@1 So what does the Supreme Court need paddling for? You forgot to mention.

Me, I think politicians engaging in politics is normal and appropriate. Trump got himself into this scrape. He can get himself out by climbing down from the absurd position he's clambered up into. Or, if he wants the Democrats to get him out, he can pay the price required.

An actual resolution of DACA et. al. is going to take weeks to negotiate. Congress spent about 3 months on it from late '17 into early '18 and that was under conditions where the Democrats had a lot less clout and so the negotiating was much easier. Those negotiations were never complete because the White House pulled the rug out and alas, I guess. But we can't fiddle around with negotiations like that with the government shut down.

So, the only sensible course is for the government to open immediately. Then everybody can sit down and negotiate an enduring resolution.

permanent DACA for "enhanced border package" as previously approved, and the wall gets a feasibility study. prediction: it will be infeasible.

stipulate to some facts, motherfucker.

When is this repulsively ugly, corrupt, infantile Pigfucker-in-Chief and its RepubliKKKan minions marching in lockstep going to be ejected permanently one-way into outer space?
@1 misinformed: What on earth would Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi need a paddling for?!
@2 Alden: Re-opening the government is indeed, the only sensible thing to do, but obviously not under any of Trumpty Dumpty's insane "conditions". Trumpty Dumpty, Dencey Pencey and their GOP yes-rubes have continually proven that reasonable negotiation with Democrats is off the table. RepubliKKKans play dirty and they play to win, no matter what the damaging costs--to the rest of us, to the world, or even eventually to any of them.

@3: Thank you and bless you, Max.

Last week he served hamburger. Today he served nothingburger.

So now the federal workers and DACA recipients are being held hostage.
FUCK.
THAT.
We don't negotiate with terrorists.

Psychiatrists are gonna have to invent a whole new diagnosis to begin to describe the Rapeublinazis' unique combination of sadistic malevolence, cruelty, stupidity, and incompetence.

Nancy Pelosi is behaving heroically, a grateful nation has her back.
Trump needs to negotiate with her and he seems unable.
We are in the realm of psychology here, and it is a real swamp.
One thing is certain- this President has zero credibility at this point and that fact is crippling his effectiveness at working around the Speaker.

@4: Hmm, you left out Schumer in your question to @1. Bend over and grit your teeth Chuck - Auntie paddles hard!

Sadly nothing new as it is only another chapter in a centuries-old tradition of taking children away from their families. ITMFA

And speaking of, does anyone follow PM Netanyahu in Israel and his legal and political khara*? Striking how those two follow the same propaganda survival tips:
https://www.timesofisrael.com/netanyahu-accuses-attorney-general-of-set-up-after-tv-news-profile/

*As for “khara,” scroll down a bit to the “Basic Arabic Swear Terms” chart.
https://www.livelingua.com/arabic/how-to-curse/

@7 Original Andrew,, @8 kallipugos, & @10 CMD: BRAVO! Well said and seconded.
@9: ....said the lonely troll with no excitement on a Saturday night while crashing in his mom's basement but to get another glycerine rush. Lay off the Kandy Korn, sugarlips--it's a silent killer.

@9: Forget about poor Chuck Schumer, sugarlips. I consider you along with the usual trolls far more deserving of a good paddling. So here you go-----WHAP!

Can’t we just start building a wall around the red states? Trump voters could avoid brown people and liberals that way. We’ll keep all the high tech jobs and benefits of free trade and they can keep the mega churches and coal mines.

@13: Well, some reds are turning purple or even blue, and you overlooked the brown in the red.

13, it’s more like “us” being walled in, and trust me, there’s a trash rainbow.

https://goo.gl/V6toQK

Keep up the concerted effort at losing elections, tho.

@15 a terrible troll: Oh, I get it--Us and Them. Just like David Gilmour of Pink Floyd fame would say about RepubliKKKans, particularly the most ignorant and easily misled of poor working class whites most dependent upon (GASP!) federal services and benefits from The Big, Bad Guv'Mint. You can thank raindrop for helping make troll paddling so much easier. WHAP! There it is.
Speaking of David Gilmour, in regards to Trumpty Dumpty's Big Wall:

'There's no way out of here
When you come in, you're in for good.
There was no promise made, the part you played,
The chance you took'.

Oh yeah. I totally forgot that this was happening today. Probably because I wrote it off as another publicity/damage mitigation stunt, like his last announcement related to the wall.

I'm glad the Dems have finally woken up and decided to play hardball just like the GOP. This is the first chance they've had to punish the tortoise from Kentucky for the bullshit he's been pulling for years, and I would say it's not a moment too soon if it weren't years overdue. The majority of America has been chanting RESIST at them for 2 years now.

Seems to me that this offer is proof that the resolve of Trump and the GOP is starting to crack.

