Donald John Trump: 2016 President-Elect

[Keepitmoving]

2 minutes ago, SmithW6079 said:

I said it on the post-election anxiety thread & I'll say it again here:

We are well and truly fucked.

America 1776-2016

LOL, is this what is says on our tombstone?

[hoosier80]

53 minutes ago, windsprints said:

After meeting with Mr. Trump, the only person to be elected president without having held a government or military position, Mr. Obama realized the Republican needs more guidance. He plans to spend more time with his successor than presidents typically do, people familiar with the matter said.

Good Lord.  He didn't realize he'd have to hire White House staff?  But he's the very best, he'll have tremendous people. 

Wanna bet he was looking for a Cliff Notes or Presidential Duties for Dummies books (well having an underling do it)?  Maybe flash cards would work.   

Or, considering he doesn't seem to know how the government works:

 

9 minutes ago, AuntiePam said:

"Too proud to ask for explanations" -- exactly

And those too proud to ask for help, typically fail.  Hence, "pride goeth before the fall". 

[maraleia]

He is going to fail so fast our heads will spin. Mark my words because everyone he is tapping for senior roles has no idea how this works.

[Lillybee]

The only jobs that he will bring back are those in the farm fields replacing the undocs that he deported.

[Wishing Well]

Hats off to Obama for wanting to mentor him-a sign of how much our REAL President cares for his country.  

 

If I were on my way out I'd pull off every one of those Biden Memes and let Trump die in there.

[Padma]

2 hours ago, SierraMist said:

I watched him on 60 minutes.  I can see why people were taken in by him.  He can sound so reasonable when he wants to (like a snake oil salesman).  But when he said he didn't know about any violence happening by his supporters against people of color, he doesn't know why people might be afraid, then I know he's lying about everything.  He's so totally full of crap.

I see it, too. Plus this was the first time--probably because of the vote, plus he was speaking so seriously--that I looked at him and didn't see "the arrogant bully-businessman" or the reality tv star. I saw a politician, no different from looking at some unpalatable rightwinger from Missouri or Kentucky or even Canada. 

He can do the "good cop/bad cop" act very easily. He's been doing it for decades. That's why people need to watch his entire speech at his rallies, not just sound bites. When you see the whole, paranoid, hateful rant, it just doesn't jive with the calm, earnest, serious man in the chair who described Hillary as "very nice" and the Obama meeting as a "great honor", even praising his sense of humor.  Did people watch the rallies before voting? They really really should have.

But the problem is that he still lies--notably about the protesters, sorry professional protesters. That's ridiculous. And that he doesn't know hate crimes are increasing is hard to believe, too.

Then there's the "press problem". They ask question, but when it gets difficult, they quit. Case in point, LGBTQ. Leslie asked about it. Trump feigned innocence and confusion. He even said, "Well, I said something nice at the convention and was praised for it", so, seriously, why are they whining and fearful?  She agreed, yes, you did and got him to say it was resolved, a non-issue for him.

BUT.... Stahl DIDN'T go the extra step to bring out the hard facts about Pence. That was the time to confront him with them, "Why did you choose Mike Pence then, a man whose top priority is ending marriage equality and who believes in conversion therapy?"  That would have been a more difficult question, but like most media, she only asked ones that allowed him some wiggle room. I really hate that. 

Edited November 14, 2016 by Padma

[SmithW6079]

3 minutes ago, Padma said:

BUT.... Stahl DIDN'T go the extra step to bring out the hard facts about Pence. That was the time to confront him with them, "Why did you choose Mike Pence then, a man whose top priority is ending marriage equality and who believes in conversion therapy?"  That would have been a more difficult question, but like most media, she only asked ones that allowed him some wiggle room. I really hate that. 

To be fair, it's not just with Trump. I'm not a reporter, but I do conduct interviews for published profiles, and there are times I listen to media questioning and don't hear a question or follow-up that I know I would have asked, that should have been asked. I think some of that stems from the corporatization of media and the insistence that it be a profit center. How can you ask the hard questions if your advertiser or sponsor will retaliate? I think NPR interviewed one of the Koch brothers and let him get away with everything because they didn't ask the pointed questions. I think news sources like Mother Jones or Jim Hightower's Hightower Lowdown are going to be more important than ever in the coming dark days.

I went on Facebook for the first time tonight in days, and I saw one of my friends protesting that she's not a racist and didn't appreciate people calling her one because she supported Trump. I don't engage in political discussions on Facebook (what's the point?), but I feel like telling her that "lie down with dogs, get up with fleas" or "a man is known by the company he keeps."

[Padma]

I wonder if he's thought of how being president could negatively impact his businesses in other ways.

I mean he'll be a lighting rod for controversy for a lot of people, some terrorists and others who are just violent and unbalanced. He also has properties--golf courses, hotels, etc.--all over the country and world. Most of them are not owned by Trump but people pay him a lot of $$$ to use his name.

Now, as people hate him more and more, you could see fewer people wanting to have that name on their properties and products. It's not the "sign of luxury and quality" anymore that they thought they were paying him for. Plus, it's very possible that someone who hates Trump might deface a building, or attack it in some way as a protest against him. So, it would even be unsafe to license the name "Trump" on your buildings.

I could see that having a BIG effect.

[backformore]

1 hour ago, Padma said:

He can do the "good cop/bad cop" act very easily. He's been doing it for decades. That's why people need to watch his entire speech at his rallies, not just sound bites. When you see the whole, paranoid, hateful rant, it just doesn't jive with the calm, earnest, serious man in the chair who described Hillary as "very nice" and the Obama meeting as a "great honor", even praising his sense of humor.  Did people watch the rallies before voting? They really really should have.

