What’s Your Motive?

5/2/20 butcherbakertoiletrymaker 27
This guy has no idea what's about to hit him.

Years ago, I had a friend whom I would often go to whenever I had a difficult decision to make. He would listen to me patiently and then would always go straight to it. He’d ask me, every single time, “What’s your motive?” Sometimes, the question didn’t bother me at all, which was usually a good sign that the direction in which I was leaning was probably the right one. Other times, however, that question would really piss me off–which was probably a good indication that my first option was probably wrong.

So, here we have Mitt Romney, who today was the only Republican to vote to convict Trump on the charge of Abuse of Power. So, here’s my question: “What’s your motive, Mitt?” Obviously, you knew he would get acquitted regardless of how you voted. Obviously, you’re not taking a run at the Presidency again because you would have done it by now (and we all know you’re scared shitless of his base). I’m not going to say that it’s impossible for you to have done it because you knew it was the right thing–but, let’s be honest: you’re both a politician AND a Republican, and considering some of the stupid shit you’ve supported solely for partisan reasons, I find that particular motive…unlikely.

Are you worried about your legacy? Thinking that maybe having people remember you for spitting on the Constitution might not be such a great memory to leave behind? Did your 23rd grandchild look at you with those sweet, toddler eyes and say, “Grandpa, please don’t destroy our republic by voting to acquit that vile, criminal bastard.”?

Did you lose a bet? Did you win a bet? Are you just trolling and if so, who are you trolling? The President? The Vice President? Us?

Were you drunk? I know you’re a Mormon, but I’ve known plenty of Mormons in my day and some of them were some drinkin’ motherfuckers. Maybe somebody slipped a mickey into your milk. It’s OK, we won’t judge you for it because you didn’t know until it was too late. You can be honest with us. It was the mickey, wasn’t it?

Did you do it so that your name would be written in the history books as the only senator in US history to vote to convict a President of his own party? Did you simply screw up and mean to vote to acquit and got distracted by that pretty, young congressional page in the room? Are you stupid? Are you crazy? Are you a MAVERICK? That’s it, isn’t it? You’ve decided to pick up where John McCain left off. Hoping one day to get a battleship named after you that then gets involved in a terrible accident at sea so people can Google your name when it hits the news and say, “Oh, yeah, I remember that guy. He voted to convict Trump. He was a real MAVERICK.”

Tell it to me straight, Mitt. What’s your motive?

https://www.vox.com/2020/2/5/21125118/mitt-romney-impeachment-vote-history

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27 Comments

  1. I have a bunch of Mormon relatives & might be able to give you a little insight. Mormons honestly believe they are better than you or me. Some is from their religion & some by how they live their lives free of the evil stuff we do. In fact, the higher you get in the Mormon church the more you feel better than everyone around you. Mitt will never have to win anything outside of Utah again and will be seen as a hero to the Mormons he really cares about. I think it was a combo of getting back at somebody he knows is corrupt that has made him look stupid in the past & his belief this raises his rank in the church and heaven. I had very little respect for this man until now & would love to see the Mormons shame the other religious leaders that continue to kiss this devil’s ass!

  2. Too little, too late. There was a time when Mitt had clout. And he could have used it to try and guide his party in a different direction. But I will give him some credit, at least he came back instead of turning tail and running like Flake and Corker.

  3. Maybe someone inserted a conscience module into his programming?

    Again, I knew this was going to be the outcome (like I was the only one.)

    However, let the angry leaks begin. By the end, the GOPers won’t regret anything till they get stomped and the tears and recriminations will come out. They might claim Jesus as their savior, but Trump/Power own their ass.

  4. I think he knows what the ghouls will try to do to his family, but he has the cash and the connections to weather the storm. The aggravating thing is that some Senators like Lamar Alexander are in the same boat, with their careers over and plenty of money in the bank, but they knuckled under They worried about people being mean to them in the country club, or their sister called in tears because her grandkid had his internship at some think tank threatened if they voted the wrong way.

  6. As someone over on GT pointed out (I think mebbe Rooo?), there’s also the fact that Rona *Romney* McDaniel is the RNC chair.

    I’m a bit of two minds on her uncle Mittens, I feel like this maaaay very well be ‘ol Mittens trying to set himself up as a member of the Republican Saviors, when (if we still have a republic!) alllll of Trumpco’s dirty deeds are dragged out into the sunlight, the Tax documents are fiiiinally released, and the RICO, Conspiracy,*** & FINCEN charges get rolling.

    Because at *that* point, there’ll be a MASSIVE Mariah “I don’t know her” act put on by the entirety of the GOP, and they’ll be DESPERATELY looking for “clean” R’s to “Lead (us) out of the Wilderness” that is the Trumpswamp.

    See also, Paul *the Wünderkind* Ryan (who ran home to WI just as things started to get really messy, then began to go for the big $$$ jobs, and brought the Wifey & Kids out to MD🤨🤔🧐)

    ***it was NEVER “Collusion,” collusion as a criminal act does not exist within the US Constitution. The international equivalent of Treason is *Conspiracy.*.
    https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/371

    Just like the domestic version is Treason:
    https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/2381

    ETA, I forgot the other part or two to my “of two minds”

    It’s also a possibility that Mittens is simply enough of an old-school R,that he’s pushing himself right out of the R-party into the “center” (what *used* to be “the right” before the tea-partiers shoved the R’s right on off the side of their Flat Earth).

