Mega-Thread: Trump Focused Discussion

[Kaleredar]

It's more of an example of the breakdown in left-right cultural and political teams. No seat belt laws, which is anti-regulatory right-coded, but two Democratic Senators (Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan) and two Democratic congressional reps. Another northeast example is Bernie Sander's past support for guns, which is in line with his state's rural character and sportsmen/hobbyists, and benefited from the NRA attacking his Democratic opponent back in 1990 (as a House rep)

The exceptions are valuable. Too much in politics right now is two mainstream coalitions with fringes, such that if I know your stance on gun control, I have some reasonable inferences on your stance on abortion, trans issues, and immigration.

The important caveat is Trump winning re-election in 2024, which is also a reflection on the popularity of his major achievements from 2017-2021. It was viewed against Biden's economy and ... well ... I guess the forum mainstream is also that voters are too dumb to give Biden credit for a great economy. Put another way, America saw four years of Biden and wanted Trump back for a second term. That's both the popularity of Trump and the unpopularity of his Democratic opponents.

More true than false with the important proviso that States drawing their Congressional districts is hobbled by the time that some states declared themselves free of the Constitution and launched a civil war. There's another US Constitution/Supreme Court/Voting Rights Act/14th Amendment (The "Federal") against Louisiana (The "State") coming in this term regarding Louisiana. You're right on the broader point about the specifics of running elections, mail-in ballots included in that.

…Trump didn’t run against Biden a second time.

And the idiocy of the electorate this time around is nothing to brag about; they elected Trump, after all. Whatever their perception of Biden’s actually good economy being bad might have been, they sure as shit aren’t going to perceive of trumps actually bad economy being anything other than bad. Once everyone realized about two days after the election that tariffs don’t magically put money in your pocket and with the escalating cost of… everything… that shows no sign of going down, Trump isn’t going to be able to paint some sort of rosy picture. I’m sure he’ll try, what with moving to end officially reporting all of those metrics that are making him look bad, but whether anyone beyond his sycophantic base believes him is a wholly separate matter.


The only way he and the GOP have forward is ensuring as few democrats have their votes count as possible. Whether they be gerrymandering, doing things like ending mail in voting, voter intimidation, or just plain disenfranchisement. But it will never be “the GOP’s ideas were just more popular.” The gop have won the popular vote twice in the last 30 years; it’s not about “popularity” for them.

[Breccia]

It's more of-

*ahem*

Well, let's ask him. Hey @tehdang your leader Trump says mail-in voting and current voting machines led to "MASSIVE" voter fraud, but forgot to cite any evidence to support this claim. You will either cite "MASSIVE" voter fraud, right now, or you can admit Trump is lying, right now, or you can remain silent which means I get to answer for you.

No evidence of "MASSIVE" voter fraud, and no other comment? You coward. I did warn you.

By my refusal to answer, I admit I know there was no "MASSIVE" voter fraud. Instead, I admit I backed someone whose policies are intentionally harmful to the country and its people on purpose, someone who blames nonexistent fraud rather than face the truth about his popularity, and someone who is increasingly dictatorial in behavior, which I also support. After all, if I back a known failure, a known adulterer, a known thief, a known terrorist, and increasingly known child rapist, backing a dictator is completely in the behavior I have shown in public on purpose.

There was no fraud, but I want Trump to seize control of elections anyhow. I openly admit I am what's wrong with America.

Next time, just say "no, there was no MASSIVE voter fraud". You coward.

[DarkTZeratul]

The only way he and the GOP have forward is ensuring as few democrats have their votes count as possible. Whether they be gerrymandering, doing things like ending mail in voting, voter intimidation, or just plain disenfranchisement. But it will never be “the GOP’s ideas were just more popular.” The gop have won the popular vote twice in the last 30 years; it’s not about “popularity” for them.

I saw a video clip of a Democratic legislator on Fox News, who asked, "You mentioned the popularity of your policies. Well, if Republican policies are popular, then why are you redrawing the maps? Why not leave the maps the way they are and rely on the popularity of your policies?"

After brief pause, the host said that while he would love to continue such an interesting discussion, his producers were telling him they were out of time.

[gondrin]

I saw a video clip of a Democratic legislator on Fox News, who asked, "You mentioned the popularity of your policies. Well, if Republican policies are popular, then why are you redrawing the maps? Why not leave the maps the way they are and rely on the popularity of your policies?"

After brief pause, the host said that while he would love to continue such an interesting discussion, his producers were telling him they were out of time.

