Trump 27: Happy Holidays Orange Menace

[Audrey2]

As much as I despise Pence, the snake is pretty awesome! 

And Donny, animals always know your true character. If even the dog hates you...

[fraurosena]

I've found a google chrome extension (by The Daily Show) that that automatically turns the presidunce's tweets into a childish scribble. 

Here's a screenshot of his latest tweets with the extension added:

 

Makes them look much more fitting with the content, don't they? 

[AmazonGrace]

Happy New Year! 

[GreyhoundFan]

7 hours ago, AnywhereButHere said:

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/trump-white-house-saw-record-number-of-first-year-staff-departures/ar-BBHreeD?li=BBnb7Kz

There you go. He's winning at something and doing much better than both of his nemeses in this area. He must be so proud. Since I don't think he even cares what it is as long as he's the greatest at it, here's a stroke to Caligula's ego. May it keep him from inciting a war for the next little bit.

I'm surprised he hasn't started whining #fakemath, saying it's all lies, because EVERYONE is dying to work for him.

 

[Audrey2]

5 hours ago, GrumpyGran said:

Or just doesn't pay attention to what he's told in the briefings. He is so dangerous. We should be able to impeach him just based on the fact that he treats Faux News as if it's an actual intelligence report.

I think you're right. When he actually is in a daily briefing, he's mentally composing his next tweet instead of listening to the briefing.

[GreyhoundFan]

17 minutes ago, Audrey2 said:

I think you're right. When he actually is in a daily briefing, he's mentally composing his next tweet instead of listening to the briefing.

Or ordering another diet coke, or watching Faux News, or imagining the next golf game...

[onekidanddone]

5 minutes ago, GreyhoundFan said:

Or ordering another diet coke, or watching Faux News, or imagining the next golf game...

Two scoops of ice cream and the BEST chocolate cake ever. With ketchup of course.

[GreyhoundFan]

"‘America first’? So far, Trump’s foreign policy mostly puts America last."

Spoiler

Concluding the national security strategy address that he delivered earlier this month, President Trump described his foreign policy aim “to celebrate American greatness as a shining example to the world.”

Not exactly.

At the end of his first year in office, the president’s approach to foreign affairs doesn’t fit the platitude-ridden narrative laid out in that speech as much as it lines up with six key components that define the Trumpian way abroad: America first, politics over policy, ego, deconstruction, risk aversion and dictators over democrats. They don’t make a neatly defined doctrine, but these components have a certain cohesion — at least in Trump’s mind — that hints at how he’ll operate for the rest of his tenure.

America first

The point of departure for any effort to decode Trump’s foreign policy is an understanding of what he means by “America first” — less a set of rules and more a state of mind. To the president, America has been getting taken to the cleaners for years via “disastrous trade deals,” freeloading allies and commitments made by Beltway establishment that have dragged America into endless, costly wars and nation-building efforts that have drained American prosperity in the dog-eat-dog world darkly described in his national security speech. Trump’s view of the world is much like his view of his business career — a cruel zero-sum game where the weak are to be taken advantage of and only the strong emerge as the real winners. These are views he’s held all his life; not an ideological construct imposed on a credulous first-time officeholder by a manipulative Stephen Bannon. America first is a variant of Trump first, which is why it subordinates the United States’s national interest to a solipsistic worldview uniquely ill-suited to dealing with the complicated challenges we face.

Politics over policy

It helps to think of Trump not as a foreign policy president, but as a recently minted politician trying to play one on TV. His approach to foreign policy is guided by his need to constantly assuage the constituency that elected him, not necessarily by actions that serve the long-term strategic interests of those constituents or U.S. allies. His ideological Svengali, Bannon, no longer inhabits the White House, but his whiteboard to-do list — with items ranging from “Build the border wall and eventually make Mexico” pay for it, to move the U.S. Embassy from “Tel Aviv to Jerusalem” — always beckons.

In February, Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) told Politico that “at one point” Trump and his team “were ready to move the Embassy” to Jerusalem “at 12:01 on January 20th” — a move that would have been capricious then and remained so when it was announced this month, despite warnings from advisers. Trump’s immediate withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership; his capricious exit from the Paris climate accord; and the various iterations on his ban on travelers from several Muslim-majority countries are valuable as gestures to his base, but mostly worthless as policy. The president’s campaign rhetoric and his determination to be the un-Obama have so far won out, and as the 2018 midterms and the 2020 presidential election approach, expect Trump’s political impulses to increasingly dominate governance — at home and abroad.

Presidential ego

Tony Schwarz, who co-wrote “The Art of the Deal,” wrote this year that Trump’s “sense of self-worth is forever at risk.” The president is driven by deep insecurities and an inordinate need for adulation and one-upmanship, on display in his speech accepting the GOP presidential nomination, when he declared “I alone can fix” what ails the American system. It was also reflected in his national security address, when he said: “For many years, our citizens watched as Washington politicians presided over one disappointment after another.” He fancies himself the greatest negotiator in the world, but allies and adversaries alike have cracked the code: If you flatter and fete Trump — as the Saudis and Israelis did in his first trip abroad, and as the Japanese and Chinese did during the president’s Asia trip — he is pliable. Witness his failure to push the Saudis on their atrocious human rights record and military campaign in Yemen, to confront Israel on its unhelpful settlement activity, and to press China and Japan on trade.

Trump the deconstructionist

Far from a builder, so far Trump has proved more adept at condemnation and demolition, spending a lot of his time trying to tear down what was built by his predecessors — particularly President Barack Obama — without offering viable alternatives to take their place. A prime example is the Iran nuclear agreement, which has its flaws, but so far has been working and is far better than no deal at all. Trump provides no logic or specifics to back up his claim that the Iran deal is “incomprehensibly bad” and as seasoned diplomats have noted, the president isn’t much of a dealmaker. If it weren’t for cooler heads such as Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Trump may already have abandoned the deal (and still could down the road), leaving Iran to go full-speed ahead with its nuclear ambitions and isolating the United States from the other parties to the agreement.

Risk aversion

It’s ironic that, for a president who desperately wants to appear tough and muscular, Trump is as cautious and risk-averse as his predecessor when it comes to leveraging American military power. Though his administration just announced the sale of long-denied “lethal” weapons to Ukraine, in defiance of Russia, in general, on these issues, Trump isn’t the un-Obama, he’s Obama redux. For all of Trump’s bellicose rhetoric toward North Korea — “fire and fury,” “locked and loaded” and so on — he has not yet taken military action; he ordered a small missile strike after Syrian President Bashar al Assad’s use of chemical weapons (even though, he, like Obama, had far more robust options); and he mostly adopted Obama’s playbook for combating the Islamic State. With Trump’s use of military force, far more yellow and red lights have been flashing than green. The world remains a turbulent and unpredictable place, but Trump seems to have accepted the military’s view, at least for now, that projecting American force is an instrument to be used carefully in pursuit of realistic goals. Let’s hope that remains the case with North Korea — one scenario where Trump’s ego, his carelessness, domestic politics and Kim Jong Un’s recklessness could combine to create a catastrophe.

Dictators over democrats

The administration’s new national security strategy brief brands China and Russia as “competitors” and promises more aggressive push back to their efforts to upend the global status quo. Maybe the president has had an epiphany about America’s two main geopolitical rivals, but his rhetorical flexing is belied by his embrace of the dictators, President Xi Jinping and President Vladimir Putin, who rule these two countries. It looks increasingly likely that he’ll soon lower the trade boom on China by imposing anti-dumping penalties and retaliating against Chinese theft of intellectual property, but he continues to give Russia a pass. Trump’s favoring of dictators is evidenced by the way he has sucked up to autocrats and human rights abusers in Egypt, Turkey, the Philippines and Saudi Arabia. All while verbally roughing up democratic leaders, including allies like German Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose refugee policy he described as a “catastrophic mistake” and South Korean President Moon Jae-in, whom he accused of “appeasement” in a Twitter outburst.

Trump deserves credit for dealing a death blow to the Islamic State’s territorial conquests in Syria and Iraq — his only laudable national security achievement to date. But the yardstick for judging Trump’s foreign policy isn’t whether his administration solves the world’s toughest problems. The question is whether his approach to foreign policy can manage the challenges the United States cannot resolve in a way that strengthens our interests while avoiding international crises, such as an escalation of conflict with Iran or, particularly, North Korea, that might irreparably harm those interests. A year in, the record does not inspire confidence. His worldview isn’t one that carefully calibrates means and ends or clearly defines true U.S. national interests and makes them a priority. Instead, it is one that will likely end up putting America last, not first, on a range of issues critical to its long-term prosperity and security.

As much as the orange menace screams "America First", he really means "Drumpf First".

[Curious]

8 hours ago, Audrey2 said:

I think you're right. When he actually is in a daily briefing, he's mentally composing his next tweet instead of listening to the briefing.

They have said that Trump likes his briefings to be ONE page with bullet points.  They sprinkle his name through reports to keep him interested according to one article I read early in presiduncy.

Since he seems to listen to fox and friends maybe they need to make a fake FandF set, get people that look like the hosts and give the briefing from closed circuit tv.  

[AmazonGrace]

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/28/us/politics/trump-interview-excerpts.html

Spoiler

 

President Trump spoke on Thursday with a reporter from The New York Times, Michael S. Schmidt. The interview took place in the Grill Room of his golf club in West Palm Beach, Fla., whose noise made some portions at times hard to hear.

The following are excerpts from that conversation, transcribed by The Times. They have been lightly edited for content and clarity, and omit several off-the-record comments and asides.

Read more coverage and analysis of the interview »

__________

The interview started with a discussion of an interview Mr. Schmidt conducted with Mr. Trump in July, when Mr. Trump said he would not have appointed Jeff Sessions as attorney general had he known that Mr. Sessions would recuse himself from the Russia investigation.

DONALD J. TRUMP: I thought it was a terrible thing he did. [Inaudible.] I thought it was certainly unnecessary, I thought it was a terrible thing. But I think it’s all worked out because frankly there is absolutely no collusion, that’s been proven by every Democrat is saying it.

MICHAEL S. SCHMIDT: You’re O.K. with me recording, right?

TRUMP: Yeah. Virtually every Democrat has said there is no collusion. There is no collusion. And even these committees that have been set up. If you look at what’s going on — and in fact, what it’s done is, it’s really angered the base and made the base stronger. My base is stronger t.han it’s ever been. Great congressmen, in particular, some of the congressmen have been unbelievable in pointing out what a witch hunt the whole thing is. So, I think it’s been proven that there is no collusion

 

 

Why is it a witch hunt if it's proving that he did nothing wrong? 

Spoiler

 

And by the way, I didn’t deal with Russia. I won because I was a better candidate by a lot. I won because I campaigned properly and she didn’t. She campaigned for the popular vote. I campaigned for the Electoral College. And you know, it is a totally different thing, Mike. You know the Electoral College, it’s like a track star. If you’re going to run the 100-yard dash, you work out differently than if you’re going to run the 1,000 meters or the mile.

And it’s different. It’s in golf. If you have a tournament and you have match play or stroke play, you prepare differently, believe it or not. It’s different. Match play is very different than stroke play. And you prepare. So I went to Maine five times, I went to [inaudible], the genius of the Electoral College is that you go to places you might not go to.

And that’s exactly what [inaudible]. Otherwise, I would have gone to New York, California, Texas and Florida.

SCHMIDT: You would have run completely differently.

TRUMP: It would have been a whole different thing. The genius is that the popular vote is a much different form of campaigning. Hillary never understood that.

SCHMIDT: What’s your expectation on Mueller? When do you —

TRUMP: I have no expectation. I can only tell you that there is absolutely no collusion. Everybody knows it. And you know who knows it better than anybody? The Democrats. They walk around blinking at each other.

SCHMIDT: But when do you think he’ll be done in regards to you —

TRUMP: I don’t know.

SCHMIDT: But does that bother you?

TRUMP: No, it doesn’t bother me because I hope that he’s going to be fair. I think that he’s going to be fair. And based on that [inaudible]. There’s been no collusion. But I think he’s going to be fair. And if he’s fair — because everybody knows the answer already, Michael. I want you to treat me fairly. O.K.?

 

Why is it a witch hunt if he's going to be treated fairly?

Spoiler

 

SCHMIDT: Believe me. This is —

TRUMP: Everybody knows the answer already. There was no collusion. None whatsoever.

 

 

If it's what you say I love it, especially later in the summer.

_________

Spoiler

 

TRUMP: Maybe I’ll just say a little bit of a [inaudible]. I’ve always found Paul Manafort to be a very nice man. And I found him to be an honorable person. Paul only worked for me for a few months. Paul worked for Ronald Reagan. His firm worked for John McCain, worked for Bob Dole, worked for many Republicans for far longer than he worked for me. And you’re talking about what Paul was many years ago before I ever heard of him. He worked for me for — what was it, three and a half months?

SCHMIDT: A very short period of time.

 

This Manafort guy, I don't know him at all, he lives in Trump Tower but I've never seen him. I gotta flatter him so he'll cover for me so  I've always known that he is a honorable man and wouldn't do anything wrong but in case he turns out to be an undeniable crook remember really I don't know him at all, he just worked for me a few months and could be a total liar and crook for all I know. You can't blame me, I hire the best people. He worked for other Republicans so they're all complicit!  

Covering all the bases.

Spoiler

 

TRUMP: Three and a half months. [Inaudible] So, that’s that. Let’s just say — I think that Bob Mueller will be fair, and everybody knows that there was no collusion. I saw Dianne Feinstein the other day on television saying there is no collusion. She’s the head of the committee. The Republicans, in terms of the House committees, they come out, they’re so angry because there is no collusion. So, I actually think that it’s turning out — I actually think it’s turning to the Democrats because there was collusion on behalf of the Democrats. There was collusion with the Russians and the Democrats. A lot of collusion.

SCHMIDT: Dossier?

TRUMP: Starting with the dossier. But going into so many other elements. And Podesta’s firm.

_________

SCHMIDT: That’s true. But in terms of, the lawyers said it would be done by, your guys said, it would be done by Thanksgiving, it would be done by Christmas. What are they telling you now? What are they telling you?

TRUMP: [Inaudible.] There was tremendous collusion on behalf of the Russians and the Democrats. There was no collusion with respect to my campaign. I think I’ll be treated fairly. Timingwise, I can’t tell you. I just don’t know. But I think we’ll be treated fairly.

SCHMIDT: But you’re not worked up about the timing?

TRUMP: Well, I think it’s bad for the country. The only thing that bothers me about timing, I think it’s a very bad thing for the country. Because it makes the country look bad, it makes the country look very bad, and it puts the country in a very bad position. So the sooner it’s worked out, the better it is for the country.

 

 

I am the country. The country is me. If I look bad the country looks bad. 

Spoiler

 

But there is tremendous collusion with the Russians and with the Democratic Party. Including all of the stuff with the — and then whatever happened to the Pakistani guy, that had the two, you know, whatever happened to this Pakistani guy who worked with the D.N.C.?

 

Whatever happened to them? With the two servers that they broke up into a million pieces? Whatever happened to him? That was a big story. Now all of sudden [inaudible]. So I know The New York Times is going to — because those are real stories. Whatever happened to the Hillary Clinton deleted 33,000 emails after she got [inaudible] — which you guys wrote, but then you dropped — was that you?

_________

SCHMIDT: You control the Justice Department. Should they reopen that email investigation?

TRUMP: What I’ve done is, I have absolute right to do what I want to do with the Justice Department. But for purposes of hopefully thinking I’m going to be treated fairly, I’ve stayed uninvolved with this particular matter.

_________

 

That's not good is it? A president saying he's got the right to do *whatever he wants* with the Justice Department. 

 

Quote

 

TRUMP: For purposes of the Justice Department, I watched Alan Dershowitz the other day, who by the way, says I, says this is a ridiculous —

SCHMIDT: He’s been very good to you.

TRUMP: He’s been amazing. And he’s a liberal Democrat. I don’t know him. He’s a liberal Democrat. I watched Alan Dershowitz the other day, he said, No. 1, there is no collusion, No. 2, collusion is not a crime, but even if it was a crime, there was no collusion. And he said that very strongly. He said there was no collusion. And he has studied this thing very closely. I’ve seen him a number of times. There is no collusion, and even if there was, it’s not a crime. But there’s no collusion. I don’t even say [inaudible]. I don’t even go that far.

 

Well if Alan Dershowitz said so....

