GOP

Ledbetterman10

Rumsfeld has my favorite political quote of all-time when was being interviewed about the Iraq War in the late 2000's. This is paraphrased...

Interviewer: But Secretary Rumsfeld, the intelligence suggests otherwise.
Rumsfeld: Look I'm not in the intelligence business.  

Halifax2TheMax

Do they have a candidate on the ballot or running as Paperboy Love Prince?

HughFreakingDillon

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=REWeBzGuzCc

mickeyrat

 

Donald Trump AR State Wire Ron DeSantis Arkansas Elections Social issues Coronavirus pandemic Government and politics Asa Hutchinson Weekend Reads Kristi Noem

Arkansas governor ponders future in GOP turned Trumpian

By ANDREW DeMILLO

Yesterday

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — Leading a state that went heavily for Donald Trump in the 2020 election and that has enacted some of the most aggressive laws on social issues, Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson in Arkansas has been in the national spotlight this year.

But not for embracing the state's Trumpian turn. It's for distancing himself from it.

At a time when red state governors like Ron DeSantis in Florida and Kristi Noem of South Dakota are carrying forward Trump's rhetoric and policies, Hutchinson is doing the opposite. He's taking a contrarian position that's making him an outsider in the state party he helped build and that now could test whether there's a path forward for ambitious Republicans in the reddest parts of the country that doesn't rely on the former president.

“He represents an important voice in the party, a voice that is relatively independent of any established consensus," said Republican pollster Whit Ayres, whose firm worked with Hutchinson before he was governor. “He thinks for himself and there are a number of us in the party who find that refreshing."

Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson leads a state that went heavily for Donald Trump in the 2020 election. He's been in the national spotlight this year, but not for embracing the state's Trumpian turn – for distancing himself from it. (July 2)

But, Ayres said, where the party is headed right now “remains a very open question."

Hutchinson couldn't be more different than Trump, at least when it comes to style. A mild-mannered attorney, Hutchinson tweets out Bible verses every Sunday morning. He tries to split the difference on contentious issues , such as when he supported keeping the state's Medicaid expansion but with a work requirement later blocked by courts.

He’s also trying to manage an increasingly ominous COVID-19 situation in his state, with cases on the rise and vaccine rates low. His powers to address it were curbed by conservative lawmakers angry about his earlier restrictions.

Midway through his second term, Hutchinson, 70, would seem poised for a big move. He is to take over next week as chairman of the National Governors Association, a position that predecessors Bill Clinton and Mike Huckabee used to launch their own White House bids. He's started a political action committee that he said will help Republican candidates in next year's midterm election.

He's also become a fixture on cable television, defending his veto of legislation targeting transgender youths in the state and warning fellow Republicans about tying their fortunes too closely to Trump.

“If Trump is the issue in 2022, we lose," Hutchinson told The Associated Press in a recent interview in his office. “He's not on the ballot and we have to be the party of ideas and principles that are relevant to what's happening in our country today. We can't be revisiting what happened last election and we can't relitigate that."

Hutchinson has provided a contrast with other top Republican figures in his state, including the frontrunner to replace him. Sarah Sanders is seeking the party's nomination with a campaign that showcases her time as Trump's press secretary, during which she regularly sparred with reporters and defended the president's most contentious policies.

Sen. Tom Cotton, a hard-edged conservative, has already been laying the groundwork for a presidential campaign, with visits to key early states.

Hutchinson's history in Arkansas' politics dates back to the 1980s, when Ronald Reagan appointed him as a U.S. attorney. He went on to chair Arkansas' Republican party and was elected to Congress before serving as head of the Drug Enforcement Administration and later as a federal Homeland Security official in George W. Bush's administration.

He ran unsuccessfully for statewide office three times before winning the governorship in 2014. Some critics on his right now say the state's politics have left him behind.

“What he’s done for the last 30 or 40 years isn’t how the party is going to succeed moving forward," said Republican Sen. Trent Garner, who frequently clashed with Hutchinson. “While I can appreciate Gov. Hutchinson’s service, he is a relic of the past. Trump and Trumpism is the bold new future of the Arkansas Republican Party."

Hutchinson leaves office in 2023 and it's unclear what he plans on doing next. Unlike his Democratic predecessor Mike Beebe, Hutchinson won't rule out another run for office.

