No idea how Biden will get much done.

Dunno.

This is from their website.  (Trump now $5 which is interesting.)  

US Presidential Election 2020
Bets will be settled on the outcome of the 59th United States Presidential Election, bets will stand if election date is postponed/result is delayed from 3 November 2020 (US time). All in betting. $25 Trump max bet applies.

Yeah, the double standards from Donald Trump. But Arizona is a bit perplexing. The Associated Press had called it. My suggestion that the Democrats need only win one of Georgia, Pennsylvania or Nevada is predicted on the assumption that the Democrats have already won Arizona.

One would imagine.

I'm hoping Bet365 don't hold onto my potential winnings until Inauguration Day lol

See.  My bet not looking so dumb now.

Chas Liccardiello (from Planet America, and famous from the Chaser’s War on Everything) says that if the Democrats win Georgia, any legal challenge for other states becomes pointless.

Duly noted. Never said it was dumb haha. Just that Trump needs one hell of a Hail Mary to take Nevada from here.

Don't forget that they vote across party lines all the time in the US, so although it makes life harder for the Dems, they'll only have to come up with legislation that tempts one or two Senators to flip, as the Senate race is so close.

Yeah but big reforms like medicare and anything to do with raising taxes or dealing with emissions is probably out.

But they're challenging Georgia.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-election-2020/trump-when-georgia-result-lawsuit-biden-vote-count-b1602364.html

This is way america is always at the brink of having their government shut down. Hyper partisan politics on both sides.

Agree on Bernie Sanders or Elizabeth Warren.

I think lots of people (myself included) underestimated the extent to which many people in the United States erroneously conflate the the politics of Sanders and Warren with the Marxist-Leninist version of “socialism”. They’d probably consider Aussie politicians on the centre-right to be socialist. Staggering. Trump was clever in suggesting that Biden is Trojan Horse for “socialism”. Such a McCathyist way to trick Americans. It has played upon people’s misplaced fears (e.g. some Latinos who fled socialist dictatorships). It’s nuts. Biden’s about as socialist as right-leaning ALP or left-leaning Aussie Lib.

Warren and Sanders would be fine in Australia. And they might get more votes than Biden did in California and NY. But people in other parts would be terrified that they are actual Commies.

Not sure about Michelle Obama as candidate. Maybe she’d have done better than Biden. But she has never held public office (as was the case with Trump). She was an adored First Lady. But imo that doesn’t qualify her to be President of the United States. It would tokenism on another level. The US needs to move past that. It only exacerbates there many problems.

Honestly not sure if he'll live that long.

Sanders would have been America's Whitlam.

Actually, in a way, he kind of was, because his opportunity for leading his country was also taken away from him by a shit system that passes as a democracy but without any input from the people at large in 2016 and 2020, just as it was for Whitlam in 1975.

I share your view regarding Michelle, I am sure she is a very intelligent and capable woman, but being the spouse of a former President isn't a suitable qualification to ask for a vote. I think Hillary might have poisoned the well on that one for the Dems; she had plenty of legit political qualifications but was seen by voters as a party elite. Thanks to that we now have Trump. Mind you though if Michelle had a term as governor of Illinois first I'd be all ears.

I'll have to agree to disagree with you on question of the fairness of the Australian political system and on the Dismissal (although I agree with many of Gough's policies and I think he had integrity) ;)

As regards, Hillary Clinton. Exactly. The US got stuck with Trump as a result of the Democrats going with her. She did have legit political qualifications, imo, unlike Michelle Obama (at present). However, she also had done a few things to make her unappealing to people who aren't card-carrying Democrats.

Events such as Bosnia, supporting the Iraq War, arguably Benghazi and the list of donors to the Clintons really didn't help her cause. Christopher Hitchens used to tear shreds from her

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UrzyVt1lbpo

If I were American, I'd have voted for Hillary. But only through gritted teeth. So her nomination likely discouraged many swing-voters and usual Republicans from supporting the Democrats. Her nomination probably also didn't even get as many Democrats to turn out as might otherwise have been the case, imo.

