How the rest of the world sees Trump...
"...all the hallmarks of his presidency have been on agitated display. The
ridiculous boasts - he has awarded himself a 10 out of 10 for his handling of
the crisis. The politicisation of what should be the apolitical - he toured
the Centers for Disease Control wearing a campaign cap emblazoned with the
slogan 'Keep America Great'.
The mind-bending truth-twisting - he now claims to have fully appreciated the scale
of the pandemic early on, despite dismissing and downplaying the threat for weeks.
His lack of empathy. Rather than soothing words for relatives of those who
have died, or words of encouragement and appreciation for those in the medical
trenches, Trump's daily White House briefings commonly start with a shower of
self-congratulation. After Trump has spoken, Mike Pence, his loyal deputy,
usually delivers a paean of praise to the president in that
Pyongyang-on-the-Potomac style he has perfected over the past three
years. Trump's narcissistic hunger for adoration seems impossible to sate.
Versus how the rest of the world sees the United States...
What have we learnt of the United States? First of all, we have seen the
enduring goodness of this country. The Frenchman Alexis DeToqueville, whose
observations in the early-19th Century did so much to demystify this
rambunctious new republic, always told us: 'America is great because she is good.'
As with 9/11, we have marvelled at the selflessness and bravery of its first
responders - the nurses, doctors, medical support staff and ambulance drivers
who have turned up to the work with the same sense of public spiritedness
shown by the firefighters who rushed towards the flaming Twin Towers. We've
witnessed the ingenuity and creativity of schools that have transitioned to
remote, online teaching without missing a beat. We've seen a can-do spirit
that has kept stores open, shelves stocked and food being delivered. In other
words, most Americans have shown precisely the same virtues we have seen in
every country brought to a halt by the virus."
– BBC reporter Nick Bryant, March 24, 2020
"The United States has a problem with violent, right-wing extremists right now.
And there may be no state where things are worse on that front than Michigan. Already,
there have been incidents of armed militia members plotting to kill police officers and
storming the capitol in protest of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's COVID-19 prevention measures.
On Thursday, the situation took a frightening turn for the worse, as the FBI revealed that,
aided by informers, it had broken up a plot by right-wing extremists to kidnap the Governor.
The general plan was to storm her vacation house, take her prisoner, and then put her
on "trial." If that sounds batsh*t crazy to you, then congratulations, you're normal.
– electoral-vote.com, October 9, 2020
BTW, no comment from the Justice Dept. on this. See why in the next item...
"You have repeatedly criticized the Vice President for not specifically calling out
Antifa and other left-wing extremist groups."
– Chris Wallace, Fox News reporter and debate moderator
"That's right"
– Donald Trump
"But are you willing, tonight, to condemn white supremacist and militia groups?
And to say that they need to stand down and not add to the violence in these cities?"
– Chris Wallace
"Sure, I'm prepared to do that."
– Donald Trump
"Then do it!"
– Joe Biden
"I would say that almost everything I see is from the left wing, not the right wing."
– Donald Trump
"Say it! Do it! Say it!"
– Joe Biden
"Gimme a name. Who would you like me to condemn?"
– Donald Trump
"White supremacists and right-wing..."
– Chris Wallace
"Proud Boys"
– Joe Biden
"Proud Boys, stand back, and stand by, but I'll tell you what, somebody's
got to do something about Antifa and the left..."
At which point, Biden smiles wryly because, well, Oh. My. God.
– Wallace, Trump, and Biden, in the first "Presidential" debate, September 29, 2020
"In 10 of the past 15 years, Trump paid no taxes at all because he lost more money
than he made. In contrast, in 2016 and 2017, he paid $750 in federal taxes each year.
That's right, $1,500 total in the first two years of his political career. Now it
is starting to come into focus why he has fought tooth and nail to hide the returns:
He is under a great deal of financial stress, with hundreds of millions of dollars in debt
coming due soon on more than $300 million in loans that he has personally guaranteed.
Also out there is a battle over the legitimacy of a $73 million tax refund he applied for and got.
If he loses that audit battle with the IRS, that could cost him over $100 million.
One thing to keep in mind about the article and the follow-up articles is that the
information comes from Trump's claims on his tax returns. They have not been audited
by an independent agency and may not bear any relationship to the truth. The good news
for Trump is that the returns do not reveal any previously unknown connections to Russia.
The bad news for him is that he isn't a very good businessman. From the article:
"Ultimately, Mr. Trump has been more successful playing a business mogul than being one in real life."
Trump made $427 million from "The Apprentice" and related projects. He invested most of it
in money-losing golf courses. In fact, his financial condition in 2015 was so bad
that it lends credence to the idea that he ran for president not because he thought
he could win (or even wanted to win), but because he thought the attention from the run
would boost the value of his brand. In 2018, Trump announced that he made $435 million
in revenue and seemed proud of it. But revenue is only part of the story. He somehow forgot
to mention his bottom line: a loss of $47 million. Many of his businesses lose money.
His golf courses and hotel in D.C. lose millions - maybe tens of millions - of dollars year in,
year out. Years ago he sold all his stocks to help him plug financial holes. The picture
that emerges is that of a man in deep financial doodoo, not a brilliant businessman raking it in.
What also emerges from the tax documents is how Trump is trying to milk the presidency
for all it is worth to cover his debts. His hotels have become magnets for (foreign)
lobbyists wanting to get into good graces. He needs that money badly to cover the loans
soon coming due. Much of this is probably in violation of the Constitution's emoluments clause.
– electoral-vote.com, September 28, 2020
That penultimate paragraph is the kicker. Trump is destroying the United States
over a publicity stunt to help his failing brand. Narcissistic corruption at its worst!
"My liberal friends have over many decades gotten very used to the idea of having a liberal court,
but that's not written in the stars. [It is] appropriate for a nation that is ... center-right to have
a court which reflects center-right points of view.
– Mitt Romney, September 23, 2020 (proving Trump's not the only one who makes shit up)
First, really Mitt, did you have to revert to being as conniving, spineless, and hypocritical as your colleagues?
Second, Republicans have won exactly one of the last seven presidential elections so, "center-right nation", not so much!
Third, the court has not been "liberal" since Earl Warren retired in 1969.
Fourth, way to honor RBG's legacy.
"We've had temperatures explode this summer... If we ignore the science and put
our heads in the sand, we're not going to succeed."
– Wade Crowfoot, California Secretary of Natural Resources, September 14, 2020
"It'll start getting cooler, just you watch"
– Trump replies, smirking
"I wish science agreed with you.
– Crowfoot
"I don't think science knows, actually"
– Trump
"Science knows"
– Joe Biden tweet
Science may not always 'know', but it usually has a pretty good idea!
"...I profoundly accept this nomination for president..."
– Trump, speaking at the White House (err, the RNC), August 27, 2020
How profound! What a maroon...
How much is the Republican party sold their soul to Trump? Glad you asked! To wit,
here is the entire Republican platform for the 2020 convention:
WHEREAS, The RNC enthusiastically supports President Trump and continues to reject
the policy positions of the Obama-Biden Administration, as well as those espoused
by the Democratic National Committee today; therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the Republican Party has and will continue to enthusiastically
support the President's America-first agenda;
RESOLVED, That the 2020 Republican National Convention will adjourn without
adopting a new platform until the 2024 Republican National Convention;
I guess when Trump cannot articulate an agenda for a 2nd term, why should the RNC?
Who needs principles when you have Trump?
"Take away your guns, destroy your 2nd Amendment, no religion, no anything,
hurt the bible, hurt God. He's against God, he's against guns, he's against
energy (our kind of energy)..."
– Trump, speaking on August 6, 2020
First off, 'no anything', I mean, really?? I won't have anything if Biden is elected?
Second, Biden is going to hurt God? If you know anything about God, I don't think
God is all that concerned about Biden on that score.
Third, Biden is a life-long practicing Catholic. No religion, indeed!
Perhaps Trump was looking in the rhetorical mirror on that one...
"One of the things that will be really great — the word experience is still good,
I always say talent is more important than experience, I've always said that,
but the word experience is a very important word, a very important meaning.
But I still don't know what he means by it here; a total non sequitor!
I never did this before, never slept over in Washington. I was in Washington maybe
17 times and all of a sudden I'm the president of the United States, you know the story,
riding down Pennsylvania Avenue with our first lady and I say this is great but
I didn't know very many people in Washington, it wasn't my thing. I was from Manhattan,
from New York, and now I know everybody. And I have great people in the administration.
You make some mistakes, like an idiot like Bolton, you don't have to drop bombs on everybody.
– Trump, in an interview with Sean Hannity, June 23, 2020
The question from Hannity was "What are your top priority items for a second term?"
And Trump had NO answer! To the softest of softball questions!
But he did like riding down Pennsylvania Avenue (like a child would)!
"The Trump administration's choice of former AccuWeather CEO Barry Myers to lead NOAA was one
in a series of troubling nominations. Myers...was not only unqualified but also had irreconcilable
conflicts of interest, as he could have used his position to benefit
AccuWeather, which is run by his brother.
– Union of Concerned Scientists in Catalyst, Winter 2020 issue
viz., Trump hiring "only the best people"
Trump downplaying the U.S. alliance with the Kurds,
11,000 of whom died fighting to help the US mission against ISIS:
"They didn't help us in the second World War, they didn't help us with
Normandy for example,"
– Donald Trump, October 10, 2019
While, technically, this is not false, it's a total non sequitur.
(Also, technically, Turkey didn't help us with Normandy either!)
"Less than three weeks after winning the White House in 2016, Trump sent out
this tweet: 'In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I
won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally.'"
– Chris Cillizza, CNN, March 6, 2019
"Last year he [Trump] said he 'heard I was first in my class' at the University of
Pennsylvania's Wharton business program, where he finished his undergraduate
degree,
but Trump's name does not appear on the school's Dean's List, or on the list of
students who received academic honors in his class of 1968."
– Marc Fisher, writing in The Washington Post, March 5, 2019
"In less than two years, my administration has accomplished more than almost
any administration in the history of our country. America's ... so true."
Laughter
"Didn't expect that reaction, but that's okay."
Laughter and applause
– Donald Trump, speaking at the U.N. General Assembly, September 25, 2018
FYI, that's the world, by proxy, laughing at a sitting U.S. president
"Stick with us. Don't believe the crap you see from these people, the fake news...
What you're seeing and what you're reading is not what's happening."
– Donald Trump, speaking at the VFW National Convention in Kansas City, July 24, 2018
Holy 1984, Batman!
"Few people who knew Trump had illusions about him. That was his appeal. He
was what he was.
Twinkle in his eye, larceny in his soul. Everybody in his rich-guy social
circle knew about his wide-ranging ignorance.
Early in the campaign, Sam Nunberg was sent to explain the Constitution to the
candidate.
'I got as far as the Fourth Amendment,' Nunberg recalled, 'before his finger
is pulling down on his lip and his eyes are rolling back in his head.'"
– Michael Wolff, writing in New York Magazine, January 8, 2018
"I'm very highly educated. I know words. I have the best words."
– Donald Trump, speaking at a SC campaign stop, December 30, 2015
To return to our regularly scheduled stream of consciousness...
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