I wish we COULD end their careers & vote them out in Nov. I can think of a couple other Repubs. I'd like to get out who are busy holding up important votes. I'm sitting here in IL where our MOC are Democrats & responsible voters. Other than donating to those running against the holdouts, I feel helpless to do anything.
I'm trying to think of what it is like to be a member of a caucus that cannot get its act together. If it were me, I'd be looking across the aisle to find common ground with people who are at least nominally on the other side, but who are open to discussion and analysis. The Republican mantra of letting the tail wag the dog is unacceptable. These particularists have lost all semblance of reason and balance. Congress was designed to broker differences of opinion. Instead, those GOP fainthearts respond to the loudest, angriest voice in the room. We don't have forever to get a sufficient number of members to agree to work with one another. Time to act.
I‘ve come to believe that Trump has (as Mary Trump suggested) „failed up“ his whole life, and the entire Freedom Caucus is the same. They are unqualified for their jobs, and so will do whatever it takes to keep them because they know they have nowhere to go but down. Any competent person with self respect would never pull the kinds of stunts they are. This includes Jim Jorden (maybe especially Jom Jordan). So it‘s important to keep in mind that these folks can‘t be reasoned with, that they are in it for only themselves, and the best thing we can likely do is give generously to their primary challengers. The good news here is that they all have only 2 year terms, and that in many cases there are good rational and reasonable people out there willing to take their jobs and actually DO them if elected.
'Failing upward'seems to be a peculiar destructive feedback loop that afflicts the world into, because ordinary families cannot afford to cater to the whims and tantrums of family members who remain fixated in late childhood. In the case of Donald Trump, he managed to avoid drug addiction, perhaps because he was forever under the watchful eye of his father, who would be conditioned to become the father's surrogate and alter ego, particularly in business matters. Donald Trump had an older brother who died of alcoholism. Trump himself seems to be a case of arrested development as someone in late childhood between the ages of six and eight years of age, shrewd enough to placate his demanding father, but losing his identity and the character that his father created of him. Donald Trump seems to be a Peter Pan-like individual whose psyche was forever locked into the arrested development of early adolescence. Rather than having to face the world as most children do, Trump had the please one individual, and only one, his father. Everything else was simply a stage prop for whatever stage in life he happened to be in. Trump was bailed out of trouble repeatedly from my childhood onward. When Trump's father was no longer available, there were teams of professional 'helpers', whether they be accountants, lawyers, fixers of every description, it didn't matter. Donald Trump never learned to grow up, and it was that man-child that presented himself every day, whether it was in his shtick of being a New York man-about-town celebrity and darling of the gossip pages, the would-be developer who lost money hand over fist, the would-be politico who served as arm candy for various politicians, and a source of campaign funds that kept them in office. Having money greases a lot of paths, as within his set, money, and lots of it to throw around, is the universal lubricant.
