Babylon Bee Classic

[PrestonyteParrot]

"Satire Alert"

Millions Of Texans Seen Crossing Rio Grande Into Mexico

EL PASO, TX — After the political winds ushered in sweeping changes to the Lone Star State last night, with radical Democrats taking power in what had been a staunchly conservative stronghold, millions of Texans were seen crossing the Rio Grande into Mexico.

babylonbee.com

 

[18IsTheMan]

Ha!

Yeah, that is satire, but there is a lot of hyperbole about the outcome of the midterms.

Just in my voting lifetime, both parties have been declared dead with no viable path forward multiple times each. The democrat party was run into the dirt in 2024. Total chaos. No leader. No discernible path forward. Bad messaging. Now they win the midterms and all is hunky dory and it's the republicans who are in total chaos. No leader. No discernible path forward. Bad messaging.

I don't know how much stock to put into any of this stuff. Both parties simply run to get elected. Once in power, they do little to nothing to advance the causes that got them elected. Most often, the party in party overplays their hand and voters retaliate by swinging the pendulum the other direction. Every win is called a mandate.

The biggest problem with elections in America is that voters are idiots. They just swing the pendulum back and forth every 2-4 years if they don't get exactly what they want from a particular party. Voters are weird. If they are unhappy about the price of potato chips, they'll vote for a candidate who ideologically opposed to everything they believe in just because that candidate is from the other party not currently in power.

 

[PrestonyteParrot]

Agree, and history will repeat if nothing changes. The Republican Party is currently nothing more than Democrat Lite at the power level. The Bush Kabal is obviously still a factor in Texas.
Hearing that John Warren and some of the Freedom Caucus are forming a movement for changes to the Republican Party in SC. Hopefully that will become a nationwide movement.

 

[The Reel Ess]

Ha!

Yeah, that is satire, but there is a lot of hyperbole about the outcome of the midterms.

Just in my voting lifetime, both parties have been declared dead with no viable path forward multiple times each. The democrat party was run into the dirt in 2024. Total chaos. No leader. No discernible path forward. Bad messaging. Now they win the midterms and all is hunky dory and it's the republicans who are in total chaos. No leader. No discernible path forward. Bad messaging.

I don't know how much stock to put into any of this stuff. Both parties simply run to get elected. Once in power, they do little to nothing to advance the causes that got them elected. Most often, the party in party overplays their hand and voters retaliate by swinging the pendulum the other direction. Every win is called a mandate.

The biggest problem with elections in America is that voters are idiots. They just swing the pendulum back and forth every 2-4 years if they don't get exactly what they want from a particular party. Voters are weird. If they are unhappy about the price of potato chips, they'll vote for a candidate who ideologically opposed to everything they believe in just because that candidate is from the other party not currently in power.

My cousin texted me to gloat a little. He asked what I thought of the blue "title" wave. I reminded him that while Biden was pres, he said the Republican pres candidate would never win another majority. I'm 56 and this is what I've seen: We get a wave of one party as a reaction to a president. We get hearings and investigations. We get the other party president and their agenda goes far from center. We get a midterm reaction, complete with hearings and investigations. We get the other president. Rinse, repeat.

 

[18IsTheMan]

My cousin texted me to gloat a little. He asked what I thought of the blue "title" wave. I reminded him that while Obama was pres, he said the Republican pres candidate would never win another majority. I'm 56 and this is what I've seen: We get a wave of one party as a reaction to a president. We get hearings and investigations. We get the other party president and their agenda goes far from center. We get a midterm reaction, complete with hearings and investigations. We get the other president. Rinse, repeat.

Saw a funny X post someone said "I can't believe the most important of my lifetime is about to end just in time for the next most important election of my lifetime to begin."

Both sides play up every election now as the most important one in the history of our nation. Was I disappointed in the results? Yeah, I guess. I want my team to win. There's a saying "everyone gets their turn in the barrel". Two years ago, it was the dems. Now it's the GOP. This is just how it goes. Obama lost a staggering 63 house seats in his 2nd midterm.

