Trump II

[Littlefield]

Trump's Company Gets Millions So Toronto Hotel Can Erase Brand

Seems Trump made easy money before and after.
Don

[Peter McLennan]

On the other hand...

https://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/2017/06/23/why-need-four-years-trump/mRm0mMoAzjG42yHzQ0AV2N/story.html

Excellent article.  Beyond criticism.

[James Clark]

You mean like all the Russian collusion attacks and lies by the Democrats.  You mean like how the Democrats locked out the Republicans from debates when policy decisions were being made when Obamacare was being written.  You mean how the Democrat Senate leader did away with the filibuster rule so Democrats and Obama could can stuff the lower courts with their federal judges without debate and without being topped by Republicans.

Look, the fact is both sides play political games for power.  The advantage democrats have is that most of the liberal media is on their side and bias the news to help them.

ACA process and AHCA process are grossly incongruent

Republicans block as many Obama nominees as both parties did *for all time* before Obama

Alan, this iteration of Republicans have decided to abandon the norms of compromise and try to implement a style of right-wing extremism that most Americans don't agree with.  Why?

[Alan Klein]

Every single point you just made is demonstrably falsely equivalent.  Well, except for the Russia stuff. That has yet to play out, but if you want we can compare the nonsensical Benghazi garbage to the current investigation if you like.  As for the rest, go research the equivalency of process and the norms prior to this current generation of republican "party of no" types and get back to me on how, exactly, you think both parties are the same...

Instead of giving me a homework assignment, why don't you tell us how my points are not factual.   I'll repeat them again below.

You mean like all the Russian collusion attacks and lies by the Democrats.  You mean like how the Democrats locked out the Republicans from debates when policy decisions were being made when Obamacare was being written.  You mean how the Democrat Senate leader did away with the filibuster rule so Democrats and Obama could can stuff the lower courts with their federal judges without debate and without being topped by Republicans...

[James Clark]

Instead of giving me a homework assignment, why don't you tell us how my points are not factual.   I'll repeat them again below.

You mean like all the Russian collusion attacks and lies by the Democrats.  You mean like how the Democrats locked out the Republicans from debates when policy decisions were being made when Obamacare was being written.  You mean how the Democrat Senate leader did away with the filibuster rule so Democrats and Obama could can stuff the lower courts with their federal judges without debate and without being topped by Republicans...

Look up, hoss.

[Alan Klein]

ACA process and AHCA process are grossly incongruent

Republicans block as many Obama nominees as both parties did *for all time* before Obama

Alan, this iteration of Republicans have decided to abandon the norms of compromise and try to implement a style of right-wing extremism that most Americans don't agree with.  Why?

The articles you pointed to are BS.  The first says that both sides were guilty of hidden negotiation regarding Obamacare.  Of course, the article also adds  "Experts agree" by claiming the republicans were worse.  Well, anytime someone says "Experts agree", they're trying to sell you the Brooklyn Bridge.  As a New Yorker, I know about those things as I've sold it a number of times myself. 

The second article's arguments came from Sen. Cardon, a Democrat, who was trying to blame Republicans for the Democrats doing away with the filibuster rule.  At that time the Dems were in charge of the Senate.  Did they check with republicans about doing away with the rule?  What do you expect Democrats to say about what they did? 

[James Clark]

The articles you pointed to are BS.  The first says that both sides were guilty of hidden negotiation regarding Obamacare.  Of course, the article also adds  "Experts agree" by claiming the republicans were worse.  Well, anytime someone says "Experts agree", they're trying to sell you the Brooklyn Bridge.  As a New Yorker, I know about those things as I've sold it a number of times myself. 

The second article's arguments came from Sen. Cardon, a Democrat, who was trying to blame Republicans for the Democrats doing away with the filibuster rule.  At that time the Dems were in charge of the Senate.  Did they check with republicans about doing away with the rule?  What do you expect Democrats to say about what they did?

Oh FFS, Alan.  just look at the numbers in the articles.   Or go Google.  Look at the hearings on the ACA, the amendments offered and by whom, and so on and so on. 

As for Republican obstructionism under Obama, *just look at the numbers*   They're real.  Not Trumpy "fake news."  Seriously, the ideologues need to be drummed out, so adults can get back to governing. 