And this is what will, I think, be his destruction.  People voted for him because they wanted change, they wanted to overthrow the established system that they didn't think was working for them.  SO Trump calls Hillary "nasty"  and a criminal, promises to lock her up, says Obama is the worst, has ruined the country.  And NOW, how are his supporters responding to the "nasty woman" being "very nice",  and a meeting with  the non-American, Muslim, ISIS founder president as "A great honor'? 

[AuntiePam]

Stahl asked him how he planned to defeat ISIS.  Trump responds the same way he's responded before:  "I'm not telling.  That's stupid, to let the enemy know your plans".  Does he not understand that operatives on all sides gather intelligence, they watch troop movements, they can see build-ups of men and equipment, and that they know (at least generally) what's going to happen? 

The "it's a secret" response to the ISIS question is no response at all.  I wish Stahl would have called him on it, but I guess the media will be in a honeymoon period with him for awhile yet.

[Jordan27]

2 hours ago, Keepitmoving said:

LOL, is this what is says on our tombstone?

That's what it says on the liberal tombstone.

[GHScorpiosRule]

I didn't watch the interview. But I'm POSITIVE that had Mike Wallace been alive, he wouldn't have let the ? ? get away with his nonsensical answers and non-answers. 

I mean, he said that LGBTQ rights-the right to marry "is the law of the land" yet Roe v. Wade isn't? Since BOTH are a result of a Supreme Court decision?

I just can't with the utter idiocy and lack of a thinking brain of his.  It's been 30 years since I was this scared for myself, other minorities, and my country. Back then it was fearing that nuclear war was a possibility. I've come full circle. And I'm terrified.

[FilmTVGeek80]

25 minutes ago, stewedsquash said:

Then why ask him at all, if the enemy already knows? I am not following your logic. 

I'm not really following your logic. Trump keeps acting as if he's this great leader who is going to defeat ISIS. He's even gone so far as to make the ludicrous claim that he knows more than the generals do. And yet when he's been asked how he's going to defeat ISIS he comes up with some bullshit response that he can't tell anyone because that will tip off ISIS. I believe what Auntie Pam was saying is that the enemy will have some idea what's going on, so to continue to act like he can't answer the question because he needs the element of surprise is ridiculous. We need to ask him that question - and he needs to answer - because it's a critically important issue and we should know if he actually has any plans or if this is just another instance of him trying to blow smoke up our asses (I'm guessing it's the latter.)

[Guest]

6 hours ago, stewedsquash said:

Seriously, tell the two ladies to take a hike.

Maybe you missed the part where I said one of them was already dead. And don't judge me as a martyr. I'm not. 

ETA: Since I'm now operating on two more hours sleep, I should have added back in this part:

I have had to take a breath, and continue to like, interact, not ignore, posters now that I have had another view of them in the political forum. I had no idea that the ones I had thought so kind, had such, to me, ridiculously mean things to say. The blinders came off, and I decided to still reach out and interact with them in other areas of the site, just as before. Because that is what you do, in my opinion, you reach out to people in the world, whether they are just like you or not.

This entire suggestion towards inclusivity completely negates your admonition that I cut loose my one remaining elderly, Fox News watching, racist friend. One's magnanimity should extend into the real world inasmuch as it does in the online one.

Edited November 14, 2016 by Guest

[Ceindreadh]

3 hours ago, Wishing Well said:

Hats off to Obama for wanting to mentor him-a sign of how much our REAL President cares for his country.  

 

If I were on my way out I'd pull off every one of those Biden Memes and let Trump die in there.

I would probably use that Simpsons quote from Trash of the Titans about letting him wallow in his own crapulence. 

4 hours ago, windsprints said:

It doesn't come as a surprise but I can't say FUCK YOU enough to this:

He does realise that most women seeking abortions don't have their own private jet that they can get taxpayers to pay for?  Has this guy every lived in the real world or was he born with that golden toilet seat on his arse?

[Danny Franks]

57 minutes ago, Ceindreadh said:

 

He does realise that most women seeking abortions don't have their own private jet that they can get taxpayers to pay for?  Has this guy every lived in the real world or was he born with that golden toilet seat on his arse?

This is what baffles the hell out of me with Republicans and their stance on abortion. They hate the poor, they hate benefits for the poor, they hate paying for single women with kids who don't have time to work enough hours to support them.... But they want to stop women from having abortions.

Look, dickheads, the women who won't be able to 'go to another state' to have an abortion are the poor women who you already don't want having kids because you don't want the government to pay for them! Are you all completely stupid? You're making the problem worse for yourselves.... God, they are such fucking idiots.

As for gay marriage, it doesn't surprise me much that Trump doesn't care about overturning it. It's the one prejudice he doesn't seem to have so... yay? The VP only has as much power as the president lets him have, so we can all hope he and Pence fall out (they clearly don't like each other), and Pence is left shaking hands and giving speeches to rotary clubs.

Also, just try to get Trump to just think of gay marriage as two hot lesbians in wedding dresses. You know he'd be a yuge fan of it then.

Edited November 14, 2016 by Danny Franks

[Chicken Wing]

Quote

I mean, he said that LGBTQ rights-the right to marry "is the law of the land" yet Roe v. Wade isn't? Since BOTH are a result of a Supreme Court decision?

Seriously, what the orange fuck? Both were deemed the law by the Supreme Court, fool! He's just going to cherry-pick which SC rulings he wants to overturn (even though he can't just up and overturn a SC ruling just because he feels like it, nor is it reasonable to expect that just because you have a conservative majority on the Court that they will side with that either) and leave others there on the grounds that the Supreme Court ruled it the law of the land, as if that exact same fucking thing doesn't apply to those other things? Stupid orange toadstool.

Quote

He does realise that most women seeking abortions don't have their own private jet that they can get taxpayers to pay for?  Has this guy every lived in the real world or was he born with that golden toilet seat on his arse?

