“O Captain! my Captain, our fearful trip is done,

whitmanThe ship has weather’d every rack,
the prize we sought is won,
The port is near, the bells I hear,
the people all exulting,
While follow eyes the steady keel,
the vessel grim and daring;
But O heart! heart! heart!
O the bleeding drops of red,
Where on the deck my Captain lies,
Fallen cold and dead.

O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells;
Rise up–for you the flag is flung–for you the bugle trills,
For you bouquets and ribbon’d wreaths–for you the shores a-crowding,
For you they call, the swaying mass, their eager faces turning;
Here Captain! dear father!
The arm beneath your head!
It is some dream that on the deck,
You’ve fallen cold and dead.

My Captain does not answer, his lips are pale and still,
My father does not feel my arm, he has no pulse nor will,
The ship is anchor’d safe and sound, its voyage closed and done,
From fearful trip the victor ship comes in with object won;
Exult O shores, and ring O bells!
But I with mournful tread,
Walk the deck my Captain lies,
Fallen cold and dead.

Walt Whitman, “Leaves of Grass”, Philadelphia: David McKay, 1891-92

By Blue Bronc, a Trail Mix Contributor

The sheer arrogance.  The absolute lack of empathy.  The stupid response.  The sadness of America for having voted for a person who would be better in an assisted living home than loose on the streets.

khizr-khan-addresses-dataWho?  Trump.  I just listened to his idiotic and completely moronic response to the mother and father, Ghazala Khan and Khizr Khanf, who spoke at Hillary’s nomination talking about the son they lost in the Bush war.  Their son was killed, the father took the idiot (even worse than the Village Idiot) to task and stated the head of the Republicans had “not sacrificed”.

The one with his buddy on his head, a dead orange rat, stated that he “sacrificed”.  He f*$&ing “sacrificed” by hiring a thousand workers.  Jesus Alou (hay-sus ah-lou).  The guy has no idea of the world.  Or of what “sacrifice” means.  He “hired” (which I decline to believe) a thousand people and for that he “sacrificed”.  He was born with a silver spoon in his mouth.

At what point do the blue collar supporters realize that hiring a thousand workers to build a tower (which will be bankrupt as soon as it is built) counts as much as going into a combat zone and being killed.  Or at least that is what the idiot (I’m sorry, he could be suffering mental disease and should not be called an idiot) is telling the media.  He sacrificed by hiring workers is his sworn statement.

His sacrifice by hiring laborers is the same as a mother’s loss of her son fighting for the United States?  At what point will his supporters see he is a carny barker?  When will his dismissal of their children’s sacrifices in the military mean something to them?  It had better be pretty soon.

“I, _____, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God.”

It might have the statement “obey the orders of the President. . .”  That means legal orders. Not torturing.  Illegal orders from any officer, non-com or other military or civilian authority are not obeyed.

Notice it says “. . .defend. . .”  Yup that means defend as in to the death.  Just like the son did.

That the fool says he “sacrificed” is to make me barf.  And, I hope any and all veteran do the same.

More Posts by Blue Bronc

 

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Author: Blue Bronc

Born in Detroit when Truman was president, survived the rest of them. Early on I learned that FDR was the greatest president, which has withstood all attempts to change that image. Democratic Party, flaming liberal, Progressive, equality for all and a believer in we are all human and deserve respect and understanding. College educated, a couple of degrees, a lot of world experience and tons of fun. US Air Force (pre-MRE days). Oil and gas fields, computer rooms and stuff beyond anything I can talk about. It has been quite a life so far. The future is making my retirement boat my home. Dogs, cats and other critters fill my life with happiness. Work pays the bills.

157 thoughts on ““O Captain! my Captain, our fearful trip is done,”

  1. By Ghazala Khan in wapo

    Donald Trump has asked why I did not speak at the Democratic convention. He said he would like to hear from me. Here is my answer to Donald Trump: Because without saying a thing, all the world, all America, felt my pain. I am a Gold Star mother. Whoever saw me felt me in their heart.

    Donald Trump said I had nothing to say. I do. My son Humayun Khan, an Army captain, died 12 years ago in Iraq. He loved America, where we moved when he was 2 years old. He had volunteered to help his country, signing up for the ROTC at the University of Virginia. This was before the attack of Sept. 11, 2001. He didn’t have to do this, but he wanted to.

    When Humayun was sent to Iraq, my husband and I worried about his safety. I had already been through one war, in Pakistan in 1965, when I was just a high school student. So I was very scared. You can sacrifice yourself, but you cannot take it that your kids will do this.

    We asked if there was some way he could not go, because he had already done his service. He said it was his duty. I cannot forget when he was going to the plane, and he looked back at me. He was happy, and giving me strength: “Don’t worry, Mom. Everything will be all right.”

    The last time I spoke to my son was on Mother’s Day 2004. We had asked him to call us collect whenever he could. I begged him to be safe. I asked him to stay back, and not to go running around trying to become a hero, because I knew he would do something like that.

    He said, “Mom, these are my soldiers, these are my people. I have to take care of them.” He was killed by a car bomber outside the gates of his base. He died trying to save his soldiers and innocent civilians.

  2. yep, trotting out the dead horse to beat again, boss
    ny times:  Hillary Clinton Hunts an Elusive Prey: White Male Voters
    In her first general election road trip after accepting the Democratic nomination for president, when she took stock of her historic feat as “my mother’s daughter and my daughter’s mother,” Mrs. Clinton rumbled by bus through the heart of the white male resistance.

    There is no group that views Mrs. Clinton with greater antipathy. A New York Times/CBS News poll two weeks ago found that white men preferred her Republican opponent, Donald J. Trump, to Mrs. Clinton almost two to one, 55 percent to 29 percent. (White women were split at 40 percent each.)

  3. craig, in case you need to update countdown message tomorrow:

    97 days to go

    no show

    no show taxes, donald

  4. Mr. trump:

    I’ll show you mine if you’ll show me yours.

