Mega-Thread: Trump Focused Discussion

[Edge-]

https://apnews.com/article/trump-par...7cf52d5a606d19

Blue lives matter. But not as much as loyalists getting the Trump lift.

lmao of course he pardons a lady who stole police funds for plastic surgery come on now, that's very important

- - - Updated - - -

Donald Trump claims to have received call from Xi Jinping and to have cut ‘200 deals’ on trade

Eventually even the media are going to stop reporting on his very obvious and transparent lies.

i wonder what he'll do then, threaten to nuke them?

[NED funded]

https://apnews.com/article/trump-par...7cf52d5a606d19

Blue lives matter. But not as much as loyalists getting the Trump lift.

I sometimes wonder where Trump even finds these people to pardon. Like this is a random small time criminal doing some of the worst trashiest crimes.

[Nymrohd]

I sometimes wonder where Trump even finds these people to pardon. Like this is a random small time criminal doing some of the worst trashiest crimes.

Someone in his circle told him about the plight of the poor blonde woman desecrating her body with bad plastic surgery to look like a Trump handmaiden and ofc he had to act.

[En Sabah Nur]

Eventually even the media are going to stop reporting on his very obvious and transparent lies.

i wonder what he'll do then, threaten to nuke them?

Oh, that'll never happen. They helped him get elected precisely because they know they can keep reporting his bullshit and keep getting clicks/views. Helps that he is his usual shotgun of shit, where they always have something to talk about. To the point they can freely ignore doing what they did with Biden in favor of pretending certain things didn't happen.

But he'll still threaten them when he gets a whiff of anything not positive about him lol

[Gorsameth]

Donald Trump claims to have received call from Xi Jinping and to have cut ‘200 deals’ on trade

Really just the most prolific bullshitter on the face of the planet, isn't he?

Are we meant to just believe that he wouldn't announce every last deal made as soon as it was done so that he could save face and try brag with something legit?

Even China are basically telling him to shut the fuck up:

Is it wrong for me to wish China would go "Every time Trump lies about china the tariffs will go up more"?

[Breccia]

So, I don't have TIME magazine's article, just kidding, of course I do.

TIME interviewed Trump and...it was...not great. They advertise the interview with

The first 100 days of President Donald Trump’s second term have been among the most destabilizing in American history.

Naturally, Trump did nearly nothing but lie. For example, he told TIME he had already gotten 200 trade deals. TIME of course asked him to name even one. Trump refused. A lot of the rest were old favorites like 2020 being stolen, the trade gap (he was wrong by literally negative 200 percent), the Jan 6th terrorists were just peaceful loving non-murderers, etc.

Trump then claimed Garcia wasn't released because nobody, more to the point Trump's lawyers, haven't asked him yet.

Well, because I haven’t been asked to ask [El Salvador President Nayib Bukele] by my attorneys. Nobody asked me to ask him that question, except you

Did...did Trump forget he was in charge?

This might be the most damning part of the interview:

It’s possible that Trump, 100 days in, is at the peak of his power. A resistance—if not one that resembles the first-term Resistance—is stirring to life. Trump’s protectionist policies threaten a recession of his own making; businesses big and small face the imminent threat of closure as they cut workers, close production lines, and try to stay afloat in the face of disruptions to supply chains and revenue of a scale not seen since the pandemic. Universities have found greater courage in the face of Trump’s threats to their multibillion-dollar research budgets. Communities that rely on immigrant labor have bristled at the uptick in deportations. With consumer confidence at its lowest level in three years and inflation expected to climb as a consequence of the trade war, even meek Republicans have raised complaints about the impact of some of Trump’s moves on their political future. Polling finds that a larger share of Americans now live in fear of their government and Trump’s approval rating has slipped to 40%, according to a Pew survey, lower at this early stage in his term than that of any other recent President.

The interview spells out Trump's attacks on democracy, his inability to form a cohesive plan, and his many failures. Even as the article suggests Trump is trying to break any organized resistance against him, it says one is forming regardless.

And this is Trump putting his best foot forward. TIME and FOX News, despite differing reasons for telling the truth (being a credible news organization vs. not wanting to be sued again), continue to point out Trump is a lying failure.

[Xath]

They have started arresting judges I thought we had a year before civil war looking like I was wrong.

[Edge-]

They have started arresting judges I thought we had a year before civil war looking like I was wrong.

i mean it's making a great argument to dismantle ice entirely because it seems like a pretty rogue agency of racist shitlords

[Doomcookie]

Whose job is it to get those voters to vote for them?

Yours.

You failed us all.

[NineSpine]

Yours.

You failed us all.

My 100+ hours of phone banking couldn't turn around a bad campaign. What were you doing?

[Edge-]

https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/hout...y?id=121099082

The cost of the air campaign has grown as additional assets have been moved into the region, according to U.S. officials, who said it cost an estimated $200 million worth of munitions in early April and that the costs were soon expected to increase to $1 billion.

So Donald is expanding the airstrikes against Houthi rebels, looks like we're going to be spending upwards of $1B on munitions alone.

How's it going so far?

