outs: "The secretary of transportation oversees a budget of almost $90 billion, the majority of which pays for building roads, bridges and other highway infrastructure. The DOT also manages multiple agencies that regulate aviation, railroads, trucking and pipeline safety."

 We've already seen the damage caused by those who did not move up the ranks to cabinet positions - even you admit Devos (& Carson) are woefully incompetent. So when Trump appoints people with no experience = BAD, but now I'm supposed to turn a blind eye when Biden does it? I'm not sure where you're getting your impression that I have issues with Pete apart from experience as nothing in my responses to you indicated otherwise. You don't have a patent on the LGBTQ community. I will always place experience and competence before identity politics even if it's someone that I identify with on a personal level.

I truly hope he does well, but his appointment did not seem like a match. Excuse me for not immediately rejoicing that a gay dude got the position lol. If anything, the Bloomberg article assuages my concerns more than the articles you linked to: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-12-15/biden-taps-former-rival-buttigieg-to-head-u-s-transportation

Edited December 16, 2020 by nite owℓ

[spenser1058]

5 minutes ago, nite owℓ said:

That's exactly my point. Both you and Jack relegated a cabinet position as a political hire but my point is that a secretary appointment should also require experience otherwise it can lead to disastrous consequences. Why is having in-depth experience such a foreign concept or written off as frivolous? The WaPo article you linked to stated, "Some transportation experts have raised questions about Buttigieg’s lack of experience in the nitty-gritty, often-dense realm of federal transportation policy." Don't get mad at me for questioning his experience based on the points that were raised.

Before his nomination, I didn't look at Buttigeig and think, oh yeah he's definitely Transportation Secretary material and I doubt you would put him on your short list for the position prior to the announcement as well. Being the Mayor of a city of 100k does not mean that one knows the ins and outs: "The secretary of transportation oversees a budget of almost $90 billion, the majority of which pays for building roads, bridges and other highway infrastructure. The DOT also manages multiple agencies that regulate aviation, railroads, trucking and pipeline safety."

 We've already seen the damage caused by those who did not move up the ranks to cabinet positions - even you admit Devos (& Carson) are woefully incompetent. So when Trump appoints people with no experience = BAD, but now I'm supposed to turn a blind eye when Biden does it? I'm not sure where you're getting your impression that I have issues with Pete apart from experience as nothing in my responses to you indicated otherwise. You don't have a patent on the LGBTQ community. I will always place experience and competence before identity politics even if it's someone that I identify with on a personal level.

I truly hope he does well, but his appointment did not seem like a match. Excuse me for not immediately rejoicing that a gay dude got the position lol. If anything, the Bloomberg article assuages my concerns more than the articles you linked to: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-12-15/biden-taps-former-rival-buttigieg-to-head-u-s-transportation

Meanwhile, we’ve seen plenty of examples of people in political positions like these (and, yes, it IS a political position - it’s selected by a politician, approved by politicians and much of the work involves meeting with, ummm, politicians). Too often, those who get bogged down in the minutiae of what should be staff work are unable to be effective with the wider world. I would submit Buttigieg has been effective at both. We’ll find out soon enough.

[JFW657]

There are legitimate arguments to be made on both sides, but a good example (I think) of someone who had limited experience in government but ended up being fairly successful at it is President Obama.

[spenser1058]

Apparently, if the Town of Palm Beach enforces the law, it’s illegal to live at Mar-a-Lago. Maybe The Donald can head up to DeBary. Imagine his presidential library along the St Johns...

Mar-a-Lago neighbors to Trump: Spend your post-presidency elsewhere
https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/trump-mar-a-lago-neighbors-dispute/2020/12/15/bc2ce1d0-3ed4-11eb-9453-fc36ba051781_story.html

From The Washington Post 

Edited December 16, 2020 by spenser1058

[nite owℓ]

1 hour ago, spenser1058 said:

Apparently, if the Town of Palm Beach enforces the law, it’s illegal to live at Mar-a-Lago. Maybe The Donald can head up to DeBary. Imagine his presidential library along the St Johns...

Mar-a-Lago neighbors to Trump: Spend your post-presidency elsewhere
https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/trump-mar-a-lago-neighbors-dispute/2020/12/15/bc2ce1d0-3ed4-11eb-9453-fc36ba051781_story.html

From The Washington Post 

I was reading that article this morning too... It seems like Palm Beach had the foresight to anticipate any potential attempts made by Trump to squirm out of agreements. Good on them, I'm sure they're relieved they planned ahead lol. I wonder if the lack of enforcement for "X" years would provide him with a precedent loophole if he tries to sue, but maybe the National Trust deal will serve as a fail-safe. Will be interesting to watch this unfold.

