Trump II

[Schewe]

What Trump Really Fears

After decades of giving his top aides autonomy and encouraging them to compete, the president faces an open-ended investigation that may uncover their excesses.

As the blast radius of the Russia investigation continues to expand, Donald Trump is facing an unnerving new reality: The fate of his presidency may now hinge on the motley, freewheeling crew of lieutenants and loyalists who have long populated his entourage.

Last week, a subpoena for Trump’s personal attorney, Michael Cohen, was approved as part of the House Intelligence Committee’s investigation into Russia’s interference with the presidential election. With that, Cohen was added to a range of Trump allies who are reportedly entangled in the investigation—from outer-orbit figures like Roger Stone and Carter Page, to more visible senior advisers like Michael Flynn and Boris Epshteyn.

Sources close to the president say there is growing concern in the White House about what skeletons may emerge as investigators comb through a coterie of aides, past and present, who would have done virtually anything to win favor with Trump.

There needs to be an investigation to find out if anybody in the Trump administration actually has ties to America...

[Alan Klein]

Not sure if you are suggesting that being a Muslim is itself an act of treason? But anyway if "we're at war", please explain why your president is boasting about the quantities of weaponry he's just sold to Saudi Arabia, the home of Wahhabism, the strain of Islam behind its current extreme manifestations? Surely if "we're at war" as you say this is akin to Nikon announcing sales of fleets of fighter jets to Brezhnev in around 1970.

While it's true the 911 terrorists mostly came from Saudi Arabia, the government there has more to fear from Islamists than we do.  They'd love to overthrow the Saudi King.  But the government there still seems to be on our side.  The Saudis as well as Bahrain, Egypt, United Arab Emirates, Yemen and the Maldives just broke off diplomatic relations with Qatar who has been supporting terrorists. I think Trump going there and re-establishing strong relations with the Sunni nations after Obama's cold response to them and his support and pacts with their Shiite enemy Iran played a strong hand in this action.  Of course, you won't read about Trump having a hand in this in the liberal biased press. 

[mecrox]

Wake up and read all my posts.  You're asleep at the switch regarding my comments about NATO.   

I'm afraid I can't find examples you've given of "Everyone's taken advantage of us for decades" apart from your unsubstantiated opinion that this is in fact the case, but no more than that. There was a discussion about unfair US-EU trade tariffs, but it appears this was based on your misunderstanding of how taxes are applied and how international treaties are negotiated and updated. That was pointed out to you at some length. And it seems you haven't taken on board the NATO funding system, or in fact the way states fund the military more generally, even though that has been pointed out to you too. So, aside from the NATO question, here is your chance to come up with some real, actual examples of "Everyone's taken advantage of us for decades", how and why. There may be plenty of examples, in fact, but I think you should let us know.

[Schewe]

You don't impeach a president because you don't like him, his way of doing things, or his policies.

How about obstruction of justice? That work?

We wouldn't be able to get the votes to impeach now because of the spineless GOP but we might after the midterms elections :~)

But the numbers still tell a story of a president that is favored by a seriously small minority.

[Alan Klein]

Sorry, most of the points you make are a figment of the imagination of alt-right's fake news. Stop playing the poor victim and behave with the dignity that one of the largest nations in the world should have.   

Busht!t walks.  Money talks.  Let Europe pay up. 

[Alan Klein]

I'm afraid I can't find examples you've given of "Everyone's taken advantage of us for decades" apart from your unsubstantiated opinion that this is in fact the case, but no more than that. There was a discussion about unfair US-EU trade tariffs, but it appears this was based on your misunderstanding of how taxes are applied and how international treaties are negotiated and updated. That was pointed out to you at some length. And it seems you haven't taken on board the NATO funding system, or in fact the way states fund the military more generally, even though that has been pointed out to you too. So, aside from the NATO question, here is your chance to come up with some real, actual examples of "Everyone's taken advantage of us for decades", how and why. There may be plenty of examples, in fact, but I think you should let us know.

Busht!t walks.  Money talks.  Let Europe pay up.

[pegelli]

Busht!t walks.  Money talks.  Let Europe pay up.

Do you really need to resort to stupid and obscene talk when you can't win an argument? I'm not impressed or intimidated by it, but it really shows your weakness.

