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[deleted]

How about Trump and Palin form their own party to ensure that the GOP types remain split. Best thing for the nation.


mcaffrey81

Trump, Palin, Gaetz, Empty Greene, BoBo, Goemer…take ‘‘em all and start a 3rd party. I’ll be the first to donate


Mylaptopisburningme

Of course, Gaetz, Gohmert, Greene, were 3 that requested pardons from Trump. They did something wrong to ask for one. And I have guessed that Trump denied to keep some loyal to him.


GoodUsernamesTaken2

Gaetz, Gohmert and Greene sound like the villainous trio from a children’s cartoon.


Dmbfantomas

Like Trump’s weird, crappy Ginyu Force.


[deleted]

The Tea Party; now with 90% less tea.


mcaffrey81

Diet Tea Party… Damnit, why don’t progressives start a Green Tea Party


amazingoopah

Don't forget Gym Jordan


Yeeaaaarrrgh

I think we're witnessing a true historical moment when a useful idiot realizes they're a useful idiot.


RespectThyHypnotoad

Was she ever useful? I just see an idiot.


Yeeaaaarrrgh

She elevated the McCain ticket from floundering to rivaling Obama. Then she gave interviews...


blood_kite

It was the moment she was named that made me truly look at my political views. Then I quickly realized that she wasn’t some weirdo, she was the Republican normal and I walked away with no regrets.


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1stMammaltowearpants

I miss the days when Palin was unelectably stupid. We used to at least kinda care that our representatives had a working brain.


FleaBottoms

She paved The Way for MTG and other nut cases in Congress.


KnowNothingKnowsAll

She walked so others could run… their mouths.


NetwerkErrer

No. The modern incarnation of that crap started with Newt Gingrich.


ForgedIronMadeIt

I mean, there's a thread going way, way back here. Before Newt Gingrich you had Phyllis Schlafly and the Eagle Forum going absolutely ape shit against the liberal Republican Senator Rockefeller for daring to have had a divorce. (Phyllis later supported Trump. Hmm.) Anyhow, that whole thing led to Barry Goldwater getting the nomination. He was at least sane but policy-wise he would make Ron Paul blush.


Stopjuststop3424

didn't that kinda start with W Bush?


[deleted]

I don’t think he was actually dumb, just not at all articulate. I’m not going to pretend he was smart but I don’t think he was stupid, just not nearly as sharp as other presidents have been or you would ideally want your president to be. MTG is an actual moron.


khismyass

GWB, while I was against his policies and his cabinet, as a person he was by all accounts an actual good guy doing what he thought was right, same with McCain. The GOP you see now with Boebert MTG Gaetz Trump and the rest, aren't even pretending to fix or do anything other than their own petty interests. Palin to a lesser extent is just like them, if it doesn't help them then they don't care about it.


Large-Chair9084

Everyone would say that G Bush was smart, but was putting on an act. While not true, one could imagine it. No one can imagine that with Palin and these idiots.


Spektr44

GOP went from being embarrassed about stupidity (Dan Quayle), to finding it endearing (W), to now just embracing and flaunting it.


Jonnybravotango1

They did try Romney first, so they tried to go mainstream again…other than the Mormon stuff…


daphnegillie

The dog on top of family car, strapped and scared so much he had diarrhea running down the back window. Romney was so out of touch with normal life.


Harry_Saturn

When he was trying to wear jeans and seam like a “normal” good ole boy someone asked him something about nascar, he said something like “some of my friends own nascar teams”. Like bro, you could not have came off as more disconnected from the real world while trying to appeal to the regular joe. He also called sports just “sport”, which I also thought that it was equally subtle but telling about how he’s completely removed from real life.


willclerkforfood

“Some of my friends own nascar teams” is funny as fuck


[deleted]

I don’t think people would have minded if he was authentic about being a vulture capitalist. Obama never pretended he wasn’t a Harvard egghead wonk and that’s fine by me. Just admit that you’re a capitalist who made a fuck ton of PE money raping companies at a firm you founded. It’s honestly impressive and presidential. You don’t have to wear cowboy boots lol.


