2016 Presidential Candidates (Let's Go)

[Rerun]

May as well start a little firestorm on IHD.  We haven't had this for a while and we could use a post boost.  LOL

Remember "Thick Skin" you have to agree to disagree.

Hillary - She is a liar and she won't use her last name.  She is going on the Ticket as Hillary. Some idiot Americans won't associate her with Bill.

Jeb Bush - At least he is honest about his name.

Donald Trump -  The Media is having this big deal about what he said about "Immigrants"  which is not true he meant "Illegal Immigrants" and they know that and it is true.  Not all but most.

Joe Biden -  Seriously?  WTF!  If he even gets one vote I'll be surprised!

Ben Carson -  I like him. 

Chris Christie -  We can't afford him as president.  Donuts at every meeting!

Carly Fiorina -  I've seen her interviewed a few times and she is spot on.

What do you say?

[Vt Big Rig]

May as well start a little firestorm on IHD.  We haven't had this for a while and we could use a post boost.  LOL

Remember "Thick Skin" you have to agree to disagree.

Hillary - She is a liar and she won't use her last name.  She is going on the Ticket as Hillary. Some idiot Americans won't associate her with Bill.

Jeb Bush - At least he is honest about his name.

Donald Trump -  The Media is having this big deal about what he said about "Immigrants"  which is not true he meant "Illegal Immigrants" and they know that and it is true.  Not all but most.

Joe Biden -  Seriously?  WTF!  If he even gets one vote I'll be surprised!

Ben Carson -  I like him. 

Chris Christie -  We can't afford him as president.  Donuts at every meeting!

Carly Fiorina -  I've seen her interviewed a few times and she is spot on.

What do you say?

Hillary  ... there are an awful lot of idiot Americans.

Jeb ....will be considered  a rerun .. (no pun intended)

Donald .... not  a chance. Will speak truth and nobody wants to hear that.

Joe Biden .... OMG. NOOOOOOO!

Ben Carson ... I like him too but he speaks the truth too often also.

Chris .... cheaper than a round of golf!

Carly .... do not understand why she is not getting some traction.

And I will add...... I listened to Booby Jindell announce ....... he at least said all the right things.

Is this the best we've got ?

[Jean]

Hillary.... NOT a chance.

Jeb Bush...........Nowhere Near ready to run

Donald Trump..............Well, at least, I doubt he can be bought and I like a lot of his ideas. He just might be good!!

Joe Biden.............. Oh, come now!!!!

Ben Carson................I like him and which he could have been our first black President.

Chris Christie................Nope, too late for Chris.

Carly Fiorina....................She is a smart one too, but I dont think she is strong enough as yet.

[Simon Dog]

Hillary  ... there are an awful lot of idiot Americans.

As well as Americans enrolled in the FSA (Free Stuff Army)

The threat of having to pay their own cell phone bill will drive many of the takers to the Democrats, no matter who is the candidate.

[Michael Murphy]

Hillary.... Like her, don't know if she survives primaries but if she does I will vote for her.

Jeb Bush........... Like George,but with a brain.

Donald Trump..............Like the Scarecrow need to go find the Wizard and get a brain.

Joe Biden.............. A little too verbal but his heart is always in the right place.


Ben Carson................Possibile but I doubt the southern republicans would vote for him.

Chris Christie................Inlive in New Jersey I also know a bully when I see one,  if he elected the first opposition he faces and all the interstates will be closed for a traffic study..


Carly Fiorina.............. Knew her a AT&T had the people skills of a snake,  booted from hp even though she did a good job, people skills lacking again.

[PrimeTimer]

hillary (killary) rodham clinton -her involvement and attitude towards murdered Americans in Benghazi is all we need to know about her.

elizabeth warren -she and hillary are one of the same.

jeb bush -conniving.

joe biden -sexual predator

chris christie -an excuse-maker and would be a huge regret.

Trump -he spoke the truth about a corrupt Mexican govt screwing us over and the thugs they let run loose, including straight over in to our own country.
Cruz -will protect us by defending our Constitution.
Fiorina -she's right; Putin cannot be dissuaded by hillary's reset button.
Carson -most intelligent person in the room.
Allen West -not running but should someday. Meantime, would make a great Secretary of Defense.
Benjamin Netanyahu -more American than some Americans. That's the problem.

