The 2018 Trump Presidency thread

[Tombs]

I'm not going to continue arguing with you. The people who have tried to reason with you prior to me have shown me that you aren't here to listen to anyone. Only your "facts" are correct and everyone else is wrong.

Perhaps next time you could join a support forum for Burn Victims or Sexual Assault Survivors and then post nothing but your propaganda - seems about as appropriate as what you do here.

People do contribute in different ways, however you've exhibited absolutely nothing in your post history that could even remotely be called "helping someone." Not surprising, considering neo-conservatives don't give a shit about any human being that isn't currently in a womb anyway.

... and no, you don't answer any question anyone asks you. You dodge anything inconvenient to your argument and have been called out on it repeatedly in multiple threads. It isn't your viewpoint that bothers me, it's just an opinion. Not to mention, fiscally I'm fairly conservative. It's the fact that nothing you post can be factually backed up - all of your links are to already debunked stories and most of your arguments are straw man arguments - again, something you've been already called out on in different threads repeatedly. Example: "I VOTED FOR OBAMA ONCE." What does this have to do with anything? I asked you about what you're doing to help our community here.

I guess both of my posts can be summed up with just a few words:

Why the fuck are you a part of this community? I'm not a moderator or anything but I empathize and care deeply about the struggles that addicts, such as myself, endure and I wish to help them/us. What about you? What did you accomplish in the spirit of Harm Reduction recently?

 

[Xorkoth]

I will admit that whatever comes from the NK talks coming up here could end up being a very good thing that comes from this presidency. We'll see. It's possible his method of dealing with NK actually works. If so, then that's great, but I still disagree with almost everything he's done, and I think the purposeful undermining of the public trust in media and the simultaneous background consolidation of the media is among the worst things an American president has ever done.

 

[JGrimez]

Only your "facts" are correct and everyone else is wrong.

There are no my facts or your facts

You dodge anything inconvenient to your argument and have been called out on it repeatedly in multiple threads.

No I don't think I did. If I've left any questions unanswered they might have been irrelevant but I'm happy to answer any that I genuinely missed. I'm not afraid to answer questions. I ask a lot of questions that go unanswered but I very rarely complain about that happening. Usually if someone doesn't answer a question it is because it invalidates their argument or they're not informed enough to give an answer. So if someone can't answer your question count that as a win maybe.

It's the fact that nothing you post can be factually backed up - all of your links are to already debunked stories and most of your arguments are straw man arguments - again, something you've been already called out on in different threads repeatedly.

This is just blatantly false so I'm led to not take anything you say as honest or serious. I try to use mainstream sources wherever possible so that people don't have a problem.

"I VOTED FOR OBAMA ONCE." What does this have to do with anything? I asked you about what you're doing to help our community here.

You were claiming you were aware of my motive, implying I was some kind of rightwing racist.
I help by giving the real story and hopefully making people think twice about stuff.

Why the fuck are you a part of this community? I'm not a moderator or anything but I empathize and care deeply about the struggles that addicts, such as myself, endure and I wish to help them/us. What about you? What did you accomplish in the spirit of Harm Reduction recently?

See above.
You don't know what I've been through. Why should addicts be treated differently than regular people? This forum appears to be about the truth. The truth about drugs and life and world events. People want to know what's actually going on they don't want to be deceived. If I've said anything to demonize or oppress addicts show me and I'll gladly apologize. I hope that answers your questions.

 

[JGrimez]

I will admit that whatever comes from the NK talks coming up here could end up being a very good thing that comes from this presidency. We'll see. It's possible his method of dealing with NK actually works. If so, then that's great, but I still disagree with almost everything he's done, and I think the purposeful undermining of the public trust in media and the simultaneous background consolidation of the media is among the worst things an American president has ever done.

It's good you're beginning to give credit where it is due. However the media brought that upon themselves. It isn't like Trump intended to destroy the public's faith in the media. Their agenda was to demonize him and destroy his reputation. He's merely throwing it back to them. They propped him up in the early days when they thought he would be an easy opponent to beat, and then when they realized he was actually getting popular they went on an obsessive and destructive smear campaign. Also this mass distrust in corporate media started long before Trump was around. Doesn't take a genius to realize certain media sources are biased, dishonest or being directed to say certain things by sponsors, corporations or politicians.

 

[Xorkoth]

It isn't like Trump intended to destroy the public's faith in the media.

