Still raining and very windy here on the Central Coast of California.
Tiffany Trump
Seriously, folks, taking out your anti-Trump feelings on Shame on all of you who are jerk asses. My hat is off to Whoopi Goldberg for extended a friendly hand and standing up to those who are too full of hate in their hearts.
Trump's lack of strong leadership
Trump is blaming the leaks on pro-Obama people still working in the various agencies and departments. He is acting like he is not in charge. He is and needs to start acting like it or these leaks will keep occurring.
Russia
Russia is upset about Trump not warming up relations like he promised. Spicer, in a presser, said the Admin says Russia needs to deescalate the violence in Ukraine and give back Crimea to Ukraine. Russia is also saying it did nothing wrong with their warplanes in flying them near US waqrships. Russia also tried to lay the blame on the US. We all need to remember one thing, Russia is not an ally or friend and with Putin in charge, will never be.
Jake Tapper
Susan Wright at Redstate is to be thanked for this story. She points out how Jake Tapper at CNN schools Trump on the difference between news and conspiracy theories. It is well worth the read.
Peter Wehner
If you don't know who he is, he is a former adviser to 3 Repbulican presidents (Reagan and both Bushes). In a great interview with CBS, he says Trump has some very disturbing relationships with Russia. It is an article everyone should read. In a related article, USA Today has an excellent article on Trump's ties to Russia going back 30 years.
Trump rallies
Trump is still holding political campaign rallies. Remember when the Right criticized Obama for doing the same? Where is that criticism now> Oh, wait, it's all a double standard, hypocrisy and the jersey being worn.
Faith leaders disappointed with Trump's LGBT agenda
Who didn't see that coming. These so called people of faith sold out their beliefs for worldly power. They abandoned their principles and are now reaping the whirlwind. Faith and the moral and ethical foundations that are related to it are suppose to know no political boundaries. These people need to be reminded of that.
Trump will pass up Obama by the end of the year
In what it will cost taxpayers to protect him on his vacations. Per Judicial Watch, a Right leaning watchdog group, it will cost taxpayers more than $200 million this year alone at the pace he is going. Obama cost taxpayers $97 million in his entire 8 years in office. Trump is living an extravagant lifestyle on our dime. Trump is a business man who knows the cost of a plane flight and vacations. Add in his weekend getaways to Mar-a-Lago are severely hurting the small businesses there thousands of dollars already in just the past 3 wseekends and you can see he is no champion of the forgotten blue collar/working class.etc person. He is a liar and a huckster and a con man.
Trump deletes a tweet
Yes, Trump deleted a tweet that went too far. Not only did he call out certain news outlets, he called them enemies of America. It's one thing to say the media is biased (all of media has some biased) but to declare those you don't like enemies of the state is going way too far and shows how he wants to be an autocrat and beyond questioning and criticism. The same goes for those in his Admin.
Sanford and McCain
Both have been severe critics of Trump and are not afraid to take him on. Sanford has never given to Trump and has shown a political bravery that needs to be emulated. McCain is reminding me of his younger days when he would stand for principle over party. Now, more on the Right and in the Republican party need to do the same.
Jewish reporter
Trump berated a Jewish reporter who is a supporter by not letting him finish his question. Trump's thin skin is going to get him into bigger trouble. He needs to grow up. The Reporter was merely asking a question about the rise in racist attacks, in particular, anti-Jewish attacks. Now, considering Jared Kushner is his son-in-law and key adviser, Ivanka has converted to Judaism and his grandchildren are ethnically half-Jewish, you would expect Trump to be considerate and have an interest in this. Instead, he has turned a blind eye and really has not spoken out.
G. O. JUB
Saturday, February 18, 2017
Friday, February 17, 2017
Thoughts on the day 02/17/2017
We live in interesting times
The Brand
That is how Trump views his Administration, himself and America. Joe Cunningham at Redstate points this out very well. Trump ignored all the warnings about Flynn because he saw Flynn as someone who could cut deals and improve Brand America. Unfortunately for Trump, he was hurting Brand Trump and Brand Administration. That is why he got rid of Flynn. The same thing was true with Manafort, Christie and his first campaign manager.
a government agency not to enforce the law.
Security protocols
Chaffetz (R-UT) wants info on security protocols at Mar-a-Lago. His concerns are legit. Trump was playing pretty fast and loose with national security and this on the heels of him making a big deal of it during the campaign.
Drain the swamp
Trump promised to drain the swamp. However, many of his cabinet picks, as well as advisors, are people of the swamp. /They are people who helped make the swamp possible and helped it grow. Many are not his friends. Elon Musk, who gets nearly $5 billion in government corporate welfare, is a prime example. Why Trump has invited him to be a key advisor is beyond any rational thought, from a perspective based upon what Trump campaigned on.
All hail the King
Trump telling the IRS to turn a blind eye to the individual mandate is illegal. He is telling a government agency not to enforce the law unilaterally, without congressional approval of changing the law/ This is just as bad as Obama unilaterally deciding to delay the implementation of the employer mandate of the ACA. Of course, Trumpkins swill say it's okay because, well, Trump, color of the jersey, etc.
Trump hypocrisy
Trump is right in calling out the illegal intelligence leaks. however, he loved it during the campaign in reference to Wikileaks. Then he loved leaks. Double standard and hypocrisy at its finest.
Civil Asset Foreiture
This blatantly unconstitutional practice that has somehow managed to be held legal has Trump's full backing and he wants to strenghen the program despite the problems with it. Law enforcement says the abuses are overblown and distorted. However, the evidence seems to say otherwise. This program targets innocents as well as the guilty It turns justice upside down and is definitely targeted primarily at the poor who can not afford to defend themselves. In addition, the amounts taken are such that law enforcement knows they will never have to defend themselves in court because the amount is too little to be worth it.
Trump's contradictory blasts of the media
Trump blasts the media for spouting "fake news". Yet, he confirms in the same statements that the leaks these "fake news" stories are based on are real and legit. How can something based upon real, accurate info be fake? Trump needs to be sat down and told what a fool he is being.
