Donald Trump and his Coterie of the Craven (part 16)

[GreyhoundFan]

"‘I was all set to terminate’: Inside Trump’s sudden shift on NAFTA"

Quote

President Trump was set to announce Saturday, on the 100th day of his presidency, that he was withdrawing from the North American Free Trade Agreement — the sort of disruptive proclamation that would upend both global and domestic politics and signal to his base that he was keeping his campaign promise to terminate what he once called “a total disaster” and “one of the worst deals ever.”

“I was all set to terminate,” Trump said in an Oval Office interview Thursday night. “I looked forward to terminating. I was going to do it.”

There was just one problem: Trump’s team — like on so many issues — was deeply divided.

 As news of the president’s plan reached Ottawa and Mexico City in the middle of the week and rattled the markets and Congress, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue and others huddled in meetings with Trump, urging him not to sign a document triggering a U.S. withdrawal from NAFTA.

Perdue even brought along a prop to the Oval Office: A map of the United States that illustrated the areas that would be hardest hit, particularly from agriculture and manufacturing losses, and highlighting that many of those states and counties were “Trump country” communities that had voted for the president in November.

“It shows that I do have a very big farmer base, which is good,” Trump recalled. “They like Trump, but I like them, and I’m going to help them.”

By Wednesday night, Trump — who spent nearly two years as a candidate railing against the trade agreement — had backed down, saying that conversations with advisers and phone calls with the leaders of Canada and Mexico had persuaded him to reconsider.

Recalling his late Wednesday conversation with Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto, Trump said, “He said to me, ‘I would really appreciate if we could negotiate instead of you terminating, because terminating sets a lot of things in motion that could be pretty devastating for a lot of people.’ ”

...

Canada and Mexico were blindsided Wednesday as news of Trump’s planned NAFTA withdrawal spread north and south of the border. 

Arturo Sarukhan, a former Mexican ambassador to the United States, described the news as a “my way or the highway ambush” from the White House, especially coming amid what has been weeks of steady and amicable discussions among the three countries about revamping the trade agreement. 

But Mexico — which was already on edge following Trump’s brief flirtation with attaching border-wall funding to a must-pass, short-term spending bill — quickly leapt to action. Two cabinet-level officials in Mexico reached out to their U.S. counterparts to deliver a blunt message: If Trump officially announced the U.S. intention to withdraw from NAFTA, Mexico would not return to the negotiating table.

Mexico would not, the officials warned, negotiate with “a gun to its head.”

The president, meanwhile, was hearing a similar message from some of his own senior advisers. Ross, the commerce secretary, and Jared Kushner, the president’s son-in-law, scrambled to persuade Trump to back down.

The United States can only trigger the six-month clock to withdraw from NAFTA once, they said. They told the president that he had strong leverage to renegotiate the trade deal but that once he publicly signaled his intent to leave, the situation would become so politically fraught for Canada and Mexico that they would not be able to return to negotiations, even if they wanted to.

In the Oval Office interview, however, Trump repeatedly insisted that he was ready to pull out of NAFTA. At one point, he turned to Kushner, who was standing near his desk, and asked, “Was I ready to terminate NAFTA?”

“Yeah,” Kushner said, before explaining the case he made to the president: “I said, ‘Look, there’s plusses and minuses to doing it,’ and either way he would have ended up in a good place.”

Perdue, the agriculture secretary, and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson also cautioned Trump against moving ahead, while two of the White House’s populists, trade adviser Peter Navarro and chief strategist Stephen K. Bannon, urged him to stay the course, announcing his intention to withdraw in a splashy prime-time rally Saturday night in Harrisburg, Pa.

The administration also received pressure from hundreds of business executives from around the country, many of whom called the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, asking what was going to happen, before calling the White House directly, urging Trump not to sign the order.

Tom Donohue, the chamber’s chief executive, also relayed the message to senior White House officials. 

The complaints pouring in from agriculture groups were even more apoplectic, warning White House officials that withdrawing from NAFTA could devastate the U.S. agriculture industry, allowing Mexico to reinstate high tariffs against U.S. exports.

...

Trump publicly claimed Thursday that his phone calls with Peña Nieto and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau persuaded him to give negotiations a chance.

But a senior administration official said Trump had already decided to hold off on signing the NAFTA termination letter before his phone calls with Mexico and Canada.

