Mega-Thread: Trump Focused Discussion

[Edge-]

Trump hits Fox News's Chris Wallace over Ukraine coverage

I love that Trump doesn't realize that by tweeting this shit constantly all he's doing is showing the world how much time he wastes watching Fox News all the time.

[kaelleria]

If Putin could write the script it would go:

- U.S. lets Turks slaughter Kurds, pushing Kurds closer to Assad/Russia

- U.S. then panics and sanctions Turkey, splintering NATO & solidifying Russia/Iran/Turkey axis.

But Putin didn’t have to write it. Trump & GOP did it for him.

https://twitter.com/ChrisMurphyCT/st...228775429?s=19

[Edge-]

https://twitter.com/ChrisMurphyCT/st...228775429?s=19

He's not wrong. This is why it's dangerous to have no coherent foreign policy or strategy, and why foreign policy on "gut/whim/instinct" choices are dangerously stupid. Bonus points when you have an easy to manipulate rube running said foreign policy who can be swayed with a few words from a close ally one way or the other.

[dubious_doomhammer]

I love that Trump doesn't realize that by tweeting this shit constantly all he's doing is showing the world how much time he wastes watching Fox News all the time.

You mean in between golfing, rallies and other unproductive and destructive things he does? Don't worry, the rest of the world is fully aware of his ineptitude.

[Breccia]

"the Chinese got what they want" while the U.S. got very little in return

Just a reminder: nobody's signed anything yet.

But what little we do know includes very little. China buys some agriproducts they would have gotten anyhow, if not for the trade war. Trump continues to apply the largest tax increase in American history, he just didn't escalate it. I haven't been checking as closely this three-day weekend, but no time like the present.

Meaningless

Whoa whoa whoa! Slow down, there, Reuters! Wanna fill in some context?

China is still a long way from forking out $50 billion for farm goods from the United States, agriculture industry analysts said on Monday, cautioning that getting there is contingent on removing substantial technical and political hurdles.

Outlining the first phase of a deal to end a trade war with China, U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday lauded his counterparts for agreeing to make purchases of $40 billion to $50 billion in U.S. agricultural goods.

That would be double the $24 billion China spent on American farm goods in 2017.

But Darin Friedrichs, senior Asia commodity analyst at brokerage INTL FCStone in Shanghai, threw cold water on the pledge.

“I think it’s a meaningless big number, thrown out to get headlines, and won’t happen,” Friedrichs told Reuters.

Boosting purchases so substantially will depend on further progress on other, more thorny, issues still to be dealt with in the talks, said Friedrichs and others.

“It’s probably still dependent on a larger deal going through,” said Tobin Gorey, director of Agri Commodities Strategy at Commonwealth Bank in Sydney.

So part of the question is, how will China suddenly double -- or more -- its purchases? By canceling their deals with Brazil and others? Considering their recent investments, that seems...risky.

Also:

Trump had said previously he would not be satisfied with a partial deal to resolve his effort to change China’s trade, intellectual property and industrial policy practices, which he argues cost millions of U.S. jobs. On Friday, he said he had decided that a phased approach was appropriate.

Yep, that's Trump lying again.

- - - Updated - - -

What do you think Trump would do if he didn't spend his entire day watching Fox and bullshitting?

Also, did he just say "Finally Germany stepped up to deal with the problem I created! What took them so long?"

[Belize]

[IMG]https://i.imgur.com/iF1hV8y.png?1[/IM
[IMG]https://i.imgur.com/Fx1Cx72.png?1[/IM
[IMG]https://i.imgur.com/Evaw9Ph.png?1[/IM

What do you think Trump would do if he didn't spend his entire day watching Fox and bullshitting?

Does he think Napoleon is still alive?

Genuinely curious.

[Nurasu]

Does he think Napoleon is still alive?

Genuinely curious.

He died on Normandy, unlike the filthy Kurds.

[Shadowferal]

The tweet shared from the former Army staff sergeant's account featured the Pyotr Velikiy, a Kirov-class battlecruiser in the Russian navy. The tweet was deleted soon after some members of the media flagged the error.

------------------------

Maybe he's trying to show his support for the country that holds his true loyalty.

[Belize]

[url=https://thehill.com/homenews/house/465717-gop-lawmaker-mistakenly-wishes-navy-happy-birthday-with-photo-of-russian-ship][img]https://thehill.com/sites/default/files/styles/thumb_small_article/public/brian_mast_ship_1013.png?itok=e8lC8FNX[/i

The tweet shared from the former Army staff sergeant's account featured the Pyotr Velikiy, a Kirov-class battlecruiser in the Russian navy. The tweet was deleted soon after some members of the media flagged the error.

------------------------

Maybe he's trying to show his support for the country that holds his true loyalty.

Freudian Slip?

[RaoBurning]

Freudian Slip?

Freudian Ship, more like.

[Thekri]

Does he think Napoleon is still alive?

Genuinely curious.

I have honestly no idea how Napoleon Bonaparte fit into that sentence. It is one of the more bizarre non-sequiturs I have seen in a while. The man has totally lost his mind.

The tweet shared from the former Army staff sergeant's account featured the Pyotr Velikiy, a Kirov-class battlecruiser in the Russian navy. The tweet was deleted soon after some members of the media flagged the error.

------------------------

Maybe he's trying to show his support for the country that holds his true loyalty.

Well in his defense, a Kirov is a damn fine looking ship.

I have nothing else to defend this though, don't they have staff that can look at image sources? And why is it that it always looks like more of an easter egg then a mistake? Like when Trump retweeted that image with a bunch of Nazi Stormtroopers on it last year.

[Edge-]

https://investigatemidwest.org/2019/...ghting-gasbag/

Pretty good piece systematically breaking down Trump (and conservative media's) attempts to gaslight the farming community about issues related to the trade war, and how it may not work.

It's going to be amazing if Trump turns farmers against the Republican party in the matter of a single term.

[Breccia]

It's going to be amazing if Trump turns farmers against the Republican party in the matter of a single term.

Indeed. But at least the farmers have recovered from those floods, right? It was a messy start to the season, but now that --

Early blizzard demolishes harvests already threatened by spring floods

Son of a bitch!

After delaying planting in spring due to widespread floods throughout the Midwest, farmers are now hoping to recover from yet another obstacle: an early blizzard, the Wall Street Journal reports. [EDITOR: Quoting TheHill to bypass paywall]

Historic flooding in the spring led farmers to delay plantings due to drenched fields. An uncharacteristically early blizzard in northern states in recent days has only amplified the race to harvest, with farmers scrambling to pull their crops before they freeze.

Late plantings have left crops immature and in need of even more time to grow. In the 18 highest corn-producing states, 58% of crops were mature by Oct. 7, compared to an average of 85% at that point in the previous 5 years, according to the USDA.

The storm dumped between 1 and 2 feet of snow from Colorado to Minnesota.

“We know the snow’s going to be a disaster,” South Dakota farmer Roger Rix told WSJ.

Farmers — especially those who produce soy — have also been struggling with fluctuating demand in the face of the ongoing U.S.-China trade war.

Farmers say this round of snow could delay harvests by an additional 3 weeks — leaving them just on the brink of winter's full blow.

Hey remember when some members of the GOP said that God would punish cities that, for example, had homosexuals? What do they have to say now, since the person that they claim God put in the White House is watching as farmers' crops are destroyed by fires, floods, snow, and one would assume locusts at this point?

[Shadowferal]

Ex-GOP official and farmer: I wouldn't vote for Trump again if he walked on water

A former GOP county chairman and Ohio farmer said Monday he wouldn't vote for President Trump again even if the president walked on water.

Chris Gibbs, the former chairman of the Shelby County Republican Party, told CNBC that he feels "dubious" about the Trump administration's announced agricultural buys from China amounting to $40 billion to $50 billion amid the heated trade war between Washington and Beijing that experts say has hit farmers particularly hard.

"He could come up with this $50 billion, he could walk across my pond and not get wet, and I’m still not going to vote for him because, you know, at the end of the day my name is Chris Gibbs, it’s not Judas, and I’m not going to sell my political moorings for 30 pieces of silver," Gibbs said.

The soybean and corn farmer voted for Trump in 2016 but said he's "out" when it comes to supporting Trump this time around.

The president announced Friday that China and the U.S. had agreed on a "phase one deal," in which China would commit to purchasing billions of dollars in agricultural products.

“I don’t believe it until [the crops are] on the boat. This is deja vu all over again,” Gibbs said, referring to the president's previous announcements that Mexico and the European Union would purchase large amounts of agriculture products.

[D Luniz]

Ex-GOP official and farmer: I wouldn't vote for Trump again if he walked on water

A former GOP county chairman and Ohio farmer said Monday he wouldn't vote for President Trump again even if the president walked on water.

Chris Gibbs, the former chairman of the Shelby County Republican Party, told CNBC that he feels "dubious" about the Trump administration's announced agricultural buys from China amounting to $40 billion to $50 billion amid the heated trade war between Washington and Beijing that experts say has hit farmers particularly hard.

"He could come up with this $50 billion, he could walk across my pond and not get wet, and I’m still not going to vote for him because, you know, at the end of the day my name is Chris Gibbs, it’s not Judas, and I’m not going to sell my political moorings for 30 pieces of silver," Gibbs said.

The soybean and corn farmer voted for Trump in 2016 but said he's "out" when it comes to supporting Trump this time around.

The president announced Friday that China and the U.S. had agreed on a "phase one deal," in which China would commit to purchasing billions of dollars in agricultural products.

