Donald Trump and the Deathly Fallout (Part 15)

[47of74]

1 minute ago, GreyhoundFan said:

Related to @47of74's post: "The Trump White House is in deep legal trouble, according to Trump’s own standards"

I love Kellyanne's Tweet. She is so freaking two-faced.

Isn't that a job requirement for working in the Tapeworm's administration, that one have at least two or more faces?

[GreyhoundFan]

5 minutes ago, 47of74 said:

Isn't that a job requirement for working in the Tapeworm's administration, that one have at least two or more faces?

Pretty much. Oh, and no sense of ethics or morals.

 

Interesting take: "Trump Critics on Climate Policy Hope Executives Can Sway Him"

Quote

Jeffrey R. Immelt, General Electric’s chief executive, says climate change is real, a position at odds with the Trump administration.

As a member of a White House manufacturing advisory council, he also has President Trump’s ear. And environmentalists are counting on Mr. Immelt, and other executives close to the president, to use that access to argue for policies to combat global warming when the White House is rolling them back.

The companies’ business objectives and credibility are also at stake. Elon Musk of Tesla, another member of Mr. Trump’s council, is building an energy business intended to avoid the need for fossil fuels in favor of solar panels, batteries and electric vehicles. Doug McMillon of Walmart, the retail giant, has committed his company to a sharp reduction in the planet-warming gases it emits, as has Indra Nooyi of PepsiCo, the food and beverage company.

...

“Mr. Trump says the business perspective is especially important, so hearing the business voice is critical,” said Kevin Moss, of the World Resources Institute, an environmental research group in Washington.

“The companies are demonstrating that it’s in their business interest to take action on climate,” he said. “The more they’re willing to say that and take action, the stronger the message comes across.”

Those hopes have become increasingly urgent as Mr. Trump — against the warnings of scientists, environmentalists and even the government’s own research — has moved to nullify the Obama administration’s efforts on climate change.

...

That action also spurred Mr. Immelt to write a blog post to G.E.’s 300,000 employees in which he criticized the rollback.

“We believe climate change is real and the science is well accepted,” said the post, first reported by Politico. “This is just the beginning of what will be a long process” of a repeal, he said, but “no matter how it unfolds, it doesn’t change what G.E. believes.”

Jennifer Friedman, a General Electric spokeswoman, declined to say whether Mr. Immelt intended to relay his thoughts to Mr. Trump personally. Many other companies also declined to commit their executives to intervening with the president on climate-related policies.

But Ms. Friedman emphasized that Mr. Immelt was outspoken, and she cited G.E.’s focus on clean energy, including Current, a subsidiary that focuses on products and services in energy efficiency, renewable generation and energy storage to large customers.

“He’s pretty out there and clear,” she said. “That’s his position in every conversation he has.”

...

 

[RoseWilder]

This is interesting: 

http://www.palmerreport.com/news/fbi-agents-descend-on-offshore-casino-run-by-donald-trump-business-partner-and-campaign-adviser/2119/

Quote

Just one day after the FBI arrested ten people in New York City with alleged indirect ties to Donald Trump and a Russian mafia figure (link), now the Feds are hitting closer to home for Trump by heading offshore. FBI agents descended today on a casino on the U.S. island territory of Saipan, which just happens to be run by a longtime Trump business partner and a former Trump campaign adviser.

According to a Bloomberg report, FBI agents entered the Saipan casino in a joint action with local authorities. A local politician characterized the action as an “investigation or raid” of the property (link). The casino is run by Mike Brown, who according to a prior Forbes article is a longtime protege of Donald Trump (link). In fact Brown is the former CEO of Trump Hotels and Casinos, which went on to file for bankruptcy three times. But Brown isn’t the only direct Trump connection to the property.

Former CIA Director James Woolsey, who was a foreign policy adviser to Donald Trump during his campaign and part of his transition period, is on the board of directors of that same casino. That means two people with close ties to Trump, one of them financial and one of them political, just saw their casino raided by the Feds.

And here's a link to the original Bloomberg article about this: 

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-03-30/fbi-agents-visit-office-of-saipan-casino-run-by-trump-protege?cmpid=socialflow-twitter-business&utm_content=business&utm_campaign=socialflow-organic&utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social

I would love to be a fly on the wall in the White House right now. I bet it's mass chaos. 