In the interview, Trump recounted his internal deliberations: “In one way, I like the termination. In the other way, I like them — a lot, both of them. We have a very good relationship. And it’s very hard when you have a relationship, it’s very much something that would not be a nice act. It would not be exactly a friendly act.”

But, the president added, he reserves the right to change his mind. “I can always terminate,” Trump said. “They called me up, they said, ‘Could we try negotiating?’ I said, ‘Absolutely, yes.’ If we can’t come to a satisfactory conclusion, we’ll terminate NAFTA.”

...

To paraphrase the tangerine toddler: who knew that trade agreements were so complicated? Maybe he should have actually studied NAFTA before screeching about it on the campaign trail.

[AmazonGrace]

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-100days-idUSKBN17U0CA

Quote

 

He misses driving, feels as if he is in a cocoon, and is surprised how hard his new job is.

President Donald Trump on Thursday reflected on his first 100 days in office with a wistful look at his life before the White House.

"I loved my previous life. I had so many things going," Trump told Reuters in an interview. "This is more work than in my previous life. I thought it would be easier."

A wealthy businessman from New York, Trump assumed public office for the first time when he entered the White House on Jan. 20 after he defeated former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in an upset.

More than five months after his victory and two days shy of the 100-day mark of his presidency, the election is still on Trump's mind. Midway through a discussion about Chinese President Xi Jinping, the president paused to hand out copies of what he said were the latest figures from the 2016 electoral map.

"Here, you can take that, that's the final map of the numbers," the Republican president said from his desk in the Oval Office, handing out maps of the United States with areas he won marked in red. "It’s pretty good, right? The red is obviously us."

He had copies for each of the three Reuters reporters in the room.

 

Because Reuters reporters probably have not seen the electoral map yet. 

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-exclusive-idUSKBN17U04E
He's picking a fight with North AND South Korea: 

Quote

"There is a chance that we could end up having a major, major conflict with North Korea. Absolutely," Trump told Reuters in an Oval Office interview ahead of his 100th day in office on Saturday.

Nonetheless, Trump said he wanted to peacefully resolve a crisis that has bedeviled multiple U.S. presidents, a path that he and his administration are emphasizing by preparing a variety of new economic sanctions while not taking the military option off the table.

"We'd love to solve things diplomatically but it's very difficult," he said.

In other highlights of the 42-minute interview, Trump was cool to speaking again with Taiwan's president after an earlier telephone call with her angered China.

He also said he wants South Korea to pay the cost of the U.S. THAAD anti-missile defense system, which he estimated at $1 billion, and intends to renegotiate or terminate a U.S. free trade pact with South Korea because of a deep trade deficit with Seoul.

Asked when he would announce his intention to renegotiate the pact, Trump said: “Very soon. I’m announcing it now.”

 

 

[JMarie]

Patagonia (they sell outdoor gear, like polarfleece jackets and sleeping bags) is suing Trump over his messing with national monuments.

http://www.theindychannel.com/newsy/patagonia-is-going-after-trump-for-his-national-monument-plans

President Donald Trump could find himself in a legal battle with a clothing company. But it wouldn't be over clothes.

Outdoor apparel company Patagonia said it's "preparing to take every step necessary, including legal action" after Trump signed an executive order Wednesday.

"I am signing a new executive order to end another egregious abuse of federal power and to give that power back to the states and to the people, where it belongs," Trump said.

The order directs the secretary of the interior to review national monument designations of at least 100,000 acres made under the Antiquities Act since 1996.

The act has let presidents designate national monuments on federally owned or controlled land.

Secretary Ryan Zinke's review could suggest Congress strip some lands of the title. While Trump himself can't remove the designation from lands, he could resize their boundaries without congressional approval.

But Patagonia's CEO called Trump's order "hypocritical" and "unprecedented." She said such a change "ignores the review process of cultural and historical characteristics and the public input."

The order specifically asks for a review of the 1.35 million-acre Bears Ears National Monument in Utah. President Barack Obama designated it during his last days in office.

Along with local tribes, Patagonia pushed for the designation for years — even creating this TV spot.

"It's hard not to feel pride as a citizen of this country when we're in a place like this," a man says as panning shots reveal the landscape.

Since Trump signed the order, Patagonia has published multiple posts on social media requesting citizens to call their U.S. representatives and express their opposition to the action.

[JMarie]

It only took him 100 days.  The first 100 days, the days he kept talking about.  The 100 days that were going to be super productive.

http://www.cnn.com/2017/04/28/politics/donald-trump-president-easier/index.html

Quote

President Donald Trump, reflecting on a first 100 days in office that has featured no major legislative wins and low approval ratings, said Thursday he thought the job would be easier.