Well, this is how the anti-Roe v. Wade segment works in justifying striking down the law and returning it to state legislation. They can say, well, technically women can still get an abortion if they want, if their individual state allows it, and if it doesn't, they'll just go to another state. And they say this knowing full well that this is not a feasible solution for, oh, 97% of the population to just travel to another state for medical needs, so those women are, as we the country are now, well and truly fucked if their rights are taken away like that. And that's how they win.

[FuriousStyles]

Ever since Trump starting his campaign I started thinking about where he would be if he wasnt born with a silver spoon in his mouth...if his father hadnt have given him a modest $1 million to start his investing.  Maybe he would have felt the need to be more informed throughout his life?  Would he have still become a billionaire?  Or would he have been one of those people hoping for jobs that are never coming back?   

It amazes me that someone who is 70 years old, an international businessman AND someone who actually ran FOR the position knows next to nothing about it. 

[needschocolate]

12 hours ago, backformore said:

As to not taking a salary - he will find a way to make money off his presidency.  he made a profit from being a candidate, renting out hotel space to his campaign, charging his campaign for the use of his plane.  He wants to keep his apartment in NYC?   I bet taxes will be paying Trump Hotel for the use of the hotel rooms for secret service. 

He has seen how much former presidents make giving speeches.  Getting paid a lot of money to talk in front of a lot of people is exactly the kind of job Trump would want. And he is probably thinking that since Hillary makes a lot giving speeches, that Melania will be able to too, that's why he had her give a few speeches during the campaign - and Hillary and Michelle both have a bunch of speeches Melania could plagiarize.

12 hours ago, backformore said:

I think someone finally told him that he CAN'T repeal Affordable Health Care, because it would mean people who paid premiums for insurance would be left without coverage.  Throughout his campaign, "ObamaCare" was called a "complete disaster:  and he vowed to get rid of it immediately.   Now, he realizes that it has some good points, and he's going to tweak it.  I think he never understood it, still doesn't, and is too proud to ask anyone to explain how it works.

Is this why the enrollments in ACA skyrocketed after the election?

[ClareWalks]

W/R/T the ISIS thing, I wish Trump had at least dropped some actual knowledge of military strategy in response to those questions, even if he supposedly didn't want to give away his actual plan. If he'd said something like "well, in the past, _______ has shown to be successful against segmented terrorist groups, or _________ has been unsuccessful. I'm not going to show my cards to ISIS, but I have spoken with (insert ANY actual military strategist here) about the best way to approach the problem, and I am confident that we will succeed." Instead he was like "I know what to do, but I won't say." That doesn't exactly inspire confidence that he knows WTF he's talking about. I could tell you I am a genius astrophysicist with grand plans for colonizing Venus, but it means nothing unless I tell you, I don't know, maybe a few facts about Venus?

[windsprints]

No surprise: Donald Trump's Lawyers Ask for Delay of 'Trump U' Trial

Its fine for HRC to be under investigation during the run for President yet they're thinking DJT shouldn't have to answer for the charges against him. And get this:

Quote

 

Trump's attorneys also proposed allowing the president-elect to record a videotaped testimony prior to the trial date, arguing that would "ensure no additional delay of trial based on future scheduling unpredictability."

They suggest that videotaped could be used in another related case, to "allow President-elect Trump to focus on transitioning to office."

 

Yep, try to keep the unstable man off the stand and replace it with edited, produced (like his reality shows) footage. 

[HumblePi]

Here we go, this is where we're heading in January. The first display of what Donald Trump's leadership for this country is going to be like. 

Two words should be enough, right?  "Stop it"

[KerleyQ]

12 hours ago, lordonia said:

Obama should have kept his trap shut about the West Wing staff. Would have been amusing to have a clueless Trump surrounded by Democrats! All hail this photo, taken when Obama was giving his congratulatory speech about Trump's win.

We are all the White House staff.  

[MulletorHater]

10 hours ago, SmithW6079 said:

To be fair, it's not just with Trump. I'm not a reporter, but I do conduct interviews for published profiles, and there are times I listen to media questioning and don't hear a question or follow-up that I know I would have asked, that should have been asked. I think some of that stems from the corporatization of media and the insistence that it be a profit center. How can you ask the hard questions if your advertiser or sponsor will retaliate? I think NPR interviewed one of the Koch brothers and let him get away with everything because they didn't ask the pointed questions. I think news sources like Mother Jones or Jim Hightower's Hightower Lowdown are going to be more important than ever in the coming dark days.

I went on Facebook for the first time tonight in days, and I saw one of my friends protesting that she's not a racist and didn't appreciate people calling her one because she supported Trump. I don't engage in political discussions on Facebook (what's the point?), but I feel like telling her that "lie down with dogs, get up with fleas" or "a man is known by the company he keeps."

I seethed for days when Joe and Meek-a gave a softball interview to the Koch brothers and were practically gushing afterwards.  They acted all surprised at the accusations that those two demons have infiltrated our political system, starting at the local level.  This is the problem with corporate media now.  The so-called journalists either have their own agendas or engage in behavior where they, themselves, become a part of the story (Here's looking at you, Brian Williams).   Or, they answer to their corporate masters and dumb down the news.  Back in the day, journalists were charged with answering 5 crucial questions when reporting or reading the news:  Who, Where, When, Why and How.  Now, some of them are so off the hook that they out-bloviate the bloviators.

