Trump's Second Term

[The Great Zaganza]

The whole focus on Trade Deficit is so YT level of economics, it should be disqualifying.
the question is: what is actually being traded (not just moved back and forth over borders), and would you actually want to produce that in your country?

 

[Andy_Ross]

Nope.

A couple of US-made Virginia-class subs as an interim measure. The later SSN-AUKUS model for the RAN is being built in Australia. It will be based on a UK model being built for the Royal Navy.

https://www.asa.gov.au/aukus/australias-nuclear-powered-submarines

If it goes tits up with the Yanks I'm sure Barrow could knock out a couple of boats for you.

 

[Andy_Ross]

FEMA making illegal payments, in gross insubordination of Donald's new laws

Elon Musk
@elonmusk

The @DOGE team just discovered that FEMA sent $59M LAST WEEK to luxury hotels in New York City to house illegal migrants.

Sending this money violated the law and is in gross insubordination to the President’s executive order.

That money is meant for American disaster relief and instead is being spent on high end hotels for illegals!

A clawback demand will be made today to recoup those funds.

 

[Andy_Ross]

There’s no reliable evidence to support the claim that FEMA “sent $59 M to luxury hotels in New York City to house illegal migrants” in a way that violates the law or a presidential executive order. For months similar claims with allegations that FEMA misused disaster relief funds for migrant housing. However, multiple fact‐checks by reputable news organizations and watchdog groups have found that these claims are either misleading or taken completely out of context.

 

[Jack by the hedge]

Little could be calculated to infuriate Trump more than to discover a government department was paying its bills.

 

[Tero]

It was not a Trump rally. Not a good photo op even.
dr.susangiurleo

The NFL lost one battle but won the war. We assumed they were obeying by taking down the “End Racism,” but the whole event was a war on everything Dump stands for. They flaunted it right to his face. Starting with Jon Batiste repeating “Land of the free” 3 times, the Black National Anthem, NFL produced ads promoting supporting children from all backgrounds, with disabilities and the ad about girls flag football. Then Kendrick.This was the most DEI of all DEI productions ever produced.

Trump booed? mostly fake

PettyAF.org (@petty.af_org) on Threads

Is this the BOO footage we’ve been searching for all night? 😳 Super Bowl LIX

www.threads.net

 

[TellyKNeasuss]

Over 80% was already allocated before the coin was released, 'Insiders' made the most.

And might those "insiders" include entities with connections to the Chinese govt.? The Trump memecoin thing comes across as in part a legal way for the POSOTUS to receive bribes.

 

[shemp]

Four years from now, there might be just enough left of the U.S. for Canada to annex as a province.

 

[Tero]

nelsonhouse123
https://www.threads.net/@nelsonhouse123/post/DF5Lhh4OgfL

To all those who were screaming about 8 mil in wasteful spending, Trump's Superbowl trip cost 10-20 mil

 

[TellyKNeasuss]

All I've seen so far is that Musk is capping the indirect costs at 15%. That's draconian, but not wildly so. I don't see where he's capping or cutting direct costs. My company's indirect costs run around 20% of budget, but are a bit higher this year because we're building out two new physical facilities. We're paying architects and construction companies. But the tweet is puzzling. The claim is that 60% of of research grants is being spent on overhead. These appear to be the rate caps. $9B out of $35B appears to be the actual expenditure, and works out to a little more than 25%.

What would your company have to do to cut out 25 percent of its overhead expenditures?

I'm not totally sure on what falls under "overhead" expenses. I was always under the impression that my employers could only bill the govt. for hours that I actually worked, so that vacation and holiday pay, and any pay that employees received when govt. offices were closed due to weather conditions were "overhead", but perhaps that is incorrect.

 

[Tero]

This will go well. Now the gov't will waste nickels instead of pennies.

Trump Orders Treasury to Stop Minting Pennies
President Trump said that he had ordered the Treasury secretary to stop producing new pennies, a move that he said would help reduce unnecessary government spending.
NYT

Meme coins:

Trump coins​

The riskiest type of crypto may be the memecoin, a digital currency based on an online joke or a celebrity mascot. It has no practical use, and vendors won’t accept it as a form of payment.

Three days before his inauguration, Trump created his own memecoin, calling it $Trump. He advertised it on his social media accounts. Crypto investors snapped up $Trump coins, causing the price to skyrocket.
NYT

 

[Donal]

Edit: screw it, I don't want to engage that hypocritical bigotry here. Please keep that topic to the other thread(s)

 

[theprestige]

Can't help wondering if Trump and his tribe are enjoying halftime!

I thought the halftime show was great.

 

[Donal]

This will go well. Now the gov't will waste nickels instead of pennies.

Trump Orders Treasury to Stop Minting Pennies
President Trump said that he had ordered the Treasury secretary to stop producing new pennies, a move that he said would help reduce unnecessary government spending.
NYT

But how am I going to disappoint trick or treaters in my neighborhood?

 

[theprestige]

And cancer research is a luxury that we don't really need?

USAID isn't the only source of funding for such things. And Tero's argument was specifically about cancer researchers needing jobs. He could have made an argument about how USAID funding was a vital element in global cancer reserch, but he didn't. He made an argument about how cancer researchers need to pay the bills.

 

[theprestige]

I just saw on TwiX (so take it for what it's worth) that The POSOTUS is ending new minting of the penny. Seems to be legit but we'll see. There is nothing so outrageous or silly coming from him that I'd think it wasn't true. I predict a lot of hoarding if it is.
But that dolt has probably never spent or even held a penny in his life. I wouldn't be surprised if he suggests minting a new (legal tender) coin with his face on it. Of course, for that to happen he'd have to be dead, but I'm ok with that.

Last time I checked, the penny's monetary value is less than the cost of making it. And it's not much used these days anyway. The US would not be the first country to discontinue its lowest-value coin. Canadia, I believe, gets by just fine without theirs. Discontinuing the penny is an easy win.

It'll probably put some poor sod at the mint out of work, though, so obviously Trump is a monster.

Uh .. don't US use cents ?

Yes, and the US one cent coin is commonly called the penny.

 

[TellyKNeasuss]

Donald says leaders are telling him there's a light over the country right now apparently.

There's definitely a light over the part of the country that I'm in. Many people are referring to it as the "Sun".

 

[Mike!]

Brilliant! This will cause the value of the penny to skyrocket!

 

[Mike!]

A Bible reference that will set the faithful into a frenzy.

Please elaborate for those of us not in the know.

 

[Andy_Ross]

On the Pennies

Donald J. Trump
@realDonaldTrump

For far too long the United States has minted pennies which literally cost us more than 2 cents. This is so wasteful! I have instructed my Secretary of the US Treasury to stop producing new pennies. Let's rip the waste out of our great nations budget, even if it's a penny at a time.