Spoiler

 

_________

TRUMP: So for the purposes of what’s going on with this phony Russian deal, which, by the way, you’ve heard me say it, is only an excuse for losing an election that they should have won, because it’s very hard for a Republican to win the Electoral College. O.K.? You start off with New York, California and Illinois against you. That means you have to run the East Coast, which I did, and everything else. Which I did and then won Wisconsin and Michigan. [Inaudible.] So the Democrats. … [Inaudible.] … They thought there was no way for a Republican, not me, a Republican, to win the Electoral College. Well, they’re [inaudible]. They made the Russian story up as a hoax, as a ruse, as an excuse for losing an election that in theory Democrats should always win with the Electoral College. The Electoral College is so much better suited to the Democrats [inaudible]. But it didn’t work out that way. And I will tell you they cannot believe that this became a story.

 

Because there has never been a Republican president. 

Spoiler

 

SCHMIDT: So they had to do this to come after you, to undercut you?

TRUMP: No, no, they thought it would be a one-day story, an excuse, and it just kept going and going and going. It’s too bad Jeff recused himself. I like Jeff, but it’s too bad he recused himself. I thought. … Many people will tell you that something is [inaudible].

SCHMIDT: Do you think Holder was more loyal to. …

TRUMP: I don’t want to get into loyalty, but I will tell you that, I will say this: Holder protected President Obama. Totally protected him. When you look at the I.R.S. scandal, when you look at the guns for whatever, when you look at all of the tremendous, ah, real problems they had, not made-up problems like Russian collusion, these were real problems. When you look at the things that they did, and Holder protected the president. And I have great respect for that, I’ll be honest, I have great respect for that.

 

Look at all the guns for whatever, look at all the tremendous, ah, ... look at the things that they did...? Well it's plain to see amirite? 

His lawyers appear to have gotten through with him that talking about loyalty pledges isn't a good thing. 

 

 

Spoiler

 

SCHMIDT: Tell me about what you were saying that the Democrats. … [Inaudible.] … Tell me about the Democrats on the tax bill, which you were telling me about. Explain that to me, I thought that was interesting.

TRUMP: So. … We started taxes. And we don’t hear from the Democrats. You know, we hear bullshit from the Democrats. Like Joe Manchin. Joe’s a nice guy.

SCHMIDT: He is a very nice guy.

TRUMP: But he talks. But he doesn’t do anything. He doesn’t do. “Hey, let’s get together, let’s do bipartisan.” I say, “Good, let’s go.” Then you don’t hear from him again. I like Joe. You know, it’s like he’s the great centrist. But he’s really not a centrist. And I think the people of West Virginia will see that. He not a centrist. … I’m the one that saved coal. I’m the one that created jobs. You know West Virginia is doing fantastically now.

SCHMIDT: It’s a big. … It’s a very popular place for you.

TRUMP: It’s the biggest turnaround. West Virginia, their average, their G.D.P. is the biggest turnaround after Texas. Texas [inaudible]. … The second percentage gain in G.D.P. [Inaudible.] And I won that state by 43 points against crooked Hillary Clinton. And I’ll tell you, I think Joe, ah. … I think there’s a lot of talk. … A lot of talk. I think we have four or five senators that [inaudible]. Just so you understand, Alabama. … I wasn’t for him. I was for Strange.

SCHMIDT: Do you think he should stop the recount? You know he said that they’re. … He was protesting the election today. Moore.

TRUMP: Well, I. … Look. … Let him do whatever he wants to do. I was for Strange, and I brought Strange up 20 points. Just so you understand. When I endorsed him, he was in fifth place. He went way up. Almost 20 points. But he fell a little short. But I knew what I was doing. Because I thought that. … If you look at my rhetoric, I said the problem with Roy Moore is that he will lose the election. I called it. But as the head of the party, I have a choice: Do I endorse him or not? I don’t know. Um. …

SCHMIDT: Was it a mistake?

TRUMP: And by the way, when I endorsed him, he went up. It was a much closer race.

SCHMIDT: Was it a mistake to endorse him?

TRUMP: I feel that I have to endorse Republicans as the head of the party. So, I endorsed him. It became a much closer race because of my endorsement. People don’t say that. They say, Oh, Donald Trump lost. I didn’t lose, I brought him up a lot. He was not the candidate that I thought was going to win. If you look at my statements, you’ve seen them, I said, “Look, I’m for Luther Strange because I like him, but I’m also for Luther Strange because he’s going to win the election.” There wouldn’t have been an election. He would have won by 25 points.

SCHMIDT: He would have won big?

TRUMP: The problem with Roy Moore, and I said this, is that he’s going to lose the election. I hope you can straighten that out. Luther Strange was brought way up after my endorsement and he almost won. But. … Almost won. … He lost by 7 points, 7 or 8 points. And he was way behind. Because of two things, you know, what happened. … [Inaudible.] … But I never thought Roy was going to win the election, but I felt. … I never thought he was going to win the election, but I felt. … And I said that very clearly. … And I wish you would cover that, because frankly, I said, if Luther doesn’t win, Roy is going to lose the election. I always felt Roy was going to lose the election. But I endorsed him because I feel it’s my obligation as the head of the Republican Party to endorse him. And you see how tight it was even to get a popular. … In Republican circles, to get a very popular tax cut approved, actually reform. Two votes. Now we have one vote, all right?

 

I think if he ever admitted he was wrong about anything he would spontaneously combust

 

Spoiler

 

O.K., let’s get onto your final question, your other question. Had the Democrats come through. …

SCHMIDT: Tell me about that, yeah.

TRUMP: Had they asked, “Let’s do a bipartisan,” Michael, I would have done bipartisan. I would absolutely have done bipartisan.

 

SCHMIDT: But they didn’t. … They didn’t …

 

 

The same Democrats who refused to meet him after he tweeted that he wasn't going to negotiate really? 

 

Spoiler

TRUMP: And if I did bipartisan, I would have done something with SALT [the state and local tax deduction]. With that being said, you look back, Ronald Reagan wanted to take deductibility away from states. Ronald Reagan, years ago, and he couldn’t do it. Because New York had a very powerful group of people. Which they don’t have today. Today, they don’t have the same representatives. You know, in those days they had Lew Rudin and me. … I fought like hell for that. They had a lot of very good guys. Lew Rudin was very effective. He worked hard for New York. And we had some very good senators. … You know, we had a lot of people who fought very hard against, let’s call it SALT. Had they come to me and said, look, we’ll do this, this, this, we’ll do [inaudible]. I could have done something with SALT. Or made it less severe. But they were very ineffective. They were very, very ineffective. You understand what I mean. Had they come to me for a bipartisan tax bill, I would have gone to Mitch, and I would have gone to the other Republicans, and we could have worked something out bipartisan. And that could’ve been either a change to SALT or knockout of SALT.

I'm not precisely sure what SALT is but this reasoning seems bass ackwards to me.  Shouldn't a president first figure out whether changing SALT is a good thing or not, and then find a way to persuade enough people to do it?  Now he's like, whatever man, I could change it or not, whatevs, it depends on whether the Democrats beg me enough. 

 

Spoiler

But, just so you understand, Ronald Reagan wanted to take deductibility away and he was unable to do it. Ronald Reagan wanted to have ANWR approved 40 years ago and he was unable to do it. Think of that. And the individual mandate is the most unpopular thing in Obamacare, and I got rid of it. You know, we gained with the individual. … You know the individual mandate, Michael, means you take money and you give it to the government for the privilege of not having to pay more money to have health insurance you don’t want. There are people who had very good health insurance that now are paying not to have health insurance. That’s what the individual mandate. … They’re not going to have to pay anymore. So when people think that will be unpopular. … It’s going to be very popular. It’s going to be very popular.

Yay, everyone loves not having health insurance! 

 

Spoiler

Now, in my opinion, they should come to me on infrastructure. They should come to me, which they have come to me, on DACA. We are working. … We’re trying to something about it. And they should definitely come to me on health care. Because we can do bipartisan health care. We can do bipartisan infrastructure. And we can do bipartisan DACA.

If they wanted to do bipartisan healthcare why didn't they just say so? Instead they wrote the ACA repeal bill in secret meetings, had no hearings and refused to accept any Democrat input whatsoever. 

