[Discussion] Hope to Remember The Trump Administration Thread as being 'transparent and honest'

Let's follow and discuss what our newest presidential administration gets up to, the good, the bad, the lawsuits, and the many many indictments.

If we fail to make hundreds of arrests out of this administration and institutional changes we'll deserve every bit of what we get.

polypusher wrote:

If we fail to make hundreds of arrests out of this administration and institutional changes we'll deserve every bit of what we get.

Well then we’re f*cked. It would be foolish to believe that the Democrats would stand up to the neocons. The Dems are spineless. This sh*t is BAD!

RawkGWJ wrote:
Paleocon wrote:

Sri Lankan explains how we have already been couped

He only got one thing wrong. I’m not laughing, and I don’t think it’s funny. He does point out that headline writers think that making a joke out of it will get more clicks.

I’ve been really worried that there will be a dramatic coup since the murder of George Floyd. Now I’m worried that we’ve transitioned from a soft coup to a casual coup; or at least a coup that looks casual on the surface, but is setting up for a major eruption. In boxing you would call this a one, one, two. Jab, jab, hook. The jab obscures the incoming power punch. I have a bad feeling that the big punch is right around the corner.

It is a sobering article. I glommed on more to his point that Trump and his GOP enablers are fomenting chaos for chaos' sake. Even they don't know what will happen. It's chaos.

The leeches, con men, and otherwise-corrupt takers count on the system remaining stable-enough to support their grift. Yet these are the same people who fight against rules and regulations that maintain or improve the stability they depend on. They refuse to see that there won't be anything left for them to take if they succeed.

Giuliani's son was at that tightly-packed press conference yesterday; today he announced he's tested positive for COVID.

RawkGWJ wrote:
polypusher wrote:

If we fail to make hundreds of arrests out of this administration and institutional changes we'll deserve every bit of what we get.

Well then we’re f*cked. It would be foolish to believe that the Democrats would stand up to the neocons. The Dems are spineless. This sh*t is BAD!

Fortunately, some of this will be done outside of pure politics and in the legal realm. But I agree it won't be nearly enough to stop the next one.

JLS wrote:
RawkGWJ wrote:
Paleocon wrote:

Sri Lankan explains how we have already been couped

He only got one thing wrong. I’m not laughing, and I don’t think it’s funny. He does point out that headline writers think that making a joke out of it will get more clicks.

I’ve been really worried that there will be a dramatic coup since the murder of George Floyd. Now I’m worried that we’ve transitioned from a soft coup to a casual coup; or at least a coup that looks casual on the surface, but is setting up for a major eruption. In boxing you would call this a one, one, two. Jab, jab, hook. The jab obscures the incoming power punch. I have a bad feeling that the big punch is right around the corner.

It is a sobering article. I glommed on more to his point that Trump and his GOP enablers are fomenting chaos for chaos' sake. Even they don't know what will happen. It's chaos.

The leeches, con men, and otherwise-corrupt takers count on the system remaining stable-enough to support their grift. Yet these are the same people who fight against rules and regulations that maintain or improve the stability they depend on. They refuse to see that there won't be anything left for them to take if they succeed.

Ask yourself this question, though. If they somehow succeeded and managed to keep power, do you think they'd turn it down? Of course they wouldn't. So it has to be both. Creating chaos and actually attempting a coup.

In the end it doesn't even matter. The moment Trump questioned the legitimacy of the 2016 election and Republicans stayed silent they'd already broken American democracy.

RawkGWJ wrote:
Paleocon wrote:

Sri Lankan explains how we have already been couped

He only got one thing wrong. I’m not laughing, and I don’t think it’s funny. He does point out that headline writers think that making a joke out of it will get more clicks.

I’ve been really worried that there will be a dramatic coup since the murder of George Floyd. Now I’m worried that we’ve transitioned from a soft coup to a casual coup; or at least a coup that looks casual on the surface, but is setting up for a major eruption. In boxing you would call this a one, one, two. Jab, jab, hook. The jab obscures the incoming power punch. I have a bad feeling that the big punch is right around the corner.

Technically a jab, jab, cross, but yeah.

Paleocon wrote:

Sri Lankan explains how we have already been couped

f*ck.

I have lived through a coup. It felt like what you’re feeling now. Like watching something stupid and just waiting for it to go away. But it doesn’t go away. You can forget about it, but it doesn’t go away.

There’s a ticking bomb at the heart of your democracy now. Your government, the very idea of governance is fatally wounded. Chaos has been planted at its heart. I don’t know what this chaos will grow into, but I can promise you this. It won’t be good.

