Sometimes, I’ll get a flashback to the 2016 presidential campaign and I’ll honestly feel like crying. We knew back then that Donald Trump was f–king horrible. Watching the disaster unfold in real time was infuriating. We were traumatized and we’re still traumatized. Do you guys remember the GOP convention in 2016? That sh-t was DARK. It was Trump’s vision for America: a hellhole full of racists constantly scapegoating immigrants, a hypocritical mindf–k of stupidity, shrieking and lies, all organized by Paul Manafort. Well, the 2020 Republican convention is still scheduled for August in Florida, the state with skyrocketing coronavirus numbers. Florida is now recording 10,000-plus cases DAILY, and on Monday there were more than 15,000 confirmed cases. It’s insane. So the NYT did a story about whether Republicans are actually going down to Jacksonville next month for the convention. LOL.
Senators Roy Blunt of Missouri and Pat Roberts of Kansas are planning to skip the Republican National Convention next month as the host state of Florida deals with the biggest outbreak of coronavirus cases in the nation. Representatives Mario Diaz-Balart and Francis Rooney of Florida are sticking with their plans not to attend, even though the convention is now in their home state. Marco Rubio, Florida’s senior senator, has not committed to attending. Neither has John Thune of South Dakota, the second-ranking Senate Republican, or Representative Liz Cheney of Wyoming, the third-ranking House Republican.
As new cases surge in Florida, including 15,300 reported on Sunday, more Republicans are taking a wait-and-see approach to the event, or deciding to skip it all together. The G.O.P., which moved the convention to Jacksonville from Charlotte, N.C., after balking at health precautions there, now finds itself locked into a state with a far bigger virus problem, and planning an event whose attendance is waning as the pandemic escalates.
“Everybody just assumes no one is going,” said Representative Darin LaHood of Illinois, an honorary state co-chairman for the Trump campaign. Mr. LaHood was one of eight House members — from Illinois, New York, Arizona, Indiana and Michigan — who told The New York Times they did not plan to attend, joining party veterans like Senators Charles E. Grassley, Lamar Alexander and Susan Collins who have already said they will skip the event.
President Trump, in the meantime, may not get the restriction-free celebration he yearns for after all. The city of Jacksonville is requiring facial coverings in any public space where social distancing is not possible. And in a news release last week, the host committee said every attendee within the convention perimeter “will be tested and temperature checked each day,” without providing further details.
Yes, in a state like Florida, with a governor like Ron DeSantis, it’s up to localities and mayors to issue regulations like mandatory masks. The Times went on to say that because all of these Republican officials were skipping out, that means that the convention would be full of ride-or-die (literally) Trumpers and MAGAts. The dark, dystopian, Trumpy vision would be fulfilled and then some. And you know all of those jackasses will refuse to wear masks and they’ll basically create a viral supercell in Jacksonville. Ugh.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.
I swear, if stupidity burned, these dingbat would be piles of ashes.
This is a disaster waiting to happen, as is Disneyworld reopening. Florida, you in danger, girl. It’s gonna be worse than NYC.
I am STILL agog at Disney opening.
anyone taking bets on how long it takes them to close again?…
A friend from Cuba just texted and asked if Disney was really open. His response to my reply was “Florida people are loco”. He is right, Florida people are loco.
@aang, this loco Floridian got out. I saw the writing on the wall. I’m at my sister’s in CO. Small, small town, few Covid cases but I’m still on guard. Florida and DeSantis have lost their minds.
Disneyworld is open yet corporate is still working remote. Greed. I will never get Disney + because of their blind greed.
I give it a month.
H, I hope you traveled safely and quarantined when you got to CO for at least 14 days.
Several vacation or quieter spots with few cases have had COVID-19 spikes from people traveling in from hot spots and bringing the virus with them.
I agree DeSantis has lost his mind, if he ever had it. My sister and her husband have lived in FL for years, both work in healthcare, and both say the caseload at the hospital they work at is rising every day: ER patients, admissions, ICU patients are going up up up. They are two of the smartest, kindest people I know, and even they are a little shaky on safe workplace practices or how to keep themselves safe. I suspect part of it is because of the cavalier attitude of FL leaders, and the sheeple who follow their lead (seriously, the beach openings and crowd management was like a deadly game of whack-a-mole, with beaches opening, crowds following, beaches closing, then a new beach opening one county over with crowds following, etc)
My sister was explaining to me today how she keeps a candy dish on her desk, because she thinks people need a little pick me up in these difficult times. She was explaining how careful she is by only putting wrapped candy in the dish. I asked ” so you’re putting a candy dish on your desk, to encourage your co-workers to come into your office, to your desk, all day? And reach in for candy? People who work in a facility with active COVID-19 cases? So that other co-workers then also come to your desk and reach in for candy?” And there was a long pause … and she said … “Oh,yeah, maybe that’s not such a good idea?” Ya think? Her boss has been awful, coming into her office and other’s work spaces without a mask, who knows why. My sister AND her husband both have medical conditions that compromise their immune responses, so they are in the special risk category.