I disagree with this statement fully. #fakenews, man... come on. He knows what he's doing with that shit. He likes Fox because they like him. Every other mainstream news source in the world (not just the US) gives one version of reality, and Fox gives another. Okay, Fox could be a noble champion against a worldwide deception conspiracy against Trump.... but it's the least likely scenario to be true. It's much more likely that Fox is running a campaign of deception/trust undermining while their parent company is quietly consolidating behind the scenes (because they are consolidating, buying up local news stations across the country, this is a fact). And this is not really Trump's fault, he may be buddies with Sinclair/Fox, but he's not them. However, he's helping them and it's mutually beneficial for both parties. He knows what he's doing.

 

[Captain.Heroin]

It isn't like Trump intended to destroy the public's faith in the media.

I know, right? It's pretty hard to run an on-going smear campaign against the U.S. media conglomerates while you're busy raping/attempting to rape 17 women.

But guess what? He managed to do both.

 

[alasdairm]

It isn't like Trump intended to destroy the public's faith in the media. Their agenda was to demonize him and destroy his reputation. He's merely throwing it back to them.

i think that's naive or deliberately obtuse.

this started long ago. hell, look at day one of the administration - the number of people who showed up was demonstrably lower than the previous inauguration and yet this petty man sent sean spicer out to lie about it: "This was the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration, period.."

the factual coverage of crowd size was some media conspiracy to belittle him and it's been the same since day 1. even sean spicer has since admitted that issue was completely botched.

we didn't have "alt facts" and "fake news" before trump arrived in office. very telling.

alasdair

 

[cduggles]

Trump has kicked reporters out of press conferences, he declared the media an "enemy of the American people", his communication team members have barred certain media from White House briefings, his FCC has paved the way for media consolidation, and he tweeted

?Network news has become so partisan, distorted and fake that licenses must be challenged and, if appropriate, revoked. Not fair to public!?

White House goes to war with the media

FCC head silent on Trump comment about pulling broadcast licenses

Trump declared war on the media. Not too bright.

If Trump can't handle bad press, he really applied for the wrong job.

Frankly an adversarial press to government is the best option. No one wants a press too close to government. Like Sean Hannity, for a perfect example.

Sean Hannity?s Ties to Two More Trump-Connected Lawyers

Obama got a major pass from the press and I think this is a pendular swing to return to normal.

Trump is an aberration but it's high time the press started asking hard questions to Congress members, the executive branch, and state and local government. And for that, I acknowledge Trump's contribution to making the media much more adversarial.

 

[scubagirl200]

If you were more insane than Trump do you think you'd recognize it?

 

[Droppersneck]

i think that's naive or deliberately obtuse.

this started long ago. hell, look at day one of the administration - the number of people who showed up was demonstrably lower than the previous inauguration and yet this petty man sent sean spicer out to lie about it: "This was the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration, period.."

the factual coverage of crowd size was some media conspiracy to belittle him and it's been the same since day 1. even sean spicer has since admitted that issue was completely botched.

we didn't have "alt facts" and "fake news" before trump arrived in office. very telling.

alasdair

Honestly I didn’t pay attention to media bias etc before the election, but when I got on the trump train it became so apparent and in your face there is almost no way any media organization will win my trust. News sources like NPR are better than most but their bias is in their ommision of things that don’t help push the open society foundations underlying agenda. Almost every single mainstream media source is compromised, some are just over the top like Rachel Maddow with her Alex jones style conspiracy shtick. Hey Alasdair what did you think about muellers comments on the media pushing the false Russian collusion conspiracy theory?

https://m.theepochtimes.com/robert-...russia-collusion-probe-are-wrong_2496293.html

 

[cduggles]

Mueller spoke? Link please. That would be awesome if it's real.

 

[cduggles]

U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley extracted an apology from new Chief Economic Adviser Larry Kudlow after she was referred to as momentarily confused when predicting Russian sanctions.

Haley is being groomed by some of the best advisers and image consultants that the Republicans have. I don't know much about her career as Governor of South Carolina, but she's managed some treacherous waters quite well. One to watch.


Haley sets a red line for Trump

In the span of 24 hours, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley has done what none of her colleagues in President Donald Trump’s Cabinet have before: successfully telegraphed to her boss that she will not quietly suffer his public humiliations.


Haley was initially blamed by White House aides for creating confusion by speaking on national television about the administration’s plans to roll out new sanctions against Russia that the president ultimately decided to defer.


