patrick.net

This is what I’ve been saying about Trump! He’s terribly honest about who he is and what his intentions might be. He may exaggerate, or invest in some hyperbole about other people’s intentions, but he’s fairly honest overall. No, I’m not interested in partisan parsing of his every word to find small inaccuracies and thus declare him a liar a la Washington Post. That kind of sophistry is dishonest at its base, and only highlights the Donald’s core honesty as a breath of fresh air.
Yes he’s a dickhead. He’s a giant walking penis! He loves to fuck with elites and their toadies, to troll them relentlessly until they commit horrible faux paus of their own. Oddly, this is the sort of behavior that’s most amusing and gratifying to me, as we see the inflated egos of these masters of the universe crushed and discredited. It’s kind of awesome.

Trump is authentic but not childish.

If anyone listened to his speeches at his rallies, you know he focused mostly on his policy ideas. They were crystal clear.

The entire world of liberal politicians is inhabited to those who would be losers in the real world.

Obama is a good example; he was a substitute teacher at the college level ("adjunct professor"). He had a negative net worth before becoming a political creature. He was a nobody before politics.

They call you a "dick" if you fight back when you are attacked. Therefore, Bush was a punching bag, Romney was a punching bag. Their attitude is fake because any man who puts up with insults is dying inside to fight back and yet they didn't.

Trump is smart enough to know how to put down the dilettante losers like Jeb Bush who has no clue.

I definitely like Rand Paul also and would have voted for him had he won the nomination.

Trump was not wishy washy on the most important issue today; illegal immigration.

Trump is definitely authentic. But, sorry to say, he's absolutely childish. Saw his behavior in the footage from Apprentice and he's got the attention span of a housefly. It's impossible to corral him into any sort of coherent discussion or narrative for longer than a few minutes, and he'll change his opinion or feelings towards an idea or person on a whim, with no warning.

He's definitely disruptive.. and that could be potentially a good thing in a place like DC. Institutionalized Dems and Reps alike could all do well to be knocked down a notch.
But ultimately he's not reliable enough to be net positive, IMHO.

To all those above who call Trump names, I recall the old quote from Cicero: "When you have no basis for an argument, abuse the plaintiff."

Are you in agreement or disagreement with: 1. lower tax rates 2. fewer fake muslim "refugees" (males old enough to hold a gun). 3. fairer trade with cheaters like China 4. fewer absurd regulations 5. fewer fake illegal aliens seeking "asylum". 6. more jobs for American workers.

Trump is brilliant but this drives other people nuts; he alone took notice of polls which showed Americans 1. distrust the media 2. distrust most politicians 3. see illegal foreign workers invading all around them.

How confusing is this to liberals anyway?

Of course, we must by all means protect the right of a foreign owner of a Manhattan restaurant to hire all the illegal workers he can while serving octopus over pasta for $38.

clambo says

Cicero: "When you have no basis for an argument, abuse the plaintiff."

I think Saul--patron saint of losers--Alinsky would agree with that too.

clambo says

Are you in agreement or disagreement with: 1. lower tax rates 2. fewer fake muslim "refugees" (males old enough to hold a gun). 3. fairer trade with cheaters like China 4. fewer absurd regulations 5. fewer fake illegal aliens seeking "asylum". 6. more jobs for American workers.

What you meant was:

Lower tax rates for the top 1%
Trade war with China
Rollback of environmental regulation to boost the top 1%
Fewer jobs created than under the previous administration.

Oh look alternative “facts” from the left wild imagination land.

I know you want it to be true, but it’s still not.

LeonDurham says

clambo says

Are you in agreement or disagreement with: 1. lower tax rates 2. fewer fake muslim "refugees" (males old enough to hold a gun). 3. fairer trade with cheaters like China 4. fewer absurd regulations 5. fewer fake illegal aliens seeking "asylum". 6. more jobs for American workers.

What you meant was:

Lower tax rates for the top 1%
Trade war with China
Rollback of environmental regulation to boost the top 1%
Fewer jobs created than under the previous administration.

clambo says

1. lower tax rates 2. fewer fake muslim "refugees" (males old enough to hold a gun). 3. fairer trade with cheaters like China 4. fewer absurd regulations 5. fewer fake illegal aliens seeking "asylum". 6. more jobs for American workers.

1. Bad, will blow budget deficit to even more unsustainable level. Need to work on spending, esp military, first
2. good
3. not yet, making noises about fair trade is not the same as having it, I reserve my judgement for future
4. good, and at least no new ridiculous regulations
5. good
6. not different from Obama here, but good

I wish Trump were really fighting for the little guy and not the top 1%. Nothing would make me happier.

I get no joy from being proven correct that he is nothing more than a snake oil salesman.