[47of74]

32 minutes ago, RoseWilder said:

This is interesting: 

http://www.palmerreport.com/news/fbi-agents-descend-on-offshore-casino-run-by-donald-trump-business-partner-and-campaign-adviser/2119/

And here's a link to the original Bloomberg article about this: 

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-03-30/fbi-agents-visit-office-of-saipan-casino-run-by-trump-protege?cmpid=socialflow-twitter-business&utm_content=business&utm_campaign=socialflow-organic&utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social

I would love to be a fly on the wall in the White House right now. I bet it's mass chaos. 

Yeah I saw another article on the site that Darth Tweetder had been considering going the Nixon route.

palmerreport.com/news/former-white-house-staffer-sources-say-donald-trump-is-now-considering-resigning-from-the-presidency/2117/

Quote

Claude Taylor, who worked on three presidential campaigns and served on President Bill Clinton’s White House staff, tweeted the following this evening: “An ind journalist I have worked with-who has been reliable-says they have 2 sources that say Trump is considering options-incl resignation.”

He probably hopes then that President Pencildick, excuse me, I meant Pence, will then do a Gearld Ford and pardon him.

[fraurosena]

Damn. I wonder how much this judge was offered?

Trump University Suit Settlement Approved by Judge

Quote

A federal judge on Friday gave final approval to a $25 million agreement to settle fraud claims arising from Donald J. Trump’s for-profit education venture, Trump University, denying a last-minute objection to the deal.

The judge, Gonzalo P. Curiel, issued his order after considering a challenge from Sherri Simpson, a former Trump University student from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., whose lawyers say she should have had a chance to opt out of the class-action settlement and individually sue Mr. Trump, perhaps forcing a trial.

The civil settlement was not enough for Ms. Simpson, who wanted to see President Trump tried on criminal racketeering charges. She also wanted an apology.

But Judge Curiel, in his ruling, sided with the class-action plaintiffs’ lawyers, who had urged him to approve the agreement, saying it was the best possible outcome for roughly 3,730 students, who could recoup more than 90 cents on the dollar of what they spent at Trump University.

“The court finds that the amount offered in settlement is fair, adequate, and reasonable, and accordingly concludes that this factor weighs in favor of final approval, “ Judge Curiel wrote in a 31-page order approving the agreement, which is subject to appeal.

I hope they appeal the hell out of it. And that criminal charges for racketeering will be able to be laid. (or has that ship sailed already?)

[GreyhoundFan]

"Trump’s failing presidency has the GOP in a free fall"

Quote

In the aftermath of the GOP health-care debacle came a revealing act of candor. House Speaker Paul D. Ryan admitted that his party, which controls the House, Senate and White House, is not yet a “governing party” because it could not “get 216 people to agree with each other on how we do things.”

...

Since the rise of the tea party, there have been perhaps 30 members of the House — the Freedom Caucus — who have been consistently unwilling to vote for center-right policy because their anti-government convictions are unappeasable. Incited and abetted by conservative media, they made then-Speaker John Boehner’s (R-Ohio) life a living hell, and have greeted Ryan (Wis.) with sharpened pitchforks.

So a party at the peak of its political fortunes is utterly paralyzed. A caucus in control of everything is itself uncontrollable.

Heading into last year’s election, Republicans knew that this problem — the tea party predicament, the Freedom Caucus conundrum, the Boehner bog — had to be dealt with. The GOP needed a large and capable leader who could either unite the whole party (at least temporarily) with a bold, conservative vision, or peel off some centrist Democratic support with innovative policy. They needed an above-average president.

What they got is unimaginably distant from any of these goals. They got a leader who is empty — devoid of even moderately detailed preferences and incapable of using policy details in the course of political persuasion.

Republicans got a leader who is impatient and easily distracted — by cable news on the Russian scandal or by Arnold Schwarzenegger’s TV ratings. The content and consequences of his tweets are bad enough; worse is the disordered personality traits they reveal — vindictiveness, shallowness and lack of discipline. Trump spent a total of 18 days on his health-care bill before demanding a vote. And he made no speech to the nation to advance his ideas — as every other recent president would have done.