"I loved my previous life, I loved my previous life. I had so many things going," Trump said in an interview with Reuters. "I actually, this is more work than my previous life. I thought it would be easier."

He later added, "I do miss my old life. This -- I like to work. But this is actually more work."

Trump also said he misses his pre-presidency freedom -- a sentiment often expressed by Oval Office occupants who find themselves in the security bubble of the White House.

"And, while I had very little privacy, in my old life because, you know, I've been famous for a long time. I really -- this is much less privacy than I've seen before. This is, you know, something that's really amazing. At the same time, you're really into your own cocoon because there's such massive protection, that you really can't go anywhere."

The President said he missed being able to take the wheel.

"I like to drive," Trump told Reuters. "I can't drive any more."

It's too much work. he has no privacy, and he can't drive anymore. 

If only there was a way out of his awful job....

[fraurosena]

16 hours ago, GreyhoundFan said:

Sigh: "Trump’s lies are working brilliantly. This new poll proves it."

I'm just shaking my head.

Ah, but here's a poll, by Faux News no less, that says only 36% of voters would re-elect the Toddler if there were to be elections now:

https://www.indy100.com/article/fox-news-poll-donald-trump-regret-electing-2020-election-7704816

Quote

When asked "if the 2020 presidential election were held today", 36 per cent say they would re-elect Trump, while 55 per cent would vote for someone else.

Quick reminder: I hate polls. I've said it before, and I'll probably say it many more times. Polls can be and are manipulated to say anything you want them to.  In that light, I find it extremely interesting that it was conducted for Faux News, and published by them. You would expect a poll by them would not have such negative results for the presidunce, or if it did, that these results wouldn't be published. Is Faux preparing to ditch the support for the Toddler? 

[VelociRapture]

Just in case anyone forgot (or needs a laugh), Senator Chris Murphy continues to be a badass motherfucker:

 

[apple1]

6 hours ago, JMarie said:

If only there was a way out of his awful job....

May I suggest -

impeachment.

[CTRLZero]

6 hours ago, JMarie said:

"I actually, this is more work than my previous life. I thought it would be easier."

How on earth did he ever think the job would be easier.  Oh, yeah, he didn't read the job description.  He probably envisioned Congress full of bobbleheads, saying yes to his every directive. 

I just hope he doesn't screw things up totally before he throws a tantrum and quits to live out his life at the Mar-a-Lago clubhouse, recounting tales of how he was the greatest president ever, accomplishing more in his first few months than anyone, ever.

[formergothardite]

16 minutes ago, CTRLZero said:

How on earth did he ever think the job would be easier.

I really think he thought he got to be a dictator. Probably why he didn't understand why it took Obama so long to do stuff. 

[Audrey2]

18 minutes ago, CTRLZero said:

How on earth did he ever think the job would be easier.  Oh, yeah, he didn't read the job description.  He probably envisioned Congress full of bobbleheads, saying yes to his every directive. 

With business as his only frame of reference and his billions, when he says, "jump" he's used to people asking, "how high" on the way back down. If they don't, he fires them. You can't fire Congress (although, thinking of several of the worst members, I wish we could). 

 

The only thing remotely saving us is that congress has slid into three factions, almost parties- the Democrats, Republicans, and the Tea Party (no to everything) obstructionists. The though of the Republican party reunifying again terrifies me, especially with the hard right wingers.

[Howl]

Brilliant tweet: 

Quote

A healthcare plan that does not cover pre-existing conditions is NOT healthcare. It's like life insurance that doesn't cover death.

 

[AnywhereButHere]

I like this opinion piece on Caligula's first 100 days. I could only wish they were his last, and we were out of this mess, but no, there is so much more (or less) to come...

 

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/opinion/we-set-a-low-bar-for-trump-he-still-failed-to-meet-it/ar-BBAsyFi?li=BBnb7Kz&ocid=msnbcrd

 

Quote

Much of Trump’s 100-days defense could have been employed by the pharaoh who ruled after the one in the book of Exodus. The cattle haven’t all died. We’ve seen less fiery hail. And pestilence has been kept to an acceptable minimum.

Sadly, the above excerpt is how this administration and it's devoted followers see it.  They're gleefully going around, breaking eggs to make omelets, not looking back and seeing the trail of dead chickens they're also leaving in their wake. 

