Left Coast Sports Babe

Florida Gators now 4-5 & ESPN resports coach Dan Mullen said between 20-30 players missed practice during the week because they had the flu. So is Ron DeSantis’s anti-vax attitude keeping folks in Florida from getting flu shots now too?

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So two defensive stands by Cincinnati Bearcats in the last 2 minutes, one with Tulsa at the 11, one at the 3, and they hang on to win 28-20 to remain undefeated. Headline on this one “S*ck it, College Football Playoff committee!”

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Someone brought a sign to ESPN Gameday in Cincinnati – We could beat the Bengals and they wouldn’t let us in the College Football Playoff.

Now that seems like a bit of a stretch. If the Bearcats beat the Bengals that would probably count as a quality win.

Beating say, the Detroit Lions, however, might hurt Cincinnati’s strength of schedule.

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Reportedly Packers QB Aaron Rodgers is ‘furious’ over leak that revealed he is unvaccinated. Wonder how furious his teammates and opponents are to know they’ve been playing with and against an unvaccinated liar?

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So Big Bird is trending because he flew south for the winter during a terrible storm and abandoned his constituents for a vacation? Oh wait, sorry, that was Ted Cruz.

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Colin Jost nails it on Weekend Update on SNL about Velveeta Voldemort doing the Tomahawk Chop at Atlanta Braves World Series game – “Native American groups said they found it extremely offensive to see their culture associated with someone who can’t even run a casino.”

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So has a single Republican demanded that Glenn Youngkin’s underage son face penalties or even jail time for trying to vote illegally – twice? I’ll wait.

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As beloved as he was in Green Bay, Brett Favre has burned a lot of bridges by signing w/ the Vikings, sending unwanted d*ck pics to a reporter, & reportedly receiving about $1 million from state of Mississippi for speeches he didn’t give. “Hold my beer” – Aaron Rodgers.

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So if Cynthia Mason, a black woman in Texas,, was sentenced to 5 years in prison for accidentally voting illegally how long should Glenn Youngkin”s son get?

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Remembering that season I watched random parts of the Bachelorette and discovered Jordan Rodgers and his family were basically estranged from his brother Aaron. Wondered, okay, families are complicated, whose fault is it? Thinking we got the answer this week.

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So would Republicans angry at their own members for passing Biden’s infrastucture bill please submit lists of bridges & roads in their districts they don’t want to be fixed or repaired?

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There’ve always been anti-vaxxers. On the fringes of both parties. A small number of them even protest every year at California State Democratic convention. Big difference is that now media thinks they’re great for ratings and clickbait.

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Ron DeSantis’s latest lie – “How many places that are deep blue are well governed in this country? Can you name me some?” California says “Hi.” (And don’t just take my word for it, take the word of state voters who just voted 61.9% to 31.8% to keep our Democratic governor.”)

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So has Velveeta Voldemort tried to take credit for infrastructure week yet?

A Los Angeles area principal apologized after their high school, Inglewood, beat opponent, Morningside, in football,.106 to nothing.

Wonder how many SEC coaches wondered if they could put Morningside on their schedule.

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Give Aaron Rodgers credit. He’s doing his part to make sure Tom Brady doesn’t get the NFL fan “QB we most love to hate” award.

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Buster Posey in his retirement speech. “Most 34 year old olds are probably experiencing some back pain getting out of bed.” And a whole lot of Giants fans old enough to be his parents or grandparents are just chuckling..

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The Dodgers tweeted out a nice statement honoring Buster Posey as he retired yesterday.

Bet they wish he’d done it a year earlier.

(And yes, I know LA beat the SF Giants in the playoffs. But that long pennant race, the Wild Card game, and then all the pitching gyrations in a five game NLDS clearly took it out of LA and made it easier for the Braves to beat them.)

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Most common PED excuse with pro athletes “I didn’t know what was in the supplement.”. And some of these clowns are afraid of a now well-tested vaccine?

