3 Trump: Parables, Politics, Panic

[RoseWilder]

American Nazi Chair says that if Trump wins, it would be "a real opportunity" for white nationalists: 

https://www.buzzfeed.com/andrewkaczynski/american-nazi-chair-a-trump-win-would-be-a-real-opportunity?utm_term=.ciBQ8DMzL#.odPVe9xO6

I felt sick to my stomach just reading this article. 

[AmazonGrace]

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/08/07/gop-congressman-says-hell-vote-for-libertarian-ticket-over-trump.html

Rep. Scott Rigell, R-Va. said Saturday that he would support Libertarian Gary Johnson for president over GOP nominee Donald Trump.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/08/07/trump-may-go-before-court-over-deal-that-deprived-us-treasury-of/

onald Trump may be brought to court after a Telegraph investigation found the Republican presidential nominee signed off a deal designed to deprive the US Treasury of tens of millions of dollars in tax. 

[Cartmann99]

1 hour ago, RoseWilder said:

American Nazi Chair says that if Trump wins, it would be "a real opportunity" for white nationalists: 

https://www.buzzfeed.com/andrewkaczynski/american-nazi-chair-a-trump-win-would-be-a-real-opportunity?utm_term=.ciBQ8DMzL#.odPVe9xO6

I felt sick to my stomach just reading this article. 

I know, I feel the same way seeing how these people so excited about a possible Trump presidency. Trump and Trump Jr. have been retweeting crap from some of these losers for months now, so either his supporters are in favor of it, or have a serious case of denial as to what Trump really stands for.

Article from Fortune from earlier this year about Trump:

Quote

Trump is “giving us the old wink-wink,” wrote Andrew Anglin, editor of a white supremacist website called The Daily Stormer, after Trump retweeted two other “white genocide” theorists within a single minute. “Whereas the odd White genocide tweet could be a random occurrence, it isn’t statistically possible that two of them back to back could be a random occurrence. It could only be deliberate…Today in America the air is cold and it tastes like victory.”

It is possible that Trump ― who, according to the campaign, does almost all of his own tweeting ― is unfamiliar with the term “white genocide” and doesn’t do even basic vetting of those whose tweets he amplifies to his seven million followers. But the reality is that there are dozens of tweets mentioning @realDonaldTrump each minute, and he has an uncanny ability to surface ones that come from accounts that proudly proclaim their white supremacist leanings.

 

http://fortune.com/donald-trump-white-supremacist-genocide/

[Cartmann99]

Some of the things that have happened this so far in Donald Trumps's campaign, made me think of an episode of Murphy Brown. 

 Here's the set-up:

Stuart Best has just been elected to congress. He received campaign contributions from people who expect something for their money, and has just been presented with the positions he is expected to promote.

 

[Howl]

@Cartmann99, you win the interwebs today.  That is an awesome find and beyond timely.  Plus I adore Wallace Shawn.  Eleventy! 

Interesting week ahead as his handlers desperately attempt to make the Donald appear presidential. 

[RoseWilder]

6 minutes ago, Howl said:

@Cartmann99, you win the interwebs today.  That is an awesome find and beyond timely.  Plus I adore Wallace Shawn.  Eleventy! 

Interesting week ahead as his handlers desperately attempt to make the Donald appear presidential. 

I'm predicting he will act like a semi-reasonable person for about 4 days and then he'll go back to acting like a lunatic again.

Yesterday I was discussing this with my Mom and I said, "so the people who keep claiming they're going to reign Trump in, and that he's going to start acting presidential soon, think we should all vote for him knowing that he can't seem to act reasonable for longer than a week. This is the kind of presidency they want to experience, one where the president acts sort-of-okay for a week and then melts down like a lunatic for weeks."

Because really, this has been going on for months now. He has several weeks were he insults tons of people, picks fights with multiple different people at a time, and generally acts like an insane person. Then there's backlast and he's slightly less offensive and crazy for a short time. Lather, rinse, repeat. He's not going to magically start acting sane and then remain that way for the next 4 years. He's always going to be a roller coaster of insanity. 

