Author Topic: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...  (Read 1309186 times)

LaineyAZ

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3150 on: July 24, 2018, 07:01:51 PM »
I think the story of how "if only the 80,000 +/- blue collar workers would have voted for HRC" than things would be different is not looking at the entire stats of who all actually voted for Trump.  The blame is being put on Dems because they showed "contempt" for these workers and that's why they voted for Trump as a backlash.

Ta-Nehisi Coates latest book, "We Were Eight Years in Power - An American Tragedy" includes an epilogue with a breakdown of voters.  As Coates says, "...in this analysis Trump's racism and the racism of his supporters are incidental to his rise.  … evidence for economic decline as a driving force (my emphasis) among Trump's supporters is, at best, mixed.  … Trump's white support was not confined by income.  … Trump won whites making less than $50,000 by 20 points, whites making between 50,000 and $100,000 by 28 points, and whites making $100,000 or more by 14 points.  … Trump won white women (+9) and white men (+31).  He won white people with college degrees (+3) and white people without them (+37).  He won young whites, age 18 to 29 (+4), adult whites, age 30 to 44 (+17), middle-age whites, age 45 to 64(+28), and senior whites, age 65 and older (+19).  … In no state did Trump's white support dip below 40 percent. … From beer track to wine track, from soccer moms to NASCAR dads, Trump's performance among whites was dominant."

Trump's biggest campaign applause line was "build the wall."  The fear of the brown horde is real, and although many of those who actually voted for Trump may never admit that is a big reason they wanted him, I think it's still a real factor for the next election as well.


scottish

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3151 on: July 24, 2018, 07:29:10 PM »
What about the federal deficit?   It's forecast to hit $1T pretty soon - that's around $3000 for every person living in the US every year.

I predict that Donald will continue his deficit program.   The economy will boom.

When he eventually retires from politics the next bunch will have to sort everything out.    The economy will turn down.

Donald will say that if he'd been in charge things would still be great.

The GOP wants to use the ballooning deficit as an excuse to get rid of Social Security and all the rest of the Entitlement programs.  I don't expect them to succeed, but I don't see any administration that doesn't come in with a blindingly obvious mandate to fix things proposing "I will raise taxes back to reasonable levels, to resolve the debt crisis and preserve the social safety net."

Remember when Trump suggested the US simply default on its debt?  I don't doubt he would do it if he could, he thinks that is what you do with debt.

That's right, Trump was actually very good at taking risks with other people's money.   Now he's doing it again.

Radagast

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3152 on: July 24, 2018, 10:38:12 PM »
What about the federal deficit?   It's forecast to hit $1T pretty soon - that's around $3000 for every person living in the US every year.

I predict that Donald will continue his deficit program.   The economy will boom.

When he eventually retires from politics the next bunch will have to sort everything out.    The economy will turn down.

Donald will say that if he'd been in charge things would still be great.
Though, throwing this out, I have seen written that $1T is 5% of the current $20T deficit. If inflation is 2.5% and the economy actually grows at 2.5% (which may or may not be wishful thinking) then $1T is deficit neutral. So, not really an issue.

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3153 on: July 24, 2018, 10:42:52 PM »
What about the federal deficit?   It's forecast to hit $1T pretty soon - that's around $3000 for every person living in the US every year.

I predict that Donald will continue his deficit program.   The economy will boom.

When he eventually retires from politics the next bunch will have to sort everything out.    The economy will turn down.

Donald will say that if he'd been in charge things would still be great.
Though, throwing this out, I have seen written that $1T is 5% of the current $20T deficit. If inflation is 2.5% and the economy actually grows at 2.5% (which may or may not be wishful thinking) then $1T is deficit neutral. So, not really an issue.

Don’t forget about the cost to service said debt and that 20T that is still hanging out there.

Kyle Schuant

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3154 on: July 24, 2018, 10:47:01 PM »
Though, throwing this out, I have seen written that $1T is 5% of the current $20T deficit. If inflation is 2.5% and the economy actually grows at 2.5% (which may or may not be wishful thinking) then $1T is deficit neutral. So, not really an issue.
Let's say you planned to sell your house, and borrowed $100,000 to renovate it, and because of the renovation you were able to sell if for $100,000 more, would you consider that money and time well-spent?

Radagast

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3155 on: July 24, 2018, 10:50:21 PM »
What about the federal deficit?   It's forecast to hit $1T pretty soon - that's around $3000 for every person living in the US every year.

I predict that Donald will continue his deficit program.   The economy will boom.

When he eventually retires from politics the next bunch will have to sort everything out.    The economy will turn down.

Donald will say that if he'd been in charge things would still be great.
Though, throwing this out, I have seen written that $1T is 5% of the current $20T deficit. If inflation is 2.5% and the economy actually grows at 2.5% (which may or may not be wishful thinking) then $1T is deficit neutral. So, not really an issue.

Don’t forget about the cost to service said debt and that 20T that is still hanging out there.
Right. But it is deficit neutral because relative to what we already had those are not proportionally larger (under the 5% growth+inflation assumption, and also maybe an assumption that tax growth equals economy growth).

Radagast

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3156 on: July 24, 2018, 10:54:32 PM »
Though, throwing this out, I have seen written that $1T is 5% of the current $20T deficit. If inflation is 2.5% and the economy actually grows at 2.5% (which may or may not be wishful thinking) then $1T is deficit neutral. So, not really an issue.
Let's say you planned to sell your house, and borrowed $100,000 to renovate it, and because of the renovation you were able to sell if for $100,000 more, would you consider that money and time well-spent?
If it kept the plebes happy, yes.

former player

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3157 on: July 25, 2018, 01:45:48 AM »
I've just started watching Rachael Maddow 24/7/2018.  15 minutes in, and so far -

1.  The White House has doctored both the official transcript and video of the Trump/Putin press conference to remove the "Did you[Putin] want Trump to win?" question.  The Kremlin has similarly (not quite exactly) doctored their transcript.

2.  Trump recently retweeted a fake Russian video of Hillary Clinton with the Russian TV logo still in the picture and it was picked up as true by right-wing media.


What the fuck?  This is scary shit.