Kellyanne Conway
She is no longer welcomed on Morning Joe. The reason is she is no longer considered credible. I know, not exactly a mortal blow but this is going to be the first domino to fall.
Well, a storm has hit and power is sporadic. More later.
G. O. JUB
The Brand
That is how Trump views his Administration, himself and America. Joe Cunningham at Redstate points this out very well. Trump ignored all the warnings about Flynn because he saw Flynn as someone who could cut deals and improve Brand America. Unfortunately for Trump, he was hurting Brand Trump and Brand Administration. That is why he got rid of Flynn. The same thing was true with Manafort, Christie and his first campaign manager.
a government agency not to enforce the law.
Security protocols
Chaffetz (R-UT) wants info on security protocols at Mar-a-Lago. His concerns are legit. Trump was playing pretty fast and loose with national security and this on the heels of him making a big deal of it during the campaign.
Drain the swamp
Trump promised to drain the swamp. However, many of his cabinet picks, as well as advisors, are people of the swamp. /They are people who helped make the swamp possible and helped it grow. Many are not his friends. Elon Musk, who gets nearly $5 billion in government corporate welfare, is a prime example. Why Trump has invited him to be a key advisor is beyond any rational thought, from a perspective based upon what Trump campaigned on.
All hail the King
Trump telling the IRS to turn a blind eye to the individual mandate is illegal. He is telling a government agency not to enforce the law unilaterally, without congressional approval of changing the law/ This is just as bad as Obama unilaterally deciding to delay the implementation of the employer mandate of the ACA. Of course, Trumpkins swill say it's okay because, well, Trump, color of the jersey, etc.
Trump hypocrisy
Trump is right in calling out the illegal intelligence leaks. however, he loved it during the campaign in reference to Wikileaks. Then he loved leaks. Double standard and hypocrisy at its finest.
Civil Asset Foreiture
This blatantly unconstitutional practice that has somehow managed to be held legal has Trump's full backing and he wants to strenghen the program despite the problems with it. Law enforcement says the abuses are overblown and distorted. However, the evidence seems to say otherwise. This program targets innocents as well as the guilty It turns justice upside down and is definitely targeted primarily at the poor who can not afford to defend themselves. In addition, the amounts taken are such that law enforcement knows they will never have to defend themselves in court because the amount is too little to be worth it.
Trump's contradictory blasts of the media
Trump blasts the media for spouting "fake news". Yet, he confirms in the same statements that the leaks these "fake news" stories are based on are real and legit. How can something based upon real, accurate info be fake? Trump needs to be sat down and told what a fool he is being.
Kellyanne Conway
She is no longer welcomed on Morning Joe. The reason is she is no longer considered credible. I know, not exactly a mortal blow but this is going to be the first domino to fall.
Well, a storm has hit and power is sporadic. More later.
G. O. JUB
Tuesday, February 14, 2017
Thoughts on the day 02/14/17
I have to say this about the Trump Admin, it constantly provides plenty of fodder for commentary.
Drop the Mike (Flynn)
Sorry but couldn't resist the pun. Flynn, who lied to Pence, Trump and the American people, has resigned. It became apparent he lied when he backtracked on his outright denial and it became more of I don't remember, perhaps we did discuss ...". Thing is, Trump had been warned about Flynn weeks ago but chose to ignore the warning signs.
Joe Cunningham at Redstate reports that Trump fanboi (his phraseology) Mike Cernovich, a member of the alt-right, is expressing disappointment that Trump sought and accepted Flynn's resignation. He is stating the facts, which are true, are actually Fake News. Flynn has stated that he was, to at least some degree, in the wrong. Mike Cernovich needs to get his head out of his tukhes.
The fall out is already starting with congressional investigations being called for. We know how well those will go based upon a well established track record.
However, Trump is correct in stating that it is disturbing concerning the intelligence leaks surrounding all of this. Streiff at Redstate references Eli Lake, who states it appears that a slow motion coup against Trump seems to be in motion and Flynn is the first significant casualty. I agree that Lake seems to be on the mark. The leaks can only be done by those in the intelligence community. Given the strained state of relations between Trump and the intelligence agencies, mostly due to Trump, it is reasonable to conclude such a thing has a strong possibility of being real. While I am unabashedly anti-Trump, this is not something I like nor can I condone such an action. Having unelected government employees trying to determine who should and should not be president is disturbing and possibly frightening.
Intelligence SNAFU and WH leaks
A person at Mar-a-Lago Club got close enough to take a pic of the nuclear football. This is unsettling, to say the least.
Trump ran a campaign on getting the our intelligence act together and taking better action concerning hacking and cybercrime. Yet, Trump using an unsecured Android smartphone. Even congress is asking for access to it to see if anything is on it that shouldn't be.
https://www.engadget.com/2017/02/13/senators-ask-for-info-on-trumps-smartphone-use/
Add in Trump discussed with Japan's PM Abe on how to respond to North Korea's latest missile test. Thing is, he discussed this at a dinner with many non-government without security clearance in attendance. Any of them could have had listening devices that could have eavesdropped in on the conversation.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/politics/wp/2017/02/13/trump-ran-a-campaign-based-on-intelligence-security-thats-not-how-hes-governing/?utm_term=.78380587cde9
Trump's immigration EO
Trump is planning to appeal the 9th Circuit Courts decision to maintain the stay on his EO. He can't simply rewrite the order because that would mean he was wrong and he would be handing the opposition a win. Trump's ego can't handle that.
Trump's typos
A writer for New York Magazine, one Olivia Nuzzi, feels that Trump's typos are of utmost importance. This is the type of stuff that gives the mainstream media and the liberal majority of it a bad name. People like her need to get a grip on reality.