But within hours of White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow’s statement Tuesday that Haley had fallen prey to “momentary confusion” and gotten “out ahead of the curve,” she’d exacted a public apology from her colleague. But that alone wasn’t enough for the former South Carolina governor, who issued a direct statement to make her point crystal clear: “With all due respect, I don’t get confused.”


The incident met with silence from the president and his loyalists but has only helped to burnish Haley’s image outside the White House.


“She’s been a very forceful advocate and I would hope the administration really values that. She stood up for herself admirably, so hopefully that will end the story there,” said Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) on Wednesday.


While Trump favorites like Defense Secretary Jim Mattis have been careful always to air their disagreements with the president in private, Haley has at times charted her own path in public.


Early in her tenure, she called Russian meddling into the 2016 election an act of “warfare.” Months later, as Trump was facing criticism over his dismissive response to women who were accusing Republican Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore of assault, she was candid in her view that the women who accuse men, including the president himself, of sexual misconduct “should be heard.”
Some of these incidents have infuriated the president, who has nevertheless maintained a friendly relationship with Haley while griping to associates behind her back.


But with a reshuffled foreign affairs team — in the past month, Trump has brought in John Bolton as his new national security adviser and tapped CIA director Mike Pompeo as secretary of state, as well as bringing in Kudlow to advise on trade as well as other economic affairs — Haley is likely to see her internal standing improve.
While she routinely clashed with former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, a former oilman, she sees eye to eye with Pompeo, a hawkish former congressman, on most national security issues.


She established a working relationship with Bolton, himself a former U.N. ambassador under President George W. Bush who helped prepare her for her confirmation hearings in late 2016, and has echoed his criticisms of the organization.
“I know John Bolton well. I have gotten advice from him, I have talked to him. I know his disdain for the U.N. I share it,” Haley told students at Duke University earlier this month — a remark Bolton gleefully relayed to associates.
As for her working relationship with the president, by the end of the day Wednesday, Haley swooped in to put a final point on the week’s mess, telling reporters in New York that it is “perfect.”


From the outset of the administration, Haley has been one of its most visible voices on foreign affairs, outshining the media shy Rex Tillerson and now, with Mike Pompeo awaiting Senate confirmation, serving as Trump’s de facto secretary of state.


But the sanctions episode is a stark reminder that this president has little compunction about letting his top staffers and appointees dangle. As the White House scrambled to explain the president’s change of heart on issuing Russia sanctions, Haley became a convenient target for West Wing aides working to smooth a ragged decision making process without blaming the president himself.
Before Kudlow took a public shot at her, the White House said that while the president signed off on sanctions legislation last week, the announcement was delayed because the Treasury Department did not have the legislation ready. Yet the White House itself sent talking points to surrogates on Saturday, the day before Haley’s Sunday show appearance.


Haley is far from the first Trump aide who’s spoken on the administration’s behalf only to have the president undermine them — and while the latest incident has boosted her public profile, it isn’t clear whether the president will be more careful to keep on her side going forward, or vice versa.


“At the center of the story, this incident will raise questions as to whether she’s speaking for the administration when she speaks at the United Nations,” said Ely Ratner, who served as deputy national security adviser for Vice President Joe Biden. “That’s something that has haunted Cabinet-level officials since the beginning of the administration.”


Indeed, after Tillerson announced in December that he was seeking talks with the North Korean government, Trump torpedoed the idea, dismissing it as a waste of time.Then, in March, Tillerson— traveling overseas — said the U.S. was “a long ways” from direct talks with North Korea, only to have the president agree the next day offer to hold a direct summit with dictator Kim Jong Un.


Trump chastised his then-national security adviser, H.R. McMaster, for his failure to tell a German audience that Russian interference in the 2016 election did not impact the results — something that McMaster, an active-duty military offer, was careful to avoid.
Haley’s advocates on Capitol Hill were not happy to see the Trump administration wipe away Haley’s declaration, worried a trend could develop that has the rest of the world doubting her words.


“It doesn’t help her credibility if, whenever she gets out there and is articulating the administration and the United States’ position, to have somebody undercut that,” said Sen. John Thune of South Dakota, the No. 3 GOP leader.