"Why does the Republican Party and by extension Fox News refuse to want to release the Epstein files or make excuses on why they aren't released yet?"

Fox News: "We'll be back after these messages".

::kicks out Democrat Legislature::

[Endus]

The exceptions are valuable. Too much in politics right now is two mainstream coalitions with fringes, such that if I know your stance on gun control, I have some reasonable inferences on your stance on abortion, trans issues, and immigration.

That should depress you, especially since there's only one "reasonable" stance regarding either abortion or trans "issues".

And that's full abortion rights for all women, and trans acceptance in society.

If you can't bring yourself to those two positions, the only reason you have is straight-up bigotry. And bigotry isn't a defensible position. It's just being a sadistic shithead because you enjoy harming innocents.

That an entire political party can't bring themselves to accept that really does tell us everything we need to know about the voters who support that party. Every single last fucking one of them.

The important caveat is Trump winning re-election in 2024, which is also a reflection on the popularity of his major achievements from 2017-2021. It was viewed against Biden's economy and ... well ... I guess the forum mainstream is also that voters are too dumb to give Biden credit for a great economy. Put another way, America saw four years of Biden and wanted Trump back for a second term. That's both the popularity of Trump and the unpopularity of his Democratic opponents.

If you want to make this about "popularity" rather than the facts, feel free, but you're digging that grave deeper, not providing actual justification that Republicans are reasonable voters with defensible views.

The Nazis were pretty popular once upon a time. If "popularity" is all you're going with, you're just expressing a lack of an ideological center.

[Breccia]

The Nazis were pretty popular once upon a time. If "popularity" is all you're going with, you're just expressing a lack of an ideological center.

Also, did you see him distance himself from his own actions? tehdang voted for Trump and is acting like somehow this is the Democrats' fault.

- - - Updated - - -

senile old demential donald can't even remember the name of the atlantic ocean anymore

Let's leave aside for now the fact that he forgot which ocean he's talking about. That's bad, true.

He just tried to explain, on live TV, that there was an ocean between us and Europe. Not just to journalists, which is far worse. But to FOX News' audience.

For some reason, he thought this would be new information to them. There is no redeeming answer to why Trump would think FOX News audience members would need to be told that there was an ocean between us and Europe or Asia.

Well, either Trump is that stupid, or his followers are that stupid. Hey @tehdang did you need to be told there was an ocean between us and Europe? I'd advise you to answer this one. You don't want me answering for you.

[Captain N]

Well, either Trump is that stupid, or his followers are that stupid. Hey @tehdang did you need to be told there was an ocean between us and Europe? I'd advise you to answer this one. You don't want me answering for you.

I mean is it really an either/or thing?

[PfeffermintShake]

Yeah ... well fuck you IDAHO! Funny part about Idaho, is to watch the conservatives that have lived there for decades get mad at the conservatives that moved there from California. Because they think that they're *liberal* Californians moving there. A true ouroboros of White Hate Group ideology.

[Rustedsaint]

Just be glad he hasn’t signed a EO renaming the oceans, oceans of America.

[DarkTZeratul]

Yeah ... well fuck you IDAHO! Funny part about Idaho, is to watch the conservatives that have lived there for decades get mad at the conservatives that moved there from California. Because they think that they're *liberal* Californians moving there. A true ouroboros of White Hate Group ideology.

They made some weird choices with the placement of some of these states.

[Bwgmon]

They made some weird choices with the placement of some of these states.

What, did you forget that Maryland and DC practically border Florida? /s

[Iphie]

Yeah ... well fuck you IDAHO! Funny part about Idaho, is to watch the conservatives that have lived there for decades get mad at the conservatives that moved there from California. Because they think that they're *liberal* Californians moving there. A true ouroboros of White Hate Group ideology.

Just another reason showing why I'll never be caught dead in Idaho if I can avoid it. (It's a shame since there's some really beautiful geology there.)

[alach]

Just another reason showing why I'll never be caught dead in Idaho if I can avoid it. (It's a shame since there's some really beautiful geology there.)

Visit Alberta instead.

[Breccia]

Trump loses it while tilting against windmills. It's New Jersey this time.

STUPID AND UGLY WINDMILLS ARE KILLING NEW JERSEY. Energy prices up 28% this year, and not enough electricity to take care of state. STOP THE WINDMILLS!

"Um...if there's not enough energy, why would he propose removing wind generators and not propose any form of replacement?"

Because he's senile and retarded. There is no reasonable explanation for why anyone would pair that cause and that effect, and no Trump supporter would try, because they're fucking cowards.

"Is wind tariffed?"

