Mega-Thread: Trump Focused Discussion

[Edge-]

Y'all I seriously can't even with McConnell and Republicans telling corporations not to "speak about politics".

Seriously, did they all forget Citizen's United? Are they gonna like, legislatively overturn that? Are they gonna raise taxes on the businesses? I mean, what's the next move? Or is the final move just whinging about it pathetically?

- - - Updated - - -

https://www.salon.com/2021/04/06/im-...porate-threat/

And McConnell is cleaning up his language.

He still wants their political speech in the form of financial contributions, just not them like...actually doing anything beyond that.

[Mayhem]

Y'all I seriously can't even with McConnell and Republicans telling corporations not to "speak about politics".

Seriously, did they all forget Citizen's United? Are they gonna like, legislatively overturn that? Are they gonna raise taxes on the businesses? I mean, what's the next move? Or is the final move just whinging about it pathetically?

- - - Updated - - -

https://www.salon.com/2021/04/06/im-...porate-threat/

And McConnell is cleaning up his language.

He still wants their political speech in the form of financial contributions, just not them like...actually doing anything beyond that.

Well, at least he is consistent in that money = speech, not actual words = speech.

[Breccia]

I seriously can't even with McConnell and Republicans telling corporations not to "speak about politics".

Yep, straight-up hypocrisy. It's okay for them to donate their money, but not for them to actually act directly.

[Edge-]

Republicans: VACCINE PASSPORTS ARE DYSTOPIAN AND AUTHORITARIAN, PEOPLE HAVE RIGHTS!

Also Republicans: Please bring your vaccine passport to our annual donor retreat in Florida or have a negative covid test.

This sounds a lot like CPAC and NRA conventions banning personal firearms on the premises.

[Felya]

Republicans: VACCINE PASSPORTS ARE DYSTOPIAN AND AUTHORITARIAN, PEOPLE HAVE RIGHTS!

Will a vaccine passport be a valid form of ID to vote?

[postman1782]

I don't know if this was posted, but Rudy Guiliani might be looking at felony charges in the state of Georgia, for breaking Georgia Code §16-10-20, which states:

A person who knowingly and willfully falsifies, conceals, or covers up by any trick, scheme, or device a material fact; makes a false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or representation; or makes or uses any false writing or document, knowing the same to contain any false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or entry, in any matter within the jurisdiction of any department or agency of state government or of the government of any county, city, or other political subdivision of this state shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished by a fine of not more than $1,000.00 or by imprisonment for not less than one nor more than five years, or both.

All of that for pushing his conspiracy theories, which the Republican legislature of Georgia has now used to make the most oppressive voting suppression bill in the country.

https://lawandcrime.com/high-profile...harges-report/

[Benggaul]

Tuesday's report:

62,283 new cases, about 1k fewer than last Tuesday. This could be good or it could just be the result of the holiday weekend. We'll need to see what the next few days bring.

Top 5:

Michigan: 6,149 new cases; 61 deaths
New York: 5,820 new cases; 47 deaths
Fuck Florida.
Pennsylvania: 4,849 new cases; 38 deaths
Texas: 4,613 new cases; 94 deaths

As previously mentioned, it's hard to know if the numbers are accurate, however Michigan retains the top spot as their cases continue climbing alarmingly. Florida continues consistently sitting in the third spot. I can probably count on one hand how many times they've fallen lower than that in the past 4-5 months and yet DeathSantis continues trying to claim "all is well". Fuck Florida.

906 deaths is about the same as last Tuesday and brings the total to 570,260. I'm still expecting the numbers to come down a little the rest of this week but it has the feeling of a plateau. Getting more people vaccinated--even if they still contract the virus--will help.

Related news:

One in three Covid survivors diagnosed with mental health condition--As if we needed more reasons to do everything we can to fight this, we're discovering more complications for the survivors. Recovery won't end with the vaccinations, but they will help mitigate how much recovery is needed.

Stay safe, folks.

[Breccia]

Andrew Giuliani is making noise about challenging Cuomo.

Giuliani, shown here



appears to have the following qualifications:

• Being the son of a mayor/lawyer now accused of multiple felonies and hosting a literal shit talk
• Having worked in the WH with Trump, the only person accused of more sex crimes than Cuomo at this point
• Is not a lawyer, has never held office, and has no graduate degree
• Is the love child of Jeffrey Jones and Garey Busey

This is a farce. Andrew Giuliani is trying to capitalize on what's left of his family name while it has any shreds of dignity left to exploit.

