The Political Junkie™ Thread - USA Edition

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**Easy E**

http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/434661/cruz-tap-fiorina-running-mate

Ted Cruz will announce today his selection of Carly Fiorina as his running mate for the presidency, a source familiar with the decision tells National Review.

Why?

**Prestor Jon**

Easy E wrote:
http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/434661/cruz-tap-fiorina-running-mate

Ted Cruz will announce today his selection of Carly Fiorina as his running mate for the presidency, a source familiar with the decision tells National Review.

Why?

He's probably hoping to garner more media attention and get win more support in the upcoming California primary. It's unlikely that Fiorina will create the kind of bounce his campaign needs.

**Easy E**

Prestor Jon wrote:
Easy E wrote:
http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/434661/cruz-tap-fiorina-running-mate

Ted Cruz will announce today his selection of Carly Fiorina as his running mate for the presidency, a source familiar with the decision tells National Review.

Why?

He's probably hoping to garner more media attention and get win more support in the upcoming California primary. It's unlikely that Fiorina will create the kind of bounce his campaign needs.

Perhaps the understatement of the thread.

**whembly**

Easy E wrote:
http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/434661/cruz-tap-fiorina-running-mate

Ted Cruz will announce today his selection of Carly Fiorina as his running mate for the presidency, a source familiar with the decision tells National Review.

Why?

California... and, she a counter to many things Clinton would yammer about...

Automatically Appended Next Post:

Prestor Jon wrote:

He's probably hoping to garner more media attention and get win more support in the upcoming California primary. It's unlikely that Fiorina will create the kind of bounce his campaign needs.

California politics is pretty wonkey...

But, it's a closed Primary and Fiorina does have some pull in California.

**WrentheFaceless**

So, shes a double loser, not only will she not be the presidential nominee, nor will she now be the vice presidential nominee.

**CptJake**

CA is not the issue, women voters are. She can attack Clinton how ever she wants and not be called a misogynist, AND attack Trump for being a misogynist (or at least for polling very poorly with women).

**Prestor Jon**

CptJake wrote:
CA is not the issue, women voters are. She can attack Clinton how ever she wants and not be called a misogynist, AND attack Trump for being a misogynist (or at least for polling very poorly with women).

If Cruz has a bad showing in California then there's a good chance Trump reaches 1237 delegates and wins the nomination outright. That would make Cruz irrelevant so for his campaign to have a chance with a contested convention California's primary is crucial. He desperately needs any help Fiorina can give him with the California primary.

**Do_I_Not_Like_That**

Just heard on the news that Trump's foreign policy, if elected, will be America first!

What is this? The 1930s!!!

Can we expect to see Congress pass neutrality acts? Or Charles Lindbergh touring the country and accusing Britain of wanting to drag America into another European war?

**yellowfever**

Honest question. What's wrong with a American wanting America first. Shouldn't all countries look after themselves first.

**Ustrello**

Because trump is a sorta isolationist and that is a terrible idea.

**Do_I_Not_Like_That**

yellowfever wrote:
Honest question. What's wrong with a American wanting America first. Shouldn't all countries look after themselves first.

Normal countries put thesmselves first, but America isn't a normal country - it's a superpower. And superpowers make their own rules, and often have global responsibilities, even if they don't like it. Them's the rules.

During the 19th century, when Pax Brittania ruled the world, America benifited from this this. American ships travelled the world unmolested becuase of the Royal Navy keeping the peace. British investment helped America grow before and after the Civil War, and so on.

Now, America has repaid that debt many times over. 2 world wars being a good example.

But like it or not, we need a strong and active America, given that China regards the South China sea as it's personal lake, who else but the US Navy can sail ships through and keep vital sea lanes open for everybody else?

That's why Trump's policy is perplexing.

**Ouze**

djones520 wrote:
[Yes, and with McCain keeping us in Iraq, ISIS never would have happened.

After George W. Bush couldn't get the Iraqi government to sign a new SOFA, and so signed a joint agreement that all US forces should leave by 2011 (and even that was hard to agree to, if I recall he was only able to get that facing the alternative of all troops leaving immediately - in 2008), should Obama have, upon assuming the presidency, invaded Iraq (again)?

In other news, serial child molester Dennis Hastert was sentenced to less than 2 years today.

**jasper76**

Do_I_Not_Like_That wrote:
Just heard on the news that Trump's foreign policy, if elected, will be America first!

What is this? The 1930s!!!

Can we expect to see Congress pass neutrality acts? Or Charles Lindbergh touring the country and accusing Britain of wanting to drag America into another European war?

He has also advocated the spread of nuclear weapons to our allies who don't already have them, while stating simultaneously that he is against nuclear proliferation. When he was told repeatedly that the spread of nuclear weapons is synonymous with nuclear proliferation, he didn't seem to understand the logic. This is not a foreign policy heavyweight that we're dealing with.