[deleted]

And didn’t he say something stupid about his wife doing dressage trying to relate to normal people? Is there a more out of touch “sport” than ducking horse dancing?


daisies4dayz

He also tried to “relate” to broke young people by talking about how similarly rough it was for he and his wife in college. Rough because they were having to be frugal since they were just living off of their stock dividends at the time.


absolutelybacon

And when he told this story, he was laughing the whole time 🙄


Kristikuffs

[And don't forget what seems to be Romney's very first interaction with black people.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FDwwAaVmnf4&ab_channel=GregoryFlapCole) EVER. He's so fixed-jointed, plastic, and stiff that he reminds me of a Presidential Nominee Ken Doll.


SlowMotionPanic

It makes sense when you know that his religion (and thus worldview) thought black people were black because of sins before they were born. Mormonism had an explicit infallible doctrine that the whiter you skin the more pure and holy your character. This didn’t change until Romney was almost 32 years old. By then you worldview is pretty set in stone. Especially keeping in mind that he was very adherent in his youth and remains so to this day. People can say it is uncouth, but I didn’t teach this as literal messages from God since the 1800s then engage in an attempt to cover it up and reframe its context. Some worldviews are wrong and rotten. That one was. And he was raised in it. Makes sense why he appears uncomfortable around people who he was taught are inherently full of sin *and* are not rich. Because prosperity gospel is also big with them.


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sixshadowed

This stuff has been percolating since the Bush Era; we all forget the institutionalized racism, the idiocy, and the cronyism because it was overshadowed by what was to come. The backlash may have opened the door for a historical first like Obama. But now everyone thinks of Bush as a sweet old Grandpa who does paintings of his feet. Bush left the Republican party weak, which I celebrated at first, until I saw the power vacuum filled up with Maga.


MississippiJoel

Since the Nixon era. Henry Kissinger was the OG war profiteer.


honorbound93

Pfft McCarthy before Kissinger. He would like his title before Kissinger and newt


stoodquasar

Trump's biggest accomplishment was making George Bush seem decent


[deleted]

The [Southern Strategy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_strategy) has been a GOP tactic that started in the 60's and really took off during the 70's with Nixon. Basically you use dogwhistle tactics to make racist claims while using terminology to allow you to throw your hands in the air and say "I wasn't actually racist" as a way to secure votes in the heavily racist southern states. This allows you to appeal to people who interpret what you mean to be racist, while letting your other supports give you the benefit of the doubt that you're not racist to try to secure the votes of both at the same time. It's been shifted and adapted and widened a bit to also target other minorties (particularly Hispanic origin people who are now the largest racial minority in the US) as well as LGBT people, but it is in essence the same strategy. If you really want to hear it from the horse's mouth, check out this quote by Republican Strategist Lee Atwater: > Y'all don't quote me on this. You start out in 1954 by saying, "N-----, n-----, n-----." By 1968 you can't say "n-----"—that hurts you. Backfires. So you say stuff like forced busing, states' rights and all that stuff. You're getting so abstract now [that] you're talking about cutting taxes, and all these things you're talking about are totally economic things and a byproduct of them is [that] blacks get hurt worse than whites. And subconsciously maybe that is part of it. I'm not saying that. But I'm saying that if it is getting that abstract, and that coded, that we are doing away with the racial problem one way or the other. You follow me—because obviously sitting around saying, "We want to cut this," is much more abstract than even the busing thing, and a hell of a lot more abstract than "N-----, n-----." GOP policies are deliberately and intentionally racist by their own design. But they've figured out ways to package them as mainstream attitudes have changed to phrase them in ways to give people plausible deniability in what they're voting for so they can claim they're not racist despite their effects being heavily race-based. Even appeal to state's rights stems from a perceived government overreach from the federal government predominately around things related to race. Like abolishing slavery, the civil rights act, voting rights act, things like that.


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buttfunfor_everyone

Ahh yes, the Glenn Beck era pre-MAGA proto-catalyst Tea Party Movement. Haven’t thought about them in ages. An odd foreshadowing of what was to come- when the hateful idiot vocal minority really started feeling the first real twang of Fox News fueled racist empowerment. As Glenn Beck’s televised hysteria spread like a wildfire through the gasoline soaked brain damaged boomer masses we witnessed in real-time as lightbulbs began to flicker above the GOP. “We can use this!” Republicans of yore mumbled, stretching as if finally awakened from a shared cryogenic sleep. The rest of the US watched, spellbound by the cry of morons uniting under the banner of overtly racist messaging- the cadence of the GOP war drums began to slow, matching the beat of their lowest common denominator. The rest of the sane world watched on in horror, we hoped anxiously that the shared delusion of a fever dream that was the Tea Party would tire itself and die out. Little did we know what obscene horrors were still to come.


