The Trump Presidency 2.0

[Ghost Econ]

As someone that lives in a red state, I don't think people realize how little poor, undereducated white people care about their healthcare. Most actively don't want to go to doctors. And if they have an emergency, they don't have a issue with not paying for it after they're safe.

[PilotMan]

Originally Posted by Lathum

They are about to find out

I hear this one..."even if it's not the best at least HE'S DOING SOMETHING!"


They don't really want to think about it, they just want to hear enough stuff that he's forcing through by bypassing all those people they don't like without thinking about how it will actually impact them.


The system and process has been so broken that we're ready to embrace a single decision maker and expect all our reps to follow in line no matter what, just so our stuff can get done. I mean, it's no less then the D's wanted from Obama and he did with limited effect. After 2 years though it was over. I expect the D's to retake the house in 26 after all this though.

[Lathum]

Originally Posted by Ghost Econ

And if they have an emergency, they don't have a issue with not paying for it after they're safe.

Their problem is from what I have heard a lot of rural areas are going to become healthcare deserts, so these people will die because the closest hospital is now 2 hours away.

[JPhillips]

I think a big part of it is that the GOP is seen as being winners and Dems are losers. That dynamic alone appeals to a lot of people.

[GrantDawg]

Already happening here, and that was just the effect of not taking the Medicaid expansion. It is going to be so much worse now, but they will all die with smiles on their faces because brown people are getting fed to alligators. That was what was important.

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[Atocep]

Originally Posted by Ghost Econ

As someone that lives in a red state, I don't think people realize how little poor, undereducated white people care about their healthcare. Most actively don't want to go to doctors. And if they have an emergency, they don't have a issue with not paying for it after they're safe.

And a lot of people that understand healthcare have good coverage and don't want others to have coverage because they believe it will make their own healthcare worse.

[RainMaker]

Originally Posted by Drake

A caveat to the above: I have a suspicion that what's going on with folks in my state is that the poor and the lower middle class have been beaten down and taken advantage of for so long that it's come to be seen as just the way of the world. That is, the way of the world is that the elite just keep taking more and more, and there's no hope that things could actually be better. That's why the price of eggs is such a big deal. When those prices go down, it feels like a rare win in their favor. The idea that we could structurally change society itself to more reasonably distribute treasure and resources in a more equitable way is just one bridge too far. When all you expect is to get kicked in the teeth, only getting a bloody lip from a punch to the mouth feels like mercy.

I think that sort of sums it up. We've been on a steady downhill decline for 50 years with regards to lower and middle class. Both parties work for corporations and wealthy people at this point and can't offer any real solutions that will work.

Democrats used to be the working class party but shifted in the 90's when they felt they needed corporate donations to compete. You have the infamous Schumer quote in 2016 about how for every blue collar worker they lose, they gain two moderates in the suburbs. They're for the status quo and don't really run on anything other than the other side being worse. Not a terribly inspiring platform.

Republicans also don't care about the working class but they at least offer some solution. That solution is of course to blame minorities and transgender athletes. Convince people that giving money to billionaires means it'll trickle down to the rest of us. It's moronic of course, but they're at least pretending to care which is why you can see people drawn to it (especially younger people these days).

Originally Posted by Drake

The funny thing is that I don't know how far down people have to be pushed before they're desperate enough to demand change. I heard a story on NPR yesterday about the food distribution chaos in Gaza. Those people are literally starving and still just settle for whatever crumbs they can get, which tells me that the bottom must be somewhere below that.

I wouldn't say they settle. Hamas was formed out of the ethnic cleansing in Palestine. The People's Guard during the Nazis. Rebel groups will always pop up under authoritarian regimes.

But they have a solution for it in that bill. That's why you give hundreds of billions in funding to your secret police. Why you build concentration camps in Florida. Why you gut education so people don't know they're being fucked. They understand we've entered late stage capitalism and what this bill will do to most people and are preparing for those repercussions. There's a reason these billionaires have been setting up private islands and bunkers.

[Lathum]

Selfishly I am thrilled the SALT deduction cap went from 10K to 40K. Going to be a big difference for us at tax return time.

[Lathum]

So the bill doubles the number of ICE agents.

What does that job interview look like?

Maybe Edward can apply?

[RainMaker]

Originally Posted by PilotMan

I hear this one..."even if it's not the best at least HE'S DOING SOMETHING!"

But that's a normal reaction for anyone. If you are doing poorly in life and one side says "you're wrong, things are great!" and the other side says "things are bad and I'll fix it", who has the more compelling argument?

For the flipside, look at the New York mayoral race. Zohran was a huge underdog but actually offered up solutions to people who were struggling in New York. Cuomo couldn't because of his donors. The result is a lot of people came out to vote for him. Many of those people don't normally participate in elections.

[RainMaker]

There's so many little nuggets in the bill like this handout to AT&T.

403 Forbidden

[flere-imsaho]

We're talking about the same people who said "keep the government's hands off of my Medicare" or call SSDI "their draw".

When their "kin" die because the nearest hospital is 5 hours away, they're going to blame black people hoovering up all the medical care in the inner cities.

And bankruptcy and collections mean nothing to them because they can't afford anything anyway.

And the GOP controls the Senate and enjoys a healthy structural advantage in the EC because of these people. These people who siphon money away from blue states and blue cities.

The GOP is doing to them what they always thought Democrats would, and they'll still blame Democrats.

Originally Posted by Lathum

Selfishly I am thrilled the SALT deduction cap went from 10K to 40K. Going to be a big difference for us at tax return time.

Same, plus I believe the other tax cuts will also benefit us. I've been voting against my economic interests for 30 years, but the GOP keep giving me, a rich white man, stuff.

Originally Posted by Lathum

So the bill doubles the number of ICE agents.

Someone did the math, and ICE now has a bigger budget than all by 15 of the world's defense budgets. Just behind Canada, just ahead of Italy.

[RainMaker]

Worth noting that the bill passed by 2 votes in the House. 3 sick and old Democrats passed away this term. Had they run younger candidates, this bill would not have passed.

[PilotMan]

They just would've had to bribe a few more. That's it. Why try when you can Murkowski?

[Jas_lov]

Originally Posted by RainMaker

Worth noting that the bill passed by 2 votes in the House. 3 sick and old Democrats passed away this term. Had they run younger candidates, this bill would not have passed.

It got 218 votes, which is what you need to get to with a full house. It just would have been 218-217 with the 3 extra democrats. But I do agree the sick old people dying doesn't help.

[RainMaker]

I think the other big takeaway is that it's an admission from the ruling class that China won. This was likely inevitable with the direction both countries were going, but this is the final nail in that debate. We're at the stage of 90's Russia where you're just stripping the empire for copper.

[GrantDawg]

I think I'm seeing a resemblance to Trump's rise in 2015-16 and the rise of Zohran Mamdani. The more both parties and the press demonize him, the more people are flocking to him, and more rabid his supporters get. People don't react well to the pile on. It starts feeling concerted, and makes you more sympathetic not less. Especially when the things you are using to demonize the person actually strikes a cord with people.


Edit: This latest stuff from the New York Times is a perfect example of how ridiculous it is getting. They had a leak from a data breach of Columbia University that he marked Asian and African American on his application. How is that a scandal. He literally is both. I guess they are trying to play off the anti-DEI thing, but the kicker here is he didn't get into Columbia. WTF does it matter?
And the worse thing: The source that gave them the information is a literal Neo-Nazi who promotes eugenics. They published hacked information from a Nazi. That is a level of desperation that makes Zohran look dangerous to the establishment in a good way.

[bhlloy]

Originally Posted by RainMaker

But that's a normal reaction for anyone. If you are doing poorly in life and one side says "you're wrong, things are great!" and the other side says "things are bad and I'll fix it", who has the more compelling argument?