They’ve been kicking around the idea of visiting the rest of the family in New England later this summer. I’ve been suggesting that if they do, they drive up and stay for a while, so they have time to isolate when they arrive and then socially distance their way through visits and sightseeing. They’re both practically retired, so taking a month off from work, or retiring completely isn’t out of the realm of possibility for them. And I would feel much better with them out of FL … even offered to host their pupster, or all of them, at my house if that makes the logistics easier. (There’s a separate bathroom, bedroom area that they could hang out in while isolating) We shall see. Sis keeps talking about these mythical ‘almost empty’ flights to Boston. I ask her “do you really want to spend 3 1/2 hours on a plane next to maskless Ted Cruz?”
Stay safe everyone!
Someone did a remake of Disney’s “we are open song” using the music from “The Shining” and it really hit the right note for me. Florida will become a case study in insane pandemic response. I am so worried about the older population there…as well as everyone else!
History will view Florida as the Philadelphia of 1918. Defying common sense and recommendations to hold a big celebration – except Florida’s will be more lethal due to length of time.
I would like to propose a new term: Disnydiots.
There’s already a term for management: Avaricious A-holes.
Was reading up on some stats – the average number of deaths per 7-day period in FL is currently 81 people. Someone brought up that New York had its single highest number of deaths in a day (over 1,000) around 14-days after reaching the 81 person mark.
Curve is exponential, there is no way to stop it. Note that this figure doesn’t include the mysteriously high number of pneumonia deaths Florida has been reporting.
Yeah, it seems manageable until suddenly it doesn’t.
One of my very wise friends keeps reminding people: don’t forget the lily pads.
It already looks pretty bad in FL, and it’s only going to get worse, much worse, until they take it seriously.
“There’s an old brain teaser that goes like this: You have a pond of a certain size, and upon that pond, a single lilypad. This particular species of lily pad reproduces once a day, so that on day two, you have two lily pads. On day three, you have four, and so on.
Now the teaser. “If it takes the lily pads 48 days to cover the pond completely, how long will it take for the pond to be covered halfway?”
The answer is 47 days. Moreover, at day 40, you’ll barely know the lily pads are there.”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/03/10/coronavirus-what-matters-isnt-what-you-can-see-what-you-cant/
Can we just lock them in there?
let them in and close the borders
in cages, please?
make that soundproof cages . . .
We don’t need soundproof cages. They can scream inside their hearts, like they do in Japan.
The 2016 RNC was so dark and depressing. I don’t know how anyone could have watched that, and then watched the DNC a week or so later, and picked Trump and the Republican vision for America.
…with Roger Stone stoking the Wilileaks drip drip drip at every positive thing the DNC had to play, followed by Russia bots sending out the “Pizzagate” meme’s.
This year is going to be much worse.
So is the wait and see approach to wait and see how much of a threat he levels if they don’t fall in line and attend or wait and see if he offers a reward for showing up?
I suspect they have little hope for his re-election and are already starting to distance themselves from Trump so they can lie to their constituents about how they never supported him once he becomes persona non grata.
Mac, yes. That’s what I’m seeing too
I’m getting the same vibes here. It gives me (cautious) hope.
Yes, I think the rats may finally be starting to leave the sinking ship, now that they are safe from primary challenges. Amazing how low poll numbers can accomplish what morals and values would not. Please don’t forget their cowardice this November!
I think they know he is going to pull tricks, so they are leaving their options open.
Gulliani and his team of con men have been reaching out to Russia, China, Ukraine for assistance in beating Biden. They probably have some “evidence” that will suddenly be found in the fall that paints Biden as corrupt. GOP politicians are going to remain on the fence to see how that plays out.
I don’t believe for one second that what we are seeing right now is Trump’s re-election strategy. He breaks the law regularly, and he will do so again to impact this election.
You know what you guys? Here’s what reasoning my partner and I see: Trump knows he’s got the election in the bag. That’s why he is acting so recklessly. Meanwhile the rats are “jumping ship,” grumbling publicly, or leaking things about how terrible Trump is or how he’s incompetent. They’ve already started to do that, so that it appears that they don’t support him. Then they’re going to act all shocked when he stays in. That saves their asses as far as PR/reputation goes.
