But does it though - does it boost their voting base?

The Republican/Trump base is just that, a core base percentage of the electorate made up of people who are racists, bigots, far right extremists, Qnuts and other assorted deplorables. They are either too stupid to see through Trump, or are smart enough to see through as well as to regard him as a useful idiot, or who are people with the "I'd rather be a Russian than a Democrat" mentality - unshakeable R voters who vote R no matter who is on the ticket, be it anyone from Bozo the Clown to Attila the Hun.

Is there really a significant number of undecided, independent voters out there to add to the base in order to boost its numbers? Are there any at all?

I suspect it boosts their base more than droning on about flat tax, deregulation, trickle down economics, and all the other boring crap that the Republican party used to believe in.

Trump's popularity among the conservatives has shown that attitude is much more important than substance. Trump doesn't really seem to believe in anything at all beyond triggering the libs, and that's all that really matters anymore for these freaks.

All true, but it doesn't answer my question.

In order to grow a political base you either have to convince undecided people to join it, or you have to convince others to switch allegiances or you have to push moderates to become racists and bigots. These all require those people to undergo a sudden and dramatic shift of philosophy and worldview.

Is there really a big pool of people out there who are ripe to be convinced to become deplorables?

I think the importance of undecided voters is vastly overstated. It's about turnout as much as anything, and getting the rubes all frothed up with trans panic or whatever is as good as a motivator to vote as any.

There are plenty of CHUDs out there that are pure pieces of ****, through and through, that were too lazy to go vote. It's about overcoming that instinct of laziness, not changing minds.

I think it's... both sorta.

Yes there are a lot of "undecided" voters out there who are not totally happy with the Democrat or Republican Parties (and this includes the Progressives, Tea Partiers, and all the other various subgroups within those parties.)

But we have a winner take all, first past the post voting systems (nearly) universally so without a small number of "issues" that inform these voters what's the point?

Now obviously I can't cite exact numbers but surely there... *pulls combination out of thin air* people who a very pro-abortion but also very pro-gun ownership let's say. (And to be clear as using that as two random examples, they are hypothetical and the discussion is NOT ABOUT THOSE TWO TOPICS or anyone's ever so strong opinions about them)

You're a mainstream (or even extremist) Republican or Democrat politician. How do you reach out to that person? Gun control vs gun rights and abortion rights vs abortion restrictions are pillars of both parties. Reach out to this voter and you're cutting your own throat with a very, very many other voters.

That's the problem. The idea that everyone who is pro or anti this or that is also by default pro this or that other things. So basically only a relatively small number of people who all agree but most things form the solid core of the parties and that leaves a lot of people out.

And it leaves the only forces IN the parties with no real disagreement, so all the internal debate boils down to "Be more extreme about the stuff we already agree on" versus "No let's get more extreme about the stuff we already agree on."

Truss the sience. Okay?

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******* hilarious.

How I wish we got SNL here!

I watch it on Youtube. Maybe it won't be blocked for you. For whatever reason there weren't any new episodes this Sat or last but usually around the time it normally airs I can find clips one at a time. Or I just wait until Sunday. Watching it one clip at a time the whole show is available.

Like this from 2 weeks ago:

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Time to get a VPN methinks!!

Here's the thing--you don't have to get undecided to vote for you, you just have to make lots of them so cynical they stay home, so that the base you're riling up is a greater portion of the votes. This can be done by the same behavior that galvanizes the core voters, especially since you can often count on your opponents to help you make the undecideds disgusted with everyone.

More sience from Marj. :rolleyes:

Here was a good comeback posted to Marj's account.

That is a good thing considering how close their island is to a tipping point.

Whataboutism. Fail.

I think that was a reference, and thus a joke, over the comment of Guam tipping over into the ocean.

Indeed it was. A metaphor being used as a literal. But because it was a Democrat involved, our B-friend was making it a whataboutism.