For the flipside, look at the New York mayoral race. Zohran was a huge underdog but actually offered up solutions to people who were struggling in New York. Cuomo couldn't because of his donors. The result is a lot of people came out to vote for him. Many of those people don't normally participate in elections.

Holy shit, I agree 100% with something Rainmaker posted. Quick, run out and buy a lottery ticket

[RainMaker]

Originally Posted by GrantDawg

I think I'm seeing a resemblance to Trump's rise in 2015-16 and the rise of Zohran Mamdani. The more both parties and the press demonize him, the more people are flocking to him, and more rabid his supporters get. People don't react well to the pile on. It starts feeling concerted, and makes you more sympathetic not less. Especially when the things you are using to demonize the person actually strikes a cord with people.

Edit: This latest stuff from the New York Times is a perfect example of how ridiculous it is getting. They had a leak from a data breach of Columbia University that he marked Asian and African American on his application. How is that a scandal. He literally is both. I guess they are trying to play off the anti-DEI thing, but the kicker here is he didn't get into Columbia. WTF does it matter?
And the worse thing: The source that gave them the information is a literal Neo-Nazi who promotes eugenics. They published hacked information from a Nazi. That is a level of desperation that makes Zohran look dangerous to the establishment in a good way.

Agree. And now you have one of those reporters crying on social media that his story didn't change the betting markets in the mayoral race. And let's not forget that they refused to report on the JD Vance vetting information because it came from a hacked source.

People can sense when there is unequal treatment in media. In 2016, they went after Trump for the sexual harassment and racism, which is fair game. But they ignored the fact that he was running against a candidate who ran a racist campaign against Obama and is married to a world-famous sex pest. The Russia stuff turned out to be a dud, too, and crushed what little credibility they had left.

Then when things finally catch up to Trump, they do it again. Completely ignoring Biden's mental decline during his Presidency and running cover for his genocide. And while the Hunter Biden stuff was never as bad as the right made it out to be, there was corruption in there that was largely ignored.

I think it's more of an issue when the candidate is an outsider, as Zohran and Trump were. Mainstream media hate those people as they're a threat to the status quo. When you're going to bat for Andrew Cuomo of all people, a corrupt pervert who killed countless seniors during COVID, people know something smells. All these stories do is further degrade trust in media and help outsiders who receive the unfair treatment.

[Edward64]

Originally Posted by Lathum

So the bill doubles the number of ICE agents.

What does that job interview look like?

Maybe Edward can apply?

I'll look for forthcoming job ads. I'm guessing the IT systems will need to be created/updated.

From way back in 2018, aka a "single source of truth"

7) Implement a system that can track all immigrants, guest workers, identified illegals, folks that overstayed their visas etc.

The problem is there is no good way to track these situations currently. Immigration reform needs to address creating a system/database that can track/report/alert etc. I honestly don't know why this isn't already in place.

(2) there is a verification system and employer can check but it's not perfect.

[Edward64]

Originally Posted by GrantDawg

I think I'm seeing a resemblance to Trump's rise in 2015-16 and the rise of Zohran Mamdani. The more both parties and the press demonize him, the more people are flocking to him, and more rabid his supporters get.

If you are referring "rise in" NY, lower odds but can see that happening.

If you are referring nation-wide, I don't see it.

[GrantDawg]

Originally Posted by Edward64

If you are referring "rise in" NY, lower odds but can see that happening.

If you are referring nation-wide, I don't see it.

I do mean New York. It is questionable that it plays out like he is the front runner in three years, but then who knows. Trump was already a well known national figure, so the obsession with him in the national press was part of his success, but it wasn't his introduction. Mamdani was an unknown in New York, and the over the top attacks are part of the reason he became well known there. If the focus stays on him for the next couple of years nationally, maybe? IDK.

[Ksyrup]

In case passage of the latest legislation wasn't bad enough, I accidentally read some of the details on how they got people on board. I wish they had just bribed them with state-specific benefits like Murkowski...

