Hillary For President 2020

[Sensualtravler]

 What is it that you see Beto bringing to the Congress? Saw an article today that his supporters were not able to list any of his accomplishments... certain there are some, and just wonder what you may be hoping for with Beto.

The Dems probably see him as someone able to raise funds. He's done well for a lying Dem who has done nothing but  pretending to be of Hispanic  decent and still able to raise 38 million. Most going into a personal account somewhere, I image, but still able to attempt to accuse Cruz of being crooked for accepting a little over $100,00 for his campaign. And Dems wonder why we don't trust,or believe anything they say. Besides, he doesn't stand a snow balls chance in hell of winning, thank God,unless he buys the election.

[Athos_131]

He's done well for a Dem who has done nothing but beng  lying Irish trash pretending to be of Hispanic  decent

Rafael ‘Ted’ Cruz accuses his Democratic opponent of changing his name to appeal to voters

At 7 p.m. Tuesday, the primary polls closed in Texas, and Sen. Ted Cruz's challenger was soon confirmed as Rep. Beto O'Rourke — a congressman born and raised in El Paso who had outraised Cruz nearly 3-to-1 in recent weeks and lifted Democratic hopes of finally cracking the Republican monopoly on statewide politics in November.

Less than two hours later on the same evening, Cruz released a radio ad against his Democratic threat on Twitter.

It was a jingle. It went like this:

I remember reading stories liberal Robert wanted to fit in,
So he changed his name to Beto and hid it with a grin.
Beto wants those open borders and he wants to take our guns.
Not a chance on earth he'll get a vote from million of Texans.
If you're going to run in Texas you can't be a liberal man.

It was set to the tune of Alabama's "If You're Gonna Play in Texas (You Gotta Have a Fiddle in the Band)," if that helps.

Besides some issues with the meter, the song was criticized on two related fronts.

1) While O'Rourke's first name is indeed legally Robert and he is white, he has used the traditionally Hispanic nickname Beto for decades. He also has not tried to hide his real one.

Texas Monthly reported the nickname was given to him as a baby growing up in a heavily Hispanic town near the Mexican border. O'Rourke even gave The Washington Post a childhood photo of himself in a “Beto” sweater last month to prove it. While Cruz suggested he had changed his name to manipulate Hispanic voters, O'Rourke identified himself as “Robert 'Beto' O'Rourke” to the El Paso Times in 2002 — 10 years before he won his U.S. Congress seat — for an article about a local 20K race.

2) “Ted” Cruz did exactly the same thing. Before moving to Texas as a child, he was born Rafael Edward Cruz — in another country, no less.

Cruz was not the first to inaccurately accuse O'Rourke of faking up a name. The Monitor in McAllen, Tex., posted a chain of warring letters to the editor late last year.

From Jake Longoria in Mission, Tex.: “It never ceases to amaze me how easily the voters of the Rio Grande Valley are bamboozled by someone who adopts a nickname that somehow bestows some type of Hispanic connection on them.”

Felipe Garcia in Edinburg, Tex.: “I will take a white ‘Beto’ over an ‘Uncle Tomas’ Cruz any day of the year.”

So, also Tuesday, after the primary vote and the radio jingle, CNN invited Cruz and O'Rourke on the air to sort out the name-calling.

“Why?” anchor Chris Cuomo asked Cruz. “Your name is Rafael. You go by Ted. Your middle name is Edward. Why go after it? You're both doing the same thing.”

“You're absolutely right,” Cruz said, and in the next sentence transitioned from a defense of his ad to a stump speech. “I'm the son of Rafael Cruz, an immigrant from Cuba who came Texas with nothing and had $100 in his underwear. ... That's the American story.”

Back to the ad. “It is just kind of a sense of humor,” Cruz told Cuomo. “You actually missed the central, the title of the song — which is if you're going to run in Texas, you can't run as a liberal man.”

If this did not seem to be the most substantive debate to be having at the beginning of a potentially historic Senate race, the questions for O'Rourke in the next segment were not much more inspiring.

“Congressman,” anchor Alisyn Camerota asked him. “I know you have a punk rock past. Do you plan to compose a punk rock song to counter that jingle?”

Along with acquiring a nickname in his distant youth, O'Rourke also played in a punk rock band.

He refused to acknowledge Camerota's question.

“We're the defining immigrant state,” he said. “We should be leading the way on immigrant reform.”

“Congressman,” Camerota said again. “Why aren't you taking my punk rock bait?”

“We can get into name calling and focus on why the other person is such an awful guy, or we can focus on the big things,” O'Rourke said.

Go back to the kiddie table, dude.

#Resist

[Lois]

I'm always amazed when Republicans point at Democrats and call them crooks.

I guess Republicans have not been paying attention lately, or at least since Nixon.

