That’s exactly what I did, JG, and then I dared to sit down and eat lunch while doing some relaxing reading! Honestly, I don’t know what I’d do if I didn’t *know* that relevant info can always be found at TOD (even if I have to backtrack to make sure I get the important connectors).
Random thought on Britain and one result of their Brexit vote: Now, they will trade places economically with France, the country they love to hate; they will be subject to Germany, the country they fear, and they will have to deal with Italy, the country they make fun of, but love to visit. They have placed themselves in a very stupid position.
Another thought, not so random, and more serious: Europe has been peaceful and productive for a long time…..good for them, good for the world. However, this rash action of the Brits can recalibrate the entire situation back to what it was like before World War I, when they were all after power and each other. One difference now is that England does not have the money, clout or power to be a deal maker. She will have to accept conditions set by France and Germany. Tell me again, why did David Cameron call for this referendum?????
What I find so interesting is that so many British people live abroad in various European countries, especially Spain. Wonder how they’ll be treated now that so the British have voted to exit the EU and xenophobia has been let loose since the BREXIT vote.
Just read a Daily KOOS posting that got me thinking about Al Franken being a possible VP pick for Hillary. He is loved by Progressives, a first Jewish VP possibility, and would be appointed replacement in the Senate by a Democratic Governor.
I love Al Franken. I love his ways. From the minute he went to the Senate, he became a serious-minded Senator, but with a devilish touch. Never takes himself too seriously. I picture his going home at night, rolling his eyes about the crazies on Capitol Hill, hoping he can get ’em all back on track. He’d be a perfect complement to Hillary, and bring a little levity to the role (like Joe Biden has!). She needs that.
I swear when I wrote that, I had no idea or at least recollection that he’d done this (yes, it seems childish, but I have no idea how any Democrat could keep from doing this!) … from wiki:
“In August 2010, Franken made faces and hand gestures and rolled his eyes while Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell delivered a speech in opposition to the confirmation of Elena Kagan to the U.S. Supreme Court. Franken’s actions prompted McConnell to remark, ‘This isn’t Saturday Night Live, Al.’ Following Kagan’s confirmation, Franken delivered a handwritten apology to McConnell and issued a public statement saying that McConnell had a right ‘to give his speech with the presiding officer just listening respectfully.'”
That percentage should be much higher. President Obama has done his best to ease race relations and be a role model for all citizens to follow. Very proud of him!
We should all be ashamed, Meta, but especially those politicians who encourage bigotry toward ANY ethnic group or minority. We’ve ‘tolerated’ this behavior from the right wing in the US for many years, but the rise of Trump is a signal to all of us that we have to rise up and defeat these hatemongers in such a decisive way that they don’t resurface again.
Who Will Speak at the Republican Convention?
by BooMan
Mon Jun 27th, 2016 at 01:03:09 PM EST
Seemingly no one wants to speak at the Cleveland convention that will elect Donald Trump as the Republican Party’s presidential candidate:
New York Rep. Elise Stefanik, a rising star who helped to write the GOP platform at the 2012 convention, “will be in her district working for her constituents and not attending the convention,” said a spokesman. Oklahoma Rep. Steve Russell, a former Army lieutenant colonel who helped capture Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, “has no plans to be a speaker at the convention,” said his office. North Carolina Rep. Richard Hudson, who’s frequently talked about as a potential future statewide candidate, “won’t be at the convention.” Mia Love, the charismatic Utah rep seen by many as the GOP’s future, is skipping Cleveland for a trip to Israel. “I don’t see any upsides to it,” Love told a reporter on Friday. “I don’t see how this benefits the state.”
Reporters at Politico reached out to “more than 50 prominent governors, senators and House members to gauge their interest in speaking” there and found almost no takers. So, I took a look at the list of speakers at the 2012 Republican National Convention, and guess what I found?
Pretty much anyone who was anyone had a speaking slot there, from Speaker John Boehner, to House members like Cathy McMorris Rodgers and Marsha Blackburn, to up-and-comers like Mia Love, to senators across the ideological spectrum, to pretty much every major Republican governor in the country.