But he's not making overt moves. He appears more eager to talk about dry policy than identity politics. He testified before a Senate committee in favor of efforts to end the sentencing disparity between crack and powder cocaine offenders. He aims to promote one of his pet issues: computer science education in public schools.

Hutchinson said next year's midterms may demonstrate whether his message still resonates with the electorate.

Hutchinson drew the ire of some conservative lawmakers this year by vetoing a bill that banned gender confirming treatments for transgender youth. The veto, which was promptly overridden, was also criticized by Trump, who called Hutchinson a “RINO," or Republican In Name Only.

The bill was among several that the governor complained were the product of culture wars and weren't necessary.

But Hutchinson hasn't strayed as far from the right wing as he could have. He was among more than two dozen governors who decided to end supplemental federal unemployment payments before they were set to run out. He's signed other bills restricting transgender people's rights, including one banning trans girls and women from competing on women’s school sports teams.

This week, he announced he was joining the growing list of GOP governors directing law enforcement or other help to Texas to assist with security along the border with Mexico in a fight with the Biden administration over immigration policy. Hutchinson initially said he would not send state troopers, citing public safety needs in the state. But hours later he announced he was dispatching up to 40 members of Arkansas' National Guard.

Hutchinson has defended his party, even when his nephew, state Sen. Jim Hendren, made a high-profile exit after the deadly riot at the U.S Capitol.

Hendren, who has formed a group aimed at promoting centrist candidates, pointed to his uncle as a model for Republicans in the post-Trump era.

“I would be surprised if he's ready to lay down that mantle of public service that he's carried for so long," Hendren said.

mickeyrat

  A prominent fundraising group for GOP women is “intentionally” withholding campaign donations to freshmen Republican Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia and Lauren Boebert of Colorado, Insider reported Wednesday.   "While we rightfully celebrate the number of GOP women serving in the House, I've always professed quality over quantity," Julie Conway, executive director of the Value In Electing Women Political Action Committee, told Insider in an email. "The work of Congress is not a joke or reality show. Our women have fought too hard for too long to be respected and taken seriously as legislators, policy makers and thought leaders. We cannot let this work be erased by individuals who chose to be shameless self-promoters and carnival barkers.  "I think that they would rather draw attention to themselves, and really Marjorie Taylor Greene more than Boebert, but they're cut from the same cloth," Conway added. 

Public records confirm the VIEW PAC has not given any money to Greene or Boebert to date, and Conway told Insider the PAC would continue to withhold support in 2022.  

In response to USA TODAY’s request for comment, Boebert said she had “never heard of” Conway or VIEW, which she described as a “DC insider PAC.”

“I care about the hard-working Americans from Colorado’s Third Congressional District ... that’s whose cloth I’m cut from,” Boebert said in an email. 

Greene did not immediately respond to USA TODAY’s request for comment. 

Both congresswomen have been criticized for inflammatory language and questionable behavior, particularly on the topic of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

At a fundraiser Thursday in Illinois for another freshman GOP congresswoman, Greene flaunted her We Will Not Comply Act, a bill she filed in April that would prevent discrimination against those who choose not to be vaccinated against COVID-19. 

“It gives you permission to tell Biden’s little posse that’s gonna show up at your door, you know, that intimidate you – they probably they probably work for antifa by night, and then they come and intimidate you to take the vaccine by day – well, you get to tell them to get the hell off of your lawn,” Illinois' WCIA News reported Greene said of the bill Thursday, alluding to comments President Joe Biden made Tuesday of his effort to knock “door-to-door” to increase vaccinations nationwide.

The New York Times reported in December that in Effingham, Illinois, where the fundraiser took place, “almost every call” to a local funeral home there involved service for a COVID-19 victim.

Boebert has also been vocal about allowing people to choose whether they want to be vaccinated without being vilified. 

“Anyone who wants the vaccine should have easy access to it (and thanks to President Trump they do) Anyone who doesn’t want the vaccine should be able to refuse it without being made to feel like a criminal,” she tweeted Thursday. “This is a free country after all.”

The Colorado congresswoman also recently compared COVID-19 to communism and accused Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, of “bullying” for telling Americans to “get over” vaccine hesitancy in a video.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Reps. MTG, Boebert snubbed by GOP women’s fundraising group

View article source

mickeyrat

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GOP Rep. Mo Brooks urged conservatives to 'fight back' and not 'surrender,' invoking the Revolutionary War in CPAC speech

Kelsey Vlamis

7 hours ago

Mo Brooks

Getty

• Mo Brooks referenced the Revolutionary War during a speech at CPAC in Dallas on Friday.
• Brooks told attendees they need to "fight back" and think about "sacrifice" like "our ancestors" did.
• Brooks made similar remarks before the Capitol riot, when he told protesters to "start taking down names and kicking ass."

