Trump 25: Stephen King’s Next Horror Story

[Destiny]

I did lose it. I cried. I’ve been having horrible flashbacks all day.

[GrumpyGran]

2 hours ago, fraurosena said:

What do you do when you lose bigly? You hark back to when you won something, inflate it, and act as if your loss hasn't happened.

 

What is this? Did he post this today? Why? Wouldn't a simple post that said "Remembering our victory of a year ago" be less...revealing? Was that taken on the plane on this trip? Isn't Melania on this trip? Why isn't she standing behind him? Where is Pence, oh I guess he couldn't go on this trip, although I secretly wish, oh never mind.

And let's add coward to the list of his identifiers. I'm calling bullshit on the ridiculous fog excuse for missing the DMZ. Did he leave the president of South Korea waiting for him there? His rhetoric while he has been in Asia has been very toned down because now that he's right there where he could easily die, he's terrified.

Oh, Hopey, Hopester, DarkIvanka, you should stay out of the pictures. This won't end well for you. These are men who don't respect you.

[Cartmann99]

 If Stephen Miller put his hand on my sweater, I'd burn the damn thing when I got home. He's an evil man, and I don't want him anywhere near me. 

[Howl]

9 hours ago, Cartmann99 said:

 If Stephen Miller put his hand on my sweater, I'd burn the damn thing when I got home. He's an evil man, and I don't want him anywhere near me. 

When I first looked at the pic, my eye was drawn to him and my mind went, Ick, it's that creepy Stephen Miller.  It so looks like he's using that opportunity to achieve some type, any type, of physical contact with a woman. If you notice the woman's body language, her torso is leaning away from him.  

[GrumpyGran]

6 hours ago, Howl said:

When I first looked at the pic, my eye was drawn to him and my mind went, Ick, it's that creepy Stephen Miller.  It so looks like he's using that opportunity to achieve some type, any type, of physical contact with a woman. If you notice the woman's body language, her torso is leaning away from him.  

You've inspired me to look more closely at that picture. That's a weird smile on Dumpy's face. Jared has the look of a little shit who doesn't think anything bad will ever happen to him. Makes me think Dump has already promised him a pardon. Miller does look like he's copping a feel and Hopey looks like she's trying to get away from him, so much so that she's practically in Dumpy's chair. Of course, she may spend a lot of time there anyway. And her smile isn't quite as big. She's not looking forward to the grill next week. It would not be too shocking if she disappeared on this trip.

[Zola]

I don't worry so much about promise of pardon for Kushner since I read the NY AG Eric Shneiderman is more or less at Mueller's right hand, so to speak, to bring both state and federal charges. As I understand, Trump can't pardon state charges. Sucks to be you, Kushner.

[GreyhoundFan]

This is a good one from the NYT: "Trump’s Totally Terrible Time"

Spoiler

Donald Trump has been trying to celebrate his one-year anniversary as president, and all he gets is terrible political news. His party got skunked in Tuesday’s elections, his associates keep getting tied to the Russians and the Republicans in Congress are flailing around like a bunch of panicked gerbils.

Hehehehe.

In the latest episode of Cabinet Members off the Rails: the sorrows of Wilbur Ross Jr.

A new investigative report detailed connections between Ross and a shipping group linked to Vladimir Putin’s son-in-law. Even worse, Forbes announced it was taking Ross off its list of richest Americans, concluding that most of the $3.7 billion Ross told the magazine he owned was fictional.

Something must be done. If there is anyone who doesn’t belong in the top levels of American government, it’s a guy pretending to be a billionaire when he really isn’t.

The Trump campaign adviser Carter Page made quite a splash with his rambling, six-hour-plus testimony before a congressional committee that demonstrated not only that he had been in contact with Russians during the campaign, but also that the man Trump picked to be one of his top coaches on foreign policy issues is … sort of nuts.

“I am not a smooth Russian speaker. Maybe you could say that about my English as well,” explained the former college lecturer with a doctorate from the University of London. One committee member described the whole performance as “really eccentric behavior.”

And then came the elections! The biggest race was for governor of Virginia, where Trump had done robocalls and tweeted for the Republican, Ed Gillespie. When his candidate got trounced, Trump quickly and supportively announced that it was Gillespie’s own fault for having failed to “embrace me or what I stand for.”

The president did not mention the results in New Jersey, where voters rose up in revulsion to Chris Christie and elected a Democrat as his successor. You cannot entirely blame Trump for Christie’s unpopularity, but the governor’s nose-dive really did accelerate when the two of them started hanging out together.

While a campaign observer might have imagined the nation was obsessed with immigrants and Confederate statues this season, it turned out the actual voters were way more concerned about health care. It was the thing Virginians brought up most often to election pollsters. In Maine, referendum voters demanded Obamacare expansion.

And this month Obamacare enrollment season opened with a big surge of sign-ups despite the president’s attempt to keep the enrollment opportunities more secret than his tax returns.

Trump, however, is trying to attach an Obamacare repeal onto the Republican tax bill. It was only one of his helpful efforts to assist his party members in Congress. This week he also had a phone call with moderate Democrats, trying to promote the G.O.P. plan. Participants reported that he told them the original version of the bill was “so bad for rich people, I had to throw in the estate tax just to give them something.”

People, how do you think the nation would respond to the idea that we have to get rid of the estate tax so rich people won’t feel left out? Discuss.

Trump also told the Democrats that his accountant had warned him he’d lose a lot of money if the bill went through.

Question: If you were a Democratic senator, how would you have responded?

A) Show us your tax returns

Show us your tax returns

C) Show us your tax returns

The president was abroad on Election Day, visiting South Korea and making preparations for a dramatic secret visit to the demilitarized zone. Which had to be canceled because it was raining.

Really. There was bad weather and his helicopter turned around, leaving South Korean President Moon Jae-in waiting at the DMZ for the guest who never arrived. Moon apparently had no trouble making the trip because he drove.

Trump also gave a speech to the South Korean Parliament — a success in the sense that he read stuff other people had written. As usual, he bragged about the stock market. The lawmakers looked as if they couldn’t care less, and you have to wonder if this constant stock market talk is a good strategy. This week former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers offered that it was “crazy” for the president to keep connecting himself to rising prices, since it was inevitable that they would drop again sooner or later.

