The 2020 Presidential Election Primary Thread

[frank ryan]

John Hickenlooper, the former gov of Colorado announced. He’s a good pragmatic choice.

[BigFatMeanie]

John Hickenlooper, the former gov of Colorado announced. He’s a good pragmatic choice.

Yeah, Hickenlooper isn't too bad. If the Dems can manage to nominate someone that isn't completely whack, I might be able to cast a Democratic vote for president for the first time in my life, instead of throwing it away on some no-chance candidate like I did in 2016. (I will never vote for Trump or one of the left-wing whack-jobs.)

[BlueK]

This current Republican member of Congress is reportedly considering running for president as the Libertarian party candidate. The more I read about him the more I like him. Naturally he wouldn't have a chance to win but I'd feel good about about my vote. I would also consider voting for the dem candidate if it isn't one of the far left wackos.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justin_Amash

[frank ryan]

This current Republican member of Congress is reportedly considering running for president as the Libertarian party candidate. The more I read about him the more I like him. Naturally he wouldn't have a chance to win but I'd feel good about about my vote. I would also consider voting for the dem candidate if it isn't one of the far left wackos.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justin_Amash

Don't do it. Amash is part of the Jim Jordan, Mark Meadows crowd, in other words, a Tea Party wacko. He hasn't exactly been the voice of constraint, not has he done anything to hold his party accountable. You're in Texas, vote for the person who might win. Stakes are too high.

[mtnbiker]

John Hickenlooper, the former gov of Colorado announced. He’s a good pragmatic choice.

No way. That weenie is anti-2nd amendment and signed a bunch of gun control legislation. Several state reps got recalled over it. Magpul, for one, left the state over it.

[frank ryan]

No way. That weenie is anti-2nd amendment and signed a bunch of gun control legislation. Several state reps got recalled over it. Magpul, for one, left the state over it.

I haven't heard about that but there's not going to be a conservative democratic nominee. I'm not sure what people consider anti-second ammendment especially with NRA having sailed into full-throated, extreme right-wing territory.


I googled what Hickenlooper passed, legislation banning high magazine weapons and requiring background checks. Doesn't seem egregious.

[Moliere]

Don't do it. Amash is part of the Jim Jordan, Mark Meadows crowd, in other words, a Tea Party wacko. He hasn't exactly been the voice of constraint, not has he done anything to hold his party accountable. You're in Texas, vote for the person who might win. Stakes are too high.

Um, Texas isn’t in play for the Dems. Sure, people thought it would be close for Clinton, but it wasn’t close.

[frank ryan]

Um, Texas isn’t in play for the Dems. Sure, people thought it would be close for Clinton, but it wasn’t close.

It's within striking distance.

[BlueK]

It's within striking distance.

Yes, but if Texas is in play it most likely means Trump is getting a beatdown nationally and losing in every swing state.

[BlueK]

Don't do it. Amash is part of the Jim Jordan, Mark Meadows crowd, in other words, a Tea Party wacko. He hasn't exactly been the voice of constraint, not has he done anything to hold his party accountable. You're in Texas, vote for the person who might win. Stakes are too high.

Amash may have been originally lazily lumped by others into that group when he first won, but he's really not anything like Jordan or Meadows. If you watched or listened to the Cohen hearing he was the only Republican who was not acting like a hyper-partisan idiot or asking stupid questions. He asked Cohen what he thought Trump feared, which I wish Cohen had answered better.

Amash is a moderate libertarian as evidenced by what he has actually voted for or against in Congress:

"Amash voted against the reauthorization of the Patriot Act, favored a measure to repeal indefinite detention, and opposed reauthorization of the FISA Amendments Act."[40]

Amash is pro-life. He opposes abortion and the use of federal funding for abortion.[47]

Amash voted "present" rather than "yes" or "no" on the 2011 Full Year Continuing Appropriations Act, which provided for the cessation of federal funding to Planned Parenthood. He explained, "Legislation that names a specific private organization to defund (rather than all organizations that engage in a particular activity) is improper and arguably unconstitutional"

Amash joined 104 Democrats and 16 Republicans in voting against the 2012 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which specified the budget and expenditures of the Department of Defense,[59] calling it "one of the most anti-liberty pieces of legislation of our lifetime".[60] Amash co-sponsored an amendment to the NDAA that would ban indefinite military detention and military trials so that all terror suspects arrested in the United States would be tried in civilian courts. He expressed concern that individuals charged with terrorism could be jailed for prolonged periods of time without ever being formally charged or brought to trial.[61]