Voters are fickle and reactionary, not ideological.

 

[SouthernBelly]

Ha!

Yeah, that is satire, but there is a lot of hyperbole about the outcome of the midterms.

Just in my voting lifetime, both parties have been declared dead with no viable path forward multiple times each. The democrat party was run into the dirt in 2024. Total chaos. No leader. No discernible path forward. Bad messaging. Now they win the midterms and all is hunky dory and it's the republicans who are in total chaos. No leader. No discernible path forward. Bad messaging.

I don't know how much stock to put into any of this stuff. Both parties simply run to get elected. Once in power, they do little to nothing to advance the causes that got them elected. Most often, the party in party overplays their hand and voters retaliate by swinging the pendulum the other direction. Every win is called a mandate.

The biggest problem with elections in America is that voters are idiots. They just swing the pendulum back and forth every 2-4 years if they don't get exactly what they want from a particular party. Voters are weird. If they are unhappy about the price of potato chips, they'll vote for a candidate who ideologically opposed to everything they believe in just because that candidate is from the other party not currently in power.

It’s because it’s one party presented as two.

 

[atl-cock]

Ha!

Yeah, that is satire, but there is a lot of hyperbole about the outcome of the midterms.

Just in my voting lifetime, both parties have been declared dead with no viable path forward multiple times each. The democrat party was run into the dirt in 2024. Total chaos. No leader. No discernible path forward. Bad messaging. Now they win the midterms and all is hunky dory and it's the republicans who are in total chaos. No leader. No discernible path forward. Bad messaging.

I don't know how much stock to put into any of this stuff. Both parties simply run to get elected. Once in power, they do little to nothing to advance the causes that got them elected. Most often, the party in party overplays their hand and voters retaliate by swinging the pendulum the other direction. Every win is called a mandate.

The biggest problem with elections in America is that voters are idiots. They just swing the pendulum back and forth every 2-4 years if they don't get exactly what they want from a particular party. Voters are weird. If they are unhappy about the price of potato chips, they'll vote for a candidate who ideologically opposed to everything they believe in just because that candidate is from the other party not currently in power.

A very astute observation. Thanks for posting.

 

[18IsTheMan]

A GOP candidate can win a senate seat in the midterms. Then, in the next presidential election a democrat president might win that senator's district. Now, all-of-a-sudden, that senator has to think about his own re-election. If a democrat president just won his district, he has to pivot how he legislates because he wants the votes of those voters who voted for the democrat president. This is how it is for both parties all the time. They aren't legislating ideologically. The legislate to keep their job.

 

[Dabo's Weenie]

It’s because it’s one party presented as two.

Or, as I say, "two sides of the same coin".

It's pro rasslin' without the tights.

 

[Deathstar]

All of those people who fled California because of the politicians they voted for are now in TX voting for the same kind of scum. Not very smart people, where will they run to next when Texas crumbles in a few years?

 

[Piscis]

All of those people who fled California because of the politicians they voted for are now in TX voting for the same kind of scum. Not very smart people, where will they run to next when Texas crumbles in a few years?

The cancer of Atlanta has metastasized to the point that it has destroyed Georgia. Every statewide race went to a Democrat. The decline has begun, the only question is, how long before the state crashes?

 

[Deathstar]

The cancer of Atlanta has metastasized to the point that it has destroyed Georgia. Every statewide race went to a Democrat. The decline has begun, the only question is, how long before the state crashes?

Yes, every major state office in Georgia is now going to be held by a liberal black woman from Atlanta. I told my wife yesterday that we seriously need to move to FL. I see all of the following happening; a mass release of dangerous criminals from jail, increased taxes (sales, property and income tax), the trans agenda will be back in our schools and they will be coming for our guns again. Business will be leaving the state as fast as they can.

All of the rural people who sat out this election will be paying for it for the next 4 years.