How long are people still going to be calling the USA the "leader of the free world"?

nereo

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3158 on: July 25, 2018, 05:38:29 AM »

How long are people still going to be calling the USA the "leader of the free world"?
Near as I can tell from my travels and living outside the US - only people from within the US really call the US the "leader of the free world".  It's basically a self-appointed title, and not one that really reflects current reality.  Biggest economy and military? sure.  But "the" (singular) leader?  most democratic countries would refute that idea.

Kris

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3159 on: July 25, 2018, 05:39:07 AM »
I've just started watching Rachael Maddow 24/7/2018.  15 minutes in, and so far -

1.  The White House has doctored both the official transcript and video of the Trump/Putin press conference to remove the "Did you[Putin] want Trump to win?" question.  The Kremlin has similarly (not quite exactly) doctored their transcript.

2.  Trump recently retweeted a fake Russian video of Hillary Clinton with the Russian TV logo still in the picture and it was picked up as true by right-wing media.


What the fuck?  This is scary shit.

How long are people still going to be calling the USA the "leader of the free world"?

I don’t think many people are calling us that anymore.

MasterStache

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3160 on: July 25, 2018, 06:02:22 AM »
How long are people still going to be calling the USA the "leader of the free world"?

We aren't and I don't anymore. Leadership doesn't just mean leading by example, but also respect. Trump exhibits neither of those traits.

hoping2retire35

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GuitarStv

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3162 on: July 25, 2018, 07:27:47 AM »
https://www.businessinsider.com/struggling-russia-cuts-military-spending-could-weaken-its-forces-2018-5

Well, this is awkward.

Why would Russia spend on their military when they have direct control of the commander in chief of the largest military in the world?

nereo

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3163 on: July 25, 2018, 07:34:54 AM »
https://www.businessinsider.com/struggling-russia-cuts-military-spending-could-weaken-its-forces-2018-5

Serious (yet somewhat philosophical) question:  Why this acute focus on getting dozens of other countries to ramp up military spending?  In effect what we are promoting is a global arms race.  Why aren't we trying to promote a world where all countries (allies and adversaries) spend less on their militaries?
The cynic in me thinks it has something to do with the industro-military complex and the clout they have for pushing policies. The historical buff in me thinks we are just trying to 'win' against China the same way we did against teh USSR (by outspending them militarily) - only China has 10x the population of Russia and has substantially more resources at their disposal.

On a related note, suppose Russia, N. Korea and China all reduced their military expansions (either due to political agreements or on their own accord) - would we still keep trying to modernize and expand our military? Is there anythuing that could get us to scale down this perpetual $600B+ (and expanding) expense?

FIRE@50

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3164 on: July 25, 2018, 07:37:51 AM »
Trump's ego and tough guy-ism demands that he increase the military spending. It also plays well with the ignorant base.

Mississippi Mudstache

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3165 on: July 25, 2018, 07:45:15 AM »
I think the story of how "if only the 80,000 +/- blue collar workers would have voted for HRC" than things would be different is not looking at the entire stats of who all actually voted for Trump.  The blame is being put on Dems because they showed "contempt" for these workers and that's why they voted for Trump as a backlash.

Ta-Nehisi Coates latest book, "We Were Eight Years in Power - An American Tragedy" includes an epilogue with a breakdown of voters.  As Coates says, "...in this analysis Trump's racism and the racism of his supporters are incidental to his rise.  … evidence for economic decline as a driving force (my emphasis) among Trump's supporters is, at best, mixed.  … Trump's white support was not confined by income.  … Trump won whites making less than $50,000 by 20 points, whites making between 50,000 and $100,000 by 28 points, and whites making $100,000 or more by 14 points.  … Trump won white women (+9) and white men (+31).  He won white people with college degrees (+3) and white people without them (+37).  He won young whites, age 18 to 29 (+4), adult whites, age 30 to 44 (+17), middle-age whites, age 45 to 64(+28), and senior whites, age 65 and older (+19).  … In no state did Trump's white support dip below 40 percent. … From beer track to wine track, from soccer moms to NASCAR dads, Trump's performance among whites was dominant."

Trump's biggest campaign applause line was "build the wall."  The fear of the brown horde is real, and although many of those who actually voted for Trump may never admit that is a big reason they wanted him, I think it's still a real factor for the next election as well.

To be clear, I wasn't "blaming" anyone. I certainly wasn't pointing to a specific demographic group.

Honestly, I think that Trump's election was probably a wakeup call that the Democratic party desperately needed. Yeah, things would be "different" if HRC were elected. We would be facing the prospect of a conservative backlash in the 2018 midterms that would lead to Republicans tightening their stranglehold on state houses around country, just in time for the 2020 census and congressional gerrymandering redistricting. Instead of the Democrats facing a "challenging" Senate map this fall, but still expected to keep close to half of the seats, we'd be looking at Republicans taking control of filibuster-proof majority. An already heavily Republican Congress would be winning elections in Democratic strongholds. All this in anticipation of Hillary likely getting knocked off by a more competent Republican in 2020 (parties just don't maintain control of the White House for 16 years. She would have been a one-term prez no matter how competent she may have been.)

Yeah, it fucking sucks what Trump is doing to America right now, but I still not convinced that we won't be better off in the end simply because of the backlash he's creating. Honestly, my biggest fear is that he gets knocked off in the 2020 elections, just as the economy is falling through the sewer grate a la 2008. The new Democratic president gets handed a shit sandwich just like Obama did, and a new breed of Tea Partiers spawns to oppose him, starting the cycle all over again. Anyway. Viva la resistance!

LaineyAZ

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3166 on: July 25, 2018, 08:17:44 AM »
Thanks, MM.  I didn't mean to point to any poster here specifically, but it's become a meme for the Dems to say, Oh, if only Bill Maher hadn't made fun of religion/rednecks/Republican legislators, who therefore felt "disrespected", then those voters wouldn't have retaliated by voting for Trump.  That theme is still being used today by conservatives to explain the election results.

My point is, that scenario would have been true for a very small part of the electorate, if any, and is certainly not the dominant reason for their vote.

talltexan

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3167 on: July 25, 2018, 08:30:48 AM »
https://www.businessinsider.com/struggling-russia-cuts-military-spending-could-weaken-its-forces-2018-5

Serious (yet somewhat philosophical) question:  Why this acute focus on getting dozens of other countries to ramp up military spending?  In effect what we are promoting is a global arms race.  Why aren't we trying to promote a world where all countries (allies and adversaries) spend less on their militaries?
The cynic in me thinks it has something to do with the industro-military complex and the clout they have for pushing policies. The historical buff in me thinks we are just trying to 'win' against China the same way we did against teh USSR (by outspending them militarily) - only China has 10x the population of Russia and has substantially more resources at their disposal.

