Democrat debate vs Trump rally

Steve Breen cartoon via Townhall

19 February 2020.  Tonight is the next debate between candidates for the Democrat party nomination for President.  It is hosted by NBC News and MSNBC in partnership with The Nevada Independent, and it’s the first one for which Michael Bloomberg has qualified.  NBC broadcast runs 9pm-11pm.  

Stephen Green a/k/a Vodkapundit will be live-drunk-blogging the debate so you don’t have to watch.  Click here.

Please note: Vodakapundit’s drunkblog automatically refreshes, so stay at the top of the blog. You can check in from time to time, or scan through it in one hit after the debate is over.  Even if you keep putting it off until tomorrow.

Let Vodkpundit watch the Dem debate so you can tune in to President Trump's rally in Phoenix, Arizona tonight, with coverage starting at 9pm. Conservative Treehouse always posts the links to livestreams from Right Side Broadcasting and others. Click here.  

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Democrat Debate tonight drunkblog link

NOTE: This blog post was delayed until Mr. VodkaPundit got up and running at 8:01.  Not to worry -  his drunk-blog will be up all night.  

Reagan McCarthy at TownHall reports:

Seven of the Democratic candidates for president will take the stage Friday in New Hampshire, ahead of the state’s primary on Tuesday, in a debate hosted by ABC News [at 8pm]. Former Vice President Joe Biden, Pete Buttigieg, Andrew Yang, Tom Steyer and Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Bernie Sanders (D-VT) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) reached the established donor and polling thresholds and will compete in this debate.

Notably absent from the debate stage is former Mayor of New York City Michael Bloomberg. Despite the exorbitant amount of money Mayor Bloomberg has spent on advertisements and campaign staff, he did not qualify for this debate. The DNC did alter the debate qualifications for the next debate on February 19th by eliminating the individual donor requirement, which will allow Mayor Bloomberg to be present on the debate stage in Las Vegas. This alteration unleashed backlash from progressives, who claim Bloomberg is buying the election.

Friday evening’s debate comes on the heels of the complete disaster in Iowa, following the state’s caucuses. Pete Buttigieg was declared the winner of the Iowa caucuses by a slim margin over Sen. Bernie Sanders, but the chaos and errors in the release of the caucus have stirred controversy in the Democratic Party. 

Stephen “VodkaPundit” Green is drunk-blogging live HERE– so you don’t have to watch. Just check in for updates at his blog whenever you feel like it (it’ll still be up there tomorrow – no need to check in in real time).

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Yesterday’s Democrat debate on CNN

The line-up looked so yawn-inducing that I didn’t even post the link to Stephen Green’s Drunkblogging at Vodkapundit.  Today, Mr. Green summarized the . . .

SNOOZEFEST: In Iowa Debate, Mild Feuding and No Fireworks. “Defying expectations, however, the gloves largely stayed on as the contenders appeared reluctant to take forceful shots and risk alienating some of their opponents’ supporters — voters they will need in the long run to have a shot of defeating President Trump.”

Or as I put it in last night’s drunkblog:

Here’s the big close, where each candidate promises that they’re the one who can take on Donald Trump on a debate stage.

But they can’t even take on each other. They can’t even get their energy up when thrown softballs by Wolf Blitzer. These folks couldn’t get it up with a hot tub, a platter of chilled raw oysters, some Barry White on Spotify, and a handful of little blue pills.

Limp debate, limp candidates, limp chances.

And:

I don’t know what my Democrat friends would say, if they were unguarded long enough to give an honest assessment. But I can’t imagine they would express much excitement.

Because how can you get excited about a bunch of contenders seemingly content with nothing more than a participation trophy?

The still-standing (D) candidates are in good company. When Cory Booker dropped out of the race the other day, he also got a trophy, as Babylon Bee reported :

Cory Booker Moved To Tears 

During Participation Trophy Acceptance Speech

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Unwatchable debate: October 15, 2019

Torture time. The Democrat debate starts at 8pm.

Stone-cold sober Stephen Green, a/k/a Mr. Vodkapundit, will be live drunk-blogging the Democrat debate tonight at 8pm. He watches so you don’t have to. Here’s the link.  

Please note: The drunkblog automatically refreshes, so stay at the top of the blog. You can check in from time to time, or scan through it in one hit after the debate is over. Even if you keep putting it off until tomorrow.

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Wrap-up: Democrat Panderfest debate (2)

image credit: CNN via Treehouse

Mark Penn called it a "Panderfest." There are dozens of takes online on last night’s unwatchable Democrat debate, and here are two extracts that are short and snappy. First, Mr. Vodkapundit, closing his drunkblogging report:

It was a big dud tonight.

Not that there weren't any fireworks, because there were a few. Not because it was tedious, which might just be my partisan bias. And not just because the field of ten had maybe three actual contenders.

It was a big dud because -- and correct me if I'm wrong here -- nobody did anything to move the needle.

Biden recovered from his last outing, but didn't show us anything new. Harris failed completely to capitalize on her earlier gains, and if I found out she really was on some kind of cold medicine, I wouldn't be in the least surprised. Booker promised to take on Biden, but demurred. Gabbard is *this* close to being a real contender, but isn't quite campaigning at that level. Castro is better than expected, but not that much better. And the rest were all just kind of there.