When that happens, do you think Trump will take responsibility? Refuse to acknowledge it’s happening? Blame Barack Obama? Blame terrorism? Discuss.

In another oratorical high point, the president managed, in a speech about the evils of North Korea, to work in a plug for one of his properties. (“The Women’s U.S. Open was held this year at Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, N.J., and it just happened to be won by a great Korean golfer. …”)

Meanwhile, back home, Republicans in Congress are announcing their retirement plans in droves.

Nothing personal.

 

[GreyhoundFan]

Boy, if only this alternative history was true. Some of the links in the article are depressing, because they remind me of this year of Drumpfian hell:  "An alternative history of the year since Election Day 2016"

Spoiler

The year since the 2016 election has been dizzying. But would it have been just as dizzying if Hillary Clinton had won? A year into the scariest experiment the American Experiment has ever experimented with, here’s a glimpse at the alternate timeline that we just barely missed out on.

Nov. 8, 2016: Madam President! The first female president of the United States, Hillary Clinton, wins the popular vote by 3 million votes and ekes out a narrow electoral college victory by winning Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, just like the polls all said! On Etsy, a million “Madam President” onesies go up for sale.

After holing up in Trump Tower refusing to talk to anyone except Ivanka, Donald Trump finally concedes at 2:43 a.m. Later, he tweets, “Conceded dumb election to Crooked Hillary. Rigged! #MAGA #2020″

Nov. 9, 2016: Clinton pledges to work with the Obama administration for a smooth transition. People are not openly weeping in their workplaces. Democratic National Committee Chair Donna Brazile graciously accepts compliments about how well the campaign was handled and praises the Clinton campaign as “a great partner” in rebuilding the DNC.  

Nov. 10, 2016: In her first news conference as president-elect, Clinton sparks outrage by suggesting that her husband, former president Bill Clinton, might be of help as a special envoy to North Korea, citing his previous diplomatic success there. “We will not tolerate a whiff of nepotism in the White House!” declares Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.). In a biting editorial, the Wall Street Journal imagines Chelsea Clinton as a “special adviser to the president, swanning in and out of the West Wing with no qualifications other than being the president’s daughter.” Fox News cites it on all its programs.  

Nov. 22, 2016: In an exclusive interview with the New York Times, Clinton touches on a wide variety of issues. The transcript is widely read, and widely understood.

Dec. 4, 2016: Clinton begins speaking with foreign leaders through State Department channels. She declines to speak to the leader of Taiwan. She doesn’t cite decades of diplomatic tradition because it’s obvious.

Dec. 10, 2016: Clinton selects Joe Biden as her secretary of state, but is criticized for joking that “as Joe would say, it’s a BFD.” On “Fox & Friends,” Steve Doocy criticizes the term as “crass,” saying, “The children are listening.” On Twitter, Donald Trump Jr. posts a photo of his daughter crying and blames Clinton. Ivanka Trump doesn’t retweet it, because she’s busy promoting a new line of trench coats, but one of her staffers “likes” it.

Dec. 16, 2016: President Obama and Clinton announce a joint plan to investigate the Russian interference in the 2016 election. On Russian state TV, President Vladimir Putin wrestles an alligator with its snout taped shut and leaves it at that. CNET reports on a mass deletion of thousands of Twitter accounts, but a Twitter spokesman says the company has noticed nothing out of the ordinary.

Dec. 19, 2016: The electoral college officially votes to elect Clinton president. Three Clinton delegates cast their vote for Sen. Bernie Sanders (Vt.), but as in previous years, the electoral college vote doesn’t merit much attention.

Dec. 30, 2016: In a Pew survey, journalists report feeling healthier, less stressed and better rested since the campaign. “It’s still 24/7, but just, like, a normal 24/7,” says one former embed. “I’m so excited for a healthier 2017!” The Washington Post unveils its new slogan, “Things Are Great!” and the New York Times unveils theirs, “We’re Good, Thanks.”

Jan. 5, 2017: As the Obama administration winds down, many civil servants opt to stay on, particularly in the Foreign Service. After all, the United States needs a fully functioning State Department.

Jan. 10: In a stiff phone call, Clinton invites FBI Director James B. Comey to continue his term. Comey accepts, a little awkwardly. Both feel good about it after. No one hides behind any drapes.

Jan. 18: Makers of pink yarn continue to meet moderate demand.

Jan. 20: Clinton is officially inaugurated as the 45th president of the United States. A star-studded lineup performs: Lin-Manuel Miranda composes a special “Hamilton” rap just for the occasion, and Clinton surprises everyone by doing that super-fast part from “Guns and Ships.” Vice President Tim Kaine claps along enthusiastically on the sidelines. A video of Chelsea’s daughter singing along goes viral, and Rush Limbaugh criticizes her for using her young children as political props.  

Harvey Weinstein throws an inauguration party in Los Angeles. Everyone goes, including all his friends in the media. If there’s one thing everyone knows about Weinstein, it’s that he throws a good party.

Jan. 21: Millions of women wake up feeling energized and excited. That’s all. It’s more than enough.

Jan. 23: Clinton’s first official act is to nominate Merrick Garland for the Supreme Court. “Some things are worth waiting for,” she jokes. The Judicial Crisis Network spends millions in an ad blitz calling for her to step down. She doesn’t. Garland is confirmed swiftly and without incident, though some commentators grumble that he isn’t liberal enough.

Clinton’s new press secretary, Donna Brazile, hosts her first briefing and answers a question about inauguration crowds: “We had a great turnout. The National Park Service has the estimates. I hope you all had as joyful a time as we did!”

Jan. 25: Donald Trump posts a tweet that invites Clinton to “meet him on Fifth Avenue,” which he quickly deletes, but not before it’s reported by millions of users to Twitter’s safety team. Twitter suspends Trump’s account for a week. In a huff, he quits Twitter.  

Jan. 27: Clinton announces an immigration bill offering “an enhanced, expedited pathway to citizenship” and vows to shorten the waiting time for refugee applicants. A bunch of immigration lawyers enjoy their quiet weekend.

Feb. 5: The Patriots beat the Falcons in an exciting Super Bowl finish. No one makes any political analogies.

