Trump restructures National Security Council

[Bags]

Four pages and still no defense of this? I guess something is indefensible after all.

[Shadowferal]

I'm reminded of the speech of the character "Lewis Prothero" in V for Vendetta:

Here was a country that had everything, absolutely everything, and now, 20 years later, is what? The world's biggest leper colony. Why? Godlessness. Let me say that again: Godlessness. It wasn't the war they started. It wasn't the plague they created. It was judgment. No-one escapes their past. No-one escapes judgment. You think He's not up there? You think He's not watching over this country? How else can you explain it? He tested us, but we came through. We did what we had to do. Islington, Enfield. I was there. I saw it all. Immigrants, Muslims, homosexuals, terrorists, disease-ridden degenerates. They had to go! Strength through unity, unity through faith! I'm a God-fearing Englishman and I am goddamn proud of it!

[Slybak]

Even i, as a person who hasn't got a clue, want to see how Trump supporters spin this.

According to his own memoir, former SecDef Bob Gates threw an absolute shitfit when David Axelrod - who had Bannon's job under Obama - attended one meeting of the Principals Committee.

That'll probably be their lead - OBAMA DID IT LIBTARDS - ignoring the fact that Bannon has been made a permanent member of the committee. Then they'll just go back to the same SCARY MOOOSLIMS and DEUS VULT horseshit that they masturbate to on 4chan.

[JohnBrown1917]

Four pages and still no defense of this? I guess something is indefensible after all.

Its hard to defend a nazi.

[Breccia]

According to his own memoir, former SecDef Bob Gates threw an absolute shitfit when David Axelrod - who had Bannon's job under Obama - attended one meeting of the Principals Committee.

Also, Joshua Bolten/Karl Rove. Same thing.

[Arenis]

So let me get this straight:

The leader of the biggest white supremacist website (which consists 100% fake-news and numbers taken out of context, substituted with their own made up context) and therefore also someone who monetises the most gullible people in society, is appointed as one of the most important persons when it comes to national security.

A fake, a fraud, a deceiver, a neo-nazi and a scam, is now 'top doge' in the USA.

Republicans, Democrats and Independant Voters of the USA, what the fuck have you done.

[serenka]

Four pages and still no defense of this? I guess something is indefensible after all.

thats a good sign, no one should ever agree with everything their favorite politician does

[BrerBear]

This NSC move is almost too much to believe. Is Trump really going to bring us together after all?

I'm solidly center-left, but I find myself rallying alongside a lot of patriotic conservatives these days who've seen through Trump's shit and put country (and morals) before party. Don't have to agree with them on everything, just the prospect of discussing our differences rationally.

This is starting to feel like the end of a buddy-cop movie where the heroes who spent the whole movie fighting have to team up to take down the true enemy...

[ati87]

thats a good sign, no one should ever agree with everything their favorite politician does

Well normally they just repeat the talking points of their overlords, so they are waiting for instructions.

[Grimbold21]

What is this doing in Gen OT's second page? Trumpettes hoping it'll vanish?

[unfilteredJW]

What is this doing in Gen OT's second page? Trumpettes hoping it'll vanish?

Can't smile through this shit sandwich.

[Bags]

Guess they can't defend this or admit it's stupid.

[Powerogue]

You should read the whole interview where it came out. It's really disturbing. The guy thinks WW2 was Judeo-Christianity vs Atheists and wants a new one of Judeo-Christianity vs Islam and Atheists.

Yikes. I have 3 words for the guy: Gott mit uns.

This is going from "this next 4 years is going to suck" to "I'm scared."

This is starting to feel like the end of a buddy-cop movie where the heroes who spent the whole movie fighting have to team up to take down the true enemy...

That would be by far the best way for this to end. Nothing unites people like a common enemy.

[Kasierith]

Hey, look, the exact sort of thing that Putin did to dismantle his military's ability to oppose him in any meaningful way. Replace everyone competent enough to be a threat with yes people.

[Skroe]

Well to be fair, it's quite interesting watching a US President trying to seize all power, let's hope the Americans arent as spineless as the Russians.

Have faith in us. Americans are fighters. The majority of American voters rejected Trump in December. He won only through our arcane, un-democratic rules. And let's just say, Trump's ratings have fallen further and he hasn't done much to engender support from anybody since then, and a hell of a lot to alienate.


But there is also one more fundamental truth about Americans that plays to our favor: we love to smash down those we lift up. That's as American as apple pie. There has not been a President in the post-war era, except maybe Eisenhower and Kennedy (who didn't live long), who hasn't been felled by something they said or did. Even with Obama, the phrase "if you like your healthcare, you'll be able to keep it!" is the phrase that pretty much sealed his Presidency's fate.

It's as I've been saying: Donald Trump will not be destroyed by one failure and policy disaster. He'll be destroyed by the one that breaks the camels back. Between Bannon on the NSC, his first 7 days, the Muslim ban, he's on schedule in building a pile of these failures. The big one is in the future.


However considering that Bannon is a Nazi, and Trumps ratings are falling, at the risk of sounding paranoid, we need to keep an eye out for his version of a Reichstag Fire, or sinking of the USS Maine (or perhaps more known to you, a Gulf of Tonkin incident). Bannon is not a stupid man. The rest of the American people and the world at large need to strongly resist the "Rally around the President" effect when these people try that stunt.

I say this particularly in regard to our European friends. Without the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the DNI in that room, nothing coming out of the NSC can be regarded as reliable or trustworthy. Europe needs to be tougher on America for proof than after 9/11.

Our European friends squeezing from the outside, just as Teresa May did the other day, and us Americans on the inside, will in time, be enough to crush Trump and his racist group.

[Wyrt]

Republicans, Democrats and Independant Voters of the USA, what the fuck have you done.

I did nothing. Trump lost my state in a landslide and that's about all we can do. Not our fault our votes are unfairly devalued because of some archaic election system.

[May90]

Hey, look, the exact sort of thing that Putin did to dismantle his military's ability to oppose him in any meaningful way. Replace everyone competent enough to be a threat with yes people.

That's what he has been doing with his cabinet as well. He's been appointing the people that were discredited in some way and whose political career was crumbling / had crumbled - and now they are dependent on him, he is their only hope, without him they are off for a disgraceful retirement.

We shouldn't be surprised... All these methods have been practiced and perfected for thousands years. At least he seems to have done his homework on something! *applauding rigorously*

[Skroe]

Hey, look, the exact sort of thing that Putin did to dismantle his military's ability to oppose him in any meaningful way. Replace everyone competent enough to be a threat with yes people.

A key difference here though is that the US Armed Forces promote from within and is extremely resistant to outside influence. Historically, like any organization, promotion through the ranks of the US military is done in such a way that the current officers sitting on the promotion boards promote up officers who relfect their views. This brings change very slowly to the organization, and is a big reason why, for example, after his successful campaign in Mosul in 2003, US Army General David Petraeus was sent basically to exile for a few years - his counter insurgency theories did not reflect his superior's heavy armor fundamentalism. It was only have they had pretty much blown it in Iraq in 2004,2005, and 2006, and Robert Gates was brought in, that Petraeus was elevated.

Obama too, tried to fiddle with picking favorites in the military, who reflected his desire for the US military to be more like a counter-terrorism task force, and less like either the Petraeus model Counter-Insurgency / Nation Building Force or the classic "Designed for War against a Near Peer" fighting force. He found very little success in this, with only a couple of names. The Obama Administration's relationship with the US Military was basically dysfunctional and at times they basically did what they wanted by broadly interpreting his orders. I'll say it again: everything you need to know about US Military / Civilian relations can be said in the fact that the US Military bombed 40 Syrian soldiers 2 days before Obama's scheme to partner up with the Russians in Syria went into effect. That is not the first, and will not be the last time the US Military decides to exercise a "veto" on something a civilian decided.

With respect to the Chairman of the JCS, and the Joint Staff as a whole, the President typically nominates a name put forward by the armed forces as their candidate. Back in 2003 when Donald Rumsfeld recalled Peter Schoomaker to be Army Chief of Staff, out of retirement, it caused a major commotion within the US Army, and Schoomaker found himself largely sidelines two and a half years into his tenure as the Iraq War worsened.

Any member of the Chiefs of Staff must be confirmed by the Senate, along with any Combatant Commanders (the head of the 10 Commands, and the operational leaders of the US Military... i.e. Central Command / the Middle East, European Command / NATO, Pacific Command, Strategic Command, etc).

This offers a strong buffer against Trump, or anyone else being able to politicize the US Military. Trump will try of course, but he will not be the first to try and fail.

- - - Updated - - -

This NSC move is almost too much to believe. Is Trump really going to bring us together after all?

I'm solidly center-left, but I find myself rallying alongside a lot of patriotic conservatives these days who've seen through Trump's shit and put country (and morals) before party. Don't have to agree with them on everything, just the prospect of discussing our differences rationally.

This is starting to feel like the end of a buddy-cop movie where the heroes who spent the whole movie fighting have to team up to take down the true enemy...

In the end, there are broadly American and un-American practices. Trumpism in all its forms, is firmly the latter. That puts the traditional right, center and left, firmly in the former. We vary in details, but we do nothing out of malice, unlike Trumpism.

The founders too, were of many political stripes. John Adams and Thomas Jefferson couldn't be more opposed on the basic principles of the extent of Federal power, but were both the dearest of friends and unwavering allies during the Revolution. They are our example.

We're on the same team. Our country needs us.

[Skroe]

But people.. C'mon! Give Trump a(nother) chance!

I actually had someone say this to me today. IRL. "Give Trump a Chance". For real.

I actually had to explain, IRL, why it is probably not the right thing to do, to give a guy who spent a year saying racist, sexist, fascist, authoritiarian, cruel, false... you get the picture... things, a chance. He hadn't exactly earned that chance.

It hurts my head that had to be explained.

The Trumpkins had over a year to get off the crazy train... Trump certainly made it easy. Them wanting us to give him a chance stinks of like, wanting decent people to legitimize their miserable decision to cover their escape down the road.

[Azadina]

I actually had someone say this to me today. IRL. "Give Trump a Chance". For real.

I actually had to explain, IRL, why it is probably not the right thing to do, to give a guy who spent a year saying racist, sexist, fascist, authoritiarian, cruel, false... you get the picture... things, a chance. He hadn't exactly earned that chance.

It hurts my head that had to be explained.

The Trumpkins had over a year to get off the crazy train... Trump certainly made it easy. Them wanting us to give him a chance stinks of like, wanting decent people to legitimize their miserable decision to cover their escape down the road.

They'll no doubt try to spin it as "well, you approved of him too!" if people give such a chance to him.