The Trump thread: All things Donald

[Lois]

What job creation?  How many lost their jobs and livelihoods when he refused to pay his contractors?  The only people he really created jobs for were attorneys.

[Lois]

So Trump told a grieving widow concerning her dead husband:

"He knew what he signed up for."

While this may be true, it clearly was not the best thing to tell her.  It might have worked for a grieving father, but not a widow.  So why does he just admit it?  Why is he denying it and then doubling down?

This is a scandal of his own creation, proving once again he does not have the skills required to be POTUS.

[_priapism]

So Trump told a grieving widow concerning her dead husband:

"He knew what he signed up for."

While this may be true, it clearly was not the best thing to tell her.  It might have worked for a grieving father, but not a widow.  So why does he just admit it?  Why is he denying it and then doubling down?

This is a scandal of his own creation, proving once again he does not have the skills required to be POTUS.

Another example of Trump's narcissistic personality disorder.  He can't sort what's important from what's about him.  Most of the world leaders simply shrug off the slings and arrows that go with their position.  The Obamas did this quite successfully for eight years.  Trump is barely eight months in, and it's a Twitter blast every day over the insults he believe he has unfairly received.  Just a nightmare to watch.

[Katiebee]

trump just disrespected the grieving widow who made her statement on Good Morning America.

He is basically calling her liar, just to protect his own fragile ego.

How much more shame is this asshole going to bring to the office of the Presidency?

[Athos_131]

How much more shame is this asshole going to bring to the office of the Presidency?

We're barely eight months in.

Hopefully Mueller works faster, but with as much diligence.

#Resist

[MissBarbara]

This is a scandal of his own creation, proving once again he does not have the skills required to be POTUS.

I love your line, "This is a scandal of his own creation." And it's just one of at lease 100 since he took office. Those on the Right constantly condemns non-Trump supporters of creating controversy, or accusing Trump of made-up things, while the plain fact is the anti-Trump folks needn't create of make up anything: Trump does a perfectly good job of this all by himself.

To Merovingian's point, I'm very leery of non-specialists offering psychological diagnoses. Yet, as more and more time goes on, I think that diagnosis fits Trump to a T. More to the point, it perfectly explains many of Trump's puzzling words, actions, and -- especially -- Tweets.

[Athos_131]

Young subscribers flock to old media

As President Donald Trump wages daily war against the press, millennials are subscribing to legacy news publications in record numbers—and at a growth rate, data suggests, far outpacing any other age group.

“The big boost we saw in subscriptions in the U.S.,” Newman said, “is driven by people on the left and younger people are more likely to be on the left. That is really a lot of what’s driving it: young people who don’t like Trump who subscribe to news organizations that they see as being a bulwark against him.”

Rosen, from the Atlantic, said that, for younger people, he’s seen this type of broadcasting on social media networks like Facebook and Twitter. “We’ve heard from even high schoolers who share Atlantic content on social media that, when they share the Atlantic, they know that they’re signaling that they’re thinking more deeply and critically about the world,” he said.

That signaling can also be a stand against Trump. Dwayne Sheppard, the vice president of consumer marketing at Condé Nast, which owns the New Yorker, said that he’s also observed a sense of brand identification—but said that, for millennials, it extends beyond social media and into the real world. Those subscribing to the New Yorker can choose between a print and digital subscription or a less expensive digital-only option; Millennials, he said, are opting for print at a rate 10 percent higher than older demographics.

“Millennials are choosing print overwhelmingly, or digital and print,” he said. “It’s a physical manifestation of the relationship. You’re on the subway or you’re in the airport and you’re carrying your New Yorker, that’s another signal of what you care about and what you choose to read.”

In the age of Trump, a dog-eared New Yorker or Atlantic may serve as a small token of resistance, but the question remains whether this trend of younger people paying for news is sustainable. Newman, from the Reuters Institute, said that even when the Trump effect wears off, millennials’ embrace of subscription services is a positive sign for the industry.

I proudly subscribe to The Washington Post.

#Resist

[Athos_131]

This is a scandal of his own creation, proving once again he does not have the skills required to be POTUS.

I love your line, "This is a scandal of his own creation." And it's just one of at lease 100 since he took office. Those on the Right constantly condemns non-Trump supporters of creating controversy, or accusing Trump of made-up things, while the plain fact is the anti-Trump folks needn't create of make up anything: Trump does a perfectly good job of this all by himself.

