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U.S.A. Generic US Election Thread

Mark

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GW Elder
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curious about @Mark 's thoughts on this MD senate race

My first thought was that there is no way anybody can beat Hogan, but then I just looked up the polls and it seems she has a 99% chance so what do I know

I’ll be honest, I don’t know much about Angela Alsobrooks, I had to look her up. My immediate thought is “oh, great, a county exec from PG county” because the county she represents is a pretty fair comparison to Baltimore and Anne Arundel Counties, which are suburbs to Baltimore much like Prince George’s county is suburb to DC on the MD side.

During the time I frequented Prince George’s county, she was a state‘s attorney for the same county. Much like Baltimore, particularly fruitful parts of PG county reap the benefits of state and federal funding. Lately, it has been Oxon Hill, which now has a section carved out and renamed National Harbor featuring casinos, hotels, and live entertainment to differentiate itself from its former less-than-wholesome surroundings, which are still very much there on the outside. With that said, I saw quite a few examples of violent offenders being released incredibly quickly. One of which shot at a former co-worker and myself several times, and then fled police requiring a taser deployment. That’s not the kind of guy you want back on the streets six months later after he cops a plea deal on a previous warrant for trafficking narcotics across county lines into the district. That example alone makes me question whether or not she employed what is called a “catch and release” program for offenders, or at the very least was a part of an institution that did. It could be irrelevant to her as a senator, but, I don’t like people that make those kind of decisions being promoted to a position where their excessive and belligerent leniency could result in worse living conditions for your average law-abiding citizen. I’ve seen what that kind of prosecution did to Baltimore, and other cities like her neighboring DC, and that certainly wouldn’t be what I’d like to see continue on a larger scale.

On the flip side, you have Hogan, who, by all accounts did an average job and kept the state out of debt with no thanks to Annapolis’ bastard step-son Baltimore, and Larry made his disdain for Baltimore well known when he was governor all along the way. He gave city leadership enough rope to hang themselves, and they did, and he swooped in during the Freddie Gray riots like some kinda hero while mumbling the “shithole city” sentiments we heard from Trump and others. For that… fuck Hogan, too. I agree with a lot of the shit he talked about Baltimore, and a lot of it was right on the money, but it’s not his place as someone who’s not intimately aware of what it’s *actually* like in the city to speak on it. A lot of his statements were prejudicial to us city residents, and we just didn’t appreciate getting dunked on by the whole country as if anyone else anywhere else has it all figured out. That city might be shitty, but it’s my city, and it has been punched down on as far back as I can remember. The state wants that revenue from downtown Baltimore, they should buck up and help deal with what’s going on outside of downtown before there isn’t a downtown left.

So… with that said, I can’t help but feel we’re not exactly in a great position with either candidate, but the situation isn’t nearly as dire as the other elections on the card.

From what I gather, it's pretty similar to MA. We like Republicans for Governor, but not for anything that's federal.

It's a weird "put a check on the state politics" to balance it sort of thing, but then a "we're not risking it nationally" thing. No matter how much they're liked in the state.

Vermont is the same. And then states like Tennessee and Kentucky have also had opposite party governors, with Tennessee having a very popular Democrat as governor get routed in the Senate campaign.

Not quite, we have flip-flopped quite a few times in my lifetime. City politics and state politics don’t really intersect until money is involved, or there’s blame to pass around. Baltimore will always be a blue city, but the bulk of its revenue comes from red citizens, tourism, etc. Poor people can’t afford to go to a Ravens game or to blow their check at the casino. Annapolis, as far as I know, is purplish. There’s a lot of section 8, but there’s also a lot of high dollar properties, the Navy, etc. The rest? Mostly red, with the exception of the suburb counties like Baltimore County, Anne Arundel County, Howard County, Prince George’s County, and Montgomery County that are purplish with a tilt towards blue in recent years as “sanctuary cities” become more prevalent and the demographics shift.
 

Rachel

No Problem Here
GW Elder
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430
wow, that was a great explanation Mark. It's neat we have people on the forums from different parts of the country who can give these local insights.

I do not envy DAs and state attorneys. I am a mother first. One of my first thoughts with criminals is something along the lines of, this person did not start out bad. Something happened in their lives. They started out as a child like everyone with a mother. What happened? Sometimes it's mental health, and the failures with that, sometimes it's poverty, fell in with bad people, abuse...etc etc. If our society was better, would this have happened? I think it's a hard job to decide who can be given a second chance/rehabilitated and who can't. And it's frustrating when that decision is wrong, and more than frustrating, it's infuriating.