Spoiler

 

SCHMIDT: What are you willing to do on infrastructure? How far are you willing to go? How much money?

TRUMP: I actually think we can get as many Democrat votes as we have Republican. Republicans want to see infrastructure. Michael, we have spent, as of about a month ago, $7 trillion in the Middle East. And the Middle East is worse than it was 17 years ago. … [Inaudible.] $7 trillion. And if you want $12 to fix up a road or a highway, you can’t get it. I want to do a trillion-dollar infrastructure bill, at least. We want to fix our roads, our highways, our bridges, which are in bad shape. And you know some of them are actually, they’re x-ed out, they have, you know, possibilities of collapse under bad circumstances. And in 10 years they will collapse. So, I want a trillion-dollar infrastructure plan. I think it can be bipartisan. I believe we can do health care in a bipartisan way, because now we’ve essentially gutted and ended Obamacare.

 

Maybe we should set up a gofundme and give them $12 to fix a highway. 

 

Spoiler

 

[Cross talk.]

SCHMIDT: But what’s the goal? What’s the goal?

TRUMP: Wait, wait, let me just tell you. … Also, beyond the individual mandate, but also [inaudible] associations. You understand what the associations are. …

 

TRUMP: So now I have associations, I have private insurance companies coming and will sell private health care plans to people through associations. That’s gonna be millions and millions of people. People have no idea how big that is. And by the way, and for that, we’ve ended across state lines. So we have competition. You know for that I’m allowed to [inaudible] state lines. So that’s all done.

Now I’ve ended the individual mandate. And the other thing I wish you’d tell people. So when I do this, and we’ve got health care, you know, McCain did his vote. … But what we have. I had a hundred congressmen that said no and I was able to talk them into it. They’re great people.

Two things: No. 1, I have unbelievably great relationships with 97 percent of the Republican congressmen and senators. I love them and they love me. That’s No. 1.

 

A lot of them said I was a kook at the primaries but I got kompromat on them so they're all kissing my hiney now. 

Spoiler

 

And No. 2, I know more about the big bills. … [Inaudible.] … Than any president that’s ever been in office. Whether it’s health care and taxes. Especially taxes. And if I didn’t, I couldn’t have persuaded a hundred. … You ask Mark Meadows [inaudible]. … I couldn’t have persuaded a hundred congressmen to go along with the bill. The first bill, you know, that was ultimately, shockingly rejected.

I’ll tell you something [inaudible]. … Put me on the defense, I was a great student and all this stuff. Oh, he doesn’t know the details, these are sick people.

 

Sure honey. 

 

Spoiler

So, the taxes. … [Inaudible.] … The tax cut will be, the tax bill, prediction, will be far bigger than anyone imagines. Expensing will be perhaps the greatest of all provisions. Where you can do something, you can buy something. … Piece of equipment. … You can do lots of different things, and you can write it off and expense it in one year. That will be one of the great stimuli in history. You watch. That’ll be one of the big. … People don’t even talk about expensing, what’s the word “expensing.” [Inaudible.] One year expensing. Watch the money coming back into the country, it’ll be more money than people anticipate.

What is he talking about and why does he ask for the word expensing after using it twice in the previous  paragraph? Is this something new? Companies never could write off the equipment they bought as business expenses before the Great Trump Tax Scam? 

 

Spoiler

But Michael, I know the details of taxes better than anybody. Better than the greatest C.P.A. I know the details of health care better than most, better than most. And if I didn’t, I couldn’t have talked all these people into doing ultimately only to be rejected.

Uh what?   Apart from the bragging that isn't even a sentence.

He knows he couldn't talk all these people to accept his healthcare bill does he? 

 

Spoiler

Now here’s the good news. We’ve created associations, millions of people are joining associations. Millions. That were formerly in Obamacare or didn’t have insurance. Or didn’t have health care. Millions of people. That’s gonna be a big bill, you watch. It could be as high as 50 percent of the people. You watch. So that’s a big thing. And the individual mandate. So now you have associations, and people don’t even talk about the associations. That could be half the people are going to be joining up. … With private [inaudible]. So now you have associations and the individual mandate.

Millions of people are joining something that no one ever talks about? What? 

 

Spoiler

I believe that because of the individual mandate and the associations, the Democrats will and certainly should come to me and see if they can do a really great health care plan for the remaining people. [Inaudible.]

So he's saying that you can't get great healthcare unless the Democrats do it. 

Gotcha. 

Spoiler

 

SCHMIDT: And you think you can do it?

TRUMP: Well, we’re perfectly set up to do it. See, it was hard for them to do it as long as the individual mandate existed. But now that the individual mandate is officially killed, people have no idea how big a deal that was. It’s the most unpopular part of Obamacare. But now, Obamacare is essentially. … You know, you saw this. … It’s basically dead over a period of time.

SCHMIDT: Yeah.

TRUMP: But the Democrats should come to a bipartisan bill. And we can fix it. We can fix it. We can make a great health care plan. Not Obamacare, which was a bad plan. We can make a great health care plan through bipartisanship. We can do a great infrastructure plan through bipartisanship. And we can do on immigration, and DACA in particular, we can do something that’s terrific through bipartisanship.

 

That's a nice sentiment. 

Spoiler

 

SCHMIDT: It sounds like you’re tacking to the center in a way you didn’t before.

TRUMP: No, I’m not being centered. I’m just being practical. No, I don’t think I’m changing. Look, I wouldn’t do a DACA plan without a wall. Because we need it. We see the drugs pouring into the country, we need the wall.

 

The Wall is back. It seems he forgot about the Wall for a while. 

Spoiler

 

SCHMIDT: So you’re not moving. You’re saying I’m more likely to do deals, but I’m not moving.

TRUMP: I’m always moving. I’m moving in both directions. We have to get rid of chainlike immigration, we have to get rid of the chain. The chain is the last guy that killed. … [Talking with guests.] … The last guy that killed the eight people. … [Inaudible.] … So badly wounded people. … Twenty-two people came in through chain migration. Chain migration and the lottery system.

 

 

I believe the last guy that killed 58 people was born in the United States. 

Spoiler

 

They have a lottery in these countries.

They take the worst people in the country, they put ‘em into the lottery, then they have a handful of bad, worse ones, and they put them out. ‘Oh, these are the people the United States. …” … We’re gonna get rid of the lottery, and by the way, the Democrats agree with me on that. On chain migration, they pretty much agree with me.

 

 

No, that's not actually how it works.  They don't have lottery in these countries, the diversity lottery is a US thing.  People apply because they want a visa, not because the government wants to get rid of the bad guys. 

Spoiler

 

[Cross talk with guests.]

CHRISTOPHER RUDDY, the president and chief executive of Newsmax: Canada, U.K., Australia. … All do best and brightest. …

TRUMP: Yeah, they have a merit system, we’ll eventually go to a merit-based system. When we bring people in. … That No. 1, don’t need our resources and No. 2, have great capabilities.

 

I couldn't get into the USA with the merit system they proposed. I'm university educated, able to hold down a job, and speak fluent English,  but I'm too old,  I've never won the Olympics or the Nobel prize and I don't have a million dollars to invest in the USA. So, see you when you come here, folks. 

Spoiler

 

SCHMIDT: Do you think I’m wrong to think next year could be the year of you being a real deal maker, in a way you maybe weren’t in the past year?

TRUMP: I was. I make deals with the Republicans. I had nobody to make a deal with the Democrats. The Democrats could have made a much better tax deal for Democrats if they came to see us, but they didn’t come. They never thought I’d be able to get this over the line. And especially when McCain, when John McCain left and went to Arizona, they thought they had it made.

 

 

They didn't come because you tweeted they'd be wasting their time. 

Spoiler

 

_________

SCHMIDT: Explain your North Korea tweet to me today.

TRUMP: Which one?

SCHMIDT: You said about the oil, that China. …

[Cross talk.]

SCHMIDT: What’s going on there. Tell me about that.

 

I tweet so much dumb shit in a day you can't expect me to remember it all

Spoiler

 

TRUMP: Yeah, China. … China’s been. … I like very much President Xi. He treated me better than anybody’s ever been treated in the history of China. You know that. The presentations. … One of the great two days of anybody’s life and memory having to do with China. He’s a friend of mine, he likes me, I like him, we have a great chemistry together. He’s [inaudible] of the United States. …[Inaudible.] China’s hurting us very badly on trade, but I have been soft on China because the only thing more important to me than trade is war. O.K.?

[Cross talk with guests.]

 

I am concerned very much about President Trump. He is losing his mind better than anybody in the history of China. You know that... The random words... One of the great two interviews of anyone's life and memory having to do with words. 

Spoiler

 

_________

SCHMIDT: Can you finish your thought on North Korea. What’s going on with China?

TRUMP: I’m disappointed. You know that they found oil going into. …

SCHMIDT: But how recently?

TRUMP: It was very recently. In fact, I hate to say, it was reported this morning, and it was reported on Fox. Oil is going into North Korea. That wasn’t my deal!

SCHMIDT: What was the deal?

TRUMP: My deal was that, we’ve got to treat them rough. They’re a nuclear menace so we have to be very tough.

RUDDY: Mr. President, was that a picture from recent or was that months ago? I don’t know. …

TRUMP: Oil is going into North Korea, I know. Oil is going into North Korea. So I’m not happy about it.

 

Is he seriously admitting that he found out about this on Fox? 

 

Spoiler

 

SCHMIDT: So what are you going to do?

TRUMP: We’ll see. That I can’t tell you, Michael. But we’ll see. I can tell you one thing: This is a problem that should have been handled for the last 25 years. This is a problem, North Korea. That should have been handled for 25, 30 years, not by me. This should have been handled long before me. Long before this guy has whatever he has.

SCHMIDT: Do you think we’ve been too soft on China on North Korea?

TRUMP: No, look, I like China, and I like him a lot. But, as you know, when I campaigned, I was very tough on China in terms of trade. They made — last year, we had a trade deficit with China of $350 billion, minimum. That doesn’t include the theft of intellectual property, O.K., which is another $300 billion. So, China — and you know, somebody said, oh, currency manipulation. If they’re helping me with North Korea, I can look at trade a little bit differently, at least for a period of time. And that’s what I’ve been doing. But when oil is going in, I’m not happy about that. I think I expressed that in probably [inaudible].

TRUMP, as aides walk by: And, by the way, it’s not a tweet. It’s social media, and it gets out in the world, and the reason I do well is that I can be treated unfairly and very dishonestly by CNN, and, you know, I have — what do have now, John, 158 million, including Facebook, including Twitter, including Instagram, including every form, I have a 158 million people. Reporting just this morning, they said 158 million. So if they a do a story that’s false, I can do something — otherwise, Andy, otherwise you just sort of walk around saying what can I do? What, am I going to have a press conference every time somebody, every time Michael writes something wrong?

 

Who is Andy? The reporters who did this story are both Michael. John Kelly was in the room? 

Anyway Daniel Dale said he lied about his social media followers, it's not that much, even if you count all the bots and the people following him on Facebook, Twitter, Insta as different people. 

If they're not tweets Imma start calling them twarts. Because it rhymes with farts

Spoiler

 

So, China on trade has ripped off this country more than any other element of the world in history has ripped off anything. But I can be different if they’re helping us with North Korea. If they don’t help us with North Korea, then I do what I’ve always said I want to do. China can help us much more, and they have to help us much more. And they have to help us much more. We have a nuclear menace out there, which is no good for China, and it’s not good for Russia. It’s no good for anybody. Does that make sense?

SCHMIDT: Yeah, yeah, it makes a lot of sense.

TRUMP: The only thing that supersedes trade to me — because I’m the big trade guy, I got elected to a certain extent on trade. You see, I’m renegotiating Nafta, or I’ll terminate it. If I don’t make the right deal, I’ll terminate Nafta in two seconds. But we’re doing pretty good. You know, it’s easier to renegotiate it if we make it a fair deal because Nafta was a terrible deal for us. We lost $71 billion a year with Mexico, can you believe it? $17 billion with Canada — Canada says we broke even. But they don’t include lumber and they don’t include oil. Oh, that’s not. … [Inaudible,] … My friend Justin he says, “No, no, we break even.” I said, ‘Yeah, but you’re not including oil, and you’re not including lumber.” When you do, you lose $17 billion, and with the other one, we’re losing $71 billion. So the only thing that supersedes trade to me is war. If we can solve the North Korea problem. China cannot. …

 

 

Daniel Dale said he lied about those numbers as well. ( the Canadian reporter who factchecks everything Trump says. )

Spoiler

 

SCHMIDT: You still think there’s a diplomatic solution?

TRUMP: China has a tremendous power over North Korea. Far greater than anyone knows.

SCHMIDT: Why haven’t they stood up?

TRUMP: I hope they do, but as of this moment, they haven’t. They could be much stronger.

SCHMIDT: But why not?

TRUMP: China can solve the North Korea problem, and they’re helping us, and they’re even helping us a lot, but they’re not helping us enough.

_________

TRUMP: We’re going to win another four years for a lot of reasons, most importantly because our country is starting to do well again and we’re being respected again. But another reason that I’m going to win another four years is because newspapers, television, all forms of media will tank if I’m not there because without me, their ratings are going down the tubes. Without me, The New York Times will indeed be not the failing New York Times, but the failed New York Times. So they basically have to let me win. And eventually, probably six months before the election, they’ll be loving me because they’re saying, “Please, please, don’t lose Donald Trump.” O.K.

 

I blame Hollywood for not casting Donald Trump as the president in West Wing or House of Cards or the Veep or some such thing because all he cares about are the ratings. 

Anyway if Hillary was president the media would be quite all right, covering the nonstop scandals that the GOP would make up about her on the daily basis. 

"oh please let me win because losing would make me feel bad.... " 

[fraurosena]

Trump Inc. Had a Rough Year, but His D.C. Hotel Is Killing It

Quote

For a host of Trump-branded properties, 2017 brought...hiccups.

Workers removed the “TRUMP” sign from the hotel formerly known as TRUMP SOHO last week in the dark of night. The move came six months after the hotel formerly known as Trump International Hotel and Tower Toronto reportedly paid the Trump Organization upwards of $6 million to get out of their contract and rebrand as The Adelaide.

Just last month, the AP reported that the owners of the Trump International Hotel in Panama City are trying to de-brand themselves of Trump.

When Trump Tower Vancouver opened in February, so many protesters showed up that city buses had to be re-routed, according to CTV News. Greenpeace protesters were charged with causing thousands of dollars of damage at the Trump Tower in Chicago, according to the Chicago Tribune.

When Trump stopped in Hawaii on his way to his Asia trip, protesters marched to Trump Waikiki chanting, “No Trump, No KKK, No fascist USA.”

But no Trump property drew as much ire as the instantly-iconic Trump International Hotel in Washington D.C., situated a block from the Justice Department’s headquarters and halfway between the White House and the Capitol Building. Over the year, protesters regularly amassed in front of the building, causing snarled traffic and sometimes drawing jeers from people in the building.

That didn’t stop the president and his advisors from making frequent visits to the hotel, and it didn’t stop conservative groups from hosting numerous fundraisers and events there. Over the course of the year, the hotel’s sprawling, palatial lobby became the place to be seen for young Republicans, campaign alums, Trump-loving tourists, and general rubber-neckers. All this is despite prices that might make fiscal conservatives blanche; a small bottle of Evian water from room service runs $9, and chicken caesar salad clocks in at $30.  

And while the hotel industry nationally saw stagnant room rates –– that’s according to analysis from the STR Global research firm –– Trump Washington hiked its rates in the months after the Inauguration, per the Wall Street Journal, which generated significantly more revenue than the hotel had predicted. Bjorn Hanson, a professor focused on tourism and hospitality at New York University, told The Daily Beast that luxury hotels typically operate at a cash flow loss in their first two years doing business. But the opposite was the case for Trump Hotel in Washington.

The hotel initially expected to lose $2.1 million in the first four months of 2017. Instead, according to the Washington Post, it raked in $1.97 million in profits.

Patricia Tang, the hotel’s director of sales and marketing, said the team there is happy with its success this year.

“We are very pleased with the performance of the hotel in its first full year of operation, not just financially but also with regards to the recognition of the high service standards achieved by our associates as indicated in the reviews and rankings on TripAdvisor, Expedia, Booking.com,” she told The Daily Beast. “We are looking forward to an even more successful 2018.”

President Trump himself appears to be interested as well. Since his inauguration, he has maintained that he isn’t involved in the management of his businesses. But an email from the director of revenue management for the Trump Hotel in Washington, which The Daily Beast reviewed, indicates that may not be the case.

Jeng Chi Hung, who holds that position, sent that email to an acquaintance on Sept. 12 of this year. The email opens with a few pleasantries. Then, Hung writes that he met with Trump, and that the president asked him specific questions about banquet revenues, demographics, and how his presidency impacted the business.

The email says this:

The company is interesting to work for being under the Trump umbrella. DJT is supposed to be out of the business and passed on to his sons, but he's definitely still involved... so it's interesting and unique in that way. I had a brief meeting with him a few weeks ago, and he was asking about banquet revenues and demographics. And, he asked if his presidency hurt the businesses. So, he seems self aware about things, at least more than he lets on. I am far left leaning politically, so working here has been somewhat of a challenge for me. But, it's all business.

Hung’s email did not say when he met with Trump. The president dined at Trump Hotel in Washington on July 29 of this year, along with Gen. John Kelly, Commerce Sec. Wilbur Ross, and Treasury Sec. Steve Mnuchin, according to ABC News. That meal came about six weeks before Hung sent his email about meeting with Trump, though it’s unclear if it coincided with that meeting.

Reached by phone, Hung told The Daily Beast, “I can’t comment on that.”

Mickael Damelincourt, the managing director of the hotel, told The Daliy Beast that Hung told him the email was a lie.

“This is total nonsense,” Damelincourt said. “Upon review of the email referenced in your inquiry, we have met with the individual and he has confirmed that he made these comments up in an effort to enhance his sense of importance to a former employer. In fact, this individual confirmed to me today that he has never met the President nor did any conversation ever take place. We are continuing to investigate this matter internally.”

The president has long maintained that he has separated himself from his many business interests.

“What I’m going to be doing is my two sons, who are right here, Don and Eric, are going to be running the company,” he told reporters at a Trump Tower press conference shortly before his inauguration. “They are going to be running it in a very professional manner. They’re not going to discuss it with me.”

Despite that, Trump has spent a significant amount of his time as president visiting his own businesses. Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), a good-governance watchdog group, calculated that he has visited one of his properties –– including his golf club in Northern Virginia, his Mar-a-Lago club in West Palm Beach, and his hotel in downtown Washington D.C. –– about one of every three days he’s been in office.

Jordan Libowitz, a CREW spokesperson, said the email raises serious concerns.

“This appears to confirm the worst fears about the Trump administration,” he said. “If this is true, it means the president, his family and his spokespeople lied repeatedly about his relationship with his business.”

“Presidents for decades have divested their assets so as to avoid even the appearance of them worrying about their business interests,” he added. “With Trump, it’s becoming hard to tell which of his jobs is his top priority.”

The opulent lobby of the Trump hotel in Washington has become a de facto clubhouse for so-called Deplorables. Internet-famous Trump supporters like Mike Cernovich, Roger Stone, and Lucian Wintrich have all made appearances there.

On Oct. 27, the hotel was the site of a surprise birthday dinner for Ivanka Trump that Jared Kushner, Melania Trump, and the president himself all attended. It was the president’s third time dining at the hotel in October, according to the log CREW keeps. A host of lobbying groups looking to influence the Trump administration have also had events there, and foreign diplomats also frequent the hotel.

Two other Trump properties have also drawn major national prominence over the first year of his presidency: Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, N.J., and the Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida.

The president has been unabashed about his affection for what he’s dubbed “the Winter White House,” which reportedly doubled its membership dues after the election. After signing a controversial tax overhaul, he  announced to diners there that they “just got richer,” according to CBS News. And while transparency advocates have been suing the Secret Service for access to the club’s visitor logs, the administration has refused to budge. And when the president ordered a missile strike on an airfield in Syria, his billionaire commerce secretary Wilbur Ross described the display as “after-dinner entertainment.”

The president has yet to order a major military strike from his golf course in New Jersey, which has its own helipad. But he hasn’t let his status as Commander in Chief slow down his gold game. And, as The Daily Beast reported, the Secret Service agents who accompany his frequent trips to the club are trying to be friendlier to its members. And he interviewed billionaire Betsy DeVos there before nominating her to be his education secretary. McClatchy reported that Trump personally pockets the membership fees and annual dues Bedminster’s members pay.  

These properties all defined the first year of Trump’s presidency. And his presidency, in turn, defined them. Hanson, the NYU professor, said the hotel’s lucrative first year is probably due in large part to media attention –– but added that in the years to come, its success should be sustainable.

“Even the critics of the Washington property acknowledged that it actually turned out better than maybe expected –– one of the better of the Trump properties, if not among the best,” he said.

12

I don't agree with the statement that 'it's hard to tell which of his jobs has top priority'. His top priority are his businesses, always have been, and always will be. He's just using the presiduncy to prop up his otherwise failing hotels and golf courses. 

[GreyhoundFan]

5 hours ago, AmazonGrace said:

I'm not precisely sure what SALT is but this reasoning seems bass ackwards to me.  Shouldn't a president first figure out whether changing SALT is a good thing or not, and then find a way to persuade enough people to do it?  Now he's like, whatever man, I could change it or not, whatevs, it depends on whether the Democrats beg me enough. 

State And Local Taxes. Those of us who live in states and municipalities that tax income and/or real estate have been able to deduct those from our federal tax returns. The ONLY reason the orange menace cares is because he has property in NY, which has super-high taxes, so he'll lose that deduction, which will be capped at $10K. Of course, that's tempered by his glee at sticking it to "blue" states, since those states tend to have the highest SALT.

Jennifer Rubin has a good piece about it.

Spoiler

After a great deal of confusion, wishful thinking and uninformed guesswork, the reality sank in on Wednesday: Republicans have hurt an awful lot of taxpayers, and the latter won’t be able to do anything about it.

The immediate issue was the soon-to-be-imposed cap of $10,000 on the deduction for state and local taxes (SALT). Thousands of taxpayers from relatively high-tax states (and/or with homes with high property tax assessments) and their local taxing authorities began to scramble. Maybe before the last grain of sand fell through the 2017 hourglass, homeowners could “prepay” property taxes for next year’s taxes. They would thereby maximize their deduction in 2017, a year with no cap.

A simple call to one’s tax accountant (whose email inboxes and voicemail filled up with alarming speed) or some common sense would have told localities and taxpayers that you cannot claim a deduction for prepayment of taxes that have not yet been incurred. No matter how well-meaning localities might be in “allowing” prepayment of taxes, it’s generally up to states to send out property tax bills. State laws generally specify that property tax obligations are incurred per calendar year.

By day’s end, reality was setting in. The Post reported:

The Internal Revenue Service said late Wednesday that homeowners can only deduct prepaid property taxes from their next income tax filings if those property taxes were assessed and paid during 2017. Most Washington-area jurisdictions say they have not yet sent out property tax bills for the coming year which, according to the IRS, would mean property owners cannot pay in advance and then claim a deduction before a new federal cap on deductions takes effect.

In other words, thousands of homeowners who scrambled to prepay their 2018 property taxes this week may have done so in vain.

Aside from the admonition not to take tax advice given on social media, the lesson here for thousands of taxpayers is simple: Republicans may very well have raised your taxes by denying a deduction that may be far more lucrative than any minor rate reduction. If that weren’t true, so many taxpayers wouldn’t be desperate to prepay property taxes; they would be celebrating their 2018 tax cuts.

Doubling the standard deduction ($12,000 for a single person, $24,000 for a married couple) won’t compensate for the itemized deductions (mortgage, SALT, charities) that many middle- and upper-middle-class households use. Those paying tens of thousands of dollars in state and local taxes (including property taxes) may not consider themselves to be rich at all. Unlike the super-rich (who get to set up pass-through companies, for example), they don’t have a clever workaround. (And if they are empty-nesters or otherwise without children, the child tax credit will be of no use to them.)

All those taxpayers in high-tax states or with high property bills can blame President Trump and their GOP members of Congress for their tax headaches. Republicans figured that it would be clever to stick it to blue-state residents who have had the advantage of itemizing (with ample use of the SALT deduction). Never before has such a pointedly partisan tax bill been cooked up to punish people who generally don’t vote for the party in power. Heritage Foundation economist Stephen Moore, who worked strenuously for the bill, stupidly wisecracked that the bill was “death to Democrats.” (Odd for a scholar from a tax-exempt think tank to extol such base partisanship, isn’t it?). Others noticed as well. (Jonathan Chait remarked, “For eight years, the notion of a gangster government using its power to punish its enemies existed as a lurid persecution fantasy on the right. Now it is being touted as a governing blueprint.”)

