S16.E27: John Kerry, Steve Ballmer, Richard Clarke, S.E. Cupp, and Mark Leibovich

[formerlyfreedom]

Quote

Former secretary of state John Kerry and former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer are the interview guests. The panelists are counterterrorism expert Richard Clarke, political commentator S.E. Cupp and journalist Mark Leibovich.

[GoldenGirl90]

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Edited September 15, 2018 by Alexis2291

[iMonrey]

John Kerry appears to have the same naiveté all the other Democrats have which is why they keep getting their asses handed to them. Bill asked point blank how they can ever win when they're the only ones playing by the rules. Kerry, Pelosi, every other establishment mouthpiece of that party keeps saying the same idiotic thing, like "we just have to believe in Democracy and believe that things will work out." Yeah. That's been working real well for you so far.

I did like the discussion about politics in sports because this taking the knee thing drives me crazy. Sports, religion and patriotism are all tied up in this weird, twisted way.

I like the slogan "we're not socialists, you're traitors."

SE Cupp was tolerable on the panel but on Overtime she said she still wouldn't vote for Hillary. Anyone who thinks things would be just as bad or worse if Hillary had won is delusional. 

Next week PJ O'Roarke. God help us.

[ottoDbusdriver]

Richard Clarke was really good, even dropping in some timely some F-bombs.

I'm pretty sure if we can tap whatever is powering Ballmer, we could close all the coal-fired power plants.
And I think Ballmer meant to say 'drives me bullshit crazy', but instead he said 'drives me bullshit' which just sounded weird.
 

14 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

SE Cupp was tolerable on the panel but on Overtime she said she still wouldn't vote for Hillary. Anyone who thinks things would be just as bad or worse if Hillary had won is delusional. 

SE Cupp was just ridiculous on Overtime about Hillary.  

 

[Milburn Stone]

34 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

John Kerry appears to have the same naiveté all the other Democrats have which is why they keep getting their asses handed to them.

This is true, but I've been surprised how well I've been able to tolerate him in his recent book-tour appearances (including this one). In his political career I've associated him with "insufferably earnest and boring," no matter that he was on the right side of most issues. Now he seems relaxed, capable of humor, and occasionally even interesting, which I never would have expected.

[ganesh]

Can all of us here get in a room put our heads together and agree that Sippy Cupp is useless, and I would go so far as to say, ignorant? Yes, actually, you are the problem. Being on tv so much with your cowardly write in vote, you perpetuated the canard that both sides are 'just as bad' causing 65 million people not to vote and just enough others to vote for the moron Jill Stein. So, yes, you are quite the problem and you need to go on a long relaxing vacation and be forgotten. 

1 hour ago, iMonrey said:

John Kerry appears to have the same naiveté all the other Democrats have which is why they keep getting their asses handed to them. Bill asked point blank how they can ever win when they're the only ones playing by the rules. Kerry, Pelosi, every other establishment mouthpiece of that party keeps saying the same idiotic thing, like "we just have to believe in Democracy and believe that things will work out." Yeah. That's been working real well for you so far.

I feel like this entire episode was written by this discussion group. Especially with Bill pointing out how the gop always controls the narrative. Though Bill's New Rules was a good punch back at that. I still say the best bet is 'vote blue and let the adults back in to clean up'. Rant on Cupp aside, she is correct in saying that Congress just doesn't pass laws but provides a check on the executive, and I would add, provide civilian oversight. And they aren't doing that. 

1 hour ago, iMonrey said:

SE Cupp was tolerable on the panel but on Overtime she said she still wouldn't vote for Hillary. Anyone who thinks things would be just as bad or worse if Hillary had won is delusional. 

I did like Bill finally losing it and pushing it to her. She looked more and more useless and cowardly to me. 

I found Ballmer to be incredibly naive. I think it is good that he's compiling facts, and maybe more politicians should use them, but 'just giving people the facts' overwhelmingly does not work, and any social scientist will tell you that. People don't want the facts; they want their facts. This is something we deal with all the time in my real life. Communicating challenging issues by showing the facts is basically guaranteed to fail. 

1 hour ago, iMonrey said:

I did like the discussion about politics in sports because this taking the knee thing drives me crazy. Sports, religion and patriotism are all tied up in this weird, twisted way.

