Presumption Of Guilt

Yglesias on how the Clinton Rules have rendered basic ideas of justice moot, as long as the target is named Clinton.

Why We Are In The Gutter

James Comey felt the need to cover his ass by releasing information about an on-going investigation ten days before an election.  This is unprecedented and against Justice Department rules and norms.

Democrats are beginning to push back, with Harry Reid waiving the Hatch Act around and Steve Cohen calling on him to resign.  In many ways, this is lamentable.  I've never been a real fan of "Democrats should fight dirty because Republicans fight dirty."  I think the Party of Governance should hold itself to a higher standard.

Comey was clearly more scared of getting attacked by Republican lawmakers than Democratic lawmakers.  He was scared of rogue agents within the FBI leaking this info to the press, primarily because they tilt Republican in Hooverville.  In other words, the FBI shows signs of becoming a partisan outfit.

If the Democrats don't counterpunch, this won't stop.  What Comey did was craven, and it might or might not have an effect on the election.  My thinking is that it stops the possibility of a wave election that might carry the House.  If we allow people within the civil service to influence our elections, we are screwed as a country.

So, counterpunch away, fellas.

I'm Going To Miss Harry Reid

Harry Reid may or may not have inside information about Donald Trump's ties to Russia.  I would honestly say it's 50/50 that he does.  Because Harry Reid doesn't give a fuck.

So, he's more than willing to accuse James Comey of violating the Hatch Act and working to help Republicans (Comey is a Republican after all).  If he's wrong, he's retiring anyway. If he can force the FBI to release damaging information about Trump's ties to Russia?

That would make him a steely-eyed missile man.

Your Weekend Read

Susan Faludi explains where Hillary hatred begins and why it needs to be defeated.

If History Be Our Guide...

I'm guessing there is zero or close to zero new information in those new emails found on the shared computer of Huma Abedin and walking human sewer Anthony Weiner.

The FBI was investigating Weiner.  They found emails to Clinton.  They have to investigate.  At this point, they could be looking at emails that they already have seen from Clinton's end.

For 20+ years, we've been living through this same dismal, fucking cycle: Horrifying Headlines; Conditional Caveat; Walking Back the Allegation; Inevitable Deescalation.  Remind me again what was so awful about the Clinton Foundation?  Remind again what was so terrible about Whitewater?

As Ezra Klein notes this gives both sides what they want.  It allows Republicans to think that they might actually win and it allows Democrats to freak out and run around sure that they are going to lose.  That latter is so freaking depressing it hurts my brain.

The real issue is unlikely to be whether Clinton wins the White House.  My guess is that most voters have made up their minds about this race by now.  The issue, as Martin Longman points out, is that this arrests the possibility of a wave election that sweeps Democrats to control of the House.  Such a result is not only preferable from a partisan point of view, but having Democrats control all three branches of government for even two years would allow for some actual governing to occur.  Republicans are simply unwilling or unable to accomplish basic tasks of legislating, so a few years of having a functioning Congress would be awesome.

This feels like a procedural nothing-burger that could wreck American politics even more.

UPDATE: Josh Marshall points out that Comey managed to make an untenable and impossible position and make it worse.

The Other Shoe

I've been expecting another round of bad Trump leaks to drop any day now.  I figured about 10 days out from the election - on a Friday - would be a good time to drop some opposition research out there.

Turns out it was the FBI that was waiting to drop a bomb.

It certainly seems like this is just due diligence, and I am willing to bet the farm there is nothing especially damning in whatever they discovered.  In short, the big issue here again is the Clinton family tendency to let a scandal bleed out and play poorly, rather than ripping the Band Aid off quickly.

No doubt this will also embolden morons like Rep. Chaffetz who want to relitigate Benghazi, the Clinton Foundation, Vince Foster, the Lindbergh baby and Jack the Ripper.

However, if the Clintons are holding on to a nice juicy piece of Trump being an asshole, now might be the time to let it fly.

You Need To Read This

Zach Beauchamp basically lays out - yet again - why David Brooks is fundamentally illiterate about the politics of this country.

If you don't understand the history of race, you don't understand America.  Not its past.  Not its future.  And certainly not its present.

Bad News/Good News

The Trump campaign wants to engage in voter suppression.

Luckily they don't have enough money to do it well.

What Is White Privilege?