Trump's Executive Orders
USA Today is reporting that the White House is posting wrong versions of Trump's orders on its website. This raises legit questions about how thorough the Admin has been is drafting the EOs.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2017/02/14/white-house-posts-wrong-versions-trumps-orders-its-website/97845888/
Kellyanne Conway
Kellyanne Conway goes on different news shows and says one thing only to be contradicted later, sometimes within an hour after she says something. Either she is lying or being played for a fool by her boss and being hung out to dry. If it is the latter, then she should quit. If it is the former, then she is scum.
I would like to thank Jay Caruso at Redstate for bringing this to our attention.
Trump is easily manipulated
Ben Howe at Redstate has pointed out how easy it is to manipulate Trump. After a skit on SNL that had Steve Bannon depicted as the Grim Reaper and telling Trump what to do, which he would then obediently do without question, Trump has been reported to be very angry. So much so that he has put some distance between himself and Bannon. The irony is Trump was being manipulated by SNL into doing what the writers apparently wanted him to do.
"Going after" Trump's children
Tomi Lahren and Sean Hannity, in a massive fit of faux outrage, lashed out against the "liberal media" for allegedly going after Trump's children without reason and doing so in a petty manner. Thing is, they couldn't be more wrong. Chelsea Clinton and the Obama daughters were and are minors. Trump's children, on the other hand, are adults. Also, the Trump children, especially Ivanka, are involved in the Trump administration and have their father's ear on policy. Finally, the criticisms have been legit and are not petty. They need to shut up until they know what they are talking about.
G. O. JUB
Drop the Mike (Flynn)
Sorry but couldn't resist the pun. Flynn, who lied to Pence, Trump and the American people, has resigned. It became apparent he lied when he backtracked on his outright denial and it became more of I don't remember, perhaps we did discuss ...". Thing is, Trump had been warned about Flynn weeks ago but chose to ignore the warning signs.
Joe Cunningham at Redstate reports that Trump fanboi (his phraseology) Mike Cernovich, a member of the alt-right, is expressing disappointment that Trump sought and accepted Flynn's resignation. He is stating the facts, which are true, are actually Fake News. Flynn has stated that he was, to at least some degree, in the wrong. Mike Cernovich needs to get his head out of his tukhes.
The fall out is already starting with congressional investigations being called for. We know how well those will go based upon a well established track record.
However, Trump is correct in stating that it is disturbing concerning the intelligence leaks surrounding all of this. Streiff at Redstate references Eli Lake, who states it appears that a slow motion coup against Trump seems to be in motion and Flynn is the first significant casualty. I agree that Lake seems to be on the mark. The leaks can only be done by those in the intelligence community. Given the strained state of relations between Trump and the intelligence agencies, mostly due to Trump, it is reasonable to conclude such a thing has a strong possibility of being real. While I am unabashedly anti-Trump, this is not something I like nor can I condone such an action. Having unelected government employees trying to determine who should and should not be president is disturbing and possibly frightening.
Intelligence SNAFU and WH leaks
A person at Mar-a-Lago Club got close enough to take a pic of the nuclear football. This is unsettling, to say the least.
Trump ran a campaign on getting the our intelligence act together and taking better action concerning hacking and cybercrime. Yet, Trump using an unsecured Android smartphone. Even congress is asking for access to it to see if anything is on it that shouldn't be.
https://www.engadget.com/2017/02/13/senators-ask-for-info-on-trumps-smartphone-use/
Add in Trump discussed with Japan's PM Abe on how to respond to North Korea's latest missile test. Thing is, he discussed this at a dinner with many non-government without security clearance in attendance. Any of them could have had listening devices that could have eavesdropped in on the conversation.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/politics/wp/2017/02/13/trump-ran-a-campaign-based-on-intelligence-security-thats-not-how-hes-governing/?utm_term=.78380587cde9
Trump's immigration EO
Trump is planning to appeal the 9th Circuit Courts decision to maintain the stay on his EO. He can't simply rewrite the order because that would mean he was wrong and he would be handing the opposition a win. Trump's ego can't handle that.
Trump's typos
A writer for New York Magazine, one Olivia Nuzzi, feels that Trump's typos are of utmost importance. This is the type of stuff that gives the mainstream media and the liberal majority of it a bad name. People like her need to get a grip on reality.
Trump's Executive Orders
USA Today is reporting that the White House is posting wrong versions of Trump's orders on its website. This raises legit questions about how thorough the Admin has been is drafting the EOs.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2017/02/14/white-house-posts-wrong-versions-trumps-orders-its-website/97845888/
Kellyanne Conway
Kellyanne Conway goes on different news shows and says one thing only to be contradicted later, sometimes within an hour after she says something. Either she is lying or being played for a fool by her boss and being hung out to dry. If it is the latter, then she should quit. If it is the former, then she is scum.
I would like to thank Jay Caruso at Redstate for bringing this to our attention.
Trump is easily manipulated
Ben Howe at Redstate has pointed out how easy it is to manipulate Trump. After a skit on SNL that had Steve Bannon depicted as the Grim Reaper and telling Trump what to do, which he would then obediently do without question, Trump has been reported to be very angry. So much so that he has put some distance between himself and Bannon. The irony is Trump was being manipulated by SNL into doing what the writers apparently wanted him to do.
"Going after" Trump's children
Tomi Lahren and Sean Hannity, in a massive fit of faux outrage, lashed out against the "liberal media" for allegedly going after Trump's children without reason and doing so in a petty manner. Thing is, they couldn't be more wrong. Chelsea Clinton and the Obama daughters were and are minors. Trump's children, on the other hand, are adults. Also, the Trump children, especially Ivanka, are involved in the Trump administration and have their father's ear on policy. Finally, the criticisms have been legit and are not petty. They need to shut up until they know what they are talking about.
G. O. JUB
Monday, February 13, 2017
Thoughts from the weekend 02/13/2017
A lot to think about from this past weekend.
Democrats
The Dems Leftist faction thinks the Democrats aren't far enough to the Left. That is whacky thinking. The fact is the majority of the country is not as far to the Left as they are and they need to realize the Dems need to tack more towards the middle. Hopefully samity will prevail.
