The Trump Presidency: Part 20

[ChristianProgressive]

De facto get rid of that pesky First Amendment so you can shut up your opponents.

1. Freedom of speech is not a license to lie
2. Frreedom of speech is not a license to manipulate minds with psychological tricks (advertising)
3. No one's actual speech is limited by capping or banning political contrivbutions. Any person is still free to attend town hall type meetings. Write Letters to the Editor, And otherwise engage in real speech. Money =/= speech.

People should not be forced to vote.Period.

Why not? Many western Democracies require voting. No one would tell them who to vote FOR, just that they fulfill their civic obligation to participate in the governing of the nation.

Get rid of federalism and make the states nothing but adminsitrieve conveinces for the Central government.

We pretty much established that in 1865 and with the 14th Amendment.

Count me out, pal,since you don't have much use for individual rights.in quite a few of your suggestions.

No right is unlimited or all-encompasing. I simply acknowledge the truth.

When you resort to argument from theory, you've lost. "But muh Freedomz..." is not an argument in the face of the way "rights" have become abused in modern society.

Most of the procedural reforms I've indicated are nothing more than fixes for the shortcomings in the existing process that Der Trumpenfuher has exposed.

 

[ChristianProgressive]

You’re going to institute a government-run (or at least a government-certified) mental health exam and not make it required for every presidential candidate?

That's a good catch. You're right, it should also be a requirement for elected officials.

 

[Ladewig]

Could he explain what this tweet means? Mary B?

Mary Birra is the CEO and Chair of General Motors.

 

[ChristianProgressive]

On the issue of whether Trump downplayed the virus, there's this NYT opinion piece, which at least might have a list of his statements.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/15/opinion/trump-coronavirus.html


But I can't see it, have to subscribe.

There has been some surprising dispute about this.

I'd love it if someone can read this article and simply post here a list of trump's statements in public, with dates.

That should settle it. Not the writer's opinion, but the quotes.

here's one, fact checked by snopes

https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/timeline-trump-covid19-responses/

 

[ChristianProgressive]

What you're describing is a police state,

nonsense

where unelected government officials (and how would they get THEIR jobs?)

I already told you, from a pool of applicants who passed objective tests of competency such as the Civil Service exam. Many nations around the world, but especially Europe use this system.

would decide who could run for office

If you can't see that allowing Al Capone (example) to run for public offfice would have been a colossally bad idea I have to question your basic ability to think.

and what anybody could say.

There are already legal limits on free speech, such as "you can't yell 'fire' in a crowded theater" or engage in slander/libel. Manny other nations, such as th British, have offices such as Offcomm, which can pull down public speech that is determined to be inacurate or dangerous. I'm hardly asking for something unprecedented.

It's troubling that you don't recognize it.

It's troubling that your reflexive, knee-jerk reaction is to moan "But Muh Freedomz!" instead of rationally considering the facts and merits.

A lot of our current problems could be reduced by eliminating gerrymandering, registering eligible voters automatically, and conducting elections entirely by mail, as four states do now. And nothing in the Constitution requires the states to allocate electoral votes on a "winner-take-all" basis. They could award them proportionally, as two states do now. For most of our history, politicians and parties have competed by offering policies and programs that they hope will appeal to the majority of voters. There were conservative Democrats and liberal Republicans. The GOP has become a cult that expects to win not by appealing to the most voters, but by disqualifying voters who would vote against them.

None of which has anything to do with my suggested reforms, except at the margins. Why do you support maintaining outmoded systems that discount some people's political power in favor of maintaing a clearly broken government?

 

[ChristianProgressive]

It would seem so except for the fact that a soldier can disobey any unlawful order. So if the president issued an unlawful or un-Constitutional order, it could be disobeyed and not betray the oath.

Or if said officer were obviouly deranged, a la Captain Queeg.

 

[ChristianProgressive]

Trump Tweets

Will someone please explain to the Fake News New York Times (ALL THE NEWS THAT’S NOT FIT TO PRINT) that the Democrats make it almost impossible for us to fill positions within government. They “maximum” delay even the best candidates, including Judges, leaving little time!

His "best candidates" are a motly collection of industry insiders, rapists, and unqualified conspiracy-spreading cranks. And they get through anyway.

 

[Ladewig]

Or if said officer were obviouly deranged, a la Captain Queeg.

That might not be the best example. In the novel, a review board overturns the decision of the court martial.

 

[Norman Alexander]

His "best candidates" are a motly collection of industry insiders, rapists, and unqualified conspiracy-spreading cranks. And they get through anyway.

One of them even got to be president.

 

[Safe-Keeper]

Tis a feature, not a bug. His approval rating will just notch up a point.

Yes, his supporters love this stuff. It's Trumpers we're dealing with.

