NSFW THE TRUMPOCALYPSE

[Andy_T]

This one really make me mad! Even by his pathetic standards, this is low.

Never underestimate the Twimp!

Half a year from here, you'll likely consider this to be one of his better and less unhinged tweets

 

[Mischief]

Mattis supports transgender individuals serving in the military. This is dt throwing meat to the conservatives. In a Stunningly Cruel and Unjustified Move, Trump Bans Transgender Military Service

 

[Andy_T]

 

[Amy SF]

Here's a response I like to the Boy Scout Jamboree fiasco, mainly because of its optimism:

I'm an Eagle Scout. I Saw Bill Clinton Speak at Jamboree. Here's What I Think of Trump's Speech

 

[PTree15]

I am so f*cking sick of every minute of this.

It's just... oh, he lied again, he did something that shows how self-absorbed he is, oh man, he did what?, this has to be the nail in the coffin, oh wow he slandered who? there's a committee investigating the latest blatant broken law, this'll be great! Ten ways Trump got owned by so and so foreign ambassador whatever who didn't shake hands or shook hands weird or didn't want to talk to him or looked miserable in a picture.

This whole thing is like a time loop of the same depressing garbage and it's so much easier to follow than it should be. I'm just numb to this entire ordeal. It's like every day the government reveals how much of a sham American politics are over and over again and nobody does jack **** about it.

Exactly my feeling. I keep thinking the latest transgression will be the one that knocks him out of office, but he keeps on rolling and rolling. I'm completely disgusted.

 

[Jamie in Chile]

Mattis supports transgender individuals serving in the military. This is dt throwing meat to the conservatives. In a Stunningly Cruel and Unjustified Move, Trump Bans Transgender Military Service

If you scroll down after reading that article, there is an interesting one below on LGBT rights and the Trump administration:

[Trump] held up an upside-down rainbow flag that read “LGBTs for TRUMP” at an event. He declared that transgender people should “use the bathroom they feel is appropriate” and said that Caitlyn Jenner could use whatever bathroom she preferred at Trump Tower. And he had his friend Peter Thiel speak at the GOP convention. None of this was particularly surprising, since Trump seems to hold no clear personal animus toward LGBTQ people and professed his support for gay rights laws as early as 2000. But after his November victory, Trump outsourced many personnel decisions to the Republican Party and Vice President Pence.

 

[Mischief]

More about what is behind dt's ban on transgender people in the military: Inside Trump’s snap decision to ban transgender troops

After a week sparring with his attorney general and steaming over the Russia investigation consuming his agenda, President Donald Trump was closing in on an important win.

House Republicans were planning to pass a spending bill stacked with his campaign promises, including money to build his border wall with Mexico.

But an internal House Republican fight over transgender troops was threatening to blow up the bill. And House GOP insiders feared they might not have the votes to pass the legislation because defense hawks wanted a ban on Pentagon-funded sex reassignment operations — something GOP leaders wouldn’t give them.

They turned to Trump, who didn’t hesitate. In the flash of a tweet, he announced that transgender troops would be banned altogether.

The president was also annoyed by the Pentagon delay, one person said. A different official said the White House had gotten positive reaction from conservatives, an important factor amid their displeasure with Trump's recent bashing of Jeff Sessions.

 

[Mischief]

The WH didn't even inform the Pentagon before they launched the tweets about banning transgender individuals from military service.

it's also clear the party was not prepared to embrace a ban on transgender soldiers in a way some in the White House assumed. The White House thought this would put Democrats on the spot, but it has put their own party on the hot seat as it wrestles with whether to wade into the LGBT issues it has studiously avoided for years.

Analysis | Trump’s transgender military ban is another case of political malpractice

 

[Mischief]

The Justice Department appears to be gearing up for a legal fight with the LGBTQ community

The Department of Justice has argued that a pivotal civil-rights law does not protect a worker's sexual orientation against discrimination, according to a new legal brief published on Wednesday.

Pitted against the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), a federal agency that oversees discrimination complaints in the workplace, the DOJ argued in its amicus brief that the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit should reaffirm a previous ruling that the protection of "Title VII does not reach discrimination based on sexual orientation."

The Justice Department appears to be gearing up for a legal fight with the LGBTQ community

 

[Amy SF]

So I thought this was interesting, not only because the election result appears to be a repudiation of the Trump administration, but also because one of our own, @GingerFoxx lives in Manchester.

