Here's what's going on in the US presidential primaries this weekend...
Saturday, March 5: The Democrats will be holding primaries or caucuses in Kansas, Louisiana, and Nebraska. The Republicans will be holding primaries or caucuses in Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, and Maine.
Sunday, March 6: The Democrats head to Maine, and the Republicans hold their primary in Puerto Rico. Also Sunday night: Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders will debate at the Whiting Auditorium in Flint, Michigan. It will start at 8pm ET and will be broadcast on CNN.
Weekend Primary Schedule
Come On
[Content Note: Misogyny.]
Here is a thing I am tired of seeing: Hillary Clinton shouldn't be the nominee because Donald Trump and his supporters and the Republican Machine will unleash ungodly amounts of vicious misogyny against her and she'll lose.
Fuck that forever.
Is the argument that we're seriously supposed to wait until we eradicate misogyny to nominate a woman, without a trace of irony that keeping women out of visible positions of power because they are women is a key tool in ongoingly facilitating misogyny?
Haha of course not! It's always just an argument about this woman. And by that I don't even mean Hillary Clinton; I mean any woman who is qualified and competent and ready to assume a role previously held exclusively by men.
It's just Hillary Clinton in this situation. But there are endless situations in which projected misogynist blowback is reason to just stick with a dude for now.
'Til some vague and mysterious time in the future when misogyny won't be an issue anymore. Apparently.
And in the meantime, let's just keep limiting women's opportunities because of misogynists who want to limit their opportunities.
And if arguably the most privileged woman in the world isn't given the chance because people will try to use bigotry against her, what of all the woman without her privilege? Whose identities provide multiple avenues of attack? When the fuck will they get a chance?
If there is a heaping fuckton of misogyny unleashed on Clinton if and when she's the nominee—and there will be!—that won't be her fault. That will be the fault of the people unleashing it.
Let's keep that in perspective.
[NB: There are legitimate policy reasons to not support Hillary Clinton. That, however, is not on-topic for this post.]
The Friday Blogaround
This blogaround brought to you by pillows.
Recommended Reading:
Bina: [Content Note: Misogynistic violence] A Pro-Woman Stance or a Political Agenda?
Chanelle: [CN: Misogynoir] Black Women Are #NotYourMules
Prison Culture: [CN: Misogynoir; violence; carcerality] AAHS Publishes Laura Scott's Story
Ragen: [CN: Fat hatred] What to Do When a Kid Is Fat Shaming Themselves
Monica: Meet the Woman Who Founded "Bharat Babies," a Children's Book Company Centred on Indian Culture
Fannie: Well Isn't That Clever
Peter: How This Little Symbol (?) Gives the Media License to Assail Hillary's Integrity
Leave your links and recommendations in comments. Self-promotion welcome and encouraged!
Daily Dose of Cute
We have this end table in the living room that's fashioned from metal, to look like vines with wee birds sitting on them, and Sophie loves to sit inside the "cage" it creates. I call it Sophie putting herself in bird jail.
"What? I like it in here!"
As always, please feel welcome and encouraged to share pix of the fuzzy, feathered, or scaled members of your family in comments.
In the News
Here is some stuff in the news today...
[Content Note: Murder] So, allegedly, almost two decades ago, a construction worker found a knife buried on a property owned by O.J. Simpson and turned it over to a police officer, who only now has handed it over to investigators. Whut? LAPD spokesman Andrew Neiman says "the knife would be tested for DNA evidence, but added it was possible that 'the whole story is bogus from the get-go.'" Oh ya think?
[CN: Privilege] BERNIE SANDERS, WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU EVEN DOING? "Fox News is not usually the destination of choice for Democratic candidates seeking to spread their message, but Bernie Sanders has agreed to participate in an hour-long town hall hosted by the network here on Monday. ...Sanders spokesman Michael Briggs said there had also been discussions about having Republican front-runner Donald Trump appear at the same forum, an idea Sanders welcomed." (Clinton was also invited, but declined citing a scheduling conflict, which is the polite way of saying FUCK YOU, FOX NEWS.) Rinse and repeat everything I said about Sanders' visit to Liberty University. I'm frankly even more annoyed that Sanders "welcomes" the idea of a town hall with Trump. Sure, let's bolster that shitlord's candidacy even more. Between this crap and Jane Sanders having said on CNN yesterday that running against Trump would be "fun," I am beyond the beyond with this campaign at this point.
Former Republican turned failed Democratic presidential candidate Jim Webb says that he won't vote for Hillary Clinton if she's the Democratic nominee, but might vote for Donald Trump if he's the Republican nominee. "'I would not vote for Hillary Clinton,' Webb said on MSBNC's Morning Joe. When asked whether he'd vote for Trump, Webb said he wasn't closed to the idea. 'I'm not sure yet. I don't know who I'm going to vote for,' he said. ...'If you're voting for Donald Trump, you may get something very good or very bad,' Webb said. 'If you're voting for Hillary Clinton, you're going to be getting the same thing.'" This fucking guy.