(Apologies for the horrible metaphor!)

[Howl]

You had me at "Caligula"!  I thought someone had written a funny piece about what Caligula's first 100 days might have been like, parodying Lord Dampnut. 

Love this: 

Quote

Much of Trump’s 100-days defense could have been employed by the pharaoh who ruled after the one in the book of Exodus. The cattle haven’t all died. We’ve seen less fiery hail. And pestilence has been kept to an acceptable minimum.

 

[JMarie]

There was a segment on ABC's Nightly News, interviewing Trump voters in Kentucky.  They talked to a man who had been a coal miner and now has black lung disease.  He and his wife both admit to having insurance coverage only because of Obamacare.  The camera crew went with them to the drugstore -- one of their prescriptions (I assume it was the husband's) would retail for six thousand dollars (!), but they paid nothing.  Yet, they not only both voted for Trump, they'd both do it again.  If they were hoping for a better health plan, what's better than zero payment??

[HarryPotterFan]

4 minutes ago, JMarie said:

There was a segment on ABC's Nightly News, interviewing Trump voters in Kentucky.  They talked to a man who had been a coal miner and now has black lung disease.  He and his wife both admit to having insurance coverage only because of Obamacare.  The camera crew went with them to the drugstore -- one of their prescriptions (I assume it was the husband's) would retail for six thousand dollars (!), but they paid nothing.  Yet, they not only both voted for Trump, they'd both do it again.  If they were hoping for a better health plan, what's better than zero payment??

Spoiler

Also how on earth is anyone stupid enough to think that being president would be easy? I guess it's to be expected from a man who didn't know healthcare is complicated. 

[GreyhoundFan]

1 hour ago, JMarie said:

There was a segment on ABC's Nightly News, interviewing Trump voters in Kentucky.  They talked to a man who had been a coal miner and now has black lung disease.  He and his wife both admit to having insurance coverage only because of Obamacare.  The camera crew went with them to the drugstore -- one of their prescriptions (I assume it was the husband's) would retail for six thousand dollars (!), but they paid nothing.  Yet, they not only both voted for Trump, they'd both do it again.  If they were hoping for a better health plan, what's better than zero payment??

I would assume that they would think a better health plan covered them, but none of those scary black people or immigrants. That seems to be the consensus of blame amongst many Agent Orange voters who have been interviewed.

 

"Alone in the White House, Trump is enjoying the perks of his new home"

Quote

The first president in recent history to reside in the White House without his immediate family still seems wonder-struck by his new home.

He enjoys leading guests on trivia-filled tours, explaining that the Lincoln Bedroom actually served as the 16th president’s office and boasting about the historical importance of the antique furnishings.

“The president took us to every room and looked at every painting and talked about every bed and every carpet and every rug and every bulletproof glass,” ­arch-conservative provocateur and ’70s guitar hero Ted Nugent told the Detroit Free Press after dining with Trump in the executive mansion. “It was just awesome.”

On that same visit, President Trump bragged to Nugent about the specialties of the White House chefs; that night, he ordered up lobster salad, lamb chops and baked Alaska for dessert. (The meatloaf, which the president insisted New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie try on another occasion, is another favorite.)

But the fact that Trump entertained Nugent’s party, which included Sarah Palin and Kid Rock, for four hours on a Wednesday night may indicate his hunger for company. Trump currently has more than 20,000 square feet to himself in the official residence on the second and third floor of the East Wing — at least until his wife, Melania, and son Barron move from New York to Washington. A spokeswoman for the first lady said that will happen this summer, once they pick a ­D.C.-area school and a redecoration of the residence is complete.

...

The same sort of accommodations will be made for the Trumps, who hired interior designer Tham Kannalikham to help them remodel the living space. They have a more formal style than their predecessors and turned down the Obamas’ offer to keep the wooden playset on the South Lawn that then-White House Chief Usher Stephen Rochon traveled to South Dakota to select for the girls in 2009.

The Trumps’ Manhattan penthouse is ornately outfitted in gold and marble. Their Mar-a-Lago Resort in Palm Beach, Fla., where the president and first lady have spent many weekends, is similarly decorated with gold leaf in the ballroom and centuries-old oak paneling in the club’s library. “The White House, by comparison,” said Barbara Res, a former Trump construction executive, “is rather tame, decorating-wise.”

“If he wants [the White House] to look like Trump Tower on the inside, we can do that, from the carpets to the floors, to making it gilded,” Rochon said.

...

