# 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:** 2202
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2020, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/44029 "2020-04-16T18:38:43Z")
Steve Mnuchin thinks Americans can live on $1,200 for 10 weeks. > ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2020, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/44030 "2020-04-16T19:13:23Z")
Well, sure. If you don’t have a house, or an apartment, or an electric bill, or a phone, or any other bill and all you need to do is find enough protein to keep yourself alive, he’s got a point. ---
**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:** [April 16, 2020, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/44031 "2020-04-16T19:31:07Z")
Scott Adams, Dilbert cartoonist and Individual 1 fanboy, thinks hundreds of thousands of deaths would be an appropriate risk to reopen the economy. > Dr. Oz, Individual 1 fanboy, calls the deaths of 1 to 2 per cent of children an “appetizing opportunity” if schools are reopened. > **[Dr. Oz says reopening schools is an 'appetizing opportunity' because only...](https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/4/16/1937803/-Dr-Oz-says-reopening-schools-is-an-appetizing-opportunity-because-only-2-3-will-die)** > > Dr. Mehmet Oz is a television quack. He’s been busted for pushing dietary supplements he was making profits off of as medical “miracles.” They weren’t. He was using his perceived medical expertise to generate profits for himself at the expense of... ---
**Author:** ![Running\_with\_Scissors](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a183cd/32.png) [@Running\_with\_Scissors](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Running_with_Scissors)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2020, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/44032 "2020-04-16T20:24:43Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > Scott Adams, Dilbert cartoonist and Individual 1 fanboy, thinks hundreds of thousands of deaths would be an appropriate risk to reopen the economy. > > Dr. Oz, Individual 1 fanboy, calls the deaths of 1 to 2 per cent of children an “appetizing opportunity” if schools are reopened. Just to remind everyone: Republicans are the _pro-life_ party (_life_ being defined as that time before you are born). ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2020, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/44033 "2020-04-16T21:49:46Z")
**[EPA overhauls mercury pollution rule, despite opposition from industry and activists alike](https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2020/04/16/epa-overhauls-mercury-pollution-rule-despite-opposition-industry-activists-alike/)** > [@](#): > > The Environmental Protection Agency changed the way the federal government calculates the costs and benefits of dangerous air pollutants, a shift that could restrict the ability of regulators to control toxins in the future. > > The move announced Thursday, one in a series of actions taken by the Trump administration that experts say will likely increase air pollution, comes as the nation is fighting a deadly respiratory virus. > > In its controversial decision, the EPA declared that it is not “appropriate and necessary” for the government to limit mercury and other harmful pollutants from power plants, even though every utility in America has complied with standards put in place in 2011 under President Barack Obama. > > While the agency technically plans to keep existing restrictions on mercury, the changes mean the government would not be able to count collateral benefits — such as reducing soot and smog — when it sets limits on toxic air pollutants. > > Some coal executives lobbied for the rollback, calling the Obama-era rule one of the worst examples of what President Trump has labeled the “war on coal.” > > But most utilities urged the EPA to leave intact a rule they once opposed. Some share the concerns of environmental advocates, who worry that the change could lead to a legal challenge, prompting some power plants to turn off their pollution controls to save money and ultimately sicken more Americans. > … Republicans are still carrying out their agenda in the background while all eyes are on COVID-19. :mad: ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2020, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/44034 "2020-04-16T22:38:27Z")
> [@All the plans to reopen the economy are terrible in different ways](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-the-plans-to-reopen-the-economy-are-terrible-in-different-ways/851591/99): > > It depends on your assumptions. We have been under lockdown for about 5 weeks now, and are seeing deaths around 2,000-2,500 per day. That rate is over 60k dead per month. Not too far off of your 100k per month. > > What would that rate be if we had open schools Very soon China will have reopened its schools, albeit just two grades and those are stagggered, so we’ll have an answer to that question for at least one country. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2020, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/44035 "2020-04-16T22:39:36Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > Steve Mnuchin thinks Americans can live on $1,200 for 10 weeks. > > [https://twitter.com/BWestbrookAZ8/status/1250563107874918400?s=19](https://twitter.com/BWestbrookAZ8/status/1250563107874918400?s=19) I would like to compel him to live on that amount of funds for that length of time and see how well he does. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2020, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/44036 "2020-04-16T22:41:20Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > Scott Adams, Dilbert cartoonist and Individual 1 fanboy, thinks hundreds of thousands of deaths would be an appropriate risk to reopen the economy. > [https://twitter.com/ScottAdamsSays/status/1250416592363483136](https://twitter.com/ScottAdamsSays/status/1250416592363483136) > > Dr. Oz, Individual 1 fanboy, calls the deaths of 1 to 2 per cent of children an “appetizing opportunity” if schools are reopened. > [Dr. Oz says reopening schools is an 'appetizing opportunity' because only 2%-3% will die](https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/4/16/1937803/-Dr-Oz-says-reopening-schools-is-an-appetizing-opportunity-because-only-2-3-will-die) Has anyone but me noted the irony of most of these people calling to “reopen” the nation and let people die to protect the stock market all seem to be men… who die at twice the rate of women when they get a severe form of this disease. It’s almost like it’s a plague directed at idiots… except non-idiots are getting zapped by it, too. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2020, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/44037 "2020-04-16T22:46:36Z")
Oops. #44507 is in the wrong thread. Sorry about that, folks. ---