[Rerun]

        

I love the honesty!  We need someone who will annihilate these ISIS creeps.  They are just horrible people.  Who would have thought they would have gotten this far!  Trump is the only one who said he would knock them out first thing.

[MooseMom]

        

I love the honesty!  We need someone who will annihilate these ISIS creeps.  They are just horrible people.  Who would have thought they would have gotten this far!  Trump is the only one who said he would knock them out first thing.

Has he said how he's going to do that?  If he has, I missed it.  Is he going to put boots on the ground?

I can't wait to see him debate Chris Christie!!  I hope they are both high enough in the polls so that Fox will include them in the first televised debate they'll be hosting!!

[MooseMom]

Benjamin Netanyahu -more American than some Americans. That's the problem.

That's a terrible thing to say.  Netanyahu cares nothing for this country that gives Israel so much money and support.  He is disrespectful of the United States.

[PrimeTimer]

Love Marco Rubio's latest campaign ad that includes a spot with Netanyahu speaking. 

[noahvale]

^

[noahvale]

*

[MooseMom]

Noahvale, it was Boehner who grossly mishandled Netanyahu,s speech before Congress.  I can,t blame him for accepting Boehner,s gift.

Good for him for taking advantage of our excellent university system.  I,m thrilled to learn that he has fond memories of his time here and has made wealthy friends.  But I am not sure his so called respect for the USA  will protect Israel from having to face criminal charges stemming from their most recent war with Palestine.

I am baffled by any American,s admiration of this man and of Putin.

But it is irrelevant since he will not be president.  I have no respect for that man and cannot understand why some of our elected officials are so eager to kowtow to him.

The GOP candidates are afraid of Trump, and he knows he has them right where he wants him.

[MooseMom]

Speaking of Netanyahu, who do you all see him hoping to be the next president?  Which is the most pro Israel GOP candidate?

[Rerun]

Who do you think the Cuban Castro Brothers will want as President?  Or the president of Iran?  Our new friends!?  Seriously?

I'll take Israel any day ....

[noahvale]

^

[noahvale]

*

[noahvale]

^

[Michael Murphy]

I would like to remind all the pro republican dialysis patients
Republicans are starting the new Congress by attacking Social Security funding through a subtle, obscure policy measure buried in the gigantic bill that establishes parliamentary rules for the new session.
The rules measure, passed late Tuesday after other day-one business like formal swearing-in ceremonies for members were completed, escalates the threat of a significant cut to Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) within the next two years. The measure bans a common accounting technique that the people who manage Social Security funding have used many times in the past to prevent benefit cuts. The two funds that comprise the Social Security system have essentially borrowed from one another as necessary over the years to ensure that benefits can be paid in full each year. SSDI, which is the primary program for providing federal benefits to people unable to work due to disability, is projected to hit a shortfall in late 2016. Reallocating revenue from the much larger Social Security retirement benefits fund to SSDI would cover the shortfall, and trust fund managers have performed such reallocations 11 times since the late 1950s.
But the Republican rules package prohibits Congress from authorizing such a transfer. That will force a showdown over how to finance disability benefits sometime in the next two years, with the threat of a nearly 20 percent cut to SSDI payments looming over the debate. The measure was overshadowed in the news by a separate rules package measure that threatens to rig the legislative process in favor of trickle-down tax policy, until the beginning of this week when critics began to decry the change.
The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities called the rule an “attempt to pit retirement and disability beneficiaries against each other” that misrepresents how the two funds operate, and pointed out that the only reason SSDI is in funding trouble next year is that it got short-changed by the past two reallocations of funding between disability and retirement benefits. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) accused the GOP of “inventing a Social Security crisis that will threaten benefits for millions & put our most vulnerable at risk.” Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) called it “a dangerous new rule” that will “set the stage to cut benefits for seniors and disabled Americans,” and pointed out that reallocating funds between the accounts is so uncontroversial that President Reagan oversaw four of the 11 times it has been done in the past.
Rep. Tom Reed (R-NY), who is taking credit for engineering the rules change, has received significant campaign financing from at least one well-heeled conservative supporter of cutting Social Security. Reed has gotten over $134,000 in contributions from people tied to vulture capitalist Paul Singer’s firm Elliott Management, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. Singer is most famous for his battle to force the nation of Argentina to prioritize debt payments to Elliott Management over public expenditures for its 41 million citizens. But the generous Republican donor is also a sharp critic of American government spending and has called for cutting benefits in Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid.
Reed told the Associated Press that his rules proposal is intended to force a reckoning over social insurance spending. “We need real reform,” he said, and “this makes that real reform that much more likely.” Leaving aside the question of what Reed means by “real reform,” and the fact that the proposed reallocation would have extended disability funding by 17 years while reducing retirement funding by just one year, the move is raising serious procedural concerns among retiree advocates.
Social Security experts Nancy Altman and Eric Kingson labeled the move “hostage-taking to force changes that the American people do not want to a vital program” in a piece for the Huffington Post. Reed’s rule means that “we could be facing a deadline, and certainly over the last couple of years ,we’ve seen Congress seemingly unable to pass bills, even with deadlines in front of them,” the American Association of Retired Persons’ David Certner told the AP.

