# 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:** 931
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2015, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/18602 "2015-01-22T02:32:38Z")
Corn subsidies are just one part of the global conspiracy by corn for world domination. Their human thralls are known as “Orvilles” and communicate by way of the Corn Whole Earth Catalog. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2015, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/18603 "2015-01-22T02:33:51Z")
Go away, **adaher**. You bore me. On top of that, you’re a walking, posting Dunning-Kruger. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2015, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/18604 "2015-01-22T02:45:49Z")
The Dunning-Kruger poster children, **adaher** and Michele Bachmann… ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2015, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/18605 "2015-01-22T02:51:43Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > The Democrats won, but that’s because independents turned towards them. They still failed to turn out. > > [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/23/AR2006102300766.html](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/23/AR2006102300766.html) [shrug] Party-identification being as fluid as it is in the American system, that just makes those independents Democrats, for that one election alone. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2015, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/18606 "2015-01-22T03:02:21Z")
It’s actually important, because there’s long been a debate in the party about whether it’s more important to appeal to independents or motivate the base. THe record seems to show that in the absence of a particularly charismatic figure at the top of the ticket, the Democrats get more success out of appealing to independents. ---
**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:** [January 22, 2015, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/18607 "2015-01-22T04:24:47Z")
Which is why the Democrats controlled the House for thirty years and the Senate as well for all but six of those years. The political dynamic in the US is, well, dynamic; the Republicans are static (in both senses of the word). ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2015, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/18608 "2015-01-22T04:46:42Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Democratic predictions that their voters will turn out in droves tend to come true only when Barack Obama is at the top of the ticket. I especially recall such predictions in 2004. I thought the a Republicans won the last election because it was a referendum on Obama. Now you’re saying that Democrats only win elections when Obamas on the ticket. So, which is it? ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2015, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/18609 "2015-01-22T05:04:46Z")
GOP voters are motivated to come out whether he’s on the ticket or not, so they voted against him in large numbers in 2010, 2012, and 2014. Democratic voters are only motivated to come out when he is on the ticket. He himself knows this, which is why he went out of his way to say that every single one of his policies were on the ballot, and that all those Democrats distancing themselves from him were actually supporters of his. It didn’t work. ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2015, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/18610 "2015-01-22T05:13:31Z")
Actually, he hardly campaigned at all. ---
**Author:** ![Locrian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/locrian/32/14146_2.png) [@Locrian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Locrian)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2015, 6:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/18611 "2015-01-22T06:43:11Z")
> [@Lamar\_Mundane](#): > > Actually, he hardly campaigned at all. He didn’t have to. There were 7 GOP candidates each saying “God told them to run” at all the debates, but no one had a budget plan. I was expecting a divine plan. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2015, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/18612 "2015-01-22T13:39:20Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > It’s actually important, because there’s long been a debate in the party about whether it’s more important to appeal to independents or motivate the base. THe record seems to show that in the absence of a particularly charismatic figure at the top of the ticket, the Democrats get more success out of appealing to independents. Bear in mind that there are “independents” to the right **and to the left** of the Democrats. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2015, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/18613 "2015-01-22T17:39:05Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > Bear in mind that there are “independents” to the right **and to the left** of the Democrats. Well, to clarify, there are independents to the left and to the right of Republicans as well. It’s just that, to be to the right of Republicans, you have to be a crazed militia goldbug who wants to reinstitute slavery and take away women’s right to vote. Republicans as a party have swung so far to the right that some Republican officials are crowding into “barking mad” territory. The vast majority of independent voters are to the left of Republicans. Democrats have not swung so far to the right as Republicans, but they’ve swung far enough that the majority of Americans are to the left of them on many issues (minimum wage, wealth redistribution, marijuana legalization, etc.). That’s the key difference: Democrats have large groups of independents to the right AND to the left of them. Republicans only have LARGE group of independents to their left. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2015, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/18614 "2015-01-22T18:24:32Z")
