***Official Political Discussion Thread***

[wavycrocket]

Would not surprise me to see Bernie Madoff name in a couple minutes

 

[dwalk31]

It’s almost like courts and judges don’t even matter anymore.

Are we going to pretend like executive clemency is a new concept?

 

[rexanglorum]

Great article here. When I read the part about Bloomberg and all the mayors whose endorsement he bought, I thought about the role of mayor and city council and county board and even governor, in many cases, and how powerless they are before capital in this, the age of neoliberalism.

It’s funny because I caution my students against applying simple concepts from micro economics to real life and to public policy. Elites have a tendency to simplify the life experiences and complex realities of poor people and poor communities and they seek to impose solutions based upon something they learned in their freshman micro economics class.

By contrast, simple macro economic concepts often times work in the opposite direction. Finance and flows of capital are not very complex but elites deliberately mystify these things. In the case of the US economy and all the social and political consequences that flow from it, a big picture view of capital flows is elucidating.

Before 1970 or so, the biggest capitalist were industrial capitalists, out of self interest, they wanted to keep their local communities reasonable educated, housed, fed, willing to start families and with access to decent infrastructure. All to help them get those workers to get to work in the industrial capitalists’ factory, be productive, cheaply move raw materials into the factory, cheaply ship out finished goods and for the workers to start families and create the next generation of workers.

While there were, of course, class antagonisms, there also was a lot of overlapping interests and in that economic structure local officials were powerful people who mediated and brokered deals between their local industrial capitalists and their local workers.

With the ascent of neoliberalism and financial capital, which started around 1975 and continued to this day, FIRe sector (finance, insurance and real estate sector) starts to pull capital out of these industrial oriented communities, put it on the hands of the very wealth who then invested it into real estate in a few metro areas, the “knowledge economy” in a few big metro areas, manufacturing in countries with little to no labor environmental laws and back into the FIRe sector which pumped more capital out of the vast majority of communities in this country.

In all but a few cities, the role of mayor became beggar in chief. Their role became that of attracting capital from these rich and powerful financiers and financial institutions. In exchange for relatively small infusions of capital, mayors discipline their own long time and now mostly poor residents and cater to the desires of outside capital. Often times, the mayors and other local officials shift the burden of funding local services onto those poor residents by offering outside investors tax free status, euphemistically known as “incentives.”

Now this brings me back to Bloomberg. Bloomberg has been on both sides of the ledger. He has been an oligarch, whose own business dealings in the financial sector, financial media and financial information gathering facilitated the extraction of capital from most of America (including many formerly middle class and industrial neighborhoods in big cities like New York). Bloomberg also has played the role of mayor who punished long time residents in order to attract capital into his city.

Bloomberg knows the game and he knows how to leverage capital to dictate the behavior of mayors.


Short version: when most of the wealth belongs to a few people and companies, they dictate how elected officials act. That is corrosive to popular sovereignty.

 

[sammy863dade]

do you live in tennessee?

 

[gry60]

And, as a black man, I am unabashedly—deeply—concerned with the black plight in America.

 

[Present]

i kinda feel like bloomberg wouldnt be able to go unchecked by the right OR left the way Trump enjoys at the moment. the right will oppose him off the strength that he's a D, the left will check him cause hes historically to right of them on a lot of stuff, fear of big money and corporate interests and such. even with dem control of house and senate they wont slurp him the same way the GOP slurps trump

Shiiiiiiiiiii.....

Same package - different delivery.

The DNC is to Democrats what the Congressional Black Caucus is to Black people.

They are positioned such that the only thing that challenges their power is solutions to the problems that put them where they are.

Much like Susan G Komen foundations greatest threat is a cure for cancer.

Wounded Warriors greatest threat is no more wars.

Etc etc...

 

[wavycrocket]

As recently as 2017........@dwalk31



But he’s busy pardoning white collar criminals and using his AG to interference in sentencing of his convicted buddies.

 

[Wargames]

Great article here. When I read the part about Bloomberg and all the mayors whose endorsement he bought, I thought about the role of mayor and city council and county board and even governor, in many cases, and how powerless they are before capital in this, the age of neoliberalism.