    Sincerely,

    Xrepublican

     

  5. Forget the ‘elusive white male’. Concentrate on 1. the white female, 2. the states with high %ages of minorities, 3. and the swing states. If the pursuit of 1. & 2. is vigorous and wise, 3. will fall into line w/o trouble.

    Idaho and Wyoming can wait until the 2020 election, when the Libertarians will surpass the repubs, and split the ”elusive white male’ into 3 nearly equal sized portions. By 2024 I expect to see the top three parties to be the Libertarian Party, the Christian (republican ?) Party, and the ruling Democratic Party.

  6. exR – I can see this part of the campaign is a tuning of the message.  Might as well take it to the middle of nowhere and try it out.  It might help down ballot too.

    Will there be anything, even a minor party, after the loon screws the Repubs?  It could be interesting if the Libertarian candidates receive enough votes to become a major party.  That comes with certain responsibilities, which vary by state.

  7. There is a whole meme on Twitter of #TrumpSacrifices
    Once allowed Mike Pence to speak for himself…….briefly.
    Eating a taco salad to show I liked Mexicans
    Survived an entire weekend at Mar-a-Lago with just one can of hairspray.
    Settled for French’s Mustard when the jar of Grey Poupon was empty.

  8. Holy Polonium!  trump is a conduit for putie who is running our election season.  It explains trump’s ugly, orange color…he is radioactive.  And Wikileaks pretends to be correct, but is right for Putie.  A not so silent war going on and Wikileaks is not so pure…the Panama Papers war was meant to punish putin and assange was the perfect top lap dog ever since he delivered snowden.  putie has no problem with a nuclear war.   This is the heart of the matter and I think a federal investigation is in order.  Meanwhile, we are stuck in convention fodder when this is the true story following trump’s bizarre press conference.  Manafort should be before congress…his russian ties need to be investigated.  I think this is bigger than Watergate.

  9. “this is bigger than Watergate”

    bw, ‘fraid you’re right about that.  so who will play bernstein and who woodward?  and is Bezos up to the katharine graham/ben bradlee part?

  10. This Man’s Story About Hillary Clinton Is Going Viral Because It’s Honestly the *Best*
    Tears.
    Laura Beck
    “Before Hillary Clinton was the Democratic Party’s nominee for President, she was a Senator from New York. (Amongst other things; seriously, this woman has done it all, but we’re just here to talk about the Senator part right now.)
    While Senator, Hillary apparently helped a man going through a very difficult time. The man, author James Grissom, wrote about his experience with Hillary on his Facebook page in a post that has since gone viral.

    In it, he recounts reaching out to Hillary for some major bills he racked up while being treated for bladder cancer. The story powerfully demonstrates Hillary Clinton’s commitment to “doing the work,” which is pretty much the second motto of her campaign, and it most definitely made it rain on my face. Like, a lot.
    Read the whole moving post below:”

  11. Clinton’s convention bounce continues Trump is in the dumper

    the media refuses to let go of the orange goose

  12. Donald, you won the Spelling Bee when you were seven years old? And was the final word ’empathy’? Will you spell that word for us now?

    ‘m’ ‘e’ ‘m’ ‘e’ ‘m’ ‘e’ ‘m’ ‘e’

     

  13. As I was reading Blue Bronc’s exquisite post, it came to mind that what we are trying to do is to find an answer for Trump.  Why is he doing this?  Why is he saying these things?  We, as a culture, strive for answers.  We don’t like things left unanswered.  We went to the moon!

    Occam’s Razor, a 14th century scientific theory postulates that the hypothesis that is easiest to test is more likely to be the correct hypotheses.  Modern society has ‘massaged’ the razor which now resides in stating that, all things being equal, the simplest answer is usually the right answer.

    The conflict comes when applying Occam’s theory to Trump.  No need to list out his foibles, too long a list.  Nonetheless, the bottom line with Trump is that he is a racist.  A bigot.  Trump looks down on those who are a different color, a different culture, speak a different language, worship a different religion; as inferior and threatening.  And bigotry in the mind of someone who is ignorant (although ignorance and bigotry may be the same thing) becomes caustic.

    Here’s the rub.  What is one of the most damning and insulting things you can call someone?  A Racist.  You can call someone rude, lazy, selfish, arrogant, etc. – but the ultimate insult is calling someone a racist.  I would rather be called any of the names above than being called a racist.  This is why many shy from the final and complete analysis; Donald Trump is a racist.  This is the simplest and most correct answer to Trump.

    I hope we soon find our political society reaching the apex of psychological discomfort, and will know we are there when I hear the “r” word coming from the mouths of those who are currently in power.  This will mean the end of Trump and the end of a possibility of a Trump presidency.

    BTW – I am an older white man.  Older white men are not the problem here.  Older white male racists are.  And this is a demographic that Trump will surely never lose.  Clinton needs to stop wasting her time and energy.

  14. Donald Trump just gave the Clinton campaign a tremendous gift.

    He has shown tremendous disrespect for our nations military. He was  equating  getting up and going to work in a luxury office  with the sacrifices that our men and women in uniform make when they go out on deployment and are involved in combat. Really?

    He has disrespected a gold star family, he has disrespected a genuine war hero, John McCain

    And in major ways demonstrated he just doesn’t understand the military

    if the Clinton campaign can’t  take advantage of this to make major inroads in areas where active and retired military live then they deserve to lose.

     

    Jack

  15. The problem here is the media which continues to treat the American public as if we are idiots.

    Hillary Clinton does not have a “white male problem”   White men without a college education are less likely to vote for her

    especially the ones with nazi tattoos  she has no problem with reasonable white men of any age.

    Less Mooooooonass has already said Trump is good for the television business too bad moonass choose his pocketbook over the country

    Boy Moonves  isn’t that a Muslim name?   Hope Trump will let you buy your way out of the Muslim camps
    Oh you say not a Muslim looks like one to Trump

     

     

  16. BB, wonderful post.  drumpf is busy making sure that everyone in America understands what a pusillanimous ass he is.

    BTW, BUMP.