Seven Reaper drones have been brought down by the Houthis since the beginning of March, with six of them occurring since March 15 and three of them over the past week, the official said.

Is that...a lot?

At least 15 Reapers have been brought down by the Houthis since October 2023, when they began targeting commercial shipping in the Red Sea region in what they claim was done in support of Hamas.

Ok so 15 since October 2023, minus the seven since March means that Biden lost 8 drones in the span of around 15 months.

Donald has lost 7 in the span of 2 months.

But surely at least the campaign is a YUGE SUCCESS?

Congressional staffers were recently briefed that the airstrike campaign had experienced only limited success in destroying Houthi military weapons supplies, such as drones, missiles and command and control operations, much of which is stored in underground bunkers. The impact has been limited because the Houthis have fortified those bunkers, officials said.

Oh...limited success?

Are the Houthis in the Signal chat?

[Endus]

No, because right at the beginning the other parties were outlawed and put in concentration camps, but let's ignore that minor detail.

In later '33, yes. The dates I listed were the rise in power of the Nazi Party before they gained precedence and control over the government. Possibly not so much the very last of those elections, which was post-Hitler-as-Chancellor, but '28-'32? No Nazi power in government, really. They went from nobodies (7th strongest party) in '28 to the primary opposition party by '32.

Right now the Democrats should be fighting not waiting.

And how, pray tell, do you expect a Democratic official to "fight" within the bounds of their position? Because once we're outside those bounds, they're not that different from the average citizen.

I don't agree that loud condemnations and critiques qualify as "fighting". Words are generally empty. It needs to be action.

That's hardly comparable.

I do not see how it's not. Both scapegoated groups of undesirables, and pushed to deport them first, before industrializing their elimination. Sure, the Republicans have rushed the shift towards death camps faster than the Nazis (as CECOT in El Salvador almost certainly qualifies), and they're working with an ally rather than annexing the nation outright, but I don't see those as particularly meaningful distinctions in this particular regard.

The USA is already shipping residents off to death camps. "It's only a handful so far" is not a reasonable counterpoint, IMO. Any number beyond 0 is unacceptable.

I am not saying people should wait for politicians, I am saying the fucking politicians shouldn't wait. Right now the democrats are playing by the rules and you absolve them of any responsibility and instead want the citizens to take the lead. Sorry but that makes no fucking sense.

I'm not "absolving them of any responsibility". There's little they can actually do without stepping outside the functions of their position. Any real action is going to involve lawbreaking, even if it's as minor as "losing" or leaking important documents to gum things up. And once you're engaging in lawbreaking-type action, all their position really provides them is access.

Frankly, we're talking about another January 6, just by Democratic supporters, at that point. I'm not sure what you expect Democrats in office to actually do, within the bounds of their positions. They can't pass bills; they don't have the votes. Filibustering just wastes time (not entirely invaluable, but just delays things, doesn't prevent them). Republicans won't negotiate with them.

You can't at the same time compare the current republican administration with the beginnings of a fascist takeover and expect them to run free and fair elections. Sorry to say this but if their goal is to remain in power then the voters are out of the equation already.

Where did I say I expect the electoral system to remain untouched?

I said waiting for sitting Democrats to fix it is, fundamentally, relying on that electoral system to fix it. I'm arguing against that. I'm arguing direct widespread action. By far more than sitting Democrats.

[tehdang]

I wonder if @tehdang will find reasonable justification to argue that while this is a terrible mistake this isn't part of a campaign of terror being carried out by this administration or anything

Is this the trolling part, where you flip the standard to proving a negative? Sorry, I don’t buy into a premise of “This is a link, now prove to me the negative that this is not what I say it is.”

Nobody is above the law.

Alleged to have assisted an illegal alien evade arrest by misleading ICE officers. ICE officers pursuing a lawful detainer previously negotiated with the chief judge. The good news is the judicial system regards her as innocent until proven guilty, and she will receive trial according to due process.

Maybe this is a learning process for people that think judges are immune from the law? Or maybe people are confused about the difference between a judge rendering a judgement or order, and the judge’s conduct? You’ll have to explain your position more than juvenile games that assign the burden of evidence.

[Edge-]

Is this the trolling part, where you flip the standard to proving a negative? Sorry, I don’t buy into a premise of “This is a link, now prove to me the negative that this is not what I say it is.”

Nobody is above the law.

Alleged to have assisted an illegal alien evade arrest by misleading ICE officers. ICE officers pursuing a lawful detainer previously negotiated with the chief judge. The good news is the judicial system regards her as innocent until proven guilty, and she will receive trial according to due process.

Maybe this is a learning process for people that think judges are immune from the law? Or maybe people are confused about the difference between a judge rendering a judgement or order, and the judge’s conduct? You’ll have to explain your position more than juvenile games that assign the burden of evidence.

nobody is above the law but we must continually take the word of ICE and this administration on good faith despite the fact that it's been 3 months of nonstop objective lies, apparently, yes.

maybe this is a learning process where fascism needs to arrive on your personal doorstep before you notice any of the signs? or maybe you are confused about the difference between lawful arrests and the administration doing exactly what the explicitly promised to do and weaponizing the government against political opponents, who very much include any judges that give undocumented immigrants due process and make them aware of their rights (because they have rights)

i'm just wondering what the justification is because you always pop up to argue how the outrageous behavior of this administration is actually quote reasonable and normal so i was wondering how it would play out this time.