I predict there will be a wall of yellow text to support your position.

#Resist

[_priapism]

To Merovingian's point, I'm very leery of non-specialists offering psychological diagnoses. Yet, as more and more time goes on, I think that diagnosis fits Trump to a T. More to the point, it perfectly explains many of Trump's puzzling words, actions, and -- especially -- Tweets.

Practice Essentials

Narcissistic personality disorder (NPD) is a cluster B personality disorder defined as comprising a pervasive pattern of grandiosity (in fantasy or behavior), a constant need for admiration, and a lack of empathy.

Signs and symptoms

In the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5), NPD is defined as comprising a pervasive pattern of grandiosity (in fantasy or behavior), a constant need for admiration, and a lack of empathy, beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts, as indicated by the presence of at least 5 of the following 9 criteria:

• A grandiose sense of self-importance
• A preoccupation with fantasies of unlimited success, power, brilliance, beauty, or ideal love
• A belief that he or she is special and unique and can only be understood by, or should associate with, other special or high-status people or institutions
• A need for excessive admiration
• A sense of entitlement
• Interpersonally exploitive behavior
• A lack of empathy
• Envy of others or a belief that others are envious of him or her
• A demonstration of arrogant and haughty behaviors or attitudes

In a proposed alternative model cited in DSM-5, NPD is characterized by moderate or greater impairment in personality functioning, manifested by characteristic difficulties in 2 or more of the following 4 areas:

• Identity
• Self-direction
• Empathy
• Intimacy

In addition, NPD is characterized by the presence of both grandiosity and attention seeking.

NPD is not associated with any specific defining physical characteristics; however, physical consequences of substance abuse, with which NPD is often associated, may also be apparent on examination. Mental status examination may reveal depressed mood. Patients in the throes of narcissistic grandiosity may display signs of hypomania or mania.

[Athos_131]

Bob Corker sounds like he’s making a case for removing Trump from office

Sen. Bob Corker said a lot of things about President Trump on Tuesday morning. The Tennessee Republican warned that Trump's itchy Twitter finger could set off another world war. He suggested Trump is a liar. He said Trump's legacy will be “debasing” America. He said Trump is not a role model for children. He declined to say whether Trump should be trusted with the nuclear codes. He said Trump's conduct is “very sad for our nation.” He said Trump has “proven himself unable to rise to the occasion.”

Later on — and perhaps most damningly — he said there were “multiple occasions where [White House] staff has asked me to please intervene; he was getting ready to do something that was really off the tracks.”

Early in this onslaught against Trump, Corker assured us that he considers all of his words carefully. “I don’t make comments I haven’t thought about,” he told ABC News. In other words: He truly believes all this stuff, and he's not just flying off the handle.

Which leads to the next question: If you truly believe all of that, wouldn't you also believe that Trump should be removed from office?

Corker's comments sure seem to be trending in that direction — whether he intends it or not. The senator is describing Trump as an imminent threat to American government and American lives. He's suggesting Trump is damaging American society. He says Trump isn't only failing, but that he's “unable to rise to the occasion." He suggests Trump was ready to do crazy things before Corker intervened and put a stop to it. He's basically arguing that Trump is derelict in his duties as president, or unfit for the office.

Depending upon whom you ask, that could be approaching grounds for impeachment — or the less likely option of removal via the 25th Amendment, in which Trump would be declared unfit by his own Cabinet.

Grounds for impeachment are forever the topic of debate, of course, given that the Constitution requires “high Crimes and Misdemeanors” for removal from office. But those high crimes and misdemeanors need not necessarily be criminal in nature; many scholars believe dereliction of duty is also sufficient, and it's really up to Congress. As Princeton University's Keith E. Wittington wrote on the Monkey Cage back in May:

Even actions that might never be crimes could be impeachable . . . In 1933, Judge Halsted Ritter’s impeachment included the charge that he had continued to practice law in a manner “calculated to bring his office into disrepute,” violating judicial ethics. Associate Justice Samuel Chase was charged with abusive behavior from the bench, and President Andrew Johnson was charged with firing the Secretary of War in a manner inconsistent with a federal statute.