'Perhaps strangest of all, it wasn't just Trump but his supporters who seemed to have come out of nowhere, suddenly expressing, in large numbers, ideas far more extreme than anything that has risen to such popularity in recent memory. In South Carolina, a CBS News exit poll found that 75 percent of Republican voters supported banning Muslims from the United States. A PPP poll found that a third of Trump voters support banning gays and lesbians from the country. Twenty percent said Lincoln shouldn't have freed the slaves.'​

--The Rise of American Authoritarism, Vox

 

[slyjoe]

Mary Birra is the CEO and Chair of General Motors.

Yes. And she sold the plant in November of last year. Dumbass Trump couldn't even check to see if GM owned the Lordstown plant.

 

[Andy_Ross]

Trump Tweets

Such Fake reporting by the @nytimes, @washingtonpost, @CNN & others. They use a small portion of a sentence out of a full paragraph in order to demean. They really are corrupt and disgusting. No wonder the media is, according to polls, record setting low & untrusted. #MAGA

I love Michigan, one of the reasons we are doing such a GREAT job for them during this horrible Pandemic. Yet your Governor, Gretchen “Half” Whitmer is way in over her head, she doesn’t have a clue. Likes blaming everyone for her own ineptitude! #MAGA

 

[Andy_Ross]

Trump retweeted

Trump Retweeted

ALX Flag of United States
@alx
TRUMP: “The Media and Governors should appreciate it.. When they’re not appreciative of me, they are not appreciative to the Army Corps.. FEMA.. it’s not right. These people are incredible, they’re working 24 hours a day.”

ALX Flag of United States
@alx
FOX Business Network Fires @trish_regan for Telling the Truth About How Liberal Media Was Using Coronavirus to Take Down Trump

toddstarnes
@toddstarnes
Can't say enough wonderful things about @trish_regan - one of the few conservatives in cable television. She's a great patriot and great friend.

Geraldo Rivera
@GeraldoRivera
Trump-haters clearly frustrated that the American people-many of whom did not vote for him-approve of the epic job @realDonaldTrump is doing to mitigate the #coronavirus catastrophe. He’s flamboyant & unrestrained, but he’s like General Patton, the right warrior for the fight.

Laura Ingraham
@IngrahamAngle
They’re not happy because ⁦@realDonaldTrump⁩ is speaking directly to American people during a crisis and getting strong approval ratings for his handling of this.

 

[Andy_Ross]

Trump Tweets

Thank you James!
Quote Tweet

James Woods
@RealJamesWoods
I couldn’t care less what anybody says, I think @realdonaldtrump is a great President. He has stepped up to the plate in this crisis like a champion.

 

[Andy_Ross]

Trump Tweets

More Fake News!
Quote Tweet

John Santucci
@Santucci
During marathon day of meetings earlier this week, President Trump continued outreach across the country regarding coronavirus & phoned former Yankees baseball player Alex Rodriguez. Multiple sources tell ABC, the president spoke to ARod from the Oval Office via me & @KFaulders

 

[a_unique_person]

Trump Tweets

Such Fake reporting by the @nytimes, @washingtonpost, @CNN & others. They use a small portion of a sentence out of a full paragraph in order to demean. They really are corrupt and disgusting. No wonder the media is, according to polls, record setting low & untrusted. #MAGA

I love Michigan, one of the reasons we are doing such a GREAT job for them during this horrible Pandemic. Yet your Governor, Gretchen “Half” Whitmer is way in over her head, she doesn’t have a clue. Likes blaming everyone for her own ineptitude! #MAGA

Complains about being demeaned. Next paragraph demeans someone.

 

[Darat]

In today's press briefing, Trump referred to the governor of Washington by name, while in the same sentence he referred to the governor of Illinois as "..that woman in Illinois"

Yeah, there is certainly some misogyny at play.

At least she wasn't bleeding all over, so he's making some effort....

 

[Ladewig]

Trump Tweets

More Fake News!
Quote Tweet

John Santucci
@Santucci
During marathon day of meetings earlier this week, President Trump continued outreach across the country regarding coronavirus & phoned former Yankees baseball player Alex Rodriguez. Multiple sources tell ABC, the president spoke to ARod from the Oval Office via me & @KFaulders

Why does President Trump consider calling a very wealthy former-baseball player an important task during a crisis?

D’oh. Right as I typed out the question, I saw how silly it was.

 

[Darat]

Two more members of BoJo's cabinet are infected. No one, especially Johnson himself, were practicing social distancing. The most ironic of course is Matt Hancock, the health secretary, also infected.
NYT:

I think there are 2 more, I'll keep looking for the specifics.


I'm waiting for the 'it doesn't apply to us we're too rich' people around Trump to start coming down with it.

Of course he wasn't practicing what he preached. Rules have always been something other people have to follow not him and his social peer group.

 

[Cain]

https://twitter.com/davidgura/status/1243693807545262080

President Trump "has told people he wants his signature to appear on the direct payment checks," the @WSJ
reports. "Normally, a civil servant—the disbursing officer for the payment center—would sign federal checks."

President Trump's the one who got us the money, so let's make certain he gets the credit. Only fair!!