On a related note, suppose Russia, N. Korea and China all reduced their military expansions (either due to political agreements or on their own accord) - would we still keep trying to modernize and expand our military? Is there anythuing that could get us to scale down this perpetual $600B+ (and expanding) expense?

We spend the most on our military because our military maintains global security. The global economic system--which we created in the last 70 years--is what forestalled the kind of great power competition that led to two world wars. The rise of China as an economic power was threatening that system anyway, but their massive economy still cannot produce military equipment that's within a decade of our best stuff.

The gap between us and Russia is smaller in terms of military, but much larger because their economy is maybe the size of California's.

hoping2retire35

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3168 on: July 25, 2018, 08:31:21 AM »
https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-defends-putin-bromance-while-mattis-works-to-arm-russian-foe-2018-7

Odd; and this \/ hasn't gone anywhere.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-36272686

Sounds like the pending NATO/US ground assualt on Russia is still pending(you know, as opposed to actually dismantling the idea, or I guess going ahead with it depending on your perspective). Maybe, again you think the forward advance should precede since a Kievian mob ousting a sitting Ukrainian president is perfectly legal and fine. Assuming that's your opinion.

hoping2retire35

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3169 on: July 25, 2018, 08:38:02 AM »
https://www.businessinsider.com/struggling-russia-cuts-military-spending-could-weaken-its-forces-2018-5

Serious (yet somewhat philosophical) question:  Why this acute focus on getting dozens of other countries to ramp up military spending?  In effect what we are promoting is a global arms race.  Why aren't we trying to promote a world where all countries (allies and adversaries) spend less on their militaries?
The cynic in me thinks it has something to do with the industro-military complex and the clout they have for pushing policies. The historical buff in me thinks we are just trying to 'win' against China the same way we did against teh USSR (by outspending them militarily) - only China has 10x the population of Russia and has substantially more resources at their disposal.

On a related note, suppose Russia, N. Korea and China all reduced their military expansions (either due to political agreements or on their own accord) - would we still keep trying to modernize and expand our military? Is there anythuing that could get us to scale down this perpetual $600B+ (and expanding) expense?

We spend the most on our military because our military maintains global security. The global economic system--which we created in the last 70 years--is what forestalled the kind of great power competition that led to two world wars. The rise of China as an economic power was threatening that system anyway, but their massive economy still cannot produce military equipment that's within a decade of our best stuff.

The gap between us and Russia is smaller in terms of military, but much larger because their economy is maybe the size of California's.

More than a decade ago we were running through Iraq in 36 hours; so I don't take great solace in this statement.

We really don't have the motivation to be a world police anymore. The Nazis are not making a European empire that can hamper our international business(the Russians are heading in the opposite direction, demographically, economically, and security wise), and as I said above they are becoming more integrated into Europe, by way of selling them NG and oil. Also, we don't need to secure oil from the Gulf to our Gulf anylonger; we are/soon to be net exporters.

MasterStache

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3170 on: July 25, 2018, 10:49:28 AM »
https://www.businessinsider.com/struggling-russia-cuts-military-spending-could-weaken-its-forces-2018-5

Well, this is awkward.

Why would Russia spend on their military when they have direct control of the commander in chief of the largest military in the world?

I think it's funny how the article attributes the continued tightening of Russian finances on "western sanctions." I thought Obama didn't do anything, you know according to Trump.  Whoops, that is awkward indeed.

runbikerun

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3171 on: July 25, 2018, 01:57:02 PM »
https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-defends-putin-bromance-while-mattis-works-to-arm-russian-foe-2018-7

Odd; and this \/ hasn't gone anywhere.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-36272686

Sounds like the pending NATO/US ground assualt on Russia is still pending(you know, as opposed to actually dismantling the idea, or I guess going ahead with it depending on your perspective). Maybe, again you think the forward advance should precede since a Kievian mob ousting a sitting Ukrainian president is perfectly legal and fine. Assuming that's your opinion.

For a demographic so fond of the words "don't tread on me", the American right as it's currently constituted seems inordinately fond of bootlicking.

talltexan

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3172 on: July 25, 2018, 02:02:42 PM »
Only now that we have an Alpha male as commander-in-chief. There wouldn't have been any bootlicking of a beta c*ck like most of our previous Presidents were.

nereo

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3173 on: July 25, 2018, 02:08:13 PM »
Only now that we have an Alpha male as commander-in-chief. There wouldn't have been any bootlicking of a beta c*ck like most of our previous Presidents were.
Can we keep this thread a bit more clean and constructive so that it doesn't get locked?  thank you.

Glenstache

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3174 on: July 25, 2018, 02:37:06 PM »
Only now that we have an Alpha male as commander-in-chief.
Spoiler: show
There wouldn't have been any bootlicking of a beta c*ck like most of our previous Presidents were.

hiding parts of that for discretion's sake.
So, to be clear, as long as the GOP president is an alpha, the GOP will lick their boots and do whatever they say, even when it goes against everything the party has stood for for decades? That, right there, is a pretty damning indictment of the GOP.

GuitarStv

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3175 on: July 25, 2018, 02:43:58 PM »
Donald J Trump is an alpha male?



You might be confusing him for the man working the puppet strings - Vladimir Putin.

nereo

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3176 on: July 25, 2018, 02:48:54 PM »
let's redirect here.  @talltexan - what actions has DJT taken as commander-in-chief that makes you approve of him over previous presidents?

Kris

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3177 on: July 25, 2018, 02:49:16 PM »
Only now that we have an Alpha male as commander-in-chief.
Spoiler: show
There wouldn't have been any bootlicking of a beta c*ck like most of our previous Presidents were.

hiding parts of that for discretion's sake.
So, to be clear, as long as the GOP president is an alpha, the GOP will lick their boots and do whatever they say, even when it goes against everything the party has stood for for decades? That, right there, is a pretty damning indictment of the GOP.

Holy shit, I thought that remark was meant sarcastically/ironically... until I saw who posted it.

Talltexan, all I have to say is....

AHAHAAHHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAHAHAHAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!

OMG. Trump is an alpha male? Have you SEEN the way he sucks up to Putin? Have you noticed how unbelievably fragile his ego is?

Trump is a man baby. He's a man baby's idea of an alpha male. If he hadn't been born into money, he'd never get anyone to have sex with him.

Good lord. The blindness...

Davnasty

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3178 on: July 25, 2018, 02:55:55 PM »
Only now that we have an Alpha male as commander-in-chief.
Spoiler: show
There wouldn't have been any bootlicking of a beta c*ck like most of our previous Presidents were.

hiding parts of that for discretion's sake.
So, to be clear, as long as the GOP president is an alpha, the GOP will lick their boots and do whatever they say, even when it goes against everything the party has stood for for decades? That, right there, is a pretty damning indictment of the GOP.

Holy shit, I thought that remark was meant sarcastically/ironically... until I saw who posted it.

Talltexan, all I have to say is....

AHAHAAHHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAHAHAHAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!

OMG. Trump is an alpha male? Have you SEEN the way he sucks up to Putin? Have you noticed how unbelievably fragile his ego is?

Trump is a man baby. He's a man baby's idea of an alpha male. If he hadn't been born into money, he'd never get anyone to have sex with him.

Good lord. The blindness...

I still think it was sarcasm. Maybe you are thinking of another Texan...

MasterStache

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3179 on: July 25, 2018, 03:23:44 PM »
Only now that we have an Alpha male as commander-in-chief.
Spoiler: show
There wouldn't have been any bootlicking of a beta c*ck like most of our previous Presidents were.

hiding parts of that for discretion's sake.
So, to be clear, as long as the GOP president is an alpha, the GOP will lick their boots and do whatever they say, even when it goes against everything the party has stood for for decades? That, right there, is a pretty damning indictment of the GOP.

Holy shit, I thought that remark was meant sarcastically/ironically... until I saw who posted it.

Talltexan, all I have to say is....

AHAHAAHHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAHAHAHAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!

OMG. Trump is an alpha male? Have you SEEN the way he sucks up to Putin? Have you noticed how unbelievably fragile his ego is?

Trump is a man baby. He's a man baby's idea of an alpha male. If he hadn't been born into money, he'd never get anyone to have sex with him.

Good lord. The blindness...

I still think it was sarcasm. Maybe you are thinking of another Texan...

Whatever it was, it was damn funny!

wenchsenior

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3180 on: July 25, 2018, 03:28:05 PM »
Only now that we have an Alpha male as commander-in-chief.
Spoiler: show
There wouldn't have been any bootlicking of a beta c*ck like most of our previous Presidents were.

hiding parts of that for discretion's sake.
So, to be clear, as long as the GOP president is an alpha, the GOP will lick their boots and do whatever they say, even when it goes against everything the party has stood for for decades? That, right there, is a pretty damning indictment of the GOP.

Holy shit, I thought that remark was meant sarcastically/ironically... until I saw who posted it.

Talltexan, all I have to say is....

AHAHAAHHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAHAHAHAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!

OMG. Trump is an alpha male? Have you SEEN the way he sucks up to Putin? Have you noticed how unbelievably fragile his ego is?

Trump is a man baby. He's a man baby's idea of an alpha male. If he hadn't been born into money, he'd never get anyone to have sex with him.

Good lord. The blindness...

I still think it was sarcasm. Maybe you are thinking of another Texan...

Whatever it was, it was damn funny!

It's particularly funny b/c of the saying (often attributed to Texans):  All hat, no cattle.  Which sums up Trump's entire personality.

Kris

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3181 on: July 25, 2018, 03:56:58 PM »
Only now that we have an Alpha male as commander-in-chief.
Spoiler: show
There wouldn't have been any bootlicking of a beta c*ck like most of our previous Presidents were.

hiding parts of that for discretion's sake.
So, to be clear, as long as the GOP president is an alpha, the GOP will lick their boots and do whatever they say, even when it goes against everything the party has stood for for decades? That, right there, is a pretty damning indictment of the GOP.

Holy shit, I thought that remark was meant sarcastically/ironically... until I saw who posted it.

Talltexan, all I have to say is....

AHAHAAHHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAHAHAHAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!

OMG. Trump is an alpha male? Have you SEEN the way he sucks up to Putin? Have you noticed how unbelievably fragile his ego is?

Trump is a man baby. He's a man baby's idea of an alpha male. If he hadn't been born into money, he'd never get anyone to have sex with him.

Good lord. The blindness...

I still think it was sarcasm. Maybe you are thinking of another Texan...

I'n not sure... I did go back and look at TallTexan's other posts just now, though. He seems far too reasonable to be this crazy, so yes, I am going to have to believe he's kidding.

Whew. I was shook. LOL

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3182 on: July 25, 2018, 06:04:00 PM »
Well, this should be interesting:
http://thehill.com/policy/national-security/398902-gop-lawmakers-introduce-impeachment-resolution-against-rosenstein

The "Freedom Caucus" members of the House GOP  have introduced articles of impeachment... against Rod Rosenstein because they say he has a conflict of interest and has not produced documents fast enough.

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3183 on: July 25, 2018, 08:43:57 PM »
Well, this should be interesting:
http://thehill.com/policy/national-security/398902-gop-lawmakers-introduce-impeachment-resolution-against-rosenstein

The "Freedom Caucus" members of the House GOP  have introduced articles of impeachment... against Rod Rosenstein because they say he has a conflict of interest and has not produced documents fast enough.

It's almost droll, how predictable this is.  Trump's only reaction to every one of his personal problems is to try to spin it around and attack his opponents with it.

He was the oldest person to ever run for office, so he attacked Clinton as too unhealthy to be President.
His foundation was fined for tax fraud, so he attacked the Clinton foundation as if it were corrupt.
The Russians supported his campaign, so he claims they are supporting the democrats.
Now he's under threat of impeachment, so he threatens to impeach someone else.

Frankly I'm amazed he hasn't publicly attacked anyone for cheating on their wife with a porn star and then paying hush money to cover it up.


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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3184 on: July 26, 2018, 04:34:24 AM »
I've just started watching Rachael Maddow 24/7/2018.  15 minutes in, and so far -

1.  The White House has doctored both the official transcript and video of the Trump/Putin press conference to remove the "Did you[Putin] want Trump to win?" question.  The Kremlin has similarly (not quite exactly) doctored their transcript.