Yet, Trump already seems to be finding his routine. He is known to turn on the television as soon as he wakes and watches more cable news once he goes upstairs to the White House residence in the evening. And he stays in close touch with friends, chatting on the phone.

He’s probably discovered the perk of the master bedroom phone — pick it up, and an on-call butler is immediately on the line. If he wants his favorite drink, a Diet Coke, it will be there in an instant.

“I am sure he is like the king of the castle,” said Allen, the former White House butler. “If the president stays up at night, there has got to be someone there if he needs something. . . . That’s the beauty of the White House. You just say, ‘I need,’ and we do.”

Sigh, so the interior of the residence is going to be gaudy, instead of the tasteful decor of the past few occupants.

[GreyhoundFan]

Good Freaking God. That is all. "Trump blames Flynn’s vetting on Obama administration"

Quote

WASHINGTON (AP) — Even though he named Michael Flynn to be his top national security aide, President Donald Trump on Friday laid the blame for any flaws in Flynn’s vetting at the feet of his predecessor.

In an interview airing Friday evening on Fox News Channel’s “The First 100 Days,” Trump tried to deflect recent criticism of his decision to appoint Flynn as national security adviser despite Flynn’s past lobbying on behalf of Turkish government interests and his acceptance of tens of thousands of dollars from a Russian state-sponsored television network.

“When they say we didn’t vet, well Obama I guess didn’t vet, because he was approved at the highest level of security by the Obama administration,” Trump said, referring to the previous administration’s approval of Flynn’s security clearance.

“So when he came into our administration, for a short period of time, he came in, he was already approved by the Obama administration and he had years left on that approval,” Trump added.

Though Flynn was indeed with the Trump administration for a short period before he was forced out, he campaigned vigorously for Trump for months during the 2016 election battle, including a fiery speech at the Republican National Convention in which he joined in as the crowd jeered Democrat Hillary Clinton. “Lock her up, that’s right,” he called out, applauding the delegates’ chants.

President Barack Obama fired Flynn from his post as director of the Defense Intelligence Agency in 2014, but Flynn maintained a security clearance that was reissued in January 2016. Trump appointed Flynn as national security adviser in January. He forced him to step down in February, saying Flynn had misled senior administration officials, including the vice president, about his contacts with Russian officials.

Trump’s comments echoed the defense advanced by his press secretary Sean Spicer on Thursday, as the Pentagon’s watchdog confirmed it was investigating Flynn, a retired U.S. Army lieutenant general, over whether he failed to get U.S. government approval to receive foreign payments.

...

On Friday, the ranking Democrat on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform faulted the Trump administration for blaming Obama.

“The White House had its own responsibility to fully vet General Flynn since new information became public during the transition — well after General Flynn’s last background check — about his lobbying on behalf of foreign interests,” said Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md. “The White House needs to stop making excuses to protect General Flynn.”

In addition to the scrutiny of his foreign payments, Flynn’s foreign contacts are being examined as part of the wider inquiries into Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential campaign. He has been interviewed by the FBI, which is investigating Trump associates’ contacts with Russia, and he is being probed by the House and Senate intelligence committees.

Kindergartners don't blame others as much as the jackass occupying the White House does.

[GreyhoundFan]

"Why Trump desperately needs to keep conservative media outlets on his side"

Quote

Alex Jones is doing his best to keep the faith, but it isn't easy.

The Infowars founder and President Trump booster has been heartened by some of the president's early-term moves yet frustrated by others. He opposed the strike on a Syrian airfield this month, and he worries that Trump's daughter, Ivanka, and her husband, Jared Kushner — both White House advisers — are liberal influences.

In a video posted on Facebook on Thursday, Jones appeared torn.

“He's done so good on moving for tax cuts, demonizing and trying to overthrow Obamacare, and getting all the jobs back, and the stock market, and killing TPP — the list goes on and on — that I say, 'Hey, this is really great,' ” Jones said. “But it is paradoxical, on the other side. You know, he's saying go after WikiLeaks, when WikiLeaks got him elected. That's a stab in the back. And all this other craziness. And I don't even know what to say, at this point, about that because it's just such a flip-flop.”

Jones went on for a while about WikiLeaks. Then, suddenly upbeat, he gave himself and his fellow Trump supporters a pep talk: “The good news is Trump, for the nationalist brand, is very strong. Nationalism is spreading all over the world. Very exciting things are happening. This is a great time to be alive. And so we can't just become demoralized if Trump starts going sideways or off his trajectory some.”