Feb. 19: Susan Fowler releases a scathing blog post about the sexist working conditions at Uber. On the same day, Clinton tweets, “We must strive for fair, safe workplaces for all Americans.” Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) moves to impeach her for using the power of the presidency to pressure a private corporation.

Feb. 26: “Moonlight” beats “La La Land” in an exciting Oscars finish. No one makes any political analogies.

March 15: Clinton urges Congress to send her a bill affirming and strengthening Obamacare. At the Capitol switchboard, phone lines reflect normal business activities.

March 20: Foreign diplomats come to Washington and check in at many different hotels. They tend not to stay at the Trump International Hotel, citing exorbitant prices, watered-down drinks and being creeped out by the wall-size poster of Ivanka staring down at them.

April 1: It’s a normal day, and no one jokes bitterly while choking back sobs.

April 15: Clinton releases her family’s joint tax return. House Republicans are outraged over declared income from a speech Bill Clinton made in February 2016. An examination of tax records reveals that he had actually donated the income to the Clinton Foundation, but Rep. Louis Gohmert (R-Tex.) moves for a special prosecutor to investigate the matter.

April 29: Clinton speaks at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner. Everyone agrees that Obama was funnier and complains about how hard it is to get into the Vanity Fair party.

May 9: Clinton’s motorcade passes a car carrying Comey in Washington. That’s the most they’ve been in touch for months, which is right and proper.

May 29: At the Group of 7 in Sicily, Clinton reaffirms the U.S. commitment to the Paris Climate Accord and, with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, proposes voluntary measures countries may take “to further address the urgent problem of climate change, which is a thing that is real and exists.” Lone holdouts Syria and Nicaragua are persuaded to join.

To celebrate, Clinton, Trudeau and German Chancellor Angela Merkel hike up to the medieval town of Castelmola, where they take a selfie (Merkel’s first!). It goes viral, sparking a surprise “Presidential Hike” craze. Shortly after, Chelsea Clinton announces a deal to publish a children’s book called “She Hiked! 13 American Women Who Went The Distance.” Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) moves to impeach Clinton, alleging that her family is trying to profit off the presidency.

May 31: Shortly after midnight, Clinton tweets the non-word “covfefe.” It remains up without explanation overnight and is deleted in the morning. Infowars host Alex Jones “decodes” all of Clinton’s tweets and “discovers” a hidden message inviting Putin to meet her at a pizza parlor.

June 1: Clinton declares June Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender Pride Month. During the ceremony, she says she misses “Will & Grace,” prompting NBC to bring it back for a few more episodes.

June 20: Old friends Robert S. Mueller III, Norm Eisen, Walter M. Shaub Jr. and Preet Bharara get together for lunch. They catch up and talk about what a relaxing summer they are having.

July 14: Clinton and Bill meet with French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte, in Paris. Clinton greets Macron and shakes his hand calmly. She does not comment on Brigitte’s appearance.

Aug. 11: In response to a white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Clinton says: “There is no place for white supremacy in a fair and free America.” On the newly named Fox morning show “Trump & Friends,” Trump decries the president for insulting “some very fine people exercising their First Amendment rights. It’s called the Constitution, Hillary! ” He high-fives Brian Kilmeade.

Aug. 18: Therapists across the country are having a pretty normal day. Business could be better, most of them think.

Sept. 4: Clinton kneels next to Colin Kaepernick during the national anthem at the first National Football League games of the 2017 season, after persuading Daniel Snyder to sign him as the starting quarterback for the newly renamed Washington Resisters. When asked about his change of heart, Snyder cites the election, saying, “I want to win now, and this is the now we’re in, so.”

Sept. 21: Clinton announces an emergency aid package for Puerto Rico in the wake of Hurricane Maria and dispatches the National Guard to assist with reconstruction.

Sept. 28: Vogue runs a profile of Chelsea Clinton with a charming anecdote about her daughter, Charlotte, selling Girl Scout cookies to staffers at the White House. Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) moves to impeach Clinton, alleging that her family is trying to profit off the presidency.

Oct. 30: Trump’s former campaign chair, Paul Manafort, is indicted by the low-profile team of regular career Justice Department prosecutors investigating Russian interference in the election, which most people had basically forgotten about.

Nov. 4: Donna Brazile publishes a book, “Hugs: The Inside Story of How Love and Kindness Put Hillary Clinton in the White House,” with a special forward from Clinton. “Teamwork makes the dream work,” she writes. “We truly are Stronger Together.”

I actually cried a little, wishing this timeline was real. Well, except for the Repugs moving to impeach constantly.

[Destiny]

20 minutes ago, GreyhoundFan said:

Boy, if only this alternative history was true. Some of the links in the article are depressing, because they remind me of this year of Drumpfian hell:  "An alternative history of the year since Election Day 2016"

  Reveal hidden contents

The year since the 2016 election has been dizzying. But would it have been just as dizzying if Hillary Clinton had won? A year into the scariest experiment the American Experiment has ever experimented with, here’s a glimpse at the alternate timeline that we just barely missed out on.

Nov. 8, 2016: Madam President! The first female president of the United States, Hillary Clinton, wins the popular vote by 3 million votes and ekes out a narrow electoral college victory by winning Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, just like the polls all said! On Etsy, a million “Madam President” onesies go up for sale.

After holing up in Trump Tower refusing to talk to anyone except Ivanka, Donald Trump finally concedes at 2:43 a.m. Later, he tweets, “Conceded dumb election to Crooked Hillary. Rigged! #MAGA #2020″

Nov. 9, 2016: Clinton pledges to work with the Obama administration for a smooth transition. People are not openly weeping in their workplaces. Democratic National Committee Chair Donna Brazile graciously accepts compliments about how well the campaign was handled and praises the Clinton campaign as “a great partner” in rebuilding the DNC.  

Nov. 10, 2016: In her first news conference as president-elect, Clinton sparks outrage by suggesting that her husband, former president Bill Clinton, might be of help as a special envoy to North Korea, citing his previous diplomatic success there. “We will not tolerate a whiff of nepotism in the White House!” declares Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.). In a biting editorial, the Wall Street Journal imagines Chelsea Clinton as a “special adviser to the president, swanning in and out of the West Wing with no qualifications other than being the president’s daughter.” Fox News cites it on all its programs.  

