Trump 40: Donald Trump and the Chamber of Incompetence

[Alisamer]

And an article came up today pointing out the many, many signs of pre-dementia (I'm not sure it's "pre" actually...) the president is showing more and more of every day. I've been saying this since the campaign trail, that he was showing signs of dementia - but then it was easy to excuse it as a combo of mean and stupid. But now? 

I'd be willing to bet that the secret service has an "orange alert" code set up for when he starts to wander off. Like a silver alert, but just for the president. 

He can't stay on a topic without rambling about random other things, he doesn't understand the most basic things and won't allow people who do know them to explain them. He's paranoid, repeats himself frequently, flies into random rages, can't keep a schedule, forgets what he's told almost immediately, can't even successfully pretend to be polite or gracious, and his views have done a 180 from what they were when he was younger. He contradicts not only his administration, but himself! Frequently! He ignores real science and latches on to conspiracy theories. He says in a speech in front of the media that the media will be "leaking" the speech. Oranges. Covfefe. Hamberders. Tim Apple. Amonymouse. 

I've dealt with THREE grandparents who had varying levels of dementia at the end of their lives. One of them had alzheimers for many years. I've seen this stuff before. I'd bet he asks the same questions over and over. I wouldn't be surprised if he's started hiding things. He doesn't seem to notice or care that Russia and China are likely both listening in to his phone, but I bet he often checks his bedroom and the oval office for "bugs" from people (IE, the media) he decided were his enemies.

I don't think Trump was brilliant to begin with, but he did manage to make and keep himself famous for a very long time so he at least had some sort of cunning. But now? There's something seriously, seriously wrong. He's slipping farther and farther from reality, and I'd bet he's getting no treatment for it either. I wish Ivanka or somebody would stand up to him and get him some proper medical care from someone who isn't a sycophant. He's getting to the point where his kids need to be helping care for him, and he in no way needs to be in charge of ANYTHING, much less a government. 

[CTRLZero]

We watched The Post (Meryl Streep/Tom Hanks) last night.  It was a good review of the push and pull between freedom of the press, corporate interests, public's right to know and national security, with a side order of corruption and coverup.  Several times we commented, "just like Trump."  The ending was humorous, in a tragicomic sort of way. 

[GreyhoundFan]

"New book details Trump’s topsy-turvy relationship with Congress"

Spoiler

During a Republican retreat at Camp David last year, President Trump seemed particularly enthralled as Gary Cohn, then his chief economic adviser, delivered a briefing on infrastructure. The president impressed the assembled lawmakers with his apparent interest in the presentation, nodding along and scribbling furious notes.

But Trump’s notes “had nothing to do with infrastructure,” journalists Jake Sherman and Anna Palmer write in their new book, “The Hill to Die On.”

Instead, Trump had scrawled “Sloppy Steve” atop his index card, followed by “copious notes” criticizing Stephen K. Bannon, his former chief strategist whom he had fired several months earlier.

“As Cohn had detailed his plans to rebuild America’s roads, the president was writing down how he wanted to trash Steve Bannon the next time someone asked him about it,” the authors write, in one of buzzy scenes that pepper the book.

The 399-page tome — written by two longtime congressional reporters at Politico who also anchor the publication’s flagship newsletter, “Politico Playbook” — chronicles Congress in the age of Trump, largely beginning on Election Day 2016 and stretching through the end of 2018. The Washington Post obtained a copy of the book, which is scheduled to be released Tuesday. 

According to a foreword, “A Hill to Die On” is the result of about 26 months of reporting, as well as interviews with White House aides and the president. The authors also write that they were reporting their book “contemporaneously with the daily news cycle” — and thus some scenes and details have already “appeared in news stories in Politico, The Washington Post, the New York Times, and elsewhere.”

The result is another addition to the now-overflowing canon of books about Trump’s Washington, this one with 22 chapters that each read like an extended edition of “Playbook” — with each including at least one or two nuggets that contain scoops or, in “Playbook” parlance, a “talker.” 