[spenser1058]

Palm Beach is exclusive enough they don’t want the hassle and the larger county is blue enough they’re not much impressed either.

A place like Volusia County that is rapidly turning red would enjoy his presence making a tourist attraction of things, not unlike Plains, GA has benefitted from Jimmy Carter living and teaching Sunday school there (although the library’s part of the Carter Center in Atlanta).

The Donald, given his reality show personality, would thrive off the attention.

@orange87 would be in hog heaven!

[spenser1058]

That’s without a doubt the most enthusiastic speech I’ve ever heard from a nominee for transportation secretary. Sometimes, to get things moving, it takes someone with the energy to move things forward. Just from everything packed into that six-minute speech, I think it’s fair to say DOT will be one of the most active sectors of the federal government with Pete leading it. As choices go, I think it’s a solid pick.

https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/live-updates/2020-election-results-transition/?id=74713338&cid=clicksource_4380645_2_heads_hero_live_hero_related#74761822

From ABC News

[jack]

21 hours ago, nite owℓ said:

Precedent doesn't make it right and LaHood's praise doesn't change my stance. The kind of mindset to write off experience as frivolous is simply appalling. Never going to convince me that experience does not come in handy even if only for political appointments. You still need someone who knows the ins and outs to iron out the kinks at lower levels and someone without experience will not have the ability to identify them. Sure, a fresh pair of eyes might help but an old broom knows the corners. I'll say it again and leave it at that: A lack of experience has consequences.

I referenced Ray LaHood because he did not have transportation experience. 

21 hours ago, spenser1058 said:

OK, Al Gore is a journalist by training. He is nevertheless considered the grand poobah of climate issues. That’s simply impossible, right?

Nope. If someone is bright and has an interest in the role, they can be quite proficient at it.

Think about all the transportation issues Buddy has worked on as mayor, including road and Lynx budgets. He is also on the boards of GOAA and CFX. South Bend also has a strong-mayor form of government so I assume Pete would have similar experience.

In any event, there are thousands of actual engineers and other professionals he can call on at DOT for expertise.

Let’s not forget a cabinet secretary IS a political job. He or she is the one cajoling the president and Congress for the funds required and working with local elected officials to get them to go along with DOT’s plans. 

I don't disagree with you. I object to him taking the position because I think he is too talented. Maybe this is Biden's way of elevating the position. 

[spenser1058]

1 hour ago, jack said:

I referenced Ray LaHood because he did not have transportation experience. 

I don't disagree with you. I object to him taking the position because I think he is too talented. Maybe this is Biden's way of elevating the position. 

Supposedly, Pete’s going to have big roles in working on both climate change and infrastructure from his perch at DOT. I think your last sentence nails it.

Matty Yglesias has noted that Pete scares the he*l out of the left because they assume the future is all about them. Instead, here’s a moderate Democrat running circles around them who’ll be around for decades.

Had the left shown a fraction of the energy Pete demonstrated, Bernie would have had a lot bigger impact on the 2020 election.

Edited December 16, 2020 by spenser1058

[orange87]

9 hours ago, spenser1058 said:

Palm Beach is exclusive enough they don’t want the hassle and the larger county is blue enough they’re not much impressed either.

A place like Volusia County that is rapidly turning red would enjoy his presence making a tourist attraction of things, not unlike Plains, GA has benefitted from Jimmy Carter living and teaching Sunday school there (although the library’s part of the Carter Center in Atlanta).

The Donald, given his reality show personality, would thrive off the attention.

@orange87 would be in hog heaven!

I think he'd be very welcome in Volusia County because (as you pointed out) it's a pretty conservative county. I don't know if anywhere in Volusia County would be prestigious enough for his standards though. Hard to compete with places like Manhattan/Palm Beach.

Edited December 16, 2020 by orange87

[JFW657]

I would guess that he'd want to live on one of the islands in Biscayne Bay.

 

[orange87]

11 hours ago, spenser1058 said:

Apparently, if the Town of Palm Beach enforces the law, it’s illegal to live at Mar-a-Lago. Maybe The Donald can head up to DeBary. Imagine his presidential library along the St Johns...

Mar-a-Lago neighbors to Trump: Spend your post-presidency elsewhere
https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/trump-mar-a-lago-neighbors-dispute/2020/12/15/bc2ce1d0-3ed4-11eb-9453-fc36ba051781_story.html

From The Washington Post 

It might turn our city into a circus with all the media attention and potential pro and anti-Trump demonstrations. Then again it would probably cause the value of my house to skyrocket so maybe it wouldn't be so bad.