There came a time, however, where personal wealth becomes secondary to an ability to fulfill the requirements of a job description, whether in private industry are in elective office. And it became clear that Donald Trump could no longer withstand the close scrutiny of the national press that was not adoring, or seeking to capitalize on Trump's own celebrity in order to make money. The David Peckers of the world occupy a very small niche in the newspaper business. Such was Trump's celebrity and popularity within the lower social classes of America, that man of means and accomplishment felt comfortable in approaching Trump to be their 'beard', or front man to accomplish their own moneymaking schemes, whether it involved touting tax cuts for the wealthy, restrictive trade deals for monopolists, or simply keeping wealthy donors' identities well hidden from public view, Donald Trump served his purpose. Trump's first Secretary of State referred to his boss as, "a fucking moron", an epithet which he took little pains to deny. The men that Trump hired to be his official Chief of Staff, and official spokespersons, seem to be replaced as often as the bed linen in the president's official residence. Power attracts ambitious men the same way a moth is attracted to a flame. Each of the men who occupied positions close to Trump took the job under the conceit that somehow, in some way, they would be able to exert some sort of controls over their rambunctious boss. That was never going to be the case. The men whom Donald Trump hired and later fired, or who left of their own volition, could fill an entire alumni chapter of some Ivy League college or university. Turning the White House and the West Wing into the president's unofficial rumpus room get our country no good at all. But, the gravitational waves emitted by this Sun King-Wannabe continued to attract and ensnare ambitious and ethically dubious men until the very end of his reign. Men like Kenneth Chesebro, or attorneys Sidney Powell, John Eastman, and Rudy Giuliani each imagine themselves to be some kind of Grand Vizier in this Arabian Nights tale, in which they saved the day for a needy, confused, and in-over-his-head Emperor; and how this damaged-goods Emperor was able to manipulate each of them until the very end. But they fail to realize was that the Emperor had a preternatural ability to detect bullshit, and being the most jealous of emperors, he always knew what he thought would benefit himself most, regardless of what it did to others. The upshot was that all of these individuals became enmeshed in the Emperor's plan to overthrow the constitutional basis on which the Emperor held his throne. Ultimately, albeit belatedly, the laws on which our country were founded are being enforced against the imperial pretensions of Donald Trump, and his foolish henchmen who thought they could ride his coattails to untold wealth and greatness.
For its part, the Republican Party that sees itself as beholden to Donald Trump is getting very little on its own, whether he was in office or out. These too fill the description of men who tend to fail upward, holding onto their jobs as congressmen or senators, nearly every one of them from relatively poor (or underpopulated) rural states, with only their official positions to hold onto, as long as they can, until they can retire at an advanced age. It goes without saying that our Constitution expected better of those individuals representing constituents, whether at the local level, in the House of Representatives, or States (and until 1914 were appointed by state legislatures) for as long as they care to serve. Back then, the pay was relatively low, and having to live in a Washington rooming house while Congress was in session was deemed to be sufficiently onerous that only a few relatively ambitious are affluent individuals were willing to withstand the rigors of the campaign trail, and actually having to serve in the Congress in which they were elected the be present. All that is changed. A senatorial seat is now seen as a perk for politically motivated men and women who are otherwise wealthy in their own right. They also tend to stay forever. Iowa's Senator Charles Grassley is now age 90; California Senator Dianne Feinstein passed away while in office at age 90. Back when the Constitution was drafted, if a man survived until age 55, he was considered a venerated elder; not so today. Through an unfortunate combination of circumstances, the upcoming 2024 election is looking to be a geriatric shitshow. The Republican front runner is Donald Trump, age 77, and who is becoming more childish with every passing day. The incumbent president, Joseph Biden, is 80 years of age, just several months younger than I am. He and I are contemporaries in ways that other voters might not relate to him in the same way as I do. He is not required to at least to pretend a youthful vigor that will convince low information voters that he is still capable of doing his job. In terms of capability, President Biden is doing a superb job by any objective standard. In terms of fulfilling the voters' expectations, the voters still have a lot to learn about the latent ability of older people to keep on top of things, and to come through when everyone else in the family fails. Joe Biden makes all of us over the age of 80 feel young again.
Scalise is out. Read that Mike Rogers (AL) wants to go across the aisle and make a deal with the democrats, claiming It’s the only way forward. Jordan doesn’t have the votes, wither, for which I am overjoyed. I can’t stomach Jim Jordan. What a shit show this is.
Middle of the road Dems and Republicans need to unite and elect Adam. But in reality, we need to come up with a more viable Democratic candidate, or Republican. However most of those types seem to be complacent.
That‘s exactly right. Sadly, these perverse politicians have convinced their constituents that this is somehow a good thing, much like Gaetz is now a hero to so many in his district. I certainly would like to know what strategy can be employed to convince ordinary voters that we actually need a functioning government. Will it take shutting down the government? How many will suffer as a result? And, in the meantime, are there enough courageous republicans in congress not up for reelection (or in Biden carried districts) who may get fed up and vote for Hakim Jeffries simply to keep the government functioning? I see no other solutions to the awful mess.