Sorry, Trump enablers, but no. I want a president who can act sane all the time, not just for a week at a stretch after all the people around him have begged him to act more rational. 

[AmazonGrace]

Yeah, a great idea, give the nuclear codes to somebody who needs people to reign him in. Nothing could go wrong.

[Howl]

William Throckmorton has a good post over at his Patheos blog titled Donald Trump the Divider of Evangelicals; The Kids Aren’t Alright With It: 

Quote

...Instead of feeding the poor, helping the broken and testifying, evangelicals are fussing about just how crazy and fascist Trump is. Is he just a little, or unacceptably too much? This can’t be a good thing.

Such shenanigans are not lost on many evangelical lay people, especially the kids. This morning I ran across this article by Amy Gennett. She makes a case that “the youth” are watching and don’t like what they see. Link to full text of Throckmorton's essay here.

Amy Gennet writes in How Evangelicals are Losing an Entire Generation, in regards to Wayne Grudem's endorsement of Donald Trump.  Grudem is the head of the Council for Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, whose beliefs can be condensed to "women submit (preferably barefoot and pregnant) and stay sweet about it".  Amy Gennet blogs at LIFESTYLE THEOLOGY FOR THE WOMAN OF GOD and is a seminary graduate.  The comments on her blog about this article are quite touching, because they are primarily from women in the 50s and 60s, even tough this particular post is about millenials.  

Quote

I have watched many Evangelicals endorse Donald Trump. But Grudem did not give an endorsement. No, he gave a moral imperative. Grudem’s article argues that it is morally constraining on the Christian person to vote for Donald Trump, particularly citing things like Trump’s upholding of religious rights for Christian schools and businesses, support of traditional marriage, and pro-life support of the rights of the unborn. Grudem dismisses accusations of Trump being a racist, anti-(legal) immigrant, and misogynistic. He feels Trump has been misunderstood, quoted out of context, and the victim of an unfair media.

What Grudem effectively does, then, is sets up a hierarchy of morality. He is willing to hold some moral values (religious rights for Christian schools and businesses, support of traditional marriage, and pro-life notions) above others (the equality of races, genders, and ethnicities). All are moral concepts, all require a moral stance, and Grudem has chosen which he prefers over others.

Evangelical leaders like Grudem are using their political and social weight on issues close to their generation, and are neglecting the moral imperatives to seek justice, peace, and equality for the Black community, the immigrant community, and the refugee community (and a slew of others). My generation will not identify with this. We cannot call a candidate “good,” as Grudem does with Trump, who has made racist remarks. We will not call a candidate “good” who has demoralized and dehumanized women on national television. We will not buy into the hierarchy of Grudem’s proposed morals over others. Because Grudem (and others) are making this hierarchy of morality intrinsically related to the Christian life and theology, we will not stand with them.  Full text here.

[VelociRapture]

I'm sitting here really worrying about what type of response this may get from Trump and his supporters:

https://m.mic.com/articles/150564/j-r-martinez-to-donald-trump-stop-disrespecting-military-veterans-and-fallen-soldiers#.8owDjMuTL

I mean, they've literally gone after the Military for everything. Unfortunately, I highly doubt Mr. Martinez will be spared despite his incredible courage in battle and despite the civility (and restraint) he showed in this letter. 

[AmazonGrace]

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/08/08/us/politics/national-security-letter-trump.html?_r=0

http://www.vox.com/2016/8/8/12404526/donald-trump-national-security-letter

Fifty top national security officials from Donald Trump’s own party don’t want you to vote for him.

The officials — who served in previous Republican administrations, including that of George W. Bush — recently signed a letter, published by the New York Times on Monday, essentially describing Trump as a national security threat. Here’s one particularly scathing section:

From a foreign policy perspective, Donald Trump is not qualified to be President and Commander-in-Chief. Indeed, we are convinced that he would be a dangerous President and would put at risk our country’s national security and well-being.

