So I saw this from John Cole, leader of the northern Balloon Juice tribe:
I know where he's coming from.
Screw "Bargaining" and "Acceptance". THAT will never happen.
We spent the last eight years of the Republicans being complete bastards towards Democrats, Obama, scientists, teachers, environmentalists, women, Blacks, Latinos, Muslims, and sane people.
And now the Beltway media and Republican leaders are telling us "oh, you need to play nice. We need to unite and come together for the sake of the nation."
BULLSHIT.
Not until Mitch McConnell resigns to answer for his eight goddamn years using Cloture and Filibuster and outright Obstruction to block Obama's Presidential duties at every turn.
Not until every Fox Not-News talking head apologizes repeatedly for six straight months for defending sexual predators like Roger Ailes and his good buddy Trump.
Not until the Republican Party openly admits they were fucking assholes all this time for the sake of winning elections.
THEY NEVER ACCEPTED OBAMA OR ANY DEMOCRATIC OFFICIAL AS LEGITIMATE. And nobody lectured THEM about "playing nice."
Trump is not my President. He never will be. I will never take the side of a crooked bankrupt con artist who sexually assaults women and insults entire ethnicities for shits and giggles.
My President is Barack Obama, long may his efforts be remembered and honored.
I was hoping we'd have a sane response to an insane election year.
Instead the madness will get worse as the LEAST QUALIFIED HUMAN BEING to ever run for President will take control of the steering wheel and drive this bus over the cliff.
I'm watching another replay of the disasters I've seen here in Florida since 2010 and 2014: where a depressed Democratic voter turnout - all because the Far Left were having their hissy fits about centrist candidates - led to the Republican candidates winning key elections leading to a goddamn Medicare Fraud in Rick Scott becoming governor and wrecking our state in some form or another. Only now I watched it happen to the entire nation as Trump - a far bigger and more destructive crook - wins on Election Night.
All I can do is look at the polling results and come to the unavoidable conclusion that too many of my fellow Whites are a bunch of racist sexist assholes who sided with a racist sexist asshole to be their President.
This election cycle, we as a nation did not answer to the better angels of our nature.
As a result, everything that Barack Obama did the last eight years gets erased.
His signature attempt to curb health care costs with Obamacare will die on Day One in Trumpland.
Obama's foreign policy efforts to end Iran's nuke deal will get shredded, most likely by a return of harsh sanctions that will drive Iran back into their WMD program, thus ensuring the neocons get their nice little invasion plan going for 2017. Depending on whether Trump gets to drop a nuke or three on Syria and Iraq to show them who's boss. Not to mention every early attempt to open Cuba back up will get shut down. In the end, EVERY effort Obama made to repair our nation's standing with our NATO and Asian allies will take a huge blow. We'll end up siding with Russia, God help us.
Obama's efforts to improve equal pay for women? Gone. Obama's efforts to protect women's health? Gone.
Obama's efforts to grant gays equal rights under the law when it comes to serving in the military, and with gay marriage? I am expecting the Far Right to be especially gleeful about bringing down the hammer on this.
Business regulations that Obama got signed? Everything gets deregulated on the Republican platform, remember?
All that effort to repair the economy, to bring down unemployment below 5 percent? I guarantee you the coming slash-and-burn Ryan budget is going to do exactly the same thing the slash-and-burn budgets in 1981 and 2001 did: ruin job growth and lead to MORE unemployment.
I had hoped, I wanted to believe, that every person who voted for Obama in 2008 and 2012 realized that his legacy was at stake with this election, that voting for Hillary at the least would have ensured Obama's administration would have a more lasting impact. Instead, voter turnout dropped. And some of it was more than just the Republicans' efforts at voter suppression. Despite all the early voting returns suggesting an uptick in overall turnout, instead we got a wet blanket.
Just enough Dems and Indys and Moderate-leaning Republicans were so put out by Hillary that they ignored the virtues of having her as President and ruined everything.
If there is any bright spot to this dark week, it's that certain things are now unavoidable.
For one thing: Trump will self-destruct. He always does.
The second thing: The Republicans will self-destruct. They are repeating the same mistakes they've made in 1981 and 2001 with their god-awful budget plans and deregulation desires. Each time they created massive economic upheaval, scandal, and self-immolation. There's a reason why I'm still sticking to the argument that the Republican Party is dead even though they've just won a major election. The Republicans are dead because they keep falling back onto the same zombie ideology that never worked, and they can't break free of that extremism to where they will evolve and survive. This will not really end well for the Republicans.
Sadly, here's why this week is one of the bleakest our nation's ever seen: The Republicans win the long game of securing the federal courts, especially with filling the Supreme Court vacancies. Mitch McConnell deserves a special place in Hell for his obstruction this past year, denying Obama's nomination for the vacancy, but McConnell got what he wanted: there is no chance now of the Democrats filling the top legal bench with Left-leaning jurists, and the Republicans can easily fill this ninth seat and any other vacancy that pops up during the next 2-4 years. Clarence Thomas is reportedly keen on retiring: Anthony Kennedy (key swing vote) and Ruth Bader Ginsburg are both well past retirement age. Trump can well fill three seats maybe four if he makes it to one term, and do so in a way to affect the Court for another 30 years.
It pisses me off not enough Democratic or Moderate voters realized that was at stake.
It pisses me off that too many Americans eagerly backed a racist sexist con artist like Trump, seemingly out of sheer spite for the entire nation.
LIVE from somewhere in the middle of the lunatic asylum known as the I-4 Corridor of the Sunshine State, it's a majorly-stressed Moderate voter watching the early returns and freaking out over the Presidential race and the Senate races.
It's 7:36 right now. Florida is currently too close to call. That's usually because the major population centers of Miami/Dade and Broward Counties along with Orlando and Tampa-St. Pete metros haven't checked in yet, during which we can hope that the turnout for Hillary picks up.
AAAAAAUUUGGGGGGHHHH I just wanna see more Blue on the maps right now.
Update 7:49 PM: The biggest problem with this part of the evening - just after 7 PM when most East Coast polls close - is waiting for enough results to come in for the networks to "comfortably call" any states one way or another.
For some reason, Kentucky and Indiana finished up early and their results are in ahead of New Hampshire and Maine (but not Vermont) so I'm currently looking at results that say Trump 24 - Clinton 3. Which is why I'm going AAAAAAUUUUUUGGGGGGGGHHHHHH for the moment.
Dammit Kentucky, you should know better than this. /headdesk
I hope to God 8:30 PM gives me better numbers.