The Dems obstructionist strategy, while being condemned by the Repubs, is just doing what the Repubs did for the previous 8 years. For the Repubs to complain is utter hypocrisy and employment of a double standard. It didn't hurt the Repubs and it won't hurt the Dems. If anything, it seems to be firing up their base, which is needed after Hillary's lackluster campaign that was significant in her losing to Trump.
Election fraud
Election commissioner Ellen Weintraub told Trump and his Admin to put up or shut up concerning evidence of election fraud. If they have evidence, they need to produce and show it to the FEC. She is spot on.
http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/federal-elections-commissioner-demands-donald-trump-proof-voter-fraud
Border wall
Trump insists he can bring down the cost of the border wall. He may find that more difficult than he thinks. There are factors when it comes to government contracts that aren't present in the private sector, such as open bidding. Trump is famous for squeezing and often cheating contractors but he still experienced cost overruns. He is not quite the genius he thinks he is.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/wp/2017/02/11/trump-insists-he-can-bring-the-cost-of-21-6-billion-border-wall-way-down/?utm_term=.a4570f0cca69
Russian dossier on Trump
CBS News reported that the dossier Trump has insisted is fake news and lacks merit is gaining credibility with laws enforcement. While the alleged compromising aspects have yet to be vetted even those who were initially doubters are now taking it seriously.
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/russian-dossier-on-trump-gaining-credibility-with-law-enforcement/
Checks and balances
Trump and his Admin have a hard time wrapping their head around this concept. Trump has called the legal system broken because some federal judges had the audacity to do their job and found aspects of his Executive Order to be possibly unconstitutional and ordered a stay. It is their job to interpret and determine what is constitutional when a matter is brought before them. They may be wrong but it seems they weren't acting in a political manner.
http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/319069-trump-tweets-our-legal-system-is-broken
Flood of refugees
Trump has said that the recent influx of refugees being predominantly from the 7 nations that he tried to ban travel from is a direct result of the stay on his Executive Order. Well, Trump has never shied away from lying, misleading and misstating facts. As NBC points out, these refugees had been approved before the EO and now that the stay has been issued, they are coming in. There is no flood of new refugees or anything of the ilk.
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/influx-refugees-cited-trump-after-ban-blocked-were-previously-approved-n719866
Immigration raids
The recent raids has those on the Left all in an uproar. Facts are, the Obama Admin had carried many such raids and some of the most recent, if not most or all, were approved under the Obama Admin. Some people need to calm down.
Ivanka Trump fashion line
Nordstrom was correct in dropping the line. Sales had declined by 32%. Now Sears and KMart have dropped the line due to seriously declining sales. Some are trying to call for a boycott of Nordstrom. I am going to quote Susan Wright at Redstate:
"Here's my thought: Why weren't you at Nordstrom buying enough of Ivanka's clothing line to keep it in demand?
You can't afford to shop at nordstrom, you say?
then go ahead and boycott. You apparently weren't a customer anyway, so continuing to not get the business they weren't getting before probably isn't going to hurt them."
Bowling Green Massacre
Kellyanne Conway trying to insist that using the word "massacre" was a slip of the tongue doesn't fly. She has used it before, twice, in separate interviews. I guess she has learned from her master that repeating a lie ...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2017/02/06/kellyanne-conways-bowling-green-massacre-wasnt-a-slip-of-the-tongue-shes-said-it-before/?utm_term=.be639a6ab9dd
Trump's tax returns
My thanks to Patterico at Redstate for this. He found out about a 1924 law, invoked successfully in 1974 against Nixon, that could force end up making Trump's tax returns public. However, with the Repubs in control of the HoR, this is extremely doubtful of ever happening.
http://www.redstate.com/patterico/2017/02/11/law-force-trumps-tax-returns-made-public/
G. O. JUB
Democrats
The Dems Leftist faction thinks the Democrats aren't far enough to the Left. That is whacky thinking. The fact is the majority of the country is not as far to the Left as they are and they need to realize the Dems need to tack more towards the middle. Hopefully samity will prevail.
The Dems obstructionist strategy, while being condemned by the Repubs, is just doing what the Repubs did for the previous 8 years. For the Repubs to complain is utter hypocrisy and employment of a double standard. It didn't hurt the Repubs and it won't hurt the Dems. If anything, it seems to be firing up their base, which is needed after Hillary's lackluster campaign that was significant in her losing to Trump.
Election fraud
Election commissioner Ellen Weintraub told Trump and his Admin to put up or shut up concerning evidence of election fraud. If they have evidence, they need to produce and show it to the FEC. She is spot on.
http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/federal-elections-commissioner-demands-donald-trump-proof-voter-fraud
Border wall
Trump insists he can bring down the cost of the border wall. He may find that more difficult than he thinks. There are factors when it comes to government contracts that aren't present in the private sector, such as open bidding. Trump is famous for squeezing and often cheating contractors but he still experienced cost overruns. He is not quite the genius he thinks he is.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/wp/2017/02/11/trump-insists-he-can-bring-the-cost-of-21-6-billion-border-wall-way-down/?utm_term=.a4570f0cca69
Russian dossier on Trump
CBS News reported that the dossier Trump has insisted is fake news and lacks merit is gaining credibility with laws enforcement. While the alleged compromising aspects have yet to be vetted even those who were initially doubters are now taking it seriously.
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/russian-dossier-on-trump-gaining-credibility-with-law-enforcement/
Checks and balances
Trump and his Admin have a hard time wrapping their head around this concept. Trump has called the legal system broken because some federal judges had the audacity to do their job and found aspects of his Executive Order to be possibly unconstitutional and ordered a stay. It is their job to interpret and determine what is constitutional when a matter is brought before them. They may be wrong but it seems they weren't acting in a political manner.
http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/319069-trump-tweets-our-legal-system-is-broken
Flood of refugees
Trump has said that the recent influx of refugees being predominantly from the 7 nations that he tried to ban travel from is a direct result of the stay on his Executive Order. Well, Trump has never shied away from lying, misleading and misstating facts. As NBC points out, these refugees had been approved before the EO and now that the stay has been issued, they are coming in. There is no flood of new refugees or anything of the ilk.