I agree with everyone! Especially "trump"! I don't capitalize it either! We need to keep the faith that most power-hungry bullies only have a short reign! Thank you, Adam for giving us that hope!
He is a zero. Jim Jordan is a sycophant of trump. (I use lower case for a reason) trump is sub-human and does not deserve a “T” I his name. Adam...why are you not on the ballot?
I wish more voters would get informed and dare I say it “wake up”. We release our voice with all this senseless drama, we become a comedy of errors. My opinion of course
Jim Jordan must have thought that becoming Speaker of the House of Representatives was something like being elected Prom King, at high school homecoming. I can think of no member of Congress over the past sixty years I have been paying attention to this sort of thing who is least qualified to hold the job of Speaker. The essential job of Speaker, apart from scheduling debate on bills pending before the House is the ability to count votes. If Jordan took off both of his shoes, he might be able to count as many fingers and toes as he has, but that's about 200 digits short of what he needs to pass legislation. He has the temperament of a pool hall shark, and the empathy of a Mafia hitman. Being Speaker, the incumbent needs to have the capacity to read people, a quality that Jordan has little or any capacity to discern. With him it's either predator or prey; he is the predator, and everyone else is the prey. So what is he going to do when he needs votes? To me, Jim Jordan is a one trick pony — he can threaten people, when anything other than a sap or pair of brass knuckles would be lost on him. Jordan alienates people; he is good with that only to the extent that witnesses who come before his committee are subjected with verbal abuse and threats, and the first-or second-year law student could probably fly rings around him. He's not verbal enough to say anything halfway intelligent, and I would have to assume that his writing skills are even less well developed.
But let's face it, Jim Jordan really isn't in the running, anyhow; and as of late this evening, neither he nor his erstwhile rival for the Speakership, Steve Scalise, have been able to corral the requisite number of votes that would allow them to claim the prize. No member of the Republican conference within the House of Representatives has yet dared suggest that one of their number might cut a deal with the Democrats so that the house can at least take care of pressing business that now includes America's financial support for two wars that are now festering in Ukraine and in Gaza. President Biden has promised Israel full-throated support over the last Saturday's massacre of innocents in southern Israel by Hamas; and Israel has mobilized its entire army in preparation for an invasion of Gaza to recover hostages and to destroy Hamas. We get to provide the arms and ammunition. Whether it is Ukraine, or Israel, surely the depth of commitment and risk to world peace if things go wrong would be expected to penetrate the stubborn pride of Republican Congressmen seeking to feather their nest while they still can. Instead, the ideologues have taken over, along with their preening egos and unabashed sense of self-importance. Representative Jordan's self regard notwithstanding, the House of Representatives still needs to go through the formal procedures necessary to appropriate money to be voted on by that House, and thereafter by the Senate, neither of which tasks are getting done anytime soon. Instead we have the tail wagging the dog. As in the board game Monopoly, you don't get a $200 unless you pass GO, and we are a long way from getting there, either this week or next. The United States government is frozen in place because eight or 10 people in the Republican conference have their nose out of joint, or they can put their ego aside and get cracking on the nation's business which becomes more urgent every day. This, my friends, is not what is meant by Leadership. If any of these people had any real sense of what it means to be a leader, they would've found a way to put their differences aside, and cut a deal with the Democrats to move the process forward. In the last person I would expect to do so would be Jim Jordan. He just doesn't have it in him!
I wish Everyone would vote to a one theme.” What is best constitutionally for all!!
I vote Hakeem Jefferies. Watching him after losing to MCCarthy.( he was professional)
It’s not about being Republican or Democrate.
We all represent our country. Jordon will not be able to unify a thing. His xabuse knowledge, his arrogant antics or profuse making a congressional mtg/ into a sand box “ war of who took my bucket?”