Most fundamentally, Mr. Trump lacks the character, values, and experience to be President. He weakens U.S. moral authority as the leader of the free world. He appears to lack basic knowledge about and belief in the U.S. Constitution, U.S. laws, and U.S. institutions, including religious tolerance, freedom of the press, and an independent judiciary.

Quote

 

(CNN)I had the honor of serving as Ronald Reagan's White House political director from 1987 to 1989, so I can claim some insight on U.S. politics. My central conclusion on the 2016 race: It might not be entirely clear that Hillary Clinton deserves to win the presidency, but it is thunderingly clear that Donald Trump deserves to lose.

From this premise, I will do something that I have not done in 40 years of voting: I will vote for the Democratic nominee for president. The depressing truth of the Republican nominee is that Donald Trump talks a great game but he is the emperor who wears no clothes.

Trump falls short in terms of the character and behavior needed to perform as president. This defect is crippling and ensures he would fail in office. Trump is a bigot, a bully, and devoid of grace or magnanimity. His thin-skinned belligerence toward every challenge, rebuke, or criticism would promise the nation a series of a high-voltage quarrels. His casual dishonesty, his policy laziness, and his lack of self-awareness would mean four years of a careening pin-ball journey that would ricochet from missteps to crisis to misunderstandings to clarifications to retractions.

 

http://edition.cnn.com/2016/08/07/opinions/reagan-republican-trump-no-clothes-lavin/index.html

[Mecca]

Trump's economic plan..... well.... my eyes basically came out of my head while listening to his speech. This guy clearly has no clue how this all works. He even said a few weeks ago he wanted to just print more money and that would fix everything. 

It appears Trump has changed his tune from before. Originally he proposed the tax brackets to be 0%, 10%, 20%, and 25%. It is now changed to 12%, 25% and 33%. He says his plan will reduce the deficit, but the numbers do not work. Hell, even many Republicans agate with that. 

Now we have the 50 GOP national security experts saying Trump is flat out dangerous. My question is: So when are the dumbasses going to wake up and realize voting for Trump truly would put the U.S. and the world at risk? 

[Cartmann99]

5 hours ago, Mecca said:

Trump's economic plan..... well.... my eyes basically came out of my head while listening to his speech. This guy clearly has no clue how this all works. He even said a few weeks ago he wanted to just print more money and that would fix everything. 

It appears Trump has changed his tune from before. Originally he proposed the tax brackets to be 0%, 10%, 20%, and 25%. It is now changed to 12%, 25% and 33%. He says his plan will reduce the deficit, but the numbers do not work. Hell, even many Republicans agate with that. 

Now we have the 50 GOP national security experts saying Trump is flat out dangerous. My question is: So when are the dumbasses going to wake up and realize voting for Trump truly would put the U.S. and the world at risk? 

Trump is pretty much down to the alt-right folks at this point, and they won't listen to anybody who doesn't love Trump:

Quote

Since The Donald bested the field of cuckservatives with his manly virility and full head of hair, those who couldn’t see a good insult go to waste have continued to use it in its shortened form—cuck—which applies first to anyone supporting Hillary, but also anyone who would challenge Donald Trump on his spelling, his logic, or his facts.

http://www.gq.com/story/why-angry-white-men-love-calling-people-cucks

[VelociRapture]

Maine Senator and lifelong Republican Susan Collins has stated she will not vote for Trump:

https://www.yahoo.com/news/gop-sen-collins-dismayed-trump-wont-vote-him-021208006--election.html

She says his mocking of a journalist with a disability, his criticism of a Judge's Hispanic heritage, and (specifically) his attacks on the Kahn family were extremely disconcerting and really made her question if he was capable of leading. She also was highly dismayed at his attacks on Senator McCain and Megyn Kelly as well.

She will not be supporting Hillary, but that's not too important or surprising to me. Far more important that she's taking a stand against Trump at all.