Republicans got an administration that is incompetent. The White House policy process has been erratic and disorganized. It has failed to provide expert analysis or assistance to Congress and did little to effectively advocate the president’s policy in ways that could have united the party.

Republicans got an administration that is morally small. Trump’s proposed budget would require massive cuts in disease research, global development and agricultural programs — just as a famine gathers a hideous strength. The proposed budget practices random acts of gratuitous cruelty.

This is a pretty bad combination: empty, easily distracted, vindictive, shallow, impatient, incompetent and morally small. This is not the profile of a governing party.

It can hardly surprise us. The president had no governing experience. He has no detailed governing agenda. He trashed everyone who tried to govern in the past. And we somehow expect him to overcome the complex governing task presented by the Freedom Caucus?

His new strategy is to go on the attack: “The Freedom Caucus will hurt the entire Republican agenda if they don’t get on the team, & fast. We must fight them, & Dems, in 2018!” By targeting individual congressmen, as Trump has now done, he runs the risk of looking pathetic if they remain unintimidated. And will he really carry this campaign beyond his Twitter feed? Have rallies in their districts? Criticize them on conservative talk radio? Raise money for their more moderate opponents? If he takes this route, then the GOP civil war will reach a new stage of bitterness, with legislative progress postponed until a core faction of the party is tweeted into submission or defeated.

Some Republicans choose to comfort themselves by repeating the mantra: “Gorsuch, Gorsuch, Gorsuch.” But that does nothing to change Trump’s stunningly high disapproval ratings. Or the stunning rebuke by the FBI director concerning his claim of being wiretapped by President Barack Obama. Or the stunning rejection of his central campaign promise by elements of his own party. Or his stunning ignorance of the basics of policy and leadership.

And all this has come in the course of the president’s political honeymoon. What, for goodness’ sake, will the marriage be like?

It is now dawning on Republicans what they have done to themselves. They thought they could somehow get away with Trump. That he could be contained. That the adults could provide guidance. That the economy might come to the rescue. That the damage could be limited.

Instead, they are seeing a downward spiral of incompetence and public contempt — a collapse that is yet to reach a floor. A presidency is failing. A party unable to govern is becoming unfit to govern.

And what, in the short term, can be done about it? Nothing. Nothing at all.

 

[Audrey2]

12 minutes ago, GreyhoundFan said:

"Trump’s failing presidency has the GOP in a free fall"

 

Quote

That the adults could provide guidance.

 

There are currently no vocal Republican adults in Washington. Adults know that you need to work together to find solutions. Adults know you need to compromise with your partner to accomplish things. Adults know they need to listen to others, that sometimes they bring up a point the listener hasn't thought of. Adults can have a civilized discourse, instead of Tweeting like an Internet bully. Adults wouldn't say publicly that they refuse to work with their partner. I wish we did have some adults in Washington. 

 

A couple of examples of adults in government that I remember are Teddy Kennedy and Bob Michel. Both were willing to work with the other side to get legislation all could tolerate. (Yes, I listed one from each party.)

 

We really need some adults back in Washington.

[GreyhoundFan]

"Another Trump promise bites the dust"

Quote

“I’m going to rip up those trade deals,” Donald Trump promised when he was campaigning for president, and about no deal was he more emphatic than the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), signed by George H.W. Bush and ratified under Bill Clinton. “NAFTA has been a disaster for our country. NAFTA has to be totally gotten rid of,” he said. “So, all of that will change with me and what I tell people is you’re going to have jobs.”

The pledge seemed particularly resonant in areas of the industrial Midwest, where people were excited by the prospect of the factories of yesteryear returning, with their high wages and good benefits. At the time, there were many critics who pointed out that scrapping NAFTA wouldn’t bring back those manufacturing jobs. But even if they were right, Trump’s promise was still clear.

Well, now he’s president, and guess what? It turns out that he may not end up keeping that promise, after all:

The Trump administration will seek modest — but numerous — changes to the North American Free Trade Agreement, according to a draft of a letter sent to Congress last week, displaying a much more conventional approach to trade negotiation than the dramatic changes President Trump had suggested he planned to seek.

The draft letter suggests a much more diplomatic tone than Trump has threatened to use during NAFTA renegotiations. It says, among other things, that the White House would look to strengthen cooperation under the World Trade Organization, an international group that the Trump administration had suggested in the past it might not abide by.

