Mega-Thread: Trump Focused Discussion

[Rasulis]

Highway Trust Fund closer to insolvency due to COVID-19, Senate panel says

During the hearing, Senate EPW Chairman John Barrasso (R-Wyoming) said in his opening remarks that the Highway Trust Fund is rapidly approaching insolvency due to the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

“Prior to the pandemic, the Congressional Budget Office projected the Highway Trust Fund would run out of money in mid-2021," Chairman Barrasso said in his statement. "Now, with Americans driving less, the Highway Trust Fund will reach insolvency far sooner than first predicted."

Basically Highway Trust Fund get its fund from Federal Gas Tax. Gasoline consumption down, tax down, less money for the fund.

[Breccia]

Whelp he did say we were at war...umm with a hoax?

Oh, right, that.

Team Trump said 24 hours later that What He Meant Was the Democrats taking issue with Trump's handling the coronavirus, that was the hoax.

Which was a fair point. Maybe. At the time. Which was Feb 28th.

Gosh. Kind of a lot's changed, hasn't it?

There has still been no, or nearly no, federal leadership. See avatar for example. Even that extended deadline ended two months ago (it started March 16, yes, two weeks after Trump said the criticism of his lack of action was invalid). Trump instead stole supplies states had bought and paid for, praised China until it was suddenly China's fault, blamed the immigrants crossing the border while bragging about fewer immigrants crossing the border, encouraged a rally of almost 6,200 with no masks and no social distancing, started the task force, left the task force, disbanded the task force, and stopped talking to Fauci.

Even if it was a hoax then, and that's debatable, but even if it was, it's not now.

[Nellise]

The CDC Twitter also has a link to this study showing all the states, such as, oh I don't know, Florida?

Alaska only looks bad because of the scaling. Delaware's graph doesn't look nearly as scary, but with barely higher population is worst case projected for 10 times as many deaths in the same period.

[Breccia]

Basically Highway Trust Fund get its fund from Federal Gas Tax. Gasoline consumption down, tax down, less money for the fund.

Oh um...ouch. Yeah, that's a real problem. Hey, remember Infrastructure Wee--

"We get it."

[Zan15]

Hey when was the last time the US lost 140,000 people and counting? I'm moderately to highly confident that WWII killed more than 140,000 Americans, but anything since I don't think so. Proportionately, WWII and now might be pretty close. The H2N2 flu of 1957 killed 116,000 Americans -- proportionately more than COVID-19 due to population growth, but H2N2 is done and COVID-19 is picking up steam.

It's becoming reasonable to believe that Trump might kill more Americans in a year, than any other short-term cause like a war or outbreak. (Other long-term causes like cancer have a head start)

On average, 220 U.S. service personnel died per day -- nearly 6,600 every month -- for the 1,364 days that America fought

But i believe it took at least a couple years before we hit 140k since we were a slow ramp up in entering WWII.

[Breccia]

Alaska only looks bad because of the scaling. Delaware's graph doesn't look nearly as scary, but with barely higher population is worst case projected for 10 times as many deaths in the same period.

Delaware is being fucked by the beach crowd, over and above all of the usual issues every state has.

[cubby]

Alaska only looks bad because of the scaling. Delaware's graph doesn't look nearly as scary, but with barely higher population is worst case projected for 10 times as many deaths in the same period.

But at the same time, we're pretty worried here in Alaska - when we all locked down, we didn't see a daily case count over 20. And now were over 100.

[Edge-]

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/...sentence-video

Trump, reminding us what he really cares about: He's getting "rave reviews" for commuting Stone's prison sentence, whatever the fuck that's even supposed to mean.

- - - Updated - - -

https://www.chicagotribune.com/polit...umi-story.html

Haven't already threatened to "send in the feds" multiple times, Trump is once again threatening to "go in and take over" Chicago.

[Templar 331]

https://www.chicagotribune.com/polit...umi-story.html

Haven't already threatened to "send in the feds" multiple times, Trump is once again threatening to "go in and take over" Chicago.

“Numbers are going to be coming down even if we have to go in and take over cities because we can’t let that happen. When you have 20 people killed, 22 people killed in one weekend in Chicago. When you have 88 shootings, it’s not even conceivable,” Trump said.

If only the little shit stain cared about COVID19 death numbers instead of the imaginary number of shooting deaths in Chicago.

[Edge-]

https://www.houstonchronicle.com/pol...s-15405247.php

President Trump on Monday downplayed “phony polls” showing a tight presidential race in Texas, saying he’s way ahead because he “saved the oil industry,” and later adding, “I created it.”

“We’re doing well in Texas,” Trump said during a roundtable discussion at the White House with Americans who say they were helped, and in some cases saved, by police officers.

Meanwhile, back in reality -

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/...utdown-economy

Texas oil industry faces prospect of collapse amid Covid-19 losses

Oil and gas producers are trying to reopen after a ‘devastating’ halt, but pessimism about an economic recovery is widespread

[Elegiac]

https://www.houstonchronicle.com/pol...s-15405247.php



Meanwhile, back in reality -

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/...utdown-economy

In the words of the immortal Bernice Starns...