Update 8:00 PM: MSNBC is evaluating the Florida counties, showing Dade, Broward, Palm Beach and Hillsborough counties going YYYUUUGGEEELY for Hillary. She's currently leading Florida 50 percent to 48 percent.
MSNBC is calling Illinois right off the bat at 8:00 PM, along with Massachusetts and New Jersey and Maryland. They're calling Trump states with Alabama and Tennessee and already Oklahoma. Hold on, they're calling a ton of states. BRB.
Update 8:15 PM: Goddammit. MSNBC is saying Rubio's gonna win the FL Senate race. He's up 51 percent over Murphy at 45 percent. What's happening there - if Hillary's still leading over Trump - is that the Republicans refusing to vote for Trump have no problem voting for Rubio.
This is gonna suck. This makes it likelier the Senate won't flip, which if Hillary wins means a shit-ton of obstruction.
I pray to the Old Gods and the New the other Senate races that can flip will go Democrat. We need 51 Senate seats at least.
Update 8:52 PM: There's apparently a lot of ballot-counting left to do in Broward and Dade counties - AGAIN - to where the close race here in Florida is STILL too close to call. I'd like to think that the results from those remaining districts will be what catapults Hillary over Trump with enough wiggle room to prove she won, rather than deal with a redux of the godawful 2000 recount.
If there's ANY good news out of Florida it's that the two big state amendments are going the right way: the Medical Marijuana amendment is going to pass, and the Solar Monopoly amendment is struggling in the results (it shouldn't get the 60 percent needed to win).
Update 9:22 PM: I know that in a lot of mid-sized and large states that Trump is leading only because the smaller rural counties that lean Republican are the first to report in, so it's skewing the early turnouts. But I cannot wrap my mind around how so many places are still going for him. This is insane.
We're STILL waiting on precincts from Broward and Dade (and maybe Hillsborough) to report in.
Update 9:55 PM: There's been almost no activity over this hour because the large precincts are still not reporting in. What's terrifying is that Trump is still just ahead by thousands of votes here in Florida that he could conceivably win this state.
It's looking like Trump could win Ohio after all. Virginia and North Carolina and even Michigan are now in play.
It looks like it was wishful thinking that Trump was losing support of Republican voters. He's doing just fine getting turnout. I'm sick to my stomach right now.
I honestly cannot see my nation this evening. It's been consumed by a raging racist sexist monster.
Wanna know the funny part? The financial markets, the ones that supposedly LOVE Republicans for their tax-cutting deregulatory ways, are currently panicking because they know goddamn well Trump will be a disaster in the White House. Not just the trade wars he's going to ignite before he even gets in there but because the Republican economic agenda he's going to sign off on won't work. Dow Futures is collapsing faster than how the British Sterling Pound fell after Brexit.
AND HOW THE HELL CAN NEW HAMPSHIRE AND MAINE STILL BE TOO CLOSE TO CALL?!
Update 10:25 PM: we're STILL waiting on Florida results from the major counties down south. We're still waiting on Georgia and North Carolina and Virginia too.
Bad news from North Carolina: The Senate race there went to the Republican Burr. We're not looking good on the Senate seats at the moment, even if Hillary can pull off a win tonight.
Just seeing so many voters for Trump right now, and it sickens me we're seeing that many racist or clueless voters out there.
I worried this election would go like the Florida governor races in 2010 and 2014 where Rick "No Ethics" Scott won despite clear evidence of his corruption and incompetence. Trump is pretty much like him, only more vulgar, racist and sexist... and TRUMP IS STILL DOING BETTER THAN HE SHOULD.
Update 10:40 PM: I kind of don't want Florida results any time soon. I'm absolutely terrified that somehow Trump does better in South Florida than he ought to and that he somehow wins this state by 150 votes. /vomit
I'm honestly disappointed. I thought we were seeing bigger turnout among voters, that we'd be seeing more Democratic votes, that we'd be close but at least it'd end up with Hillary winning our state.
And now we're on the precipice of Trump winning the whole damn thing. He's taken Ohio, he's taken North Carolina. All of a sudden Michigan and Wisconsin are in play. Nevada and Arizona might not go Democratic after all.
We're looking at the likelihood of a President Trump tomorrow morning.
...
What the hell, America? What the goddamn hell did you decide to do?
I can't stay up any longer. I'm too depressed to focus any more.
I see in your polls the same fear that would take the heart of me.
A day may come when the courage of men fails,
when we forsake our Facebook and break all bonds of Friendster...
but it is not this day.
An hour of Tweeting and shattered shields,
when the year of madness comes crashing down,
but it is not this day!
This day we VOTE!!
By all that you hold dear in this Great America,
I bid you stand, Citizens of the United States!!!
CHARRRRRRRGGGGEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!
Okay, so it wasn't an epic battle that awaited me at the polling precinct this morning.
But the parking lot was busy this morning.
The line itself wasn't too long inside, they had eight columns for ballot pick-up by last name (this is one of the few times I'm glad I'm not in the long lines for As, Ds, Ls, Ms, Ns, and Ss) and then 10 booths for filling out your ballots.
Tell history and the state of Florida I did my duty! I voted Hillary, I voted Pat Murphy for Senate, I voted Dem ticket straight down because guess what Republicans, I ain't voting for obstructionists who won't do their jobs.
Voted NO against the Solar con job.
Vote YES for Medical Marijuana.
So. I voted.
I just want to make sure, YOU ALL VOTED TOO.
Get to your polling precinct today if you haven't voted early.
And volunteer to help out. There's a lot of people who can't drive or walk to their precincts. You can volunteer to drive voters to where they need to go and help them get in line. You might wanna check out My Ride To Vote site about getting a ride to your precinct.
GET THE VOTE OUT.
THIS ELECTION MATTERS.
And for the LOVE OF GOD don't vote Republican. Not this year. Not until they break away from their racist and sexist voting base and wake the hell up to the 21st Century.
Just a little nervous and agitated and horrified we're one vote away from a goddamn bankrupt sexist racist con artist in Donald Trump being in the White House. WHY SHOULD ANYBODY BE WORRIED?!?!?!?!?!
Granted, I'm feeling a little better right now reading up on the last-minute news on the Early Voting surge we had in Florida. Turnout was higher than in 2012 for early voting, which foretells a likely higher turnout overall by the end of Tuesday night. The last-minute turnout of Black voters - who seem to wait for the last Sunday to vote as they organize at their churches and head to the ballot booths en masse - combined with a higher turnout of Latinos is heartening. I'd like to think that with solid returns from Dems and Left-leaning Indys that Florida will go for Hillary.