 

[undiminished689]

Of course they are. I think you missed my point. I'm saying that Trump and his people are using the government for their own interests at the expense of the people. Lots of other people are doing it too, the system is immensely corrupted. I just don't think Trump is the answer or is even trying to be, he's just saying he's trying to fix things so people support him and vote for him. Same as almost all the other politicians.

and what makes him different from any other group

 

[alasdairm]

^ that can be his campaign slogan: "i honestly believe i'm no better or worse than anybody else!"

alasdair

 

[undiminished689]

That's derives from the point of like "Ooooo NRA is a lobby group" like what makes the gov any different besides legalized theft that is taxation

 

[JGrimez]

I disagree with this statement fully. #fakenews, man... come on. He knows what he's doing with that shit. He likes Fox because they like him. Every other mainstream news source in the world (not just the US) gives one version of reality, and Fox gives another. Okay, Fox could be a noble champion against a worldwide deception conspiracy against Trump....
but it's the least likely scenario to be true.

I wouldn't go that far but you may be on the right track. Fox are still corporate-owned media. But staff leave over time and a place can change. I find it extremely bizarre that they are currently the closest to honest, after being known as Faux News since Iraq and broadcasting pro-war propaganda. But now look Tucker Carlson seems to be the only one in the mainstream arguing against war https://youtu.be/V-yba3R6IBY
As for Fox and Trump, Fox has always supported the Republican candidate and money is still money, so they'll be truthful sometimes to get ratings but still operate through the establishment agenda.

i think that's naive or deliberately obtuse.

I'm being genuinely serious. How have some missed the repeated lies and/or bias of the mainstream news media?
This actually began in the 50s/60s when the CIA started recruiting journalists to push propaganda (Operation Mockingbird)

this started long ago. hell, look at day one of the administration - the number of people who showed up was demonstrably lower than the previous inauguration and yet this petty man sent sean spicer out to lie about it: "This was the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration, period.."

the factual coverage of crowd size was some media conspiracy to belittle him and it's been the same since day 1. even sean spicer has since admitted that issue was completely botched.

The smear campaign against Trump started months before this but this is a good example. The inauguration of a new president and a triumph of democracy should be a celebratory moment but the liberal media framed this as the end of the world and a Russian takeover of American. So the inauguration crowd size, a reporter first tweeted a picture of a half-full crowd while attendees were still arriving, trying to show that only a small number of people were supporting the Pres. Many other media outlets jumped on this and shared the picture around. This happened first, ok? So of course as he usually does Trump goes on the offensive, and unfortunately makes a mistake (lies) about the actual number. There was no reason for Trump to lie about this as he knows it would not be a difficult thing for reporters to verify. Maybe he received incorrect information? The real answer is who really cares? It's the size of a crowd.... he was filling out stadiums at his rallies in the weeks before this so everyone was already aware of his support. The issue was the initial liberal media attack and the attempt to discredit his legitimacy. You can't keep attacking someone and then cry when they hurt you worse.

we didn't have "alt facts" and "fake news" before trump arrived in office. very telling.

Actually I remember the exact moment the term "fake news" was coined and it was when the Pizzagate scandal started to get attention. Instead of being properly investigated the media just spread the term "fake news" around to discredit this wild and untrue conspiracy theory. The problem is there was a lot of smoke around that, there was no child sex operation being run out of a pizzeria basement, but all of the people under suspicion have direct ties to child traffickers, pedophiles or satanists. So what would have been the biggest scandal in the world if it happened to Trump was covered up (by Fox also, republicans were also accused) and labeled "fake news". That term then began to be the go-to for any news that was damaging to the liberal establishment, and not just fake stories.

Unfortunately for the liberal media Trump was able to take that term and use it against them. Ever since he (deservedly) threw the term at CNN's Acosta in that press conference, the term has been used to describe the liberal media. Long story short they started the smear and it backfired, and this is how it's been going for a while when it comes to attacking Trump. The reason he is winning this 'battle' is because he's not politically-correct, he's not bound by corporate bosses telling him what to say and he has Twitter which is his own news source and he talks directly to the individual unfiltered.

That's just how myself and many others feel about it. I think there is a very sharp division between I don't even want to say the left and the right, more like pro-corporate media versus anti. I'm just anti-war, anti-CIA etc. And it's the liberals who have historically been very skeptical of law enforcement and the intelligence agencies. It's uncomfortable to see them now championing the abuse of civil rights even if it is only to go after Trump

 

[JGrimez]

Trump has kicked reporters out of press conferences,

If someone acts a fool they will be ejected. What did they do previously? I dare say they were pushing the limits of decorum and being a disruption.

he declared the media an "enemy of the American people"

Certain sources are. They're pushing for this war in Syria and confrontation against Russia which is directly counter to the best interests of the American people.
That's just the tip of the deception iceberg.

