Trump 23: The Death Eaters Have Taken the Fucking Country

[Destiny]

I struggled with what to name this thread, cos to be frank, I'm out of snark. I'm just back to the staring at CNN for as long as I can stomach before I have to turn it off to cry.

All I have to say is this: love your neighbor, and for fucking fuck's sake, speak out when you see hate. We have to be better for our kids, and this past week is definitely not our best.

Also, fuck the Orange Menace. No one who carries a torch and nazi flag and chants what they chanted is a good person. 

Continued from here:

 

[JenniferJuniper]

The man posing as the US president is a criminal who colluded with a foreign enemy to gain the presidency.  God knows what white collar crimes he's committed over the years; I suspect they are endless.

Now he's outed himself as a Nazi.  We should not soften that word.  No "neo".  No "sympathizer".   Old school or newer school, a Nazi is a Nazi.  And there is no daylight between Nazi and Nazi sympathizer.  If you sympathize with and support Nazis you are a Nazi.

He needs to be removed from office.  The American public must find a way to force those who can do it to do it now, before all hope is lost for this country.

[GrumpyGran]

Here it is. And I don't know how to quote from the previous thread. So in reference to Hopester:

Dark Ivanka emerges from the shadows. I guess she get Moochie's job. This surprises me, where did this ambition come from? It's not a pay raise so why expose yourself now? Curious.

And A+++++ to all of your comments about Trump's verbal diarrhea attack. He truly does not understand how to win, does he?

[Destiny]

I usually watch the news while doing my morning exercise. Today, I'm afraid to turn on CNN cos I'm wondering what fresh hell might be awaiting me. This is not fucking normal. :/

[GreyhoundFan]

I think this says it all: "President Trump must go"

Spoiler

Donald Trump on Tuesday afternoon gave the most disgusting public performance in the history of the American presidency. Framed by the vulgar excess of the lobby of Trump Tower, the president of the United States shook loose the constraints of his more decent-minded advisers and, speaking from his heart, defended white supremacists and by extension, their credos of hatred. He equated with those thugs the courageous Americans who had gathered to stand up to the racism, anti-Semitism and doctrine of violence that won the cheers and Nazi salutes of the alt-right hordes to whom Trump felt such loyalty.

After several days in which Trump and his advisers wrestled with what should have been a straightforward task — condemning the instigators of the unrest that rocked Charlottesville, Va., this past weekend — Trump revealed the reason that finding those words was such a struggle. He, too, is an extremist.

No one who values the best of what the United States has stood for could watch without feeling revulsion, anger or heartbreak. No one who comes from a past such as mine, which includes similar mobs rising up and ultimately collaborating in the murder of dozens of my family members in Hitler’s Europe, could view Trump’s performance without a degree of fear as well. Certainly, the same must be true for African Americans who have watched such mobs lynch their family members and seek to deny them the most basic rights.

That is why condemnation of what happened in Charlottesville came so quickly and naturally from leaders of conscience worldwide. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who has stepped up to fill the void as leader of the West created by Trump’s moral bankruptcy and incompetence, immediately called the actions of the white supremacists in Virginia “horrifying” and “evil” and stated, “It is racist, far-right violence and clear, forceful action must be taken against it, regardless of where in the world it happens.” She also swiftly displayed humanity and sensitivity by expressing sympathy to the family of Heather Heyer, killed by an extreme right-wing act of terrorism in the streets of Charlottesville. Trump has yet to speak to Heyer’s family directly or visit the site of the attack, steps he took, for example, following an incident at Ohio State, when the attacker was Muslim.

From the United Kingdom to Italy to the Vatican to China, the violence in the United States and the racism of the extremists were decried by leaders who seemed to grasp the values for which the United States has fought throughout the past century. This tracks with a broader trend in which foreign leaders, some once seen as the United States’ closest allies, have found themselves having to distance themselves from the inflammatory language and actions of the American president.

Some of us have long been urging people to see that the Trump presidency was “not normal.” But we are past such discussions now. There is only one conclusion that any American patriot of either party can draw. Trump must go.

It has been perfectly natural during the first few months of this presidency for commentators and political leaders to treat Trump, his statements and actions like those of his predecessors. But in the past week, the dangers of his reflexive behavior have become even more crystal clear. In a matter of days, the president’s reckless remarks have triggered fears of nuclear war with North Korea, he threatened military action against Venezuela, he continued his quiet war against the environment and the U.S. public health system and then, in response to Charlottesville, he revealed his true colors and that he is not preserving, protecting and defending the Constitution as his oath requires. Rather, he is at war with it and its values — from a free press, to an independent judiciary, to equal protection for all under the law.

Since the Team of Sycophants will never invoke the 25th Amendment to remove him, the responsibility lies with the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, to reveal his wrongdoing. A great task is upon whistle-blowers in the government to challenge Trump’s attacks on American institutions, upon Congress to investigate not only his ties to Russia but also his possible corruption, and ultimately, upon the American people to vote out Trump supporters and enablers on Capitol Hill, and then, ensure a suitable replacement for him in 2020.

Every day Trump remains in office is a victory for the extremists. But in that same moment on Tuesday, Trump made it clear that to defeat the champions of hatred in the United States, he must go. That he also must go to preserve the United States’ standing in the world, to ensure the safety of our people and our way of life has also been made clear in the past week. It is now time that we follow his dangerous words with our own actions. It is why Heather Heyer was on that street in Charlottesville. We owe it to her and to ourselves to remove him from office as soon as the law permits. Trump himself has demonstrated the price of each day of delay.

 

[Cleopatra7]

12 minutes ago, Destiny said:

This is not fucking normal. :/

I would actually argue that it is. Trump is merely saying through a bullhorn what was alluded through dog whistles and euphemisms. When a black person decided to stand up for themself, even in the most nonviolent way possible, they are still seen as more dangerous than a mob of white men carrying torches and shouting, "Sieg Heil." This has always been the case and it always will be unless something major happens, something I don't think I'll live to see. 

[WiseGirl]

18 minutes ago, Destiny said:

I usually watch the news while doing my morning exercise. Today, I'm afraid to turn on CNN cos I'm wondering what fresh hell might be awaiting me. This is not fucking normal. :/

This is how I feel about turning on the news also. Regarding naming the thread, Where is Potter to conquer Voldermort? 

[GreyhoundFan]

Another good one from Jennifer Rubin: "Republicans, cut the outrage. It’s time to disown Trump.'

Spoiler

The party of Lincoln is now the party of Robert E. Lee, Jefferson Davis and Southern slave owners who decided to kill fellow Americans so that they could keep men, women and children enslaved. The Republican Party, in other words, has obliterated its entire historical legacy and become the party of the Enemies of Lincoln.

And let’s be clear: Republicans cannot say, “That’s not us — that’s just President Trump.” They supported him, they elected him, they defended him and they gave him the aura of a normal presidency. They cannot be the party of Lincoln and be the party of Trump. In that vein, we can dispense with Republicans’ “outrage,” “frustration,” “anger” and all other meaningless expressions of internal sentiment. Unless and until they are prepared to do something — not just send tweets — to politically disown Trump, the party is toast and none of its members should be elected or reelected.

How would they do this? First, elected officials must deny Trump the audience he so desperately craves. They need not appear with him, nor invite him to the Hill. (The State of the Union can be delivered from the White House or in writing; he would besmirch the House by appearing there.) Lawmakers and state officials should not troop to the White House for photo ops. They can communicate with the White House by phone or through aides. In short, Trump must be shunned and ostracized. He is not fit for polite company, let alone the presidency. He has demolished the rules of civilized behavior, and therefore should enjoy none of the ceremonial niceties that are extended to normal presidents.

Second, beyond resolutions condemning Trump’s remarks, every member of Congress should do his or her utmost to remove the neo-Nazi iconography in their districts and states. Neo-Nazis have claimed the Confederacy as their own — and therefore have reminded the rest of us that the Confederate statues are not tributes to patriotism, gallantry or liberty but to treason, inhumanity and slavery. That is why neo-Nazis identify with these symbols of the Old South. That is why they have no place in a democratic society built on the principle that “All men are created equal.” State and local officials need to carefully examine school curriculum to make sure students are not confused as to the heroes and the villains in the Civil War. Every student should learn to spot and debunk the “Lost Cause” propaganda. Perhaps April 9 should be a national holiday commemorating the Confederacy’s surrender and the magnanimity displayed by President Abraham Lincoln and U.S. generals toward their defeated foes.

Third, Cabinet members, sub-Cabinet officials, staffers and outside participants on councils, commissions and committees must leave the administration. It’s not enough, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and White House Chief of Staff John Kelly, to look on with a pained expression as the president declares that some of the white nationalists were “very fine” folks. He deceived you and others as to what he would say and he has shown himself unfit. You cannot serve in the administration of a neo-Nazi sympathizer. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, why stay in an administration in which you command so little respect and in which you must lend your own reputation to a disgraceful president? (Defense Secretary Jim Mattis should remain, a final backstop to prevent a military disaster.)

Fourth, Republicans must treat the president as they would someone not of their party — for he is not, to repeat, of the party of Lincoln. If Hillary Clinton refused to release her tax returns, hired unqualified relatives, kept business ventures that posed a conflict of interest and violated the Constitution’s emoluments clause, Republicans would commence hearings and pass legislation to put an end to all of it. It’s long past the time that Trump should be permitted to escape the kind of inquiry Republicans would insist upon for any Democratic president. By refusing to do so, the GOP is saying: “He’s one of ours. He’s a Republican, so we don’t rock the boat.”

Fifth, now would be a fine time for formation of a third party, one that can at the end of the Trump presidency repeal and replace the GOP. The Free Republican Party, the Appomattox Republicans (It cannot be said enough: The Confederates were losers) or whatever ex-Republicans in the center-right call themselves can endorse for office defectors from the GOP and reclaim Republicans who have disassociated themselves with the GOP thanks to Trump. Moderate Republican House members of the Tuesday Group, the new Centrist Project (dedicated to backing independent candidates), members of Stand Up Republic (founded by 2016 conservative independent presidential candidate Evan McMullin and his former running mate, Mindy Finn) and others have the chance to stake their claim as the true successors to the party of Lincoln. Those who have wrestled with the question as to whether the GOP could be reformed or whether it should be discarded in light of Trump’s GOP takeover have their answer. If they cannot disgorge him, they must start over.

In sum, Republicans’ words are insufficient and, at this point, insufferable. When we look back at this time, the only thing people will ask is: “What did you do?” Republicans will need a better answer than “I was outraged and gave tough quotes — on background.”

 

[WiseGirl]

"Fifth, now would be a fine time for formation of a third party, one that can at the end of the Trump presidency repeal and replace the GOP."

Yes, yes, yes to a third party and may it completely outshine, outnumber, and replace the GOP in importance and influence in US politics.

[sawasdee]

Jennifer Rubin was a respected Republican columnist for years, and I disagreed with almost everything she wrote. Since tRump emerged, she has become the most articulate voice of the conscience of the GOP.

If those on Capitol Hill have any morals or ethics, they should be taking her words to heart. And if they have any instincts of self preservation, they should listen to her very closely. She is the voice of the true GOP, which historically was never so amoral, self seeking and power hungry as those who claim to be its representatives today.

Whether the GOP can ever be retrieved from those who hijacked it, I do not know. But if it can't, then there must be a new party, with the old values, of fiscal conservatism etc - which I, personally, would not support. But Americans need that voice. America needs a multi party system - and a GOP that stands for racism, disempowerment of minorities and a theocracy has no place in it.

[GreyhoundFan]

Breaking news: "Trump’s business advisory councils disband as chief executives repudiate president over Charlottesville views"

Spoiler

President Trump’s relationship with the American business community suffered a major setback on Wednesday as the president was forced to shut down his major business advisory councils after corporate leaders repudiated his comments on the violence in Charlottesville this weekend.

A slew of corporate chieftans announced they were resigning from the councilsl in recent days after they said Trump was slow to condemn white supremacy groups.

On Twitter, Trump said it was his decision to disband both councils. “Rather than putting pressure on the businesspeople of the Manufacturing Council & Strategy & Policy Forum. I am ending both,” he tweeted.

The dissolution of the council is a major setback for a president who had cast himself as a business leader who could bring greater prosperity to companies and the economy.

 

[47of74]

1 hour ago, Destiny said:

I usually watch the news while doing my morning exercise. Today, I'm afraid to turn on CNN cos I'm wondering what fresh hell might be awaiting me. This is not fucking normal. :/

I usually don't watch the news in the gym cause loudly snarling about what fornicate face and his enablers are doing would be frowned upon in said gym, and would distract me from my exercises.

I see said fornicate face's business advisory panel disbanded today.

Quote

A panel of corporate leaders advising President Trump on economic policy disbanded Wednesday afternoon, during a week when the president is rapidly losing support from business leaders citing controversial remarks Trump made about violent clashes between white supremacists and counterprotesters.

CNBC reported that Trump's Strategic and Policy Forum broke apart Wednesday, according to a member of the panel. As the news was breaking, Trump tweeted that he was ending the forum and a separate manufacturing council with corporate leaders.

"Rather than putting pressure on the businesspeople of the Manufacturing Council & Strategy & Policy Forum, I am ending both. Thank you all!" Trump wrote.

Kind of a reverse you can't fire me, I quit move on the part of fornicate face.  I thought there were supposed to be butt loads of CEOs to replace the ones that left already.

[MarblesMom]

It seems everything he touches implodes.  He seems to be self-destructing.  What an idiot.

[Cartmann99]

15 minutes ago, GreyhoundFan said:

Breaking news: "Trump’s business advisory councils disband as chief executives repudiate president over Charlottesville views"

Oh hell. I hope Trump doesn't decide to nuke anybody while he's raging over this. 

In other Trump news:

Quote

Michael Cohen, a longtime personal lawyer of President Donald Trump and a top campaign surrogate for him during the 2016 presidential campaign, would like the world to know that he isn’t a racist.

In the wake of President Trump’s remarks that some “very fine people” attended last week’s white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, Cohen took to Twitter to insist that he is personally not a racist, despite his continued support for the president.

"As the son of a holocaust survivor, I have no tolerance for racism,” Cohen explained. “Just because I support President Trump doesn’t make me a racist.”

To prove his point, Cohen also posted several photos of himself with black people.

http://www.rawstory.com/2017/08/trump-lawyer-posts-slew-of-photos-of-himself-with-black-people-hoping-to-prove-hes-not-racist/

 

[onekidanddone]

10 minutes ago, Cartmann99 said:

http://www.rawstory.com/2017/08/trump-lawyer-posts-slew-of-photos-of-himself-with-black-people-hoping-to-prove-hes-not-racist/

Does Cohen think he and his black 'people' won't get tossed in the back of a truck if Trump gave the word?

[sawasdee]

@GreyhoundFan Apparently the advisory councils chose to disband - it wasn't the TT's decision.

 

http://www.rawstory.com/2017/08/trump-tries-to-claim-he-dissolved-2-councils-of-ceos-after-advisory-group-chooses-to-disband/

Spoiler

President Donald Trump is claiming he dissolved two councils of CEOs after multiple CEOs resigned from one panel and the other chose to disband altogether.

After the resignations of three executives from President Donald Trump’s American Manufacturing Council, Axios.com was contacted by executives from the President’s Strategic and Policy Forum, who said they had decided to disband.

“CEOs on President Trump’s top outside business-advisory group decided Wednesday to disband amid the tumult over his response to this weekend’s white-nationalist violence in Charlottesville, top business sources tell Axios,” said Allen on Wednesday.

Moments after Axios made the announcement that the Strategy and Policy Forum is disbanding, President Trump tweeted that he was ending both groups, apparently trying to take credit for the executives’ decision.

However, an executive from the group told Axios, “Debate over the forum has become a distraction and the group has decided to disband.”

The decision was made quickly by board members, the source said, “Given the comments of the last several days, no one could continue to be seen as supporting this kind of divisiveness.”

“The thinking was it was important to do as a group,” one member told CNBC. “As a panel, not as individuals because it would have more significant impact. It makes a central point that it’s not going to go forward. It’s done.”

Trump’s unwillingness to condemn the neo-Nazis and Klan members who rioted in Virginia has sent shock waves through the government and through the corporate world which understands that the president has crossed a line with the public.

“Trump’s ‘both sides’ response to the violence has made CEOs even more wary of interacting with the White House, with many of them facing pressure from employees and shareholders to distance themselves. The loss of support from business could further undermine Trump’s already-faltering legislative agenda,” said Allen.

Earlier this week, Merck Pharmaceuticals CEO Kenneth Frazier resigned from the American Manufacturing Council in protest of Trump’s tepid condemnation of the hate groups that converged on Charlottesville leaving one person dead and at least 20 others injured.

Trump immediately attacked Frazier on Twitter. The Merck CEO was followed by Under Armor CEO Kevin Plank and Itel’s CEO Brian Krzanich.

 

I have a horrid feeling this may have been a commercial more than an ethical decision - they couldn't afford the blowback.

[GreyhoundFan]

2 minutes ago, sawasdee said:

@GreyhoundFan Apparently the advisory councils chose to disband - it wasn't the TT's decision.

Yeah, the WaPo did it as breaking news. I'm sure the TT is trying to frame it as his decision, but we all know the truth.

[onekidanddone]

28 minutes ago, sawasdee said:

I have a horrid feeling this may have been a commercial more than an ethical decision - they couldn't afford the blowback.

@sawasdee you hit the nail on the head. I don't trust their reasons, but it did just dump a whole new port-a-potty on TT.

ETA: Total trivia, but all the port-a-potties on the Mall were owned by a company called Don's johns.  For fuck faces's take over the "Don's" was covered up.

[GrumpyGran]

So did Bannon tell him to go out yesterday and speak his mind? He was obviously being contained before, he's now made three different statements, each with noticeable differences. The last one is classic Trump. Did Bannon think this would get him back in good graces?

I think Trump's in delusion world right now because he's back in the Tower. Maybe he'll get to stay there. 

[formergothardite]

Like I said on the Bates thread, I'm not sure how after this week anyone who claimed they voted for him because Hillary would be worse can still stand by that. We have a president that said Nazi's and KKK members were 'good people" and says people who protest hate, violence and racism are just as bad as those who spread it, there is no way Hillary could have been worse. 

[Zola]

And how they said voting for Hillary would be worse because then we'd have a president under federal investigation, suspected of various criminal activity. 

[sawasdee]

I still haven't got my head around the numbers of educated people who voted for him: he was so obviously unfit on every level - temperament, education, intelligence, knowledge of how the government works, ethically compromised on every level ( financial, sexual). And that the Evangelicals stood by him after that pussy grabbing tape, and his reference to '2 Corinthians' which exposed his lack of any familiarity with the Bible....

What scares the shit out of me is that some of these people may stand by him - either because of deep rooted, closeted racism, a misguided religious commitment, or a refusal to acknowledge the depth of their mistake - as he daily proves himself more unfit for the position he holds.

These people are more frightening than the uneducated, ignorant  tRump 'base'. The evangelicals are faith issue voters -no abortion, hate gays - but the educated absolutely baffle and scare me.

[onekidanddone]

2 minutes ago, Zola said:

And how they said voting for Hillary would be worse because then we'd have a president under federal investigation, suspected of various criminal activity. 

They will never see how hypocritical and ironic this is.

[Howl]

1 hour ago, sawasdee said:

But if it can't, then there must be a new party, with the old values, of fiscal conservatism etc -

It already exists -- this is the Evan McMullin/Mindy Finn Stand Up Republic party.  

Click here for the About Us page from Stand Up Republic's (SUR) Web site.   They are a little too conservative for me, but Evan McMullin is smart, smart, smart, but he's never been married, and he's Mormon, with a lesbian mom. 

I'll be interested to see if they can capture millenials in 2020.  Plus, just like Canada has a PM named Justin, it would be cool to have a VP named Mindy.
 

But back to Evangelicals who still support Trump -- they are still holding firm, as far as I can tell, simply because HE'S NOT HILLARY and he has a staunchly Evangelical fundy VP.  With the Dems in power, Satan was gaining a strong hold, with marriage equality becoming law, the possibility of a bazillion godless liberals being appointed to the Supreme Court and all sorts of ungodly crap.  Now they have a chance to turn that around.  They see that as god's work. It's so f**king providential!!!! Why did god let Obama get elected?   Cognitive dissonance has never been a problem for these people. 

[fraurosena]

About those statues respecting heritage, this...

... just shows their ignorant uneducated hypocrisy, doesn't it?