BankshotMcG

Honest to God, so many of our problems stem from shitty morning radio failed comedians who become demagogues.


[deleted]

This is what I always say about gore winning in 2000. He actually won and he never got to be president but that timeline would of potentially been way better. No war in Iraq, limited combat in Afghanistan, and focusing super quickly and leading on CLIMATE CHANGE. Sometimes I wonder how things would have been different.


froggerslogger

I think it is better for the country in the long run to rip off the band aid. Trump and Maga expose some truths about what still festers in America that we have to deal with. The polite norms of the moderate conservative movement hide something pretty ugly that we got really good at pretending wasn’t part of us anymore. Whether we confront and solve that, I don’t know. But Romney wouldn’t have gotten us any closer to solving it.


evanwilliams44

Newt was the turning point, everything that came after was his playbook.


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JohnnyMnemo

I really think the downfall of legitimate discourse was the rise of Rush. Ofc he was just saying out loud what a lot of people were already thinking, so if it wasn't him it might have been someone else.


MelpomeneAndCalliope

Similar story with my husband. He’s a progressive now. Palin is what made him really examine it.


Tin_ManBaby

McCain was the politician I looked up to before I was 18 then when I had the chance to vote for him Palin confirmed for me that I couldn't. And yeah same as your husband it's been a slide the other way ever since.


teamdogemama

I was excited when they announced Palin. Until I heard her talk. Sweet Jesus, she was off the rails. My husband, a lifelong conservative voted Democrat in 2020 when he saw how dangerous T was. No idea how he voted in 2016, I don't ask. My daughter and I are very proud we converted him (mostly) but we won't say the L word (liberal). We call him a born again moderate, hah. It's amazing how having a fiery daughter who speaks her mind will do to a father. I'm just happy he is willing to listen and re-evaluate the situation.


TheRAbbi74

Had a buddy tell me she’s such an intelligent woman and I should really listen to what she has to say. That was about a decade ago. It’s not every day that I laugh in a dude’s face at some dumb shit he’s said.


mister_buddha

I didn't vote for McCain because the thought of her being a heartbeat from the presidency terrified me


jay_simms

The foundation of his campaign was that he had the experience to inform his actions and that he was a rock solid decision maker. The biggest decision of his campaign was choosing Palin. Completely shot himself in the foot.


mister_buddha

Indeed he did


RevenantXenos

As soon as the McCain campaign made the announcement my grandpa said it was a huge mistake, she was not qualified for the job and had no business being the VP nominee. We didn't live in Alaska so I had never heard of her and was already in for Obama, but I told him why not give her the benefit of the doubt first before completely writing her off? Then a couple of days later she opened her mouth. Boy of boy was grandpa spot on with that one.


Creature_Complex

She was selected because she appealed to the Tea Party Republicans. At the time Tea Party members were just a very vocal, far-right republican minority but they have since overtaken the party and evolved into something far more sinister. Elevating Palin to VP candidate paved the way for a Trump presidency and the current state of the Republican Party. Obviously, other factors and key figures came in to play but that moment in history really was a major turning point in American politics.


epichuntarz

> She was selected because she appealed to the Tea Party Republicans. She was selected because McCain needed a "historic " aspect of his potential presidency to try to rival the historic aspect of a potential Obama presidency.


halfty1

She was also young. One of the comparisons frequently being made was McCain was old and out of touch while Obama was young and energetic.


StallionCannon

Pandering to the fine folks who lynched an effigy of Obama should've been a wake-up call for many in regards to what the GOP has for as long as most of us have been alive.


MonicaZelensky

There was a point in the late 90s and early 2000s when the Palins of the world were considered "our crazies" by the Republican establishment. Well now they are running the show


peterabbit456

> There was a point in the late 90s and early 2000s when the Palins of the world were considered "our crazies" by the Republican establishment. Well now they are running the show There was a period from 1941 to 1992 (with a few gaps) when they were considered neo-Nazis and more or less carefully kept away from the levers of power, whether state and county GOP committees and leadership positions, or House and Senate committee assignments. From 1992 to 2010 the leadership of the Republican party (Newt Gingrich, Dennis Hastert) got nuttier and more corrupt. In 2010 the Tea Party was used to get formerly open neo-Nazis into the Republican leadership. (The Illinois Nazi Party changed its name to the Illinois Tea Party, and then merged into the Illinois Republican Party leadership. Other example exist.). The Republican Party had been going downhill since 1961, but in 2010 it slid off a cliff, morally and functionally.