I truly hope one day Baltimore will see brighter days. Maryland is unique geographically, so close to the capital, a coastal state, its port history, its navy history, in the middle between north and south. Its citizens deserve good representation who will help them.
 

Mark

Dumbass Progenitor
Administrator
GW Elder
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7,194
wow, that was a great explanation Mark. It's neat we have people on the forums from different parts of the country who can give these local insights.

I do not envy DAs and state attorneys. I am a mother first. One of my first thoughts with criminals is something along the lines of, this person did not start out bad. Something happened in their lives. They started out as a child like everyone with a mother. What happened? Sometimes it's mental health, and the failures with that, sometimes it's poverty, fell in with bad people, abuse...etc etc. If our society was better, would this have happened? I think it's a hard job to decide who can be given a second chance/rehabilitated and who can't. And it's frustrating when that decision is wrong, and more than frustrating, it's infuriating.

I truly hope one day Baltimore will see brighter days. Maryland is unique geographically, so close to the capital, a coastal state, its port history, its navy history, in the middle between north and south. Its citizens deserve good representation who will help them.

I learned young that people even within walking distance of where I grew up looked at people from my neighborhood differently. That does something to you psychologically, when the black kids think your parents are either dealers, fiends, or cops (why else would white people live there?) and the other white kids on the other side of the tracks look at you like you’re poor even though both of your parents work at the same theater seat manufacturer. I also realized as I got older that I have a unique experience that most people from the city only got to see one side of. I grew up around cops and crackheads. I have friends and family that are cops and crackheads. I take every opportunity to see both sides of the coin because of that, and although it may come off argumentative or ignorant at times, all I can offer up is the experiences I’ve had over the course of my life… some good, some bad.

As a kid, I used to love going downtown to see monster trucks at the arena, a baseball game, or to visit the aquariums and hang out with the dolphins because a relative “knew somebody”. It used to be this awesome place you’d go to see cool stuff, but it was always one of those “you listen to me when we’re walking through here, boy” kind of conversations leading up to it. I knew someone on every block that I was to go to if something happened to my parents while we were walking, because we didn’t have a car until I was a young teenager. These days? I don’t even want my daughter in the city. There are kids younger than her killing people in broad daylight. That is disturbing to me, and I can’t blame people for not wanting to come here when that’s what you’re going to potentially face. Who wants to meet their maker from some dumbass kid who thinks he’s a gangsta because he’s pointing a gun at someone for their pocket change? I’ve seen these kids wave guns around scared shitless, I’ve seen them discharge their guns and hit cars because they’re too ignorant to know proper safety. These kids know what they’re doing, but they don’t, if you know what I mean. The gravity of their actions doesn’t matter.
 
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I think last night is a great example as to why Trump doesn't fuck with Obama anymore...

Barack Obama GIF by PBS News
 
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960

Mark

Dumbass Progenitor
Administrator
GW Elder
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7,194
semi-related but for the states/territories roll call last night they did a playlist with songs "representing" each state. i use scare quotes because some of the picks are reaches (for me personally, i've always associated alicia keys with north dakota) but unfortunately i have to hand it to the dnc, they got the north carolina pick right




I had to check the list… just to make sure that they didn’t put Good Charlotte on there for Maryland. That would have turned the state red for sure.
 

Rachel

No Problem Here
GW Elder
Messages
430
here's my thoughts for the next day.

Well this probably won't shock anyone that I so loved seeing the Obamas. I've missed them! For awhile I was low-key frustrated with them because they seemed to almost disappear during the Trump admin. My feeling at the time was that they could have done more.

But I forgot how much of a one-two punch they are, as a team. Wow! AND, they so love each other. I honestly can't think of too much of a modern comparison except couples like the Reagans, the Carters, and Queen Liz and Philip.

Compare that to Melania. She's such an awful person! At first I didn't pay her much mind...but she's genuinely bad. This came out:


1724261507793.png

The no being Melania's response

I also had no idea that Wisconsin's roll call was going to be live at Kamala's rally in Wisconsin, the SAME arena that held the RNC. That was gutsy! Anything could have gone technically wrong to show egg on their face. And it was packed! Again, another contrast.

And yeah the jab at the crowd size

obama-hillary.gif

I am also very excited that my governor will be featured on a panel of all eight female dem governors today at 3 CT:



LOVED that Kansas shoutout from Obama! YES! You're a son of Kansas too!!!
 
