It's Over. Weiner Has Survived.

[SoDesuKa]

This Weiner thing has been kicking around long enough that there aren't any more undecideds on the issue. The ones who've called for his resignation haven't closed the sale, and barring any more revelations, it doesn't look like they're going to. It was only a matter of time before the number of potential buyers would dwindle to the point where there'd be no sale. That point has been reached. There's nobody left to convince.

The discussion now moves to academic considerations of why the people who wanted Weiner out couldn't close the sale. I think they just didn't make their case that he was too reckless to continue. He simply made a mistake, that's all. Overturning the will of the voters needs an unambiguous rationale, and Weiner's opponents haven't got a strong enough case.

The Weiner matter is already starting to fade, and I give the guy credit for hanging tough. Bravo, Anthony. We need guys who don't back down.



Weiner Opponents Fail

[rsmith6621]

1. The Wife Isnt Home and It's Not Wednesday Yet.

I think his decision has been made and he want's his wife standing by him when he announces.....and that will be on Wednesday.

[BeFree]

4. If he does resign

I will be ashamed of him for letting the rat-bastards get to him.

He needs to hang tough and let his cheap-ass attackers whither away.

[Warren DeMontague]

24. That totally should be code for something sinister.

"The Eagle has landed, the fat man wants a cheeseburger"

[Poll_Blind]

28. .

PB

[SoDesuKa]

31. "Tomorrow, When the Apricots Bloom"

I agree. "Wednesday When the Wife Returns" sounds very ominous.

"The Ball Is In Play."

"The Fishing Boats Reach the Shore."

"Chef Sprinkles Oregano on the Tuna Fish."

[Chan790]

51. I get the thing about it sounding coded...

but why do you go on in your post to talk about Chris Christie?

[Warren DeMontague]

72. He reminds me of a squirrel with nuts in his cheeks

or maybe a rabid chipmunk that got too close to the fukushima plant.

[SpiralHawk]

Wednesday: El dia de Full Moon Eclipse

[jeanmarc]

60. He'll be stripped of his committee positions, he's finished

If you present the constituents of his district a new poll where it asks the question if Weiner is stripped of his committee memberships that he should resign, I guarantee you a majority will say 'yes', he should resign.

He's finished.

[SoDesuKa]

61. Backlash

Weiner's opponents don't fear a backlash but perhaps they should. There are lots of people who think Weiner's being hounded for a mistake anybody could make. That's been my attitude from the beginning.



Phone Sex is No Big Deal.

[PhillySane]

2. Yea,

I'm not so sure he has the final say in this. The O man does not approve.

[SoDesuKa]

6. O Punted

O punted. When that happened, you knew there wouldn't be a deal.

[Marr]

36. As his most dedicated supporters are fond of saying, the O man is not a dictator.

[KingFlorez]

3. I'm not so sure about that

You have to look at all the damage that has been already done and it's pretty substantial.

[midnight]

5. K&R

[KittyWampus]

7. LOL! You forgot the House Ethics Investigation. Weiner made MANY mistakes & fucked us over.

And he will continue to do so.

LOL! Yeah, it's starting to fade. Wishful thinking. Maybe if you clap your hands.

[Name removed]

10. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator.

[SoDesuKa]

11. No Legs

If there was any way for the Republicans to use it, they would have used it in the debate. But they didn't.

Weiner will do the Letterman show and be all aw-shucks about it.

[KittyWampus]

12. LOL! Haven't been following politics much, have you. You let your opponent hang themselves.

No need to mention the idiot self destructing.

[SoDesuKa]

17. Interpreting Obama

Obama said, "If it were me, I'd resign." In football, that's called punting.

What does it mean when the president declines to weigh in on a matter that he is told affects the future of the party? It means it's not worth his attention, he's got other things to worry about.

[sabrina 1]

75. You got that wrong. They CAN'T mention it because

every time they do someone asks them, as even Greta Van Sustern did, 'what about Vitter'.

There is absolutely no reason for Weiner to go, and dozens of reasons for him to stay. The first being that regardless of any personal sexual activity he was involved in which is none of our business, he WAS set up because of being the only one to go after Justice Thomas. It started in Feb when he wrote the letter to Thomas, and intensified after Thomas had to admit to wrong-doing.

The second reason is, we have a president who has done nothing about War Crimes and Wall St. crimes. He has told us we need to forget those horrifice, deadly, crimes or the slaughter of children and the torture of men, women and children. Does he really think people can forget such things??

