The Trump Presidency - Chapter 2

[Ksyrup]

As a licensed attorney, the thought of Matt Gaetz as the nation's top attorney is disgusting. What a joke. Of course, with a covicted felon in the WH, what's wrong with a suppressed statutory rape charge for the attorney general?

I assume this means they will attempt to prosecute every single person on Trump's personal vendetta list.

[Edward64]

Definitely a new world.

I do wonder how many of his cabinet, top special advisors will last 2 years.

[GrantDawg]

Originally Posted by Arles

Looks back at the 2016 rhetoric on what Trump was going to do and then compare to what actually happened. He has no "core beliefs" and the moment something becomes unpopular or he doesn't benefit from it as much as he planned, he drops it like a bad habit. He promised things like repealing Obamacare, building a wall that Mexico paid for, invest $550 billion into US infrastructure, renegotiate the Iran deal, cancel funding for "sanctuary cities" and (of course) deport all people here illegally.

Know how many of those promises he kept? 0, nada - none of those things happened.

https://www.politifact.com/truth-o-m...s/trumpometer/

Look at his appointments then. Look at these appointments now. He had some pretty creepy people in his cabinet 8 years ago, but they look like law abiding Mensa members compared to the likes of Tulsi Gabbard and Matt Gaetz. So much of the absolute crazy stuff he wanted to do was halted by the people around him. That is not going to be the case with this bunch.

[Lathum]

Guys. We’re not surviving this. It’s been a good run.

[RainMaker]

Gaetz is nowhere near as funny as Hegseth. It's of course bad to have a pedophile as AG but he's further to the left on antitrust and corporate power than most Dems.

[GrantDawg]

Attorney General nominee Matt Gaetz does not have federal criminal experience except in the area of sex trafficking.


@kenwhite.bsky.social on Bluesky

[cuervo72]

Guess we can put that "they'll just 25th him and get JD in a few months" stuff to bed, eh?

[GrantDawg]

Originally Posted by cuervo72

Guess we can put that "they'll just 25th him and get JD in a few months" stuff to bed, eh?

That was never happening. Trump is going to enjoy a sweet life of playing golf, and let the inmates run the asylum.

[Atocep]

I was just telling a friend yesterday that Trump's nominations so far are bad, but I was expecting worse. The Secretary of Defense and AG nominations have us back where I expected to be.

Gaetz is being brought in to rubber stamp Trump going after political enemies and Hegseth is there to purge non-MAGA generals.

[RainMaker]

There was always going to be a few oddballs in there and I imagine one of them doesn't get approved (probably Hesgeth). But most of the others are just run-of-the-mill neocons like he had the first time around. Is Gaetz really much worse than Jeff Sessions?

[Brian Swartz]

There's nothing Trump can do that is remotely as damaging as having an electorate that chose him twice. The damage is already done.

[RainMaker]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/busin...ktok-ban-sale/

[JPhillips]

Rumors are Trump is planning on working with Johnson to use an article 2 power that never been used previously. If the two chambers disagree about adjourning, the President can adjourn them. So long as Johnson is on board, this means Trump will recess appoint everybody regardless of what the Senate decides.

They either agree to adjourn with the House and Trump makes the appointments or they disagree, Trump adjourns them, and then makes recess appointments.

t least for the next two years Trump is going to have whoever he wants.

[kingfc22]

America wanted a dictator...so a dictator they will get.

Hope they enjoy it

[Arles]

My wife sent me this and I thought this crew would enjoy it:



x.com

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Edward64

Definitely a new world.

I do wonder how many of his cabinet, top special advisors will last 2 years.

Most don't.

His staffing choices, or the extremely high failure rate for them, are probably my single biggest gripe about term one

[miami_fan]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

As a licensed attorney, the thought of Matt Gaetz as the nation's top attorney is disgusting. What a joke. Of course, with a covicted felon in the WH, what's wrong with a suppressed statutory rape charge for the attorney general?