I'm really heartened by this William & Mary poll that had around 28 percent of registered Republicans in Florida voting FOR Hillary. That's incredible: the partisan nature of party affiliation rarely allows that much crossover. By comparison, Mitt Romney had nationwide about 93 percent support of GOP voters with only 6 percent flipping to Obama. If this division in Florida reflects the overall voter turnout - some state Republicans might be all-in for Trump, others might have more flipping to Hillary - then Trump is seriously toast. Considering how unpopular Trump remains even among Republicans, he could be losing many more voters than Romney did and Romney lost the general election. (I haven't seen any comparable losses for Hillary, who seems to have the Democratic base locked up).
So in terms of Hillary, I'm feeling a bit okay. Where I'm stressing out are the down-ballot races for Senate and House. Kinda know that the House may not be winnable thanks to gerrymandering, but there's a slight probability a voter turnout surge for Hillary in key states combined with women voting against Republicans (out of spite for Trump and other ills the GOP inflicts on women) could make those "safe" districts moot. Thing is, the fate of the House is outside much of what I can do other than voting here in Florida for the Congressional Democrats.
It's the Senate that bothers me. Some of the final pundit predictions are leaning towards the whole thing literally going 50-50, which is simply nerve-wracking (and it may mean each Senate bill has to have the Vice President issue tie-breakers). There's some polling suggesting the Republicans might keep the Senate. If that happens, especially with a Hillary win, we're going to face open and unending obstruction on everything: The Republicans will never "allow" Hillary to win (they hate her more than they ever hated Obama), and will spite the Constitution to do so.
I'd much rather see the Senate flip with a decent majority to the Democrats. I'd much rather see Murphy beat Rubio here in Florida, and the Dems winning in Nevada and New Hampshire and Missouri and North Carolina and Illinois and Wisconsin (FEINGOLD!) and it's possible Louisiana might grant the Dems a shot (they go by run-off with the top two vote-getters) and... and yeah. There's a lot of wishful thinking there.
To my mind, a sane election result should look like this for Hillary:
Utah going to the not-Trump GOP candidate McGuffin, McGruff, MacAndcheese, you know, that guy...
I'm hearing that Iowa and Ohio may flip to to Trump depending on turnout, and I worry about North Carolina where the voter suppression effort may have a real effect on the final tally, but I'd like to think sanity will prevail where it needs to, and that Trump is going to lose that many voters. Still, I know we can't take this for granted... I know, I KNOW...
I'd like to think the voter surge in Florida - combined with the improved polling Murphy gained on No-Show Rubio this past month - means that Florida gives Hillary both the national win and a friendly Senate.
So that's me, that's where my head is at tonight.
Tomorrow morning, I vote.
Tomorrow, many of us vote.
Vote well. Vote wisely.
HINT: That means FOR THE LOVE OF GOD DON'T VOTE REPUBLICAN.
It was a thrill getting to see President Barack Obama, even if it was from a distance. It was great to hear him live, with the response and cheers of the crowd.
The rest of the rally, though, let me just note that getting into the baseball stadium at Kissimmee was a headache and getting out when the rally was over a complete damn nightmare. I swear to the Old Gods and the New that the Osceola County law enforcement don't know a damn thing about traffic control. Look, I know traffic in Florida sucks, but it's something about the Orlando drivers that are freaking psychotic sons of... grrrrrrr, I'm still in a mood.
Anyway. I documented the atrocities.
Told you. Traffic getting into the Osceola Heritage Park = headache
They had us parked a fur piece away that required walking. I think I got my calorie burnoff for the week taken care of.
And this was just the line to get in. It looped around outside the main gate about ten times.
The rally organizer who planned this: "Hey, let's have an outdoor rally in Florida where it's rainy weather like 750 days out of the year or so. Oh, it's only early November, surely the bad weather would have passed by now..."
The main gates into the ballpark. Secret Service checking everybody going in for any dangerous items like paper signs. Oh, wait, it's not a Trump rally, so those posters we were carrying in were likely not gonna scare anybody...
The was the crowd about 30 minutes into the rally, well before the main guests had showed. Unlike Hillary's rally last week, there were no lineups of guest speakers to keep the crowd stoked. We were all pretty much waiting for Stevie Wonder (wait, what?) and Obama himself...
I wondered why they were holding this rally at a baseball field that could only hold 20,000 or so instead of the larger football stadiums within Orlando's city limits. But then a familiar plane flew across the horizon a few miles away, and I understood that the baseball field was within range of the airport so that everybody can see Air Force One fly by...
Oh man, here's the video of it:
My smartphone camera isn't all that great with zoom and stuff, so it's too grainy to get a good view. But everybody else saw it and that's why you're hearing the cheers.
In the meantime, here's Stevie Wonder!
Stevie wrapped up his concert after a few songs - "Higher Ground" and "Superstition" were highlights - and then we waited for Obama to show. While it was a bit annoying that I was part of the late crowd that were forced to stand in the upper deck area for the entire rally, I was in an incredible spot to see the Presidential detail ride in from the airport:
At which point it was just a matter of waiting for the main man to show. In the meantime, Senator Bill Nelson - oh, hey, I seen that guy before! - made the introduction alongside candidate Pat Murphy to get the crowd pumped up.
They talked about getting Murphy elected this Tuesday so that he could be part of the Democrats' attempt to knock Republicans out of control of the Senate. They made a solid case about how they'll actually do work - unlike being a no-show like Rubio - and vote on nominations for office rather than obstruct as the GOP promises.
And then it was time... to welcome... to the stage...
And then the rally ended to Bruce Springsteen music, and the parking lot filled with people refusing to stick to proper exit routes causing massive traffic jams to where it took more than an hour to get onto the main road. I swear, a place where there's just one gateway in or out is a bad place to host a rally. Rage rage rage.
(Edit: I originally thought Sunday was the last day to campaign. Obama is still campaigning this Monday)
Tuesday is it, folks. On the most election of our lives to stop Trump from destroying everything good and decent about our nation, and to stop Trump from wrecking the global economy and our strong standing among our allies.
Get the vote out, Florida. Vote for Hillary, vote for Murphy, vote for every Democrat on every ballot seat.
Get the vote out, America. Vote for Hillary. Vote for Democrats to the Senate and to the House and to your state legislatures and governorships. We need to break that obstruction and put into office people who will do their elected duties to serve the public trust.