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/influx-refugees-cited-trump-after-ban-blocked-were-previously-approved-n719866
Immigration raids
The recent raids has those on the Left all in an uproar. Facts are, the Obama Admin had carried many such raids and some of the most recent, if not most or all, were approved under the Obama Admin. Some people need to calm down.
Ivanka Trump fashion line
Nordstrom was correct in dropping the line. Sales had declined by 32%. Now Sears and KMart have dropped the line due to seriously declining sales. Some are trying to call for a boycott of Nordstrom. I am going to quote Susan Wright at Redstate:
"Here's my thought: Why weren't you at Nordstrom buying enough of Ivanka's clothing line to keep it in demand?
You can't afford to shop at nordstrom, you say?
then go ahead and boycott. You apparently weren't a customer anyway, so continuing to not get the business they weren't getting before probably isn't going to hurt them."
Bowling Green Massacre
Kellyanne Conway trying to insist that using the word "massacre" was a slip of the tongue doesn't fly. She has used it before, twice, in separate interviews. I guess she has learned from her master that repeating a lie ...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2017/02/06/kellyanne-conways-bowling-green-massacre-wasnt-a-slip-of-the-tongue-shes-said-it-before/?utm_term=.be639a6ab9dd
Trump's tax returns
My thanks to Patterico at Redstate for this. He found out about a 1924 law, invoked successfully in 1974 against Nixon, that could force end up making Trump's tax returns public. However, with the Repubs in control of the HoR, this is extremely doubtful of ever happening.
http://www.redstate.com/patterico/2017/02/11/law-force-trumps-tax-returns-made-public/
G. O. JUB
Saturday, February 11, 2017
Thoughts for the day 02/10/2017
Yes, I know it is technically 02/11/2017 but this is for stuff I thought about on the 10th so live with it.
Trump has got to be outright lying now about crime
Trump has often enough been corrected on his misleading statements about crime and the state of matters in America that this is no longer a matter of stating a falsehood but simply lying. This sounds like Trump trying to gain more power despite what the Constitution says and he and his administration don't care how much they lie and violate the Constitution. He is deliberately misleading about the facts to make things sound much worse than they are. Crime is still way down from their peak and police officer deaths while on duty are also. This NBC article, which has credible sources proves how much Trump is lying:
http://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/why-president-trump-s-misleading-image-american-crime-matters-n718546
In addition, Trump's inflammatory responses has caused judges to require extra security. Now, while Trump did not in any way tell his most devoted cult followers to engage in this highly illegal action, his words inspired them. He has to start realizing that as POTUS, his words carry weight far beyond what he may intend and must learn to dial things down.
Trump and McCain
Trump attacked Senator McCain because he didn't cheerlead the Yemen mission. He denigrated McCain's military service in Vietnam while he was going through his own "Vietnam" of bedding women and getting deferments for his "sore foot".Trump is a thin-skinned man-child who needs to grow up and learn to take criticism and, most importantly, that he is far from perfect. In addition, there were those who called McCain and his service dishonorable. The only dishonorable people are those criticizing McCain.
Ninth Circuit Court's decision
The Ninth Circuit upheld the stay on Trump's EO concerning those 7 Muslim nations. The decision seems to be solid concerning legal principles and foundations. Trump may not appeal to the SCOTUS since it is far from guaranteed it will overturn the stay. Even Patterico on Redstate said the decision was solid.
CT punishing poor people
Connecticut has increased fees for purchasing and retaining a license to own a firearm to a point that poor people will no longer be able to afford to purchase a firearm. Before anyone says why should the poor waste money on a firearm, I remind you that poorer neighborhoods are generally not as well patrolled by the police, the response time by police is generally longer and quite often their needs are often ignored. Communities with money get disproportionately favorable treatment. In addition, the right to keep (own) firearms is a constitutionally guaranteed right of the People. By increasing the fees, CT is saying that some are more equal than others.
More on Nordstrom
Trump and his Nordstrom feud has pushed, if not violated, ethics. Of course, that really doesn't matter to Trump or his blind followers who said Hillary turning over the Clinton Foundation to Chelsea was insufficient in avoiding conflict of interest. Yet, Trump not divesting himself of ownership of his businesses and simply turning over management to his sons is fine with those same hypocrites.
And to have Spicer say Nordstrom was motivated sloely by politics and not by a sound business decision just shows how much of a toady lackey he is. And the same goes for Conway.
Michael Flynn Sr
Looks like he was lying about not talking to the Russian ambassador. Well, looks like Trump meant by draining the swamp was so he could fill it up with his own corruption.
Police body cams
Streiff on Redstate made an excellent point that body cams are an excellent idea. Police resistance to them is misplaced and will only lead to the public believing the police want to protect bad cops ( a definitively small minority but one that can have an outsized impact). This in turn will undermine public trust and confidence in police officers.
G. O. JUB
Trump has got to be outright lying now about crime
Trump has often enough been corrected on his misleading statements about crime and the state of matters in America that this is no longer a matter of stating a falsehood but simply lying. This sounds like Trump trying to gain more power despite what the Constitution says and he and his administration don't care how much they lie and violate the Constitution. He is deliberately misleading about the facts to make things sound much worse than they are. Crime is still way down from their peak and police officer deaths while on duty are also. This NBC article, which has credible sources proves how much Trump is lying:
http://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/why-president-trump-s-misleading-image-american-crime-matters-n718546
In addition, Trump's inflammatory responses has caused judges to require extra security. Now, while Trump did not in any way tell his most devoted cult followers to engage in this highly illegal action, his words inspired them. He has to start realizing that as POTUS, his words carry weight far beyond what he may intend and must learn to dial things down.