I wish they talked about it more because the pervasive jingoism in sports is appalling, and this is where Cupp showed her total ignorance to me. Mark L was right - people don't want politics in sports unless it's their politics. And yes, Sippy, we should take a moment to be thankful for the service of our troops - on Memorial Day, Veterans Day, and even the 4th of July. We have parades and everything! Do we need to thank the troops during week 13 of the Colts versus Seahawks? Also, yeah, no one is forcing you to stand - you don't have to - but you'll be drummed right out of the league. 

Ballmer was being disingenuous as well - NBA players are required to stand for the anthem. I think it's in their CBA. 

[DXD526]

Kerry was basically doing stand-up there for a while! Loved his observations that "We have a president for whom the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, are three different things", and "He's that rare combination of the maturity of an 8 year-old boy with the insecurity of a teenage girl". You've been a great crowd! Don't forget to tip your waitress!

Cupp was incredibly irritating on Overtime, but she lost me during the regular show when she started talking about how much she loves W. And she decided to do a write-in vote for president as a protest and wrote in Paul Ryan? Good lord, that woman is a moron. 

[opus]

That Chris Farley description of Ballmer was spot on.

[ganesh]

Art of the Deal?! More like art of the squeal. 

[meowmommy]

I must have taken my stupid pills because I have questions, I have questions.  I agree with Richard Clarke that the Democrats had better not be complacent about winning in November, but I am wondering where he got his numbers.  He said 206 - 205 with 24 tossups, which is much, much tighter than any forecasts I've seen.  And who was that in the picture when Bill made the joke about podcasts?  

4 hours ago, ganesh said:

Art of the Deal?! More like art of the squeal. 

That's a joke that's been going around for a while now.  He needs some new material.

4 hours ago, opus said:

That Chris Farley description of Ballmer was spot on.

He needs to invest some of his $40B in a couple of Valium.  And he evaded the question of why he needs so damn much money.  I wasn't sure if Bill was asking him why he doesn't donate to campaigns or that he should go Mark Cuban and run himself.  I told you I have questions.  

5 hours ago, DXD526 said:

she lost me during the regular show when she started talking about how much she loves W.

I don't watch/read/whatever this woman, so what does she love about W?  The war?  The recession?  The curtailment of civil liberty?

[opus]

9 minutes ago, meowmommy said:

And who was that in the picture when Bill made the joke about podcasts?  

I just took it as "generic podcast guy". I could be wrong though.

[ganesh]

52 minutes ago, meowmommy said:

I don't watch/read/whatever this woman, so what does she love about W?

I don't know who actually whatevers this woman. 

[Gemma Violet]

9 hours ago, opus said:

That Chris Farley description of Ballmer was spot on.

I really enjoyed him and agreed with the two panel members who said he should be on every week.  I think Bill got a kick out of him, too.

[Victor the Crab]

"I want Democrats to attack this president more!" "I want Al Franken back in the Senate!" You know if Bill thinks Democrats need to toughen up and fight more, then he can always just, you know, run for office himself. Senator, congressman, whatever. Then he can show them and us how it's supposed to be done. Of course, that means taking a huge pay cut and doing some hard work, instead of just telling jokes on television and then getting stoned out of his ass on his couch in his Hollywood home. But hey, all for the good of the country he professes to love.

But then, that might not be a good idea. Bill's always telling the left that "When they go low, we go LOWER!" Yet, on Friday's show, he complained when liberals released a letter that stated Brett Kavanaugh sexually assaulted a female while in high school. Make up your mind Bill, do you want the left to take the high road or the low road? You're not very good at backing up your beliefs, now are you?

21 hours ago, iMonrey said:

Next week PJ O'Roarke. God help us.

And Michael Moore. God help us, squared.

[sistermagpie]

1 hour ago, Victor the Crab said:

But then, that might not be a good idea. Bill's always telling the left that "When they go low, we go LOWER!" Yet, on Friday's show, he complained when liberals released a letter that stated Brett Kavanaugh sexually assaulted a female while in high school. Make up your mind Bill, do you want the left to take the high road or the low road? You're not very good at backing up your beliefs, now are you?

I thought that too. Basically he wants the Democrats to fight dirty but he also wants them to have his perspective on things, which means that they have far more respect for far-right crackpots than people who are against sexual assault or too supportive of civil rights.