Corporate media, including cable "news" and infotainment shows will have a lot to answer for.  Even the venerable New York Times has been a disappointment.  Virtually all of them helped to normalize the unthinkable.  That's why I refused to watch the 60 Minutes interview with Drumpf.  The show already had credibility problems with the Benghazi reporting and I was not about to contribute to its or CBS' ratings.   Screw CBS because that's exactly what you see now--B.S.  All the president of CBS cared about were ratings when Drumpf was a candidate.  But, he was not alone.  Now, we have pro-Trump "journalists" out there telling folks that we are overreacting to the elevation of a white nationalist anti-Semite as White House chief strategist.  Talk about putting the "white' back in the White House!  I will not let them get away with telling me that my fears are over-exaggerated.  Nor, will I ignore that some European far-right nationalist groups see Drumpf as a vindication of their movements.

I will support the journalists who are still fighting the good fight and speaking truth to power.  Hopefully, Jeff Bezos, the owner of The Washington Post will continue allowing the paper's journalists to sound the alarm no matter the attacks from the likes of Laura Ingraham and the propagandists (they aren't journalists) on Faux News.  It is more important than ever that journalists value truth and facts over clicks, ratings and notoriety and potential book sales.

Oh, and please wake me when Drumpf himself actually denounces the post-election intimidation of minorities that he deliberately whipped up during the election season including inciting armed goons to show up at polls in certain communities.  Until then, his apologists and surrogates can take a stadium full of seats.

[NinjaPenguins]

Quote

I'm not really following your logic. Trump keeps acting as if he's this great leader who is going to defeat ISIS.

Trump probably fantasizes about being air dropped into a desert somewhere and karate chopping his way through an ISIS training camp with Bruce Willis and Chuck Norris bringing up the rear. On the very, very, very, very slim chance he oversees the complete and utter obliteration of ISIS, that fantasy will be what he tells the American people actually happened. A speech recounting how Orange made all those terrorists renounce Allah at the business end of his combat boots will be broadcast from a gold-plated aircraft carrier, highlighted by half-naked showgirls holding aloft a Mission F***ing Accomplished banner. He'll award himself several medals, to be pinned on the military uniform he's taken to wearing, completing his transformation into Muammar Gaddafi.

But he'll probably fail, as he always does.

I can't believe people are asking about strategy. Sad. The strategy is he knows more than the generals, who are rubble. I would bet hard cash money that Orange considers that an actual strategy. 

[fishcakes]

13 hours ago, MulletorHater said:

I'm still waiting for Drumpf to publicly and forcefully denounce the hateful acts that have occurred on his behalf since his selection by the Electoral College.

But ... but ... he said, "stop it." He looked right in the camera and everything. With both eyes!

12 hours ago, backformore said:

I think someone finally told him that he CAN'T repeal Affordable Health Care, because it would mean people who paid premiums for insurance would be left without coverage.  Throughout his campaign, "ObamaCare" was called a "complete disaster:  and he vowed to get rid of it immediately.   Now, he realizes that it has some good points, and he's going to tweak it.  I think he never understood it, still doesn't, and is too proud to ask anyone to explain how it works.

Even tweaking the ACA is going to be much harder than he thinks it is, at least the way he wants to do it, which is to remove the aspects of it that make the whole thing function. Although there have already been 61 attempts in Congress for repeal, that was just theater to appease the GOP base; they knew Obama was going to veto it. But now that they've got President Moritmer Snerd to sign off, I'm interested to see how many of them will really vote in favor of repealing even the less popular provisions of the act, but without which the most popular provisions become impossible. All of these idiots, not just Trump, banging on about what a disaster Obamacare is have not really thought through the consequences of a repeal because they knew they didn't have to; they didn't genuinely expect that it was a legitimate possibility and that they'd have to come up with a workable replacement.

But at the same time, I wouldn't be surprised if there were a wholesale repeal just because these assholes want to rub it in Obama's face. I mean, so what if people suffer, go bankrupt, and die? The main thing is that Obama didn't get the last word. Meanwhile, I need to check with my doctor to see if, in lieu of insurance, she'll accept "something terrific."

12 hours ago, backformore said:

And nothing will please ME more than when his idiot supporters realize that his plan to "bring jobs back to America"  will most likely include stuff like lowering the minimum wage, raising the retirement age, cutting Medicaid and social security. 

Seriously, we're all going to burn, but the Trump supporters are going to burn with us and I'm not going to shed a tear over that.

12 hours ago, lordonia said:

Obama should have kept his trap shut about the West Wing staff. Would have been amusing to have a clueless Trump surrounded by Democrats!

I think it would have have been hilarious if Trump were to show up on January 20 and find there are no staffers because he didn't hire anyone. He'd probably have Chris Christie make all the copies and fetch him KFC until he got around to hiring an assistant.

12 hours ago, sistermagpie said:

Didn’t he reveal this in an interview. He said something like “I never use it” as if that made any sense.

He said something like "all of my employees are having a terrible time with Obamacare. It's so bad they can't even use it." Then people asked, "oh, so you don't provide health insurance to your employees?" Finally, one of his surrogates said that of course he provided health insurance, but "some" employees have Obamacare and it's just terrible! It's a disaster! Sad!

[NewDigs]

13 hours ago, PatsyandEddie said:

I can't wait to hear what the ladies from Pussy Riot are going to have to say. ?

Ha! NPR had an interview with Nadezhda Tolokonnikova a couple of weeks ago.

The NYTimes covered the information more fully than the NPR site.

Their "Make America Great Again" video is NSFW.

[Chicken Wing]

Quote

Even tweaking the ACA is going to be much harder than he thinks it is, at least the way he wants to do it, which is to remove the aspects of it that make the whole thing function. Although there have already been 61 attempts in Congress for repeal, that was just theater to appease the GOP base; they knew Obama was going to veto it. But now that they've got President Moritmer Snerd to sign off, I'm interested to see how many of them will really vote in favor of repealing even the less popular provisions of the act, but without which the most popular provisions become impossible. All of these idiots, not just Trump, banging on about what a disaster Obamacare is have not really thought through the consequences of a repeal because they knew they didn't have to; they didn't genuinely expect that it was a legitimate possibility and that they'd have to come up with a workable replacement.

