#laszlo doesnt understand women

[scuttle-buttle]

Chapter 13

WC: 1200

Rated: E

Chapter Tags: angst, anxiety, truth hurts, jealousy, hints at infidelity, mildly suggestive dialogue?, laszlo still doesn’t understand women

🧠

He wasn't sure where to go after he left you in his parlor. Laszlo never had a history of the best coping mechanisms, which is how he found himself meeting Karen, the last person he should've been seeing given the situation, at a bar downtown. But he would admit that he felt much calmer than earlier.

Laszlo was grateful that Karen had agreed to meet him on short notice. Not much was said in the first fifteen minutes or so. Eventually Laszlo broke the silence. “Karen,” his head cocks to the left, “might I ask you a question? Regarding my aide, since you appear to know her well.” He took a sip of the burning whisky.

Karen looks up at him where he sits next to her, “yes.” She hides her displeasure well.

“Recently, she has been acting strange. More melancholic and aggressive than is usual. She-” he searches for a way to mask the truth enough but still convey his question “-mentioned having relationship troubles. She expressed that she believed her significant other to be unfaithful. I was hoping that, as a woman yourself, you might have insight to this that I could offer her.” A beat passes. “To assuage her anxieties and improve her work ethic back to its full potential, of course,” he adds to appear pragmatic. He was hesitant to admit that he was really asking for himself.

“Oh I’m sure she will be fine, Laszlo,” she curls her fingers around his upper arm as a caring gesture. “Young women often deal with these things as they attempt to figure out what they want in life. At her age they are always so emotionally back-and-forth. She is likely trying to make decisions between her love life and her future as a career woman. To really find and establish her identity. In all honesty I have always seen her as too independent to settle down seriously with a partner. I would not find it a shock if she was considering breaking the relationship off. Time will tell.” Her answer is easy, almost practiced.

He gives a small grunt at her advice. He sincerely hoped that you weren’t reconsidering your relationship with him. Laszlo knew that he shouldn’t be asking Karen about you, but who else could he trust? She had always given him sound professional advice in the past. Seeing that Karen was waiting for a response he diplomatically states “I’m not sure that will be sufficient advice to offer her, let alone coming from me. Perhaps you are right in that time will be what is required.” He works to keep his fear from showing in his features.

“Since we are on the topic,” Karen turns to face him. “Laszlo, I must admit I haven’t been entirely truthful with you the last few weeks.”

He looked up to meet her eyes across the bar. “How so?” Had you confided in Karen about something? It wouldn’t make sense, seeing as you held an unfounded grudge currently.

“When you left Munich I had told you that I agreed that a long-distance relationship of that sort wouldn’t be fruitful for either of us. At the time I believed it.”

Laszlo shifted back in his chair. His brow furrowed as his thoughts raced to make sense of what Karen was telling him. Had her beliefs changed? Had she regretted agreeing to end the relationship? At the time it had been a very civil, and frankly easy, conversation. Not wanting to misinterpret his own conclusions, he asks “and now?” He doesn’t notice her fingers still on his bicep.

Her head cocks to the side. “When you first left I had hoped you would ask me to join you. I also understood that it wasn’t of your nature to do so, and I couldn’t hold that against you. So when I was given the chance to bring my research back to the city I realized that it would bring me close to you. I thought that perhaps we could try again; pick up where we left off before you moved. Maybe I even stay.”

His expression remains unchanged as he mulls over her confession. She had regretted the mutual split. Laszlo can feel the annoyance bubble in him instantly. He feels regret at shutting you down earlier when you had been correct all along. He knows his first words should be to defend you, to defend your relationship. What instead leaves him is “why did you not bring this to my attention sooner? Had I known then things might have been different. And yet you waited years to tell me.”

“I wasn’t sure it was a commitment you were prepared for. With time it became harder to admit.”

“Says you, the woman who knows no boundary to what is or is not appropriate to confess. You’ve made your life’s work on asking about and admitting the taboos of our human existence. I hardly think that your desire to remain coupled would be that difficult to explain to me.” His raising voice attracts the attention of some patrons nearby. He pays no mind to their curious glances.