[pathora44]

Will a vaccine passport be a valid form of ID to vote?

No because obviously Republicans are less likely to take the vaccinations so they are less likely to have a vaccine passport.

- - - Updated - - -

Andrew Giuliani is making noise about challenging Cuomo.

Giuliani, shown here



appears to have the following qualifications:

• Being the son of a mayor/lawyer now accused of multiple felonies and hosting a literal shit talk
• Having worked in the WH with Trump, the only person accused of more sex crimes than Cuomo at this point
• Is not a lawyer, has never held office, and has no graduate degree
• Is the love child of Jeffrey Jones and Garey Busey

This is a farce. Andrew Giuliani is trying to capitalize on what's left of his family name while it has any shreds of dignity left to exploit.

MY GOD! The Giuliani name has any dignity left to exploit? I mean I get it that a piece of shit like Rudy Giuliani would still have support among Republican voters. They would happily vote for the literal Devil all the while stating how good Christians they are so I will never be surprised who they vote for.

[cubby]

Andrew Giuliani is making noise about challenging Cuomo.

Giuliani, shown here



appears to have the following qualifications:

• Being the son of a mayor/lawyer now accused of multiple felonies and hosting a literal shit talk
• Having worked in the WH with Trump, the only person accused of more sex crimes than Cuomo at this point
• Is not a lawyer, has never held office, and has no graduate degree
• Is the love child of Jeffrey Jones and Garey Busey

This is a farce. Andrew Giuliani is trying to capitalize on what's left of his family name while it has any shreds of dignity left to exploit.

The irony is he seems to be too fucking stupid to realize Cuomo won't be there to challenge. No way Andrew survives these scandals - if he doesn't resign he for sure won't run again - the DNC would drop him like a grabbed pussy (I may have reached too far there).

[Breccia]

Just a reminder, the NRA bankruptcy trial begins shortly.

The NRA is seeking to declare bankruptcy, despite claiming they are flush with cash, in all likelihood to avoid the lawsuit that will force them to dissolve for not being a charity (see also: Trump University). To be fair, this tactic (declaring bankruptcy to avoid a lawsuit) has a long tradition, but so does the insanity defense. And it doesn't always work.

Bankruptcy is a lot of things, but at its core it's "we can't pay all our debts". But this is typically followed by the court deciding who gets paid and how much. This means, apparently, the judge of the case can say "I'm appointing an outside expert, who can and will investigate these claims of fraud". The judge of the case can also say "no, you're not bankrupt, you're flush with cash, you have to pay your debts".

*ahem*

But.

The real benefit might turn out to be NRA officials put on the stand. In a lawsuit like this, they have no realistic choice. LaPierre will be asked some really ugly questions and he will have to answer them. I mean, I guess he could take the 5th, but saying "I can't answer because I could be thrown in jail" during a bankruptcy meeting is a bold move, Cotton.

Trials of this magnitude won't be fast, but we will see updates from time to time. Keep an eye out.

- - - Updated - - -

No way Andrew survives these scandals

Don't be so sure.

Cuomo is accused of fewer sex issues than Trump, but has a better success record (especially with COVID) than Trump. Add the highly partisan nature of NYState (the city is solid blue and is 51% of the state) and, over 2 years of continued results, he could survive this.

[cubby]

Just a reminder, the NRA bankruptcy trial begins shortly.

The NRA is seeking to declare bankruptcy, despite claiming they are flush with cash, in all likelihood to avoid the lawsuit that will force them to dissolve for not being a charity (see also: Trump University). To be fair, this tactic (declaring bankruptcy to avoid a lawsuit) has a long tradition, but so does the insanity defense. And it doesn't always work.

Bankruptcy is a lot of things, but at its core it's "we can't pay all our debts". But this is typically followed by the court deciding who gets paid and how much. This means, apparently, the judge of the case can say "I'm appointing an outside expert, who can and will investigate these claims of fraud". The judge of the case can also say "no, you're not bankrupt, you're flush with cash, you have to pay your debts".

*ahem*

But.

The real benefit might turn out to be NRA officials put on the stand. In a lawsuit like this, they have no realistic choice. LaPierre will be asked some really ugly questions and he will have to answer them. I mean, I guess he could take the 5th, but saying "I can't answer because I could be thrown in jail" during a bankruptcy meeting is a bold move, Cotton.

Trials of this magnitude won't be fast, but we will see updates from time to time. Keep an eye out.

So much shit from that end of the table, it's hard to keep track - I'm glad you're on it. You seriously could write a very good book from your posts in these forums alone. As always, hats off to you.

The court appointee is a called a Trustee, and those fuckers are awesome. They get access to everything, and as you pointed out, can be charged with running the business (or find someone to do it) if the court feels it's necessary. Plus, they can report crimes they discover during their appointment - which is nice. I'm sure the NRA isn't worried about that, at all. Any omitted documents or attempts to delay the process can result in fines and sometimes imprisonment. They also pretty much run the case, with a judge merely overseeing their actions.

The NRA is in for a wild ride.

My big question is what is the NRA trying to bankrupt out of? Too much campaign money from Russia? What debts do they hold.

Don't be so sure.

Cuomo is accused of fewer sex issues than Trump, but has a better success record (especially with COVID) than Trump. Add the highly partisan nature of NYState (the city is solid blue and is 51% of the state) and, over 2 years of continued results, he could survive this.

Wow, ok - that will be fun to watch. I didn't realize he had a chance still. Interesting.

[Kaleredar]

Don't be so sure.

Cuomo is accused of fewer sex issues than Trump, but has a better success record (especially with COVID) than Trump. Add the highly partisan nature of NYState (the city is solid blue and is 51% of the state) and, over 2 years of continued results, he could survive this.

I think it’s better that the democrats drop him, preferably sooner rather than later near an election.

The democrats have been fairly consistent in proving that, unlike the GOP, they don’t abide by sexual harassment and will extricate it from their party. That’s a moral stance they need to abide by.

Removing Cuomo early and setting up another up and coming New York democrat to run means that Cuomos misdoings won’t be a subject in most voters minds come election time, giving a spawn of Giuliani less of a chance to be elected as “a guy the trumpublicans will show up to support while disallusioned democrats sit the election out because they don’t support cuomo

Remember, the GOP thrive on turning controversy into their platform, and unlike with Hillary and their farcical attempt at slandering Biden’s son, Cuomo’s controversy seems to have substance behind it.

[Breccia]

My big question is what is the NRA trying to bankrupt out of?

Since they declared almost immediately after being sued for being a fraudulent charity, my answer is "being sued for being a fraudulent charity".

The NY AG sued Aug 6.

The NRA declared "Project Freedom" Jan 15. The NRA is following a fairly standard GOP playbook: name the despicable act you're doing something patriotic so that people are reluctant to oppose it in public. But what it really was, was declaring bankruptcy in Texas, announcing plans to re-incorporate in Texas, and also announce they were in better financial shape than ever.

No, really, they said that.

And what makes this so obviously WAC ("What A Coincidence!") is the NRA's sudden declaration of bankruptcy was right about the time Trump lost every single possible legal and even some illegal moves to stay in power.

I don't know what will stop the NRA members from making a new organization, with blackjack and hookers, unless they're found guilty of a crime. The question seems to be, what are they allowed to bring from NRA Classic to New NRA? The idea of "re-incorporating" seems to imply they want to bring some of their assets with them, which the bankruptcy filing should fuck with hard. The only reason I can think of, to declare bankruptcy while trying to reorganize, is because you know the other options are far worse. For example, being found liable for fraud and having NY take all your illegal money.

The NRA probably hoped they could hide in Texas, so far with no results. The judge already tossed the motion to dismiss the fraud lawsuit once. From what I've seen, the bankruptcy Judge Hale has been pretty by-the book rather than partisan, and this whole thing is a move of desperation an experienced judge like himself will see through in a New York minute.

Basically, this might be a wild ride for the NRA...but it's all downhill.

- - - Updated - - -

Removing Cuomo early and setting up another up and coming New York democrat

Cuomo would have to agree to this, or things get really ugly.

