The Trump Presidency – 2016

[JPhillips]

dola

We’ve created more jobs in the last 3 months than Joe Biden and Barack Obama created in their 8 years in office. - Mike Pence

Nope. That's not a winning message. Here's a hint, you shouldn't bring up 2020. Ever.

[albionmoonlight]

We’ve created more jobs in the last 3 months than Joe Biden and Barack Obama created in their 8 years in office. - Mike Pence

So when a Republican says "You didn't build that. President Trump and I built that" it's awesome and OK and not at all insulting.

It can be so hard to keep up sometimes

[albionmoonlight]

dola

Me: Black Lives Matter

GOP: That's the problem with you Dems. You are obsessed with race. You are the real racists. All Lives Matter to me because I am colorblind. We should all be colorblind.

Biden: [Picks Harris as running mate]

GOP: Next on Hannity--we stole a hair from Kamala Harris's brush and ran a DNA test on it. After the break, we will give you her exact genetic breakdown. You'll be shocked to learn what percentage Swahili she is.

[sterlingice]

From the "so petty it's just sad" category:

US to ease water rules after Trump's shower moan

SI

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by sterlingice

From the "so petty it's just sad" category:

US to ease water rules after Trump's shower moan

SI

In addition to being ridiculous, I don't understand how this helps. If I've got 10 showerheads but they are all capped at 2.5, how is that resolving the pressure issue? I'm honestly confused as to how more water fixes the issue. Can't you just buy a bigger showerhead today to get more water to come out? If he's complaining about the 2.5 cap, this doesn't change that.

EDIT to add... I can't believe a Seinfeld episode is coming to life in this absurd a way.

[lungs]

Originally Posted by JPhillips

Trump WH is going on the attack against a GOP Rep that said QAnon was garbage.

Burn down the whole damned party and start over.

QAnon whack jobs are organizing a Save the Children protest in my town. And people are falling for it.

Sometimes I think I’m in The Twilight Zone.

[albionmoonlight]

Originally Posted by lungs

QAnon whack jobs are organizing a Save the Children protest in my town. And people are falling for it.

Sometimes I think I’m in The Twilight Zone.

I'm Catholic, so growing up, abortion was always the conversation-ending card that right-wing people would play. No matter what public policy matter you were discussing, you could always end the conversation with "It's not as bad as killing babies."

(This is also why I was a conservative Republican until law school).

Q-Anon's obsession with pedophilia is the same way. No matter what you are discussing, they can come back with "It isn't as bad as pedophilia."

And then if you try to counter with "I'm pretty sure Hillary Clinton and Bill Gates aren't running an international child sex ring," then they have already won b/c they've managed to take the debate away from whatever real issue they'd prefer not to discuss.

[JPhillips]

There's a lot of Trump to get wet. Maybe instead of more water he should focus on less body.

[ISiddiqui]

It appears there is a big peace deal between Israel and UAE and Trump had somewhat of a hand in it (probably allowing for a neutral party to allow both parties to discuss it).

Israel and UAE reach historic peace deal, Israel to suspend annexation - The Jerusalem Post

Looks like the UAE and Israel will have flights between each other. Israel will suspend annexation of more of the West Bank. Some cooperation between the two countries?

[BYU 14]

Originally Posted by JPhillips

There's a lot of Trump to get wet. Maybe instead of more water he should focus on less body.

Well, he could always visit Sea World and jump in the Orca pool and bath with the local inhabitants. Plenty of water in there.

[JPhillips]

Trump campaign starting to go all in on Kamala Harris birther angle.

The old hits are always the best.

[JPhillips]

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

It appears there is a big peace deal between Israel and UAE and Trump had somewhat of a hand in it (probably allowing for a neutral party to allow both parties to discuss it).

Israel and UAE reach historic peace deal, Israel to suspend annexation - The Jerusalem Post

Looks like the UAE and Israel will have flights between each other. Israel will suspend annexation of more of the West Bank. Some cooperation between the two countries?

Well, maybe.

The UAE has now said it's a roadmap towards normalization and Israel has said they will still annex, but they've put it on hold for a while because of the agreement.

[albionmoonlight]

Originally Posted by JPhillips

Trump campaign starting to go all in on Kamala Harris birther angle.

The old hits are always the best.

I'm picturing Don Jr. and Eric onstage at a club with their guitars. And they just finished a rousing rendition of "Black People say the N Word in Rap Songs, so Why Can't We?"

And then Don Jr. says, "OK. Now we wanna play y'all something from our upcoming album that Eric wrote. I think that y'all are going to like this"

And everyone decides it's a good time to get up and use the restroom.