Amash has expressed opposition to political gerrymandering. He said in 2018, "I firmly believe there should be an independent process for drawing districts. They should be based on geographic considerations, and they should be as compact and contiguous as possible...I always felt the maps should be drawn in a way that is less political and more based on geographic considerations."[65] As of February 2019, Amash was the only member of Michigan's GOP congressional delegation who was not fighting a federal lawsuit challenging the state's political boundaries.[66]

In July 2018 House Republicans introduced a resolution supporting the officers and personnel of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Amash was the only Republican in the chamber to vote against the resolution.[72][73] He tweeted, "The House voted today on an inane resolution regarding ICE. The resolution makes several dubious claims and denounces calls to abolish ICE. I wouldn't abolish ICE without an alternative, but there's no reason to treat a federal agency as though it's beyond reproach and reform."[73]

In December 2018 Amash was one of eight House Republicans to vote against a stopgap government funding bill that included $5.7 billion in border wall funding. Amash tweeted, "This massive, wasteful spending bill—stuffed with unrelated items—passed 217-185. It’s amazing how some wall funding causes my fellow Republicans to embrace big government."[74]

In February 2019 Amash was the only House Republican to co-sponsor a resolution blocking Trump’s national emergency declaration seeking additional funds to build physical barriers on the southern border. He tweeted, "A national emergency declaration for a non-emergency is void. A prerequisite for declaring an emergency is that the situation requires immediate action and Congress does not have an opportunity to act. @POTUS @realDonaldTrump is attempting to circumvent our constitutional system."[75] On February 25, Amash was one of 13 House Republicans to vote to block Trump's declaration.[76]

Amash and fellow U.S. Representative Ted Lieu (D-CA) introduced a bill[77] to block the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) from financing its Cannabis Eradication Program through civil asset forfeitures.[78]

According to a DEA performance budget submitted to Congress for the fiscal year (FY) 2014, the DEA received $18 million in FY 2013 funding for cannabis eradication from the Department of Justice's Asset Forfeiture Fund.[79] Amash took aim at civil asset forfeiture in a statement, saying that the practice allows for "innocent people to have their property taken without sufficient due process".[80]

Amash co-sponsored H.R. 1227, also known as the Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act of 2017. The bill was introduced by U.S. Representative Thomas Garrett (R-VA).[81]

Amash supported a repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act, saying that the "real threat" to traditional marriage and religious liberty is government, not gay couples.[47

Amash has been a frequent critic of the National Security Agency's anti-terrorism surveillance programs.[18][83][84]

He voted against the 2011 reauthorization of the USA PATRIOT Act,[85] the 2012 reauthorization of the FISA Amendments Act,[86] and the USA Freedom Act.[87]

Amash opposed President Donald Trump's 2017 executive order to temporarily curtail Muslim immigration until better screening methods are devised. He stated: "Like Pres. Obama's executive actions on immigration, Pres. Trump's executive order overreaches and undermines our constitutional system."[88]

Amash proposed an amendment to the reauthorization bill of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.[89] The Amash amendment would have required the government in criminal cases to seek a warrant based on probable cause before searching surveillance data for information about Americans.[90][91] While the Amash amendment received bipartisan support as well as support from civil liberties groups including the American Civil Liberties Union,[92] the amendment ultimately failed by a vote of 183 to 233.[93]

In 2016 Amash made headlines by joining the list of Republicans who opposed the GOP nominee for President, Donald Trump.[97][98][99] After Trump was elected president, the Huffington Post profiled him in an article with the following title, "The One House Republican Who Can't Stop Criticizing Donald Trump." Amash said, "I'm not here to represent a particular political party; I'm here to represent all of my constituents and to follow the Constitution."[100][101]

On January 14, 2017, Trump sent out a series of tweets criticizing Rep. John Lewis (D-GA), one of the main leaders in the 1960s civil rights movement. Amash responded with a quick quip, "Dude, just stop."[102]

On April 1, 2017, senior White House aide Dan Scavino tweeted that Amash was "a big liability" and urged followers to "defeat him in primary." Amash later referred to Trump as a "childish bully," saying that his attacks would be "constructive in the fifth grade. It may allow a child to get his way, but that's not how our government works."[100][103]

In May 2017 Trump was accused of pressuring fired FBI director James Comey to end an investigation into former national security adviser Michael Flynn. Amash was reported as the first Republican congressman to publicly state that the allegations, if proven true, merited impeachment.[104] This report is contested by the office of Rep. Carlos Curbelo (R-FL), who claims that he was the first to recognize that if true, the allegations merit impeachment.[105][106]

