The Weekend Watering Hole: Friday, March 24th, 2017: FAUX Pas

On Wednesday, March 22nd, TIME Magazine’s Washington Bureau Chief, Michael Shelton, interviewed FAUX president Donald trump. I give Shelton credit, he apparently did not laugh in the FAUX president’s face (which is the least I’d like to do to trump’s face on any given day at any given minute. But I digress.)  I have to feel sorry for poor Mr. Shelton, as there was no way that any human could possibly keep up with the gibberish uttered by the “Most Embarrassing Man In The World”(TM). ‘Sad.’

The following is an except from ‘President trump’s Interview With TIME on Truth and Falsehoods.’ If you’re not dizzy by the time you’ve finished reading it, you will be if you read the entire interview. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

FAUX POTUS: “Yeah well if you’d look at, in fact I’ll give you the front page story, and just today I heard, just a little while ago, that Devin Nunes had a news conference, did you hear about this, where they have a lot of information on tapping. Did you hear about that?”

SHELTON: “I have not, no.”

FAUX POTUS: “Now remember this. When I said wiretapping, it was in quotes. Because a wiretapping is, you know today it is different than wire tapping. It is just a good description. But wiretapping was in quotes. What I’m talking about is surveillance. And today, [House Intelligence Committee Chairman] Devin Nunes just had a news conference. Now probably got obliterated by what’s happened in London. But just had a news conference, and here it is one of those things. The other one, election, I said we are going to win, we won. And many other things. And I think this is going to be very interesting.”

SHELTON: “So you don’t feel like Comey’s testimony in any way takes away from the credibility of the tweets you put out, even with the quotes?”

FAUX POTUS: “No, I have, look. I have articles saying it happened. But you have to take a look at what they, they just went out at a news conference. Devin Nunes had a news conference. I mean I don’t know, I was unable to see it, because I am at meetings, but they just had a news conference talking about surveillance. Now again, it is in quotes. That means surveillance and various other things. And the New York Times had a front-page story, which they actually reduced, they took it, they took it the word wiretapping out of the title, but its first story in the front page of the paper was wiretapping. And a lot of information has just been learned, and a lot of information may be learned over the next coming period of time. We will see what happens. Look. I predicted a lot of things that took a little of bit of time. Here, headline, for the front page of the New York Times, “Wiretapped data used in inquiry of Trump aides.” That’s a headline. Now they then dropped that headline, I never saw this until this morning. They then dropped that headline, and they used another headline without the word wiretap, but they did mean wiretap. Wiretapped data used in inquiry. Then changed after that, they probably didn’t like it. And they changed the title. They took the wiretap word out.”

Almost the last thing the FAUX president said in the interview was this:

“Hey look, in the mean time, I guess, I can’t be doing so badly, because I’m president, and you’re not.”

So…I gather from all that Nunes held a news conference, and the NY Times took out “the wiretap word”, and voila! he’s magically vindicated. Oh, and also, too, he’s the president.  Badly.  So there!

Words fail me.

This is an early edition of the Weekend Watering Hole. Have at it.

Randy Rainbow weighs in on Alternative Facts

This is how I’d like to see the White House Press Corps respond to this administration’s bullshit artists.

The Watering Hole, Monday, August 8th, 2016: Looney-Toons

Okay, just because the American Psychiatric Association doesn’t want their members to publicize ‘armchair’ diagnoses of the Presidential candidates – meaning Donald Trump, of course – doesn’t mean that we non-psychiatrists can’t do it. And, although “Looney-Toons” isn’t the most clinically accurate ‘armchair’ diagnosis, it at least allows for a little humor to start the week.

Herr Trump seems to have been given a lot more unearned medals than just that poor guy’s Purple Heart.

Herr Trump can’t even rule his own hair.

“Hmm..”Victory Thru Herr Hair Hare Power”!?”

“Look at this – my hair’s a mess!  Can’t anyone help me?”

“Can’t you see you’re next?”
“Okay, why not?”

“I’m not sure what’s in this, but if it dissolved that thing on his head, that’s a step in the right direction.”

“Flowers?! Are you kidding? I can’t even comb them over!”

Although it could have been worse, i.e.:
...The blow to his vanity was just too much, pushing him over the edge.  His self-image as “Donald J. Trump, Billionaire” was destroyed. 

He began to dress in a bunny suit, repeating over and over, “My name is Elmer J. Fudd, Millionaire.  I own a mansion and a yacht.”

Longtime friend and co-worker Daffy Duck describes a recent visit:

He “may be crazy, but” he’s not going to the White House!

This is our daily Open Thread. Please feel free to discuss anything you like – or dislike.

Sunday Leftovers: Mocking Trump

I found one of these videos posted in the Raw Story comments by “sam202.”  All the words are Trump’s own, but a genius named Peter Serafinowicz dubbed him to sound all catty and Liberace-like.

I think the dubbed voice is more appropriate for the gossipy content of Trump’s speeches anyway.

This is our totally late — so late we’re down to leftovers — open thread.

The Watering Hole, Monday, March 14th, 2016: Cuteness Trumps Evil At The End

This weekend I OD’d on Trump. And jelly beans. I’m not sure which made me feel worse.

I refuse to watch any of the myriad videos of Hair Drumpf that have dominated the internets over the past, well, forever it seems. As I have mentioned in comments elsewhere, being a lifelong New Yorker means, in part, that we’ve been exposed to toxic levels of NY’s own version of Agent Orange since long before “Celebrity Apprentice” existed. Having long ago dismissed Drumpf à l’Orange as a loud-mouthed, self-important asshole, it’s frightening to see so many people taken in by this vulgar charlatan. Especially if one looks at his mouth. It appears to have been shaped over a lifetime of angrily hurling bullying insults and orders. How can anyone look at Drumpf “speaking” without being disgusted and horrified?

Here’s a shot from a thread at ThinkProgress:

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump describes how he was ready to punch a person who rushed the stage during an election rally earlier in the day, as he speaks to a crowd in Kansas City, Mo., Saturday. CREDIT: AP Photo/Nati Harnik

The next few are from various threads at Raw Story:

U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally in Bloomington, Illinois, March 13, 2016. REUTERS/Jim Young

Trump prepares to spit venom at Jake Tapper.

A commenter at Raw Story posted this ‘Trump Snarling’ GIF.

But enough ugliness, even for a Monday. Here’s some cuteness to counteract the face if evil:

And perhaps a little tranquility for the end of the day:

This is our daily Open Thread – talk about whatever’s on your mind.

The Watering Hole, Tuesday March 1, 2016 – Super Tuesday

We interrupt our regular programs to bring you up to the minute commentary by posters of this blog on the Super Tuesday primary event. As a way of introduction and background, here is a snippet from Raw Story:

Democrat Hillary Clinton aims to build an impregnable lead on “Super Tuesday,” the most consequential day of the presidential nominations calendar, while Republicans struggle to derail their insurgent and controversial front-runner Donald Trump.

With barely 24 hours before the big day, Clinton and Trump are well positioned to secure the lion’s share of the delegate bonanza in the 11 states voting in each party’s primaries.

Trump and Hillary? Let the voters decide.

Follow the money (per NBC News):

 

 

 

The Watering Hole; Thursday January 21 2016; Narcissistic Fascism, AKA GOP

There’s a new GOP monster out there,
One that’s emerging from the Narcissistic-Fascist
Ice core that is its heritage, and this day has become:
Trump-Cruz — drip-drip.

Q for America: Whereto from here?

Without doubt, one of the most disturbing aspects of 2016’s Republican Presidential campaign is that its two “leaders” at this point — Donald Trump and Ted Cruz — are politically FAR to the right of that mystical (and poorly defined) boundary that separates American Conservatism from classic European Fascism. Add to that Trump’s indelible and definable narcissistic megalomania — and Cruz’s hyper-religious-anti-government obsession — and what emerges is a potential horror show the world has not seen since, say, 1939.

Number one (currently) in that horror show is the (supposed) billionaire and real estate mogul from New York, Donald Trump. Anyone not brain-dead who’s watched even a video clip from most any of Trump’s campaign appearances cannot help but notice that among all of his myriad undercurrents, two stand tall and proud: Egomania and Narcissism — either one of which could well demand of him, should he become President, some potentially untoward consequences.

A Neuroscientist explains: Trump has a mental disorder that makes him a dangerous world leader

According to a number of top U.S. psychologists, like Harvard professor and researcher Howard Gardener, Donald Trump is a “textbook” narcissist. In fact, he fits the profile so well that clinical psychologist George Simon told Vanity Fair, “He’s so classic that I’m archiving video clips of him to use in workshops.” This puts Trump in the same category as a number of infamous dictators like Muammar Gaddafi, Napoleon Bonaparte, and Saddam Hussein. And although there are narcissists out there who entertain us, innovate, or create great art, when a narcissist is given immense power over people’s lives, they can behave much differently. As the 2016 presidential election grows nearer we must ask ourselves, if elected president would Donald Trump act on the behalf of the will of the people, or would he behave more like a dictator—silencing any dissenting voices, perpetually refusing to compromise, and being oppressive to certain groups? . . . (highlights mine)

Ah, the potential products of Narcissism? Good question. Brings to mind a quote:

The doom of a nation can be averted only by a storm of flowing passion,
but only those who are passionate themselves can arouse passion in others.

And then there’s this, the other side of that same coin:

Ted Cruz’s obsession to destroy America

So far during his candidacy, Ted Cruz has said that if he should become President, he will (at the very least) . . .

• Move the U.S. Israeli Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, Israel’s “once and eternal” capital.
• Shutter the Commerce Department in order to promote free trade and “close the congressional cookie jar.”
• Abolish the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau “. . . and the alphabet soup of regulators.”
• Abolish the Departments of Education, Energy, Housing and Urban Development, and the Internal Revenue Service.
• “Rip to shreds“ the Iran Nuclear Deal on his first day in office, because “it represents a pattern we’ve seen in the Obama administration over and over again of negotiating with terrorists.”
• “Utterly destroy” ISIS. “Carpet-bomb them into oblivion” until the “sand can glow in the dark.”
• “Repeal every word“ of the Affordable Care Act and then “pass common-sense health-care reform that makes health insurance personal and portable and affordable and keeps government from getting in between us and our doctors.”
• Rescind President Obama’s executive orders, esp. those on immigration and gun control. “Those executive orders are not worth the paper they’re printed on because when you live by the pen, you die by the pen, and my pen has got an eraser.”
• Bar (Muslim) refugees from Syria, allow Christian immigrants only.
• Ban Sanctuary Cities, because “Not only are these sanctuary policies an affront to rule of law; they are extremely dangerous.” Sanctuary. Dangerous. Papiere bitte the only solution?
  

Cruz also advocates a budget-busting flat tax, the elimination of payroll taxes and, of course, ipso facto, the eradication of Social Security and Medicare. He also plans to freeze the hiring of civilian government employees and to eliminate the president’s authority to restrict exports of fossil fuels. Because, you know, MONEY!

Ted Cruz obviously fits the radical far-right wing conservative definition of Leader. He may not be the full narcissist that his poll companion — Trump — has proven himself to be, but Cruz remains, as they say, ‘close enough for government work’ to that “leadership” pinnacle. But — mix ’em both together and here’s what will likely follow:

The National Government will regard it as its first and foremost duty
to revive in the nation the spirit of unity and cooperation. It will preserve
and defend those basic principles upon which our nation has been built.
It regards Christianity as the foundation of our national morality, and
the family as the basis of national life. Turbulent instincts must be
replaced by a national discipline as the guiding principle
of our national life.

Grrrrrrrrrr !!!!

GOP + Trump + Cruz ⇒ Narcissistic Fascism, AKA GOP

Oh, and lest we forget their defining model:
they clearly belong to and derive from that historical
Narcissistic Fascist, a.k.a.

A. Hitler.

******

OPEN THREAD