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Wait, JD Vance, running for Ohio Senate as outsider & working class supporter tweeted “Want to have dinner w/ me & Peter Thiel? Donate $10,800 by tomorrow I’ll send you the details,” Because nothing says working class supporter like hawking expensive dinners w/ a billionaire?

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If GOP is so sure Build Back Better would be unpopular why don’t they just let Democrats pass it, then run on repealing the bill in 2022?

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Virginia results – 50.9% Youngkin – 48.4% McAuliffe. New Jersey results. 50.58% Murphy – 48.67% Ciattarelli. Guess which loser is challenging election results? For a party is making education a top issue, concept of learning to be a good sport appears to be beyond GOP.

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Know many Democrats are annoyed at Joe Manchin. But imagine (& I’m NOT morals police), if Cal Cunningham in North Carolina could’ve thought w/ his “upper brain” while campaigning & at least just held off sexting a woman not his wife until after election.

51 Senate seats would be nice right now.

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Dear media including CNN: All these stories now about people struggling with inflation.

Where were all the stories of people who were able to buy food and stay in their homes after the Biden/Democratic stimulus was passed

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Colin Powell’s funeral, with George & Laura Bush, Hillary Clinton (Bill still recovering), Barack & Michelle Obama, as well as Joe and Jill Biden in attendance, is a nice bipartisan moment. Sometimes easy to forget we used to have bipartisan moments.

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While I’m wishing Aaron Rodgers a fully recovery, because no one should die just for being stupid, must confess as a Stanford grad it is amusing to see an unvaccinated Cal grad who clearly learned so little about science.

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Oddly, in 2018 “Rodgers’ commitment to end childhood cancer and blood disorders earned the Packers quarterback an honorary doctorate of humanities degree from the Medical College of Wisconsin”

So he believes in curing cancer but not vaccines? Has someone checked Rodgers for cumulative concussions?

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Per ESPN, Aaron Rodgers, who now has COVID-19, “pursued an alternative treatment” and “then petitioned the NFL to recognize him as vaccinated. The NFL refused.”

Hmm, so Rodgers has COVID but is he at least dewormed?

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Matt Cain on KNBR with his favorite Buster Posey story: Posey calls time and goes out to the mound to ask Madison Bumgarner “What do you want to throw here.” And Madbum response “I dunno, you’re smarter than me, you call it.” #SFGiants

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All this handwringing about how deep blue” New Jersey is and how bad it was that Murphy barely won. The last time a Democratic Governor was re-elected in New Jersey was 1977.

But the last Governor re-elected in New Jersey period was Chris Christie.

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Lisa Murkowski voted to open debate on the John Lewis Voting Rights Act. Good for her. But sorry that this very small step is now almost heroic by GOP standards.

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Meanwhile Susan Collins has voted against opening debate on the John Lewis Voting Act. Will her reason be that she was “very concerned” or “very troubled?”-

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We laugh when Rachel Maddow talks about the hundreds of Q-Anon members in Dealey Plaza who believe Velveeta Voldemort is a biological cousin of JFK Jr. But don’t forget – most of these people vote!

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Watched Maddow tonight also cover GOP’s Lauren Witzke claiming she won Chris Coons’ Senate Seat in Delaware & demanding state troopers help her “reclaim” seat.

Coons won the last eelection 291,804 to 186,054 votes.

What Rachel calls “weird humming noise in background” sounds a lot like batsh*t crazy sedition.

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GOP Senator Mike Lee, “I support the vaccine, I’ve been vaccinated, but this mandate is doing serious harm to our economy.” Like saying “I support speed limits, I follow speed limits, but ticketing trucks driving 100 mph does serious harm to our economy by slowing drivers down.”

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Rick Scott complains TSA & government have no right to show proof of vaccination or to make travelers wear masks. Guess Scott figures it could lead to passengers having to take off shoes, remove metal from pockets, limit liquids in carry-on & gasp, even show ID to board planes..

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Facebook running regular commercials saying how much they care about safety and some regulation, even updating of section 230. Translation: Facebook didn’t care, they don’t care, but they are REALLY scared of the bipartisan coalition of Senators ready to rein them in.