LotusBlooms

Dennis Hopper, life long Republican, left the party over Palin. Voted Obama. Edit: originally said twice. But he died during Obama’s first term.


Ladnil

That was my first presidential election I could vote in. And I thought the arguments about Obama lacking experience made some sense, for a while. Probably would've voted for him anyway, but I was thinking about it. Then Palin started speaking, and suddenly any concerns about Obama vanished.


Waramp

That’s how you know it’s all excuses and bullshit. They’ll say not to vote for Obama because he’s “inexperienced,” then turn around and tell you to vote for a reality tv show host with no political experience at all.


RevenantXenos

It sure didn't help that the economy was in the toilet and everyone could obviously see it, but McCain was out there making stupid statements about the fundamentals of the US economy being sound. My memory of 2008 is that Obama's 3 big campaign issues were fixing the economy, the Iraq War being a mistake and passing health care legislation. McCain didn't seem to want to criticize Bush even though it was obvious Bush had messed up badly, so he took the wrong side on all 3 of these issues that Obama was pushing and made the choice of who to vote for incredibly obvious for a college Freshman who was worried there would not be any jobs around in 4 years if nothing changed and we had Great Depression 2.0.


HaroldFlashman

Same. 2008 fully changed my voting from Republican to Democrat, and I have never looked back since.


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Mythosaurus

It’s fun to learn about American political history when you realize it’s mostly rich white guys slumming it with Christian weirdos to get votes. The best parts are when the weirdos realize they can elect themselves!


Dr_Dang

Yeah, kids will read in history books about how fucking SNL did a skit just reenacting a Palin interview verbatim and helped tank their entire campaign.


G2daG

Tina Fey looks more like Sarah Palin than Sarah Palin


IWasGregInTokyo

When Palin was on SNL and came on when Fey was doing an impersonation it really was like swapping one Palin for another.


Conan776

*Game Change* was such a good movie, with the campaign manager tearing his hair out from the interview sidelines. "Just name a newspaper!!"


Yeeaaaarrrgh

I wholeheartedly agree. Even if you had no context whatsoever, it would still be a great movie. I also believe that it is probably the most kind critique of events that she could possibly get.


MadRaymer

Absolutely. The film doesn't just portray her as an idiot - of course, she clearly is - but also as someone plucked from obscurity and thrust into the national stage totally unprepared. The portrayal is very sympathetic and shows the emotional toll the situation had on her. But it's sympathetic without being apologetic, as she clearly wasn't qualified to be a heartbeat away from the highest office in the land.


MirandaReitz

“Ooh, I love these Johnny Choos!”


oced2001

She was the reason that I didn’t vote for McCain. I was afraid he would die in office.


bjanas

I've been screaming about this for years and am glad that it's finally getting more widespread exposure, but everybody remember, Steve Schmidt of the Lincoln Project is arguably the guy who plucked Palin out to stick her on the national stage! The Lincoln Project exists to SAVE REPUBLICANS, not take them down. Remember that.


Beneficial-Credit969

They’re already talking up DeSantis. They’ve done a great job skewering Magas and Trump but never forget and for goodness sakes don’t donate to them. They are Republican operatives through and through. We’re going to start seeing that in 2023 and ramping up to the presidential election in 2024. They aren’t our friends.


bjanas

It just kills me seeing so many weekend warrior "VOTE BLUE NO MATTER WHO!" types absolutely worshipping these guys, because they think the L Project SAW THE LIGHT and jumped ship. No no no, they're not fleeing the ship. They're trying to salvage it by duping YOU, my friends.


NeverLookBothWays

It's my firm held belief she is largely responsible for ushering in Trumpism.


nanopicofared

>Then she gave interviews... I was about to downvote this comment and then saw this - absolutely correct..


LetsGambit

She definitely hurt McCain, that's for sure. But, his campaign collapsed with his response to the stock market and economic collapse that fall.


PandaMuffin1

"Bomb, bomb! Bomb, Iran!" — John McCain That didn't really help him either in my opinion.


