"THE SQUAD" ENGAGES IN AFFIRMATIVE ACTION

What else to call admitting an octogenarian white male?

https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/new-jersey/2019/07/16/aoc-lets-bill-pascrell-join-squad-democratic-congresswomen/1750485001/

When we first moved to Maplewood Pascrell was our representative. IIRC at that time Maplewood was represented by 3 different members of the House. Pascrell, Payne and one other whose name I can't remember. 

ml1 said:
When we first moved to Maplewood Pascrell was our representative. IIRC at that time Maplewood was represented by 3 different members of the House. Pascrell, Payne and one other whose name I can't remember. 

 I recall Joseph Minish (D) and Dean Gallo (R). Not sure if Pascrell represented Maplewood as well as South Orange.

Maplewood's Township Committee was 100% Republican when we moved in (1976).

Pascrell used to be my rep in West Orange until we were redistricted into Frelinghuysen's district. I've always liked him.

paulsurovell said:
 I recall Joseph Minish (D) and Dean Gallo (R). Not sure if Pascrell represented Maplewood as well as South Orange.
Maplewood's Township Committee was 100% Republican when we moved in (1976).

 my recollection was from the late '90s when the eastern edge of Maplewood  was in Payne's district, the southern edge was included in a mostly Union County district and the majority of the township was in Pascrell's. 

Dang! Now GOPers are going to have to rework their charming racist poster:

Illinois Republicans are trying to quash outrage after a graphic on the Illinois Republican County Chairmen’s Association Facebook page posted Friday depicted four congresswomen of color in an action movie-style poster topped with the title “The Jihad Squad.”

In the picture, Reps. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) and Ilhan Omar (D-MN) are wielding guns, while Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), seemingly photoshopped onto a red, Bond-girl style dress, smiles in the middle.

ml1 said:
 my recollection was from the late '90s when the eastern edge of Maplewood  was in Payne's district, the southern edge was included in a mostly Union County district and the majority of the township was in Pascrell's. 

 After the 1990 census Maplewood ended up divided among three Districts. Payne in the East, Pascrell in the middle and Franks in the West. 

Franks was the one I forgot. Am I correct that all of them lived in Maplewood at that time?

The focus on the squad is not helping Democrats as they represent a tiny slice of the electorate.  Somebody needs to remind more than a few politicians that good politicians can divine what is possible and then make it happen.

tjohn said:
The focus on the squad is not helping Democrats as they represent a tiny slice of the electorate.  Somebody needs to remind more than a few politicians that good politicians can divine what is possible and then make it happen.

considering that it's the GOP and the press focusing on them, and not the Democratic Party, it's not intended to help the Democrats. 

But long term, they are much more the future of the party than the likes of Schumer, Biden, and the rest of the old guard. And what center- right middle aged white guys think now won't be that relevant to the party in a decade. 

Unless the party is aiming for irrelevance in a decade. In which case being the centrist party of Wall Street and endless wars is the way to go. 

ml1 said:
considering that it's the GOP and the press focusing on them, and not the Democratic Party, it's not intended to help the Democrats. 
But long term, they are much more the future of the party than the likes of Schumer, Biden, and the rest of the old guard. And what center- right middle aged white guys think now won't be that relevant to the party in a decade. 
Unless the party is aiming for irrelevance in a decade. In which case being the centrist party of Wall Street and endless wars is the way to go. 

Some of their ideas are the future.  Some aren't.  I cringe when people such as AOC call for the abolition of ICE.  I have no problem with ICE.  I have no problem with our Armed Forces.  I often have concerns about the elected leaders in charge of these organizations.

tjohn said:
Some of their ideas are the future.  Some aren't.  I cringe when people such as AOC call for the abolition of ICE.  I have no problem with ICE.  I have no problem with our Armed Forces.  I often have concerns about the elected leaders in charge of these organizations.

Probably because the likes of Fox News uses the ICE issue as a wedge.  Abolishing it as a standalone agency really shouldn't be seen as a strange leftist idea. But of course, it's easy to demagogue an issue like this.

ICE has had a turbulent history. Various bodies have questioned ICE’s necessity as a standalone agency, including the conservative Heritage Foundation and DHS’s own inspector general. Still, the agency’s funding and its work have grown substantially. In its latest budget, Congress approved $6.9 billion in appropriations for ICE, up from $3.6 billion in 2005, the first year an ICE budget was enacted. According to the Center for Migration Studies, the average number of immigrants ICE detains daily has nearly doubled, from just over 21,000 in 2003 to over 38,000 in 2017.

ICE agents themselves have appealed to DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen for an overhaul of the agency. In June, 19 special agents in charge at ICE’s HSI division wrote to Nielsen saying differences between the goals and functions of HSI and ERO are so great that the two should be split into separate agencies. The plea suggests that the backlash against the U.S. arrests and deportations are having an impact on transnational work as well.

https://www.brennancenter.org/blog/abolish-ice-movement-explained

tell you what.  It’s not the alleged immigration marriage and tax fraud that does it.  It’s the running for Congress afterward part. That takes balls.

Robert_Casotto said:
tell you what.  It’s not the alleged immigration marriage and tax fraud that does it.  It’s the running for Congress afterward part. That takes balls.

Especially when the White House is occupied by such a fine gentleman.  Imagine the howling if Obama was plausibly accused of the crimes of which Trump is accused.  If Obama had a habit of ditching wives when they started to get a little long in the tooth.  etc.,  etc.

it's also not considered "fraud" by the IRS.

Johnson, the tax attorney, said if taxpayers incorrectly file tax returns as “married filing jointly” where there is no legal marriage, it is typically not a criminal matter unless taxpayers have a strong intent to cheat on their taxes, or unless they directly provide false factual information

https://www.apnews.com/b49ee5604ec2435a90945820b7c973eb

Either way, she's not in the big leagues of tax fraud compared to what Trump's lawyer accused him of.

tjohn said:

Robert_Casotto said:
tell you what.  It’s not the alleged immigration marriage and tax fraud that does it.  It’s the running for Congress afterward part. That takes balls.

Especially when the White House is occupied by such a fine gentleman.  Imagine the howling if Obama was plausibly accused of the crimes of which Trump is accused.  If Obama had a habit of ditching wives when they started to get a little long in the tooth.  etc.,  etc. 

 I think the more relevant question is who ditched who? Interesting point.......our semi invisible first lady was made to sign a prenup of course.  However she is now holding a full house.  Should she leave the moron now, imagine how badly it would look for him and to his world of knuckle draggers.

Melania's net worth just tripled.

tjohn said:

ml1 said:
considering that it's the GOP and the press focusing on them, and not the Democratic Party, it's not intended to help the Democrats. 
But long term, they are much more the future of the party than the likes of Schumer, Biden, and the rest of the old guard. And what center- right middle aged white guys think now won't be that relevant to the party in a decade. 
Unless the party is aiming for irrelevance in a decade. In which case being the centrist party of Wall Street and endless wars is the way to go. 

Some of their ideas are the future.  Some aren't.  I cringe when people such as AOC call for the abolition of ICE.  I have no problem with ICE.  I have no problem with our Armed Forces.  I often have concerns about the elected leaders in charge of these organizations.

 So no one favors a "Big Tent" Party anymore?

Dem Members of Congress stretch from the so-called "Squad" on "the  Left" to NJ Congressman Jeff Van Drew on "the Right"

The republicans have become a Stalinist Party where everyone must follow the Leader whichever way he chooses to go on a given day. On member, Justin Amash, tried to be different and was forced out of the Party.