The Trump Presidency: Part 20

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llwyd said:
Well, surely to his base he is, on some essential level, I mean he must be. I think it's painfully obvious that he is a very incompetent, very dangerous person that should never hold a public office. But that's just me, what do I know: ca 48% of the American electorate voted him for the president of the bloody US of A, aka the leader of the free world. And you say he can't bullexcrete?
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I'm telling you, most of them don't believe him. They just like his anger directed at liberals and his willingness to say any stupid ******* thing that pops into his head. They want their conservative judges and they want to stifle anything proposed by the evil progressives. He's not convincing anyone of anything, which is what a good crap-slinger does; such a person would have his opposition saying "yeah, he's got a point" rather than "how can anyone vote for this garbage shaped like a human?"
 
dudalb said:
The problem is Trump has built his whole presidency around how great everything is, and now he has a real crisis to face, and he is clueless on how to respond, and so, by default, he is sticking to his standard technique of attacking his enemies and claiming everything is just fine, the virus is nothing to worry about.
This is going to cause disaster, maybe edging to catastrophe.
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He is the perfect frontman for the cult of wealth. He is the 12 carat gold plated empty vessel of sound and fury.
 
Babbylonian said:
I'm telling you, most of them don't believe him.
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Well, on some level they must do. Of course they also just, mostly, agree with him (in the sense that you can agree with him). I mean the zealots pass his obvious non-religiousness and evilness and the corporate elite his evident stupidity, but then he appoints crazies to judges and cuts taxes to billionaires and giant corporations. But if you think that propaganda and pr (or bovine digestive system end results) have nothing to do with that you are ever so mistaken. There would have been several much more competent people that would have done just the same, but way less badly.
 
llwyd said:
To be honest, the US health care system - and society - is probably way worse for coping with a pandemic than Italy. All those people not affording to self-quarantine combined with the crazily ineffective health care services that millions still have no access to. There will be lots of posturing and PR from the administration, and Trump is admittedly certainly good at bullexcreting, but that would really need to complemented by effective action on ground...

Babbylonian said:
But he's not, not even a little bit. Even his own supporters don't believe the things he says, often attempting to clarify what he meant before he comes out to clarify that he means exactly what he says, no matter how obvious it is that he's lying.
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He seems to be pretty good at bull excreting himself. I think he has convinced himself that he is a stable genius who is smarter than everyone in the room (smarter than everyone in the country).

But in reading this page, I realized that there is more than one defining toon of BSing. In some contexts, it means actually fooling listeners by throwing out a wide range of lies. In other cases, it means trying to fool listeners by throwing out a wide range of lies. In other cases, it means not being concerned with whether or not what one says is true or false - the focus is on the messsge and it is irrelevant whether the message is factually accurate or merely a well-described fantasy. President Trump excels at this last definition. He does not stop and think about the truth before making a conscious decision to lie - he just describes the world the way he sees it. He describes the world the way he wants it to be but uses the indicative mood rather than the subjunctive mood.
 
Ladewig said:
He seems to be pretty good at bull excreting himself. I think he has convinced himself that he is a stable genius who is smarter than everyone in the room (smarter than everyone in the country).

But in reading this page, I realized that there is more than one defining toon of BSing. In some contexts, it means actually fooling listeners by throwing out a wide range of lies. In other cases, it means trying to fool listeners by throwing out a wide range of lies. In other cases, it means not being concerned with whether or not what one says is true or false - the focus is on the messsge and it is irrelevant whether the message is factually accurate or merely a well-described fantasy. President Trump excels at this last definition. He does not stop and think about the truth before making a conscious decision to lie - he just describes the world the way he sees it. He describes the world the way he wants it to be but uses the indicative mood rather than the subjunctive mood.
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I really like that description - I think I was clumsily trying to say something like that. Like it's really not about the literal truth value. So, I guess then more like some kind of an emotional value. So for his base it is not at all important if his one random rant or other is not literally true as long as it is "emotionally true". But to me that is still the end output of bovine digestion process, I mean literally, surely it is.
 
And all he did was announce a travel ban to Europe?
And the UK is exemepted? What the hell is that? Don't they have the virus in the UK?
Sort of makes the whole thing useless.
And has just pissed off allof Europe .
What a freaking moron. I know I am stating the obvious,but I have to vent.
 
