Politics

My thoughts on the government #shutdown? If only OPA of #Scandal could handle this...

Let's face it, what's going on between Congress and the White House right is some ugly, childish, we-want-what-we-want-when-we-want-it-and-we-don't-care-who-gets-hurt bullshiggity. I know I throw around the term "hot mess" but this right here takes that label and multiplies exponentially to the nth degree. This is a chess match where we've reached a stalemate. Or a poker game where neither side will fold or call. In the meantime, no one wins. 

I mean, c'mon on, people. If nothing else, America has always been able to say that we rock as a nation. It's inherent for Americans to look at other nations and say, "This is how we do it, get like us." No one is saying that this week. China is telling their people that America is closed, no need to visit. Kids on a field trip were turned away from the Lincoln Memorial. Lincoln is doing backflips in his grave. This is some epic buffoonery from a party that pushed Sarah Palin and then Mitt Romney at us with a straight face. Stop. Clearly, it's time for an intervention.

I won't point fingers (*stares hard at GOP*) or cite a lack of strong leadership (*shade thrown at Boehner*) but I will say that to unravel this will take a revolt, a revelation, a reversal or a Kennedy. Since only a few of those charming, reach-across-the-aisle Kennedys are in a position to fix this, I suggest Olivia Pope.

ABC's Scandal returns tonight to entertain us with the tale of a DC crisis manager who operates in a no-nonsense, non-partisan forward-thinking way. (Except when it comes to her on-again, off-again boyfriend,  the President of the United States of America, but that's a whole other plot line) What we wouldn't give to have an Olivia Pope at the table with Boehner, Reid, et al to straighten this mess out. Though since the problem is budget related, this could be a problem:


My point is, maybe we need to lock Boehner in a room with Huckleberry Quinn and their power tools and see what happens. Maybe Harrison could hit the House floor with his epic money clip and change some yeas to nays or nays to yeas, whichever is needed. Abby could sleep with Jack Lew (Treasury Secretary) just to put him in a more mellow frame of mind all the way around and who knows what he's got locked in a safe at his place. Olivia, of course, would explain in rapid-fire detail the hellfire and brimstone that would rain down on their collective heads if they don't figure a way to fix this and right soon. And then we could get this:


While we're waiting for that to happen at least we have fresh episodes of Scandal on tonight at 9pm central on ABC. Lord knows we need some entertainment during this exasperating, shame-inducing, trying times. Who's watching with me? Anyone got words of wisdom for Congress? Do share...

Five Lessons Learned from #Election2012


Before I get too giddy, let's review the fact that 57 million Americans voted for Mittens. Let that sink in. 57 million people thought Romney would be a better President than Barack Obama. I'm sorry, I just can't see how 57 million people thought that guy was qualified to make world-impacting decisions on a daily basis. Now whether it was disappointment or racism or party loyalty - who knows. Either way, that number is frightening. Somehow, we have to unite and come together as a country. Though I must say when I pranced into Starbucks in my "Got Hope?" T-shirt this morning... whew. Honey if looks could kill I'd be decked out in the purple casket right now.

But let's take a look at five of the important takeaways from these long, brutal and at times down right ugly election:

1. No More Rich C-students: After G-Dub, the American people are not going to accept just any old entitled so-and-so with a bankroll for the Presidency. It's no longer enough to be a "likeable" guy and truth be told, Mitt wasn't that likeable. But the point is this - all told it's estimated that over two BILLION dollars was raised/spent in the effort to get Mittens to 1600 Penn. And apparently you can no longer buy the White House with a half-assed candidate. I'm not saying wasn't smart but at no time did he appear to be on Obama's level intellectually or politically.  Conclusion - the bar has been raised. You have to have a candidate who can stand on more than a black card and a trust fund.

