The Pennsylvania primaries saw many left-leaning Democrats defeat the mainstream party’s preferred candidates. Four of them were also backed by the Democratic Socialists of America. All four were women, and all won their Democratic primaries over men, including a couple of incumbents.
The reason economic populism still resonates in despite record-low unemployment is that many people hold jobs that pay too poorly to cover middle-class basics. The United Way estimates 40% of Americans fall into this category.
So much for that Nobel Peace Prize for Donald Trump, peacemaker. North Korea is back to rattling its nuclear-tipped saber over joint military operations between the U.S. and South Korea. Will any of the morons who suggested Trump deserved the Peace Prize take note that simply saying something will happen in the future usually isn’t enough to get it done, a rule that goes double for Trump? Highly doubtful.
The Senate Intelligence Committee released reams of testimony about the June 2016 Trump Tower meeting, which raised some interesting questions. For those treating this as a mystery/thriller, the most tantalizing clues involve the “cryptic” notes Paul Manafort took. My favorite of those is “illici,” which looks like he made it almost to the end of the word before he realized that maybe he shouldn’t write that one down.
Digby has your periodic reminded that while it might seem Republicans are accomplishing nothing despite complete control of Washington, neglect is destroying what they don’t wreck on purpose. She says it might never be put back together, which is of course what the GOP has been trying to do for 40 years.
I still regret the defenestration of Al Franken, but the othes shitcanned by the #metoo revolt against skeevy men aren’t much missed. That doesn’t mean they have accepted their fate, though: Many of them are trying to stage comebacks, even luffa-wielding Bill O’Reilly.