I've got one rule as regards voting that I will never break...I will never vote for someone who knows less about crucial issues like foreign policy than I do.

**d-usa**

Trump's weird "other countries will be forced to pay us for helping them out" stance just feeds on the same kind of misinformation that has people complaining about foreign aid.

We are not helping all those countries fight ISIS or AQ out of the goodness of our hearts, spending US money and having US military forces die in some sort of act of charity.

We are helping those countries fight because it is in our own self interest.

**jasper76**

Trump does have a valid point that NATO countries aren't spending their fair share (he's not the first one to notice, for sure), and this is an issue Clinton had better not give him any ground on. These countries really do need to be carrying their established share of the burden, and this shouldn't be a partisan issue.

**Ustrello**

To be honest a few of the NATO countries have been picking up their slack, especially Poland and the Baltic States. I remember just reading that Estonia and Latvia just bought a bunch of javelins.

**whembly**

jasper76 wrote:
Trump does have a valid point that NATO countries aren't spending their fair share (he's not the first one to notice, for sure), and this is an issue Clinton had better not give him any ground on. These countries really do need to be carrying their established share of the burden, and this shouldn't be a partisan issue.

Eh... my problem is that he's conveying the message that these NATO countries isn't worth having an Alliance.

Keep in mind that 9/11 is the only time that article 2 was invoked.

Having said that... I'm really interested to how these numbers came about:

Spoiler:

Because, that... doesn't look *good*...

But, how would Trump fix this? Or anyone for that matter?

**jasper76**

Don't worry. Trump's a terrific deal maker. It's gonna be great. We're gonna squeeze the Eurozone for cash so hard that you're gonna get sick of squeezing.

Or something like that.

Automatically Appended Next Post:
By the way I think those numbers might look so inequitable could be due to relative GDP

**KamikazeCanuck**

whembly wrote:
jasper76 wrote:
Trump does have a valid point that NATO countries aren't spending their fair share (he's not the first one to notice, for sure), and this is an issue Clinton had better not give him any ground on. These countries really do need to be carrying their established share of the burden, and this shouldn't be a partisan issue.

Eh... my problem is that he's conveying the message that these NATO countries isn't worth having an Alliance.

Keep in mind that 9/11 is the only time that article 2 was invoked.

Having said that... I'm really interested to how these numbers came about:

Spoiler:

Because, that... doesn't look *good*...

But, how would Trump fix this? Or anyone for that matter?

Oh Canada. At least we're beating Luxembourg.

**Ouze**

whembly wrote:
But, it's a closed Primary and Fiorina does have some pull in California.

Indeed, this should bring Cruz tens of votes.

I don't see any way that reminding the American public she's a huge liar with regards to Planned Parenthood could hurt Cruz, or that the democratic nominee could point to the dozen plus state investigations into PP that showed her story was totally made up, or maybe mention some of the actual consequences of her lies.

I'm sure that Carly will bring the Cruz campaign the same winning brand she brought to HP, and the McCain campaign, and her own Senate campaign, and her own presidential run, though!

**Ensis Ferrae**

d-usa wrote:
We had a plan for Iraq, but then Obama decided to screw that plan and decided to pull out all troops without leaving behind a security force totally abandoning Iraq even though they wanted out help. Totally his fault.

Nope... not really anyway.

See, we had this little thing called a SOFA (Status of Forces Agreement), and the one that Bush Jr. signed with al Maliki gave a pretty clear timetable for us to be completely gone. I was still in the army at that point, and we kept seeing memos floating around and whatnot that were telling the Pres. "They are not ready for this!"

So, Obama goes to al Maliki and says, "my experts say y'all are still a hot mess, you want us to stick around a bit and help you unfeth yourselves?" and Maliki says, "Nah brah, we good, your predecessor signed the document and in'shallah, that's what we gonna do!"

**whembly**

Aaaaaaand the Cruz campaign has new logo/site:
https://www.cruzcarly.com/

Here's a townhall (righty site, boo hoo) for analysis:
Hail Mary: Cruz to Announce Fiorina as Would-Be VP Pick This Afternoon

When Cruz first teased this afternoon's "major announcement," three possibilities sprang to mind. First, he was landing a serious endorsement, possibly from Indiana Gov. Mike Pence. Second, he was following through on the groundwork he started laying earlier in the week to roll out his (very hypothetical) running mate. Third, the hype was a head-fake, designed to goad the networks into offering live coverage of a theatrical debate challenge to Donald Trump. The best case scenario was the first one. Picking up needed institutional support and/or reeling in a big name in the must-win Hoosier state would generate at least a modicum of positive press. The worst case scenario was the final option. You'd think the media would have a vested interest in helping pressure Trump into agreeing to another mega-ratings debate, but Cruz's renewed demands have gone largely uncovered, mostly drawing yawns. He would get pummeled for wasting everyone's time, and Trump probably wouldn't even respond. Once Pence's office denied that the governor would be at Cruz's event, door number two opened wider. Then WMUR-TV confirmed many observers' most plausible suspicion early this afternoon:

WMUR reporting: Cruz to announce intention to name Fiorina as his running mate https://t.co/fmGgnfXzxw
— Jesse Rodriguez (@JesseRodriguez) April 27, 2016

Last night, after Donald Trump had completed his dominant sweep of five northeastern blue states, National Review editor Rich Lowry offered some advice to Cruz:

The question now is whether this surge is limited regionally or transfers to Indiana. Certainly, all of the Trump-is-inevitable talk in the media isn’t going to hurt him. If Cruz has a gambit to blunt the media narrative out of the Northeast and turn the page going into Indiana–there’s been speculation of a VP pick–this might be the time to drop it.

Matt Lewis at the Daily Caller made the case a few weeks ago that joining forces with Carly Fiorina was Cruz's best play, given the circumstances:

Cruz probably needs to take some additional chances. His campaign has been utterly competent at the blocking and tackling (areas where Marco Rubio’s team was deficient), but when you’re down by a touchdown, you can’t play conservatively (no pun intended). Here’s one obvious idea that could shake things up: With the “unity ticket” idea out the window, Cruz should still consider selecting a running mate now (or, if there are some legal or technical reasons this cannot happen prior to the nomination, of making his intentions clear). Cruz, I think, might especially benefit from selecting a female for this role. Carly Fiorina, who has already endorsed Cruz, could barnstorm the country attacking Hillary Clinton...it would be new and fresh and exciting. It would also allow him to basically be in two places at once—to have two stars on TV, on the stump, and on the fundraising circuit.

That piece was published just after the Texan's sweeping victory in Utah, which he built upon with a string of primary and delegate wins across the first half of April. But the last two weeks have knocked Cruz back into a weakened, defensive crouch. He cannot afford to lose Indiana next Tuesday -- his delegate math would be dented badly, and the psychological impact of falling in a state that was once tentatively chalked up as a probable win for him would be immense. The media narrative, which is already deafening, would become ear-splitting. And so, in a week of desperation gambits, a Hail Mary is launched. Yesterday, we linked to Allahpundit's post outlining why picking Carly now might be Cruz's least-bad selection from a menu of unappealing options. I don't disagree with many of his points, and I'm a Carly admirer, but I'll be surprised if this stunt is met with anything other than widespread derision. Here's a guy who's down by millions of votes, and hundreds of delegates, and who's obviously worried that the window to stop his surging rival is closing. So with literally no path to the nomination before a potential second ballot at July's convention, he's going to...announce his Vice Presidential running mate?

We'll see how the optics play out, but I suspect it'll look and feel like something out of Ted Cruz's land of make believe, in which voters aren't voting the way they are, and the Manhattan media are the only true villains. Fiorina is an accomplished woman and a sound political performer who possesses an elite intellect and temperament. To her credit, she's doing everything she can to help stop a man she and many conservatives view as an unelectable, uninformed, untethered embarrassment to the party. But this maneuver has the stench of a 'final throes' spasm from a campaign that fears it is doomed. If Carly defies the odds by breathing life into the Cruz effort, rallying him to victory Indiana, then proving herself to be a real asset in California, this will look like a stroke of genius in hindsight. Color me skeptical. Then again, even if none of those things happen, this afternoon's performance is at least a concerted effort to change the trajectory of the race and disrupt a suffocating storyline. Cruz has do something. Choosing Carly is it. Let's see how the chips fall.

I agree with the author that this looks bad to me... not that I have a problem with Cruz picking Fiorina (although, I'd rather have Nikki Haley). But, then again, what else is Cruz supposed to do?

As someone who's in the #NeverTrump camp, I'm happy he's trying *something*... 'cuz... feth Trump!

Hypothetical: Wished someone named Bill (no, not Clinton) would run as the top ticket and Cruz as his VP... then we can have a "Bill & Ted Adventure" campaign.

**Ensis Ferrae**

Ouze wrote:
In other news, serial child molester Dennis Hastert was sentenced to less than 2 years today.

Only two years is absolutely fething disgusting! Personally, I think this just further shows what a joke our "justice" system is.

**whembly**

Ouze wrote:
whembly wrote:
But, it's a closed Primary and Fiorina does have some pull in California.

Indeed, this should bring Cruz tens of votes.

She as pull with the GOP voters in CA.