In June 2018 the Huffington Post asked House Republicans, "If the president pardoned himself, would they support impeachment?" Amash was the only Republican who said "definitively he would support impeachment..."[107] In July 2018 Amash strongly criticized Trump's press conference with Russian president Vladimir Putin. Amash tweeted, "The impression it left on me, a strong supporter of the meeting, is that 'something is not right here.' The president went out of his way to appear subordinate. He spoke more like the head of a vassal state."[108]

When Trump's former attorney Michael Cohen testified before the House Oversight Committee on February 27, 2019, Amash asked him, "What is the truth President Trump is most afraid of people knowing?" Democrat Krystal Ball wrote, "Amash showed how someone actually can exercise oversight responsibility and try to get to the truth, even if the truth might not be in his party’s short-term best interest."[109] CNN editor Chris Cillizza wrote, "The Michigan Republican did something on Wednesday that almost none of his GOP colleagues seemed willing to even try: Ask Cohen questions about his relationship with Trump that might actually shed some new light on not only their relationship but on the President of the United States."[110]

--------------------------------
He's definitely NOT a Trumpist. We'd be much better off if most Republicans in Congress were more like this guy and less like the bozos who are just enabling a moron president.

[Moliere]

It's within striking distance.

[frank ryan]

Amash may have been originally lazily lumped by others into that group when he first won, but he's really not anything like Jordan or Meadows. If you watched or listened to the Cohen hearing he was the only Republican who was not acting like a hyper-partisan idiot or asking stupid questions. He asked Cohen what he thought Trump feared, which I wish Cohen had answered better.

Amash is a moderate libertarian as evidenced by what he has actually voted for or against in Congress:

"Amash voted against the reauthorization of the Patriot Act, favored a measure to repeal indefinite detention, and opposed reauthorization of the FISA Amendments Act."[40]

Amash is pro-life. He opposes abortion and the use of federal funding for abortion.[47]

Amash voted "present" rather than "yes" or "no" on the 2011 Full Year Continuing Appropriations Act, which provided for the cessation of federal funding to Planned Parenthood. He explained, "Legislation that names a specific private organization to defund (rather than all organizations that engage in a particular activity) is improper and arguably unconstitutional"

Amash joined 104 Democrats and 16 Republicans in voting against the 2012 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which specified the budget and expenditures of the Department of Defense,[59] calling it "one of the most anti-liberty pieces of legislation of our lifetime".[60] Amash co-sponsored an amendment to the NDAA that would ban indefinite military detention and military trials so that all terror suspects arrested in the United States would be tried in civilian courts. He expressed concern that individuals charged with terrorism could be jailed for prolonged periods of time without ever being formally charged or brought to trial.[61]

Amash has expressed opposition to political gerrymandering. He said in 2018, "I firmly believe there should be an independent process for drawing districts. They should be based on geographic considerations, and they should be as compact and contiguous as possible...I always felt the maps should be drawn in a way that is less political and more based on geographic considerations."[65] As of February 2019, Amash was the only member of Michigan's GOP congressional delegation who was not fighting a federal lawsuit challenging the state's political boundaries.[66]

In July 2018 House Republicans introduced a resolution supporting the officers and personnel of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Amash was the only Republican in the chamber to vote against the resolution.[72][73] He tweeted, "The House voted today on an inane resolution regarding ICE. The resolution makes several dubious claims and denounces calls to abolish ICE. I wouldn't abolish ICE without an alternative, but there's no reason to treat a federal agency as though it's beyond reproach and reform."[73]

In December 2018 Amash was one of eight House Republicans to vote against a stopgap government funding bill that included $5.7 billion in border wall funding. Amash tweeted, "This massive, wasteful spending bill—stuffed with unrelated items—passed 217-185. It’s amazing how some wall funding causes my fellow Republicans to embrace big government."[74]

In February 2019 Amash was the only House Republican to co-sponsor a resolution blocking Trump’s national emergency declaration seeking additional funds to build physical barriers on the southern border. He tweeted, "A national emergency declaration for a non-emergency is void. A prerequisite for declaring an emergency is that the situation requires immediate action and Congress does not have an opportunity to act. @POTUS @realDonaldTrump is attempting to circumvent our constitutional system."[75] On February 25, Amash was one of 13 House Republicans to vote to block Trump's declaration.[76]