    There is also a possibility of–as John Roberts so often does on the biggest rulings–the idea that Mittens is looking ahead to posterity & being sure to be recorded as coming down on the right side of history–if nothing else, to do that for his legacy within his own family. Dude *already* has 23 grandkids–that’s a helluva game of Telephone, to keep the rumors out of, and that’s just while he’s still alive to tell his own “GrampyMittens did right by youz!” stories.

  8. …so – no particular insight of my own to offer here on the mormon thing but I listen to a podcast by the name of Mueller She Wrote (would recommend it, as it happens) & the ladies on there have mentioned a few times that there are at least a handful of folks who have ol’ Mitt down as a candidate to fulfill some sort of prophecy about a white horse/savior type thing…I mean, it’s bullshit obviously…but you know that hasn’t discouraged these people for years…

    https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/ryanhatesthis/romneys-vote-to-remove-trump-from-office-sparked-rumors

    the not-being-hated-by-your-dozens-of-grandkids thing might be all there is to it but I wouldn’t write off the possibility that he’s shoring up the crazy-vote in preparation to proving MisterPiggins right & taking another shot at the big gig?

  9. I think he was going for the legacy angle, first and foremost. I also suspect that he knows that eventually things are going to turn for Trump and the Trumpers and he’ll be able to go forth from that day forward as the one voice of sanity in a sea of madness.

  10. I think his vote yesterday was for those Senators “on the fence” that couldn’t find a spine.

    There was no way the GOP could allowed a majority to vote to remove so they only had 1 vote to really play with.

    Romney has real wealth, unlike Trump, and once Donnie is out (sigh) he’ll be no use to the GOP and I think there are several in that party that want a piece of him. And I think this is the reason Donnie won’t leave on his own accord.

    I could totally see Great grandpas Mike or Joe pickinig Romney as a running mate in a effort to “bridge the divide” and “help heal the counrty.”

        • I’m at *the dude typing himself into a damn bloody stump*levels of frustrated about all of it😉

          Thank god I work with preschoolers who have IEP’s, and who take literally ALL of my concentration when I’m at work–because I HAVE to just live fully in the moment there, and can’t worry about their/our world & future going all to shit.

  11. I think he probably thinks Trumpism is a temporary scourge on his party, and wants to come out on top when it ends. There are a lot of “reasonable Republicans” who think this. Even if Trump and his ilk are solidly and soundly defeated in the next few elections (I doubt it will be that easy though), Trumpism has taken foot. Mitty will either be lost within his own party, or if the Democrats take hold, he’ll be wearing the scarlet R and will suffer from that.

    • I think that is a piece of his calculation, probably not as blatantly as someone like Bill Kristol. I do think there is some good faith concern on his part too.

      The fact that more Republicans aren’t doing the same thing kind of look down the road says a couple of things to me.

      One is that the Murdoch monopoly over the right’s media means that they have nowhere to go to get their message out unless they luck into one of the quota jobs that are reserved for dull witted conservatives at major media joints, like Bret Stephens at the NY Times.

      The other is that there is no serious money out there from conservative oligarchs. Koch supposedly is unhappy with Trump, but it’s just hot air. If he truly cared, he would be spending for primary opponents like he did in 2010, and the institutions he controls like Cato and AEI would be blaring sirens 24-7, like they did with Obamacare.

      • Yeah I thnk you are spot on – I think they either are calculating the Trumpism is here to stay, or they’re not worrying about it at all. If they were as unhappy as they’d like us to think, they’d do something about it to protect themselves and fix whatever they’re unhappy about.

        I think the scary thing is that the lunatic Republicans who are getting elected are the real deal – they aren’t Trumpy just because they want to get elected; I think a lot of them are genuinely like that and now those are the people leading the Republican Party.

        I do think Mitt has some degree of conscience here, but also thinks that he’s going to come out on top for doing the right thing (like they’re not mutually exclusive, I think). Even though Trump was ultimately acquitted, Trump and other Republicans are not going to forget his vote and are going to take aim at him. He’s not going to get out of this unscathed, and I’m sure he knew that, yet he did the right thing. So that says something.

    • …off the top of my head I’d say Mueller is a prime example of someone who wants to be able to look back & tell himself he tried to excise this cancer from his beloved republican party…& that the patient didn’t die on the table

      …& – sad as I personally might find it to contemplate – I think by december there’s a good chance it’ll be in post-op recovery with a lot of very expensive & highly publicised cosmetic work & a lot of physio in full effect

      …it shouldn’t be able to at this point since the rot appears to run from root to branch but to get into all of it there’d have to be more bloodletting on the other side of the aisle than the DNC has the stomach for…or at least that would be my bet if I were the betting sort

  12. I think Mitt’s motive is pretty simple. He’s staking out a position as a “stand-up dude with principles” and it seems to be working out for him:

    https://www.rawstory.com/2020/02/while-trump-attacks-mitt-romneys-faith-at-home-utah-is-celebrating-him/

    Please note that I don’t believe for a nanosecond he actually has principles — he’s just adopting some protective camouflage that appeals to his base. As someone above noted, he’s not running for anything outside of Utah anytime soon, if ever, so he can just focus on the Mormons. And as the article above points out, even if those Mormons are Trump supporters, they are still willing to give Mitt “integrity points” for taking a stand on “principle.”

    There’s a reason Marx dubbed religion “the opium of the people.” In general, it’s easy to bilk the religious. Televangelists, Republicans, grifters, and Trump do it every. single. day.

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