However on the issue of a Congressman's personal sex life, he has wagged a moralistic finger and demanded he step down. These are his priorities, his perceptions of what is right and wrong leaves a lot to be desired imo, and I lost a lot of respect for him from the time he made it clear that war crimes were not very important to him.

The people don't care what Weiner did regarging his personal sex life, no matter how many people in the Democratic party have turned into family values hypocrites.

I do not want to belong to the party of family values, who are now silenced by their own hypocrisy. We should never, ever have gotten on board with their agenda.

There is nothing wrong with sex! Is that so hard for a democrat to understand? Or is there something else going on here.

[Fla_Democrat]

18. Whut makes you think the R's

want him gone? I damn sure wouldn't. He's defanged, and filling a seat. Will he still vote the way he would anyway? Yes. Will he be able to go to the microphone or on any cable news program and make powerful speeches? I don't think so, not more than once, anyway....

Possible slap down tactics..

Yea, Anthony, don't get your boxer-briefs in a bunch.
Sure, ok, we will address that issue, just keep your pants on.
Wow, you sure are stressed, wanna borrow my cell phone?

The people who want him gone, are certainly not the republicans. It's the people who do not being lied to and played for a fool, or it is the people who feel he will become what he is, a distraction to the party.

[Forkboy]

8. You said "hanging".

[Maru Kitteh]

9. It's so cool that you were put in charge of that decision.

[SoDesuKa]

13. Reading Tea Leaves

Send me an e-mail in six months telling me that I was wrong. I will be properly abashed.

[Maru Kitteh]

77. As it turns out. I didn't need six months. Thankfully.

Now, it's almost over.

It's a damn shame that a message so strong was carried in a vessel so weak, but make no mistake, Weiner did this to himself.

[sabrina 1]

14. If he hangs in there, he will survive.

He's tough, but this has to be difficult. Still, if his contituents want him, that's what he should focus and shut out all the other noise.

Years from now when people look back at this, they will wonder what kind of primitive society this was, assuming it evolves.

[SoDesuKa]

22. Remembering Chaos

People who look back on the events of our day will note that we spent a lot of time running around in circles. The Weiner "issue" is one of many news stories that get a lot of press for a couple of weeks, then die down.

As a matter of current reality, this one's over. If the Republicans aren't bringing it up, the Democrats won't either. O all the instruments agree, this dog won't hunt.

[Zax2me]

15. Is this anything like"PROOF - WEINER ACCOUNT HACKED"?

Threads we had?

[Codeine]

63. 24 business hours, man. 24 business hours. nt

[hyphenate]

16. What's done is done

I'm on Weiner's side--why should he resign when the whole pack of Repug wolves still wander the halls of the Capitol? No fucking way Weiner should go anywhere.

I know he wanted to run for NY mayor, but that destiny might have eluded him, but I'm so fucking sick and tired of all the shit that goes down under Repug rule, and enough is enough. Weiner should stand his ground and tell everyone "fuck you!" who tries to pull him down. If his constituents are still happy with him, then there is no other reason for him to resign. There is no one--no one--who should make his decision for him, but for his wife.

The biggest mistake ANYONE can make is to assume those who are in Congress with him are somehow better than he is. Because the truth is this: EVERYONE else is doing something similar, they just haven't been caught at it, that's all.

[SoDesuKa]

19. Weiner to Say "Aw Shucks" on Letterman

Letterman did an aw shucks of his own.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XXaaKw3jLR0

[AtomicKitten]

20. I just hope there are no new photos. The drip, drip, drip is excruciating.

[Fool Count]

21. What sale? There is no one to convince but Weiner himself.

What does he really have to gain by resigning? Sparing Obama "a distraction"? Weiner probably has more important (to him) things
on his mind now. Should he resign, he is facing a loss of at least 1.5 years worth of his salary (at $174,000 annually), with no obvious
prospects for finding alternative employment. Plus his resignation puts a definitive end to his political career. By not resigning he
keeps his salary and retains a good chance of being reelected in 2012. What's on the other side of the ledger? Congressional
Democrats and Obama are slightly more annoyed with him than usual for being such a media hog. That should be a no-brainer for him.
Unless they could wield some unpublicized threat to his career, income, family or life, I don't see how Pelosi/Obama are going to make
Weiner resign. In principle, they could offer him some valuable incentive down the road, like a well-paying job in the private sector,
which would seem attractive if his reelection prospects weren't so good. But one has to question Pelosi/Obama's ability to deliver
on such a promise few years from now. So barring Weiner's self-sacrificing devotion to his party and its leaders (something we may
safely rule out by now), I don't see what else would convince him to resign. Certainly not a hidden cache of his naked pictures -
we all have seen those already.