[Howl]

@VelociRapture, I came across the Susan Collins' letter this morning on HuffPo.  These are thoughtful Republican voices saying, No, just NO as they are coming to the realization of the true awfulness of Trump, and more importantly, Trump's inability to change or have any form of insight at all.  

It also speaks to the tendency among decent people to give someone the benefit of the doubt.  People are now forced to face the reality, as Susan Collins as done, that Trump lacks even the tiniest bit of common decency and is the poster child for "loose cannon on deck".  I suspect these voices will continue to grow as the days roll along.  

I googled "loose cannon on deck" and one person cites Victor Hugo's 1874 novel titled Ninety-Three, set in Brittany in 1793.  According to wikipedia, 

Quote

Meanwhile, at sea, a group of Royalist “Whites” are planning to land the Marquis de Lantenac, a Breton aristocrat whose leadership could transform the fortunes of the rebellion. While at sea, a sailor fails to properly secure his cannon, which rolls out of control and damages the ship. The sailor risks his life to secure the cannon and save their ship. Lantenac awards the man a medal for his bravery and then executes him (without trial) for failing in his duty.

Hmmmm.....

ETA: Two ex-EPA heads under Republican administrations have also 'defected', primarily over climate change.  From CNN:   

Quote

Two former administrators of the Environmental Protection Agency under Republican presidents endorsed Hillary Clinton on Tuesday, citing her plan to tackle climate change and Donald Trump's "profound ignorance of science."

William D. Ruckelshaus, who was the first EPA administrator under President Richard Nixon and then again the fifth under President Ronald Reagan, and William K. Reilly, the administrator under President George H. W. Bush, said in a joint statement that while Republicans have a history of protecting the environment, Trump "threatens to destroy that legacy of respect for the environment and protection of public health."

"That Trump would call climate change a hoax -- the singular health and environmental threat to the world today -- flies in the face of overwhelming international science," the duo said.

And Popular Science Magazine notes that, apparently, Trump's running mate Mike Pence does not believe that climate change is settled science. And, when interviewed by Chris Matthews (as reported by Popular Science) and repeatedly challenged on his beliefs about evolution, Pence would only say, "No, I‘ve said to you, Chris, I believe with all my heart that God created the heavens and the earth, the seas and all that is in them."

AND, Pence doesn't believe that smoking kills, just that it's not so good for you.  Again,  the Popular Science article noted, 

Quote

As a member of Congress in 2009, Pence voted against the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, which allowed the FDA to regulate tobacco products

because, ya know, we can't have a nanny state. 

I find it interesting that Popular Science would get this raw about a current political candidate.  The tone of the article was not forgiving.   

[AmazonGrace]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/trump-many-people-are-saying_us_57a95219e4b06adc11f14357

 

#ManyPeopleAreSaying that when Trump says #ManyPeopleAreSaying there's actually #NoPeopleSaying what he says #ManyPeopleAreSaying

[Cartmann99]

Trump is inciting his fans to assassinate Hillary Clinton:

 

[AmazonGrace]

Quote

 

I’d guess that people all over the United States make jokes like that about the president all the time.

I’d also guess that the U.S. Secret Service finds exactly none of them funny.

None.

 

http://www.azcentral.com/story/opinion/op-ed/ej-montini/2016/08/09/montini-donald-trump-hillary-clinton-second-amendment-judges/88479610/

[AmazonGrace]

I want to be clear here. As a principled conservative, I loathe the high likelihood that Hillary Clinton will — barring a bear attack or some other unforeseen externality — win this election.

She'll nominate liberal Supreme Court justices. We'll lose religious liberty. We'll have our Second Amendment freedoms compromised. Chuck Schumer's immigration bill is going to be so bad it will make many of us beg for the Gang of Eight.

However, Trump would be far worse. He'd be more dangerous to our safety and our republic. And since I know his loss is coming, I pray to God that it is total. You should, too.

http://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/rick-wilson-beat-trump-drum-article-1.2739979

[VelociRapture]

30 minutes ago, AmazonGrace said:

I want to be clear here. As a principled conservative, I loathe the high likelihood that Hillary Clinton will — barring a bear attack or some other unforeseen externality — win this election.

