Trump 40: Donald Trump and the Chamber of Incompetence

[apple1]

5 hours ago, fraurosena said:

Believe it or not, but over here you can get fined for not having healthcare insurance.

That's what the "individual mandate" was that was part of the ACA under the Obama admin. The Trump admin got rid of the individual mandate very early on as part of their crusade to try to destroy the ACA.

[fraurosena]

Just a thought, but maybe, just maybe, if you adhere to the law, the judges will start to rule in your favor. I know, I know, it's quite unheard of for authoritarian regimes to obey the law of the land, but yeah, that's what you have to do if you want the court system to rule for you instead of against you. Sorry, not sorry.

 

[AmazonGrace]

Man not smart: 

 

[47of74]

Man not smart: 

[/url]  

 

Yeah I heard fuck head was doing a giant ego trip at Mt. Vernon.

 

https://www.politico.com/story/2019/04/10/donald-trump-mount-vernon-george-washington-1264073

 

President Donald Trump had some advice for George Washington.

 

During a guided tour of Mount Vernon last April with French president Emmanuel Macron, Trump learned that Washington was one of the major real-estate speculators of his era. So, he couldn’t understand why America’s first president didn’t name his historic Virginia compound or any of the other property he acquired after himself.

[Howl]

USA Today has an op-ed about Trump's likely dementia. 

Trump's cognitive deficits seem worse. We need to know if he has dementia: Psychologist   We see signs that the president's abilities are declining, but the only way to find out for sure is to give him a full neuropsychological evaluation.

Gives a good overview of Trump's word salad thing (paraphasias) and gives examples of the paraphasias evident in Trump's recent speech. 

Spoiler

Semantic paraphasia involves choosing the incorrect words. For instance, after Attorney General William Barr released a letter on the Mueller report, Trump said: “I hope they now go and take a  look at the oranges, the oranges of that investigation, the beginnings of that investigation."

Phonemic paraphasia, which is linked to the moderate to severe stages of Alzheimer’s, is described as "the substitution of a word with a nonword that preserves at least half of the segments and/or number of syllables of the intended word.” For example, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu becomes “Betanyahu,” big league becomes “bigly,” anonymous becomes “enenamas” or "anenomynous," renovation becomes “renoversh,” missiles become "mishiz," space capsule becomes “capsicle,” midterm elections become "midtowm" and "midturn" elections, and Christmas becomes “Chrissus.”

and then there's the CPAC speech, which I did not watch. Apparently, it was 2-hours worth of incoherent blathering, careening here and there. 

Spoiler

At its extreme, this is called tangential speech. As psychologist Ben Michaelis told Stat, doctors evaluating for Alzheimer’s listen for tangential remarks and non sequiturs and whether the patient can stay on topic.

You had to listen to Trump's whole CPAC speech to realize just how tangential it was. “Those who learned about the speech from glancing at mainstream news headlines the next morning would have no idea how flat-out bonkers the whole thing was … even by Trumpian standards,” Amanda Marcotte wrote in Salon. The Washington Post's Eugene Robinson said Trump “gave a rambling and incoherent two-hour speech in which he raved like a lunatic.”

People are starting to wonder if Acting Cabinet Secretaries can vote on a 25th Amendment call and if keeping so many of the Cabinet level positions without a permanent Secretary is a ploy against a successful invocation of the the 25th Amendment.  This issue is clear as mud and may be another issue that winds its way through the courts should it come to invoking the 25th.  Our government is in total disarray. 

Edited April 10, 2019 by Howl

[GreyhoundFan]

15 minutes ago, Howl said:

People are starting to wonder if Acting Cabinet Secretaries can vote on a 25th Amendment call and if keeping so many of the Cabinet level positions without a permanent Secretary is a ploy against a successful invocation of the the 25th Amendment.  This issue is clear as mud and may be another issue that winds its way through the courts should it come to invoking the 25th.  Our government is in total disarray. 

The problem is that the sycophants he has installed as acting secretaries are not going to make one move against the mango moron.They'll just go along and sink with the ship.

[AmazonGrace]

Democracy probably died already while no one was looking

Trump is getting another grandchild 

 

[AmazonGrace]

I just got my taxes and last year I paid €650 for health insurance. Plus a little something for medications.

[fraurosena]

3 hours ago, AmazonGrace said:

Man not smart: 

 

From the article:

Quote

[...] “If he was smart, he would’ve put his name on it,” Trump said, according to three sources briefed on the exchange. “You’ve got to put your name on stuff or no one remembers you.” [...]

So, nobody remembers George Washington? 

[AmazonGrace]

1 minute ago, fraurosena said:

From the article:

So, nobody remembers George Washington? 