[CN: War on agency] Meanwhile, while abortion hardly figures in the public conversation during this presidential election: "West Virginia Republicans this week passed a bill that would criminalize a medical procedure often used after a miscarriage and during second-trimester abortions. SB 10, sponsored by state Sen. Dave Sypolt (R-Preston), would prohibit someone from performing or attempting to perform a 'dismemberment abortion' unless it is necessary to prevent serious health risk to the pregnant person. The bill targets the dilation and evacuation (D and E) procedure, commonly used in second-trimester abortion care. During the procedure, a physician dilates the patient's cervix and removes the fetus using forceps, clamps, or other instruments. ...D and E bans are the latest chapter in a decades-old strategy by the anti-choice movement to target specific abortion procedures. Health and medical professionals criticize these bans as substituting politicians' agendas for the judgment and expertise of doctors." Any physician who violates the West Virginia law would be "guilty of a felony and may be fined $10,000 and imprisoned for up to two years. The physician may also face injunction and civil damages." You know—to protect "women's health."
[CN: Child neglect and abuse] I don't even have words: "Immigrant children trying to stay in the United States are often left to defend themselves against a team of skilled government lawyers in court proceedings because they are not entitled to legal counsel. Now, one immigration judge is claiming that three and four-year-olds can learn immigration law well enough to represent themselves, the Washington Post reported. 'I've taught immigration law literally to 3-year-olds and 4-year-olds,' Jack H. Weil, an immigration judge, said in sworn testimony in a deposition in Seattle, Washington federal court, according to the publication. 'It takes a lot of time. It takes a lot of patience. They get it. It's not the most efficient, but it can be done.' He made the claim twice more in the deposition, stating, 'I've told you I have trained 3-year-olds and 4-year-olds in immigration law. You can do a fair hearing. It's going to take you a lot of time.' Weil's statement are part of a lawsuit spearheaded by the American Civil Liberties Union and other immigrant advocacy groups calling on the government to provide appointed legal counsel for children who are unable to afford one themselves in court proceedings. He insisted that the comments were taken out of context in a follow-up email with the Washington Post." Of course he did.
[CN: Police misconduct; misogynoir] GOOD: "Nearly eight months after he violently arrested Sandra Bland—who subsequently died in police custody—Brian Encinia is now jobless. Former trooper Encinia was indicted for perjury on January 6, when a grand jury decided that he made false statements about his actions while arresting Bland. The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) immediately announced that it would 'begin termination proceedings to discharge him.' Encinia challenged the decision, but DPS announced yesterday (March 2) that his termination is now final, effective immediately."
"Mark Hamill is very keen on the idea that Luke Skywalker could be gay. It's a notion he's brought up before. But his thoughts are being given new legitimacy given director JJ Abrams recent remarks that 'it seems insanely narrow-minded and counterintuitive to say that there wouldn't be a homosexual character' in the Star Wars universe. Said Hamill, according to a new report in The Sun: 'I just read online that JJ is very much open to that. In the old days you would get fan mail. But now fans are writing and ask all these questions, 'I'm bullied in school… I'm afraid to come out.' They say to me, 'Could Luke be gay?' I'd say it is meant to be interpreted by the viewer. If you think Luke is gay, of course he is. You should not be ashamed of it. Judge Luke by his character, not by who he loves.'" ♥
Neat! "The Hubble Space Telescope just calculated the distance to the most far-out galaxy ever measured, providing scientists with a look deep into the history of the universe. The far-away galaxy, named GN-z11, existed a mere 400 million years after the Big Bang, or about 13.3 billion years ago. Because the light from such a distant galaxy must travel huge distances to reach Earth, scientists are seeing the galaxy as it looked over 13 billion years ago."
Oh nooooo, lol! "Wading birds in the Everglades prefer to nest near resident gators for protection. And the arrangement appears to be mutually beneficial." But: "There is one drawback for adult birds who stray too close to their bodyguard: Gators are not discriminating diners. 'I liken it less to a bodyguard situation, more like keeping some psychopathic murderer in your yard, to keep out cat burglars.'"
And finally! "Photographer Photoshops His Dog into a Giant." Exactly as advertised. I can't stop laughing!
Quote of the Day
"You saved my life. I want that to sink into your ears and mind. My President, you saved my life, and I am eternally grateful. I have a 'pre-existing condition' and so could never purchase health insurance. Only after the ACA came into being could I be covered. Put simply to not take up too much of your time if you are in fact taking the time to read this: I would not be alive without access to care I received due to your law. ...Thank you for serving me even when I didn't vote for you. Thank you for being my President."—Brent Nathan Brown, a lifelong Republican who had been "very vocal" in his opposition to the President and the Affordable Care Act, in a letter to President Obama.
Love.
Republicans, We See You
[Content Note: Bigotry; warmongering.]
In his New York Times column today, Paul Krugman basically summarizes everything I've been writing about the Republican primary for the last eight months:
So Republicans are going to nominate a candidate who talks complete nonsense on domestic policy; who believes that foreign policy can be conducted via bullying and belligerence; who cynically exploits racial and ethnic hatred for political gain.If I have said once, I have literally said two dozen times that Trump is not an outlier, but the unfiltered id of the Republican Party—and that Republicans who feign horror at the specter of his getting the nomination are full of shit, because his policies are not, as they continually insist, outside the mainstream Republican platform, but centered firmly within it. That, if anything, he is less extreme in some ways than his current competitors.
But that was always going to happen, however the primary season turned out. The only news is that the candidate in question is probably going to be Donald Trump. Establishment Republicans denounce Mr. Trump as a fraud, which he is. But is he more fraudulent than the establishment trying to stop him? Not really.
Actually, when you look at the people making those denunciations, you have to wonder: Can they really be that lacking in self-awareness?