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Senator Klobuchar introducing her bipartisan bill – “American Innovation & Choice Online Act” w/ Grassley, Durbin, Graham, Blumenthal, Hirono, Kennedy, Booker, Lummis, Warner & Hawley. Not only should bill pass but Amy should get Presidential medal for working w/ Josh Hawley.

Listening to Chuck Grassley repeatedly praise Amy Klobuchar for her work leading the “American Innovation and Choice Online Act,” was both lovely and a sad reminder that there was a time Senators used to work across the aisle regularly.

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-“It breaks your heart. It is designed to break your heart. The game begins in the spring, when everything else begins again, and it blossoms in the summer, filling the afternoons and evenings, and then as soon as the chill rains come, it stops and leaves you to face the fall alone. You count on it, rely on it to buffer the passage of time, to keep the memory of sunshine and high skies alive, and then just when the days are all twilight, when you need it most, it stops.

A. Bartlett Giamatti.

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Pitchers and catchers report in 103 days.

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As I mentioned two days ago, whatever happened in game 6 of this World Series, there’s was a major piece of good news after game 5. At least there was zero chance of hearing a celebratory crowd in the ballpark doing the Chop.

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Clearly more important things to worry about. But University of Cincinnati, #2 in country, today ranked #6 by College Football Playoff committee, on strength of schedule. While Alabama, who lost to 6-2 Texas A&M and Oregon who lost to 3-5 Stanford, are in top 4. Power 5 bias.

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GOP loves to beat the inflation drum, especially on food prices, and blame it on Democrats’ stimulus plan. And media lets them do it. How about a reminder that without the stimulus plan many Americans wouldn’t have been able to afford food at all?

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Newly elected Lt. Gov of Virginia, Winsome Sears, not only had a campaign poster of her holding an assault style rife, but also she has expressed support for a Texas style abortion ban. Wonder how many suburban Virginia women figure they can just drive to DC?

84% in, and right now with over 2.3 million votes cast, the NJ Governor’s race is separated by 565 votes. Wonder how many New Jersey residents stayed home thinking their vote didn’t matter?

So according to GOP precedent right now when can we expect Terry McAuliffe is going to call Virginia’s election officials and demand they find him more votes?

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Listening to Glenn Youngkin’s victory speech….lots of optimistic platitudes, not so many specifics. But to be fair, not nasty. One major note – Youngkin did NOT thank Velveeta Voldemort. “RINO” attacks from The Former Guy in 3.2.1..

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So as Youngkin says he’s going to give parents a choice in where their kids go to school can’t wait to see what happens if a lot of parents of color decide they want their kids to go to nice white suburban schools.

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Two facts that explain almost all media coverage of politics right now.

1. Media has decided the only way to get ratings now is gloom and doom

. 2. See Fact 1.

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So wonder what these GOP parents who think their children are too fragile to read or hear anything potentially vulgar or upsetting tell the kids when they ask “So what does ‘let’s go Brandon” mean?

Wonder how many sports fans who say they can’t root for the Houston Astros because they cheated also are big fans of Tom Brady.

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If anyone on the New Orleans Saints had tackled Tom Brady with a horse collar tackle that resulted in a torn ACL, NFL would have suspended the entire team for the remainder of the season.

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Acting GM Zack Scott, arrested on DUI charges in Aug, will not return to NY Mets. Thinking if Mets hadn’t done deep dive from 1st place Aug 6 to out of playoff contention. Scott would have announced stint in rehab & team would have announced their full support of him for 2022.

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Rachel Maddow covers how Biden administration Elizabeth Prelogar, US Soliciter General, brilliantly argued against Texas abortion law. For example, if allowed, California could add a bounty for anyone turning someone in who violates state’s gun laws.

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Grand total of 34 NYPD cops went on unpaid leave over the vaccine mandate today. Assuming at least 30 of the 34 will be profiled in the NYTimes.

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While Democrats are focused on GOTV in Virginia, these numbers bear repeating – 169,638 to 169,305 – 433 votes.