As for Covid-19, now they have a reason for lockdown number 2.0. Going into the election what they’re gonna do is delay it, or fix it like they did last time, and he will stay in power. If they delay it he’ll be in power for God knows how long.
Then we have this vaccine that is supposed to be coming out at the end of the year or early next year and it’s gonna be mandatory, you watch. 300 million vaccines. Guess how big the population of America is?? Anybody seeing shades of mark of the beast? I’m just askin’. I’m not sayin.’ I’m saying, Think. Watch. Put it together. That vaccine is going to have a whole other shit in it that isn’t about Covid-19.
And you know what? If there is a chip it goes into everybody. Somebody denies it? Well, they’ll be starved out. They won’t be able to go into buildings, won’t be able to see a doctor, won’t be able to buy anything. As for online buying, I’ll bet Amazon is going to require a serial number of a vaccine lot to prove that you’ve got the vaccine before you can buy anything. That goes for any online buying.
Mark my words, Trump is staying in power and he knows it. It isn’t him who has the real power though. It’s the behind the screen puppet masters that are engineering everything.
This ^
Good. Not good in that, we know innocent people will be infected from no fault of their own, but GOOD that the establishment isn’t backing this crusty, pathetic, WaterGait, lying rapist predator… any more, when it is extremely unlikely that he will win. They should all be ashamed of themselves. Altho I’m sure they are only ashamed of him.
I agree with @lobstah – lock them all up and throw the key into the Atlantic.
There is a video from the ’90s when NBC covered a party at Mar a Lago. The horroshow we currently have to call “president” is chumming it up with Jeffrey Epstein. They are pointing out women they consider hot – literally pointing at them and leering. And laughing. Peeking out from behind them is none other than Gigi Maxwell, the sex trafficker. At one point, she notices the NBC camera and repositions herself so as to be still behind them but in the frame. She puts on the grinning act. All while Rhythm is a Dancer plays in the background. SO. GROSS.
She is just as bad as Epstein. Possibly worse as she set it all up for him. At some point, “worse” becomes pointless. They’re all scum. (Apologies to actual algae.)
They’re only running away from him because he’s losing. If he had the same message but was blowing Biden away in the polls they would be right there cheesing and grinning for camera time.
Absolutely true. As we have seen.
Yes. Never forget these enablers.
When I woke up after the election in 2016, I texted my sister and said, “Are we in hell? I feel like we’re in hell.” I could not have imagined the horrors that we are living through right now between the virus, the police brutality that we see everyday and the emboldened racists that stomp around with their guns. I’m terrified that Trump and his criminal cronies are going to steal the election.
My son was born on 8/1/16. When we went to bed on election night I told him we would wake up to the first woman president. Pretty sure I cried the next day.
I do, at least, take extreme pleasure in the fact that he was born during Obama’s presidency and he loves the YouTube videos Michelle did with reading stories. He knows not who this terrible person is.
My sweet baby was two weeks old – I vividly remember checking the American election results during a late night feeding, feeling completely hopeless and powerless as I gaped at my phone. I cried and cried, and I still couldn’t have imagined the horrors that were to come.
I used to sort of vaguely believe that if parallel worlds really do exist, then this one is the Prime Universe from which all other realities branch out. But then 2016 happened, and I pray that this reality is just some shitty splinter realm where everything is FUBAR.
It really comforts me to believe that all is basically well over in the Prime.
Oh come on REPUBLICANS!!! Ya’ll need to be there in PERSON, NO MASK, and NO SOCIAL DISTANCING!!! You’ve been supporting him…from afar with your Zoom media bites with Fox news…defending his lies, propaganda, re-election worries, and conspiracy theories, the convention will only CONFIRM what Trump has been saying all along!!! The rise of infection rates is a HOAX!!! The Democrats and doctors are LYING!!! We’re doing just fine in handling Covid! Oh wait a minute … was that Trump of Chuck Woolery tweeting that? It’s hard to distinguish one asshat from another asshat these days.
Exactly. They should all HAVE TO go because of their previous actions.
Including his three oldest children.
I think the Republicans should all be forever to attend. Reap what you sow. This is the world they brought on.
That is going to turn into a super spreader event, and anyone who attends from another area is going to bring it back home.
I hope no one goes. Honestly the conventions aren’t necessary. He’s the incumbent (barf) and the Dem nominee has been set for months now. All the official stuff can be done remotely.