Krugman again:
Mr. Ryan also declares that the "party of Lincoln" must "reject any group or cause that is built on bigotry." Has he ever heard of Nixon's "Southern strategy"; of Ronald Reagan's invocations of welfare queens and "strapping young bucks" using food stamps; of Willie Horton?Behold your roosting chickens, Republicans: "The political leadership taught their base too well whom to blame for what ails them, and thus cannot now move them from their fixed gaze and finger-pointing, even as it isn't helping the party anymore—and stands likely to hurt the party for the foreseeable future. They sowed the seeds of prejudice for decades, and now they reap nothing but the only crop such seeds can yield. ...And now the party elites have the temerity to publicly lament that the genie won't go back in the bottle. 'What happened to my party?' wonder the vanishing moderates of the Republican Party, shaking their heads gravely and publicly wringing their hands, before shuffling off to wash them of any responsibility."
Put it this way: There's a reason whites in the Deep South vote something like 90 percent Republican, and it's not their philosophical attachment to libertarian principles.
Krugman continues:
In fact, you have to wonder why, exactly, the Republican establishment is really so horrified by Mr. Trump. Yes, he's a con man, but they all are. So why is this con job different from any other?Behold your roosting chickens, Republicans: "Nothing is more dangerous to the GOP brand than a nominee who flatly refuses to pretend that their policies are anything but what they actually are. ...The challenge for Republican elites has always been how you convince people who aren't obscenely wealthy to vote for a platform designed to exploit them. So they developed a strategy based on appealing to bigotry, to othering and scapegoating and victim-blaming. And then they dressed it up in cynical language about morality. Donald Trump in particular has no use for this masquerade. He's quite content, proud even, thankyouverymuch, to blaze through the campaign trail without any of the requisite delicacy. Because he knows that decades of building a base by fomenting hatred doesn't require it anymore."
The answer, I'd suggest, is that the establishment's problem with Mr. Trump isn't the con he brings; it's the cons he disrupts.
First, there's the con Republicans usually manage to pull off in national elections — the one where they pose as a serious, grown-up party honestly trying to grapple with America's problems. The truth is that that party died a long time ago, that these days it's voodoo economics and neocon fantasies all the way down. But the establishment wants to preserve the facade, which will be hard if the nominee is someone who refuses to play his part.
...Equally important, the Trump phenomenon threatens the con the G.O.P. establishment has been playing on its own base. I'm talking about the bait and switch in which white voters are induced to hate big government by dog whistles about Those People, but actual policies are all about rewarding the donor class.
The entire narrative around Trump's ascendance is total rubbish. Deeply mendacious rubbish, fueled by Republican elites who want to deflect accountability for spending decades laying the groundwork for a candidate exactly like Donald Trump.
And the media not only fails to interrogate this narrative, but helpfully disseminates it.
Just this morning, I read this LA Times piece about the GOP elites' risky plan to stop Trump, in which was this passage: "[Mitt Romney] and other mainstream party leaders say the circumstances this time are extraordinary—citing Trump's sharp departures from long-held conservative policies and coarse rhetoric that is hurting the party's efforts to look more inclusive."
What "sharp departures from long-held conservative policies" are those, exactly? I see this framing over and over, without any evidence to back it up. We're just meant to take as read that Donald Trump diverges significantly from conservative policies, despite the fact that he clearly doesn't.
The real issue is that he's "hurting the party's efforts to look more inclusive." Look being the operative word. The Republican Party is not actually trying to be more inclusive, but merely to look that way. And Trump doesn't have any use for that pretense.
Truly, the only conservative policy from which he has taken a sharp departure is the policy of pretending to give a single fuck about the appearance of decency.
Anyway. Krugman's column is validating. Maybe now that an Important White Dude is saying it, the media heretofore insistent on repeating ad nauseum these bullshit talking points about Trump and his party will reconsider.
[H/T to syb on Twitter.]
Republican Debate Wrap-Up
[Content Note: Bigotry.]
Here is just an actual thing that happened during a presidential debate:
Donald Trump, holding up his hands, which Marco Rubio had said were small: Look at those hands. Are they small hands? And he referred to my hands—if they're small, something else must be small. I guarantee you there's no problem. My guarantee.For those of you keeping count at home, this was the second time in a single day that Trump made an oblique reference to his dick. The first time was during an event in Iowa, when he was pushing back against Mitt Romney's critical speech:
Donald Trump: Mitt is a failed candidate. He failed. He failed horribly. He failed badly. That was a race, I have to say, folks, that should have been won. That was a race that absolutely should have been won. I don't know what happened to him. He disappeared. He disappeared. And I wasn't happy about it; I'll be honest. Because I am not a fan of Barack Obama, and that was a race— And I backed Mitt Romney. I backed him. You can see how loyal he is. He was begging for my endorsement. I could have said, "Mitt, drop to your knees." He would've dropped to his knees. He was begging. [makes a "yeah I said that" face] He was begging me!So this is where we are. Donald Trump has a perfectly adequate sized dick, and Mitt Romney would have sucked it, if only Trump had ordered him to do it.
Quite a party you've got there, Republicans.
Anyway.
The Washington Post has a complete transcript of the debate.
I live-tweeted it, and I have Storified those tweets. If, however, you'd prefer a one-tweet summary, this is probably as good as any of 'em:
This was the 11th Republican debate, and I've watched (I think) all but one of them. That's more than 20 hours of watching these dirtbags shout garbage at each other, and, I have to tell you, each one is worse than the last.
The total lack of empathy among these men is appalling, matched in abject horror only by their aggressive posturing about how they will wield the US' military might.
There isn't a more dangerous combination for a leader.
Question of the Day
What's the best nickname someone's ever given you?