For all their "just because" attempts to repeal Obamacare over the past six years, the GOP side has yet to do so while offering an actual alternative. And they still have no such thing. Yet Trump insists that he will repeal and replace -- simultaneously. With what? And how? Oh, but he wants to keep the "good" parts of Obamacare, such as banning exclusions for pre-existing conditions. Uh huh. And since he plans on doing away with the aspects that actually allow such an idea to function in the healthcare industry in the first place, what exactly is he going to do to force insurance companies to cover these people without charging them a $50,000 yearly premium to make up for their expensive health needs? Huh? Huh? You think State Farm is going to charge me the same premium for my auto insurance if they're forced to cover me even knowing for a fact that I'm going to total my car every six months?

Oh, but he plans to make healthcare affordable to people by offering HSAs and tax deductions. Except those kinds of "incentives" are next to worthless to low-earning individuals who, regarding the former, do not necessarily make enough money to be able to set aside portions of their paycheck and, regarding the latter, do not pay enough taxes for such a deduction to be worthwhile compared to what they had to spend on their insurance premium. The only people this means anything to are the wealthy and upper-middle-class, people who are most likely to already get their healthcare through their employer anyway.

But wait! He also plans to open up the industry so carriers can offer policies across state lines, forcing them to compete and thereby lowering prices! Except we've already tried that kind of strategy, and you know what the insurance companies did? Nothing. No one got into it. Because it's not beneficial to them either.

Seriously, every one of his "ideas" to fix the healthcare industry and offer a "better" alternative to Obamacare just shows his deep ignorance of how both work.

Edited November 14, 2016 by Chicken Wing

[glowlights]

For anyone else who refused to watch 60 minutes last night, Jezebel has helpfully put up a clip and full quotes regarding T***p's statements about abortion access and Roe v. Wade.

http://theslot.jezebel.com/trump-women-might-have-to-go-to-another-state-to-get-a-1788947360

I'll just be over here having a rage stroke.

[zxy556575]

1 hour ago, fishcakes said:

Meanwhile, I need to check with my doctor to see if, in lieu of insurance, she'll accept "something terrific."

I needed that laugh. :)

Everyone's crystal balls are thoroughly cracked, but I honestly never thought repealing the ACA was possible. Certain members of Congress don't give one shit about sick people, but they absolutely care about getting reelected. (Although ... 20M citizens who rely on the ACA vs X number of right-wingers who want it gone? Who the fuck knows any more.)

The same goes for privatizing social security and medicare. First of all, what dumbfuck company would take those money-losers on? More importantly, look at the voting stats by age.

Edited November 14, 2016 by lordonia

[fishcakes]

4 minutes ago, lordonia said:

Everyone's crystal balls are thoroughly cracked

This is the hard part for me, the uncertainty. I don't need all the appeasing noises  and "maybe we'll do this, maybe we won't do that," from Trump and his puppetmasters. Just tell me when and where I'm going to get fucked over so I can firm up my plans to drive into the sea.

[potatoradio]

I ain't breathing no sigh of relief that Pennywise the Clown doesn't see marriage equality as enough of a shiny object to care or that he isn't interested enough in who pees where to step in any bathroom crises. He can and will be distracted on a dime. Nothing is safe.

I sure wish his staff all the luck in the world spending the next four years tapdancing and kowtowing and otherwise acting like captives chained to Jabba the Hutt in hopes that they might get credited with praise paraded on the teevee in front of the librulls. So. much. winning.

Yes, Pennywise, please proceed to go fight ISIS yourself. Take Chachi and Duck Dynasty Dude and all of your brownshirts with you. You know more than the generals. Have at it.

As far as accepting - well, it's not unlike getting a diagnosis of cancer and still waiting to hear how quickly I'm going to die. Will it be quick or do I suffer first? So, I'm coming around accepting being in survival mode. Yay for progress.

I"ve been reaching out to people in my life to get together and simply talk. Some hand wringing will happen, but mostly we all need to get our bearings together. 

One of my family members works for the U.S. government in a highly unstable region of the world. He just sent his kids to college and his wife is in D.C., so he's pretty much alone. I said that it was hard enough to watch the news here, that i couldn't imagine him trying to live his life through this horrible transition. He said that his family pleaded with him to quit, but he said that, while at first he's been sickened by the news, now he's determined to follow Lincoln's inspiration and persevere in great odds. I'm not heartened by his description of "great odds," but I'm taking comfort that he's not fleeing. 

I'm honestly not sure how the MSM should play Pennywise. On the one hand, I want them to start calling out every atrocity he commits, as well as his neocon party. Then again, maybe it's smarter to fool him into thinking he's won and, meanwhile, build resistance underground? 

Today, I am wearing a safety pin. A woman with a hijab got on the elevator with me and I saw her look at it and then ask me what floor she needed for department X. I am so very sad that she was clearly comforted by a symbol that I was a safe person, but, for anyone who thinks we're wearing safety pins just to feel better about ourselves? You're missing the point. It's not like "raising awareness" ribbons. People are going to need to see visible signs that they can trust each other. 

Edited November 14, 2016 by potatoradio

[zxy556575]

Because I need to shout this into the unheeding universe: nothing makes me more table-flipping angry these days than the phrase "party of Lincoln."

[windsprints]

Quote

from Trump and his puppetmasters

http://www.tubechop.com/watch/8565007

Quote

People are going to need to see visible signs that they can trust each other.

I agree and that fact makes me incredibly sad that in a matter of days we've come to this.