[Rowdyboy]

23. Whats the point of surviving when you've lost all credibility? Who's gonna sponsor a bill with

Anthony Weiner? Who will work with him in committee? Sure, he can survive. Adam Clayton Powell survived for awhile back in the 1960's. Is this what you want for Weiner? Because we controlled the House in 1969. Today it will be much worse.

Oh yeah....when Powell finally gave up his fruitless attempt to cling to power he was replaced with Charlie Rangel who has been a far stronger voice for progressives than Powell ever would have been. Out of Powell's defeat was born Rangel's career. We won that trade.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Clayton_Powell,_Jr .

In January 1967, the House Democratic Caucus stripped Powell of his committee chairmanship. The full House refused to seat him until completion of the Judiciary Committee's investigation. Powell urged his supporters to "keep the faith, baby" while the investigation was under way. On March 1, the House voted 307 to 116 to exclude him. Powell said, "On this day, the day of March in my opinion, the end of the United States of America as the land of the free and the home of the brave."<7>

Powell won the Special Election to fill the vacancy caused by his exclusion but did not take his seat. He sued in Powell v. McCormack to retain his seat. In November 1968, Powell was again elected. On January 3, 1969, he was seated as a member of the 91st Congress; but he was fined $25,000 and denied seniority.<8> In June 1969, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that the House had acted unconstitutionally when it excluded Powell, a duly elected member.<9>

Powell's increasing absenteeism was noted. In June 1970, he was defeated in the Democratic primary by Charles B. Rangel. That fall, he failed to get on the November ballot as an Independent; and he resigned as minister at the Abyssinian Baptist Church and moved to his retreat on Bimini. Rangel continues to represent the district (2010).

[Warren DeMontague]

25. Who's gonna sponsor a bill with him? I dunno... Barney Frank?

How about David Wu?

[Rowdyboy]

27. Thank God Eric Holder is attorney general and not in congress....

[Warren DeMontague]

37. Eh. I'm much more Outraged about Holder letting the DEA drag pot smoking cancer grannies to jail

than I am about Weiner tweeting a picture of his dick.

[jeff47]

53. Plenty of people work with David Vitter

And he committed an actual felony. There was also Kennedy's little driving incident, yet he was the lion of the senate.

This too shall pass.

[girl gone mad]

26. Do you think there is a generational divide here?

I just can't relate to the outrage. I grew up with the internet. Sex chat/texting doesn't seem any worse than looking at pornography or reading a romance novel. It's engaging in a fantasy. He may have acted like a narcissistic idiot, but where's the crime?

[eridani]

29. Not according to yesterday's poll

Women over 45 were Weiner's strongest defenders.

[Kaleva]

33. It appeared that women over 45 dominate DU. Going by the responses.

[Scottybeamer70]

35. It isn't generational.......

I'm wayyyyyyy past 45.......and a man.........I think he should stay!

[EFerrari]

32. It's not generational, no. It's something else. n/t

[The Midway Rebel]

34. It's that some folks have an abhorrent fascination and obsession with human genitalia.

Their own and others.

[WinkyDink]

45. I believe the one you refer to is Anthony Weiner, who seems obsessed with what he perceives as note-

worthy.

[cali]

47. I think you're being a bit harsh toward Weiner.

[SoDesuKa]

40. Firedog Lake

I generally go by what Jane Hamsher has to say about things. Although she's not a friend of Weiner's for other reasons, Hamsher was appalled at the idea of forcing his resignation because some embarrassing photographs had ended up in the hands of a right wing thug like Andrew Breitbart.

Hamsher's been correct on so many issues that if I disagree with her I tend to re-evaluate my own thinking. However, I don't remember the last time I disagreed with her. She did put quite a bit of effort supporting Ned Lamont against Joe Lieberman as though Lamont had a chance. Of course, Lieberman had Barbara Boxer out campaigning for him. Barbara Boxer's now on my shit list.

[WillyT]

64. Tried To Find That Out Here:

Link: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.ph...

[OHdem10]

30. The wife is to be home tonight, MONDAY. Trip changed

Volcanic Ash made the State Dept have to come home.

[hfojvt]

38. What? No video for him?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZHwVBirqD2s

[slackmaster]

39. We must keep its spark alive by discussing its fading as it fades

[SoDesuKa]

41. I'll Settle For a Thread

I'll settle for a thread that's missing the all-too-familiar smirking references to Weineer's name or to the facts of the case. There aren't any joke variations left, but apparently it takes some folks longer to catch on.