Amash and fellow U.S. Representative Ted Lieu (D-CA) introduced a bill[77] to block the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) from financing its Cannabis Eradication Program through civil asset forfeitures.[78]

According to a DEA performance budget submitted to Congress for the fiscal year (FY) 2014, the DEA received $18 million in FY 2013 funding for cannabis eradication from the Department of Justice's Asset Forfeiture Fund.[79] Amash took aim at civil asset forfeiture in a statement, saying that the practice allows for "innocent people to have their property taken without sufficient due process".[80]

Amash co-sponsored H.R. 1227, also known as the Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act of 2017. The bill was introduced by U.S. Representative Thomas Garrett (R-VA).[81]

Amash supported a repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act, saying that the "real threat" to traditional marriage and religious liberty is government, not gay couples.[47

Amash has been a frequent critic of the National Security Agency's anti-terrorism surveillance programs.[18][83][84]

He voted against the 2011 reauthorization of the USA PATRIOT Act,[85] the 2012 reauthorization of the FISA Amendments Act,[86] and the USA Freedom Act.[87]

Amash opposed President Donald Trump's 2017 executive order to temporarily curtail Muslim immigration until better screening methods are devised. He stated: "Like Pres. Obama's executive actions on immigration, Pres. Trump's executive order overreaches and undermines our constitutional system."[88]

Amash proposed an amendment to the reauthorization bill of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.[89] The Amash amendment would have required the government in criminal cases to seek a warrant based on probable cause before searching surveillance data for information about Americans.[90][91] While the Amash amendment received bipartisan support as well as support from civil liberties groups including the American Civil Liberties Union,[92] the amendment ultimately failed by a vote of 183 to 233.[93]

In 2016 Amash made headlines by joining the list of Republicans who opposed the GOP nominee for President, Donald Trump.[97][98][99] After Trump was elected president, the Huffington Post profiled him in an article with the following title, "The One House Republican Who Can't Stop Criticizing Donald Trump." Amash said, "I'm not here to represent a particular political party; I'm here to represent all of my constituents and to follow the Constitution."[100][101]

On January 14, 2017, Trump sent out a series of tweets criticizing Rep. John Lewis (D-GA), one of the main leaders in the 1960s civil rights movement. Amash responded with a quick quip, "Dude, just stop."[102]

On April 1, 2017, senior White House aide Dan Scavino tweeted that Amash was "a big liability" and urged followers to "defeat him in primary." Amash later referred to Trump as a "childish bully," saying that his attacks would be "constructive in the fifth grade. It may allow a child to get his way, but that's not how our government works."[100][103]

In May 2017 Trump was accused of pressuring fired FBI director James Comey to end an investigation into former national security adviser Michael Flynn. Amash was reported as the first Republican congressman to publicly state that the allegations, if proven true, merited impeachment.[104] This report is contested by the office of Rep. Carlos Curbelo (R-FL), who claims that he was the first to recognize that if true, the allegations merit impeachment.[105][106]

In June 2018 the Huffington Post asked House Republicans, "If the president pardoned himself, would they support impeachment?" Amash was the only Republican who said "definitively he would support impeachment..."[107] In July 2018 Amash strongly criticized Trump's press conference with Russian president Vladimir Putin. Amash tweeted, "The impression it left on me, a strong supporter of the meeting, is that 'something is not right here.' The president went out of his way to appear subordinate. He spoke more like the head of a vassal state."[108]

When Trump's former attorney Michael Cohen testified before the House Oversight Committee on February 27, 2019, Amash asked him, "What is the truth President Trump is most afraid of people knowing?" Democrat Krystal Ball wrote, "Amash showed how someone actually can exercise oversight responsibility and try to get to the truth, even if the truth might not be in his party’s short-term best interest."[109] CNN editor Chris Cillizza wrote, "The Michigan Republican did something on Wednesday that almost none of his GOP colleagues seemed willing to even try: Ask Cohen questions about his relationship with Trump that might actually shed some new light on not only their relationship but on the President of the United States."[110]

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He's definitely NOT a Trumpist. We'd be much better off if most Republicans in Congress were more like this guy and less like the bozos who are just enabling a moron president.

That's some good stuff. He definitely seems different than Jordan when you read that.

[Northwestcoug]

Biden 2020!

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[wapiti]

Biden 2020!

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A great example of why Twitter sucks.

[Moliere]

The 2020 Presidential Election Primary Thread

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Beto is in

:rockon2::condom: