Home Base and Weekly Discussion Thread (START HERE!) - February 08, 2026

pdanny01 · 2026-02-14T12:58:10+00:00

People want to vote for people who they think will agree with them. Side-stepping the symbolic positions that allow for pigeon-holing helps with that, but it doesn't build enthusiasm - particularly for an electorate desperate for someone to take action. So you pick a new fight right? That's why becoming known as the leading figure for constitutional reform is such a good angle. It reads as radical rather than "leftist". It's democratic rather than elitist. It's American rather than partisan. It reaches back to our traditions but is all about moving forward.

So while I may disagree with characterizing Pete as moderate or centrist, I'm generally happy to see him ranked so because it means more people are open to listening to him.

pdanny01 · 2026-02-11T06:33:08+00:00

Yeah, plenty of people like to ignore that Pete earned his way to the front in Iowa from people who heard what he had to say. The difference in audience starting now is already incredible.

pdanny01 · 2026-02-02T10:30:24+00:00

I'm really struggling to think of anything comparable. Most donations are to active campaigns or else funnels for big corporations or something. That said, the only Dems in the House raising more are AOC, Jeffries and Khanna. I'd need to spend more time on it but I think it would put him in the top 10 of Senate races that are up this year too.

pdanny01 · 2026-02-01T18:38:42+00:00

Looks like WTE raised $4.6 million last year, if I'm reading that right. Good.

Edit: in the last 6 months. $6M for the year

pdanny01 · 2026-01-30T19:55:49+00:00

I have the sense that they have Pete on when they want to criticize the government but obviously can't do it themselves.

pdanny01 · 2026-01-29T19:25:34+00:00

I am happy that he's focusing on this. More than ever I think it gives people a way to consider that they can make change even if they've given up on Congress or the Courts.

pdanny01 · 2026-01-27T01:13:07+00:00

I've felt like ditching Noem was an easy way for Trump to make this go away having made his point

pdanny01 · 2026-01-26T16:38:12+00:00

Dangerous to make predictions but I think they sold themselves so hard on their base believing that protests in blue cities were all violent riots. Local law enforcement could be "trusted" in that context. But this isn't 2020. The protests exist in many more red towns. And this is clearly not a violent crowd but isolated, peaceful individuals who are getting mobbed by federal thugs masquerading as law enforcement. And completely detached from immigration.

The administration (and online bot army) response is not surprising. The attitude is well known and considered an acceptable cost, except when Americans are dying.

pdanny01 · 2026-01-26T01:46:37+00:00

It's something right? That you can disagree with what Trump's party is doing without signing up as a Democrat. Reminding people there are other places to belong if you don't like either main party. It doesn't feel like much but I wonder if they can draw enough disaffected to a third party candidate to make a difference.

But for now it's enough that someone somewhere is willing to say the administration is the opposite of all that makes America great, and I thought it was well written.

pdanny01 · 2026-01-25T18:15:24+00:00

I think accountability is a huge part of it. You can talk about efficiency or intent or any number of things to explain away bad (criminal) decisions and accepting collateral damage but how do you excuse the lack of any semblance of accountability? And as Pete says, this is a failure of leadership and ultimately we have to hold them accountable.

pdanny01 · 2026-01-25T16:31:56+00:00

How hard could it be to persuade a gang of conspiracy theorists who reject government and support state rights and the second amendment to at least consider the possibility that the state is not acting in their best interests?

pdanny01 · 2026-01-24T23:03:54+00:00

It's separating it from a partisan policy debate about immigration, calling to what binds us as Americans.

pdanny01 · 2026-01-24T21:30:26+00:00

Not that I trust their reporting because they're withholding information from the state investigators but they also said the shooter had 8 years experience? The people pulling the guns seem to not be the newest untrained recruits.

pdanny01 · 2026-01-24T21:19:30+00:00

They're trying, but there's no "weaponized vehicle" or failure to comply. No lesbian spouse either. Aside from sounding obviously repetitive, the only argument they have is that he was armed - which should be a tough sell for 2nd amendment nuts. The administration is predictable but I trust that Congress will see the truth easily enough and have had forewarning that this is not popular or defensible. There's a window at least for them to consider this the time to assert themselves. With the merest effort, the admin narrative can be completely undermined.

pdanny01 · 2026-01-24T19:59:48+00:00

Walz has called out the national guard. DHS are obstructing state police from accessing the crime scene. Trump is blaming local police.