  17. How And Why Trump Will Try to Ditch the Debates
    by Josh Marshall

    Donald Trump gave his first hint last night that he might try to get out of the Fall presidential debates. I have thought for months that he’d likely try to get out of them. I think he will be at a steep strategic and tactical disadvantage in any debate with Hillary Clinton – a point I’ll expand on later. But from thinking he’d try to get out of the debates, I wasn’t clear how he’d do it without facing crushingly bad publicity and exposure as a coward. The latter is something that cuts apart everything his campaign is based on. A few weeks ago, I figured out what that strategy will be.

    As usual, Hillary & the Dems are trying to rig the debates so 2 are up against major NFL games. Same as last time w/ Bernie. Unacceptable!
    — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 30, 2016

  18. BlueB…   excellent post!…  as usual…

    The campaign season has just started going and already Trump is stumbling and bumbling.  Of course he is disgusting, a racist, an idiot, a narcissist…  etc., etc.  I’m trying to figure out what’s really happening with him.  Does he purposely want to take down the Republican party?  Does he want to lose?  Is he secretly trying to get Hillary elected?  Or is he truly psychotic and having some kind of breakdown?  Only time will answer any of these questions.  In the meantime, I’m horrified at his behavior and lack of empathy for others.  I’d like to say his supporters are just as bad….   but I know some of them aren’t so much voting for Trump as their hatred of Hillary is what is motivating them.  Some of these people I call friends and I’m truly mystified.

  19. dv, even simpler answer than “he’s a racist” is  he is an egotistical megalomaniac completely and excessively absorbed in himself.  no room for others of any sort.  his motto not just  l’état, c’est moi, but

    l’univers , c’est moi!

  20. let him ditch the debate

    she can be with Gary Johnson and Trump’s empty chair

  21. Jack,

    Im 100% in agreement with you about trump handing hillary the best gift off all.  Not only should she used it to get into office with as large a % age as possible…..but she and all dems should  start right now on the best strategy to use this in order to get back the house and senate…….if they don’t…..they def…..do not deserve it.

    I just cant believe that this is happening to the Republican party…….it about time no?

  22. kind of like Romney saying his sons working on his campaign was the same as serving in the military

  23. tony, maybe they can do their debate by live-tweets.  that seems to be the twit’s fav way of communicating.

  24. Only thing that I can think of that could be better is to have ALL of the Bush Crime Regime, naked, tortured, with wild dogs biting them while being dragged to being water bordered……give up a cpl of years of my life to witness that…….5 yrs if i can see it in person…….later

  25. houston, we have a problem

    cnn :

    Hillary Clinton endorsed by Houston Chronicle, Trump ‘danger to the Republic’

  26. from above link:
    The board wrote that while it usually endorsed candidates closer to Election Day, it made an exception for the 2016 presidential race because the choice between Clinton and Trump was not merely political and to stand behind the Republican nominee would “repudiate the most basic notions of competence and capability.”
    “Any one of Trump’s less-than-sterling qualities — his erratic temperament, his dodgy business practices, his racism, his Putin-like strongman inclinations and faux-populist demagoguery, his contempt for the rule of law, his ignorance — is enough to be disqualifying,” the board wrote. “His convention-speech comment, ‘I alone can fix it,’ should make every American shudder. He is, we believe, a danger to the Republic.”
    […]

    “These are unsettling times, even if they’re not the dark, dystopian end times that Trump lays out,” the board wrote. “They require a steady hand. That’s not Donald Trump.”

  27. Whoever is scheduling the debates should make sure they are not up against other major tv competition.  It is not in Hillary’s interest to attempt to manipulate the debate schedule.  Her response – through Robby Mook – should be any time, any place. And God damn, would the media stop quoting the asshooigan’s forking tweets and making them seem like they are or should be the subject of news coverage?  Jesus.  They are tweets.

     

    BTW, after a trump run of being ahead in 5 of 6 polls, the tables have turned and Hillary is ahead in 5 of the 6 latest polls. his average in those was +3, hers is +4.4. Might explain why fivethirtyeight’s polls plus prediction is HRC 61.8% and drumpf’s is 38.1% of winning in November. The Polls only is at 53.3% to 46.7 and the “now” forecast is 63.3% to 36.4, all with HRC ahead.

  28. Wow, Pat that lays it out. very few editorials seem willing to go that far. Most are weak condemnations that can be ignored.

     

    Jack

  29. Pogo

    CBS news made it clear for them all Trump coverage is about the money.

    Trump tweets draw eyeballs end of story.

     

    Jack

  30. Besides being an early endorsement of Clinton -the Houston Chronicle never I mean never endorses Democrats

     

  31. Pogo –  the group which picks the dates for the debates had a full write up to present fat head.  From now through the election day there are football games, college and pro, other sports, the Olympics, and numerous whateverelses.  The dates were the least onerous.

    That bull butt is complaining was expected.  Nothing is done unless he does it.  So if someone presents something to him he will reject it immediately and make his own date.  He can go off and suck raw Rocky Mountain Oysters for all I care about him and his fragile id.