This is white privilege.

Radical Transparency

Here is what might be an interesting discussion on the WikiLeaks dumping of John Podesta's emails.  (I don't know, I'm proctoring an essay and can't listen to it.)

I will admit that I find Glenn Greenwald an insufferable douchecanoe who lives in the sort of Magical Unicorn Land of Brightly Colored Pixies that typifies a certain type of Libertarian Narcissist.
But I wanted to talk about the very idea of "radical transparency."  Klein, apparently, feels that there should be limits to this transparency, because - SURPRISE! - it might be applied to her.  It turns out that taking pot shots at the powerful isn't so much fun when you yourself become a public figure.

I would argue even further that the very idea of radical transparency is corrosive of democratic government.

By all means, government ACTIONS should be transparent.  Bills should not be forced through a vote in the middle of the night without sufficient public review.  The deliberation that go into writing a law absolutely should be secret.  The horse-trading and log-rolling that typified legislating prior to the Tea Party and the radical transparency movement is what made the whole freaking mess work.  American democracy didn't work because it was "super awesome with terrific sauce" but because it consisted - from the very drafting of the Constitution - in a series of backroom deals and compromises.

The radical transparency movement seeks to destroy that climate of private deal making.  This is the ultimate expression of purity politics.  We expect elected officials to agree with us all the time, and if they deviate from the One True Faith, we shall excommunicate and crucify them.  This is more true on the Tea Party right, but certainly represents a powerful force on Left.

Hillary Clinton is - in many ways - the perfect person for this moment.  She is very adept at backroom dealing and compromise. She's a doer.  And she's also completely out of fucks to give about how people view her.  She probably resents being called Killary or Shillary by her putative allies, but in the end, she's tougher than most people give her credit for.

I would love to see us return to a few more smoke filled rooms, a few more efforts at compromise legislation that don't get torpedoed by someone leaking the deliberations to the rapist in the Ecuadorian embassy.

Ultimately, I want politics to work again.  It doesn't have to be pure, and I don't have to agree with it.  I don't expect my politics to be like a Netflix cue where I hand select exactly the show I want to watch, while my son watches something else in the next room.  I expect it to be like family movie night where we argue and search for compromise and eventually wind up watching something we can all agree on.  The Netflix option is easier.  By far.

But family movie night is so much healthier and robust.  We've lost that capacity in our politics, and I would argue that while our a la carte approach to life in the Internet Age is partly to blame, the creed of radical transparency simply makes it worse.

Winning Message!

Bill Weld has something to say.

Funny 'Cause It's True

SNL had a well-deserved bit of political humor, and it wasn't their hilarious take on the debates.

Jamelle Bouie explains.  Subtlety and sophistication aren't really hallmarks of SNL's political humor, but I think he's right.  This sketch really pulls off something observant and true.

Never Look At Just One Poll, But...

The ABC poll has some internals that Josh Marshall has flagged - rightly - as being significant.  The poll shows a collapse in voting enthusiasm among Republicans.  Here's the key finding:

The previous ABC/Post poll found a sharp 12-point decline in enthusiasm for Trump among his supporters, almost exclusively among those who’d preferred a different GOP nominee. Intended participation now has followed: The share of registered Republicans who are likely to vote is down 7 points since mid-October.

That is what creates a wave election.

Martin Longman notes that when the race is effectively over by 9PM EST, western Republicans will still be trying to get their voters to the polls.  This only combines with Trump's problems with Latino voters.

Maybe Clinton really is only up about 6 points.  I'm guessing it's more.  Because math.

Now, This Is A Story About Trump Voters That Is Important

Trump has lost each debate.  He has been hammered by controversies of his own making.  His party is close to open civil war over his candidacy.  And now he is basically turning his back on some basic political norms.

The result could very well be a very depressed turnout among Republican voters.  All of his statements about a rigged election, every unforced error that upsets normal people...all of these make it less likely that people will vote.

The single greatest advantage Republicans have had is that their voters always show up.  Midterms, presidential elections...those old GOP voters will show up.

If Trump significantly depresses GOP voting, that is what puts the House in play.

What If He Won?

I mean, he won't.  But what if he did?

He gives every inclination of being a dictator, and this is only the latest in a long string of scary statements.

Maybe in 2020, the GOP will have an entrance exam before their primaries.