I'm going to call it a tie between Iain calling me "Apple Cheeks" and Deeks calling me "Lint Trap," lol.
Fat Fashion
This is your semi-regular thread in which fat women can share pix, make recommendations for clothes they love, ask questions of other fat women about where to locate certain plus-size items, share info about sales, talk about what jeans cut at what retailer best fits their body shapes, discuss how to accessorize neutral colored suits, share stories of going bare-armed for the first time, brag about a cool fashion moment, whatever.
* * *
I recently got this sweatshirt from Torrid, and I love it so much!
RIP fucks.
Obviously, I still care about a lot of things, but it's absolute perfection for those "I'm not offended; I'm contemptuous" moments, lol.
Anyway! As always, all subjects related to fat fashion are on topic, but if you want a topic for discussion: Got any tops (or jackets, or shoes, or whatever!) that you love because of an overt message they convey?
Have at it in comments! Please remember to make fat women of all sizes, especially women who find themselves regularly sizing out of standard plus-size lines, welcome in this conversation, and pass no judgment on fat women who want to and/or feel obliged, for any reason, to conform to beauty standards. And please make sure if you're soliciting advice, you make it clear you're seeking suggestions—and please be considerate not to offer unsolicited advice. Sometimes people just need to complain and want solidarity, not solutions.
For the Tall Ladies
[Content Note: Misogyny; sizism; violent metaphors.]
One of the interesting things I've seen, on Twitter and here in comments, in response to the Ghostbusters trailer is tall women being very excited about Leslie Jones' evident tallness.
Jones, who is six feet tall, has talked about her tallness in interviews and in her stand-up. In the profile of her I recommended in December, she says: "I know I'm fly—don't get me wrong. But I don't look, like, standard Hollywood. As a comedian, it's something you learn to use."
Her Showtime special, "Problem Child," which aired in 2010, began that way:There's a certain defensiveness to it, by design: "Jones often begins her standup sets by 'taking away their bullets'—neutralizing anything that might distract an audience, so that 'they can stop looking at my outfit, stop worrying about whether I think I'm sexy, and just listen.'"
I know y'all already noticed that I'm a big bitch. ...When I walk in a Payless, it gets quiet than a motherfucker. ...I swear, men, if you can get past my big-ass feet and how tall I am, I'm a great fucking catch. ...I'm fine. I can fuck. I can fight. Oh, I ain't no damsel in distress, motherfucker. You can go get the car, baby, while I handle these three thug motherfuckers.The final line devolves into shadowboxing—Jones bobbing and weaving like a mean-mugging Buster Keaton.
I don't know the lived experiences of tall women, as, at 5'3", I'm pretty much the opposite of tall. But when I hear y'all speak about your experiences, I can certainly relate, as a fat woman, to the constant admonishments, oblique and overt, to take up less space.
And I think it's great that Paul Feig lets Leslie Jones take up space on the screen. I can imagine how cool it is for tall women to look at that frame, and see a tall woman being allowed to be fucking tall.
Anyway. Here's a thread for the tall ladies to talk about the trailer, or their experiences generally with representation in pop culture.
And to my tall friends: Thank you for generously bending over all those times to give me hugs.
Daily Dose of Cute
Zelly and Duckie. ♥
As always, please feel welcome and encouraged to share pix of the fuzzy, feathered, or scaled members of your family in comments.
In the News
Here is some stuff in the news today...
Politico has the full transcript of Mitt Romney's jeremiad against Donald Trump, if you're interested. Donald Trump will no doubt be responding at his campaign event scheduled this afternoon. Shitshow-a-go-go!
[Content Note: War; video may autoplay at link] Fucking hell: "The Syrian government reported a nationwide power outage on Thursday—just the latest electricity problem in a country that has seen frequent outages during a five-year war between the regime, rebels and terror groups. Electrical workers determined the cause and had begun restoring power to some places by late afternoon, the country's ministry of electricity said without detailing what had gone wrong. It wasn't clear how many people were affected by Thursday's outage, as many cities outside of the government's control already weren't being served by the government-run power grid. The ISIS terror group and other militants groups control large parts of the country, and many cities in these areas use fuel-powered generators for electricity."
[CN: Misogynoir] Good grief the Republican Party is fucking terrible: "Naming post office buildings is a job that sometimes falls to the US Congress, and the often stalled body is surprisingly efficient at doing so. But yesterday (Mar. 1) was a surprising exception to their frequently unanimous vote: Nine congressmen, all Republican, voted against naming a new post office building in Winston-Salem, North Carolina after poet Maya Angelou. ...The measure still passed, with 371 'yes' votes." Good.
[CN: Assassination; misogyny; terrorism] My god: "Berta Cáceres, the Honduran indigenous and environmental rights campaigner, has been murdered, barely a week after she was threatened for opposing a hydroelectric project. Her death prompted international outrage at the murderous treatment of campaigners in Honduras, as well as a flood of tributes to a prominent and courageous defender of the natural world. The co-founder of the Council of Indigenous Peoples of Honduras (Copinh) was shot dead by gunmen who entered her home in La Esperanza at around 1am on Thursday. Some reports say there were two killers; others suggest 11. They escaped without being identified, after also wounding her brother. Police told local media the killings occurred during an attempted robbery, but the family said they had no doubt it was an assassination prompted by Cáceres's high-profile campaigns against dams, illegal loggers, and plantation owners." I tend to believe her family. My condolences to them, and everyone who knew and admired Cáceres. What a chilling message to Honduran activists who survive her.