[Edge-]

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/th...ll-11617812129

No wonder Republicans are going crazy with voter suppression efforts, they see the wind blowing their voters, and Republican leaning Independents, towards the Democratic party.

Maybe they should like, work on their party platform and messaging instead? Nah, voter suppression!

[xmirrors]

Maybe they should like, work on their party platform and messaging instead? Nah, voter suppression!

I naively thought Trump's defeat would start this process, but they are stubborn assholes. We need to beat them again in 2024, especially after they feel some vindication in 2022 when they no doubt flip the House.

[Kathandira]

I naively thought Trump's defeat would start this process, but they are stubborn assholes. We need to beat them again in 2024, especially after they feel some vindication in 2022 when they no doubt flip the House.

If Biden does a good job in his term, I have a feeling we will see 8 years of Democrats. But the common citizen needs to FEEL the effects of his decisions. If those effects are the results of people having less money, then we will see a Republican president in 4 years.

[Edge-]

I naively thought Trump's defeat would start this process, but they are stubborn assholes. We need to beat them again in 2024, especially after they feel some vindication in 2022 when they no doubt flip the House.

They had a moment where they ALMOST got there after the 2012 loss, with their post-mortem functionally saying, "Appealing primarily to white folk isn't going to viable moving forward, we need to broaden our tent."

And then Trump came along and shredded it as the party tripled down on their past practices.

It'll be a long, long time before they detach themselves from Trumpism, they're suckling that teet now and won't want to give it up. I imagine they'll need to start losing local/state level power in a big way before they start wondering why their voter suppression efforts haven't been as effective and if they should like, figure out how to appeal to more people.

Trump's defeat couldn't have started that process, the party is a god-damned cult. Which is the same reason why you still see people flying Trump flags and with MAGA merchandise stores 6 months after Trump lost the election. Meanwhile, 6 months after Biden won the election I see nary a Biden sign or flag in sight. Because there's no fuckin cult for Biden.

[Kathandira]

They had a moment where they ALMOST got there after the 2012 loss, with their post-mortem functionally saying, "Appealing primarily to white folk isn't going to viable moving forward, we need to broaden our tent."

And then Trump came along and shredded it as the party tripled down on their past practices.

It'll be a long, long time before they detach themselves from Trumpism, they're suckling that teet now and won't want to give it up. I imagine they'll need to start losing local/state level power in a big way before they start wondering why their voter suppression efforts haven't been as effective and if they should like, figure out how to appeal to more people.

Trump's defeat couldn't have started that process, the party is a god-damned cult. Which is the same reason why you still see people flying Trump flags and with MAGA merchandise stores 6 months after Trump lost the election. Meanwhile, 6 months after Biden won the election I see nary a Biden sign or flag in sight. Because there's no fuckin cult for Biden.

I cannot be happier that every second post in my social media feeds aren't about Trump anymore. Makes casual catching up feel a lot less like doom scrolling.

[Kaleredar]

They had a moment where they ALMOST got there after the 2012 loss, with their post-mortem functionally saying, "Appealing primarily to white folk isn't going to viable moving forward, we need to broaden our tent."

And then Trump came along and shredded it as the party tripled down on their past practices.

It'll be a long, long time before they detach themselves from Trumpism, they're suckling that teet now and won't want to give it up. I imagine they'll need to start losing local/state level power in a big way before they start wondering why their voter suppression efforts haven't been as effective and if they should like, figure out how to appeal to more people.

Trump's defeat couldn't have started that process, the party is a god-damned cult. Which is the same reason why you still see people flying Trump flags and with MAGA merchandise stores 6 months after Trump lost the election. Meanwhile, 6 months after Biden won the election I see nary a Biden sign or flag in sight. Because there's no fuckin cult for Biden.

Trump’s cult losing but still wearing his stuff like a badge of honor is very similar to people flying the confederate flag. They see it as a form of defiance, instead of what it actually was... a crushing loss.

If the democrats can ride a few more victories in 2022 and 2024 I think we’ll see the trumpkins begin to dissolve into whatever new form the GOP takes. Just like what the tea party people did.

Of course, should the democrats win in 2022 and 2024, it’ll hopefully mean they were able to pass fair voting legislation which means the GOP will be in dire, dire straits as a national party. Making the trumpkins and whatever form they devolve into largely irrelevant.

We can all pray for as much, at least.