Many impeachment efforts have been prompted by behavior seen as inconsistent with the responsibility and reputation of the office. Some individuals are impeached to get them out of office, when their actions threaten the political system’s functioning, and they can’t be stopped any other way.

Impeachments also serve a broader function. Congress can use it to reinforce or create new political norms. Even when the impeached official is not convicted and removed from office, the impeachment itself sends others the message that those actions were unacceptable and must not be repeated. When a federal official is destabilizing established norms of conduct, Congress may impeach to send a strong signal that such behavior must not become the new normal.

Even lawful actions, or actions within an officer’s authority, can be impeachable offenses. Context is everything. Actions that are ordinary and inoffensive in some circumstances can be extraordinary and threatening in others. Impeachment is not merely for illegal or constitutional actions. It is also a remedy for dereliction of duty and abuse of power.

Some Democrats have argued that previous Trump actions — or inaction — have constituted dereliction of duty, especially when it comes to his reluctance to condemn Russia for its 2016 election interference. Perhaps some of that could be dismissed as overheated partisan rhetoric.

In the case of Corker, though, it's coming from a Republican who was once close to Trump and might be more measured in his comments. Yet he's  basically labeling Trump an irredeemable failure who cannot be prevailed upon to perform his job functions. Corker previously said Trump hadn't yet demonstrated the “stability” or “competence” needed to serve; now he's basically saying it's a lost cause.

And whether you think that's a sufficient basis for impeaching and/or removing a president from office, it stands to reason that a politician who believes those things would seek out whatever remedies were available for preventing the things he's warning us about.

It maybe never come to pass — and it likely won't — but Corker's rhetoric here can't help but point in that direction.

#Resist

[Athos_131]

‘Utterly untruthful’: Corker unbound as he attacks Trump over fitness, competence

By just before 9 a.m. Tuesday, Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) was already a man unburdened.

Corker, the chairman of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee, had appeared early on three major morning shows — ABC, CBS and NBC — ostensibly to preview his party’s tax plan ahead of President Trump’s visit to the Capitol on Tuesday for a lunch with Senate Republicans.

But before the morning shows had even wrapped, Corker had ratcheted up his already simmering and deeply personal feud with the president — prompting a flurry of retaliatory tweets from Trump. The spat served to ensure that the chaos and feuding that has come to define Trump’s young presidency would yet again distract from a day originally intended to focus on tax reform.

During a trio of harsh television interviews, Corker called Trump “utterly untruthful,” expressed hope that he would stand aside to allow Congress to formulate a tax plan, worried aloud about the president’s divisive governing style and, speaking about ongoing tensions with North Korea, told ABC’s “Good Morning America” that he would like to see Trump “leave it to the professionals for a while.”

“The president continues to kneecap his diplomatic representative, the secretary of state, and really move him away from successful diplomatic negotiations,” Corker said. “You’re taking us on a path to combat.”

In one particularly striking interview with CNN, Corker in the span of three minutes called Trump what he dubbed “the L-word” (the president, he said, “has great difficulty with the truth”), said he would not support him for president again (“no way”) and called for Trump’s staff to better manage him (he said he hopes West Wing aides would “figure out ways of controlling him”).

“I don’t know why he lowers himself to such a low, low standard and debases our country in the way that he does, but he does,” Corker said, adding that he wasn’t sure Trump was a good role model for children.

The Tennessee Republican recently announced that he is not running for reelection, and his lame duck status seems to have liberated him to more forcefully speak his mind.

Corker’s succession of brittle comments seemed to enrage Trump — who often spends his mornings flipping between channels — and the president responded with several tweets. Using his favorite diminutive nickname for the short-statured senator — “liddle’” — the president called Corker “a lightweight” and “the incompetent head of the Foreign Relations Committee,” blaming him for having “set the U.S. way back.”

Corker, who earlier this month had warned that Trump’s recklessness could launch “World War III” and evocatively described the White House as “an adult day-care center,” responded in kind on Twitter.

“Same untruths from an utterly untruthful president. #AlertTheDayCareStaff,” Corker wrote after Trump’s first missives, essentially calling the president a liar.

The entire back-and-forth took place before lunchtime, when Trump is meeting with Senate Republicans, including Corker, to help push through a tax plan that, if successful, would mark the administration’s first major legislative achievement.

Tuesday’s back-and-forth underscored just how much Trump and Corker’s relationship has deteriorated in recent months — a vitriolic personal feud that has spilled over into public view, threatening to overwhelm the president’s already struggling legislative agenda.

Corker supported Trump’s campaign — serving as a human vouchsafe for a man many in his own party did not entirely trust with the nuclear codes — and was initially under consideration both as Trump’s vice president or secretary of state. But Corker quietly began to sour on the president, especially as he watched him careen across the world stage, saying Trump was dangerously upending years of global policy.

In August, following the racially motivated violence that left one woman dead in Charlottesville, Corker publicly slammed Trump for saying there were “fine people on both sides. “The president has not yet been able to demonstrate the stability nor some of the competence that he needs to demonstrate to be successful,” Corker said then.

Then, two months later, in a deliberate interview with the New York Times, Corker laced into Trump again, criticizing him for running the West Wing like a “reality show” and warning that he could be leading the nation down “the path to World War III.”

At that point, the relationship seemed damaged beyond repair, although Corker indicated that he might still vote for a Republican tax plan if he believed it wouldn’t add to the deficit.

 But Tuesday’s rift could further complicate Trump’s legislative agenda, especially if Corker is giving voice — as he has claimed previously — to concerns other Republicans have but are skittish to articulate aloud.

Corker had no such qualms Tuesday. He said during the CNN interview that Trump, who had never held elected office until winning the White House in November 2016, has not grown into his job as president. “He has proven himself unable to rise to the occasion,” Corker said. “He’s obviously not going to rise to the occasion as president.”

If Corker’s words were harsh — and, as some in his own party argued, contributing to an unhelpful internecine Republican feud — the Tennessee senator seemed liberated. Later Tuesday, speaking to reporters in the hallways of Congress, he continued his broadside, saying: “I’ve seen no evolution in an upward way. As a matter of fact, it seems to me it’s almost devolving.”

The White House did not respond to request for comment, but in a Fox News interview, press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders called Corker “ineffective,” arguing that Trump is eager to make progress on a host of issues, including taxes, the Iran deal and North Korea.

“I think you have one or two people who don’t want to see the ball move further down the field,” she said. “This is a president who wants to be aggressive, wants to take action. And if Sen. Corker doesn’t want to be a part of that, then I think that’s sad for his constituents, but we’re not going to let that get in the way of us moving forward.”

#Resist

[Athos_131]

How Donald Trump's Failure to Help Puerto Rico Could Haunt Him in 2020

#Resist

[Athos_131]

'No One Can Best the American Worker,' Says Heiress Whose Company Relies Solely on Foreign Factories

#Resist

[Athos_131]

‘Utterly untruthful’: Corker unbound as he attacks Trump over fitness, competence

http://www.snappytv.com/tc/6139557

#Resist

[Northwest]

Trump’s latest big interview is both funny and terrifying

POTUS swings and misses at the softest softballs.

https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2017/10/23/16522456/trump-bartiromo-transcript

[Lois]

His incompetence might save us.

[Northwest]

(I take your point, Lois, and agree!)

It's a perfect symbiotic relationship, where each lives on the fecal output of the other.

Trump gives 18th interview to Fox

Unlike his predecessors, the president gives the overwhelming majority of his interviews to one network.

Read the rest:

http://www.politico.com/story/2017/10/25/how-many-interviews-has-trump-given-fox-244157

[Lois]

Trump's tax cuts will likely add over $5 trillion to the national debt in the next ten years.  So much for the GOP being the party of fiscal responsibility.

[Elizabeth]

 “I don’t know why he lowers himself to such a low, low standard and debases our country in the way that he does, but he does,” Corker said, adding that he wasn’t sure Trump was a good role model for children.


LOL.......Role Model for Children...??....WTF....??
How about being a good role model for Adults.....??
He fails in that also.........

Love,
Liz

[joan1984]

Factoring in the current 3% GDP, and growing with the reforms proposed, who believes the tax plan, yet to be finalized, will result in less revenue to Federal Government over the coming years?

Part of the result is expected to bring 3 or more Trillion back to the US from overseas accounts, with the more reasonable rate structure. Is that factored into your calculation, Lois?

Trump's tax cuts will likely add over $5 trillion to the national debt in the next ten years.  So much for the GOP being the party of fiscal responsibility.