Trump and McCain
Trump attacked Senator McCain because he didn't cheerlead the Yemen mission. He denigrated McCain's military service in Vietnam while he was going through his own "Vietnam" of bedding women and getting deferments for his "sore foot".Trump is a thin-skinned man-child who needs to grow up and learn to take criticism and, most importantly, that he is far from perfect. In addition, there were those who called McCain and his service dishonorable. The only dishonorable people are those criticizing McCain.
Ninth Circuit Court's decision
The Ninth Circuit upheld the stay on Trump's EO concerning those 7 Muslim nations. The decision seems to be solid concerning legal principles and foundations. Trump may not appeal to the SCOTUS since it is far from guaranteed it will overturn the stay. Even Patterico on Redstate said the decision was solid.
CT punishing poor people
Connecticut has increased fees for purchasing and retaining a license to own a firearm to a point that poor people will no longer be able to afford to purchase a firearm. Before anyone says why should the poor waste money on a firearm, I remind you that poorer neighborhoods are generally not as well patrolled by the police, the response time by police is generally longer and quite often their needs are often ignored. Communities with money get disproportionately favorable treatment. In addition, the right to keep (own) firearms is a constitutionally guaranteed right of the People. By increasing the fees, CT is saying that some are more equal than others.
More on Nordstrom
Trump and his Nordstrom feud has pushed, if not violated, ethics. Of course, that really doesn't matter to Trump or his blind followers who said Hillary turning over the Clinton Foundation to Chelsea was insufficient in avoiding conflict of interest. Yet, Trump not divesting himself of ownership of his businesses and simply turning over management to his sons is fine with those same hypocrites.
And to have Spicer say Nordstrom was motivated sloely by politics and not by a sound business decision just shows how much of a toady lackey he is. And the same goes for Conway.
Michael Flynn Sr
Looks like he was lying about not talking to the Russian ambassador. Well, looks like Trump meant by draining the swamp was so he could fill it up with his own corruption.
Police body cams
Streiff on Redstate made an excellent point that body cams are an excellent idea. Police resistance to them is misplaced and will only lead to the public believing the police want to protect bad cops ( a definitively small minority but one that can have an outsized impact). This in turn will undermine public trust and confidence in police officers.
G. O. JUB
Thursday, February 9, 2017
Thoughts for the day 02/09/2017
Missed giving thoughts yesterday but lots to think about today.
Nordstrom
Nordstorm made the decision to drop Ivanka Trump's line due to poor sales performance. President Trump, while not crossing a legal line but definitely crossing, big time, an ethical line, tweeted a critical blast at Nordstrom. Spicer and Conway decided to both push the Trump Administration even further across that line, with Conway going on Fox & Friends and saying that people need to buy Ivanka Trump's line. Trump just really doesn't understand it or, perhaps, he doesn't care. Conway has shown herself to just wanting to throw away all of her integrity for simple access power. Spicer has shown himself to be a toady lackey.
Tribalism and Blind Loyalty
Yesterday, a writer for Redstate posted about how we live in an age of tribalism where we root for the person because of the "jersey" they are wearing. While the article was pretty much spot on it did have one fatal flaw, it assigned blind loyalty and praise being due to the letter next to the politician's name as a characteristic of the left when in reality it is a characteristic of all sides. This kind of broad brush stroking is unbecoming and only adds fuel to the fire of tribalism.
Civil Asset Forfeiture
Trump "jokingly" threatened that he would be willing to destroy the career of a politician wanting to reform Civil Asset Forfeiture, which is very much needed. CAF is out of control and will only get worse unless something is done. Trump may say he was joking but given his track record, it is hard to think he was actually joking and not being serious.
A state lawmaker in Pennsylvania dared Trump to come after him and try to destroy his career. He even called Trump a loofa-face shit-gibbon. I, along with many others, will be plagarizing, oops, I mean, borrowing this insult for quite a while.
Getting wealthier at taxpayer's expense
Trump loves to brag about how wealthy he is and how he is not going to accept pay for being POTUS. However, he is going to charge the DoD and the Secret Service a ton of rent to use office space in Trump tower. President Trump can show what a true patriot he is by allowing those two departments to use the space space free or, if necessary for legal purposes, the obligatory $1 per year. If Trump is as wealthy as he says he is then he doesn't need the rent money. Of course, not being able to see his tax returns, which he has yet to release despite his promises, there is no way to know the extent of his true wealth or charitable giving.
SCOTUS nominee Gorsuch
While there are a lot of unknowns about Judge Gorsuch, he does seem to understand the need for an independent judiciary and will not be a toady lackey of Trump. In a closed door session with Senator Blumenthal (D-CT), he called Trump's comments about the judges concerning his EO Travel Ban disheartening and demoralizing. Senator Ben Sasse (R-NE) confirmed the authenticity of those comments. Trump, in typical Trump fashion, said Gorsuch wasn't talking about his comments (that is an outright lie by Trump) and lashed out at Blumenthal by referring to how Blumenthal had overstated his Vietnam military service as exposed by the New York Times, the very same publication the Trump has blasted by calling it dishonest and a manufacturer of fake news, except when it suits Trump's aeanda. However, Trump should remember about throwing stones and living in glass houses as he himself had 4, or was it 5, draft deferments due to a sore foot, oops, meant "bone spurs", something his father helped shepherd along.
As an additional note, Chris Cuomo, during his interview of Blumenthal, did bring up Blumenthal living a lie for years concerning his military service, despite what Trump said to the contrary. Cuomo's response was very good in saying Trump was once again wrong on the facts.
White House leaks
As Susan Wright at Redstate points out very well in her post today, Trump is trying to run the government as a business, which is something that you can't do. Businesses tend to have people working to further themselves at the expense of others. Government needs to have people working together for the good of the entire nation, even those who didn't vote for you. However, the Trump Administration seems to have at least 4 power centers: Steve Bannon, Reince Priebus, Kellyanne Conway and Jared Kushner. Two power centers is to be expected and is not unusual. However, 3 or or more is not typical and actually detrimental, especially when trying to run the government as a business, which a government is not. As Susan Wright so ably put it, to do so with the multiple power centers, is to have a government working against itself, not as a cohesive unit working for the good of the nation.
