Sfdebris.net

It doesn't matter who the nominee is, the "shut down the government on purpose" caucus is going to keep voting down everyone until the clock runs out.

And when the clock runs out shut down.

Welp looks like I was wrong, they found an utter lunatic to their liking.

It's weird that all the theocrats who want federal regulation of everything you do somehow ended up in the alleged "party of limited government"

pilight wrote: ↑Wed Oct 25, 2023 10:39 pm It's weird that all the theocrats who want federal regulation of everything you do somehow ended up in the alleged "party of limited government"

It makes sense considering the larger picture. They want policy that is largely very unpopular. They can't easily implement it on a Federal level, so "limited government" is a euphemism for "state's rights" which itself is a euphemism for a divide-and-conquer strategy where they impose their theocracy at a local level. Their best bet is a Federal government that has been hamstrung or dismantled enough that it's powerless to enforce the rights we collectively voted for. They'd settle for an autocratic Federal government imposing things, but it's more fragile and harder to get. The current situation has taken decades of concerted promotion of sympathetic minds to important decision-making positions.

The thing to remember about both theocrats and autocrats is that for them hypocrisy isn't a mistake, it's just a value-neutral tool. Whether your words support or oppose your actions is irrelevant when the ends justify all means.

In this case, the "limited government" promoted by Reagan is only a limit on government programs and Federally-protected rights, as his administration was bent on reversing the New Deal policies. Limited government power is never the goal so long as the right people are wielding it; the real goal is a limit on what it provides to its citizens. This is usually aimed at the side-effect of putting the citizenry at the mercy of other powers. For the theocrats it's their particular flavor of salvation, for those looking to enshrine a Corporatocracy it's captive markets with no oversight and no collective bargaining either as labor or consumers. Theocrats will happily use the power of the government to enforce their vision of the world on people, and a government unable to stop them at the same time is a welcome contradiction.

The theocrats aren't necessarily on the Limited Government train the whole way with everyone else they're riding with, but it's been going enough in the same direction for a while to all team up. The fracturing we've seen in the GOP lately has a lot to do with those differing interests trying to steer things as they get closer and closer to their respective points of divergence.

So, new guy is Mike Johnson. He appears to be a complete psycho.

https://newrepublic.com/post/176439/rep ... ion-denier

That the people who supported Jordon supported Johnson I understand, he's just a more extreme version of Jordon with an identical voting record including supporting the coup attempt.

That the people who opposed Jordon supposedly over those very things voted for Johnson I'm surprised by. Maybe they just like that he looks more professional?

hammerofglass wrote: ↑Thu Oct 26, 2023 7:52 am That the people who opposed Jordon supposedly over those very things voted for Johnson I'm surprised by. Maybe they just like that he looks more professional?

Same. I think the key factor is that he isn't as well known, so he didn't immediately raise as much pushback.

It's also likely these weren't the important reasons they opposed Jordan. Bacon said in an interview that his reluctance to Jordan wasn't any of the things that seem like they would matter, but simply the fact that the "rule" is they only bring a vote when they know they have the votes to win, and Jordan skipped that. It was procedural, not policy, for him. Even despite the threats.

Given the quick reversal on Emmer as well, it's possible there was a certain amount of support/lack of support from Trump involved in the voting strategies here.

ProfessorDetective wrote: ↑Thu Oct 26, 2023 5:49 am So, new guy is Mike Johnson. He appears to be a complete psycho.

https://newrepublic.com/post/176439/rep ... ion-denier

Don't the Democrats have to vote on him getting the position too or am I getting mixed up?