(This is 10% funnier if you picture Eric with a nose ring and a Megadeath T-shirt.)

[GrantDawg]

Trump openly admits he is starving the post office to stop voting by mail. He openly brags about voter suppression, not to mention distroying small businesses that depend on the postal service. The GOP remains silent.

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk

[Ksyrup]

Apparently Harris upset so many GOPers, Herman Cain came back from the dead to tweet a Trump campaign video about her!

[JPhillips]

The Voice of America is going full time Trump/Pence propaganda.

Ivanka Trump Continues Women Empowerment Agenda Amid Pandemic https://t.co/wnKj93oNN2 pic.twitter.com/L6gvHu9rLR

— The Voice of America (@VOANews) August 13, 2020

[stevew]

Trumps “unemployment extension” is going to pay between 1-3 weeks max. The allocated money is about 15-18billion and for 30million unemployed people @$300/week that’s 1-3 payments. What a troll job.

[JPhillips]

I'm pretty sure the law doesn't matter anymore, but using the FEMA money should require states to pay 25% in order to get anything from the Feds.

[stevew]

The 25% can be already existing benefits that the state is paying. So it basically it doesn’t mean anything.

[JPhillips]

Thanks. I didn't realize that was the new interpretation. That's not what the government was saying when the EOs were signed, but like I said, I doubt the law matters.

[RainMaker]

Originally Posted by GrantDawg

Trump openly admits he is starving the post office to stop voting by mail. He openly brags about voter suppression, not to mention distroying small businesses that depend on the postal service. The GOP remains silent.

Remember this the next time we lecture the world about freedom and democracy. It's a hunk of shit.

[RainMaker]

absolutely baller content from the postal workers union pic.twitter.com/GE8DsRzAEc

— Charlie Bonner (@CharlieKBonner) August 13, 2020

[stevew]

Originally Posted by JPhillips

Thanks. I didn't realize that was the new interpretation. That's not what the government was saying when the EOs were signed, but like I said, I doubt the law matters.

Anyone with a benefit amount less than 100$/week would get nothing extra. His order is so insignificant.

[albionmoonlight]

The President is bragging about intentionally making part of the government work worse. Not just one of the "help poor or minority people" parts of the government (people brag about shutting those down all the time). But one of the parts of the government that middle class and white people use.

He's not doing it in secret. He's proud of it.

And 39% of the country is still 100% behind this guy.

[albionmoonlight]

Originally Posted by stevew

Anyone with a benefit amount less than 100$/week would get nothing extra. His order is so insignificant.

On the plus side, the orders are so weak sauce and ineffectual that most people agree that they are legal.

So he's doing better than he normally does with these things.

[JPhillips]

It won't matter, but Michael Cohen is claiming to bring the fire in his book.

"From golden showers in a sex club in Vegas, to tax fraud, to deals with corrupt officials from the former Soviet Union, to catch and kill conspiracies to silence Trump’s clandestine lovers, I wasn’t just a witness to the president’s rise—I was an active and eager participant."

[GrantDawg]

Just listening to the latest "Model Talk" on 538. They are clear to caution that a 8 point lead at this point is far from safe, and there is no way to model the level of voter suppression that we might be facing. They are saying this is basically a 2 point Electoral College lead for Biden, so really razor thin.

[Atocep]

From the Trump campaign

The Radical Left is trying to CANCEL College Football. Can you believe it?

These college athletes work their entire lives for this moment and they deserve a chance to live out their dreams without fear of them being CRUSHED by the Left.

It’s so important that EVERY American come together at a time like this. We need to send a united message that, despite the Democrats’ best efforts, AMERICA WANTS COLLEGE FOOTBALL!

President Trump is calling on his most reliable supporters, like YOU, to make a public statement and add your name to the Official Petition to DEFEND College Football.

[RainMaker]

The people who call others snowflakes are having a complete meltdown over not being able to watch 20 years old play football.

[PilotMan]

No College sports is nothing more than an inconvenience. Make a huge deal about these kids missing their chances, and you're missing the thousands of kids who are paying for college and missing their own chances that maybe aren't televised. College athletes aren't the only ones effected by Covid.

[AlexB]

Originally Posted by JPhillips

It won't matter, but Michael Cohen is claiming to bring the fire in his book.

"From golden showers in a sex club in Vegas, to tax fraud, to deals with corrupt officials from the former Soviet Union, to catch and kill conspiracies to silence Trump’s clandestine lovers, I wasn’t just a witness to the president’s rise—I was an active and eager participant."

