RoverAndOut

Says the one who thought Bill Russell was a world-renowned figure. Let's leave politics to the grown-ups, shall we?

Worth noting the Governor of Vermont is a liberal Republican, who approved the impeachment of Trump in 2019, voted for Biden in November and said Trump should resign over the Capitol Riot this month. Constitutionally, he can appoint whoever he likes to the seat, he could choose a moderate Democrat or a liberal Republican to fill the seat if the need arose. He doesn't strike me as the sort of person to purposefully create gridlock for political ends. But as I said above, no evidence yet that Leahy's in any real danger.

CNN reporting it was out of 'an abundance of caution' so until we know more, sounds like he's not in mortal danger just yet.

I'd expect it to be extended. Don't see Major going before Boris's successor is chosen.

8 in 20 years is definitely a record. The US was a bit of a basket case for this period, due to the prevalence of the slavery debate as new states were added. Lots of debates and deals made and lots of party turmoil between pro-slavery and anti-slavery factions. Harrison famously died 31 days into his presidency having caught a chill during a 2-hour inauguration address on a cold, wet day with no coat trying to prove he wasn't frail (that went well). Tyler was an accidental president (in the sense, no one had really considered a VP actually taking over before) and although he initially ran in 1844, he dropped out. Polk served one term, achieved everything he set out to achieve and declined to seek a second term (he died less than 6 months later from cholera). Taylor was a soldier with no strong political affiliation, he died in office barely a year in having fallen ill with a still-unknown definitive illness (there are some who believe he was poisoned but this has never been proved). Fillmore succeeded as VP but lost the nomination fight (but ran again in later years). Pierce was a feckless President whose party turned against him and he wasn't re-nominated for a second term (he was also a raging alcoholic). Buchanan said he'd only serve one term and failed to deal with the growing divide between the North and the South so did just that and you know what happened with Lincoln. The ruling party changed frequently too: 1840 - Whig, 1844 - Democrat, 1848 - Whig, 1852, 1856 - Democrat (two different men though), 1860 - Republican (successor to the Whigs in many ways). It carried on too: between 1837 and 1913, only 1 president (Ulysses S. Grant) served two consecutive full terms (Cleveland served two non-consecutive terms and Teddy Roosevelt took over after McKinley was shot 6 months into his second term). Only two managed it before FDR took over in 1933! (Woodrow Wilson the other). History lesson over. Another note, that has been mentioned in these ere parts before: John Tyler, 10th President of the United States between 1841 and 1845 and who died in 1862 still has a living grandson in 2021, 92-year-old Harrison Ruffin Tyler.

Shrewsbury manager Steve Cotterill will watch their FA Cup 4th Round tie from his hospital bed after contracting Covid. Brief stay in intensive care but on the mend it seems. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/55705684

Also: isn't @Toast's Robbie Coltrane missing from this list? As I recall, we had 4 straightforward space fliers each for Banana and GCR, with Filipchenko a shared entry - those 8, plus 5 each for DI and AFB makes 18, plus Toast's is our 19 clear winners. Filipchenko is now the headache 20th out.

AFB in particular has a strong field of candidates: Olivia Newton John is a ticking timebomb, Simone de Oliveira's 82 and a two-time breast cancer survivor, Roy Taylor's got MND and Nora Nova is ancient (90+). But no one can ever be certain with the Scavenger Hunt! Spade is only 2 hits away (Eurovision and Space Flier) and Captain Chorizo, Great Uncle Bulgaria, Biblio and Toast have all got a unique hit, so are technically 2 away themselves. I still suspect it will be done in the next month or two, though.

Doesn't end the game but puts both @Death Impends and @An Fear Beag 1 Eurovision performer away from victory. It's not going to last as long as the first two games, but the same twists and turns and race for the finish line is still on!

I know this isn't the headline to the post, but are you telling me that, not only is Trump going to die of Covid, but so are Blair, Clinton AND Monica?!

Agreed that they're all opportunists who just tack to the prevailing wind but the reason it's important is that if McConnell says he should be impeached it provides political cover to other moderate Republicans who might be feeling that way. More importantly, McConnell still controls the business in the Senate until Inauguration Day next Wednesday, so if the House passes the Article of Impeachment, a Senate trial could potentially be expedited and held before Trump leaves office if McConnell decided to. Not that it really matters, the main aim of this impeachment, aside from sending a message that you can't incite a mob to invade the Capitol (which apparently needs spelling out), is the possibility of disqualifying Trump from ever running for office again.