 

[18IsTheMan]

All of those people who fled California because of the politicians they voted for are now in TX voting for the same kind of scum. Not very smart people, where will they run to next when Texas crumbles in a few years?

Was talking to someone last night who said their parents were moving from Michigan to SC. I asked where and they said Charleston. I told them "Ugh, don't bother. Charleston has been taken over by Yankees."

 

[Piscis]

Yes, every major state office in Georgia is now going to be held by a liberal black woman from Atlanta. I told my wife yesterday that we seriously need to move to FL. I see all of the following happening; a mass release of dangerous criminals from jail, increased taxes (sales, property and income tax), the trans agenda will be back in our schools and they will be coming for our guns again. Business will be leaving the state as fast as they can.

All of the rural people who sat out this election will be paying for it for the next 4 years.

I'm not sure the rural people sat out. The Atlanta metro area is now well over half of the state population. Georgia has become like NY state, where one metro area dictates politics to the whole state.

Luckily, the Georgia legislature is structured to give a lot of power to the counties and rural areas.

 

[Lurker123]

I'm not sure the rural people sat out. The Atlanta metro area is now well over half of the state population. Georgia has become like NY state, where one metro area dictates politics to the whole state.

Luckily, the Georgia legislature is structured to give a lot of power to the counties and rural areas.

No link, but saw an analysis that was arguing that this election was heavily "sat out" across the board by one party.

 

[Deathstar]

I think it says everything when your party sweeps into power and it wipes out the stock market. The worst losses in stock market history. Worse than the Covid 19 crash. I wonder if all of the fools who voted for these commies or just did not vote are happy with their 401K this afternoon.
Probably quite a few are parasites who have no savings…

 

[usc_nc]

Yes, every major state office in Georgia is now going to be held by a liberal black woman from Atlanta. I told my wife yesterday that we seriously need to move to FL. I see all of the following happening; a mass release of dangerous criminals from jail, increased taxes (sales, property and income tax), the trans agenda will be back in our schools and they will be coming for our guns again. Business will be leaving the state as fast as they can.

All of the rural people who sat out this election will be paying for it for the next 4 years.

It will a lot more than 4 years

 

[Dabo's Weenie]

I think it says everything when your party sweeps into power and it wipes out the stock market. The worst losses in stock market history. Worse than the Covid 19 crash. I wonder if all of the fools who voted for these commies or just did not vote are happy with their 401K this afternoon.
Probably quite a few are parasites who have no savings…

Relax.

The people they voted for are just going to confiscate yours and give it to them... in the name of "fairness".

Problem solved.

 

[USCEE82]

The Atlanta metro area is now well over half of the state population. Georgia has become like NY state, where one metro area dictates politics to the whole state.

^^^^^^This^^^^^^

 

[USCEE82]

Yes, every major state office in Georgia is now going to be held by a liberal black woman from Atlanta. I told my wife yesterday that we seriously need to move to FL. I see all of the following happening; a mass release of dangerous criminals from jail, increased taxes (sales, property and income tax), the trans agenda will be back in our schools and they will be coming for our guns again. Business will be leaving the state as fast as they can.

All of the rural people who sat out this election will be paying for it for the next 4 years.

My wife and I are having the same discussion.

 

[PrestonyteParrot]

Was talking to someone last night who said their parents were moving from Michigan to SC. I asked where and they said Charleston. I told them "Ugh, don't bother. Charleston has been taken over by Yankees."

Just don't send them to Greenville. Believe it or not, Andrews took Greenville county with 51% of the vote.
Not sure if that was the result of angry Republican voters or new demographics with the influx of non-southerners.

 

[Sweetwatergolf]

Just don't send them to Greenville. Believe it or not, Andrews took Greenville county with 51% of the vote.
Not sure if that was the result of angry Republican voters or new demographics with the influx of non-southerners.

The nominee/appointee to run against her was not the best choice. That was the problem.