For Trump, it is critical that Jones and other backers in the conservative media continue to look on the bright side — and continue to tell the president's base to do the same.

...

No single factor can fully explain loyalty, but positive spin in the conservative press is surely a big one. Rush Limbaugh lamented on his radio show Tuesday that “it looks like President Trump is caving on his demand for a measly $1 billion in the budget for his wall on the border with Mexico.” Yet when a longtime listener, “Tim from Detroit,” called in to say that Trump “will be making a grave mistake if he compromises on this,” Limbaugh urged patience.

“Now, wait,” the host said. “He’s not compromising on the wall. He’s saying he’ll delay funding until September so as to avoid a government shutdown.”

Sean Hannity struck the same chord on Fox News Thursday night: “He's not perfect. Nobody's perfect. But he's done a really good job of keeping his promises.”

The message Trump voters have heard over and over is that their man deserves a long leash. So far, they seem willing to give him one. But things could change if commentators like Jones, Limbaugh and Hannity were to turn on Trump.

The White House seems to understand the stakes. On Monday, the president hosted a reception for about 50 conservative media members, fielding questions while providing an opportunity to mingle with top officials, including chief of staff Reince Priebus, chief strategist Stephen K. Bannon and senior adviser Jared Kushner.

The event was conceived as a way “to appreciate the folks who have really covered the president fairly and covered a lot of issues ignored by mainstream media,” White House press secretary Sean Spicer told Politico.

...

Trump taped a single TV interview that will air in prime time Friday, on the eve of his 100th day. The lucky network is, of course, Fox News.

Every president works to stay in the good graces of the news outlets favored by his base, but Trump is in an unusual position. A new president typically enjoys a honeymoon period in which people who did not vote for him nevertheless say they approve of his performance. Barack Obama's approval rating at this early stage of his presidency was 69 percent, for example; Trump's is 42 percent. Just 7 percent of Hillary Clinton voters approve of Trump's job performance.

Trump is not winning many converts. If he is not winning converts, then he really needs to hold on to the supporters he already had. And to hold on to the supporters he already had, he needs to keep the conservative media voices that cheered him to victory on his side.

 

[fraurosena]

5 hours ago, GreyhoundFan said:

"Why Trump desperately needs to keep conservative media outlets on his side"

 

It makes me glad that there are signs that the biased media is willing to be critical of the presidunce. It's quite possible they're hedging their bets, because, let's be honest here, this whole Russia-emoluments-nepotism thing that's attached to his leg like a ball on a chain is becoming harder and harder to ignore. Even for the biased media.

[fraurosena]

Another example of the tangerine toddler's tremendous tangled web of duplicitous deceit.

Trump: '8-year assault' on Second Amendment is over and Trump's Connection to Sig Saur maker

From the second article:

Quote

Trump is quite familiar with the manufacturer of the rifle, Sig Sauer—he and his sons have used the gunmaker as a backdrop for Trump's presidential campaign. 

Last May, as Trump was poised to launch his presidential bid, he personally touredthe Sig Sauer factory in New Hampshire, where the company makes most of its 74,000 semi-automatic rifles sold in the US market. This February, his sons Donald Trump Jr. and Eric toured the factory, posing for a photo with MCX rifles. And early this year Trump addressed a crowd at the National Shooting Sports Foundation's annual trade show in Las Vegas, where his sons also posed for photos with Sig Sauer representatives. [...] 

Such optics may have been important in the early going for Trump, who back in 2000 said he supported a longer waiting period for gun buyers and a ban on assault weapons.

And from the first:

Quote

Trump declared that an "eight-year assault" on gun ownership rights had come to a "crashing end" with his election. [...]

"You have a true friend and champion in the White House. No longer will federal agencies be coming after law-abiding gun owners," Trump said in his speech. "No longer will the government be trying to undermine your rights and your freedoms as Americans. Instead, we will work with you, by your side."

While Trump, as well as his fellow speakers at the NRA meeting, decried Obama for his stance on guns, sales of firearms in over the past eight years surged, large due to fears that Obama would implement tougher gun control laws.[...]

Trump reaffirmed his campaign pledges to expand gun ownership rights and roll back some of the restrictions instituted under his Democratic predecessor. But made no new policy pronouncements to the gathering [...]

