The Unlikable Teddy Cruz Quits

Cruz prepares to eat his wife. Image from source, MSN

I didn't expect it, did you? No other embarrassing loss prior to tonight could shake Ted Cruz before Tuesday night. But there, right after one of his patented "victory from defeat" (and let's not forget God before country) speeches, Ted Cruz up and quit. And right after picking the equally unlikable Carly Fiorina as his running mate, too.

But there he goes. Old squiddy face is going back to the Senate, and leaving John Kasich to. . .what. . .tilt at a few more windmills? Try to swoop into the convention and steal the nomination? I can't see it.

But this whole thing has been so bizarre, end-to-end, who the hell knows anymore? The only thing we know for sure is that we don't know for sure.

[Excerpt]

Ted Cruz drops out of the Republican presidential race

Ted Cruz, the insurgent Texan whose presidential campaign was fueled by disdain for Washington, dropped out of the 2016 race Tuesday night, removing the last major hurdle in Donald Trump’s quest to become the Republican nominee for president. . .


Read more at: MSN

GOP Clown Car Gets Less Crowded (Dem Side Down to Two)

It was bound to happen. It's still too full. But the 2016 GOP Presidential Clown Car is finally shaking loose some of its more useless passengers. It's difficult to tell if the crazy level has dropped on average. I mean, Rand Paul is out of there, but he's always been half reasonable/half cuckoo. Mike Huckabee somehow got his fat behind out of that little trunk, but he wasn't ever so much crazy as oily and evil.  Rick Santorum was a frothy mix of very sincere (but awful) religious principles, and desperation. . .with maybe a little crazy in with the lube and unfortunate fecal matter.

But they're leaving behind the primary drivers, Donald J. Trump and Rafael "Ted" Cruz, who between them encompass at least a dozen overlapping negative qualities to different degrees, including batshit crazy. It's a VENN diagram I don't even want to contemplate. Still stuffed in the back seat are Ben "Dr. Stabby" Carson, Jim "Who?" Gilmore, Carly "Bring me those puppies!" Fiorina, (poor, sad) Jeb! Bush and John "Dishwater" Kasich. Marco Rubio is climbing furiously over the center console to try to get a front seat, and I'm guessing Chris Christie is on the roof rack, or tied to the fender or something. But it has to be a little more comfortable with three losers dumped out at the curb.

Likewise, the much smaller batch of Democrats can now focus a little better, being pared down to two after the departure of the dull but dreamy Martin O'Malley. Thursday night's debate, co-moderated by Rachel Maddow, will be the first one-on-one debate of the whole dang 2016 season. No kid's table, no extraneous candidates.

Buckle up kids, we're finally getting the whole thing in actual gear after sputtering around for over a year!

Impressions: 2016 GOP Debate #2

Embarrassing.

Fascinating. Entertaining. Baffling, Crazy. Boring. Interminable. Endless. And ultimately, still embarrassing.

The GOP/conservative/Republican/Tea Party contingent is a confounding, self-contradictory mélange of mostly crap with the occasional flash of wit or inspiration, dashed with horrifying lack of self awareness, anti-American and anti-constitutional (but simultaneously allegedly patriotic) fervor, and crazy religiosity. Impressions:

Image from source,
Washington Post

- Carly Fiorina acquitted herself nicely, and was unquestionably the winner. She's awful, but for this crowd, she was terrific.

- Donald Trump hurt himself with thinking people (who he was already not doing well with), and hopefully with some less fervent supporters. If he goes up in popularity, it's not for any reality-based reason from this debate.

- Ben Carson came off slightly better and a tiny bit more animated than he has in the past, though could get a job voicing Winnie the Pooh.

- Ted Cruz was just as creepy and face-punchable as ever. Jesus and meanness and creepy facey-ness.

- Marco Rubio was smart (-ish), and articulate, but oddly juvenile, while also bearing huge old man ears.

- Chris Christie managed to be more amiable and dickish.

- John Kasich looked like he woke up after a long slumber with his face pressed against a pillow, and bed head. He made sense (sometimes) but looked like hell.

- Ron Paul looked extra-weasely, and landed few punches, though he tried. He actually sounded a little reasonable. . .too often to make me comfortable.

- Mike Huckabee is a Dominionist prick who should never, ever be near the levers of power.

- Scott Walker was sleepy-eyed, but occasionally reared his head and made a semi-coherent point.

- Jeb! Bush was mostly reasonable, but not above pandering. I can't imagine he'll budge an inch.

From the kiddie table, you had two Jesus freaks (Jindal and Santorum) and two sorta-kinda normals (Pataki and Graham). They arguably got more airtime than they every would have otherwise, particularly without Rick Perry, but fit the tone of this clown show pretty well.

Embarrassing is still my assessment.


[Excerpt]

Fiorina emerges in GOP debate, but Trump still dominates conversation

The second Republican debate, a three-hour affair that veered from sophomoric insults to policy to late-night silliness, ended after 11 p.m. Wednesday, with an outsider candidate — former tech executive Carly Fiorina — challenging front-runner Donald Trump in a way few rivals have.
 . .

Read more at: MSN

Rick Perry Bails Out of the 2016 GOP Clown Car

The Other Half was just telling me earlier today that he originally thought Rick Perry would be a contender, back in 2012. I thought the same, I thought he'd be more of a force. I was less worried about it this time, after his goofy performance four years ago. But for all the hype and buzz he used to have, he's the first one to have his torch snuffed out. Oops.

[Excerpt]

Rick Perry drops out of race for 2016 Republican presidential nomination

Former Texas governor Rick Perry has announced that he is dropping out of the race for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination. Perry is first in the Republican field to exit the race. His campaign ran into financial trouble after he did not poll high enough to participate in the first presidential debate.
. . .

Read more at: The Guardian