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Rep. Mo Brooks urged conservatives to "fight back" and "sacrifice" during his speech Friday in Dallas, Texas, at the Conservative Political Action Conference. 

Brooks, a Republican from Alabama, is running for US Senate with the endorsement of former President Donald Trump. His speech was reminiscent of remarks Brooks made on January 6 during the pro-Trump rally that preceded the Capitol attack, during which he told protesters to "start taking down names and kicking ass."

"Now our choice is simple. We can surrender and submit or we can fight back as our ancestors have done," Brooks said Friday, invoking the Revolutionary War and suggesting conservatives should be thinking about a comparable sacrifice.

Read more: Biden's pick to oversee Capitol riot cases is expected to be a former public corruption prosecutor

"Think for a moment about our ancestors who fought at Valley Forge. They didn't fight the British, they fought for survival," Brooks said, referencing thousands of Continental soldiers who died over the course of six months.

"That's the kind of sacrifice that we have to think about," he continued. "And I ask you: are you willing to fight for America? Are you willing to fight for America?"

 

Brooks is being sued by California Rep. Eric Swalwell, who alleges Brooks is responsible for the thousands of rioters who breached the Capitol. Trump, Donald Trump Jr., and Rudy Giuliani are also targeted in the lawsuit.

According to a recent court filing, Brooks said he "represented the will" of his constituents when he told the protesters to fight hours before the riot. His attorneys also insisted Brooks only appeared at the rally because the White House had asked him to.

During his CPAC speech, Brooks also repeated Trump's unsubstantiated claims about voter and election fraud.

NOW WATCH:

More: Mo Brooks CPAC Capitol Siege

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mickeyrat

this kid shouldnt be allowed at the adults table.....

Rep. Madison Cawthorne (R-North Carolina). Courtesy of the Committee on Arrangements for the 2020 Republican National Committee via Getty Images

More

• The North Carolina congressman said door-to-door vaccinations could lead to the confiscation of people's guns and bibles.

• The GOP lawmaker was speaking at a CPAC event in Dallas on Friday.

• Joe Biden said Tuesday door-to-door vaccines could improve vaccination rates as the Delta variant spreads.

• See more stories on Insider's business page.

Rep. Madison Cawthorn said President Joe Biden's call to offer COVID-19 vaccines door-to-door could lead to the government taking people's guns and bibles.

Cawthorn, a Republican from North Carolina, was speaking Friday during an interview at the Conservative Political Action Conference event in Dallas, Texas, taking place this weekend. He was speaking with Right Side Broadcasting Network, a conservative media outlet.

"And now they're sort of talking about going door-to-door to be able to take vaccines to the people. The thing about the mechanisms they would have to build to be able to actually execute that massive of a thing," Cawthorn said, in reference to Biden's latest community-based vaccine push.

"Think about what those mechanisms could be used for. They could then go door-to-door to take your guns. They could go door-to-door to take your bibles," Cawthorn said.

Biden said Tuesday that offering vaccines door-to-door could help increase vaccination rates as the Delta variant of the coronavirus spreads rapidly in several US states. The US also missed the White House's goal of inoculating 70% of adults by July 4th. As of Friday, nearly 59% of adults were fully vaccinated, according to the CDC.

Biden's remarks on Tuesday drew immediate pushback from some conservatives, including Rep. Lauren Boebert, who called the door-to-door vaccinators "needle Nazis." GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene also made a Nazi reference, calling the vaccinators "medical brown shirts," a reference to Adolf Hitler's militia and paramilitary force.

The White House hit back at the criticism, with Press Secretary Jen Psaki saying on Friday: "The failure to provide accurate public health information, including the efficacy of vaccines and the accessibility of them to people across the country, including South Carolina, is literally killing people, so maybe they should consider that."

Read the original article on Business Insider

View article source

Halifax2TheMax

Who here still supports that clown car of a party? Holy fuck are they gone. Might even say jumped the shark but I think they still have a ways to go before they totally self destruct and take the nation with them.

stuckinline

mickeyrat said:

this kid shouldnt be allowed at the adults table.....