Remember the goal of the republicans is to drastically cut disability payments to every one in two years.  I worked for forty five years to earn these payments now these jack lets want to take half of my payments.

[MooseMom]

Rerun, you can have your buddy Netanyahu.  You are welcome to keep paying for his defense and his military equipment.  You are welcome to all of your right wing candidates who want to keep you in a constant state of fear and terror, who want you to keep paying for more weapons and more military advisors so that more and more money goes to all of those who have their fingers in the pie that is the vast military industrial complex. 

And you bet, I'd much rather be friends with Cuba so that our markets can open to them and so that their people can have some decent standard of living.  The more open that society is, the more exposed their people are to the outside world, the less relevant the Castro brothers will become.  I don't wish to condemn those people to a continued life of backwardness.  And we should not be held hostage by the feelings of a small group of ageing people in Little Havana.  We have to move on and not make decisions based in a past that most young people today have no real reason to remember.

And yes, I want to see Iran's nuclear program contained as much as possible.  Again, Netanyahu is fearmongering when his country would be the greatest beneficiary to a declawed Iran.  The deal may not work, but you have to remember that the American people democratically elected Barack Obama by a wide margin because he promised to talk to our foes so that we could live in a slightly less dangerous world.

And Noahvale, San Francisco decided to declare itself a "Sanctuary City", and they are going to continue to be so even after the murder of Kate Steinie.  If that girl had been Hispanic or African American, you wouldn't even know her name.  So sure, the media can ask Hillary or Bernie any question they like about San Francisco, but I don't think that city is going to be swayed.

I want to hear more about how Mike Huckabee is trying to redefine marriage by saying that it should be about raising children and that now it seems that people are being too selfish by marrying for reasons of merely love and sentimentality.  Do you think the media will ask the other GOP candidates whether or not THEY believe that love of a spouse is a valid reason to get married?

Trump has the ego the size of a small planet.  He cannot wait to strut his stuff in a debate.  He doesn't want to be president.  He wants attention, and he will say absolutely anything to get it.  And no, GOP candidates have NOT distanced themselves from his comments on immigration.  They've only commented on the "tone" of his words.  I will say that Jeb Bush HAS distanced himself....after two weeks of mulling it over.  And Trump is right back on his case.  So Trump is going to force those candidates into some very uncomfortable situations, and I just cannot WAIT to see how they respond.

As for Israel and war crimes, Noahvale, here's an assessment of the UN's report on the subject from the Foreign Policy Journal, hardly a left wing rag.  Enjoy.

http://www.foreignpolicyjournal.com/2015/07/06/un-report-on-war-crimes-during-israels-51-day-assault-on-gaza/

Oh, and the US was the only country to veto this report.  We've let ourselves become puppets of this man.  Oh, but he's a "great American", so I guess that's OK.

But my question still stands as it was not merely rhetorical.  Who do you all think Netanyahu would like to see as the GOP nominee?

[Hootie]

Can we just vote no on all the candidates? None them appear to my liking...especially Ms. Hillary...