[spenser1058]

A bit of promising news today. While the good folks of Palm Beach haven’t yet convinced The Donald he can’t live at Mar-a-Lago, we are pleased to report Mike Huckabee is moving back to Arkansas.

Huck’s most infamous role as a resident of the Sunshine State was probably his attempt to roll back the right of our citizens to access the beaches. Fortunately, in Arkansas that won’t be a problem. 
 

https://floridapolitics.com/archives/389622-mike-huckabee-confirms-hes-moving-back-to-arkansas

From Florida Politics 

[spenser1058]

Speaking of Ray LaHood, here’s what he had to say about Pete:

It's a good pick," former Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, a Republican who served in Obama's Cabinet, told Axios. "It sends a loud message to mayors and to cities that they count. It's where the action is on putting people to work."
 

From Axios

[spenser1058]

I know this is probably something only us old folks can appreciate, but if you’re a fan of Shields and Brooks on the PBS News Hour, Friday night will be Mark’s last regular appearance. If you’ve ever wondered where civilized politics went, theirs was the last redoubt every Friday night for 12 minutes or so just before the show closed.

It’s on starting at 7pm on WUCF or you can stream it afterward at pbs.org.

Edited December 18, 2020 by spenser1058

[JFW657]

I used to watch them when they were Shields and Gigot....

But I like David Brooks, too.

[spenser1058]

Well, Pat Robertson has said it’s time for The Donald to give it up and go. Since we don’t want Pat telling God to send wildfires at us again (the last time he did was back in ‘98  for flying rainbow flags downtown -odd thing was the wildfires burned the Republican areas, not downtown), I guess His Orangeness needs to go...

Edited December 21, 2020 by spenser1058

[orange87]

25 minutes ago, spenser1058 said:

Well, Pat Robertson has said it’s time for The Donald to give it up and go. Since we don’t want Pat telling God to send wildfires at us again (the last time he did was back in ‘98  for flying rainbow flags downtown -odd thing was the wildfires burned the Republican areas, not downtown), I guess His Orangeness needs to go...

I cringe when I see people STILL TO THIS DAY comment on social media that Trump is "still going to win" and that Biden is "going to jail soon." SMH

Edited December 21, 2020 by orange87

[nite owℓ]

13 hours ago, spenser1058 said:

Well, Pat Robertson has said it’s time for The Donald to give it up and go. Since we don’t want Pat telling God to send wildfires at us again (the last time he did was back in ‘98  for flying rainbow flags downtown -odd thing was the wildfires burned the Republican areas, not downtown), I guess His Orangeness needs to go...

I was a teenager when Pat spoke those words and I remember how it made me feel while growing up in a religious household (SuperChannel, Focus on the Family radio, etc.) were pretty much staples in the house growing up, but I was just biding my time until I was old enough to escape lol.

I'm not giving that old bat any credit because on one side of his mouth he says Trump should concede while the other half is saying, "I think the Biden corruption has not totally been brought to fruition, but it doesn’t seem to be affecting the Electoral College, and I don’t think the Supreme Court is going to move in to do anything..."

Besides Pat's stance on gay people, he always takes the opportunity to come out of the woodwork with some nonsense kookery about the earthquake in Haiti, Sandy Hook shooting, Pulse shooting, Vegas shooting, etc. The Pharisees/Witchdoctors always find a way to use tragedies to support their agendas. They would've found a way to use the epidemic to place blame on something had the virus not also affected their own communities. We saw how NYC was being treated early on, so no I wouldn't put it past people like Pat to do that. These are the same hypocrites who gladly voted for Trump in the name of the lord too.

Edited December 22, 2020 by nite owℓ

[spenser1058]

Don’t forget when you watch “It’s a Wonderful Life” this Christmas that George Bailey was the Democrat (savings and loans grew rapidly during the Depression due to legislation spearheaded by FDR) and Mr. Potter was the Republican.

The film is one of the best fables representing the differing philosophies of the two parties ever made.

 

[AmIReal]

52 minutes ago, spenser1058 said:

Don’t forget when you watch “It’s a Wonderful Life” this Christmas that George Bailey was the Democrat (savings and loans grew rapidly during the Depression due to legislation spearheaded by FDR) and Mr. Potter was the Republican.

The film is one of the best fables representing the differing philosophies of the two parties ever made.

 

I've never tried to read politics into the movie, but I guess if you look for it you can find it anywhere.

Btw, Frank Capra who directed and produced the movie, was a conservative republican. In his later years he said he was a pacifist and opposed the Vietnam War.