[CN: Guns; murder] "South African athlete Oscar Pistorius has been denied leave to appeal against his conviction for murdering [Reeva Steenkamp, who was dating Pistorius at the time he killed her]. The Constitutional Court has made the ruling, meaning Pistorius will now be sentenced in April. ...Prosecutors are believed to be targeting a sentence of at least 15 years in jail for Pistorius."
[CN: Colorism; appropriation] Nina Simone's family continues to be deeply unhappy with the unauthorized biopic of the singer starring Zoe Saldana.
Actress Kaley Cuoco, who previously made some stupid comments about feminism that I'm too disinterested to look up, now says she's definitely a feminist: "Of course I'm a fucking feminist. Look at me. I bleed feminism. I get equal pay to my male costars on a big show, I have my own home, I'm as independent as you could possibly be." Okay then!
[CN: Image of insect at link] I love this: "Found all over the world, the wandering glider (Pantala flavescens) is aptly named. The dragonfly has truly global reach, and it is found on every continent except Antarctica. To get to all those far-flung corners of the planet, the winged insect (also sometimes called the 'globe skimmer') makes epic migratory flights: They have been seen, for example, traversing the Indian Ocean in the hundreds of thousands on their way from Asia to Africa. But just how far they go has shocked researchers. New research suggests that these dragonflies make transcontinental voyages on a regular basis, which is quite a feat for an insect less than 2 inches in length."
[CN: Video autoplays at link] And finally! This video is a few months old, but I only saw it for the first time today: A kitten tries to copycat (see what I did there?!) her mama's grooming routine. TOO ADORABLE!!!
Whoa: Jane Sanders' Interview with Chris Hayes
[Content Note: Racism; misogyny.]
Jane Sanders, who is married to Bernie Sanders, did an interview with MSNBC's Chris Hayes last night, and it was something. And by "something," I mean "super shitty."
Hayes: —Clinton's lead, which is now nearly two hundred allocated delegates more than Sanders, will become more difficult for Sanders to overcome, because of that proportional allocation. That's a lesson Clinton learned in her two thousand eight race against Barack Obama. Joining me now, spouse of two thousand sixteen presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, Jane Sanders. Ms. Sanders, it's wonderful to have you. Um, what is your feeling about—So, a couple of quick thoughts here:
Sanders: It's nice to be here, Chris.
Hayes: —the mathematical path forward for the Sanders campaign, facing now this banked deficit of 200 allocated delegates, and the fact that it's proportional all the way through?
Sanders: Well, we knew the early maps would be harder for us, uh, for several reasons. First that the people across the country might not be as familiar with Bernie as they are, uh, with the woman that has been in three presidential campaigns—two of her husband's and her own already. Um, so she's quite well-known throughout the world, and we needed to introduce Bernie. Um, however, uh, the early states have turned out to be at least as good as what we had hoped. Um, as you say, it's proportional, so, in Massachusetts, we had forty-nine percent of the vote. The delegate—the delegate count is going to be just about equal. In Vermont, where they know him the best, he got a shutout. Uh, he will get a hundred percent of the delegates, because, uh, Secretary Clinton didn't meet the—the fifteen percent threshold to get any delegates from our state. Um, in terms of the states that we just had, with, um, Super Tuesday, it seems—I think there are two important things to point out: Most of the states that, uh, Secretary Clinton won had low voter turnouts. Most of the states that Bernie won had high voter turnouts. We know, when we have a high voter turnout, Bernie does better, because the more people that participate in the process, they more they, uh— His ideas are carried out. Uh, the second is that most of the states—just, you know, not all of them—but most of the states are historically red states and are not likely to carry the day in the general election. Most of the states that Bernie has won are mostly blue states or battleground states. And he's won them handily. I think it was, um, ten percent in Oklahoma, nineteen percent in Minnesota, twenty some odd percent, ah, in Oklahoma, so—
Hayes: Well, let me stop you right there.
Sanders: —I think we're looking good.
Hayes: Let me stop you right there. There's two things, talking about this from a red state, blue state— I mean, that does seem to me a little, um, a little bit of misdirection, insofar as general election electorates are different, right? And also, it also seems a little dismissive of, say, the good folks in Alabama, right? I mean, it's not Alabaman Democrats'—
Sanders: Oh no, yeah.
Hayes: It's not Alabaman Democrats' fault that they don't have a majority of voters in Alabama! [chuckles] They can't do anything about that, except, you know, make more Democrats. Um, and, and that—that links up to a deeper issue here, right? Which is there is a stark demographic divide happening in the states that Clinton is winning and the states Sanders is winning. Exit polling showing Bernie Sanders losing black voters by eighty-five to fourteen; losing in those states with very high percentages of black voters across the South. I mean, it just seems impossible to me for someone to win the Democratic nomination in the age of the Obama coalition who is losing by those margins among black voters.
Sanders: Well, the age of the Obama coalition was two thousand eight. This is two thousand sixteen. And we'll see either the Sanders coalition, or the Clinton coalition. Uh, I think that it's— You're absolutely right; we need to reach the, uh, the African American voter better. As I said, they're not that familiar with them—with Bernie. What we've done is, um, try to reach the working class voter, uh, the middle class voter, and not go, uh, not divide and, and, and reach out to individual sectors of the community. The Latino community, the African American community, the women, the men, the—the young. Um, but we have to do a better job on that. Um, and we know that, and we are going forward. I think if you look at the, uh, election results of yesterday, you'll see that we were—we had increased, uh, significantly with the Latino vote. Um, and in terms of the wide discrepancy, the same discrepancy holds true with Bernie against Clinton in terms of anybody under 30, no matter what race, what ethnicity—
Hayes: Yeah, there's a huge disparity.