The BBC are not letting this one rest either - directly calling him out for flat out lying and his press spokesperson then following up to repeat the lies and how they've tried to remove Putin's answers from the transcripts.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-44959300

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3185 on: July 26, 2018, 05:44:46 AM »

Frankly I'm amazed he hasn't publicly attacked anyone for cheating on their wife with a porn star and then paying hush money to cover it up.
Give it time  - remember, he hammered HRC for 'enabling' her husbands infidelity, and lined up a bunch of women who alleged sexual contact with Bill Clinton during the debate, which is in the same ballpark.  If he faces a male opponent I'd expect him to throw allegations out of affairs, coverups and rape, particularly since his own infidelity continues to dog him (latest example: Cohen's tape of the payoff for Karen McDougal's affair).

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3186 on: July 26, 2018, 05:52:36 AM »
I wonder why Stormy got $130,000 and McDougal got $150,000? How does Donald's pay scale work?
Funny he paid all this hush money and both stories are splashed all over the place.
Did Donald pay back David Pecker the $150,000?

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3187 on: July 26, 2018, 05:54:49 AM »
Frankly I'm amazed he hasn't publicly attacked anyone for cheating on their wife with a porn star and then paying hush money to cover it up.

Not really the same but he does bring up Bill Clinton. Football is coming up. It's about time for some more diversion tactics by attacking black athletes again. That really gets the white angry mob fired up!

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3188 on: July 26, 2018, 06:07:02 AM »
I wonder why Stormy got $130,000 and McDougal got $150,000? How does Donald's pay scale work?
Funny he paid all this hush money and both stories are splashed all over the place.
Did Donald pay back David Pecker the $150,000?

Sounds like McDougal got the, er, short end of the stick. She got $150 grand for a 10-month affair, while Stormy earned 87% as much for a one night stand.

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3189 on: July 26, 2018, 06:46:55 AM »
Only now that we have an Alpha male as commander-in-chief.
Spoiler: show
There wouldn't have been any bootlicking of a beta c*ck like most of our previous Presidents were.

hiding parts of that for discretion's sake.
So, to be clear, as long as the GOP president is an alpha, the GOP will lick their boots and do whatever they say, even when it goes against everything the party has stood for for decades? That, right there, is a pretty damning indictment of the GOP.

Holy shit, I thought that remark was meant sarcastically/ironically... until I saw who posted it.

Talltexan, all I have to say is....

AHAHAAHHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAHAHAHAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!

OMG. Trump is an alpha male? Have you SEEN the way he sucks up to Putin? Have you noticed how unbelievably fragile his ego is?

Trump is a man baby. He's a man baby's idea of an alpha male. If he hadn't been born into money, he'd never get anyone to have sex with him.

Good lord. The blindness...

I still think it was sarcasm. Maybe you are thinking of another Texan...

I'n not sure... I did go back and look at TallTexan's other posts just now, though. He seems far too reasonable to be this crazy, so yes, I am going to have to believe he's kidding.

Whew. I was shook. LOL

I apologize for being away from the discussion so long that my clarification of this partially sarcastic post was wanting.

I personally oppose Trump, and I think I have many other posts that express this. 

I think the sarcasm was hard to detect because it's pretty plain how much the GOP enables Trump. They do it because they're afraid of the plurality of GOP voters who nominated him and won him the White House. I am registered GOP, (you may have guessed that from my screen name) and--as I prepared for the 2018 primary season--all the research I did into Republican candidates made it clear that there was one issue they tried to win on: "I supported Donald Trump, and I started doing it before my opponent did."

In exchange for not sicking his voters on them, Trump and his associates are allowed a host of ethical breaches that were not seen since the Warren Harding administration. Scott Pruitt by himself (disclosure: I work for a public utility, so EPA really matters to us) was so corrupt that it was cartoonish, but he's hardly alone. When I share my concerns about these things with other republicans at work and home, however, all they tell me is that Trump has accomplished more in 500 days as President than Ronald Reagan did in his first term. It makes me feel as though Trump has bent reality in some way that was simply impossible for previous Presidents.

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3190 on: July 26, 2018, 06:54:42 AM »
Frankly I'm amazed he hasn't publicly attacked anyone for cheating on their wife with a porn star and then paying hush money to cover it up.

Not really the same but he does bring up Bill Clinton. Football is coming up. It's about time for some more diversion tactics by attacking black athletes again. That really gets the white angry mob fired up!

Not the intended outcome I'm sure, but the reaction to silent demonstrations has been the proverbial straw which has turned us off watching the NFL. On top of the league's continued fumbling of concussions and willingness to forgive players for domestic assault and the escalating forced-worship of the military players are being given a pretty clear message - shut up and play regardless of personal harm or whats going on in your home life -  we own you.

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3191 on: July 26, 2018, 06:57:39 AM »
I should address the other parts of the claim: I do think Trump is an Alpha male for several reasons (reminder: I am GOP #nevertrumper)

  • He's incredibly popular with the PUA community. Guys like Roosh V, etc., were in for Trump very early. These are the people who tried to build a brand in the early 2000's around teaching men to seduce women. (you might remember a reality show with a guy named Mystery that was about this) "Alpha" is a key signifier for this community, just as "beta" is an epithet. I think some of you object that Trump is not a true "alpha" because of the disastrous press conference in Helsinki. I'd argue that the whole construct of "alpha" is based on outmoded ideas of how people should interact that were born of a toxic masculine society from decades ago.
  • I've followed the writings of Scott Adams (the creator of Dilbert) to try to understand the rise of Trump, and how he hijacked my political movement. Adams would certainly characterize Trump as an "Alpha" male
  • Superficially, you see all the trappings of the "Alpha" lifestyle, the golden elevator, the sons who hunt african mega-fauna, the romantic involvement with models and porn-stars
  • Most importantly is the way he uses language: Trump's way of speaking is entirely devoid of fact. What he says is simply unrelated to any verifiable reality. He does not use words as a tool to provide information, but he does use them to signal social hierarchy. I don't think he intentionally lies, I think he's simply lived a life (inherited wealth, business owner, entertainer) that has caused him to develop this tool for language use to build his business.



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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3192 on: July 26, 2018, 07:24:07 AM »
Just saw this sobering glimpse into the future this morning.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/26/opinion/trump-re-election-2020.html?smid=fb-nytopinion&smtyp=cur

It encapsulates a lot that I’ve worried about.

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3193 on: July 26, 2018, 07:33:38 AM »
I should address the other parts of the claim: I do think Trump is an Alpha male for several reasons (reminder: I am GOP #nevertrumper)

  • He's incredibly popular with the PUA community. Guys like Roosh V, etc., were in for Trump very early. These are the people who tried to build a brand in the early 2000's around teaching men to seduce women. (you might remember a reality show with a guy named Mystery that was about this) "Alpha" is a key signifier for this community, just as "beta" is an epithet. I think some of you object that Trump is not a true "alpha" because of the disastrous press conference in Helsinki. I'd argue that the whole construct of "alpha" is based on outmoded ideas of how people should interact that were born of a toxic masculine society from decades ago.
  • I've followed the writings of Scott Adams (the creator of Dilbert) to try to understand the rise of Trump, and how he hijacked my political movement. Adams would certainly characterize Trump as an "Alpha" male
  • Superficially, you see all the trappings of the "Alpha" lifestyle, the golden elevator, the sons who hunt african mega-fauna, the romantic involvement with models and porn-stars
  • Most importantly is the way he uses language: Trump's way of speaking is entirely devoid of fact. What he says is simply unrelated to any verifiable reality. He does not use words as a tool to provide information, but he does use them to signal social hierarchy. I don't think he intentionally lies, I think he's simply lived a life (inherited wealth, business owner, entertainer) that has caused him to develop this tool for language use to build his business.

I figured that 'Alpha' male was supposed to mean a natural leader, someone who inspires the best in those who look towards him.  Someone who lives up to his promises and commitments, and engenders trust in those around him.  Someone who is physically and mentally attractive to women.  Someone who doesn't complain or whine, but instead quietly fixes problems. 

Trump exhibits none of those traits.  He has been able to fuck porn stars because he bought them with his daddy's money, not because he's attractive in any way.  He came to power by dividing a country (and by begging the Russians to fix things for him).  He lies constantly, to the point that it's questionable how tenuous his grip on reality really is.  He has abandoned and cheated on every wife he's had.  Whining is probably his greatest talent . . . and Trump bends the knee to lick Putin's boots at every instance.

I don't see how you could define that behaviour as 'Alpha' . . . or if you did, why anyone would want to be 'Alpha'.

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3194 on: July 26, 2018, 07:39:27 AM »
I should address the other parts of the claim: I do think Trump is an Alpha male for several reasons (reminder: I am GOP #nevertrumper)

  • He's incredibly popular with the PUA community. Guys like Roosh V, etc., were in for Trump very early. These are the people who tried to build a brand in the early 2000's around teaching men to seduce women. (you might remember a reality show with a guy named Mystery that was about this) "Alpha" is a key signifier for this community, just as "beta" is an epithet. I think some of you object that Trump is not a true "alpha" because of the disastrous press conference in Helsinki. I'd argue that the whole construct of "alpha" is based on outmoded ideas of how people should interact that were born of a toxic masculine society from decades ago.
  • I've followed the writings of Scott Adams (the creator of Dilbert) to try to understand the rise of Trump, and how he hijacked my political movement. Adams would certainly characterize Trump as an "Alpha" male
  • Superficially, you see all the trappings of the "Alpha" lifestyle, the golden elevator, the sons who hunt african mega-fauna, the romantic involvement with models and porn-stars
  • Most importantly is the way he uses language: Trump's way of speaking is entirely devoid of fact. What he says is simply unrelated to any verifiable reality. He does not use words as a tool to provide information, but he does use them to signal social hierarchy. I don't think he intentionally lies, I think he's simply lived a life (inherited wealth, business owner, entertainer) that has caused him to develop this tool for language use to build his business.

thanks for responding talltexan.  To be clear, my post above was not about your belief that DJT is an alpha male, but more a plea for members on all sides to avoid needlessly inflammatory terms like 'bootlicking beta c*ck".

On one hand I agree with you, in the sense that I think DJT certainly sees himself as an alpha male, and based on his own comments his personal image is of a brilliant, handsome, self-made billionaire in excellent health. A casual view of the facts show all of those adjectives come with big caveats (to say the least). Whether simply believing one is an alpha male is enough to actually be an alpha male is an interesting question. And then there's the question about whether we want to be led by a self-described alpha-male, particularly during a time of global peace and (at least until the today) expansion.

Whether DJT actually believes his own bluster --- at times I think he gets sucked into his own lies, and at other times he simply doesn't care and probably is baffled that other people do. In the entertainment & marketing  world - and in particular in realty TV and gaming there's a legally protected concept called "Puffery" where one can say general terms like "it's the greatest product ever produced" and have actual legal protection, but those kinds of statements just don't fly as honest in day-to-day conversation.  So when he makes blatantly false statements like having the 'biggest crowds ever" or that immigrants are 'horrible people - rapists - stealing your jobs'.... these were beyond the pale in US Politics until this last cycle, but frankly aren't in the world where DJT inhabited over the last four decades.

caracarn

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3195 on: July 26, 2018, 07:56:34 AM »
Just saw this sobering glimpse into the future this morning.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/26/opinion/trump-re-election-2020.html?smid=fb-nytopinion&smtyp=cur

It encapsulates a lot that I’ve worried about.
I too feel it was realistically assembled.

I think we've got a lot of fence sitters who have a very "meh" attitude and would be summed up in the voters in the article who said the things for them were fine.  If the Democrats do not get off the Trump attacks and instead start making a case for why the actual results and things that are happening and back away from Trump specifically and instead head down a path of "why are the Democrats better for YOU", this article paints a likely picture, of fence sitters keeping their feet in Trump's yard.

It is possible (thought November is still far away) that we'll have a preview of this article in the mid-terms.  The step backs yesterday of Trump's two biggest grenades, if sustained until the election, can create a lot of the same climate.  The economy will keep petering along so no real pain for voters, and fighting on the moral front is a losing battle as we've all seen.  Therefore the vast majority of voters will feel nothing to get their dander up and may back away from angry backlash at the voting booth.  I do feel it is too late for Democrats to pivot for the 2018 elections, and therefore we are in the situation the article presents where attacks on Trump are pointless and we'll see how many seats swing and it can be a harbinger of how 2020 can play out as the similarities are there.

caracarn

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3196 on: July 26, 2018, 08:14:56 AM »
Trump exhibits none of those traits.  He has been able to fuck porn stars because he bought them with his daddy's money, not because he's attractive in any way.  He came to power by dividing a country (and by begging the Russians to fix things for him).  He lies constantly, to the point that it's questionable how tenuous his grip on reality really is.  He has abandoned and cheated on every wife he's had.  Whining is probably his greatest talent . . . and Trump bends the knee to lick Putin's boots at every instance.
I'm personally working to try to understand the man himself and how anyone can beat him.

The Cohen tape offered what I felt was a very interesting glimpse into a Trump that has been hidden from us.  A Trump that is not in front of the camera and is not performing for an audience, in short the Trump that operate in the background and likely the Trump the porn stars and his wives likely see.  What I saw was a very calm and considering individual being confronted with a problem that he had to solve and very methodically talking it through.  He's having a conversation on the phone with someone else at the same time and both exchanges continue during the short audio clip that was released.  In short the bombast and bravado was not present.  Instead he appeared very differently.  It is therefore not beyond belief that Karen McDougal was truly attracted to this inner man, and not simply at him for his money.  Interviews with her do not seem to oppose that idea.  Stormy on the other hand spews contempt for ridicule for the man, but their two contexts are very different.  The latter was a one-night stand, someone who likely saw what we do, the other was 10 months of relations, one who likely got to see a lot more of the Trump on the Cohen tape.  McDougal does not seem angry as Stormy does, she appears remorseful of her decision to become involved with a married man, yet still shows that she cared for the man himself.

What I think this may have shown us is that every single action that we "see" (thorough the eyes of the camera or through the tweets) is far from irrational movements but instead a very calculated and orchestrated process.  It strengthens what I have seen since the start, that attacking the character of the man, his mannerisms, his language and such just sucks up time and that is right where he wants people because while they all flit around no real damage is being done.  His base has discounted this input from the beginning, this is never going to work with them.  Only doing the hard work or finding actual problems, as is done when he walks back statements like he did yesterday with Putin II and tough stance on Europe, will impact anything in a sustainable way. 

I am beginning to think about how "tenuous his grip on reality is" is actually a calculated act my an individual who has a very firm grasp on reality but is playing a part when we can see him, a part he has played for decades and therefore appears to be him.  Imagine if Meryl Streep or whoever else you feel is the best actor alive today had instead of playing different roles instead just played once character for decades.  How terrific would they be?  They'd get very, very good at it and having to live in that role and having to look at it from all directions would get very good at understanding how every facet of the character could be used to greatest effect.  The bombast, the lying to drive people to distraction, every little trait of the character is understood by a master craftsman.  This is how I think the Cohen tape may be the greatest gift we have ever been given.  Not because I feel it will lead to an indictment or an impeachment, but because instead it was a never-intended-to-be-seen-by-his-audience piece into who the real man may actually be, and therefore will wake up well meaning and talented people who can use that new knowledge to formulate a new strategy to come at him. 


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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3197 on: July 26, 2018, 08:15:50 AM »
Below is why Trump or someone like Trump has a real chance of being elected. Republicans are not doing grass-roots voter raising. However Republican-led legislatures have been very busy otherwise, in redrawing districts or defending those redrawn districts, and legislation to skew and suppress voting.
I live in North Carolina and our districts are so gerrymandered. Despite being ruled unconstitutional by the state supreme court, those districts were used in the 2016 election. And it still hasn't been corrected.

Up the pipeline in particular is legislation to approve needing to present an ID to be able to vote. FYI there is NO FEDERAL rule requiring showing an ID to vote. They are going to try to get the legislation approved by using misleading titles. Only AFTER does it pass, will they specify which Ids are acceptable. Republican legislature spend all their time churning out legislation that strips the (democratic) governor of his historic powers and oversight and instead give it to the (republican held) legislature. It's really disgusting and despite mass protests there's nothing it seems the voters can do.

Heck, if you can't win fairly, might as well mislead, cheat and suppress voting.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/north-carolina-gop-pledges-to-defend-gerrymandered-congressional-map/2018/01/10/5fe99686-f64b-11e7-a9e3-ab18ce41436a_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.efa16bd73823
https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2018/07/north-carolina-gops-plan-to-deceive-voters-about-its-radical-ballot-measures.html

And I think this has been brought up before, but we are no longer ranked as a full democracy but as a flawed democracy. One of the weighting of rankings is how open, transparent, and fair our election process is.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/america-democracy-rated-donald-trump-not-fully-democratic-us-president-report-the-economist-a8195121.html
« Last Edit: July 26, 2018, 08:23:31 AM by partgypsy »

wenchsenior

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3198 on: July 26, 2018, 08:36:26 AM »
Just saw this sobering glimpse into the future this morning.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/26/opinion/trump-re-election-2020.html?smid=fb-nytopinion&smtyp=cur

It encapsulates a lot that I’ve worried about.
I too feel it was realistically assembled.

I think we've got a lot of fence sitters who have a very "meh" attitude and would be summed up in the voters in the article who said the things for them were fine.  If the Democrats do not get off the Trump attacks and instead start making a case for why the actual results and things that are happening and back away from Trump specifically and instead head down a path of "why are the Democrats better for YOU", this article paints a likely picture, of fence sitters keeping their feet in Trump's yard.

It is possible (thought November is still far away) that we'll have a preview of this article in the mid-terms.  The step backs yesterday of Trump's two biggest grenades, if sustained until the election, can create a lot of the same climate.  The economy will keep petering along so no real pain for voters, and fighting on the moral front is a losing battle as we've all seen.  Therefore the vast majority of voters will feel nothing to get their dander up and may back away from angry backlash at the voting booth.  I do feel it is too late for Democrats to pivot for the 2018 elections, and therefore we are in the situation the article presents where attacks on Trump are pointless and we'll see how many seats swing and it can be a harbinger of how 2020 can play out as the similarities are there.

I generally agree with this.  Trump just doing his daily clown show is more than enough to activate the base Dems, but if the actual Dem candidates RUN on constantly attacking Trump (and by extension his supporters), that will just activate the 'weak' Trump/GOP supporters.