Romney made sure that Latino governors Susana Martinez of New Mexico and Brian Sandoval of Nevada were given primetime slots. Govs. Scott Walker, Chris Christie, Mary Fallin, Bob McDonnell, and John Kasich all made appearances, most of them prominent.
Nah, there are plenty of racist GOP politicians who will be more than glad to speak at Rump’s Convention. Bigots like Palin, Steve King, Cotton, Brewer, Gingrich and Hatch will be stepping over each other to wiggle up to Trump — especially if it means that he will choose them as his VP.
Sanders is like “The Man Who Came to Dinner” and never left. Nobody cares what you want or think, Bernie. Go home and try doing your job and as a senator.
With brexit taking up much of the airspace - this is not a good time to be anti TPP and it comes across as pandering. Why does it have to get mentioned at this point in time?
“Actress Meryl Streep is scheduled to join Obama and her party Tuesday and Wednesday in Morocco for a conversation on helping girls go to school. About 85 percent of the North African country’s girls are enrolled in primary school, but only 14 percent attend high school.”
The draft Dem platform has many Bernie priorities, incl. $15 minimum wage….so… https://t.co/5LSafqfkCl
— Jonathan Capehart (@CapehartJ) June 27, 2025
Sanders got 3.7 million fewer votes than Hillary Clinton. He has 389 fewer pledged delegates than the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee. The draft platform released over the weekend has many of his priorities, such as support for a $15 minimum wage, in it. The Democratic Socialist isn’t even a Democrat. He “joined” the party in his run for the presidency because “in terms of media coverage, you had to run within the Democratic Party.” Yet, Sanders continues to lecture unwavering Democrat Clinton and withhold an endorsement from his moribund presidential campaign while maintaining a secret service detail.
If anyone ought to “stand up, be bolder than you have been” it’s Sanders. He lost the race for the nomination. And he won platform planks from a party he views with contempt. So, “stand up, be bolder than you have been,” Sen. Sanders. Endorse Clinton already and exit the race.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) hasn’t just been active in calling out Donald Trump; she’s also positioned herself as one of the nation’s most prominent Democrats that Republicans just love to hate.
This NBC News report, for example, is a reminder that the presumptive GOP nominee is doing more than just trading rhetorical jabs with a Senate critic. One gets the impression that Trump vehemently dislikes Warren on a rather personal level.
Donald Trump told NBC News that Sen. Elizabeth Warren is “racist” and “a total fraud” after attacking him during a Hillary Clinton rally in Ohio on Monday.
“She made up her heritage, which I think is racist. I think she’s a racist, actually because what she did was very racist,” Trump said in a phone interview.
Let’s pause to note two things. First, if Donald J. Trump, of all people, wants to have a debate about who is and isn’t “a racist,” he’s making a terrible mistake. Second, the background on Trump’s latest whining has to do with Warren family lore about a Cherokee ancestor.
Republicans don’t believe Warren’s family history, and have used this in recent years to make ugly, racially charged attacks.
How Britain Can Break from Brexit
A roadmap for how Britain can walk itself back from its disastrous referendum.
by Richard Ned Lebow and Simon Reich
June 27, 2025
Like so many important events, “Brexit” – the decision by British voters to withdraw from the European Union (EU) – is the outcome of both social forces and human agency. It offers important political lessons for how to maintain Western democracy and cooperation.
The successful campaign to withdraw Britain from the EU was the work of disgruntled Tories who have not gotten over the loss of empire, the decline in unquestioned authority and privilege of the upper class, and who share the delusion that independence from Europe could somehow restore this bygone era. For decades, these backward looking Tories were consigned to the backbenches of the Conservative parliamentary party. Their moment came in 2013 when Prime Minister David Cameron pledged that the people must “have their say” on Europe and promised to hold a referendum if re-elected. In February 2016, Cameron honored his pledge, announcing a referendum in June. Those voting to withdraw from the EU won a narrow victory – 52 to 48 percent.