“I don’t believe it until [the crops are] on the boat. This is deja vu all over again,” Gibbs said, referring to the president's previous announcements that Mexico and the European Union would purchase large amounts of agriculture products.

rather sure he already tried for 30 pieces of silver..just Trump gave him coins made of tin, and he is just waiting till now to complain

[Kryctos]

Indeed. But at least the farmers have recovered from those floods, right? It was a messy start to the season, but now that --

Early blizzard demolishes harvests already threatened by spring floods

Son of a bitch!



Hey remember when some members of the GOP said that God would punish cities that, for example, had homosexuals? What do they have to say now, since the person that they claim God put in the White House is watching as farmers' crops are destroyed by fires, floods, snow, and one would assume locusts at this point?

well duh he is testing their faith all they need is a tornado to level their houses now.

And regarding napoleon... at least hegot the last name right and didnt say dynamite.

[Clone]

well duh he is testing their faith all they need is a tornado to level their houses now.

And regarding napoleon... at least hegot the last name right and didnt say dynamite.

No way an idiot like him has seen that movie, let alone heard of it.

[Paranoid Android]

SCOOP: American Media, Inc. and the National Enquirer shredded sensitive Trump-related documents that had been held in a top-secret safe right before Trump was elected in 2016, according to fresh allegations made in a new book by journalist @RonanFarrow. https://t.co/fDYmlQ7ZYt

https://twitter.com/dlippman/status/...366130689?s=19

Really not a shock since there was stories of American Media had stories on Trump.

Heck they bought some Playboy model, plus Trump used the National Enquirer to fuel stories. Remember Ted Cruz dad taking part in assassinating Kennedy?

[Breccia]

I don't know how good of a news source Propublica is...so I'll check.

Overall, we rate ProPublica Left-Center biased based on story selection that favors the left and factually High due to proper sourcing and evidence based reporting.

Okay, good to go.

We Found a “Staggering” 281 Lobbyists Who’ve Worked in the Trump Administration

"I'm sure Obama did it. I'm sure every administration hires lobbyists because they're involved in that field."

Maybe, but...

The number of lobbyists who have served in government jobs is four times more than the Obama administration had six years into office. And former lobbyists serving Trump are often involved in regulating the industries they worked for.

That's right: Trump is filling the swamp about eight times faster than Obama.

Here are their names.

"Okay, but, surely these lobbyists follow standard ethic rules and recuse themselves from matters they directly worked with."

We don't know. The Trump administration has refused to disclose which lobbyists have recused themselves and from what.

Consider Colin Roskey. Days after leaving a two-decade career as what one former employer called the “smartest” health care lobbyist, he joined the Department of Health and Human Services in January. As deputy secretary for legislation for mandatory health, he headed the portfolio that he tried to influence for most of his career.

HHS declined to reveal any recusals he signed while appointed. A spokesman said that “all employees are expected to abide by the ethics rules.”

Just days before joining HHS, Roskey listed among his clients major dialysis providers that receive federal payments through Medicare, including Fresenius Medical Care — an industry juggernaut, with more than 330,000 patients in thousands of dialysis clinics in the U.S. A third of the company’s billion-dollar revenue comes from Medicare. A recent revamp in the dialysis industry ordered by Trump, expected to shift millions of dollars from dialysis centers to cheaper home-based options, put Roskey’s office at the heart of regulating how much profit or loss some of his former clients will see in coming years. Roskey said in an interview that he recused himself from this matter.

Public records show that Roskey lobbied for at least 27 clients between January 2017 and December 2018 on an array of issues other than dialysis involving public health care programs, from prescription drugs to palliative care.


In early October, Roskey stepped out of government and went straight back to work for his old lobbying firm, Lincoln Policy Group, which specializes in health care policy. “Spending time at HHS will make [Roskey] even more valuable to our team — and we are so excited to have him back,” the lobbying firm announced in a statement.

Roskey said he had no knowledge of how the new kidney care regulations will be implemented.

After his monthslong stint with the Health Department, Roskey said he plans to lobby the legislative branch, which is not prohibited by the current ethics rules. “While working with the government I gained knowledge and background, intellectually and professionally, and I intend to unapologetically utilize those skills for my employer and clients,” he said.

The senior-level appointment of a key lobbyist raises concerns for ethics experts like Canter. “There’s no way [he would’ve been hired under Obama] because Trump dropped a key provision of the Obama ethics pledge,” she said.

Indeed, an Obama-era ethics pledge clause absent in Trump’s prevented registered lobbyists from seeking or accepting employment with any executive agency that they lobbied the two years prior.

This is the Obama Executive Order referred to by the bolded above. It's one of the many E.O.'s Trump intentionally removed upon taking office.

Congratulations rabid fanbase. You elected a lying loser.

[Smitzelplix]

Trump is still trying to get the citizenship status of people in regards to the census despite the ruling of the Supreme Court, his new plan to get people's citizenship status is by asking for drivers' license records that typically include citizenship data.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/pol...uling-n1065821