. . .

And here's some of Liz Sheld’s Morning Brief at PJ Media:

. . . there is really no difference between the candidates. The most important thing to these jokers is getting rid of Trump and they are counting on people who hate Trump to vote for them no matter what lunatic policies they are pushing. If you think about it, it's a smart strategy: desperate people make rash decisions and the deranged anti-Trump folks are desperate to get rid of Trump. If the cost is open borders, health care for illegal immigrants, an alarmist "climate change" policy that will wipe out loads of American jobs, forcing people out of their preferred healthcare plans in favor of one administered by postal workers, raising taxes, taxpayer-subsidized abortion, post-birth abortion and getting back in bed with Iran, so be it. As I wrote yesterday, the only question that matters in this election is whether people hate Trump more than than they hate these whacked-off policies. If it weren't for this media-Democrat manufactured Orange Man Bad crisis, people wouldn't swallow the radical, left-wing policy crap so easily. G-d help us.

But maybe cartoonist Henry Payne said it best:

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Unwatchable primary debates and Free Stuff

image credit: dreamstime.com

Libertarian John Stossel tallied up the Democrat candidates’ promises and plans for giving away Free Stuff. No matter which candidate is making promises,

We can't afford it! The federal government is already $22 trillion in debt -- $150,000 per taxpayer.

While Trump's $267 billion is bad, the Democrats' plans are worse. We counted $297 billion proposed by Biden, $690 billion from Buttigieg, $3.8 trillion from Warren, $4 trillion from Sanders and $4.3 trillion from Harris. That would double what the entire federal government spends now.

Senator Harris "wins" the free stuff contest.

Taxpayers lose.

The second unwatchable debate is this evening at 8pm – 11pm. The line-up:

Former Vice President Joe Biden; California Sen. Kamala Harris; New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio; Washington Gov. Jay Inslee; New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand;  Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard; Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet; New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker; entrepreneur Andrew Yang; and Julián Castro, former housing secretary in the Obama administration.

Remember, Stephen Green, a/k/a Mr. Vodkapundit, will be live drunkblogging again this evening (Wednesday). He watches so you don’t have to. Here’s the link –click to his website; his drunkblog link will be on the right-hand sidebar.

UPDATE 7:50pm: Here's the live link to Vodkapundit's Drunkblog. Click here.

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Round 2 of Unwatchable Debates

Stone-cold sober Stephen Green, a/k/a Mr. Vodkapundit, will be live drunkblogging both the Tuesday (tonight) and Wednesday Democrat debates this week. He watches so that you don’t have to. Here’s the link to his website; look for drunkblog link on the sidebar. Debate starts at 8pm. Runs for 3 hours!

Please note: Vodkapundit's drunkblog automatically refreshes, so stay at the top of the blog. You can check in from time to time, or scan through it in one hit after the debate is over.

UPDATE 5pm: Here's the page link, and here are opening thoughts from Mr. Vodkapundit himself:

I mean, have you seen these people, the folks who run for office? If you can't have fun at their expense, then you're taking them entirely too seriously. That probably goes double for a race where Slow Joe Biden is the frontrunner in a crowded field of more than 20 candidates. Speaking of doubles, we have another double Democratic debate this week, and I'll be here -- carbo-loaded, glasses-wearing, beverage cart next to my desk -- to have far too much fun with all the action. Click in right here at around 7:45 Eastern on Tuesday and Wednesday nights for all the action.

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Mueller's "circus of embarrassments"

By now, everyone has seen the headlines or watched the anchors reporting on Robert Mueller's hearing before Congress. So just in case you've been busy at work or otherwise occupied, here is the link to Vodkapundit's (Stephen Green) Drunkblogging on the main event. Click here. 

Mr. Green leads off:

If former special counsel Robert Mueller trying to avoid saying much of anything while being questioned by some of the most duplicitous people in the world is your idea of Must-See TV, then you're probably already tuned into MSNBC. And may the Lord have mercy on your brain.

On the other hand, if you'd rather just follow along online with a coffee or (better yet) a Bloody Mary, then you've come to the right place.

House antics to follow shortly. Bloody Mary recipe to follow almost immediately.

Welcome to a very special midweek early morning drunkblog.*

*Open bar, professional drinker. Try this at home.

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Unwatchable debates : Part 2

photo credit: inquirer.com

Stephen Green, a/k/a Mr. Vodkapundit, will be live drunk-blogging Round Two of the debates this evening. He watches so you don’t have to. Here’s the link.

He activated his live drunk-blog about 8:50 pm last night, so he’ll probably be going live at about the same time this evening.

For Powerline blogger Paul Mirengoff’s wrap-up of last night’s extravaganza, click here.

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Unwatchable debates

Everyone knows that the two debates between Democrat presidential candidates are this evening and tomorrow evening, both at 9pm. There are some voters who expect the proceedings to be pretty amusing and plan to tune in. But the idea of turning on the television to actually watch these two events does not sound like much fun to me.

Fortunately, there’s an alternative. Stephen Green, a/k/a Mr. Vodkapundit, will be live drunk-blogging at PJ Media. Here’s the link https://pjmedia.com/vodkapundit/.

UPDATE 8:50 pm: A better direct link is here.  It automatically refreshes, so stay at the top of the blog.

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On Tax Day: the Fair Tax option

Today was the deadline to file your income tax returns. Mr. Vodkapundit, Stephen Green, marked the occasion with his column at PJ Media, "Abolish the Income Tax, Abolish the IRS":

The Fair Tax isn't exactly a new idea, but it's one worth reminding people of every April 15.

The Fair Tax would completely eliminate payroll taxes and individual and corporate income taxes by repealing the 16th Amendment. Washington would be funded instead by a national sales tax -- partly offset by a monthly "prebate" paid to every household. As described by Americans for Fair Taxation, the prebate is "an 'advance refund' at the beginning of each month so that purchases made up to the poverty level are tax-free." You would take home 100 percent of your pay, and determine your own tax rate based on how much you spend each month.

The IRS is abolished, replaced by a tax collection mechanism every single merchant is already familiar with. Conspicuous consumption by the rich would be met with a heavy sales tax burden, but investments in jobs and growth and innovation would be tax-free.

Other benefits include zero compliance cost for individuals, no more audits, no more loopholes, and vastly reduced opportunities for official corruption and graft. Almost as good, perhaps, is that only legal U.S. residents are eligible for the prebate, but everybody, from native-born citizen to illegal alien, pays their fair share at the cash register.

Makes sense, which is why it's unlikely to happen. Full article is here.

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Unemployment up?

art credit: lindavernon.com

Good point from Stephen Green at Instapundit:

WINNING: U.S. gains 213,000 jobs in June; unemployment rises to 4%.

When unemployment goes up while the economy is adding jobs at a healthy clip, it’s great news. It means that people who had dropped out of the labor force and had stopped being counted as “unemployed,” feel confident enough to start looking for work again.

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Repealing Obamacare: again

YouTube: Right Side Broadcasting

Following President Trumps’s brief speech today (above) in a last-ditch effort to get the Uniparty RINOs to keep their promise to repeal Obamacare, it’s timely to review a couple of reasons why Congress should repeal:

• Medicare is not the answer. Here is today’s horror story about a 91-year old needing treatment but getting rejected by the system.
• Single-payer systems put the state, not the individual in charge of medical decisions. Here’s Mr. Vodkapundit (Stephen Green) on the final chapter in little Baby Gard’s life, and the tragic situation with his parents.

Yet Congress is so used to end-running rules, breaking campaign promises, and disregarding their constituencies that it will be a miracle if they do the right thing on healthcare. How do they keep getting away with it? Here’s an essay by Angelo M.Codevillaon at the American Greatness blog about what “regular order” in the legislative process is supposed to look like. 

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Rep. Tom Price as Secretary of Health and Human Services

photo credit: Star Tribune

Good news! Rep. Tom Price is going to be Trump’s Secretary of Health and Human Services. CTH reports:

President-elect Donald J. Trump has selected Representative Tom Price, a six-term Republican congressman from Georgia who has led opposition to the Affordable Care Act, to be secretary of health and human services, according to a transition team official.

Mr. Price, an orthopedic surgeon, has been a severe critic of the health law, saying it interferes with the ability of patients and doctors to make medical decisions.

And he says that events have borne out his warnings.  “Premiums have gone up, not down,” Mr. Price said recently. “Many Americans lost the health coverage they were told time and time again by the president that they could keep. Choices are fewer.”

An announcement of Mr. Price’s appointment is expected as soon as Tuesday, according to the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the announcement had not been released. [The WaPo announced it here.]

Some Republicans have attacked the Affordable Care Act without proposing an alternative. Mr. Price, by contrast, has introduced bills offering a detailed, comprehensive replacement plan in every Congress since 2009, when Democrats started work on the legislation.

From his days as a Georgia state senator, Mr. Price, now 62, has been a voice for doctors, often aligned with the positions of the American Medical Association and the Medical Association of Georgia.

Even the New York Times had something nice to say.

For Tea Party people who were active during the run-up to the passage of Obamacare, Tom Price is one of our heroes. Good news, indeed. And as Stephen Green (Mr. Vodkapundit) adds on PJ Media, “Give that man a giant scalpel.”

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Drunkblogging the GOP debate

For those of you who don't want to watch the 2nd GOP debate, there's always an alternative. Stephen Green, Mr. Vodkapundit, is Drunkblogging the event at PJ Media. 

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Dealing with the State of The Union speech tonight

For patriots who cannot imagine watching or listening to the SOTU this evening, here is an option from Stephen Green (Mr. Vodkapundit at PJ Media):

Drunkblogging tomorrow night’s State of the Union Address, you ask?

I’m readying my favorite martini pitcher in anticipation already.

Check back at the PJM home page Tuesday night at about 8:45PM Eastern for all the fun and cocktails and facepalms you can handle.

He watches it, so you don't have to.

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