[slackmaster]

55. What "case" are you referring to?

He's not under indictment for anything. Nobody is accusing him of any crimes. There is no "case" here.

[Raine]

42. While Obama didn't kick him under the bus he sure didn't pull him

out from under it either. Weiner gets no support from his collegues, I think he's a goner.

[SoDesuKa]

43. Wait a Week

It's not surprising that fellow politicians didn't rush to Weiner's defense until the worst was over. Politicians are often pretty craven, esp. when lending a hand to someone who might sink anyhow. In a week's time, however, look for declarations of support for Weiner from people who've up till now been silent. Then they'll say they supported the Congressman all along.

[cali]

44. It's over alright. for him. even if he doesn't resign. his district is almost

certain to be eliminated. personally, I think he'll resign, but if he doesn't, he still faces an ethics investigation and becoming one of the least relevant congresscritters.

[DCBob]

46. Hardly over. If he doesnt resign there will be a House Investigation..

which will most likely reveal he used office equipment to send the photos and messages. Serious violation.

[jeff47]

54. Except it isn't.

The regulations literally say that government equipment can be used for limited personal use. As in check one's personal email or tweet or facebook or whatever. As long as it's not the vast majority of what you do with the equipment.

The only thing banned is you can't use government equipment for fundraising.

[DCBob]

71. I dont think one is allowed to use Govt phones/computers to send obscene photos/msgs.

[jeff47]

73. Actually, one is.

In that _sending_ such material is not explicitly banned.

[DCBob]

76. If you are so sure, feel free to try it.. I suspect you will regret it.

have fun.

[sabrina 1]

56. He can do what Lieberman did, switch parties.

Lieberman got a standing ovation after betraying the party, maybe Weiner will too??

He should take Keith's advice imo. If your party won't stand by you when you have done nothing illegal and to after the criminals who are taking out Democrats one at a time, then it's best to go it alone. His constituents want him, he did nothing illegal, we are not the party of family values, he is not a hypocrite, never preached sexual morality, and stood up against discrimination based on sex for years. That's what counts. Let the party solve its own problems and if they dump him, a lot of people will be pretty angry since they are doing nothing about Clarance Thomas who has actually committed crimes and is sitting on the SC.

[SoDesuKa]

62. Cultural Lag

Phone sex isn't a threat to our social values, but our response to any kind of sexual novelty tends to be prudish. Because societies don't adapt their sexual mores as fast as technology changes, there's a cultural lag between the actually acceptance of a novelty and the perception of its acceptance.

It's a little embarrassing that a transcript of a phone sex session would be released to the newspapers. But there's no actual social harm done. Instead, people are looking for ways to punish a behavior for which there's no consensus is blameworthy.

I don't think it's necessary for Weiner to bolt the party. Democrats tend to be more realistic about changing social mores, whereas Republicans tend to be airheads and hypocrites. These are only general characteristics. There are some sensible Republicans and - hoo boy! - we've got our share of airheads and hypocrites, too.

Weiner's surviving. People are getting over themselves. Even the Republicans are keeping their distance from this non-issue, possibly because of diaper man Vitter and Oxycontin man Limbaugh.

[sabrina 1]

66. I agree with what you say. However when the leadership of

party takes the trouble to come out on a weekend to condemn someone for their own personal sexual choices, and they are talking about censure and taking away committees from him, it does seem like the Democratic Party itself, is part of the problem.

As Keith Olberman said, he should quit, then run in a special election. Personally when your party takes the position it has, the party has left you. As an Independent he will not have to be concerned with the Party's prudish attitude towards sex and may even be able to speak about this problem in a few months, so long as everything he does he does without 'embarrassing' the Party.

The truth is that it seems the Dem. Party is more and more becoming the party of family values which is truly a disappointment. They did not need to anything more than 'Rep. Weiner's constituents will decide whether he goes or stays and at this point nothing illegal has occurred so we have no other statement to make'. Instead they took a moral stand worthy of the best fundie Republicans during the Clinton administraion.

[SoDesuKa]

68. Sexual McCarthyism

It's unusual for professional politicians to get an issue completely wrong, but the leaders you're referring to have certainly overestimated the gravity of the "case" - such as it is - against Weiner. My guess is that they feel safe responding with horror to any sexual indiscretion - after all, who's going to defend a pervert?

But we've been here before, when people who should have stood up to Sen. Joseph McCarthy falied to do so . . . out of cowardice. I don't like to see actual cowardice among party leaders. They can discreetly hang back, of course. But leadership imposes some burdens on people selected for those privileged positions. They have to lead, not play it safe.

