All Things Trump: Is it over yet?

[Brian Peacock]

Click here for more information about the post above.

[Tero]

Thoughts and prayers! We need $$$ here in the flatlands.

[Seabass]

Ex-Republican Max Boot on his former party's moral bankruptcy.

The GOP’s declaration of moral bankruptcy
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions ... ankruptcy/

Republicans now found themselves making excuses for a boorish, ignorant demagogue who had no respect for the fundamental norms of democracy and no adherence to conservative principles. The party of fiscal conservatism excused a profligate president who added $2 trillion in debt and counting. The party of family values became cheerleaders for what Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg has witheringly and accurately called the “porn star presidency.” The party of law and order became accomplices to the president’s obstruction of justice. The party of free trade did nothing to stop the president from launching trade wars. The party of moral clarity barely uttered a peep at the president’s sickening sycophancy toward the worst dictators on the planet — or his equally nauseating attacks on America’s closest allies. The party that once championed immigration eagerly joined in the president’s xenophobic attacks on refugee caravans. And the party that long castigated Democrats for dividing Americans by race pretended not to notice — or even cheered — when the president made openly racist appeals to white voters.

Faster and faster went the GOP’s descent into oblivion. Now its bankruptcy is complete. It has no more moral capital left. The Republican Party as we once knew it — as a party of limited government — officially ended on March 14.

That was the day that 41 of 53 Republican senators voted to ratify President Trump’s blatantly unconstitutional and transparently cynical declaration of a national emergency so that he can spend money for a border wall that Congress refuses to appropriate. This comes 16 days after 182 out of 195 House Republicans voted the same way. Only 13 Republicans in the House and 12 in the Senate dared to block this flagrant assault on the Constitution. So only 10 percent of Republicans in Congress have any — any — principles left. By an interesting coincidence, that’s also the percentage of Republican voters who disapprove of Trump. The party of Lincoln — the party that freed the slaves and helped to win the Cold War — is now devoted exclusively to feeding Trump’s insatiable ego and pandering to his endless lust for power...

[Tero]

By repeating " I did this" over and over, Trump has 50% believing he did it
https://www.cnn.com/2019/03/18/politics ... index.html

[Brian Peacock]

Ex-Republican Max Boot on his former party's moral bankruptcy.

The GOP’s declaration of moral bankruptcy
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions ... ankruptcy/

Republicans now found themselves making excuses for a boorish, ignorant demagogue who had no respect for the fundamental norms of democracy and no adherence to conservative principles. The party of fiscal conservatism excused a profligate president who added $2 trillion in debt and counting. The party of family values became cheerleaders for what Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg has witheringly and accurately called the “porn star presidency.” The party of law and order became accomplices to the president’s obstruction of justice. The party of free trade did nothing to stop the president from launching trade wars. The party of moral clarity barely uttered a peep at the president’s sickening sycophancy toward the worst dictators on the planet — or his equally nauseating attacks on America’s closest allies. The party that once championed immigration eagerly joined in the president’s xenophobic attacks on refugee caravans. And the party that long castigated Democrats for dividing Americans by race pretended not to notice — or even cheered — when the president made openly racist appeals to white voters.

Faster and faster went the GOP’s descent into oblivion. Now its bankruptcy is complete. It has no more moral capital left. The Republican Party as we once knew it — as a party of limited government — officially ended on March 14.

That was the day that 41 of 53 Republican senators voted to ratify President Trump’s blatantly unconstitutional and transparently cynical declaration of a national emergency so that he can spend money for a border wall that Congress refuses to appropriate. This comes 16 days after 182 out of 195 House Republicans voted the same way. Only 13 Republicans in the House and 12 in the Senate dared to block this flagrant assault on the Constitution. So only 10 percent of Republicans in Congress have any — any — principles left. By an interesting coincidence, that’s also the percentage of Republican voters who disapprove of Trump. The party of Lincoln — the party that freed the slaves and helped to win the Cold War — is now devoted exclusively to feeding Trump’s insatiable ego and pandering to his endless lust for power...

Yeah, but think how bad things would have been if that nasty woman... so nasty... had won the popular vote.

[L'Emmerdeur]

As to the Trump Russia collusion, I doubt anything will come of it. It smells like another unprovable, unfalsifiable conspiracy theory. What will happen though, is that shitting on each other (left vs right I mean) is currently favouring the Republicans in the US. I think whoever starts really reaching across the aisle will have a HUGE advantage.

Like if Sanders ran for the Republicans.

Why do you so firmly believe it? Is it because Trump lost a bunch of his estimated wealth while in office, contrasted with the Clintons and Obamas, who both seem to have increased their net worth while 'serving' in public office?

Would you prefer a wealthy person who became a politician, or a politician who got wealthy in office?

Trump's 'estimated wealth' was largely an illusion to begin with. To the extent that it has decreased, if it actually has, it's due to his own actions, as explained in Forbes: 'How Trump Is Trying—And Failing—To Get Rich Off His Presidency'

As for the Clintons and Obamas increasing their net worth while in office, in both cases it was mostly from book royalties, though for the Clintons more of that came after Bill Clinton left office. It's after they leave office and write books and are free to take lucrative speaking engagements that politicians generally increase their income considerably over what they were getting while in office. I'm not pleased about that, but as one member of this site likes to say, there's 'nothing illegal' about it.

I believe that the Russian government meddled in the 2016 presidential election on more than one front. I also believe that members of Trump's campaign organization had multiple contacts with Russians who are either part of the Russian government or are closely associated with it, and then lied about it. I believe these allegations because credible evidence has been provided to the public to support them.

I also think it's extremely likely that Trump has lied about his involvement with the Trump Tower meeting. To whatever extent that his campaign was working with Russian entities, Trump was at least much more aware of it than he's admitted, and may have been actively involved. I believe it's likely that Trump lied because at this point it has been demonstrated multiple times that lying is how he deals with anything that he finds troubling or uncomfortable, and I don't think his son would have taken that meeting without telling his father about it in advance.

I'm reserving judgment on how much Trump was actively courting Russian involvement in the election. However I consider actions like attempting to interfere with the investigation of Flynn and firing James Comey because of 'the Russia thing' to be clear examples of obstruction of justice.

[Tero]

Trump lap dog Nunes is a snowflake, bullied by two Twitter accounts
https://www.thedailybeast.com/rep-devin ... r-accounts

[JimC]

The President is not a white supremacist. I'm not sure how many times we have to say that," Mr Mulvaney told Fox News Sunday.

Not sure?

How about don't bother, the denials are rather pointless...

[Brian Peacock]

[Cunt]

I also think it's extremely likely that Trump has lied about his involvement with the Trump Tower meeting. To whatever extent that his campaign was working with Russian entities, Trump was at least much more aware of it than he's admitted, and may have been actively involved. I believe it's likely that Trump lied because at this point it has been demonstrated multiple times that lying is how he deals with anything that he finds troubling or uncomfortable, and I don't think his son would have taken that meeting without telling his father about it in advance.

I'm reserving judgment on how much Trump was actively courting Russian involvement in the election. However I consider actions like attempting to interfere with the investigation of Flynn and firing James Comey because of 'the Russia thing' to be clear examples of obstruction of justice.

Every politician should be given a 'wealth clock', to show how much money they have, and how much they gain while 'serving' the public.

Of course, I find it simpler to assume they are all corrupt, and save the research. I know that good people work in politics, but there is something very off-putting about how most of the world doesn't get to interact with their politicians, and aren't allowed to know what is going on in their financial lives.

As privacy falls, it will improve that part, I hope.

[Tero]

[Seabass]

Wtf is wrong with these idiots...


On Amazon, a Qanon conspiracy book climbs the charts — with an algorithmic push
https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/ ... sh-n979181

The book is currently No. 9 in all books about politics and No. 1 in all books about “Censorship,” one slot ahead of Ray Bradbury’s “Farhenheit 451.”

A book that pushes the conspiracy theory Qanon climbed within the top 75 of all books sold on Amazon in recent days, pushed by Amazon’s algorithmically generated recommendations page.

“QAnon: An Invitation to the Great Awakening,” which has no stated author, ranked at No. 56 at press time, was featured in the algorithmically generated “Hot new releases” section on Amazon’s books landing page. The book claims without evidence a variety of outlandish claims including that prominent Democrats murder and eat children and that the U.S. government created both AIDS and the movie Monsters Inc.

The Qanon conspiracy theory moved from fringe parts of the internet in 2018 to achieve national prominence thanks to supporters of President Donald Trump who wore clothes and held signs referencing “Q” at political rallies. The conspiracy theory’s rise was followed by a variety of Qanon-related moneymaking schemes that included merchandise for sale that could also be found on Amazon.

---

Suspect in killing of New York mob boss flashed “MAGA forever” and QAnon slogans in court
https://news.vice.com/en_us/article/59x ... s-in-court

The murder of the Gambino crime family boss seemed, at first glance, like a classic New York City mob hit of old — until Monday, when the case took an extremely modern twist.

The suspected killer, appearing in court for the first time, flashed his palm to the cameras, revealing a large “Q” written in blue pen, as well as slogans associated with the bizarro far-right pro-Trump conspiracy theory known as “QAnon,” like “Patriots in Charge” and “United We Stand.” He’d also written “MAGA forever” on his hand.

[Sean Hayden]

It's the new vandalism, and another reason the Internet as a tool for enlightenment is a lie.

[Tero]

Detail

https://theconcourse.deadspin.com/how-a ... ssion=true

[Seabass]

The Brazilian Trump meets with the American Bolsonaro. A match made in hell.

Jair Bolsonaro says Brazil and the US stand side by side “against fake news”
https://www.vox.com/2019/3/19/18272995/ ... -fake-news

But what was perhaps most jarring about Bolsonaro and Trump’s meeting was how closely their worldviews seemed to align. This came across most clearly when Bolsonaro vowed that the US would stand against “fake news.”

“Brazil and the United States stand side by side in their efforts to ensure liberties and respect to traditional family lifestyles, respect to God our creator, and stand against gender ideologies and politically incorrect attitudes and against fake news,” Bolsonaro said Tuesday, through a translator.

His statement, made alongside the US president, was striking, and a direct example of how he ran his campaign and his presidency so far. Bolsonaro and the cabinet he appointed often promote so-called traditional values, and Bolsonaro consistently attacks “gender ideology” — a kind of catchall that refers to LGBTQ rights, feminism, and leftist ideals that he sees as undermining the social order.

Bolsonaro also flings the term “fake news” at his critics, including those in media. He stirs fears over “gender ideology” and berates “fake news” to rally his base and distract from scandals in his administration and his increasingly unpopular agenda; in February, his approval rating fell to about 39 percent.

Trump cozying up to authoritarian leaders is nothing new, but Bolsonaro got his “Trump of the Tropics” nickname for a reason: Both men are democratically elected leaders who indulge in undemocratic tendencies and rhetoric. Their appearance together in the Rose Garden was another striking example of the Trump administration’s shift in tone on issues of free speech and human rights — and why Bolsonaro has so often been compared to Trump.