When will the American people get to a place where they say, "enough of this b---s---? We can't wait another year to get rid of the bad apples. Stop paying Congress for not doing their job and send all campaign donations to humanitarian relief organizations. The greatest country in the world is looking foolish because it doesn't have functioning government and therefore can't carry out the necessary functions of government. Very soon there will be real world consequences that we are all going to feel if we don't demand better!
It’s a sad thing to see this country unable to be or do the noble things that our founding fathers accomplished. Two things that are apparent to me is: 1) All elected officials in Congress need term limits, not just the position of president. However, to bring this about the very people who would need to make this a law are the very people who it would most affect. It’s like asking the fox to guard the henhouse. It would never pass. I am 72 years old and have followed local and national politics for a long time. Sometime in my late twenties I realized that “career“ politicians were not healthy for our democracy. When this country was being formed and shaped, the vision was legislators were to make the sacrifice of governing for a limited time then go back home to their jobs or farms or whatever they engaged in before. This new country was something they felt strongly enough about that the time away from their home and livelihood was worth it. Longevity was not the reason to be elected. Somewhere along the years the “perks” ( i.e. medical insurance, pensions,) became too enticing to give up. The ordinary private citizens don’t get to partake of these benefits, I’m not sure why politicians get to ( especially now with their abyssal behaviors and dismal track records).
2) Somehow this country and our democracy became the rule of the minority. I know that there are marginalized groups who feel their voices are not heard have a right to speak and make their thoughts known. But they should not hold the power to thwart the choices of the majority. Special interest groups have a right to hold to their beliefs but they don’t have a right to hijack the majority’s wishes. A prime example is the current situation with the expulsion of McCarthy as speaker of the house by 6 people. Why should this small number of people be allowed to dictate what most of the body does not want? This is just one example throughout the nation, both at a local and national level, of minority rule. There has to be a better way. Maybe it starts with better people? Just waiting for Adam or Liz to run someday.
I wish we COULD end their careers & vote them out in Nov. I can think of a couple other Repubs. I'd like to get out who are busy holding up important votes. I'm sitting here in IL where our MOC are Democrats & responsible voters. Other than donating to those running against the holdouts, I feel helpless to do anything.
Yes, he is. With Trump 100% behind it.
I'm trying to think of what it is like to be a member of a caucus that cannot get its act together. If it were me, I'd be looking across the aisle to find common ground with people who are at least nominally on the other side, but who are open to discussion and analysis. The Republican mantra of letting the tail wag the dog is unacceptable. These particularists have lost all semblance of reason and balance. Congress was designed to broker differences of opinion. Instead, those GOP fainthearts respond to the loudest, angriest voice in the room. We don't have forever to get a sufficient number of members to agree to work with one another. Time to act.
I‘ve come to believe that Trump has (as Mary Trump suggested) „failed up“ his whole life, and the entire Freedom Caucus is the same. They are unqualified for their jobs, and so will do whatever it takes to keep them because they know they have nowhere to go but down. Any competent person with self respect would never pull the kinds of stunts they are. This includes Jim Jorden (maybe especially Jom Jordan). So it‘s important to keep in mind that these folks can‘t be reasoned with, that they are in it for only themselves, and the best thing we can likely do is give generously to their primary challengers. The good news here is that they all have only 2 year terms, and that in many cases there are good rational and reasonable people out there willing to take their jobs and actually DO them if elected.
'Failing upward'seems to be a peculiar destructive feedback loop that afflicts the world into, because ordinary families cannot afford to cater to the whims and tantrums of family members who remain fixated in late childhood. In the case of Donald Trump, he managed to avoid drug addiction, perhaps because he was forever under the watchful eye of his father, who would be conditioned to become the father's surrogate and alter ego, particularly in business matters. Donald Trump had an older brother who died of alcoholism. Trump himself seems to be a case of arrested development as someone in late childhood between the ages of six and eight years of age, shrewd enough to placate his demanding father, but losing his identity and the character that his father created of him. Donald Trump seems to be a Peter Pan-like individual whose psyche was forever locked into the arrested development of early adolescence. Rather than having to face the world as most children do, Trump had the please one individual, and only one, his father. Everything else was simply a stage prop for whatever stage in life he happened to be in. Trump was bailed out of trouble repeatedly from my childhood onward. When Trump's father was no longer available, there were teams of professional 'helpers', whether they be accountants, lawyers, fixers of every description, it didn't matter. Donald Trump never learned to grow up, and it was that man-child that presented himself every day, whether it was in his shtick of being a New York man-about-town celebrity and darling of the gossip pages, the would-be developer who lost money hand over fist, the would-be politico who served as arm candy for various politicians, and a source of campaign funds that kept them in office. Having money greases a lot of paths, as within his set, money, and lots of it to throw around, is the universal lubricant.