[PrimeTimer]

Liz Warren should definitely not be considered. Here's why: she is connected to the largest US Marxist organization, "Democratic Socialists of America". She has taught at a "national teach-in" alongside Frances Fox Piven, the honorary chair of Democratic Socialists of America and of the famous Cloward-Pivens Socialist Manifesto. No wonder Communist Party USA likes her. 

[Rerun]

If that girl in San Francisco would have been black there would be continuous riots and burning still going on in most every black city in America.  And they would have blamed the police for not doing their jobs.

The President is all worried about global warming and is talking to Iran about nuclear advancement.  We will not have to worry about a slow global warming death, it will be quick and to the point!  But if you listen to the astrologists and their theory on comets coming to blast us or the BIG ONE on the west coast which will push the west coast into the ocean.   Who are the fear mongers?  Hmmmm?

I think medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security should be looked at!  There is a lot of fraud in the disability arena.  Dialysis being paid for should be looked at.  The last EOB I got was for the month of May for $74,000.  The Democrats would probably want medicare to raise their limits because poor DaVita is struggling to make ends meet.  boo hoo hoo

I think this country is too far in debt to be saved.  I listen to Greece's problems and ours are way worse.  But we just keep putting our heads in the sand. 

All the Gays hold signs that say "LOVE WINS" and they are the same people who cheer on Abortions.  We kill thousands of babies every single day in this country but "Love Wins".  Really? 

Sex is a covenant under marriage between a man and a woman.... period.  So sex any other way is wrong whether people believe it or not.  So, getting married after the fact gay or not .... you have missed the boat on being moral.  Bill Cosby is immoral, and I believed him. But, there ya go I should have known!

I don't think a bakery who has Morals and values should have to make any nasty cake or a gay marriage cake when there are TONS of bakeries who will.  I don't think a Jewish bakery should have to make a cake with a swastika on it either.  Or a Vegan bakery should have to make a cake with a moose on it!    If I were asked to make a cake that I was opposed to, I'd be sorry for the person who ate it.  It would probably taste like pickle juice.  Would I get fined for making a bad tasting cake?  I hope they ask the GOP candidates this.

[MooseMom]

Since this discussion is supposed to be about the 2016 candidates, let's try to focus on them.

I do not intend to vote for any GOP candidate, but I will listen to reason.  So here's the challenge...

Instead of telling us that such and such a candidate is "smart" or "cute" or "tells it like it is", tell us one policy move/change that each candidate proposes.

Donald Trump talks a lot about immigration.  What does he propose doing about the millions of illegals here already, and how will he carry out his proposals?

Marco Rubio talks a lot about Cuba and how he vehemently disagrees with the new US relations with that country.  Does he propose to roll back the advances that have been made thus far?   If so, how will he do that?

Ted Cruz has made no secret of his hatred of the ACA.  Now that it is the law of the land, what does he propose doing to revoke it, and with what will he replace it?

Rand Paul talks a lot about how he is against intervening in the Middle East and getting into yet another war in that part of the world.  What does he propose that the US should do in this regard?  The American people do not want to be drawn into yet another blurry conflict, so how will he convince the party's hawks that we should withdraw the little support that we've already given?

Rick Perry is from a state that has built its fortune on oil.  The state has already forbidden any town or area in Texas that does not want fracking to be able to legally block that method of oil production.  With the price of oil in freefall, what will he do to protect Texas, and thus America, from the economic impact of that? 

Jeb Bush looks to be, at least on the surface, a reasonable man.  What will be the pillars of his foreign policy?

Carly Fiorina has been the head of an international corporation.  I'm sure she realizes that it's the big medical providers who are the big fraudsters of Medicare (like DaVita).  Will she go after her fellow corporatists and make sure they no longer can steal taxpayer's money and condemn dialysis patients from sub-optimal treatment so that they can preserve their bottom line?

All of these candidates are being pulled to the right by their base.  How will they respond to the rising popularity and power of leftist parties in Europe?