I assume this means they will attempt to prosecute every single person on Trump's personal vendetta list.

Marco, Matt, and don't forget DJT is a resident now... It's officially a Florida Man administration!

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

I assume this means they will attempt to prosecute every single person on Trump's personal vendetta list.

A great deal of his supporters, me very much included, are going to be very disappointed if he doesn't.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Brian Swartz

There's nothing Trump can do that is remotely as damaging as having an electorate that chose him twice. The damage is already done.

Which is roughly how I feel about the fact there's anywhere that the election was even close.

It's why I've never bought into the whole "MAGA" concept.

There's too many ignorant, mentally/emotionally ill, and plain ol' evil people in the country for "great" to ever be a reasonable goal.

And those three things account for pretty much every vote )cast by a real person) for Harris or Biden.

[Mota]

Is there a Bluesky version of FOFC? Asking for a friend...

[Front Office Midget]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

There's too many ignorant, mentally/emotionally ill, and plain ol' evil people in the country for "great" to ever be a reasonable goal.

And those three things account for pretty much every vote )cast by a real person) for Harris or Biden.

Honestly, this sort of thing doesn't surprise me coming from JIMG, but has anyone noticed an uptick of this type of rhetoric all over the Internet lately? Thinking of severely reducing all Internet exposure from here on out.

It's really concerning if this is the attitude people have around us in the modern day.

Was there a memo I missed that everyone is supposed to hate everyone now?

[Edward64]

Almost seems like normal.

[Edward64]

On why the Gaetz pick ...

Just a moment...

President-elect Trump picked Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) for attorney general for one, big, telling reason: Gaetz will proudly do the dirty work on controversial legal topics that others won't.

Why it matters: Get used to this. It's your future foretold: On some topics, Trump wants to seem reasonable. On others — like anything related to his suspicion of a hostile "deep state" — he demands his own personal, controllable wrecking ball.

A powerful MAGA insider who talks often to Trump told us the reason he picked Gaetz is simple: "He likes him."

"Everyone else looked at AG as if they were applying for a judicial appointment. They talked about their vaunted legal theories and constitutional bullshit. Gaetz was the only one who said: 'Yeah, I'll go over there and start cuttin' f---in' heads.'"

More interesting in the article. We'll see how damning the report is.

Countless Republicans trashed Gaetz before and after his shocking nomination. His House colleagues' parting gift: a quick leak to Punchbowl that Gaetz was about to get hit with a damning House Ethics Committee report. The subject of the report: illegal drug use and sexual misconduct.

Gaetz resigned his Florida seat Wednesday, just before the Ethics Committee was set to hold a pivotal meeting on the Gaetz investigation. Gaetz's resignation ends the wide-ranging probe, Axios' Andrew Solender reports.

And then we have the below prediction. My guess is Trump will get the guy he wants, one way or another.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/senat...021449503.html

Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy predicted that President-elect Donald Trump’s nomination of Matt Gaetz to be attorney general would be rejected by the Republican Senate next year.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Gaetz was the only one who said: 'Yeah, I'll go over there and start cuttin' f---in' heads.'"

Let's just assume this is accurate ... I'm suddenly about 50% more enthused about the choice than I was before reading it.

[Lathum]

Can't wait to see Matt Gaetzs plan for lowering the cist of eggs

[Mota]

We're soon going to find out that they don't actually want to make the lives of Americans better, they're just vindictive B words. You know what word I mean. I can't say it. But I waaaaaaaaant to say it.

[GrantDawg]

We are in the weirdest timeline.
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/rcna179936

Sent from my SM-S916U using Tapatalk

[Brian Swartz]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

And those three things account for pretty much every vote )cast by a real person) for Harris or Biden.

On the contrary, I would say poor citizenship (at a minimum) accounts for everyone who would ever consider voting for Trump at this point for any position, under any circumstances, regardless of who the other major party opponent was; dogcatcher, president, or anything in between.