There is, for instance, the anecdote from 2016 in which Trump calls Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.), now the House minority whip, to solicit his opinion on Mike Pence, whom Trump was then considering as his running mate. Scalise praised the now-vice president, who, unbeknown to him, happened to be sitting with Trump and listening to the whole conversation. 

“That’s good to know, because he’s right here with me,” Trump said, once Scalise finished, according to the book. 

Sherman and Palmer write that Scalise later joked he was “an unwitting participant in the vetting of Mike Pence in front of Mike Pence!”

There is also the moment, during the presidential transition, in which Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) arrives at Trump Tower in New York for an interview with Trump for what many believe is “a done deal” — him nominating her to be his interior secretary. Instead, the authors recount, “the president-elect had a folder of media clippings at the ready, detailing various times McMorris Rodgers had spoken out against him.” The job ultimately went to someone else. The details of Trump’s meeting with McMorris Rodgers were first reported by The Washington Post.

And there is Trump’s confession, in an Oval Office interview with Sherman and Palmer, that he is not particularly troubled that Republicans lost control of the House in the 2018 midterms — the sort of electoral defeat that would devastate most other presidents, and the sort of admission that might disappoint Trump’s fellow Republicans. The president told the duo that had Republicans held the House, especially by a narrow margin, it “would’ve been impossible” for him to accomplish anything because of the legislative horse-trading among all the various factions in the chamber.

“In Trump’s thinking, a Democratic House majority was welcome, even freeing,” they write. Trump, they continue, instead said, “Now, I just say, ‘Hey, folks, let’s go. Give me legislation. Let me see. And if we like it, we’ll work on it.’ ” 

Sherman and Palmer also report that once Democrats won the House, and now-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) was scrambling to rally enough support in her caucus to win the top leadership role, Trump devised a plan to help his rival if she couldn’t muster the Democratic votes: “He would ask the Freedom Caucus, the most conservative members of Congress and his staunchest allies, to do the unthinkable and vote for Pelosi.”

Trump told the authors that he thought “the most conservative members of Congress would do him a favor by voting for Pelosi.”

If Trump looms large over the book, other characters also make appearances in smaller vignettes.

In one scene, during a tense immigration standoff between House and Senate Republicans, several lawmakers say they can’t wait until Sen. Martha McSally (R-Ariz.) — then a House member — moves over to the Senate because she’ll bring with her a healthy dose of “testosterone” and hold firm on conservative issues.

According to the book, McSally generated “hoots and hollers” among her colleagues when she retorted, “It’s not about having testosterone. It’s about growing a pair of ovaries.” 

Fox News host Sean Hannity also makes several appearances, including on a health-care conference call with Trump and a few Republican lawmakers where, “much to everyone’s surprise,” Hannity is also on the line.  

Throughout, Sherman and Palmer delve especially deep into the dramas involving House Republican leaders, including the contentious and simmering fight between Scalise and Rep. Kevin McCarthy (Calif.), now the House minority leader, to succeed then-House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.) after he announced in April 2018 his plans to retire from Congress. 

At one point, after seeming to promise not to challenge McCarthy for Republican leader, Scalise still gathers his brain trust at Del Frisco’s Double Eagle steakhouse where the topic of a possible run against McCarthy comes up. When news of the dinner leaks, Sherman and Palmer write, Scalise claims to McCarthy he was never even at Del Frisco’s, but McCarthy is furious.

“Run against me, McCarthy told him, I’ve had it,” they write, channeling McCarthy’s message to Scalise. “I don’t want to take this s--- anymore. I’ve been on leadership teams where the top two leaders don’t get along, and I won’t do it again.”

Scalise spokeswoman Lauren Fine responded: “It’s completely inaccurate to suggest Whip Scalise lied to Leader McCarthy.”

Trump’s son-in-law and senior White House adviser, Jared Kushner, also appears several times, coming off as generally naive. In one anecdote before the election, the authors write that Kushner tells Ryan he found congressional committees — which are the critical starting ground for the overwhelming portion of legislation — to be “inefficient.”

