American Politics Thread: Orange is the new POTUS

[DuffMan]

Originally Posted by woob

IMG

Not sure why, but pots and kettles were the first thing that jumped to mind when I read his comment.

[DuffMan]

So the WH, is going to put out some kind of release listing all of Trumps accomplishments in the first 100 days.

There are 37 points in this list and 23 (62%) were accomplished by executive order or memorandum.

Here are some of his more awesome ones they consider accomplishments

Eliminating Stream Protection Rule: On February 16th 2017, The President Signed Into Law H.J. Resolution 38, Which Eliminated A Burdensome Energy Regulation That Grew The Federal Bureaucracy And Put Upward Pressure On Energy Costs (H.J. Res. 38, Signed 2/16/17)

Eliminating Regulations On Extraction Companies: On February 14th 2017, The President Signed Into Law H.J. Resolution 41, Which Eliminated A Costly Regulation That Threatened To Put Domestic Extraction Companies At A Disadvantage. (The White House Press Office, "Remarks By President Trump At Signing Of H.J. Resolution 41," 2/14/17)

Minimizing Affordable Care Act: On January 20th 2017, The President Signed An Executive Order "Instructing Federal Agencies To Minimize The Burden" Of The Affordable Care Act. "On his first day in office, President Donald Trump signed an executive order instructing federal agencies to minimize the burden of his predecessor's signature accomplishment, the Affordable Care Act, pending congressional repeal." (The White House Press Office, "Executive Order Minimizing The Economic Burden Of The Patient Protection And Affordable Care Act Pending Repeal," 1/20/17)

http://www.cnn.com/2017/04/24/politi...nts/index.html

[octothorp]

Originally Posted by photon

That AP interview is so crazy.

One of my favorite parts is where he says he said NATO was obsolete as he didn't know much about NATO, but now he knows lots about NATO.

Bizarre.

This is one of my favorite Trumpisms:
1. say crazy, inflamatory things about a topic to make yourself look big.
2. Call everyone else weak, sad liars when they say you clearly doesn't understand topic.
3. Months later, adopt passive, status-quo perspective on topic that others were advocating in the first place.
4. Justify the change in stance as being because nobody could appreciate how complicated the topic is, and how you are now an expert on it.

[Lanny_McDonald]

Originally Posted by peter12

This is incredibly offensive, and just really an outright attention seeking move.

Everyone knows that real diagnoses of mental illness require a degree of longitudinal testing, and in-person interactions between the subject and professional.

Often multiple opinions are sought before making a diagnosis. Man, America is just crap from top to bottom. Brutal.

Offensive? Thanks for supporting exactly what I said earlier about trying to reason with some people.

There is a long tradition of psychiatrists and psychologists not making comment on individuals because there is not a chance to review their behaviors through longitudinal analysis or direct interviews. This is encapsulated in the Goldwater Rule and has been observed for decades. Having said that, this panel did observe the Goldwater Rule and provided feedback as a panel. They also had longitudinal data from the public record to review and many third party interviews to rely upon. This is no different than a forensic psychologist conducting a review of similar data and coming to a conclusion, so proper protocol appears to have been followed. Oh, and no, multiple opinions are rarely sought out prior to making a diagnosis. This level of self-second guessing would put psychiatrists out of business almost immediately. Only in the most difficult and extreme instances would a second opinion be required, and Trump is about as open a book as they come.

[Lanny_McDonald]

Originally Posted by photon

This doesn't sound ominous at all...

Top Trump administration officials will hold a rare briefing on Wednesday at the White House for the entire U.S. Senate on the situation in North Korea, senior Senate aides said on Monday.

All 100 senators have been asked to the White House for the briefing by Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis, Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats and General Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the aides said.

...

House aides said they were working with the White House to set a similar briefing for members of the House of Representatives.

http://mobile.reuters.com/article/idUSKBN17Q1LR?il=0

Sounds to me like he's laying the groundwork for a preemptive strike. This guy is crazy enough to ask to use a nuke too. This could get ugly quickly.

[Cheese]

Great satire
http://www.newyorker.com/humor/borow...ocial_facebook

[Fozzie_DeBear]

Originally Posted by New Era

Sounds to me like he's laying the groundwork for a preemptive strike. This guy is crazy enough to ask to use a nuke too. This could get ugly quickly.

It could, and the confusion around the Carrier group highlights how things could accidentally spiral out of control if a low-level engagement were to occur.

Make no mistake though, North Korea's equipment is older that the Iraqis and any confrontation would be extremely one-sided. NK could do a lot of damage to Seoul and some to Japan, but their military would be decimated very very quickly, especially if they were to cross the border.

They would be much tougher on defence, but the military outcome is not a question. The question is, what will China find acceptable?

It's really tough, because a regime like NK's having a nuclear device on a reliable ICBM really is not acceptable. Not to mention that they are a regime that is as savage to their own population as any. A pre-emptive strike (with China's support) with an agreed upon end-state might be the best option...out of a bunch of crappy options.

The worst would be a strike that upsets China, has no long-term strategy and is launched more for domestic distraction reasons..

[peter12]

Originally Posted by New Era

Offensive? Thanks for supporting exactly what I said earlier about trying to reason with some people.

There is a long tradition of psychiatrists and psychologists not making comment on individuals because there is not a chance to review their behaviors through longitudinal analysis or direct interviews. This is encapsulated in the Goldwater Rule and has been observed for decades. Having said that, this panel did observe the Goldwater Rule and provided feedback as a panel. They also had longitudinal data from the public record to review and many third party interviews to rely upon. This is no different than a forensic psychologist conducting a review of similar data and coming to a conclusion, so proper protocol appears to have been followed. Oh, and no, multiple opinions are rarely sought out prior to making a diagnosis. This level of self-second guessing would put psychiatrists out of business almost immediately. Only in the most difficult and extreme instances would a second opinion be required, and Trump is about as open a book as they come.

Man, you play a slippery game.

[Fozzie_DeBear]

Slippery? Why? These are professionals who have legitimacy...

[photon]

The USS Michigan -- a guided-missile submarine -- is expected to make a visible port call in South Korea on Tuesday, according to a US defense official.

The official described the move as a show of force amid tensions between the US and North Korea.

The US Navy submarine is expected to dock in the port city of Busan, South Korea, on the same day that North Korea celebrates the 85th anniversary of the founding of the Korean People's Army.

A port call involves stopping at a foreign port for supplies, repairs or transshipment of cargo.

http://www.cnn.com/2017/04/24/politi...rea/index.html

[Lanny_McDonald]

Originally Posted by photon

The USS Michigan -- a guided-missile submarine -- is expected to make a visible port call in South Korea on Tuesday, according to a US defense official.

The official described the move as a show of force amid tensions between the US and North Korea.

The US Navy submarine is expected to dock in the port city of Busan, South Korea, on the same day that North Korea celebrates the 85th anniversary of the founding of the Korean People's Army.

A port call involves stopping at a foreign port for supplies, repairs or transshipment of cargo.

http://www.cnn.com/2017/04/24/politi...rea/index.html

This is the Trump administration, so this sub might just end up making that visible port call in Honolulu.

Also, North Korea threatens to sink the Vinson.

http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-w...rges-restraint

Would certainly be a statement. The North Koreans have a fleet of submarines so could they conducted their next nuclear test in the waters beneath the American carrier group? Then if the US twitches the North Koreans obliterate Seoul in a blaze of glory right before Pyongyang becomes a smoldering radioactive dead zone.

[Mr.Coffee]

but then what? Then China's pissed. I still don't think the US pulls the trigger as an aggressor. Sabre-rattling be damned.

But I will saw it sure seems like Trump's determined to make a "legacy" (aka go to war with someone). Which could be good for oil prices. Sorry that sounds bad (it is bad), but you gotta think the probability of a Trump started war is >60% over his tenure here.

[KootenayFlamesFan]

The Trump administration is taking retaliatory action against Canada over a decades-old trade dispute, moving to impose a 20% tariff on softwood lumber that is typically used to build single-family homes, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said Monday in an interview.

Mr. Ross said the tariff would be applied retroactively and imposed on Canadian exports to the U.S. of about $5 billion a year. He said the dispute centers on Canadian provinces that have been allegedly allowing loggers to cut trees down at improperly subsidized costs and sell them at lower prices.

The decision is preliminary and the Commerce Department will need to make a final determination. After that, the U.S. International Trade Commission will also need to find that the U.S. industry has suffered injury before any tariff is levied. But even a preliminary decision has immediate real-world consequences, by discouraging importers from buying lumber from Canada.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/trump-a...5372?mod=e2twp

[Snuffleupagus]

Originally Posted by KootenayFlamesFan

https://www.wsj.com/articles/trump-a...5372?mod=e2twp

Does the USA even have enough trees to support their needs?

[Senator Clay Davis]

He's just desperate for any kind of "win" after suffering loss after loss in his first 100 days. Truly one of the most sadly pathetic individuals ever to become a public figure. Though I must admit I do like Canada's proposed response.

[Fuzz]

Make it a pot hedge and we have a deal.

[DuffMan]

How will Canada retaliate?
Let's have a trade war.

[Senator Clay Davis]

I am glad Trump brought up softwood, because the jokes are simply writing themselves on Twitter. Small hands, soft wood.

[FlameOn]

Trump is now backing down on his requirements for a border wall so the government does not shut down.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump stepped back Monday from demanding a down payment for his border wall in must-past spending legislation, potentially removing a major obstacle to a bipartisan deal just days ahead of a government shutdown deadline.

Trump told a gathering of around 20 conservative media reporters Monday evening that he would be willing to return to the wall funding issue in September, according to two people who were in the room. They spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the get-together, which was not originally intended to be on the record.

The border wall money is fiercely opposed by Democrats, whose votes are needed to pass the government-wide spending legislation that comes due Friday at midnight. The wall is also unpopular with many Republicans, and GOP negotiators on Capitol Hill were uneasy about the clash over the wall potentially sparking a government shutdown.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, who has a key role providing Democratic votes to pass the legislation, welcomed Trump's reported shift on the wall.

https://www.apnews.com/64d9aed27a964...der-wall-money

[Looch City]

Just keep on winning Donald.