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 dmHave we sunk to the level of comparing Trump to Hitler? Really? Which ethnic group has Trump advocated genocide against? Which country has Trump invaded or threatened to invade? I seem to remember very few major wars (think Ukraine, Gaza) during Trump's time in office. The only real preparation for war consisted in replenishing our Strategic Oil Reserves (which Biden has depleted to hold the price of gas down and help his re-election campaign although they are not nearly as low as during Trump's time in office), At least Dems are finally buying guns for mutually assured destruction. > Yes, Kyle Rittenhouse found that out, didn't he? |
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ls (more) All these are your judgments. How about telling us of some of the policies that he implemented with which you disagree? |
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dmaestro 15-May-24, 06:21 |
The right has been pushing the deep state conspiracy forever. Why? Because it’s essential to replace diverse experts with the shadow hand of the rich and powerful who like Trump pretend they are for the common person. This is a plutocracy masquerading as a democracy. As we will see. The culture war is about imposing Christian Nationalism by any means necessary—tyranny. I think the USA common dream is over and it is time to end it peacefully and be governed as we choose. But if the USA self destructs it will deserve it. The ignorance or the average Ugly American was a disappointment to be sure. |
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dmaestro 15-May-24, 06:35 |
Trump’s policies were mostly self serving and destructive with some glitter thrown in. But as we see cult based Christians will openly serve evil to defeat their enemies under the guise of “god” and “healing”. Yet even Solomon for all the wisdom far more than today’s “Christian” leaders was undone by the failings Trump always had. The church would be part of the divorce. |
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dm Explain that and explain with what authority you lump all Christians into it. ============== <Trump’s policies were mostly self serving and destructive with some glitter thrown in.> More glittering generalities. No specifics, just charges, which, without specifics are nothing more than baseless charges. |
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dmaestro 15-May-24, 07:11 |
GM Regarding Evangelicals the general assessment of you all is well known. Exceptions prove the rule. Tribal Generalities work. Thank God I am not one of you. |
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dm From a very small pool of FRB directors. If you sent Biden left-wing radicals to appoint, how is that indicative of freedom to appoint whom he wants? ============ <The right has been pushing the deep state conspiracy forever. > If this is true, what is wrong with stating it? Disprove it, if you can. Saying that it has been "pushed" does nothing to destroy its credibility. =============== <Why? Because it’s essential to replace diverse experts with the shadow hand of the rich and powerful who like Trump pretend they are for the common person.> And of course "Scranton Joe" the Pennsylvania "common man" has not done this, has he? Now, as for "experts" are we referring to people like the human cockroach, Anthony Fauci, who told us not to wear masks, then to wear a mask, and then to wear two masks? This same person who told us that the minimally-tested vaccine was "safe and effective?" Or Deborah Birx, who is now walking back her previous advice? Or are we talking about military experts who engineered the debacle of the Afghanistan withdrawal? Or perhaps the engineers who have brought us Bidenomics with huge inflation and a staggering economy which we are now supposedly propping up by imposing a 100% tariff on Chinese electric vehicles because they would outsell the EV's that American manufacturers cannot sell to a skeptical American public? Or perhaps we are talking about the foreign policy experts who went to Ukraine with Boris Johnson to convince Zelensky to cease negotiations with Russia and go to war instead. Those experts, yes, they're the one, right? |
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dm Yes, glittering generalities are favorite weapons of the left. ============================== <Regarding Evangelicals the general assessment of you all is well known.> How convenient to throw everyone into the pool. This way you can paint everyone with the conveniently broad brush of more glittering generalities. ===================== <Thank God I am not one of you.> I agree. Your presence would deprive us of credibility. |
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🤣🤣🤣 “Yes, glittering generalities are favorite weapons of the left.” Rotflmao. Oh the irony |
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Controlled by Deep State Agencies You feel the CIA, CDC, and BATF secretly control your life? I have had zero involvement with any of these three, aside from very minor CDC recommendations. |
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dmaestro 15-May-24, 08:02 |
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What? Dr. Fauci certainly is an expert. Masks were not required when people were sequestered, and we needed to reserve limited supplies for first responders like Thumper and medical personnel. The vaccine clearly was both safe and effective. What makes you think it wasn’t? Have you been tuned in to idiocy from Gateway Pundit, Fox, Breitbart, American Stinker, Epoch Times, Infowars, or worst of all, Natural News? Don’t fill your noggin with rubbish. |
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Shiva |
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N One of our best withdrawals. While Trump negotiated it without consulting the Afghan government, he wisely left the operation to a far more competent administration. Biden’s military experts were not any different from Trump’s, they just did not have to contend with Trump stage managing the operation as a photo op. <<Or perhaps the engineers who have brought us Bidenomics with huge inflation and a staggering economy which we are now supposedly propping up by imposing a 100% tariff on Chinese electric vehicles because they would outsell the EV's that American manufacturers cannot sell to a skeptical American public? >> If Musk wasn’t waging all out war on his own product maybe Tesla would be doing better. Full disclosure, I bought stock shortly after Tesla’s last split, before Musk decided to destroy Twitter and attack his customer base. My investment never recovered. <<Or perhaps we are talking about the foreign policy experts who went to Ukraine with Boris Johnson to convince Zelensky to cease negotiations with Russia and go to war instead.>> No one told Zelensky to go to war. Boris Johnson denies interfering with the negotiations. Russia began attacking Ukraine in 2014, and has wanted to annex the entire nation ever since. The evil war criminal runt just decided to kill Ukrainians. Is Putin a war criminal? He will be arrested most places if he steps outside his country, except in North Korea where dictators are loved, like Trump. |
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dmaestro 15-May-24, 08:30 |
The so-called deep state consists mostly of diverse non partisan experts on problems low information belief based populism can’t resolve. This is a threat to the populist Christian rights desire to impose their orthodoxy and deploy low information charismatic cult leader populist based tyranny. m.youtube.com |
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gmforsythe 15-May-24, 06:17 I know this was directed at LS but i'll bite... however it doesn't matter and what I am about to post is a complete waste of my time and energy because if DJT were to grow horns a forked tongue and a demon's tail live on national television. People like you would say how dare you pick on a deformed disabled person. here is one list... www.americanprogress.org here is another... www.cnn.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Trump supports ‘right-to-work’ Trump-backed “right-to-work” as a candidate in 2016 and has said he would sign a National Right-to-Work law introduced in the Senate if it reaches his desk. He frequently attacks union dues (paid by union members, not the companies they work for) as the cause of job losses and issued a memo earlier this year calling for the abolition of federal workers’ bargaining rights. 2. Failed to support second stimulus round during the coronavirus pandemic The Trump administration vehemently opposed extending the temporary $600 increase in unemployment benefits and $150 billion in aid to state and local governments included in the CARES Act. Failing to extend the aid will cost millions of jobs – including 5.3 million due to insufficient federal aid to state and local governments and 5.1 million from the expiration of the temporary boost in unemployment insurance for workers waylaid by the pandemic. 3. Hid economic analysis on ‘tip stealing’ rule Trump’s Department of Labor proposed a rule that would allow employers to pocket the tips of their employees as long as workers are paid the minimum wage. The department’s economic analysis showed the rule would have cost workers $5.8 billion in wages each year. 4. Blocked overtime for millions of workers Instead of defending a proposed 2016 rule that would have raised the overtime salary threshold from $23,660 to $47,476 ($913 a week) – which would have strengthened overtime protections for 12.5 million workers – the Trump administration issued its own rule setting the threshold at $35,568 ($684 a week) before employers are required to pay overtime, leaving roughly 8.2 million workers behind. 5. Denied workers a minimum wage increase In July 2019, the Democratic controlled House of Representatives voted to increase the federal minimum wage to $15 by 2025, increasing wages for over 33 million workers and lifting 1.3 million people out of poverty – nearly half of them children. It died before going to the Senate when Trump said he would veto the bill. 6. Excluded millions of workers from paid leave The Trump DOL issued a temporary rule exempting certain employers from the paid leave provisions in the Families First Coronavirus Relief Act, including an estimated 9 million health care workers and 4.4 million first responders. 7. Proposed lowering tipped workers earnings In December 2019, the Trump Labor Department proposed letting employers assign tipped employees more “side tasks” – tasks for which they do not receive tips, such as restocking and cleaning – while continuing to pay them the subminimum tipped-worker wage. If finalized, the proposed rule would cost tipped workers more than $700 million annually. 8. Expanded rule to reduce overtime pay In November 2019, the Trump Labor Department proposed a rule making it easier for employers to use the “fluctuating workweek method” for calculating overtime pay. This would let employers pay workers half of their regular rate for hours worked over 40, rather than the usual time-and-a-half. 9. Allowed misclassification of gig workers In April 2019, Trump Administration stripped tens of thousands of workers of protections under the National Labor Relations Act by deciding that platform-based drivers for Uber and Lyft are not employees covered by the NLRA, setting a precedent that undermines employee status for other misclassified workers. 10. Pushed to lower farmworkers wages Although some 10 percent of 200,000 temporary crop farm workforces are migrant visa workers – some of the lowest paid workers in the labor market – the Trump administration proposed changing the way all temporary farmworkers workers’ wage rates are calculated, resulting in lowering their wages to benefit employers. IMPACT ON JOBS 11. Tax plan that encouraged outsourcing Trump’s signature legislative achievement, the so-called Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), is mostly a large tax cut for corporations. Far from being a “worker-friendly” tax reform bill, it actually provided huge financial incentives for companies to send jobs overseas. Since Trump took office, an estimated 200,000 jobs have gone overseas. 12. Tax benefit for firms that outsource An under-noticed and particularly bad part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act provides a tax benefit for firms that “fissure” their operations by outsourcing work to subcontracted firms (anywhere in the world). This fissuring of the workplace will only be accelerated by the TCJA. 13. Encouraged offshoring of jobs, profits • Job losses: The TCJA has encouraged offshoring of both corporate profits and real production, resulting in a net loss of nearly 1,800 factories between 2016 and 2018 alone and 740,000 manufacturing jobs just since February 2020. • Tax losses: The TCJA has also accelerated profits being shifted to overseas tax havens, which deprives the United States of roughly $100 billion in revenue each year to benefit Americans. 14. Undermined job security for service workers In October 2019, Trump repealed Executive Order 13495, which required successor contractors to retain workers on federally funded service contracts for a set period of time. 15. Allowed states to privatize employment services A Trump Labor Department rule allows states to privatize employment services that use outside contractors instead of unemployed public employees in the administration of the employment services program. 16. Undercut workers’ freedom to organize Trump Supreme Court appointee Neil Gorsuch was the deciding vote on the already pro-business court’s disastrous Janus v. AFSCME decision imposing “right-to-work” conditions on all public employees. Trump has since appointed another anti-worker justice, Brett Kavanaugh, and has nominated extreme right-wing Judge Amy Coney Barrett to replace the late Ruth Bader Ginsberg, setting the stage for decades of anti-worker rulings by the high court, including possibly a case involving a national anti-union “right-to-work” law. 17. Allowed overvaluation of U.S. dollar, hurting jobs Dollar overvaluation is the single largest cause of growing U.S. trade deficits, causing the loss of five million U.S. manufacturing jobs and the closing of 91,000 plants since 1998. More than half of this negative increase has occurred since the Trump administration began imposing tariffs on China in March 2018. IMPACT ON HEALTH 18. Persistent effort to kill workers’ health care As millions of workers were losing their employer-sponsored insurance due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s worth noting the Trump administration and its Republican allies have: Asked the Supreme Court to rule the Affordable Care Act (ACA) unconstitutional. Weakened the ACA as part of the 2017 tax cut for corporations. Done nothing to make it easier for workers who lost employer-sponsored insurance due to the pandemic to slide into coverage under the ACA marketplace exchanges, even though an administrative fix to do so was easily available. 19. Failed to protect workers’ health Despite the continued spread of COVID-19 in the workplace and over 210,000 U.S. deaths, the Trump administration’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA): Refused to issue an emergency temporary standard for infectious disease to protect workers from the virus. Rejected a union petition for mandatory rules to protect workers from exposure to the coronavirus on the job. Halted all work on a permanent infectious disease standard in 2017 that would have protected workers from diseases like COVID-19 and mitigated the spread of the disease at workplaces and back into the community. Issued dangerous guidelines allowing essential workers to continue working even if they may have been exposed to the coronavirus — as long as they appear to be asymptomatic and the employers implement additional limited precautions – in stark contrast to stricter public guidelines that include quarantining exposed individuals. 20. Intimidated local health departments In April 2020, Trump issued an executive order that claimed to require the nation’s meat production plants to remain open. The executive order did not actually prevent public health departments from closing plants, but it has been used to intimidate local agencies against closing plants with multiple deaths and huge outbreaks. State and local agencies mistakenly thought that their hands were tied and they could not demand that the meat industry implement the most basic CDC guidance of providing masks and social distancing. As a result, 40,000 meat and poultry workers have become sick and hundreds died. IMPACT ON WORKERS SAFETY 21. Made it more dangerous to go to work Trump has killed OSHA safety standards and gutted its enforcement ability by reducing the number of safety and health inspectors to the lowest level in its 50-year history. There are so few inspectors now that it would take the agency 165 years to visit every U.S. workplace just once. 22. Allowed young workers to perform unsafe tasks In September 2018, the Labor Department proposed a rule to allow 16- and 17-year-olds to independently operate power-driven patient lifts, putting these young workers at risk and endangering patients. 23. Eliminated pay and safety rules The Trump administration blocked the implementation of the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces rule ensuring that taxpayer dollars are not awarded to contractors who cut corners on workplace safety and other labor protections. 24. Encouraged denying unemployment benefits The Trump Labor Department issued temporary guidance that encourages state unemployment insurance agencies to push employers to report workers who fail to return to work over concerns about coronavirus infection – so the workers can be disqualified from receiving further unemployment assistance, forcing them to put their and their families’ health at risk or risk poverty and hunger. 25. Repealed workplace injury reporting In 2017, Trump repealed the requirement that corporations maintain accurate injury and illness records. He then signed an executive order mandating agencies repeal two worker protections for every new one they adopt, and directed agencies to identify existing worker safeguards that can be labeled “burdensome” and therefore subject to repeal. 26. Halted planning for future pandemics Trump administration officials halted implementation of an Obama-era rule requiring hospitals and nursing homes to adopt plans, provide staff training and stockpile equipment (respirators, masks, etc.) to protect health workers and patients from future outbreaks of airborne infectious diseases – yes, specifically like COVID-19. 27. Delayed silica dust exposure rule In April 2017, OSHA delayed enforcement of a rule limiting workers’ exposure to deadly silica dust that can cause an incurable, often fatal, lung disease and is associated with an increased risk of lung cancer. This will cause an estimated 160 more worker deaths. 28. Removed record of worker deaths from OSHA homepage In August 2017, OSHA moved the list of workplace fatalities to an internal page, posting less information and burying information that could save workers’ lives. 29. Weakened standards for mine safety inspections In April 2018, the Mine Safety and Health Administration finalized a rule that weakened mine safety inspection requirements and withdrew more than a dozen rules protecting mineworkers from major hazards such as explosive coal dust and mining chemicals. 30. Allowed increase of line speeds during pandemic In April 2020, the Trump Department of Agriculture allowed 15 large poultry plants to increase their line speeds in the middle of the pandemic, despite many of the plants being sites of COVID-19 outbreaks. Poultry workers already faced high risk of work-related COVID-19 infections and serious injuries; this decision only exacerbated that risk. IMPACT ON SENIORS 31. Stopped funding for Social Security Under the guise of pandemic relief, Trump signed an executive order suspending funding for Social Security by allowing employers to defer withholding and paying the 6.2 percent employee share of the Social Security payroll tax for workers making less than $2,000 per week. This election-year bait-and-switch will provide a small boost for most workers, but will do nothing for unemployed workers, and workers will have to pay all of the deferred taxes back in January 2021. Trump even suggested making the tax cuts permanent but has not offered an alternative to replace the funding. 32. Restricted disabled Social Security benefits The Trump administration reinstated a Reagan-era rule that allows denial of Social Security benefits to people with disabilities by severely tightening disability requirements. It has also closed many Social Security offices, making it harder for the disabled to access their earned benefits. IMPACT ON WORKERS’ RIGHTS 33. Obstructed workers’ right to fair union elections Between March 19 and March 31, 2020, the Trump NLRB suspended all union elections, including mail ballot elections, and then allowed mail ballot elections, but only if the employer agreed. 34. Restricted on-the-job free speech The Trump administration and its agency heads have pursued an anti-union agenda by: Forcing more disputes into arbitration, rather than engaging in open bargaining with employees. Allowing executives to gag employees by banning them from talking with each other about internal investigations into corporate violations of worker rights and other work-related issues. Preventing employees from using cafeterias and other open-to-the-public company spaces to discuss workplace matters. Expanding “management rights” to let bosses make unilateral changes that undermine the collective bargaining process. Denying worker access to the company email system to communicate with co-workers about workplace issues. 35. Actively union-busting Trump agencies have attempted to break federal unions: Social Security and Veterans Administration Agency heads went into open warfare with their unions. The Federal Labor Relations Authority was ordered by Trump not to recognize the staff union. Department of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos was found guilty of union-busting after she attempted to violate the union contract. 36. Denied workers the right to class action claims The Trump Justice Department urged the U.S. Supreme Court to find it legal for employers to require workers to waive their rights to class action claims, siding with employers. 37. Eroded workers’ bargaining rights The Trump administration launched a multifaceted attack on the collective bargaining rights of federal workers, including limiting the use of official time for collective bargaining activities, weakening due process protections for federal workers subject to discipline and undermining the U.S. Postal Service. IMPACT ON WORKERS 38. Rejected protecting workers’ bargaining power On February 6, 2020, the Democratic controlled House of Representatives passed the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act to significantly restore workers’ right to organize and bargain collectively. Trump said he would veto the bill if it reached his desk, and the Republican controlled Senate refused to consider it. 39. Hindered worker organizing The Trump Labor Board gave employers more power to prevent union organizers and off-duty employees from talking with employees at the workplace about forming a union, even during non-work time. While employers retain the ability to hold mandatory anti-union meetings on the job, opportunities for workers to have pro-union meetings were eliminated. 40. Narrowed ‘joint-employer’ standard to benefit employers The Trump Labor Department passed a rule narrowing when a firm is deemed a “joint employer” (i.e. McDonald’s and its franchisees) substantially limiting employers’ liability for wage and hour violations and making it harder for workers to hold accountable all those who set their employment terms. The Economic Policy Institute estimated the ruling would cost workers more than $1 billion annually. A federal court struck down most of the rule. 41. Dismantled fiduciary protections for retirement savers The Trump Labor Department scrapped an Obama administration fiduciary rule requiring financial advisors to give investment advice that was in the best interest of the saver. Now, brokers and other salespeople can steer savers to higher-cost, lower-quality investments that are more beneficial to the advisor than the saver. 42. Narrowed ‘protected concerted activity’ The centerpiece of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) is workers’ right to engage in “protected concerted activity” — i.e. to protest, strike or organize a union — to improve their working conditions. The Trump National Labor Relations Board has systematically narrowed its interpretation of what counts as protected concerted activity, leaving workers unprotected against employer retaliation should there be a need to protest or strike over safety conditions or other employer rules that negatively impact working conditions. 43. Changed pandemic unemployment eligibility rules The Trump Labor Department issued guidance allowing states to create more restrictive rules determining who is eligibility for, and the duration of, the $300 weekly Pandemic Unemployment Benefits, disproportionately excluding those who were new to the labor force, not consistently employed full-time in the previous year, or whose incomes were too low to meet income thresholds –– exactly the types of workers most impacted by the virus. IMPACT ON AMERICA 44. American prestige at an all-time low According to a 25-nation survey conducted by the Pew Research Center, the world views America more negatively than ever before. To make matters worse, most of the world thinks the U.S. is in decline and China is on the rise. These numbers are a significant negative change from the results of similar surveys under previous administrations. 45. Forced government shutdown One of Trump’s most damaging efforts to punish federal workers (and consequently all Americans relying on government services) was the 35-day government shutdown of 2018-19. Why this unnecessary shutdown and lockout of these workers over the Christmas holiday season? Because Trump didn’t feel he got enough funding for his border wall. 46. Allowing foreign intrusions into our government While Trump openly praises dictators like Russia’s Vladimir Putin and North Korea’s Kim Jong-un, those relationships aren’t the only reason the world has concerns about who is influencing America’s foreign policy. Trump’s former campaign manager Paul Manafort has a long history with Russia and Ukraine and other foreign leaders. . During the Mueller probe, investigators found at least 17 of Trump’s campaign officials and advisors had more than 100 contacts with Russians. Trump’s longtime personal lawyer and fixer Michael Cohen and former national security advisor Michael Flynn had numerous contacts with Russians throughout the 2016 campaign. Both went to jail for lying about those contacts. The Trump campaign gutted the Republican Party platform’s anti-Russian stance on Ukraine. 47. Diminished integrity, accuracy of 2020 Census The 2020 Census plays a central role in allocating political representation and federal government resources across states and localities, a vital issue to American democracy. In 2019, the Trump administration proposed a failed effort to add a citizenship question to the 2020 Census questionnaire, which would have depressed response rates, cost taxpayers more money and diminished the accuracy of the Census. (The Supreme Court blocked it.) . 48. Attempting to deport DACA students, minors Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) has been one of the most successful immigrant integration programs ever. It allows eligible migrants who entered the United States without authorization as minors to obtain a temporary reprieve from deportation, allowing them to work, pay taxes and attend college, giving them labor rights that have translated into wage gains and making it more difficult for employers to exploit immigrant workers and the U.S.-born workers who work alongside them. Despite legal challenges and the Supreme Court ruling against the administration’s previous attempts kill DACA, the Trump administration has vowed to continue its efforts to end the program. 49. Suspended issuance of green cards In June 2020, Trump suspended the issuance of permanent immigrant visas – “green cards” – to migrants applying for them from abroad. Green cards grant lawful permanent resident status, which provides a path to citizenship for immigrants who wish to naturalize. While this effort was clearly an attempt to scapegoat immigrants and blame them for a crashing economy in the spring of 2020, it has had a hugely negative impact on agriculture that relies on immigrants to harvest fields across America, ultimately raising the price of products on American shelves. NOT MADE IN AMERICA 50. American manufacturing Trump constantly talks about bringing manufacturing back to America, but the Donald J. Trump Collection of hats, shirts, eyeglasses, perfume, cuff links and suits are made in Bangladesh, China, Honduras and other low-wage countries. His campaign’s “Make America Great Again” hats are made in China. Trump’s daughter, Ivanka, a vice president at his company, presidential advisor and frequent campaign surrogate, markets hundreds of additional products under her own line of jewelry and clothing, 75 percent of which are imported, and 56 percent of which are made in China, the country Trump most often blames for the large U.S. trade deficit. Less than a third of Trump’s products are made in the U.S. It would be nice if President Trump followed his own advice to “Buy American, America First.” (Sources: Edited from a detailed Sept. 16, 2020 report by the Economic Polity Institute “50 reasons The Trump Administration is Bad for Workers.” For detailed citations of the facts in this report go to epi.org/publication/50-reasons. Additional sources include Social Security Works, Ucomm blog, The Hightower Lowdown, Daily Kos, Quartz and the Brookings Institution.) Filed under: Elections labortribune.com And that's just to get you started. !!!!!!!!!!! Please note that I have not included: the more than 5,000 court cases he has been involved in where he refused to pay people he contracted to do work for him. AFTER they did the work he demanded they accept a fraction of the bill or get nothing at all. This hurt countless small business people. Please note that I have not included : his 19 out of a possible 100 business credit score , his six bankruptcies to avoid repaying loans. Please note that I have not included : his disloyalty to all his wives because committing adultery is like breathing for him. But hey I guess that just means that he who can not be trusted with anything, must be trusted with everything! |
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zorro If "He" refers to me, yes I do take my car to the dentist, because he is 40 miles from me and there is no public transportation here. As far as a tetanus shot, I have mentioned before that I have had periodic tetanus shots, just to remind you. But I expect you to repeat the lie, because it fits your narrative. |
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BUTTT>>>>>>> |
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<<I know this was directed at LS but i'll bite... >> Well, the pointless vanity wall DID have a point, pander to American racists and piss off our southern neighbors. Granted, some wall was necessary, and had he stuck with border patrol recommendations plus beefing up personnel, who make any real difference, he would have met little resistance from the left. It is, of course, a favorite and oft repeated lie from many in the right Biden wants illegals to vote. Back in reality I think between 2003 and 2023 states produced some 20 examples of ballots cast by immigrants not authorized to vote—most simply due to misunderstanding as opposed to intentional fraud. It is illegal for non citizens to vote in federal elections—there is already a law addressing this virtually non existent phenomenon. So Mike Johnson was super excited to announce a second law was recently passed addressing this same issue. I disagreed with Trump’s policy of abandoning the Kurds who sacrificed their lives fighting Al Queda for us, and all the military equipment we simply left to Syria and Russia. Very sad Ukrainians faced weapons we provided the Russian orc invaders of their peaceful, non threatening homeland. Trump tariffs hurt US agriculture, which he subsequently poorly subsidized to offset their losses. Trump wasn’t really big on policy, he was more of a seat of the pants kind of guy. Whatever shined brightest in the camera lens was his policy. His campaign’s sole policy plank in the 2016 convention was to deny arms shipments to Ukraine. This was a gift to Putin, who was dead set against the antitank tech Trump later withheld in his extortion effort leading to impeachment number one. Here is a list from Ballotpedia: FIRST, propose a constitutional amendment to impose term limits on all members of Congress. Failed. But also a bad idea. Granted, I would not have minded Mitch McConnell term limited. But aside from allowing executive privilege to metastasize, why remove someone competent and good? SECOND, a hiring freeze on all federal employees to reduce the federal workforce through attrition (exempting military, public safety, and public health). Very damaging to the department of state. Trump soured international relations failing to make appointments, and many of those he made were poor. “Heckuva job, Brownie!” (Yes, I know that was Bush, complimenting an incompetent FEMA director). THIRD, a requirement that for every new federal regulation, two existing regulations must be eliminated. Failed, but also very poorly considered. FOURTH, a five-year ban on White House and Congressional officials becoming lobbyists after they leave government service. Failed— but actually this one I could endorse. FIFTH, a lifetime ban on White House officials lobbying on behalf of a foreign government. I believe that failed, but was another solid idea. SIXTH, a complete ban on foreign lobbyists raising money for American elections. Ok, he had a few decent ideas. Seven actions to protect American workers: FIRST, I will announce my intention to renegotiate NAFTA or withdraw from the deal under Article 2205. Bad. Ultimately the deal was almost identical, save what we gave up. Not quite as bad for our trading partners. SECOND, I will announce our withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Bad. THIRD, I will direct the Secretary of the Treasury to label China a currency manipulator. Would need more examination of this one. FOURTH, I will direct the Secretary of Commerce and U.S. Trade Representative to identify all foreign trading abuses that unfairly impact American workers and direct them to use every tool under American and international law to end those abuses immediately. Never happened, but not poorly considered. FIFTH, I will lift the restrictions on the production of $50 trillion dollars’ worth of job-producing American energy reserves, including shale, oil, natural gas and clean coal. Bad for the environment. Though Biden has not done any better. SIXTH, lift the Obama-Clinton roadblocks and allow vital energy infrastructure projects, like the Keystone Pipeline, to move forward. Failed. Also environmentally and economically unsound. SEVENTH, cancel billions in payments to U.N. climate change programs and use the money to fix America’s water and environmental infrastructure. Failed. First off, we are not paying billions—this was a lie. Five actions to restore security and the constitutional rule of law: FIRST, cancel every unconstitutional executive action, memorandum and order issued by President Obama. Failed, and bad. SECOND, begin the process of selecting a replacement for Justice Scalia from one of the 20 judges on my list, who will uphold and defend the U.S. Constitution. Bad. THIRD, cancel all federal funding to sanctuary cities. Retribution. FOURTH, begin removing the more than two million criminal illegal immigrants from the country and cancel visas to foreign countries that won’t take them back. Mostly bad. FIFTH, suspend immigration from terror-prone regions where vetting cannot safely occur. All vetting of people coming into our country will be considered “extreme vetting.” He did not really change existing policy, this was simply showmanship. But busting up immigrant families was the real icing, sprinkled with liberal candied lies that Biden welcomed illegal immigrants to exacerbate problems for the incoming administration. Which is how Trump vetoed the bipartisan immigration bill authored by a conservative Republican. |
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apatzer <Please note that I have not included: the more than 5,000 court cases he has been involved in where he refused to pay people he contracted to do work for him. AFTER they did the work he demanded they accept a fraction of the bill or get nothing at all. This hurt countless small business people. Please note that I have not included : his 19 out of a possible 100 business credit score , his six bankruptcies to avoid repaying loans. Please note that I have not included : his disloyalty to all his wives because committing adultery is like breathing for him. But hey I guess that just means that he who can not be trusted with anything, must be trusted with everything!> None of these things affect me as a citizen any more than other presidential actions taken before their term affected their evaluations of their performance of duties while in office. ================== I will respond to #50 on your list though. There is no proof that Pres. Trump was personally involved in sourcing campaign clothing, pins, or signs. I would challenge you to find a recent candidate for any political office who distinguishes himself from Pres. Trump by not obtaining these materials from cheaper foreign manufacturers. This charge is pure bovine scatology. To blame Donald Trump for the actions of his adult daughter is ludicrous. He has no more control over her than Joe Biden has over Hunter, whose actions were obviously illegal, whereas Ivanka's were not. If Bill Clinton's marital infidelity both before holding office and while in the White House were no big deal, why is Donald Trump not given the same free pass - especially as no proof of marital misconduct while President has even been alleged, much less proven by a blue dress? Donald Trump never bragged about showering with his daughter, but Joe Biden did. Oh....and you might be interested in reading Tara Reade's story. Can we slay "double standard" on this one? |
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Double Standard What law did Hunter violate accepting a board position? Hunter was never an advisor to the president, as Ivanka was. Hunter DID violate a gun law many conservatives oppose. Also, he did smoke crack. He was charged and pled guilty to these offenses. As for Tara Reade, her story is not credible. Not a single one of Trump’s accusers subsequently praised him for his efforts on behalf of sexual assault victims. Ms. Reade is now a citizen of Russia, where Putin might send her to the Ukraine front to murder civilians, in a more just world. |
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GM That statement alone shows your overly Indulgent attitude and contortions in excusing the inexcusable. It also shows an utter disregard for biblical principles and a lack of wisdom. Because those multitude of things is a testament to that man's character and his character affects everything he decides to do. And yes they did affect you. Yes, I did copy paste and gave you my sources. You see you query's to LS got me thinking. So I looked into a large amount of Trump's policies and was astounded by what I read. Then (for ease of posting) I searched to see if these abhorrent policies had been gathered in an organized list. They had! So for your ease of review and my ease of posting. I presented them. May I suggest that moving forward, don't ask questions that you not only don't want to know the answer to. Are to laissez-faire to verify or aren't interested in. But I knew it was a waste of time to begin with. But it is good to know that you condone, stealing, swindling, slander, sexual assault, discrimination, fraud etc just as long as YOU feel it doesn't personally affect you as a citizen. Good to know 👍👍 Bill Clinton's infidelity was a big deal to me and I didn't vote for the man! But let's compare Apple's to Apples shall we. Bill Clinton has had one wife his entire life, he cheated on her with at least 5 women. Two that I know of, with three other allegations. That alone lost my vote. Donald John Trump has been married 3 times, and has at least 19 women have publicly accused Trump of sexual harassment and misconduct . Plaid off porn stars that he had unprotected sex with, and has NDA's with a plethora of women. Oh I'm sorry did you actually think that I supported Bill Clinton? Trying to compare the two men on the faithfulness front is like trying to compare a man who killed 3 in a domestic dispute with Ted Bundy, just to make Bundy look less sleazy. You really wanna go there??? Even if I were to cathedral point about point number 50 which I am not going to do it still wouldn't matter you still have hundreds of others to look at!!!? the timing of some of the trademark approvals raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest. In May 2018, Ivanka Trump's company was granted several new trademarks a week before Trump announced he wanted to lift sanctions on the Chinese company ZTE, which had violated U.S. sanctions. www.theguardian.com But the fact that the matter is is you are one of those two as I say not as I do types and if your guy does it it's just okay that's all there is to it!! And guess what while your lot was crying that Bill Clinton had infidelity so he wouldn't be faithful to the country I was right there along with you right. But the only difference between us is now that when someone you like does it you're okay with it now that's called hypocrisy sir! |
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I used text to speech |
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Sexual Assault Broaddrick filed an affidavit with Paula Jones's lawyers stating there were unfounded rumors and stories circulating "that Mr. Clinton had made unwelcome sexual advances toward me in the late seventies. ... These allegations are untrue". She then recanted that statement to investigators of potential misconduct by Clinton led by Kenneth Starr, while insisting at the time that Clinton had not pressured or bribed her in any way. Starr declined to further investigate the issue, and mentioned it only in a footnote of his final report. Speculation continued that Broaddrick had more to say on the matter, and in an interview with Dateline NBC that aired on February 24, 1999, Broaddrick discussed the matter in public for the first time, this time saying that Clinton had raped her, which a lawyer for Clinton denied to be true. Broaddrick's claims returned to public attention in relation to the 2016 Hillary Clinton presidential campaign and the 2017 Me Too movement. She wrote a memoir repeating the allegation in 2018. End quote. So did Broaddrick commit perjury, or was she the victim of false memories? She later accused Hillary of killing her cat. Her statements seem to have drifted further and further from reality as time went on. That happens to people. Alien abduction stories often grow more detailed over time, and frequently entail rape or anal probes, whereas real memories tend to grow fuzzier and less reliable over time. That is the nature of human consciousness—our brains are wired to fill in detail, and we are highly susceptible to suggestion. One example of that is the McMartin preschool. There was never any satanic ritual conducted there, but it became California’s longest criminal trial. Wenatchee Washington had a police investigator convinced a certain church was molesting children. Those children had false memories implanted by poorly trained social workers. The people were all ultimately found not guilty. Not that many churches have NOT conducted themselves horribly with respect to sexual abuse of minors—of which I have personal experience. But aside from kiddie porn (which was a minor cottage industry until Reagan got the U.S. Postal Service to become the world’s largest producer and distributor), most pedophilia are lone individuals not working in concert. Coaches, youth pastors, Sunday school teachers, etc. Now, I agree that if a teacher has sex with a 17 year old student, she should be fired. That violates ethical conduct standards. But prison? If I were a 17 year old student the only reason I might report something of that nature were if I contracted an STD. Some of these people marry their “victims” and live happily ever after once they are released from prison. Hard to see what any real crime might have been. I think I’m drifting off topic. Bill’s behavior was abhorrent and indefensible. But was it worthy of impeachment? If Trump received a blowjob from an intern I would agree with censure but not impeachment. Or if Trump lied about paying hush money to a porn star—probably worthy of criminal prosecution but not impeachment. That isn’t a high crime or treason. Just really poor judgment. I swear though that if Biden pressured foreign officials to subvert US elections, or incited insurrection, I would absolutely want him impeached and removed from office. If Biden was later revealed to have orchestrated a phony elector scheme to overturn the will of the people, or pressured state election workers to “find” 10,000 votes in his favor, he would not earn my vote. He could pay hush money to a porn star. If efforts to fraudulently conceal that violated the law I have no issue with him facing trial over it, but it would not be enough to deter my vote for him—provided I supported his policies and opposed those of his opponent. Those are legal issues independent of his qualification for office. I like what one politician said—if you agree with the majority of my policies, vote for me. If you agree with ALL my policies, please consult a therapist. |
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dmaestro 15-May-24, 12:55 |
I see GM now as mixing Christian Nationalism, MAGA and right wing libertarianism something I find toxic and have zero affinity with. But highly intelligent who knows what he is doing. www.politico.com It is less important that specific claims be accepted as true by Trump apologists than seeing the general picture. This endless nitpicking over conceding any point as we see from Trump’ s lawyers on down is just the cultic norm. Christian Nationalism is a threat, the greatest threat we face internally right now www.americanprogress.org. Trump and allies see him as God’s tool and plan to use every power they can to force it down our throats. And as we have legend Trump can abuse the office and run a mob operation with impunity so the danger is real. They claim he doesn’t mean it and we will retain our freedoms. Just like was said of Hitler. These MAGA apologists simply have basic mindsets and values that I find repulsive and a threat. That is where I must start and end Not whether there is some excuse. So whatever…carry on. |
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Grammar Thumper writes pretty well too. |
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GM and Patz “ May I suggest that moving forward, [GM], don't ask questions that you not only don't want to know the answer to. Are too laissez-faire to verify or aren't interested in.” Interesting. Twice in the last couple days, GM has asked me specific questions. Shich I answered straightforwardly and not rudely at all. Both yines my responses were utterly ignored. |
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GMF 05:50 1. <The President has virtually zero control of the FRB.> The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, commonly known as the Federal Reserve Board, is the main governing body of the Federal Reserve System. It is charged with overseeing the Federal Reserve Banks and with helping implement the monetary policy of the United States. Governors are appointed by the president of the United States and confirmed by the Senate for staggered 14-year terms. 2. <The article I linked says exactly the opposite. The Deep State (CIA, FRB, CDC, FDA, BATFE, etc.) are NOT elected.> Quite right! These are government agencies, appointed and controlled (subject to Law) by the Executive Branch of the government and charged with carrying out government policy. They are NOT elected themselves, but under the authority of the President who IS elected. Isn't that what my post said? |
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Zorroloco Just as Dietrich Bonhoeffer faced in his day and age. So do we now. Facts simply need not be believed or are brushed off as inconsequential. |
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GMF 7:17 1. [<The President appoints the Fed Chair. It’s political. > From a very small pool of FRB directors.] Who gets into the 'very small pool' and how? By recognised merit! Even if this were not so, the Prez can still appoint whomever he will, subject to Congressional approval. Both the Prez and Congress who do the appointing are elected. 2. [<The right has been pushing the deep state conspiracy forever.> If this is true, what is wrong with stating it? Disprove it, if you can.] The proponent of the theory has the onus of proving it; the detractors do NOT have to prove it false. So far, every attempt at 'proving' the Deep State as an organisation that is a law unto itself has failed miserably under close examination, riddled with internal contradictions post-hoc 'explanations' when its 'predictions' are wrong. And there are ever-changing excuses and even when a foreign government which is part of this international cabal is tossed out and their adversaries are elected with radically different policies, this is 'interpreted' as merely the cabal changing tactics. But they're all in it! In short, the 'Deep State' (in that form) HAS been disproved, it's just that some people refuse to realise it. However, there is indeed a 'Deep State' in America. This consists of millions of everyday men and women who have sworn an oath to 'defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign or domestic'. Most are service men and women, some are law enforcement officers, some are politicians, some are government officials, etc. It is this depth of service to the Constitution over personalities that gives the 'Deep State' (in this sense) its strength. It is nauseating to see some people who think that loyalty to one man is more important, and yet they call themselves 'Patriots'! 3. <Now, as for "experts" are we referring to people like the human cockroach, Anthony Fauci, who told us not to wear masks, then to wear a mask, and then to wear two masks?> Context is everything! Don't you remember your mother holding your hand and saying 'Stay on the footpath!' and only a few seconds later saying 'Cross the road now'? This concept of 'context' applies to most things in life, but is one of the first things forgotten in polemics. Your other examples fall into the same category... <This same person who told us that the minimally-tested vaccine was "safe and effective?"> Safer than the risk of COVID, and more effective than anything else available at the time, while buying time for more testing and alternatives to become available. <Or Deborah Birx, who is now walking back her previous advice?> That's what humble, intelligent people do when better information becomes available. Why stick to your first estimate if the data it was based on is improved, or the circumstances it applied to are no longer relevant? <Or are we talking about military experts who engineered the debacle of the Afghanistan withdrawal?> Every complete withdrawal from a siege situation involves losses. Better to blame the idiots who got you into that situation; Republican Bush in the first instance, and Republican Trump who 'negotiated' the disaster-in-making but pushed it back until after the election. <Or perhaps the engineers who have brought us Bidenomics with huge inflation and a staggering economy> Please learn a little bit about economics, as well as including context in your posts. Inflation is the result of a mismatch between supply and demand. Supply chains were disrupted world-wide by COVID, and once the pandemic eased and people started to spend, that caused the mismatch. The same happened not just in America, but throughout the western world! That's not 'Bidenomics', but Market Capitalism! But you don't want to acknowledge the boom-bust nature of Market economics, so you pin that tail on any convenient scapegoat instead, <Chinese electric vehicles because they would outsell the EV's that American manufacturers cannot sell to a skeptical American public?> If the 'skeptical American public' won't buy American EVs, then what difference would Chinese competition make? Oh, that's right! The Chinese can do it for half the price, because they have actually been working on that problem while American manufacturers have been wedded to gasoline engines! This is how lack of forward planning by Americans is somehow turned into evidence of an insidious plot by foreigners (preferably foreigners of a different 'race'). <Or perhaps we are talking about the foreign policy experts who went to Ukraine with Boris Johnson to convince Zelensky to cease negotiations with Russia> It doesn't take much 'convincing' when the other party's position is that your entire country has no right to exist and should become part of the Putin Dictatorship. Remember, Putin had already seized the whole of Crimea and most of two other provinces in the East, and he wasn't 'negotiating' to withdraw from them. <and go to war instead.> The problem you face here is that PUTIN 'went to war', not Zelensky. I don't recall Ukrainian troops on the outskirts of Moscow at any stage, nor Rostov-on-Don being turned into a pile of rubble like Mariupol. Please, you know how to debate intelligently; you have shown that many times! Don't abandon that technique now! |
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