So he pissed on Trump in Vegas

[JPhillips]

Supposedly it's a known story about a pee show rather than Trump peeing or being peed on.

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by Atocep

From the Trump campaign

To be fair, there are many fine people on both sides who are concerned about the Big 12 being able to defend against the spread.

[NobodyHere]

https://www.foxnews.com/sports/trump...ilitary-advice

[Atocep]

Originally Posted by NobodyHere

https://www.foxnews.com/sports/trump...ilitary-advice

“If I ever had a military battle, I’d call Belichick up and say, ‘What do you think, what do you think? Give me a couple of ideas,” Trump said. “He’d be as good as any general out there.”

But kneeling is disrespectful.

[RainMaker]

USPS removing some mailboxes in Eugene

[Thomkal]

And to no one's surprise Trump applied for a mail ballot in Florida today

[QuikSand]

Trump went from a high of 4.1 intelligence briefings per week on average in March 2017 to 0.7 per week since July 1. An intelligence briefing held on Monday was the president’s first in August and the first since July 22. https://t.co/IITgRLDc68

— Peter W. Singer (@peterwsinger) August 14, 2020

right, then

[BYU 14]

Originally Posted by NobodyHere

https://www.foxnews.com/sports/trump...ilitary-advice

You have got to be fucking kidding me, how do people still except this without flinching

[Edward64]

Kudos to the Trump team (whoever lead the charge) on getting the UAE-Israeli deal. A mid-size foreign policy win. Don't know what all the "carrots" were but wouldn't be surprised if easy access to future vaccine was part of it. Won't be surprised if there is a huge push by the Trump team to get others onboard quickly. Domestic policy/legacy is problematic to the 56-62% but he may be able to pull off some positive legacy on the ME front.

Palestinians being a tier-1 problem that is on all the front pages have come and pass, world dynamics have moved on to other priorities. Time for them to cut the best deal with a Biden administration they can knowing they won't get near everything they want.

[Edward64]

Good news assuming other follow. Time to diversify the supply chain to other low cost countries. I've got a good chunk of Apple stock (and in MF) but it took forever for them to be a 1T company and now in 2-3 years they are on the verge of 2T, they have plenty of padding to survive.

I don't think it was just the trade war (convenient excuse) but also some other factors (e.g. it's a Taiwanese company) but Trump did more to escalate and bring to the forefront China practices so he does get some credit.

Foxconn CEO: China no longer 'world's factory' due to Trump trade war - Business Insider

Over the past 50 years, China has become a global economic powerhouse, largely because of the rise of its manufacturing industry. But the CEO of one of the largest companies in that space, Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., predicted that era could be coming to an end.

Young Liu, the chairman of Hon Hai, which is more commonly known as Foxconn, told investors this week that China's "days as the world's factory are done," Bloomberg reported Wednesday.

Liu said during Foxconn's latest earnings call that Trump's trade war with Beijing has forced electronic-device makers to diversify their supply chains to other countries so they don't get hit with tariffs on Chinese-made products, according to Bloomberg.

Foxconn, the largest manufacturer of iPhones, plans to do the same. Liu told Bloomberg 30% of the company's production capacity is now outside China, a 20% increase from the previous June, and that it was interested in expanding in a variety of regions.

[Ksyrup]

The absentee/mail-in ballot debate has been heating up, and I'm trying to understand both sides of this. Trump keeps making a distinction between the two, while his detractors say there is no distinction.

Here's what I see - there is a distinction, in terms of who qualifies for it and if it has to be requested. You have about 10 states where ballots are automatically mailed. This seems to be what Trump is mainly railing against. I'd be interested to see if there have been any studies on voter fraud in these states (mostly west coast states). I assume Trump and Friends are concerned that, given the pandemic, other states will adopt something similar. Again, I haven't seen anything that suggests voter fraud is (or is not) a valid concern - although presumably his voter fraud commission would have found it...

Then you have the vast majority of states, where "absentee" voting is permitted for anyone (which begs the question of why it's called absentee). Presumably, in these states, every single person could vote by mail, but they have to request a ballot, it's not automatically sent. This includes Trump's "home" state of Florida. True to form, I assume he would say Florida does it right and states likely to vote against him can't be trusted to do it right. But the threshold here is that it has to be requested, it's not just automatically mailed as in the Group 1 states.