Ok, so, here I've asked specific questions about specific candidates.  I do not vote for candidates based upon their demeanor or whether or not I'd feel comfortable drinking a beer with them.  I want to know what they will do, what they have to offer us, if elected.  I will not be drawn into discussions about President Obama and what a disaster he has been and how much this secret Muslim despises you and me merely because we are Americans because we all know how much he hates the USA and is intent upon destroying the Constitution and this awful thing and that dreadful thing and blah blah blah.  He is not the one up for election, so let's try to keep discussion where it is supposed to be, which is on the candidates (especially on those in the GOP since there are so many).

(Rerun, your comparison of the US and Greece is way off base.  The US economy is strong because it avoided austerity as a measure to tackle debt, thus enabling business to grow.  Greece does not produce anything and has a history of weak government.  They never belonged in the Eurozone in the first place, but they cooked their books so that it would appear that they'd qualify.)

[PaulBC]

I'm not sure I want to know where everyone stands on politics, since this can get in the way of treating each other like humans. I will resist the urge to argue, but I have nothing to hide either.

Disclosure: I am a lifelong Democrat. At the age of 7, I was passing out McGovern campaign material in my neighborhood. I was thrilled (at age 9) when Nixon resigned. I have never been a big fan of Reagan, and have been disappointed and confused by the way his image was so skillfully rehabilitated since leaving office as a not very popular president with Iran Contra dogging him. Every year, I think I get a little less liberal, but the "center" moves so far right every year it is hard to keep up.

So with that, I'll give you my unbiased view. Hillary Clinton is the most likely Democratic candidate and I'd proudly vote for her. The idea that she is hiding her last name is nonsense. I have no idea why anyone would hide their association with the last genuine US economic boom in which real wages and wealth rose across the board. One of my minor regrets in life is accepting a fairly well-paying postdoc in Switzerland in 1996 instead of coming directly to the Bay Area and raking in serious money during the Clinton Boom. I can understand if the kids don't know about the Clinton Boom, but around here the age is pretty high, so maybe memories are shorter than I think.

I personally like Biden, but I think his day is long past. I appreciate him as VP and I always enjoy his speeches. He's one of the last old school liberals out there. I'm a liberal too. I am not ashamed of the term. I am not "progressive" especially. I think that FDR had a good understanding of how the public and private sectors could be mutually beneficial. Eisenhower understood this too, though he was Republican. In fact, it wasn't until Reagan that the GOP started to resemble "smash the state" anarchists--a position that is hypocritical since they obviously seek power in the government that they pretend to view as an antagonist. ("Don't rely on the government to help you. It is too busy helping me line my pockets.")

Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren... probably not gonna happen, but I hope their ideas can influence the debate.

Jeb Bush.  True, he does not hide his last name, John-Ellis-Bush Bush must simply revel in it to refer to it twice like that. Honestly, I don't see how he could be worse than Dubya, and he is about the only serious looking candidate the GOP has offered so far. I think that when the dust clears, the GOP winds up with the most electable candidate (e.g. McCain, Romney), so I would not be surprised to see him nominated (in fact I am not sure who else there is).

The list is way too long to say much. I have a few random thoughts, but I won't be voting for any of them.

Ben Carson is a brilliant neurosurgeon, but suffice it to say neurosurgery is a specialty and does not imply expertise in much else.

Chris Christie must simply have an enormous ego if he thinks he has a shot. His image is tarnished, and he is disliked from both sides of the political spectrum for different reasons.

Trump is not a serious candidate. He's a publicity hound, and not even all that special as billionaires go. Why do people bother writing about him at all?

Where do I stop? Carly Fiorina. Including her for no reason except that I always get a good laugh out of it. Her chief claim to fame is destroying Silicon Valley's most venerated corporation, Hewlett Packard. And she has tried to make a go of it in politics since then without any success.

Rick Perry. I remember taking him seriously in 2011 ("He's like Bush, only dumber. Our side doesn't have a chance.") I wouldn't vote for him as dogcatcher, but the funny thing is I actually agree with things he says sometimes. Like "git America workin agin". Yes! That is an excellent idea. Not just get Americans working at jobs, but getting the whole thing working, because it is kinda broken. Sadly, I don't think Perry has the faintest idea what doing this would entail. Perry also said that the GOP should reach out to black voters, and that is also a good idea, but probably not gonna happen either.