Nov. 22, 2016: In an exclusive interview with the New York Times, Clinton touches on a wide variety of issues. The transcript is widely read, and widely understood.

Dec. 4, 2016: Clinton begins speaking with foreign leaders through State Department channels. She declines to speak to the leader of Taiwan. She doesn’t cite decades of diplomatic tradition because it’s obvious.

Dec. 10, 2016: Clinton selects Joe Biden as her secretary of state, but is criticized for joking that “as Joe would say, it’s a BFD.” On “Fox & Friends,” Steve Doocy criticizes the term as “crass,” saying, “The children are listening.” On Twitter, Donald Trump Jr. posts a photo of his daughter crying and blames Clinton. Ivanka Trump doesn’t retweet it, because she’s busy promoting a new line of trench coats, but one of her staffers “likes” it.

Dec. 16, 2016: President Obama and Clinton announce a joint plan to investigate the Russian interference in the 2016 election. On Russian state TV, President Vladimir Putin wrestles an alligator with its snout taped shut and leaves it at that. CNET reports on a mass deletion of thousands of Twitter accounts, but a Twitter spokesman says the company has noticed nothing out of the ordinary.

Dec. 19, 2016: The electoral college officially votes to elect Clinton president. Three Clinton delegates cast their vote for Sen. Bernie Sanders (Vt.), but as in previous years, the electoral college vote doesn’t merit much attention.

Dec. 30, 2016: In a Pew survey, journalists report feeling healthier, less stressed and better rested since the campaign. “It’s still 24/7, but just, like, a normal 24/7,” says one former embed. “I’m so excited for a healthier 2017!” The Washington Post unveils its new slogan, “Things Are Great!” and the New York Times unveils theirs, “We’re Good, Thanks.”

Jan. 5, 2017: As the Obama administration winds down, many civil servants opt to stay on, particularly in the Foreign Service. After all, the United States needs a fully functioning State Department.

Jan. 10: In a stiff phone call, Clinton invites FBI Director James B. Comey to continue his term. Comey accepts, a little awkwardly. Both feel good about it after. No one hides behind any drapes.

Jan. 18: Makers of pink yarn continue to meet moderate demand.

Jan. 20: Clinton is officially inaugurated as the 45th president of the United States. A star-studded lineup performs: Lin-Manuel Miranda composes a special “Hamilton” rap just for the occasion, and Clinton surprises everyone by doing that super-fast part from “Guns and Ships.” Vice President Tim Kaine claps along enthusiastically on the sidelines. A video of Chelsea’s daughter singing along goes viral, and Rush Limbaugh criticizes her for using her young children as political props.  

Harvey Weinstein throws an inauguration party in Los Angeles. Everyone goes, including all his friends in the media. If there’s one thing everyone knows about Weinstein, it’s that he throws a good party.

Jan. 21: Millions of women wake up feeling energized and excited. That’s all. It’s more than enough.

Jan. 23: Clinton’s first official act is to nominate Merrick Garland for the Supreme Court. “Some things are worth waiting for,” she jokes. The Judicial Crisis Network spends millions in an ad blitz calling for her to step down. She doesn’t. Garland is confirmed swiftly and without incident, though some commentators grumble that he isn’t liberal enough.

Clinton’s new press secretary, Donna Brazile, hosts her first briefing and answers a question about inauguration crowds: “We had a great turnout. The National Park Service has the estimates. I hope you all had as joyful a time as we did!”

Jan. 25: Donald Trump posts a tweet that invites Clinton to “meet him on Fifth Avenue,” which he quickly deletes, but not before it’s reported by millions of users to Twitter’s safety team. Twitter suspends Trump’s account for a week. In a huff, he quits Twitter.  

Jan. 27: Clinton announces an immigration bill offering “an enhanced, expedited pathway to citizenship” and vows to shorten the waiting time for refugee applicants. A bunch of immigration lawyers enjoy their quiet weekend.

Feb. 5: The Patriots beat the Falcons in an exciting Super Bowl finish. No one makes any political analogies.

Feb. 19: Susan Fowler releases a scathing blog post about the sexist working conditions at Uber. On the same day, Clinton tweets, “We must strive for fair, safe workplaces for all Americans.” Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) moves to impeach her for using the power of the presidency to pressure a private corporation.

Feb. 26: “Moonlight” beats “La La Land” in an exciting Oscars finish. No one makes any political analogies.

March 15: Clinton urges Congress to send her a bill affirming and strengthening Obamacare. At the Capitol switchboard, phone lines reflect normal business activities.

March 20: Foreign diplomats come to Washington and check in at many different hotels. They tend not to stay at the Trump International Hotel, citing exorbitant prices, watered-down drinks and being creeped out by the wall-size poster of Ivanka staring down at them.

April 1: It’s a normal day, and no one jokes bitterly while choking back sobs.

April 15: Clinton releases her family’s joint tax return. House Republicans are outraged over declared income from a speech Bill Clinton made in February 2016. An examination of tax records reveals that he had actually donated the income to the Clinton Foundation, but Rep. Louis Gohmert (R-Tex.) moves for a special prosecutor to investigate the matter.

April 29: Clinton speaks at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner. Everyone agrees that Obama was funnier and complains about how hard it is to get into the Vanity Fair party.

May 9: Clinton’s motorcade passes a car carrying Comey in Washington. That’s the most they’ve been in touch for months, which is right and proper.

May 29: At the Group of 7 in Sicily, Clinton reaffirms the U.S. commitment to the Paris Climate Accord and, with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, proposes voluntary measures countries may take “to further address the urgent problem of climate change, which is a thing that is real and exists.” Lone holdouts Syria and Nicaragua are persuaded to join.

To celebrate, Clinton, Trudeau and German Chancellor Angela Merkel hike up to the medieval town of Castelmola, where they take a selfie (Merkel’s first!). It goes viral, sparking a surprise “Presidential Hike” craze. Shortly after, Chelsea Clinton announces a deal to publish a children’s book called “She Hiked! 13 American Women Who Went The Distance.” Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) moves to impeach Clinton, alleging that her family is trying to profit off the presidency.

