34 Comments
Dec 10, 2020Liked by Dan Pfeiffer

Thank you Dan for this. For me this will be a test to see if the Democratic Party can actually grow a pair or eat Wimpie Burgers and live under the Republican's thumb for a political eternity.

Happy Hanukkah.

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Dec 10, 2020Liked by Dan Pfeiffer

Reminds me; better make some latkes today.

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Dec 10, 2020Liked by Dan Pfeiffer

OMG - don't forget the applesauce. A little schmaltz, too. :)

Did you see this?

“Sen. David Perdue (R-GA) sold his Washington, D.C., home last year to a brokerage industry official whose organization is under the purview of a committee Perdue sits on,” ProPublica reports.

“The deal was made off market, without the home being listed for sale publicly.”

“Though an appraisal provided to ProPublica by the buyer found that Perdue sold for slightly under market value, four local real estate experts disagreed, telling ProPublica that the almost $1.8 million sale price Perdue garnered seemed high. Their estimates of the premium ranged from a few thousand dollars to as much as about $140,000.

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PS You cannot buy schmaltz anywhere and must collect it yourself from inside any chicken you may buy and there is precious little there as well.

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Yes you can...

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=schmaltz&crid=2EN1I9HOYF7MS&sprefix=schmaltz%2Caps%2C272&ref=nb_sb_ss_ts-a-p_1_8

My wife made some but a whole chicken produced a couple of tablespoons. Guess chickens aren't as fatty as they used to be. But we did have some gribenes :)

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True, they are not. I have been storing what I can find in my freezer until I get enough to make some myself.

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We bought a third freezer. And my wife calls me a hoarder :)

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and yes I have seen that...and if the voters of GA elect these two scoundrels....I don't know what to say. Don't know if I believe polls now but wonder if anyone else has seen any??

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RealBS, I mean Clear is all over the place. Nothing on 535's front page. I'm still getting negative pleadings from Dems, all is lost, the sky is falling that don't bode well.

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Yes, I don't like that messaging...it should be 'if we don't get elected, and get to provide some help for families.....' you fill it in. Just got a plea for money from Ossoff.

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Or better yet, you need to elect us so we can help your families find jobs and FOOD. Those two will NOT help you...AT ALL.

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It's sad. We need some new pros that know how to reach people. No wonder we keep losing elections...

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Have never liked applesauce; sour cream and Kosher salt for me thank you.

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Boy are we polar opposites, I never liked the latkes. Only ate the applesauce; sour cream and Kosher salt :)

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I really am puzzled about why this obsession of Mitch McConnell would matter to more than a few factories/plants that were slow to adopt to new COVID-19 rules, especially when there's very little data showing much resulting litigation.

Part of me wonders if this type of federal liability shield is a dress rehearsal for liability shields for other, more common everyday incidents, and McConnell believes if this passes and courts don't overturn the shield for some reason, then he can start conditioning passage of legislation on a whole host of liability shields for corporations.

Oh, want to pass a climate bill? Liability shield for companies who might cause climate change.

Oh, want immigration reform? Fine, liability shield for all contractors working on immigration/border issues.

Oh, want to expand Obamacare? Fine, but tort reform for hospitals/doctors price of passage.

Oh, want to cancel student debt via legislation? Fine, but no liability as to for profit colleges for failing/defrauding students.

Oh, want a major infrastructure program? Fine, but no liability for construction companies who build something that injures/kills workers and/or users of the final product.

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You are right on all counts. Protect the rich, the corporations, screw the people. And he better do it or Elaine won't...

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'Lawmakers have more information now than they did in the spring about the potential for coronavirus-related lawsuits. And data shows that the “flood” of litigation warned about by Republicans and business groups has not materialized thus far.

An online complaint tracker from the law firm Hunton Andrews Kurth shows that out of an overall pool of about 6,500 lawsuits filed across the country so far, only 116 have been filed by employees over issues like lack of personal protective equipment, exposure or infections at work, and death from the virus. Consumers have filed another 29 personal injury or wrongful death claims for coronavirus exposure.

“That’s like two to four lawsuits per state,” said Hugh Baran, an expert on legal recourse for employees at the worker-focused National Employment Law Project. “That’s a trickle. It’s not a flood. ... This whole immunity bill that’s been proposed by McConnell and Cornyn is really a solution in search of a problem.”'

https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/12/08/stimulus-negotiations-liability-shield/?fbclid=IwAR2pEBZagpuHfNOFtjjRRKUr8qSeM0y7LKy8hPj2cgqSEaQy7r2SrhyvwEU

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Thank you for expanding on Katie Porter’s brilliant and draining Twitter thread. It’s just all so frustrating, on many levels, because it seems hard to put these ideas into practice.

