The Trump Presidency 13: The (James) Baker's Dozen

[dudalb]

In theory, the US can't "keep" control of it. It has no right at all to control it.

Neither has China, by international law it's open sea.

 

[Regnad Kcin]

The Mueller report has been sent to the AG.

 

[a_unique_person]

Lock Him Up! Lock Him Up!



Wait a second, he's part of the Trump clan? Never mind.



Seriously, remember that Kushner originally lost his security clearance, but was reinstated despite objections from security experts,

He's doing God's work.

 

[dudalb]

The Mueller report has been sent to the AG.

And the dow just has a big drop sendng the recession red light to flashing.
Big news day.
And let's start making book as to how long until we start hearing leaks from the Mueller Report.

 

[a_unique_person]

Trump Tweets

“Our own Benjamin Hall is doing fantastic reporting on ISIS right on the from line (True). ISIS was willing to die but now, because of big pressure, save for a few people in caves, most have surrendered. A testament to our President.”

Thank you Pete Hegseth @foxandfriends

A testament to our president.

 

[dudalb]

A testament to our president.

Sounds like the optimistic reports we had from Vietnam "The Viet COng are just about wiped out".

 

[newyorkguy]

Trump Tweets

ISIS uses the internet better than almost anyone....

Trump Tweets

...they are losers and barely breathing. Think about that before you destroy your lives and the lives of your family!

How much can people take? This is becoming like punishment. Cruel and extremely unusual!

 

[WilliamSeger]

Steven Moore... the guy who wrote the book "Bullish on Bush", where he praised the business polices of George W. Bush.

One time when I was on CNN with him, he claimed the "Volcker Rule" required setting interest rates according to commodity prices. That is...not what the Volcker Rule is. Watching this clip, starting around 07:59:​

Putting a man on the Fed board who's monetary commentary is only known for being partisan, illogical, and fact-fudged is a great idea.

Less than 4 years later the economy was in the worst recession in over half a century.

More recently, he said "the people on the Federal Reserve Board should be thrown out for economic malpractice" and wrote a Wall Street Journal column stating that their policies were slowing the economy. Continuing the tradition of appointing people to organizations that they hate. At least he isn't being put in charge of it.

Last year, Moore co-wrote a book with notorious Reaganomics "expert" Art Laffer titled "Trumponomics: Inside the America First Plan to Revive Our Economy." I don't know if it includes brilliant ideas like adding thousands of dollars to foreign car tariffs.

 

[Ladewig]

Last year, Moore co-wrote a book with notorious Reaganomics "expert" Art Laffer titled "Trumponomics: Inside the America First Plan to Revive Our Economy." I don't know if it includes brilliant ideas like adding thousands of dollars to foreign car tariffs.

Oooh. Is the first chapter titled "First of all, you never have to default because you print the money, I hate to tell you, OK?"

[May 2016. Lyndon, Washington.]

I’m having a hard time thinking of any recent public figure that could hit that level of condescension whole being so idiotic.

 

[SezMe]

What he really means is that the EC system is easier to cheat.

No, not easier to cheat but easier for the GOP to win because it provides a bias in favor of small, rural states.

 

[SezMe]

Yes, our system where like a half dozen swing states get all the attention while the rest of the country is totally ignored makes much more sense.

Made all the worse by having Iowa and New Hampshire be the two states to express an opinion in the presidential sweepstakes. It would be pretty hard to pick to more atypical examples.

 

[SezMe]

Yeah! Every morning children should be mandated to give thanks and pray to Mithra, Zeus and Bael. Let's see how far that goes in the buckle of the old bible belt?

Or some teacher has the kids read from the wisdom of L. Ron Hubbard.

 

[SezMe]

I think something close to a second Civil War is now inevitable...<SNIP>

A decade ago I would have thought "Dumb idea". Now? Not so much.<SNIP>

You have every right to speak your opinion, but I heartily disapprove. Entertaining such ideas makes them easier to advocate for. Any disentanglement of the Union would make everyone worse off. And I say that as a Californian, a state that could easily stand alone.

 

[SezMe]

By fudging stuff on the public dime.

https://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-pol-trump-tank-ohio-20180702-story.html

From that linik:

But after an overhaul by newly hired welders and machinists at a Pentagon-owned factory here in northwestern Ohio, they roll off the assembly line as new 80-ton Abrams M1A2 tanks for the U.S. Army.

WHAT! How did that come about? Who is against socialism?

 

[SezMe]

What gets to me is his feud with the late Senator McCain..what the hell does he gain from that? It just makes him look bad and petty to all but the hard core of his deluded followers>

Trump succeeded as an outsider appealing to those whose voices were ignored by the "elites". McCain was an "insider", part of the patriarchy that said all the right things but, in fact, ignored the fly-over states. That was a winning strategy and it bought a LOT of voters who are NOT his hard core base. He's keeping them in the fold by reminding them he was not part of the McCain crowd.

 

[The Great Zaganza]

Trump's McCain bashing is a Q Anon dogwhistle.

 

[Craig4]

Trump's McCain bashing is an expression of his despare that he knows he will never be like him. Trump will never be a statesmen. The political class will not gather to mourn Trump. Trump is like Gilgamesh being asked by Utnapishtem, "who will gather the gods for you". Like in Gilgamesh, the answer is no one.

 

[CapelDodger]

From that linik:

WHAT! How did that come about? Who is against socialism?

It's never a good sign when a country's army gets directly involved in the economy. There goes a government's power of the purse, and shortly after goes the government. Egypt is a great example.

 

[Mumbles]

Trump's McCain bashing is a Q Anon dogwhistle.

Doubt it - the man doesn't do dog whistles, he does steam whistles. If Dolt 45 wanted to discuss Qanon, he'd just say "Cannon's a terrific guy, going to arrest all my enemies any day now can you believe it?" and then walk around with his arms out if people cheered.

 

[Ziggurat]

Is anyone willing to go to war with China to stop them from claiming the South China Sea? This is right wing thinking. The only way to get another country to change course is to take military action. Our only option is to shoot and bomb.

Is that really the only way to get China to back off on its claims? How about sanctions and negotiations? Too namby-pamby?

Negotiations can only work if China is less interested in the SCS than it is in whatever else you can offer. China cares a lot about the SCS, and would only abandon its claims in exchange for something enormous. And the US doesn't care enough about islands in the SCS to offer anything that big to China.

We care a lot about freedom of navigation in the SCS, which China doesn't like, but they're not willing to go to war over it, and so we have no reason to negotiate with China to get what we don't need their permission for.

And obviously shooting and bombing are not our only option, nor did I ever suggest it was our best option. Doing nothing is always an option, and could easily be preferable to going to war.

Lastly, recognizing reality isn't partisan. What outcome you prefer depends on your values, but a description of what outcomes are possible is value neutral. Confusing statements of what is with statements of what should be is a sure sign that your ideological blinders are on too tight.