The Kind-Hearted Smart Aleck

During the 35-day government shutdown, the longest in this country's history, Donald Trump saw his approval rating drop to 37% in Gallup polls. The latest round of Gallup polls were just released this week and it showed Trump's post-shutdown approval rating was up 7 points to 44%. Upon seeing this, my first reaction was, "WTF?!? Are people really this stupid?!?" Considering the fact we elected this man president at all, I suppose it should be obvious by now that answer is a resounding yes! Let's think about this for a moment. Congress passed a bipartisan, nearly unanimous budget bill which Donald Trump said he was going to sign. After receiving some heat from right-wing talking heads like Ann Coulter and Rush Limbaugh, Trump changed his mind at the last moment and decided to shut down the government until he received the money he initially wanted to build a southern border wall. The shutdown lasted a record-setting 35 days, where hundreds of thousands, if not mi...

While appearing on MSNBC's Morning Joe , Tom Brokaw uttered these words: "I think the Democrats are as much to blame right now as the Republicans are. They've got control of the House, but they're mostly just 'Yeah, yeah, yeah. We're not going to do what you want to do.' I haven't seen a grand plan." The "grand plan" was back in December when the Senate overwhelmingly passed a "clean" (no wall funding) budget bill, which President Trump showed all indications of signing, but then reversed course due to right-wing talking heads like Ann Coulter and Rush Limbaugh telling him he shouldn't. This would have, at least temporarily, prevented a shutdown. Instead, after Trump shockingly rejected the proposal, the Senate was forced to scramble and rush something together in order to prevent a shutdown. This didn't happen and here we are, in day 34 of the the longest government shutdown in U.S. history. This is 100% Donald Tr...

Since the start of the government shutdown, a majority of voters have blamed President Donald Trump. His polling has ranged between 50% and 60%. Blame on the Democratic House has ranged between 30% and 40%. On MSNBC the other day, anchor Katy Tur made the claim that a new Pew Research poll found 53% of the public now blame the Democratic Party for the shutdown, also noting that most pollsters run contrary to this and blame Trump. Due to the outlier-nature of this report, I decided to do a little fact-checking and here's what I found. While Ms. Tur was accurate in the specific number she reported, she was inaccurate in what that number represented. The Pew Research poll she cited asked participants whether they approved or disapproved how Donald Trump, Republican Congressional leaders, and Democratic Congressional leaders were handling shutdown negotiations. Here were the results: - 53% disapprove of how Democratic Congressional leaders are handling shutdown negotiations - 60% ...

As I noted yesterday, while I'm about as big a fan of Congressional Republicans as the pope is of Saw  films, I think the onus of the government shutdown should fall on Donald Trump's shoulders. Throughout the process, the man contradicted himself more times than Bill Clinton has bit his lower lip in the past 50 years. Call me crazy, but it's difficult to know what a president will or won't sign when he consistently provides conflicting messages on just that. While I don't really fault Congressional Republicans or Democrats for what happened over the weekend, however, I find it quite perplexing, to the point of being comical, how Republicans in general have responded to said shutdown. In a newly released NBC News poll, which was conducted after the start of the shutdown, here were a few of the results: Who's to blame for the government shutdown? Democrats/Independents: 54.4% Trump, 23.9% Republicans (78.3% combined), 18.1% Democrats (net +60.2% Republicans/-6...

Since the federal government shut down at midnight on Saturday, January 20th, the Republican and Democratic parties have taken turns pointing fingers at one another for blame. Republicans have tried referring to the situation as Schumer Shutdown, in reference to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, claiming he and the Democratic Party have taken the government hostage over DACA. Many Democrats have come forth with the attack, "The GOP controls all three parts of government! How can they blame the minority?" While I could sit here and nitpick the two parties' rationales and get fancy by casting a specific percentage of blame to both, I'm not going to do that. This isn't the Schumer Shutdown and isn't even the McConnell Shutdown; it's the Trump Shutdown. Period. Donald Trump doesn't know what in the hell he's doing. He's like a 5-year-old who was just handed the keys to a Mercedes, has surrounded himself with blind men, is being provided direc...