And a remote Republican convention is a much better convention…
I didn’t watch the conventions in 2016. I did not want to witness crazy criminal in action. I had planned to vote for Hilary, knew some of her history as a senator and in the state department. I’m hoping the GOP faces a major failure in Jacksonville. Is this convention facing a possible financial loss?
I will be watching the NBA playoffs that week and closely tracking the events of whichever fabulous woman scored the Democratic VP nomination a week earlier. I do hope that Ivanka greets every attendee personally with hugs and kisses on both cheeks, daily.
Ha! I continue to follow Twitter, SDNY posts. I think we can safely bet after 1/20/2021 we’ll see family indictments. Ivanka possible misuse of campaign funds? I, too, am looking forward to the announcement of our VP to be!
@KellyRyan, I believe it is operating at a loss even now. I read an article that the almost $40M raised to host the convention in Charlotte had mostly been spent by the host committee (LOLOL!) and so there were hardly any monies left to give to the new host location, and donors were balking at having to give money again. I can’t recall where I read that, but I do recall cackling loud enough that my husband called out to me from another room.
If these yahoos see no problem with in person teaching for the fall, I don’t see why they can’t all attend a conference together. The hypocrisy is stunning.
NBA will start soon in Orlando, FLORIDA! We will how that will go. Sweating and touching not just the same ball but each other.
Here in CA, our Governor shut down some businesses again. It is sad but necessary.
What the EFF is going on with his hair??! It’s worse in the video. The right side of his hair looks UUUUUUUUGE. Has he gone the Melania route and gotten a wig??
I think it’s glued on.
I love in Jacksonville and work at a hotel that will be filled with these maga morons. I am dreading this event!!
Hoping and praying that you and your colleagues keep safe and healthy. It’s incredibly irresponsible of Trump et all to hold a convention in Florida risking the health of others who have to work or support this convention. It’s absolutely disgusting.
Down at the landing area? Are they holding it in the Jags stadium? Moved from Jacksonville year and a half ago. You guys are getting the covid cases bad. Good luck to you hon. As usual, it’s the working class that suffers the most. Hugs
*sigh*
Anybody want to take a bet trumpenfurher will want to leave Florida (Key West is my spirit animal) and bring his shit storm to my home state of Texas?????? We have so many idiots here already yelling for him to come here.
Also Dear Florida:
We feel you. We also have an idiot governor who doesn’t know his ass from a hole in the ground and decided to reopen too soon. Cases have spiked and now he’s blaming everyone except himself. I have to turn off the news in self defense
The Texas Republicans can’t find a place for their own state convention so good luck Donald!!!
For those that don’t know, the Texas Republican Party was *INSISTING* that it was going to hold an in person convention in Houston this week. For over two months, they’ve considered making changes and then saying, NOPE, it’s our freedom liberty right to worship at the altar of Donald J. Trump in PERSON. Meanwhile, Texas Democrats went all virtual for their convention, raised $2 million dollars and no one’s died from it. THEN the surge hit Texas, with Houston being especially hit hard. The Mayor said please don’t come. The Republicans said, nope, we’re coming. The Mayor said, pretty please, people are dying and hospitals are full. The Republicans said, okay we’ll socially distance and make sanitizer available. The Mayor called the Convention center operators and lo and behold, the operators shut the Republicans down because there’s a contract clause that specifically cites epidemics in Harris County. So now the Republicans are suing everyone but the Texas Supreme Court ruled yesterday that they can’t “commandeer” the convention center. They’re having live emergency Zoom meetings where the leaders can’t figure out how to hold the mute button and saying, rightfully, things like, “Republicans can’t do technology like Democrats can.”
So sure. Donald should try to come to Texas. We’ll bundle them all up in an indoor rodeo arena out in West Texas and let them yell at each other for twelve hours.
@Sassafras:
Yep everything you said and more, but I live in the deepest reddest part of the state (and that is saying something) and believe it or not there’s actual mask-less idiots walking around with a PETITION trying to garner enough signatures to force the Tx Supreme Court to let the republican’ts hold their convention here anyway because it (and I not making this up. I wouldn’t even begin to know how!) has been ordained of God that trump be reelected and Texas is the holy battleground. Seriously.
Why WE have all the escapees from the bin, I just don’t know…
Maybe they’ll cancel due to “weather”. Has anyone checked the weather, you guys? lol It still boggles the mind that the president is so willfully reckless.
Hot and humid with afternoon thunderstorms. Maybe he melts if he gets wet.
Ya gotta wonder what % make up and hairspray he is…
They should be forced to attend without masks.
You will never convince me that Laura Ingraham didn’t intentionally nazi salute at the 2016 convention. I believed it then, and I believe it even more now.