It’s funny because I caution my students against applying simple concepts from micro economics to real life and to public policy. Elites have a tendency to simplify the life experiences and complex realities of poor people and poor communities and they seek to impose solutions based upon something they learned in their freshman micro economics class.

By contrast, simple macro economic concepts often times work in the opposite direction. Finance and flows of capital are not very complex but elites deliberately mystify these things. In the case of the US economy and all the social and political consequences that flow from it, a big picture view of capital flows is elucidating.

Before 1970 or so, the biggest capitalist were industrial capitalists, out of self interest, they wanted to keep their local communities reasonable educated, housed, fed, willing to start families and with access to decent infrastructure. All to help them get those workers to get to work in the industrial capitalists’ factory, be productive, cheaply move raw materials into the factory, cheaply ship out finished goods and for the workers to start families and create the next generation of workers.

While there were, of course, class antagonisms, there also was a lot of overlapping interests and in that economic structure local officials were powerful people who mediated and brokered deals between their local industrial capitalists and their local workers.

With the ascent of neoliberalism and financial capital, which started around 1975 and continued to this day, FIRe sector (finance, insurance and real estate sector) starts to pull capital out of these industrial oriented communities, put it on the hands of the very wealth who then invested it into real estate in a few metro areas, the “knowledge economy” in a few big metro areas, manufacturing in countries with little to no labor environmental laws and back into the FIRe sector which pumped more capital out of the vast majority of communities in this country.

In all but a few cities, the role of mayor became beggar in chief. Their role became that of attracting capital from these rich and powerful financiers and financial institutions. In exchange for relatively small infusions of capital, mayors discipline their own long time and now mostly poor residents and cater to the desires of outside capital. Often times, the mayors and other local officials shift the burden of funding local services onto those poor residents by offering outside investors tax free status, euphemistically known as “incentives.”

Now this brings me back to Bloomberg. Bloomberg has been on both sides of the ledger. He has been an oligarch, whose own business dealings in the financial sector, financial media and financial information gathering facilitated the extraction of capital from most of America (including many formerly middle class and industrial neighborhoods in big cities like New York). Bloomberg also has played the role of mayor who punished long time residents in order to attract capital into his city.

Bloomberg knows the game and he knows how to leverage capital to dictate the behavior of mayors.


Short version: when most of the wealth belongs to a few people and companies, they dictate how elected officials act. That is corrosive to popular sovereignty.

He is uniquely equipped to manipulate the system to get the outcome he wants. Like I said in a lot of ways he would be worst than trump 1st term in that it’s taken 3 years for Trump to realize the hustle and as we are seeing manipulate it. Either of them would from 2021-2025 just tear **** up because they both know they can basically do whatever they want with the position.

Scary stuff honestly

 

[heelsandeers]

I actually prefer Trump.

I like my racism Southern style...out in the open, with that bold, unfiltered, Organic, Non-GMO, clean, reliable taste.

so more Justices and Judges like Gorsuch and Kavanaugh? More AG’s like Barr? More Secretaries of State like Mike Pompeo?

I'm not rolling. Trump is considerably more dangerous of the 2 with 0 checks from congress and a lap dog AG

four more years of Trump brings judicial appointments that will do damage for decades

i'll also take the benefit of Bloomburg not being an anti-science, climate change denying moron like those that enable Trump

 

[Present]

so more Justices and Judges like Gorsuch and Kavanaugh? More AG’s like Barr? More Secretaries of State like Mike Pompeo?

I'm not rolling. Trump is considerably more dangerous of the 2 with 0 checks from congress and a lap dog AG

four more years of Trump brings judicial appointments that will do damage for decades

i'll also take the benefit of Bloomburg not being an anti-science, climate change denying moron like those that enable Trump

Thats not Trump...thats Mitch McConnell.

Also - Joe Biden wrote the 1994 Crime Bill.

Distictions w/o differences.

 

[IATT]

 

[dwalk31]

 

[RustyShackleford]

Thats not Trump...thats Mitch McConnell.

