# Stupid Republican idea of the day **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [March 26, 2009, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897 "2009-03-26T18:48:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1372
**Author:** ![TonySinclair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@TonySinclair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TonySinclair)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2016, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/27422 "2016-02-17T04:28:51Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > That’s OK, Bush got him! Wait, not Bush? It was Cheney? Wolfowitz?.. The Republican revisionism on Bin Laden is disgusting. The fact is that he wasn’t indicted for any crime against the US until 1998, so Clinton had only two years to get him, and even then, he was just one of many bad guys half a world away. Nobody had any idea that he could do anything significant in North America, let alone Manhattan. Bush had over 7 years to get him after he was identified as the man behind 9/11, and couldn’t do it. So maybe it wasn’t so easy to do. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2016, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/27423 "2016-02-17T04:33:51Z")
> [@TonySinclair](#): > > Bush had over 7 years to get him after he was identified as the man behind 9/11, and couldn’t do it. So maybe it wasn’t so easy to do. It’s not that Bush _couldn’t_ do it; he chose not to. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2016, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/27424 "2016-02-17T04:39:19Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > It’s not that Bush _couldn’t_ do it; he chose not to. [The quote from Bush.](http://archives.politicususa.com/2011/05/02/bush-bin-laden.html) > [@](#): > > On March 13, 2002 then President Bush said, “We haven’t heard much from him. And I wouldn’t necessarily say he’s at the center of any command structure. And, again, I don’t know where he is. I’ll repeat what I said. **I truly am not that concerned about him.** I know he is on the run.” He not only chose not to, he didn’t give a shit. ---
**Author:** ![smithsb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smithsb/32/12107_2.png) [@smithsb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smithsb)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2016, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/27425 "2016-02-17T04:58:09Z")
Dang it. Someone posted a timeline of Bush’s called off search here on the Dope and I saved it. It’s missing; not the file, just my neurons. ---
**Author:** ![smithsb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smithsb/32/12107_2.png) [@smithsb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smithsb)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2016, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/27426 "2016-02-17T05:09:58Z")
Never mind. Here it is. [http://thinkprogress.org/bin-laden-timeline/](http://thinkprogress.org/bin-laden-timeline/) ---
**Author:** ![TonySinclair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@TonySinclair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TonySinclair)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2016, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/27427 "2016-02-17T05:23:25Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > It’s not that Bush _couldn’t_ do it; he chose not to. I find that hard to believe. I know he said he didn’t care, but I think that was probably disinformation. I think he would have loved to have caught him. ---
**Author:** ![smithsb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smithsb/32/12107_2.png) [@smithsb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smithsb)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2016, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/27428 "2016-02-17T05:33:17Z")
Derplahoman legislature is at it again. [Oklahoma subcommittee advances school anti-abortion bill](http://www.koco.com/news/Oklahoma-subcommittee-advances-school-anti-abortion-bill/38021998) Highlights: "An Oklahoma legislative subcommittee has advanced a bill that requires public schools to tell high school students that life begins at conception. the bill’s sponsor, Republican Rep. Ann Coody of Lawton, says that even if the measure becomes law, it could not be implemented this year because of budget constraints." The state is $1.3 billion in the budget hole and digging deeper but the derps have plenty of time to jam religious, anti-women measures through the legislature. Perhaps they will pass legislation that states the world is 6000 years old or Sharia law cannot be considered in court. Just kidding on that Sharia thing - they did that a few years ago. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2016, 5:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/27429 "2016-02-17T05:41:44Z")