The English, the elderly, the rural, and the uneducated voted disproportionately in favor of leaving. But among young voters, 75% wanted to remain in the EU, a percentage almost matched by Londoners, voters in several other major cities, and those in highly educated communities like Oxford and Cambridge. The young are justifiably angry that the opportunities the EU offered them have been taken away by the same generation that has increased their tuition fees and made house ownership an impossible dream. Like many educated and cosmopolitan British people, they have multiple identities, and European is one of them.
If the younger ones had so much to lose, why did so few, percentage-wise, vote? Nothing good comes from sitting out elections or voting to “send a message.” The only message received is that such voters are idiots who have willingly walked into the lion’s mouth then are surprised when they are eaten. I hope and pray that the U S electorate gets off its ass en masse to say no to our own self-inflicted Armageddon. We need a democratic wave from the White House to the State House, to local councils to get our country on the right track. PBO had done the heavy lifting and has laid out a path to follow, now it is our time to take what he has given us and to move it forward. “Yes, we can” because “we are the ones that we have been waiting for.”
White House.gov
Hi. Just arriving so have no clue what this is about.
Hello everybody, and Ms NerdyW!
Ah, reproductive choices! Am now reading the previous thread, trying to catch up. Hope you are having a mellow Monday, people.
Congrats VC! I’m far behind too. I was enjoying #NationalSunglassDay
Thanks, CM; no sunglasses for me this aft. Am desperately trying to catch up and, being a slow reader, am not too optimistic about my end time.
Sunglasses have been my BFF since surgery.
Good that you have a reliable BFF.
VC, I truly sympathize. These days, if you go out for just a little while to do some errands the whole world changes and you’re hopelessly behind.
That’s exactly what I did, JG, and then I dared to sit down and eat lunch while doing some relaxing reading! Honestly, I don’t know what I’d do if I didn’t *know* that relevant info can always be found at TOD (even if I have to backtrack to make sure I get the important connectors).
Thanks, NW for a new Post.
Congrats, VC for your Au⭐ Medal😉
Another great decision! Take that, Gun Nuts!
Random thought on Britain and one result of their Brexit vote: Now, they will trade places economically with France, the country they love to hate; they will be subject to Germany, the country they fear, and they will have to deal with Italy, the country they make fun of, but love to visit. They have placed themselves in a very stupid position.
Another thought, not so random, and more serious: Europe has been peaceful and productive for a long time…..good for them, good for the world. However, this rash action of the Brits can recalibrate the entire situation back to what it was like before World War I, when they were all after power and each other. One difference now is that England does not have the money, clout or power to be a deal maker. She will have to accept conditions set by France and Germany. Tell me again, why did David Cameron call for this referendum?????
What I find so interesting is that so many British people live abroad in various European countries, especially Spain. Wonder how they’ll be treated now that so the British have voted to exit the EU and xenophobia has been let loose since the BREXIT vote.
Just read a Daily KOOS posting that got me thinking about Al Franken being a possible VP pick for Hillary. He is loved by Progressives, a first Jewish VP possibility, and would be appointed replacement in the Senate by a Democratic Governor.
Very interesting!
I love Al Franken. I love his ways. From the minute he went to the Senate, he became a serious-minded Senator, but with a devilish touch. Never takes himself too seriously. I picture his going home at night, rolling his eyes about the crazies on Capitol Hill, hoping he can get ’em all back on track. He’d be a perfect complement to Hillary, and bring a little levity to the role (like Joe Biden has!). She needs that.
I swear when I wrote that, I had no idea or at least recollection that he’d done this (yes, it seems childish, but I have no idea how any Democrat could keep from doing this!) … from wiki:
“In August 2010, Franken made faces and hand gestures and rolled his eyes while Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell delivered a speech in opposition to the confirmation of Elena Kagan to the U.S. Supreme Court. Franken’s actions prompted McConnell to remark, ‘This isn’t Saturday Night Live, Al.’ Following Kagan’s confirmation, Franken delivered a handwritten apology to McConnell and issued a public statement saying that McConnell had a right ‘to give his speech with the presiding officer just listening respectfully.'”