G. O. JUB
Nordstrom
Nordstorm made the decision to drop Ivanka Trump's line due to poor sales performance. President Trump, while not crossing a legal line but definitely crossing, big time, an ethical line, tweeted a critical blast at Nordstrom. Spicer and Conway decided to both push the Trump Administration even further across that line, with Conway going on Fox & Friends and saying that people need to buy Ivanka Trump's line. Trump just really doesn't understand it or, perhaps, he doesn't care. Conway has shown herself to just wanting to throw away all of her integrity for simple access power. Spicer has shown himself to be a toady lackey.
Tribalism and Blind Loyalty
Yesterday, a writer for Redstate posted about how we live in an age of tribalism where we root for the person because of the "jersey" they are wearing. While the article was pretty much spot on it did have one fatal flaw, it assigned blind loyalty and praise being due to the letter next to the politician's name as a characteristic of the left when in reality it is a characteristic of all sides. This kind of broad brush stroking is unbecoming and only adds fuel to the fire of tribalism.
Civil Asset Forfeiture
Trump "jokingly" threatened that he would be willing to destroy the career of a politician wanting to reform Civil Asset Forfeiture, which is very much needed. CAF is out of control and will only get worse unless something is done. Trump may say he was joking but given his track record, it is hard to think he was actually joking and not being serious.
A state lawmaker in Pennsylvania dared Trump to come after him and try to destroy his career. He even called Trump a loofa-face shit-gibbon. I, along with many others, will be plagarizing, oops, I mean, borrowing this insult for quite a while.
Getting wealthier at taxpayer's expense
Trump loves to brag about how wealthy he is and how he is not going to accept pay for being POTUS. However, he is going to charge the DoD and the Secret Service a ton of rent to use office space in Trump tower. President Trump can show what a true patriot he is by allowing those two departments to use the space space free or, if necessary for legal purposes, the obligatory $1 per year. If Trump is as wealthy as he says he is then he doesn't need the rent money. Of course, not being able to see his tax returns, which he has yet to release despite his promises, there is no way to know the extent of his true wealth or charitable giving.
SCOTUS nominee Gorsuch
While there are a lot of unknowns about Judge Gorsuch, he does seem to understand the need for an independent judiciary and will not be a toady lackey of Trump. In a closed door session with Senator Blumenthal (D-CT), he called Trump's comments about the judges concerning his EO Travel Ban disheartening and demoralizing. Senator Ben Sasse (R-NE) confirmed the authenticity of those comments. Trump, in typical Trump fashion, said Gorsuch wasn't talking about his comments (that is an outright lie by Trump) and lashed out at Blumenthal by referring to how Blumenthal had overstated his Vietnam military service as exposed by the New York Times, the very same publication the Trump has blasted by calling it dishonest and a manufacturer of fake news, except when it suits Trump's aeanda. However, Trump should remember about throwing stones and living in glass houses as he himself had 4, or was it 5, draft deferments due to a sore foot, oops, meant "bone spurs", something his father helped shepherd along.
As an additional note, Chris Cuomo, during his interview of Blumenthal, did bring up Blumenthal living a lie for years concerning his military service, despite what Trump said to the contrary. Cuomo's response was very good in saying Trump was once again wrong on the facts.
White House leaks
As Susan Wright at Redstate points out very well in her post today, Trump is trying to run the government as a business, which is something that you can't do. Businesses tend to have people working to further themselves at the expense of others. Government needs to have people working together for the good of the entire nation, even those who didn't vote for you. However, the Trump Administration seems to have at least 4 power centers: Steve Bannon, Reince Priebus, Kellyanne Conway and Jared Kushner. Two power centers is to be expected and is not unusual. However, 3 or or more is not typical and actually detrimental, especially when trying to run the government as a business, which a government is not. As Susan Wright so ably put it, to do so with the multiple power centers, is to have a government working against itself, not as a cohesive unit working for the good of the nation.
G. O. JUB
Tuesday, February 7, 2017
Thoughts on the day 02/07/2017
Obama not loving America
I read a writer's post of Redstate yesterday and she stated that Obama did not love America. while I will agree Obama was not a great or even good president (he was, at best, lower end of mediocre, IMHJO). I feel this was a false statement to make and way over the top. This really shocked me as I respect her and have found her to be usually level headed. I hope this was just a momentary lapse and her being merely human.
#MAGA
If ISIS really wants to get under Trump's skin, they should make hats with the above hashtag but add under it "Make Arabia Great Again". The early morning tweets from Trump and Spicer's press briefings would be classic in their meltdowns.
Take On Wall Street
Remember how Trump, during the campaign, promised to take on Wall Street and stand up for the common man? Well, it seems that what he really meant by taking on Wall Street was that he would take on Wall Street as his chief advisers and cabinet members and screw the common man. He is looking for them to reduce regulations, which, on the surface, seems like a good idea, but is in reality a cover to reduce protections for the common man and employee.
As a Classical Liberal, I'm all for shrinking government and reducing the amount of regulations that really aren't necessary but Trump will ultimately shaft the common man. Remember, the wealthy, the corporations, etc, do not have never created jobs on a large scale. All they have ever done is, bottom line, provided jobs created by the consumer. It is the consumer that creates jobs and the Great Depression helped prove that as a true fact in an unequivocal manner.
Journalists not reporting/under reporting terrorism.
This is a patently false statement by Trump and his administration is that it is being done in a deliberate manner with the agenda to undermine him. Not every act of terrorism is going to garner the same attention due to limitations of resources, time and/or space. When Trump released his list, he failed to list the Quebec Mosque incident or the Charleston SC Church incident. Both are classic acts of terrorism but Trump wrongly believes that it is impossible for domestic terrorism to occur by those who are not Muslim. His misguided and definitively wrong belief will allow for the resurgence of Right Wing and White Racist terrorism.