Impeachment doesn't mean you're federally barred from office, nor is it a requirement for someone to be federally barred from office. The two things are separate. As I said before, one of the arguments being made for pursuing impeachment is that it would be a useful fact-finding exercise if you were looking to bar him from office. This could be achieved in other ways and since he is being investigated in several states and now DC for inciting a riot in the Capitol, not to mention any federal crimes he may or may not pardon himself for, and the fact he has faced an impeachment trial already in his term, I wouldn't say another attempt is crucial to this aim. Not to mention, as I pointed out, it is nigh on impossible for a impeachment trial to be conducted within a week (the House could vote on Wednesday, the Inauguration is a week on Wednesday). It's a clever line, but lacks any understanding of the American political system. There are not 18 Republican Senators who entertain thoughts of running for President in 4 years time. There were 17 candidates in 2016 and only 5 were Senators and one wasn't even still in the Senate. Add to that that 74 million people voted for Trump 3 months ago and regardless of the events of the past week, you're going to have to convince a lot of people who voted for Trump that you deserve the nomination. Voting to impeach their leader is probably not your best strategy for winning the nomination. Finally, what right-minded Republican Senator wants to try and pick their way through the civil war that is about to engulf the Republican party and try and form a winning coalition in 2024? In short, there are not going to be 18 Republican senators who will vote to convict Trump, even if there were it wouldn't bar him from office, and even if it did, the Senate won't hold an impeachment trial this side of Inauguration, after which time I doubt they'll bother anyway.

It's been suggested that impeachment hearings could be held to gather evidence in order for him to be barred from standing for public office in the future. That way, he wouldn't be able to run in 2024 anyway. Same may happen to Don Jr. Of course, if the DC Prosecutor chooses to pursue Trump as the agitator of the riot, then plenty of evidence to that effect would be gathered that way also. Not as simple as that. Impeachment requires a supermajority not a simple majority - 2/3rds of the Senate, so 67 votes not 51. Currently, the Senate is made up of 51 Republicans, 46 Democrats and 2 Independents who vote with the Democrats (Bernie Sanders being one of them). The remaining seat is currently vacant and belongs to David Perdue, the Senator from Georgia whose election has at this time not yet been decided (as the Democrats haven't been sworn in yet: Kelly Loeffler, the other Senator from Georgia who also faced election gets to continue in her seat as she's technically a caretaker for the seat, not a sitting Senator, despite the fact she has just lost an election - that's the simple explanation anyway). It's not yet certain when Warnock and Ossoff will be sworn in and until that happens, the Democrats are two votes further down. So at present, they'd need the 48 votes they currently have, plus another 18 Republican votes (66 would be enough for two thirds in a 99-seat Senate). If the two Georgia seats were filled then they'd need 17 Republican votes. Murkowski, Collins and Romney is 3. That leaves 14 more out of the remaining 47 or 48. Ben Sasse has suggested he thinks there reason to impeach this time, but where are the other votes going to come from? Plenty think it's not worth the personal political cost to them since he's out in a fortnight anyway. Pelosi is getting on with it, the article for 'Incitement of Insurrection' will be introduced on Monday and voted on on Tuesday or Wednesday, but it's unlikely to get any further as McConnell, for now, still controls the Senate and Lindsay Graham the Judiciary Committee. They only have to delay a week and it's Inauguration Day. Of course, as discussed he may be impeached post-inauguration, but I doubt it. Best chance of him going is either he's convinced to resign (unlikely) or Pence invokes the 25th Amendment (also seems unlikely, like everyone else, the Cabinet are just waiting for Inauguration Day, not to mention half the Cabinet Secretaries have been sacked or quit since the election so it's not entirely clear who's left to vote to invoke 25 anyway).

I remember reading the same thing. Definitely sounded like he fancied his chances of making 70 Up, which would, of course, have been the 10th edition. No mention on the BBC report of a cause of death, but must have been fairly quick.

Doubtless they'll be back. According to the true believers, it was Antifa infiltrators that instigated the violence. Oh, and the latest Trump video where he concedes is, of course, deep faked. Either that or he's being held hostage in the White House and being forced to make these statements. Honestly. This is what they're saying, I'm not making it up.

Only because he's realised he's gone too far and there are consequences. He's trying to save his own skin as per usual. This was the speech that he needed to make yesterday. Damage is done. And when he realises that, is he really going to change? Listening to some of the Republicans in Congress, it's already business as usual again.

No, I think @Joey Russ is correct. The question at the top is whether the respondents agreed with the storming of the Capitol. The results are then divided into subsets: All voters, registered Democrats, registered Independents, registered Republicans and then finally Voters who believe that fraud decided the election (they may be Dems, Indys or Reps). You're confusing the bottom line with being a separate question. And I agree, you'd assume it to be nearer to 100% but not according to this survey.