While it's quite common for presidential nominees to make promises to their constituents about what they'll do if elected to office, the Republican Party has decided to go a different route. In a statement released by the Republican National Committee (RNC) yesterday, the party promised that, if their nominee is elected president, they'll permanently shut down the federal government. In the statement, RNC Chairman Reince Priebus said this: "If we win the next election, it's going to be a historic victory. Why is this you might ask? What is it Democrats always tell people? 'We're going to try to get things done to improve people's lives and in essence prove the government can be the source for some good and blah blah blah,' right? What is it us Republicans always say? 'Government can't be trusted; it's evil; it's pretty much worthless,' right? Yet when Republicans get elected to office, they still try to get things done on occ...

Two years after Ted Cruz and the his fellow Republicans shut down the federal government in an attempt to take away millions of people's healthcare and just days following their attempt to shut down the government in an attempt to transform women into stepford wives across the country, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced he and the rest of the GOP will in fact be shutting the government down again, but for a different reason: "We're old, we're tired, and we need a seriously long vacation. Look, people don't realize how hard it is to work 130 days a year for $174,000, as opposed to 250 days a year for $50,000. We work about 30-35% of the year and, in my opinion, that's 20-25% too much. I can understand why some people might get upset at us for this, like last time, when we cost the country $20 billion or so, but we're not the ones they should be upset about; it's those low-income moochers off the government and the hard-working taxpayers. ...

Tell me if you've heard this one before: Texas Senator Ted Cruz threatens a federal government shutdown if he doesn't get his way about something but lays claim that if the government should shut down due to this, it won't be his fault. That's right, almost two years after he decided to play a big part in shutting down the federal government for a couple weeks due to the Affordable Care Act not getting defunded, Ted Cruz has taken a similar stance regarding Planned Parenthood. However, according to him, just as the first shutdown wasn't his fault, this potential shutdown won't be his doing either. In a conference call with pastors last week, Cruz said he'd try to defund Planned Parenthood by tying it to an appropriations bill funding the federal government, adding: "We can expect President Obama and many of the congressional Democrats to cry loudly that if Congress uses its authority, Congress will be quote 'shutting down the government.' ...

There comes a time in most all our lives where we have to take a deep breath and walk away with our tails between our legs after failing in our pursuance of a major crush. If we don't, then a court order may follow, and we soon won't be allowed within a certain distance of that person. What can I say? Love (and/or infatuation) causes many people to lose their minds once in a while. That brings me to Texas Senator and man voted most likely to fondle himself while listening to his own recorded speeches - Ted Cruz, whom seems to possess such an intense obsession over Obamacare, the healthcare bill is rumored to be seeking a restraining order against the Senator. Not only has Cruz uttered such extreme rhetoric where he claims that Obamacare is the end of freedom as we know it and was chiefly responsible for the government shutdown in the name of repealing the healthcare law, he's now appeared to compare everything that he deems to be wrong in the world with the Affordable C...

On Fox News' show Hannity , anti-woman Ann Coulter said the following to host Sean Hannity about the government shutdown: "The shutdown was so magnificent, run beautifully. I'm so proud of these Republicans, and that is because they have branded the Republican Party as the anti-Obamacare Party." Earth to Coulter - the GOP didn't need the shutdown to brand themselves as the anti-Obamacare Party. I have a feeling their 40+ attempts at repealing the bill did the trick there. Also, the shutdown didn't just brand the GOP as the anti-Obamacare Party. The shutdown,  along with previous words and actions have branded the GOP as the following in recent weeks, months, and years: - The anti-gay party - The anti-woman party - The anti-minority party - The anti-any-religion-but-Christianity party - The anti-healthcare party - The anti-lower class party - The anti-middle class party - The anti-education party - The anti-diplomacy party - The anti-compr...