Dems are lucky right now that Trump is such a personal disaster b/c they don't have much to sell policy-wise.  They do have a clear advantage in messaging on health care (and I personally think they should push hard for Medicare option for all).  The GOP tax cuts aren't super popular, but it's hard to actively run against tax cuts.  The economy is doing fine, relatively speaking.  Most voters don't vote on foreign policy, and the Dems are already conflicted about being for or against trade wars.  The Russia probe doesn't register high on most voters' interest scale.  And (much to my misery) the appalling environmental policy of this administration rarely activates any voters at all, historically.

So, Dems should run on health care, and maybe a vague idea of 'restoring checks and balances to government' without hammering Trump so much personally.  Dems should run on better pay/benefits/retirement security/student loan relief.  But they can only run on those latter things if they have actual coherent policies that could be put into practice and are simple conceptually.  Do they?

I also think the Dems could win if they coherently messaged anti-trust, anti-mega corp policies and stuck to that theme going forward, but most establishment politicians need big corp money too much to do that.  It might work with some of the fresher candidates.

But right now, it seems like the Dem base is mostly activated by Trump's immigration policies and Trump himself.  Maybe that will work, but I'm skeptical. I think immigration policy is an absolute loser in a general....it's far too easy for the GOP to  sell, 'liberals care more about Dreamers or immigrant kids than you and your kids'.  And slogans like "Abolish ICE" are absolutely moronic b/c they sound like Dems are saying "we want open borders and no border enforcement" even if that isn't what they mean. 

Identity politics issues are IMO also losers in a general election b/c the more voters are reminded of differences among our citizenry, rather than common goals and similarities, the more they tribalize.   Identify politics could work in specific races in a mid term...as we've seen in some of the special elections.  Will the Dems thread that needle, though? Questionable.

« Last Edit: July 26, 2018, 08:40:02 AM by wenchsenior »

nereo

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Re: So Let's Speculate about the Future of a Full Trump Presidency...
« Reply #3199 on: July 26, 2018, 08:53:45 AM »
Just saw this sobering glimpse into the future this morning.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/26/opinion/trump-re-election-2020.html?smid=fb-nytopinion&smtyp=cur

It encapsulates a lot that I’ve worried about.
I too feel it was realistically assembled.

I think we've got a lot of fence sitters who have a very "meh" attitude and would be summed up in the voters in the article who said the things for them were fine.  If the Democrats do not get off the Trump attacks and instead start making a case for why the actual results and things that are happening and back away from Trump specifically and instead head down a path of "why are the Democrats better for YOU", this article paints a likely picture, of fence sitters keeping their feet in Trump's yard.

It is possible (thought November is still far away) that we'll have a preview of this article in the mid-terms.  The step backs yesterday of Trump's two biggest grenades, if sustained until the election, can create a lot of the same climate.  The economy will keep petering along so no real pain for voters, and fighting on the moral front is a losing battle as we've all seen.  Therefore the vast majority of voters will feel nothing to get their dander up and may back away from angry backlash at the voting booth.  I do feel it is too late for Democrats to pivot for the 2018 elections, and therefore we are in the situation the article presents where attacks on Trump are pointless and we'll see how many seats swing and it can be a harbinger of how 2020 can play out as the similarities are there.

I generally agree with this.  Trump just doing his daily clown show is more than enough to activate the base Dems, but if the actual Dem candidates RUN on constantly attacking Trump (and by extension his supporters), that will just activate the 'weak' Trump/GOP supporters.

Dems are lucky right now that Trump is such a personal disaster b/c they don't have much to sell policy-wise.  They do have a clear advantage in messaging on health care (and I personally think they should push hard for Medicare option for all).  The GOP tax cuts aren't super popular, but it's hard to actively run against tax cuts.  The economy is doing fine, relatively speaking.  Most voters don't vote on foreign policy, and the Dems are already conflicted about being for or against trade wars.  The Russia probe doesn't register high on most voters' interest scale.  And (much to my misery) the appalling environmental policy of this administration rarely activates any voters at all, historically.

So, Dems should run on health care, and maybe a vague idea of 'restoring checks and balances to government' without hammering Trump so much personally.  Dems should run on better pay/benefits/retirement security/student loan relief.  But they can only run on those latter things if they have actual coherent policies that could be put into practice and are simple conceptually.  Do they?

I also think the Dems could win if they coherently messaged anti-trust, anti-mega corp policies and stuck to that theme going forward, but most establishment politicians need big corp money too much to do that.  It might work with some of the fresher candidates.

But right now, it seems like the Dem base is mostly activated by Trump's immigration policies and Trump himself.  Maybe that will work, but I'm skeptical. I think immigration policy is an absolute loser in a general....it's far too easy for the GOP to  sell, 'liberals care more about Dreamers or immigrant kids than you and your kids'.  And slogans like "Abolish ICE" are absolutely moronic b/c they sound like Dems are saying "we want open borders and no border enforcement" even if that isn't what they mean. 

Identity politics issues are IMO also losers in a general election b/c the more voters are reminded of differences among our citizenry, rather than common goals and similarities, the more they tribalize.   Identify politics could work in specific races in a mid term...as we've seen in some of the special elections.  Will the Dems thread that needle, though? Questionable.

The part of that article which seems a stretch to me is that we'll have another 2.5 years of a booming economy and no military engagements - that would set a modern record for the US.  That would blow past the 91-'01 expansion.

I'm also not convinced that it will be the 'fence sitters' who decide the 2020 election. I maintain what matters most is how many Dems turnout to vote.  As we've seen in the last 9 cycles, the GOP turns out in about the same numebrs every election, and in higher numbers than the other party, and are very loyal voters.  If more Dems show up to vote in 2020 than in 2016 I think it is a lock - but history shows turnout is often supressed when there's an incumbent running.

Regarding their platform and what issues the Dems ought to run on, I think whatever motivates people to the voting booth.  It's probably not running against tax cuts or how big a liar Trump is. Environmental concerns might motivate more of the younger demographic - which are exactly the sorts to sit out elections and most likley to favor the democrats. But none of those would be as useful as a coherent, realistic and optimistic series of policies which promised better lives over what the GOP has been offering.  So far that's been largely background discussions.