There came a time, however, where personal wealth becomes secondary to an ability to fulfill the requirements of a job description, whether in private industry are in elective office. And it became clear that Donald Trump could no longer withstand the close scrutiny of the national press that was not adoring, or seeking to capitalize on Trump's own celebrity in order to make money. The David Peckers of the world occupy a very small niche in the newspaper business. Such was Trump's celebrity and popularity within the lower social classes of America, that man of means and accomplishment felt comfortable in approaching Trump to be their 'beard', or front man to accomplish their own moneymaking schemes, whether it involved touting tax cuts for the wealthy, restrictive trade deals for monopolists, or simply keeping wealthy donors' identities well hidden from public view, Donald Trump served his purpose. Trump's first Secretary of State referred to his boss as, "a fucking moron", an epithet which he took little pains to deny. The men that Trump hired to be his official Chief of Staff, and official spokespersons, seem to be replaced as often as the bed linen in the president's official residence. Power attracts ambitious men the same way a moth is attracted to a flame. Each of the men who occupied positions close to Trump took the job under the conceit that somehow, in some way, they would be able to exert some sort of controls over their rambunctious boss. That was never going to be the case. The men whom Donald Trump hired and later fired, or who left of their own volition, could fill an entire alumni chapter of some Ivy League college or university. Turning the White House and the West Wing into the president's unofficial rumpus room get our country no good at all. But, the gravitational waves emitted by this Sun King-Wannabe continued to attract and ensnare ambitious and ethically dubious men until the very end of his reign. Men like Kenneth Chesebro, or attorneys Sidney Powell, John Eastman, and Rudy Giuliani each imagine themselves to be some kind of Grand Vizier in this Arabian Nights tale, in which they saved the day for a needy, confused, and in-over-his-head Emperor; and how this damaged-goods Emperor was able to manipulate each of them until the very end. But they fail to realize was that the Emperor had a preternatural ability to detect bullshit, and being the most jealous of emperors, he always knew what he thought would benefit himself most, regardless of what it did to others. The upshot was that all of these individuals became enmeshed in the Emperor's plan to overthrow the constitutional basis on which the Emperor held his throne. Ultimately, albeit belatedly, the laws on which our country were founded are being enforced against the imperial pretensions of Donald Trump, and his foolish henchmen who thought they could ride his coattails to untold wealth and greatness.