Not only can Dems not rely on a propaganda machine to create distractions – keeping a paranoid audience focused on irrelevant culture wars rather than real corruption – but as soon as Dems try to expose R's motives, the press will start lecturing about good politics, questioning the effectiveness of such “negative” messaging. I can just hear Chuck Todd asking “Is the Dem strategy to attack rather than offer solutions losing the working class?” with plenty of Op-Eds from Bret Stephens and Danielle Pletka confirming his suspicion. It’s legacy media's version of Ben Shapiro’s “Orange Man Bad isn't a platform.” We’re damned if we do, damned if we don’t.

As Michelle Goldberg wrote, Republicans are shielded from popular rebuke because we’ve all subconsciously accepted that it’s a power-grab operation fueled by white grievance. We expect nothing more, and in fact McConnell's often praised for his cynical tactics. Dems, however, are held to a standard – and unmasking R's often backfires in the press, even as the attacks are truthful and important, because the media focus on partisan optics over substance. And then voters think private citizen Hunter Biden's laptop is just as suspect and dangerous to democracy as senate majority leader Mitch McConnell's corporate ties and single-handed ability to kill a national relief package.

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zach - i couldn't agree more. What's wrong with Democrats, they lay there like a lox while people are losing their homes, going hungry. what happened to passion, anger.

If the media comes down on you with their hypocritical BS turn it on them, get mad, ask them if they care about people, the common good, not about winning a Pulitzer.

And what is with Mitch? He isn't human. No compassion, no soul, no heart, no G-d. Take him on, call him names, put him on the defensive. What are we afraid of, losing. We're good at that.

Sorry about the screed, I'm going rogue. I'm mad as hell.

Happy Hanukkah...

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Hi Dan - just saw on some random blog (so take that with a grain of salt), According to Article I, Section 3, Clause 4 of the Constitution, the Vice President, being the President of the Senate, has discretion over who receives "priority recognition" in the Senate. And though it's beena tradition since 1937 to give it to the Senate Majority Leader, there is no Senate Rule that says it *must* be done this way.

For those who may have not know what 'priority recognition" means (as I didn't before reading this), the member of the Senate with Priority Recognition chooses which legislation is taken up and which is not.

According to this blogger, there would be nothing stopping VP-Elect Harris from giving "priority recognition" to Sen. Schumer - and he would be the arbiter deciding which bills would receive a vote and which would not.

My questions here are: 1) is any of that true? and 2) if so, what are the arguments for NOT doing it, other than Democrats seems to be more risk-averse in politics.

Thanks!

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I agree. Put pressure on McConnell RELENTLESSLY. Stacey Abrams we need you!

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We sure do need her. Sadly she has become the Republican's excuse for more voter suppression. Fight back!

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Well in one way it's a good sign that they are afraid of her. It just proves that she is good at what she does.

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If Ossoff and Warnock do NOT message this to the voting public in Georgia, I will tear my hair out. Great analysis Dan.

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Dec 10, 2020Liked by Dan Pfeiffer

Good morning. Care to make a bet, I'll take the Democrats to wimp out completely. :)

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You and Dan, masters of reality or cynicism?

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Have little enough money as it is...but answer me this: Why are we so cynical/jaded/negative about the Georgia race????

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Because we can't win for losing.

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Is it murder or blackmail plus murder?

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To paraphrase dear Barry G., "Extreme (but accurate) campaign ads in defense of dying and desperate Americans IS NO VICE!!"

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Hi Dan,

I would appreciate if you would comment on what is happening today in Washington where more than 100 House Republicans signed onto an amicus brief in support of the Texas lawsuit aimed at overturning the election results in four swing states. It is also rumored that Senator Ron Johnston may also go along with this insidious plan.

The key word is overturn. They not only want to overturn the election but our constitutional democracy!

I do realize it will go nowhere but the very thought of them trying is a threat to our constitution, our country, and our way of life.

Your thoughts please.

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But Dan, don’t hold back. What do you really think about McConnell?

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You all have the power to help get this done. Call your Senators and Members of the House now and tell them to speak out on this every day. I just did and it felt good. All they have to do is use Katie Porter's talking points. Tell your friends to make calls too. Calls from constituents matter to elected officials!

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Saw this on Adam Jentleson's Twitter page and believe he is spot on: "Maybe the most important fact of covid talks is that without making a single concession, McConnell watched as Dems climbed down from 3.4T to 2.2T to 900B. Now he probably thinks he can put something like his skinny 500Bish bill on the omni/CR, jam Dems with it & they’ll take it." I hate McConnell, but damn he is wily and smart.

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