Re: Trump's mocking of Blasey-Ford:

[Baitball Blogger]

"If I had not made that speech, we would not have won. I am the president, you are not."

Did you see the promo clips for the interview with Leslie Stahl?? She asked why he had mocked Blasey-Ford. I think he started out by claiming that he had not made fun of her, and then he admitted that if had not made that speech, they would not have won. I am basing this on promo clips, so I hope I'm not taking his statements out of context.

Do you all remember what Mitch McConnell claimed? He said that the Dems had politicized the issue and that convinced Republicans to vote for Kavanaugh.

So what was it? Trump dehumanizing and mocking Blasey-Ford? Or the spin that Republicans felt that Kavanaugh was being beaten up by the Dems?

You see how the Republicans leave nothing to chance. This was a concerted effort from every leader in the Republican party in order to win support from their base, and provide cover for Senate Republican votes for Kavanaugh.

It's important to examine how they are appealing to their base's worst prejudices.

[Moostache]

1. Senate Reptilians don't need cover to vote party line, that's baseline assumed...

What they need (and I am looking squarely at Collins and Flake) is attention and cameras and reporters breathlessly following them around and making them into temporary "big deals" when they know in their souls that they are nothing more than craven sell-outs and opportunists.

Fuck every one of them, forever, will dull, rusted lawn tools.

[Baitball Blogger]

2. I think we are underestimating how much they rely on communicating with their base.

If they can convince their base to curry support for their decisions, they can do anything. Including shooting someone in Time Square.

Not sure how we counter that. But it is about support. I see how that works out in my right-wing community. They curry support from their base and they can get away with fraud and conspiracy. Now I see it playing out at a National level.

[Arkansas Granny]

3. What I really found repulsive about Trump's mockery was that

he was actually mocking a 15 year old girl who had feared she might be accidentally killed.

[demmiblue]

4. That and the laughter at his rally.

Absolutely ghoulish.