Sanders: —they are. Yes.
Hayes: All right. Jane Sanders, from Burlington, Vermont. Thank you very much. I appreciate it.
1. I find it really gross when Sanders won't even say Hillary Clinton's name, but instead refers to her, for the first time in the interview, as "the woman that has been in three presidential campaigns—two of her husband's and her own already." What the fuck.
2. Black voters just haven't heard of Bernie Sanders. That old canard. This line of bullshit is problematic for a whole lot of reasons, not least of which is the implicit circular racist shitshow that is: Black voters aren't informed and, if they were, they would definitely vote for Bernie
Sanders, so the fact that they aren't voting for Bernie Sanders proves they're uninformed. For fuck's sake.
3. "The age of the Obama coalition was 2008." Uh, nope. That was the beginning of the age of the Obama coalition. And that coalition is the future of not only the Democratic Party, but of the country. The fact that the Sanders campaign has failed to realize or accept this fact is exactly why they're losing.
4. The Sanders campaign is trying to reach out to working class and middle class voters irrespective of race, because they don't want to be "divisive." Hoo boy.
5. It is flatly not true that Sanders wins with "anybody under 30, no matter what race." Sanders wins with white voters under 30, and, in some contests, only white men under 30.
That is hardly a comprehensive accounting of everything wrong with this interview. Again I say: What the fuck is the Sanders campaign even doing?
Have at it in comments.
Two-Minute Nostalgia Sublime
[Content Note: There are some flickery lighting effects in this video.]
Ray Parker, Jr.: "Ghostbusters"
Film Corner: Ghostbusters
[Content Note: Slapstick violence.]
It's here!!! The first full-length trailer for this summer's Ghostbusters film, starring Leslie Jones, Melissa McCarthy, Kate McKinnon, and Kristen Wiig!!!
Video Description: Overhead shot of New York City at dusk. Text Onscreen: "30 years ago." Tinkly piano version of Ghostbusters theme. Text Onscreen: "Four scientists saved New York." Shot of New York City street. Text Onscreen: "This summer." Graffiti of Ghostbusters logo in subway. Text Onscreen: "A new team will answer the call."
Cut to Kate McKinnon, a thin white blond woman; Melissa McCarthy, a fat white brunette woman; and Kristen Wiig, a thin white brunette woman, standing in a row, looking petrified. McCarthy, holding a camera, says breathlessly, "It's a class four apparition." Cut to a lady ghost hovering above them, glowing blue. Wiig approaches her. "It's okay," she says. "She seems...peaceful." She reaches out her hand as the ghost looms. "My name is Erin Gilbert, doctor of particle physics. I—" The ghost screams and vomits green slime all over Wiig. McCarthy records it, gape-mouthed. THERE IS SO MUCH SLIME!
Cut to Wiig, all cleaned up, later. "That stuff went everywhere, by the way," she says. "In every crack. Very hard to wash off." McCarthy and McKinnon look horrified.
Text Onscreen, as the Ghostbusters theme begins to play in earnest: "From Columbia Pictures."
Cut to a lab, full of equipment and parts and wires and gadgets. McCarthy says to McKinnon and Wiig: "We have dedicated our whole lives to studying the paranormal. Now there's sightings all over the city."
Cut to Leslie Jones, a tall, thin black woman, who is dressed as a public transit worker, standing in a subway tunnel, looking up at a gaggle of blue-glowing ghosts. Cut to people running in the streets.
"There are people out there who need our help," McCarthy says, back in the lab. A proton pack (!) glows. She says to McKinnon: "Holtzmann, you're a brilliant engineer." McKinnon demonstrates a contraption she's built. She winks and smiles. McCarthy says to Wiig: "Erin, no one's better at quantum physics than you." Wiig stands in front of a giant whiteboard filled with equations and makes finger-guns. "We can provide a real service," says McCarthy, leaning on a piece of equipment and getting shocked. "Ooh that's hot," she whispers, makes a whoopsface.
Cut to Jones, sitting in a booth at the lab. She smiles broadly. "I'm joining the club!" she says. "You guys are really smart about this science stuff, but I know New York." Clip of Jones at work in a transit booth. "And I can borrow a car from my uncle!" Cut to the street outside the lab, where Jones stands with a hearse. "Haha!" she exclaims, spreading her arms.
"Uh, you didn't disclose that the vehicle was gonna be a hearse," McCarthy says. "It's a Cadillac!" Jones replies.
Cut the the hearse Caddy decked out as the Ghostbustermobile, leaving a garage and tearing down a street. Cut to the four women standing outside the Ghostbustermobile in their Ghostbuster uniforms, looking COOL AS FUCK.
"Let's go!" Wiig says. "Let's go!" McCarthy says. "Oh," they both say, and look at each other. "Did you want to—? I'll let you," says McCarthy. "Next time," says Wiig.
The Ghostbustermobile racing down a street at night. The Ghostbusters bustin' ghosts! In voiceover, Wiig says: "Someone is creating a device that amplifies paranormal activity. We might be the only ones who can stop it."
Cut to Wiig walking cautiously through a wig shop. She's startled by McKinnon posing in a wig and hat and making a silly face. "Holtzmann, come on!" she exclaims. McKinnon replies, "The hat is too much, right? Is it the wig or the hat?"