[Alan Klein]

Well, at least SOME GOP members are not willing to be enablers for the #BigOrangeButthead

Republicans Slam President Trump for 'Face-Lift' Tweet: 'This Isn't Normal'

I don't see you getting so upset when they cut off his head as a joke or murdered him on a stage playing Caesar; or when comedians have said the most vulgar things about him and all these  fake news hosts do who do nothing but spew insults.  But keep attacking him.  It'll payoff in 2018 and 2020.

[Alan Klein]

Oh FFS, Alan.  just look at the numbers in the articles.   Or go Google.  Look at the hearings on the ACA, the amendments offered and by whom, and so on and so on. 

As for Republican obstructionism under Obama, *just look at the numbers*   They're real.  Not Trumpy "fake news."  Seriously, the ideologues need to be drummed out, so adults can get back to governing. 

"Obstructionism" is when the other side is doing it.  When we do it, it's being loyal to the Constitution and following long-established "checks and balances."   

[James Clark]

"Obstructionism" is when the other side is doing it.  When we do it, it's being loyal to the Constitution and following long-established "checks and balances."   

Relative perception isn't what we're talking about - we're talking about the objective reality of how the Republicans decided to go stupid when Obama was elected, and the result, 9 years later, is the kneejerk need to defend "their" guy, even when he's an unmitigated disaster like Trump.  Again, go look at the numbers, and if you have a shred of objectivity, you have admit that the Rs are the one that have goofed up the system. 

[Alan Klein]

Relative perception isn't what we're talking about - we're talking about the objective reality of how the Republicans decided to go stupid when Obama was elected, and the result, 9 years later, is the kneejerk need to defend "their" guy, even when he's an unmitigated disaster like Trump.  Again, go look at the numbers, and if you have a shred of objectivity, you have admit that the Rs are the one that have goofed up the system. 

The "objective reality" you speak of is that 9 years ago the Democrats owned the presidency and both house of Congress.  They jammed through Obamacare.  Then they lost the House, the Senate, and 1000 other elected positions around the country and finally lost the presidency last year.  So who goofed up what?

[Farmer]

Alan - look up the numbers.  Until you do and discuss them, you have nothing useful to say.

[Schewe]

I don't see you getting so upset when they cut off his head as a joke or murdered him on a stage playing Caesar; or when comedians have said the most vulgar things about him and all these  fake news hosts do who do nothing but spew insults.  But keep attacking him.  It'll payoff in 2018 and 2020.

Hum...while I don't think Kathy Griffin's post of the Trump head was in good taste, I think it is actually covered under the 1st amendment. The primary thing wrong with it in my opinion was in addition to being in poor taste, it wasn't funny. But then again Kathy Griffin is often not very funny that that's her problem. I also think the furor about it was way more out of scale than the many, MANY example of similar examples where Obama was the victim...I don't recall nearly the furor over that...so, can you spell double standard? Something you scream a lot...

As for the production of Julius Caesar in the park, while I didn't see it, I'm pretty sure it was intended as political commentary and not advocating violence. To claim that is simply being silly...from the director:

But Mr Eustis, creative director of the theatre, said people were missing the point.

“Anyone seeing our production of Julius Caesar will realise it in no way advocates violence towards anyone,” he said. Instead, he said his production makes “the opposite point: Those who attempt to defend democracy by undemocratic methods pay a terrible price and destroy their Republic.

“For over 400 years, Shakespeare’s play has told this story and we are proud to be telling it again in Central Park.”

So, casting Caesar as an overweight blond guy with bad hair and a long tie might have been a bit obvious but I thought it was poignant commentary...

As for comedians and TV hosts saying vulgar things about Trump, well duh. What did Trump expect? That people would treat him as a creepy wealthy playboy real estate mogul? Then he shouldn't have run for public office. Seriously, if Trump is gonna go apoplectic over what somebody says about him he should resign the office. When you step into the public glare you better prepare yourself for a lot of flak–which Trump clearly didn't do.

Remember the earlier interviews when he lamented that the job of president was a lot of work? That he loved his old life and he thought once he was president, the media would treat him nicer.

Was he naive, inexperienced or simply stupid?

Yeah, we'll see what happens in 2018. The democrats' best weapon is Donald J Trump...he has already galvanized the resistance and the town halls that the GOP congressmen run from is hitting home–while spending 7+ years as the "Party of No™" they have arrived in power with little idea of how to actually govern and they are saddled with a psycho in the White House...