In the grand scheme of things, it's incredibly difficult to say there were any winners in the government shutdown. However, it's without question there were some losers - namely the American people and the Republican Party (including the Tea Party). A poll was just released by the Washington Post/ABC , and the results follow the recent trend - the GOP is disliked more than a neighbor's dog that constantly poops on your lawn. In this latest poll, 53% of respondents blamed the shutdown on Congressional Republicans, while just 29% blamed it on President Obama. Obama's approval ratings went largely unchanged, as close to an equal number of people approve and disapprove of the job he's doing as president. The Republican Party, meanwhile, was hit harder than a fly by a bodybuilder whom just took both speed and steroids. According to this poll, just 32% of respondents view the GOP in a favorable manner (an all-time low for this poll), while 63% view the party unfavorab...

Former Florida Representative and current crazy person Allen West seemed quite upset about the federal government re-opening without defunding Obamacare, even though the shutdown cost the country $24 billion and there was no possible way defunding the healthcare bill would have passed the Democrat-controlled Senate and White House. On his Facebook page, he sent the following post: "I'm watching the spectacle occurring on the Senate floor. They have passed the 60 vote threshold for enduring cloture. I want the American people to understand that tonight the Constitutional Republic we know as America has suffered a horrible defeat. Obamacare is not the law of the land. It is an edict handed down by a tyrant, not a President. The US Senate has just voted to affirm a new precedent that the executive branch can amend law without Congressional approval, and Congress allows it. The waivers, exemptions, and delays implemented by President Obama have delineated a separation, not of po...

Ever since the start of the shutdown, Ted Cruz and his Tea Party ilk have regularly stated that they're speaking for the American people with their actions and demands, because America doesn't want Obamacare. Cruz even went so far as to say if the American public was polled on whether or not to defund Obamacare, we'd vote 100-0 to defund it. Of course, the only poll which shows such numbers resides in the mind of Ted Cruz himself, since every reputable poll has shown that the public doesn't want to defund the healthcare plan and they especially don't want it to be the reason for the shutdown. Perhaps what Cruz was really stating with his poll numbers is that he hears 100 voices, all of whom support the defunding of Obamacare. Cruz and company love to talk about poll numbers surrounding Obamacare. Why wouldn't they? The Republican Party spent how much money on negative ads surrounding the healthcare reform bill? They spent how much time during election season t...

As I've previously written about, President Obama has already negotiated with regard to the healthcare reform bill. That's how the bill was passed in the first place. The GOP now wants him to negotiate again and have attempted to place themselves in a better light by making it appear as if they're negotiating when the president is not. Here's a shot story about how I view this matter. Setting: A boyfriend and girlfriend deciding on what movie to see at a theater Lucy Fur: "So, what movie do you want to see, honey?" Justin Yu: "I don't know. I was kind of wanting to see that new Bruce Willis one; how about you?" Lucy: "You know I don't care for his movies. How about that new Justin Timberlake romance?" Justin: "Geez. Aren't you tired of that Timberflake guy?" Lucy: "Never!" Justin: "Well, I really don't want to see that one. What about that new comedy starring Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilso...

Let's review a few significant events in the world of politics over the past few years. 1. Barack Obama was elected president in 2008. 2. He signed a healthcare reform bill which became known as Obamacare. 3. The case got taken to the Supreme Court and was ruled as Constitutional. 4. The Republican Party went after Obamacare and promised to repeal it if they won enough elections in 2012. 5. Obama was re-elected in 2012 and Democrats picked up seats in both the House and the Senate. 6. Obamacare is scheduled to be mostly implemented as of January 1st, 2014. 7. House Republicans tried repealing, defunding, and delaying Obamacare even though Democrats controlled the Senate and the president, who the bill was named after (according to the GOP), was also a Democrat. 8. After these efforts failed, the House decided to shutdown the government until they got their way. Notice a theme with this series of events? Republicans lost. The 2008 presidential election? Republica...