[Katiebee]

You were talking about me. At least Beto votes to fund infrastructure repairs with an increase in the gasoline tax. I really hate having highways that I have to pay for each use.

[watcher1]

You were talking about me. At least Beto votes to find infrastructure repairs with an increase in the gasoline tax. I really hate having highways that I have to pay for each use.

Are you talking about toll roads? Once a toll road, the odds are very slim they will ever become freeways. A bureaucracy once started will just continue to grow. Other then gasoline taxes and/or road usage tax, there is not too much a state can do to repair their infrastructure. Maybe look to the Federal government?

[Katiebee]

Gas taxes are fine. We use the roads, everyone pays for use. That is why I pay taxes, to have infrastructure maintained.

[psiberzerker]

Gas taxes are fine. We use the roads, everyone pays for use. That is why I pay taxes, to have infrastructure maintained.

In theory.  By the same political theory, Lotto pays for schools.  Have you looked at schools lately, or heard about parents having to pay for supplies like glue sticks?  Infrastructure works the same way, because we have a real estate embezzler for President, it's a lot more permissive to take that funding, and order a bunch of extra mixer trucks that never show up, then pocket the cost of the concrete that's never delivered.

It doesn't do any good to pay into a system for roads, if that funding goes into the pockets that run the DOT.  Or, keep shelling out, with faith that that pothole on your street will get fixed.  Just do yourself a favor, when spring rolls around, and you're driving down the road you payed for?  Try to think about where your taxes actually go, while you're bitching about them not going into the roads.

[Katiebee]

I know. But hey, we have Republicans running the state. It was much better when the Democrats had sway. They actually did what they said they were going to do. They raised taxes and used those taxes for what they were intended for. They were making the system work.

But the Republicans would rather tear down the system because “private enterprise” is more efficient and better. In other words, they became part of the problem.
They want smaller government but they run into a proble, they want to control everything, too.

[psiberzerker]

But the Republicans would rather tear down the system because “private enterprise” is more efficient and better. They want smaller government but they run into a proble, they want to control everything, too.

As long as it's lucrative, yeah.  "Small government" means less taxes for big business, but the "Defense" contractors need to make a buck too.  So, to fund their bloated (50+% of the federal) budget, they're going to have to tax someone, and that means you.  (I barely even pay Sales Tax.)  That's what "Libertarian" means:  "I don't want to sound like a corporautocrat, but these taxes are unfair, amirite?"  Oh well, not like this is sustainable for much longer anyway...

Roads, affordable health care (Without Insurance companies playing middle men) the environment, individuals' civil rights?  There's no money in that.  I mean, that would be "Socialism."

[joan1984]

  Pot hole repair, and infrastructure upkeep are distinctly State issues, and not Federal issues. States and State/Local politicians need to have their feet held to the fire by their own Constituents, and not ramble on about Federal Government who is not responsible.

  Having 'Federal Money' for what should be State responsibility, is shorthand for having a requirement to pay "prevailing wage", which is shorthand for Union wage, for the same work that should be accomplished within the State by the lowest capable bidder. States should not give up their responsibility, nor should they receive Federal money for infrastructure upkeep.

  Weasel words, and 'free' money from Uncle Sam, is just a way for local pols to duck doing their own jobs, and a way to increase the actual costs, and increase the actual time needed to do those jobs. When you hear Federal, think Union, think less competition in the bidding process, think slower process prior to and during construction, and think less construction for the same money spent, over the longer and inconvenient time, because your local politicians took the weasel way out of actually doing their jobs.

[psiberzerker]

It doesn't matter where the money comes from, Federal Taxes, or State taxes, it's being taxed, and it's not being spent on what the taxes are collected for.  So, in other words, theft.  You can make this a State/Federal issue all you want, but it doesn't change the fact that taxpayers are paying for roads they can't use, and the FEDERAL guidelines, not the money, can and will be used to regulate the other systems.  

That aren't the National Highway System, which is solidly FEDERAL money.  You done?

[Athos_131]

I like seeing Yellow Wall defeated by facts.

Keep it up, y'all.

#Resist

[psiberzerker]

You done?

Actually, I'm not.  You ever driven I40?  Because I did, from Wilmington to Barstow, (Then up to Fresno, and Milpitas) and then I hitchiked back.  In the 90s, when the Clintons were running the show, and we had bleeding heart liberals in congress.  This was pretty close to your state run ideal.  Now, just do the Oklahoma section.  You find that it is still Kthunk Kthunk Kthunk ferroconcrete surface with expansion cracks in it at mind meltingly regular intervals so it doesn't crack due to heat expansion during the day night cycle.  Border-toBorder, only now it hasn't been repaved since the 90s.  So it's also cracked, potholled, and patched due to your state funded, but federally embezzled from up to the Cabinet level reality from your "Conservative" nightmare.  I know this, because I was living in Lawton, and Norman in the late OOs.  