2. Minorities are no longer minor - Fact of the matter is that the Republicans spent a lot of time trying to segregate and categorize people. They wanted women in one bucket (next to the stove and the cleaning supplies), blacks in another bucket (out back by the cotton fields). They sort of assumed that Latinos were either on welfare or illegal and they bashed China (there goes your Asian vote) at every opportunity. Conclusion - If you shade all the minorities, they band together, turn into a majority and vote against you. Obama got over 50% of women voters, over 70% of Latino voters and over 90% of African American voters. 

3. No country for murkiness - What I mean by this is that your candidate actually has to be about something. You can't toss out some half-assed policies (and change your mind next week) and promise to be more clear when you get elected. That's like asking someone to marry you on your first date. People need to know what they are getting. Two weeks before the election I still did not know what Mittens was for or against. Conclusion - You have to have a platform. Even if it sucks. State it, claim it and stick to it.

4. Birds of a Feather - Even if Mitt was charismatic and charming, he both endorsed and surrounded himself with some pure D idiots. You are your crew, sir. And Mitts' crew was a train wreck. Paul Ryan looked like a child seated next to Biden. Mourdock had foot in mouth disease. Trump appears to need psychiatric help and/or medication. Karl Rove is a blathering hot head. This does not a great brain trust make. Conclusion - You can't just appease the money folks. At some point you need to pick people who can help you and not hurt you. Also doesn't hurt to surround yourself with a variety of viewpoints, not just the ones you like to hear.

5. Hope rises, hate fails - Hate-mongering and fear speech are old and cold tactics. It's harder to scare people who have access to 24/7 news cycles and Google. Sure you can just make things up and fling them out there to see who takes the bait but as Grandma Blanche used to say - the truth will always out. The Republicans called Obama everything but a child of God. CEOs threatened to fire people. Romney told people their jobs were being shipped overseas. I could be here all day listing the shenanigans but the conclusion is this - you can't win on fear if the other side is offering hope. 

This second term won't be easy but I'll be really surprised if Obama doesn't take the gloves off and come out swinging. He has no more elections to win. With his re-election, the healthcare plan, the immigration reform and the equal pay laws stay in place. I believe he'll try and reach out across the aisle but I also believe he'll work around any obstruction as best he can with no looking back. While the first presidency was an ascension, this is a solidification. I look forward to seeing what comes next.

Exhale everybody. What did this election teach you?

Things I loved about #DNC2012 and why you care


Whew. That's a wrap ya'll. #DNC2012 is in the books. I found it to be uplifting and exhausting. Now it's a countdown to Election Day with a few interesting debates along the way. There were many, many things I loved about the convention but here are a few of my favorites:

1. Democrats are the party of inclusion - Unlike the white-washed RNC, the DNC embraced all the colors of the rainbow. Without cherry-picking, you could easily scan the crowded and see all races, all ages, and both sexes liberally represented. Why do you care? This means chances are someone who cares about the things you care about belongs to the Democratic Party.

2. Diamond Bill is still shining - I started calling former President Clinton "Diamond Bill" back in the mid-90s. 

Diamonds are created over stress and time. They are coveted and sometimes come at too high a price. Ladies love them and men don't mind them either. Diamonds are tough and resilient. You can bury them deep in shiggity for as long as you'd like but after a quick rinse, buff and polish - they shine again. You know how when a diamond is in the sun and it catches the light, it's so dazzling you just have to look at it? Diamond Bill, ya'll. Why do you care? He's going to be out on the road campaigning for Obama and it's good to know he's still got it.

3. POTUS and VPOTUS love their wives - No shade to G.Dub and Laura or Daddy Bush and Barbara or even Ron and Nancy but you never looked ad those couples and wondered if they wouldn't rather be at home stirring the cocoa. Jill Biden actually blushed when her husband shouted her out from the stage last night and this pic of Barack and Michelle tells you all you need to know:

Why do you care? Love's in need of love today people.