I've been trying to find a clever analogy to paint just how ridiculous the Tea Party's government shutdown is and think one has finally dawned on me. The Tea Party has stated that Obamacare is ruining this country essentially and have shutdown the government in an effort to get the law repealed, defunded, or delayed. Yet, the law hasn't been fully implemented. This would be like players shutting down baseball before the Wild Card was implemented because it was destroying the game. Such a conversation between a player and the commissioner may go like this: Player: "We've had it! What you did with the Wild Cards has completely destroyed the game and we're not going to stand for it anymore! We go on strike!" Commissioner: "What do you mean?" Player: "You heard me!" Commissioner: "The Wild Cards have destroyed the game? But that doesn't go into effect until next season..." Player: "Yeah, I know. But, just ...

It seems that politicians affiliated with the Tea Party think the government is evil, aren't coy about saying this, and do everything in their power to shutdown the government, which they just did. I've always found this to be a tad odd. First off, why would someone seek a position with a group he or she didn't believe in? Secondly, if this person was hired, why would he or she do everything in their power to shut it down? Can you imagine people in other professions holding a similar philosophy? If these individuals were to earn their job through a vote, I imagine their ads would go as follows: Position: Teacher "I'm going to be frank - I don't believe in public education. I never did, as a matter of fact. It's actually my goal to get education abolished entirely. We simply don't need it. The only things we need to learn are from our parents and our Lord Jesus Christ. So, please keep that in mind this next Tuesday when you make your vote, and vote f...

In light of the government shutdown, which began at the stroke of midnight today, I've read several posts on social networking sites from far-right conservatives which have sarcastically said things such as: "It looks like the world didn't end after all," "What? My house is still here?," and "The sky is not falling, president. Just sayin'..." This reminds me of the remarks directly following the 2013 budget sequestration. With such drastic spending cuts, many politicians - particularly Democrats - warned us that some would be significantly impacted by them. Not five minutes after the sequestration took place, I heard some conservative pundits say things such as: "What? That's it?," "This isn't a big deal at all!," and "Exaggerate much, Mr. President? Are you a comedian on the side or something?" Do these people think that, when such events take place in government, there's a magic switch somewhere w...

It seems that some (many) whom identify themselves as Tea Partiers are happy with the government shutdown and think it's a good thing. I can't say this completely surprises me, yet it astonishes me nonetheless. A growing number of self-described Tea Partiers believe in minimal government, if any government at all, so a government shutdown to them is like a wet-dream. They can then temporarily skip and gallop naked about the earth, yelling out, "You see? I don't need government! I'm free! Free as a bird! I was right all along! The government is useless and only there to limit my freedom! Make this shutdown permanent so I can always be so free!" Perhaps if I become addicted to drugs - a hallucinogen especially - and wander away to neverneverland, I too will feel that way. However, as much as I'd love to believe that we're all 100% independent and free, I'd be more delusional than a legally blind person who claims to see voices to think this way. ...

Texas Senator and man who makes Tom Cruise look sane - Ted Cruz - has been claiming that he and other Tea Partiers are speaking for the American people to defund Obamacare. He even went as far to say that if it were up to the American people, the vote would be 100 to 0 to defund the bill. Sorry, Ted, but like many of the other things you say, this is false. In five recent polls taken on the matter, an average of 38% of people support the defunding of Obamacare, while an average of 49.6% oppose such an idea, with another 13% whom aren't sure. Using Cruz's made-up vote count, this would result in 38 people voting aye and 50 people voting nay for the defunding of the healthcare reform bill. In other words, Cruz was just off by 62% and 50%, respectively... I actually find it to be quite funny that Cruz and the Tea Party claim to be speaking for the American people in shutting down the government to repeal, defund, or delay Obamacare. As I just noted, the numbers aren't on t...