Also - Joe Biden wrote the 1994 Crime Bill.

Distictions w/o differences.

The president is the one that appoints Justices for Supreme Court vacancies, the Senate approves the appointment. Same with other Federal judges.

Mitch McConnell can't unilaterally fill them.

The Dems have a better shot at winning the Presidency than taking the Senate. There needs to be at least one firewall for the courts.

So no matter how much I hate Bloomberg, I believe he is a racist too, but it is clear as day to me that Trump is more dangerous to this country.

Biden is better than both by a mile though.

 

[Mark Antony]

Old white man Christmas today?

 

[gry60]

Bloomberg is the kind of racist you never see coming until its too late.

Bloomberg is the kinda cat that smiles with you until you tell him you're moving to his neighborhood. Then, he pulls his kids out of public school and defunds it, moves one town over but maintains his current address just so he can vote to get the garbage collection budget of his old neighborhood slashed. Y'all still exchange that good, casual convo at the grocery store though.

 

[IATT]

Old rich white man Christmas today?

fixed.. dont wanna offend dwalk31

 

[heelsandeers]

Thats not Trump...thats Mitch McConnell.

Also - Joe Biden wrote the 1994 Crime Bill.

Distictions w/o differences.

no, that's Trump

say what you want about Bloomberg - his justices and judges will NOT be coming from the Federalist Society

 

[Present]

no, that's Trump

say what you want about Bloomberg - his justices and judges will NOT be coming from the Federalist Society

...Mitch is the one doing the judicial stuff Fam.

At least people can see whats going on with those federelist types and protest in the street - as theyve been doing.

Bllomberg is going to look out for rich folks - and do it in a way that youll never see it coming.

Sure we might have solved the transexual bathroom usage issue but the real stuff like inequality, justice, etc....

Not so much.

 

[RustyShackleford]

I think a reasonable person can think that Mike Bloomberg is a racist that has no business being president, and think that Trump is another level above him.

If a doctor told you that you have cancer, Stage 1 is a better diagnosis than Stage 3. But you still wish you had neither.

 

[IATT]

 

[Present]

The president is the one that appoints Justices for Supreme Court vacancies, the Senate approves the appointment. Same with other Federal judges.

Fam - do you actually beleive Donald J Trump is reading resumes / appointing judges?

 

[RustyShackleford]

...Mitch is the one doing the judicial stuff Fam.

At least people can see whats going on with those federelist types and protest in the street - as theyve been doing.

Bllomberg is going to look out for rich folks - and do it in a way that youll never see it coming.

My G, McConnell doesn't have the power to work unilaterally. Trump and Mitch are working together.

And protesting in the street will do nothing to stop them if they have the White House and Senate come January 2021.

 

[RustyShackleford]

Fam - do you actually beleive Donald J Trump is reading resumes / appointing judges?

Who gives a ****, that doesn't matter. He is the one that appoints them.

Obama and Mitch were in a standoff over judges for two years.

My point is that procedurally, legally, Trump and Mitch work as team to appoint judges. Mitch is not doing it unilaterally, he can't.

So heelsandeers point stands

 

[heelsandeers]

...Mitch is the one doing the judicial stuff Fam.

At least people can see whats going on with those federelist types and protest in the street - as theyve been doing.

Bllomberg is going to look out for rich folks - and do it in a way that youll never see it coming.

Sure we might have solved the transexual bathroom usage issue but the real stuff like inequality, justice, etc....

Not so much.

and those judges will continue to get through as long as Trump is in charge

what exactly do you think Bloomberg is capable of doing to look out for rich folks that Trump & company aren't already doing?

just wait and see how a 7-2 conservative Supreme Court looks out for the rich

 

[RustyShackleford]

Listen any Republican Senate Majority Leader or Republican President will appoint and push through the same Federalist Society ghouls.

The thing with Bloomberg is that his stances on Environmental Rights and Gun Laws kinda disqualifies those judges from consideration. So brining this up is not some endorsement of Bloomberg, it is just pointing out how much more destructive Trump will be.