John Thune. Interesting choice.

Sen. Thune will be the Majority Leader in the upcoming session. He promises to get Trump's agenda enacted and his appointees confirmed but I wonder. Thune is only half nuts. He doesn't much like Trump and doesn't defend Trump's bullshit with quite the verve of a true MAGA believer. I don't think he will be a rubber stamp.

Trump, strangely, is already a lame duck and his lameness will only increase. There won't be any more coat tails. Career politicians generally have only one guiding principle; to get elected. Loyalties shift from lame ducks to rising stars with startling speed.

Thune will attract his own followers in growing numbers. He will become, inevitably, Trump's chief rival.

I think he was a good choice, by the way.

 

The first big indicator will be if the incoming Senate abolishes the filibuster.

 

True but as you say, Trump's effectiveness varies pretty widely.

The one I can't figure out is Marco Rubio. What the heck does he think he's doing? Does he believe he will complete his term as Secretary of State covered with glory? He won't. Even if Trump does establish himself as dictator, which I think is his goal, Trump's end must come sometime and where will that leave Rubio? Ex dictators, even dead ex dictators, are rarely beloved.

 

The Senate remains very much a hidebound institution. Thune was next in line.

The real test will be if Senate Republicans will bend to Trump's will and go into recess.

I think they should. Seriously. They absolutely do NOT want to oppose Trump or his nominees in any way. This would avoid that.

It's not the principled thing to do, of course, but principles, norms, precedents and all of that went out the door long ago. (Remember Merrick Garland's SCOTUS nomination?) Democrats are only now figuring out what Republicans have known for much longer: do what you can get away with.

I expect them to go into recess because Trump has trapped them.

 

The Senate has resisted going into recess for quite some time now. Trump is not the first President to complain about it. The advantage of doing so now is that the Senate would avoid either confirming this collection of freaks, geeks, and clowns or refusing to confirm them.

 

Breaking News:
Gaetz withdraws his attorney general nomination

Former Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz posted on X on Thursday that he is withdrawing his nomination for attorney general.

 

Hope they release that report and all the other reports MTG has been talking about. The part of protecting children is actively protecting pedophiles.

 

The report is expected to be finished December 5. They may not release it since Gaetz withdrew. However my guess is that Gaetz will retake his oath of office for the next term and then they will release the report then.

 

So Trump gave him the boot. Interesting.

 

It will be roundabout, people will join and leave, but one thing will be constant, that
Trump will orchestrate and promote his policies, and based on elections, people gave the GOP and him mandate because they are unhappy with the direction and state of affairs in our country.

 

I think so.

I also think the Senators are telling Trump they're not going to give him a recess period. That means Gaetz would have been outed, which certainly wasn't the original deal with him.

I believed that Gaetz was a stalking horse, sent out to ensure Trump's only-slightly-less-crazy nominees got through. But when they talked about recess appointments, I figured the Senate would back down from a confrontation with Trump. Perhaps Gaetz's withdrawal was the condition they require to recess?

 

MTG is such a horrible person. If she had any morals and the ability to release the info, she would have already done it. I think she was bluffing to protect her pedo friend.

 

That term isn't technically accurate. Ephebophilia is more apt.

 

https://youtube.com/shorts/EKsEQhMP608?si=uy72ubvQA3lZ-UDv

 

If we’re in a clinical or research environment, then we make the distinction. Ephebophilia and hebephilia are not in the average person's vocabulary, and pedo is a slang term. As far as I know, there's no English slang term that is specific to ephebophiles or hebephiles. Everyone who has a sexual preference for minors is called a pedo.

 

Well, I found it very interesting. I was not aware of the fine distinctions between them but it does make sense.

Also, I'd like to highlight Stanislav's video post. I thought that it was absolutely hilarious. If you didn't look at it, click on it now!

 

I'm pretty sure that I was the one who was policed for using a layman's slang term that most people understand. But, since we're trying to educate people, psychiatrists who worked on the DSM 5 considered getting rid of all distinctions between the sexual preferences for children. Ultimately, if you don't have the self-control to follow the law and not harm children, there is an issue.