Paleocon wrote:

Technically a jab, jab, cross, but yeah.

Technically a jab, jab, fierce Shoryuken, but close enough.

r013nt0 wrote:
Paleocon wrote:

Technically a jab, jab, cross, but yeah.

Technically a jab, jab, fierce Shoryuken, but close enough.

That gives way too much credit to the Stupid-Watergaters. They barely know one button.
We're not fighting back, or even defending, so it's jab-spam until we fall over.

Oh great, it's going to be a bunch of jabs and then KO by crouching short kick footsies.

Tucker Carlson Responds To Trump Attorney Sidney Powell's Lack Of Evidence Of Voter Fraud: 'She Never Sent Us Any'

In a rare turn of events, Carlson pointed out there has been no evidence to support the allegations of voter fraud from Trump's campaign attorney Sidney Powell.

Fox News Debunks Rudy Giuliani's Voter Fraud Allegations In Less Than Three Minutes

Fox News' Kristin Fischer said Rudy Giuliani's claims were "light on facts."
farley3k wrote:

Tucker Carlson Responds To Trump Attorney Sidney Powell's Lack Of Evidence Of Voter Fraud: 'She Never Sent Us Any'

In a rare turn of events, Carlson pointed out there has been no evidence to support the allegations of voter fraud from Trump's campaign attorney Sidney Powell.

Fox News Debunks Rudy Giuliani's Voter Fraud Allegations In Less Than Three Minutes

Fox News' Kristin Fischer said Rudy Giuliani's claims were "light on facts."

All true. The problem is, that won’t stop the neocons from continuing to push the lie that Trump actually won and was cheated out of the victory. I think the maga march showed that there is potentially enough neocon zealots to justify pushing forward with the coup. I mean who’s stopping them? Who is actually opposing them? Nobody. Swatting down their legal grievances doesn’t mean sh*t when they have a cultish control of a certain segment of the population.

This is really bad y’all.

‘Exhibit Q’: Lawyer Lin Wood Submits that Michigan Is Really Minnesota in Failed Pro-Trump Election Affidavit

The crux of Ramsland’s analysis, describing himself as part of the management team at Allied Securities Operations Group, tallies up precinct returns to allege that the 2020 election vote totals in Michigan exceeded the number of residents.

”Here’s the problem: the townships and precincts listed in [the relevant paragraphs of] the affidavit are not in Michigan,” author John Hinderaker wrote. “They are in Minnesota. Monticello, Albertville, Lake Lillian, Houston, Brownsville, Runeberg, Wolf Lake, Height of Land, Detroit Lakes, Frazee, Kandiyohi–these are all towns in Minnesota.”

I thought the Neocons were the anti-Trump people.

DSGamer wrote:

I thought the Neocons were the anti-Trump people.

Nah, neocons have always been the anti-people people.

RawkGWJ wrote:
farley3k wrote:

Tucker Carlson Responds To Trump Attorney Sidney Powell's Lack Of Evidence Of Voter Fraud: 'She Never Sent Us Any'

In a rare turn of events, Carlson pointed out there has been no evidence to support the allegations of voter fraud from Trump's campaign attorney Sidney Powell.

Fox News Debunks Rudy Giuliani's Voter Fraud Allegations In Less Than Three Minutes

Fox News' Kristin Fischer said Rudy Giuliani's claims were "light on facts."

All true. The problem is, that won’t stop the neocons from continuing to push the lie that Trump actually won and was cheated out of the victory. I think the maga march showed that there is potentially enough neocon zealots to justify pushing forward with the coup. I mean who’s stopping them? Who is actually opposing them? Nobody. Swatting down their legal grievances doesn’t mean sh*t when they have a cultish control of a certain segment of the population.

This is really bad y’all.

It will be time to worry if laws against domestic terrorists are opposed by police charged with their enforcement. Of course, that's assuming the government opposes domestic terrorism...

Tkyl wrote:

‘Exhibit Q’: Lawyer Lin Wood Submits that Michigan Is Really Minnesota in Failed Pro-Trump Election Affidavit

The crux of Ramsland’s analysis, describing himself as part of the management team at Allied Securities Operations Group, tallies up precinct returns to allege that the 2020 election vote totals in Michigan exceeded the number of residents.

”Here’s the problem: the townships and precincts listed in [the relevant paragraphs of] the affidavit are not in Michigan,” author John Hinderaker wrote. “They are in Minnesota. Monticello, Albertville, Lake Lillian, Houston, Brownsville, Runeberg, Wolf Lake, Height of Land, Detroit Lakes, Frazee, Kandiyohi–these are all towns in Minnesota.”

