Iowa's four congressional districts. Note Cedar Rapids in the First, Davenport and Iowa City (a college town) in the Second, Des Moines in the Third, and Ames (the other college town) in Steve King's Fourth (source).
I mostly agree with Saagar Enjeti's analysis of the way the Democratic presidential debates are turning out. But not completely.
There are no perfect candidates-- and even if someone starts out perfect, it doesn't usually last long. I'm old enough to have stopped expecting perfection in candidates. I'm also old enough to have given up on the concept of supporting a lesser of two evils. I may not get perfection, but I'm not backing evil, even if it is lesser. And even if it is against Trump!
Unless you're new here, you know the misuse of the word "moderate" to describe conservatives is a pet peeve of this blog's. I was happy to see someone else tackle the topic this week-- Norman Solomon for Common Dreams: There’s Nothing Moderate About "Moderates." A Primary Example Is Joe Biden.
Trump's mind by Chip ProserIn Tuesday night's debate, Mayo Pete mostly regurgitated his slick McKinsey-like, carefully-tested talking points. He didn't really have a memorable moment, but he did make a worthwhile point about Status Quo Joe: "We cannot have a vision that amounts to 'back to normal,' he said.
Conventional wisdom from the corporate media and from #NeverTrump Republicans who saw their party taken over by a carnival barker and 2 bit charlatan, is constant and unwavering: Democrats need to be more like "moderate" conservative Republicans-- you, know, like Jeb Bush, Chris Christie, John Kasich, Marco Rubio... all the clowns the carnival barker and 2 bit charlatan turned to mincemeat.
Who Will Be The Democratic Nominee? by Nancy OhanianBiden's name wasn't mentioned last night-- and the half dozen conservatives who were onstage fared badly, although none of them were boo-ed despite the barrage of Republican talking points that flew out of the mouths of Delaney, Frackenlooper, Ryan and Bullock each time one of them spoke.
Status Quo Joe With Colombian President Uribe In 2017Biden doesn't want to play the role of political piñata tonight. His record, though, lends itself to exactly that. Trump will certainly use it against him if he's the nominee and the Democrats on the stage with him tonight should go all in in testing every weak point in the most repulsive record any Democratic candidate has brought to the primary stage since his old ally Joe Lieberman.
Over the weekend, in a Boston Globe essay, Power In The Rubble of The American Dream: Why Donald Trump May Be The Most Consequential President of Our Time, David Scharfenberg predicted that post-Trump, even though his "ugliness will linger,
Passing The Torch by Nancy OhanianThe media is trying to stoke what the Washington Post called explosive faceoffs tonight and
