George W. Bush and Paul Ryan looking "reasonable" tells us we are doing something wrong.

[gulliver]

We're focusing way too exclusively on Trump, the bad fruit, instead of focusing on the bad tree, Republicanism. We're making Trump a lightning rod, and that lighting rod is protecting the Republican house, no pun.

Consider what happens now. Trump, the nutty clown, does or tweets something ridiculously terrible. What happens? The news media starts telling us how Trump did something that his fellow Republicans are criticizing him for. The Dems, because they are all jumping on Trump's case at the same time, are ignored. It's not news.

Poor, "beleaguered" (straight-faced lying, faux-intellectual jerk) Paul Ryan gets to appear reasonable. "Artist and senior statesman," George W. Bush looks reasonable, despite the fact that he should be spending the entire rest of his life averting his eyes in shame and begging forgiveness. Dubya and Paul Ryan shouldn't be allowed to be the good guys. They should be taking heat.

We need to spread the heat.

When Trump does some crazy clown thing, instead of jumping right on Trump, maybe Schumer jumps on Mitch McConnell instead. Attack Trump's nutty clown thing, sure, but do it in a way that McConnell gets heat. "I can't believe, Mitch McConnell can stand meekly by like the rest of the Republicans in Congress seem to while Trump lets Putin sneer and laugh at our great country." That kind of thing.

[onecaliberal]

1. No question. That maggot still exists because republicans allow it. They're criminal too.

[Bluepinky]

2. Good point! The entire Republican Party is the problem, not one or two people.

[bigtree]

3. k&r

[Dennis Donovan]

4. I don't think of the problem being "Republicanism" as much as "Conservatism"

I'm old enough to remember decent Republicans like Jacob Javits and John Lindsay (before he became a Dem). Ike was a good guy, too.

And the old-school Conservatives, you could, at least, negotiate with them. The "modern" conservative movement, which I trace back to Limbaugh (around the time I first heard of him in 1990), has perverted their rather simplistic and cowardly ideology ("Don't do anything! Maintain the status quo!" ) into an extremist, non-negotiable ideology.

[gulliver]

9. Calling it "Republicanism" identifies Limbaugh-like "conservatism" with the party it comes from.

A lot of people consider themselves "conservative" but not Republican. I think a little more than half of independents are that way, for example. I completely think the Dem tent should now be open to good and reasonable people, regardless of whether or not they consider themselves conservative. Some values (honesty, rewarding hard work, faith/spirituality, courage in defending our country from its enemies, community, etc.) are shared by liberalism and old-school conservatism. Conservatives "claim" those values more vocally than liberals for some reason. (Maybe we let them.) But I really think all of the "good parts" of old-school conservatism are much better represented in the Dem Party than in the Republican Party.

"Conservatism," (I notice you put it in quotes too) is another creature. That's the Limbaugh/Hannity/Alex Jones "conservatism." Under the name "conservatism," it gets credit for being related to the often reasonable, norm-upholding conservatives of the past. It doesn't deserve that credit, imo. I think of it as "Republicanism" to identify it with the party it comes from. That makes it plainer about what needs to be voted against and makes it easier for people who think of themselves as somewhat conservative to vote out the nut and his fellow nuts.

[Iliyah]

5. Quite a few of us knows it is the Republican party that is

compromised. The media harps on shithole because of ratings.

DU seems to also. That's why I always welcome positive threads concerning the Democratic Party.

[Wounded Bear]

6. Maggots will not attack healthy flesh...

That's why they are still useful in medicine, they eat the rotting, dead flesh and eschew the good, healthy tissue.

[RainCaster]

8. But MAGAts attack everything that is healthy

And our society should have no use for them. Complicit traitors.

[StevieM]

7. Paul Ryan is not a good person. His lies about HRC in 2016 were a crucial part of their strategy

and absolutely pivotal to Trump's victory.

[BlancheSplanchnik]

21. He's so clearly a fake shell of a human being himself.

His every facial expression screams, “I’ve been practicing this face in the mirror so it’ll be more convincing.”

[zentrum]

10. Well done.

[Guilded Lilly]

11. K&R especially...bad tree Republicanism...! (n/t)

[PatrickforO]

12. Actually I was thinking war crimes trials for Bush and his cronies. Particularly Rumsfeld and

Cheney.

McConnell is a disgusting snake and Ryan a hypocritical punk.

Bernie said the biggest threat to the world is global warming. As much as I love Bernie, I think he's wrong here.

The biggest threat to the world, both humanity and the earth itself is..........the Republican party AND the uber-capitalist radical-right billionaire freaks that own them.

Absolutely. And, while it is sometimes entertaining to watch them self-destruct, because they are, it is also very stressful, because they could drag all of us down with them.

[sprinkleeninow]

16. Recall when bush* was asked what he'd be doing once out of office?

Something to the effect as "Well, in the morning Laura will make me a cup of coffee."

[PatrickforO]

19. LOL. Lots of fun Bush-isms. He just was not the sharpest pencil in the pack.

Terrible president, and the neoconservative American Empire ideology is a terrible idea.

[sprinkleeninow]

20. * allowed ordering the illegal invasion of two countries.

Another ridiculous statement:
"Mission Accomplished."

Wasted $$$ capital and sheer disregard for human lives.

'Colon' powell shows his lying face on many of the nat'l holiday shows on public TV.

I need a stiff drink, I think, having recalled this.

[gordianot]

13. Everything Donald Trump learned about manipulating crowds of deplorables he learned at the WWE.

Trump the low life depends on hate to appeal to his base as he exhibits his drama. Much like his time at the WWE we will find out if gaming the system (with Russia) works this November. For now Trump is Republicanism.

[welivetotreadonkings]

14. Fully agreed.

The so-called "reasonable" Republicans will allow the darkest instincts of their base to manifest into a party that continues to drift toward fascism, so long as they get to continue their radical remaking of the courts and advance their deregulatory agenda. The silver lining of our current nightmare is that Trump and his pawns are buffoons; they are terrible at covering their tracks. What happens when the GOP elects a criminal and a con-man who is actually good at what they do?

[shadowmayor]

15. lil' Bush, Ronnie Raygun, and Dick Nixon

None of these criminals ever will look reasonable to me. Gore Vidal referred to our country as the United States of Amnesia and I think he was correct. I'm stunned at the number of my democratic friends who are saying that lil' Bush wasn't so bad compared to this guy. Really?? (Keith Olbermann said much the same). Two tax cuts, two major wars, Katrina disaster and a Wall Street melt down just for starters! I say no, I think they're all just different forms of terminal cancer. Is pancreatic cancer worse than liver cancer, or maybe they just both suck?

[saidsimplesimon]

17. Thanks, gulliver

Give them no quarter, the turtle is an accomplice to treason against the USA. How much money does Mitch get from the Russians? He and Chao are pawns of rumpie and Tsar Puttie. imo

[Quixote1818]

18. This is spot on! nt