[Watermelon]

6 minutes ago, potatoradio said:

 

Today, I am wearing a safety pin. A woman with a hijab got on the elevator with me and I saw her look at it and then ask me what floor she needed for department X. I am so very sad that she was clearly comforted by a symbol that I was a safe person, but, for anyone who thinks we're wearing safety pins just to feel better about ourselves? You're missing the point. It's not like "raising awareness" ribbons. People are going to need to see visible signs that they can trust each other. 

Yeah, I heard about those safety pins.  The 2 critiques I've heard are 1) they require people to search them out and (more importantly) 2)your local neighborhood racists know about the safety pins and are suggesting to use them in order to trick people into thinking they've found a safe space.

Edited November 14, 2016 by Watermelon

[potatoradio]

3 minutes ago, Watermelon said:

your local neighborhood racists know about the safety pins and are suggesting to use them in order to trick people into thinking they've found a safe space

Oh my god. Thank you for telling me that. There are indeed monsters out there h*llbent on destruction and mayhem. But hey, the Thing has said, "Stop it," so they'll listen to him, right? 

I can't even....

[windsprints]

Quote

your local neighborhood racists know about the safety pins and are suggesting to use them in order to trick people into thinking they've found a safe space.

 I guess I need to rewire myself to always consider possibilities such as this going forward. 

Ugh right about now I'd like to go move to help take care of the orphaned baby elephants. But I suppose not even that is a safe bet. Trump's sons will probably show up to hunt.

After his comments about all his social media followers I really wish there was a way to get all who don't like him to unfollow on the same day.  

Edited November 14, 2016 by windsprints

[candall]

3 hours ago, Chicken Wing said:

[,,,]

Well, this is how the anti-Roe v. Wade segment works in justifying striking down the law and returning it to state legislation. They can say, well, technically women can still get an abortion if they want, if their individual state allows it, and if it doesn't, they'll just go to another state. And they say this knowing full well that this is not a feasible solution for, oh, 97% of the population to just travel to another state for medical needs, so those women are, as we the country are now, well and truly fucked if their rights are taken away like that. And that's how they win.

Exactly.  Roe v. Wade won't be specifically overturned; reproductive rights won't be struck down.  (That would be too dramatic, too simple to comprehend, too easy to protest.)  The Court will just hand down a decision that says something like:  According to our strict interpretation of the Constitution, the federal government has no jurisdiction over certain individual rights and the authority to make the determination belongs to the states.  

Be on alert for the word "Jurisdiction"--that's going to be code for "We've decided to cancel women's control over their own bodies."

[AuntiePam]

11 hours ago, stewedsquash said:

Then why ask him at all, if the enemy already knows? I am not following your logic. 

I'm probably not explaining myself clearly.  Trump says he has a plan to defeat ISIS but he refuses to give even a general idea of what that plan involves.  More ground troops?  Nukes?  Engaging more allies?  Blowing up the oil fields? 

His excuse for not giving even the bare bones of his plan is that he doesn't want the enemy to have advance knowledge.  He doesn't understand that all kinds of information is already out there -- all sides have intelligence about the other side.  He's covering for the fact that he doesn't understand what's going on.

[callmebetty]

1 hour ago, fishcakes said:

But ... but ... he said, "stop it." He looked right in the camera and everything. With both eyes!

Even tweaking the ACA is going to be much harder than he thinks it is, at least the way he wants to do it, which is to remove the aspects of it that make the whole thing function. Although there have already been 61 attempts in Congress for repeal, that was just theater to appease the GOP base; they knew Obama was going to veto it. But now that they've got President Moritmer Snerd to sign off, I'm interested to see how many of them will really vote in favor of repealing even the less popular provisions of the act, but without which the most popular provisions become impossible. All of these idiots, not just Trump, banging on about what a disaster Obamacare is have not really thought through the consequences of a repeal because they knew they didn't have to; they didn't genuinely expect that it was a legitimate possibility and that they'd have to come up with a workable replacement.

But at the same time, I wouldn't be surprised if there were a wholesale repeal just because these assholes want to rub it in Obama's face. I mean, so what if people suffer, go bankrupt, and die? The main thing is that Obama didn't get the last word. Meanwhile, I need to check with my doctor to see if, in lieu of insurance, she'll accept "something terrific."

Seriously, we're all going to burn, but the Trump supporters are going to burn with us and I'm not going to shed a tear over that.

I think it would have have been hilarious if Trump were to show up on January 20 and find there are no staffers because he didn't hire anyone. He'd probably have Chris Christie make all the copies and fetch him KFC until he got around to hiring an assistant.

He said something like "all of my employees are having a terrible time with Obamacare. It's so bad they can't even use it." Then people asked, "oh, so you don't provide health insurance to your employees?" Finally, one of his surrogates said that of course he provided health insurance, but "some" employees have Obamacare and it's just terrible! It's a disaster! Sad!

I know I shouldn't laugh, but it's  just the ridiculousness  of his something terrific for health care .  Can you imagine making an appointment ? 

"And what type of insurance do you have HMO, PPO ?

"Oh no I have something terrific insurance"

 

I imagine he would love to have a White House Staff reality show where he hires someone new on a weekly basis.

Edited November 14, 2016 by callmebetty

[sistermagpie]

8 hours ago, Danny Franks said:

Look, dickheads, the women who won't be able to 'go to another state' to have an abortion are the poor women who you already don't want having kids because you don't want the government to pay for them! Are you all completely stupid? You're making the problem worse for yourselves.... God, they are such fucking idiots.