Karen sighs. “Laszlo, please. We both know how fickle you were with these things back then. We only ever saw each other on weekends because of the distance to start with. I once suggested that you come to work at the institute so that we could be closer and you dismissed the idea. I'm sure even you can imagine that in hindsight as enough to deter me.”

His jaw clenches; he knows that she has a valid point. He was not the most pleasant or sociable at times. In truth he isn’t sure what he would have said if she had been honest from the start. “I suppose,” he breathes in deeply to calm himself, “that you had good reason to be cautious regarding this. But it has been years, Karen. You must be made aware that I have met someone; I am engaged in a serious relationship. I am happy.”

“Yes, I’m aware of that new development.” She looks away for a second, a flash of bitter in her eyes before it quickly vanishes. Laszlo is confused as to how she would know, as he had never disclosed having a significant other explicitly in her presence. He doesn’t have time to dwell on it. Her hand moves down to cover his own on the bar’s surface. “But my dear, we have such a history together. Think of how good things were between us. She is too young for you. A student no less! I know you, surely, better than she ever could. I know the things you need. I can give that to you and more.” Her whispered words are impassioned. He jerks back at the feel of her palm meeting his cheek.

Laszlo carefully and quickly retreats his hand from under her grasp. “I can assure you that I only view our relationship now as one between colleagues. Nothing more. I apologize if I gave you the impression otherwise. Have a good evening, Dr. Stratton.” With that he steps out of the bar and into the cold night air. He needed to find you.

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[patriotsnet]

Why Are Republicans Standing Behind Trump

New Post has been published on https://www.patriotsnet.com/why-are-republicans-standing-behind-trump/

Why Are Republicans Standing Behind Trump

Trump Is Still A Force In The Party

Republicans Stand Behind Trump

After the 2012 elections, prominent Republicans sharply criticized Mitt Romney and his campaign. Democrats did the same to Hillary Clinton after 2016 and sometimes included former President Barack Obama in their criticisms, too. For a political party to change direction, it nearly always has to distance itself from past leaders.;

Or put another way: For there to be an autopsy, there has to be a dead body.

Why Dont Republicans Stand Up To Trump Heres The Answer

Rep. Mark Sanford

If youre still flummoxed by the abject servility of congressional Republicans, by their refusal to confront Trump and stand up for American values, check out last nights primary election in South Carolina. The purging of Mark Sanford says it all.

Sanford is a long-serving conservative lawmaker who typically votes with his party, but on a few public occasions, he has actually dared to suggest that Trump is not the supreme very stable genius that the deluded Republican base deems Trump to be. The result: Sanford loses his job.

For the inexcusable sin of speaking his mind about factual reality, the Republican base voters in Sanfords House district threw him out last night, handing the GOP nomination to a far-right Trumper who repeatedly denounced Sanford as disloyal.

This is why rank-and-file Republican lawmakers refuse to speak out. Theyre afraid of their own constituents. Its Trumps party now, and the constituents in red districts virtually worship the guy. Forget about putting country over party, because its actually worse than that. Sanfords colleagues wont put country over career. Theyll vow that what just happened to Sanford will not happen to them.

As conservative commentator Erick Erickson said today, Mark Sanford losing in South Carolina is pretty much proof positive that the GOP is not really a conservative party that cares about limited government. It is now fully a cult of personality.

I stand by every word.

Republicans And Their Declared Positions On Donald Trump

Elected officials’ positions on Donald Trump Federal:Republicans and their declared positions on Donald Trump Republicans supporting Donald Trump Republicans opposing Donald Trump State and local: Republican reactions to 2005 Trump tape

In a typical general election year, elected officials readily line up behind their party’s presidential nominee. In 2012, for example, The Hill reported that only four Republican members of Congress had declined to endorse Mitt Romney by mid-September of that year. “All other House and Senate Republicans” had already endorsed the Republican nominee.

But 2016 was not a typical general election year.

Controversial comments from the GOP’s 2016 nominee, Donald Trump, about women, Muslims, Hispanics, and veterans who were prisoners of war caused some Republican lawmakers to distance themselves from the businessman, while others outright denounced him.

This page tracked the stances of Republican lawmakers on Trump throughout the 2016 presidential election: Did they support him? Did they oppose him? Or were they somewhere in between? The focus of this page is on Republican members of Congress and Republican governors, but we also have included some information on influential Republicans who have served in Republican presidential administrations.