VOTE THIS TUESDAY. Stay in line once you get to your precinct. Don't let anybody tell you otherwise. Don't get discouraged if you're there for hours. You can stand up against any suppression effort, you can make your voice known.
Was everybody seeing this stuff and acting as though they weren't? Was insanity just a matter of dropping the act? - Susanna Kaysen, Girl Interrupted
I may have mentioned before, I've always been sober. I think I've also clarified that I never said I was sane. Well, not fully sane or insane otherwise. I know I'm off-kilter, but still high-functioning and trying what I can to be helpful to the world.
There's a lot on my mind right now. Some of it is NaNoWriMo, it IS that time of the year after all, and while I'm doing what I can to finish enough chapters / sections of my superhero 'verse stories I'm still tempted with the idea of writing about this entire past year (and further back) of this year of madness we've all endured.
I've been helping out with the local Hillary campaign to Get Out The Vote to ensure enough voters are at the polls to make things matter. I've seen what happens here in Florida - 2000, 2010, 2012, 2014, now - when there's terrible turnout and only the crazy ones show up (to vote in crooks like Rick "Medicare Fraud" Scott). I feel I haven't done much, just canvass a handful of local neighborhoods, and I can only hope I'm part of a larger group of Pro-Hillary supporters who are doing what they can to ensure Florida does not flip to Trump.
That's been the maddening thing this whole time. Ever since he dominated the Republican polls back in 2015, it's been frustrating as hell to watch around 40 percent of everyone around me - on the media, the Intertubes, the real world - just get suckered into Trump's con game with him this massively corrupt black hole crushing everything into one big disaster.
In three days, maybe two now, this particular madness will end. The general election happens on Tuesday. There will be some finality to that when the ballots are truly finally in.
But I know the madness won't die. It will just turn into a different, nastier monster. Trump's ongoing - and unproven - cries of "rigged" elections that feed into the ongoing Republican efforts to suppress minority voters will see to that: even if a majority of voters on all sides accept the results of a Hillary win, there will be just enough of Trump's followers who never will. Worse, there will be enough Republicans in Congress and in the state governments who have already pledged to obstruct her in every matter - essentially expanding their current obstructionist habits - as though they will never see her as legitimate.
Of course, if Trump wins he and the Republicans will drop all pretense of "rigged" elections and declare it a great moral victory that will continue on the Grand Reagan Revolution of 1000 Years. The elections only count when Republicans win.
I so want this crazy to end this Tuesday, with a large enough victory - a resounding thrashing of the Republican party at all levels of government - to make the GOP Obstruction moot. It'd be nice to think that will happen. Instead I'm biting my nails over whether or not Hillary can even win (GODS HELP US IF TRUMP DOES) and whether or not the Democrats claim the Senate (to at least free up court and executive nominations). I'm stressing out over whether my own home state of Florida stays Blue after two election victories by Obama - the polling is saying one thing, the early growing turnout of Latinos is saying another - because if Hillary wins Florida it's a good sign Hillary's winning the whole Electoral College.
And I'm recognizing that the post-election will remain crazy either way: A Trump victory that will pretty much signal the end of the nation (He will raid everything for his own pocket, subvert every law, destroy every norm, and leave our economy a smoldering wreck before he's even sworn in); a Hillary victory that will signal escalation of hostilities with a Far Right that will never accept her in the Oval Office.
Madness. Takes it toll.
There is only one sane response to all this.
Go see Obama at a Florida rally. One last chance to see him standing there as President of the United States, to thrill in his rhetoric, to cheer with the crowds. As always a student of history and politics, this is a Must-Do before his tenure ends.
I hope to bring back pictures and videos.
A brief respite in the middle of the last days of insanity.
P.S. GET THE DAMN VOTE OUT FOR THE DEMOCRATS IN EVERY COUNTY AND EVERY STATE.
But before you get out in the streets and clubs to party, just take a moment to get out the vote and VOTE EARLY if you can.
The last day to vote is set for Sunday November 6th. I would definitely check with your county Supervisor of Elections office to confirm the dates and times, as well as confirming where to go for Early Voting. Since I live in Polk, best I can do is show you this county's. Note to voters: You GOTTA Early Vote in YOUR county, no crossing the county line from Pinellas to Pasco to get your vote in! Okay? Okay.
After this Sunday, the next time to vote will be TUESDAY NOVEMBER 8TH.
JUDGMENT DAY.
Not that there's a lot of pressure on this or anything but uh FOR THE LOVE OF GOD DON'T VOTE REPUBLICAN.
Parliament must vote on whether the UK can start the process of leaving the EU, the High Court has ruled.
This means the government cannot trigger Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty - beginning formal exit negotiations with the EU - on its own.
Theresa May (the Prime Minister following Cameron's fall from power over the Brexit results) says the referendum - and existing ministerial powers - mean MPs do not need to vote, but campaigners called this unconstitutional.
The government is appealing, with a further hearing expected next month...
The Tories were trying to pull off a Pontius Pilate Maneuver: Wash their hands of the affair and let other people do the heavy lifting and take the blame.
That's because the public response to the entire Brexit issue makes it clear that anyone holding this hot potato when the music stops is going to get burned.
The economic implications alone should terrify people. The value of the British coinage - as they call it the Pound Sterling - took a huge hit right after the vote and the current signs are that it will continue to suffer. The value of your currency impacts on trade and tourism in big ways. Also, their own banks - some of the biggest financial institutions on the planet (London is bigger than New York as a capital of finance, for us Yanks to comprehend) - are threatening to relocate to Europe rather than stay in the UK. This can become a serious hit on the nation's ability - for people, for businesses, for the government itself - to deal with any loans, debts and overseas financial transactions.
This getting messier, not easier. As well it should, because the people in power who let it come to this need to answer for this mess.
This fight over the Article 50 rule is getting to the point where the British government is going to have to call a General Election (it's traditionally every five years, but emergency situations warrant calling this out of cycle. They're not regimented the way we do it here in the US). Considering how the Brexit ruling has stirred up all the wrong passions - violence against Immigrants and minorities have ticked up, the fringe politicians are stirring up even more threats, the generational and geographic disparities are more riven than ever - the next election can end up a greater pile of chaos with the wrong people in power. Just think of what it would be like if Trump, uh Boris Johnson ended up as the last Tory standing...
Now you know why the British are openly airing these kinds of ads:
Uh, no. We're not voting for Trump and you lot need to break out the brooms and sweep your own damn messes up.
Sorry, Infidel, but seriously it's their own damn fault.