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Apparently Vance is now calling out Walz for lying about his wife's IVF treatment. Turns out she got a different kind of treatment that was sort of similar that fertility doctors say people get confused about all the time, but OH MY GOD HE LIED AGAIN.

First the spicy tacos and now this. Vance can't stand a liar! Who knew?
He should sit on a couch and have a chat with Trump. I'm sure the couch and the kids will be safe.
 

Rachel

No Problem Here
GW Elder
Messages
430
You are a pharmacist right

She elevated so many shitty people

Dr. Oz, Dr. Phil, McCarthy, Chopra

The way she handled diet culture

The recent Hawaii story

Moral panics

But mostly all of the pseudoscience she elevated that did real harm, no fact checking...

And of course no reflection or apology
 

Mark

Dumbass Progenitor
Administrator
GW Elder
Messages
7,194
You are a pharmacist right

She elevated so many shitty people

Dr. Oz, Dr. Phil, McCarthy, Chopra

The way she handled diet culture

The recent Hawaii story

Moral panics

But mostly all of the pseudoscience she elevated that did real harm, no fact checking...

And of course no reflection or apology

A billionaire is a billionaire in my book. White, black, male, female, or any other label, it doesn’t matter. It will always be them versus us in that battle.
 

Rachel

No Problem Here
GW Elder
Messages
430
Boy Clinton is taking me back to my childhood.

I feel like he could almost slot back in the office if Biden is there right now, they are probably the same age?

I would be very curious how many in this thread remember Clinton

I was just a little too young to remember except my parents hid the paper from me towards the end

But yeah he could break it down and say a speech
 
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9,756
Boy Clinton is taking me back to my childhood.

I feel like he could almost slot back in the office if Biden is there right now, they are probably the same age?

I would be very curious how many in this thread remember Clinton

I was just a little too young to remember except my parents hid the paper from me towards the end

But yeah he could break it down and say a speech
Clinton, despite being elected over 30 years ago, is younger than both Biden and Trump.
 

Mark

Dumbass Progenitor
Administrator
GW Elder
Messages
7,194
Boy Clinton is taking me back to my childhood.

I feel like he could almost slot back in the office if Biden is there right now, they are probably the same age?

I would be very curious how many in this thread remember Clinton

I was just a little too young to remember except my parents hid the paper from me towards the end

But yeah he could break it down and say a speech

Yeah, he could. Method actor extraordinaire. He could look you straight in the face and say that he didn’t have sexual relations with that woman while she’s still taking a baby wipe to her dress trying to clean up an executive order.

But, let’s not forget that he played the sax on the ol’ MTV for cool points.

Hillary scares the living shit out of me, though. She’s creepy.

Those are just my opinions, though. I don’t trust someone that’s too smooth of a talker.
 

Mark

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I am glad Chelsea is happy and Rush is dead

I couldn’t imagine being a teenager, in high school and college age, with that shit happening with my parents. That’s part of the reason I sympathize with Trump’s youngest boy. He doesn’t deserve some of the shit I’ve seen thrown his way just because of the nitwits that birthed him.
 
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Tim Walz's son is in the crowd crying his eyes out while pointing and shouting "that's my dad!" During his acceptance speech.

That's a good moment.
By contrast JD Vance's kid was pointing and shouting "That's my Pikachu!" while playing Pokemon GO during his father's acceptance speech and Vance told his kid to shut up.
 
I would be very curious how many in this thread remember Clinton
I was in 2nd grade when he was elected and 12th grade when he left.
He could look you straight in the face and say that he didn’t have sexual relations with that woman
He didn't, though. That was one of his tells, he wouldn't look directly at the person or the camera when he said that. Clear body language gave him away.
Also, don't stage medical emergencies after hearing great things about one from the previous night.
Did he really? Is that confirmed? wtf
 
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Did he really? Is that confirmed? wtf
Not officially confirmed, but just look at the videos. Harris's happened on one night, and then the very next day there's a medical emergency in the front row at a Trump Rally (but behind Trump). Nobody does anything outside of Trump who walks over and "takes care of it" himself.

The convenience factor is incredible here.
 

Rachel

No Problem Here
GW Elder
Messages
430
wow okay so apparently we need Mark to come back here and give more local thoughts because some of the talk today is about Wes Moore's speech. I had no idea this was going to become a Maryland fest but here we are



Alu I thought you said they have R govs lmao

People are saying to watch for him, maybe he could be pres one day??
 
Not officially confirmed, but just look at the videos. Harris's happened on one night, and then the very next day there's a medical emergency in the front row at a Trump Rally (but behind Trump). Nobody does anything outside of Trump who walks over and "takes care of it" himself.