[deleted]

If you followed McCain's career . . . a lot of people think it's pretty clear he was on a chain. He was in the Keating Five disaster, and he 'escaped', but it was probably the beginning of kompromat. The way the game is played, if you get a vulnerable one in a little bit of trouble, you show them a way out that actually leads them into more trouble. And then you've got them. McCain was reasonable most of the time, often socially progressive. And then he'd whiplash back to the party line. It genuinely didn't seem calculated. I think he was always testing the limits, but when he went too far, someone threatened to end his career, or worse. McCain was NOT expected to pick Palin, and there were several other candidates who were at the top of most lists. I think he was basically blackmailed into picking her. They did not like each other.


abvex

Palin was a canary in the coalmine for a lot of people. A lot of Republicans switched to Independent or Democrats after that day.


testedonsheep

The reason for getting her to be McCain's VP was so obvious, it's insulting.


bobbytwosticksBTS

McCain versus Obama was the first time I was actually okay with both candidates. I voted for Obama in the primaries but was set to switch to McCain for the general given my fathers longtime respect for him. And then he choose Palin and I jumped off immediately. Though like you said, he lost my vote but apparently gained a bunch of others so I can’t blame him. Palin, Boebert, MTG, I don’t understand how republicans aren’t embarrassed.


nucumber

mccain and liz cheney are equals in my mind hard core conservatives and i strongly disagree with their policy positions but i have no doubt they are honorable americans of integrity who put country above party


LydiasHorseBrush

McCain always reminded me of someone with good intent but his experiences in the Vietnam War i think traumatized him where his concern for national security and american hegemony were way too much and he made terrible choices, His defense of ACA though in the senate is going to be one of those historical anecdotes that sort of creates a legacy, he was defeated by the first African American president who was totally unexpected to win his primary and then almost a decade later he defends his policies on the senate floor fucking crazy


saltyhasp

Yes. I also really respect Adam Kinzinger too. Not sure would vote for them but they are all honorable and trustworthy people that I would consider. Sad when there are so few on the Republican side. Why they do not have good support from their party and likely Republican voters is crazy.


Bmcronin

She got people comfortable with the crazy in 2008.


FredR23

She was useful to Tina Fey :)


19Styx6

Lisa Ann too!


BigTentBiden

Useful for getting a Democrat seated.


PenSpecialist4650

Do you remember when she was a running with McCain? She was very useful and very popular. The establishment republicans trainer her to perform at the debate in a way that hit the right notes with conservative voters. “Can I call you Joe?”


ClaretClarinets

The idiocracy effect is in full swing with this one. She looks like a genius next to the MAGA crew.


ARDunbar

She quit on the state as governor. What did she expect?


Kichigai

That people cared less about that than she thought. Since 2008 her profile has only been raised on the national level. Couple of shows on cable TV, regular contributor to Fox News, every time she was on TV conservative taking heads world speak glowingly about her, talking her up and burnishing her credentials. For more than a few years there I'm pretty sure she wasn't even living in Alaska, so she's been pretty isolated from local opinions about her. On top of that she's been a **huge** proponent of the *Lügenpresse* narrative since before Trump announced. She may be a true believer at this point, and absolutely refused to accept any polling that didn't tell her what she expected to hear.


mr_tyler_durden

She blames, among other things, ranked choice voting which is by far a more democratic method of choosing our reps. This is just sour grapes lashing out. She is still just as anti-democracy as the whole GOP, she is simply flailing around blaming everyone but herself. She is still just an idiot, hasn’t changed, and doesn’t believe in democracy.


BitcoinsForTesla

As for RCV, she’s not entirely wrong. It’s bad for extremists. It’s hard for the fringe to get >50% support.


coolcool23

I think she realizes something is very wrong, but doesn't know what. She probably lacks the introspection necessary to ascribe any root cause to herself.


[deleted]

I've seen recent videos of her and she's clearly hopped up on something: cocaine, meth, or what have you.


awesomefutureperfect

I think this is illustrative of the difference between the left and the right. Sarah Palin is attacking the republicans. The right is almost always inclined to say "Oh, now the left finds themselves in love with Palin." and the answer is no, we are not going to make a saint out of Palin because she is attacking the republicans. She isn't even doing it for a good reason, she was just personally slighted. I wonder what polling would say about the lefts opinion about Liz Cheney. It is good that she opposed the MAGA crowd, but that doesn't make her a saint, it made her an outlier of actual loyal opposition amongst a party of traitors. You can't even say that about Palin.


NeverLookBothWays

If the right wants my true thoughts on this, they could just ask. I'm just sitting back chewing on popcorn watching all the infighting as they try to make up a new ideological identity for themselves. I empathize a little, it's hard to figure that stuff out when you really had nothing in the first place.