May 31: Shortly after midnight, Clinton tweets the non-word “covfefe.” It remains up without explanation overnight and is deleted in the morning. Infowars host Alex Jones “decodes” all of Clinton’s tweets and “discovers” a hidden message inviting Putin to meet her at a pizza parlor.

June 1: Clinton declares June Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender Pride Month. During the ceremony, she says she misses “Will & Grace,” prompting NBC to bring it back for a few more episodes.

June 20: Old friends Robert S. Mueller III, Norm Eisen, Walter M. Shaub Jr. and Preet Bharara get together for lunch. They catch up and talk about what a relaxing summer they are having.

July 14: Clinton and Bill meet with French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte, in Paris. Clinton greets Macron and shakes his hand calmly. She does not comment on Brigitte’s appearance.

Aug. 11: In response to a white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Clinton says: “There is no place for white supremacy in a fair and free America.” On the newly named Fox morning show “Trump & Friends,” Trump decries the president for insulting “some very fine people exercising their First Amendment rights. It’s called the Constitution, Hillary! ” He high-fives Brian Kilmeade.

Aug. 18: Therapists across the country are having a pretty normal day. Business could be better, most of them think.

Sept. 4: Clinton kneels next to Colin Kaepernick during the national anthem at the first National Football League games of the 2017 season, after persuading Daniel Snyder to sign him as the starting quarterback for the newly renamed Washington Resisters. When asked about his change of heart, Snyder cites the election, saying, “I want to win now, and this is the now we’re in, so.”

Sept. 21: Clinton announces an emergency aid package for Puerto Rico in the wake of Hurricane Maria and dispatches the National Guard to assist with reconstruction.

Sept. 28: Vogue runs a profile of Chelsea Clinton with a charming anecdote about her daughter, Charlotte, selling Girl Scout cookies to staffers at the White House. Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) moves to impeach Clinton, alleging that her family is trying to profit off the presidency.

Oct. 30: Trump’s former campaign chair, Paul Manafort, is indicted by the low-profile team of regular career Justice Department prosecutors investigating Russian interference in the election, which most people had basically forgotten about.

Nov. 4: Donna Brazile publishes a book, “Hugs: The Inside Story of How Love and Kindness Put Hillary Clinton in the White House,” with a special forward from Clinton. “Teamwork makes the dream work,” she writes. “We truly are Stronger Together.”

I actually cried a little, wishing this timeline was real. Well, except for the Repugs moving to impeach constantly.

Well fuck. We could have fucking had it all, and we don’t. You had one fucking job America, and you blew it. 

[candygirl200413]

I was reminiscing on Wednesday about my year from the election and honestly, a part of me really died I realized. It doesn't scare me anymore, but I was truly changed.

[GreyhoundFan]

"The Leaks. The Frustrations. Omarosa’s Shoes. Mike Dubke on His 103 Days in the White House"

Spoiler

On the frigid morning of February 16, 2017, Mike Dubke sat in front of the Resolute desk, facing Donald Trump. “Tell me a bit about yourself,” the President said. Dubke obliged, but after a few minutes Trump cut him off. “All right,” Trump said, “so what do you think about a press conference? Do you think I should do a press conference?”

Six days earlier, this scene would have been all but unimaginable for Dubke. It had been a standard Friday at Black Rock Group, the Alexandria-based public affairs firm that Dubke helped found. Dubke had just gotten off a conference call and was looking forward to a family ski trip the coming week. And then Sean Spicer called.

Spicer was then juggling the dual roles of White House press secretary and communications director. He wanted to speak to Brian Jones, a partner at Black Rock who was well-regarded among Republicans, most recently for being an adviser to Chris Christie’s brief 2016 campaign. Spicer asked if he was interested in being the next White House communications director.

Jones decided against it; he had two young kids, and he knew what those hours would look like. But before he called Spicer back, he turned to his business partner, Dubke. “Are you interested?” Jones asked, only half-joking.

Dubke shrugged and—as one does when offered a shot at coordinating messaging for a White House ensconced in PR nightmares like a disastrous travel-ban rollout and a national security adviser resigning in disgrace—said, “Eh, why not?”

So it was that Dubke—a tall and cheerful 47-year-old with an aesthetic familiar to any actor ever cast as a Pop Warner football dad—found himself in the Oval Office, advising Trump on his impromptu plan to meet the press. He suggested the President bring in policy experts, look at the calendar to see when might make sense, and then drill down on one particular issue. The kind of advice any flack might give.

Trump cut him off again. “No, I mean today,” he said. “I think we should do a press conference today.”

The remainder of Dubke’s interview was thus spent looking on as policy folks prepped the President and ushers set up the East Room, and learning that the harder Vice President Mike Pence punches you on the arm, the more he likes you. (That first punch was light, Dubke says, but they’d only just met.)

And then the press conference, Trump’s first as President, commenced. The freewheeling session featured such vintage Trumpisms as “the leaks are absolutely real. The news is fake,” and “Russia is fake news.” Dubke stood against the wall, stone-faced in the cameras’ line of fire, while his phone buzzed incessantly with texts. Asked one friend: “What the hell are you doing at the White House?”

Spicer called around 8 that night with an offer: Dubke would start the next day.

The lead-up to Dubke’s interview and the interview itself—a chain of events marked by whims and happenstance and even leaks—should’ve been warning enough about the months to come. Dubke made it all of 103 days before resigning on May 18. And in two hours of recent interviews with Washingtonian, he spoke about the frustrations and financial disclosures and unforeseen health issues that defined them.

His reflections offer a broader window into just how slipshod this administration’s operations can be, how leaks, especially early on, crippled the press shop, as well as a West Wing in which a select few were hell-bent on bolstering their own names at the expense of the White House as a whole.

“The thing about Dubke is you’re never questioning the quality of work. He’s a smart tactician and an unbelievably stand-up individual,” Spicer says. Perhaps his biggest liability, though, in a White House that incentivizes on-screen savvy, was that “Mike wasn’t looking to become some TV star.”