Yeah, if Michelle Obama wants to run, hopefully, she gets some runs on the board as a governor or a senator or something. Although Hitchens was rather critical of her college dissertation, too. But I do think she's reasonable.

I wouldn't mind if somebody like Samantha Power ran for president. Although, she might require more domestic policy experience (as a senator or governor), too. She's great on the international stage, however.

Lemon on CNN saying time to come together. Last week saying he had to cut non democrats out of his life.

Pure speculation but-

With time and covid knocking off the elderly and new voters coming of age all the time I think she could still win. 

I think about all all the people who are 14-17 now and even the ones that are 18-24 now. They have had Trump who is demonized and grew up with Obama and perhaps trust in them.

Not what I meant. There are almost 70 million people voting for Trump - 5 million more than last time. Their needs need to be addressed - not ignored. Why do they feel disenfranchised? Why do they feel that Trump represents them? I would make the same point for Republicans but I imagine that Trump is going nowhere so they won't have the problem.

Scott,

agree that Michelle Obama could mobilise lots of support. But I dunno about the extent to which  many of Gen Z can considered as having grown up during the Obama years (‘08-‘16), at least in meaningful terms. They were born but loads of them would have been very  young.

Would they have been thinking about politics at such a young age?

Maybe it’s a case of associating Michelle Obama with a happier era. Even then it’s problematic because Barack Obama had plenty of flaws which they shouldn’t be glossing over (much sooner him as POTUS than Trump). Hagiography about Obama won’t help them (and will only polarise the country more). But if loads of Gen Zers do actually think about Obama’s presidency as glorious  and if that actually does  leads to a groundswell of support for Michelle Obama for president (by virtue of having been First Lady then)... that’s not a great reflection of the US political landscape. That’d amount to total symbolism (as opposed to meritocracy). There are so many competent, well-qualified people in the US. But to lead the country, that doesn’t matter, it’s all imagery, not substance or policy.

I reckon there might be something in Michelle Obama getting momentum from Gen Z and millennials. And that hype and symbolism is a pathway to the presidency doesn’t bode well for actually improving things in the US. They ought to have learned from picking one celebrity President (although I’m sure Michelle Obama would be better than Trump).

https://twitter.com/therecount/status/1324202411150483458?s=20

Lol.  Count the vote, stop the count.

MAGA logic.

It’s the happy era thing and familiarity.

She has lived within the presidential lifestyle so it comes down to how much they want to return to the Whitehouse.

The bar has been set with Trump.

I think if America ever wants to truly project democracy as the best system to the world they need to move past the nepotism and recycling of the same families. 

Honestly the USA is the Liam Reddy of democracy.

I think the Bush family was ok.

Dont really think it’s ok if your partner has been in the job that you should be allowed to have it.

Quote of the night.

Margin in Georgia down to 18.5k. 50k votes left to count: https://edition.cnn.com/politics/live-news/trump-biden-election-results-11-05-20/h_c9ae794f369956bead63723a2cfe4438

Biden will need about 80% of these final votes to go his way which is probably too much to ask even despite the postal vote composition, but damn he got it close down there.

Announcements in Nevada and Arizona at 4am and 1pm AEDT respectively, wins in both for Biden would finish it.

Trump just got around 2000 more over Biden in GA. Some small to medium counties are overwhelmingly red. The city areas will definitely push back. In jest, why do I feel the counting is being done to make it a form of entertainment? :D

Why did Nevada stop counting at  05:45 a.m. ET, Nov. 4? 24 hours of no counts.

This is just shameful. https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1324353932022480896?s=19

70% would do it 35,000 - 15,000. Still would be a recount.

CNN updating just now saying the Georgia Secretary of State says there's actually 61k votes left to count today.