LeonDurham says

I get no joy from being proven correct that he is nothing more than a snake oil salesman.

Umm. I think you do get joy from thinking that you are correct otherwise you would not have mentioned it...and I repeat once again.......lots of people voted for TRUMP because it was a chance to send a FUCK YOU message to the old school politicians. Just like they voted for Obama to send a FUCK YOU message to whitey. Only a completely naive dreamer would think that one man could clean up the corruption in DC.

komputodo says

LeonDurham says

I get no joy from being proven correct that he is nothing more than a snake oil salesman.

Umm. I think you do get joy from thinking that you are correct otherwise you would not have mentioned it...and I repeat once again.......lots of people voted for TRUMP because it was a chance to send a FUCK YOU message to the old school politicians. Just like they voted for Obama to send a FUCK YOU message to whitey. Only a completely naive dreamer would think that one man could clean up the corruption in DC. And yes it is fun watching him fuck with the media.

clambo says

Trump is brilliant but this drives other people nuts

Sorry, dude, he's not brilliant. He's remarkably dim... clueless, more like. He would likely be the world's worst chess player because he only sees one move in front of him, and he reacts.

For some issues, this is okay! Immigration is obviously problematic and him taking a relatively simplistic approach is probably going to be fine. But his approach to trade is boneheaded at best, and his rollback of environmental regulations is disastrously shortsighted.

LeonDurham says

I wish Trump were really fighting for the little guy and not the top 1%. Nothing would make me happier.

I think this is wrong - and again, I might be proven wrong also - but Trump is in it not for 1%, not for the little guy, he is in it for TRUMP. And he is authentic, and tells what he thinks, even if what he thinks changes several times a day.

Evan F. says

Sorry, dude, he's not brilliant. He's remarkably dim... clueless, more like. He would likely be the world's worst chess player because he only sees one move in front of him, and he reacts.

I see him more as a battering ram willing to gore some oxes where traditional Republicans would relent facing the nonstop 24/7 hostile media.

Trump Honeybadger just doesn't give a fuck.

As long as he keeps good advisers close (as he has done so far) - he is managing more Conservative and Libertarian longterm gains than I have seen in my entire lifetime.

dr6B says

I think this is wrong - and again, I might be proven wrong also - but Trump is in it not for 1%, not for the little guy, he is in it for TRUMP.

Self-interest refers to actions that elicit the most personal benefit. Adam Smith, the father of modern economics, explains that the best economic benefit for all can usually be accomplished when individuals act in their own self-interest. His explanation of the invisible hand reveals that when dozens or even thousands act in their own self-interest, goods and services are created that benefit consumers and producers.

socal2 says

I see him more as a battering ram willing to gore some oxes where traditional Republicans would relent facing the nonstop 24/7 hostile media.

Trump Honeybadger just doesn't give a fuck.

And that is why he is so much fun to watch...There are damn few people that could deal with the personal attacks he deals with daily and he just shakes them off...The man is a survivor and for that reason alone, someone to be reckoned with.

jazz_music says

Trump escape prosecution for money laundering for the Russians

I am not sure he did launder money for Russians, but even if he did, chances of prosecution are zero. When was the last time a bankster was prosecuted for money laundering for narcocartels? Hello, HSBC - https://www.marketwatch.com/story/netflix-documentary-re-examines-hsbcs-881-million-money-laundering-scandal-2018-02-21; hello, Wells Fargo https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/wells-fargo-biggest-us-bank-laundered-billions-from-mexican-webster, hello, all other big banks such as Rabobank, Wachovia and so on. A poor guy selling $100 worth of crack is put away for years, while banksters get fat on laundering drug or mafioso money.

jazz_music says

On multiple occasions, in front of a large audience, Trump has floated the question of his possibility of extending his term in office beyond the 8 years limit. Why would he do that when he didn't even win the popular vote? Also he immediately filed the papers to run for president in 2020 and he has already done campaigning for that end.

With right wing control of congress and supreme court, this could happen fairly easily. Congress could simply allow it, especially if someone burns the Reichstag or some other crisis were to occur.

No offense, but I think this is paranoia for several reasons. First, he will be old and frail on his diet of hamburgers in 6 yrs (80 yrs old). Second, I do not see a mechanism how this can be pulled off - it requires a civil war. Third, D's might win House (but not Senate) in midterms (I saw 70% possibility for bets), so even assuming that R's march in lockstep (which would not be true in case like this), legally this can not be pulled off. Fourth, this would go against his method of talking everyone to death while not doing much.

Leondurnham must not know any actual poor people. I do.

They don't pay taxes so how in the world would a tax cut really affect them? They got a "raise" =the earned income credit (payment for having a child) was raised to $3378 last year. They also got an increase in the standard deduction which will translate to an even larger refund next year (assuming they worked).