For its part, the Republican Party that sees itself as beholden to Donald Trump is getting very little on its own, whether he was in office or out. These too fill the description of men who tend to fail upward, holding onto their jobs as congressmen or senators, nearly every one of them from relatively poor (or underpopulated) rural states, with only their official positions to hold onto, as long as they can, until they can retire at an advanced age. It goes without saying that our Constitution expected better of those individuals representing constituents, whether at the local level, in the House of Representatives, or States (and until 1914 were appointed by state legislatures) for as long as they care to serve. Back then, the pay was relatively low, and having to live in a Washington rooming house while Congress was in session was deemed to be sufficiently onerous that only a few relatively ambitious are affluent individuals were willing to withstand the rigors of the campaign trail, and actually having to serve in the Congress in which they were elected the be present. All that is changed. A senatorial seat is now seen as a perk for politically motivated men and women who are otherwise wealthy in their own right. They also tend to stay forever. Iowa's Senator Charles Grassley is now age 90; California Senator Dianne Feinstein passed away while in office at age 90. Back when the Constitution was drafted, if a man survived until age 55, he was considered a venerated elder; not so today. Through an unfortunate combination of circumstances, the upcoming 2024 election is looking to be a geriatric shitshow. The Republican front runner is Donald Trump, age 77, and who is becoming more childish with every passing day. The incumbent president, Joseph Biden, is 80 years of age, just several months younger than I am. He and I are contemporaries in ways that other voters might not relate to him in the same way as I do. He is not required to at least to pretend a youthful vigor that will convince low information voters that he is still capable of doing his job. In terms of capability, President Biden is doing a superb job by any objective standard. In terms of fulfilling the voters' expectations, the voters still have a lot to learn about the latent ability of older people to keep on top of things, and to come through when everyone else in the family fails. Joe Biden makes all of us over the age of 80 feel young again.
“ fame is thr new currency”... what a phrase!!
HOW VERY APPROPRIATE TO CALL THIS WHAT IT IS.
Thank you Adam!!
Scalise is out. Read that Mike Rogers (AL) wants to go across the aisle and make a deal with the democrats, claiming It’s the only way forward. Jordan doesn’t have the votes, wither, for which I am overjoyed. I can’t stomach Jim Jordan. What a shit show this is.
Middle of the road Dems and Republicans need to unite and elect Adam. But in reality, we need to come up with a more viable Democratic candidate, or Republican. However most of those types seem to be complacent.
Amen
That‘s exactly right. Sadly, these perverse politicians have convinced their constituents that this is somehow a good thing, much like Gaetz is now a hero to so many in his district. I certainly would like to know what strategy can be employed to convince ordinary voters that we actually need a functioning government. Will it take shutting down the government? How many will suffer as a result? And, in the meantime, are there enough courageous republicans in congress not up for reelection (or in Biden carried districts) who may get fed up and vote for Hakim Jeffries simply to keep the government functioning? I see no other solutions to the awful mess.
I agree with everyone! Especially "trump"! I don't capitalize it either! We need to keep the faith that most power-hungry bullies only have a short reign! Thank you, Adam for giving us that hope!
He is a zero. Jim Jordan is a sycophant of trump. (I use lower case for a reason) trump is sub-human and does not deserve a “T” I his name. Adam...why are you not on the ballot?
I wish more voters would get informed and dare I say it “wake up”. We release our voice with all this senseless drama, we become a comedy of errors. My opinion of course
Jim Jordan must have thought that becoming Speaker of the House of Representatives was something like being elected Prom King, at high school homecoming. I can think of no member of Congress over the past sixty years I have been paying attention to this sort of thing who is least qualified to hold the job of Speaker. The essential job of Speaker, apart from scheduling debate on bills pending before the House is the ability to count votes. If Jordan took off both of his shoes, he might be able to count as many fingers and toes as he has, but that's about 200 digits short of what he needs to pass legislation. He has the temperament of a pool hall shark, and the empathy of a Mafia hitman. Being Speaker, the incumbent needs to have the capacity to read people, a quality that Jordan has little or any capacity to discern. With him it's either predator or prey; he is the predator, and everyone else is the prey. So what is he going to do when he needs votes? To me, Jim Jordan is a one trick pony — he can threaten people, when anything other than a sap or pair of brass knuckles would be lost on him. Jordan alienates people; he is good with that only to the extent that witnesses who come before his committee are subjected with verbal abuse and threats, and the first-or second-year law student could probably fly rings around him. He's not verbal enough to say anything halfway intelligent, and I would have to assume that his writing skills are even less well developed.
But let's face it, Jim Jordan really isn't in the running, anyhow; and as of late this evening, neither he nor his erstwhile rival for the Speakership, Steve Scalise, have been able to corral the requisite number of votes that would allow them to claim the prize. No member of the Republican conference within the House of Representatives has yet dared suggest that one of their number might cut a deal with the Democrats so that the house can at least take care of pressing business that now includes America's financial support for two wars that are now festering in Ukraine and in Gaza. President Biden has promised Israel full-throated support over the last Saturday's massacre of innocents in southern Israel by Hamas; and Israel has mobilized its entire army in preparation for an invasion of Gaza to recover hostages and to destroy Hamas. We get to provide the arms and ammunition. Whether it is Ukraine, or Israel, surely the depth of commitment and risk to world peace if things go wrong would be expected to penetrate the stubborn pride of Republican Congressmen seeking to feather their nest while they still can. Instead, the ideologues have taken over, along with their preening egos and unabashed sense of self-importance. Representative Jordan's self regard notwithstanding, the House of Representatives still needs to go through the formal procedures necessary to appropriate money to be voted on by that House, and thereafter by the Senate, neither of which tasks are getting done anytime soon. Instead we have the tail wagging the dog. As in the board game Monopoly, you don't get a $200 unless you pass GO, and we are a long way from getting there, either this week or next. The United States government is frozen in place because eight or 10 people in the Republican conference have their nose out of joint, or they can put their ego aside and get cracking on the nation's business which becomes more urgent every day. This, my friends, is not what is meant by Leadership. If any of these people had any real sense of what it means to be a leader, they would've found a way to put their differences aside, and cut a deal with the Democrats to move the process forward. In the last person I would expect to do so would be Jim Jordan. He just doesn't have it in him!
I wish Everyone would vote to a one theme.” What is best constitutionally for all!!
I vote Hakeem Jefferies. Watching him after losing to MCCarthy.( he was professional)
It’s not about being Republican or Democrate.
We all represent our country. Jordon will not be able to unify a thing. His xabuse knowledge, his arrogant antics or profuse making a congressional mtg/ into a sand box “ war of who took my bucket?”
Jefferies yea
Jordon a sound NO NO NO!!!
I’m seeing reports that Scalise has dropped out. This is a total sh-t show.
When will the American people get to a place where they say, "enough of this b---s---? We can't wait another year to get rid of the bad apples. Stop paying Congress for not doing their job and send all campaign donations to humanitarian relief organizations. The greatest country in the world is looking foolish because it doesn't have functioning government and therefore can't carry out the necessary functions of government. Very soon there will be real world consequences that we are all going to feel if we don't demand better!
Why do these deplorables keep being re-elected?
It’s a sad thing to see this country unable to be or do the noble things that our founding fathers accomplished. Two things that are apparent to me is: 1) All elected officials in Congress need term limits, not just the position of president. However, to bring this about the very people who would need to make this a law are the very people who it would most affect. It’s like asking the fox to guard the henhouse. It would never pass. I am 72 years old and have followed local and national politics for a long time. Sometime in my late twenties I realized that “career“ politicians were not healthy for our democracy. When this country was being formed and shaped, the vision was legislators were to make the sacrifice of governing for a limited time then go back home to their jobs or farms or whatever they engaged in before. This new country was something they felt strongly enough about that the time away from their home and livelihood was worth it. Longevity was not the reason to be elected. Somewhere along the years the “perks” ( i.e. medical insurance, pensions,) became too enticing to give up. The ordinary private citizens don’t get to partake of these benefits, I’m not sure why politicians get to ( especially now with their abyssal behaviors and dismal track records).
2) Somehow this country and our democracy became the rule of the minority. I know that there are marginalized groups who feel their voices are not heard have a right to speak and make their thoughts known. But they should not hold the power to thwart the choices of the majority. Special interest groups have a right to hold to their beliefs but they don’t have a right to hijack the majority’s wishes. A prime example is the current situation with the expulsion of McCarthy as speaker of the house by 6 people. Why should this small number of people be allowed to dictate what most of the body does not want? This is just one example throughout the nation, both at a local and national level, of minority rule. There has to be a better way. Maybe it starts with better people? Just waiting for Adam or Liz to run someday.