I love the friends I have gathered together on this thin raft/
We have constructed pyramids in honor of our escaping/
For this is the land where the Pharaoh died... - Jim Morrison lyrics, WASP (Texas Radio & the Big Beat) by the Doors
I have to admit I exist in an echo chamber of my own.
I tend to read the same blogs over and over - check my Links tab up top on this site's menu - and draw from them the same messages and warnings (which are "Republicans are insane," "Republicans are idiots," and "Republicans are insulting").
I tend to chat with the same people on Twitter, and with the same circle of online friends I made through Ta-Nehisi's Open Threads back when he hosted them, and had that carry over to places like Facebook.
My own blogging appeals to a particular audience - Hello, Crooks & Liars readers - and I tend to link to and get linked by the same bloggers writing on similar issues with similar world-views.
So, there's that. I'd like to think I'm honest enough to admit that.
Because the problem is in the real world away from the Intertubes and the echo chamber of "ZOMG Republicans Are CRAY-CRAY" it gets so damn lonely.
I happen to live in a state - grr, Florida - that drives me crazy with asinine voting for, well, asshole Republican leadership.
I've had to cope - poorly - with the likes of Rick "Medicare Fraud" Scott winning the governorship. TWICE. /full-on rage
The last ten years or so of my life have been living in particular Florida counties that are die-hard conservative, not exactly safe havens for Moderate ex-Republican Apostates like meself.
I drive past signs for bad actors on the political stage, for the likes of No-Show Rubio and Chris "Bridgegate" Christie back when he was the favorite flavor of the month. I see far too many Confederate bumper stickers on these coal-roller supertrucks with Trump signage far too often.
I work in a place where the people are nice but their political world-view is unquestioning conservatism. There are literally churches on every corner in this nice quiet friendly town and far too many of them are surrounded by neighborhoods where "Trump/Pence" yard signs dominate the "We Live For Christ" yard signs.
It's nerve-wracking, and isolating, where I can't comprehend how or why so many people around me would be so willing to defy their own faith - which preaches against greed and deception and sexual depredations - to back a crook like Trump all because they can't listen past their own echo chambers of "Democrats are godless heathens" and "Hillary is the real crook, lock her up."
I mean, I kind of know that in the larger sense most voters are partisan simply by party affiliation: they can't really go against their own party, even if the candidate in question is clearly someone as horrifying as Trump. I've been there. It took me years to get past by first awareness of how dark the Republicans were getting - back in 1992 - to finally break off my party affiliation in 2003 and move onto the relative sanity of No-Party Affiliate. Expecting Republicans today to vote against Trump is akin to expecting them to tear off their own arms.
Still and all, here I am in the middle of a Red county in the middle of a state that in theory has more Democrats in it but still leans far too Republican too often. Here I am in a place where the polling is schizoid, where I can't feel comfortable enough about Hillary possibly winning Florida - a major step to deny Trump even a fool's hope in Hell - and coping with the dread that Rubio could win and give Republicans a chance to retain the Senate (OH GOD NO).
The election is six days away, now about five days, and for all the worry I felt back in 2012 when Obama was fighting a close race against Romney in this election cycle I'm feeling twenty times worse.
It should never have been so close THIS time, either.
All I can hope for is all my friends in our wonderful heathen not-so-crazy echo chamber of supporting effective and competent governance. I can see some of them already voted early, and I hope the rest of them vote soon and vote well.
And I hope all their friends are heathens who vote.
1 And when Shoeless Joe had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in that cornfield in Iowa for about the space of half an hour. 2 And I saw the seven Fielders which stood before the Manager; and to them were given seven gloves. 3 And another player this one the Catcher came and stood at the plate, having a golden mask; and there was given unto him much body powder, that he should use the deodorant with the prayers of all saints upon the home plate which was before the Pitcher's mound. 4 And the chalky dust of the deodorant, which came with the prayers of the game attendees, ascended up before the Manager out of the Catcher's hand. 5 And the Catcher took the home plate, and covered it with dirt of the Wrigley Field, and cast it into the earth of Cleveland: and there were Voices on the PA, and Thunderings in the stands, and Lightnings in the upper decks, and an Earthquake felt all the way to San Antonio. 6 And the seven Fielders which had the seven gloves prepared themselves to ground out.
IT'S THE END TIMES PEOPLE.
I woke up this morning to radio chatterers talking about how rigged it all was, but I found out they weren't shilling Trump's latest campaign points about losing this election, they were talking about a rigged Game Six in the World Series so that the Chicago Cubs play the Cleveland Indians in a Game Seven.
See, Game Sevens are like GOLD in the pro leagues. Hockey, Basketball, Baseball... Anything that goes to the FINAL GAME and the FINAL OUT, where EVERYONE knows EVERYTHING is on the line... The TV and radio ratings for such a game are through the roof.
And the word is, the Cubs/Indians Series has been great for ratings.
That's because we're honest-to-God watching history. Of all the teams in pro baseball, these are some of the teams with the longest histories and the darkest, most painful jinxes.
It used to be the Boston Red Sox were the most jinxed team in sports - the infamous Curse of the Bambino - but after winning a Series in 2004 they're no longer the team to feel pity for.
No, that's been the Chicago Cubs - haven't been to a Series since 1945, haven't WON since 1908 (?) - and then the Cleveland Indians - haven't been since 1997, haven't won since 1948.
Cleveland's bad luck has been the source of one of the better baseball movies out there, Major League (avoid the sequels, the original was best).
Chicago Cubs' bad luck is so ingrained into the American culture nobody even remembers thinking of them as winners, despite all the fan love the Cubbies (and beloved park Wrigley Field) get.
Other baseball cities don't have this as bad, save for Washington DC home of the maligned (and long-gone) Senators (thrice!) and always-second-best Nationals (who used to be the sad-sack Expos).
So here we are for Game Seven. Between two jinxed teams, looking to break those jinxes. And only one of them can.
So here we are for the End Times.
Because this is how God rolls, son.
Did you think the Good Lord is gonna let Chicago Cubs or Cleveland Indians off the hook? End all that heartache? Granted, one of these teams' fanbase will carry on the Great Sorrow, but the energy and happiness released by the victors will drown out any Sorrow across the nation.
And God can be both merciful and cruel.
Look at the rest of the world. Wars and rumors of war. Plagues. Mayans refusing to build a new calendar to replace the one that ended back in 2012. Celebrities dying at an alarming rate. An American Presidential election that defies, no worse denies all sane reason.
This is why we need to get the vote out, America, in large consistent impossible-to-ignore numbers that would guarantee a solid Democratic party victory for Hillary and for control of BOTH Houses of Congress.