A clique of House Freedom Caucus members walked out of the White House in the early afternoon, their attitudes seemingly adjusted. Representative Tim Burchett, Republican of Tennessee, was one of them. He posted a video on social media gushing about the two-hour experience he’d just had with his president.

“The president was wonderful, as always,” Mr. Burchett said in the video. “Informative, funny, he told me he likes seeing me on TV, which was kind of cool.” Representative Byron Donalds, Republican of Florida, is shown in the video, too. “Did you show them what he signed for you?” Mr. Donalds asks Mr. Burchett. “Yeah, he signed a bunch of stuff,” Mr. Burchett said. “It’s cool.”

Mr. Burchett told The New York Times later on that his name had been misspelled on the placard placed in front of his chair for the Cabinet Room meeting (it was missing an “r”) so the president scribbled in the letter, signed both sides of the card and gave it to him as a souvenir. Mr. Burchett said the president also loaded up the son of Representative Chip Roy, Republican of Texas, with souvenirs.

[flere-imsaho]

The person who continues to rise, nationally, and clearly had a connection to Mamdani's victory, is AOC. I remain unconvinced she'd win the EC, but she might do a lot better than we'd think. However, I suspect she'll get Schumer's seat at some point and having someone like her, and with her energy, boosting a refresh of Democratic ranks, with messaging that appeals to people who have been shit on, especially economically, is only a good thing.

[flere-imsaho]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

In case passage of the latest legislation wasn't bad enough, I accidentally read some of the details on how they got people on board. I wish they had just bribed them with state-specific benefits like Murkowski...

These are not serious people.

[kingfc22]

The priorities of these fucking morons.

President Donald Trump wants UFC fight on White House grounds - ESPN

[Lathum]

Originally Posted by kingfc22

The priorities of these fucking morons.

President Donald Trump wants UFC fight on White House grounds - ESPN

Imagine of Obama tried to do a UNC-Duke game on the WH grounds

[GrantDawg]

In response to the stupid article in NYT about Zavhon's application to Columbia where he didn't get accepted, ProPublica publishes an article on how Jared Kushner got into Harvard without qualifications other than being rich.
https://www.propublica.org/article/t...tm_content=7-4

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[JPhillips]

Meanwhile Trump called some Jewish bankers Shylocks and the media can't even decide whether or not the term is antisemitic.

[Drake]

I spent more time wondering if he realized it was Shakespearean.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by kingfc22

The priorities of these fucking morons.

President Donald Trump wants UFC fight on White House grounds - ESPN

Get a grip. It's part of the 250th birthday celebration, which will have hundreds of events over the course of TWO YEARS (runs til 7/4/26). UFC is also one of 13 official corporate sponsors helping to pay for events all over the country.

[Brian Swartz]

[NobodyHere]

[kingfc22]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

Get a grip. It's part of the 250th birthday celebration, which will have hundreds of events over the course of TWO YEARS (runs til 7/4/26). UFC is also one of 13 official corporate sponsors helping to pay for events all over the country.

Surprised you’re not asking for non-white individuals to fight to the death as entertainment. Probably more up your alley.

[Atocep]

Originally Posted by RainMaker

I think the other big takeaway is that it's an admission from the ruling class that China won. This was likely inevitable with the direction both countries were going, but this is the final nail in that debate. We're at the stage of 90's Russia where you're just stripping the empire for copper.

China is far and away the biggest winner of Trump's bill. The clean energy cuts are going to allow China to continue to spread influence across the globe by pushing their clean energy projects into other countries. It's going to give them a huge advantage in AI.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by kingfc22

Surprised you’re not asking for non-white individuals to fight to the death as entertainment. Probably more up your alley.

Oh look, another person who really needs to go fuck themselves.

You actually think I've got any more use for illegal invaders from Canada? Or for that matter, lily white libtards?

[JPhillips]

Now the whole GOP is saying there are no windmills in China.