4. Ya boy went in - For the record, Obama put on a clinic on how to throw shade, throw 'bows and snatch wigs the bougie way. You don't name call, you don't lie, you don't question citizenship. You merely suggest that a man who insults the Queen may not be up to the task of foreign affairs. You politely scroll through your accomplishments. And you put the cherry on top of the sundae by reminding everyone listening that you  are doing the damn job right now. Why do you care? Who doesn't want their President to be the coolest guy in the room?

5. DNC riverdanced all over the RNC - Tweets (9 million vs. 4 million), ratings, ability to engage the crowd, speak factually while keeping it classy? DNC did that. As I tweeted last night, the RNC talked to a chair, the DNC talked to the citizens. Why do you care? Because now action needs to be taken.

Make sure all of your people know their voting rights and have those papers ready. Look around and see if there is anything you can do to help this campaign. To me, the theme song for last night was Black Sheep's "The Choice is Yours..." Now go make it.

Thoughts, comments, insights?

Six things I learned from #RNC2012


I watched bits and pieces of the Republican National Convention and I kept waiting. I kept waiting for that light bulb moment when I would finally understand why Mitt Romney was truly a viable candidate for the presidency. Would it shock you to know that the a-ha! moment never came?

But here's what I did learn from the Republicans this week:

1. Truth doesn't matter. Really, all of you fact checking watch dogs out there can just open up margarita huts in the Cayman Islands (next to Romney's bank). You are no longer needed. Apparently, things don't have to be true for you to say them. It's kind of like at a jury trial. Object if you like but as long as the jurors have already heard it...

2. Issues don't matter. One mo' gin, can someone give me the Republican rundown on ANY of the major issues impacting the day-to-day and long-term running of this country? Anyone? Anyone? 

3. Buzzwords = good, Details = bad. Romney detailed outlined PowerPointed his five step "turn the country around" plan but did not deign to back any of it up with details. How are you stimulating trade and ending dependency on foreign oil? Exactly? If he knew, he would tell us right? Or has he adopted an "when you pick me, I'll tell you" strategy?

4. Diversity? We don't need no stinking diversity. Alright now - trotting out Condi, some dude I didn't know, a biracial chick from Utah and having Bebe (serious side-eye to Mr. Winans) sing your closing song does not diversity make. Attendees counted what they described as a "handful" of "diverse" conventioneers. Where was the semblance of inclusion? In Tampa, you couldn't have bussed some folks in and given them a sammich to stand near a camera and pretend they cared? C'mon somebody.

5. Celebrity wins. When the biggest buzzword to come out of your convention is #Eastwooding... you're doing it wrong. I know they hate that Schwarzenegger messed all over Maria, he was their go to celeb for years. When an 82 year old celeb gets more buzz than your nominee? Something ain't right. Say what you want about the dems but we like our Presidents to be on some rock star status. Obeezy, Diamond Bill, LBJ, JFK? (Not Carter so much but darn he's a smart, personable guy)

6. Folks can't separate disagreement from discrimination  One thing the Republicans have got to learn is how to disagree with a policy or an ideal without it sounding like racist hate-speak. It's one thing to be disappointed in Obama because he didn't live up to your expectations but ReThugs had their folks all up in the camera calling him socialist, communist, Muslim, evil spawn of Satan... basically everything but a child of God. That kind of hatemongering always backfires. It takes some time but it always loses in the end. Let's make that happen in November, shall we?

And one more for a bonus-

7. Apparently the USA has left the building. So the country is gone? Who has it? Where did it go? Whose was it to begin with? If "they" didn't want "us" here, why did they bring us? Shouldn't Native Americans be waving this "take back" banner? So many questions, so few answers...

So in essence, I learned nothing about the Republican Party that I didn't already suspect. As soon as the balloon dropped, I ran to barackobama.com and gave up some more dollars. I cannot with the Romney of it all. I. CAN. NOT. 

BougieLand, a few questions - Did anything at the RNC surprise you? Who's looking forward to the DNC next week? What do you expect to see/hear? And it's about that time - what are you doing for Labor Day weekend?