Where we get a map that looks like this for Hillary:
And we get a map that looks like this for the Senate:
I have a good idea that a lot of Pasco residents here in the Sunshine State are trying to find out about the candidates for each of the seats on the 2016 ballots: Right now, my 2016 reckonings is the hottest article on my site for views and all.
Sad thing is, as I've noted on that article, there's little information about the down-ballot candidates. The local news is at best shaky - the Tampa Bay Timesdoes not list any Pasco campaigns on their recommendations - outside of any headline-worthy scandals, so the suggestions I've put out there for voting for the Mosquito Control Board are quite honestly mere suggestions.
WHY I make a big deal out of the Mosquito Control Board elections is because it's a quirky kind of office to see holding open elections for seats - I don't see other counties holding elections for this - yet perfectly Florida in its focus - mosquitoes are a serious health issue down here - that it deserves mention.
It didn't help that in 2010, when I began blogging more current event politics on this site, that there was a serious amount of campaigning for the seats. I'm talking massive: The open seats each had like three or four candidates running, for some measly little part-time office that I was told met maybe three or four times a year. And by massive I'm talking tonnage of yard signs: a plethora of signage that even Presidential campaigns don't generate (was there a sign discount going on with the local printers or something?). There were twenty yard signs - I don't even think I'm exaggerating - for some guy named "Skeeter" compared to one sign for Rick "No Ethics" Scott.
For something happening in the midterms, in the middle of a Great Recession, to see no other yard signs but for Mosquito Control was a bit insane.
This is a photo from back in 2010 in front of the West Pasco Government Center where they host the Early Voting during the last two weeks before the big Election Day. Take a close look. LOOK AT ALL THE YARD SIGNS. I can tell you more than half of those signs - There's Griffin right up front! - were for the Mosquito Control Board.
The driveway ends at a roundabout where cars can drop off riders and stuff. There's a memorial there, and there is always an insane amount of signs there too:
This photo was taken early in the 2010 Early Voting cycle: I remember a day or three later there were so many yard signs there that someone decided to stack them atop each other to form a barricade. It went three signs high. It tipped over in a strong breeze. It was hilarious.
So anyway, in my reminiscing, today I had a reason to drive back into Pasco County for my dad's 80th birthday. I drove by an Early Voting line at the Land O'Lakes Library (shout out to my peeps) where it went out into the parking lot, so yeah it's busy this year. I realized hey, I haven't been back to the West Pasco Center in ages so I might as well swing by and see how crazy the signage is this year. It wasn't too far out of the way for me to drive.
Well, this is what I saw today:
There's the Roundabout for 2016. And... and... there's almost no signage compared to 2010. That driveway up to here had few yard signs lining the path.
What the hell happened?
I circled it, twice. I didn't see ANY signage for the Pasco Mosquito Control Board. I even asked the volunteer sign wavers hanging out in front of the building - at the safe 75 ft. distance from the doorway - why there wasn't any Mosquito Control Board signs, but nobody knew.
I guess Thomas Wolfe was right: You can't go home again.
That leaves the House elections. For all the slight odds of a Democratic victory there, the likelihood is that the gerrymandering and dominance of enough states will ensure the Republicans hold onto that half of Congress.
But what if? What if the Republicans win the House but still lose it?
Here's the situation. There is a lot of anger driving the Trump voter base, and enough of that anger is aimed not just at Democrats but at any Establishment figure. Especially the ones among the Republican ranks who HAVEN'T given Trump his demanded absolute fealty.
If that happens while the Republicans retain control of the House, the fight for the Speakership will turn into a free-for-all. For all the unity of the GOP when it comes to the issues, the party itself is riven by noticeable factions. The so-called Freedom Caucus - the ones with the extremist wingnuts looking to burn ALL of government down - is the most active and most obsessive... just not the largest one. It's still large enough to have driven the previous Speaker Boehner into early retirement, and they're still hungry for more control of both party and Congress.
Given the dynamics of gerrymandered districts, there's every chance most of the Freedom Caucus will survive this election cycle. And remain united enough to force new leadership on the Republicans and the House that would push their agenda - tax-cut everything, deregulate everything, Christianize everything, Impeach all Democrats or drive them from office - at all hazard.
The way the House works, they can block any leadership election with enough nay votes to prevent anyone Establishment from winning outright (they were about to pull this on Boehner when he outmaneuvered them with his retirement). They won't have enough - not at the beginning - to win but they'll at least stop anyone else.
At that point the whole place could go mad. Whatever makeup of the mainstream Republicans among House members would rail against such blocking, and they'd be looking at other options.
If the majority of House Republicans wanted to - and if there's a procedure for it, which I think there is - they could kick the Freedom Caucus members out of the party itself, denying them any effort at control. Problem with this solution: If they kick enough of the rabblerousers out, they run the risk of losing too many members... allowing the Democrats to emerge with a plurality that can control the House instead.
The second option would be for enough mainstream Republicans - at least the ones in safe districts, or the ones looking at retiring soon anyway - to either go Independent or else switch to Democrat to where the Democrats gain a majority or a strong plurality. It would depend a lot on what kind of deals the Democrats would be willing to make with the defectors. This solution is less likely because there might not be enough Republicans in office willing to run this risk. But it's there.
Another option would be for enough Republicans to just not vote on the matter, avoiding any official accountability while dropping the requirement for House control to a level where the Democrats could win anyway. It will force the Democrats to be more "bipartisan" with Republicans to win enough votes on enough bills to pass, although it gives Democrats the power to set the agendas and control of committees. Problem with this solution: the Freedom Caucus will know exactly what's going on, and they won't forgive or forget when 2018 rolls around.
Thing is, even if Ryan wins his district, all this can still happen: the Far Right among the Republicans will want Ryan's scalp, especially if Trump loses. They will blame the Speaker for failing to "unite" the party behind Trump (no matter how Trump was likely to lose), and still force a leadership crisis to try and get a more "aggressive" Republican to destroy Hillary at all costs. If Trump wins, he will do so despite Ryan's weak non-support... and Trump and his Congressional allies will be vindictive about it.
This is, of course, a What If thought exercise. If Hillary wins the White House and the Republicans keep at least the House, the Republicans may well set aside their internal differences to focus on their shared enemy, and may well keep Ryan in the Speakership position because, quite honestly, they're out of other (relatively sane) options. Ryan would still be willing to let some of the more rabid Congresscritters - Chaffetz in particular - pursue eternal investigations into Hillary's administration while forcing government shutdowns to pressure the Democrats into accepting his evil budget plans.
But the Republicans right now are not a bunch of sane or competent fellows. They're of a mindset desperate for power and control - even considering the power they currently have - and can well lash out in the worst ways if they don't get their way. Taking it out on the Establishment leadership that never crosses the lines that the wingnuts hope to cross is usually how they cause most of their damage.
It just depends on how obsessed the Far Right is with winning at all costs that they mistakenly throw it all all away even if they win just enough... all because they might not win it all.
As far as "October Surprises" go, this was one that kind of exploded in the face of the ones throwing it onto the political landscape. To wit via the New Yorker:
On Friday morning, James Comey, the director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, sent a letter to the heads of several committees on Capitol Hill, in which he said he wished to “supplement” the testimony he gave in July about the Bureau’s investigation into Hillary Clinton’s private e-mail server. During that testimony, Comey had defended his decision not to bring any charges in the case, even though his agents had found evidence that Clinton and her aides were, in his words, “extremely careless in their handling of very sensitive, highly classified information.”
Back in July, the Republicans in Congress berated Comey for his lack of communication with their committees that were witch-hunting, uh investigating Hillary. As such, Comey promised to keep them better in the loop. Hence this letter:
In his letter on Friday, Comey wrote, “In connection with an unrelated case, the FBI has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to the investigation. I am writing to inform you that the investigative team briefed me on this yesterday, and I agreed that the FBI should take appropriate investigative steps designed to allow investigators to review these emails to determine whether they contain classified information, as well as to assess their importance to our investigation.” Comey added that the agency couldn’t yet determine “whether or not this material may be significant or not,” or “how long it will take us to complete this additional work.”
Comey’s letter was brief and, evidently, carefully stated. Remarkably, though, its release wasn’t accompanied by any contextual information or background briefing to either lawmakers or the press...
That meant Comey's letter could be twisted into a hundred different ways. For the Hillary-Haters in Congress, that meant they could use it as a weapon:
...It made its way to much of the media in the form of a tweet posted shortly before 1 p.m. by Jason Chaffetz, the Republican Congressman from Utah who chairs the House Committee on Oversight, and who is a longtime Clinton tormentor. “FBI Dir just informed me, ‘The FBI has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to the investigation,’ ” Chaffetz’s tweet said. “Case reopened.”
So for about three hours this past Friday afternoon, the entire political world was caught up in another maelstorm of WTF ZOMG HILLARY DOOMED NOW ranting. Republicans both high and low crowed. Trump started talking like the election wasn't rigged anymore.
The story quickly turned on the fact that Comey overstated the value of the new revelations as they related to Hillary, and that he misrepresented which investigation was actually being pursued. He also - according to former FBI personnel - violated various departmental protocols with the FBI and DOJ. The one who's really in trouble now is Comey.
The one who OUGHT TO BE IN TROUBLE is Chaffetz. He's the one who took Comey's vague letter and turned into a source of fake outrage for the Republicans on the Far Right to tout as the final blow to Hillary's Presidential hopes. But elected officials apparently never answer for their sins, and Chaffetz is likely going to get re-elected in his safe Deep Red district back in Utah.
So we can look forward to at least two more years of Chaffetz tossing these types of bombs onto America with fake investigation after fake probe after fake outrage towards Hillary. He's already promised to do this.
It shouldn't be the Republicans getting angry here: It should be the Democrats. And you Dems BETTER USE THAT ANGER TO GET THE DAMN VOTE OUT AND KICK THESE REPUBLICAN BASTARDS OUT OF OFFICE.
Well, the trial came up right real quick, which itself is a bit odd because usually these things pad out for months if not a full year with court fights and delays and stuff. I figured the prosecutors must have had enough of a case with the evidence on hand - these Bundy Boys videotaped themselves doing this! The whole world saw this... - that they just wanted it done-and-done.
The verdicts finding Ammon Bundy, older brother Ryan Bundy and five others not guilty of a federal conspiracy drew elation from defense attorneys who spent five weeks arguing that the armed takeover amounted to a time-honored tradition of First Amendment protest and civil disobedience.
Despite overwhelming evidence these clowns occupied a federal building on federal land... with guns... with the intent to disrupt federal employees... essentially an open attempt at insurrection...
And this jury in Oregon looked at all that and said "Huh. Guess they were just showing off their camping skills."
The jury apparently bought the defense's argument that this was an honorable protest, a legitimate uprising against unlawful authority. The jury must have ignored the vandalism that took place at the wildlife preserve. The jury must have thought... well, crap, I can't comprehend what the hell this jury was thinking.
The jury must have figured this trial wasn't all that big of a deal.
This trial - and there's been a lot of them over the years - brings up the biggest vulnerability of any jury system: The jurors themselves.
We're talking about a group of people who may not necessarily be "peers" of those on trial. We get jurors who are, despite all the court instructions and seriousness of the matters at hand, are going to bring their own personal biases and perspectives. This Oregon jury had to be made up of people who at some level sympathize with the Bundy movement's arguments against federal land use laws.
White juries freeing violent White radicals. Gee, who'd a thunk it.
Worst of all: These juries are made up of people who are not experts on law, being asked for that trial to become experts. And many of them are just not up for it.
The outrage is going to spill over into this day and week. I'm sure the political landscape will get affected, because a lot of the "Alt-Right" crowd are going to be crowing about this victory over the hated Feds while everybody is going to go WTF.
Meanwhile, there's a protest going on in North Dakota over a pipeline going through a tribe's water source. I guarantee you a lot of those peaceful and unarmed protesters - most of them Natives - are going to see jail time, 'cause you know, Not White. Meanwhile, there's been protests in a lot of cities across America over this Black Lives Matter thing, with a lot of peaceful and unarmed residents - most of them Black - getting jailed half the time simply because that was their neighborhood they lived in. I figure most of them are going to see jail time, 'cause you know, Not White.
I'd argue for more protests in the streets about the inequalities of the jury system, but I figure only White Boys like me should show up for it. And not a lot of White Boys will, will we, since this is a system that benefits us, right?
Eight months after the nation watched an armed militia take over a wildlife refuge in Oregon to protest federal land ownership, a jury has come back and said that the militia members are “not guilty.” This includes not guilty of a charge that describes what everyone knows these militants did, considering that they live-streamed themselves doing it: conspiracy to prevent Bureau of Land Management and US Fish and Wildlife employees from doing their jobs at the wildlife refuge.
Again, this is literally what they did. They armed themselves and took over a wildlife refuge, preventing federal workers from going into the facility and doing their jobs. Ammon Bundy, the militants’ leader, even participated in interviews in which he called for more people to join him in his cause...
...The defense argued there was no intent to keep federal employees off the refuge. But come on. An armed group occupied a federal building. Your imagination doesn’t have to stretch very far to realize what was happening.
Yet a jury found them not guilty.
It is impossible to ignore race here. This was a group of armed white people, mostly men, taking over a facility. Just imagine: What would happen if a group of armed black men, protesting police brutality, tried to take over a police facility and hold it hostage for more than a month? Would they even come out alive and get to trial? Would a jury find them and their cause relatable, making it easier to send them back home with no prison time?...
At some point, the reality that juries are going to be habitually biased is going to sink in.
At some point, the Angry White Guy movement is going to cross a line nobody can excuse or defend, even the damned NRA (who sells White Fear to make profits off of guns). And of course, when that happens a whole lot of innocent people are going to pay for it.
It's one of those things you gotta do in your life if you're into history and politics.
You got to go see a Presidential rally at least once. Cross it off the bucket list, as it were.
So this Monday I get an email from Hillary's campaign saying "hey, RSVP for her rally in Tampa on Wednesday" and I'm all "wow I just happen to have that day off from work (gotta cover for Saturday) and this would be an awesome thing to do!"
So I went.
Eh, you know my leanings. If you've been reading this blog since 2007 you know I've leaned Democrat - even as I stand proudly as a Moderate ex-Republican - and this would be a chance to go stand around with 5,000 people or so.
I'm seeing, by the by, a bunch of pro-Trump people crowing about "poor turnout" at this event because Trump was here in Tampa a few days ago with "20,000" announced attendance and Hillary "oh boo hoo" was smaller at an announced 4,500. Let me make this clear: Turnout at the rallies does NOT equal turnout at the election places, and hilariously enough the early reports are that Hillary is WINNING turnout there.
So anyway, here's a slew of photos of me going to the rally.
I stopped off at the downtown library for Tampa-Hillsborough to make sure my tablet charged up, and because as a librarian I always make a visit to any library just to feel the ambiance.
This is where the line got to from the park, with the library in the distance, I'd say about four blocks away. The line would eventually snake all the way around this parking garage towards the Performing Arts center I believe.
While standing in line I bumped into a platoon - eight or nine women - who where in Tampa for a professional college administration association's conference. They were in from New York, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and they had gotten last-minute emails like I did. They were thrilled they were getting a chance down here to see Hillary.
I asked one to get a photo of me. Selfies only do so much.
Vendors out selling gear. The conference ladies were upset nobody was selling "Nasty Women" t-shirts.
A break in the line. It's called a traffic stop.
You can see where the rally is set up in the Curtis Hixon park. Nice water fountain.
I dunno if I'm in any trouble posting pics of the Secret Service sniper teams on the rooftops.
As with any rally, the opposing candidate's fanbase will have their hecklers in force. I have to admit this one had put some effort into it. The others were uninspiring and in some ways more vulgar than this. One woman went around with a sign saying "My DOG Has a Vagina Does That Qualify Her For President?" I was sorely tempted to shout back "Your dog is more qualified than Trump" but I didn't want to start a ruckus on a good day.
Here's all the camera crews setting up for the day. To my knowledge nobody at the Hillary rally shouted insults or threats at them. Unlike what happens at a Trump rally...
This is where I ended up facing the stage. A good number of families circled this part, a lot of mothers showing up with daughters - and a few sons - in tow.
This is a historic thing. People talk about seeing Presidents or candidates when they were younger. My dad talked a few times about growing up in DC and being in one of the inaugural parades for Eisenhower.
Tampa's Congresswoman Kathy Castor, doing warm-ups for the crowd while Hillary's stuck in traffic (she was in Lake Worth earlier this day).
I'm swinging around to get pictures of the crowd, and pictures of downtown Tampa. You notice anything about those buildings? Trump did not build a single one of them (the one he failed I think got knocked down to make way for someone else's tower).
I think that's Mayor Bob Buckhorn. Hugely popular in Tampa.
Hillary at the podium!!!
And yes, this is a problem nowadays at political rallies and historic events. I'm getting phone-blocked trying to use my tablet to do exactly the same thing. I know I was blocking people who were behind me (I tried apologizing...).
There we go, clearer view. Had to wait a few minutes.
And here's the security phalanx to escort Hillary and the other VIPs back to the airport to wherever Hillary needed to go to next. I asked the cops "Smile please" but I think only a couple of them did. Ah well.
And that's just the photos. Here's the video clips!
Good Lord. I'M ON FILM. How did that happen? Anyways, for all those eight regular readers of this blog, now you have a face and a voice to go with these rants.
I know I'm in shadow: the sun was just starting to get behind me. If I ever get a video editor program that can clean things up, I might try to brighten this enough to make me more FABULOUS... ahem,
Here's me walking into the fenced-off part of the event. Ooh, water! Yes, this is an outdoor event in Tampa even in late October, this was a hot day. Thank God for the cool breeze coming off the nearby river. When I say Oops at the end it's because I almost lost the bottled water cradled in my other arm.
Showing you the early crowd - this was about an hour before the event actually started - and to show you downtown Tampa in the distance.
I have to apologize on this one: We were about five or six other speakers getting onto the stage and we were all getting pumped up that the next speaker was Hillary! They asked us to sing "HAPPY BIRTHDAY" for her and everything! And then... Instead it was someone else coming onto the stage so I paused the recorder just as they were saying "Academy Award nominee..." so I'm going oh great another celeb but then they finished saying "Angela Bassett." And this is actually good because Ms. Bassett is from the area - grew up in St. Pete - so I switched the camera back on. This explains the interruption. Sorry.
I can get a better clip of Ms. Angela Bassett getting the crowd fired up. Give me a second, here we go:
Anyway. That's been my day. Long drive back on I-4, bleh. Got home and spent a lot of it getting these videos uploaded to share. After this, there's work to be done. Well, AT work, doing my job as a librarian. And also getting some volunteer hours in with the local GOTV efforts with Hillary's campaign people in Polk County.
It's more than just showing up at rallies, people. It's showing up TO VOTE. Everybody's got to do that, especially everybody voting for Hillary and for sanity.
Let's do it.
Just one last thing, though. Hillary, seriously, when you're campaigning for re-election in 2020, do everyone a favor in Florida and do these rallies INDOORS. It's called AIR CONDITIONING AND IT EXISTS FOR A REASON.
Click the map to create your own at 