Trump declared war on the media. Not too bright

Other way around. The establishment via the media declared war on him.

Frankly an adversarial press to government is the best option. No one wants a press too close to government. Like Sean Hannity, for a perfect example.

A fair and honest media that holds everyone accountable is what people want. It doesn't exist though. Studies show 90% of coverage on Trump is negative. Just make it 50/50 and don't BS viewers with childish nonsense like "Trump gets 2 scoops of ice-cream", "Trump is afraid of stairs", "Trump drinks a lot of diet coke and eats steaks". It's nonsense propaganda ignoring real issues.

Obama got a major pass from the press and I think this is a pendular swing to return to normal.

Obama was the establishment candidate. Follow the agenda and receive media praise. We know he is because he guided the war machine along and continued on from Bush. Anyone can see that. Clinton also got a major pass from almost all the media. They didn't dig into her scandals, they glossed over them and they censored any legitimate questioning of her health issues. I agree we don't want a Hannity/Trump-type relationship but that seems to be a result of having the entire establishment against him pushing smears.

 

[cduggles]

Donald Trump just stunned political observers by ejecting a prominent Univision anchor from his press conference

Trump on Megyn Kelly: "There Was Blood Coming Out Of Her Eyes, Blood Coming Out Of Her Whatever" During Debate

Donald Trump under fire for mocking disabled reporter

Referring to the 2001 article (published by the Washington Post) at a South Carolina rally on Tuesday night, Mr Trump called Mr Kovaleski "a nice reporter".

"Now the poor guy, you gotta see this guy," he continued, before launching into an apparent impression of Mr Kovaleski, waving his arms around with his hands at an odd angle.

"Uhh I don't know what I said. Uhh I don't remember. He's going like 'I don't remember. Maybe that's what I said.'"

Mr Kovaleski has arthrogryposis, a condition that affects the movement of joints and is noticeable in his right arm and hand.

Yeah, I can't understand why anyone would think Trump doesn't respect the press. Particularly Mexicans, women and people with disabilities. Classy.

And it's too bad rallies don't win elections. Even in the deepest Red.

At Pennsylvania rally, Trump again calls for the death penalty for drug dealers

This rally was just after Trump announced the tariffs on aluminum and steel-- that wily move that switched out the Chief Economic Advisor from Gary Cohn, who was the Goldman Sachs Group Inc. President and Chief Operating Officer, for Larry Kudlow of MSNBC. Definitely trading down.

It matters because the Pennsylvania special election was in steel country.

The Republican candidate Rick Saccone conceded to Democratic candidate Conor Lamb.

Pennsylvania's 18th Congressional District special election, 2018

Let's not forget Roy Moore, child molester (even Ivanka thinks so)

Trump rallies for Moore ahead of Alabama election

And then...
Alabama election: Democrats triumph over Roy Moore in major blow to Trump

This is before a few more losers, but...

Donald Trump cannot stop endorsing losers

So I say let him have his unhinged rallies and relive the days before he had to work a few days a week and chant about that wall Mexico is going to pay for and HILLARY!

Trump either can't boost candidates, motivates voters to stay home, motivates people who can't stand him to vote, or he drags the candidate down with his baggage. Whatever works. Let him rally till he drops!

 

[swilow]

At least Trump doesn't have time to screw up everything. .

 

[Xorkoth]

and what makes him different from any other group

Umm... I feel like I'm talking in a circle with you. Nothing makes him different, I'm saying, again, that I think the system is corrupted and most, if not all, of the politicians are corrupt. I'm trying to refute the idea that Trump is somehow going to be our savior from this. He's corrupted too. I find it difficult to accept that so many people look at him, his demeanor, his history of narcissistic behavior and shitty, elitist behavior, the way he speaks, the way he spoke during his campaign rallies, and some of the stuff he has done or been a part of since getting into office, and think "this guy is gonna save us from government corruption". Come on... he's a corrupted individual who is using the American presidency for fame and personal gain and gain for his cronies. The picture is clearly painted. There hasn't been a smear campaign against Trump for decades, long, long before he decided to run for president or any public office. The picture has been clear all along about what kind of man he is. He's been in the public eye for a long time.