If you need some cheering up, the US Republicans are tearing each other apart live on TV. https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/01/03/us/house-speaker-vote
House to Vote on McCarthy's Bid to Become Speaker: Watch Live

The group of right-wing Republicans opposing Mr. McCarthy has grown ahead of Tuesday’s vote, leaving the election’s outcome uncertain. He needs a majority of the House to take the job, and no Democrats are expected to back him.

It's oddly soothing, watching the Republicans milling about chaotically, unable to figure out what to do...
Mad Matt Gaetz has just risen to nominate Jim Jordan... who has just thrown his weight behind Kevin McCarthy. Hilarious.
So McCarthy has failed to win on the second ballot. This could go on quite some time.
I think Kevin McCarthy has failed to be elected speaker at the third ballot. Possibly by a wider margin than before.
Day 2 and the hilarious Republican shambles continues. Kevin McCarthy has failed to be elected speaker for the 4th time. https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/01/04/us/house-speaker-vote
Kevin McCarthy's House Speaker Bid: Watch Live

After Representative Kevin McCarthy, the Republican leader, had fallen short three times on Tuesday, and the House held another vote to find someone to hold the gavel. Donald Trump called on Republicans to line up behind Mr. McCarthy.

Man, that's a lot of shapeless grey suits.
And here we go again. Vote No. 5 that McCarthy will also lose.
And now a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see Kevin McCarthy fail to be elected Speaker for the sixth glorious time.
Yep, unless a load of Democrats vote for him (they won't), McCarthy has failed to be elected Speaker for the 6th time. He's approaching Farage-like levels of electoral failure.
It's incredible that they have no quicker way of conducting these votes. It's taking 45 minutes per pointless, unchanging round of voting.
I have to say, @[email protected], when Marjorie Taylor Greene comes across - comparatively speaking - like a voice of reason, you've got a REAL problem.
And then they take ages to announce to results, even though we've been counting. Everyone knows the answer. https://twitter.com/DanRebellato/status/1610742215495516182
Dan Rebellato on Twitter

“It's incredible that they have no quicker way of conducting these votes. It's taking 45 minutes per pointless, unchanging round of voting.”

Twitter
I mean they took 12 minutes to come to the same conclusion that everyone else watching had already come to.
And we're back! Another vote has been called, so Kevin McCarthy inches ever closer to being not elected speaker for the seventh time. Exciting!
Aaaand he's failed again. Oh Kevin...
Let's go again! Why not? Just to make absolutely, completely, 100% sure that the Republicans are a hilarious car crash. Take eight!
It's always great fun when inept politicians think they can gaslight us by insisting that something is the case when EVERYONE can see it's not. In that spirit, we should all enjoy the GOP's insistence that the House Speaker non-election is 'a very healthy conversation'.
And he's lost for the eighth time.
@danrebellato I have been waiting for the home alone memes
@danrebellato so glad you’re on mastodon ;)
Did Matt Gaetz vote for Trump AGAIN??
And he’s failed for the ninth time!
10th time lucky! Come on Kevin! #hilarious

Awwww! so CLOSE!

*Morgan Freeman, Narrator* It wasn't close. Not at all.

I have to go to bed. Sort it out Republican dumb-asses!

*Morgan Freeman, Narrator* The Republican dumb-asses did not sort it out.

@danrebellato this has to be the most stupid thing ever I am agog that so called grownups are doing this over and over again and wtf is Kevin thinking being humiliated time after time
@danrebellato you’d have thought that in a country where the leader and the government can be from different parties, the government and their speaker could be from different parties. It’s no MORE fucked up.
@davidclewis Get outta here with your sane ideas. We're WAY past that now.