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

A great deal of his supporters, me very much included, are going to be very disappointed if he doesn't.

The amusing thing about this kind of overt endorsement of banana-republic style tactics is that they never work out. Even if Trump ends up being irresponsible enough and violating his oath of office enough to do this, he will eventually not be president anymore. And then you have to deal with the payback. The only way government can ever work is by people actually following the laws, not flouting them when it suits their whim.

[Ben E Lou]

Reporting coming out today that 10+ R Senators are going to vote "no" on Gaetz. Yesterday I saw a take from someone on the right (not sure who, was just scrolling) that was essentially "this is Trump's first true 4-D chess move in either of his terms" because it:

• gets Gaetz out of the House, greatly improving morale for House Republicans (I literally LOLed when I read that)
• demonizes non-MAGA R Senators who will vote not to confirm him
• Simultaneously allows non-MAGA R Senators to look all statesmanlike because they "stood up to Trump" in the early days of round 2, so they can confirm just about everyone else with the cover of "we didn't just rubber-stamp all of them!"
• Gives Gaetz an excuse to step down from the House before the vote on his conduct

EVERYBODY WINS!
(I think the post may have mentioned another outcome or two as well, but those are the ones I recall.)

[Edward64]

If true, you think Gaetz is in on this 4-D move?

[Atocep]

I didn't see him having the votes since he's probably the most hated person on capital hill. I assumed the Rs would eventually fold and he'd get through though.

[Ben E Lou]

Originally Posted by Edward64

If true, you think Gaetz is in on this 4-D move?

I have no idea. And keep in mind, the above was just one dude's take. I tend to doubt it's that deep. That said, another thought: what happens if he's not confirmed but Rubio is? Can't DeSantis just...make Gaetz a Senator at that point? And...why wouldn't he? On brand. Sticks it to the libs and the RINOs. Kisses up to Trump. That move seems to check all the boxes, no?

[cuervo72]

I think he just happens to like Gaetz, views him as loyal, and gave him a slot. I don't think it's much deeper than that.

[JPhillips]

I think Gaetz said he was willing to do the things nobody else will and that appeals to Trump. Trump certainty doesn't give a damn about the effective management of the DoJ outside of how that effects him personally.

[Ben E Lou]

Originally Posted by cuervo72

I think he just happens to like Gaetz, views him as loyal, and gave him a slot. I don't think it's much deeper than that.

Yeah, if I had to guess, this. But the way it plays out could be...interesting.

[Atocep]

He's always said he wanted his Roy Cohn. Gaetz is willing to be that guy. Trump doesn't think further ahead than that.

[cuervo72]

This basically: x.com

[GrantDawg]

Originally Posted by Ben E Lou

I have no idea. And keep in mind, the above was just one dude's take. I tend to doubt it's that deep. That said, another thought: what happens if he's not confirmed but Rubio is? Can't DeSantis just...make Gaetz a Senator at that point? And...why wouldn't he? On brand. Sticks it to the libs and the RINOs. Kisses up to Trump. That move seems to check all the boxes, no?

I believe Desantis wants that seat in two years. I think part of Trump's thinking in picking Rubio was to bribe him off that seat and try to pressure Desantis to install Laura Trump into it. The immediate calls for Desantis to name her from the Trump people tells me that is the case. The main reason he wouldn't (beyond spite for Trump) is he wants the seat, and wants to pick someone who has no interest in keeping it. Gaetz would be the same problem.

Now, it is possible that Desantis chooses to not run for Senate to fully concentrate on a White House run. In that case he might pick Laura Trump to help suck up to the Trump people.

[RainMaker]

Originally Posted by cuervo72

I think he just happens to like Gaetz, views him as loyal, and gave him a slot. I don't think it's much deeper than that.

Same. They have a lot in common. Both came from wealthy, powerful parents. Both love the lights and attention. And they share a common interest in underage girls (maybe boys too in Gaetz case).