But here’s the rub: In addition to congressmen who represent enclaves with an unusually large number of constituents who itemize (like endangered Virginia Republican Rep. Barbara Comstock), there are 14 (three voted against it) Republican House members from California, five (four voted against it) from New Jersey, nine from New York (five voted against it), three from Minnesota, five from Wisconsin and three from Iowa (all are among the highest tax states). Voters might decide to vote each and every one of them out of office. (Even those who voted against it voted for the party leadership that imposed the tax bill. Change the party of the representative, and the majority for the wallet-busting bill disappears.)

It might just be that the partisan design of the tax bill wasn’t clever in the least. To paraphrase Moore, the tax bill might turn out to be “death to the GOP majority.”

 

[GreyhoundFan]

He puts the "dunce" in presidunce, doesn't he?  "Trump Tweets On Bitter Cold and Global Warming, Proving He Doesn't Know Difference Between Weather and Climate"

Spoiler

President Donald Trump proved once again in a tweet Thursday that he doesn't seem to understand the difference between weather and climate.

Noting the brutal cold in the East, Trump tweeted that "we could use a little bit of that good old global warming." He went on to incorrectly comment that global warming was something "our country, but not other countries, was going to pay trillions of dollars to protect against," eluding to the Paris Climate Accord. 

It's not the first time the president has confused the weather and climate. In 2012, he tweeted: "It's freezing and snowing in New York — we need global warming."

In fact, he tweets something similar every time the East experiences wintry weather:

The Trump administration has proven time and again that it ignores science, including the recently released, Congressionally-mandated National Climate Assessment, which found "no convincing alternative explanation" for climate change over the past 100 years other than "human activities, especially emissions of greenhouse gases."

NASA makes this distinction: "weather is what conditions of the atmosphere are over a short period of time, and climate is how the atmosphere 'behaves' over relatively long periods of time."

Dr. Marshall Shepherd, director of the University of Georgia's atmospheric sciences program and former president of the American Meteorological Society, has said that "weather is your mood; climate is your personality," meaning a single weather event like a heat wave cannot be linked to climate, but long-term trends are better indicators of a changing climate. 

Weather Underground's Bob Henson notes that localized cold and heat waves will continue despite human-induced climate change. Globally, this has been one of the warmest years on record. 

From January through November, this year’s average U.S. temperature was the third warmest in records going back to 1895. The only warmer years for January through November were 2012 and 2016, according to NOAA. As of Dec. 24, NOAA reported more than 33,000 daily record highs this year, but only about 9000 daily record lows.

In fact, cold snaps in the East have been linked to global warming.

"Several groups of scientists have found that warming in the Arctic and the resulting loss of sea ice are making it more likely that the jet stream will take dramatic wintertime dips and push intense cold outbreaks into midlatitude areas, such as the eastern U.S.," Henson said. "These cold waves aren’t enough to compensate for the overall warming of the climate across the whole planet."

Henson notes that while some parts of the eastern U.S. are expecting bitter, record-breaking cold for New Year’s Eve, it "doesn’t mean human-produced climate change is something we’ve put behind us," adding that the eastern U.S. occupies less than 1 percent of the world’s surface.

"Most of the planet is expected to be warmer than average over the next few days. But the coldest departures from average will be located over the eastern United States and Canada, so it’s easy to focus on that one part of a much bigger picture," he said.

In other parts of the U.S., temperatures will be above average for New Year's Eve. Las Vegas, Phoenix and Albuquerque will each get within a few degrees of their warmest New Year’s Eve on record.

"The unusually warm, dry weather of early December fed into the catastrophic wildfires that struck Southern California," Henson said. "Meanwhile, Alaska is having one of its mildest Decembers on record, causing problems for transportation."

Noting that climate is about long-term trends and not short-term weather events, Henson stresses that "two weeks does not a winter make."

"Most of December was warmer than average over the central and eastern U.S. Looking ahead, NOAA’s 3- to 4-week temperature outlook calls for above-average temperatures to prevail across much of the nation in mid- to late January," Henson said. 

In eluding to the Paris Accord in his tweet, Trump showed he either does not understand the conditions of the accord or chooses to ignore it.

He fails to note that the accord does not mandate but calls on countries to voluntarily impose measures to reduce carbon emissions. His comment in Thursday's tweet that the U.S. would have spent trillions of dollars while others wouldn't is incorrect.

Trump announced his plan to pull out of the accord in June, noting that "as someone who cares deeply about our environment, I cannot in good conscience support a deal which punishes the United States."

"The Paris accord is very unfair at the highest level to the United States," he said, adding that he was "elected to represent the citizens of Pittsburgh, not Paris."

 

[fraurosena]

I know, I know, he's rarely cogent in his tweets, but what on earth is he on about here?

Is this an attack on the Post Office? Which one would that be, do you think? I may not be an American, but I'm sure there's more than one Post Office in the USA...

Was there something about the United States Postal Service on Faux News, perchance, that triggered this tweet?

[AmazonGrace]

2 minutes ago, fraurosena said:

I know, I know, he's rarely cogent in his tweets, but what on earth is he on about here?

Is this an attack on the Post Office? Which one would that be, do you think? I may not be an American, but I'm sure there's more than one Post Office in the USA...

Was there something about the United States Postal Service on Faux News, perchance, that triggered this tweet?

Was there anything in Washington Post that he would be mad about today ?  Not the first time he's tried avenging himself on the Fake News Media by  posting something about Amazon.  

9 minutes ago, GreyhoundFan said:

He puts the "dunce" in presidunce, doesn't he?  "Trump Tweets On Bitter Cold and Global Warming, Proving He Doesn't Know Difference Between Weather and Climate"

  Reveal hidden contents

President Donald Trump proved once again in a tweet Thursday that he doesn't seem to understand the difference between weather and climate.

Noting the brutal cold in the East, Trump tweeted that "we could use a little bit of that good old global warming." He went on to incorrectly comment that global warming was something "our country, but not other countries, was going to pay trillions of dollars to protect against," eluding to the Paris Climate Accord. 

It's not the first time the president has confused the weather and climate. In 2012, he tweeted: "It's freezing and snowing in New York — we need global warming."

In fact, he tweets something similar every time the East experiences wintry weather:

The Trump administration has proven time and again that it ignores science, including the recently released, Congressionally-mandated National Climate Assessment, which found "no convincing alternative explanation" for climate change over the past 100 years other than "human activities, especially emissions of greenhouse gases."

NASA makes this distinction: "weather is what conditions of the atmosphere are over a short period of time, and climate is how the atmosphere 'behaves' over relatively long periods of time."

Dr. Marshall Shepherd, director of the University of Georgia's atmospheric sciences program and former president of the American Meteorological Society, has said that "weather is your mood; climate is your personality," meaning a single weather event like a heat wave cannot be linked to climate, but long-term trends are better indicators of a changing climate. 

Weather Underground's Bob Henson notes that localized cold and heat waves will continue despite human-induced climate change. Globally, this has been one of the warmest years on record. 

From January through November, this year’s average U.S. temperature was the third warmest in records going back to 1895. The only warmer years for January through November were 2012 and 2016, according to NOAA. As of Dec. 24, NOAA reported more than 33,000 daily record highs this year, but only about 9000 daily record lows.

In fact, cold snaps in the East have been linked to global warming.

"Several groups of scientists have found that warming in the Arctic and the resulting loss of sea ice are making it more likely that the jet stream will take dramatic wintertime dips and push intense cold outbreaks into midlatitude areas, such as the eastern U.S.," Henson said. "These cold waves aren’t enough to compensate for the overall warming of the climate across the whole planet."

Henson notes that while some parts of the eastern U.S. are expecting bitter, record-breaking cold for New Year’s Eve, it "doesn’t mean human-produced climate change is something we’ve put behind us," adding that the eastern U.S. occupies less than 1 percent of the world’s surface.

"Most of the planet is expected to be warmer than average over the next few days. But the coldest departures from average will be located over the eastern United States and Canada, so it’s easy to focus on that one part of a much bigger picture," he said.