[NineSpine]

Is this the trolling part, where you flip the standard to proving a negative? Sorry, I don’t buy into a premise of “This is a link, now prove to me the negative that this is not what I say it is.”

Nobody is above the law.

Alleged to have assisted an illegal alien evade arrest by misleading ICE officers. ICE officers pursuing a lawful detainer previously negotiated with the chief judge. The good news is the judicial system regards her as innocent until proven guilty, and she will receive trial according to due process.

Maybe this is a learning process for people that think judges are immune from the law? Or maybe people are confused about the difference between a judge rendering a judgement or order, and the judge’s conduct? You’ll have to explain your position more than juvenile games that assign the burden of evidence.

Aren't you here to defend the guy that ordered investigations of his own wrongdoing to be dismantled?

[Edge-]

Aren't you here to defend the guy that ordered investigations of his own wrongdoing to be dismantled?

that's just improving efficiency by firing investigators investigating his companies because you see then thats fewer people on government payrolls! savings!

[NineSpine]

In later '33, yes. The dates I listed were the rise in power of the Nazi Party before they gained precedence and control over the government. Possibly not so much the very last of those elections, which was post-Hitler-as-Chancellor, but '28-'32? No Nazi power in government, really. They went from nobodies (7th strongest party) in '28 to the primary opposition party by '32.



And how, pray tell, do you expect a Democratic official to "fight" within the bounds of their position? Because once we're outside those bounds, they're not that different from the average citizen.

I don't agree that loud condemnations and critiques qualify as "fighting". Words are generally empty. It needs to be action.



I do not see how it's not. Both scapegoated groups of undesirables, and pushed to deport them first, before industrializing their elimination. Sure, the Republicans have rushed the shift towards death camps faster than the Nazis (as CECOT in El Salvador almost certainly qualifies), and they're working with an ally rather than annexing the nation outright, but I don't see those as particularly meaningful distinctions in this particular regard.

The USA is already shipping residents off to death camps. "It's only a handful so far" is not a reasonable counterpoint, IMO. Any number beyond 0 is unacceptable.



I'm not "absolving them of any responsibility". There's little they can actually do without stepping outside the functions of their position. Any real action is going to involve lawbreaking, even if it's as minor as "losing" or leaking important documents to gum things up. And once you're engaging in lawbreaking-type action, all their position really provides them is access.

Frankly, we're talking about another January 6, just by Democratic supporters, at that point. I'm not sure what you expect Democrats in office to actually do, within the bounds of their positions. They can't pass bills; they don't have the votes. Filibustering just wastes time (not entirely invaluable, but just delays things, doesn't prevent them). Republicans won't negotiate with them.



Where did I say I expect the electoral system to remain untouched?

I said waiting for sitting Democrats to fix it is, fundamentally, relying on that electoral system to fix it. I'm arguing against that. I'm arguing direct widespread action. By far more than sitting Democrats.

Nobody is arguing that we should wait for the Democrats. The argument is that the opposition political party has to do something besides shrug. They lost to this guy. It's on them to build the political capital to beat him.

[Templar 331]

Maybe this is a learning process for people that think judges are immune from the law?

Amazing. You believe Trump is above the law and judicial orders but a judge is not because ICE had their feelings hurt.

[Nymrohd]

Maybe this is a learning process for people that think judges are immune from the law? Or maybe people are confused about the difference between a judge rendering a judgement or order, and the judge’s conduct? You’ll have to explain your position more than juvenile games that assign the burden of evidence.

Indeed. The only person who we are learning in this process is above the law, are Trump loyalists spending fund meant to honor fallen police officers to get fillers.

[gondrin]

Well, as I said, the Judge that got arrested is already released.

https://apnews.com/live/donald-trump...f-6dfb44f70000

Judge Hannah Dugan, a Milwaukee judge who was arrested by the FBI on accusations she helped a man evade immigration authorities, appeared briefly in federal court Friday before being released from custody.

Her next court appearance is May 15.

“Judge Dugan wholeheartedly regrets and protests her arrest. It was not made in the interest of public safety,” her attorney, Craig Mastantuono, said during the hearing. He declined to comment to an Associated Press reporter following her court appearance.

The arrest comes amid a growing feud between the Trump administration and the judiciary over the White House’s immigration enforcement policies.

Oh hey, Trump knows there is insider trading with his administration. We all know nothing will come of it though. Same link as above.

President Donald Trump said he couldn’t rule out members of his administration sharing tips on his tariff policies and trade negotiations with traders on Wall Street, saying “I can commit to myself, that’s all I can commit to.”

Speaking to reporters on Air Force One, Trump said that while he couldn’t be sure, he hires “honorable people” and that “I have thousands of people that work for me, but I can’t imagine anybody doing that.”

He was responding to news reports that some administration officials have provided non-public updates to traders and financial executives amid market turmoil caused by Trump’s steep tariffs on American imports.