Holy crap, Stupid Watergate.

As a Minnesotan I've dealt with this a lot over the years. Minnesota abbreviates to MN. Michigan is MI. Easy to mistake the two, especially if you're a clueless minion intent on stealing an election. They don't even know which flyover states they're flying over.

JLS wrote:
RawkGWJ wrote:
farley3k wrote:

Tucker Carlson Responds To Trump Attorney Sidney Powell's Lack Of Evidence Of Voter Fraud: 'She Never Sent Us Any'

In a rare turn of events, Carlson pointed out there has been no evidence to support the allegations of voter fraud from Trump's campaign attorney Sidney Powell.

Fox News Debunks Rudy Giuliani's Voter Fraud Allegations In Less Than Three Minutes

Fox News' Kristin Fischer said Rudy Giuliani's claims were "light on facts."

All true. The problem is, that won’t stop the neocons from continuing to push the lie that Trump actually won and was cheated out of the victory. I think the maga march showed that there is potentially enough neocon zealots to justify pushing forward with the coup. I mean who’s stopping them? Who is actually opposing them? Nobody. Swatting down their legal grievances doesn’t mean sh*t when they have a cultish control of a certain segment of the population.

This is really bad y’all.

It will be time to worry if laws against domestic terrorists are opposed by police charged with their enforcement. Of course, that's assuming the government opposes domestic terrorism...

This is already happening. Ask Talia Jane!
Video shows Proud Boys member punching journalist during ‘Million MAGA March’ That guy that assaulted her is actually the leader of a militant white supremist group.

In the latest episode of The Worst Year Ever podcast Ms. Jane gives a first hand account of cops beating, arresting, pepper spraying, and flash bang grenading small pockets of peaceful anti-protesters, while turning their back to the maga marchers.

She also relays accounts of police calling white supremist extremists “armed friendlies”.

RawkGWJ wrote:

She also relays accounts of police calling white supremist extremists “armed friendlies”.

Rittenhouse really needs to go to jail forever and help stamp out that idea.

IMAGE(https://scontent-msp1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/126042411_5282189365128225_6402844384439451002_n.jpg?_nc_cat=107&ccb=2&_nc_sid=2c4854&_nc_ohc=EsgsyUN3mDgAX-M39zz&_nc_ht=scontent-msp1-1.xx&oh=48aed8e7088230f4fbae50f30fa85eec&oe=5FDF8E1D)

jowner wrote:

What concerns me is I don't understand the end game. It's hate + fear + enemy driven. If they were successful with essentially their internal civil war of driving out liberals/left/boogeyman what comes after? The USA as we know it would be totally different but then who is the new enemy? That's where I get concerned for things sliding into massive wars cause someone needs to be the bad guy.

The right doesn't have an end game. The entire purpose of their movement is to loudly and angrily oppose anything that Democrats support.

As Stele mentioned the RNC didn't even bother writing a platform this year. A major part of that is because no one knows what Trump will say from one moment to the next so the best way to not say something that Trump might later contradict or denounce is to simply not say anything. Which is what they did.

But Republicans also didn't have a platform because outside of hating Democrats they don't really believe in anything. At least anything that they can say out loud.

And this has been going on since at least 2008 when the Tea Party drove out the last of the semi-reasonable Republicans.

Probably the best example of Republican's complete lack of any purpose outside of hating Democrats is the ACA. Republicans hated the legislation from the start and tried to kill it literally over a hundred times.

They also vaguely talked about how they would do it better but, and here's the kicker, never once over the past decade did any Republican put forth even a rough proposal or how they would improve the ACA or tackle healthcare in general. This year Trump told people multiple times that he and Republicans were working on a great replacement to the ACA that would be better and cheaper, but that he couldn't talk specifics quite yet because things were still getting sorted out, but he'd have something great to announce in two weeks.

Those two weeks came and went several times and yet there's still no Republican plan to improve on the ACA because they don't have any plan at all. They never had a plan. Just like they don't have a plan for immigration, climate change, income and wealth inequality, racism, you name it. They just oppose whatever the Democratic position is.

And that flows from the fact that the GOP is no longer in control of conservative media like it was when Fox News first took to the airwaves in the mid-90s. Back then the GOP leadership would literally give Fox daily talking points for their on-air talent to repeat.

Today it's the conservative media that's telling the GOP what to say. Conservative politicians now have to back whatever dreck dribbles out the mouths of on-air personalities lest they find themselves targeted by the angry mob. Just look at how quickly Fox News has fallen out of favor with conservatives because of the election.

Conservative media also doesn't have to solve people's problems or address the needs of Americans. It just need to get eyeballs for advertisers. And scaring people or making them angry is a great way to get eyeballs.

This is a major reason why there's no actual ideas or proposals coming from Republican politicians. The thought leaders of their party--conservative media personalities--don't have to govern. They just have to give their viewers or listeners that hit of dopamine they crave and the easiest way to do that is to make people mad or scared about something the Democrats did (or didn't do). What the actual Republican take on the matter is--or if they even have one--doesn't matter in the slightest. It's all about being against the Democrats.

Georgia has announced that they're expecting to complete their certification today.

The right absolutely has an end game. It's the same game they've been playing for decades.

Undermine faith in the Government
{so that they can}
Privatize absolutely everything
{and therefore}
Enrich themselves
{then take over the courts so that they can legalize everything they do and}
Avoid any possible repercussions for their actions and make it extremely hard to undo the damage

One small nit. The GOP does actually have a platform, but one that they cannot articulate publicly without mobilizing every sane American. It is a platform of white supremacy and exclusion. They are a party who knows precisely who they are and what they stand for, but saying the quiet part out loud will get them curb stomped.

Tkyl wrote:

‘Exhibit Q’: Lawyer Lin Wood Submits that Michigan Is Really Minnesota in Failed Pro-Trump Election Affidavit

The crux of Ramsland’s analysis, describing himself as part of the management team at Allied Securities Operations Group, tallies up precinct returns to allege that the 2020 election vote totals in Michigan exceeded the number of residents.

”Here’s the problem: the townships and precincts listed in [the relevant paragraphs of] the affidavit are not in Michigan,” author John Hinderaker wrote. “They are in Minnesota. Monticello, Albertville, Lake Lillian, Houston, Brownsville, Runeberg, Wolf Lake, Height of Land, Detroit Lakes, Frazee, Kandiyohi–these are all towns in Minnesota.”

I love that the claims were initially debunked by a pro-Trump blog.

Quintin_Stone wrote:
Tkyl wrote:

‘Exhibit Q’: Lawyer Lin Wood Submits that Michigan Is Really Minnesota in Failed Pro-Trump Election Affidavit

The crux of Ramsland’s analysis, describing himself as part of the management team at Allied Securities Operations Group, tallies up precinct returns to allege that the 2020 election vote totals in Michigan exceeded the number of residents.

”Here’s the problem: the townships and precincts listed in [the relevant paragraphs of] the affidavit are not in Michigan,” author John Hinderaker wrote. “They are in Minnesota. Monticello, Albertville, Lake Lillian, Houston, Brownsville, Runeberg, Wolf Lake, Height of Land, Detroit Lakes, Frazee, Kandiyohi–these are all towns in Minnesota.”

I love that the claims were initially debunked by a pro-Trump blog.

Yeah I accidentally started to read the comments after the article. Crazy town.

Paul Ryan, Mar, 2017, during the GOP's first attempt to repeal "and replace" Obamacare:

"We were a 10-year opposition party… being against things was easy to do... Moving from an opposition party to a governing party comes with some growing pains."

My how they've grown.

JC wrote:

This administration can't end soon enough...

Trump administration cuts off Fed emergency lending programs

Trump wouldn't do this if he thought he was still going to be president come January.

This is him salting the earth on his way out because he's a petty, spiteful, and vindictive person.

OG_slinger wrote:

Fox News’ Popularity Slips Among Republicans in Wake of Election

IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/DFQjhqd.png)

Morning Consult wrote:

From late December 2019 through Nov. 2, 67 percent of U.S. adults who identify as Republican viewed Fox News favorably, according to Morning Consult’s Brand Intelligence, which tracks consumer attitudes of thousands of brands, while roughly 16 percent had an unfavorable view of the cable channel.

Then came election night, when Fox News was the first news organization to project a Trump loss in the battleground state of Arizona.

The announcement reportedly enraged the president, and in the days since he has continued to wallop the network on Twitter, saying its ratings have “completely collapsed,” criticizing its coverage of his supporters’ rally in Washington, D.C., on Nov. 14 and suggesting that his followers turn instead to One America News Network or Newsmax, two conservative cable news networks.

It appears such rhetoric has impacted public opinion of the brand. In polling conducted Nov. 9-16, the network’s average favorability rating among GOP respondents has dropped 13 percentage points, to 54 percent, and the average share of those with an unfavorable view of the network nearly doubled, to 30 percent...

Commenting on this a bit late, but:

After 3 decades, your reliable mouthpiece says one thing that you really don't agree with, and suddenly you have a meltdown and kick it to the curb...

Who's the snowflake now?