Reference to Hank Johnson (D-Ga) citing ecological concerns from an EPA report in a slightly awkward manner. "Tipping point" of course is a widely used ecological concept.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41559-019-0797-2

https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/fu...-102511-084654

https://harvardforest.fas.harvard.ed...-warning-signs

But the conservative echo chamber in its infinite wisdom decided that Johnson must have been speaking about the island of Guam literally tipping over. Not exactly a brilliant ploy - trying to distract from Greene's idiocy with general conservative idiocy instead.

You misspelled "collective stupidity"

There's probably something else at work here too -- this comment was made ten years ago -- and that 'something else' is, Mr. Johnson is, y'know. ;)

A moron who thinks islands tip over?

Fact check: True.

The psycho-partisans of the right cling to any such comment like Gollum and the One Ring. Their idols can make openly cruel statements or completely wrong claims (how many authoritarian righties have claimed that a woman's reproductive system shuts down when being raped?) at a constant flow and its all resolved in their liquified brainpans 'cause "Obummer sed der was 57 states one time, over twelve years ago. hurr, hurr hurr,".

You're not even clever.

.. or that homosexuality is a disease that can be cured with therapy.

The stupid is strong on the right of the political spectrum, and the righter, the stupider - dumb breeze-blocks abound.

He's playing to an audience of one.

You're not wrong there. I used to be castigated for saying that. Take a look at this reporter interviewing Boise, OK residents who refuse to get Covid 19 vaccinations. Among them, one says he gets the flu when he gets a flu shot (which is impossible); when the reporter asks him if he think he'll get the coronavirus if he get the vaccine, he says, "probably". The others say they "don't trust the government" or "Biden" or even that "liberal New Yorker Trump". You can't fix stupid and, man, are they stupid.

https://madison.com/video/cnn/health...a864223df.html

While I'm amused by Little Miss Trumptrash's assertion she was ambushed (having served in both Iraq and Afghanistan I do know a bit about ambushes and my impression is that they don't involve cookies) I'm uncomfortable by the use of the Guard troops in a political stunt. Politics and our military should never mix in such an obviously partisan way.

Agreed. Our military should never be used like that. I saw the Guam rep's sad attempt to justify it today on CNN and it just didn't wash.

I found a tweet by Marj which I am inserting below. Next to it is a response.

To make sense of this, I read an analysis not specific to Marjorie Taylor Greene, but to the crop of incoming Republican legislators. That some are trying to use media -- especially social media -- to build their 'brand.' They hope to be successful the way trump was, though most don't expect to achieve the same level of notoriety as trump. Most will settle for being well-known in their local area or region. Some of the incoming Republicans have frankly admitted, they have little interest in lawmaking or government service. One new congressman revealed, instead of legislative aides, he's hired communication specialists.

Viewed in this sense, what Greene is doing has a certain twisted logic. It's not about serving her district and their needs in Congress. It's about creating a brand for herself that she will be able to cash in on for a long time.

I think the response got it about right.

I notice that, apart from stupid stunts like this, MTG has just about disappeared from the news radar now. Her career so far has been meteoric - downwards.

I'm looking forward to her final face plant when it happens. Some people should not be in government.

Some should be in a government facility. Not the legislative building but a jail.

I suspect many are actually unwell so should be in an institute that can try and help them.

Nice padded rooms, tall fences around the perimeter, no visitors, no remote for the TV.

Just killfile him and leave him to stew in his own idiotic rhetoric.

I'm impressed that they got the real Marjorie Taylor Greene to appear on the show.

Marge is going to keep on doing more and more outrageous stuff tp keep the spotlight on her until all her donors are going to abandon her.
She should enjoy her seat while she has it.

For the moment, yes, Most people get tired of the same circus act repeated again and again.

You are, unfortunately, probably incorrect. She's the most prominent politician presenting garishly as a Trumper and Qnut. She will easily be able to fund at least her next couple campaigns by courting nutbars nationally.

Trump set the entertainment attention bar rather high, fast and furious for his base nut jobs. It's like a drug: they've become used to it and it's going to take more and more to keep them satisfied. I'm not sure amateurs like MTG are up to it. She going to burn out.

I think the Trump/MTG/etc. Donor crowd is limited to the MyPillow/Mercer type: too rich and with ambitions to world domination.

The backbone GOP donors are quite scared about being boycotted.