Dubke could never quite shake the swamp narrative that took hold when he joined the White House. He fit neatly into the so-called establishment—his two firms, Main Street Media Group and Black Rock, have long counted American Crossroads, the Karl Rove-led behemoth of a super PAC, among their clients. The Rove link made Dubke an easy target for campaign folks inside and outside the White House—even though, as Dubke puts it, he could “probably count on one hand” the number of times he and Rove have interacted. Quickly came the unnamed sources castigating the hire: “How does this help serve the President’s interests?” one “Trump insider” asked the Washington Post. “It serves the interests of Reince and Sean, but I don’t see how it serves the President’s interests.” The chattering class, though, deemed it a signal of Trump’s willingness to get serious, to branch outside his ragtag circle of loyalists in favor of an establishment counterweight.

Yet with no campaign ties, and having never worked for the Republican National Committee, Dubke entered the White House tribeless. Those were the dividing lines, at least in the comms and press shops. “Those camps got along well, but they were definitely camps,” Dubke says. “You’ve worked in the trenches with folks at the RNC, you’re going to know your people there quite well. Same thing with the campaign. You’ve been in the trenches with these folks for months fighting a very hard presidential campaign; you’re going to know these folks very well.”

Which is to say Dubke didn’t have as natural a constituency as most onlookers imagined. He claims there were “benefits” to this, in that he could “easily flow into both worlds.” But the reality is that few staffers felt they owed Dubke their loyalty, and in a work environment whose social politics were charged with the volatility of a high school cafeteria, that was, well, not great. “He was destined to fail,” says one former Trump adviser. Adds a source close to the White House: “I literally never heard anyone ask, ‘Is Dubke onboard with this?’”

Nonetheless, Dubke says one of his early efforts was to unite the masses. “I wanted everyone to trust each other.” The first week of April, as the symbolic 100-day mark loomed, he organized a brainstorming session in an Eisenhower Executive Office Building conference room on how to best sell the President’s agenda. “I had this thought that if we brought in all the junior staffers and the mid-level staffers and the senior staffers from communications and press, and we all worked together, everyone would feel like they were all part of the team,” he says.

Less than a week later, a Politico story on the meeting popped. It featured detailed complaints about Dubke’s leadership, sourced to six anonymous White House officials—roughly 20 percent of the gathering’s attendees. Today, seven months later, that piece still bothers Dubke. “In my mind, it was ridiculous, and I think what it was, really, was probably a way for some junior staffers to make themselves feel important, by telling a reporter about a private meeting in the White House,” he says. “I was just upset.” He says he had an idea of who the leakers were, and confronted some of them, but felt he didn’t have “enough hard evidence” to fire them.

“I hate to say it,” Spicer says of their attempts to plug the leaks, “but it became futile.”

Yet Dubke says he regrets not firing anyone, or at the very least, moving some people outside of the West Wing, even if he didn’t have concrete proof of guilt. He drove home to Alexandria that night to talk about it with his wife. “I think I know. I’m almost positive,” he told her, “but I’m not 100 percent sure. Do I want to ruin somebody’s reputation and somebody’s livelihood?’

“If I had one regret from my time there,” he says, “it’s that I wish I had done that in a couple of cases.”

Dubke maintains that the constant crush of leaks often kept his team from strategizing on long-term messaging, ostensibly the main function of the communications department. The combination of starkly defined factions and stubborn personalities meant that every issue, it seemed, was litigated in the press; for every “senior administration official” touting the White House’s unity behind an executive order or policy proposal, there was another eager to sow whispers of division.

Take steel tariffs, for instance: in April, Trump signed an executive order that called for the Commerce Department to investigate the economic impact of steel imports into the US, with the eventual goal, perhaps, of slapping on a tariff. “It was one of those where there continued to be leaks about one side or the other in order to force the President to make a decision, maybe before he had heard all the arguments,” Dubke says, an implicit reference to what he calls the “water-and-oil” pair of National Economic Council director Gary Cohn and National Trade Council director Peter Navarro. “That fight continues.”

Also to blame for the lack of long-term messaging: Dubke’s workspace. His office was in Upper Press, ground zero of the White House press corps. “In hindsight, I think I would’ve put my office up on the second floor,” he says. “A lot of times, I’d get a knock on the door, and a reporter’s asking me a question because they can’t get ahold of Sean…It’s hard to focus and get your work done when you’re constantly being interrupted like that.”

Leaks, bad real estate—in Dubke’s view, these are all reasons why, for instance, tax reform—Trump’s last hope for a major policy victory before midterms—limped out of the gate. “I feel like some of the messaging on tax reform, really, it needed…there could’ve been some more messaging coming out of the White House or the Treasury Department in terms of what the goals are, why it’s important to cut our tax rate from 35 percent to 20 percent,” he says. “That’s one example of where I think we probably didn’t do as good a job.”

It’s an admission that brings into sharp relief the ways in which this White House is often its own worst enemy. The counterfactual, of course, is difficult to envision: if the comms shop had engaged in an early, robust messaging strategy with regard to tax reform, would it have reached the floor by August, as Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin had originally hoped? Probably not. But December? Possibly. If anything, it would have helped clue in the average Trump supporter to a White House goal that, until now, they likely didn’t know existed.

So, yes, Dubke has some regrets. But he says a lot of good came out of his “front-row seat to history,” too, however brief the view. Despite having no immediate allies coming in, he got close to Spicer—mainly, he claims, because neither of them “had a big ego.” “There was a level of trust between the two of us. I’ve got his back; he’s got my back.” It’s difficult for him to explain it beyond that, because as with all great friendships, “it just kind of happened.” He counts Sarah Sanders as a friend, too. Hanging in his office at Georgetown University, where he now works as a politics fellow, is a photo of the two them walking and laughing outside the White House. (It should be noted that a Georgetown staff member put the photo there, not Dubke, but he still says they’re friends.)

But what did Dubke think of his other colleagues, such as Omarosa?

He pauses for a long time. “I think she’s got a lot of shoes,” he says. I ask him why he says this. “Because she’d leave them all over the White House.”