Rep. Madison Cawthorne (R-North Carolina). Courtesy of the Committee on Arrangements for the 2020 Republican National Committee via Getty Images

More

• The North Carolina congressman said door-to-door vaccinations could lead to the confiscation of people's guns and bibles.

• The GOP lawmaker was speaking at a CPAC event in Dallas on Friday.

• Joe Biden said Tuesday door-to-door vaccines could improve vaccination rates as the Delta variant spreads.

• See more stories on Insider's business page.

Rep. Madison Cawthorn said President Joe Biden's call to offer COVID-19 vaccines door-to-door could lead to the government taking people's guns and bibles.

Cawthorn, a Republican from North Carolina, was speaking Friday during an interview at the Conservative Political Action Conference event in Dallas, Texas, taking place this weekend. He was speaking with Right Side Broadcasting Network, a conservative media outlet.

"And now they're sort of talking about going door-to-door to be able to take vaccines to the people. The thing about the mechanisms they would have to build to be able to actually execute that massive of a thing," Cawthorn said, in reference to Biden's latest community-based vaccine push.

"Think about what those mechanisms could be used for. They could then go door-to-door to take your guns. They could go door-to-door to take your bibles," Cawthorn said.

Biden said Tuesday that offering vaccines door-to-door could help increase vaccination rates as the Delta variant of the coronavirus spreads rapidly in several US states. The US also missed the White House's goal of inoculating 70% of adults by July 4th. As of Friday, nearly 59% of adults were fully vaccinated, according to the CDC.

Biden's remarks on Tuesday drew immediate pushback from some conservatives, including Rep. Lauren Boebert, who called the door-to-door vaccinators "needle Nazis." GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene also made a Nazi reference, calling the vaccinators "medical brown shirts," a reference to Adolf Hitler's militia and paramilitary force.

The White House hit back at the criticism, with Press Secretary Jen Psaki saying on Friday: "The failure to provide accurate public health information, including the efficacy of vaccines and the accessibility of them to people across the country, including South Carolina, is literally killing people, so maybe they should consider that."

Read the original article on Business Insider

View article source

Bentleyspop

stuckinline said:

mickeyrat said:

this kid shouldnt be allowed at the adults table.....

Rep. Madison Cawthorne (R-North Carolina). Courtesy of the Committee on Arrangements for the 2020 Republican National Committee via Getty Images

More

• The North Carolina congressman said door-to-door vaccinations could lead to the confiscation of people's guns and bibles.

• The GOP lawmaker was speaking at a CPAC event in Dallas on Friday.

• Joe Biden said Tuesday door-to-door vaccines could improve vaccination rates as the Delta variant spreads.

• See more stories on Insider's business page.

Rep. Madison Cawthorn said President Joe Biden's call to offer COVID-19 vaccines door-to-door could lead to the government taking people's guns and bibles.

Cawthorn, a Republican from North Carolina, was speaking Friday during an interview at the Conservative Political Action Conference event in Dallas, Texas, taking place this weekend. He was speaking with Right Side Broadcasting Network, a conservative media outlet.

"And now they're sort of talking about going door-to-door to be able to take vaccines to the people. The thing about the mechanisms they would have to build to be able to actually execute that massive of a thing," Cawthorn said, in reference to Biden's latest community-based vaccine push.

"Think about what those mechanisms could be used for. They could then go door-to-door to take your guns. They could go door-to-door to take your bibles," Cawthorn said.

Biden said Tuesday that offering vaccines door-to-door could help increase vaccination rates as the Delta variant of the coronavirus spreads rapidly in several US states. The US also missed the White House's goal of inoculating 70% of adults by July 4th. As of Friday, nearly 59% of adults were fully vaccinated, according to the CDC.

Biden's remarks on Tuesday drew immediate pushback from some conservatives, including Rep. Lauren Boebert, who called the door-to-door vaccinators "needle Nazis." GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene also made a Nazi reference, calling the vaccinators "medical brown shirts," a reference to Adolf Hitler's militia and paramilitary force.

The White House hit back at the criticism, with Press Secretary Jen Psaki saying on Friday: "The failure to provide accurate public health information, including the efficacy of vaccines and the accessibility of them to people across the country, including South Carolina, is literally killing people, so maybe they should consider that."

Read the original article on Business Insider

View article source

Once again I have to ask....

Who is the bigger idiot?

The idiots who have recently been elected to Congress?
Or
The idiots who voted for the idiots?

