Congressional Kabuki: Non-Electric Boogaloo Edition

Andrew Donaldson

Born and raised in West Virginia, Andrew has since lived and traveled around the world several times over. Though frequently writing about politics out of a sense of duty and love of country, most of the time he would prefer discussions on history, culture, occasionally nerding on aviation, and his amateur foodie tendencies. He can usually be found misspelling/misusing words on Twitter @four4thefire and his food writing website Yonder and Home. Andrew is the host of Heard Tell podcast.

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22 Responses

  1. pillsy says:

    On the one hand, you’re right that this is total nonsense and we should all mock it.

    On the other hand, it’s not like the Senate would actually be doing a ton of other useful stuff if it weren’t for this nonsense.Report

  2. Jaybird says:

    How many of Hillary Clinton’s bills made it to a vote within a year or so of getting sworn in?Report

    • Philip H in reply to Jaybird says:

      How many of anyone’s bills make it? Who cares? It was a resolution of intent, not, you know, and actual authorization or appropriation. But hey, lets keep pounding Hillary as the enemy two years on . . . oh wait, we are still supposed to be pounding Obama aren’t we?Report

      • Jaybird in reply to Philip H says:

        AOC is a leader of the Democratic Party within a year of getting elected. Her Green New Deal set the stage in such a way that we knew it was a big deal within minutes of its announcement.

        And we don’t remember a thing about Clinton’s accomplishments in the Legislative Branch other than that she checked off a box.Report

        • Philip H in reply to Jaybird says:

          AOC is a leader, not the leader. She’s driving ideas many of us want to see driven, which the centerists in the old guard have avoided until now. I’m grateful she has.

          And again, the resolution sent to the Senate was just that – an aspirational think piece. Real legislation is yet to come, and AOC is not likely to author all of it.

          We don’t remember a thing about Obama’s accomplishments in the Senate or Bush the Younger’s accomplishments as Texas Governor, or Clinton’s accomplishments as Arkansas Governor or . . . .Report

        • pillsy in reply to Jaybird says:

          I am not quite sure what to think about AOC, but she seems to be much closer to Bill than Hillary when it comes to her political talents.

          Indeed, she’s talented enough that I think she’ll be in a position to brutally disappoint her Leftist fans by selling out before we know it.Report

          • North in reply to pillsy says:

            Very much this. She isn’t a Ted Cruz of the left. She is not making life miserable for leadership; indeed she’s been a tolerable team player.

            Also implicit in Jaybirds observations is the negation of a favorite libertarian, media and conservative bugaboo; that the Democratic Party is controlled by and composed of deranged leftists. Far from it. AOC is so noteworthy because she’s a photogenic, influential left leaning member of the Democratic Party where there were not many previously. I don’t plan on holding my breath waiting for the regular suspects to acknowledge that of course.Report

            • Jaybird in reply to North says:

              Here’s a tweet I saw earlier today:

              I think that she’s the most dangerous Democrat that the Dems have.Report

              • North in reply to Jaybird says:

                Time will tell. Her behavior so far suggests to me that she has good potential to moderate. So change “dangerous” to “high potential” then I’d agree with you.Report

              • pillsy in reply to Jaybird says:

                @North,

                Yeah, she seems to have ambitions (and. likely abilities) beyond representing a single Congressional district, and pursuing those ambitions will almost certainly require her to move to the center, no matter which tack she takes.Report

              • North in reply to Jaybird says:

                Yes, and her behavior, so far, has suggested that she knows it and that she is acting accordingly. Like I said, she isn’t behaving like a Ted Cruz who trashes his own party and leadership for his own self promotion. She definitely gives me the vibe of being a team player (within reason). I still don’t agree with her policy wise but I think it’s great (for her, for the nation and for the party) that she’s in the Democratic party.Report

              • veronica d in reply to Jaybird says:

                Plus she can dance.Report

  3. Chip Daniels says:

    And what isn’t nonsense, is the changing climate and its effects.
    IMO, even a “Shoot for the Moon Wishful Dream Statement” is superior to our current strategy which is…Do Nothing.Report

  4. Philip H says:

    And yet he can’t be bothered to bring up the House resolution – passed 420 to 0 – demanding full release of the Mueller report. Since the math may be fuzzy – that means a LOT of House Republicans voted for it. Probably because they knew the Senate would kill it but still . . .Report

  5. Stillwater says:

    “Republicans want to force this political stunt to distract from the fact that they neither have a plan nor a sense of urgency to deal with the threat of climate change. With this exercise, the Republican majority has made a mockery of the legislative process,” said Sen. Minority Leader Chuck Shumer (D-NY)

    “This is nonsense, and if you’re going to sign on to nonsense, you ought to have to vote for nonsense,” said Sen. McConnell.

    Mitch McConnell once again shows that he’s better at politics than Schumer (who is just awful at politics, so the bar is pretty low).Report

    • Philip H in reply to Stillwater says:

      Harry Reid should never have been Democratic Leader in the Senate, nor should he have been replaced with Chuck Schumer. Its part of why I am not happy that so many younger more charismatic and more strategic Senators in the Democratic Party are running for President. Some of that talent is needed on the Hill.Report