[Alan Klein]

How about obstruction of justice? That work?

We wouldn't be able to get the votes to impeach now because of the spineless GOP but we might after the midterms elections :~)

But the numbers still tell a story of a president that is favored by a seriously small minority.

The midterms is what this is all about - politics. Who's going to have the Power.   This is all about the Democrats posturing so they can hopefully take back the House and/or Senate in 2018 and position themselves to take the presidency in 2020..  It's not about so-called collusion.  After a year, there's no evidence presented showing Trump colluded with the Russians.  But it plays wells in the media and sells newspapers to boot.

[Alan Klein]

Do you really need to resort to stupid and obscene talk when you can't win an argument? I'm not impressed or intimidated by it, but it really shows your weakness.

Talk, talk, jaw, jaw.  It's tiring.  I made all my points and so have you.  Now it comes down to doing something.  We'll see who's got the ace in the hole. 

[pegelli]

We'll see who's got the ace in the hole.

Yup, and I bet it ain't Trump 

[Alan Klein]

Yup, and I bet it ain't Trump 

I'll take that bet.

[Alan Goldhammer]

How Different—and Dangerous—Is Terrorism Today?
http://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/how-different-and-dangerous-is-terrorism-today

Useful article to read.

[Schewe]

Busht!t walks.

Oh, if only that were true for the Bullsh$ter-in-Chief Donald J Trump.

Oh, about those "Obstructionists"...

Trump Calls Democrats 'Obstructionists,' But He's Only Nominated 11 Ambassadors

President Trump took to Twitter on Monday to complain about Democratic "OBSTRUCTIONISTS," blaming the Senate for being slow to approve his nominees, including his ambassadors.

-------
Donald J. Trump  ✔@realDonaldTrump
.@foxandfriends Dems are taking forever to approve my people, including Ambassadors. They are nothing but OBSTRUCTIONISTS! Want approvals.
-------

A spokesman for the ranking Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee threw it right back, saying Trump should be spending less time on Twitter and more time actually filling those positions.

So far, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and his deputy John Sullivan are the only Senate-approved top officials in Trump's State Department. The White House hasn't nominated any undersecretaries or assistant secretaries — those jobs are being filled on an acting basis by career foreign service officers.

Overseas, the picture is similar. Trump has nominated only 11 ambassadors, including Nikki Haley to the United Nations, Terry Branstad for China and David Friedman for Israel. Those three have been confirmed, as have two career Foreign Service officers for postings in Africa. There are nearly 190 ambassadorships.

[Schewe]

Plus this...

Trump's sluggish hiring could hamper anti-terror plans

Perhaps most crucially, Trump has not yet decided on a permanent leader of the FBI.

President Donald Trump said Sunday that the United States needs to be "smart, vigilant and tough" after a terrorist attack rocked London. But the president's counter-terrorism strategy could be hindered by dozens of vacancies across the government, not least a permanent FBI director.

Top ranks at the State Department remain largely unfilled, as are some key ambassadorships. Trump has not named anyone to lead the Transportation Security Administration, which screens people at airports, or to run the Homeland Security office charged with protecting the country's physical and cyber infrastructure. His choice to lead the Federal Emergency Management Agency is awaiting Senate confirmation, but Trump has not named a deputy.

At the Justice Department, Trump has not nominated an assistant attorney general for the national security division.

And, perhaps most crucially, Trump has not yet named a permanent leader of the FBI, which plays a central role in combating domestic terrorism. The president has continued to interview candidates for the job nearly a month after he fired James Comey.

"This is a team sport," said Max Stier, the head of the nonpartisan Partnership for Public Service, which advised Trump's presidential transition on hiring. "It's critical to have a full team."

The White House did not provide any comment Sunday.

"The White House did not provide any comment Sunday."
Uh, that's because the WH runs and hides when the media asks questions (the visual of Spicy hiding in the bushes comes to mind)

[Schewe]

Do they not roll over from the previous administration if new ones are not appointed?  I honestly do not know.

Normally, they would but don't you remember just after the inauguration Trump asked all of the appointed ambassadors to resign...

Donald Trump 'orders Barack Obama's ambassadors to resign posts' in unprecedented move

The move risks leaving the US without envoys in key countries like Britain, Germany and Canada

Donald Trump has yet again proved that he is intent on ripping up the diplomatic rule book.