Smellyman

Bentleyspop said:

stuckinline said:

mickeyrat said:

this kid shouldnt be allowed at the adults table.....

Rep. Madison Cawthorne (R-North Carolina). Courtesy of the Committee on Arrangements for the 2020 Republican National Committee via Getty Images

More

• The North Carolina congressman said door-to-door vaccinations could lead to the confiscation of people's guns and bibles.

• The GOP lawmaker was speaking at a CPAC event in Dallas on Friday.

• Joe Biden said Tuesday door-to-door vaccines could improve vaccination rates as the Delta variant spreads.

• See more stories on Insider's business page.

Rep. Madison Cawthorn said President Joe Biden's call to offer COVID-19 vaccines door-to-door could lead to the government taking people's guns and bibles.

Cawthorn, a Republican from North Carolina, was speaking Friday during an interview at the Conservative Political Action Conference event in Dallas, Texas, taking place this weekend. He was speaking with Right Side Broadcasting Network, a conservative media outlet.

"And now they're sort of talking about going door-to-door to be able to take vaccines to the people. The thing about the mechanisms they would have to build to be able to actually execute that massive of a thing," Cawthorn said, in reference to Biden's latest community-based vaccine push.

"Think about what those mechanisms could be used for. They could then go door-to-door to take your guns. They could go door-to-door to take your bibles," Cawthorn said.

Biden said Tuesday that offering vaccines door-to-door could help increase vaccination rates as the Delta variant of the coronavirus spreads rapidly in several US states. The US also missed the White House's goal of inoculating 70% of adults by July 4th. As of Friday, nearly 59% of adults were fully vaccinated, according to the CDC.

Biden's remarks on Tuesday drew immediate pushback from some conservatives, including Rep. Lauren Boebert, who called the door-to-door vaccinators "needle Nazis." GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene also made a Nazi reference, calling the vaccinators "medical brown shirts," a reference to Adolf Hitler's militia and paramilitary force.

The White House hit back at the criticism, with Press Secretary Jen Psaki saying on Friday: "The failure to provide accurate public health information, including the efficacy of vaccines and the accessibility of them to people across the country, including South Carolina, is literally killing people, so maybe they should consider that."

Read the original article on Business Insider

View article source

Once again I have to ask....

Who is the bigger idiot?

The idiots who have recently been elected to Congress?
Or
The idiots who voted for the idiots?

yes

benjs

Bentleyspop said:

stuckinline said:

mickeyrat said:

this kid shouldnt be allowed at the adults table.....

Rep. Madison Cawthorne (R-North Carolina). Courtesy of the Committee on Arrangements for the 2020 Republican National Committee via Getty Images

More

• The North Carolina congressman said door-to-door vaccinations could lead to the confiscation of people's guns and bibles.

• The GOP lawmaker was speaking at a CPAC event in Dallas on Friday.

• Joe Biden said Tuesday door-to-door vaccines could improve vaccination rates as the Delta variant spreads.

• See more stories on Insider's business page.

Rep. Madison Cawthorn said President Joe Biden's call to offer COVID-19 vaccines door-to-door could lead to the government taking people's guns and bibles.

Cawthorn, a Republican from North Carolina, was speaking Friday during an interview at the Conservative Political Action Conference event in Dallas, Texas, taking place this weekend. He was speaking with Right Side Broadcasting Network, a conservative media outlet.

"And now they're sort of talking about going door-to-door to be able to take vaccines to the people. The thing about the mechanisms they would have to build to be able to actually execute that massive of a thing," Cawthorn said, in reference to Biden's latest community-based vaccine push.

"Think about what those mechanisms could be used for. They could then go door-to-door to take your guns. They could go door-to-door to take your bibles," Cawthorn said.

Biden said Tuesday that offering vaccines door-to-door could help increase vaccination rates as the Delta variant of the coronavirus spreads rapidly in several US states. The US also missed the White House's goal of inoculating 70% of adults by July 4th. As of Friday, nearly 59% of adults were fully vaccinated, according to the CDC.

Biden's remarks on Tuesday drew immediate pushback from some conservatives, including Rep. Lauren Boebert, who called the door-to-door vaccinators "needle Nazis." GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene also made a Nazi reference, calling the vaccinators "medical brown shirts," a reference to Adolf Hitler's militia and paramilitary force.

