Circa 2014, George Mitchell (D-Maine), Bob Dole (R-Kan.), Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) and Howard Baker (R-Tenn.) were known to be IRL friends. But that was back then. These days I think the hatred is more real than not.

I think part of it is that we're in the political equivalent of "total war" -- if a politician were seen as being friendly with political opponents they would probably be destroyed in primaries by party rivals using it as red meat for how they were "soft" or an "x in name only" or some similar idiocy.

See for example the criticism of Ellen's friendship with George W Bush.

Though interestingly the Obamas and Clintons don't get the same criticism for that, apart from occasionally being held up to suggest the centre left wing of the democrats isn't that different from the old bush-era republicans

Criticism of everything Obama related is next level compared to anything those others have had to deal with.

I’m not in the US and all of the names you listed have politics I disagree with.

As a counterpoint, a recently released via FOIA transcript of Obama to reporters in the last days of his presidency:

Obama: Privately, that's not -- [Trump's] interactions with me are very different than they are with the public, or, for that matter, interactions with Barack Obama, the distant figure. He's very polite to me, and has not stopped being so. I think where he sees a vulnerability he goes after it and he takes advantage of it.

A fair amount of it is still kayfabe to the pros (the problem is, it isn't to the public).

https://docs.google.com/viewerng/viewer?url=https://assets.b...

I think it started as the latter, but the ideology kind’ve got away from itself and slowly manifested into reality as voters demanded more and more extreme positions from politicians to consider them “authentic.”

Steve Jobs to Murdoch:

> The axis today is not liberal and conservative, the axis is constructive-destructive, and you've cast your lot with the destructive people. Fox has become an incredibly destructive force in our society.

It used to be the latter until the marks started getting elected. For the congressional boomers (Pelosi, McConnel et al), it's a grift. For the young crowd (AOC, Crenshaw, etc), it's a mission.

This - the problem with Truss was that she was a "true believer" in total garbage, so as soon as she tried to turn it into policy it blew up. Johnson's skill was in talking a lot and not delivering any policy.

Let's also be clear the ideas were right-wing libertarian market fundamentalism, fomented through the shady 55 Tufton Street establishment, likely funded by American billionaire money.

The market fundamentally rejecting the ideas of the market fundamentalists would be hilarious, if it wasn't happening to us.

I think with the older politicians, who have been in office for a while, it might be more kayfabe. But so many of those politicians have retired, and have been replaced with newer members who don't have personal relationships with other members, it's probably real hatred.

> Do you think it is real hatred or kayfabe?

I think when one side believes (with good justification) that the other side tried to get them killed in the workplace, it's not kayfabe any more.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politic...