Meanwhile, China leads the world in wind power generation. But now this will also be ignored by MAGA.

[GrantDawg]

Musk is saying he is forming the "American Party". I put money on no one ever running as a part of that party.

[RainMaker]

Originally Posted by Atocep

China is far and away the biggest winner of Trump's bill. The clean energy cuts are going to allow China to continue to spread influence across the globe by pushing their clean energy projects into other countries. It's going to give them a huge advantage in AI.

They were kicking our asses in EVs anyway. This is about saving face too. Don't worry though, when coal makes its big return, we will be ready!

[Edward64]

Originally Posted by GrantDawg

Musk is saying he is forming the "American Party". I put money on no one ever running as a part of that party.

If he frees up the purse strings, I'd think he would find the right people, in the right districts to run against the establishment on their fiscal irresponsibility.

Just a moment...

Musk sought to drum up support for his potential third party launch, positing that his new party would target a handful of vulnerable swing seats to leverage political power.

“Given the razor-thin legislative margins, that would be enough to serve as the deciding vote on contentious laws, ensuring that they serve the true will of the people,” he wrote.

My guess is he's going to have to do a POC (proof-of-concept) on a select few in mid-terms 2026. If successful enough, then go into 2028. Otherwise, it'll just fade away.

While Musk may have the millions to pour into backing certain candidates — which he has already promised to do, pledging to support Rep. Thomas Massie’s (R-Ky.) reelection campaign amid targeting from Trump — establishing a third party involves a series of thorny obstacles including navigating complex state laws, ballot access regulations and other legal hoops.

Really no idea how it'll all turn out. But if he's serious, I'm happy someone is giving it a shot.

[GrantDawg]

Originally Posted by Edward64

If he frees up the purse strings, I'd think he would find the right people, in the right districts to run against the establishment on their fiscal irresponsibility.

Just a moment...

My guess is he's going to have to do a POC (proof-of-concept) on a select few in mid-terms 2026. If successful enough, then go into 2028. Otherwise, it'll just fade away.



Really no idea how it'll all turn out. But if he's serious, I'm happy someone is giving it a shot.

I'm not saying he couldn't do it, and find people to play a part. I'm saying he is going to lose interest in be into something else before it goes anywhere.

[Edward64]

Yeah, I can see that happening too.

[Mota]

One can imagine that if he were to try forming a new political party, that the companies he leads would ask him to step down. After all, there's no way he's spending a "minimum" of 40 hours per week in the office in each company like he expects his employees to do.

[Ghost Econ]

I like that these guys can go around buying elections, politicians, parties... but I have to declare any donation my wife or I make because one of the companies they own (that I do no business with) is banking related. Combined we make what Musk "earns" in about half an hour. But that $20 might just corrupt our country.

[bhlloy]

Originally Posted by GrantDawg

I'm not saying he couldn't do it, and find people to play a part. I'm saying he is going to lose interest in be into something else before it goes anywhere.

Also, if he doesn't suddenly "lose interest" he will have the contracts his companies rely on killed and possibly be deported back to SA, so there's that.

[JPhillips]

It's just structurally impossible to be successful as a third party. Perot found this out, any position that a party takes that's popular is going to be co-opted by one of the two major parties. The only way to get somewhere with a third party is to start locally and build support over many years. There's no path for a party to start at the national level.

[RainMaker]

Originally Posted by JPhillips

It's just structurally impossible to be successful as a third party. Perot found this out, any position that a party takes that's popular is going to be co-opted by one of the two major parties. The only way to get somewhere with a third party is to start locally and build support over many years. There's no path for a party to start at the national level.

Focus on areas with ranked choice.

[GrantDawg]

Nothing to see here. Everything is fine. .https://www.axios.com/2025/07/07/jef...administration

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[GrantDawg]

Dola: What is really funny about this report is that AG Pam Bondi said she had the Epstien list on her desk. And now it doesn't exist.

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[RainMaker]

Guess she lost it. What a stroke of bad luck.