> [@TonySinclair](#): > > I find that hard to believe. I know he said he didn’t care, but I think that was probably disinformation. I think he would have loved to have caught him. Didn’t try very hard, did he? ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2016, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/27430 "2016-02-17T06:16:29Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > [The quote from Bush.](http://archives.politicususa.com/2011/05/02/bush-bin-laden.html) > He not only chose not to, he didn’t give a shit. If you were a politician and you currently had no credible information to act on what would you say? We don’t really know to what extent Bush’s choices inhibited the ability to catch him, I despise the man but I have no doubt he’d do whatever it took to put bin Laden in a body bag. I’m just sayin, let’s keep the republican stupid idea thread on point. ---
**Author:** ![TonySinclair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@TonySinclair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TonySinclair)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2016, 7:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/27431 "2016-02-17T07:00:49Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > Didn’t try very hard, did he? How would we know? If you’re trying to find someone in hiding, you don’t call a press conference to announce every new lead you get. And the CIA doesn’t allow its former employees to publish books before they are checked for sensitive info. It may be that even though it won’t matter to Bin Laden, the techniques they employed are still highly classified. Don’t get me wrong; I think Bush is a lazy idiot. But it’s not like he had to do anything more than say, “OK, go ahead,” and I’m sure there were a lot of people in govt that wanted Bin Laden dead. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2016, 7:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/27432 "2016-02-17T07:19:19Z")
> [@BigAppleBucky](#): > > Whites are a superior race > 10% overall 16% Trumpsters > > Yep, stupid squared. > [@running\_coach](#): > > I’m surprised it’s that low. Progress! ---
**Author:** ![Mollie\_Magill](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mollie_magill/32/20882_2.png) [@Mollie\_Magill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mollie_Magill)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2016, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/27433 "2016-02-17T15:03:17Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > [QUOTE=BigAppleBucky] > South Carolina Trump supporters - stupid squared? > > PPP poll that came out today (Feb 16). Some breakouts > > Overall Republicans vs Trump supporters > Whites are a superior race > 10% overall 16% Trumpsters > > Yep, stupid squared. I’m surprised it’s that low. [/QUOTE] I’m not. Asking whether someone agrees with the statement “whites are a superior race” is just like asking “Are you a racist?” All but the most strident racists will deny being a racist. I’m sure if those polled had been asked a more subtle question, we would have seen a much higher percentage. I’m sure many of the people who disagreed with the statement often say things like, “Well, I can’t say what I really think, because it wouldn’t be politically correct.” At this point, I’m waiting for Trump to go ahead and call Obama the Nigger in Chief, or something like that. I have a bad feeling that would only make his numbers go up. ---
**Author:** ![BigAppleBucky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigapplebucky/32/178_2.png) [@BigAppleBucky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigAppleBucky)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2016, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/27434 "2016-02-17T15:54:27Z")
> [@Mollie\_Magill](#): > > I’m not. Asking whether someone agrees with the statement “whites are a superior race” is just like asking “Are you a racist?” All but the most strident racists will deny being a racist. I’m sure if those polled had been asked a more subtle question, we would have seen a much higher percentage. I’m sure many of the people who disagreed with the statement often say things like, “Well, I can’t say what I really think, because it wouldn’t be politically correct.” > > At this point, I’m waiting for Trump to go ahead and call Obama the Nigger in Chief, or something like that. I have a bad feeling that would only make his numbers go up. Well 54% of SC Republicans favor hanging the Confederate flag on the capitol grounds and 70% Trumpsters feel the same way. So yes. ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2016, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/27435 "2016-02-17T17:33:20Z")
> [@Sitnam](#): > > If you were a politician and you currently had no credible information to act on what would you say? We don’t really know to what extent Bush’s choices inhibited the ability to catch him, I despise the man but I have no doubt he’d do whatever it took to put bin Laden in a body bag. > > I’m just sayin, let’s keep the republican stupid idea thread on point. Here’s what I would say, and its not all that difficult to imagine a good politician saying it. I’d say that we’re currently trying everything possible to find and capture him. I’d praise the men and women in the military doing a tireless hunt in the far off places in the world, chasing every lead and looking in every cave. However, I’d lower expectations by telling everyone that this is difficult, like finding a needle in an Afghanistan-sized haystack. But then I’d end it by sounding strong and confident, hammering the point that his terror networks are being dismantled, and that bin Laden himself is scared and on the run. What Bush said was he didn’t know and he didn’t care. Don’t ascribe to him any competence than he deserves. In this case, I’m willing to take his word for it because it wasn’t a politically smart or beneficial thing to do. Bush basically called off the manhunt for the man responsible for 9/11. If nothing else, that’s how I’ll always remember his 9/11 legacy ---
**Author:** ![Abe\_Babe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3ab097/32.png) [@Abe\_Babe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Abe_Babe)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2016, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/27436 "2016-02-17T17:54:57Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > [Michael Savage and The Donald are way ahead of you.](http://mediamatters.org/blog/2016/02/16/trump-joins-radio-ally-to-fuel-scalia-murder-co/208604) This is what made me laugh the most here: > [@](#): > > TRUMP: You know usually I like to give you answers I can’t remember ever getting an answer from him ---
**Author:** ![Spavined\_Gelding](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/958977/32.png) [@Spavined\_Gelding](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spavined_Gelding)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2016, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/27437 "2016-02-17T17:56:22Z")
I can’t say that I am surprised to see that a fair percentage of South Carolina Republicans would like the Confederate Battle Flag (the red rag of the rebellion) displayed in Columbia. Despite the usurpation during the civil right struggle of anything noble that thing may have stood for, there is still a certain romance in the memory of the service of thousands of South Carolinians during the Civil War and an element of defiance of the strangers (including one of my ancestors) who burned down Columbia in 1865. It is not pretty but it is no surprise. What is a surprise is that 10% of them are willing to come out flat footed fro White Supremacy. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2016, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/27438 "2016-02-17T21:15:36Z")
[West Virginia Republicans want to protect Uber drivers from having to drive gay people.](http://wonkette.com/598848/west-virginia-lawmakers-will-protect-uber-drivers-from-gays-who-want-to-ride-them#CxssJW8eTAgf5yoI.99) ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2016, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/27439 "2016-02-17T21:38:43Z")
> [@Not\_Carlson](#): > > I think there is a near 100% certainty that we’ll soon see some bigoted non-trans moron walking into opposite-sex toilets in an ass-backward attempt to prove . . . something. > Like the people who commit voter fraud to prove that voter fraud exists. [And the trolling begins.](http://www.king5.com/story/news/local/seattle/2016/02/16/man-womens-locker-room-cites-gender-rule/80478058/) > [@](#): > > It was a busy time at Evans Pool around 5:30pm Monday February 8. The pool was open for lap swim. According to Seattle Parks and Recreation, a man wearing board shorts entered the women’s locker room and took off his shirt. Women alerted staff, who told the man to leave, but he said “the law has changed and I have a right to be here.” > > “Really bizarre,” MaryAnne Sato said. “I can’t imagine why they would want to do that anyway!” > > Sato uses the locker room a few times a week, but she says this is a first for her. It’s also a first for Seattle Parks and Recreation. Employees report that the man made no verbal or physical attempt to identify as a woman, yet he still cited a new rule that allows bathroom choice based on gender identification. > > No one was arrested in this case and police weren’t called, even though the man returned a second time while young girls were changing for swim practice. > > “Sort of works against the point they’re trying to make. They’re causing people to feel exposed and vulnerable with the intention of reducing people feeling exposed and vulnerable,” said pool regular Aldan Shank. ---
**Author:** ![Grsz11](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Grsz11](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grsz11)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2016, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/27440 "2016-02-17T22:10:38Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > [And the trolling begins.](http://www.king5.com/story/news/local/seattle/2016/02/16/man-womens-locker-room-cites-gender-rule/80478058/) Seriously, fuck that guy. ---
**Author:** ![lance\_strongarm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/87869e/32.png) [@lance\_strongarm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lance_strongarm)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2016, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/27441 "2016-02-17T23:00:02Z")
> [@Grsz11](#): > > Seriously, fuck that guy. Why? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897.md?page=1371) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897.md?page=1373)