Updated: Democrat Cavanaugh pulls off upset in state Senate special election

It's been pointed out (by such people as John Oliver, among others), that state legislature elections are just as crucial as federal elections, because federal representatives tend to watch what state legislators do and copy them at the federal level.

 

[GingerFoxx]

So I thought this was interesting, not only because the election result appears to be a repudiation of the Trump administration, but also because one of our own, @GingerFoxx lives in Manchester.

Updated: Democrat Cavanaugh pulls off upset in state Senate special election

It's been pointed out (by such people as John Oliver, among others), that state legislature elections are just as crucial as federal elections, because federal representatives tend to watch what state legislators do and copy them at the federal level.

If the number of political flyers in my mailbox the past few weeks were any indication, Mr. Cavanaugh was campaigning hard for his victory.

 

[Andy_T]

Maybe the typical Twimp voters were afraid to directly vote for the Republican candidate Boutin.

After all, we've heard so much about why Putin is really bad recently and even Twimp has been trying to distance himself from him...

 

[peacefulveglady]

I am very disgusted at the recent Ban for Transgender people from Military , aren't they American's too that can serve our country? I know earlier in the year i was neutral with Trump didn't like some protesting but, that Honeymoon was over a few week months ago when Trump started to violate more people of this country, i wish we had a president that don't infringe on our peoples rights .

 

[Andy_T]

I know earlier in the year i was neutral with Trump didn't like some protesting but, that Honeymoon was over a few week months ago when Trump started to violate more people of this country

... unfortunately, he's nowhere near done yet. As a matter of fact, he has hardly started, as his own incompetence so far has torpedoed most of his activities, which are typically targeted at violating somebody's rights...

 

[Andy_T]

An interesting article:

The real reason the Trump administration has such a leak problem

The President will not take any internal criticism, no matter how politely it is given. He does not want advice, cannot be corrected, and is too insecure to see any constructive feedback as anything other than an attack.

So some of the sources are left with no other option but to go to the media, leak the story, and hope that the intense blowback gives the President a swift kick in the butt. Perhaps then he will recognize he screwed up. The President cares vastly more about what the press says than what his advisers say.

 

[peacefulveglady]

... unfortunately, he's nowhere near done yet. As a matter of fact, he has hardly started, as his own incompetence so far has torpedoed most of his activities, which are typically targeted at violating somebody's rights...

yeah i had a few Trump supporters if i didn't like him or Trumps plans and all go to Mexico or Canada since your are not thankful for living a free country, if this is actually free then why ban certain people in military?

 

[PTree15]

An interesting article:

The real reason the Trump administration has such a leak problem

This is so scary. He's like a 5-year-old.

 

[Calliegirl]

I am so f*cking sick of every minute of this.

It's just... oh, he lied again, he did something that shows how self-absorbed he is, oh man, he did what?, this has to be the nail in the coffin, oh wow he slandered who? there's a committee investigating the latest blatant broken law, this'll be great! Ten ways Trump got owned by so and so foreign ambassador whatever who didn't shake hands or shook hands weird or didn't want to talk to him or looked miserable in a picture.

This whole thing is like a time loop of the same depressing garbage and it's so much easier to follow than it should be. I'm just numb to this entire ordeal. It's like every day the government reveals how much of a sham American politics are over and over again and nobody does jack **** about it.

I've been a Democrat most of my life (before that I registered nonpartisan) and I've been hoping that they were busy working on getting him out. But most of them have been doing nothing. A few are trying but it's not enough. I've lost faith in them doing anything, I will probably go back to nonpartisan, not that it matters anymore.

Today this came out and I agree with most, if not all of it. I've been thinking the same thing, but hoping I'm wrong. I'm as guilty as the next person, hoping this time something will happen, but it won't. He's in there for the rest of this term, and if there is still a country after that, he'll probably be back for another four years to finish us off.

I hope I'm wrong, but I don't believe he's going anywhere.

Why We've Lost to President Trump

We've Lost to President Trump



July 27, 2017

If it was going to happen, it would have happened by now. After months of chanting this is not normal the new normal is fully vested in our society. The critical moment came upon us, and when it did the People stood up and spoke with a single voice with a clear message: We'll put up with it.