> [@Evil\_Captor](#): > > Well, to clarify, there are independents to the left and to the right of Republicans as well. It’s just that, to be to the right of Republicans, you have to be a crazed militia goldbug who wants to reinstitute slavery and take away women’s right to vote. Republicans as a party have swung so far to the right that some Republican officials are crowding into “barking mad” territory. The vast majority of independent voters are to the left of Republicans. > > Democrats have not swung so far to the right as Republicans, but they’ve swung far enough that the majority of Americans are to the left of them on many issues (minimum wage, wealth redistribution, marijuana legalization, etc.). That’s the key difference: Democrats have large groups of independents to the right AND to the left of them. Republicans only have LARGE group of independents to their left. That is why I believe that [if both extremes were mobilized in the same election](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=744106), say in a matchup between a progressive like Elizabeth Warren/Bernie Sanders/Dennis Kucinich/Ralph Nader, and a Tea Party RW like Ted Cruz/Louie Gohmert/Steve King/Rand Paul . . . the progressive would win. ---
**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:** [January 22, 2015, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/18615 "2015-01-22T18:34:41Z")
> [@Evil\_Captor](#): > > Republicans as a party have swung so far to the right that some Republican officials are crowding into “barking mad” territory. now you are being defamatory, I seriously doubt that [Barking](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barking) would have them. ---
**Author:** ![DrumBum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e79b87/32.png) [@DrumBum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrumBum)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2015, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/18616 "2015-01-22T18:54:52Z")
> [@Toxgoddess](#): > > Apparently it was a bad idea for Fox News to invent “no-go” areas of Paris. The Mayor of Paris has threatened a lawsuit for inaccurate reporting. > > [Paris Mayor to sue Fox News over Muslim claims - BBC News](http://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-30915395) And now [Bill O’Reilly](http://money.cnn.com/2015/01/21/media/bill-oreilly-anne-hidalgo-ridiculous/index.html)is jumping in to defend the honor of Fox News. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2015, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/18617 "2015-01-22T19:15:56Z")
I didn’t know Fox invented the term. I could have sworn I was hearing about “no-go” and “places the police won’t go” in the mainstream media right after the Charlie attack. Fox just ran with it after other media outlets checked into it a bit more. ---
**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:** [January 22, 2015, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/18618 "2015-01-22T20:14:59Z")
Tom McClintock (not my Congressman, TG, but he does represent the district next door): “[Don’t raise the minimum wage, people who are on it aren’t worth any more money.](http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2015/01/gop-rep-keep-minimum-wage-low-for-minorities-who-arent-worth-more-than-7-an-hour/)” ---
**Author:** ![rogerbox](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/76d3ee/32.png) [@rogerbox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rogerbox)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2015, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/18619 "2015-01-22T20:58:36Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > Tom McClintock (not my Congressman, TG, but he does represent the district next door): “[Don’t raise the minimum wage, people who are on it aren’t worth any more money.](http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2015/01/gop-rep-keep-minimum-wage-low-for-minorities-who-arent-worth-more-than-7-an-hour/)” > [@](#): > > The minimum wage is that first job when you have no skills, no experience, no working history. That’s how you get into the job market, that’s how you develop that experience, develop that work record, **get your first raise, then your next raise, then your promotion.** Bolded part is not how minimum wage jobs work in the real world. I’ve worked minimum wage before when I was younger, was called a very good worker by my managers, and the only time I ever got a raise was when the state minimum wage was raised. I would bet 90% of minimum wage workers only ever see a raise from MW being raised, and only 1% _at most_ ever get a “promotion” to a higher paying job. They’re called dead-end jobs for a reason. I’d rather their employers be forced to pay them a living wage so that those profiting off of their labor can pay them enough so they can live without foodstamps and other programs they qualify for, sticking the taxpayers with the bill, subsidizing their greed. (pre-emptively: If they will just raise the prices to make up the difference, why would businesses care if all of the cost is passed onto the consumers? If the MW was raised across the board, all burgers and fries would raise in price equitably so it wouldn’t make any difference to the market. Answer: Because it’s a lie.) ---
**Author:** ![TonySinclair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@TonySinclair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TonySinclair)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2015, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/18620 "2015-01-22T21:15:05Z")
> [@DrumBum](#): > > And now [Bill O’Reilly](http://money.cnn.com/2015/01/21/media/bill-oreilly-anne-hidalgo-ridiculous/index.html)is jumping in to defend the honor of Fox News. In the link, he’s quoted as saying, “Fox News isn’t even seen in France, because they block it.” That should be fairly easy to check. Are there any French Dopers here? ---
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2015, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/18621 "2015-01-22T21:42:40Z")
Yup. We mostly don’t watch Fox News because it’s _American TV_. As in “in English”. Which we don’t speak. It might be available on cable, or not, I dunno. I guess it depends how deep the various cable/satellite TV providers dig for channels to broadcast just in case someone might want to subscribe just to be able to watch Fox News. I feel confident saying we don’t “block it”, as in actively. We just don’t give a shit about it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897.md?page=930) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897.md?page=932)