Forgettables and Lamentables: People and Things To Be Put to Rest

 

 

--Assuming the Election of 2020 is actually over, here are some things about which I’d like to forget.

 

·      Ranked choice voting: If you think Joe Biden won decisively, think again. Biden owes his presidency to Jo Jorgensen, the Libertarian candidate. Libertarians are on generally on the right, so we can assume that without Jorgensen, most of her votes would have gone to Trump. Look at the margin-of-victory numbers vs. her voting support:

 

            Arizona:     Biden +11,645      Jorgensen 51,057

            Georgia:   Biden + 24,000   Jorgensen, etc. 72,000

            Pennsylvania:  Biden +53,219  Jorgensen 78,083

            Wisconsin        Biden +20,040  Jorgensen 38,415

 

·      Bernie Bros cost Hillary the 2016 election. See the above bullet and get back to me. Democrats have issues they must resolve. Overall, progressives did better than moderates in 2020. Biden came close to losing, so compost all the “need-moderates” barnyard exhaust. Then explain how Sarah Gideon lost to Susan “The Waffler” Collins.

 

·      Partisan Polling.  It should be banned. How many pleas did you see from Amy McGrath or Jamie Harrison showing they were either ahead or just slightly behind? McConnell trounced McGrath by almost 20% and Harrison spent over $10 million and lost by 10%. If their campaigns were appliances, they’d be busted for bait-and-switch.

 

--I would be happy never want to hear these names again:

 

·      The Clintons: Bonkin’ Bill is one of the biggest frauds of my lifetime. A liberal Democrat? His name is on legislation not even Reagan could get passed: NAFTA, DADT, DOMA, IIRIRA, PRWORA, repeal of Glass-Steagall, the Omnibus Crime Bill, the US-China Relations Act, the Telecommunications Act, the pardon of Marc Rich, war in Somalia (but not Kosovo or Rwanda). If you don’t know about this stuff, look it up! 

 

    Hillary had public sympathy on her side during the Lewinsky scandal, but went full Tammy Wynette in exchange for access to power. She was a run-of-the-mill senator; a decent,  though bellicose, secretary of state; and squandered a huge lead in 2016. 

 

 ·      Nate Silver: Speaking of frauds! Here’s a guy who got the 2008 election right and hasn’t been in the money since. Now he pleads that his data points were wrong. All that means is that his polls were never scientific in the first place. Silver is merely an aggregator, though not a discerning one. Truly scientific polls–if they still exist–have margin errors in the plus or minus 2% range, not 9% or more. Even Nostradamus was better at predictions.

 

 ·      Sarah Gideon: If you can’t beat Susan Collins, you’re in the wrong state.

 

 ·      Gus Bickford: The head of the MA Democratic Party is accused of telling UMass students to go public with allegations against Congressman Richie Neal’s primary opponent, Alex Morse. Bickford claims he broke no laws. Perhaps, but that doesn’t mean he’s not crooked. 

 

 --I don’t need to hear these names again unless proceeded by modifiers such as fired, indicted, arrested, or sentenced:

 

·      Donald Trump: There are prostitutes with more morality than Trump. We know this from their testimony.

           

·      William Barr: He has no respect for the law, so maybe the law should show some disrespect toward him.

 

·      Mike Pompeo: He is despised abroad and unloved at home.

 

·      Betsy DeVos: Can she even spell “education?”

 

·      Jared Kushner: Sleaze? Flunky? Asshat? Take your pick.

 

·      Mike Pence: Machiavelli fell on his sword for 4 years. Let him bleed.

 

·      John Bolton: The “brave” man who didn’t tell the truth when it actually mattered.

 

·      Steve Bannon: Move to Russia; you and Julian Assange deserve each other.

 

·      Elaine Chao: Time to return this perennial toady to the muck.

 

·      Rudy Giuliani: Once a very good mayor of NYC. Must have met the Devil at the crossroads and traded his soul for slime.

 

·      Eugene Scalia: Antonin’s son as secretary of labor? How about Willie Sutton as secretary of the treasury?

 

·      Trump’s interchangeable eye candy: To Kellyanne Conway, Kayleigh McEnany, Stephanie Grisham, Sarah Sanders, Hope Hicks, etc. Don’t lose you looks ladies, or Fox News won’t keep you around very long.

 

·      Mitch McConnell: As honest as your average Kentucky basketball coach. So vile he might be Jesse Helms risen from the grave.