Apart from the above fishy flip-flop on gun control, in the NRA-speech he once again referred to Elizabeth Warren as Pocahontas and accused her of plotting to challenge him in 2020. Wow. Plotting. Now that's conspicuous and revealing phraseology. In other words, anyone standing against him in the 2020 elections is viewed as scheming to overthrow the government.

Scary rhetoric.

[Cartmann99]

6 hours ago, GreyhoundFan said:

They have a more formal style than their predecessors and turned down the Obamas’ offer to keep the wooden playset on the South Lawn that then-White House Chief Usher Stephen Rochon traveled to South Dakota to select for the girls in 2009

 I've seen many formally decorated rooms that I thought were just lovely. Even if a more formal room is not your style, you can tell when the pieces work together and don't look overdone or garish. The Trump style is just tacky. It's like when little girls are playing dress up and they pick out dresses with big gold sequins, glittery turquoise eyeshadow, shimmering fuchsia blush, and frosted purple lipstick. It's adorable on little girls having fun, it looks like hell when applied to decorating a room.

I know the Obamas ended up donating the playset to some organization, but it was dumb for Trump to turn it down. Even if Barron wasn't interested in it, Trump has several grandchildren who would have enjoyed it. I'm sure he could have found someone willing to tacky it up with metallic gold paint.

[fraurosena]

Ahh, the drawbacks of nepotism and lack of ethics...

At least 12 White House officials lost their jobs due to ethics violations or Russia ties & 15 Trumpists who did not survive the first 100 days

Quote

The first 100 days of Donald Trump’s presidency have seen a striking number of professional casualties.

Mr Trump’s administration has seen more employees lose their jobs or not make it past a background check than perhaps any other administration in modern times. While many presidencies experience some slight disturbances as their administrations begin to take flight, Mr Trump’s turnover rate has been more akin to the kind of turbulence that requires flight attendants to fasten their seat belts.[...]

the fallout from Mr Trump’s team has frequently verged on the edge of scandal. 

 

Quote

The first three tumultuous months of Trump’s term have seen a perhaps unprecedented number of personnel casualties. A big part of the problem is that his transition team did a lousy job of vetting. Red flags that might have been discovered by a simple Google search didn’t emerge in some cases until after nominees were named publicly. The president also gravitated toward billionaires as he stocked the government, and the richer someone is the more conflicts they are likely to have. Complying with the requirements of the Office of Government Ethics proved too onerous for some. The premium that this president places on loyalty over experience and qualifications cost others their postings. Backstabbing and palace intrigue — which created a brutal, joyless work environment in the West Wing — drove others away after only weeks in their dream jobs.[...]

The vetting process became especially messy after Trump fired Chris Christie as head of the transition team just days after the election. The president was reportedly prodded by son-in-law Jared Kushner, whose father Christie had sent to jail as U.S. attorney in New Jersey. Christie’s ouster was part of a broader purge that put family members and conservative hard-liners linked to Mike Pence and Jeff Sessions in charge of the effort. [...]

Here's a short list of these particular officials. The articles both contain extensive information on the 'scandals' attached to each one.

•  Todd Rickets (nominee Commerce Secretary, withdrew)
•  Philip Bilden (nominee Navy Secretary, withdrew)
•  Vincent Viola (nominee Army Secretary, withdrew)
•  Andy Pudzer (nominee Secretary of Labor, withdrew)
•  Michael Flynn (national Security Adivsor, fired)
•  Katie Walsh (deputy White House Chief of Staff, resigned)
•  Boris Epshteyn (special assistant to the presidunce, unclear if fired or resigned)
•  Gerrit Lansing (chief digital advisor, resigned)
•  Anthony Scaramucci (proposed head Office of Public Liaison and Intergovernmental Affairs, withdrew)
•  Jason Miller (proposed White House communications director, withdrew)
•  Monica Crowley (proposed oversee communications in senior position National Security Council, withdrew)
•  K.T. McFarland (Deputy national security adviser, transferred to ambassadorship Singapore)
•  Craig Deare (nominee NSC’s senior director for Western Hemisphere Affairs, dismissed for dissing the presidunce)
•  Shermichael Singleton (senior adviser to Ben Carson, dismissed for dissing the presidunce)

[Howl]

12 hours ago, GreyhoundFan said:

Good Freaking God. That is all. "Trump blames Flynn’s vetting on Obama administration"

Well, yes, until you realize that this is all they've got and how absolutely pathetic that is.  Jeff Sessions re: looking forward to calling Sally Yates to testify at a hearing, saying something along the lines of, We'll see if she illegally unmasked names for political gain.   