The draft letter also reinforces that Canada and Mexico are the United States’ two largest export markets, and that the countries have “shared borders” and “shared goals, shared histories and cultures, and shared challenges.”

...

Not only that, one particularly controversial provision of the treaty, known as investor-state dispute settlement, is not targeted for elimination. As the New York Times describes it:

Rather than scrap Nafta’s arbitration tribunals, regarded by some free-trade critics as secretive bodies that give private corporations unbridled power to challenge foreign governments outside the court system, the letter proposed to ‘maintain and seek to improve procedures’ for settling disputes.

So if you thought the Trump administration was going to rein in corporate power to do a favor for workers, you’ll be disappointed yet again.

We can’t predict the future, but if this first move is any indication, it appears that rather than scrapping NAFTA, the administration is going to negotiate some minor technical changes that attempt to give the United States some more advantageous terms while keeping the basic structure in place. Which may be perfectly fine from a policy standpoint, but it’s not anything like what Trump promised. Trump is also signing two executive orders today to study our trade deficits and see what might be done about them. Again: perfectly fine, but not exactly the radical changes he said he’d undertake. 

This all fits in well with a pattern that we’ve seen repeated over and over as the Trump candidacy turned into the Trump presidency. Here’s how it works.

1. Trump makes a grandiose promise that sounds great to at least some voters but no serious person believes.
2. Trump runs headlong into reality and discovers that doing what he promised would either be impossible or disastrous.
3. Trump initiates a hasty retreat from his promise.

So for instance, Trump said he’d build a big, beautiful wall across the entire southern border, and Mexico would pay for it. In practice, Mexico isn’t paying for it, the wall won’t cover the border, and we’ll get around to funding it at some later time. Trump promised to bring back all the coal jobs that have disappeared over the decades. It turns out that in practice, he’s going to undo some environmental regulations, which will bring back approximately zero coal jobs; in fact, it’s a near-certainty that there will be even fewer coal miners at the end of Trump’s term than at the beginning.

...

All that’s not to say that Trump hasn’t already kept some of his promises, because he has. But generally speaking, the more extravagant and ambitious the promise was, the more likely it has been scaled back or dropped altogether.

There’s one more promise Trump made that we should keep our eye on. As the election approached, he said that if he became president, he would “make every dream you ever dreamed for your country come true.” Something tells me that’s one he’s not going to be able to keep.

 

[47of74]

13 minutes ago, GreyhoundFan said:

"Another Trump promise bites the dust"

 

Well if we get lucky my dream of a certain orange tapeworm and a large number of his allies both in the executive and legislative branches behind bars will come true.

[GreyhoundFan]

6 minutes ago, 47of74 said:

Well if we get lucky my dream of a certain orange tapeworm and a large number of his allies both in the executive and legislative branches behind bars will come true.

My dream would be to build a wall...around a prison where we have incarcerated the tangerine toddler and his whole crazy crowd.

 

Here's a piece about the spawn and their spouses: "How Trump’s children (and their spouses) are still tied to the White House"

[47of74]

7 minutes ago, GreyhoundFan said:

My dream would be to build a wall...around a prison where we have incarcerated the tangerine toddler and his whole crazy crowd.

 

Here's a piece about the spawn and their spouses: "How Trump’s children (and their spouses) are still tied to the White House"

And it would be a wall that der Trumpenfuehrer and his pals would have to pay for too.

[AnywhereButHere]

4 hours ago, 47of74 said:

Yeah I saw another article on the site that Darth Tweetder had been considering going the Nixon route.

palmerreport.com/news/former-white-house-staffer-sources-say-donald-trump-is-now-considering-resigning-from-the-presidency/2117/

He probably hopes then that President Pencildick, excuse me, I meant Pence, will then do a Gearld Ford and pardon him.

As much as I'd love to see him resign in disgrace (there would be dancing - and cake), I'm not sure I want to see Pence as president. He's just crazy in a nicer package. All of the GOP fragmenting factions will be happy to coalesce behind a nice, shiny, religious nutbar.

We can either be thrown violently into a raging inferno by Caligula or be slowly roasted over a low flame by Brother Pence. Ugh.