 

[Skuddy]

I think it says everything when your party sweeps into power and it wipes out the stock market. The worst losses in stock market history. Worse than the Covid 19 crash. I wonder if all of the fools who voted for these commies or just did not vote are happy with their 401K this afternoon.
Probably quite a few are parasites who have no savings…

I was thinking about dumping some yesterday and should have. I knew this was coming but it will inevitably recover and go back up like it always does. I suspect data centers and AI will be regulated and taxed to the hilt and subsequently leave like our manufacturing did. Maybe it's time to start taking some Mandarin classes.....

 

[PrestonyteParrot]

"Satire Alert"

Another one right on target

Russell Brand Convicted In UK Court On Charges Of Raping While Not Muslim

LONDON — Harsh justice looked set to be carried out soon, as actor-comedian-podcaster Russell Brand was found guilty in a UK court on charges of raping while not Muslim.

babylonbee.com

 

[Dabo's Weenie]

The nominee/appointee to run against her was not the best choice. That was the problem.

Neither of the major parties offered attractive candidates. Who likes choosing between two losers?

 

[I4CtheFuture]

I think it says everything when your party sweeps into power and it wipes out the stock market. The worst losses in stock market history. Worse than the Covid 19 crash. I wonder if all of the fools who voted for these commies or just did not vote are happy with their 401K this afternoon.
Probably quite a few are parasites who have no savings…

$2.3 Trillion in tech, wiped out in a single day. Historic loss.

Irony: They think Trump was bad for the economy. ~ You can't fix their level of retardation. You just can't. It's going to take a civil war to set these people straight.

 

[Psycock]

Idiots against things like data centers that are partly responsible for the economic boom in our country. They create so many jobs, can lower costs for people if they negotiate terms with the builders, etc. Some are giving local residents generous bonuses. Most now have recycling water. When Bernie Sanders, Warren, etc. oppose something you know you should support it. They used to shout similar hysteria about nuclear energy which is very clean. Would I want one next door to my house? Probably not. But instead of stopping progress and letting China win the AI race, just negotiate the terms when they are proposed for the good of all. We will go into a recession if they hurt the economy, which is actually booming overall. Fears are decimating the stock market with no end in sight. Socialism/communism on the horizon if enough of the radicals get elected. And congrats S.C. you now have a transplant Senator who is a Pediatrician yet thinks its ok to poison minors with puberty blockers. She shouldn`t even be allowed to have a medical license. They asked 1000 times what qualified Darline to be a Senator, yet I don`t remember anyone ever asking the same thing about "Dr." Andrews. I wonder how much she made off of the insurance companies who have been "ripping us off." No wonder she doesn`t "owe anybody anything."

 

[ThinnyJ]

Politics is certainly not the answer to our country's problems. There is judgement hanging over the United States...
Too young to die, but too wicked to live...

 

[gamecock stock]

Ha!

Yeah, that is satire, but there is a lot of hyperbole about the outcome of the midterms.

Just in my voting lifetime, both parties have been declared dead with no viable path forward multiple times each. The democrat party was run into the dirt in 2024. Total chaos. No leader. No discernible path forward. Bad messaging. Now they win the midterms and all is hunky dory and it's the republicans who are in total chaos. No leader. No discernible path forward. Bad messaging.

I don't know how much stock to put into any of this stuff. Both parties simply run to get elected. Once in power, they do little to nothing to advance the causes that got them elected. Most often, the party in party overplays their hand and voters retaliate by swinging the pendulum the other direction. Every win is called a mandate.

The biggest problem with elections in America is that voters are idiots. They just swing the pendulum back and forth every 2-4 years if they don't get exactly what they want from a particular party. Voters are weird. If they are unhappy about the price of potato chips, they'll vote for a candidate who ideologically opposed to everything they believe in just because that candidate is from the other party not currently in power.