Who?

[Alisamer]

13 hours ago, apple1 said:

That's what the "individual mandate" was that was part of the ACA under the Obama admin. The Trump admin got rid of the individual mandate very early on as part of their crusade to try to destroy the ACA.

They got rid of it, and made a big deal about how they did so, but according to my co-worker's tax preparer, they didn't bother to mention that it REALLY doesn't go away until this year, so she's getting the penalty for not having insurance. She's put in for a hardship exemption, so hopefully they'll allow that.

Not only is pretty much everything Trump says the opposite of the truth, he is also getting more and more incoherent. This is ridiculous. 

On the plus side, if the recording for his animatronic at the Hall of Presidents glitches, no one will really notice.

Edited April 10, 2019 by Alisamer

[thoughtful]

George Washington's name became and remained famous because of others' admiration for him. I have the impression that he was not all that interested in fame or power.

I'm confident that, in years to come, the name Trump will come to mean "shoddily made and  supporting criminals" and be the hallmark of what to avoid. Heck, it already has that meaning for steak, education, presidents . . .

 

 

[fraurosena]

His language is getting more and more aggressive towards his detractors. Frightening development. Really frightening.

 

An attempted coup? Treason? Because he got investigated? 

 

[Audrey2]

3 hours ago, GreyhoundFan said:

The problem is that the sycophants he has installed as acting secretaries are not going to make one move against the mango moron.They'll just go along and sink with the ship.

My theory has long been that some of his Cabinet/ Secretaries has discussed the 25th Amendment. When Trump or his cronies discover this, the Cabinet member "decides to pursue other opportunities", so a more loyal acting secretary can take their place.

[Howl]

26 minutes ago, Audrey2 said:

My theory has long been that some of his Cabinet/ Secretaries has discussed the 25th Amendment. When Trump or his cronies discover this, the Cabinet member "decides to pursue other opportunities", so a more loyal acting secretary can take their place.

Yes, as he installs more and more loyalists toadies and lickspittles the purity requirements will become more extreme and will go deeper into the upper tiers of employees at all Cabinets.  

Barr may be the worst right now; he's in a position to do an astounding amount of damage as well as brutally effective damage control.

I fear that I'll die without ever seeing the full Mueller Report and am rapidly losing faith in Mueller himself.  

 

[47of74]

They got rid of it, and made a big deal about how they did so, but according to my co-worker's tax preparer, they didn't bother to mention that it REALLY doesn't go away until this year, so she's getting the penalty for not having insurance. She's put in for a hardship exemption, so hopefully they'll allow that.
Not only is pretty much everything Trump says the opposite of the truth, he is also getting more and more incoherent. This is ridiculous. 
On the plus side, if the recording for his animatronic at the Hall of Presidents glitches, no one will really notice.

I’m hoping instead of an animatronic they instead just have a sign where he would stand that says, “Hic est locus Donaldus Trump, incarceratus pro criminibus.” (“This space for Donald Trump, incarcerated for his crimes”). In fact every place where they have pictures, statutes, etc of Presidents that should be done. Or maybe not even mention him by name but instead just state the 45th office holder.

[HerNameIsBuffy]

1 hour ago, Howl said:

fear that I'll die without ever seeing the full Mueller Report and am rapidly losing faith in Mueller himself. 

The only faith we could ever have in him (assuming no one here knows him personally) is by reputation based on the opinions of others.  

Many of the people praising him lauded Barr as well before the letters.

I know I’m cynical but I’m going to side eye everyone who is particularly successful in government since i don’t think you can succeed without playing the game.

i hope I’m wrong.

[fraurosena]

1 hour ago, Howl said:

Barr may be the worst right now; he's in a position to do an astounding amount of damage as well as brutally effective damage control.

I fear that I'll die without ever seeing the full Mueller Report and am rapidly losing faith in Mueller himself.  

 

There was something remarkable Barr said yesterday during his hearing that Rachel Maddow pointed out in her show last night. He made a comment that it would be unfortunate if Mueller would hand over the report to Congress himself. This could mean a number of different things:

1. Barr is being facetious 
2. Barr is hinting Mueller could very well do that
   - and does he fear Mueller might do so?
   - or does he know Mueller is going to?
3. Mueller may have actually threatened to do it or said he will do it under certain circumstances; there are a few reports already that members of his team are very dissatisfied with Barr's handling of the report

Here's the video of that part of TRMS. I've set it to start at the time Barr makes his peculiar statement:

 

18 minutes ago, HerNameIsBuffy said:

Many of the people praising him lauded Barr as well before the letters.