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List Of Republicans Who Opposed The Donald Trump 2016 Presidential Campaign

This article is part of a series about

e

This is a list of Republicans and conservatives who announced their opposition to the election of Donald Trump, the 2016 Republican Party nominee and eventual winner of the election, as the President of the United States. It also includes former Republicans who left the party due to their opposition to Trump and as well as Republicans who endorsed a different candidate. It includes Republican presidential primary election candidates that announced opposition to Trump as the nominee. Some of the Republicans on this list threw their support to Trump after he won the presidential election, while many of them continue to oppose Trump. Offices listed are those held at the time of the 2016 election.

Klobuchar: Trump’s Actions Are Like A ‘global Watergate’ Scandal

Today, as Democrats in the House of Representatives move toward bringing articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump, with the next Judiciary Committee hearing of evidence set for Monday, few Democrats are still clinging to the hope that Republicans will reach a breaking point with Trump like they did with Nixon.

“I really don’t think there is any fact that would change their minds,” Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., a member of the House Intelligence Committee, told NBC News.

Why? Two key changes since Nixon: a massive divide in American political life we hate the other team more than ever before and a media climate that fuels and reinforces that chasm, powered by Fox News on the Republican side.

Himes said he was “a little stunned by the unanimity on the Republican side,” especially among retiring lawmakers who don’t have to worry about surviving a GOP primary had they gone against Trump. “We’re in a place right now where all that matters to my Republican colleagues is the defense of the president,” he added.

No Republican congressmen have said they support impeachment. In the Senate, the entire GOP voted to condemn the impeachment inquiry, except for three moderates: Mitt Romney of Utah, Susan Collins of Maine, and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska. The three have stopped short of saying they support Trump’s impeachment, however, and it would take at least 20 Republican senators to vote to convict him in a Senate trial for removal to succeed.

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Trump Has Been ‘consistent And Loyal’

Laszlo Pasztor, a retired white military officer and evangelical Protestant who works with the Republican evangelical coalition in Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, told ABC News he believes his community has been attracted to Trump’s conservative policies such as anti-abortion and protecting their “right to exercise our faith.”

“He’s been consistent and loyal. And Christians value his loyalty,” Pasztor told ABC News.

Historians and religious studies experts note that the white evangelical bloc has gotten a great deal of attention in the political sphere, even though they only represent 15% of the entire religious population in America, according to Robert P. Jones, the CEO of PRRI.

Rev. Traci Blackmon, a Black minister who serves as the associate general, minister of justice and local church ministries for the United Church of Christ, told ABC News that not all Christians share the same support for the president or other politicians.

“There are many voices out here, evangelical and progressivewho understand a moral compelling to vote for people who see everyone, who believe in a beloved community in this country,” she told ABC News.

During the 2016 presidential election, voters were split between Trump and Hillary Clinton 45 to 48% , according to a 2018 survey by the Pew Research Center.

Video: Black churches mobilize voters

Republicans Choice: Stand With Trump Or Risk His Wrath

Trump has already informed at least two GOP lawmakers of his dissatisfaction with their defense of his racist tweets.

Sen. John Cornyn prides himself on winning a large share of the Latino vote in Texas, campaigning in the Asian American community and running ads in three languages. Its a crucial strategy for a Republican in a diverse state and one that is sharply divergent from President Donald Trumps approach.

So as Cornyn seeks reelection next year with Trump on the ballot, hes making sure that he isnt dragged down by the presidents more inflammatory politics, exemplified again this week by his racist tweets telling four liberal Democratic congresswomen to go back to where they came from.

I dont have any trouble speaking to any of my constituents. They dont confuse me with whats happening up here in D.C., said Cornyn, who has gently criticized Trumps battle as a mistake that unified Democrats. I know we are consumed by this here, but it doesnt consume my constituents when I go back home.

Its a common refrain for Republicans trying to deflect a Trump-fueled firestorm and highlights the dilemma that the party will face for months to come.

GOP lawmakers, especially those facing potentially tough reelection bids, need to create independent identities to win over Trump skeptics. But if they break too fiercely with the president, he and his grassroots supporters might turn on them, with disastrous political consequences.

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Republican Exodus: String Of Prominent Republicans Desert Donald Trump

In the lead-up to the US election, more than 150 former Republican Party staffers have publicly denounced Donald Trump.

Unity greatest strength: Biden marks 9/11

More than 150 former aides and staffers to the Republican Partys last three standard-bearers former president George W. Bush and senators John McCain and Mitt Romney are throwing their support behind Joe Biden, they announced on Thursday.

Each of the three political alumni groups, all acting as separate organisations, released statements condemning US President Donald Trump and, at times, denouncing his prior feuds with their former bosses.

The three leaders, all lifelong conservatives, have each had their own well-documented past with the current President.

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Working for John McCain was an honour, and his example of public service remains a lasting influence on us. His motto country first and his frequent call on Americans to serve causes greater than our self-interest were not empty slogans like so much of our politics today. They were the creed by which he lived and he urged us to do the same. It is in that spirit that we are supporting his friend, Joe Biden, a statement from the McCain alumni group read.

The group is made up of more than 100 former staffers from Mr McCains nearly 35-year political career, ranging from junior aides to chiefs of staff.

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Loyalists Stand With Trump

Why military veterans stand behind Donald Trump

For now, however, Republican voters like Drago remain more the exception than the rule.

In the days before the Capitol riot, Reuters/Ipsos polling showed that Trumps repeated assertions of election fraud were catching on: About 65% of Republicans felt Bidens election victory was due to illegal votes and election-rigging. That was up from 59% who said so in a Nov. 13-17 poll shortly after the election.

In a poll just after the riot, on Jan. 7-8, just 23% of Republicans approved of the response by Utah Sen. Mitt Romney, one of the Republican lawmakers most vocal in assigning blame to the president, while 52% disapproved. Meanwhile, 46% of Republicans said they approved of the response of Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, a Republican ally of Trump who condemned the violence but continued to challenge the election results. About 28% of Republicans opposed Cruzs position.

The continued backing of Trumps base has not deterred a growing number of GOP leaders from seeking his ouster, however, either by impeachment or an effort under the U.S. Constitutions 25th Amendment provisions for removing a president based on inability to perform the duties of the office. Some, such as Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney – the third-ranking Republican in the House and daughter of former Republican Vice President Dick Cheney – cast the decision as a duty to put country over party.

But that argument could spur many of Trumps faithful supporters to seek retribution.

I would put money into that, he says.

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Whats Next For The Gop After Trump Acquittal

Other Republicans, also leery of defending Trump’s behavior, justified their vote by arguing that the trial of a former president is unconstitutional. They faced heavy pressure from GOP voters in their states, who largely remain in Trump’s corner and made it clear that they expect the same of their party leaders.

The Republican senators who voted to convict Trump were Mitt Romney of Utah, the only Republican who voted to convict him last year in the first impeachment trial; Susan Collins of Maine; Lisa Murkowski of Alaska; Ben Sasse of Nebraska; Bill Cassidy of Louisiana; Richard Burr of North Carolina; and Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania.

Romney voted to convict Trump last year, Collins and Murkowski have independent brands and are sometimes described as the two most moderate Republicans, Sasse is a Trump critic who bit his tongue for most of his presidency until he was renominated for his seat last summer, Toomey and Burr are retiring after the 2021-22 congressional session, and Cassidy doesn’t face voters again until 2026.

Other Former Federal Government Officials

The Weekly StandardBill Kristol

Charles Fried, United States Solicitor General; Associate Justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court

David K. Garman, Former Assistant Secretary and Under Secretary of Energy

Steve Baer, former president, United Republican Fund of Illinois

Juan Hernandez, political consultant, co-founder of Hispanic Republicans of Texas

Matt Higgins, former press secretary for New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani

Stuart Stevens, political consultant and strategist

Mac Stipanovich, strategist and lobbyist; former Chief of Staff to Bob Martinez

Rick Wilson, political consultant and former Republican strategist.

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How Trump Won The Evangelical Vote

During his 2016 campaign, Trump, who hadn’t made organized religion a centerpiece of his life, spoke at Christian schools and groups touting his devotion to their causes and rallied support among prominent figures, including Jerry Falwell Jr.

