DL Open Thread Monday October 15th 2021

I am very happy to be living in an era bipartisan cooperation in which everyone puts the country first and petty tribalism doesn't run the show.   But can the current golden age of Coonsian bipartisan cooperation and happiness survive the Colorado River drying up for good?  I sort of doubt it. Also today... only 16% of Americans are hard line anti-vaxers. But they sure get a shit ton of media attention. And speaking of airtime, UD Alum Lydia Cole joins Rob in the bunker to talk about current protests and what demands need to be made to make sure that sexual assault is taken seriously on campus. And finally, if you never want another decent night's sleep, read this article El Som linked to over the weekend and marvel at how hard republicans are working to install trump as President for life, while Democrats can't be bothered to lift a finger to stop it.

Don’t get excited about the Bannon Indictment

Bannon's case is assigned to Judge Carl J. Nichols, a Trump appointee. He clerked for Clarence Thomas
As Scott Lemieux notes at LGM. It it is entirely predictable that Judge Nichols will invent some broad new form of executive privilege that applies retroactively, contemporaneously, and prospectively to anyone who has ever had a conversation with Donald Trump.
Nichols has been a member of the Federalist Societysince 2003.

Who is the “Democratic Base” voter that the Democratic Party continues to abuse?

Somebody asked if I could succinctly describe democratic base voters. I did, but they didn't like the answer, so they took a powder. Good riddance. That's fine but it is important to define terms so for everyone knows what I am talking about when I correctly observe that "the Democratic Party has spent the last 27 years abusing, berating and doing everything it can to drive the enthusiasm OUT of its base voters.". So here is some "politics 101" for anybody who needs it. First of all, "base voter" whether Democratic or Republican isn't a demographic. Base voters don't live in a certain zip code. Political scientist define base voters as voters who have a high degree of political participation and a strong connection to the espoused values of a political party. Therefor they are more likely to 1) show up on Election Day and 2) vote the "straight ticket." Political scientist further describe "base voters" as being more interested in strengthen a party’s...

“INFLATION PANIC!” is corporate pushback against rising worker power

Whenever the corporate media moves en masse like this, it’s a good idea to slow down and consider what’s actually happening,
The inflation freakout is all about class conflict. In fact, it may be the fundamental class conflict: that between creditors and debtors, a fight that’s been going on since the foundation of the United States. That’s because inflation is often good for most of us, but it’s terrible for the kinds of people who own corporate news outlets....