Not quite the same though. Whereas Mueller seems to have an unblemished reputation, Barr most certainly does not. Barr was harshly criticised for his role in the extremely controversial pardoning of key figures in the Iran Contra scandal, which Barr had urged Bush senior to do.

I highly suspect those people who happened to praise both Mueller and Barr also happen to have another thing in common: an R behind their name. Remember, Mueller is said to be a Republican himself, and when he was appointed Special Counsel, he was -- at first -- praised by Republicans too. It was only after Trump began his attacks on the investigation that the repugliklans flip-flopped on their initial opinions.

Like everyone else, I only know Mueller by reputation. I've no way of knowing what his thinking is in this matter. But I have some hope that he is true to his reputation and more a patriot than a Republican. 

[HerNameIsBuffy]

17 minutes ago, fraurosena said:

There was something remarkable Barr said yesterday during his hearing that Rachel Maddow pointed out in her show last night. He made a comment that it would be unfortunate if Mueller would hand over the report to Congress himself. This could mean a number of different things:

1. Barr is being facetious 
2. Barr is hinting Mueller could very well do that
   - and does he fear Mueller might do so?
   - or does he know Mueller is going to?
3. Mueller may have actually threatened to do it or said he will do it under certain circumstances; there are a few reports already that members of his team are very dissatisfied with Barr's handling of the report

Here's the video of that part of TRMS. I've set it to start at the time Barr makes his peculiar statement:

 

Not quite the same though. Whereas Mueller seems to have an unblemished reputation, Barr most certainly does not. Barr was harshly criticised for his role in the extremely controversial pardoning of key figures in the Iran Contra scandal, which Barr had urged Bush senior to do.

I highly suspect those people who happened to praise both Mueller and Barr also happen to have another thing in common: an R behind their name. Remember, Mueller is said to be a Republican himself, and when he was appointed Special Counsel, he was -- at first -- praised by Republicans too. It was only after Trump began his attacks on the investigation that the repugliklans flip-flopped on their initial opinions.

Like everyone else, I only know Mueller by reputation. I've no way of knowing what his thinking is in this matter. But I have some hope that he is true to his reputation and more a patriot than a Republican. 

I almost wonder if Barr doesn’t hope Mueller does it to take it out of his hands.

I would love to know Barr’s motives for coming out of retirement for this shit show.  Seems crazy to me to risk your reputation on something so explosive when you’ve already gotten out of the game.

[Dandruff]

6 minutes ago, HerNameIsBuffy said:

I would love to know Barr’s motives for coming out of retirement for this shit show.  Seems crazy to me to risk your reputation on something so explosive when you’ve already gotten out of the game.

Maybe somebody called in a favor?  I'd guess it would have had to be a big one.

[fraurosena]

15 minutes ago, Dandruff said:

Maybe somebody called in a favor?  I'd guess it would have had to be a big one.

Or he has as yet hidden ties to Russia, and he has some oligarch or other pulling his strings. All the repugliklans do, so why would he be the exception?

[AnywhereButHere]

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/barr-says-i-think-spying-did-occur-on-trump-campaign/ar-BBVMOgT?ocid=ientp

Barr seems to be pandering to Trump's paranoia. Just what this country needs is another sycophant feeding the crazy. Not that it makes much difference. It's either feed the naked emperor or be forcibly "retired". Or hey, he's just as bug fuck nuts as his boss. We're all going to hell...

 

Quote

Attorney General William Barr declared Wednesday he believes "spying did occur" on Donald Trump's presidential campaign, suggesting the origins of the Russia investigation may have been mishandled and aligning himself with the president at a time when Barr's independence is under scrutiny.

Barr, appearing before a Senate panel, did not say what "spying" had taken place. He later said he wasn't sure there had been improper surveillance but wanted to make sure proper procedures were followed. Still his remarks give a boost to President Trump and his supporters who insist his campaign was unfairly targeted by the FBI.

Barr was testifying for a second day at a congressional budget hearing that was dominated by questions about special counsel Robert Mueller's Trump-Russia investigation. Barr said he expects to release a redacted copy of Mueller's report next week, and Democrats have repeatedly expressed concern that his version will conceal wrongdoing by the president.

Barr, who was nominated to his post by Trump four months ago, was asked about spying by Republican Sen. Jerry Moran. He said that though he did not have specific evidence of wrongdoing, "I do have questions about it."...

 

[fraurosena]

Sweet Rufus. His wannabe authoritarianism is more blatant and disgusting every time he opens his mouth.

 

But wait, there’s more!

 

[GreyhoundFan]

 

[formergothardite]

I have a feeling that something bad is going to happen in this next election so that he can remain in power. It will not be a real election. He is not giving up power. We are in bad, bad times. And I don't know what to do.