There is no way this whole situation is anything but terrible and Trump has done ZERO to make things better and seems to daily sink us lower and lower.

[Schewe]

It sucks folks, it really sucks and the whole world knows it...

American politics Donald Trump’s Washington is paralysed

JULY 4th ought to bring Americans together. It is a day to celebrate how 13 young colonies united against British rule to begin their great experiment in popular government. But this July 4th Americans are riven by mutual incomprehension: between Republicans and Democrats, yes, but also between factory workers and university students, country folk and city-dwellers. And then there is President Donald Trump, not only a symptom of America’s divisions but a cause of them, too.

Mr Trump won power partly because he spoke for voters who feel that the system is working against them, as our special report this week sets out. He promised that, by dredging Washington of the elites and lobbyists too stupid or self-serving to act for the whole nation, he would fix America’s politics.

His approach is not working. Five months into his first term, Mr Trump presides over a political culture that is even more poisonous than when he took office. His core voters are remarkably loyal. Many businesspeople still believe that he will bring tax cuts and deregulation. But their optimism stands on ever-shakier ground. The Trump presidency has been plagued by poor judgment and missed opportunities. The federal government is already showing the strain. Sooner or later, the harm will spread beyond the beltway and into the economy.

From sea to shining sea
America’s loss of faith in politics did not start with Mr Trump. For decades, voters have complained about the gridlock in Washington and the growing influence of lobbyists, often those with the deepest pockets. Francis Fukuyama, a political theorist, blamed the decay on the “vetocracy”, a tangle of competing interests and responsibilities that can block almost any ambitious reform. When the world changes and the federal government cannot rise to the challenge, he argued, voters’ disillusion only grows.

Mr Trump has also fuelled the mistrust. He has correctly identified areas where America needs reform, but botched his response—partly because of his own incontinent ego. Take tax. No one doubts that America’s tax code is a mess, stuffed full of loopholes and complexity. But Mr Trump’s reform plans show every sign of turning into a cut for the rich that leaves the code as baffling as ever. So, too, health care. Instead of reforming Obamacare, Republicans are in knots over a bill that would leave millions of Mr Trump’s own voters sicker and poorer.

Institutions are vulnerable. The White House is right to complain about America’s overlapping and competing agencies, which spun too much red tape under President Barack Obama. Yet its attempt to reform this “administrative state” is wrecking the machinery the government needs to function. Mr Trump’s hostility has already undermined the courts, the intelligence services, the state department and America’s environmental watchdog. He wants deep budget cuts and has failed to fill presidential appointments. Of 562 key positions identified by the Washington Post, 390 remain without a nominee.

As harmful as what Mr Trump does is the way he does it. In the campaign he vowed to fight special interests. But his solution—to employ businesspeople too rich for lobbyists to buy—is no solution at all. Just look at Mr Trump himself: despite his half-hearted attempts to disentangle the presidency and the family business, nobody knows where one ends and the other begins. He promised to be a dealmaker, but his impulse to belittle his opponents and the miasma of scandal and leaks surrounding Russia’s role in the campaign have made the chances of cross-party co-operation even more remote. The lack of respect for expertise, such as the attacks on the Congressional Budget Office over its dismal scoring of health-care reform, only makes Washington more partisan. Most important, Mr Trump’s disregard for the truth cuts into what remains of the basis for cross-party agreement. If you cannot agree on the facts, all you have left is a benighted clash of rival tribes.

---snip--

July 4th is a time to remember that America has renewed itself in the past; think of Theodore Roosevelt’s creation of a modern, professional state, FDR’s New Deal, and the Reagan revolution. In principle it is not too late for Mr Trump to embrace bipartisanship and address the real issues. In practice, it is ever clearer that he is incapable of bringing about such a renaissance. That will fall to his successor.

[pegelli]

On the other hand...

https://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/2017/06/23/why-need-four-years-trump/mRm0mMoAzjG42yHzQ0AV2N/story.html

Excellent article, and I agree that I still take Trump with all his bullying and stupid decisions over the veneered crooks like Ryan and Pence. So look at the alternatives of Trump stepping down (or being forced to step down), it will be worse then what we have today. I just wish he would cut out the stupid crap and start governing with a bit of common sense and dignity.

