Trickle-Down

New Presidential Polls For Iowa And New Hampshire

This is the newest NBC News / Marist Poll for Iowa and New Hampshire. It was just released. The margin of error for Iowa Republicans is 5.3 points, and Iowa Democrats 5.5 points. The margin of error for New Hampshire Republicans is 4.9 points, and for New Hampshire Democrats is 5.4 points.

Donald Trump now has a significant lead in New Hampshire, and trails Walker by only 2 points in Iowa (which is within the survey's margin of error). If these numbers hold up, Trump could come out of the first two contests as the leader in delegates.

On the democratic side, Clinton leads Sanders by 24 points in Iowa and by only 10 points in New Hampshire. It looks like Sanders is doing well in New Hampshire (a state that borders his own home state of Vermont).

Looking Better By Comparison To Trump

Political Cartoon is by Joel Pett in the Lexington Herald-Leader.

Another Shooting - And Our Politicians Still Do Nothing

The media is now focused on another mass shooting -- this one in a theater in Louisiana. Two innocent women were killed and several people were wounded. This makes three politically motivated shootings in the United States in just a little over a month.

It should bring home to Americans that radical muslims are not the only terrorists we have to worry about in this country. I know that right-wingers are hard at work trying to pass this latest shooting off as the work of a madman, but even the Louisiana police are not buying that. They have come out and said the shooter was not legally insane, but knew exactly what he was doing and had it planned out. It's just a fact of life in America that right-wing white terrorists are every bit as dangerous, if not more dangerous, than muslim radicals.

I don't doubt that all three of the recent shooters had some kind of psychological problems -- but they all were acting out of hate. And all three of them got their hate from ideas being floated by others -- one from muslim radicals, and the other two from racist right-wing radicals.

Another fact is that it was far too easy for all three of these hate-filled men to get a gun. In fact, any terrorist, criminal, or otherwise dangerous person can buy any kind of firearm they want legally in the United States. In fact, at least 40% of all the guns sold in this country each year are sold without performing any kind of background check. That's just crazy. The least we could do is prevent these dangerous people from legally buying a firearm.

Now I know that some of you are going to say they'll just get a gun illegally, and that is probably true for some. But buying a gun illegally is a lot harder than people think, and the very act of doing that could land them in jail (before they use that gun to kill an innocent person). Even if we just prevent some of the killings, it will be worth it.

I'm not talking about taking guns away from honest law-abiding citizens. I may be a liberal, but I know the Second Amendment prevents that -- and guarantees the right of law-abiding citizens to own a gun (or many guns). But it does not guarantee the right of terrorists, criminals, or the dangerously mentally-ill the right to own a gun. The Supreme Court has been clear about that. Preventing these people from buying a gun is not a violation of the Second Amendment.

Most Americans know that, and they want background checks to be done on all gun sales in this country. Consider this quote from a recent Public Policy Polling survey:

Virginians are resoundingly in support of background checks on all gun purchases. . . 86% favor background checks to just 8% who are against them, including 91% support from Democrats, 84% from Republicans, and 81% from independents. In the last month we've also found 86/10 support for them in North Carolina, 85/9 support for them in Michigan, and 90/9 support for them nationally.

So why won't our politicians do what the vast majority of Americans want -- plug up the holes in our background check law? Because they think the National Rifle Association (NRA) will spend money to defeat their re-election effort if they do -- even if the NRA has to lie to do it (and accuse them of trying to outlaw guns for everyone). And they are probably right -- but considering the overwhelming support for plugging the holes in the background check law, I have to believe such an effort could be stymied. Sadly though, most politicians are more interested in easily getting re-elected than in fighting to protect the lives of innocent citizens.

And we are already starting to see these cowardly politicians moving to protect their own butts. Louisiana governor Jobby Jindal is parroting the NRA line -- that now is not the time to talk about regulating gun sales. If now is not the time, then when is the time. The truth is that they don't ever want to talk about it.

That's just sad. Our politicians have decided that American lives, even the lives of innocent children, are not as important as getting elected. They have betrayed the American people -- and undoubtably will continue to do so.

Now's Not The Time ?

Political Cartoon is by Rob Tornoe in Media Matter for America.

Candidates That Party Members Say Will Win Nomination

These charts were made from information in the new CNN / ORC Poll done between July 22nd and 25th of a random national sample of 1,017 adults. The margin of error for only Democrats or only Republicans is 4.5 to 5 points.