Government efficiency
Too many people are under the impression that the federal government needs to act in a quick and efficient manner. The Founding Fathers settled on creating a government that under normal circumstances would operate in a slow, deliberate manner. There was no single intent of the Founding Fathers and never was. The myth perpetrated by the Right about the "Intent of the Founding Fathers" is just that, a myth. The Constitution and the Federal Government is a series of alternatives and compromises. You had Hamilton on one end and Jefferson on the other with Madison being more towards the middle but leaning towards Jefferson while Adams was also more towards the middle but leaning towards Hamilton. The rest of the Framers and Founding Fathers also fell between Hamilton and Jefferson to varying degrees, which is further proof that there was no single "Intent of the Founding Fathers".
Efficiency means not wasteful, not speedy. People need to realize that.
Trump not committed to democracy, the Constitution or Separation of Powers
A look at his speeches from both his campaign and inauguration makes a great case for him wanting to be an autocrat, as this article points out:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2017/02/07/unlike-all-previous-u-s-presidents-trump-almost-never-mentions-democratic-ideals/?utm_term=.e5579c8b1b5a
And then this article in the New Yorker further backs up this point and I am quoting Evan McMullin from the article so the Right won't think that it is a hit piece:
http://www.newyorker.com/news/ryan-lizza/how-president-trump-could-seize-more-power-after-a-terrorist-attack
“I do believe the world faces a serious and growing terrorist threat,” Evan McMullin, the former C.I.A. officer and Republican who ran for President as an independent candidate against Trump, said. “But Trump, either by ignorance or malice, is distorting the nature of that threat by targeting very well-vetted immigrants, including legal permanent residents and refugees. He simply does not have a strong national-security case to make against these people, which is why it is reasonable to wonder if he has some ulterior motive for taking such extreme steps against them.”
...
Trump’s efforts to hype the threat from terrorism during a period of domestic calm should be regarded with extreme skepticism. As McMullin noted, “Trump’s strange focus on the terrorist threat” was “out of step with reality at the moment” and was “a telltale sign of a leader contemplating policies that would otherwise be unacceptable.”
G. O. JUB
I read a writer's post of Redstate yesterday and she stated that Obama did not love America. while I will agree Obama was not a great or even good president (he was, at best, lower end of mediocre, IMHJO). I feel this was a false statement to make and way over the top. This really shocked me as I respect her and have found her to be usually level headed. I hope this was just a momentary lapse and her being merely human.
#MAGA
If ISIS really wants to get under Trump's skin, they should make hats with the above hashtag but add under it "Make Arabia Great Again". The early morning tweets from Trump and Spicer's press briefings would be classic in their meltdowns.
Take On Wall Street
Remember how Trump, during the campaign, promised to take on Wall Street and stand up for the common man? Well, it seems that what he really meant by taking on Wall Street was that he would take on Wall Street as his chief advisers and cabinet members and screw the common man. He is looking for them to reduce regulations, which, on the surface, seems like a good idea, but is in reality a cover to reduce protections for the common man and employee.
As a Classical Liberal, I'm all for shrinking government and reducing the amount of regulations that really aren't necessary but Trump will ultimately shaft the common man. Remember, the wealthy, the corporations, etc, do not have never created jobs on a large scale. All they have ever done is, bottom line, provided jobs created by the consumer. It is the consumer that creates jobs and the Great Depression helped prove that as a true fact in an unequivocal manner.
Journalists not reporting/under reporting terrorism.
This is a patently false statement by Trump and his administration is that it is being done in a deliberate manner with the agenda to undermine him. Not every act of terrorism is going to garner the same attention due to limitations of resources, time and/or space. When Trump released his list, he failed to list the Quebec Mosque incident or the Charleston SC Church incident. Both are classic acts of terrorism but Trump wrongly believes that it is impossible for domestic terrorism to occur by those who are not Muslim. His misguided and definitively wrong belief will allow for the resurgence of Right Wing and White Racist terrorism.
Government efficiency
Too many people are under the impression that the federal government needs to act in a quick and efficient manner. The Founding Fathers settled on creating a government that under normal circumstances would operate in a slow, deliberate manner. There was no single intent of the Founding Fathers and never was. The myth perpetrated by the Right about the "Intent of the Founding Fathers" is just that, a myth. The Constitution and the Federal Government is a series of alternatives and compromises. You had Hamilton on one end and Jefferson on the other with Madison being more towards the middle but leaning towards Jefferson while Adams was also more towards the middle but leaning towards Hamilton. The rest of the Framers and Founding Fathers also fell between Hamilton and Jefferson to varying degrees, which is further proof that there was no single "Intent of the Founding Fathers".
Efficiency means not wasteful, not speedy. People need to realize that.
Trump not committed to democracy, the Constitution or Separation of Powers
A look at his speeches from both his campaign and inauguration makes a great case for him wanting to be an autocrat, as this article points out:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2017/02/07/unlike-all-previous-u-s-presidents-trump-almost-never-mentions-democratic-ideals/?utm_term=.e5579c8b1b5a
And then this article in the New Yorker further backs up this point and I am quoting Evan McMullin from the article so the Right won't think that it is a hit piece:
http://www.newyorker.com/news/ryan-lizza/how-president-trump-could-seize-more-power-after-a-terrorist-attack
“I do believe the world faces a serious and growing terrorist threat,” Evan McMullin, the former C.I.A. officer and Republican who ran for President as an independent candidate against Trump, said. “But Trump, either by ignorance or malice, is distorting the nature of that threat by targeting very well-vetted immigrants, including legal permanent residents and refugees. He simply does not have a strong national-security case to make against these people, which is why it is reasonable to wonder if he has some ulterior motive for taking such extreme steps against them.”
...
Trump’s efforts to hype the threat from terrorism during a period of domestic calm should be regarded with extreme skepticism. As McMullin noted, “Trump’s strange focus on the terrorist threat” was “out of step with reality at the moment” and was “a telltale sign of a leader contemplating policies that would otherwise be unacceptable.”
G. O. JUB
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