The White House hit back at the criticism, with Press Secretary Jen Psaki saying on Friday: "The failure to provide accurate public health information, including the efficacy of vaccines and the accessibility of them to people across the country, including South Carolina, is literally killing people, so maybe they should consider that."

Read the original article on Business Insider

View article source

Once again I have to ask....

Who is the bigger idiot?

The idiots who have recently been elected to Congress?
Or
The idiots who voted for the idiots?

My concern is that idiots aren't going to be the ones to teach idiots how to prevent being taken advantage of, and the intelligent ones are getting quite tired of having to unteach all of the falsehoods filling these minds for decades. How does the idiotic cohort become not idiotic at this point? What (feasibly achievable) goals are likely to have any impact on the under- or miseducated?

mickeyrat

 https://medium.com/the-haven/lauren-boebert-r-co-calls-for-mass-firings-of-teachers-64e4dea07ff9

DewieCox

mickeyrat said:

 https://medium.com/the-haven/lauren-boebert-r-co-calls-for-mass-firings-of-teachers-64e4dea07ff9

I’m calling for mass firings of people that still claim their pro wrestling cousin is their father, despite a paternity test and court rulings proving otherwise.

JeBurkhardt

Bentleyspop said:

stuckinline said:

mickeyrat said:

this kid shouldnt be allowed at the adults table.....

Rep. Madison Cawthorne (R-North Carolina). Courtesy of the Committee on Arrangements for the 2020 Republican National Committee via Getty Images

More

• The North Carolina congressman said door-to-door vaccinations could lead to the confiscation of people's guns and bibles.

• The GOP lawmaker was speaking at a CPAC event in Dallas on Friday.

• Joe Biden said Tuesday door-to-door vaccines could improve vaccination rates as the Delta variant spreads.

• See more stories on Insider's business page.

Rep. Madison Cawthorn said President Joe Biden's call to offer COVID-19 vaccines door-to-door could lead to the government taking people's guns and bibles.

Cawthorn, a Republican from North Carolina, was speaking Friday during an interview at the Conservative Political Action Conference event in Dallas, Texas, taking place this weekend. He was speaking with Right Side Broadcasting Network, a conservative media outlet.

"And now they're sort of talking about going door-to-door to be able to take vaccines to the people. The thing about the mechanisms they would have to build to be able to actually execute that massive of a thing," Cawthorn said, in reference to Biden's latest community-based vaccine push.

"Think about what those mechanisms could be used for. They could then go door-to-door to take your guns. They could go door-to-door to take your bibles," Cawthorn said.

Biden said Tuesday that offering vaccines door-to-door could help increase vaccination rates as the Delta variant of the coronavirus spreads rapidly in several US states. The US also missed the White House's goal of inoculating 70% of adults by July 4th. As of Friday, nearly 59% of adults were fully vaccinated, according to the CDC.

Biden's remarks on Tuesday drew immediate pushback from some conservatives, including Rep. Lauren Boebert, who called the door-to-door vaccinators "needle Nazis." GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene also made a Nazi reference, calling the vaccinators "medical brown shirts," a reference to Adolf Hitler's militia and paramilitary force.

The White House hit back at the criticism, with Press Secretary Jen Psaki saying on Friday: "The failure to provide accurate public health information, including the efficacy of vaccines and the accessibility of them to people across the country, including South Carolina, is literally killing people, so maybe they should consider that."

Read the original article on Business Insider

View article source

Once again I have to ask....

Who is the bigger idiot?

The idiots who have recently been elected to Congress?
Or
The idiots who voted for the idiots?

IMO it is the voter. The people who are elected are manipulating easily manipulated people for power, money, influence and fame. They know exactly how to play people to get them to react, and contribute money to their causes and re-election funds. Some of the elected are true believers, but my suspicion is that most are cynical opportunists. 

Merkin Baller

If only there was a history of anti-intellectual movements from which we could gain some perspective on what's happening here in the United States. 

mickeyrat

heres why gop and wingnut media have panties in a bunch

https://www.zinnedproject.org/news/day-of-action-june-12/

tbergs

DewieCox said:

mickeyrat said:

 https://medium.com/the-haven/lauren-boebert-r-co-calls-for-mass-firings-of-teachers-64e4dea07ff9

I’m calling for mass firings of people that still claim their pro wrestling cousin is their father, despite a paternity test and court rulings proving otherwise.