“ ‘We’ll get to that later,’ Kushner told Ryan’s aides, giving the impression he wanted to — and believed he could — single-handedly rewrite Congress’s two-hundred-year-old rules,” they write. 

One person close to Kushner disputed the anecdote as “nonsense.” “Jared has immense respect for the workings of the government and in no way would make a statement of that sort,” said the person, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.

Later in the book, amid negotiations during the most recent government shutdown, the pair describe Kushner as marveling “at the fact that it costs the government $750 per day to keep an undocumented child in the United States,” before quipping, “They might as well put them up at the Four Seasons Hotel in Georgetown.”

The subtitle of the book is “The Battle for Congress and the Future of Trump’s America.” And like nearly all things in Trump’s America right now, it is the president himself who most often makes for the best copy — and the pair return frequently to Trump, whom they depict as bumbling, if genial.

In a chapter devoted to Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh’s successful Supreme Court nomination fight, Sherman and Palmer write that at one point, “the president privately raised the prospect of tapping Merrick Garland — the very man [Senate Majority Leader Mitch] McConnell had blocked from even getting a hearing” under President Barack Obama. Still, they add some caveats, noting that it can be difficult to suss Trump’s “serious ideas from musings” and that “it’s not clear how serious Trump was.” 

In another scene, Rep. Bill Posey (R-Fla.) urges Trump to stop the “tweets and whining about crowd size” — an admonishment that prompts the president’s ire.

“ ‘Who the f--- are you?’ Trump shot back, before once again incorrectly positing that he had had the ‘biggest inauguration’ ever,” the pair write.

Trump also seems to have copious free time, and the book gives the impression of a president constantly dialing lawmakers just to chat. One Sunday night in early 2018, Rep. Steve Stivers (R-Ohio), who was then the chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee, finds himself at home during a family dinner, patched through to the president. 

After briefing Trump on an upcoming special election in Pennsylvania and chatting for roughly 20 minutes, Stivers attempts to end the call, politely saying, “Mr. President, I’m sure you have better things to do.”

But, the authors write, Trump stayed on the line. 

 

[formergothardite]

1 hour ago, Alisamer said:

I've been saying this since the campaign trail, that he was showing signs of dementia - but then it was easy to excuse it as a combo of mean and stupid. But now? 

I always thought it was him being incredible mean and not giving one shit about anything but himself, but the video of him getting off the plane and not being able to figure out that he needed to get into the car with the door open that was right in front of him made me really think that it is dementia. My MIL was diagnosed with dementia and a couple weeks ago she couldn't figure out to get into the car when my husband held the door open for her. 

I think they might be sneaking him medication, but he is clearly becoming more and more unwound. He has always lied but now he doesn't even make sense. His inability to stay on topic and not blurt out nonsensical things I think might also keep him from the frantic campaign schedule that he had last time. 

[GreyhoundFan]

"Trump’s 10 most absurd claims"

Spoiler

President Trump said Tuesday that his father was born in Germany, which is not true. This would have been chalked up to a slip of the tongue (it was actually his grandpa who was born in the Vaterland) … except that it is the third time he has said this. So I promptly declared that, among Trump’s most bizarre claims, “this one may take the cake."

Then Trump made me feel silly. Just a few hours later, in a speech at a National Republican Congressional Committee fundraiser, Trump suggested that wind farms cause cancer.

Which got me thinking: What are Trump’s most truly puzzling and obscure claims? I’m not talking about conspiracy theories like birtherism or that vaccines cause autism, which may be his most harmful claims. But what are the things that seem based on the least logic, are so divorced from reality and are unique to Trump?

Here are the top 10 I came up with:

10. Exercise shortens your life.

The claim: Washington Post reporters Marc Fisher and Michael Kranish reported in their Trump biography that Trump “believed the human body was like a battery, with a finite amount of energy, which exercise only depleted.”