Repubs are such idiots. Honestly so sick of them. Secretary Clinton needs to campaign on this.
That percentage should be much higher. President Obama has done his best to ease race relations and be a role model for all citizens to follow. Very proud of him!
We should all be ashamed, Meta, but especially those politicians who encourage bigotry toward ANY ethnic group or minority. We’ve ‘tolerated’ this behavior from the right wing in the US for many years, but the rise of Trump is a signal to all of us that we have to rise up and defeat these hatemongers in such a decisive way that they don’t resurface again.
Who Will Speak at the Republican Convention?
by BooMan
Mon Jun 27th, 2016 at 01:03:09 PM EST
Seemingly no one wants to speak at the Cleveland convention that will elect Donald Trump as the Republican Party’s presidential candidate:
New York Rep. Elise Stefanik, a rising star who helped to write the GOP platform at the 2012 convention, “will be in her district working for her constituents and not attending the convention,” said a spokesman. Oklahoma Rep. Steve Russell, a former Army lieutenant colonel who helped capture Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, “has no plans to be a speaker at the convention,” said his office. North Carolina Rep. Richard Hudson, who’s frequently talked about as a potential future statewide candidate, “won’t be at the convention.” Mia Love, the charismatic Utah rep seen by many as the GOP’s future, is skipping Cleveland for a trip to Israel. “I don’t see any upsides to it,” Love told a reporter on Friday. “I don’t see how this benefits the state.”
Reporters at Politico reached out to “more than 50 prominent governors, senators and House members to gauge their interest in speaking” there and found almost no takers. So, I took a look at the list of speakers at the 2012 Republican National Convention, and guess what I found?
Pretty much anyone who was anyone had a speaking slot there, from Speaker John Boehner, to House members like Cathy McMorris Rodgers and Marsha Blackburn, to up-and-comers like Mia Love, to senators across the ideological spectrum, to pretty much every major Republican governor in the country.
Romney made sure that Latino governors Susana Martinez of New Mexico and Brian Sandoval of Nevada were given primetime slots. Govs. Scott Walker, Chris Christie, Mary Fallin, Bob McDonnell, and John Kasich all made appearances, most of them prominent.
Crazy ass bigot Jan Brewer would do it. She loves DT.
Sarah Palin would certainly do it.
Nah, there are plenty of racist GOP politicians who will be more than glad to speak at Rump’s Convention. Bigots like Palin, Steve King, Cotton, Brewer, Gingrich and Hatch will be stepping over each other to wiggle up to Trump — especially if it means that he will choose them as his VP.
Good decision by the court. The decision does mean that the rest of those bullshyt laws from the other states are null and void too? right?
COMING UP: Hillary Clinton Remarks at Rainbow PUSH Convention in Chicago, IL - http://abcnews.go.com/Live?stream=6
Grandma goes everywhere. Love it!
This video of Let’s Girl Learn is worth watching. https://amp.twimg.com/V/aff05144-0fe8-41f4-99ld-477194f-2982d
Coolest POTUS EVAH.
Thank you, President Obama
Oh, thank you. Was hoping there might be a transcript or excerpts somewhere!
Here ya’ go:
Yay! All ya gotta do is ask, around here!
Well, that made me cry. Bravo to him. What a man!
And he’s gorgeous too!!
Just trying to stay relevant. Sit down, Bernie
Sanders is like “The Man Who Came to Dinner” and never left. Nobody cares what you want or think, Bernie. Go home and try doing your job and as a senator.
Hillary did not help with her comments about TPP today.
With brexit taking up much of the airspace - this is not a good time to be anti TPP and it comes across as pandering. Why does it have to get mentioned at this point in time?