Don't insult my intelligence. I've got two degrees myself, one in History and Politics and an M.A. in History. I don't throw my education around, it's not necessary to do so. I'm perfectly aware of Godwin's Law and assumed that would be the thing to pick up on. I do not expect American democracy to crumble overnight, but if you think everything is tickety-boo with US institutions at this moment in time, then I would suggest you look a bit closer. Public trust in their institutions is at an all-time low, misinformation is rampant. The divide between left and right has been larger before but the animosity and distrust that both sides feel towards each other is worse than it's been in years - remember in other significant crises like Watergate, even the majority of Republicans believed Nixon was guilty. The partisanship that emerged in the 90s with Clinton and Gingrich has been ramped up by perceived, or real, injustices, particularly since the 2008 financial crash. In 2008, Obama was elected and Palin was unleashed onto the national stage. In 2010, the Tea Party became a political force. By 2012, Birtherism was a thing, despite Obama releasing his entire birth certificate. In 2016, Trump won the Republican nomination and then the presidency. In 2020, Trump supporters refuse to accept the result of the election and storm the Capitol Building. Trump isn't disappearing any time soon. Is that not a pattern? He'll have plenty to say post-presidency, whether that's with his TV Network or wherever. His supporters won't disappear, because this isn't just about Trump. It's about QAnon, it's about anti-vaxxers and coronavirus. It's about all these myriad of reasons why people feel violated or disenfranchised. You're right, the United States will most likely survive. It is a 'very resilient country with a strong democracy and strong institutions'. But it still had to fight a Civil War 150 years ago (the flag of the secessionists made it into the Capitol Building for the first time in history today). It also survived the 1960s, but not without the death of a President, a frontrunning candidate and 2 iconic civil rights leaders. I wouldn't consider that a particularly stable democracy. I sincerely hope that this is the watershed. The dying of the light. The point where those who have been ambivalent about Trump and his antics draw the line and say 'no more'. But the fact it got to this point is itself damning. I wish I could just laugh it off and dismiss it as you do. But haven't we laughed off enough in the past decade plus and ended up at this point?

Agree with a lot of what you say on here but I do wonder just how much longer people need to calm down and there's nothing to see here. The President of the United States has instigated a riot that has resulted in the occupation of the Legislature of the United States and the death of a woman. Biden may well be inaugurated as expected but these people and their anger doesn't just disappear overnight, particularly when the exiting President is still encouraging them and feeding their paranoia.In October, the FBI arrested men plotting to kidnap the Governor of Michigan and put her on trial for treason. Today, armed gangs have been seen outside the count in Georgia for the two Senate Special Elections, causing state election officials to evacuate. This is not normal and it shouldn't be dismissed. The Munich Beer Hall Putsch was similarly ridiculous and unsuccessful, but the long term consequences were dire.

Make America Great Again. Something that actually does need to happen now.

The whole thing is a Virtual Insanity though.

Colin Bell another miss in here. Have we lost our touch? (Waiting for a winning hit tomorrow now...)

Well most of us put a Captain in front of Tom Moore, what more do you want?! Sheesh!

It's both. The converted Boeing 747 used as the official Presidential plane, with offices and kitchens and room for the press, etc. is Air Force One. (That's it's name in popular culture). But technically only because the President is on board. Any plane carrying the President has the call sign Air Force One, just as if they carry the VP they're Air Force Two. But (for once) I believe Coffin Lodger is correct that he has use of the Presidential plane up to leaving office. Usually an exiting President's final act after the inauguration ceremony is to be flown on Air Force One to their usual residence. In Trump's case, presumably, that would be Mar-a-Lago, but technically I guess it could be anywhere he wants. But who knows what will happen with this guy.

On the day that 2 hits here are both sacked, it seems only right to update the leaderboard. There's been 11 managerial changes since the last update (all sacked) and among them 4 hits in this pool. 2 of them were ineligible due to taking the job after the game started (you really don't get long these days!) and new hits are in green. Hits mentioned here (8): Eddie Howe (Bournemouth - mutual consent), Russ Wilcox (Southend - new manager confirmed), Hayden Mullins (Watford - new manager confirmed), Mark Molesley (Weymouth - moved to new club), Sabri Lamouchi (Nottingham Forest - sacked), Garry Monk (Sheffield Wednesday - sacked), Philip Cocu (Derby - sacked), Slaven Bilic (West Ham - sacked) Also hits (7): Gerhard Struber (Barnsley - moved to new club), Mark Bowen (Reading - resigned), Mark Kennedy (Macclesfield - resigned), Richie Wellens (Swindon - moved to new club), Stuart McCall (Bradford - sacked), Joey Barton (Fleetwood - sacked), John Askey (Port Vale - sacked) Misses (9): Paul Cook (Wigan - resigned), Graham Coughlan (Mansfield - sacked), Michael Jackson (Tranmere - new manager confirmed), John Sheridan (Wigan - moved to new club [technically ineligible for this game though]), Ben Garner (Bristol Rovers - sacked), Sam Ricketts (Shrewsbury - sacked), Phil Parkinson (Sunderland - sacked), David Dunn (Barrow - sacked), Vladimir Ivic (Watford - sacked [ineligible]), Ian Holloway (Grimsby - sacked), Tony Pulis (Sheffield Wednesday - sacked [ineligible]), Jake Buxton (Burton Albion - sacked), Current leaderboard: @RoverAndOut - 10 (Howe, Monk, Mullins, Cocu, Lamouchi, Wilcox, Kennedy, McCall, Bilic, Barton) @BuffaloPhil - 7 (Cocu, Struber, Lamouchi, Bowen, Wellens, Bilic, Barton) @Great Uncle Bulgaria - 5 (Howe, Mullins, Cocu, Molesley, Askey) @msc - 3 (Howe, Struber, Lamouchi) @Miracle Aligner - 2 (Howe, Monk) Somehow, I'm up to half marks now, and irritatingly Phil Parkinson was my first reserve so I could have 11. I may be screwed by Aston Villa, Leeds and Burnley doing better than hoped and their managers not leaving any time soon, though, so I wouldn't worry too much.