In the past few weeks circumstances have reached a point of full saturation. The revelation of the Donald Trump Jr. emails, and subsequent Natalia Veselnitskaya meeting, was a do-or-die moment. Historians will look back to that event and point out that from that point forward, nothing else would truly matter. For those of us who hoped to eliminate the Kremlin's influence over the White House, the past couple weeks were a final stand. Reinforcements never came. And now it's too late to do anything more. The President has won in every way that matters. The country has accepted his treason, his incompetence, his corruption, his embarrassing circus, and his contemptible agenda. There will still be fights. There will be skirmishes won and skirmishes lost by both sides. But the big picture will remain the same. President Trump will be in power, he will remain in power, he will continue to consolidate his power, he will use that power to personally profit at the nation's expense, he will hand over sweetheart deals to the Kremlin, he will cripple the workings of our government with his inept leadership.

Many people have questioned our criticism of Congressional Democrats and the media as the guilty parties in enabling President Trump's crimes. But imagine for a moment that the Mafia has taken over your city while the police have sat on the sidelines, unable to be bothered to oppose them. They make appeals for funding, saying that all new Mafia activity demands more resources before it can be addressed. But they aren't really trying. They say all the right things in public speeches to give the appearance of being opposed to the Mafia. But for all of their claims to be outraged by the Mafia's crimes, they never act. They insist they're powerless, then ask for more money. In reality, they just don't care that the Mafia is committing these crimes.

The Mafia may be guilty of their crimes but the dereliction of duty by the police turns out to be the greater offense against society. They had a duty to oppose the Mafia, but instead they perverted their roles and exploited the crimes of these criminals for their own selfish gains. The Democrats have an obligation as the minority party to oppose the President. That opposition must be in actions, not merely words. They are duty bound to appeal to the People of the country, to gather support, and to bring that public pressure of the entire nation to bear on the Republican caucus. The Democrats have abandoned their duty as the oppositional minority party and have instead perverted themselves to exploit the President's crimes for their own selfish gains. How can anyone expect Republicans in Congress to oppose their own President when the opposition party can't even be bothered to do so?

Nancy Pelosi and those who are going along with her plan, torn from an episode of the early 2000s show The West Wing, to retain-and-fundraise-against have exacted an amazingly damaging wound on our country. Some of you won't see it, because you don't want to see it. It's Pelosi, her carnival barker Ted Lieu, and the rest of her followers who have conditioned you to become passive, yet believe you are active. They have programmed you to never be so outraged that you demand the President be impeached, yet be outraged enough to desperately hope he is impeached. Even when indisputable evidence is revealed that his campaign engaged in collusion with Russian agents, you will believe it's not enough evidence. You will insist on waiting longer and longer. You'll wait so long that President Trump will leave office through term expiration. No matter how damning the evidence you will never be roused enough to demand his removal. You'll only be roused enough to fetch your checkbook while you direct your outcry elsewhere. They have indoctrinated you with their doublethink, growing in outrage but diminishing in urgency, and in that sense she is no better than Louise Mensch for placating the opposition into a false sense that justice is around the corner just as long as you keep waiting. The past two weeks are the proof.

Perhaps what is most amazing, and most contemptible, about all of this is that from the beginning of President Trump's term, and until very recently, these same people would constantly be up in arms, shaking their fists in righteous indignation while shouting EMOLUMENTS CLAUSE! TWENTY FIFTH AMENDMENT! GET HIM OUT NOW! These battle cries have been shouted for six months with such fervor that unbridled passions have stripped these phrases of their very meaning, and many Democrats (with a good deal of assistance from liberal media outlets) have eagerly fanned those flames. The same Democrats who have encouraged you to desperately hope for impeachment over a far fetched emoluments theory that never existed before January 2017 are the same Democrats who are telling you that campaign officials attempting to collude with Russian agents isn't enough to warrant impeachment.

If you believe the Democrats are powerless then you cannot support the Resistance. If you believe the Democrats are powerless then you did not attend the Women's March, you weren't at the March for Science, you weren't at the March for Truth, you haven't written a single letter, you haven't made a single call. If you've done even one of these things, even if only one time, then you cannot claim that the Democrats are powerless. If they are, then why did you bother? Did you do those things because someone paid you? Or did you do those things because you believed those actions could help to move the needle?