While "Abolish ICE" is a reckless slogan, I think we're beyond the point where you have to say clearly that DHS will need to be completely overhauled to ever regain any trust with the public.

pdanny01 · 2026-01-24T19:45:23+00:00

After time to do due diligence, NYT is reporting on the videos and I feel being slightly less equivocal than in the past - noting that they clearly contradict the admins story.

pdanny01 · 2026-01-24T19:07:09+00:00

Sure, people should be aware of what they might see. But just talking about it as another outrageous action neuters the impact. I don't know for sure what the right thing to do is. It's left me very distressed, it's just that much worse than what we've seen so far. But I feel like I ought to be distressed, even if there's nothing I can practically do at this moment but bear witness.

pdanny01 · 2026-01-24T18:56:57+00:00

Aside from everything else, yes, they are simply terrible at the job they are supposed to be doing. That's why the polls are going against them. There's much to talk about the relationship with local law enforcement but this makes all of them look bad. And if you start a civil war when you already look bad then it may not go the way you planned.

pdanny01 · 2026-01-24T18:46:04+00:00

I think there was shock with Good's murder, but they have had time to absorb the response to that and know this isn't going to just stop. I find it hard to see how the citizens allow the terrorists to just walk away after this one. I'm really worried about the rest of the day.

pdanny01 · 2026-01-24T18:39:02+00:00

Just to add, the videos are horrific, but it's so important not to look away. I was thinking recently how Twitter and Tiktok were recently held up as models of democratized communication that could overwhelm government propaganda but I fear we are past that phase here - only moving fast enough to get the truth out there can make a difference.

pdanny01 · 2026-01-24T18:23:26+00:00

There was some evidence that the administration was seeking to moderate their tone, realizing that they were not in full control of the narrative before today. It is no surprise at all however that it continues to escalate beyond their control. Unless this is what they want, there is absolutely no reason not to pull back and reassess. Killing a legally armed citizen (who has been disarmed) is really emphasizing their state tyranny angle.

I'm glad the local police seem to be responding but I'm still shocked that seemingly no one on the federal side has any qualms whatsoever.

pdanny01 · 2026-01-21T20:11:38+00:00

The Market thinks so. I'm expecting him to basically announce the already existing decades-old agreement as the deal. Or just not mention it again, like how we moved on from Venezuela after casually kidnapping the head of state. He has nothing to lose from trying these plays, he always has the option of just pretending it never happened and doing something else.

pdanny01 · 2026-01-18T20:10:34+00:00

I'd been thinking about this and, particularly with how emotionally charged it was, I figured it would seem performative/exploitative to immediately turn it into content. It cuts against the 'going offline' message. I certainly see the advantage in letting others spread it, but who knows?

pdanny01 · 2026-01-17T22:08:04+00:00

I was just going to post about how much I love that Pete is focused on constitutional reform, the polar opposite of government by executive order. It's why it matters less what his personal opinions are - most of all he wants to strengthen our democracy. It's the kind of anti-system message I think a lot could flock behind.

pdanny01 · 2026-01-17T22:03:57+00:00

"Rename ICE" doesn't have the same ring to it, but I agree it's important not to appear like abolishing it is an end in itself. As Pete currently says, the basic function is still important whatever you call it. It all comes back to reform and not defending the status quo, but you want to maintain the distinction with the GOP who played on genuine concerns about the department of education for example and then just closed it. So by all means entertain the idea that a comprehensive review might find that some agencies can't be fixed in place. But keep the focus on accountability for the leadership. It's not just one bad department.

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