[Lathum]

Originally Posted by Ben E Lou

[*]Simultaneously allows non-MAGA R Senators to look all statesmanlike because they "stood up to Trump" in the early days of round 2, so they can confirm just about everyone else with the cover of "we didn't just rubber-stamp all of them!"

I can see there being some truth to this one. If you aren't willing to accept Gaetz you likely aren't willing to accept the FOX News guy and likely Gabbard. Vote no on Gaetz but let the other 2 through would give some cover.

Personally I think the votes should be secret ballot. Look at what happened with Thune vs. Scott. These people know right from wrong, they just care more about their careers in politics than doing the right thing.

[JPhillips]

Looks like a bunch of them are looking for reasons to obey the king.

What I’m hearing privately from a few key GOP senators: yes, they’d prefer to not have a messy fight over Gaetz. Not their favorite. But they also don’t have a lot of energy for pushing back. Trump runs the show, they say. If Gaetz can reassure them, they’re open to backing him.

— Robert Costa (@costareports) November 14, 2024

[Atocep]

Originally Posted by JPhillips

Looks like a bunch of them are looking for reasons to obey the king.

What I’m hearing privately from a few key GOP senators: yes, they’d prefer to not have a messy fight over Gaetz. Not their favorite. But they also don’t have a lot of energy for pushing back. Trump runs the show, they say. If Gaetz can reassure them, they’re open to backing him.

— Robert Costa (@costareports) November 14, 2024

Collins and Murkowski will vote no because it will be meaningless. A couple others will have concerns. But none of them want a war with Trump this early. They'll give him what he wants out the gate.

[Arles]

I think Trump is taking a page out of the "Bad Boys Pistons" playbook on Jordan and the Bulls. They would just go out fouling like crazy from the start and the Pistons knew the refs wouldn't have the stomach to foul the entire team out so they let a lot slide. Trump is dumping gasoline on the entire nomination process knowing that the congress won't have the stomach to reject a bunch of these guys.

If he just did Gaetz and a bunch of "normal nominations", he probably doesn't have a chance. But they can't block everyone so they have to decide which hill they want to die on (in regards to Trump).

[JPhillips]

Flood the zone is a Bannon thing from the first run.

[Brian Swartz]

Originally Posted by Lathum

Personally I think the votes should be secret ballot. Look at what happened with Thune vs. Scott. These people know right from wrong, they just care more about their careers in politics than doing the right thing.

This is exactly why they shouldn't be secret ballot. People have a right to know. The fact that the electorate is irresponsible enough to say 'why didn't you support Trump's unqualified nominations' rather than 'thank you for doing your job' doesn't mean we should hide from them what their Senators actually voted on the record.

[Atocep]

RFK Jr selected to lead HHS.

[JPhillips]

I thought I liked Jared Polis, but he's very excited about RFK Jr. so that's a hard no on him.

[Swaggs]

It is wild to look at cabinet members per tenure on wikipedia.

Trump had 7 acting and official Attorney Generals in his four years and 5 acting and official Secretaries of Health and Human Services. And 4 Secretaries of State. Most other recent presidents had 1 or 2 per 4 (or 8) year terms.

Worth noting that it isn't unusual to have an interim/acting during the initial confirmation periods at the beginning of terms, but good lord it seems crazy that people like Rubio or Markwayne Mullin, who both could have are senate seats for the next 30 years, would roll the dice to work in this administration given their likelihood of survival. I guess it is possible they (and the house members like Stefanik) are looking to fastback to their lobbying careers while they are still young enough to enjoy it.

[Atocep]

Originally Posted by JPhillips

I thought I liked Jared Polis, but he's very excited about RFK Jr. so that's a hard no on him.

Was that tweet a tryout for MAGA so that he has something lined up when his term ends? WTF

[JPhillips]

Everything the right fantasizes about Soros, Elon is doing. He met with Iran's UN Ambassador to talk foreign policy.