I don't see any way that reminding the American public she's a huge liar with regards to Planned Parenthood could hurt Cruz, or that the democratic nominee could point to the dozen plus state investigations into PP that showed her story was totally made up, or maybe mention some of the actual consequences of her lies.

Nope. She was right.

If you're buying into the meme that those videos are edited... then, every damn news show on the planet who uses 'stock videos' are all fakey-fake then.

I'm sure that Carly will bring the Cruz campaign the same winning brand she brought to HP, and the McCain campaign, and her own Senate campaign, and her own presidential run, though!

Yeah, because you just *know* HP would still be the same giant, successful company had Carly not been the CEO at the time... say, what's the next winning lotto number?

**jmurph**

Yikes. Cruz is reeking of desperation now. The Kasich thing was a bad move, and I think this is as well. It is kind of the opposite of projecting confidence and doesn't really address any of his campaign's issues. I guess it is a desperate play to appeal to Fiorina's Cali ties, but she got smoked there and comes across as exactly the wealthy political type that the primary has shut out this season. (When Boxer criticized Fiorina's choice "to become a CEO, lay off 30,000 workers, ship jobs overseas [and] have two yachts," a spokesman for Fiorina responded that the Fiorinas were a two-yacht family because they spent time in both California and Washington, D.C. Great comeback response.)

All she really brings is the ability to attack Trump for being misogynistic, which will then be replayed in the general. So good for giving HRC more political ad ammo, I guess?

**whembly**

Ensis Ferrae wrote:
Ouze wrote:
In other news, serial child molester Dennis Hastert was sentenced to less than 2 years today.

Only two years is absolutely fething disgusting! Personally, I think this just further shows what a joke our "justice" system is.

Am I both a hypocrite in some fashion for cheering that he's at least going to prison and at the same time, calling out how the FBI caught him is total BS?

They got him by catching him structuring... which is a means to withdraw/deposit large cash right under the report-limit, in order to payoff his victims.

**Ouze**

whembly wrote:
Ouze wrote:

I don't see any way that reminding the American public she's a huge liar with regards to Planned Parenthood could hurt Cruz, or that the democratic nominee could point to the dozen plus state investigations into PP that showed her story was totally made up, or maybe mention some of the actual consequences of her lies.

Nope. She was right.

See what I mean? This is the best part of this call. We can keep pointing out how there was investigation after investigation showing she was totally full of it, and people will just keep doubling down on it. It's awesome! I love talking about this and I don't see any way this will hurt the Cruz campaign. Lets talk about know Cruz's home state, known bastion of liberalism, Texas, not ony investigated and found no wrongdoing on PP's part, they actually indicted the accusers/liars. How could that backfire?

I mean, there's no point in arguing with you about this, obviously, but the average American, in my experience, has somewhat less enthusiasm for being lied to in a totally bald-faced manner like they're idiots. Cruz\Carly 2016!

**Tannhauser42**

Makes you wonder, though: Was Fiorina Cruz's first choice? Or was she the only one willing to accept his offer? And how far down the list was she if that was the case?

By the way, a new candidate has announced for 2016:
The Glorious PC Master Race!

**Co'tor Shas**

I still love how much that sarcastic one-liner has taken hold.

**whembly**

Ouze wrote:
whembly wrote:
Ouze wrote:

I don't see any way that reminding the American public she's a huge liar with regards to Planned Parenthood could hurt Cruz, or that the democratic nominee could point to the dozen plus state investigations into PP that showed her story was totally made up, or maybe mention some of the actual consequences of her lies.

Nope. She was right.

See what I mean? This is the best part of this call. We can keep pointing out how there was investigation after investigation showing she was totally full of it, and people will just keep doubling down on it. It's awesome!

Ya mean, that Congressional Hearing found that PP does, in fact, sell baby parts and that more investigation is needed?.

I love talking about this and I don't see any way this will hurt the Cruz campaign.

Good... let's keep talking about it.

Lets talk about know Cruz's home state, known bastion of liberalism, Texas, not ony investigated and found no wrongdoing on PP's part, they actually indicted the accusers/liars. How could that backfire?

You mean, the same fething Texas county that tried to indict Gov. Perry for doing his job? That the case was thrown out?

I mean, that Texas prosecutosr is going after those investigator for using fake IDs... yeah... go ahead in put all of your marbles in that basket.

This amounts to prosecutural abuse imo. Just like the CA authority RAIDING The Videographer's house swat style and all....

I mean, there's no point in arguing with you about this, obviously, but the average American, in my experience, has somewhat less enthusiasm for being lied to in a totally bald-faced manner like they're idiots. Cruz\Carly 2016!

You mean... like... Hillary and Obama during Benghazi gate?

Spoiler: