Mega-Thread: Trump Focused Discussion

[alexw]

Too little, too late.



Mnuchin was singing the praises of $1,000 per person as recently as this literal morning.

I said it about a week ago and I'll say it again now. The federal government has to nationalize big large chunks of the economy. It can call it something else if it wants to in order to appease the fears of its republican voter base, but nethertheless this is what it has to do. Somewhere between 20 to 50% of the economy has just been vaporized. There is no hope of those businesses returning to viability any time soon. They will mass default on their loans, fire all their staff, and just plain cease to exist. That will cascade into the still functional parts of the economy and cause a Great Depression MKII event if its not halted. A meteor is the process of hitting the economy and will wipe much if not the majority of it out.

This damage can be minimzed but it needs federal action 2 weeks ago. The closed businesses need to be underwritten so they don't undergo an orgy of liquidation sales and bankruptcies. Their workers need to be underwritten so they can still buy and consume the products of the still functional parts of the economy so the economic cascades can be prevented.

But right now the Trump administration is mirroring the mistakes of the Herbet Hoover administration when it refused to act thereby letting the economy burn down around its ears. They are asleep at the wheel and everyone is going to end up paying the price. But then there are consequences to installing a self-serving incompetent grifter into the whitehouse, and allowing him to gut the federal bureaucracy of capable professionals and replace them will fellow grifters. Its just a shame everyone else who doesn't want him there will end up paying the price as well.

[Breccia]

The federal government has to nationalize big large chunks of the economy.

I believe the DPA is what you're talking about. Well, part of it.

- - - Updated - - -

More deplorable behavior: American terrorists are planning to spread the coronavirus to Jews and law enforcement.

How deplorable of these people.

- - - Updated - - -

Sen. Rand Paul has tested positive for COVID-19.

Sen. Mike Lee [KY-Jelly] self-quarantines, because of Rand Paul.

- - - Updated - - -

Oh for fuck's sake, Rand Paul was at the gym while waiting for his test results. He went swimming in the goddam steam pool.

It's time for Guess the Speaker.

I’ve never commented about a fellow Senator’s choices/actions. Never once.

This, America, is absolutely irresponsible. You cannot be near other people while waiting for coronavirus test results. It endangers others & likely increases the spread of the virus.

"Um...there are 98 people who could say that"

Sen. Simena, yes.

- - - Updated - - -

Oh, it keeps getting worse, doesn't it?

Several months before the coronavirus pandemic began, the Trump administration eliminated a key American public health position in Beijing intended to help detect disease outbreaks in China, Reuters has learned.

The American disease expert, a medical epidemiologist embedded in China’s disease control agency, left her post in July, according to four sources with knowledge of the issue. The first cases of the new coronavirus may have emerged as early as November, and as cases exploded, the Trump administration in February chastised China for censoring information about the outbreak and keeping U.S. experts from entering the country to help.

“It was heartbreaking to watch,” said Bao-Ping Zhu, a Chinese American who served in that role, which was funded by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, between 2007 and 2011. “If someone had been there, public health officials and governments across the world could have moved much faster.”

Zhu and the other sources said the American expert, Dr. Linda Quick, was a trainer of Chinese field epidemiologists who were deployed to the epicenter of outbreaks to help track, investigate and contain diseases. As an American CDC employee, they said, Quick was in an ideal position to be the eyes and ears on the ground for the United States and other countries on the coronavirus outbreak, and might have alerted them to the growing threat weeks earlier.

No other foreign disease experts were embedded to lead the program after Quick left in July, according to the sources. Zhu said an embedded expert can often get word of outbreaks early, after forming close relationships with Chinese counterparts.

Zhu and the other sources said Quick could have provided real-time information to U.S. and other officials around the world during the first weeks of the outbreak, when they said the Chinese government tamped down on the release of information and provided erroneous assessments.

Now I'll give Trump every ounce of credit he doesn't deserve: this article does say that China suppresses info, so Dr. Quick might not have gotten the info anyhow. And the article seems self-contradictory: was she fired, or did she quit?

Regardless, yet another story breaks in which something that could have helped, wasn't done. It's not "go swimming in a public pool with coronavirus" stupid, but it's just more PR to add to the pile.

[alexw]

I believe the DPA is what you're talking about. Well, part of it.

Not really no. The DPA is for mobilizing the economy to fight specific threats and while that would be useful in shifting the production of parts of the economy to counter the covid-19 threat, the major problem outside of the virus itself is that big chunks of the economy have ceased to function. There's no need to mobilze the aviation industry, or cinema's, or bars, or car manufacturing, or etc, etc, etc. Those industries need to be mothballed in a way that allows them to resume business once this disaster is over with, otherwise they will simply cease to exist and it will take multi-decades to recover from this crisis.

[Shadowferal]

Sen. Rand Paul has tested positive for COVID-19.

Is this karma?

[Edge-]

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-h...-idUSKBN21910S

We literally had someone working in China specifically to keep an eye out for outbreaks like this. And the Trump administration fired them in July of last year, 3-4 months before cases started appearing.

This is another example of why cutting so much "waste" isn't always a great idea.

[Zan15]

Is this karma?

what the mother fucking holy hell.....

stay at home order- check
Social distancing- check
Business, including Gyms closed in many many states - check.


So what does this Dbag and his fellow members do???


Senate Republicans expressed their concern after emerging from a closed-door lunch where they received news that Sen. Rand Paul had tested positive for coronavirus.
Three different GOP senators told CNN that Paul was in the gym with colleagues this morning and several pointed out how close the Kentucky senator had sat to others during Senate lunches in recent days.


/facepalm


and they want people to make sacrifices….

[Shadowferal]

Well the GOP Senate can now show everyone how well they make sacrifices

[arandomuser]

Libertarians.

and another familiar face is saying something similar, im not saying its the russians but.../ its definitely the russians lol

[Acidbaron]

Libertarians.

Giving everyone the freedom to die "free"? Odd, bunch.

[Dead Moose Fandango]

What's that? GOP members might get the virus? Karma, you say? I wouldn't know. I'm too busy laughing.

[Xyonai]

I don't like Rand Paul, to put it mildly, but I do hope he can recover at minimal risk to anyone else.

And while he's laying miserable in bed while in recovery, I hope he can find it in himself to stop being a fucking chode about these relief bills.

[Poopymonster]

I don't like Rand Paul, to put it mildly, but I do hope he can recover at minimal risk to anyone else.

And while he's laying miserable in bed while in recovery, I hope he can find it in himself to stop being a fucking chode about these relief bills.

Kentucky has lots of coal, meaning black lung...he might finally learn how those miners feel they've been fucking for years.

[Thekri]

"We have never seen anything like this" "The enemy is attacking 144 nations" "We will be totally victorious, and far sooner then anticipated".

What the hell is this press conference? None of those statements make any sense. We have seen plenty of global pandemics in history, describing a virus as an enemy that is attacking is not a helpful or calming metaphor, and how the fuck can you be victorious? And why is he promising it will be over quickly when nobody else is saying that? Also, why does Trump have to touch everyone that takes the podium? He keeps patting them all on the back for literally no reason.

[akris15]

"We have never seen anything like this" "The enemy is attacking 144 nations" "We will be totally victorious, and far sooner then anticipated".

What the hell is this press conference? None of those statements make any sense. We have seen plenty of global pandemics in history, describing a virus as an enemy that is attacking is not a helpful or calming metaphor, and how the fuck can you be victorious? And why is he promising it will be over quickly when nobody else is saying that? Also, why does Trump have to touch everyone that takes the podium? He keeps patting them all on the back for literally no reason.

Same reason he has to use the term "Chinese Virus"...Trump turned these conferences into propaganda to show to Fox News hes doing something. Look how all the directors are cheering to Trump "thank you for making my job easier" where there is a such a terrible response from the Federal Government the governors R and D are working overtime to save the slack from the Federal response, where he's taking credit for things signed under Obama (Veterans Choice of 2014) and how the real adults in the room (Dr. Fauci) is not in there...

[Thekri]

"Except for health care workers, 100% of Americans who have been testing were showing symptoms, and thought they had it" - Mike Pence.

Well Mike, except for you... and your wife.. both times. And the president, and a whole bunch of politicians.

[Paranoid Android]

Too little, too late.



Mnuchin was singing the praises of $1,000 per person as recently as this literal morning.

Well, have we of course talked about Mnuchin and him wanting discretion where the money goes.

Guess where people say which business might get more of a favor? The hospitality, aka hotel business. Guess who is in the hotel business?

THE POSITIONING BEGINS — here are some problems with the bill, as flagged by a democrat.

Big four plus mnuchin meeting this am. https://t.co/dlKVKO7WBG

https://twitter.com/JakeSherman/stat...313581057?s=19

If you choose to look at the link, it has image on Mnuchin's demands.

[Zan15]

I don't like Rand Paul, to put it mildly, but I do hope he can recover at minimal risk to anyone else.

And while he's laying miserable in bed while in recovery, I hope he can find it in himself to stop being a fucking chode about these relief bills.

I hope he recovers fully, decides that his life is too short, he resigns and gets out of politics.
its the only thing I can hope without getting infracted

[Benggaul]

Okay, you know, until this point I haven't really WISHED the disease on anyone, but Trump's smug little smile and "That's too bad" reaction to the news that Romney is now in self-isolation because of the virus blows that out of the water. Fuck Trump. I hope he gets it and suffers through it, then gets his ass thrown in jail when he comes out the other end for being responsible for the deaths of millions.

[Thekri]

Okay, you know, until this point I haven't really WISHED the disease on anyone, but Trump's smug little smile and "That's too bad" reaction to the news that Romney is now in self-isolation because of the virus blows that out of the water. Fuck Trump. I hope he gets it and suffers through it, then gets his ass thrown in jail when he comes out the other end for being responsible for the deaths of millions.

Yeah, of all the least classy moments in this press conference, that one might take the cake. There have been a lot of them though, he won't stop shitting on Obama constantly.

Still, the more I see of this, the more I am convinced he is going to get reelected. Exactly what has worked for him all along is going to work for him here. Blame other people for everything, create enemies, divide people, and lie. He doesn't seem off his game at all, he is dropping lies, insults, and attacks constantly throughout these press conferences. This isn't just business as usual for him, he seems to see that as an opportunity to get yuge ratings. So Trump is on TV every day, and I haven't heard anything about Biden in a week.

[akris15]

Yeah, of all the least classy moments in this press conference, that one might take the cake. There have been a lot of them though, he won't stop shitting on Obama constantly.

Still, the more I see of this, the more I am convinced he is going to get reelected. Exactly what has worked for him all along is going to work for him here. Blame other people for everything, create enemies, divide people, and lie. He doesn't seem off his game at all, he is dropping lies, insults, and attacks constantly throughout these press conferences. This isn't just business as usual for him, he seems to see that as an opportunity to get yuge ratings. So Trump is on TV every day, and I haven't heard anything about Biden in a week.

I mean you know come fall hes going to say something like "I personally fought off the greatest pandemic of all time and it was all to my absolute genius. All the countries in the world said I did the best, ask anyone that is all they said".