Dread Pirate Roberts said:
I streamed the address but didn't watch, just listened. Sounded very labored and man he does sniff a lot. Just so deadpan like he really didn't want to be talking at all
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Well, clearly reading it against his basic instincts - banning travel with Europe, a bloody gigantic thing and just killing the markets for no good return (as the virus is already happily free rangeing in the USA), after having been very loudly ridiculing the treath as a "Democratic hoax". I mean even his base might notice something not totally kosher there. But then again, they voted for him in the first place.
 
llwyd said:
Well, clearly reading it against his basic instincts - banning travel with Europe, a bloody gigantic thing and just killing the markets for no good return (as the virus is already happily free rangeing in the USA), after having been very loudly ridiculing the treath as a "Democratic hoax". I mean even his base might notice something not totally kosher there. But then again, they voted for him in the first place.
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And he exempted the UK, which makes NO sense if he is serious about keeping additional virus cases out of the us. Last time I looked, the UK had the Virus too.
 
dudalb said:
And he exempted the UK, which makes NO sense if he is serious about keeping additional virus cases out of the us. Last time I looked, the UK had the Virus too.
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Well, it's rather touching that he remembered Boris even in this hour of need :)
 
For those keeping score it has now been a full year since the the White House has held a press briefing. For 50 years President; from both parties, held them almost daily.

The current Press Secretary has held the job since June of 2019 and has never held a press briefing. She has had two more DUI arrests then she has ever held Press Briefings.
 
dudalb said:
And he exempted the UK, which makes NO sense if he is serious about keeping additional virus cases out of the us. Last time I looked, the UK had the Virus too.
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They're white, except those that aren't, and speak some variant of English. And he has golf courses there.
Watch for the exceptions of the no-go zones.
 
Obviously, one might remember that in the olden times the USA and Western Europe worked rather effectively in tandem. There was a community of values even with pretty big policy differences. But there was an alliance, a strong alliance - and I guess there still is something left of that. But nothing like it used to be.
 
And Trump speech has been upstaged by the NBA suspending its season because of the virus after the indicent in the OKC/Utah game.
The panic factor just went up bigtime with that.
 
Trebuchet said:
They're white, except those that aren't, and speak some variant of English. And he has golf courses there.Watch for the exceptions of the no-go zones.
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I missed that until you mentioned it. But it is so obvious.
 
I suspect lots of comments how the NBA commsioner is showing a lot more courage and leadership about the virus then the POTUS is.
 
Trump Tweets

The Media should view this as a time of unity and strength. We have a common enemy, actually, an enemy of the World, the CoronaVirus. We must beat it as quickly and safely as possible. There is nothing more important to me than the life & safety of the United States!

Hoping to get the payroll tax cut approved by both Republicans and Democrats, and please remember, very important for all countries & businesses to know that trade will in no way be affected by the 30-day restriction on travel from Europe. The restriction stops people not goods.
 
Captain_Swoop said:
Trump Tweets

The Media should view this as a time of unity and strength. We have a common enemy, actually, an enemy of the World, the CoronaVirus. We must beat it as quickly and safely as possible. There is nothing more important to me than the life & safety of the United States!

Hoping to get the payroll tax cut approved by both Republicans and Democrats, and please remember, very important for all countries & businesses to know that trade will in no way be affected by the 30-day restriction on travel from Europe. The restriction stops people not goods.
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What's to stop Europeans arriving in the USA via the UK? Like many of them do already?
 
Norman Alexander said:
What's to stop Europeans arriving in the USA via the UK? Like many of them do already?
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Nothing, it's just Trump tacitly endorsing Bojo's Brexit and doing Putin a solid by being a dick to continental Europe. Gotta keep that hustle going while we're all too focused on doom and gloom to notice.
 
Yesterday afternoon.

dudalb said:
And Donnie is still in denial mode:

Statements made a few minutes ago:

"Trump once again downplayed the severity of the coronavirus spread, telling reporters on Capitol Hill on Tuesday that his administration is doing a good job and that it will all work out.
“It will go away, just stay calm,” Trump said after an hour-long meeting with Senate Republicans on an economic relief package. “Everybody has to be vigilant, be calm. Everything is working out.”

<snip>
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Today.