Mrs. Robinson is there too! From the VOA article:
“Actress Meryl Streep is scheduled to join Obama and her party Tuesday and Wednesday in Morocco for a conversation on helping girls go to school. About 85 percent of the North African country’s girls are enrolled in primary school, but only 14 percent attend high school.”
Sanders got 3.7 million fewer votes than Hillary Clinton. He has 389 fewer pledged delegates than the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee. The draft platform released over the weekend has many of his priorities, such as support for a $15 minimum wage, in it. The Democratic Socialist isn’t even a Democrat. He “joined” the party in his run for the presidency because “in terms of media coverage, you had to run within the Democratic Party.” Yet, Sanders continues to lecture unwavering Democrat Clinton and withhold an endorsement from his moribund presidential campaign while maintaining a secret service detail.
[Good one, Capehart!]:
If anyone ought to “stand up, be bolder than you have been” it’s Sanders. He lost the race for the nomination. And he won platform planks from a party he views with contempt. So, “stand up, be bolder than you have been,” Sen. Sanders. Endorse Clinton already and exit the race.
Donald Trump calls Elizabeth Warren a ‘racist’
06/27/16 04:16 PM
By Steve Benen
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) hasn’t just been active in calling out Donald Trump; she’s also positioned herself as one of the nation’s most prominent Democrats that Republicans just love to hate.
This NBC News report, for example, is a reminder that the presumptive GOP nominee is doing more than just trading rhetorical jabs with a Senate critic. One gets the impression that Trump vehemently dislikes Warren on a rather personal level.
Let’s pause to note two things. First, if Donald J. Trump, of all people, wants to have a debate about who is and isn’t “a racist,” he’s making a terrible mistake. Second, the background on Trump’s latest whining has to do with Warren family lore about a Cherokee ancestor.
Republicans don’t believe Warren’s family history, and have used this in recent years to make ugly, racially charged attacks.
NOW…
New post.
https://theobamadiary.com/2016/06/27/president-obama-welcomes-the-2015-wnba-champion-minnesota-lynx/
How Britain Can Break from Brexit
A roadmap for how Britain can walk itself back from its disastrous referendum.
by Richard Ned Lebow and Simon Reich
June 27, 2025
Like so many important events, “Brexit” – the decision by British voters to withdraw from the European Union (EU) – is the outcome of both social forces and human agency. It offers important political lessons for how to maintain Western democracy and cooperation.
The successful campaign to withdraw Britain from the EU was the work of disgruntled Tories who have not gotten over the loss of empire, the decline in unquestioned authority and privilege of the upper class, and who share the delusion that independence from Europe could somehow restore this bygone era. For decades, these backward looking Tories were consigned to the backbenches of the Conservative parliamentary party. Their moment came in 2013 when Prime Minister David Cameron pledged that the people must “have their say” on Europe and promised to hold a referendum if re-elected. In February 2016, Cameron honored his pledge, announcing a referendum in June. Those voting to withdraw from the EU won a narrow victory – 52 to 48 percent.
The English, the elderly, the rural, and the uneducated voted disproportionately in favor of leaving. But among young voters, 75% wanted to remain in the EU, a percentage almost matched by Londoners, voters in several other major cities, and those in highly educated communities like Oxford and Cambridge. The young are justifiably angry that the opportunities the EU offered them have been taken away by the same generation that has increased their tuition fees and made house ownership an impossible dream. Like many educated and cosmopolitan British people, they have multiple identities, and European is one of them.
If the younger ones had so much to lose, why did so few, percentage-wise, vote? Nothing good comes from sitting out elections or voting to “send a message.” The only message received is that such voters are idiots who have willingly walked into the lion’s mouth then are surprised when they are eaten. I hope and pray that the U S electorate gets off its ass en masse to say no to our own self-inflicted Armageddon. We need a democratic wave from the White House to the State House, to local councils to get our country on the right track. PBO had done the heavy lifting and has laid out a path to follow, now it is our time to take what he has given us and to move it forward. “Yes, we can” because “we are the ones that we have been waiting for.”