In an unprecedented move, the President-elect’s team are reported to have demanded ambassadors appointed by Barack Obama to leave their overseas posts by Inauguration Day on 20 January. The decision to provide no grace period for politically appointed ambassadors marks a significant break with decades of tradition.

So, yeah...it's a problem of his making.

[Alan Klein]

How Different—and Dangerous—Is Terrorism Today?
http://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/how-different-and-dangerous-is-terrorism-today

Useful article to read.

Well, I suppose terrorism could also go back to Spartacus against the Romans. One side seeing a terrorist when the other side see a patriot.

But I think we make a mistake when we call every act terrorism as if the whole purpose of terror is to blow things up for its own sake.   My point is that terror are acts of war.  And war has a political purpose.  I'm sure if ISIS had long range rockets, they shoot one to land on that London bridge rather then depending on some mole to act as a saboteur.  Many people think that ISIS, who have captured territory to create a caliphate, really a nation or religious state, are criminals when they are the enemy.  Their people aren't sent to jail; they are soldiers, enemy combatants who have to be fought militarily, not in a court of law like some bank robbers.  But so many people in Europe and in America think in these terms because of political expediency rather than survival.  In our effort to be nice to Muslims, and we should be nice to them if they're peaceful, we missed the forest through the trees.  That there are people who are at war with us and we have to defend ourselves militarily.  Accusing Trump and other of aggravating them and causing their actions, we have to admit that these people are at war.  Nothing we say or don't say will change their objectives.

[Alan Klein]

Do they not roll over from the previous administration if new ones are not appointed?  I honestly do not know. 

Apparently they do roll over from previous administrations.  It appears that if the ambassador left, the Chargé d'Affaires takes over.  The existing ambassadors and Chargé d'Affaires all seem pretty experienced, speaking the local languages and having been involved in foreign affairs for many years.  Excepting the political appointments.  I notice that ambassador position to The Netherlands has been vacant since February, 2016.  I wonder what the Dutch did to tick off Obama?  And we're still not at war with them. 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ambassadors_of_the_United_States 

[pegelli]

That is common USA saying, and not something to be offended about.  Its means if you are really sincere, you'll pay up for something (like defense), but if you don't put up the money, you're really not doing anything.

Joe, it's not the words or expression that I find obscene, it's the type of reaction that I qualify as such. Several people have pointed out many times in this thread that Alan's ideas of "not paying up" is fake news and not based on any existing agreement. He's fully entitled to his beliefs that the agreements are crap but don't blame the other countries for that (like Trump and the Trump suppporters are doing). That is childish and counterproductive and turns friends into people who don't care for you anymore. Just cut the silly victim-playing "everybody is taking advantage of us", it's not true and not helping you, but instead face up to challanges with dignity instead of a populist blame game.

[Alan Goldhammer]

Apparently they do roll over from previous administrations.  It appears that if the ambassador left, the Chargé d'Affaires takes over.  The existing ambassadors and Chargé d'Affaires all seem pretty experienced, speaking the local languages and having been involved in foreign affairs for many years.  Excepting the political appointments.

The majority of US Ambassadors are career foreign service people and are commonly found in the less important countries (a college classmate of mine was Ambassador to Yemen during a particularly troubling time about 18 years ago).  Trump has 50 slots to fill and those are mainly the big Euro and South American countries and these tend to be patronage appointments.  Those are the countries where the existing ambassadors resigned when the administration changed in January.

[pegelli]

Apparently they do roll over from previous administrations.  It appears that if the ambassador left, the Chargé d'Affaires takes over.  The existing ambassadors and Chargé d'Affaires all seem pretty experienced, speaking the local languages and having been involved in foreign affairs for many years.  Excepting the political appointments.  I notice that ambassador position to The Netherlands has been vacant since February, 2016.  I wonder what the Dutch did to tick off Obama?  And we're still not at war with them. 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ambassadors_of_the_United_States

That may well be true, but why does Trump blame the senate for "obstruction" if there is nothing to obstruct because he doesn't nominate candidates. It's just another example of trying to gain popularity among supporters by a blame game vs. rollling up your sleeves and start governing the country