"I'm supposed to feel sorry for that bitch? I DON'T."

[cubby]

https://www.houstonchronicle.com/pol...s-15405247.php



Meanwhile, back in reality -

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/...utdown-economy

"I created it" - what in the holy fuck does he think that even means? How are people not actively filling out the 25th Amendment forms to out his silly insane ass.

[Edge-]

"I created it" - what in the holy fuck does he think that even means? How are people not actively filling out the 25th Amendment forms to out his silly insane ass.

Because you're a hateful lib that can't handle how Donald J. Trump, our savior, traveled back in time millions of years to lay the foundation for the, until recent, oil boom in Texas.

Why can't you just accept that Trump is the greatest thing since sliced white bread?

The usual: "Take the president seriously, not literally" and "What he meant was..."and "He's the best communicator, he has the best words" etc. etc.

[cubby]

So this is great:

Trump can't fire Fauci.

Bwwwwwahahahahahahahaha!

Civil service protections are in place, preventing him from being let go "without cause" (Employment Law term). Fuck you Trump! You idiot child nation destroyer.

[Edge-]

So this is great:

Trump can't fire Fauci.

Bwwwwwahahahahahahahaha!

Civil service protections are in place, preventing him from being let go "without cause" (Employment Law term). Fuck you Trump! You idiot child nation destroyer.

Directly.

But has "Doing it right takes a long time" ever stopped him or his appointees from doing something very quickly and then being sued over it before?

Because like...it hasn't. But that being said I still don't think he's going to fire him, not in the middle of a pandemic. He's stupid, but I don't think he's so stupid as to realize how bad that would look for him.

[cubby]

Directly.

But has "Doing it right takes a long time" ever stopped him or his appointees from doing something very quickly and then being sued over it before?

Because like...it hasn't. But that being said I still don't think he's going to fire him, not in the middle of a pandemic. He's stupid, but I don't think he's so stupid as to realize how bad that would look for him.

The indirect route keeps Fauci in place, protected from retribution directly by not being fired. Trump would have to prove cause, and that takes a hearing, which requires someone to be in reality - which we all know Trump is not.

My only surprise is that Fauci, at his high level, is still protected by civil service rules. But I love it.

[Breccia]

“We’re doing well in Texas,” Trump said during a roundtable discussion at the White House

*cracks knuckles*

Right, so all you Trump supporters out there, you have a doozy this time.

1) Post any poll from the last, um, let's say month and a half, that matches Trump's claim that he is up "many points" in Texas. "Many" doesn't have a definition here, but "few" does, so your target is 8% or higher.

2) Find evidence that Trump created the oil industry. Oh, I'm guessing you'll try to find Trump helped the oil industry. Too bad that's not what he said. That doesn't count.

3) Find evidence that the Texas oil industry is doing well. I didn't say "one company" I said "the Texas oil industry".

4) Find proof that nobody has seen gas less than $2 per gallon. Trump said that, too. Good luck with that -- despite Trump's efforts, people over the age of sixty are still alive.

5) And of course, find evidence that "We're doing well in Texas". This one's pretty open-ended, "We" has some options, so does "well". But coming back with a story about one or two people is just going to expose that your attempts to find larger stories about more people failed.

Can you do all of them in 24 hours? Can you do any of them in 24 hours? Don't forget, failure to even try means you admit that Trump lied and also you admit you're a coward for not looking.

Expect these challenges to continue. Expect there to be more of them, as an apparently unhinged Trump goes on the campaign trail -- the source of some of his most amazing lies and broken promises. The list of things you admit are lies, and the growing evidence of your craven cowardice, will continue to mount until you actually find something. So there's no reason not to at least try. Come on. Give it a go! There's five of them right here, just pick one, and go for it. Like, right now.

[Elegiac]

So to take a mildly amusing break from the shitshow, Ghislaine Maxwell is reportedly being moved from cell to cell in order to avoid assassins.

I'm torn between imagining a Scooby-Doo hallway chase scene or picturing an assassin checking exactly one cell and being like "Ah fuck, she ain't here, better call this off."

[Edge-]

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/don...trump-n1233708

And Trump's niece, Mary Trump, just got the go-ahead to publisher her book.

Trump is not having a great summer, why wouldn't anyone sign his yearbook?

[Paranoid Android]

So this is great:

Trump can't fire Fauci.

Bwwwwwahahahahahahahaha!

Civil service protections are in place, preventing him from being let go "without cause" (Employment Law term). Fuck you Trump! You idiot child nation destroyer.

Mmm? Can I be that guy? I wouldn't mind him firing Fauci. Trump more or less put put Fauci in the cooler and never meets or listens to him anyways. So I wish he would fire Fauci, just shows more incompetence. So throw more logs on the fire and fire Fauci.

So people out there just for your comfort. I hope no more Covid cases or deaths, but Trump is ignoring Fauci and I want Trump out. Again, more logs and maybe get more people to recognize that Trump will blow up anything.