Pasztor said evangelicals flocked to Trump because of his early and consistent messaging and signs he would make eventual appointees to the high court such as Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh. Following Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg’s death in September, Trump nominated Amy Coney Barrett, a Catholic conservative, to the court, spring boarding support among evangelicals from the mid-50% range to 71%, according to PRRI.

“That is still the reason why, a significant reason why evangelicals are consistently still with him,” Pasztor said, referring to the Supreme Court picks.

Pasztor acknowledged his community does take notice when Trump acts unethically or speaks with divisive and sometimes vulgar rhetoric. The 2005 “Access Hollywood” tape audio, where Trump described sexual assault on a hot mic, Trump’s reluctance to condemn white hate groups and demeaning his opponents have come under fire from religious groups and ethics watchdogs for years.

“Sometimes we’re troubled by some of his tweets, some of his aggressive statementsWe have not ignored that,” Pasztor said. “But on the other hand, we’ve got to look at the good that he has done.”

Why Do Republicans Continue To Support Trump Despite Years Of Scandal

It was late September last year when a whistleblower complaint revealed that President Trump had tried to force the Ukrainian government to investigate Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden. Within moments the scandal captured headlines. What followed was months of back and forth as Republicans supported the president while the Democrats used their political capital to get him impeached.

But this was not the first time ;;or the last time ;the president was caught in the middle of a scandal.;Since the impeachment trial that followed the Ukraine incident, episodes from The New York Times uncovering unsavory details from President Trumps tax returns, to his questionable dismissal of multiple Inspectors General, to his refusal to clearly condemn white supremacists have all sparked widespread media attention and partisan fighting in 2020.;

Although with his polls dropping, some Republicans may finally be distancing themselves from the President, the question has been regularly asked the past four years: why do the Republicans continue to support the President despite these troubling charges being leveled at him? And, what is it that the Democrats stand to gain from repeated allegations?

;In addition to demonstrating how polarization accelerates scandals, the paper also found that:;

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Republicans In Congress Stay Largely In Line Behind Trump

A few top Republicans called for a smooth transition, but the critical mass of the party remained silent as President Trump continued to try to subvert the popular vote and falsely claim he won re-election.

By Nicholas Fandos

Nearly two weeks after President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr. was declared the winner of the election, leading congressional Republicans remain unwilling to recognize his victory, keeping silent on Friday even in the face of President Trumps increasingly brazen attempts to subvert the results.

As Mr. Trump met at the White House with Michigan lawmakers in hopes of overturning that states popular vote, a few additional fissures emerged in the otherwise solid wall of Republican support for his tactics. Senator Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, the retiring chairman of the Senates health committee, became the most senior Republican to call for Mr. Trump to begin the transition process. And the partys top House appropriator, Representative Kay Granger of Texas, said it was time for the president and Republicans to move on.

But by and large, those notes of dissent and others came from Republicans who are already retiring at years end or have no immediate plans to face voters, like Senators Mitt Romney of Utah and Ben Sasse of Nebraska.

And having defied the predictions of a down-ballot blood bath at the hands of voters fed up with Mr. Trump, congressional Republicans have seen there is little political cost for their quiet support.

No Honeymoon For Biden

Trump voters aren’t ready to acknowledge Joe Biden as;president despite his margin of victory of 7 million votes nationwide.

Three of four, 73%, say Biden wasn’t legitimately elected. Most don’t want their representatives to cooperate with him, even if that means gridlock in Washington.

Six in 10, 62%, say congressional Republicans “should do their best to stand up to Biden on major policies, even if it means little gets passed.” That’s more than double the 26% who say congressional Republicans “should do their best to work with Biden on major policies, even if it means making compromises.”

There are disquieting findings in the poll for Fox News, which has prospered as the dominant news source for conservatives. In a USA TODAY/Suffolk Poll in October 2016, 58% of Trump voters said Fox was their most trusted source of news.;In the new poll, that;drops to 34%.

Trust has risen in two relatively new outlets that have made their reputations by championing Trump. Newsmax is;the most trusted among 17% of Trump voters, followed by 9% for One American News Network, or OANN.;

David Paleologos, director of the Suffolk University Political Research Center, says the findings could reflect “a seismic shift in the landscape of trusted news sources for conservatives in the country.”

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