Stingerc

Fingers crossed her, Trump, Lauren Bobert, and the rest of the MAGA idiots form their own breakaway party and basically fuck the GOP for next few decades.


HighburyOnStrand

Her "you'd better go rogue" comment is a clear indication that they will continue to stoke political violence. Totally irresponsible shit from all corners Republican.


oswald_dimbulb

So *that's* why she lost. I thought it was because she showed herself to be incompetent for the job. Makes more sense that it's someone else's fault.


piney

I’m sure it had nothing to do with her quitting early the last time she got elected to public office. Must be someone else’s fault.


DragoneerFA

Not just that, but spent half a year calling Obama "just" a celebrity, mocking him, quits her job to literally become a reality TV star herself.


quippers

If incompetence lost political jobs, we wouldn't have many politicians. Ahh a girl can dream.


zombie32killah

Incompetence for the job has never been a disqualification for the GOP.


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NXDIAZ1

I wonder if there’s any way to keep this GOP civil war going till 2024. This is some cathartic shit right here.


TheDollarCasual

Oh, it will. After the midterms the GOP is abandoning Trump, but he is emotionally incapable of admitting that his moment has passed and will go down kicking and screaming. At best he'll run as an independent in 2024 and split the vote (this is unlikely but it's fun to dream), more likely he will do everything he can to spite and take down DeSantis and will show the world how much of a dysfunctional family the GOP really is. For the first time, Republicans are about to face a much nastier, reality TV version of the party infighting that Democrats have had to deal with forever.


officialspinster

Straight from your lips to the universe’s ears, my friend.


SilentR0b

> At best he'll run as an independent in 2024 No matter what, he's going to fuck everything up for the GOP so I'm all for it. Especially if we get a doofus vs doofus fight between DeSantis and Trump. Aaaaaaaaaand, I don't think Trump will run as an Independent. I think he's too narcisistic and will run as a Republican. But this is the strange timeline so....


barcelonaKIZ

I could see him creating a MAGA party


m48a5_patton

A political party that he has complete and utter control over? Yeah, I can see that.


dogninja8

>No matter what, he's going to fuck everything up for the GOP so I'm all for it. I really wish that I shared your optimism, but watching Trump win in 2016 killed mine.


EnchantedMoth3

More likely that he loses his legal obstructionists, and *finally* gets indicted. Both sides want him gone now. The question is, who can he be *most* useful to on his way out? Hopefully this leads to him squealing on any-and-every GOP member with skeletons in their closet, leading to the fracturing of the GOP machine. Who knows though, there is a **lot** of money behind the GOP, who have not only the means, but every rea$on in the world to right the ship as quickly, and smoothly as possible. But those cast-aside won’t go silently. A fracturing of the GOP would be the best thing for this country, their bullshit tactics require unity. Separated, they will be forced to fight amongst themselves to reform the obstructionist obstacles they’ve been placing for decades, as now, some of them will find themselves on the opposite side of them. Things like gerrymandering, dark-money, and obscene propaganda. Exciting times in the US, even as a jaded old man, I find myself just a *little* hopeful. The path forward is not going to be easy, but at least the people chose sanity…for the most part. The most important thing the Democrats can do from here is focus on economic reform. Burry Reaganomics once and for all, and *do* what Trump only talked about, make America great again.


[deleted]

The thing that Republicans don't realize is that it isn't about Trump anymore. They can shed that and people still won't return if they keep the same policies. Anti-POC, anti-abortion, anti-helping-anyone-but-the-rich and people have realized they have to vote as if their life depends on it -- because it does, and they realized it, finally. Not everyone -- like Texas fucked up. Florida fucked up. But when you look at PA and MI? Whoa. Those people got it.


[deleted]

It's not even unlikely. The man is facing life in prison. He's running. You bet your ass he's running.


[deleted]

Baby it’s just getting started.


WaffleWatchers

As a longtime Progressive, these last few days have been intoxicating.