Why it makes the list: Because it sounds like a theory people had 100 years ago, before modern medicine and science.

9. Global warming is a Chinese hoax.

The claim: “The concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make U.S. manufacturing non-competitive.”

Why it makes the list: This 2012 claim was so out there that even Trump, when confronted with it during the 2016 campaign, was loath to stick by it. He suggested it was really just a “joke.” “I often joke that this is done for the benefit of China,” Trump said. “Obviously, I joke. But this is done for the benefit of China, because China does not do anything to help climate change.”

8. His inauguration crowd was bigger than Obama’s.

The claim: “I made a speech. I looked out. The field was — it looked like a million, a million and a half people.’’ White House press secretary Sean Spicer assured that it was the “largest audience to ever witness an inauguration — period — both in-person and around the globe.”

Why it makes the list: Because we have eyes and there are pictures. Also because they went down this road literally within hours of Trump assuming the presidency.

7. Wind farms cause cancer.

The claim: “If you have a windmill anywhere near your house, congratulations, your house just went down 75 percent in value. And they say the noise causes cancer. You tell me that one, okay?”

Why it makes the list: As The Post’s Philip Bump writes, this is part of a long-running, anti-wind farm effort Trump has undertaken, so that’s where it’s coming from. But it’s so bizarre that it’s not even clear how you would fact-check it. Is there something about the frequency? Can you even get cancer audibly? How would that even work?

6. There were 3 million to 5 million illegal votes in 2016, and none were for Trump.

The claim: “Of those votes cast, none of 'em come to me. None of 'em come to me. They would all be for the other side. None of 'em come to me."

Why it makes the list: The 3 million to 5 million allegedly illegal votes is one thing. But if it weren’t for the second part — the thing where people only voted illegally for Hillary Clinton somehow — this might not be on the list. It’s a truly underrated aspect of this conspiracy theory. Even if it were somehow possible to perpetrate such massive voter fraud, how is it possible nobody would illegally vote for Trump? Trump, of course, needed them all to be for Clinton, because his conspiracy theory had to account for his 2.9 million vote loss in the popular vote. And it’s not like you could say there were 10 million illegal votes … right?

5. His father was born in Germany.

The claim: “My father is German — was German. Born in a very wonderful place in Germany, so I have a great feeling for Germany.”

Why it makes the list: As mentioned above, if this were a one-off, it wouldn’t qualify. That Trump has said his New York-born father was born in Germany three times now — once Tuesday and twice in July 2018 — earns a spot. Did nobody on his staff correct him after he uttered this twice in a few days last year? And what is even the motivation here? If he’s claiming affinity with Europe, he’s already got a Scottish-immigrant mother he could use.

4. Pershing executed Muslim terrorists with blood-tipped bullets.

The claim: He said of U.S. Gen. John J. Pershing during the U.S.-Philippine War: “They were having terrorism problems, just like we do. And he caught 50 terrorists who did tremendous damage and killed many people. And he took the 50 terrorists, and he took 50 men and he dipped 50 bullets in pigs’ blood . . . And he had his men load his rifles, and he lined up the 50 people, and they shot 49 of those people. And the 50th person, he said: You go back to your people, and you tell them what happened. And for 25 years, there wasn’t a problem. Okay? Twenty-five years, there wasn’t a problem.” It was a clear reference to Muslims, and the idea that the pig’s blood would prevent them from going to heaven.

Why it makes the list: This is also something Trump has repeated despite it being discredited. And it’s really scraping the bottom of the barrel when it comes to fake anti-Muslim stories on the Internet.

3. Foul play in Antonin Scalia’s death.

The claim: Within days of the Supreme Court justice’s 2016 death, Trump told conservative talker Michael Savage, “I’m hearing it’s a big topic. It’s a horrible topic but they’re saying they found the pillow on his face, which is a pretty unusual place to find a pillow.” He added: “I can’t give you an answer. It’s just starting to come out now.”