  32. Hope nobody minds if I repost this comment from whskyjack. It was at the end of yesterday’s comments so in case you missed it this NY Times article is incredible! The person who put this together must have spent many days compiling and linking everything. Yes, all the tweets are linked, Amazing! How can anyone read this page and not see DT for the deranged, mentally ill person that he is! He’s not just racist, he’s insane!
    Thank you Jack for finding this:

    whskyjacksays:
    July 31, 2016 at 10:07 pm

    just in case you needed the information
    The 250 People, Places and Things Donald
    Trump Has Insulted on Twitter: A Complete List

  33. Mccain issues scathing rebuke of Trump’s actions over the past days regarding the Kahn family.  One of the strongest yet from a Republican.  I think this means that Republicans in the Senate are in real trouble.  Here’s the text:

    “The Republican Party I know and love is the party of Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Dwight D. Eisenhower, and Ronald Reagan.
    “I wear a bracelet bearing the name of a fallen hero, Matthew Stanley, which his mother, Lynn, gave me in 2007, at a town hall meeting in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire.  His memory and the memory of our great leaders deserve better from me.
    “In recent days, Donald Trump disparaged a fallen soldier’s parents. He has suggested that the likes of their son should not be allowed in the United States — to say nothing of entering its service. I cannot emphasize enough how deeply I disagree with Mr. Trump’s statement. I hope Americans understand that the remarks do not represent the views of our Republican Party, its officers, or candidates.
    “Make no mistake: I do not valorize our military out of some unfamiliar instinct. I grew up in a military family, and have my own record of service, and have stayed closely engaged with our armed forces throughout my public career. In the American system, the military has value only inasmuch as it protects and defends the liberties of the people.
    “My father was a career naval officer, as was his father. For hundreds of years, every generation of McCains has served the United States in uniform.
    “My sons serve today, and I’m proud of them. My youngest served in the war that claimed Captain Khan’s life as well as in Afghanistan. I want them to be proud of me. I want to do the right thing by them and their comrades.
    “Humayun Khan did exactly that — and he did it for all the right reasons. This accomplished young man was not driven to service as a United States Army officer because he was compelled to by any material need. He was inspired as a young man by his reading of Thomas Jefferson — and he wanted to give back to the country that had taken him and his parents in as immigrants when he was only two years old.
    “Captain Khan’s death in Iraq, on June 8th, 2004, was a shining example of the valor and bravery inculcated into our military. When a suicide bomber accelerated his vehicle toward a facility with hundreds of American soldiers, Captain Khan ordered his subordinates away from the danger.
    “Then he ran toward it.
    “The suicide bomber, striking prematurely, claimed the life of Captain Khan — and Captain Khan, through his selfless action and sacrifice, saved the lives of hundreds of his brothers and sisters.
    “Scripture tells us that ‘Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.’
    “Captain Humayun Khan of the United States Army showed in his final moments that he was filled and motivated by this love. His name will live forever in American memory, as an example of true American greatness.
    “In the end, I am morally bound to speak only to the things that command my allegiance, and to which I have dedicated my life’s work: the Republican Party, and more importantly, the United States of America. I will not refrain from doing my utmost by those lights simply because it may benefit others with whom I disagree.
    “I claim no moral superiority over Donald Trump. I have a long and well-known public and private record for which I will have to answer at the Final Judgment, and I repose my hope in the promise of mercy and the moderation of age. I challenge the nominee to set the example for what our country can and should represent.
    “Arizona is watching. It is time for Donald Trump to set the example for our country and the future of the Republican Party. While our Party has bestowed upon him the nomination, it is not accompanied by unfettered license to defame those who are the best among us.
    “Lastly, I’d like to say to Mr. and Mrs. Khan: thank you for immigrating to America. We’re a better country because of you. And you are certainly right; your son was the best of America, and the memory of his sacrifice will make us a better nation – and he will never be forgotten.”

  34. trump is now claiming that when he loses, it will because of voter fraud.

    more likely because he insulted all the republicans in charge of gotv

  35. In the end, I am morally bound to speak only to the things that command my allegiance, and to which I have dedicated my life’s work: the Republican Party, and more importantly, the United States of America. 

    Notice he lists the Republican party first and while he condemns Trumps attack he doesnt repudiate him

    McCain is putting party over country.

     

    Jack

  36. KGC

    In basketball It is called working the ref’s no wonder Bobby Knight loves Trump

     

    Jack

  37. I think KGC is right about the media, CBS is claiming their poll shows Clinton with a 4pt bump, in reality Clinton went up 4 pts. and Trump lost 3 pts. making it a 7pt. bump for that poll.

     

    Jack

  38. BB
    Your post is wonderful. Everybody should have the opportunity to go to war; of wondering what is around the next corner, what is behind a villager’s smile. Or of calling the field hospital to see if so-and-so made it. Or of rushing your WW-2 vet 1st Sgt to the field hospital after he is found semi-conscious in an outdoor privy; only to be told that the teetotaler NCO was intoxicated. The litany can continue endlessly.

    The individual who is seeking to buy the presidency cannot buy ownership of being Commander-in-Chief of our Armed Forces. That is a role bestowed by all those serving and their families on that singular individual who has earned the trust, through demonstrated leadership, competence, and patriotism, to protect the interests of our Country while not wasting our precious humanity on stupid endeavors.

  39. I feel bad for McCain because he is trying to say this is not the view of Republican candidates –well it is the view of the top of the ticket

    And now would be a good time for Democrats to say nothing. The VFW has weighed in and I would say at this point nether the Veterans or the Gays think that so much of The Donald

     

  40. jack, cut the guy some slack.  he did say “and more importantly, the United States of America.” 

  41. I’m really sorry my parents aren’t alive to watch the implosion of the Republicans  —

    When Nixon left office my mother happened to be visiting me in SF.  We walked over to Ghirardelli Square and it was filled with people celebrating,

    I think election day is going to be like that.  yeah yeah a lot of work to do — but there is a good chance Trump will come in third

    And by the way Mrs. Greenspan Rep Keith Ellison is not a Muslim American He is an American of the Muslim faith next time you have on a catholic activist please refer to them as Catholic Americans Make sure everyone has a modifier I know what I would use for you.

  42. The one thing that I take issue with as far as McCains letter – is that he said that’s not what the Republican party is about.  Bullspit!  A nominated Presidential candidate is head of his/her political party until either defeated or out of office.

    Trump is the head of the Republican party.  They voted for him, they nominated him.  One can only assume he represents the party.  They own his stink.  Period.