How much Mike Garcia (R) beat Christy Smith (D) by in CA Congressional District 25 in 2020.

Even in states like California that support voting rights we need to VOTE.

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This is such a small thing… but as a woman I find myself irrationally annoyed every time I hear Amy Comey Barrett talk in that breathless little girl voice. But, onwards.

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Apparently the Former Guy is selling “Let’s Go Brandon” t-shirts for $45 on his website. $45! So forget what the phrase means about Joe Biden. Having you spend $45 for a childish t-shirt says Trump thinks you’re f*cking stupid.

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James Carville, criticizing WH communication AND media. “All we talk about is inflation, we don’t talk about wage growth, increased power workers have, how we’re poised for a really good recovery..There’s a lot of good news in this economy & we’re not getting it out.” He’s right.

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Seeing well-deserved ire directed at Josh Hawley after he claimed having their masculinity attacked pushes men into watching porn and playing video games.

Josh was elected in part because Claire McCaskill is moderate/conservative red-state Democrat – not all that different politically than Manchin – & many in party didn’t put money or effort into supporting her.

Claire was a million times better.

Litmus tests belong in labs

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There are 48 Democratic Senators who would be happy to go on television and give interviews about why they support the Build Back Better agenda. So media, stop being lazy and drama-focused by just covering the two who have issues with it.

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All you need to know about today’s GOP: They’re fine w/ judge not allowing people Kyle Rittenhouse fatally shot in Aug to be called “victims.” But they’re also fine w/ St. Louis homeowner who pointed weapon at peaceful BLM protesters in July calling himself “a victim of a mob.”

Even if the Braves end up winning World Series at the least I just wanted Astros to win tonight. So my last memories of baseball before this winter don’t involve that bleeping Chop.

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Thinking there might have been about as many people who thought Trevor Siemian would have beaten Tom Brady this year as thought the SF Giants would have won 107 games. Sometimes I love sports.

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Read in SF Chronicle that last night when the Astros’ Jose Altuve came to the plate, just before he hit a home run 434 feet, the organist at Truist Field played “It’s a Small World.” Stay classy Braves.

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As the World Series returns to Houston, this is your voting rights reminder for the night. Houston is in Harris County, Texas, population 4.7 MILLION.

Harris County went for Biden over Trump 56% to 43%

And GOP wants 1 drop box for the entire county. #FreedomToVoteAct

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New Detroit Lions slogan for opponents “Better than a bye-week.”

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For anyone who says it doesn’t matter that Donald Trump has endorsed Glenn Youngkin because Youngkin is a nice independent kind of guy I challenge you to name ONE person Velveeta Voldemort has endorsed who turned out to be an nice independent kind of elected official.

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McAuliffe has a good track record as Governor. Youngkin hasn’t even been on a city council. Haven’t Americans learned enough about putting amateurs in charge?

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Random question. Tickets to World Series in Atlanta, even the cheap seats, were going for $1,000 and up last night. So who paid for Velveeta Voldemort’s suite last night for game 4?

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Presume Chasten was in charge of the costumes but they dressed up their babies as ‘infrastructure’ – ie traffic cones.

So if Chasten and Pete Buttigieg bring their twins, dressed as traffic cones, to a briefing covering what’s in Biden’s Build Back Better bill will the media show up and cover the whole thing?

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In a NY Times story, read that New York City’s vaccination rate among workers affected by city’s mandate rose to 83% at end of day Oct 29, up from 71 % on Oct. 19, day before the requirement was announced. Why isn’t that 83% the headline, instead of the minority holdouts?

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I understand why big Pharma is running ads against allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices. For them it’s strictly about profit. I’m still waiting for Senators who oppose this overwhelming popular change to explain why THEY are against it.

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Look, I don’t love Manchin or Sinema. But so much social media hate saying THEY’RE the ones blocking everything good in Senate?

Uh, there are 50 GOP Senators, some who claim to be moderate, who are marching in goose step behind Mitch McConnell on everything important. #VoteBlueIn22