My best friend’s father died unexpectedly late Sunday. I found out yesterday. We grew up together, and I often spent holidays with them. In fact I was with them last thanksgiving. They’re Jewish but aren’t sitting Shiva because of the virus. They can have 21 people at the funeral and asked if I wanted to go. I have to think 100 times because of the virus which has started to tick back up in Suffolk County (A trump county and a lot of maskholes here). Yesterday I Drove around trying to find a florist that would deliver a gourmet food basket, but none would because of the virus. I did find a very good restaurant that would deliver trays of food though.
this morning I was driving to staples and I had to pull over because I started sobbing and couldn’t stop. I almost gave up, thinking, I’ll never make it through this year, I just can’t. But then I thought of him, and his evil horrible face, and I bucked up. I can’t let him break me.
@Darla, my deepest sympathies for yourself, your friend and her family. You are correct, everytime we think of giving up, we have to fight on. I don’t know what will happen if 45 gets another 4 years.
I’m really sorry for your and her loss. I also feel so downtrodden about our current state sometimes and find myself crying too. My husband is pretty good at helping me buck back up thankfully. I hope you have some good support too, especially during this difficult time.
Thank you both.
H, I was just saying that to my mother. If things go wrong in Nov, I don’t really know what I’ll do. My coping skills will be used up by then. God help us all.
I’ve never heard the term MAGAts before. I LOVE that. That is exactly what they are.
This is devastating to watch from Canada. I feel for all of you so much.
As someone who lives in the Charlotte area, I am so relieved that we have a Democrat governor that told President Cheeto no to a full convention with no safety measures and he took his ball somewhere else. I hope Jacksonville will be able to keep the people who live and work there safe from the MAGAts that insist on showing up.
This is a great way/excuse for Republicans to start fleeing the sinking ship. As my father says, finding a Trump ally/supporter in the American congress this time next year will be like finding a Nazi in Germany in 1946. 🙄
Your dad has a wicked sense of humor! Maybe the Trumpies will even go so far as to claim they were part of the French resistance all along. 🙂
Your Dad is spot on. They will try to rewrite their cowardly role in history. We can never forget how this inept, corrupt situation was fully enabled by their party.
Absolutely! I will never forget or forgive the Republicans for the devastation that Trump brought. In the Senate they are absolutely spineless, worried that he’ll get mad and call them names.
I just can’t. As a new york resident, I already know I’ll be traumatized for the rest of my life for what I lived through this year. Florida and everywhere else had plenty of time to get their sh*t together and chose not to. I have family down there and I hope they’ll be alright – but one of them drove my family apart with his racist belief system the last 4 years so I guess we’ll see. I’m so tired of being scared and frustrated. It’s not enough to laugh at them, they represent all of us Americans and it’s wicked disappointing.
I’m in Jacksonville FL and I am terrified. Our mayor is a spineless supporter of 45. The whole shit-show needs to be cancelled. With all the people who work customer facing jobs in FL — all of the convenience store, bar, restaurant, and nightclub workers — it will be a nightmare here and when the science-averse, refusing to wear a mask idiots take it home it will be equally awful. Temperature checks and rapid COVID-19 tests (accuracy can be spotty) won’t do shit. They’ve already been on airplanes and
in Ubers. The data scientist who designed FL’s COVID-19 dashboard was fired for refusing to manipulate data. Her community COVID-19 board paints a very different picture than the ‘official’ one. Sister in law is a nurse and confirms all hospital beds running low, not just ICU. How is 45’s complete mishandling of this crisis not a genocide?
Sadly, there are plenty of people here and elsewhere who will gladly follow 45 to a convention and over a cliff. Ride or die with an emphasis on DIE.
When the inevitable deaths come, it will be Invisible Sky Daddy’s will, of course. The dead will just be martyrs in the in the fulfillment of biblical prophecy.
You do wonder if he and the complicit lurkers behind him will at some stage before he pops off and goes to hell, be charged with crimes against humanity….
Feel very very sad for the workers who have to deal with them, as someone said above, the uber/taxi/bus drivers, the servers, the grocery store clerks – and everyone who comes into contact with them. It’s criminal they’ll be the ones that ultimately pay for this willful, belligerant insanity.
I’m in Florida, in the Panhandle. Its so friggin DUMB here, y’all. I work in healthcare and I’ve already accepted that I’m definitely going to contract The Rona. I mean, that check is in the mail, you know? I legit updated my last will and testament, made sure my living will is in place and designated my healthcare proxy.
Its weird but doing that kind of made me feel better. Go figure.