[iMonrey]

Quote

I wish they talked about it more because the pervasive jingoism in sports is appalling

I have a simple solution to this whole knee-taking controversy. Simply stop playing the national anthem at sporting events. Problem solved!

Quote

But then, that might not be a good idea. Bill's always telling the left that "When they go low, we go LOWER!" Yet, on Friday's show, he complained when liberals released a letter that stated Brett Kavanaugh sexually assaulted a female while in high school.

I see his point about that. It's anonymous, it's unsubstantiated, and it happened with the guy was in high school. It looks pretty desperate.

[Victor the Crab]

18 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

I see his point about that. It's anonymous, it's unsubstantiated, and it happened with the guy was in high school. It looks pretty desperate.

But that's the kind of stuff Republicans pull and get away with. And Bill wants Democrats and the left to get down to that level. So either he accepts this as part of the strategy to attack the right, or admit he was wrong about going lower to beat them. Bill comes off as a hypocrite here, which is not the first time for him.

[meowmommy]

On 9/15/2018 at 10:45 AM, DXD526 said:

Kerry was basically doing stand-up there for a while! Loved his observations that "We have a president for whom the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, are three different things", and "He's that rare combination of the maturity of an 8 year-old boy with the insecurity of a teenage girl". You've been a great crowd! Don't forget to tip your waitress!

Apparently the interwebs are having a hissy fit over the joke.

Quote

Kerry shrugged. Maher laughed. The audience applauded. The two men moved on to discuss a variety of other subjects covered in the forthcoming memoir, including Kerry’s work as secretary of state and his friendship with the late senator John McCain.

Online, though, Kerry’s comments were not as well received. Though some lauded the comparison as “absolutely priceless” and a “mic drop” moment, many expressed disappointment in Kerry, even if they agreed with his assessment of Trump.

[ganesh]

3 hours ago, iMonrey said:

Simply stop playing the national anthem at sporting events. Problem solved!

The anthem at sports is one of those things that are done because they're just done. No one in a position of influence has the spine to stand up about it. 

[DB in CMH]

6 hours ago, Victor the Crab said:

"I want Democrats to attack this president more!" "I want Al Franken back in the Senate!" You know if Bill thinks Democrats need to toughen up and fight more, then he can always just, you know, run for office himself. Senator, congressman, whatever. Then he can show them and us how it's supposed to be done. Of course, that means taking a huge pay cut and doing some hard work, instead of just telling jokes on television and then getting stoned out of his ass on his couch in his Hollywood home. But hey, all for the good of the country he professes to love.

 

He could also donate huge sums of cash to the DNC, thus walking the talk. 

Oh wait, he did. 

[ottoDbusdriver]

5 hours ago, iMonrey said:

I see his point about that. It's anonymous, it's unsubstantiated, and it happened with the guy was in high school. It looks pretty desperate.

Sidebar

          The anonymous accuser -- is no longer anonymous.

End Sidebar

[Victor the Crab]

1 hour ago, DB in CMH said:

He could also donate huge sums of cash to the DNC, thus walking the talk. 

Oh wait, he did. 

How generously bare minimal of Bill to do. Maybe if he doesn't declare that in his taxes next year, I'll be impressed.

[ahpny]

Quote

But then, that might not be a good idea. Bill's always telling the left that "When they go low, we go LOWER!" Yet, on Friday's show, he complained when liberals released a letter that stated Brett Kavanaugh sexually assaulted a female while in high school. Make up your mind Bill, do you want the left to take the high road or the low road? You're not very good at backing up your beliefs, now are you?

I didn’t see Bill position as inconsistent. I saw it as pragmatic. Though it’s hard to return to the mindset of last week, i.e., before the non-anonymousing of the accuser and addition of further detail, all we knew last week was one anonymous women raised accusations of drunken misbehavior at a high school party when Judge Kavanaugh was 17 years old. Without more, this is the type of accusation that feeds the view that the entire MeToo enterprise is unfair and overblown; more importantly, precisely the type of left-wing stuff that makes the Democrats unacceptable to large swaths of otherwise middle of the road voters.  Indeed, this reasoning seems to be why Senator Feinstein sat on this for so long. All Bill did was acknowledge that many will view this in exactly this manner, and how that will harm the legitimate case against Kavanaugh. Bill did not suggest forgiving anything that Judge Kavanaugh was accused of doing (in contrast to his discussion later of what Al Franken indisputably did, which of course is significantly different).

One of our most fundamental rights is the right to face your accuser. That’s why anonymity mattered so much. That these events happened 35 years ago only makes that anonymity look even more damning.

Of course that was old news. The accuser’s reveal changes everything, so much that the “done dealness” of his appointment is now in question.

[ganesh]

Unless he removes his name from consideration, I don't see him not being confirmed. This is a party that willingly violated their constitutionally mandated duty when Obama nominated Garland. 

I don't think Bill thinks democrats should go lower, but in the new rules as he pointed out, they continually lose the national narrative. They just have to hammer home "you're lying this is the truth" and they just don't do that. 

[GHScorpiosRule]

First I want to say how refreshing, yes, refreshing to hear Bill say he wasn’t feeling so pessimistic this week. Then Richard Clarke shit that down quick. Speaking of, Clarke reminded me of Actor Morgan Sheppard with that beard he was sporting!!

And I liked New Rules.

Sippy Cupp is a waste of Space and I don’t know why Bill keeps having her come on the show.

Ballmer was just too manic for me.

[msrachelj]

On 9/15/2018 at 7:36 PM, meowmommy said:

I must have taken my stupid pills because I have questions, I have questions.  I agree with Richard Clarke that the Democrats had better not be complacent about winning in November, but I am wondering where he got his numbers.  He said 206 - 205 with 24 tossups, which is much, much tighter than any forecasts I've seen.  And who was that in the picture when Bill made the joke about podcasts?  

That's a joke that's been going around for a while now.  He needs some new material.

He needs to invest some of his $40B in a couple of Valium.  And he evaded the question of why he needs so damn much money.  I wasn't sure if Bill was asking him why he doesn't donate to campaigns or that he should go Mark Cuban and run himself.  I told you I have questions.  

I don't watch/read/whatever this woman, so what does she love about W?  The war?  The recession?  The curtailment of civil liberty?

how was that hyper, childish man ceo of microsoft? i kept thinking "he doesn't seem all that smart or savvy" what the heck? he was as annoying as fuck. he did evade the question of needing all that money. i can think of many animal organizations that would love to see some of his $$. i get angrier by the day when i see all the unfairness in this world. it's not like he worked any harder than someone making $35,000 in a blue collar job. 

[Victor the Crab]

8 hours ago, ahpny said:

I didn’t see Bill position as inconsistent. I saw it as pragmatic. Though it’s hard to return to the mindset of last week, i.e., before the non-anonymousing of the accuser and addition of further detail, all we knew last week was one anonymous women raised accusations of drunken misbehavior at a high school party when Judge Kavanaugh was 17 years old. Without more, this is the type of accusation that feeds the view that the entire MeToo enterprise is unfair and overblown; more importantly, precisely the type of left-wing stuff that makes the Democrats unacceptable to large swaths of otherwise middle of the road voters.  Indeed, this reasoning seems to be why Senator Feinstein sat on this for so long. All Bill did was acknowledge that many will view this in exactly this manner, and how that will harm the legitimate case against Kavanaugh. Bill did not suggest forgiving anything that Judge Kavanaugh was accused of doing (in contrast to his discussion later of what Al Franken indisputably did, which of course is significantly different).

One of our most fundamental rights is the right to face your accuser. That’s why anonymity mattered so much. That these events happened 35 years ago only makes that anonymity look even more damning.

Of course that was old news. The accuser’s reveal changes everything, so much that the “done dealness” of his appointment is now in question.

Given how things are unfolding with the whole Kavanaugh story, with some GOP senators having doubts about his character, the chances of his nomination being withdrawn keep growing. If it fails, well it can be said it was still worth it for Feinstein and the Democrats to try this. But if it succeeds, then Bill will have several dozen eggs on his face for what he said Friday.

8 hours ago, ganesh said:

I don't think Bill thinks democrats should go lower,..

He said it on more than one occasion. Even along with fellow loudmouth Joy Behar. If he doesn't mean it, why say it? If he thinks he knows what's better, then he should run for office on Capitol Hill. Or else, he should just stick to comedy. Who knows, he just might get another Emmy nomination.