Honestly, Knat is the only worthwhile comment here.From what I can tell, it can be summed up as the gathering of people with no actual knowledge of politics. SLOG is now either trolls or idiots. Christ, I miss my college days when I didn't skip most of the comments and articles.

In either case, can we get less insufferable when it come to weed. I know Lester is a soy boy but weed cookies don't taste better than the best non-weed cookies in the city.

I liked this article:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2019/01/20/heres-an-alternative-trumps-extortion/?utm_term=.cb767db3d6fa

@17 - Knat - I agree that at least this shows he might be starting to understand he needs to negotiate, not demand (i.e. crack). And it was interesting how little attention his speech got. I didn't see any article on it till several hours after it happened (my husband & I kept wondering if he had actually done it or not)

@ 18,

Well, it is an open platform; what would you like to see? If there are worthwhile comments to make, then make them. You can be the change you want to be.

Wow Rich;
this little tantrum is an epic Democracy 101 Fail.
The churlish mental midgets on the Left want to stick their fingers in their ears and scream into the sky and ignore the other half of the country but that isn't how democracy works.
Sure, we find you just as loathsome and repugnant as you find Trump but Adults overlook the nausea and deal with their fellow countrymen.
Give some serious thought to growing up.
It's really important to the country.

Mistral- "Communicate, compromise and quit playing politics."
Wow, sure fits the republican party engagement since Obama was elected and before. I guess people may find it hard to adjust now that those whiny liberals are all of a sudden not just bending over like they used to.
Not to mention that the wall is still a terrible waste of money.

@21: Yeah, it's excruciating not to be able to agree with you. But you know that Donald will do this AGAIN and hold government workers hostage over something even more ridiculous than the wall.

If we don't break this pattern now we're even more doomed. Past shutdowns were resolved by the President and Congress coming to terms with the objective realities they were faced with.

Objective reality means nothing to our narcissist president.

Republicans are horrible people.

Remember all of those Trumpists and their t-shirts that said FUCK YOUR FEELINGS?! Well, Donald Trump, FUCK YOUR FEELINGS. Reopen the government and do your job (you, too, Mitch McConnell) and FUCK YOUR FEELINGS!!!!

@13 --- that's a brilliant suggestion.
(and why not treat those soon-to-be-Fiefdoms the way Israel treats Palestine)?
(or, and way better yet, have Israel* treat Palestinians LIKE ACTUAL HUMAN BEINGS)

You're tied for TheGoldenStarAward™ with @26, and with this comment:

"I guess people may find it hard to adjust
now that those whiny liberals are all of a sudden
not just bending over like they used to."
--CMDwannabe

It's very sad. But, I have a feeling they'll be able to Just Move On.
I know I have.

*B.D.S, Baby!
(have (FREEDOM-LOVIN'!) far alt right tighty-whiteys banned boycotts, yet)?

Yes @ 28, I do sense some adjustment issues.

@13 garbanzobeing: I like your thinking. But why don't we first build a wall around Trumpty Dumpty, Pencey Dencey, Mitch McDumbbell, their Trumpist minions ad nauseum, cut off their filthy $$$$$$$$ and ill-gotten 1%er fringe bennies (oh, gee--sorry, poor jobless RepubliKKKan supporting coal miners and fracking engineers!), and call that Prison for Life? I believe the entire world would thus celebrate.
@25 Catalina Vel-DuRay: I know, right?
@26: blip for the WIN.
@27 xina: Seconded.

Fucker's gotta erect SOMEthing before he blinks off into irrelevance/dies in a cheeseburger-related incident/becomes a bunk muffin in stir.

@36
Your false equivalences are showing. Cover that shit up, ain't nobody needs to see that.

seconding @ 37
Mistral- go sell your ideas to republicans. I'm sure you 'll be appreciated, after al they have been following your advice for decades.

35
Do you know what is really is irrelevant ?
How many, many, many, many more Americans voted for hillary than trump.
Totally. Irrelevant.
But thanks for reminding us what a sweet victory it was.
We think we'll go watch Rachael Maddow's election night coverage on youtube again;
nothing cheers us up more than watching The American Voter slap the smirk right off of her face...

39
After that maybe we'll check in on Ruth's health.
We can't wait to use that fattened Senate majority the recent Blue! FUCKING! Wave!! gave us on a new Supreme.
Nothing like the smell of no leverage and shrinking public support in the morning....

22 This plutocracy is not a real democracy but we can/are working to change that?

A criminal system that tore children from their parents. A racist/class system with more people imprisoned than any other country in the world. A system that profits from prison labor and cheap labor. A third world looking country with growing poverty and persons unsheltered with those with unspeakable wealth. And so much despicable more. This did not happen overnight.

Do not back down.

This city government continues to build its police forces and ignore/abuse the poorest peoples.
Bought and paid for and put in place. They are part of the plutocracy.

40

You should get back to writing Lester emails about snowboarding or whatever.