There were, I think 13 options for GOP voters to choose from in 2023-24. Who did they choose? The guy who got fired by the people in 2020. So what happened? He has done way worse the 2nd time around than the first time, resulting in his party taking an epic beating, one for the ages, in the midterms. That guy has an average job approval rating of 38.3%. How bad is that? Consider that Herbert Hoover got 39.6% of the vote against FDR in 1932, in the midst of THE GREAT DEPRESSION. What were Republican voters thinking when they had alternatives like Chris Christie, Asa Hutchinson, Nikki Haley, all good former Governors in their states? I will never understand what Republican voters were thinking in 2023-24.

Does the above sound familiar to Gamecock football fans? After Steve Spurrier retired, Carolina hired a Head Football Coach who was FIRED in his previous Head Football Coach job, Will Muschamp. What happened after that? Muschamp gets fired by South Carolina within 5 years. What was Carolina thinking? Donald Trump is the "Will Muschamp" of Presidents, an unmitigated disaster for the country. This midterm reminds me of 1974.

I will say this; I never thought I'd live to see a Black elected Senator in Mississippi. I'm old enough to remember a former Mississippi Governor, Ross Barnett.

I will add that I believe Annie Andrews will do a great job as Senator.

 

[Lurker123]

What were Republican voters thinking when they had alternatives like Chris Christie, Asa Hutchinson, Nikki Haley, all good former Governors in their states? I will never understand what Republican voters were thinking in 2023-24.

To be fair, the GOP voters chose him, but then the nation did as well. He always has low approval numbers, 2024 maybe showed more about the other option.

2026? People didn't see their grocery bills come back down. Many people incorrectly thought slowing inflation meant the prices would come back down to "nornal", so they switched horses again because those handsome, dashing DSA candidates look cool and sound good and we might as well give them a try.

Throw in the unpopular war that should have ended months ago, and you get what we got.

 

[gamecock stock]

To be fair, the GOP voters chose him, but then the nation did as well. He always has low approval numbers, 2024 maybe showed more about the other option.

2026? People didn't see their grocery bills come back down. Many people incorrectly thought slowing inflation meant the prices would come back down to "nornal", so they switched horses again because those handsome, dashing DSA candidates look cool and sound good and we might as well give them a try.

Throw in the unpopular war that should have ended months ago, and you get what we got.

I do not blame voters for not choosing Harris. A lot of Democrats did not and do not like her. And even then, Trump got only 1 1/2% more popular votes. I was not referring to the general election in 2024. I was referring to the Republican presidential primaries in 2023-24. I will never understand Republican voters not going with one of the many other options in 23-24. His job approval rating in the 2018 midterm was 43.5%, around 5 points higher than it is today.

I'm sort of a student of economics. I said in the early 2020s that inflation goes in cycles and that we had begun an inflationary cycle. "Mrs Satterfield" made fun of me for saying that. But it's true. We are going to have elevated inflation for quite awhile. I don't see that changing. That said, Trump's tariffs and the Iran War have exacerbated inflation. Most of the Democrats who won were not DSA types. For example, Andrews comes from a Republican family, Roy Cooper, a former NC Governor, Sherrod Brown, former Ohio Senator, etc

Inflation, yes that hurt the GOP. But Trump is underwater on immigration by 11.1% and on crime by 7.3%. Obviously, we will never know but, I suspect if Republican voters had gone with one of the other options, I don't believe things would have been as bad for the GOP like it was this past Tuesday.

 

[Lurker123]

I do not blame voters for not choosing Harris. A lot of Democrats did not and do not like her. And even then, Trump got only 1 1/2% more popular votes. I was not referring to the general election in 2024. I was referring to the Republican presidential primaries in 2023-24. I will never understand Republican voters not going with one of the many other options in 23-24. His job approval rating in the 2018 midterm was 43.5%, around 5 points higher than it is today.