[sabrina 1]

69. That's a perfect description of what we just witnessed.

'Sexual McCarthyism' sponsored by the far right and then adapted by the Democratic Leadership.

Shameful really, and then you have the people will just take the lead of the party without thinking of the future ramifications of all of this.

Which is why imo, it is so important that Weiner does not quit. That would only give legitimacy to the witch hunt. But, I have to admit, I'm not sure I would have the strength to do it.

[liberalla]

48. I'm not as certain as you are, but I hope he makes it through

and is able to remain in Congress. Remain there until his district votes him out.

[leveymg]

49. Good. Can we turn our attention to the crimes of Clarence Thomas now?

Indict Clarence Thomas

[pipoman]

50. Oh FFS

a mistake? Really? JC.

[FreeJoe]

52. You misunderstand the dynamic

At this point, the party has determined that Weiner is a liability. They want him out. He still controls his seat and doesn't want to give up for nothing. They are negotiating. In a few days, they will probably reach an agreement and he will resign. The agreement will be his taking on a consulting/lobbying job with someone. He's not rich. He can't afford to just quit. That's the holdup.

[SoDesuKa]

59. The Devil You Know

We all agree that it would have been better if Weiner hadn't pressed the wrong button and sent an embarrassing photo out to 50,000 people. But using an embarrassing photo - or even several - hardly justifies overturning the will of the voters in Weiner's district who chose him as their Congress person.

My interpretation of President Obama's non-committal response is that he's not going to pressure Weiner into quitting. Weiner also got messages of active support from progressives, indicating to me that booting him out over a sexual indiscretion has a backlash of its own. All told, Weiner's opponents haven't closed the sale, and their window of opportunity for doing so has now closed.



Window of Opportunity Has Closed

[Dreamer Tatum]

57. I think the path is now clear to learn about this newfangled thing called Twitter.

Evidently, it uses telephones to operate.

[SoDesuKa]

65. You're Onto Something

As new techologies develop, they are implemented in predictable stages:

The first is weaponization. No sooner had people discovered iron than they applied that technology into making knives, swords and arrow heads.

Next is making musical instruments out of the new technoogy. The discovery of transistors led to the development of the electric guitar.

Later, the technology is sexualized. Nylon was developed for parachutes in World War II, but it wasn't long till people realized what it could do for women's legs.



The Advance of Technology

[fascisthunter]

58. GOOD - Clarence Thomas

that should be repeated all over the internet. Spread his name and his actions far and wide. If the media won't cover it, we should!

[HappyMe]

67. This crap isn't over just yet.

His wife will be home tomorrow. There is still the investigation. He isn't going to be assigned to any committees.

This will probably drag on for another damn week.

[sabrina 1]

70. That is why he should quit the party and become an

Independent. Aside from anything else, his vote would mean a lot more as an Independent. He could bargain with Democrats for it, instead of having them take it for granted. And when your party leaves you, I see no reason to stay especially when your constituents and your party have two different opinions.

It would relieve the Party, cowards that they are, of any 'shame' although what is shameful about sex I have yet to understand. And he would be free of a party that is increasingly less Liberal and may no longer be a suitable match for him, as he IS a Liberal on most issues.

[cali]

74. bargain with his vote? are you suggesting that he'd

not vote or vote repub? He has little to bargain with. In any case, his district is almost certain to be eliminated.

If I were you, I'd put your faith into people like my rep, Peter Welch- more liberal than Weiner, more influential, not endlessly Israel right or wrong, a better legislator, scandal free and yes, he'll remain that way.

[Imajika]

78. LOL, pretty bad call there chief...

"It's Over. Weiner Has Survived."

Wrong in spectacular fashion.

[Maru Kitteh]

82. Confusing wishful thinking for reality has been a big part of this whole debacle.

Starting with sending pictures of one's genitalia to anonymous people over the internet and expecting it to remain "private."

[AsahinaKimi]

79. Life proves it...things can sure change in a hurry...

Sort of like a strong westerly wind fanning the flames and starting a forest fire.

[lynne]

80. Appears this thread was premature . . . eom

[Zax2me]

81. NICE

[Nye Bevan]

83. AND KARL ROVE HAS BEEN INDICTED

[deaniac21]

90. That was in May.

[dbt]

84. Or not.

[pintobean]

85. "Weiner Opponents Fail"

[Name removed]

86. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator.

[LLStarks]

87. Unless you are Larry Sabato. nt

[A-Schwarzenegger]

88. Heat Sweep Mavs.

[Phentex]

89. Yes, bravo...

[A-Schwarzenegger]

91. K.

[deaniac21]

92. .