  43. McCain knows one thing above all–throughout his long captivity he realized that the United States would never abandon him to his captors; he was correct. This confidence was not contingent on whether Republicans or Democrats were in power; it was the faith built-up over each of our wars.

    It’s important to understand that we do our best to follow the Geneva Conventions on treatment of POWs. We expect opposing forces to do the same whether they are signatories or not. I don’t want the Repugnant Pretender screwing with how we manage the Laws of Armed Conflict.

  44. Yeah, but Pat, he wasn’t worried about country, “more importantly” was just an aside, an after thought. He just wants Trump to shut up and to protect his party.  If he had repudiated Trump and called him unfit to be president then my comment would have been out of line. As it is, he is just playing the politician and trying to protect his ass.

    He didn’t recognise that this time it is different and it is time to step up take a risk and be a patriot.

    Jack

  45. interesting conclusion in david graham’s article “‘He Doesn’t Know What the Word Sacrifice Means’
    Donald Trump has chosen to debate the parents of a slain American serviceman over who has sacrificed more” in the atlantic:
    In late 1953, Senator Joe McCarthy turned his red-baiting crusade toward the Army, accusing it of being stocked with Communists. McCarthy and his chief counsel, Roy Cohn, had miscalculated, and the reaction doomed McCarthy’s crusade and career. Decades later, Cohn became a close friend of a young real-estate developer named Donald Trump. If Cohn’s protégé learned anything from him about why it’s unwise for a politician to go to war with the U.S. Army, it isn’t showing today.

     

  46. “Election year or not, the VFW will not tolerate anyone berating a Gold Star family member for exercising his or her right of speech or expression,” said Brian Duffy, who was elected July 27 to lead the nation’s oldest and largest major war veterans organization.

    “There are certain sacrosanct subjects that no amount of wordsmithing can repair once crossed,” added Duffy, the national commander of the near 1.7 million-member Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States and its Auxiliary.

    “Giving one’s life to nation is the greatest sacrifice, followed closely by all Gold Star families, who have a right to make their voices heard.”

    The VFW statement came just hours after a group of Gold Star families wrote to Trump.

  47. well, hell, once more the drumpf’s getting a lot of free media coverage including us on the trail.  his dark soul (if he has one) knows it’s all too tempting to pass up…

    keep muttering to myself “The Only Thing Necessary for the Triumph of Evil is that Good Men [and women] Do [or say]  Nothing” even if it means saying his name.

  48. While i don’t do this often, I will cut McCain a break on the “most importantly” juxtaposition.  It is a legitimate construct to end a list (in this case a list of 2) with the most important item of the list coming last. If there is one thing about McCain I do not question it is his dedication to our country.

    Flatus, I was not afforded the opportunity to visit Vietnam – when I graduated from HS in 1970 the reduction in numbers drafted had begun – My number was 219 and they didn’t get that high from 1970 on.  I do love the story about the teetotaling NCO in the privy.

  49. Idiot MSNBC anchor just said that there’s a 7 point difference between Clinton and Trump, “Trump went down a little, Clinton went up a little – that’s what happens when you have your convention second”.

    Maybe that’s what happens when one candidate is a racist bigot who insults military families across the nation?

  50. they are just unwilling to give up what they see as a ratings bonus

  51. Patd…   I agree with Jack.  McCain has not pulled his endorsement of Trump.  IMO, he absolutely is putting party above country.  At this point that’s what any leading Republican in our government who is still endorsing Trump (think Ryan & McConnell) is doing.

    Thank you for all the links….   it’s really good stuff.

    Excellent cartoon, Jamie.

    DV…  I forgot to thank you for that basketball video on the last thread.  It made for good viewing early this morning.

  52. Of course Kahn would have other ties to Hill. His employment by a law firm that handles Clinton’s taxes, that once also employed Loretta Lynch, that contributed to her campaign, that has ties to Saudi Arabia, who employ -er, I mean, are contributors to the Clinton family bank account -er, I mean, The Clinton Foundation.

    People giving HRH HRC pass after pass. Sad.

  53. Just because Mr. Khan a Harvard educated lawyer is a Democrat and Clinton supporter, it doesn’t make his story and statement any less true it also doesn’t makes Trumpkins statements go away He is entitled to Freedom of Speech

  54. BID,

    this is a gold star family

    Your pettiness is really making you look bad.

    Please think before you post.

    Jack

  55. Trump is the issue re: Khan.  Hillary is not.  Trump waded in and showed his stupidity.  Trump loses this issue and loses it big time. Trying to characterize the discussion as a pass for Hillary (reciting Faux talking points) is IMHO idiotic. I understand that you are a disillusioned Bernie supporter turned Sophist without a candidate with a chance in hell of winning to back. As I almost always say, provide the link. Here’s one about Khan.

  56. Who will the GOP nom defame, slander, or insult today?  Audie Murphy?  Mother Theresa?  Every citizen of this Great Land?  All of the above?   Monty Python at the height of their powers on really good drugs couldn’t conceive such absurdity.

  57. KGC – absolutely.  They want a tight race for ratings.  A few of them thinking about writing a book.

    Renee – you’re welcome.  There’s 2 more of those out there on YouTube.  This was episode 3.

    BID – I just heard that Kahn has ties linking him to Mohandas Ghandi!  It appears they’re both of Indian decent.  Give it a break, would ya?

    It’s an amazing thing to watch the Trump campaign talking spinners try to answer questions and completely pivot to the same old worn out talking points.

  58. More drumpf lies exposed:

    Mr. Khan’s odyssey from lawyer and legal consultant to prime-time D.N.C. speaker began in December, when he got a phone call from a writer for Vocativ, an online publication, who wanted his thoughts on Mr. Trump’s statements about Muslims.