 

[formergothardite]

Trump apparently totally forgot to sign an executive order he was supposed to be signing. He just sort of wanders out while Pence tries to let him know what he did. Pence had to go pick up the papers and take them with him and I guess Trump signed them at some point. 

He is losing it. 

http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/326796-trump-appears-to-forget-to-sign-executive-orders

[Cartmann99]

2 hours ago, AnywhereButHere said:

As much as I'd love to see him resign in disgrace (there would be dancing - and cake), I'm not sure I want to see Pence as president. He's just crazy in a nicer package. All of the GOP fragmenting factions will be happy to coalesce behind a nice, shiny, religious nutbar.

We can either be thrown violently into a raging inferno by Caligula or be slowly roasted over a low flame by Brother Pence. Ugh.

 

I understand. Pence really believes all the RWNJ religious stuff, he knows how government works, and he can "look presidential" long enough to sell the latest dumpster fire to the rubes.  Gah!

[onekidanddone]

3 hours ago, 47of74 said:

Well if we get lucky my dream of a certain orange tapeworm and a large number of his allies both in the executive and legislative branches behind bars will come true.

Oh orange tape worm. How could you do that to me.  I  had such a lovely dinner out with hubby, and now I'm  getting all nauseous 

[onekidanddone]

Husband's uncle's car.

White Plight is a thing..who knew

 

 

[47of74]

1 hour ago, onekidanddone said:

Oh orange tape worm. How could you do that to me.  I  had such a lovely dinner out with hubby, and now I'm  getting all nauseous 

Sorry.

Did you all see Darth Tweetder isn't gonna throw out the first pitch of the regular season on Monday;

cnn.com/2017/03/28/politics/donald-trump-washington-nationals-opening-day/

Quote

A scheduling conflict has led President Donald Trump to balk at throwing the Opening Day first pitch for the Washington Nationals, the White House said Tuesday.

The Nationals also informed reporters at the team's pre-Opening Day media event on Tuesday that Trump would not participate in the longtime presidential tradition.

The Nationals open at home this year, with their first game taking place against the Miami Marlins at 1 p.m. ET on Monday.

The tradition of a president throwing out the first pitch dates back to 1910, when then-President William Howard Taft hurled one for the Washington Senators' opener.

Scheduling conflict?  Ya, right.  Dry that one out you could fertilize every baseball field in North America.

More likely he doesn't wanna make a fucking fool (well, more of a fucking fool) of himself when he shows his inability to throw the ball.

[GreyhoundFan]

I love the opinion write Dana Milbank. He published this one today: "This one weird trick can solve all of Trump’s problems"

Quote

The name of the game is gaming the name.

Politico this week reported on an innovative new policy from the Trump administration: An Energy Department official had directed staff “not to use the phrases ‘climate change,’ ‘emissions reduction’ or ‘Paris Agreement’ in written memos, briefings or other written communication.”

A department spokeswoman denied that there had been a new directive, which, given the administration’s record of truthfulness, is practically a confirmation. Politico reported that it may be less a matter of “formal instructions” than a “general sense that it’s better to avoid certain hot-button terms in favor of words like ‘jobs’ and ‘infrastructure.’ ”

Thus would the Department of Jobs and Infrastructure, formerly the Department of Energy, be forced to change the name of its Office of International Climate and Clean Energy to the Office of Hot-Button Terms. Or perhaps it should be the Office of Puppies and Lollipops, so that people would come to see global warming as a good thing.

The retiring of undesirable names is not limited to the Energy Department, as it turns out. The Kushner family, President Trump’s in-laws, plan to change the name of their flagship development, 666 Fifth Ave. , to the less-Luciferian 660 Fifth Ave. Apparently it’s not good for business to have your property (in the news lately because of the Kushners’ attempted deal with Chinese investors) named with the Mark of the Beast.

Banning “climate change” could be the beginning of an elegant solution for this floundering young administration: If you can’t eliminate a problem, eliminate any mention of the problem. And Trump has already amassed a substantial list of people and things he would undoubtedly like to make go away. He could decree no more mention of: Michael Flynn. Immunity deals. Obamacare. Chuck Schumer. The Freedom Caucus. Democrats. The Congressional Black Caucus. April Ryan. The failing New York Times. Mark Meadows. Jim Jordan. Raul Labrador. Jared Kushner’s testimony. Ivanka Trump’s conflicts of interest. Conflicts of interest generally. The Club for Growth. Heritage Action. NBC. ABC. CNN. Paul Ryan. Preet Bharara. Snoop Dogg. The Russia probe. The FBI. The CIA. Russia. The Senate Intelligence Committee. Polls. The deficit. Judges. Arnold Schwarzenegger. Congress.