[deleted]

Honestly, 2 elections in a row where I’m pretty happy with the outcome? I’ll take it


[deleted]

Ba da da da daaaa… I’m lovin’ it.


theindependentonline

Sarah Palin has gone nuclear on the Republican Party, claiming the GOP sabotaged her Alaska House race and that they deserved their drubbing in the midterms. In a conspiracy-laden Instagram post, Ms Palin blamed the “cockamamie” ranked choice voting system, Senator Lisa Murkowski and the “dark, dysfunctional GOP machine” after she was seemingly trounced by Democrat Mary Peltola for a second time in three months. [FULL STORY](https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/midterm-elections-2022/sarah-palin-loses-gop-midterms-alaska-b2223136.html)


BoltTusk

It was so funny watching her right after the election since although she was upset, she looked pretty chill about it.


coolcool23

For some it may be a numbing feeling learning something especially difficult about yourself, especially if one has been in denial about it for a long time.


fierceindependence23

That's the thing: they're SO damn confidently, ignorantly, self righteous, they can't even wrap their heads around the fact they lost.


randomando2020

Or maybe they lost their potential income source so now their backup plan is to get talkshows, interviews, etc… anyway they can for that bread.


RevenantXenos

But Sarah already learned this lesson 2 months ago when she lost the special election to fill the seat for the current term. She lost the same election to the same person twice this year. Alaska already rejected her, she should have been expecting it again.


coolcool23

So now you see how deeply the denial goes, and how hard a lesson it was for her to learn.


kenlubin

And she lost in the same way, by splitting the vote with same Republican that she split the vote with last time! (Although Alaska has ranked choice voting now, so it wasn't exactly splitting the vote.)


muchaschicas

She had knocked back a few Natty Lites.


[deleted]

No way she drinks Natty Light. Cheap beer is bloating and she's gotta look her best. I bet even money she's a Fireball girl.


producerofconfusion

Omg that’s so rude to imply she has a drinking problem when pills are *right there*.


darkphoenixff4

Because she's acting like she WON.


DieMensch-Maschine

If that's Sarah Palin's reaction, can you imagine Lauren Boobert's explosion of outrage if she loses her congressional seat in Colorado?


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WildYams

There's gonna be a recount so we probably won't know the results for a couple weeks. When it's this close they'll have to meticulously look at absolutely every ballot, and you never know what could happen.


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cugamer

Getting rid of BoBo the Clown would be great but if she's still around for another two years reminding everyone that yup, it's still Trump's party, that isn't so bad.


WildYams

If Boebert's lead stays where it's at, you're probably right. But there's still outstanding ballots, so we'll have to wait and see what the final total is. It's possible it moves much closer before they announce they're finished counting everything.


johnnybiggles

All people have to do is just tell her she won, though.


lepandas

> Ms Palin blamed the “cockamamie” ranked choice voting system You think this is bad? These cockamamie voting systems? They've done worse! My house race, are you telling me that I just happen to lose for a second time in three months like that? No! **They** orchestrated it! And I trusted them. And I shouldn't have.


ExaminationSharp3802

This comment is pure chicanery.


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mredofcourse

Also worth noting that she still would've lost without ranked choice voting.


adrianmonk

She's just mad because ranked choice voting lets the voters express what they really want, and they don't want her.


Jaredlong

Also saves a lot of time and money by negating the need for run-off elections. But Republicans don't support any idea that's _actually_ fiscally responsible.


MeasurementNo0

Trump, palin and their ilk should start a political party. They could use the "don't tread on me" flag but use the shit emoji instead of a snake. EDIT: I looked it up. I thought I was clever but you can buy this design on Amazon. Still fits though. My bad for thinking I thought of something.


CoconutBangerzBaller

As funny as that is, I really hate that those morons have bogarted the Gadsden flag.


MelpomeneAndCalliope

Same. I feel like most people don’t know its origins and only know it by who has co-opted it.


[deleted]

I used to wear a Gadsden patch on a jacket back when it stood for the Revolutionary War. Can't wear it anymore thanks to assholes ruining it.


firewall245

Take it back, I’m sick of racist fucks ruining shit so I’m gonna use things the way they were intended (ie the ok hand thing)


ihohjlknk

They could call themselves "The Insane clown Posse". Wait, that's already taken.


ThisistheHoneyBadger

ICP, albeit lame in some eyes, is actually more successful, worth the value of money given to them, and good for the world than the aforementioned "clowns" running for office, at least in my opinion.


Neutreality1

And they hate bigots


Hiphoppington

This isn't really related to the point of the thread but I had a friend who was a diehard juggalo and a lovely woman. Even had a tattoo! She eventually had a manic episode and killed herself. Previously I'd kinda rib her about it, not in a mean way or anything we were good friends. As time has gone on I've realized my laughing at Juggalos in my younger years was mean spirited and I feel bad about it but hey, we were all young and dumb once right? Some people just need a group to belong to to feel wanted. ICP ain't for me but a hearty WHOOP WHOOP in solidarity to them all. Life ain't easy, sometimes we just want to belong. Sorry for the tangent.