They've shown over and over that they enjoy taking away the control of women's bodies more than they mind paying for children they can't afford. After all, they can also judge those children and their parents for being moochers. It's the same with healthcare. Having people collapse in ERs is far more expensive than a reasonable healthcare plan, but it also allows people to withold "their" money from unworthy people they don't want to pay for, so they'll suck up the giant loss even while claiming they don't want healthcare because it's too expensive. There's many policies in US life that prioritize punishing and shaming over practically dealing with the problem in a way that would benefit the country.

Really, all this divisiveness is just as much of an example. I saw someone on Facebook recently say they voted for Trump because they were worried about religious freedom. I've read an explanation of so many religious wars by people saying that basically one group thinks another group is going to try to force their religion on them, so they pre-emptively try to force theirs on them. They want special rights for Christians and their justification is that somehow it's them who's had their religious rights taken away. If they committed to the fair laws of religious freedom we'd all be protected but no, they see it the opposite way, that their group needs special rights.

2 hours ago, stewedsquash said:

Still not following. What is it you want him to say publicly? Do you want him to do like President Obama has done (in general  regarding the military) and announce when we will leave, when we will arrive? Where we will go? What weapons will be used? A list of people going? For me, at this stage, it is enough to say we will beat ISIS

I think the point is, we all know very well he hasn't the slightest idea how to defeat ISIS. He has no military experience, no insider knowledge on what's going on over there, he's probably not even as informed as plenty of ordinary citizens following the conflict. His ideas are more like anyone's random uncle's ideas that he expounds on at Thanksgiving--be tough, kick their asses, the generals are just idiots, etc. Even in the debate there was that stunning moment where he complained about plans being talked about in the news and when the moderator explained to him that there is a sound strategy involved in when the military does or doesn't decide to release information he just said, "I can't think of a reason." As if, as usual, his very limited view of the world was the decisive factor here.

When he says he's not telling his plan to fight ISIS, he's just using an elementary-school level trick to sound like he knows something without having to have any sort of intelligent conversation about the actual facts of the incredibly messy situation going on in the middle east. He's not actually holding the details of the DDay invasion close to the chest here.

32 minutes ago, Watermelon said:

2)your local neighborhood racists know about the safety pins and are suggesting to use them in order to trick people into thinking they've found a safe space.

But it's not like people follow people with safety pins around. It's just a thing people are wearing in public, where you can't tell who the racists are anyway. It's not like somebody gets on a subway car, checks for pins, and only sits down if they see them. They're not going to trust someone with their well-being just because they're wearing a pin. 

[PatsyandEddie]

21 minutes ago, AuntiePam said:

I'm probably not explaining myself clearly.  Trump says he has a plan to defeat ISIS but he refuses to give even a general idea of what that plan involves.  More ground troops?  Nukes?  Engaging more allies?  Blowing up the oil fields? 

His excuse for not giving even the bare bones of his plan is that he doesn't want the enemy to have advance knowledge.  He doesn't understand that all kinds of information is already out there -- all sides have intelligence about the other side.  He's covering for the fact that he doesn't understand what's going on.

He seems to think he can just order the bombers and jets to fly over the Middle East and "bomb the shit out of them ".  Sorry that is against international law for multiple reasons not least of which is the killing of innocents. ISIS is an ideology hiding behind a religion and therefore it isn't in one place only. He doesn't get anyfuckingthing. 

I watched Nadehzhda's video on CBC last evening. Bwahaha! Spot on! The band member being interviewed, Masha, said to keep protesting in the streets and make your voices heard. She also called him "crazy asshole" and people are "naive to think you put someone like that in President's chair and then control him".

Edited November 14, 2016 by PatsyandEddie
Addition

[potatoradio]

8 minutes ago, sistermagpie said:

There's many policies in US life that prioritize punishing and shaming over practically dealing with the problem in a way that would benefit the country

Preach. This, alone, should be a rallying point over the next few years. 

[backgroundnoise]

13 hours ago, Padma said:

I wonder if he's thought of how being president could negatively impact his businesses in other ways.

I'm wondering about the tourism industry in total.  Plenty of people around the world are disgusted with the USA right now.

[HumblePi]

The Bible has always emphasized the formative power of speech. In the Bible, book of James, he compares the tongue to a rudder on a ship, capable of defiling the whole body. (James 3:3-6). Even more than 2,000 years ago, wise men realized what power the spoken and written word holds.

Our speech is a principle function in defining who we are.  If you change how people talk, that changes how they think. Has Donald Trump taken seriously the way language can alter the way we view him? The power of speech can never be understated, it can be used to build or it can be used to destroy.  It's an extremely powerful weapon that takes no army, guns or tanks to eliminate enemies or to calm fears and promote real healing.

Donald Trump never had this power, never will. That he would dare to equate himself to Abraham Lincoln who was perhaps one of the most powerful orators in history, is absolutely abhorrent to me. Lincoln's Gettysburg Address was written by him in 2 days prior to the dedication of Gettysburg as a cemetery for soldiers that died up to that point in the Civil War. It was 2 minutes long and 273 words and in that short time Lincoln was able to galvanize a country with the emphasis on freedom, equality and union. At the very start of his speech at Gettysburg, Donald Trump's speech was about how "those women lied" and that he plans to sue those 12 or so women who claimed he was sexually inappropriate with them.  He went on to talk about ending illegal immigration, scrapping the ACA, and building a wall.

The ability to articulate in a clear and comprehensive manner is something that neither Donald Trump nor anyone within his entire staff and cabinet just don't have. If nothing else, Barack Obama should be put on retainer just to help draft any speeches or presentations that the new President Trump will be required to give, at least he won't embarrass himself to the public.

[Tara]

I wonder which of the networks will "rise" to become the anti-Fox News?

I watched as that network fueled the fires of hatred for Obama for 8 years. I would put it on now and then just to see why so many of my otherwise intelligent friends were allowing themselves to be brainwashed. I listened to Fox News refuse to believe that Obama was born here.  Not even the state of Hawaii officially producing his birth certificate was enough (it was Photoshopped, they said).