    Mr. Khan criticized Mr. Trump’s statements as un-American in an article published by Vocativ. A few weeks later, he got a phone call from a Clinton campaign official, who had seen the article and asked if his comments could be used in a tribute for his son at the convention.“I said, ‘What a wonderful honor,’ ” he recalled in the interview. “Who am I to say, ‘No’?”

    Months later, the campaign asked if he and his wife would come to the convention. “The initial plan was just to go there and stand and talk to the media afterwards,” he said. “Then somebody called and said, ‘Would you like to say a word or two?’ ”

    Time was tight and the schedule packed, he was told. The campaign asked whether he needed speechwriting help or any coaching. “I said: ‘I really don’t, I have my thoughts in my head,” he said. “I won’t make it an hourlong speech, just let me say what I want to say. It will be heart-to-heart.”

    Nothing from the speech, he said, was the product of the campaign, including his dig at Mr. Trump’s lack of military service. It all flowed pretty easily, because he had been thinking about these things for quite a while, he said.

    Who wrote that, Hillary’s speechwriters?  No, not so much. Most Harvard lawyers can write just fine I’d say.

  59. Apparently The Evangelicals of Colorado don’t love The Donald

    Yeah we never did see St Bernie’s tax returns

  60. Pogo

    Thanks for the Times link.

    When you see the question ask and Trumps response it is truly bizarre. The closest comparison I can make it to is some one with high functioning Aspergers, where they can’t read social cues.  But Trump is a highly successful business man in an industry where reading social cues is mandatory, Yet here he is clueless. It makes me wonder if age isn’t catching up to him.

    As I said it was weird.

     

    Jack

  61. Jack, drumpf is the type person who gave rise to the warning, “Engage brain before starting mouth.”  it’s an admonition he apparently has never heard, and certainly does not heed.

  62. Steve Cortez Trump fluffer lives in a fantasy world  How much does he get paid for selling any future credibility

    It’s sad when you get your talking points from Roger Stone certainly along with Dick Morris the true bottom feeders of the political world

    The Gallup poll is interesting because it shows Trumpkin the worst Republican candidate in recent times. People saw and heard him and decided they did not want to vote for him.
    I’m sure he is going to have the Gallup Poll declared a tool of the DNC Clinton shows some problems and their are opportunities for third parties. I don’t see things getting better for Trump and he has surrounded himself with mediocre talent and yes men. And his kids may be well meaning but they don’t know anything about politics.

  63. trump   incoherent
    usually the vp is the attack dog Pence is the explainer and apologist

  64. The story on Khan’s copy of the constitution is interesting.

    He buys them by the case because he invites the local graduating ROTC class for dinner so they can meet a muslim family and partly to honor his son. Then he gives each one a copy of the constitution. He seems a ready made Reagan type Republican yet here he is a Democrat.

    Do the republicans want to return to dominance, get rid of the racist wing and a great many immigrants and African Americans are a natural fit for the social conservative message. .

     

    Jack

  65. He sounds like an amazing guy not the dupe the Republicans are trying to make him out to be.

    Rudy Giuliani told McCain to STFU

  66. nbc news:
    Is Hillary Clinton Unpopular Because She’s Not a Train Wreck?
    “Every moment Hillary Clinton is in front of me, I think she is thinking about how not to make me angry, and she is somehow making everyone around me angry by doing that,” Doyle told NBC News this week. “What Hillary proves is that you can do ‘everything right’ and that’s still going to be wrong.”

  67. Is it ok if we keep Trump (pretty por-va-vor) after all of this mess?  I see him a  bridge between the races………I see that more people are starting to except Muslims…..mr Khan is a great speaker….and his son an American Hero that no-one can deny…..hey thats kinda catchy no….almost like a song…..like no one can deny…..

    We need trump in the Senate……He is truly the Great U niter imo…….he has united Latins, Women, Muslims, Jews…….he has shown us how to welcome one another…..by not hating…….He can have his KKK hating pals for all i care……

    Blue……Now i see why you like Trump so much……thanks

  68. I mean…..i love the irony……..trump is all over the place getting free press, and just by saying some very stupid and bare assing things lately about Khan and his family….he single hand-idly has given Khan, his family, and all Muslims a much needed public relations boost…….same goes for Mexicallies and other minorities…….later

  69. We need trump in the Senate…

    Maybe Little Marco will give up his seat for Trump

  70. Solar, you’re cracking me up.  btw – had carnitas for dinner last night.  Kinda delicious.

  71. Ive learned to look at things from all angles…..kinda have too when you build houses for a long time…..many ways to look at the objective…….Now looking at trump…..and how he is making people like Karl Rove, Rumssy, cheney, all of the bush crime family watch from the sidelines as the end of their world comes TRumpling down…..choking on thier own pee………just makes me sad that the racist Republican as they stand are almost over….they will come out with new ways….but not as strong as it has been for the past 40 yrs……a slow death is not a pleasant death……..loving it all the way…..Ok, i see i stopped the show….so later

  72. hmmm, maybe one less goper senator in our future

    rollcall: Fiscally conservative senator in debt after aborted presidential run

    Republican Sen. Rand Paul still owes more than $300,000 to vendors and campaign workers after his failed presidential run, a Kentucky newspaper reported.  

    Paul’s presidential campaign reported  $301,108 in campaign debts and $2,558 in cash on hand in its most recent filing with the Federal Election Commission, according to the Lexington Herald-Leader.  

    One vendor said it won’t do business with the Kentucky Republican again, and another said their payments have been delayed. A Paul campaign spokeswoman said everyone will be paid in full.  

     

    Paul is not the only presidential candidate to owe money from his presidential campaign. Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders’ campaign owes  $898,878.96, and despite not even making it to a single primary contest, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker still owes $734,675.95 from his failed presidential effort.  

  73. carnitas……thanks for inviting…….grrrrr think thats what im having for dinner……with some avacado, and a cold bud…..xr, jace…want some? and get tony on the way, some-one has to drive no? oh and get the spidey gal………but leave her deer-deers….

  74. I mean…..i love the irony……..trump is all over the place getting free press, and just by saying some very stupid and bare assing things lately about Khan and his family….he single hand-idly has given Khan, his family, and all Muslims a much needed public relations boost

    Solarman…   wow…  hadn’t thought of it that way.  And yes, for the Mexicans too!  Glad you’re back and posting.

  75. maybe the failed candidates can ask advice from Trump about how to negotiate or not pay their debts

  76. It is family week on the Oregon coast again.  We are all talking about the implosion of the Trump campaign.

    It is turning into great entertainment.  I love the new CNN poll…52-43 Hillary…

  77. Several interesting points have popped up here and around during the last several days.  A couple are very interesting to ponder.  Ponder uno, what if the gas bag comes in third?  Ponder dos, what if he is really mentally ill and craters, on stage, and no way to hide he is in his own universe?

    Coming in third means that the Republicans could be removed from being a “major” party in at least one state, most likely more.  That means they would have different, and more ponderous, requirements to be on the ballot.  That he loses and instantly goes commando with the lawyers and his id, would be very interesting.

    Leaving this world, assuming he has one step in it right now, would mean big time mental disease in public.  Something the Republicans spent decades trying to hide and not fund.  Depending on his Chernobyl he might just be spending time in the house with friendly people and good drugs.  Or he might end up doing something serious (he talks about carrying a concealed gun – hopefully the Secret Service took it away) and spend the next months wearing very restrictive hardware until his court date.  I doubt even his highly trained bankruptcy legal eagles could save him there.

    His actions and answers keep getting stranger and more like an answer to something he heard playing Pokémon Go when his fake underling tells him to eat quiche.

  78. BUMP!!
    538 revised its polls only forecast to 60.3 – 39.7% HRC, Pool-plus to 66.8-33.2.

  79. Warren Buffett just challenged Donald Trump to a dual release of their tax returns.

  80. Clinton should start talking about the importance of the debates

    and is Trump going to release a doctor’s report…underneath that orange face is bright red

  81. Yea Buffet is good.  And Nebraska splits their electoral vote proportionately – so Clinton will slice a bunch off of a normally really Republican state.

    Here’s their rules:

    Maine and Nebraska have taken a slightly different approach in recent years. These states allocate two Electoral Votes to the popular vote winner, and then one each to the popular vote winner in each Congressional district (2 in Maine, 3 in Nebraska) in their state. This creates multiple popular vote contests in these states, which could lead to a split Electoral Vote. 

  82. XD

     

    Are we going to call 60% final tally a public madate?  Can we just dissolve the GOP @ 75%, cuz i’ll be horrified if more than 5 people vote for Voldemort.

  83. Hillary should just treat the debates as they will happen and dt will, of course, be there…….until he absolutely says he won’t debate, and then she should just brand him a coward.

    “Branded”

  84.  

    she wasn’t lying I think she shouldn’t try to discuss it anymore. She should say ”  I made mistakes” and move on but she was talking about the interviews with the FBI but all this does is end up parsing her statements

  85. Craig,

     

    Hillary isn’t really lying, but rather ‘massaging the truth’.  Kind of like the car salesmen who says the car is a ‘smooth-ride comfort-ride’ car – because the hard ride has been broken in.  All the while the car has about 350,000 miles on it.

    Clinton is a lawyer, trained to twist the truth.  After 25+ years of scathing assaults, it’s who she is and she’s good at twisting the truth.  She’s not going to change.

    Trump is who he is.  He’s not going to stop what he’s doing either.  This is a game, a conquest to him.

    In the end, just like Benghazi, just like Obamacare, just like the Rose Law Firm, just like Vince Foster; the Republicans have beat this to death and the American public is ready to move on. She needs to let them. I agree with KGC, she needs to pivot off the issue and not answer at all.

  86. Based on the facts as I understand them, WaPo went overboard in an attempt to regain access to Trump’s coffee beans.

  87. oh please, FBI director repeatedly said she lied, just not to the FBI. no sugar coating it no matter where you’re coming from

  88. If you see larger parts of the interview he is asking about Comey’s statement and I think she took it to mean – what he said about her statements to the FBI  when Trey Pouty asked him about perjury charges.  He said her testimony to the FBI had been truthful and no perjury had taken place and now supposedly they are looking into whether she perjured herself before the committee

    but this is too complicated for journalists to get right; doesn’t fit  the narrative and won’t help the horse race.

  89. I know it’s not nice to revel in other people’s problems

    but the Hucksterbee got nailed for using “Eye of the Tiger”

    and 538 has dropped Trump to 68-32

    If I were the head of the Democratic party I would start focusing on senate races and take the focus off Clinton. I agree that she puts het foot in it every single time

    so Chuck Todd now where is Trump’s path to whitehouse

  90. I am taking the rest of the week off from TM…I don’t want my week on the Oregon coast affected by negative vibes from the anti-Hillary folks…see you next week…

  91. What Dukakis, Kerry, Romney, and Gore found out is that once you check into Goobertown you can never get out.

  92. Ms Cracker, the deadbeat’s path to the White House is wide, straight, and as empty as North Dakota. It runs between chuck todd’s ears.

  93. Tonight on All In Lawrence Wilkerson says Trump “has revealed the 30 percent or so of the Republican base that is positively certifiable. I’ve been saying all along he was either gaming the GOP or he is nuts.

     

  94. It’s almost a certainty that Russ Feingold is coming back to the Senate.  So just three more

    who are the three who are going down?

  95. Craig

    What those of us who regularly handled classified materials have been trying to explain to you (not helped by media muddying the terms) is that there is a difference among all types and how they are handled

    Classified top and bottom and indicated as such at the time it is in your hands, must receive special handling.

    Classified by another department after it has left your hands, and entirely different can of worms and often the result of over classifying.

    Marked in some way as containing material extracted from classified materials but not classified in its own right (can be a book extract, and photograph, something pertinent to the email but not the material from which it is extracted.) These are referred to as “Portion Markings” They are NOT classified.

    As it stands now from Comey’s statement there were three (out of about 30,000) that SHOULD HAVE BEEN CLASSIFIED, but were not at the time Hillary had them.  Since then, state has said that two of those were incorrectly marked and retracted the classification.

    I think Hillary has been as totally honest as she can be and as a result of her being such a wonk about such things sounds dishonest from over explaining everything.  Being hounded by committee after committee with the sole purpose of trying to get a gotcha question twisted and answered didn’t help.

    Careless even grossly careless by the people at State, and probably other departments is certainly accurate, particularly when you consider staffers taking home their private computers because it was the way to get work done.  It was habitual before Hillary and during Hillary, not to mention the one up man ship by other departments classifying everything that wiggled or walked (pain the in ass for anyone having to actually get a job done).

    Apparently there is a crack down now with more strictly enforced guidelines.  Let us hope those come with better guarded and working computers or there will be a lot more of this type of thing in the future.

    People want to believe Hillary is guilty so therefor they ask her to admit her guilt and stop lying because vicious circle they know she is guilty.  It really is impossible.  If she admits guilt to something she didn’t do, you get an “AH HAH we knew it”.  If she insists that she never intentionally did anything wrong, you get more hounding.  Enough Already!!!

     

  96. 30% hard core racists, tea party nut cases, etc.  Filled in by low info and committed party people.

     

  97. Let’s get this 538 stuff clarified.  538 says that there is a 63% chance Hillary will win, and a 36% chance Trump will will.

    They predict, as of now, the final vote percentages will be 47.6 to 44.6, and the electoral vote will be 299 to 238.

    This is still going to be a close race.

  98. So i’m scrolling while watching House and see “Apocalypse : Hitler.   “The Fuhrer.” HItler takes advantage of the economic crisis of 1929 to take full control. ” Hmmmm, something ominously familiar about that.

  99. They’re saving Ivanka for Secretary of State.  The older son will be Secretary of HUD, the younger one (the nerd) will be Secretary of Agriculture.  The youngest, Baron, is slated for Secretary of the Treasury (with Donald as his co-signer).  Yeeeeeeeeee-Hawwwwwwww!  Fear the Muslims!  And that brown hoard?  We get a wall, a moat, gators; Disneyland is gonna build a bigun theme park in Kiev.  We’ll be the best.  Enemies going down the tubes you know, down the tubes – those losers.

    Sorry, for a moment I went nuts and starting channeling the Donald.  I am just so sick of the f$cking nonsense.  That’s right, Lewis Black had it nailed straight:  “Republican Bullshit Nonsense”

     

  100.  “FBI director repeatedly said she lied,”

    Got a link, I don’t ever remember him saying that.

    He did say that Clintons statement  that she never sent classified emails was not true but  but given the facts surrounding the emails that is a long way from a lie.

     

    Jack

  101. I actually had a Republican friend today tell me that Trump didn’t really represent what the Republican party is about.  I said, BS – he is your nominee.  He beat out 13 others (many highly qualified).  You held a 4 day party for him in Cleveland – nominated him for President.  He is the leader of the Republican party.  He leads the vision of your party (until defeated, out of office or removed from the campaign).  I then asked my friend if he was going to vote for Trump.  He said yes.  I said then you must be a misogynistic bigoted racist.

    Just got unfriended.  Gonna need a new friend ;o(

  102. Watching the CNN special:  Meet the Donors:  Does Money Talk?

    Excellent documentary on some of the heavy hitters and a little of the inside about the wheels, deals, and dinners with the rich and powerful, but well worth hearing what they have to say about the system.

     

  103. Hey Solar

    It was good to see you post today.. You make a great point on how Trump has united so many in opposition to him. A very nasty guy. I just want him under a rock somewhere. ..

  104. clinton is doing better than romney did among white people

    once and for all Patricia Smith is a mentally unstable person who the republicans have exploited Howard Kurtz the oxymoron at fox whining about why no one covered her speech because unfortunately she no longer has any credibility just like you Howie

  105. If you aren’t watching BraidDead on TV, you might want to catch up.  Hilarious parody on WA but with exploding brains courtesy of bugs (maybe from outer space) entering the ears of political types at all levels.

    http://www.cbs.com/shows/braindead/

    If you don’t like satire, Aaron Tveit is there for scenery.  I keep hoping they will figure out a reason for him to sing.

     

  106. Dems shall pick up senate seats in NH, PA, IL, & WI. ripper senators in AZ, MO, OH, & FL look a little wobbly.

  107. Courting the old white guys who never went to college is a waste of campaign resources. They didn’t want a black boss, and don’t want a woman boss. They cannot be moved.

    Presidential elections are won by moving the Indies in the swing states. The campaign resources must go there. If there are resources left over, as there will be for the Dems this year, they can be used to strengthen the various candidates down ticket.

  108. For Dems to try to convert me was a waste of time. Only repubs could make a Dem of me. They did it. The lesson I took from that was, 1. leave the repubs to waste each other; 2. let trump kill the ripper coalition, chasing repubs toward Libertarianism,  neo-conmunism, or christianrightism.

  109. Goodnight, Survivor.

    Sweet Dreams, 2.0, wherever you are.

    Don’t let the bedbugs bite, Mr. Bink.

  110. Trump Calls Clinton “Devil”, Devil Responds: “Leave Me Out of this Shit Show”

    click here for slideshow

  111. Ftom Dana Milbanks wapo column today:

    Certainly, Clinton tells whoppers, too. But Glenn Kessler, The Post’s Fact Checker, tells me that in his six years on the beat, “there’s no comparison” between Trump and other politicians. Kessler says politicians’ statements get his worst rating — four Pinocchios — 15 percent to 20 percent of the time. Clinton is about 15 percent. Trump is 63 percent to 65 percent.

    Btw, NEW THREAD.

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