The convenience factor is incredible here.
Ah okay.

I only looked at the one video posted here, and it looked like he just "helped" the guy by shaking his hand? Or was there more?

Had to be, unless he's gone full Jesus with claims of healing powers.
 

Rachel

No Problem Here
GW Elder
Messages
430
I wish I had a gov people took notice of <_____> that must be nice

Edit: that said, from the women's panel yesterday I just found out my gov is the new Chair. That totally blew me away
 

Rachel

No Problem Here
GW Elder
Messages
430
oh yeah I forgot to mention something

1724342976412.png

A ton of rumors are swirling right now, I know everyone here will roll their eyes but people are wondering why she flew back so soon

Beyonce + Taylor at the DNC final night??
 

Mark

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GW Elder
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7,194
if yall wanna feel even older my current class of high school american history students includes some students who were born during the obama administration

You shut your mouth when you’re talking to us like that.

He didn't, though. That was one of his tells, he wouldn't look directly at the person or the camera when he said that. Clear body language gave him away.

You know what I mean, though. Tells aside, it takes a brazen dude to commit to a lie like that.

wow okay so apparently we need Mark to come back here and give more local thoughts because some of the talk today is about Wes Moore's speech. I had no idea this was going to become a Maryland fest but here we are



Alu I thought you said they have R govs lmao

People are saying to watch for him, maybe he could be pres one day??


We typically do. Wes Moore was elected ending a several term run of Republican and pseudo-Republican “Democrat” governors. Two terms under Hogan, two terms under O’Malley (who ran as a Democrat, but if you go down the rabbit hole of policies, it paints a different picture, especially coming off of the heels of his two term stint as Mayor of Baltimore), and one term by Bob Ehrlich. Historically, Baltimore mayors usually end up running for governor because it’s instant notoriety with a large swath of voters already being familiar with the candidate. I’m sure similar happens in other states, admittedly, I don’t follow their politics… but it seems like a fail-proof strategy. Wes Moore seems to be following the trend of governors from outside of Baltimore leadership, a trend that stopped after Martin O’Malley raised taxes everywhere imaginable.

Personally, I can’t say that I like or dislike the guy. I’ve never met him like I have Ehrlich, O’Malley, and Hogan, so I can’t offer up much of a personal opinion on his character. Ehrlich was out of touch, O’Malley was your typical “rob Peter to pay Paul” Democrat, and Hogan was a pretentious dick that used his cancer diagnosis to sway public opinion of him in his favor as a means to detract from his dark red policies. When the riots happened in 2015, he left us hanging in Baltimore, talked all kinds of shit about city leadership, and then sent the NG and out of state police in to create a sort of military occupation within the city limits. I don’t know if you’ve ever been somewhere where you were pulled out of your car by camouflage-wearing out-of-state police with automatic rifles while driving around doing your job, but it leaves a lot to be desired within the context of feeling “at home” in your hometown. The city needed backup during that time, and the state, at his behest, let us burn to prove a point, and then swooped in with force targeting civilians and people not even involved with the riots just to A.) avoid another black life lost by police, and B.) say “we’ve helped, we initiated X amount of traffic stops and X amount of detainments” days after the worst part of the riots and nowhere near the epicenter of them.

So, in the grand scheme of things, we typically see red leadership longer than blue leadership for the state itself. A Dem will make their way into Annapolis periodically, but they have to stay in bed with the Republicans in order for any hope at a second term… and even then, as soon as a suitable challenger arises, that Democratic governor is a turd in the eyes of the GOP here. It’s not too dissimilar from the presidential elections where we see one party overthrow the other after one too many consecutive terms of one party. The major difference being that the Dems have to stay in the good graces of the GOP throughout their terms or they will guarantee two-term Republican governors. On the flip side, if a Republican governor comes out swinging too hard… the city and city-adjacent counties will put them in check as well. The problem stems from city residents requiring a good degree of abuse to get their attention first, otherwise, you’re not going to get them to get out and vote unless it directly affects their everyday life… which is a tough one, considering what’s going on in Annapolis means little when you’re dodging bullets, getting carjacked, being robbed and so on in Baltimore.
 
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oh yeah I forgot to mention something

View attachment 19399

A ton of rumors are swirling right now, I know everyone here will roll their eyes but people are wondering why she flew back so soon

Beyonce + Taylor at the DNC final night??
This is ironic since one speaker last night at the DNC (Jeffries maybe?) about how we are "never, ever getting back together" with Trump. And all I thought was... "Foreshadowing?"
 
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