That's what you're talking about, in practice.  In theory, because you politically retarded anti-progressives (Or if you prefer Regressive) have this fantasy in your head that the States can maintain the roads, while your regressive Congress, and serial career cement embezzling president raids their funding like a petty cash fund.  So now, NONE of the states are investing in the highways.

Get out there, and drive.  Anywhere in the US.  National (Federal) highways, State roads, country roads, inner shitty, or suburnab streets, and find me 1.  In America, that's properly maintained.  Then, lecture me on how your system is working, for US.  You got your fucking cake, now choke on it.

[joan1984]

  Complaining about pothole repair to others at KB is a useless exercise, value only as a place to vent, perhaps. Withhold funding and support from your local officials, and let them know why, that you care about road upkeep in your local area, and vote against the incumbents, be vocal, let the Press know why you will withhold your support, just might do the trick.

  Apply the pressure where you pay your local taxes, and demand local results.
Oh, you don't pay local taxes? Hmmm, then, never mind, live with the potholes.

[psiberzerker]

  Complaining about pothole repair to others at KB is a useless exercise.

In the thread you started for a candidate we don't even know is running, in an election we aren't even sure we'll be happening (Due to the impending collapse of the government) ignoring repeated pleas to consider the House race.

So, not quite as much an exercise in futility as ^that.

Any more deflections?

[watcher1]

Another idea being floated in some states to repair the crumbling infrastructure is a vehicle miles traveled (VMT) tax.

[watcher1]

To somewhat return on topic, I think Warren did not do herself much good by claiming she has Native American blood in her.  If it was six generations ago she would be 1/64th Native American but if it was ten generations ago she would be a miniscule 1/1020th Native American, both figures coming from the DNA test she recently published. The DNA test cannot tell what Native American tribe she may come from. In today's paper, now the Native Americans (some tribes) are getting down on Warren for saying she is part Native American. It is not only having Native American blood in you but how you live the culture that counts. 

I just think she unnecessarily raised a brewing firestorm if she decided to run.

[Athos_131]

If it was six generations ago she would be 1/64th Native American but if it was ten generations ago she would be a miniscule 1/1020th Native American, both figures coming from the DNA test she recently published. The DNA test cannot tell what Native American tribe she may come from.

The Sun-Times is bad for you, yo.

Just about everything you’ve read on the Warren DNA test is wrong

The Pinocchio Test
We are not trying to defend Warren’s decision to release the test, just to set the record straight about what the test shows. The media bungled the interpretation of the results — and then Warren’s opponents used the uninformed reporting to undermine the test results even further. We fell into this trap as well, and were too quick to send out a tweet (now deleted) that made an inaccurate comparison. We should have not relied on media reporting before tweeting.

Warren’s Native American DNA, as identified in the test, may not be large, but it’s wrong to say it’s as little as 1/1024th or that it’s less than the average European American. Three Pinocchios all around — including to our tweet.

Three Pinocchios

#Resist

[psiberzerker]

It is not only having Native American blood in you but how you live the culture that counts.

Yeah, I completely agree with that.  The same should go for African Americans like Colin Kaepernic, for example.  For another:



Anne (Dunham) Obama.  Funny, how people seem to judge you only by the color of your skin.  Colin is a Polack, culturally.

I just think she unnecessarily raised a brewing firestorm if she decided to run.

Raised, past tense, if she decides to run, future tense.  Yeah, a brewing shitstorm because white supremacists are in Power.  That's why we need to fight it.  All of US, especially white people, because the 1/100th  of the population can't do it all by themselves from their reservations.

[joan1984]

Ms. Warren, now Senator Warren, raised the topic of her supposed Native American (Cherokee is the claim) Heritage when being a minority was clearly to her advantage, including herself by association, knowing an advantage may be forthcoming with a University Employer, be it an advantage in hiring, or granting of Tenure, or access to monetary grants.

Harvard noted it's own diversity by virtue of Professor Warren's being faculty.

She seeks to continue such deception, is caught in the lie, and does not relent.
  The DNA tested in her self serving 'test' includes no American Indian samples, offering as 'equivalent' some samples from Peru and Mexico, to measure against. So at best the result shows she could be 1/64th Peru/Mexican, or 1/1000 Peru/Mexico in origin... about the same as my cat...

To somewhat return on topic, I think Warren did not do herself much good by claiming she has Native American blood in her.  If it was six generations ago she would be 1/64th Native American but if it was ten generations ago she would be a miniscule 1/1020th Native American, both figures coming from the DNA test she recently published. The DNA test cannot tell what Native American tribe she may come from. In today's paper, now the Native Americans (some tribes) are getting down on Warren for saying she is part Native American. It is not only having Native American blood in you but how you live the culture that counts. 

I just think she unnecessarily raised a brewing firestorm if she decided to run.