He clarifies: “We had this desk in Upper Press that was a temporary desk for somebody who didn’t work in the West Wing. But she’d come over for meetings and other things. And her shoes were always there, different pairs. So we had a collection of Omarosa’s shoes.” It was a potential safety hazard, White House staffers agreed, so they had to be “kicked under the table.” Dubke is unclear on whether this meant Omarosa was walking around barefoot, or perhaps just liked to wear different pairs at different parts of the day. “I’m not sure that I ever witnessed the changing of the shoes,” he says, “just that the shoes that were left there were Omarosa’s shoes.”

Alas, the friendships and reality-star sightings weren’t enough to keep Dubke around. Reports this summer suggested he resigned because of an inability to breach and break bread with Trump’s inner circle. That’s in some sense true. But Dubke says that mainly the job wasn’t worth selling off his businesses—”all of what I’ve built over the last 25 years”—as the Office of Government Ethics demanded. And then there was a visit to his doctor the month before, when he learned that his blood pressure was “way up…which my wife wasn’t too pleased about.” The doctor put him on medication.

Thus Dubke entered the Oval Office on May 18, resignation letter in hand, just over 100 days after his improbable arrangement of that first press conference. (He offered to stay into June as Trump wrapped up his first overseas trip as President.) He says he and Trump had a “very candid conversation” about the “level of frustration I had that things weren’t progressing as quickly as I thought that they could.” He won’t get more specific than that, but says one of the things he liked about Trump was that he “never felt” he couldn’t speak his mind. All told, he says he “appreciated” his relationship with this President.

And that’s part of what made leaving the Oval and walking to West Executive Boulevard and getting in his car to head home so complicated. There was disappointment, he says, “in the sense that I felt like I was doing good, and I felt like I was making a difference.” There was remorse. “When you walk away from a situation in which you are really in the trenches with your colleagues, and you step away from that…I did have some remorse after I left,” he says. “Because I felt like I left them behind.”

But now, sitting at his desk at Georgetown, blood pressure under control, with a meeting soon on behalf of those insidious Rove-tied firms, he admits there was another emotion, too: “A bit of relief.”

Interesting perspective on the dumpster fire administration.

[AnywhereButHere]

 

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.cnbc.com/amp/2017/11/11/trump-putin-again-denies-meddling-in-2016-election.html

Quote

President Donald Trump said Saturday that Russia's Vladimir Putin again denied interfering in the 2016 U.S. elections. But Trump declined to say whether he believed the Russian leader.

"He says he didn't meddle. I asked him again. You can only ask so many times," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on the trip to Hanoi, Vietnam. "Every time he sees me, he said: 'I didn't do that.' And I believe, I really believe that when he tells me that he means it."

Oh look, Putin denies he meddled in the US election, so of course it must be true. Nothing to see there. Just the evil democrats spreading lies. 

Caligula’s like the love-blind parent refusing to believe little Vovochka could possibly shoplift from the candy store. 

[WiseGirl]

36 minutes ago, AnywhereButHere said:

Oh look, Putin denies he meddled in the US election, so of course it must be true. Nothing to see there. Just the evil democrats spreading lies.

Yeah, why do I feel like the orange one was checking in for his yearly performance review? 

And I'll just leave this here.  TT kissing up to Putin is so far reaching.

From Seth Abramson...(Twitter"THREAD) BREAKING: According to an individual with firsthand knowledge of the judging of the 2002 Miss Universe pageant, Trump tried to rig the outcome of the international contest to award the prestigious “Miss Universe” title to Vladimir Putin’s then-mistress, Oxana Fedorova.

[fraurosena]

So, today is Veteran's Day. Of course, the presidunce tweeted. For once, what he says in that video is actually quite good. As it's a pre-recorded and scripted video, he stays on message, and the message is a good one (and therefore most certainly not written by him!). But that's only when you listen to the video (and surprisingly, his voice even sounds palatable). Watching it made me angry. Because of course, it's all about him. All you see is him giving speeches, to veterans it's true. But most of the time you see him and only the backs of the heads of the veterans. Or you see him shaking their hands, patting their shoulders, oh, giving them a medal! But nowhere do you see anything about the veterans themselves, what they did, what they sacrificed. Nothing. Just the backs of their heads. Ugh!

 

[GreyhoundFan]

I hope once the TT is no longer in office, the US can regain at least some of our standing in the world. I'm not too optimistic: "Trump says U.S. won’t be ‘taken advantage of anymore.’ Hours later, Pacific Rim nations reach deal on trade without America."

Spoiler

DANANG, Vietnam — President Trump delivered a fiery speech on trade here Friday, declaring that he would not allow the United States to be “taken advantage of anymore” and planned to place “America first.”

And then, less than 24 hours later, 11 Pacific Rim countries collectively shrugged and moved on without the U.S.

On Saturday, the countries announced they had reached a deal to move ahead with the Trans-Pacific Partnership free-trade pact that Trump threw into question when he withdrew from it earlier this year.

The agreement represents something of a rebuke of Trump, coming near the end of his five-country, 12-day swing through Asia, and reflects the willingness of other nations to proceed without the buy-in of the United States.

A statement early Saturday trumpeted a breakthrough on the “core elements” of the trade agreement. “Ministers are pleased to announce that they have agreed on the core elements of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership,” it read.

The deal was originally expected to be announced Friday — the same day Trump addressed business leaders at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit here, in a speech heavy on tough talk and protectionist rhetoric — but was delayed after Canada raised concerns.

The decision to move ahead with the TPP agreement, minus the United States, reflects how Trump’s decision to withdraw from the deal created a vacuum other nations are now moving to fill, with or without the president.

In his speech Friday, Trump struck an aggressive note, saying he believed the United States had for too long been the victim of poor trade deals.

“We are not going to let the United States be taken advantage of anymore,” he said. “I am always going to put America first, the same way that I expect all of you in this room to put your countries first.”

Instead, he said the U.S. was still a willing trade partner, but only for deals based on “mutual respect and mutual benefit.”

“I will make bilateral trade agreements with any Indo-Pacific nation that wants to be our partner and that will abide by the principles of fair and reciprocal trade,” he said.  “What we will no longer do is enter into large agreements that tie our hands, surrender our sovereignty, and make meaningful enforcement practically impossible.”

A senior administration official, asked if the new trade announcement foreshadowed the United States being left behind in the region, rejected the notion, pointing out that “the president is here visiting and is part of the dialogue, and has already spent a significant portion of time talking to his allies and like-minded partners in Japan and South Korea.”

