Are You Ready for IMPEACHMENT?

US-POLITICS-INVESTIGATION-WOMEN-RUSSIA

With the Senate’s Impeachment Trial of “donald john trump” beginning tomorrow, here’s some light reading to prepare yourselves regarding each team’s basic arguments, should you wish.

Okay, it’s not really “light reading” – well, the trump team’s “Answer” to the House impeachment managers’ “Trial Memorandum” was “light reading” as far as substance and credibility go. It’s also literally light in weight: at a mere six pages, maybe an ounce?, vs the weightier (in all aspects) 110-page House Trial Memorandum.

Since I haven’t actually read the House’s tome, let’s start with the trump team’s “Answer.”

“Ridiculous” is the best way to describe it, starting with its heading:

IN PROCEEDINGS BEFORE
THE UNITED STATES SENATE

ANSWER OF PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP

Seriously, they won’t even use the word “impeachment” in the heading, as if not saying it means it didn’t happen.

The opening paragraph repeats the tired arguments that the Dems have been trying to impeach trump since his inauguration, and trying to “overturn” his election:

The Articles of Impeachment submitted by House Democrats are a dangerous on the right of the American people to freely choose their President.  This is a brazen and unlawful attempt to overturn the results of the 2016 election and interfere with the 2020 election – now just months away.  The highly partisan and reckless obsession with impeaching the President began the day he was inaugurated, and continues to this day.

It has already been argued by smarter people than me that, if an election were to be “overturned” (and the second paragraph also mentions “nullifying an election”), then the candidate who lost would become the winner, and all of the current president’s actions would automatically be null and void.  This idea is just as impossible as it sounds, and no one except an idiot would believe it.  Therefore, trump’s minions all subscribe to this notion.

The trump team’s arguments continue by stating that Article 1 of the Impeachment doesn’t indicate any “crime or violation of law whatsoever”, and claims that “At all times, the President has faithfully and effectively executed the duties of his Office on behalf of the American people.” At this point, they go into the so-called “perfect call” to Zelenskyy, trying to push that the call was about corruption and about other countries “not carrying their fair share.”

Here’s the fun part (and from this and other details included in trump team’s arguments, you can see why many say that trump had direct input or wrote some of this himself):

…the transcripts of the April 21 call and the July 25 call disprove what the Article alleges.  When the House Democrats realized this, Mr. Schiff created a fraudulent version of the July 25 call and read it to the American people at a congressional hearing, without disclosing that he was simply making it all up.”

Anyone who watched the first impeachment hearing knows that Chairman Schiff both preceded and followed his ‘mob’ parody of trump’s call with a disclaimer stating that he was paraphrasing.  Conservatives simply don’t get ‘irony’, ‘sarcasm’ or ‘satire’.

In trump team’s argument against Article 2 of the Impeachment, regarding obstruction of Congress, they state, in part:

…the notion that President Trump obstructed Congress is absurd.  President trump acted with extraordinary and unprecedented transparency by declassifying and releasing the transcript of the July 25 call that is at the heart of this matter. [emphasis theirs]

This is an out-and-out lie.  The actual “transcript” is still hidden in the ultra-secret server (gee, I can’t imagine why) and all we have seen is the call memo, which is damning enough.

Here’s one part that I really don’t get:

Following the President’s disclosure of the July 25 call transcript[sic], House Democrats issued a series of unconstitutional subpoenas for documents and testimony.  They issued their subpoenas without a congressional vote, and, therefore, without constitutional authority.

Huh?  AFAIK, a congressional committee doesn’t need a full vote of the House in order to issue subpoenas.  I have no idea whose ass this came out of, but it smells pretty bad to me.

You can read the rest of the trump team’s arguments and see for yourself how pathetic and, indeed, ignorant they sound.

Now the House’s “Trial Memorandum”: as I said, I haven’t read it yet, but here’s a brief synopsis from Raw Story.:

The document divides the argument by the House of Representatives into three points.

“The Senate should convict President Trump of abuse of power,” is the first section.

“The Senate should convict President Trump of obstruction of Congress,” is the second section.

“The Senate should immediately remove President Trump from office to prevent further abuses,” is the third section.

Raw Story also includes the outlines for the House’s arguments regarding each point.  If you’re like me, and watched or otherwise kept up with the impeachment hearings, their arguments should be familiar to you.

I’ll stop here in order for there to be time to read more of the details.

And while I was finishing up this thread, the House Impeachment Managers issued their own response to the trump team’s “Answer.” I should have waited a little longer!

Edit:  For reference, here’s White House Counsel Pat Cipollone’s “fuck you” letter to Gerry Nadler.  I think he used trump’s Sharpie to sign it:

THIS IS AN OPEN THREAD – FEEL FREE TO COMMENT THROUGHOUT THE IMPEACHMENT TRIAL.

Rambling Idiot Sez What?

cant look at trumps face

At the GOP “Retreat” in Baltimore, trump spit out a whole bunch of words. The transcript is from the Washington Post, with the caveat that it “was compiled from uncorrected closed captioning. (Some of the transcribing errors are pretty funny, BTW.) It’s pretty long, as trump supposedly spoke for 70 minutes. I’m leaving it in all-caps, but I tried to break it up where trump jumped from one topic to another.

THANK YOU, IT HAS BEEN FANTASTIC. A LOT OF POWER. A LOT OF POWER. THANK YOU FOR YOUR FRIENDSHIP AND YOUR DEVOTION, TO OUR NATION . I AM DELIGHTED TO BE HERE WITH SO MANY TERRIFIC REPUBLICAN MEMBERS OF CONGRESS. YOU ARE TERRIFIC. I WANT TO THANK OUR AMAZING LEADERSHIP TEAM, REPUBLICAN WHIP AND ONE OF THE BRAVEST MEN I KNOW, STEVE SCALISE. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. [APPLAUSE] CONFERENCE CHAIR LIZ CHENEY, THANK YOU, LIZ. [APPLAUSE] NRCC CHAIR TOM EMMER. TOM, THANK YOU, TOM. CHIEF DEPUTY WHIP BILL FERGUSON. GREAT JOB. THANK YOU, GREAT JOB. AISLES AND WANT TO PROUDLY WELCOME OUR NEWEST REPUBLICAN CONGRESSMEN, PEOPLE THAT THOUGHT A BIG FIGHT AND THEY ARE WINNERS. THEY REACTED SO INCREDIBLY UNDER PRESSURE THE WORLD WAS WATCHING. A LOT OF PEOPLE WERE HOPING FOR THE OPPOSITE OUTCOME BUT MANY MORE PEOPLE WERE HOPING FOR THE OUTCOME WE HAD. A MAN WHO WAS NOT EXPECTED NECESSARILY TO WIN, THEN HE WAS BRUTAL AND BRILLIANT AND DID A GREAT JOB, NOW SOON-TO-BE AND NOW CONGRESSMAN DAN BISHOP FOR MANY YEARS. THANK YOU, DAN. WHAT A GREAT JOB. WHAT A GREAT JOB, DAN. AND ANOTHER MAN WHO FOUGHT SO HARD, AND HE WAS SUPPOSED TO WIN BY A LITTLE TINY BIT AND HE WON BY A LOT OF POINTS, IT WAS A BIG VICTORY AND I WANT TO CONGRATULATE YOU, GREG MURPHY. HE WILL BE WITH YOU FOLKS FOR A LONG TIME. THEY ARE SPECIAL PEOPLE. NORTH CAROLINA, THANK YOU. IT WAS SOME CROWDS THAT TURNED OUT, LIKE PEOPLE NEVER EXPECTED, AND IT WAS A GREAT EVENING OF TELEVISION. I WOULD NOT SAY THE FAKE NEWS WAS TOO HAPPY WITH THE OUTCOME OF THAT IS OK. WE DID IT AND WORKED TOGETHER AS A TEAM. IT WAS VERY INSPIRATIONAL FOR A LOT OF PEOPLE TO WATCH.

EVERYONE HERE TONIGHT HAS A CRITICAL ROLE TO PLAY IN THE FINAL CROSSROADS. IN CONGRESS DEMOCRATS HAVE EMBRACED A DANGEROUS AGENDA. RADICAL SOCIALISM AND OPEN BORDERS. DEMOCRATS ARE DETERMINED TO REPLICATE THE MOST CATASTROPHIC FAILURES OF WORLD HISTORY RIGHT HERE IN THE UNITED STATES. THEY HAVE NEVER LEARNED. THEY HAVE NOT WATCHED. EACH OF YOU IN THE HOUSE REPUBLICAN CONFERENCE IS ON THE FRONT LINES DEFENDING AMERICAN FREEDOM, AMERICAN SECURITY, AMERICAN PROSPERITY AND THE AMERICAN WAY OF LIFE. YOU ARE THE ONES DOING THE DEFENSE. HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF OUR FELLOW CITIZENS ARE COUNTING ON US AND SO HELP US, GOD, WE WILL NEVER, EVER LET THEM DOWN. [APPLAUSE]

TOGETHER WE ARE GOING TO FIGHT HISTORIC RATTLES, AND WE HAVE HISTORIC BATTLES AHEAD OF US. GOING TO MAKE OUR COUNTRY EVEN GREATER AND WE ARE GOING TO WIN OVERWHELMING VICTORIES FOR THE AMERICAN PEOPLE. THE SPIRIT WE HAVE IN THE REPUBLICAN PARTY, I DON’T BELIEVE HAS EVER BEEN THIS HIGH. OVER THE PAST 2.5 YEARS WE HAVE ALREADY DELIVERED UNPRECEDENTED PROGRESS FOR CITIZENS OF EVERY BACKGROUND AND WALK OF LIFE. NOW WE MUST GO DIRECTLY TO THE AMERICAN PEOPLE TO SHARE THE STORY OF WHAT WE HAVE ACHIEVED AND TO EXPLAIN OUR BOLD VISION FOR THE FUTURE.

WORKING WITH REPUBLICANS IN CONGRESS, WE SLASHED 30,000 PAGES OF REGULATIONS FROM THE FEDERAL REGISTER. [APPLAUSE] AND THAT IS AN ALL-TIME RECORD AND WE DID THAT IN A LOT LESS YEARS. IT IS A RECORD NO MATTER HOW LONG THE PRESIDENT’S HAVE SERVED. WE SAVED AN AVERAGE AMERICAN HOUSEHOLD $3000. EARLIER TODAY MY ADMINISTRATION FORMALLY REPEALED THE HORRIBLE, DANGEROUS ANTI-EVERYTHING WATERS OF THE UNITED STATES RULE. [APPLAUSE] THANK YOU, LOUIS. THANK YOU, LOUIS. [APPLAUSE] THANK YOU. I ALWAYS SAY THE ONLY THING THAT HAD GOING FOR IT WAS THE TITLE. I SAID I AM THE ONLY ONE THAT WOULD FIND THIS, BUT IT WAS A GOOD THING WE DID, RIGHT, LOUIS? GOVERNMENT WILL NO LONGER TRY TO MICROMANAGE EVERY RAIN PUDDLE AND DRAINAGE DITCH ON PRIVATE LAND. THEY TOOK YOUR LAND AWAY FROM YOU.

WE ENACTED THE ACCOUNTABILITY ACT SO ANYONE WHO MISTREAT OR ABUSES OUR VETERANS CAN BE PROMPTLY FIRED. [APPLAUSE] THERE WAS A TIME YOU COULD NOT FIRE ANYONE KNOW HOW MATTER — ANYONE KNOW MATTER HOW MUCH THEY STOLE OR WERE SATANIST, AND WE HAD SOME OF THOSE. YOU COULD NOT FIRE THEM AND NOW WE CAN DO IT QUICKLY AND EASILY. THEY DON’T TREAT THEM WELL, WE GET THEM OUT. WE HAVE REMOVED 7000, 600 EMPLOYEES AND GIVE OUR VETERANS THE CARE THEY DESERVE. WE ARE ALSO VERY PROUD TO TELL YOU THE VETERANS CHOICE WHICH IS SOMETHING SPECIAL, THEY HAVE BEEN TRYING TO GET IT FOR DECADES AND DECADES, CHOICE SO MORE VETERANS HAVE THE RIGHT TO SEE A PRIVATE DOCTOR IF THEY HAVE TO WAIT IN A LINE, INSTEAD OF THREE OR FIVE WEEKS WITH NUMBERS YOU WOULD NOT BELIEVE, YOU ARE SICK, NOT FEELING WELL AND THEY SAY COME BACK IN FOUR WEEKS. NOW YOU GO TO A LOCAL DOCTOR OF YOUR CHOICE, BY THE WAY. UNLIKE SOMEBODY ELSE WERE THEY SAID YOU COULD HAVE YOUR DOCTOR AND YOU CAN HAVE YOUR PLAN 28 TIMES. THAT DIDN’T WORK OUT TOO WELL. YOU CAN SEE A DOCTOR, WE PAY THE BILL AND IT HAS BEEN AN INCREDIBLE THING. WHAT IS HAPPENING AT THE V.A. HAS BEEN REALLY SOMETHING SPECIAL. YOU JUST SEE IT. ALL YOU USED TO SEE AND READ ABOUT WAS HOW BAD THE V.A. WAS RUN, AND I DON’T HEAR THE STORIES ANYMORE. PEOPLE WILL RUN OUT AND START TRYING TO FIND SOMEBODY. WHO IS UNHAPPY? THOUSANDS AND HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS, PLEASE CALL US IMMEDIATELY AND THAT IS THE PROBLEM. PEOPLE ARE REALLY HAPPY. WHAT WE HAVE DONE THERE IS INCREDIBLE.

WE ACHIEVED RECORD FUNDING TO RESTORE THE HEIGHT OF THE AMERICAN MILITARY, $700 MILLION LAST YEAR, AND NOW JUST TO PROVE , THANK YOU VERY MUCH, $700 BILLION NEXT YEAR, MORE MONEY BY FAR THAN EVER BEFORE. [APPLAUSE] AND REMEMBER THAT IS ALL MONEY THAT IS BUILT IN THE USA. WE BUILD IT RIGHT HERE. AMERICA IS RESPECTED AGAIN. OUR NATION IS STRONGER TODAY THAN EVER BEFORE. WE HAVE THE GREATEST EQUIPMENT. WE HAVE PEOPLE WITH SPIRITS LIKE THEY HAVE NOT HAD. WE HAVE THE GREATEST EQUIPMENT. OUR EQUIPMENT 2.5 YEARS AGO WAS OLD AND TIRED, AMMUNITION WAS LOW, OUR PLANES DID NOT FLY WELL OR AT ALL. NOW WE HAVE BEAUTIFUL NEW PLANES AND JETS AND FIGHTER JETS AND BOMBERS, AND WE HAVE HOPEFULLY EVERYTHING — HOPEFULLY WE DON’T HAVE TO USE THEM MUCH OR AT ALL BUT WE HAVE THE GREATEST MILITARY WE HAVE EVER HAD. [APPLAUSE]

AND TOGETHER, SO IMPORTANTLY WE ENDED THE LAST ADMINISTRATION ‘S HEARTLESS WAR ON AMERICAN ENERGY FOR ALL THE FOLKS IN TEXAS. YOU ARE HAPPY, PLENTY OF OTHER PLACES BUT YOU ARE HAPPY. THE U.S. IS THE NUMBER ONE ENERGY PRODUCER ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD BY FAR. [APPLAUSE] FOR THE FIRST TIME IN MORE THAN 60 YEARS, WE ARE NOW A NET EXPORTER OF AMERICAN NATURAL GAS. [APPLAUSE] WE ARE ENDING DECADES OF FOREIGN ENERGY RELIANCE TO UNLEASH THE BLESSINGS OF AMERICAN ENERGY INDEPENDENCE. WE ARE REALLY, IF YOU LOOK AT WHAT IS GOING ON IN CERTAIN COUNTRIES IN THE MIDDLE EAST, AND YOU LOOK AT THE STREETS, AND YOU SEE THE SHIPS — STRAITS, AND YOU SEE THE SHIPS BEING TAKEN AWAY — IRAN IS MUCH DIFFERENT. NUMBER ONE, THEY WOULD NOT TAKE THEM. THEY BETTER NOT. NUMBER TWO WE DON’T HAVE MANY THERE. WE USED TO BE FLOODED. WE USED TO GET EVERYTHING THERE. NOW IT IS A WHOLE DIFFERENT STORY. WE ARE VERY ENERGY INDEPENDENT.

WE HAVE INVESTED BILLIONS OF DOLLARS TO COMBINE — COMBAT THE OPIOID CRISIS AND THOSE STRUGGLING WITH ADDICTION TO FIND ACCESS TO TREATMENT, EDUCATION AND EMPLOYMENT, TREMENDOUS PROBLEM. WE HAVE HAD SUCCESS WITH OPIOIDS , NOT THAT IT GOES AWAY BUT LOOKING VERY STRONGLY FOR SOMETHING THAT CAN REALLY TAKE AWAY THE PAIN WITHOUT BEING ADDICTIVE AND WE ARE GETTING CLOSE. THIS IS A — PEOPLE GO INTO THE HOSPITAL FOR A WEEK AND COME OUT DRUG ADDICTS. THEY COME OUT ADDICTED. IT IS A TERRIBLE THING BUT WE ARE WORKING HARD AND GETTING CLOSE, FINDING A PAINKILLER THAT IS NOT ADDICTIVE. FOR THE FIRST TIME IN THREE DECADES DRUG OVERDOSE DEATHS HAVE DECLINED OVER 30 YEARS. [APPLAUSE]

FIRST TIME. THANKS TO THE ENTIRE REPUBLICAN TEAM IN CONGRESS, WE PASSED BIGGEST TAX CUT AND REFORM IN AMERICAN HISTORY. [APPLAUSE] AND WE ARE NOW WORKING ON A MIDDLE TAX, A TAX CUT FOR THE MIDDLE INCOME PEOPLE THAT IS GOING TO BE VERY INSPIRATIONAL. IT IS GOING TO BE SOMETHING THAT I THINK IS WHAT EVERYONE IS LOOKING FOR. WE WILL BE ANNOUNCING IT IN THE NEXT YEAR. IT WILL BE A VERY SUBSTANTIAL TAX CUT FOR MIDDLE INCOME FOLKS WHO WORKED SO HARD. WE WILL WORK ON IT ALTOGETHER. YOU SEE WHAT THE OTHER TAX CUT HAS DONE AND FRANKLY I AM NOT SURE BUT I WOULD SAY THE REGULATION CUTS, THE MASSIVE CUTS IN REGULATION, STILL HAVE PLENTY OF REGULATION BUT THE MASSIVE CUTS EQUAL THE TAX CUTS IN TERMS OF JOBS AND AND BUSINESSES. THE COMBINATION OF EVERYTHING WORKED BECAUSE WE PROBABLY HAVE RIGHT NOW THE STRONGEST ECONOMY IN THE HISTORY OF OUR NATION. [APPLAUSE]

AND WHAT THE MEDIA IS TRYING — THEY WANT A RECESSION SO BADLY. THE WORD, AND EVERY TIME THEY GO AFTER US, THE MARKET GOES UP. YOU HAVE GOT TO EXPLAIN THIS TO ME. WE ARE VERY CLOSE TO HAVING ANOTHER STOCK MARKET RECORD. WENT UP AGAIN TODAY. I THINK IT IS OVER 100 RECORDS AREA DAYS WHERE THE STOCK MARKET HIT IN THE HISTORY OF OUR COUNTRY ALL-TIME HIGHS. IT IS OVER 100. I WILL GET THE EXACT NUMBER BUT IT IS REALLY SOMETHING. THREE WEEKS AGO IF YOU LISTENED IT WAS LIKE DOOM AND GLOOM. I DON’T THINK THEY BELIEVED IT, BUT THAT IS OK.

WE ARE DOING VERY WELL WITH CHINA. CHINA WOULD LIKE TO DO SOMETHING. WE ARE TAKING IN BILLIONS AND BILLIONS OF TARIFFS AND THEY ARE EATING THE COST. IT IS NOT BEING BORNE VERY MUCH BY US. BILLIONS AND BILLIONS, MONEY FLOWING IN. WE NEVER HAVE TAKEN $.10 FROM CHINA. SUPPLY CHAINS ARE BEING BROKEN LIKE TOYS AND PEOPLE ARE LEAVING AND MILLIONS OF JOBS IN CHINA ARE BEING LOST. WE DON’T WANT THAT BUT WE WANT A FAIR DEAL. WE HAVE LOWERED OUR BUSINESS TAX FOR ONE OF THE HIGHEST IN THE WORLD TO ONE OF THE MOST COMPETITIVE. NEARLY $1 TRILLION HAVE RETURNED TO OUR SHORES, $1 TRILLION, PART OF WHAT WE DID.

WE DOUBLED THE CHILD TAX CREDIT. [APPLAUSE] THANK YOU TO A NUMBER OF PEOPLE FOR THAT, BUT ESPECIALLY THE IVANKA TRUMP. IT WAS IMPORTANT TO HER THAT SHE UNDERSTOOD JARON IS HERE, BUT SHE UNDERSTOOD WHAT THAT MEANT. SHE WORKED SO HARD. WE CREATED OPPORTUNITY ZONES TO REVITALIZE THE DISTRESSED COMMUNITIES. TIM SCOTT WAS FANTASTIC AND MANY OTHER SENATORS WHO WORKED HARD ON THAT BUT TIM SCOTT IN PARTICULAR REALLY WORKED HARD, SOUTH CAROLINA AND WE THANK TIM. THEY ARE DOING NUMBERS NOBODY BELIEVED POSSIBLE. SO MUCH MONEY IS GOING INTO AREAS THAT HAVE NEVER SEEN MONEY IN A LONG TIME.

WE ELIMINATED OBAMACARE’S CRUEL AND UNPOPULAR INDIVIDUAL MANDATE. [APPLAUSE]

SINCE OUR ELECTION IN 2016, WE HAVE CREATED 6 MILLION NEW JOBS INCLUDING ONE MILLION MANUFACTURING, ENERGY AND CONSTRUCTION JOBS. REMEMBER WHEN PRESIDENT OBAMA SAID FORGET MANUFACTURING, NOT GOING TO HAPPEN. WE HAVE ALMOST 600,000 IN TERMS OF MANUFACTURING JOBS AND NOBODY THOUGHT THAT WAS POSSIBLE. AS SOON AS WE GET THE TRADE STUFF PERFECT THE WAY WE WANT IT, ONLY SIGN IT WHEN IT IS REALLY GOOD, WE DO UNTIL YOU SEE WHAT HAPPENS WITH THIS ECONOMY. WE ARE READY TO REALLY ROCK IT EVEN MORE. YOU GO FROM ELECTION NIGHT, THE DAY AFTER, NOVEMBER NINE, AND YOU LOOK AT THE NUMBERS ON STOCK MARKETS, OVER 50%, THROUGH ONE CASE ARE — 401K’S ARE THROUGH THE ROOF. 72%, WHATEVER IT MAY BE, NUMBERS THEY HAVE NEVER HAD BEFORE, NO ONE SEEN ANYTHING LIKE IT.

THIS IS WHEN WE ARE FIGHTING PEOPLE ON TRADE, WOULD WE HAVE THIS GREAT MILITARY AND WE DEFEND COUNTRIES THAT ARE IMMENSELY WEALTHY AND THEY DON’T HELP US OUT. THEY DON’T PAY US FOR ALMOST ANYTHING. WE ARE TALKING TO THOSE COUNTRIES. THEY ARE OUR FRIENDS AND ALLIES. SOMETIMES OUR ALLIES TREAT US WORSE, BUT WE DON’T LET THAT HAPPEN. TAKES A LITTLE GETTING USED TO BECAUSE NO ONE HAS EVER ASKED THEM. WE ARE DEFENDING YOUR COUNTRY, YOU ARE RICH AS CAN BE, YOU HAVE TO PAY A LITTLE BIT. THEY GO NO. NO. MR. PRESIDENT, GOT TO PAY. YOU GOT TO PAY. THE ANSWER IS, BUT NOBODY HAS EVER ASKED US TO DO THAT. THAT IS WHY I AM DIFFERENT. [APPLAUSE] I SAY TELL ME WHY WE ARE DEFENDING YOU FOR FREE. WHY A TINY FRACTION OF WHAT IT COSTS, THEN YOU TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE UNITED STATES FOR MANY YEARS ON TRADE. SO WE GET KILLED WITH TRADE, WE GET KILLED DEFENDING YOUR NATION. TELL ME, MR. PRESIDENT, MR. PRIME MINISTER, KING OR QUEEN, WHY ARE WE PROTECTING YOUR COUNTRY, AND THEY GO, BUT NOBODY HAS EVER ASKED ME THAT. THEY CAN’T THINK OF AN ANSWER. THE ONLY THING THEY SAY ALL THE TIME, BECAUSE IT HAS ALWAYS BEEN THAT WAY. I SAY IT WILL NOT BE THAT WAY ANY LONGER. YOU GOT TO PAY. IT IS TRUE. [APPLAUSE] NOT GOING TO BE THAT WAY ANY LONGER.

LAST MONTH WE WERE 600,000 PEOPLE JOINED OUR WORKFORCE FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER, MOST NEW HIRES ARE MINORITIES AND WOMEN. NOBODY KNOWS THAT BECAUSE THE MEDIA DOESN’T GET THAT ACROSS. [APPLAUSE] MORE THAN 7 MILLION AMERICANS HAVE BEEN LIFTED OFF OF FOOD STAMPS AND WE NOW HAVE A 13 STRAIGHT MONTHS OF WAGE GAINS OF AT LEAST 3%. [APPLAUSE] THINK OF THAT. DURING THE CAMPAIGN I USED TO SAY PEOPLE WOULD GO BACK 21 YEARS, WHEN I WAS RUNNING, AND THEY MADE 21 — MORE MONEY YEARS AGO THAT THEY WERE MAKING 2.5 YEARS AGO. THEY WERE MAKING MORE MONEY. ETIHAD TWO JOBS AND EVEN THREE JOBS. NOT ANYMORE. AFRICAN-AMERICAN, HISPANIC AMERICAN UNEMPLOYMENT HAVE REACHED THE LOWEST RATE EVER RECORDED IN THE HISTORY OF OUR COUNTRY. [APPLAUSE] I WONDER IF THAT WILL BE MENTIONED DURING THE DEBATE. I DON’T KNOW. I HAVE A FEELING — KEVIN, YOU THINK THEY WILL BE TALKING ABOUT THAT? IT IS A GOOD DEBATE POINT. THEY HIT ME LEFT AND RIGHT, I WILL SAY AFRICAN-AMERICAN UNEMPLOYMENT IS THE LOWEST IT HAS EVER BEEN. THANK YOU VERY MUCH, GOOD LUCK. BUT ANOTHER GOOD ONE IS AFTER AFRICAN-AMERICAN AND HISPANIC AMERICAN POVERTY RATES HAVE ALSO REACHED THE ALL-TIME IN OUR HISTORY RECORD LOWS. HOW DO YOU LOSE THIS DEBATE? HOW DO YOU LOSE THIS? IT IS A TOUGH ONE TO BEAT ALSO. OUR PLEDGE TO THE WORKERS ARE SECURING COMMITMENTS FOR 13 MILLION EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES FOR AMERICAN CITIZENS. WE HAVE THE GREATEST COMPANIES IN THE WORLD AND THEY ARE TRAINING PEOPLE — GOVERNMENT CAN’T REALLY TRAIN THEM. WE ARE TRAINING PEOPLE THROUGH THESE PROGRAMS WHERE WE ARE GOING TO THESE — WALMART IS AN EXAMPLE AND SO MANY OTHERS. WE ARE GOING TO THE COMPANIES AND THEY ARE TAKING PEOPLE AND TRAINING THEM. NO ONE CAN TRAIN THEM, ONLY THE COMPANY ITSELF. 13 MILLION PEOPLE AND IT IS SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL TO SEE.

WE GATHER TO CELEBRATE THESE EXTRAORDINARY GAINS. WE HAVE DONE THINGS I DON’T THINK ANY ADMINISTRATION HAS COME CLOSE TO. WE HAVE DONE THINGS THAT FEW HAVE THOUGHT ABOUT DOING, BUT WE NEED TO PREPARE FOR THE COMING FIGHT BECAUSE THE TRADITIONS AND BELIEFS THAT HAVE MADE THE DREAM POSSIBLE ARE UNDER ATTACK LIKE NEVER BEFORE. YOU HAVE NEVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE IT. I HAVE NEVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE IT. HOUSE DEMOCRATS ARE PURSUING THE MOST RADICAL FAR-LEFT PROGRAM EVER PUT FORWARD IN THAT HISTORIC CHAMBER.

IT IS THE DEMOCRATS AND IT IS THE MEDIA. WE ARE FIGHTING TWO BATTLES. THE DEMOCRATS AND THE MEDIA. IT IS AS IF THEY ARE ONE BECAUSE THEY ARE ONE. THEY ARE WORKING TOGETHER. THEY ARE COLLUDING AND THEY ARE EXTRACTING. — ABSTRACT — THEY ARE OBST RUCTING. WITH THE GRIM SPECTER OF SOCIALISM DESCENDING ON THE DEMOCRAT PARTY IT IS UP TO ALL OF US TO ENSURE THE SURVIVAL OF AMERICAN LIBERTY. WE HAVE A VERY BIG TASK. PEOPLE SAY YOU ARE GOING TO BEAT THIS ONE OR THAT ONE, THEY ARE SO FAR-LEFT. IT IS HARD TO BEAT A SOCIALIST WHEN YOU HAVE A WEALTHY COUNTRY. WE HAVE A WEALTHY COUNTRY. WHEN THEY SAY WE WILL GIVE AWAY YOUR HEALTH CARE, WE WILL DO FREE EDUCATION, WE WILL CUT STUDENT LOAN DEBT DOWN TO NOTHING, $1.6 TRILLION OUT THE WINDOW, EVERYTHING IS GIVEN AWAY, THEN THEY SAY WE DON’T HAVE TO RAISE YOUR TAXES — IF YOU PAY FIVE TIMES WHAT PEOPLE ARE PAYING YOU WOULD NOT COME CLOSE.

WE ARE WORKING HARD ON A PLACE CALLED VENEZUELA. 15 YEARS AGO IT WAS ONE OF THE WEALTHIEST AND TODAY THEY DON’T HAVE FOOD OR WATER OR ANYTHING. THEY DON’T HAVE ANYTHING. WE ARE SENDING THINGS TO HELP THEM ON A HUMANITARIAN BASIS AND WE ARE WORKING WITH COLUMBIA AND OTHER NATIONS TO HELP THE PEOPLE THAT HAVE BEEN ABLE TO ESSENTIALLY ESCAPE BUT THAT WAS SOCIALISM. LOOK WHAT HAPPENED TO THEM IN A SHORT TIME. ISSUE AFTER ISSUE AMERICANS MUST CHOOSE BETWEEN FUNDAMENTALLY DIFFERENT VISIONS THAT WILL DEFINE OUR NATION FOR MANY GENERATIONS TO COME. MORE THAN 130 DEMOCRATS IN CONGRESS HAVE SIGNED UP FOR THE BERNIE SANDERS TOTAL GOVERNMENT TAKEOVER OF HEALTH CARE. CRAZY BERNIE. HE IS A CRAZY GUY. WHEN FRENCH — WHICH WOULD DRAMATICALLY RAISE MIDDLE-CLASS TAXES, ELIMINATE PRIVATE HEALTH INSURANCE FOR 180 MILLION AMERICANS AND DESTROY MEDICARE FOREVER. REPUBLICANS WILL ALWAYS PROTECT MEDICARE FOR OUR GREAT SENIORS WHO EARNED IT AND PAID FOR IT, AND WE WILL ALWAYS PROTECT PATIENTS WITH PRE-EXISTING CONDITIONS. [APPLAUSE]

228 HOUSE DEMOCRATS VOTED TO PUT AMERICA BACK INTO THE DISASTROUS PARIS CLIMATE ACCORD. HOW IS THAT WORKING OUT FOR PARIS? THE YELLOW VESTS. THEY DIDN’T LIKE ALL OF THAT MONEY BEING SENT TO PEOPLE THAT THEY HAD NEVER HEARD OF THE COUNTRY FROM WHICH THEY CAME, AND HASN’T BEEN WORKING OUT WELL BUT THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN A DISASTER FOR US. IT WOULD HAVE COST US A TREMENDOUS FORTUNE. THEY WERE GOING TO TAKE AWAY OUR WEALTH AND SAY WE CAN’T DO CERTAIN BUSINESSES. WE CAN’T TAKE NEW ORLEANS GAS. WE CAN’T DO ANYTHING. THIS WOULD HAPPEN ONE OF THE GREAT TRAVESTY.

THAT AND THE CLEAN WATERS ACT DIDN’T GIVE YOU — TODAY WE HAVE THE CLEANEST AIR, THE CLEANEST WATER WE HAVE EVER HAD IN THE HISTORY OF OUR COUNTRY. [APPLAUSE] JUST FOR THE PRESS BECAUSE THEY WILL GET ME, LET’S SAY OVER THE LAST 25 YEARS. I WOULD SAY THE FIRST FEW YEARS THEY HAD CLEANER AIR AND WATER BECAUSE THERE WAS NOBODY HERE. I HAVE TO BE ACCURATE BUT THEY WILL NOT PUT IT ON, THEY WON’T PUT THE SECOND PART ON. THEY WON’T PUT THE EXPLANATION ON. WE HAVE CLEAN AIR AND WATER. THE PARIS ACCORDS WOULD DO NOTHING TO IMPROVE OUR ENVIRONMENT. IT WOULD ONLY PUNISH OUR COUNTRY WHILE FOREIGN PEOPLE OPERATE WITH IMPUNITY. YOU LOOK AT CHINA, INDIA, RUSSIA AND OTHER PLACES, SMOKESTACKS POURING OUT, EVERYTHING IS POURING OUT.

WE ARE GOING TO BE CLEAN, BUT ISN’T IT SORT OF NAIVE — THEN THEY TALK ABOUT PLASTIC STRAWS. WHAT ABOUT THE PLATE, WHAT ABOUT THE WRAPPER MADE OUT A MUCH TOUGHER PLASTIC? WE HAVE NOT GOTTEN TO THAT. JUST STRAWS. SOME DAY YOU WILL EXPLAIN THAT TO ME, LOUIS. YOU ARE A BIG ENVIRONMENTALIST. CAN YOU EXPLAIN THE STRAW? THEY CAN’T EXPLAIN IT. WE DID A COUPLE OF THINGS. WE ARE WORKING ON CARS BECAUSE FOR A VIRTUALLY INSIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF ENERGY WILL BE ABLE TO PRODUCE CARS THAT ARE SUBSTANTIAL BY $300,000 OR SO CHEAPER, LESS EXPENSIVE, MUCH SAFER, BECAUSE THE HEAVIER — THEY ARE HEAVIER, STRONGER, NOT MADE OF PAPIER-MACHE. HEAVY, STRONG AND THEY WILL COST A LOT LESS MONEY.

PEOPLE SAID WHAT IS WITH THE LIGHTBULB? HERE IS A STORY. I LOOKED AT IT. THE ONE WE ARE BEING FORCED TO USE — NUMBER ONE TO ME MOST IMPORTANTLY, THE LIGHT’S NO GOOD. I ALWAYS LOOK ORANGE, AND SO DO YOU. THE LIGHT IS THE WORST. NUMBER TWO IT IS MANY TIMES MORE EXPENSIVE THAN THAT OLD INCANDESCENT BULB THAT WORKED VERY WELL AND VERY IMPORTANTLY I DON’T KNOW IF YOU KNOW THIS, THEY HAVE WARNINGS. IF IT BREAKS, IT IS CONSIDERED A HAZARDOUS WASTE. IT IS GASES INSIDE. READ WHAT THEY SAY. IF IT BREAKS, BRING IT TO YOUR LOCAL WHATEVER, HAVE IT WRAPPED — WHAT ARE WE DOING? I SAID TO ONE OF THE PEOPLE TODAY, THEY BREAK A LOT, SO WHAT DO THEY DO — THEY THROW THEM AWAY. THEY CALL IT HAZARDOUS WASTE, BUT MANY TIMES MORE TO EXPENSIVE — IT IS MANY TIMES MORE EXPENSIVE AND THE LIGHT IS NOT AS GOOD. WE ARE GOING TO SELL THAT BUT WE ARE GOING TO SELL INCANDESCENT BULBS AND PEOPLE ARE HAPPY, IT HAS BEEN AMAZING. [APPLAUSE] PEOPLE DON’T TELL YOU WHY. THEY SAY HE IS GETTING RID OF AN ENERGY-EFFICIENT BALL. THEY DON’T TELL YOU ABOUT THE DANGERS OF THE BALD AND THE COST OF THAT BOLD. OVER 100 DEMOCRATS SIGNED UP TO SUPPORT THE $100 TRILLION GREEN NEW DEAL. THAT IS A BEAUTY. NO MORE COWS, NO MORE PLANES, I GUESS NO MORE PEOPLE. BECAUSE KEVIN [McCarthy] IS JUST LIKE A COW , JUST SMALLER. I HAD TO PICK SOMEBODY AND I LOOKED AT THAT BEAUTIFUL, POLITICAL FACE OF YOURS. A LITTLE TRUTH TO THAT.

I SEE HARDENED DEMOCRATS POLITICIANS THAT — I SAY IT IS INCREDIBLE. THEY ARE STANDING BEHIND AOC. I CALL HER CORTEZ. YOU DON’T HAVE TIME TO GO THROUGH THE WHOLE NAME. HER NAME IS CORTEZ. I CALLED HER AOC AND THE OTHERS AOC PLUS THREE. AOC PLUS THREE. THAT IS THE DEFINITION. I SEE WHAT SHE IS TALKING, SHE IS GOING THROUGH THIS DEAL THAT IS SO INSANE BUT I DON’T WANT TO TALK ABOUT IT.

I HIT POCAHONTAS TOO EARLY. I THOUGHT SHE WAS GOD. SHE HAS EMERGED ON THE ASHES AND NOW IT LOOKS LIKE SHE COULD BEAT SLEEPY JOE. HE HAS NO IDEA WHAT HE IS DOING OR SAYING. PRESIDENT XI OF CHINA, HE IS TOUGH. HE IS A. KIND OF A GUY. GREAT GUY BUT HE IS DYING TO SEE — HE WANTS SLEEPY JOE. IMAGINE THIS, THOSE GUYS IN A ROOM. HERE IS XI. HI. HERE IS SLEEPY JOE. WHERE AM I, WHERE AM I? JUST SIGN HERE. LIKE YOU GUYS HAVE BEEN DOING THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS, LET US TAKE MONEY OUT OF YOUR ACCOUNT AND KEEP REBUILDING CHINA WITH AMERICA’S MONEY. A LOT OF THINGS ARE STOPPING THAT ARE BAD, FOOLISH AND CRAZY.

BUT WE WON’T LET DEMOCRATS OBLITERATE DOMESTIC INDUSTRY AND CRIPPLE WORKING-CLASS FAMILIES WITH SKYHIGH ENERGY PRICES. DEMOCRATS ARE PROPOSING TO PACK THE COURTS WITH LAWS AND ACTIVIST JUDGES. LOOK AT THESE. DOING WELL, LATELY WE ARE DOING WELL. [APPLAUSE] AND TODAY I SIGNED THE 150TH JUDGE, FEDERAL JUDGE. [APPLAUSE] THINK OF IT, 150 INCLUDING COURT OF APPEALS IN TWO GREAT SUPREME COURT JUSTICES. THINK ABOUT IT. [APPLAUSE]

AND YESTERDAY, COINCIDENTLY, WE JUST WON THE ASYLUM CASE, THE BIG ONE, THE BIG ONE. WE WON IT IN A VOTE OF 7-2 SO IT WASN’T A VERY CLOSE ONE. AND TO ME, SO IMPORTANTLY, BECAUSE WE WANT TO BUILD THAT WALL, WE ARE BUILDING THAT WALL BECAUSE THREE MONTHS AGO WE GOT THE CASE ON THE WALL. THAT WALL IS BEING BUILT AND IT IS BEING BUILT RAPIDLY, AND WE HOPE TO HAVE AS MUCH AS 500 MILES OF WALL BUILT BY THE END OF NEXT YEAR, 500 MILES. THAT IS A LOT. THAT IS ABOUT WHAT WE WANT. AND THAT IS BEING BUILT DESPITE THE MOST OBSTRUCTIVE GROUP OF PEOPLE I HAVE EVER SEEN. IF THEY WANT TO RUN THEIR CAMPAIGN WITH OPEN BORDERS, THEY WANT TO RUN THEIR CAMPAIGN ON SOME OF THE THINGS THEY ARE SAYING, GREEN NEW DEAL AND ALL IT ENTAILS, I SAY LET THEM GO. DON’T CRITICIZE TOO MUCH, PLEASE.

ONE THING I HAVE LEARNED ABOUT POLITICS, YOU CAN SAY SOMETHING ONE DAY BUT IS ABSOLUTELY INSANE , LIKE THEY ARE SAYING, THEN TWO WEEKS LATER SAY THE OPPOSITE AND NO ONE WILL EVER CALL YOU ON IT. YOU ARE IN THE CRAZIEST BUSINESS I HAVE EVER SEEN. YOU CAN DO WHATEVER YOU WANT AND TWO WEEKS LATER THEY WILL SAY SOMETHING DIFFERENT. I WANT TO BRING THEM DOWN THE PIKE BEFORE WE START CRITICIZING THE GREEN NEW DEAL. I WANT TO SAY BECAUSE WE ARE ON TELEVISION, EVEN THOUGH I GUESS THEY SHOULD BE WATCHING THE DEBATE BUT PROBABLY WATCHING US — WE HAVE A LOT. SEE THOSE CAMERAS? WE KICKED REPORTERS OUT BUT THOSE CAMERAS, WE ARE ON LIVE. THE GREEN NEW DEAL, WE WANT THAT THING TO GO AS LONG AS IT CAN BECAUSE ANYONE THAT CAN WIN OFFICE PROMOTING THE GREEN NEW DEAL, THEY DESERVE TO WIN. THEY GOT TO BE REALLY GOOD AND HAVE THE GREATEST LINE OF CRAP ANYBODY HAS EVER HAD IN THE HISTORY OF POLITICS. THEIR DELIVERY HAS TO BE PERFECT, SOMETIMES — LOUSY POLITICIANS, BUT THEY HAVE ONE THING THAT IS INCREDIBLE, THEY STICK TOGETHER. YOU PEOPLE HAVE TO STICK TOGETHER. WE HAVE MORE SPIRIT WITH OUR CONGRESS MEN AND WOMEN THAN WE HAVE EVER HAD THAT I SEE. YOU ARE IN A SMALL — JUST A LITTLE SHORT OF TAKING THE MAJORITY. YOU ARE GOING TO TAKE IT. YOU ARE GOING TO TAKE THE MAJORITY. [APPLAUSE]

AND DAN, DAN BISHOP, AND CRAIG MURPHY, THEY WILL TELL YOU BECAUSE THEY SAW WHAT HAPPENED. WE WENT INTO THOSE COMMUNITIES AND THEY WENT OUT TO VOTE LIKE NO ONE HAS EVER SEEN. I WILL STAFF IN EVERY COMMUNITY I CAN. WE WILL MAKE A LIST — I GOT A LOT OF ENERGY. YOU DON’T HAVE THE ENERGY, YOU CAN FORGET THAT ONE. EVERY SAYS I GOT TO REST FOR A COUPLE OF WEEKS AFTER TWO STOPS. LET ME REST. SHE DID NOT LIKE STAIRS, SHE DID NOT LIKE AIRPLANES, SHE DID NOT LIKE A LOT. SHE SAID I DON’T HAVE TO GO TO WISCONSIN TO CAMPAIGN. HER HUSBAND WAS A PRO. I SAW WHAT THEY WERE DOING IN WISCONSIN, I DON’T LIKE IT. A LOT OF THOSE TRUMP AND TRUMP HENCE SIGNS, A LOT OF THEM. I DON’T LIKE IT. DON’T WORRY ABOUT IT, DARLING. WISCONSIN WILL BE FINE. THE WINNER OF WISCONSIN IS DONALD TRUMP. A LOT OF SIGNS, SHE SAID. IN MICHIGAN THERE WERE A LOT OF SIGNS IN THE LONG. SIGNS ALL OVER THE PLACE. GOT TO GO BACK TO MICHIGAN MORE OFTEN. MICHIGAN HASN’T BEEN WON FOR DECADES BY A REPUBLICAN. MY PEOPLE TELL ME GREAT. I DON’T KNOW WHO HER PEOPLE WERE. IF THEY EVER THREATEN ME WITH THAT THAT I COLLUDED WITH HER PEOPLE THAT I COULD UNDERSTAND. THAT I COULD. BECAUSE THEY TOLD HER DON’T GO BACK TO MICHIGAN. DON’T GO BACK. DONALD TRUMP HAS WON THE GREAT STATE OF MICHIGAN. DONALD TRUMP HAS WON THE GREAT STATE OF PENNSYLVANIA, GREAT STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA, THE GREAT STATE OF FLORIDA, THE GREAT STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA. REMEMBER THEY SAID WE WOULD LOSE TEXAS. THEY DIDN’T SAY THAT. THEY ARE CROOKED AS HELL, BUT THEY DID SAY TEXAS IS IN PLAY. BEING SOMEWHAT NEW TO THE GAME, I SAID LET ME ASK YOU A QUESTION. WHAT DOES IT MEAN AND THEY SAY IT IS IN PLAY? IT IS TOO CLOSE TO CALL. I AM SIX OR SEVEN MONTHS AT THIS THING. TEXAS IS IN PLAY. I WENT TO MAKE A SPEECH, WE HAD A LINE MILES LONG. EVERYBODY WAS TELLING ME A GREAT GUY GOT INTO TEXAS, WEARING HIS BIG COWBOY HAT, I WISH WE COULD WEAR THEM — NO ONE WOULD LOOK AT MY HAIR AND CRITICIZE. YOU EVER NOTICE IN TEXAS THEY WEAR THE HAT — I WOULD DO THAT. I WOULDN’T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT HAIRSPRAY OR MY HAIR BLOWING, BEAUTIFULLY BLOWING IN THE WIND. THIS GUY IS ON TELEVISION, STRONG TEXAS GUY AND THEY ASK HIM ABOUT THE RACE BEING SO CLOSE LIKE FIVE MONTHS BEFORE THE ELECTION. HE SAID I DON’T KNOW WHERE YOU COME FROM BUT I COME FROM TEXAS. ONE OF THE THINGS I WILL TELL YOU FOR REAL, THIS RACE IS NOT CLOSE AT ALL. TRUMP IS GOING TO WIN BY A LOT. GET TO THE EVENING AND THEY ARE SAYING TEXAS IS IN PLAY, IT IS TOO CLOSE. THE POLLS CLOSE AT 8:00. UNLESS YOU HAVE A HUGE COMMANDING LEAD — IT TAKES AN HOUR OR THREE BEFORE THEY SAY WHO WON. THE POLLS HAVE CLOSED, DONALD TRUMP HAS WON THE STATE OF TEXAS. LIKE SIX MONTHS, THEN TODAY I HEARD IT AGAIN.

I THINK IT WAS BUTTIGIEG. THEY SAID — BOOT AND THEN EDGE — NO ONE CAN PRONOUNCE HIS LAST NAME. NOBODY. THE JUDGE. THEY SAY BUTTIGIEG AND TRUMP. WHAT I’VE DONE FOR ENERGY, IF ANYONE BEAT ME IN TEXAS — I DON’T THINK ROCKEFELLER COULD BEAT THE IN TEXAS. THE REAL ROCKEFELLER, THE FIRST ROCKEFELLER. HE WOULD HAVE A HARD TIME. THEY SAID BUTTIGIEG — HE IS DOING A ROTTEN JOB RUNNING HIS OWN CITY. LOUSY JOB. BUT THEY SAY BUTTIGIEG IS TWO POINTS UP IN THE STATE OF TEXAS AGAINST PRESIDENT TRUMP. I SAID I DON’T THINK SO. I DON’T THINK SO. I DON’T WORRY ABOUT THAT TOO MUCH. YOU THINK BUTTIGIEG’S WINNING TEXAS? I HAVE HAD HIM UP TO HEAR. — HERE.

DEMOCRATS CARE MORE ABOUT ILLEGAL ALIENS AND THEIR OWN CONSTITUENTS. REPUBLICANS KNOW OUR DUTY IS TO AMERICAN CITIZENS. DEMOCRATS VOTED AGAINST’KATES LAW — AGAINST KATES’S LAW AND THE CHARGE ABOUT GUN POSSESSION WHICH WAS LIKE — GOT AWAY WITH MURDER, CAN YOU IMAGINE? IT IS NOT OVER YET. WHAT A HORRIBLE THING TO LACE IN SAN FRANCISCO, HOLDING HER OTHERS HAND AND SAYING, WHAT HAPPENED, CAN YOU IMAGINE THE SHOCK OF IT? THAT IS INCREDIBLE. THIS LOW LIFE GETS OUT. GETS OUT. PEOPLE ALL OVER THE WORLD SEE THAT AND SAY WHAT IS WRONG WITH UNITED STATES OF AMERICA WHEN THEY SEE THAT?

LAST YEAR MORE THAN 80% OF HOUSE DEMOCRATS REFUSED TO SUPPORT OUR HEROES, ICE AND NEARLY EVERY HOUSE TO MCGRATH VOTED IN FAVOR OF SANCTUARY CITIES ALLOWING ILLEGAL ALIENS WITH SEVERE CRIMINAL RECORDS TO TERRORIZE INNOCENT COMMUNITIES AND THESE GUYS WERE TREMENDOUSLY SUCCESSFUL IN NORTH CAROLINA BECAUSE ALL WE KEPT DOING WAS SAYING THE GOVERNOR AND ALL OF THESE DEMOCRATS, RIGHT, ALL OF THE DEMOCRATS WANT SANCTUARY CITIES AND THEY LET SOMEBODY OUT FAIRLY RECENTLY AND THAT SOMEBODY WREAKED HAVOC. I WILL TELL YOU, IT WAS SO HORRIBLE. INSTEAD OF TAKING HIM, GETTING HIM TO ICE, BUT I WILL TELL YOU THE FOLKS AT ICE AND BORDER PATROL AND LAW ENFORCEMENT, THEY ARE NOT TREATED PROPERLY AND WE RESPECT THEM, MOST AMERICANS REALLY RESPECT THEM. [APPLAUSE] YOU KNOW WE HAVE MS 13, THE TOUGHEST PEOPLE YOU HAVE EVER SEEN BUT NOT AS TOUGH AS ICE. ICE RUNS IN TO THEIR NESTS. THEY CALL THAT A NEST. THEY DON’T LIKE GUNS BECAUSE THEY ARE NOT PAID FOR IN A. THEY TAKE YOUNG PEOPLE, SLICE THEM UP, BEAUTIFUL, YOUNG AND IN A CASE, 16-YEAR-OLD YOUNG GIRLS WALKING HOME FROM SCHOOL. THEY TOOK THEM AND SLICED THEM UP BECAUSE IT WAS MORE PAINFUL. ANIMALS. NANCY COLLUSIVE ATTACKED ME BECAUSE I CALLED THEM ANIMALS. SHE SAID THEY ARE NOT ANIMALS, THEY ARE HUMAN BEINGS. I DON’T THINK SO. ICE WILL GO INTO A NEST. THEY CALL IT A NEST. WE HAVE A LOT OF THEM CONGREGATED, UP TO NO GOOD AND ICE WILL RUN INTO THE NEST LIKE IT IS, LIKE THEY ARE HAVING BREAKFAST WITH THEIR FAMILY MONDAY MORNING. THEY ARE TOUGH AND THEY ARE PATRIOTS AND LOVE OUR COUNTRY AND WE ARE THROWING OUT MS 13 BY THE THOUSANDS. WE ARE GETTING THEM OUT OF OUR COUNTRY. [APPLAUSE]

AND EVEN TOUGH SHERIFFS SAY, BETTER THAN THEY DO IT. I AGREE WITH THEM, BETTER THAN THEY DO IT, THE SHERIFFS AGREE BUT THEY SAY BETTER THAT THEY DO IT. THEN THE DEMOCRATS WANT TO KEEP THEM AROUND AND ACTUALLY TAKE CARE OF THEM AND PROTECT THEM. I DON’T KNOW, TELL ME IF IT IS GOOD POLITICS AND I DON’T CARE ABOUT THE POLITICS. IT IS SO BAD FOR OUR COUNTRY BUT IF YOU TOLD ME YOU COULD WIN WITH THAT, OPEN BORDERS, — WE TAKE THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE, REALLY BAD PEOPLE. PUBLIC SERVANTS LIKE A SACRED PLEDGE TO DEFEND THE NATION AND ITS PEOPLE, POLITICIANS WHO SUPPORT SANCTUARY CITIES, HAVE FORSAKEN THE SOLEMN VOW INSTEAD OF MAKING A SHAMEFUL FACT TO SHIELD AND HARBOR CRIMINAL FEUDED — FUGITIVES. THEY WILL DO IT AT ANY COST. PEOPLE IN CALIFORNIA, THEY DON’T WANT SANCTUARY CITIES. IT IS THE POLITICIANS THAT WANT THEM. A LOT OF THE PEOPLE ARE REVOLTING. THEY DON’T WANT SANCTUARY CITIES. THEY CAN’T BE SAFE IN SANCTUARY CITIES. THEY ARE PROTECTING CRIMINALS. IN JULY, MONTGOMERY COUNTY, MARYLAND DECLARED ITSELF A SANCTUARY CITY FOR CRIMINAL ALIENS, FORCING LOCAL JAILS TO RELEASE THESE DANGEROUS INMATES INSTEAD OF SAFELY HANDING THEM OVER TO ICE. ICE WILL TAKE CARE OF THE REST. TWO MONTHS LATER EIGHT ILLEGAL ALIENS HAVE BEEN ARRESTED FOR RAPE OR SEXUAL ASSAULT OF A MINOR. LAST MONTH LOCAL OFFICIALS IN MONTGOMERY COUNTY RELEASED AND ACCUSED TERMINAL ALIEN RAPIST ONTO THE STREETS, DEFYING ICE’S POWERFUL REQUEST TO TURN THEM OVER TO THEM. HAVE IN MARCH, IN DURHAM NORTH CAROLINA A ARRESTED — A SHORT TIME LATER THAT SAME ILLEGAL ALIEN WAS CHARGED WITH MURDER OF A 19-YEAR-OLD WOMAN IN GEORGIA. THIS IS HAPPENING OVER — THESE ARE STORIES I COULD GIVE ALL DAY LONG.

I LOVE THE ANGEL MOM’S. I LOVE THOSE WOMEN. WOMEN AND FAMILIES I GOT TO KNOW A LOT OF. THEY HAVE SUFFERED. THEY ARE SCORNED BY THE RADICAL LEFT. WHO COULD SCORE AND A PERSON WHO LOST THEIR DAUGHTER, PUT IN AN ASHCAN AND BURNED? THEY FIND THE PERSON AND IS LIKE WHO CAN EVEN, WHO COULD GO THROUGH WHAT THEY HAVE? IT HAPPENS A LOT. FAR WORSE THAN WHAT I’M TELLING YOU TONIGHT, FAR WORSE. DEMOCRATS BELIEVE OUR CITIES SHOULD BE SANCTUARIES FOR VIOLENT CRIMINAL ALIENS. REPUBLICANS BELIEVE OUR CITIES SHOULD BE SANCTUARIES FOR LAW-ABIDING AMERICANS. [APPLAUSE] DEMOCRATS ALSO BELIEVE ANY ILLEGAL ALIEN WHO MERELY SETS FOOT ON U.S. SOIL SHOULD BE AUTOMATICALLY RELEASED INTO THE INTERIOR OF THE UNITED STATES AND GIVEN FREE HEALTH CARE FOR LIFE. THESE POLICIES IMPOVERISH U.S. IMMUNITY’S WHILE ENRICHING HUMAN SMUGGLERS, TRAFFICKERS AND VICIOUS CRIMINAL CARTELS.

208 HOUSE DEMOCRATS, 90% OF THE CAUCUS, VOTED AGAINST NOTIFYING ICE WHEN AN ILLEGAL ALIEN TRIES TO BUY A GUN. DEMOCRATS WANT TO CONFISCATE GUNS FROM LAW-ABIDING AMERICANS SO THEY ARE DEFENSELESS WHEN SOMEONE WALKS INTO THEIR HOUSE WITH A GUN. IT IS LIKE, WHATEVER YOU WANT. WHATEVER YOU WANT. I AM DEFENSELESS. WHATEVER YOU WANT. HOW CRAZY IS THIS? REPUBLICANS WILL FOREVER UPHOLD THE FUNDAMENTAL RIGHT TO KEEP AND BEAR ARMS. [APPLAUSE] THANK YOU. THE AGENDA OF THE DEMOCRAT PARTY IS THE DEMOLITION OF THE AMERICAN MIDDLE CLASS, BECAUSE THAT IS WHAT HAPPENS. A REPUBLICAN AGENDA IS TO MAKE OUR NEIGHBORHOODS SAFER, FAMILIES STRONGER AND OUR MIDDLE-CLASS BIGGER AND MORE PROSPEROUS THAN EVER BEFORE, AND WE ARE ON OUR WAY TO DOING IT, BUT WE HAVE TO WIN THIS NEXT ELECTION.

I SAID THE OTHER DAY, I DON’T KNOW IF ANYONE SAID IT BEFORE, SOUNDS LIKE IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN SAID MANY TIMES BEFORE BUT IT IS LIKE A PLANT. YOU GREW THE PLANT, PUT IT IN BUT IT HAS NOT REALLY GRABBED ON YET. HE WILL NOT. IT NEEDS TIME. WE NEED TIME. WE HAVE DONE TREMENDOUS CHANGES, TREMENDOUS, AND WE WILL DO OTHER CHANGES, GREAT OTHER CHANGES. WE NEED THE ADDITIONAL TIME TO LET IT GRAB ON BECAUSE THEY WILL DESTROY WHAT WE HAVE DONE. WE CAN’T LET THAT HAPPEN. YOU WON’T HAVE ENERGY, BUSINESS, JOBS, INCOME, IT WILL BE A DISASTER. YOU HAVE TO FIGHT LIKE HELL.

I TELL THE STORY OF A MAN WHO PLAYED — HATES ME, ALWAYS HATED ME AND I ALWAYS HATED HIM. CAN’T STAND THAT GUY. I MEET HIM AND HE IS WORKING WITH MY PEOPLE ON HELPING US OUT WITH FUNDRAISERS AND EVERYTHING. I SAY WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE? TRYING TO HELP YOU GET ELECTED. I SAID YOU GOT TO BE KIDDING ME. I SAID, YOU DO HAVE NO CHOICE. YOU DON’T HAVE A CHOICE. HE SAID I REALLY RESPECT WHAT YOU HAVE DONE OVER THE LAST THREE YEARS, ALMOST THREE YEARS NOW. I RESPECT YOU. IT HAS BEEN GREAT FOR BUSINESS AND JOBS. I HAVE MORE PEOPLE WORKING THAN WHEN YOU BECAME PRESIDENT AND IT IS A CREDIBLE WHAT HAS HAPPENED. FOR THE FIRST TIME IN MY LIFE I LIKED THIS GUY. TOUGH GUY. BUT NO, HE IS ONE OF MANY.

I WAS JOKING ONE-TIME, WALKED UP TO — I SAID I DON’T HAVE TO MAKE A LONG SPEECH. YOU HAVE TWO LIKE ME — WHETHER YOU LIKE ME OR NOT MAKES NO DIFFERENCE BECAUSE OUR COUNTRY WILL GO TO HELL IF ANY OF THESE PEOPLE GET IN. IT WILL GO TO HELL. I’M GOING TO LEAVE, I JOKED, THEN I CAME BACK AND TALKED BUT I SAID I WAS JOKING BUT I AM REALLY NOT. YOU HAVE NO CHOICE. WERE THE INCOME OF THE SEINE — THE SANER THEY ARE, THE WORST THEY ARE DOING. THE LEFT WILL TAKE YOUR MONEY, THEY WILL TAKE AND HURT YOUR FAMILIES. I DON’T THINK PEOPLE COULD ALLOW THAT TO HAPPEN. WE HAVE A COUNTRY THAT IS DOING I THINK BETTER THAN EVER BEFORE, THE ECONOMY THE STRONGEST IT HAS EVER BEEN, MILITARY, ALL OF THE THINGS WE HAVE DISCUSSED AND YOU HAVE TO FIGHT SO HARD THAT WE WIN THIS ELECTION.

I HAD A BIG MEETING ON ETHANOL AND THE FARMERS. IT WAS INCREDIBLE. CHUCK GRASSLEY WAS THERE AND JONI ERNST, MIKE DOWNS, A GROUP OF GREAT PEOPLE. JUST SITTING AROUND THE ROOM. BEN SASSE, WHO HAS BECOME GOOD — WE HAD ARGUMENTS BEFORE BUT DOESN’T MATTER, BEN SASSE WAS THERE. WE HAD A GREAT GROUP OF PEOPLE. AS WE WERE SITTING IN THE OVAL OFFICE TALKING ABOUT FARMERS, I REALIZED ALL OF THESE PEOPLE HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE WIN BECAUSE FARMERS WILL BE TOTALLY PUT OUT OF BUSINESS. MANY BUSINESSES WILL BE PUT OUT. I DON’T EVEN KNOW WHAT THEY ARE THINKING. WHAT ARE THEY DOING? I SENT TO SOME OF THE PEOPLE — SET TO SOME OF THE PEOPLE, STRONG REPUBLICANS, I SAID YOU REALLY HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE WIN BECAUSE IF YOU DON’T, THIS COUNTRY IS IN SUCH TROUBLE.

I USED TO TALK ABOUT 2016 AS BEING A VERY IMPORTANT ELECTION AND IT WAS. IN ITS OWN WAY THIS IS — I WILL NEVER SAY MORE IMPORTANT BUT I CAN ALMOST SAY OF EQUAL IMPORTANCE BECAUSE EVERYTHING WE HAVE DONE, AND THE BIGGEST GAINS ARE TO COME BECAUSE THE HARD WORK OF GETTING IT APPROVED, YOU WERE INVOLVED, IT WAS SO HARD. WE GOT THINGS DONE. THE TAX CUTS, ALL OF THE THINGS WE DID, WE WOULD HAVE HAD HEALTH CARE DONE AND WE WILL GET IT DONE IF WE GET BACK THE HOUSE AND KEEP THE PRESIDENCY. WE WOULD HAVE HAD HEALTH CARE DONE EXCEPT FOR — [APPLAUSE] WE HAD ONE LITTLE SURPRISING VOTE LATE IN THE EVENING BUT WE WOULD HAVE HAD IT DONE. WE WOULD HAVE HAD IT DONE AND WE WILL GET IT DONE IN THE HOUSE. EVEN ON HEALTH CARE WE HAVE DONE AN INCREDIBLE JOB. THE MANDATE AND ALL OF THE OTHER THINGS WE HAVE BEEN ABLE TO DO. WE ARE FIGHTING FOR EVERYDAY CITIZENS WHO WORK HARD, RAISE THEIR CHILDREN, FOLLOW OUR LAWS, SERVE OUR COMMUNITIES, RESPECT OUR POLICE AND BELIEVE IN AMERICA WITH THEIR EVERY OUNCE OF THEIR HEART, THEIR SOUL. WE ARE FIGHTING TO PROTECT THEIR JOBS, DEFEND THEIR FAMILIES AND TO ENSURE THEIR CHILDREN CAN LIVE THE AMERICAN DREAM.

THE REPUBLICAN PARTY IS ACTUALLY LOVED IN THIS COUNTRY, AND I THINK IN A CERTAIN WAY LOVED LIKE NEVER BEFORE BECAUSE THEY SEE WE ARE FIGHTING FOR THIS COUNTRY, WHAT WE GREW UP WITH, THE VALUES THAT WE WANT. THE REPUBLICAN PARTY, SOME PEOPLE TAKE IT FOR GRANTED BUT YOU ARE LOVED. I SEE IT ALL THE TIME. I SAW IT IN NORTH CAROLINA, BACKSTAGE, SO MANY PEOPLE HAVE SAID THANK YOU FOR SAVING OUR NATION. WHEN YOU HAVE DONE IS INCREDIBLE. SOME OF THE THINGS YOU HAVE DONE IN A SHORT TIME IS PRETTY INCREDIBLE. [APPLAUSE] A NATION’S FIRST DUTY IS TO CARE FOR ITS OWN CITIZENS AND THAT IS WHY WE ARE WORKING TO GIVE THE AMERICAN PEOPLE A HIGH QUALITY — THIS IS WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN. A LOW-COST HEALTH CARE SYSTEM WITH MORE TRANSPARENCY AND WE ARE DOING TRANSPARENCY. YOU HAVE SEEN THAT. A MAN WHO CAME IN WHO IS AN EXPERT, TREMENDOUS MAN, WHO I HAVE A LOT OF RESPECT FOR. HE SAID TRANSPARENCY. EXPLAIN TRANSPARENCY, SOUND SIMPLE. I GOT IT DONE. THIS IS WHERE PEOPLE CAN GO TO HOSPITALS AND PRICE AND PICK THEIR DOCTOR. HE SAID THIS IS BIGGER THAN ANY HEALTH CARE YOU CAN DO. IT WILL BE PUT INTO EFFECT. THE SECRETARY IS DOING AN INCREDIBLE JOB. IT WILL BE PUT INTO EFFECT SOON. PEOPLE ARE ABLE TO GO AND NEGOTIATE THE PRICE IS. YOU HAVE POORER STORIES WHERE A WOMAN WILL CUT HER HAND AND GO INTO A HOSPITAL — DON’T ASK HOW MUCH BUT GO INTO A HOSPITAL AND HAVE THE HAND AND THEN THEY GET BILLED $5,000 AND DON’T HAVE $5,000. THE HORROR STORIES ARE UNBELIEVABLE, AND WE WENT THROUGH IT, SOME OF YOU IN THE ROOM, WHEN I DID SIGNINGS. WE ARE HAVING TRANSPARENCY WHERE YOU CAN HAVE LISTS OF PRICES, SOME PROBLEM, THEY LIST IT. YOU CAN NEGOTIATE PRICES. YOU CAN GO TO THE DRUGSTORE AND SAY, WE WANT TO SEE HOW MUCH IS THAT — RIGHT NOW YOU CAN’T DO THAT. THEY DON’T LET YOU DO THAT BUT NOW WE DO.

WE HAVE DONE A LOT. RIGHT TO TRY IS SOMETHING WE HAVE DONE. [APPLAUSE] YOU HAVE TO SEE THE RESULTS. A PERSON CAN BE TERMINALLY ILL IN THE OLD SYSTEM AND WE COULD HAVE A DRUG THAT WE KNOW WORKS BUT WILL TAKE ANOTHER YEAR OF TESTING UNTIL THE PERSON, SORRY, YOU CAN’T USE THAT BECAUSE IT MAY HURT YOU. IT WILL KILL YOU, YOU ARE TERMINALLY ILL. THEY WANTED TO DO THIS FOR 45 YEARS. IT IS NOT AS EASY AS ALL OF THAT. THE COUNTRY WAS WORRIED THEY WOULD SUE THE COUNTRIES. THE DOCTORS WERE WORRIED THEY WOULD SUE THE PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANIES. THEY GOT EVERYONE INTO A ROOM. WHAT WE DO IS SIGN AN AGREEMENT WHERE WE GUARANTEE IN OUR TOUGH AGREEMENT WHERE YOU GUARANTEE WE HAVE NO LIABILITY, THE DOCTOR HAS NO LIABILITY, THE PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANY HAS NO LIABILITY AND VARIOUS OTHER THINGS AND EVERYBODY IS HAPPY. THEY SAID WE DON’T WANT TO RUN THE RISK. IF A PERSON IS TERMINALLY ILL — WE DON’T WANT THEM ON THE LIST BECAUSE THEY DO A LIST OF SUCCESS. WHEN A PERSON IS VERY, VERY SICK KNEW THE END OF THEIR LIFE, TERMINALLY ILL, WE DON’T WANT THAT PERSON ON OUR LIST AS A SAMPLE. I SAID I UNDERSTAND SO WE WON’T HAVE THAT PERSON. HE WILL NOT HAVE THAT PERSON. — YOU WILL NOT CREATE — VERY, SICK TERMINALLY ILL PEOPLE BUT FOR YOUR LIST — THEY SAID WELL, WE LIKE THAT AND WE GOT IT SIGNED. YOU HAVE TO SEE THE SUCCESS. USED TO GO TO ASIA, EUROPE, ALL OVER THE WORLD IF THEY HAD MONEY. MOST PEOPLE DID NOT HAVE MONEY SO THEY WOULD GO HOME AND DIE. NOW THEY HAVE THE RIGHT TO TRY, AND I WILL CONGRATULATE YOU ON THAT BECAUSE YOU WERE THE ONES WHO DID THAT JOB AND GREG WAS GREAT, WHEREVER HE IS. YOU STOOD UP FAST. THAT IS GOOD. THANK YOU, GREG. I CALLED GREG AND SAID, YOU GOT TO GET IT DONE. IT WASN’T EASY. WE HAD MORE PEOPLE COMING AT US. THANK YOU VERY

THAT IS WHY WE ARE ENDING YEARS OF ECONOMIC SURRENDER AND WE ARE CONFRONTING CHINA’S CHRONIC TRADING ABUSES. PAST PEOPLE LET THEM LOOT OUR ECONOMY, RACKING UP TRILLIONS AND TRILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN TRADE DEFICITS. NOW, THE WORLD IS ON NOTICE THAT PEOPLE ARE NOT GOING TO BE ABLE TO DO THAT TO THE UNITED STATES ANYMORE. THEY GET IT. THEY COME TO ME, AND THEY SEE ME. THE LEADERS, I KNOW THEM ALL. SOME OF THEM, I HAVE GREAT RESPECT FOR. SOME, I DO NOT GET ALONG WITH AS WELL. THERE WAS A POLL THAT OBAMA IS MORE POPULAR IN GERMANY THAN I AM. I SAID, OF COURSE HE IS. HE IS NOT SAYING TO GERMANY, YOU HAVE TO PAY US FOR THE MILITARY, AND WHY ARE YOU PAYING BILLIONS AND BILLIONS OF DOLLARS TO RUSSIA FOR A PIPELINE COMING IN THAT WE DEFEND? WE PAID BILLIONS OF DOLLARS TO RUSSIA, AND THEN WE DEFEND GERMANY FROM RUSSIA. DOES THAT WORK? RIGHT, DOES THAT WORK? GIVE RUSSIA BILLIONS AND THEN WE DEFEND YOU. THAT IS A WONDERFUL DEAL. WE HAVE PLENTY OF THOSE. THAT IS ONE OF THE BETTER ONES. WITH YOUR HELP, WE WILL ALSO ACHIEVE AN HISTORIC VICTORY FOR THE AMERICAN FARMER, RANCHER, AND WORKERS BY REPLACING THE HORRIBLE DISASTER. TO ME, ONE OF THE WORST DEALS EVER, NAFTA, AND WE ARE REPLACING IT WITH THE USMCA, WHICH REALLY IS BETTER. [APPLAUSE]

GOT TO GET IT UP FOR A VOTE. I GOT TO PUT IT UP FOR A VOTE. THE DEMOCRATS ARE GOING TO VOTE FOR IT. UNIONS LOVE IT. FARMERS LOVE IT. I WOULD SAY UNIONS LIKE IT, BUT THEY LIKE IT. WE HATE NAFTA. IT IS THEIR ALL-TIME LEAST — MANUFACTURERS LOVE IT. THE FARMERS ARE DESPERATE FOR IT. IT IS SO IMPORTANT, AND THAT IT BIPARTISAN. I TOLD NANCY PELOSI — NANCY PLOTTED UP FOR A VOTE. YOU HAVE TO DO SOMETHING OTHER THAN TRY AND IMPEACH SOMEBODY THAT DID NOT DO ANYTHING WRONG. YOU HAVE TO. [LAUGHTER]

I SAID IT IS HARD TO IMPEACH SOMEBODY WHO DID NOT DO ANYTHING WRONG. “THE MUELLER REPORT IS OUT!” “THERE IS NO COLLUSION” AFTER TWO AND A HALF YEARS. RUSSIA SAID, YOU KNOW, IF WE REALLY DID PICK HIM, WE MADE A REAL BAD CHOICE. [LAUGHTER]

THINK OF IT. EVEN TONIGHT, I AM TALKING ABOUT — WE HAVE THE STRONGEST MILITARY. WE ARE SPENDING BILLIONS AND BILLIONS. STRONGEST MILITARY, RIGHT? WE HAVE THE STRONGEST ENERGY. HILLARY WANTED WINDMILLS. SHE WANTED SOLAR. SOLAR IS FINE. YOU KNOW, SMALL POTATOES COMPARED TO WHAT WE ARE TALKING ABOUT. DOES NOT HAVE THE POWER THAT YOU NEED. I LOVE SOLAR. I THINK SOLAR IS GOOD, BUT IT IS LIMITED. THE WIND IS VERY EXPENSIVE BECAUSE YOU PUT UP THIS WINDMILLS — THEY ARE MADE IN GERMANY AND CHINA. THINK OF THE POLLUTANTS THAT GO IN THE AIR WHEN THEY ARE MAKING THESE MASSIVE STEEL THINGS. IF IT IS ANYWHERE NEAR YOUR HOUSE, YOUR HOUSE GOES WAY DOWN IN VALUE. TRY DROPPING A WINDMILL SOMEWHERE CLOSE TO YOUR HOUSE. TRY SELLING YOUR HOUSE. THEY MAKE NOISE, THEY KILL ALL THE BIRDS. THE ENERGY IS INTERMITTENT. YOU HAPPEN TO BE WATCHING THE DEMOCRATIC DEBATE AND THE WIND IS NOT BLOWING, YOU ARE NOT GOING TO SEE THEM. WHAT HAPPENED TO THIS DEBATE? [LAUGHTER]

HE SAYS, DARLING, THE WIND IS NOT BLOWING. THAT WHEN MEL STOPPED. THAT WINDMILL STOPPED. REPUBLICANS KNOW THAT AMERICAN FAMILIES ARE THE TRUE BACKBONE OF AMERICA. THAT IS WHY I WAS THE FIRST PRESIDENT TO PROPOSE NATIONWIDE PAID FAMILY LEAVE IN MY BUDGET. VERY IMPORTANT. [APPLAUSE]

WOMEN WANT IT. OUR GOAL IS TO ENSURE THAT EVERY AMERICAN FAMILY ENJOYS AN AMAZING QUALITY OF LIFE. TOGETHER, WE ARE GOING TO FIX OUR HOUSING FINANCE SYSTEM. WE ARE WORKING ON THAT VERY HARD TO PROTECT THE DREAM OF OWNERSHIP FOR THE NEXT GENERATION. WE ARE GOING TO MAKE NEW CARS MORE AFFORDABLE AND MUCH SAFER. MY ADMINISTRATION WILL ISSUE STANDARDS THAT WILL SAVE FAMILIES THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS, AS I SAID, OF DOLLARS PER CAR. WE ARE GOING TO FIGHT FOR THE FUTURE OF CITIES LIKE BALTIMORE THAT HAVE BEEN DESTROYED BY DECADES OF FAILED AND CORRUPT RULES.

THE LEFT-WING AGENDA OF TOTAL GOVERNMENT DOMINATION CRUSHING REGULATION, CRIPPLING TAXES, UNRESTRICTED MIGRATION, AND — I MEAN, THINK OF THIS. IT IS UNDERMINING ALL LAW ENFORCEMENT. THEY UNDERMINE LAW ENFORCEMENT, AND THEY DEVASTATE AMERICA’S ENTER CITIES. THEY HAVE BEEN — INNER CITIES. EVEN THE CITIES LIKE LOS ANGELES, LOOK AT WHAT IS HAPPENING. IT IS LIKE — LOOK AT WHAT IS HAPPENING! SAN FRANCISCO, TAKE A LOOK AT WHAT IS GOING ON, AND WE ARE GOING TO HAVE TO STEP IN TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT BECAUSE WE CANNOT ALLOW THAT TO HAPPEN TO OUR GREAT CITIES. LOS ANGELES IS A GREAT CITY. WE CANNOT ALLOW IT. IN THE NOT-TOO-DISTANT FUTURE, WE ARE GOING TO STEP IN. WE ARE NOT GOING TO ALLOW IT TO HAPPEN WHERE MAJOR COMPANIES ARE LEAVING THEIR CITIES. LEAVING OUR COUNTRY WHEN THEY SEE THAT! YOU WALK IN, THEY PAY A LOT OF RENT. THEY WALK INTO A BEAUTIFUL BUILDING, THE BEST STREET IN CALIFORNIA, AND YOU HAVE A SITE THAT NO BUT — SIGHT THAT NOBODY CAN BELIEVE AND WE ARE GOING TO HAVE TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT, AND WE WILL DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT. WE ARE GOING TO GIVE THEM NOTICE. WE GAVE THEM A NOTICE TODAY. CLEAN IT UP! YOU GOT TO DO SOMETHING. WE CANNOT HAVE IT. THESE ARE OUR GREAT AMERICAN CITIES, AND THEY ARE AN EMBARRASSMENT, WHAT DEMOCRATS HAVE LET HAPPEN. REPUBLICANS WANT TO REBUILD OUR INNER CITIES AND PROVIDE A FUTURE OF LIMITLESS OPPORTUNITY FOR ALL AMERICANS. AND REPUBLICANS BELIEVE THAT PARENTS SHOULD HAVE THE RIGHT TO SEND THEIR KIDS TO THE SCHOOL OF THEIR CHOICE. [APPLAUSE]

SO JUST IN CONCLUDING, AND EVERYTHING WE DO, REPUBLICANS ARE FIGHTING FOR THE VALUES THAT BRING US TOGETHER AS ONE NATION UNDER GOD. WE SUPPORT, PROTECT, AND DEFEND THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES. WE STAND UP FOR THE HEROES OF LAW ENFORCEMENT. WE REJECT GLOBALISM, AND WE EMBRACE PATRIOTISM. WE BELIEVE THAT THERE IS NO TREASURE ON EARTH MORE VALUABLE THAN OUR AMERICAN CITIZENSHIP. WE BELIEVE — [APPLAUSE] THAT CHILDREN SHOULD BE TAUGHT TO LOVE OUR COUNTRY, HONOR OUR HISTORY, CHERISH OUR HEROES, AND ALWAYS RESPECT OUR GREAT AMERICAN FLAG. THESE ARE THE VALUES THAT UNITE US TONIGHT. THESE ARE THE VALUES THAT BIND OUR COUNTRY. THESE ARE THE VALUES THE AMERICAN PEOPLE SHARE DEEP IN THEIR SOULS. AND THESE ARE THE VALUES THAT REPUBLICANS WILL CHAMPION ALL ACROSS THE LAND. AND THAT IS WHAT IS HAPPENING, AND THAT IS WHY PEOPLE LOVE WHAT YOU ARE DOING. THAT IS WHY PEOPLE ARE LOVING THE REPUBLICAN PARTY AGAIN. [APPLAUSE]

OUR TASK IS TO BE CONFIDENT TO THESE TRUTHS, CERTAIN TO THIS VISION, BOLD IN OUR ACTIONS, AND FOREVER LOYAL TO THE CITIZENS WE SERVE. IF WE STAY TRUE TO OUR MISSION, AND WE HAVE TO, AND WE HAVE TO STICK TOGETHER, LIKE THEY DO, THEY GOT NOTHING ELSE ON US, BUT LIKE I SAID, THEY STICK TOGETHER. IF WE REMAIN FIRM IN OUR CONVICTIONS, IF WE ALWAYS PUT AMERICA FIRST, THEN THERE WILL BE NO LIMIT TO THE PROGRESS THAT WE WILL MAKE, NO BOUNDS TO THE GOOD THAT WE WILL DO, NO CEILING ON THE HEIGHTS THAT WE WILL REACH, AND NO AND TO THE VICTORY — END TO THE VICTORIES WE WILL ACHIEVE.

WE WILL WIN, WIN, WIN, AND WE WILL KEEP ON WINNING. YOU KNOW, I TELL THAT STORY, AND SOME PEOPLE LOVE IT, AND PROBABLY, SOME DO NOT, BUT I THINK THEY ALL LOVE IT. I AM GOING TO WIN THAT PLACE LIKE, HERE WE GO. I AM GOING TO USE DAN AS AN EXAMPLE. I AM IN NORTH WE ARE GOING TO WIN — NORTH CAROLINA. WE ARE GOING TO WIN SO MUCH. WE ARE GOING TO WIN, WIN, WIN. OUR COUNTRY, WE GO BACK, AND WE HAVE BEEN DOING SO MUCH WINNING WITH TRADE AND ALL OF THESE DIFFERENT THINGS, AND I AM GOING TO GO — I AM GOING TO GO TO DAN BISHOP, AND I WILL SAY, DAN, WE ARE GOING TO WIN. THEY WILL COME IN TO SEE DAN. THEY WILL SAY, PLEASE, PLEASE, STOP THE PRESIDENT FROM WAITING PERIOD YOU ARE A NEW CONGRESSMAN. GO TO THE OVAL OFFICE. HE RESPECTS YOU BECAUSE UNLIKE THESE OTHER PEOPLE, HE DOES NOT KNOW YOU SO WELL, SO YOU ARE SO RESPECTED, AND PLEASE, SEE THE PRESIDENT AND TALK TO THE PRESIDENT. TELL HIM TO STOP WHINING SO MUCH. WE DON’T WANT TO WIN SO MUCH IN THE GREAT STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA. AND I AM GOING TO SAY, DAN, I AM SORRY. I AM NOT DOING THAT. WE ARE GOING TO KEEP WINNING, WINNING, WINNING. RIGHT? WE ARE GOING TO KEEP WINNING, WINNING, WINNING. [APPLAUSE]

CONGRATULATIONS. AFTER ALL WE HAVE ACHIEVED AND AFTER EVERYTHING THAT WE HAVE ACCOMPLISHED, OUR MESSAGE IS SIMPLE. THE BEST IS YET TO COME. [APPLAUSE] THE BEST IS YET TO COME! TOGETHER, WE WILL MAKE AMERICA STRONGER AND SAFER AND PLOWED HER AND GREATER THAN EVER BEFORE. YOU ARE A TERRIFIC GROUP, AND I KNOW ALMOST ALL OF YOU. I LIKE MOST OF YOU. I KNOW ALL OF YOU. [LAUGHTER]

NOW, YOU ARE A TERRIFIC GROUP, AND I THINK WE ARE GOING TO HAVE A TERRIFIC LONG TIME TOGETHER. KEVIN AND EVERYBODY, I WANT TO THANK YOU. THIS WAS AN INCREDIBLE EVENING. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. GREAT JOB. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. (music) (music)

OPEN THREAD – HAVE AT IT!

Smells Like Trump Spirit (A Song Parody)

Here’s Nirvana to tell you why Trump is dangerous.

Smells Like Trump Spirit
Based on “Smells Like Teen Spirit” by Nirvana
Original lyrics and music by Chris Novoselic, David Grohl, and Kurt Cobain ©1991 Warner/Chappell Music, Inc
Additional lyrics by Wayne A. Schneider ©2018

They all got guns, warn your friends
They always lose but still pretend
He’s overboard and self-adored
You know he’s just a dirty whore
He’ll go so low, who knows how low
He’ll go so low, who knows how low
He’ll go so low, who knows how low
He’ll go so low, who knows

When he tweets out, he’s so dangerous
But he needs to entertain us
It’s so stupid but contagious
So we let him entertain us
A potato, a white rhino, a bandito, no libido
Yeah, hey

Continue reading

Weep For America

OMFG! This man is insane! Donald J. Trump has no perceivable grounding in Reality. He starts off with a lie about the Empire State Building. Now, you might say I’m quibbling (and I would congratulate you on your extensive, if slightly misused, vocabulary) but there’s a reason Donald did it. He’s setting up a contrast between how long it took to build the Empire State Building (*) and how long it takes to build new “highways” (I wasn’t aware the Interstate Highway System was expanding so much), a difference he blames entirely on regulations. No other reasons, just regulations. Never mind, Donald, that the REASON for all those regulations was one word – experience. We learned what could go wrong if you didn’t make people follow certain codes. (Good example by an American company overseas: KBR and the electrocuting showers. That’s what no regulations gets you. Also see: Somalia.) He claims he could have built the latest new highway he saw in a state he wouldn’t name for less money and faster. Those of us who know of him and his history know it’s because he doesn’t follow regulations. BTW, if you haven’t already checked, Donald claimed the Empire State Building was built in eleven months. If you do the Google search suggested below, you’ll see it clearly says it took one year and forty-five days to complete. Donald wanted to minimize how long it took (without any mention of the lives lost) to build it. Just because he likes to exaggerate and make himself seem more important, knowledgeable, and useful than he really is.

Near the end, when asked how race relations can be improved, he answers that things will get better once jobs come back, good-paying jobs, and everyone is making more money, then we’ll see race relations improve. Yes. Seriously. He said that. He thinks money solves all problems, even centuries of institutional racism in America. It’s as if suddenly all the managers are going to be black and making more money, and then they’ll be happier and they won’t complain about the fact their local bank still won’t give them a fucking mortgage.

Then he brags about his winery in Charlottesville.

There are several times during the presser when he says “Excuse me. Excuse me.”, usually following some “chatter”. If you’ve ever seen The President Show with Anthony Atamuniak (that’s close to his name) as Donald Trump, you will hear his impersonation. And you’ll laugh to yourself. And if you’re in public at the time, it could get you some strange looks. I’m just sayin’.
So enjoy the interview. Then curl up with a nice bottle somewhere and weep gently for this country.
Then go out and fucking VOTE!

(*) If you start to type “How long did it take” into Google, the first option on the list is “…to build the Empire State Building”. I’m guessing a lot of people did what I did and fact-checked Donald and instantly found him wrong. Again.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2017/08/15/trumps-off-the-rails-news-conference-on-charlottesville-the-alt-left-and-infrastructure-annotated/?utm_term=.335966271167

The Watering Hole, Saturday, April 29, 2017: Presidenting Is Hard

In an interview with Reuters, Donald J. Trump, the man who did not win by the largest electoral vote total for a Republican (even since Reagan), actually said, “This [being president] is more work than in my previous life. I thought it would be easier.” This may be because Trump did not know that the entire White House staff would have to be replaced when he took office. He learned this when he sat down with President Obama after winning the election. Apparently no one on his campaign staff knew that either, including his future Chief of Staff and RNC Chairman Reince Priebus.

So I want to send a great big “FUCK YOU!” to every American who voted for this ignorant, egomaniacal, narcissistic, xenophobic, misogynistic, white nationalist, dictator-loving shit stain on the fabric of our society. Read a fucking book! Try to learn exactly what the government is responsible for doing and how it’s done. Learn about the three branches of government and how they interact with each other. Then try to understand why it is so important to put people in those positions who know what the fuck they’re doing! Try to understand why, no, you don’t want an “outsider” elected to the highest public office in the land for his first job as a public servant. Especially when he surrounds himself with similarly inexperienced people who want nothing but to destroy the liberal framework of our society. You idiot Trump supporters elected a man who is going to take away many of the government services upon which most of you depend. (Read that last sentence back to yourselves a few times. The sentence structure may look funny, but it’s what we call “grammatically correct.”) In other words, your lives are about to take a sharp turn for the worse. That’s the price you’re going to pay for your stupidity. Your only hope is to learn. Somehow.

This is a tweet by the Rogue POTUS Staff account, which is generally accepted to be real inside people tweeting about real inner workings in the White House, so there’s a good chance this is not entirely made up stuff. It will make you laugh, but it should unnerve you a little and make you want to get him out of there legally and as soon as possible. He certainly needs mental health treatment, so it’s a good thing Obamacare covers that.

This is our daily open thread. Fell free to leave a cathartic rant upon any subject you wish.

A Nutty Day (A Song Parody)

I love Sir Paul McCartney, and I have nothing but the deepest admiration, awe, and respect for his musical genius and creativity, and I would never dare make a claim that I could do anything better than he when it came to music. But there is one rather small, almost insignificant complaint I have (other than the official lyrics of “Live and Let Die” where he sings “And if this ever-changing world in which we live in [sic],” which can easily be corrected by changing them to “And if this ever-changing world in which we’re livin’,” and nobody would know the difference), and it’s that some of his most beautiful melodies are also his most saddest songs. Take “She’s Leaving Home.” Such a beautiful tune, and yet such a sad, sad song. “Cried For No One,” is another one. I love that tune and yet it’s hard to feel happy when singing it. And the third one, the one below, “Another Day,” is another great tune with such a sad story. One of my personal goals in all these years of writing song parodies was to take one of those sad Paul McCartney songs and turn it into a happy melody we could have fun singing. I hope I succeeded. And I hope I don’t offend my musical idol, Sir Paul McCartney, without whom a great many bass players would not know how to play, and I wouldn’t have been able to write parodies of “Lady Madonna,” “I’ve Just Seen A Face,” “Revolution,” (I’m sure he helped John out here and there) “Too Many People,” “Eleanor Rigby,” “Here, There, and Everywhere,” “The Night Before,” “Another Girl,” and the entire “Let It Be” album. Thank you, Sir Paul, and I hope you enjoy this one. Maybe you could sing it for us and give us an even happier tune to enjoy even more, even if it is true. 🙂

This is a typical day in the life of Donald J. Trump, so-called President Of The United States. Or as the acronym that’s most often used on the internet goes, Continue reading

The Weekend Hole, Sat-Sun, January 14-15, 2017: Everything’s Alt-right (A Song Parody)

One of the greatest rock operas (and one of my personal favorites) is “Jesus Christ Superstar,” a story about a nice Jewish boy who went into his father’s business. (A Jewish friend from the development I grew up in used to tell me that joke.) This particular parody is based on the very popular song from that musical, “Everything’s Alright.” I feel bad because try as I might, I could not find any suitable video, or even audio clip, to post so you can follow along. But it MUST be from the original Broadway musical, and NOT the film which sucked hugely. If you use a clip from that, it won’t match the lyrics because they sing it wrong in the movie. You know how these parodies work. Can’t have that. So you’ll have to drag out your CD and play along. Then again you should know how the song goes, especially once you start going through the words. I hope you enjoy it. Let me know what you think, and if you like it, please share it. Thank you very much. Oh, and, yes, the Trump lines are deliberate.

Everything’s Alt-right
Original words and music, “Everything’s Alright” by Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber, 1970
Additional lyrics by Wayne A. Schneider, 2017

Kellyanne Conway
Try not to get frenzied, try not to log onto
Forums that upset you so don’t you know
Everything’s alt-right yes Nazis online
And we want you to tweet well tonight
Let the world turn around you tonight
And the lies will get by so retweet all about them tonight

Steve Bannon
Everything’s alt-right yes everything’s alt-right yes

Kellyanne Conway
Tweet and it shall soothe you calm you then annoy you
Stir up your poor hothead so then you’ll see
Everything’s alt-right yes Nazis online
And they’re cool; your appointments, sweet
More the liars in your stead and fleet
Post your lies post your lies
Then relax think of Nazis tonight

Steve Bannon
Everything’s alt-right yes everything’s alt-right yes

The Thinking People Who See Trump For The Fraud He Is
Donald your appointments brand you an extremist
Could we be paced for a war?
Why are your days wasted? You could have placed maybe
Three hundred better people or more
People who aren’t angry people who aren’t raving
Matter more than your tweets and hair

Kellyanne Conway
Try not to get frenzied try not to log onto
Forums that upset you so don’t you know
Everything’s alt-right yes Nazis online
And we want you to sleep well tonight
Let the world turn around you tonight
And the lies will get by so retweet all about them tonight

Steve Bannon
Everything’s alt-right yes everything’s alt-right yes

Donald Trump
Surely you’re not saying we have the resources
To save the poor from their lot?
There will be poor always pathetically struggling –
Look at the good things you’ve got!
Think! while you still have me
Move! while you still see me
You’ll be lost and you’ll be so sorry when I’m gone

Kellyanne Conway
Tweet and it shall soothe you calm you then annoy you
Stir up your poor hothead so then you’ll see
Everything’s alt-right yes Nazis online
And they’re cool; your appointments, sweet
More the liars in your stead and fleet
Post your lies post your lies
Then relax think of Nazis tonight
Post your lies post your lies
Then relax think of Nazis tonight

All
Everything’s alt-right yes everything’s alt-right yes

Everything’s Alt-right (Reprise)
Original words and music, “Everything’s Alright” by Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber, 1970
Additional lyrics by Wayne A. Schneider, 2017

Kellyanne Conway
Try not to get frenzied try not to log onto
Forums that upset you so don’t you know
Everything’s alt-right yes Nazis online

Donald Trump
And I think I shall sleep well tonight
Let the world turn around me tonight

Kellyanne Conway
And the lies will get by so retweet all about them tonight

This is our daily open thread.

The Weekend Watering Hole, December 3rd-4th, 2016

As George W. Bush so eloquently stated all those years ago, “There’s an old saying in Tennessee — I know it’s in Texas, probably in Tennessee — that says, fool me once, shame on — shame on you. Fool me — you can’t get fooled again.”

There are countless numbers of people who should have taken to heart even Dubya’s garbled version (perhaps he had been listening to The Who on his way to that day’s event) of the saying, “Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me”, during this past Presidential campaign and election. The vast majority of those people belong in that huge conglomeration known as “The Media”. Subgroups include, but are not limited to: cable and other news channels, their corporate owners and news division heads, “journalists”, “reporters”, newspundits aka talking heads, political strategists, and official spokeswhores for political candidates. I’m not even going to bother going into the internet “media”, that would be like peeling away every layer of the world’s largest onion (and would bring tears to your eyes, too.) Better to focus on the main offenders.

On Thursday, a “postmortem session” was held at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, attended by representatives of several of the above subgroups. Apparently this is a traditional event that’s held following Presidential elections. As described in general in this article in The Washington Post, this year’s event quickly devolved into a “shouting match.”

A lot of lies were told, and false narratives put forward; too many for me to address all at once, so I’ll limit myself for now and add further commentary as the weekend progresses and time allows.

Clinton communications director Jennifer Palmieri condemned [Steve] Bannon, who previously ran Breitbart, a news site popular with the alt-right, a small movement known for espousing racist views.

“If providing a platform for white supremacists makes me a brilliant tactician, I am proud to have lost,” she said. “I would rather lose than win the way you guys did.”

Kellyanne Conway, Trump’s campaign manager, fumed: “Do you think I ran a campaign where white supremacists had a platform?”

“You did, Kellyanne. You did,” interjected Palmieri…”

Yes, you did, Kellyanne. Trump’s rants freed the voices and actions of a legion of bigots, including and especially white supremacists. But you and other Trump campaign spokeszombies denied, deflected and disowned reports of rising anti-Muslim anti-immigrant, anti-minorities threats and violence, along with Nazi-related graffiti, etc., often in Trump’s name; you did everything but denounce it in the strongest of terms. Forfuckssake, your candidate actually gained ground when he refused to tone down his violence-condoning rhetoric.

“Do you think you could have just had a decent message for white, working-class voters?” Conway asked. “How about, it’s Hillary Clinton, she doesn’t connect with people? How about, they have nothing in common with her? How about, she doesn’t have an economic message?”

Well, Kellyanne, Secretary Clinton DID have a “decent message for white, working-class voters” – the problem was that Trump’s unsubtle dog-whistle message stripped away the veneer of decency from certain segments of “white, working-class voters.” Maybe if Clinton had couched her economic message and policies in lurid hyperbole instead of measured, factual terms, the “media” would have given her more coverage, and more “white, working-class voters” might have paid attention. Or not. I think that once Trump opened his campaign with his lying anti-Mexican slurs, the inner xenophobe in too many Americans sat up and proclaimed “now, that guy speaks MY language.” (Yes, when your language is ‘limited vocabulary/poor grammar’ Americanese.) Trump’s angry shouting drowned out any more mundane, pragmatic offerings from Hillary Clinton. And “the media” simply ran with the loudest “monster-shouter” (H/T Stephen King’s “The Stand.”)

Trump officials said Clinton’s problems went beyond tactics to her weaknesses as a candidate and the deficits of a message that consisted largely of trying to make Trump unacceptable.

[Clinton campaign manager Robby] Mook posited that the media did not scrutinize Trump’s refusal to release his tax returns as intensively as the issue of Clinton’s private email server.

Conway retorted: “Oh, my God, that question was vomited to me every day on TV.”

First the only weaknesses candidate Clinton had were that she’s center-right (which means dangerously left to the impaired judgment of the right-wing), her name is Hillary Clinton, and she’s a woman. She was not “the most crooked politician ever to run for President”, or anything even close to it. She did not murder anyone, despite all of the “body count” conspiracies. And, despite millions of dollars and thousands of hours of fruitless investigations, she did not cause the deaths in Benghazi. Hillary stayed on message the majority of the time, but how could she NOT point out all of the myriad reasons why Trump made HIMSELF unacceptable? Especially since “the media” wasn’t doing a damn thing to inform voters of those reasons?

Second, yes, Kellyanne, you were asked about Trump’s tax returns every day, because neither you nor Trump ever answered the fucking question. As with so many other important questions, you were the one who was projectile-vomiting nonsensical talking points, redirecting the interview right back to Hillary and her emails, or Benghazi, or whatever the current Clinton faux-scandal was on your agenda.

“Conway accused Clinton’s team of being sore losers. “Guys, I can tell you are angry, but wow,” she said. “Hashtag he’s your president. How’s that? Will you ever accept the election results? Will you tell your protesters that he’s their president, too?”

Well, ‘hashtag’ FUCK YOU, Kellyanne, would Trump have accepted the election results if he had lost? You know the answer to that one, you slimy harpy twat. And fuck every goddamned Republican who dares to demand that we kowtow to Donald Trump and his minions, after every word and deed from the right wing for the last eight years were meant solely to stop duly-elected President Obama from actually acting as the American President. Donald Trump is incapable of giving any dignity or credence to the Office of the President of the United States; IMO, he doesn’t even aspire to do so. “Sad.”

Kellyanne, you’re a paid professional liar, and you sold your shriveled, empty soul to an amoral selfish greedy disgusting excuse for a human being. If there really is a Hell, I’m sure that you’ll eventually end up being the spokeswhore for Satan.

There was so much more that I hope to address eventually. Plus, there’s a more detailed account of the discussions at the Harvard event here.

“The media” seemed to feel that its job was to sit back and let Trump be his deplorable self, almost idly marveling in wonder as to how Trump got away with telling the out-and-out lies that he did. It took until the last month or so before the election for “the media” to, to a small degree, come out of its collective catatonic state and finally challenge some of the lies, but there were too many and it was too late. “The media” owns a yuge chunk of the blame for this election’s horrific outcome. But that’s a topic that also needs more time than I have at this moment. But an important part of that discussion involves both Jeff Zucker and CNN’s endless and usually uncritical coverage of all things Trump, along with the insidious, duplicitious role of Trump campaign advisor/CNN political “pundit” Corey Lewandowski and his current role in the Trump transition.

This is our Weekend Open Thread – discuss whatever you’d like.

The Weekend Hole, Sat-Sun, Nov 26-27, 2016: Have You Read The 25th Amendment?

In his series “The Resistance” (formerly known as “The Closer” until the election of Donald J. Trump), Keith Olbermann spells out how Republicans in Congress can remove Trump from office without going through the process of an impeachment. And it’s all perfectly legal and constitutional, because the procedure is spelled out in Article of Amendment 25, Section 4,of the US Constitution. It reads as follows:

4. Whenever the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive departments or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall immediately assume the powers and duties of the office as Acting President.

Thereafter, when the President transmits to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives his written declaration that no inability exists, he shall resume the powers and duties of his office unless the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive department or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit within four days to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office. Thereupon Congress shall decide the issue, assembling within forty eight hours for that purpose if not in session. If the Congress, within twenty one days after receipt of the latter written declaration, or, if Congress is not in session, within twenty one days after Congress is required to assemble, determines by two thirds vote of both Houses that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall continue to discharge the same as Acting President; otherwise, the President shall resume the powers and duties of his office.

So how would this work? Well, upon returning from the swearing-in ceremony, Vice President Pence and a majority of the heads of the cabinet departments (and it could be the ones still in office on January 20, or even the ones who act as heads of the departments should the heads all have resigned effective at noon that day) could write a letter to Speaker Paul Ryan and President Pro Tempore of the Senate Orrin Hatch (the President Pro Tem is the oldest serving member, not the Majority Leader) simply stating the Donald is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office. They don’t have to give a reason. They don’t have to prove anything. No hearings. No nothing. Just a letter.

Now, of course, the Donald could fire back a letter within minutes (and I’d bet he’ll have such a letter pre-written, ready to go) saying no such inability exists. Within four days (in case there’s a holiday weekend in there), Pence and his department heads could fire back another letter (again, they should have this one written along with the first because it would be needed) saying the inability does still exist. Then the matter would go to the Congress. It would require a two-thirds vote of both the House of Representatives and the Senate to remove Trump from power permanently.

I can only hope the Republicans in Congress recognize the danger of having Trump be POTUS and take the legal, constitutional path to remove him from being able to do damage. He could keep the title, since I’m sure that’s all he really wanted out of it, but he wouldn’t have the authority to do anything. Not that I would be much happier in a Pence administration. Unlike Pence, I actually like women and want to see them have the autonomy over their bodies that men take for granted. That’s even less likely to happen under Pence than under Trump, but at least Pence knows something about governing. Trump does not. In fact, based on his comments on the campaign trail, I’m convinced Trump doesn’t understand how government works at all. He talked as if the POTUS had powers he doesn’t really have. In fact, at times it sounded like he thought a POTUS was a dictator, possibly because a lot of Republican citizens think he is. That’s just projection on their part.

And while it is perfectly constitutional to remove Trump from power (if not office) in this matter, it’s actually harder than impeaching him. Invoking Article 25, Section 4, requires two-thirds of both Houses to remove him. But to impeach him (for Treason, Bribery or other High Crimes and Misdemeanors) would require only a simple majority of votes in the House of Representatives. It would still require a two-thirds vote in the Senate to remove him. But you’d have to produce actual charges and conduct an actual trial for that process to work. And while Trump will be in violation of the Constitution at 12:01 PM EST on January 20, 2017, it will not be because of a crime. Instead, and possibly among other reasons, it will be because he had a group of foreign dignitaries come to his hotel in Washington, DC, and encouraged them to stay there when they visited the United States. In other words, he would personally profit from his job beyond what the Congress provides as compensation. (It’s called an Emolument, and its definition depends on what the Framers took the word to mean, not what it may have come to mean since.) Unless, of course, he lets them and their entire staffs stay there completely free of charge, including meals. Then he might argue that he’s not receiving any emoluments. But does anyone believe a man driven by the lust for money, who campaigned on a bigoted platform designed to make white people feel good about themselves, would let foreigners stay at his hotel completely free of charge? I don’t. And I wouldn’t believe a word Trump said about whether or not he was making any money on it. He’s a billionaire because he says he is. He’s the one deciding how much his properties are worth, not an independent auditor. There is very little that Trump says that can be taken at face value. And that’s one of many reasons why he should never be allowed to be POTUS. Also, he’s a bit of an asshole, but there’s no law against that. Otherwise I’d be in a lot of trouble, too. 🙂

This is our weekend open thread. Feel free to discuss anything you wish.

The Weekend Hole, Sat-Sun, Nov 19-20, 2016: The Fulsome Five

So far Donald Trump has announced the selection of people to fill five major positions in his administration who all deny climate change is real and exacerbated by human activity. They also happen to be examples of the worst kinds of choices one could have in charge of the things over which they shall be in charge. This doesn’t surprise me. Trump chose Republican Party Chairman Reince Priebus to be his Chief of Staff, and Reince is helping Trump pick people who, in typical modern Republican fashion, are wholly unsuited for the positions they will hold. If you’ll recall how the last Republican administration did things like put a lobbyist for the mining industry in charge of the Interior Department, the ones who give out permits to companies wanting to mine on federal property, you’ll get the feeling they’re doing it all over again. And it’s important to note that in addition to all the other flaws each of these people has (bigotry, racism, white supremacy), they’re all climate change deniers. Reince would like to see an end to the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement. Their reasons are not in the least bit scientific (they totally reject what 97% of climate scientists say on the subject and defer to the few who are on the payrolls of companies who don’t want the use of fossil fuels, the key human activity making the problem worse, to end), but are economic instead. In short, they whine and complain that if we stop burning fossil fuels, the giant corporations that extract and refine fossil fuels for a living will be out of a job. To which I say, “So?” We’re talking about companies responsible for producing a product whose use will eventually bring about the death of us all. And we’re supposed to be upset that they’ll be out of business?

Steve Bannon, chosen to be Trump’s Chief Strategist (with the not-so-hidden side job of being Chief White Nationalist, which pleased the KKK and Neo-Nazis) and lured away from his former job of running Breitbart News website (the site so horrible they named it after Andrew Breitbart, who actually named it after himself) has said that climate change is a hoax created by activists, scientists, and renewable energy executives. (He really loves conspiracy theories.) He believes there should be unfettered access to fossil fuels as opposed to the more intelligent strategy of ending our use of such destroyers. Bannon believes President Obama’s focus on climate change is a threat to national security. The Pentagon disagrees. They consider climate change to be the biggest threat to national security. But Bannon is of the ilk (I love using that word; it’s so onomatopoeic) that believes the greatest threat to national security is, of course, “radical Islamic terrorism,” usually just shortened to “Islam.” That’s because people like that are more afraid of their own imaginations than they are of factual reality. They refuse to accept the fact that by using the very words they decry Obama for not using, they’re playing into the hands of the very people they claim are the greatest threat to us. That’s too complicated for their fear-filled minds to absorb. Michael Flynn, the former head of the Defense Intelligence Agency who was forced out for being a bad manager, will be Trump’s National Security Adviser. While he hasn’t said a whole lot about climate change, he has belittled it as a threat to national security, he being of the Bannon ilk when it comes to terrorism.

Mike Pompeo is a bought and paid-for Koch Brothers stooge. And now he’s going to head the Central Intelligence Agency (a/k/a NAMBLA), the people largely responsible for spreading terrorism via drone strikes famous for taking out large portions of wedding parties. And Little Jeff Sessions is being tapped to be the Attorney General. In addition to having demonstrated a complete and utter lack of understanding of the science behind climate change, Sessions is a well known racist. He thought the Ku Klux Klan was alright, until he learned they smoked pot. Not the attitude I want in my Attorney General.

There you have it. As fulsome a five as you’ll ever find, at least until the next five names come out of the Trump Transition Team. Everyone of them worthy of disapproval. There’s a word for that. Oh, yeah. Deplorable.

This is our weekend open thread. Feel free to discuss any topic you wish.

The Watering Hole, Saturday, October 29th, 2016: Lighten Up!

Let’s start the weekend with a few lighter political stories that shouldn’t raise anyone’s blood pressure.

President Obama is enjoying himself at the expense of several Republicans in “Barack Obama’s Sweet Revenge Tour” by Tim Murphy of Mother Jones. Here’s an example, regarding the Darrell Issa campaign mailer shown below:

issa_obama-mailerAccording to the Mother Jones article:

“At a fundraiser in La Jolla on Sunday, Obama trashed the California Republican for his mailer. “Issa’s primary contribution to the United States Congress has been to obstruct and to waste taxpayer dollars on trumped-up investigations that have led nowhere,” he said. “This is now a guy who, because poll numbers are bad, has sent out brochures with my picture on them touting his cooperation on issues with me. Now that is the definition of chutzpah.”

Next, The Yale Record has the best non-endorsement-endorsement ever. An excerpt:

“…Because of unambiguous tax law, we do not encourage you to support the most qualified presidential candidate in modern American history…”

The brief piece ends with:

The Yale Record has no opinion whatsoever on Dr. Jill Stein.
—The Editorial Board of The Yale Record

Last, today’s Washington Post has some encouraging news about Trump’s chances in Pennsylvania. Even better, though, the article is accompanied by a photo of Trump talking with Rudy “n.v.9/11” Ghouliani Guiliani – I know, you’re thinking, “why is a photo of two of the most despicable men that NYC ever spawned BETTER than Trump slipping in PA?” – well, you’ll have to see it (it could be worse, at least Rudy’s facing away from the camera, more-or-less.) I commented to Wayne that, knowing Trump, he’d probably try to sue the photographer for taking an unflattering picture when Trump’s combover wasn’t ready for its close-up. Then, of course, Trump would likely accuse Secretary Clinton of hiring the photographer as part of a worldwide conspiracy to expose what lies underneath Trump’s “hair” – and what lies beneath is a large expanse of bare-naked Trump-scalp. “Sad.” Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

This is our daily Open Thread – relax, enjoy the weekend!

The Watering Hole, Monday, October 24, 2016: Trump Supporters Need To Learn History

After the last presidential debate, a Trump supporter told Face The Nation host John Dickerson that “morality and values” were important to her.

“Based on what the country was based on,” she said. “I think that the laws that Obama has passed, the way the country has — I call it down turning. Some of the other people are proud of it and happy for it. I personally am against it, the homosexuals, the abortions. All the stuff, I am against.”

Asked if “Make America Great Again” meant to her a return to the time before legal abortion and gay rights, she replied “That’s part of it.”

Perhaps if some if these Guardians of Morality knew more of their American history, they’d be thankful for gay people, and would be more than happy to extend to them the recognition that they are equally deserving of the rights the rest of us take for granted. How many heterosexuals out there have gotten fired for being straight? It so happens that Friedrich Wilhelm August Heinrich Ferdinand Steuben, the man General George Washington hired to train our Revolutionary War soldiers, the man more popularly known as Baron von Steuben, was gay.

So the next time some Christian Conservative (an oxymoron, as Jesus did not teach a philosophy of Conservatism) rants against gay people, point out that the freedom to rant and rave such a hateful position in public was guaranteed because a gay man brought discipline and structure to our nation’s early armies and enabled them to help the French Army defeat the British.

This is our daily open thread. Feel free to discuss whatever you wish. It’s a free country, thanks to a gay man.

The Watering Hole, Monday, September 26, 2016: Look Who’s Talking About Trying To Get Away With Lying?

Well, the moment many of us have been waiting for to be over is nearly upon us. The first of the Election 2016 Presidential Debates between a well-qualified, well-experienced woman and an unqualified, inexperienced man-child will be held 9:00 PM EDT tonight at Hofstra University, in Hempstead, NY. (For those unfamiliar with New York, it’s out on what we call, “The Island.”) The format, as determined by the Commission on Presidential Debates, will call for lirpas in the first round. If both survive, battle continues with the Ahn’woon. The moderator for the first debate will be NBC News’ Anchor and Keith Olbermann-sound alike Lester Holt, who took over for the much ridiculed Brian Williams after the latter made claims about his first-hand experiences that could not be verified by other people who were actually there, some whom of also claimed Williams wasn’t. The final straw for Williams came when he boasted he was the first “on the scene” to interview Neil Armstrong as he set foot on the moon. Alert fact-checkers noted Williams was only ten years old at the time, and raised considerable doubt about the possibility the Williams family could afford to send Young Brian to astronaut school. The story was later deemed by the majority of fact-checkers as “Mostly False” and Williams was suspended for six months.

The media’s practically prepared to name Donald Trump the winner tonight if he doesn’t trip on the way out to the podium and mess his adult diapers. Hillary Clinton, on the other hand, will be declared to be “hiding something” if she can’t answer questions based on false premises, or adequately (to the Republican side) explain why she hasn’t mitigated their outrage over Benghazi, when the facts and the evidence showed the Republicans did more to kill Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens, Information Officer Sean Smith, and two CIA operatives, Glen Doherty and Tyrone Woods, than Secretary Clinton ever did. She asked Republicans for more funding for security specifically at Benghazi, among other places, and was turned down. There was never any order by her or anyone else to “stand down” and not send a rescue team. Every lie they’ve told about her has been debunked. But since people aren’t convinced by facts (it’s a problem we all have), it’s hard to convince these people that everything they want to do as a result of the Benghazi lies they believe is no longer justifiable. They’ll say to do it anyway because it’s what they want to do to her.

It should come as no surprise that the Trump Campaign is calling for moderators not to be allowed to fact-check the candidates. Newt Gingrich, a Terran-based life form with aspirations of invading and colonizing the Moon, actually defended this by tweeting

Gingrich has defended the theory that the way to a Republican voter’s heart was through the emotional door of his psyche, not the rational, fact-based, reasoning part of his brain.

Former CBS News Anchor Bob Schieffer, a personal friend of the Bush family and a former presidential debate moderator himself, had a suggestion. He said to let the candidates have the first crack at fact-checking in their responses, and if they don’t correct the record then the moderator should before moving on. And this infuriates Conservatives because they don’t believe important decisions should be based on a calm, rational review of the facts of the situation. They feel reaction to a crisis, especially an attack of some kind, should be swift (even if not all the facts are in), decisive (even if decided wrongly, because that honestly doesn’t matter to them), and over-powering (even if excessive). What matters, they’ll tell you, is that it felt like it was the right thing to do. Because that’s how they think you should govern, by doing what feels like the right thing to do, not by doing what actually is the right thing to do. You can expect Trump to Gish Gallop and spew one lie (or false premise, or extreme exaggeration of a technically true point) after another, inundating Clinton with so many false premises, straw man arguments, rambling fragmented sentences, innuendo and meaningless gobbledygook that a coherent yet accurate response will be impossible. And they’ll make a big deal out of the fact that she couldn’t, or wouldn’t, address the question asked of her even though the “question asked of her” was based on the fantasy worldview of someone so frightened by the truth that he’ll stop at nothing to prevent being exposed. Trump is a liar and a con-man, and his entire income structure is based on maintaining a completely false image as a shrewd businessman, unafraid to take on a political system he personally bragged about exploiting. And that’s why he wants no fact-checkers. He won’t be bringing any to the debate.

This is our daily open thread and may also possibly serve as our live-blogging of the debate itself. Come join us.

The Watering Hole, Monday, September 12th, 2016: False Choices, False Christians

Last month, the Christian Post editors published this assessment of the Republican Presidential Candidate, Donald J. Trump, aka “Scam Artist Trump”, and the Democratic Presidential Candidate, Hillary Rodham Clinton, aka “Crooked Hillary”, focusing on which candidate would most benefit the Evangelical Christian agenda.

I characterize the article that way quite deliberately. Not once, either in the discussion on Trump or the discussion on Clinton, is there any mention of, for instance:

– which one would be better for Americans as a whole?
– which one would be better for America’s status and reputation in the world?
– which one is more likely to, in a fit of pique, do or say something to start a war or provoke another terrorist attack?

And so on – you get the picture. The point being that, at the very least, Evangelical Christians – whose voices are purportedly represented by the Christian Post – consider themselves “Christian” first and foremost, and “American” a very distant second (if that high.)

Since I’m writing this at 1:30am Eastern Time, I’m not going through it point-by-point, there’s way too much that I could rant about. So I’ll just throw out one of the most egregious lies in the “Hillary” section. An excerpt (emphasis mine):

“While we will not endorse any candidate in this election, here are several factors we believe Evangelicals should prayerfully consider when thinking about what to do on Election Day.
First, Evangelicals should not vote for Hillary Clinton.

She supports taxpayer-funded abortion for any reason until the moment of birth. Given the importance of valuing life, this position alone is sufficient for an Evangelical Christian to disqualify her for the presidency.

Yeah, well “this position” is a total lie, and if the CP had any integrity, they’d print a written retraction. Neither Candidate Clinton nor any other person on the pro-choice side has EVER supported “taxpayer-funded abortion for any reason until the moment of birth.” [I am going to adapt this post and try to get it published at CP–wish me luck!)

I’ve been checking off and on for the last month to see if CP prints any sort of update to this piece, without success. I have to wonder, though, if anything such as the C-in-C “debate”, other Trump (or his spokemokeys’) insanities, or incriminating revelations about Trump’s shady business and political dealings, would sway the “Evangelical Christians” to lean a little more toward the saner candidate, Hillary Clinton? I sure as hell hope so.

For other CP content that doesn’t really encourage my “sure as hell hope”, please see their Politics page – I dare ya, some of the headlines/authors alone are, to borrow a phrase from a Raw Story commenter, “basket-worthy.”

This is our daily Open Thread–talk about the above, or anything else that strikes your fancy.

The Cheat Goes On – A Song Parody

Today’s open thread is going to be a song parody suggested to me by Alert Reader houseofroberts. (Thanks, house.) It’s a parody of Sonny and Cher’s “The Beat Goes On,” and it’s about (insert favorite insult here) Donald J. Trump.

The Cheat Goes On
Original words and music, “The Beat Goes On” by Sonny Bono, 1967
Additional lyrics by Wayne A. Schneider, 2016

The cheat goes on, the cheat goes on
Just keep sounding a victim to their brains
Donny, Donny, deke, Donny, Donny, dumb

Commodore was once the rage, uh-oh
Boastfully he turned a page, uh-oh
The branding crap’s the current thing, uh-oh
Tinyhander is their newborn king, uh-oh

And the cheat goes on, the cheat goes on
Just keep sounding a victim to their brains
Donny, Donny, deke, Donny, Donny, dumb

Democracy more’s the super sport, uh-oh
Listen, girls still make their marks, uh-oh
And troops will keep on marching off to war
Electorally they keep a dismal score

The cheat goes on, the cheat goes on
Just keep sounding a victim to their brains
Donny, Donny, deke, Donny, Donny, dumb

Koch boys sit in chairs and moan and piss
Trump keeps chasing blacks to get a kiss
The lies keep a-coming faster all the time
Some folks cry, “Hey, Donny, did you do a crime?”

And the cheat goes on, the cheat goes on
Just keep sounding a victim to their brains
Donny, Donny, deke, Donny, Donny, dumb

And the cheat goes on, and the cheat goes on
And the cheat goes on, and the cheat goes on

That’s it for our show. You’ve been a great audience. Don’t forget to tip the veal and try the waitresses. Talk about what you wish.

Sunday Roast: With Friends Like These…

Obviously presidential candidates can’t appear on every TV show to defend their own idiotic comments, so they have surrogates to do that for them. International con-artist and flamboyant jack-o’-lantern Donald J. Trump (who also happens to be the GOP Presidential nominee) has several of these surrogates going around the various TV shows trying to explain what Trump really meant when he said some of the things he said, even when he denied saying them. And we know he said them because we saw video of him saying them. He would say them, the media would report that he said them, there would be proper outrage over the things he said (or supposedly said, or supposedly did), and the surrogates would be out in the next few days telling us the media has distorted the whole situation and it’s not what everybody says it is. I can only think of one time when they were actually right about that. The crying baby. The New York Daily News, Rolling Stone Magazine, The New York Times, Salon, Wired, Baltimore Sun, and even Fox News all reported that Trump had ordered a crying baby removed from one of his rallies. Trump and his spokesjacks (spokespeople for the jack-o’-lantern) said the media was distorting what actually happened and for once they were right. Trump did say all the words you heard in the quotes, but what most of the media didn’t point out was that the woman was already packing up and leaving when Trump insultingly told her “Actually I was only kidding, you can get the baby out of here.” That was just Trump being a dick. The mother herself, Devan Ebert, said through a Facebook post that she wasn’t kicked out of the rally at all, that she was leaving anyway so her baby wouldn’t disrupt the rally, and that she still supports Trump. Okay, so Trump was right about that one. But it was one of the only ones. Trump has said many, many other even more horrible things and when he has, his campaign sent people out to talk to the media. And considering the way they have chosen to defend him, maybe he should rethink using them in the future.

Former Reagan Administration official Jeffrey Lord is a perfect example of the kind of friend Trump doesn’t need if he really wants to win this election, and there’s ample reason to believe he doesn’t. (For example, he picked Jeffrey Lord to be one of his spokesjacks early on. Lord was on CNN recently after Trump claimed, multiple times, that President Obama “founded ISIS.” Trump tried to say later that he was just being sarcastic, “but not really.” It took retired Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling to straighten Lord out on the facts and history of ISIS. But if you think this was one of Trump’s harmless diversions from reality, think again. Hassan Nazrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, has been using Trump’s comments to say that “there are admissions by US officials that they created ISIS.” He doesn’t understand that Trump is not a “U.S. official” and never will be.

Katrina Campins is a successful real estate agent and a participant on Season 1 of The Apprentice. She was sent to CNN to debate Trump’s economic policies with that network’s own economics analyst, Ali Velshi. Suffice to say Trump needs to pick better economic spokesjacks. Campins was unable to come up with a premise that made any sense, which made Velshi’s head spin. Trump’s economic policy includes, as you might have guessed, more tax cuts, as if that’s going to solve anything. It won’t. Tax cuts do nothing but hurt poorer people and help rich people get even richer. Trickle Down Economics (Supply Side Economics) has been proven to be a disastrous way to govern.

BTW, all these stupid things that Trump has been saying are not his fault at all, according to Kimberly Guilfoyle. She says that they’re President Obama’s and Sec Hillary Clinton’s fault. “It’s like the most unholy partnership of all time between the Obama Administration, Hillary Clinton, constantly making comments trying to bait Trump into saying something that will sidetrack him.” Of course they are. These people need to get it through their clearly addled minds that Trump doesn’t need any baiting to say stupid things. “Proceed, Mr. Trump.”

Kellyanne Conway, not one to shy away from making a false equivalence, tried to counter Trump’s famous “Second Amendment” remarks with the attendance of a certain person at one of Clinton’s rallies.

Where would you feel more safe? Would you feel more safe in at a rally where the speaker who is running for president says you have a right to protect yourself under your Second Amendment constitutional rights? Or would you feel more safe at a rally where the man who perpetrated the worst mass murder since 9/11 in America’s history was standing right behind the candidate?

First of all, nobody but you can make you “feel safe.” It’s not the president’s job to do that, either. Because this is a free country and you are allowed to go where you want and do what you want as long as you don’t break any laws. But if you decide you do want to break some laws, like shooting people, you’ll probably be able to do it. Instead of a police state where people need the government’s permission to do things, we have a system of justice based on deterrence. It’s assumed you don’t want to go to jail, so the threat of losing your freedom is usually enough to keep 99% of people from breaking the law. But some people don’t care about that because they expect to die doing the crime they’re doing, and that’s how you get people like Omar Mateen shooting up the Pulse nightclub. Which brings me to the second point: “the man who perpetrated the worst mass murder since 9/11 in America’s history” is dead. He wasn’t sitting behind Clinton at that rally. It was his father, Seddique Mateen, and he has every legal reason to be there (despite what you’ll hear some RWers say.)

Even Dr. Ben Carson took time away from his busy schedule of public napping to defend Trump after the Republican nominee started disparaging the whole election process. Despite the fact that Democrats have won Pennsylvania the last few election cycles, and despite the fact that Clinton is leading Trump there by a significant margin, Trump told his audience that if he loses PA (and he will), it could only be because of cheating by the Democrats. These is a dangerous thing to say, and an especially irresponsible one because there’s no proof that the Democrats plan to cheat. There is, however, proof that the Republicans tried to cheat by passing their own version of a Voter ID bill (all of which are designed to prevent groups of likely Democratic voters from voting.) Carson started his rebuttal by referencing “voting irregularities” in the 2012 election in Philadelphia. The irregularities to which he refers are the fact that Romney got 0 votes in 59 voting districts in Philadelphia. To anyone who has paid attention to voting patterns in Philadelphia since the FDR administration, this came as no surprise, as Snopes points out. The districts are in areas with a heavy black population, and there are only about 300-500 people in each district. And while there are a handful of registered republicans in those districts according to voter registration records, attempts to locate them were mostly fruitless. Besides, the same thing happened to McCain in 2008 when he got 0 votes in 57 districts. Carson tried to justify Voter ID laws by claiming it’s the only way to prevent voter fraud. This is another favorite tactic of the right, to distort the meanings of words. They like to claim that every election irregularity is “voter fraud.” Voter fraud happens when someone tries to cast a vote posing as someone they aren’t, and it’s not in the least bit a serious problem no matter how many times the right says it is. So the Voter ID laws they like to pass, which by design disproportionately harm black people, college students from another state, and senior citizens, are passed to fix a problem that simply does not exist. Out of a billion votes cast, do you know how many cases of in-person voter fraud there have been? Thirty-one. That is hardly justification to make people travel many miles to get a specific form of ID just to cast a vote, when they had no problem voting before. Many times these laws don’t allow for college IDs to be used (even though they have pictures on them and can be used for every other state requirement of identification), but do allow for hunting licenses to be used (which often DON’T have a photo of the person on them, and are more likely to be obtained by conservatives rather than liberals. I base that on the fact that liberals tend to be more sympathetic to animals than conservatives, who aren’t sympathetic to anyone but conservatives.) But in the end, Carson wouldn’t come out and say that Trump was right, which means he wasn’t helping Trump, either.

Which brings us to perhaps the worst spokesjack a candidate could have, Katrina Pierson. In case you don’t recognize her by name, she’s the one who likes to show up on TV wearing a necklace made of bullets. Pierson was among those trying to defend Trump’s remarks about Obama being the founder of ISIS. When asked if Trump was being sarcastic, she tried to answer, “Yes and no.” She then tried to say that while it was true that Obama “didn’t fill out the paperwork to create ISIS” (note to readers, neither did ISIS because there is no form you fill out to create an organization of assholes hell-bent on murder), that he and Clinton did create the policies that led to the formation of ISIS (which is also not true as that would have been the Bush Administration’s policies; their policies led to the creation of al Qaeda in Iraq, which was the precursor of ISIL, also known as ISIS in some areas.) On another CNN program Pierson tried to re-write history by saying, “Remember, we weren’t even in Afghanistan by this time. Barack Obama went into Afghanistan, creating another problem.” Does it even need to be pointed out that Bush took us into Afghanistan before he illegally took us into Iraq? In addition to wanting to know how someone like this could possibly be helpful to Trump, I would also like to know why CNN keep having her on at all? Virtually nothing she says can be connected to Reality in any way.

Finally, lest you think I’m just picking and choosing a few incidents going all the way back to a year ago when Trump famously launched his campaign by saying Mexico was sending us rapists, I’m not. All of these stories are from within just the past few days. Trump used to brag that he only hired the best people to work for him. Either he hasn’t actually met them, or he was just lying again.

This is our daily open thread. Eat up.

The Watering Hole, Monday, July 18, 2016: An Unfunny Trainwreck

Presumptive Republican Presidential Nominee and Narcissistic Mendacious Carnival Barker Donald J. Trump and his choice to be his running mate, Indiana Governor and anti-Woman, anti-LGBT, pro-Christian-and-no-other-religion department store female underwear mannequin, Mike Pence, sat down with CBS 60 Minutes’ Lesley Stahl for their first joint interview since the announcement was made. You’d think they just met in the hallway. It did not go as well as the Republican Party might hope, unless their hope was that Trump would forget to rein in his ego even a little bit and Pence would forget that his political career is coming to an end this November.

See the interview and a great summary of why this was a complete and total trainwreck here. While you’re there, count the lies Stahl allows Trump to Gish Gallop into his comments. Lies such as that he was against the Iraq War from the beginning, that Hillary Clinton “invented ISIS with her stupid policies,” and many others. And his refusal to directly answer questions like “How are you going to declare war on ISIS?” are very scary. This man is a buffoon, and there is absolutely no rational reason to believe he is competent in the least way to handle the responsibilities of being president. You cannot convince me otherwise. Go ahead. Try.

This is our daily open thread. You are free to discuss any topic you wish.

The Watering Hole, Saturday, June 18, 2016: Can Tiny Hands Handle The Presidency?

A Super PAC calling itself “Americans Against Insecure Billionaires with Tiny Hands” released this video asking if someone could be President with tiny hands.

The group originally wanted to call itself, “Trump Has Tiny Hands,” but were told by the FEC that they had to change it because the “committee does not appear to be an authorized committee of that candidate,’ and therefore cannot use his name in the PAC’s name. An understandable rule considering what people would do if they could. I know what I would do if I could. “Americans Against Donald Trump’s Bigotry, Racism, Misogyny, Homophobia, Xenophobia, Fraud, Mendacity, and General Sleaziness.” My first ad would feature, of course, kittens. I hope the group is able to get its ad spread around, and I encourage you to share this post to help that endeavor.

People like Donald Trump need to be ridiculed for the frauds they are. If you’re one who believes that Trump’s “success” as a businessman shows he can be a good president, I would say two things. 1) How? What is the connection between running a for-profit corporation whose only purpose for existence is to make you and some close associates wealthy, and governing a nation of hundreds of millions, with equal rights and differing opinions on how things should be done? And, 2) Donald Trump is not as good a businessman as he has lead you to believe. One of the many ways he’s been able to stay rich is by not paying his vendors and suing the people who say bad things about him.

If reporters say truthful things about Trump that make him look bad, he bans them from covering him, just like he did with several media outlets, including the Washington Post. In March 2016, The WaPo published an article asking what happened to the $6 million dollars Trump said he raised for veterans groups. Trump gave a list of 24 charities that would receive money. Some of the money was in the form of direct contributions by Trump’s friends. Some was supposed to come from one of Trump’s Foundations. And Trump himself pledged to donate $1 million of his own money. It was through social media that Trump was shamed into finally making that personal $1 million donation in May.

Donald Trump is not true to his word and cannot be believed in anything he says, or promises, or says he promises, or promises he says. He has demonstrated a complete lack of understanding of how government works. He seems oblivious to the fact that there are two other co-equal branches of government that do have a say in how things are done in this country. One writes the laws Trump promises he’ll pass, if they choose to do so, and the other decides whether or not the law was broken and what the punishment for it will be. He does not understand that the president rarely does anything personally when it comes to all the negotiations done on behalf of our federal government. There are people already in our government who have been doing it for decades for that. He lies constantly about Syrian immigrants, claiming none of them are being vetted and are coming to our shores by the thousands. Nothing could be further from the truth. It takes nearly two years for any of them to get here. He calls for blatant violations of the Constitution from banning people because of the religious faith they practice (which ignores the fact that it was religious freedom that motivated many of our earliest settlers) to deciding which media outlets would have access to his administration to fulfill their free press rights.

Donald Trump is interested in one person, and one person only – Donald Trump. He cares more about himself than he does about everybody else on the planet combined. (And I honestly believe that is not an exaggeration.) He has the temperament of a spoiled rich child, which is no surprise given he was one, and none of the patience and fortitude of someone wanting to be the leader of the most powerful country in the world. He has had corrupt business dealings with corrupt people, and he has abused the legal system with his constant lawsuits against people telling the truth about him. Hard as I try, I can’t think of any way in which Donald Trump would make a good president. Or even a competent one. He is precisely the kind of person our Founding Fathers feared might one day become president. And should he somehow, despite the God Conservative Christians claim exists, win the presidency, our nation will surely test Franklin’s admonition that we would have a Republic, if we could keep it.

The Watering hole, Monday, May 30, 2016: Will America Elect Yet Another Overtly Racist President?

America is far from perfect. We have achieved many great things in our history, but it has been despite our flaws, not because of them. And among the worst of our flaws is this country’s history of racism and white supremacy. Yes, not just the racism but the white supremacy, too. We on the Left post many words decrying white supremacists, but we rarely admit our country has elected many white supremacists POTUS, and they weren’t all Conservatives and/or Republicans and at least a few were Progressives and/or Democrats. As a Liberal, that bothers me. I want what’s best for everyone, and the color of one’s skin does not determine whether one is a human being or not. But there are many people, white people in particular, who feel this is not so; they feel that one’s skin color DOES determine how human one is. And sadly, these people often get elected to public office, where they are able to put their racist viewpoints into law. A President Donald J. Trump would be such a racist president.

It’s bad enough that Trump lies, and lies, and lies, and lies, and lies, and lies, and, just for good measure, engages in promoting conspiracy theories. (This is not to mention the xenophobia, misogyny, birtherism and bullying tactics.) But Donald Trump’s overt racism is probably one of the least admirable things about him. And yet, it’s precisely the reason he is so admired among many of his supporters. White supremacist organizations of all kinds have been openly endorsing Trump, while he has renounced or even denounced so few of them. He had to lie (there’s no other word for it) and say he didn’t know much about David Duke, after the former KKK Grand Wizard publicly endorsed him, despite the fact that several years ago Trump publicly commented on David Duke and his association with the Klan. So why hem and haw over publicly rejecting his endorsement? Trump knew Duke was connected to the Klan. Is that not enough to say he doesn’t want Duke’s support? Why say he has to know more about him before commenting? And if Trump doesn’t want the support of white supremacists, why does he so often retweet their tweets? (He can’t claim he didn’t know when their screen name has “white genocide” in it.)

Many of Trump’s fans like him because, as they tell it, “He says what I’m thinking.” If that’s true of you, then you’re not thinking good thoughts. In fact, you’re talking like someone who wants to take us back to the 1940s and 1950s, when white men were generally (if often wrongly) perceived to be the most admired people in the country. (Are you Pat Buchanan, by any chance?) And you have a problem for which you should seek treatment. Trump appeals to people like you because he uses “Othering”, where all your problems are blamed on people who aren’t like you. In other words, people who are non-white, non-Christian, and non-American. Others. Others who can be scapegoated. It’s the very ugly secret behind Trump’s success to win the nomination of the party that, let’s be truthful here, appeals as hard as it can to low-information, low-effort-thinking, less-educated, and less-intelligent voters. People who have opinions not based on reality. Of course, as part of their juvenile “I know you are but what am I?”-style of debating, they accuse us of not being based in reality, because the way we see the world doesn’t match the way they see the world. I’m not just talking about the difference between the way Liberals and Conservatives see the world, I’m talking about people who believe so many things that are provably false. And they base their voting choice on who they think could best solve the problems of the world as they see them, meaning both their problems and the world. These people are either not very intelligent, or very afraid of something that isn’t going to happen to them. Do conservative voters in the Midwest states really believe ISIS is going to come to America and bring death and Sharia Law to them? Just because they’re taking over a country thousands of miles away from here, that doesn’t have the same history as our country, that doesn’t have the same religious makeup as ours, that wasn’t enjoying the same freedoms as ours, doesn’t mean it’s going to happen here. I mean, c’mon! I thought you folks loved our military. Have you no faith in their ability to defend us from whatever it is you imagine is going to happen to us? (And you are imagining it. It isn’t going to happen.) And whatever it is you fear is going to happen, do you really think an overtly racist president is the best choice to be commanding your military? Say what you will about Hillary Clinton (and many of you Trump supporters have been doing just that, even though much of it isn’t true, meaning grounded in the real reality), she doesn’t see our oversized military as the go-to solution where tact and diplomacy would work better. And neither does Bernie Sanders. And neither should you.

I really, really hope our country is better than to elect a crass, petulant, childish racist as our president. We deserve the consequences if we do.

The Watering Hole, Monday, May 23, 2016: Why Do Donald Trump’s Positions Appeal To You When He Clearly Has None?

We on the Left often talk about low information voters more than they do on the Right, but that’s only because the Right depends on them so much to stay in power. Without the low information voter and the low effort thinkers, Republicans would never have been able to grab onto and retain the political power they currently enjoy and abuse, not only on the national level, but at the state level, too. An informed voter would never vote for a Republican unless that voter was a greedy, rich, selfish bastard who couldn’t care less about helping his or her fellow human beings who are in trouble (often due to Republican policies.) And face it. If you aren’t greedy, rich, or selfish, you really have no reason to vote for a member of a party that openly admits to doing things that help the super rich far more than they help you or anyone else you personally know. I mean, seriously, do rich people need more tax cuts? We are talking about taxing income beyond a ridiculously high point at which they’ll literally be bringing in (not necessarily earning) more money than they can possibly use in their life times or their grandchildren’s, so why do Republicans insist on lying and acting like taxing more of that income will take away all incentive to make money? That’s pure selfishness talking, not sound public policy. And if it’s sound public policy you want out of your public servants, then why on Earth would you vote for Donald J. Trump? What possible argument could you have?

It can’t be because of Trump’s positions on any of the major issues. In addition to the fact that Trump often speaks in incoherent phrases, he has often been unable to state a position and stick to it. Whether it’s on taxing the rich, paying down the national debt, a woman’s right to exercise her constitutional right to an abortion, the minimum wage, money in politics, defeating ISIS, following international laws, immigration, H-1B visas, border control, the Syrian refugee crisis, banning Muslims, being so popular with white supremacists, the KKK and David Duke, the multi-national Iran nuclear deal, or even healthcare in the US, Trump has often stated, then reversed, then modified whatever position he had, sometimes within hours. He expressed three separate and conflicting opinions on abortion in less than an hour and a half. And some of his current positions are in conflict with longstanding planks in the Republican Platform. Here’s the thing: Whichever position Trump had that attracted you to him is almost certainly changed by now, possibly to be the opposite. And if his current position is appealing to you, just wait until he gets criticized on it and it will change again. “Everything’s negotiable” to Trump, even the interest paid on treasury bonds, which is ridiculous, of course. But Trump’s typical low-information, low-effort-thinking supporter doesn’t know that, nor does he know that the people who hold the highest amount of our national debt are you and your fellow American citizens, not the Chinese, as Trump often infers but never states outright (as far as I know.)

It can’t be because of his “honesty” (about which he often brags). Trumps says a lot of things on the campaign trail that simply aren’t true, or even close to true. Sadly for our nation, studies have been showing that, regardless of your political ideology, the truth doesn’t seem to matter. It would appear, to many Conservatives especially, that what you feel to be the truth is what is the truth (to you, anyway). This could explain why Trump tells lies to appeal to Conservatives emotionally, even though the lies aren’t in the least bit grounded in Reality. It feels right to Conservatives, so there must be something wrong with the evidence. It’s a shame, but not a surprise really, the Republican Party has been so antithetical to funding public education. Despite the fact that the truth may not matter, it’s still important that people learn how to think critically about a subject, regardless of whether it’s politics or religion, instead of just accepting what they’re told as true. But critical thinking requires effort, and your average Joe Sixpack conservative has neither the desire nor the ability to put a lot of thought into things. So when they do put that small amount of effort toward a position on something, they often end up choosing the Conservative point of view, even when it provably isn’t the best choice, or even the one that will move them toward their ultimate goals, whatever they are. Donald Trump may at one time in his life said something you also believed. He once said he believed in a woman’s right to choose to undergo an abortion. Now, because he panders to a bunch of low-effort thinkers, he says abortion should be criminalized (despite its being a Constitutional right) and that the doctor should go to jail for performing one, not the woman because she is also a victim. That kind of “thinking” requires you to believe the woman was not choosing to undergo an abortion and that it was done against her will. Kidnapping is already a felony so why would any new laws be needed? If taking away someone’s Constitutional rights can be done by making it illegal to ever exercise those rights, then we should be able to solve our national gun problem by making it illegal to exercise your right to own guns. But that’s not how it’s supposed to work, so these Republican efforts to ban abortion by criminalizing the performance of one cannot possibly withstand Constitutional muster. And neither will Trump’s efforts to bring back waterboarding and other methods of torture (“even worse”). Nor will barring people entry to this country because of the religion they practice. Nor will deporting people born on American soil. Trump has held many different positions on many different topics, so which position on which topic makes you believe Trump would make a good President? Or an effective one? Or even a competent one? Because by the time Election Day comes around, it’s entirely possible that Trump will no longer hold that viewpoint you thought made him better than the rest. So why would you vote for him?

This is our daily open thread. Feel free to make fun of Donald Trump, or discuss anything else you wish.

The Watering Hole, Monday, February 8, 2016: Trump the Lawless

Over the weekend, Donald J. Trump, the billionaire racist real estate developer son of a millionaire racist real estate developer, told CNN’s Jake Tapper that he would bring back waterboarding (and “worse” techniques). When it was explained to the authoritarian favorite that waterboarding and many other forms of torture are illegal under both US and international law and treaty, Trump demonstrated his complete lack of comprehension of the law, how it works, how national security works, and why subjects are classified at all, by saying he would bring it back by “declassifying” it.

Sorry, Donald, but whether or not the use of waterboarding is classified has nothing whatsoever to do with its legality. In fact, classifying its use would violate several additional laws besides the ones barring its use in the first place. It is illegal to classify something just to keep it hidden from the public, or because it was illegal at the time. For those who never served or never learned the distinction, information is classified (or not) based on the damage its disclosure would do to national security. Nothing more. If it could cause some identifiable damage to national security (not national reputation), some minor information that could give a potential enemy information they could use to their advantage over ours, it would be given the level “Confidential.” The exact number of troops in a unit would be classified Confidential, since it could help an enemy to know the exact number of persons they’d be facing. Information whose disclosure could cause serious damage to our national security would be classified Secret. Mission logs in a communication unit that does presidential support missions would be classified Secret. (I’ve written some.) But information whose release could cause exceptionally grave damage to national security is classified Top Secret. Obvious things like nuclear launch codes would be classified Top Secret. And there are levels of Top Secret requiring even higher levels of clearance to obtain. Sometimes they fall into the category of Sensitive Compartmentalized Information (SCI). A good example would be safes that have two combination dials where nobody is allowed to know both combinations. (It’s called the Two Man Integrity System.) You could be cleared for that level of classified info, but it doesn’t mean they have to grant you access to it. I don’t think many in the civilian world understand that in order to have access to classified information, you require three things. First, you must have proper identification or be personally known to the person revealing you the information. Second, you must have the proper level of security clearance for that information. This can be waived by the Commander-in-Chief or a command level officer, but not by lower ranking personnel who might have to handle it as part of their everyday duties. The third and most important thing you must have is a need to know. I happened to have held a very high level security clearance, but that didn’t mean I had the authority to just open up the safes and read classified reports, even for things well below my clearance level. I didn’t have any need to know the classified information, so I would never have been given access to it. This is often overlooked in many lesser-quality TV shows or movies, and people are told things they shouldn’t know because they don’t need to know it. So nobody could say they sat and read a bunch of classified reports and learned stuff because they would have had to demonstrate a need to know the information they sought. When something is classified, it has to be because its unauthorized disclosure would damage national security. And despite the idea I personally believe some Bush Administration officials may have harbored, our national reputation is not part of our national security. You can’t classify something just because it would make America look bad. So if waterboarding were being used, that fact alone could not be considered classified. By Trump saying he would “declassify” its use, he shows he has no understanding of how and why information is classified.

“You can say what you want. I have no doubt that it does work in terms of information and other things — and maybe not always but nothing works always. But I have no doubt that it works,” he insisted.

Then there’s the matter of whether or not one believes “it works.” Whether or not one believes it, the fact is it does not “work.” It never has. (And, please, if you have to twist and manipulate the facts around one small piece of information which may or may not have been learned as a result of torture, it still wouldn’t prove it “works” or was justified.) It does not generate usable or reliable information because a person being tortured will say anything to get the torture to stop. Wouldn’t you? Wouldn’t you tell them anything you think they might want to hear, even if you made it up entirely, if you thought it would make the torture stop? Don’t lie. And waterboarding is torture, you can ask Sean Hannity. Oh, wait. He’s never fulfilled his promise to be waterboarded for charity, so he wouldn’t know. I’ve never been waterboarded, either, but I never offered to be. I believe the people who have undergone it and said it was torture, including conservatives. What you see happening on TV and in the movies, where torturing someone gains useful intelligence, is bullshit. Torture is done as a show of power and domination over a prisoner. I’m assuming it’s a prisoner that’s being tortured, because if it isn’t there are far more serious problems being neglected here. And once you start torturing someone, they’ll say whatever they think you want to hear, whether or not it’s the truth, as long as they think it will make you stop torturing him. This is reality, and to deny it and claim torture does “work” is to reveal a level of mental illness usually reserved to the people being chased by the FBI’s Behavioral Analysis Unit. These are sick people we’re dealing with here, and when you combine that with the overwhelmingly authoritarian streak Trump and his supporters have, waterboarding will be the least of your problems. Torture is illegal for a reason. And it makes no difference what handpicked lawyers in your administration say, it is still illegal. If you cannot wrap your already-wrapped-with-something head around that idea, you are completely and totally unfit to occupy the office of President of the United States. Or even Senior Domestic Policy Adviser.

“When they’re chopping off the heads of people — and innocent people in most cases — beyond waterboarding is fine with me.”

One more time for those who have trouble with polysyllabic (big) words: You can’t do it. It would break the law. You would go to jail and pay a yuge fine. Does that make it clear? We signed international treaties where we agreed that Torture was never, under any circumstances, justifiable. Never. It makes no difference whatsoever what criminals do, it does not justify stooping to their level. I understand why you think it would. You are an Authoritarian, as are most of your followers. You believe in the use of brutal tactics to have your way. You lack empathy. You lack ethics, too. You will say anything to get people to give you what you want, and you aren’t even being tortured! You think this makes you a good businessman. It might make you a rich businessman, but I would hardly say it makes you “good.” You wrongly believe that one of the qualifications that makes one a good president is the ability to negotiate a deal. But that wouldn’t be your job as president, either domestically or overseas. There are people who have been working for the government far longer than you whose job it is to negotiate labor contracts and international treaties. You aren’t the one who will be doing that, so stop going around telling everyone you will. It’s a lie. One among many you tell all the time. But just because you say it’s true doesn’t mean it is, and it doesn’t matter if people think it’s true, it still isn’t. Waterboarding is torture. Torture is never legal or justifiable. It doesn’t work and never has. It’s not going to save anyone’s life and does more long term harm than any short term good it arguably might do. And it is a really, really, sick, depraved thing to do. No decent human being would even think of using it, and you’ve proven to everyone you are anything but. And so are the people who adore you and believe in everything you say. I weep for this country.

This is our daily open thread. Feel free to discuss whatever you wish. I won;t torture you.

The Watering Hole, Saturday, January 23, 2016: If You Hate Freedom And Liberty, You’ll Love Donald J. Trump

Liberal Libertarianism was something unknown to me when I took my first test at Political Compass. I was familiar enough with the well-known ideologies of Liberal and Conservative, enough to know I’m Liberal while my father’s Conservative. But I wasn’t aware of the “perpendicular” ideologies of Libertarianism and Authoritarianism, the former being how free you think we should individually be versus how much control over your life you believe your rulers should have (and note that I did not mention the word “government” there.) The Liberal/Conservative scale would be an economic one, while the Libertarian/Authoritarians scale would be a social one. Go there. Take the test. If you never have before, you’ll learn something about yourself and how you compare to some famous historical figures.

I just did and I scored -8.5 on the Economic Left/Right scale (very Liberal) and -8.46 on the Social Libertarian/Authoritarian scale (very Libertarian). Like Gandhi’s views only more so. (But not his courage. Or wisdom. Or sheer animal magnetism.) So naturally I would not be in favor of a very Authoritarian person taking control of the Executive Branch of our government, the ones charged with enforcing the Law. And a Conservative capitalist, to make matters worse, choosing who will rule over the Economy. Nor would a lot of people. Or should you’d think. Or so you’d hope. People with an Authoritarian bent are very scary. They’ll do whatever the person in charge says to do provided they believe the person in charge will accept responsibility for what happens. (Of course, it may not occur to them that the person in charge was lying about accepting responsibility.) In Stanley Milgram’s famous first experiment into trying to answer why WWII German soldiers were so willing to obey orders to murder defenseless people, he found that 26 out of 40 men were willing to administer lethal doses of electricity to a complete stranger just because an experimental socialist told them to. Humans seem to have a natural disposition toward having someone be in authority provided that person was willing to be responsible. We don’t like someone to be in charge who randomly picks people to die every day, and imposes a death penalty on anyone who complains about it. But we like someone who is willing to face the consequences of his actions, assuming the law provides for significant consequences for those actions that do more harm than good. Unfortunately, too many of us may like Donald J. Trump as such an authority figure. Trump is very appealing to the sort of person who gives in to his Authoritarian side. And he’s also appealing to a large group dubbed decades ago by sociologist Don­ald War­ren as Middle Americans Radicals (MARS), who have a lot in common with, but can be distinct from, Tea Party People. This is not good. John W. Dean can explain a little bit about why here and here.

He checks off every box on the list of authoritarian traits. As I have explained on other occasions these personalities are typically male; they are dominating; they oppose equality; they are desirous of personal power; they are amoral, intimidating and bullying, faintly hedonistic, vengeful, pitiless, exploitive, manipulative, and dishonest; they will cheat to win; they are highly prejudiced (racist, sexist, and/or homophobic), mean-spirited, militant, and nationalistic; they tell others what they want to hear, take advantage of “suckers,” and specialize in creating false images to sell themselves. They may or may not be religious, but usually they are both political and economic conservatives and/or Republicans.

You might ask, “Who on Earth would want to be put someone like that in charge of our government?” And the answer would surprise you.

“[A]uthoritarian followers are both men and women, who tend to be highly conventional, always and easily submissive to authority, while willing to work aggressively on behalf of such an authority. They tend to be very religious, with moderate to little education, trusting of untrustworthy authorities, prejudiced (e.g., with respect to gay marriage); they are typically mean-spirited, narrow-minded, intolerant, bullying, zealous, dogmatic, uncritical of their chosen authority, hypocritical, inconsistent, prone to panic easily, highly self-righteous, moralistic, strict disciplinarian, severely punitive; they also demand loyalty and return it, have little self-awareness, and are typically politically and economically conservative Republicans.”

Americans. That’s who. So it’s a good thing our Constitutional form of balanced power government prohibits the kind of tyrannical dictatorship Trump’s opponents fear he’ll bring, and Obama’s enemies claims he has. (FTR, Tyrant Obama’s opponents, if he truly was the tyrant you claim he is, I wouldn’t have been listening to you bitch about him these past seven years, because you would have been taken off the face of the planet. You almost make me wish he was half the tyrant you claim he is. Almost.) A Trump Presidency (as I’m sure he refers to it himself) would be a disaster, and not just because of the type of person he is, but because of the kinds of ideas he outs forward.

A wall? Seriously? And would you believe people lap that shit up? Trump loves Construction. I’ve heard him say it in interviews years ago. He loves to build things. So, naturally, he’d say he wants to build a wall on our southern border. And then has the balls to say he’ll make the country on the other side pay for it. And people believe him! Authoritarians, who may or may not also be racists, white supremacists, and bigots in general, are loving it! Never mind that such a wall would never keep people out. You’d be amazed how far people will go to tunnel across a border. And never mind that no foreign government would be stupid enough to agree to such an arrangement without the threat of military force behind it. Do we want yet another war with Mexico? I don’t.

Then there’s the ban on Muslims entering the country, all because about .005% of the world’s population of Muslims has abandoned their religious beliefs to exert power over a region of the world thousands of miles away. As much as I hate to see anyone brutally rule over another, it’s not our problem as a nation. And it would be even less of a problem if we would stop living with the false belief that we need access to fossil fuels for the foreseeable future. We don’t. And the people who would lose a lot of money should this nation pull its giant head out of its overweight ass and switch to renewable sources of energy (such as Charles and David Koch, to name just two such miscreants) are not the kind of people about whom I could give a pair of fetid dingo’s kidneys. And neither should you.

So, if you truly hate freedom and liberty, if you think we really should have a tyrant in charge, if you honestly believe we all need to have the heavy hand of government crush our spirits daily, then go ahead and vote for Donald J. Trump. I promise you I’ll fight you every step of the way. And I won’t be alone.

This is our daily open thread. Being the Liberal Libertarian that I am, I’ll simply remind you you’re free to discuss any topic you want.

The Watering Hole, Saturday, January 2, 2016: He’s Trump, He’s Trump, What’s On His Head?

If one were to believe the political poll results published by the scam artists, Donald J. Trump has a lot of support to be the presidential nominee of the Republican Party in 2016. I don’t. I’ve already talked before about why these things should be taken with a grain of salt. Besides the facts that neither the primary nor the general election is being held tomorrow (making the entire premise of many of these question meaningless,) people who make a living following these things say that the vast majority of voters don’t make up their minds until the final weeks before the vote. The only people answering these polls (which is about one out of the seven or eight folks they attempted to survey) have already put forth the minimal effort needed to reach their decisions and concluded that alleged billionaire real estate developer and reality show star Trump would be great for America. Even though he clearly won’t.

For one thing, he lies. One can immediately counter that all politicians lie, and that certainly has an element of truth to it. But Trump’s not a politician, he’s a narcissistic billionaire enjoying one of the biggest waves of popularity he’s ever personally experienced. Not that narcissism disqualifies one from being President; it might actually be a prerequisite to a certain degree provided he’s able to turn it off and listen to other people. Either Trump is incapable of doing that, or he’s surrounding himself with sycophantic hero worshipers who would never tell him something he didn’t want to hear. But he lies. A lot. He lies about Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton. He lies about so many things that Politifact couldn’t name just one for their Lie of the Year 2015, so they named Trump.

For another thing, the message itself that Trump delivers is not in any way shape or form a positive one. Sure he talks about “making America great again,” but who says it isn’t right now? And who says it has to be? Why can’t “really, really, really good” be good enough? The problem with a slogan like Trump’s is that it could mean anything to anybody. Trump’s not defining what would make America greater than it is now except to list the kinds of things all conservatives hate about our society as being the reasons it isn’t great, like the fact that we care about people and want to help make their lives better. Conservatism is about selfishness, first and foremost, so it stands to reason a narcissist trying to win the nomination of a predominantly conservative party would concentrate on the things that most annoy people who think of themselves, first. And fear works on people like that. Make people afraid, tell them whom to fear (please, we don’t need to name any former propaganda ministers), and if they’re the type who don’t put a lot of effort into their thinking (which might expose the lies behind your fear mongering), they’ll do anything you ask (or just imply you think would please you, like beating up a protester at your rally.) Trump’s fear mongering and lies have gotten so bad that terrorists really have started using his anti-Muslim comments in a recruiting video.

And where the narcissism I spoke of earlier should be damning to a group of people who are taught to practice humility in their lives, Conservative Christians (an oxymoron, as Conservatives do very little Jesus would approve) seem to absolutely love Trump. And considering what they believe their religion teaches them about women and sex (including Trump’s lawyer, who thinks marital rape is impossible), the sexism Trump regularly displays can only strengthen their ill-conceived love of the man. This would not otherwise be a problem in a country where the freedom to peacefully practice one’s religion is constitutionally guaranteed, but these people vote. And they base their decision to vote on whom they think will move this country toward their idea of a Christian paradise. Which is ironic considering Trump’s fear mongering them into believing the religious extremists want to install Sharia Law across America, in violation of their religion freedom to do the same with Christianity.

Long before the Republican convention is over and a nominee and his or her running mate is announced, all of these things about Trump, his viewpoints, his policy proposals, his budget numbers, his own hypocritical, self-serving lifestyle, all of it will convince the Americans people that the Office of President of the United States is not a character in a reality show, and not a job to give someone barely suited to do that. Donald J. Trump is, if anything, less fit to serve as President of the United States than I, and I know something about the way the world really works. (Hint: It isn’t always for us, and we can’t fire them and replace them with China.) Trump thinks we can order other countries to do as we please or, in his case, as he pleases. Or maybe as his BFF and admirer Vladimir Putin pleases. And what pleases Putin is having journalists murdered. Which Trump seems to refuse to believe is true. And while it may be technically true that no proof exists the man who once ran their secret intelligence agency left no evidence of his involvement in those journalists’ murders, we would then have to believe that being a Russian journalist critical of Vladimir Putin simply has an inexplicable mortality rate significantly higher than one of those not so critical. And that’s not likely.

Stop supporting Donald Trump for president. He doesn’t deserve it, and he isn’t fit for the job. Running a country is nothing like running a corporation, even an international one. And anyone who thinks otherwise is basing his vote on a dangerous fallacy. But then, that’s just what the Republican Party wants you to do. Otherwise they’d never win elections.

This is our daily open thread, so you are totally free to talk about anything other than Donald Trump, which in itself would displease him very much. Go on. There’s other things happening out there. Tell us about a few of them. Just stop making me think of Trump! 🙂