**Author:** ![aurora\_maire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aurora_maire/32/328_2.png) [@aurora\_maire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aurora_maire)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2020, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/44038 "2020-04-16T23:32:42Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > Scott Adams, Dilbert cartoonist and Individual 1 fanboy, thinks hundreds of thousands of deaths would be an appropriate risk to reopen the economy. > [https://twitter.com/ScottAdamsSays/status/1250416592363483136](https://twitter.com/ScottAdamsSays/status/1250416592363483136) > > Dr. Oz, Individual 1 fanboy, calls the deaths of 1 to 2 per cent of children an “appetizing opportunity” if schools are reopened. > [Dr. Oz says reopening schools is an 'appetizing opportunity' because only 2%-3% will die](https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/4/16/1937803/-Dr-Oz-says-reopening-schools-is-an-appetizing-opportunity-because-only-2-3-will-die) You know, I’ve got an idea. All these folks are saying that the least vulnerable people should go back to work. Well, who are the least vulnerable? The children. Send your kids to work instead of school! Laws don’t matter when the economy is at stake. ---
**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:** [April 17, 2020, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/44039 "2020-04-17T00:01:25Z")
[Federal judge denies new criminal trial for Roger Stone](https://apnews.com/7fb4b2cc4bb76b9debaa7e673c3a5e41) > [@](#): > > “The assumption underlying the motion – that one can infer from the juror’s opinions about the President that she could not fairly consider the evidence against the defendant – is not supported by any facts or data and it is contrary to controlling legal precedent,” she wrote in denying the new trial. “The motion is a tower of indignation, but at the end of the day, there is little of substance holding it up.” ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2020, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/44040 "2020-04-17T00:12:55Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > Oops. #44507 is in the wrong thread. Sorry about that, folks. Which thread is it in? ---
**Author:** ![crowmanyclouds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crowmanyclouds/32/19884_2.png) [@crowmanyclouds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crowmanyclouds)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2020, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/44041 "2020-04-17T02:30:05Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > Scott Adams, Dilbert cartoonist and Individual 1 fanboy, thinks hundreds of thousands of deaths would be an appropriate risk to reopen the economy. > [https://twitter.com/ScottAdamsSays/status/1250416592363483136](https://twitter.com/ScottAdamsSays/status/1250416592363483136) > > Dr. Oz, Individual 1 fanboy, calls the deaths of 1 to 2 per cent of children an “appetizing opportunity” if schools are reopened. > [Dr. Oz says reopening schools is an 'appetizing opportunity' because only 2%-3% will die](https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/4/16/1937803/-Dr-Oz-says-reopening-schools-is-an-appetizing-opportunity-because-only-2-3-will-die) It becomes clearer and clearer that the only tragedy on 9/11 was the loss of the Twin Towers. CMC fnord! ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2020, 10:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/44042 "2020-04-17T10:53:06Z")
Headline says it all: **After Fauci urged caution in reopening the economy, Fox News turned to Dr. Phil for a second opinion** > **[After Fauci urged caution in reopening the economy, Fox News turned to Dr....](https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/04/17/dr-phil-fauci-coronavirus/)** > > They offered conflicting views on how quickly the U.S. should return to pre-pandemic life in order to restore the economy amid historic unemployment and a volatile stock market. "He acknowledged that the novel [coronavirus](https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2020/02/28/what-you-need-know-about-coronavirus/?tid=lk_inline_manual_4&itid=lk_inline_manual_4) is killing Americans — more than 33,000 as of early Friday — but also wondered why the economy would shut down over the pandemic but continues to function as people die from lung cancer, car crashes and pool drownings. “We don’t shut the country down for that,” said Dr. Phil, after he cited inaccurate statistics on accidental deaths. “Yet we are doing it for this and the fallout is going to last for years because people’s lives are being destroyed.” ---
**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:** [April 17, 2020, 11:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/44043 "2020-04-17T11:20:23Z")
> [@](#): > > “We don’t shut the country down for that,” said Dr. Phil, after he cited inaccurate statistics on accidental deaths. “Yet we are doing it for this and the fallout is going to last for years because people’s lives are being destroyed.” You know what else destroys people’s lives, Phil? _Dying of coronavirus_. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2020, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/44044 "2020-04-17T12:02:17Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > You know what else destroys people’s lives, Phil? Hitler? ---
**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:** [April 17, 2020, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/44045 "2020-04-17T19:49:03Z")
> [@bobot](#): > > Headline says it all: > **After Fauci urged caution in reopening the economy, Fox News turned to Dr. Phil for a second opinion** > > [https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/04/17/dr-phil-fauci-coronavirus/](https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/04/17/dr-phil-fauci-coronavirus/) > > "He acknowledged that the novel [coronavirus](https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2020/02/28/what-you-need-know-about-coronavirus/?tid=lk_inline_manual_4&itid=lk_inline_manual_4) is killing Americans — more than 33,000 as of early Friday — but also wondered why the economy would shut down over the pandemic but continues to function as people die from lung cancer, car crashes and pool drownings. > “We don’t shut the country down for that,” said Dr. Phil, after he cited inaccurate statistics on accidental deaths. “Yet we are doing it for this and the fallout is going to last for years because people’s lives are being destroyed.” Dr. Phil is a psychologist, not an MD, and his license to practice psychology was rescinded in Texas and he isn’t licensed in any other state. ---
**Author:** ![WolfpackJeep](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpackjeep/32/2921_2.png) [@WolfpackJeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WolfpackJeep)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2020, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/44046 "2020-04-17T20:08:07Z")
So it really is correct to refer to him as “Dr.” Phil now? ---
**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:** [April 17, 2020, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/44047 "2020-04-17T20:14:07Z")
> [@WolfpackJeep](#): > > So it really is correct to refer to him as “Dr.” Phil now? He has a Doctorate in clinical psychology so he’s still _that_ kind of Dr. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2020, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/44048 "2020-04-17T20:31:33Z")
I know he’s not an actual doctor, and the guy he was rebutting is. Hence, Stupid and Republican. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897.md?page=2201) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897.md?page=2203)