This survey didn't ask party members who they supported for the nomination. Instead, they asked who hey thought would be the eventual winner of their party's nomination.

The overwhelming choice of Democrats was Hillary Clinton. About three-quarters of them (75%) say Clinton will be the party's nominee. About 9% say it will be Joe Biden, and 8% say it will be Bernie Sanders.

The picture is much muddier on the Republican side. Although 39% think Jeb Bush will be the nominee, 61% disagree -- with 18% saying it will be Donald Trump, 11% saying it will be Scott Walker, and 6% saying it will be Marco Rubio. About 26% pick another candidate or say they are unsure.

Another Sad Sequel

Political Cartoon is by Rob Rogers in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Christopher Froome Of Great Britain Wins Tour de France

Stage 21 of the 2015 Tour de France was run on Sunday. It was the traditional ride into Paris, and sprint finish. The stage winner was Andre Greipel of Germany. Bryan Coquard of France finished second, and Alexander Kristoff of Norway finished third. The stage did not alter the overall standings, And Christopher Froome of Great Britain is this year's race winner.

Below are photos of the winners, and the podium finishers:

YELLOW JERSEY (Overall Leaders)
1. Christopher Froome, Great Britain (Team Sky)
2. Nairo Alexander Quintana Rojas, Colombia (Movistar)
3. Alejandro Valverde Belmonte, Spain (Movistar)

GREEN JERSEY (Best Sprinter)
1. Peter Sagan, Slovakia (Tinkoff-Saxo)
2. Andre Greipel, Germany (Lotto-Soudal)
3. John Degenkolb, Germany (Giant-Alpecin)

POLKA DOT JERSEY (Best Climber)
1. Christopher Froome, Great Britain (Team Sky)
2. Nairo Alexander Quintana Rojas, Colombia (Movistar)
3. Romain Bardet, France (AG2R La Mondiale)

WHITE JERSEY (Best Young Rider)
1. Nairo Alenander Quintano Rojas, Colombia (Movistar)
2. Romain Bardet, France (AG2R La Mondiale)
3. Warren Barguil, France (Giant-Alpecin)

TEAM LEADERS
1. Movistar (Spain)
2. Team Sky (Great Britain)
3. Tinkoff-Saxo (Russia)

There Are Positives

Political Cartoon is by Steve Sack in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune.

Republican Teabaggers Are Responsible

The Religious Con Game

At least 44% Of The American Public Has Tried Marijuana

According to a recent Gallup Poll (done between July 8th and 12th of a random national sample of 1,009 adults, with a margin of error of 6 points) nearly half (44%) of Americans now admit to having tried marijuana at some point in their lives. Personally, I think it may even be slightly higher than that. Some people simply won't admit to having broke the law, even if they are assured their answer will be held secret.

But even if we just accept the 44% figure, that's a pretty hefty portion of the population. And those people will know that marijuana is not the dangerous drug the government has claimed it is. This helps to explain why the movement to legalize marijuana (and tax it) is growing fast. These people know there is no legitimate reason for marijuana to be illegal.

Trumpnado

Political Cartoon is by Andy Marlene in the Pensacola News-Journal.

Trump Still Looking Strong In Latest National Poll Of GOP

These are some interesting results from the latest national poll of Republicans. It seems that a majority of Republicans (56%) consider John McCain to be a war hero, and that same percentage thinks Donald Trump owes McCain an apology for doubting his hero status.

But that has not hurt Trump in the polls. This poll (the YouGov Poll done between July 20th and 22nd of 1,000 random national adults -- with a margin of error of 4 points) shows Trump with his biggest lead yet. He has the support of 28% of Republicans -- 14 points better than Bush, and 15 points better than Walker. No other candidate got more than 7% (one-quarter the support that Trump got).

Trump has definitely tapped into the anger of the GOP teabagger base, and they don't care what he says about anyone else -- even other Republicans. They are angry, and they see Trump as the candidate (the only candidate) that is voicing the anger they feel.

Political pundits keep saying that Trump will fade, but he certainly isn't fading yet. And I'm starting to think he may have more staying power than anyone thought. The teabaggers have been looking for a hero for six years, and it looks like they have finally found one -- Donald Trump.

This does not necessarily mean he will win the nomination, and in fact, most Republicans don't think he will. About 36% think Jeb Bush will be the eventual winner, while 11% think it will be Walker, 10% think it will be Trump, and 7% think it will be Rubio (see chart below).