Republicans have zero plans to clean house; there's going to be tons of obfuscation, redirection and Benghazi! Benghazi! because that spin strategy worked in the past and the Obama-hating Trump Humpers will have total buy in. I'll qualify this by noting they might opt for hanging a Republican out to dry, if he/she can be sufficiently vilified in a way that it won't reflect badly on the party. Cough cough  *Misha Flynn* cough cough. 

Here's a CNN article on the hearings where Yates will testify:  Sally Yates to testify at May 8 Senate hearing

She'll testify May 8th, along with  James Clapper, director of national intelligence under former President Barack Obama,  before the Senate judiciary subcommittee. 

Quote

....The Washington Post reported last month that the White House sought to block Yates' testimony, citing attorney-client and presidential communications privileges -- but White House press secretary Sean Spicer said Trump had no objection to Yates testifying.

Also, it's been two weeks and haven't heard anything about Louise Mensch's predictions coming true.  That said, some of those predictions, if true, would completely destabilize that US government. 

[GreyhoundFan]

Emperor Delusional wrote (actually Jared probably wrote it for him) an opinion piece for the WaPo. "President Trump: In my first 100 days, I kept my promise to Americans". I'm not going to quote much, but it's a sad read.

Quote

One hundred days ago, I took the oath of office and made a pledge: We are not merely going to transfer political power from one party to another, but instead are going to transfer that power from Washington, D.C., and give it back to the people.

In the past 100 days, I have kept that promise — and more.

Issue by issue, department by department, we are giving the people their country back. After decades of a shrinking middle class, open borders and the mass offshoring of American jobs and wealth, this government is working for the citizens of our country and no one else.

The same establishment media that concealed these problems — and profited from them — is obviously not going to tell this story. That is why we are taking our message directly to America.

We have opened the White House doors to listen, engage and act. We’ve invited in labor leaders, factory owners, police officers, farmers, veterans and Democrats, Republicans and independents.

...

Um. No. Not so much.

 

[GreyhoundFan]

Every thing I read makes me more afraid. "Trump is now talking about consolidating his power"

Quote

President Trump has suggested that the judiciary doesn't have the authority to question him. He was a very early proponent of nuking the filibuster for Supreme Court Justice Neil M. Gorsuch. And he recently raised eyebrows by congratulating Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on the expansion of his presidential powers — echoing his previous admiration for strongman leaders.

Now Trump is talking about consolidating his own power.

In an interview with Fox News that aired Friday night, Trump dismissed the “archaic” rules of the House and Senate — using that word four times — and suggested they needed to be streamlined for the good of the country.

A sampling:

• “We don't have a lot of closers in politics, and I understand why: It's a very rough system. It's an archaic system.”
• “You look at the rules of the Senate, even the rules of the House — but the rules of the Senate and some of the things you have to go through — it's really a bad thing for the country, in my opinion. They're archaic rules. And maybe at some point we're going to have to take those rules on, because, for the good of the nation, things are going to have to be different.”
• “You can't go through a process like this. It's not fair. It forces you to make bad decisions. I mean, you're really forced into doing things that you would normally not do except for these archaic rules.”
• And then Trump came out and just said it: He doesn't like the filibuster.
• “I think, you know, the filibuster concept is not a good concept to start off with,” he said.

So there you go. Trump is frustrated with the pace of legislation after 100 days, and his answer is that he wants to change the rules.

Whether this is just him blowing off steam or signaling what lies ahead, it's significant. Because it suggests a president, yet again, who doesn't agree with his own powers being limited or even questioned. Remember when senior policy adviser Stephen Miller declared “the powers of the president to protect our country are very substantial and will not be questioned?” This is more of that kind of attitude.

He wants more power — and he wants it quickly. It's not difficult to connect this to his past admiration for authoritarian leaders, and these comments are likely to give Democrats (and even some in the GOP establishment) plenty of heartburn. This is a demonstrated pattern for him, for all the reasons listed at the top of this post.

We're a far cry from the presidential candidate who decried President Obama's executive orders, suggesting they were an indication of a weak leader who couldn't bend Congress to his will. Trump is now admitting that he can't bend Congress to his will, but he blames the system rather than himself. Who knew governing was so tough, right?

...

Whether he targets the filibuster specifically or not, his attitude toward his own power is clear: The more, the better. He's already gotten a taste for rolling back the filibuster, and after just 100 days of frustration, he already wants more.

He really is trying to make this into a dictatorship.