Nobody should believe that Congressional Democrats are powerless because Congressional Democrats don't believe it. Look what is happening with the health care in Congress. Democrats have pulled in activists and protesters into the halls of Congress and in front of the White House. They are bringing public pressure to bear on Republicans, and just enough Republicans are breaking away from the pack. Two weeks ago the Democrats were handed the golden ticket. Had they chosen, Congressional Democrats could have turned the moment into the catalyst that would have brought widespread solidarity through the country to demand the impeachment of a traitorous President. What you did not see at the time, though perhaps you're starting to see it now, is that Congressional Republicans were ripe for abandonment of the President. Had the public outrage built up with Democrats initiating the push, Congressional Republicans would have had the timing and excuse they would have needed to justify turning against President Trump. But with that knowledge, what did Nancy Pelosi do? She went on Sunday morning talk and said told the nation to ignore the campaign meeting. She complained it was a distraction from health care.

There's a reason only a very small handful of Democrats in Congress will broach the subject of impeachment. Pelosi is threatening her own caucus against pursuing impeachment. Just as President Trump is overtly attacking Republicans who don't fall in line behind him, runnning attack ads and threatening their reelections, so too is Pelosi threatening her own caucus against supporting impeachment. The very small group who have defied her are a very few who believe they are secure against any primary challenge.

Looking back, it's difficult to remember exactly what our goals or expectations were when we began this endeavor. We wanted to stand in opposition to incompetence, the destruction of reality, and alarmingly fast dissolution of the rule of law that could already be seen. Above everything else we understood that the chief concern facing the country was the integrity of our sovereignty and national security. We recognized that the concerns about President Trump were supra-partisan, and we hoped that by providing a glimpse into the heart of the catastrophe known as the Trump administration we might help fuel a supra-partisan awareness of what was at stake. Perhaps we were naive. At least, some of us, because there was certainly discussion on the matter among ourselves. We hoped that the power of democracy would be able to influence the outcome of this administration one way or another. In many ways this administration has turned out worse than even our pessimistic fears could have imagined. And somehow, our efforts have become weighed down in a thick partisan fog against a mutually corrupt oppositional leadership.

The past six months have proven that President Trump is a traitor who doesn't think twice to undermine the strength and security of our country for personal gain, and the past two weeks prove that nothing will be done about it by Congress because there is no will in either party to do so. Mueller's investigation will continue, likely for two years at a minimum, and in the end some allegation about tax evasion will be made, and maybe even some suggestions that people within the President's sphere engaged in some degree of financial wrongdoing. Just like the Fitzgerald's investigation in the Plame Affair failed to come close to producing an impeachable result when the Bush administration leaked the identity of an undercover CIA operative as political revenge, neither will Mueller's investigation be able to establish the President's treason. Likely, the President will pardon anyone close to him who happens to be indicted. And with the exception of Democrats continuing to rail against President Trump for fundraising purposes, that will be the final conclusion to the matter.

Until now we hoped we might help guide people to envision events that were on the horizon for the future. But at this point it seems the only thing useful we can do is to record history, for whatever benefit it may be a hundred years from now. It's difficult to see a useful purpose in our project anymore otherwise, especially with the growing dangers involved and the renewed zeal for prosecutions.

 

[PTree15]

I love Trent Reznor. This is from an interview with Vulture.com.
http://www.vulture.com/2017/07/trent-reznor-nine-inch-nails.html

Well, the weird thing now is looking at politics as a father. My kids walk in the room and I’ve got CNN or MSNBC on and I have to hit the mute button because I don’t want to get into a discussion about how embarrassing the president is. He’s a ******* vulgarian. Aside from whatever ideological beliefs he has — if he has any — he’s a grotesque person who represents everything I hate. I’m repulsed by everything about him and he’s the president, you know? I haven’t figured out how to rationalize that to my kids’ beautiful little optimistic minds. I grew up in a shitty little town full of Trump voters, so think I can I understand the point of view of someone who supports his message. What I don’t understand is supporting that messenger.

 

[Mischief]

An interesting article:

The real reason the Trump administration has such a leak problem

They (the WH staff) also leak to consolidate their respective power positions. Apparently Trump, Kushner, Ivanka, Bannon, Conway, etc. all call reporters to provide info as "unnamed sources." Seasoned reporters apparently can tell who someone else's "unnamed source" is because they are all familiar enough with the players to know who's providing what information.