No.

"Why are energy prices up 28 percent?"

The most likely reason is provider PJM, according to local sources.

Why are Energy Bills Going Up June 2025?

The increase in energy bills beginning in June 2025 is largely driven by higher prices in PJM’s capacity market. As previously mentioned, the capacity market functions like an auction where utility companies buy energy in advance to meet future demand during peak periods, such as extremely cold or hot days.

In PJM’s most recent auction in early 2025, prices rose higher than expected due to a surge in projected demand. PJM attributes this increase to two main factors:

1. Rapid growth in energy use for expected data centers, and
2. A shortage of new, reliable energy projects being built and connected to the grid.

According to PJM, data centers alone account for 70 percent of the projected increase in demand. But supply has not kept pace with this unexpected increase in demand. As a result, utilities paid more for future capacity, and those costs are passed on to customers.

A significant reason for this supply shortfall is PJM’s own delays in connecting new energy projects to the grid. Before a new project, such as a solar or wind farm, can connect to the grid and deliver electricity, it must go through PJM’s interconnection queue. This is a review process that assesses whether the project can be safely added to the grid, but in practice, this has become a major bottleneck. As of March 2025, 143 gigawatts worth of projects — including 79 projects in New Jersey — were awaiting approval in the interconnection queue, enough to power about 115 million homes. For comparison, PJM currently has about 179 gigawatts on the grid as of 2025. In 2022, PJM decided it would not review newer project applications until early 2026, and it’s unlikely that projects currently applying to join the grid will come online before 2030. However, PJM’s recent Resource Reliability Initiative fast-tracked primarily fossil fuel projects, even though over 95 percent of projects awaiting approval are renewable and storage projects, giving gas-powered energy an unfair advantage.

Yup. The costs are up due to (1) more AI server farms (2) not making enough renewable energy (3) fast-tracking fossil fuels and (4) making the customer pay for all of that.

In other words, prices are up in NJ because PJM is doing what Trump wants. I believe @Paranoid Android would say "Trump is gaslighting New Jersey" and he would be correct if he did.

"Well at least it's just New Jersey seeing increases in energy costs. Can you imagine if it was nationwide? That would sure make Trump look foolish."

This Forbes article from two hours after Trump's tweet-

"God dammit."

Residential electricity bills have increased by almost 10% since President Donald Trump was sworn in for his second term as president, according to data from the Energy Information Administration, rising from 15.95 cents per kilowatthour in January to 17.47 cents in May, the latest data available.

The cost of electricity has risen 5.5% over the last 12 months, according to the latest consumer price index data, almost twice as much as the overall cost of living (up 2.7%).

Trump has repeatedly promised to lower utility bills, but multiple reports released this summer blame his moves imposing new tariffs, cutting clean energy sources and supporting the expansion of data centers as reasons for the spikes in price.

Climate think tank Energy Innovation estimates energy provisions in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed into law July 4, will increase wholesale electricity prices by 74% over the next 10 years, leading to a household energy cost increase of $170 annually by 2035.

Yup. Trump is directly responsible for increasing power costs. And that's not even counting how hard he's pushing AI and crypto. Yes, crypto also contributes to rising energy costs, yes, Trump is pushing crypto.

Why would anyone do this?

[Edge-]

donalds policies drive up energy prices yet he blames windmills that he still thinks causes cancer

the leader of the republican party!

[Mayhem]

Also, did you see him distance himself from his own actions? tehdang voted for Trump and is acting like somehow this is the Democrats' fault.

Yeah, but that's standard Republican playbook. If it's something neutral/good, they are responsible (happens almost never), if it's something bad and/or they got caught, someone else is responsible (happens all the time, every time, always). "It's the womens fault that men want to rape them" probably the most fitting example considering his avatar.

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donalds policies drive up energy prices yet he blames windmills that he still thinks causes cancer

the leader of the republican party!

There's way too much lead in this leader.

[Trifle]

Cut Trump some slack, guys. Don’t you know he’s a war hero?!

[PhaelixWW]

Cut Trump some slack, guys. Don’t you know he’s a war hero?!

Same vibe:

[PfeffermintShake]

GAMERGATERS TOUCH THE HOT STOVE

Sony is raising the price of all PlayStation 5 models by $50 in the US.
In a blog post announcing the change, Sony cited the “challenging economic environment,” which includes the tariffs President Trump has placed on imported products.


Not looking good for GTA6 numbers.

[Breccia]

Same vibe:

You know there's like three people who saw that movie, right? And I don't know where the last one is.