Giant ghost strolling through Times Square! The Ghostbusters ready their proton packs! Wiig shoots at a ghost! McCarthy punches a ghost with a device! Jones, McCarthy, and McKinnon aim their proton shooters at a ghost! Administrative Assistant Chris Hemsworth kicks open a door!
In voiceover, McCarthy says: "There's a bigger picture at hand here: These ghosts can possess the human form."
McCarthy looks in a sink drain glowing green and gets slimed in the face. Her face drips slime. Jones looks at her like WTF. McCarthy, clearly possessed, gives a creepy smile. She picks up McKinnon by the throat and dangles her out a window. Jones runs, yelling, toward McCarthy, who then spins her head around backwards on her neck. "Oh hell no," says Jones. "The devil is a liar!"
All three tumble back in and onto the floor. "Get outta my friend, ghost!" Jones yells. She slaps McCarthy, and the ghost leaves with a green swoosh. "Ow, that's gonna leave a mark," McCarthy moans. "The power of Patty compels you!" Jones shouts, and slaps McCarthy again. "Owwww!" McCarthy groans.
Ghostbuster logo. Text Onscreen: "Who you gonna call? Summer."
* * *
The thing I love about this trailer is that it manages, in under three minutes, to highlight each of the four stars' unique comedic talents. We see Leslie Jones' amazing high-volume physical comedy punctuated with grinning swagger; Melissa McCarthy's exquisite goofiness; Kate McKinnon's brilliant dry sardonicism juxtaposed with over-the-top expressions; and Kristen Wiig's inimitable quiet awkwardness. It's terrific.
Mitt Romney to Trash Talk Donald Trump
[Content Note: Bigotry.]
It was announced yesterday afternoon that two-time presidential loser Mitt Romney will appear today at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City to give a speech at 11:15am ET "on the state of the 2016 race."
Ever since, parts of the transcript have been "leaking" to the press, to let everyone know that the real purpose of his speech is to attack Donald Trump as a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad candidate.
Here are the excerpts that have been made available to the press:
In 1964, days before the presidential election, Ronald Reagan went on national television and challenged America that it was a "Time for Choosing." He saw two paths for America, one that embraced conservative principles dedicated to lifting people out of poverty and helping create opportunity for all, and the other, an oppressive government that would lead America down a darker, less free path. I'm no Ronald Reagan and this is a different moment but I believe with my heart and soul that we face another time for choosing, one that will have profound consequences for the Republican Party and more importantly, for the country...A few thoughts:
At home, poverty persists and wages are stagnant. The horrific massacres of Paris and San Bernardino, the aggressions of Putin, the growing assertiveness of China and the nuclear tests of North Korea confirm that we live in troubled and dangerous times...
But if we make the right choices, America's future will be even better than our past and better than our present...
Of the remaining candidates, the only serious policy proposals that deal with the broad range of national challenges we confront have come from Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, and John Kasich...
Donald Trump says he admires Vladimir Putin, while has called George W Bush a liar. That is a twisted example of evil trumping good...
The president of the United States has long been the leader of the free world. The president and yes the nominees of the country's great parties help define America to billions of people. All of them bear the responsibility of being an example for our children and grandchildren...
Trump relishes any poll that reflects what he thinks of himself. But polls are also saying that he will lose to Hillary Clinton...
On Hillary Clinton's watch at the State Department, America's interests were diminished in every corner of the world. She compromised our national secrets, dissembled to the families of the slain, and jettisoned her most profound beliefs to gain presidential power...
A person so untrustworthy and dishonest as Hillary Clinton must not become president. But a Trump nomination enables her victory...
I understand the anger Americans feel today. In the past, our presidents have channeled that anger, and forged it into resolve, into endurance and high purpose and into the will to defeat the enemies of freedom. Our anger was transformed into energy directed for good...
Here's what I know. Donald Trump is a phony, a fraud. His promises are as worthless as a degree from Trump University. He's playing the American public for suckers: He gets a free ride to the White House and all we get is a lousy hat...
His domestic policies would lead to recession. His foreign policies would make America and the world less safe. He has neither the temperament nor the judgment to be president. And his personal qualities would mean that America would cease to be a shining city on a hill...
1. When you're sending out a dude who thinks people aren't entitled to food as the standard-bearer of your party's moral compass, you have derailed.
2. Again, this charade is ostensibly the result of Republican Party elites who want to stop Donald Trump. But could anything more effectively solidify his support among right-leaning voters than a representative of the party establishment attacking him very publicly?
3. Surely the GOP knows, unless they have some backroom deal with Trump and this whole thing really is a fucking farce, that this could push Trump into a third-party run. Which would make a Clinton or Sanders victory even more likely. So what's the real strategy here?
4. To cite Trump's policies as dangerous garbage, but then suggest that Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, and John Kasich offer "serious policy proposals that deal with the broad range of national challenges we confront" is laughable. Utterly absurd. Aside from Trump's "build the biggest wall" proposal, the other candidates for the most part share the same policy positions as Trump, and, in some cases (Rubio on abortion; all of their positions on totally defunding Planned Parenthood; all of their positions on repealing the provision that insurance must cover preexisting conditions) are even more extreme than Trump.
5. I agree wholeheartedly that Trump "has neither the temperament nor the judgment to be president." But on what planet do Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, and John Kasich have the temperament and judgment to be president? This entire Republican primary has been a colossal shitshow. None of the people running should be allowed anywhere near the Oval Office. Ever.