In other parts of the U.S., temperatures will be above average for New Year's Eve. Las Vegas, Phoenix and Albuquerque will each get within a few degrees of their warmest New Year’s Eve on record.

"The unusually warm, dry weather of early December fed into the catastrophic wildfires that struck Southern California," Henson said. "Meanwhile, Alaska is having one of its mildest Decembers on record, causing problems for transportation."

Noting that climate is about long-term trends and not short-term weather events, Henson stresses that "two weeks does not a winter make."

"Most of December was warmer than average over the central and eastern U.S. Looking ahead, NOAA’s 3- to 4-week temperature outlook calls for above-average temperatures to prevail across much of the nation in mid- to late January," Henson said. 

In eluding to the Paris Accord in his tweet, Trump showed he either does not understand the conditions of the accord or chooses to ignore it.

He fails to note that the accord does not mandate but calls on countries to voluntarily impose measures to reduce carbon emissions. His comment in Thursday's tweet that the U.S. would have spent trillions of dollars while others wouldn't is incorrect.

Trump announced his plan to pull out of the accord in June, noting that "as someone who cares deeply about our environment, I cannot in good conscience support a deal which punishes the United States."

"The Paris accord is very unfair at the highest level to the United States," he said, adding that he was "elected to represent the citizens of Pittsburgh, not Paris."

 

He knows it when it's convenient for him to know it.

https://www.politico.com/story/2016/05/donald-trump-climate-change-golf-course-223436 

From 2016:

Trump acknowledges climate change — at his golf course

The billionaire, who called global warming a hoax, warns of its dire effects in his company's application to build a sea wall.

By BEN SCHRECKINGER

Quote

 

The New York billionaire is applying for permission to erect a coastal protection works to prevent erosion at his seaside golf resort, Trump International Golf Links & Hotel Ireland, in County Clare.

A permit application for the wall, filed by Trump International Golf Links Ireland and reviewed by POLITICO, explicitly cites global warming and its consequences — increased erosion due to rising sea levels and extreme weather this century — as a chief justification for building the structure.

 

 

 

. 

 

Assuming Pence wants existing programs replaced with prayer and slutshaming. 

[GreyhoundFan]

14 minutes ago, fraurosena said:

I know, I know, he's rarely cogent in his tweets, but what on earth is he on about here?

Is this an attack on the Post Office? Which one would that be, do you think? I may not be an American, but I'm sure there's more than one Post Office in the USA...

Was there something about the United States Postal Service on Faux News, perchance, that triggered this tweet?

The USPS is often just called the post office, even though there are thousands of branches. Last year, USPS struck a deal with Amazon where they would do most of the deliveries of Amazon shipments, which had previously been handled by UPS, FedEx, and/or Lasership. They agreed to do deliveries of Amazon packages on Sundays, even though they normally don't deliver on Sundays. They did agree on a fee, but it probably is too low.

I'm sure he was just doing it to bitch about Amazon's CEO, Jeff Bezos, who owns the WaPo.

[fraurosena]

1 minute ago, GreyhoundFan said:

The USPS is often just called the post office, even though there are thousands of branches. Last year, USPS struck a deal with Amazon where they would do most of the deliveries of Amazon shipments, which had previously been handled by UPS, FedEx, and/or Lasership. They agreed to do deliveries of Amazon packages on Sundays, even though they normally don't deliver on Sundays. They did agree on a fee, but it probably is too low.

I'm sure he was just doing it to bitch about Amazon's CEO, Jeff Bezos, who owns the WaPo.

 

In other words, he's jealous of somebody making a good DEAL. Something the presidunce prides himself on, but to date has not done at all. I don't think he could make a deal even if his life depended on it. 

(I'm not counting that tax bill, he was only cheering on lyin' Ryan and McTurtle from the sidelines, although of course he's taking credit for it)

[AmazonGrace]

When the Weather Channel subtweets the president: 

 

[AmazonGrace]

Quote

 

 But I think it’s all worked out because frankly there is absolutely no sex with sheep, that’s been proven by every Democrat is saying it. 

 Virtually every Democrat has said there is no sex with sheep . There is no sex with sheep And even these committees that have been set up. If you look at what’s going on — and in fact, what it’s done is, it’s really angered the base and made the base stronger. My base is stronger t.han it’s ever been. Great congressmen, in particular, some of the congressmen have been unbelievable in pointing out what a witch hunt the whole thing is. So, I think it’s been proven that there is no sex with sheep. 

..

 I have no expectation. I can only tell you that there is absolutely no sex with sheep. Everybody knows it. And you know who knows it better than anybody? The Democrats. They walk around blinking at each other.

..

 There’s been no sex with sheep. But I think he’s going to be fair. And if he’s fair — because everybody knows the answer already, Michael. I want you to treat me fairly. O.K.?

..

Everybody knows the answer already. There was no sex with sheep. None whatsoever.

But there is tremendous sex with sheep with the Russians and with the Democratic Party.

 I watched Alan Dershowitz the other day, he said, No. 1, there is no sex with sheep, No. 2, sex with sheep is not a crime, but even if it was a crime, there was no sex with sheep. And he said that very strongly. He said there was no sex with sheep. And he has studied this thing very closely. I’ve seen him a number of times. There is no sex with sheep, and even if there was, it’s not a crime. But there’s no sex with sheep. I don’t even say [inaudible]. I don’t even go that far.

 

If you say it enough times everyone will believe that you had no sex with sheep. 

[GreyhoundFan]

1 hour ago, fraurosena said:

In other words, he's jealous of somebody making a good DEAL. Something the presidunce prides himself on, but to date has not done at all. I don't think he could make a deal even if his life depended on it. 

Guess what, the tweet came just after Faux & Friends aired a segment about USPS.

[apple1]

Re: Trump's screed about the US Postal Service: It is my understanding that package delivery is the profitable portion of the whole Postal Service. The profits keep the Postal Service afloat, in spite of standard mail service operating in the red.

IIRC, the Postal Service went through a few years in which they were so much in the red, it was questionable how they would survive if they continued to provide home mail delivery. (This may not be the whole story, but - you get my drift).

[fraurosena]

14 minutes ago, GreyhoundFan said:

Guess what, the tweet came just after Faux & Friends aired a segment about USPS.

Ha! I knew it... what a surprise!

However, now it's the end of the year and I'm reflecting on the year gone by, I have to say that I'm rather glad that the presidunce is spending most of his time watching Faux, golfing and tweeting. The heavens know what damage he could have done to the country if he really had started at his job as the head of state, so at least the US is spared from that. The damage being done by the rest of the administration and the GOP is bad enough as it is.

[apple1]

4 minutes ago, fraurosena said:

Ha! I knew it... what a surprise!

However, now it's the end of the year and I'm reflecting on the year gone by, I have to say that I'm rather glad that the presidunce is spending most of his time watching Faux, golfing and tweeting. The heavens know what damage he could have done to the country if he really had started at his job as the head of state, so at least the US is spared from that. The damage being done by the rest of the administration and the GOP is bad enough as it is.

@fraurosena I enjoy your posts - but I am going to (somewhat) disagree on part of this one.

I agree about the watching Faux and the golfing. I sure wish he would quit the tweeting, though, because I have a great fear that his tweets will provoke WW III (nuclear).

Besides, his tweets make America look stupid to the rest of the world. I promise, we are not all like that. :-)

[fraurosena]

13 minutes ago, apple1 said:

@fraurosena I enjoy your posts - but I am going to (somewhat) disagree on part of this one.

I agree about the watching Faux and the golfing. I sure wish he would quit the tweeting, though, because I have a great fear that his tweets will provoke WW III (nuclear).

Besides, his tweets make America look stupid to the rest of the world. I promise, we are not all like that. :-)

@apple1, you have a point there. That is a pretty big downside to his tweeting habit, for sure. However, I have to disagree with you on one thing though. His tweets really don't make America look stupid to the rest of the world. They only make him look stupid. We know full well you're not all like that, I can assure you. 

 

For everyone feeling down at this time of reflection, please read this twitter thread. 

 

[candygirl200413]

NYT has really pissed me off with their reporting, but this especially. They never ask any hard hitting questions to him and a lot of reporters feel that they're being "attacked" because hard hitting questions weren't ask.