I'm sort of a student of economics. I said in the early 2020s that inflation goes in cycles and that we had begun an inflationary cycle. "Mrs Satterfield" made fun of me for saying that. But it's true. We are going to have elevated inflation for quite awhile. I don't see that changing. That said, Trump's tariffs and the Iran War have exacerbated inflation. Most of the Democrats who won were not DSA types. For example, Andrews comes from a Republican family, Roy Cooper, a former NC Governor, Sherrod Brown, former Ohio Senator, etc

Inflation, yes that hurt the GOP. But Trump is underwater on immigration by 11.1% and on crime by 7.3%. Obviously, we will never know but, I suspect if Republican voters had gone with one of the other options, I don't believe things would have been as bad for the GOP like it was this past Tuesday.

I think they might have been.

I still cant blame the republicans for choosing him when the nation turned around and chose him too.

I agree many of the democrats elected were not DSA types, but more DSA candidates got elected than previously. I seriously hope the Democrat party gets a handle on that portion of their party. In all seriosuness, I think they've opened a bag they cant now close.

 

[gamecock stock]

I think they might have been.

I still cant blame the republicans for choosing him when the nation turned around and chose him too.

I agree many of the democrats elected were not DSA types, but more DSA candidates got elected than previously. I seriously hope the Democrat party gets a handle on that portion of their party. In all seriosuness, I think they've opened a bag they cant now close.

MAGA is the right-wing equivalent of the DSA. I'm a free market capitalist . I cannot stand the DSAers. There are too many extremists in BOTH parties. Some of the MAGA-types, NOT ALL, but some of them would love to have fascism and, frankly, are racist. If, by chance the DSAers got control of the Democratic party and the extremists of the MAGA faction got control of the GOP, that would be awful. We would then badly need a VIABLE centrist 3rd party. But I'll give "credit" to both parties. I suspect they work together very well to make it nearly impossible for a VIABLE 3rd party to come into existence.

There are too many common sense people in both parties to let the extremists take over, in my view. Once Trump leaves the scene, I believe Trumpism will die. Even Trump says MAGA. will die once he steps off the stage. Vance, if he can shake off the stench of Trumpism could emerge. Rubio, DeSantis, Cruz, Huckabee Sanders, Haley, they all could emerge. I'm thinking that Vance is going to have a hard time separating his time with Trump. So one of the others will come out on top. If Vance comes out on top, you are handing the keys to the White House to the Democrats. On the Democratic side, it will not be a DSA-type., not if the Democrats want to win the White House. I see Beshear, Shapiro, Emanual, Ossoff, or Landreu emerging, all moderate left.

One of the things I forgot to mention that hurt the GOP in the midterms was Trump's grift (which may explain why the public polls has him underwater on crime) The Trump family is making Hunter Biden look like a pauper. One of the Trump children (I think it was Don Jr) reportedly said that they want to be the richest family in the world by the time Don Srs term ends. I'm sure that Putin is saying "hold my beer". The defense related contracts that both Don Jr and Eric's financial interests got is , well, very suspicious. Trump Sr. making $2.2 BILLION in his first year back, I don't think sits well with the public. One of my jobs in my career was regulating the selling of stocks, bonds, mutual funds, etc in the state. Trump's stock investing , to me, sure does smell like insider trading. Him wanting to charge $100,000 to give Wall Streeters inside peek into his Truth Social posts before the general public sees them, that would be jail time for anyone else. Stock trading by elected officials needs to be banned. BOTH parties are at fault (yes, I'm talking to you too Nancy). It's outrageous.

 

[TheRoo]

Republicans vs. Democrats matters -- but it is low level noise.

A higher order runs the world.

 

[Lurker123]

I agree that both parties have extremists, but i cant paint all of MAGA that way. I know we're told that repeatedly, but in my personal experience, trying to put america first is nothing like what the media tells us it is. Racism, fascism, etc may be symptoms of individuals in both systems, but i dont think MAGA openly promotes it.

Now the DSA? They dont even pretend to be rational. They flat out tell you what they want to do. Workers needing to control the means of production? Private property is racist?

But we're all told to not really believe it, thats just talk. I seriously wonder what the one side is evolving into. Maybe the rational D's reign them in. To me, it looks like the rational D's are playing with fire.


Honestly, I dont think you or I are going to be alive to see just how low we as a country sink because of it.

 

[kidrobinski]

Stock, I don’t think the public looks into it as deeply as you suggest. They were unhappy with food and gas costs (and not just food/gas; speaking of which, what is the incentive to bring prices back down if people are paying today’s prices), blamed it on the party in power, probably swayed by media ‘opinions’ (aka Trump hit pieces; you sound kind of like that yourself tbt), and here we are.

The Muslim effect and confluence; what is your opinion on that? You mentioned what you couldn’t believe regarding Trump; this is what is difficult for me to wrap my head around.

 

[Lurker123]

Stock, I don’t think the public looks into it as deeply as you suggest. They were unhappy with food costs (and not just food; speaking of which, what is the incentive to bring prices back down if people are paying today’s prices), blamed it on the party in power, probably swayed by media ‘opinions’ (aka Trump hit pieces; you sound kind of like that yourself tbt), and here we are.

The Muslim effect and confluence; what is your opinion on that? You mentioned what you couldn’t believe regarding Trump; this is what is difficult for me to wrap my head around.

I reqd a piece after Trump's election that predicted something like you said.

People freaked when the D's were in the white house and inflation went through the roof. A lot of voters jumped right. But the thought was that prices would come back down, NOT just inflation coming under control.

(For those that dont know, inflation is a measurement of the increase of price over a time, not a measurement of the price.)

So when the prices stay high, a lot of those same people jumped back to the left, based on affordability promises.

Imo, we have an issue though, where prices aren't coming back down. So where do we jump next? Probably something even more radical, just to try something different. And thats when big mistakes can be made.

 

[Uscg1984]

No link, but saw an analysis that was arguing that this election was heavily "sat out" across the board by one party.

It appears so. I took a look at the numbers in Greenville and Anderson counties, since I consider those my "home" counties when I lived in SC. In 2024, Trump won Greenville Co. 158,541 to 100,074. In 2026, Graham lost it 102,314 to 107,111. The 3rd party vote in Greenville went from about 1% to about 2.5%. I don't think the story in Greenville is that there has been a massive demographic change in 2 years (After all, Wilson won the county by about 9 points), but that a lot of voters from 2024 sat this one out or cast a protest vote about the Senate candidate. The voters opposing the president's party were much more motivated this time than the voters supporting it.

Anderson saw a similar drop in R numbers. In 2024, Trump won it 71,828 to 25,281. In 2026, Graham won it 44,590 to 27,303. Again, a moderate boost in the Dem vote vs a large drop off in Rep support. It looks like one side was a lot more motivated than the other.

 

[gamecock stock]

Stock, I don’t think the public looks into it as deeply as you suggest. They were unhappy with food and gas costs (and not just food/gas; speaking of which, what is the incentive to bring prices back down if people are paying today’s prices), blamed it on the party in power, probably swayed by media ‘opinions’ (aka Trump hit pieces; you sound kind of like that yourself tbt), and here we are.

The Muslim effect and confluence; what is your opinion on that? You mentioned what you couldn’t believe regarding Trump; this is what is difficult for me to wrap my head around.

kidroninski, I will admit, as Lurker knows, I was and am not a fan of Trump and did not vote for him. I kind of understand what the appeal of Trump was because, believe it or not, I was on the Trump train after he first announced in 2015. But, the more I heard him AND LOOKED INTO HIM, I got off that train. I try to look at these political things evenly. I voted for Reagan twice. I voted for Romney in 2012 (but not because I did not like the job Obama was doing. I just liked Romney much more). And, I think Lurker would back me up on this: I wrote on the old Scoop site, I supported Chris Chrsitie for the GOP nomination in 2023. If Asa Hutchinson had gotten the nomination, I would have voted for him. And I probably would have voted for Haley if I could get past the fact that she is a Clemson grad and big Clemson football fan. But it would have been petty to not vote for her for that reason. There are obviously a lot of Republicans who have now turned sour on Trump and voted for the Democratic candidates Tuesday. So, I feel vindicated on my assessment on Trump. Inflation, more than anything else gave Trump a 2nd shot at the presidency. Inflation certainly was one of the bigger issues this past Tuesday. What will bring inflation down? As always, the law of supply and demand.

I don't want to discriminate against Muslims. I don't know if you know this but, Dr Oz who works under RFK Jr and under Trump is a Muslim. That said, I had hoped that Mallary McMorrow would win the Dem nomination for Senate in Michigan. When she dropped out, I pulled for Stevens against El Sayed. When he won, I hoped he would win the Michigan race. Why? As you might imagine, I really felt that there needed to be a check and balance against Trump. With all the mid-year redistricting that the Republicans did, there was doubt in my mind that the Democrats could win the House. So, my feeling was that it was important that the Democrats win the Senate. A friend of mine was concerned about El Sayed. When I told him my rational for pulling for El Sayed, he agreed. Are all or most Muslims bad? I don't think so. I am of Greek ancestry. Are all Americans of Greek ancestry bad? I don't think so, though my wife might disagree .

I don't believe in open borders and was and am critical of Biden on that, My Dad was born in good old South Carolina, as I was, His parents had immigrated to South Carolina from Greece. I never met his parents. For some reason, his parents took him, his brothers and his sister back to live in Greece, My Dad ended up joining the Greek Army and fought against the Communists to keep them from taking over Greece in the late 1940s like they did Eastern Europe. He met my Mom there. He moved back to South Carolina and brought my Mom to South Carolina in 1950. So, I'm not against immigration, even of Muslims. But, I want people to knock on the door like my Mom did, for us to decide whether they can come in.

I have said this before here and I'll say it again: I'm Democratic-party leaning, having worked for 2 state-wide elected Democratic party Constitutional officers, when Democrats could still get elected state-wide in South Carolina (though I guess Andrews kind of punched a hole in the "South Carolina is a Republican state" theory ). I am not yet prepared to move away from that theory. We'll see..

On the DSA: they are made up of mostly crazy young people. When I was in college, I was way, way more liberal than I am today. I went door-to-door for George McGovern, for crying out loud.. My conservative father-in-law said I would change as I got older. He was right, as I am much more conservative than I was back then. His Republican daughter still married me and is still with me. I've drifted more to the right and she has drifted more to the left. 51 years and counting.

I probably did not answer your question about Muslims well. I don't want to discriminate against them. That said, I am big on law and order. If anyone, Muslim, Italian, Greek, Brit, etc does anything illegal, I want the law to hammer them. I reluctantly believe in the death penalty, which is not a liberal position, obviously.

 

[gamecock stock]

I agree that both parties have extremists, but i cant paint all of MAGA that way. I know we're told that repeatedly, but in my personal experience, trying to put america first is nothing like what the media tells us it is. Racism, fascism, etc may be symptoms of individuals in both systems, but i dont think MAGA openly promotes it.

Now the DSA? They dont even pretend to be rational. They flat out tell you what they want to do. Workers needing to control the means of production? Private property is racist?

But we're all told to not really believe it, thats just talk. I seriously wonder what the one side is evolving into. Maybe the rational D's reign them in. To me, it looks like the rational D's are playing with fire.


Honestly, I dont think you or I are going to be alive to see just how low we as a country sink because of it.

As I said, not all MAGA is that way but, there are a lot that are extremists. I would say about 20-30%. No I don't believe they would admit to being fascist and racist. I certainly would not if I was them. That would not be bright on their part. Actions speak louder than words.

I agree with what you say about the DSA. What is more dangerous: the enemy that reveals itself or the enemy that does not?

I don't worry about me because I know I won't be around much longer, which I'm fine with and have come to peace with. But, I do worry about my children and grandchildren and the world they will inherit.