I watched as Fox News spinned Hillary's email woes as, "She is trafficking classified information."  Obama's efforts towards balancing health care costs became 'he's a socialist."  Socialist was the bad word for 8 years until Bernie Sanders stood up and normalized it again.

Now racist is the bad word.  Everyone's a racist, except the person calling the others racist.  I am seeing people self-righteously insulting an entire race of people under the guise of, "They are the racists, not me."

I have often said Fox News is bad for this country.  It kept the country divided and hateful towards a differing point of view. 

Now I fear either CNN or MSNBC will continue with Fox's example, because after all, doing so made Fox the #1 news show. I know many people felt MSNBC was as bad as Fox, but they never inspired the vitriole that Fox News inspired.

We shall see.

[MulletorHater]

2 hours ago, windsprints said:

No surprise: Donald Trump's Lawyers Ask for Delay of 'Trump U' Trial

Its fine for HRC to be under investigation during the run for President yet they're thinking DJT shouldn't have to answer for the charges against him. And get this:

Yep, try to keep the unstable man off the stand and replace it with edited, produced (like his reality shows) footage. 

I know, right?  Nor, is there practically 24/7 coverage of this as opposed to, say, Hillary's emails (or lack thereof).

I also heard that his lawyer suggested he settle these lawsuits.  With what?  Does he actually have the financial resources to settle these lawsuits without dipping into campaign or his fake foundation's contributions?  Given that his word and promises have the worth of shit-soiled toilet paper, why would anyone willingly sign a settlement agreement where he promises to pay restitution for his fraud?

Speaking of media coverage, it infuriated me that several media pundits advised that if Hillary won the election, she should reach out to Republicans and include some of them in her cabinet and select some to fill top positions ostensibly to heal the divisions in the country.  They were kidding me with that shit, right?  Has anyone suggested this same standard for Drumpf?  Oh, wait...he already said on CNN that he wouldn't consider putting Democrats in his cabinet.  And, I don't recall one pundit suggesting that he do so or holding him to the same standard that Hillary was held.

I'm still waiting for someone who can explain to me why I'm obligated to give him a chance to prove that his campaign talk was "just silly talk."  Not only did Drumpf run on a platform of unapologetic lies, racist rants, personal smears, and trashing the rule of law, but he is also dangerously unqualified.  The expectation that he will be somehow tamed by cooler heads is wishful thinking especially since he has the attention span and maturity level of a gnat.  

[HumblePi]

2 minutes ago, Tara said:

I wonder which of the networks will "rise" to become the anti-Fox News?

I watched as that network fueled the fires of hatred for Obama for 8 years. I would put it on now and then just to see why so many of my otherwise intelligent friends were allowing themselves to be brainwashed. I listened to Fox News refuse to believe that Obama was born here.  Not even the state of Hawaii officially producing his birth certificate was enough (it was Photoshopped, they said).

I watched as Fox News spinned Hillary's email woes as, "She is trafficking classified information."  Obama's efforts towards balancing health care costs became 'he's a socialist."  Socialist was the bad word for 8 years until Bernie Sanders stood up and normalized it again.

Now racist is the bad word.  Everyone's a racist, except the person calling the others racist.  I am seeing people self-righteously insulting an entire race of people under the guise of, "They are the racists, not me."

I have often said Fox News is bad for this country.  It kept the country divided and hateful towards a differing point of view. 

Now I fear either CNN or MSNBC will continue with Fox's example, because after all, doing so made Fox the #1 news show. I know many people felt MSNBC was as bad as Fox, but they never inspired the vitriole that Fox News inspired.

We shall see.

Fox Network is a vile insult to our intelligence and people watch that shit-show either for titillation, morbid curiosity or validation of their hate. The best way to eliminate such right wing so-called 'news' networks is simply to ignore it, stay off the network as a viewer. When viewer numbers diminish, they'll have a deep shake-up and chop off some heads.

[SmithW6079]

15 hours ago, Keepitmoving said:

LOL, is this what is says on our tombstone?

 

12 hours ago, Jordan27 said:

That's what it says on the liberal tombstone.

No, that's what it says on America's tombstone. Don the Con is an authoritarian, polarizing figure. All his BS about "unity" now is just that -- BS. He's a petulant child (I mean, what kind of man responds to criticism by whining on Twitter that it was "very unfair"?). He has appealed to the absolutely lowest in humanity. For all his bravado about being a Washington outsider, he's filling his transition team and his future cabinet with Washington insiders, lobbyists, and other people from the "swamp." He's appointed a white supremacist as one of his chief counsels. And I can't wait until the hoi polloi who voted for him realize he lied about almost anything.

Sometimes I wonder about people who take such delight in rooting for their fellow Americans to be second-class citizens. I guess just so long as their rights aren't trampled, they're good to go.

[HumblePi]

This is just some of my own 'chewing the cud' or ruminations but thinking of the two appointments so far that Donald Trump has made I realized something. Reince Priebus is pretty much a cookie-cutter conservative Republican and good friends with Paul Ryan. Steve Bannon is.......well, we all know what he represents. These two men will be working very closely with Trump, both giving him their ideas, suggestions and guidance. They are pretty much opposed philosophically so I'm hoping that one will cancel out the other. But even more pertinent is the fact that every single one of Trump's campaign staff (lackies), Giuliani, Gingrich, Christi, Jeff Sessions, Lewandowski, Kellyanne Conway....ALL of them, they're ambitious, visceral, verbal, pompous, arrogant, stubborn, love the spotlight AND the control.

In the short term I can imagine a very bumpy start but as time goes on I predict these people will turn on each other and cut each others throats and take everyone they can with them.