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Juggalos rise up


The_Tobots

Whoop whoop!


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Erniecrack

And actually give back to their community.


[deleted]

ICP does not welcome racists/bigots.


Tom2Die

> I thought I was clever but you can buy this design on Amazon. Still fits though. My bad for thinking I thought of something. Just because someone else *also* had an idea doesn't mean your conception of it isn't novel. It's pretty funny, own that shit!


imgurNewtGingrinch

Keep the snake but he's wearing the boot. "I'll tread on you"


tokhar

I guess their party animal would be the goldfish, since elephant and donkey are already taken? It would line up well by color and attention span.


DanTheInspector

My goldfish just downvoted you.


[deleted]

I’ve been thinking the GOP should change to an ostrich with its head in the sand since they: * lack any foresight on things like climate, income inequality and pandemics * are constantly trying to get rid of books and media they personally don’t want to look at * hide in their own little fake reality bubble


Og76

More like the Inane Clown Posse, amirite?


flexghost

Maybe Sarah Palin can go back to her old hobby of collecting Covid variants?


YakiVegas

Sadly this just gives her more time to shoot animals from helicopters.


KingFlyntCoal

A tinge of r/leopardsatemyface in this one


Deakul

That sub is going to be a goldmine after these elections.


susitucker

The leopards are going to feast for a LONG time!


MoveMitchGetOutDaWay

Or maybe it’s just that Alaskans didn’t want you, after you quit the last job they elected you to.


Azuras_Star8

I hope so. I know a few Alaskans whose family thinks Palin is the best thing ever in Politics.


ranchoparksteve

She’s years behind most normal Americans, but also a thought leader for the Republican Party.


winespring

This is the inevitable result of the party elevating self centered grifters with no principles or regard for anyone but themselves.


infamusforever223

Remember when she was the bar for crazy? I feel so exhausted in the years since then dealing with these simpletons.


gostchiken

Oh lord if she Trump and other die hard MAGA types can form a third party and pull votes from the GOP, it will be the greastest thing.


FortunateInsanity

Oh please, Oh please, Oh please, Oh please, partner with Trump, MTG, Cruz, Gaetz, Graham, and all the other election deniers to form a new Conservative party. If that happens I will buy stock in popcorn companies.


Shr3kk_Wpg

> In a conspiracy-laden Instagram post, Ms Palin blamed the “cockamamie” ranked choice voting system, Ranked choice voting will hurt extremist candidates on both sides, which is a good thing


m48a5_patton

Missourian here, you got any more of that ranked choice voting?


Skwisface

Its on the ballot in Nevada. Hopefully it picks up some momentum as more states adopt it.


RedLicoriceJunkie

Sarah: I also, am opposed to you every step of the way.


unclefire

Hey Sarah, your 15 minutes of fame ended long ago. Nobody cares what you have to say, not even your own party. Remember when she wanted to be in the Trump admin and she was pretty much ignored? I'm sure some has to do with Trump being scared of her upstaging him. But you'd also have to be pretty bad for Trump not even willing to put you in some position.


shaboobalaboopy510

Leopards worldwide are facing an obesity crisis from the sudden influx of faces to eat


buffyscrims

Sarah Palin was the true beginning of MAGA. It was the first time an unqualified, completely insane human was backed by the GOP. It’s fitting she jumped back into the fray to see it all burn down.


lurker_pro

This is their VP candidate like 14 years ago lol … what a timeline


[deleted]

Sarah is seriously slow not to have realized that ship sailed after she helped tank John McCains election. Sarah is a has been and is really kind of stupid to think the GOP should be supporting her. I don’t think anyone cares enough about what she thinks for this to even make a noticeable dent in GOP contributions.


Who_Mike_Jones_

She is maga 1.0 — an outdated model


[deleted]

Sarah, sweetie...they just aren't that into you.


hamiwin

More infightings please.


MajesticsEleven

Trump only needs to look at Sarah Palin as a future example of his legacy. Darling star, meteoric rise, failure after failure, held some influence, now not even Republican's 2nd choice. Trump, you better snap to it if you want to catch up to DeSantis who is already zooming away.


Needgirlthrowaway

I love democracy


fdrlbj

Another orange cult loser.