Why it makes the list: The idea that a conservative Supreme Court justice would be assassinated in the final year of a Democratic president’s second and final term would obviously have been a historic American scandal. Trump wasn’t the only one suggesting it was possible, but the magnitude of the suggestion and the baselessness are jaw-dropping.

2. His stage-rusher was tied to ISIS.

The claim: In a tweet, Trump said of a man who rushed the stage at a rally in Ohio and was apprehended, “USSS [Secret Service] did an excellent job stopping the maniac running to the stage. He has ties to ISIS. Should be in jail.” He attached a video detailing the man’s alleged ties to ISIS.

Why it makes the list: Trump often uses suggestion to wield conspiracy theories, without technically subscribing to them. In this case, though, he flat-out said the man was tied to ISIS, which was debunked as a hoax. Then, when confronted with that evidence, Trump seemed baffled that it wasn’t true. He punctuated it all by declaring, infamously, “All I know is what’s on the Internet.”

1. It might not be his voice on the “Access Hollywood” tape.

The claim: After Trump apologized for his “locker room talk” on that tape, he privately floated the idea that it wasn’t actually him at all, according to the New York Times. “We don’t think that was my voice,” he reportedly told a GOP senator he was imploring to investigate.

Why it makes the list: There are many good Trump impersonators, but none who are that good. Also, he admitted to this at a very crucial juncture in the 2016 race. And the video also includes portions where he’s talking on camera.

 

[Dandruff]

Does Trump believe that anything he says, no matter how ridiculous or disputable, will be accepted as fact?

Has Pence been getting more involved in presidential (vs. vice-presidential) tasks or have the eldest Trump kids been spending more time with him?

Could Trump's behavior be a reaction to short- or long-term medication?

Could behavior resembling dementia be used to avoid prosecution for things that are currently under investigation?

[47of74]

Could behavior resembling dementia be used to avoid prosecution for things that are currently under investigation?

 

God knows fuck head would likely try it if he thought it would get him out of trouble. (Shudder I almost said get him off....EWWWWWWWWWWWW). After all another monster - Vincent Gigante - was able to pull it off for a while.

[fraurosena]

16 hours ago, Alisamer said:

He's getting to the point where his kids need to be helping care for him, and he in no way needs to be in charge of ANYTHING, much less a government. 

His kids? Helping care for him? Come on, they are merciless bloodsuckers like their pa. 

[Ozlsn]

1 hour ago, fraurosena said:

His kids? Helping care for him? Come on, they are merciless bloodsuckers like their pa. 

Unfortunately I think there is too much at stake for them to take action until forced. They would be left very exposed and with quite a few enemies seeking payback. Better to keep him as a figurehead while the power migrates... where exactly?

[apple1]

17 hours ago, Dandruff said:

Has Pence been getting more involved in presidential (vs. vice-presidential) tasks or have the eldest Trump kids been spending more time with him?

Unfortunately - I suspect that Stephen Miller is, in part, operating the puppet from behind the curtain.

[Howl]

14 minutes ago, apple1 said:

Unfortunately - I suspect that Stephen Miller is, in part, operating the puppet from behind the curtain.

Sheesh, that's a horrifying thought. 

How much has Mick Mulvaney changed the dynamic in the WH?  He's definitely a smooooooth operator.  However, Miller's been around since Day 1 and has managed to navigate West Wing politics + stay on Trumpy's good side, as far as we know.  

[Alisamer]

5 hours ago, fraurosena said:

His kids? Helping care for him? Come on, they are merciless bloodsuckers like their pa. 

Very true. I'm holding out some hope for Barron, since he's still a kid and seems disconnected from the circus a bit. Poor kid always looks miserable when he's seen with his dad. But really, if his adult kids are going to leech off him, they need to be trying to keep him functional. Or at least contained. He's at the age where they need to be checking in on him occasionally and realizing at some point they may need to override his wishes for his own good, encourage him to retire and get him skilled care*. I think Melania probably hoped he'd have keeled over by now, and is just holding on at this point.

I get the impression Trump has always just wanted the accolades and attention, but has no desire to actually do any work. He wants to rake in the money, bask in the worship of his followers, and be called "the most powerful man in the world", while playing golf as often as possible. Somebody has got to be holding the reins, trying to keep him wandering in a vaguely presidential direction.  He's in way over his head, and has no idea what is going on most of the time. 

*I know many people stay healthy and sharp to a much older age than Trump and are fully capable of making their own decisions until the end, but we're talking about a guy who can't figure out how to close an umbrella, can't remember the difference between a windmill and wind turbine, mixes up words regularly, and sometimes has to be reminded to actually sign the legislation he just spent several minutes blathering on about!

[fraurosena]

10 minutes ago, Alisamer said:

But really, if his adult kids are going to leech off him, they need to be trying to keep him functional. Or at least contained. He's at the age where they need to be checking in on him occasionally and realizing at some point they may need to override his wishes for his own good, encourage him to retire and get him skilled care*.

• They are though. Keeping him contained, I mean. Functional, not so much. Mueller's oranges, anyone?
• Ivanka and Jared are both his special advisors, and in the WH on a daily basis. No need to check up on him if they're there all the time.
• For all we know they are overriding his wishes. For their good, of course, not necessarily his.
• Getting him skilled care? Well, who knows, maybe they have secretly hired a carer for him. Disguised as a security officer or some such, to keep him from wondering off. Or maybe Melania is fulfilling that role. 
• They will never let him retire. That would be akin to slaughtering the goose that lays the golden eggs. As long as he is presidunce, they can do whatever they want, make lucrative deals with Saudi Arabia, China, Turkey, Russia and who knows who else. No, they'll be propping him up as long as they can.

[AmazonGrace]

The sad thing is that if he does happen to find the energy to hold more demented, more rambling, increasingly nonsensical rallies, his supporters won't notice anything wrong

[fraurosena]

1 hour ago, AmazonGrace said:

The sad thing is that if he does happen to find the energy to hold more demented, more rambling, increasingly nonsensical rallies, his supporters won't notice anything wrong

True. And look! He's going to hold a rally! 

Because when you're a thin-skinned presidunce it's always better to spout nonsense to your cult followers than to good-naturedly endure some truth-roasting at the hands of the press.

[Alisamer]

@fraurosena are they really keeping him contained, though? They've not managed to keep him from embarrassing himself and them. No one can stop him tweeting. I agree they are going to try to prop him up as long as possible, but for their own good, not his. Which is dumb, because if they're half as rich as they want people to think they are, they'd all have managed to be set and independent of him by now, instead of riding his coattails. 

They all suck, basically. He's unfit to be leader of anything, they're all leeches. He's losing what few marbles he had, and his kids seem to be at least as dumb as he is. And I'd bet every one of them has done something that should have sent them to prison ages ago. 

[formergothardite]

27 minutes ago, Alisamer said:

because if they're half as rich as they want people to think they are,

I don't think any of them are even that rich. 

 

 

[Alisamer]

I just read another article about the president's potential cognitive decline. Trump's father had alzheimers. That is a major, major red flag.

[apple1]

6 hours ago, apple1 said:

Unfortunately - I suspect that Stephen Miller is, in part, operating the puppet from behind the curtain.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/immigration/trump-ditches-his-nominee-to-lead-ice-says-he-wants-someone-tougher-for-top-immigration-enforcement-role/2019/04/05/c184cc6a-57bd-11e9-9136-f8e636f1f6df_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.52ab255b099f

Quote

,,,Stephen Miller has been criticizing Vitiello to the president and looking for an opportunity to cut him loose...

 

[onekidanddone]

On 4/4/2019 at 11:05 AM, CTRLZero said:

We watched The Post (Meryl Streep/Tom Hanks) last night.  It was a good review of the push and pull between freedom of the press, corporate interests, public's right to know and national security, with a side order of corruption and coverup.  Several times we commented, "just like Trump."  The ending was humorous, in a tragicomic sort of way. 

I loved the story line and the movie over all, but I just didn't see Streep as Katherine Graham and I think  Bradlee could have been better cast.  I think I was spoiled by Jason Robards 

[Dandruff]

6 hours ago, Howl said:

How much has Mick Mulvaney changed the dynamic in the WH?  He's definitely a smooooooth operator.  However, Miller's been around since Day 1 and has managed to navigate West Wing politics + stay on Trumpy's good side, as far as we know.

I'm wondering about the Trump kids' interactions with Pence since he's VP...on paper, at least.  If Trump is really going 'round the bend, I could see Pence being asked to take on more public responsibilities.  Also, if he was to become President under less than ideal circumstances, couldn't he issue pardons and influence what info does and doesn't get released outside the WH/Senate?

I believe Pence sold his soul the moment he agreed to run for VP.  Perhaps he thought the potential gains to his religious agenda would be worth whatever angst dealing with Trump Inc. might cause him.  I suspect he has lost more than a little sleep over this.  I also think he's going to continue to play his part.

[CTRLZero]

1 hour ago, onekidanddone said:

I think I was spoiled by Jason Robards 

We put "All the President's Men" on our list to watch in the next couple of months.  It came out around the time I graduated from high school, so it's been awhile!  My husband was commenting that in "The Post," Woodward and Bernstein were somewhere in the news room.  I hadn't even thought about that.  The scandals would just keep on coming!

[onekidanddone]

5 minutes ago, CTRLZero said:

We put "All the President's Men" on our list to watch in the next couple of months.  It came out around the time I graduated from high school, so it's been awhile!  My husband was commenting that in "The Post," Woodward and Bernstein were somewhere in the news room.  I hadn't even thought about that.  The scandals would just keep on coming!

I've been hiding on the JRod and ZZ forums these days, because this one was just not good for my blood pressure.  

Am I right to assume he has been ratcheting  up the crazy even more lately?

@CTRLZero:  I was a kid during the Watergate hearings.  My parents were complete news junkies and had the radio or TV on practically 24/7 there was no escape. Right around that time my dad got a job in D.C. while we were still in Providence. His office was in the Watergate and he would stay at the HoJo across the street. 

[Howl]

On 4/4/2019 at 10:05 AM, Alisamer said:

He can't stay on a topic without rambling about random other things, he doesn't understand the most basic things and won't allow people who do know them to explain them. He's paranoid, repeats himself frequently, flies into random rages, can't keep a schedule, forgets what he's told almost immediately, can't even successfully pretend to be polite or gracious, and his views have done a 180 from what they were when he was younger. He contradicts not only his administration, but himself!

One thing I've noticed recently is Trumpy's consistency over certain issues.  Years ago he said X, and he's still perseverating over X.  Years ago he hated Y and he's still perseverating over Y.  More recently it's the Wall; it's an obsession. Immigration is an obsession.  The weird thing about wind generators causing cancer is thought to go back to Trump trying to stop a wind farm in the vicinity of his Scottish golf course. He lost a legal battle and had to pay court costs.  He forgets a lot of stuff, but he never forgets a slight and will seek revenge forever. 

Can this also manifest in dementia?  Some of it is Stephen Miller pulling levers behind the curtain, but certainly not all. 

[Dandruff]

1 hour ago, Howl said:

One thing I've noticed recently is Trumpy's consistency over certain issues.  Years ago he said X, and he's still perseverating over X.  Years ago he hated Y and he's still perseverating over Y.  More recently it's the Wall; it's an obsession. Immigration is an obsession.  The weird thing about wind generators causing cancer is thought to go back to Trump trying to stop a wind farm in the vicinity of his Scottish golf course. He lost a legal battle and had to pay court costs.  He forgets a lot of stuff, but he never forgets a slight and will seek revenge forever. 

Perhaps it's that winning for him is far more an issue of ego than substance?  I'm thinking that if he really can't win, or didn't win, then repeatedly demonizing his "opponent" might temporarily satiate the internal bully.