I didn't realize she was a high school drop out too. Gee, that makes even more sense. Our system is pretty fucked if we can't even require an elected official to at least be educated. But then again, blame the dumb voters. My gawd.

Halifax2TheMax

Where does one go if not full on bat shit crazy? Good gawd.

https://www.instagram.com/tv/CRRLS0AAlrz/?utm_medium=copy_link

Halifax2TheMax

Two states, both similar and with repub gubners. Except one has her eye on the White House. Sure, no difference despite the differing approaches. Freedumb isn't free but it can be dumb.

Opinion: Vermont’s and South Dakota’s covid infection rates are remarkably similar — but their outcomes are not

Ashish K. Jha is dean of the Brown University School of Public Health.

Two states. Two different paths in responding to covid-19. Together, they offer invaluable lessons about the road ahead for the nation — especially as infection rates creep up because of the delta variant.

The two states are Vermont and South Dakota. Both feature among the three states that Covid Act Now classifies as falling in the lowest-risk category, along with Massachusetts. This may be a surprise. While New England states are known to have done extraordinarily well in vaccinating their populations, South Dakota is in the middle of the pack. So, what explains the fact that South Dakota has infection numbers almost as low as Vermont, the most vaccinated state in the nation?

Let’s start with some basics. Vermont and South Dakota share several important similarities. Both have relatively White, older and rural populations. They have comparable median incomes. Both states have Republican governors, challenging the simplistic notion that covid risk is a partisan phenomenon.

Over the past two months, the rates of infection in Vermont and South Dakota have appeared remarkably similar. Both states have seen steep declines in cases, making both states near the best in terms of infections per population.

But this is where the similarity ends. While nearly 75 percent of Vermonters have had at least one vaccine shot, putting the state near the threshold for herd immunity, only half of South Dakotans have had at least one shot. South Dakota’s substantial population immunity instead comes in large part from prior infections, particularly during the fall. This massive surge in infections was driven by the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in August that brought nearly half a million people to South Dakota, sparking outbreaks across that state and, indeed, the nation. With little to no interest on the part of its governor to squelch the outbreak, South Dakota reached the highest levels of infection seen by any state during the pandemic. At its peak, the state was reporting more than 160 new cases per 100,000 residents. Vermont, in comparison, never climbed above 30 cases per 100,000.

Unsurprisingly, these states experienced stunningly different outcomes. Adjusted for population, nearly six times as many people died in South Dakota from covid-19 as in Vermont (230 per 100,000 in South Dakota compared to just 40 per 100,000 in Vermont). In real numbers, while about 250 Vermont residents died from the disease, more than 2,000 South Dakotans died. And as of today, Vermont has a lower unemployment rate, suggesting that there need not be any trade-off between public health and the economy.

By some estimates, nearly half of the people of South Dakota may have been infected. These infections led to huge amounts of suffering beyond the deaths themselves. We are seeing an increasing body of evidence that many who survive serious illness from the virus have long-term complications and symptoms. When infections spike, a run on hospital beds means other people die because they can’t access hospital care, which almost surely occurred in South Dakota at the height of the surge. Vermont took a different approach, keeping public health measures in place to keep infections low and then, building up population immunity through excellent vaccination campaigns.

The virus isn’t going away. In fact, it is likely to become endemic, meaning it will continue to circulate, occasionally causing outbreaks in low-vaccination communities. Most people will encounter the virus at one point or another. And if they don’t have immunity from vaccines, many will get sick. The harms from infection are large, especially in comparison to the generally mild side-effects of the vaccines. And there is some evidence that the vaccine-induced immunity is more effective than natural infection-induced immunity. As the highly contagious delta variant spreads, states that have experienced high levels of infection such as South Dakota may be more vulnerable than highly vaccinated states such as Vermont.

In the spring of 2020, governors had to make decisions with little federal guidance and little historical precedent. But by that summer, it was much clearer how to curtail the disease, protect public health and manage the economy carefully. By following the science, Vermont saved an enormous number of lives and has now reached a degree of population immunity through vaccination that makes large outbreaks unlikely. Embracing a policy of “personal responsibility,” South Dakota did little to protect its residents, leading to the deaths of more than 2,000 South Dakotans and the suffering of tens of thousands more. To avoid more unnecessary outbreaks, we need to learn from states that have successfully weathered the pandemic, follow the science and keep vaccinating Americans.

Opinion | Vermont’s and South Dakota’s covid infection rates are remarkably similar — but their outcomes are not - The Washington Post