So, one poor female I know got a "refund" of over $10,000. She also gets 1. food stamps 2. Obamacare

She works a lousy job but being a high school graduate in South Florida means you will be in the service economy, particularly a female who can't swing a hammer.

I also do not understand how some people can hold two mutually exclusive opinions. 1. Trump is a bumbling idiot 2. He is a cunning, scheming, and evil proto-dictator, who will be able to overthrow 240+ years of American democratic tradition. He even could not rally R's to repeal Obamacare - what can he agree with them about? At first convenient moment R's will stab him in the back and throw overboard.

I think he is beloved particularly by white men because he is not PC, and he is authentically not PC. That is just who he is, when he does restrain himself it is painful to watch, he just is bursting to let fly. In addition and I have said this from when he first got into politics he believes what he says ( except in the bursting at the seams restraint he is sometimes forced into).So though almost everything out of his mouth is not true in a factual sense, he believes it to be true, really he tells lies but he doesn't lie (often). This is a classic promoter which is what he is or call it con man if you will. Is this what we want in a Pres? Apparently for about 40 % of the country it is. But I think what everyone has to see is the there is too much power that has devolved to any president. The system is out of balance. For example tariffs are constitutionally a responsibility of congress as is declaring war.

rdm says

So though almost everything out of his mouth is not true in a factual sense

example?

dr6B says

I also do not understand how some people can hold two mutually exclusive opinions. 1. Obama is a bumbling idiot 2. He is a cunning, scheming, and evil proto-dictator, who will be able to overthrow 240+ years of American democratic tradition.

Fixed that for you. Nobody believes Trump has a meta-agenda or grand secret scheme he's carrying out. Critics recognize he is underqualified for the job and winging it most of the time.

clambo says

They don't pay taxes so how in the world would a tax cut really affect them?

It cant and never will. Success will always be concentrated at the top. Unless you want bolshevik russia, any tax cut anywhere will the more successful more than low earners. HOWEVER, the amount this extra economic success helps low earners is incredibly significant to that low earner. An $10/hour job is significant to someone who doesnt have a job. A $4/hour bump is incredibly significant to someone who makes min wage. Sorry, no minimum wage earner will ever benefit as much as a billionaire from economic success, or get hurt as much as billionaire when the economy is destroyed.

This is an intellectually challenged argument the left is making. Very, very weak

Automan Empire says

Fixed that for you. Nobody believes Trump has a meta-agenda or grand secret scheme he's carrying out. Critics recognize he is underqualified for the job and winging it most of the time.

Please read jazz post cited here. Furthermore, some of my very left wing colleagues are afraid of Trump dictatorship, which would require a fairly high level of political skills which he obviously lacks.

BTW I have no less or more problem with Obama than with Trump, so you do not need to bother with fixing this for me. Just in case, I also do not think that Obama is a Muslim, was born in Kenya etc. He was prob a better Pres than Bush Jr.

jazz_music says

On multiple occasions, in front of a large audience, Trump has floated the question of his possibility of extending his term in office beyond the 8 years limit. Why would he do that when he didn't even win the popular vote? Also he immediately filed the papers to run for president in 2020 and he has already done campaigning for that end.

With right wing control of congress and supreme court, this could happen fairly easily. Congress could simply allow it, especially if someone burns the Reichstag or some other crisis were to occur.

CBOEtrader says

example?

You cant be serious. I know, fake news, fake quotes

http://projects.thestar.com/donald-trump-fact-check/

rdm says

CBOEtrader says

example?

You cant be serious. I know, fake news, fake quotes

Yes, serious. I want to know what YOU are referring to, not a parroted link to some fake news journalist.

Trump does hours of talks w/o teleprompters. He gets a lot of facts slightly wrong or twisted. His ultimate point is almost always easy to ascertain and factually consistent. Ex: his Chicago crime quotes were off but his concept was correct. He does this a lot. Is this what you mean?

From your link :

"Wow, NFL first game ratings are way down over an already really bad last year comparison. Viewership declined 13%, the lowest in over a decade."

Source: Twitter

in fact: Deadline.com reported that viewership did indeed decline by 13 per cent -- but that this was a "9-year low," the lowest since 2009, not the lowest in "over a decade."

OMG WHAT A LIAR. He used the word over instead of almost. #Impeach

CBOEtrader says

OMG WHAT A LIAR

What was posted said Trump rarely lies, he believes what he says it just what he says isn't factually correct. So is he a liar, an ignoramus, a narcissist, all the above or something else? That was the point of what was posted but the Trump Deranged Sycophants can only react and judge not understand. Sad
https://www.politifact.com/personalities/donald-trump/statements/byruling/pants-fire/