Then there are the other 8-10 states which require a valid excuse to vote absentee. This includes my state of Kentucky, although it appears we may have a bipartisan agreement to expand the definition of absentee to allow for health/Covid concerns without requiring any proof of a real ailment that would prevent in-person voting (TBD in the next couple of weeks). This is obviously the most restrictive set of states in terms of allowing mail-in voting.

is this a fair summary? Is Trump just objecting to Group 1, or Groups 1 and 2 (other than FL, of course)?

I do think Trump detractors ought to better explain this rather than just saying he's talking about the same thing. He's not - although again, it's unclear whether, from the standpoint of voter fraud, there's any practical difference. I think that's the tack they ought to take when explaining why they disagree with him on this issue.

It is also apparent to me that Trump is hedging his bets, so the USPS slowdown will help his position one way or the other. But that's another issue.

[spleen1015]

I think you pretty much have it right.

Group 1 is what everyone is calling "Mail in voting". Group 2 is what they're calling "Absentee". To me, absentee voting IS mail in voting. They use the terms this way as a way of distinction I guess.

I have talked to 3-4 people about this and they all have the same concerns. With mail in voting, how many ballots get sent in by dead people? How are their voter rolls updated so that ballots aren't sent to dead people.

I tend to think that the amount of ballots that are truly from dead people are such a small percentage to not make a difference but this appears to be the main issue for some people.

[Ksyrup]

And again, I don't know the details of those 8-10 state that have mail-in voting, but this isn't going to be the first election they use it, and presumably they would have a good feel for any potential fraud or other concerns that they have ACTUALLY experienced, versus this boogieman BS Trump is spewing.

[JPhillips]

Like in person voting, there are isolated cases of fraud, but nothing like the thousands or tens of thousands of fraudulent votes claimed by Trump. And it makes sense, that sort of organized, labor intensive voter fraud would come with very high risk of getting caught and would still be unlikely to change state level outcomes.

Mail-in voting states haven't experienced any more fraud than in-person states.

[Ksyrup]

The one thing that I think is a legitimate concern is the capacity to deal with the increase in mail-in ballots. In KY, for example, we had about 700K mail-in ballots for the primary and the expectation is that if we did the same for the general election, we'd be looking at around 1.7M ballots. It would overwhelm the system (even outside of any USPS shenanigans). So I do think that's a valid concern.

Personally, I'd be fine with expanded absentee voting, plus early voting. There's no excuse for not being able to get to a polling place once in 14 days. For all the crap that KY got for having only 1 polling place open per county - which drew a ton of national criticism due to the slanted coverage - we had more people vote than ever before AND the only time there was any wait in Louisville was at rush hour (5-6pm) on election day. There were few lines even earlier that day at the same polling place, not to mention it was open for like 10 days prior. Why people would wait until then to vote is beyond me.

[JPhillips]

Personally, I think mail-in voting is going to be a disaster in large part because Trump is going to make sure it's a disaster. I'd love more early voting aross the country to alleviate pressure on election day, but the GOP isn't interested in making it easier to vote. I think the only option, as shitty as it is given the pandemic, is in-person voting.

Dems really need to be planning and communicating for voting. The GOP is quite openly planning to steal the election and our norms won't save us.

[Ksyrup]

We'll see what the ultimate plan ends up being in KY, but I'm surprised that our GOP SOS and Dem Governor have worked so well together. Mainly, I'm shocked that the GOP has allowed the SOS to give in on some of the points that the GOP has typically argued against.

It probably speaks more to the fact that KY is solid red and McConnell is likely not in any true peril than anything else, I'm guessing. But whatever the reason, it's been refreshing to see.

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

Personally, I'd be fine with expanded absentee voting, plus early voting. There's no excuse for not being able to get to a polling place once in 14 days. For all the crap that KY got for having only 1 polling place open per county - which drew a ton of national criticism due to the slanted coverage - we had more people vote than ever before AND the only time there was any wait in Louisville was at rush hour (5-6pm) on election day. There were few lines even earlier that day at the same polling place, not to mention it was open for like 10 days prior. Why people would wait until then to vote is beyond me.

I'm sure there's just as much racism and partisan crap (if not moreso) involved with which polling places are open for early voting, too, though.

"It's impractical to leave every polling place open for early voting. You wouln't want to expose our poor, elderly poll workers to more COVID risk. It's /definitely/ only a coincidence that the ones you can early vote in are in older, white, more affluent neighborhoods that are 20 minutes away from anyone who registered as a Democrat in 2016."

SI

[Ksyrup]

Eh, that's probably an issue in some places, but in Lexington and Louisville, it was simply the largest places they had - UK stadium in Lexington and the state fairgrounds/Exhibit Hall in Louisville.