Good grief.
HB2 at SCOTUS: Updates
[Content Note: War on agency. NB: Not only women need access to abortion.]
As I mentioned yesterday, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Whole Women's Health vs. Hellerstedt, a case challenging parts of Texas' omnibus abortion bill, HB2.
For some additional background reading, see Jessica Mason Pieklo's "The 36-Year-Old Abortion Rights Case Emerging Again in Whole Woman's Health" and Tina Vasquez's "For Undocumented Women in Texas, HB2 Is Life or Death."
For coverage of yesterday's events at the Court, see:
Dahlia Lithwick: "The Women Take Over."
Irin Carmon: "No Clear Signal from Supreme Court on Abortion."
Lyle Denniston: "Argument Analysis: Two Options on Abortion Law?"
If you want to see what mainstream media sources are saying about the arguments, Molly Runkle's got a good round-up of coverage.
The transcript of the arguments is available in PDF format, and one thing that is abundantly clear: It matters a whole lot that there are liberal women on that Court.
Here, for example, are Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Elena Kagan, and Sonia Sotomayor calling bullshit on the fundamental inconsistency in Texas' argument, made by Solicitor General of Texas Scott Keller, that steep requirements for clinics are to "protect women's health" but that the closing of clinics as a result does not constitute an undue burden:
JUSTICE GINSBURG: Well, how many women are located over 100 miles from the nearest clinic?DAMN.
MR. KELLER: Justice Ginsburg, JA 242 provides that 25 percent of Texas women of reproductive age are not within 100 miles of an ASC. But that would not include McAllen that got as-applied relief, and it would not include El Paso, where the Santa Teresa, New Mexico facility is.
JUSTICE SOTOMAYOR: It includes—
JUSTICE GINSBURG: That's—that's odd that you point to the New Mexico facility. New Mexico doesn't have any surgical—ASC requirement, and it doesn't have any admitting requirement. So if your argument is right, then New Mexico is not an available way out for Texas because Texas says to protect our women, we need these things. But send them off to Mexico—New Mexico, New Mexico where they don't get it either, no admitting privileges, no ASC. And that's perfectly all right. Well, if that's all right for the—the women in the El Paso area, why isn't it right for the rest of the women in Texas?
MR. KELLER: The policy set by Texas is that the standard of care for abortion clinics should rise to the level of ASCs for clinics, and admitting privileges for doctors. Texas obviously can't tell New Mexico how to regulate, but the substantial obstacle inquiry examines whether there is the ability to make the ultimate decision or elect the procedure. And when there's—
JUSTICE GINSBURG: Then why should it count those clinics?
MR. KELLER: Well, here, the evidence in the record showed that this particular clinic was 1 mile across the border that was still in the El Paso metroplex, and women in El Paso often used that facility to obtain abortions. So that would go into the contextual analysis of this particular as-applied challenge. This doesn't go to the facial challenge, but the as-applied challenge and whether women in El Paso do have access to abortion. In any event, over 90 percent of Texas women of reproductive age live within 150 miles of an open clinic as of today.
JUSTICE KAGAN: Mr. Keller, the—the statistics that I gleaned from the record were that 900,000 women live further than 150 miles from a provider; 750,000, three-quarters of a million, further than 200 miles. Now, that's as compared to just in 2012, where fewer than 100,000 lived over 150 miles, and only 10,000 lived more than 200 miles away. So we're going from, like, 10,000 to three-quarters of a million living more than 200 miles away.
MR. KELLER: Well, Justice Kagan, first of all, I believe the statistics at JA 242, which is their expert testimony, would not account for McAllen or El Paso, but in looking at the fraction of women affected. And that would be the facial challenge standard, that at a minimum, a large fraction of cases, there would have to be invalidity even if there was an undue burden. The travel distance of—even in Casey, the district court found over 40 percent of Pennsylvania women were going to have to travel at least one hour, sometimes over three hours, and there was a 24hour waiting period. Texas reduces that waiting period to two hours for traveling over 100 miles. And in Casey, that was not a facial substantial obstacle. Here, that relevant fraction is—is lower. And under Casey, then the facial challenge would not succeed. And Petitioners have a heavy burden, and they haven't shown any capacity evidence—
JUSTICE SOTOMAYOR: When there's a need. Meaning, where are you taking an account in the undue burden analysis the value of the need being—of being imposed? Meaning, even if I grant you that in some circumstances travel time is necessary because you just can't get any kind of abortion clinic to go into a particular area, so you might have to impose a burden that might be undue in other circumstances. Where do we evaluate the benefit of this burden? What—what's the need? You—you seem—your brief seemed to be telling us that there's no role for the Court to judge whether there's really a health benefit to what you're doing.
MR. KELLER: Well, there would be three elements of the doctrine. There's the rational basis test—
JUSTICE SOTOMAYOR: I'm not talking about the doctrine. I'm talking about the question I asked, which is, according to you, the slightest health improvement is enough to impose on hundreds of thousands of women—even assuming I accept your argument, which I don't, necessarily, because it's being challenged—but the slightest benefit is enough to burden the lives of a million women.
If Justice Kennedy is persuaded by that exchange alone, I don't even know.
Justice Ginsburg once said: "People ask me sometimes, when do you think it will it be enough? When will there be enough women on the court? And my answer is when there are nine."
I don't disagree. And in related news on that front, President Obama is reportedly vetting Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Jane L. Kelly as a potential nominee to replace Justice Scalia. According to Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, announcement of the President's pick could come within the week.