...

Once problematic phrases are excised, benign ones can take their place. Debt would become “free Chinese money.” The Constitution would become the “Conversation” to make it feel less restrictive, and the First Amendment, which Trump again this week threatened to revise, would become the “First Asterisk.” The phrase “Medal of Honor” would be inserted for all mentions of “impeachment” in federal documents, “our Slavic partners” would substitute for “Russia,” “swimming lessons” would take the place of “waterboarding” and references to Devin Nunes would be replaced by the phrase “His Eminence.”

Now that would be a real climate change.

I needed the laugh.

[onekidanddone]

6 minutes ago, 47of74 said:

Sorry.

Did you all see Darth Tweetder isn't gonna throw out the first pitch of the regular season on Monday;

cnn.com/2017/03/28/politics/donald-trump-washington-nationals-opening-day/

Scheduling conflict?  Ya, right.  Dry that one out you could fertilize every baseball field in North America.

More likely he doesn't wanna make a fucking fool (well, more of a fucking fool) of himself when he shows his inability to throw the ball.

I am  glad he wont' be taking an orange shit all over opening day.  Opening day is sacred.

[GreyhoundFan]

Never been a big fan of "W", but this is good: "What George W. Bush Really Thought of Donald Trump’s Inauguration"

Quote

The inauguration of Donald Trump was a surreal experience for pretty much everyone who witnessed it, whether or not they were at the event and regardless of who they supported in the election. On the dais, the stoic presence of Hillary Clinton — whom candidate Trump had said he would send to prison if he took office — underlined the strangeness of the moment. George W. Bush, also savaged by Trump during the campaign, was there too. He gave the same reason for attending that Bill and Hillary Clinton did: to honor the peaceful transfer of power.

Bush’s endearing struggle with his poncho at the event quickly became a meme, prompting many Democrats on social media to admit that they already pined for the relative normalcy of his administration. Following Trump’s short and dire speech, Bush departed the scene and never offered public comment on the ceremony.

But, according to three people who were present, Bush gave a brief assessment of Trump’s inaugural after leaving the dais: “That was some weird shit.” All three heard him say it.

A spokesman for Bush declined to comment.

Yeah, that pretty much sums it up.

 

 

I posted in the Bannon thread about his financial disclosure form, but the WaPo has put a large number in one place here.  Some interesting reading.

 

[47of74]

I guess the Tangerine Toddler didn't like the fact that Flynn might roll over on him, and that's why he stormed out without signing the orders...

occupydemocrats.com/2017/03/31/trump-just-stormed-signing-ceremony-simple-question/

Quote

An increasingly frustrated and defensive Trump just threw a tantrum and stormed out of an executive order signing ceremony when CBS’ White House Correspondent tried to ask a question about disgraced former National Security Advisor Gen. Michael Flynn, who has just offered to testify, presumably against his former bosses, in front of the Senate and House committees investigating the Trump team’s connections to Russia.

 

[JMarie]

https://www.aol.com/article/news/2017/03/31/poll-one-in-three-american-voters-give-trump-f-rating/22020474/

15% would give him an A???????????

[kacarlton]

https://www.aol.com/article/news/2017/03/31/poll-one-in-three-american-voters-give-trump-f-rating/22020474/
15% would give him an A???????????

Those are his "business" buddies. [emoji23]

[Cartmann99]

46 minutes ago, JMarie said:

https://www.aol.com/article/news/2017/03/31/poll-one-in-three-american-voters-give-trump-f-rating/22020474/

15% would give him an A???????????

I ran into one of them on Twitter this week. Their profile proclaimed that Trump was anointed by God to be our president. 

[send*the*ferrets]

Re: the wall... next he is going to tell us he decided to save cost and go for an invisible electric wall that will just shock Mexicans when they try to cross the border. The Emperor's New Wall. Done and dusted.