“We'll continue that conversation with many parties here,” the official said. “So we absolutely are engaged on the economic side, and we’ll continue to be so."

Shaking my head.

[fraurosena]

2 minutes ago, GreyhoundFan said:

I hope once the TT is no longer in office, the US can regain at least some of our standing in the world. I'm not too optimistic: "Trump says U.S. won’t be ‘taken advantage of anymore.’ Hours later, Pacific Rim nations reach deal on trade without America."

  Hide contents

DANANG, Vietnam — President Trump delivered a fiery speech on trade here Friday, declaring that he would not allow the United States to be “taken advantage of anymore” and planned to place “America first.”

And then, less than 24 hours later, 11 Pacific Rim countries collectively shrugged and moved on without the U.S.

On Saturday, the countries announced they had reached a deal to move ahead with the Trans-Pacific Partnership free-trade pact that Trump threw into question when he withdrew from it earlier this year.

The agreement represents something of a rebuke of Trump, coming near the end of his five-country, 12-day swing through Asia, and reflects the willingness of other nations to proceed without the buy-in of the United States.

A statement early Saturday trumpeted a breakthrough on the “core elements” of the trade agreement. “Ministers are pleased to announce that they have agreed on the core elements of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership,” it read.

The deal was originally expected to be announced Friday — the same day Trump addressed business leaders at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit here, in a speech heavy on tough talk and protectionist rhetoric — but was delayed after Canada raised concerns.

The decision to move ahead with the TPP agreement, minus the United States, reflects how Trump’s decision to withdraw from the deal created a vacuum other nations are now moving to fill, with or without the president.

In his speech Friday, Trump struck an aggressive note, saying he believed the United States had for too long been the victim of poor trade deals.

“We are not going to let the United States be taken advantage of anymore,” he said. “I am always going to put America first, the same way that I expect all of you in this room to put your countries first.”

Instead, he said the U.S. was still a willing trade partner, but only for deals based on “mutual respect and mutual benefit.”

“I will make bilateral trade agreements with any Indo-Pacific nation that wants to be our partner and that will abide by the principles of fair and reciprocal trade,” he said.  “What we will no longer do is enter into large agreements that tie our hands, surrender our sovereignty, and make meaningful enforcement practically impossible.”

A senior administration official, asked if the new trade announcement foreshadowed the United States being left behind in the region, rejected the notion, pointing out that “the president is here visiting and is part of the dialogue, and has already spent a significant portion of time talking to his allies and like-minded partners in Japan and South Korea.”

“We'll continue that conversation with many parties here,” the official said. “So we absolutely are engaged on the economic side, and we’ll continue to be so."

Shaking my head.

Well, he'll have his way then. It really will be America First then. In a party of one.

[Cartmann99]

Isn't this where the mom tells the boys to quit squabbling, or nobody gets ice cream? 

[Rachel333]

What? Even for him that's a weird thing to tweet. I had to go check to see if it was real.

Then there's this one. Apparently Obama didn't have "chemistry" with Putin. 

 

[Destiny]

What? Even for him that's a weird thing to tweet. I had to go check to see if it was real.
Then there's this one. Apparently Obama didn't have "chemistry" with Putin. 
 

Is this real god damned life?

[onekidanddone]

On 11/8/2017 at 8:49 PM, Cartmann99 said:

 If Stephen Miller put his hand on my sweater, I'd burn the damn thing when I got home. He's an evil man, and I don't want him anywhere near me. 

If he put a hand on me, I'd be making my one phone call and trying to post bail.

[candygirl200413]

*proceeds to drink all the vodka I can get my hands on*

[elsiedindin]

This insane freak show cannot be over soon enough. 

[fraurosena]

Oh my, he's really found his twitterthumbs in the night again. 

My first reaction:

Ugh. Enough already with the Russia love. Yuk. We know you had some time together with your crush, Putin. You don't have to gush about it on twitter like a schoolgirl. Blech!

My second reaction:

Where exactly are always playing politics?

My third reaction:

Asshat, when you're a politician, you are by definition always surrounded by politics. Stop complaining about it, you fucking chose to be in this role. 

[elsiedindin]

12 minutes ago, fraurosena said:

My third reaction:

Asshat, when you're a politician, you are by definition always surrounded by politics. Stop complaining about it, you fucking chose to be in this role. 

If he's really tired of politics, I have a few suggestions as to where he can go.

[fraurosena]

Here's Bill Palmer's takedown of the presidunce's latest tweets:

Donald Trump says Americans are “haters and fools” – and asks Vladimir Putin for help

Quote

Hours after Donald Trump sent his already collapsing presidency into total freefall by publicly siding with Russian President Vladimir Putin and against the United States intelligence community, Trump found a way to make it even worse for himself. On Saturday evening he launched into his most inexplicably demented Twitter meltdown to date, in which he called people everything from “haters and fools” to “short and fat.”

Trump incredibly tweeted “When will all the haters and fools out there realize that having a good relationship with Russia is a good thing, not a bad thing. There always playing politics – bad for our country. I want to solve North Korea, Syria, Ukraine, terrorism, and Russia can greatly help!” (To be clear, he used “There” instead of “They’re” in his tweet.) The latest polls say that the majority of Americans now believe the Trump campaign and Russia conspired with each other during the election, meaning that Trump is calling the majority of Americans “haters and fools.”

In that same breath, Trump flatly asked Russia for help. Just in case it wasn’t blatant enough, another Trump tweet spelled out that he’s specifically seeking help from Putin: “Met with President Putin of Russia who was at APEC meetings. Good discussions on Syria. Hope for his help to solve, along with China the dangerous North Korea crisis. Progress being made.” Who cares what he’s asking for help with, the bottom line is that he’s now asking Putin for help, in two consecutive tweets, just hours after publicly aligning himself with Putin against the United States.

Donald Trump then went on to misspell two different words before randomly insisting that Hillary Clinton was a poor speller. Then he threw a fit because North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Un had called him “old”, firing back that Kim is “short and fat,” before declaring “I try so hard to be his friend.” Trump is in need of immediate professional psychological help.