[Bart_van_der_Wolf]

Excellent article, and I agree that I still take Trump with all his bullying and stupid decisions over the veneered crooks like Ryan and Pence. So look at the alternatives of Trump stepping down (or being forced to step down), it will be worse then what we have today. I just wish he would cut out the stupid crap and start governing with a bit of common sense and dignity.

I agree, good article and the short-term alternatives might be more politically correct/acceptable but just as damaging (or worse).

Of course, the current President is also damaging to the interests of the USA in an international arena, but true leaders know they will only have to put up with a fool for one term. The damage to the American people might have a cleansing effect at next election time, although gullible people usually stay gullible and might fall for the next false messiah.

I do feel sorry for those who have to endure the whole thing unraveling.

War is a likely diversion and is often used by populists (who always try to blame others for their own failings) as a diverion, and it tends to unite the people behind the foreign threat.

Cheers,
Bart

[scyth]

War is a likely diversion and is often used by populists (who always try to blame others for their own failings) as a diverion, and it tends to unite the people behind the foreign threat.

not populists only, MIA as well = https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Eisenhower's_farewell_address_(reading_copy)

[Alan Klein]

I agree, good article and the short-term alternatives might be more politically correct/acceptable but just as damaging (or worse).

Of course, the current President is also damaging to the interests of the USA in an international arena, but true leaders know they will only have to put up with a fool for one term. The damage to the American people might have a cleansing effect at next election time, although gullible people usually stay gullible and might fall for the next false messiah.

I do feel sorry for those who have to endure the whole thing unraveling.

War is a likely diversion and is often used by populists (who always try to blame others for their own failings) as a diverion, and it tends to unite the people behind the foreign threat.

Cheers,
Bart

The interests of America have been straightened internationally since Trump?  It was very weak under Obama.  Our adversaries are afraid of us again.  And our so-called friends no longer see us as an easy mark.  That's why your hear all the complaints from some of our allies.  They're going to have to pay more.  That will be good for American taxpayers.

[pegelli]

The interests of America have been straightened internationally since Trump? 

Good question, but I don't think so. Maybe his enemies will be a bit more careful but the US allies are mostly just ignoring him and will sweat it out. Probably the best choice in the short run.

[Schewe]

The Wayback Machine from 11:01 a.m. ET Nov. 3, 2016

Melania Trump pledges to combat cyber-bullying as first lady

If Melania Trump is first lady, she'll focus efforts on putting an end to bullying on social media.

In her first solo speech since the Republican National Convention, Melania Trump on Thursday called for an end to online bullying of children and teenagers, saying,  it is "absolutely unacceptable when it’s done with no name hiding on the internet."

“Technology has changed our universe. But like anything that is powerful it can have a bad side. We have seen this already. As adults, many of us are able to handle mean words — even lies. Children and teenagers can be fragile. They hurt when they are made fun of or made to feel less in looks or intelligence. This makes their life hard and forces them to hide and retreat. Our culture has gotten too mean and too rough especially to children and to teenagers.”

"We have to find a better way to talk to each other, to disagree with each other, to respect each other," she continued. She did not make any reference to the fact that her husband has engaged throughout the campaign in bare-knuckled personal attacks on his political opponents, the media, random celebrities and a host of others.

Ironic huh? Sad too...and now:

'Fake News.' President Trump Doubles Down on Twitter Feud With 'Morning Joe' Hosts

President Donald Trump on Friday called MSNBC's Morning Joe "fake news" after host Joe Scarborough alleged senior White House aides asked him to apologize to the President to prevent the publication of a negative story about Scarborough in the National Enquirer.

"Watched low rated Morning Joe for first time in long time," Trump tweeted Friday morning. "FAKE NEWS. He called me to stop a National Enquirer article. I said no! Bad show."

Scarborough made the allegation in a scathing op-ed he wrote with co-host Mika Brzezinski published in The Washington Post Friday. Scarborough reiterated the claim on MSNBC, saying "the calls kept coming" about the potential story from three top White House aides.

Scarborough has since responded to Trump's tweet over the allegation, asking the President in a tweet why he keeps "lying about things that are easily disproven?"

"I have texts from your top aides and phone record," Scarborough wrote. "Also, those records show I haven't spoken with you in many months."

The White House did not immediately respond to TIME's request for comment on the alleged communications.

The President of the United States of America and the Leader of the Free Friggin' World™ has nothing better to do than watch Morning Joe and get into a Twitter war with TV talk show hosts...

#MAGA-NOT!