She'll nominate liberal Supreme Court justices. We'll lose religious liberty. We'll have our Second Amendment freedoms compromised. Chuck Schumer's immigration bill is going to be so bad it will make many of us beg for the Gang of Eight.

However, Trump would be far worse. He'd be more dangerous to our safety and our republic. And since I know his loss is coming, I pray to God that it is total. You should, too.

http://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/rick-wilson-beat-trump-drum-article-1.2739979

I got so confused reading this. I thought you were saying these things and then added a random link at the bottom. Really glad I took a look at the link before posting a confused comment. 

 

51 minutes ago, Cartmann99 said:

Trump is inciting his fans to assassinate Hillary Clinton:

 

There is something just so seriously wrong with this guy. I mean, forget the election and the politics and all that crap - he's saying this sort of thing about the mother of his daughter's friend. How on earth does he rationalize that or explain that? 

[AmazonGrace]

1 minute ago, VelociRapture said:

I got so confused reading this. I thought you were saying these things and then added a random link at the bottom. Really glad I took a look at the link before posting a confused comment. 

 

There is something just so seriously wrong with this guy. I mean, forget the election and the politics and all that crap - he's saying this sort of thing about the mother of his daughter's friend. How on earth does he rationalize that or explain that? 

Oh he was not talking about murder at all, he was talking about VOTING... 

Quote

 

But Trump's campaign denied that he was suggesting violence, instead saying the real estate mogul was referencing the power gun rights advocates have at the voting booth.

"It's called the power of unification — 2nd Amendment people have amazing spirit and are tremendously unified, which gives them great political power," Trump campaign spokesman Jason Miller said in a statement. "And this year, they will be voting in record numbers, and it won't be for Hillary Clinton, it will be for Donald Trump."

 

http://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2016-election/trump-campaign-defends-2nd-amendment-comment-n626601

 

Sorry for being confusing. 

[Destiny]

Send help. I'm surrounded by Trump supporters. SEND HELP AND WINE AND CHOCOLATE AND KITTENS BECAUSE I CAN'T START A POLITICAL FIGHT RIGHT NOW!

[louisa05]

28 minutes ago, Destiny said:

Send help. I'm surrounded by Drumpf supporters. SEND HELP AND WINE AND CHOCOLATE AND KITTENS BECAUSE I CAN'T START A POLITICAL FIGHT RIGHT NOW!

Is wine enough? I might go for straight shots of something much stronger in that situation. 

If wine is sufficient, how many cases should we send? How long are you stranded in this situation? Is a case an hour good? 

[VelociRapture]

46 minutes ago, Destiny said:

Send help. I'm surrounded by Trump supporters. SEND HELP AND WINE AND CHOCOLATE AND KITTENS BECAUSE I CAN'T START A POLITICAL FIGHT RIGHT NOW!

I started a political fight without access to wine or chocolate or kittens. Obviously, I'm the greatest political fight starter ever. Believe me, I'm the greatest political fight starter ever. All you other political fight starters are just weak and soft. 

[Mecca]

1 hour ago, Destiny said:

Send help. I'm surrounded by Trump supporters. SEND HELP AND WINE AND CHOCOLATE AND KITTENS BECAUSE I CAN'T START A POLITICAL FIGHT RIGHT NOW!

I feel your pain. All I see around these parts are Trump signs in support of him. I decided to just screw it and ordered several stickers to put on my car. If they can show their support for numb nuts, I can show my lack of support for numb nuts. Two came in today so they are going on my car after I eat some delicious Mexican food. 

[Mecca]

Here is something I just don't understand about Trump and his supporters. How many times have we heard, "Trump is a straight shooter and means what he says?"  Then once Trump says something extremely stupid, which is daily at this point, Trump and his fan people fall all over themselves saying that is not what he meant. So which is it?