He calmly(?) shut down all travel from Europe (except the UK) for 30 days.

If that's being calm it's going to be a rough ride when he loses it altogether.
 
White House treats covid meetings as top secret.
WASHINGTON, March 11 (Reuters) - The White House has ordered federal health officials to treat top-level coronavirus meetings as classified, an unusual step that has restricted information and hampered the U.S. government’s response to the contagion, according to four Trump administration officials.
....
Staffers without security clearances, including government experts, were excluded from the interagency meetings, which included video conference calls, the sources said.

“We had some very critical people who did not have security clearances who could not go,” one official said. “These should not be classified meetings. It was unnecessary.”
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https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/e...urces/ar-BB11337q?li=BBnb7Kz&ocid=mailsignout
 
dudalb said:
Trump to address the nation tonight on the virus.
TUrn off your BS meters if you don't want them to explode.
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He's a really bad actor trying to give one of those serious announcements that real Presidents don't have to act to give.
 
Beelzebuddy said:
Nothing, it's just Trump tacitly endorsing Bojo's Brexit and doing Putin a solid by being a dick to continental Europe. Gotta keep that hustle going while we're all too focused on doom and gloom to notice.
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So if they can land OK from the UK...how effective is this "restriction" actually?

More than just some political shenanigans, it's a typical Trump effort: wasteful, useless AND stupid.
 
Captain_Swoop said:
Trump Tweets

The Media should view this as a time of unity and strength. We have a common enemy, actually, an enemy of the World, the CoronaVirus. We must beat it as quickly and safely as possible. There is nothing more important to me than the life & safety of the United States!

Hoping to get the payroll tax cut approved by both Republicans and Democrats, and please remember, very important for all countries & businesses to know that trade will in no way be affected by the 30-day restriction on travel from Europe. The restriction stops people not goods.
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He's already contradicting his own speech. In it, he claimed the 30 day ban would "apply to the tremendous amount of trade and cargo" coming from Europe.
 
I never read Michael Lewis' book The Fifth Risk (he asked eggheads about the biggest threats to the world, and they'd come up with three or four things, but Lewis argues it's the thing people do not mention that usually gets us). I Googled his book title against pandemic, and found an interview he did with The Guardian.


Guardian: Part of your story examines the consequences of the ideological cull of climate scientists from government. You have lived in close proximity to wildfires in California, there have been unprecedented hurricanes. Do you think there will come a point when people demand leaders who understand the importance of scientific knowledge?

Michael Lewis: You would think so. It hasn’t happened yet. For people to suddenly start to value what good government does, I think there will have to be something that threatens a lot of people at once. The problem with a wildfire in California, or a hurricane in Florida, is that for most people it is happening to someone else. I think a pandemic might do it, something that could affect millions of people indiscriminately and from which you could not insulate yourself even if you were rich. I think that might do it.
 
Safe-Keeper said:
He tried to be serious? How out of character for him.
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He quite literally has an expression for when he wants people to think he is serious, it is so comical watching him switch to his "presidential" expression. To me it looks like he is constipated and straining.
 
Captain_Swoop said:
Trump Tweets

Hoping to get the payroll tax cut approved by both Republicans and Democrats, and please remember, very important for all countries & businesses to know that trade will in no way be affected by the 30-day restriction on travel from Europe. The restriction stops people not goods.
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Hmmm... are they not the Do-Nothing Democrats today? Funny how that works.
 
Guy seriously needs some public speaking training. Squinting, monotone, unengaging. Pretty dreadful to be honest.
 
Trump Tweets

“Nancy Pelosi all of a sudden doesn’t like the payroll tax cut, but when Obama proposed it she thought it was a brilliant thing that all of the working families would benefit from because if you get a paycheck, you’re going to take home more money.” @kilmeade @foxandfriends
 
Worm sez:
Guy seriously needs some public speaking training. Squinting, monotone, unengaging. Pretty dreadful to be honest.
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He'd just say that he speaks better when being "himself" -- not having to be too concerned with facts, just talking off the top of his head. He'd be un-coachable. See, he'd say, I'm a natural. I don't like to read off the teleprompter.


Cuomo for president.
 
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What if Fox News covered Trump the way they covered Obama? The sheer hypocrisy is mind blowing.

 
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