The [s]First[/s] [s]Only[/s] Second Trump term

[Troy]

Edited to say that more and more polling is showing that Russia had a lot less to do with the election outcome and the tribalism of the radical left had a lot more to do with it. The white middle class is feeling very alienated by the lesbian dance theory crowd that's been the spokespeople for the Democrat left over the last few years. How many here have expressed the feeling that they feel targeted just for being a white heterosexual? That feeling isn't just here.

I'm there with the people in the middle looking at the left and thinking "that's my only option - fuck." But I didn't deem Trump to be fit to be a President, still don't.

If someone sells their soul to the devil to accomplish something, and then it turns out you didn't need the devil's help after all. You still sold your soul, I feel like that's deal-with-the-devil 101 in any story. It comes back to bite you in the ass.

[GORDON]

As someone who didn't, I am looking at both sides thinking they are all terrible.

I am legit sad and disgusted by all of them.

[Troy]

I don't how someone can claim a special prosecutor "isn't warranted" here, either. High level republicans coming out against it are just sucking administration dick.

It's a pretty dire situation: The AG has rescued himself from the investigation, the FBI director got fired for going to the deputy AG and asking for more resources for it. Grand jury summons have been issued.

This stinks pretty bad, I honestly can't tell if it's just Trump bumbling around or something much worse. Either way let someone independent figure it out.

The narrative on all these right-wing news sites is that everyone is 'blowing it out of proportion" and "something that the left has been wanting". If Trump wanted Comey out for stuff he did last year, then he should have fired him when he took office. That would have raised minimal eye brows, hell, everyone would have likely been happy. Instead we have this.

[GORDON]

Comey.ast week said how he lost sleep that he may have cost Hillary the election by doing his job when thousands of classixied Hillary emails were found on weiners laptop. I.assumed Trump was firing him for that. It's a pretty dumb thing to say on the record about your boss.

[Troy]

Comey.ast week said how he lost sleep that he may have cost Hillary the election by doing his job when thousands of classixied Hillary emails were found on weiners laptop. I.assumed Trump was firing him for that. It's a pretty dumb thing to say on the record about your boss.

I couldn't find him saying that anywhere. I did see him saying he was "mildly nauseous" with the idea he could have influenced the election, but still thought he did the right thing. I guess you could spin it a certain way, but as him coming out days before the election and incorrectly saying "1,000s of new emails were on Weiner's computer" is considered by many to be one of the main reasons Trump won the election... why fire him for it now?

[Vince]

Edited to say that more and more polling is showing that Russia had a lot less to do with the election outcome and the tribalism of the radical left had a lot more to do with it. The white middle class is feeling very alienated by the lesbian dance theory crowd that's been the spokespeople for the Democrat left over the last few years. How many here have expressed the feeling that they feel targeted just for being a white heterosexual? That feeling isn't just here.

I'm there with the people in the middle looking at the left and thinking "that's my only option - fuck." But I didn't deem Trump to be fit to be a President, still don't.

If someone sells their soul to the devil to accomplish something, and then it turns out you didn't need the devil's help after all. You still sold your soul, I feel like that's deal-with-the-devil 101 in any story. It comes back to bite you in the ass.

I think you're too young to remember Carter's "malaise speech". Carter pretty much went on TV to talk about the bad economy and blamed us. That had a huge impact on his reelection prospects.

For 8 years the white middle class has been getting the same thing from the Democrats. If we don't want to bake a wedding cake for a gay couple because they don't think their union is legitimate in God's eyes, we're a bigot. If we want to be cautious about which Muslims we allow into the country, we're Islamaphobes. If we believe the chromosomes only allow for males and females, we're homophobes. After landslide elections for the first black President, that same President kept telling us our racism was getting worse. I didn't vote for either major party. But I can sure understand why so many said they weren't going to vote for her or her party and turned to Trump. It was a middle finger to the people saying we are the problem.

[Troy]

For 8 years the white middle class has been getting the same thing from the Democrats. If we don't want to bake a wedding cake for a gay couple because they don't think their union is legitimate in God's eyes, we're a bigot. If we want to be cautious about which Muslims we allow into the country, we're Islamaphobes. If we believe the chromosomes only allow for males and females, we're homophobes. After landslide elections for the first black President, that same President kept telling us our racism was getting worse. I didn't vote for either major party. But I can sure understand why so many said they weren't going to vote for her or her party and turned to Trump. It was a middle finger to the people saying we are the problem.

This is all fine, and I actually agree with parts of it. People are allowed their opinions and to vote appropriately.

It's why Trump was elected. But that "unrepresented anger" should have evolved into something, right? He's the President. None of that explains the blind eye and carte blanche he's getting.

Trump wants to run a banana republic style family focused oligarchy. The checks and balances systems only works when other members of his party grow spines and stand up to him.

He was joking when he said he could "shoot a guy in the middle of the street" and still get his nomination. It's true though - scary. I mean, fuck - I still go to right wing websites and see headlines about Hillary's freaking email server. I can't even pretend to give a shit about that issue anymore. I had to click through what felt like years of Benghazi headlines about embassy security. Now the ACTUAL FOREIGN CORRUPTION thing is supposed to be a "nothing" event?

Up to this point Trump seemed relatively insulated from it. Let Flynn and a bunch of his staff go down - it looks bad but it isn't the end of the world and it's not impeachable ( I think). Purposely hindering an active investigation - definitely seems like his first step over the line.

Sadly, given that nobody seems willing to even stand up to him, Trump going to run wild until 2018, and enough Dems get into Congress for the checks and balances system to function again. If that doesn't come to fruition - who knows? I guess we'll just have to find out what the "centrist" breaking point is. The Pepe army is marching under his banner no matter what.

[GORDON]

Comey.ast week said how he lost sleep that he may have cost Hillary the election by doing his job when thousands of classixied Hillary emails were found on weiners laptop. I.assumed Trump was firing him for that. It's a pretty dumb thing to say on the record about your boss.

I couldn't find him saying that anywhere. I did see him saying he was "mildly nauseous" with the idea he could have influenced the election, but still thought he did the right thing. I guess you could spin it a certain way, but as him coming out days before the election and incorrectly saying "1,000s of new emails were on Weiner's computer" is considered by many to be one of the main reasons Trump won the election... why fire him for it now?

I may have meant "mildly nauseous" when I said "lost sleep." I had no intention of trying to exaggerate anything, I just hadn't memorized it.

Why fire him now, when he said it a few days ago? It seems pretty immediate to me. I also don't see how I am trying to spin anything. Guy lipped off to his boss on the record, got fired.

[GORDON]

It's why Trump was elected. But that "unrepresented anger" should have evolved into something, right? He's the President. None of that explains the blind eye and carte blanche he's getting.

I disagree that there are any (many) blind eyes or blank checks. Or, at least no more than there were under Obama. People see what they want to see, left and right. When they get vocal about it they show they are morons.

I'm the one pointing out the double standards and hippo-crates.

[GORDON]

Now the ACTUAL FOREIGN CORRUPTION thing is supposed to be a "nothing" event?

As for this, I recently learned about all the fake news articles. What do you propose to do about it? Shut down the first amendment? Ban The Onion?

[Troy]

Why fire him now, when he said it a few days ago? It seems pretty immediate to me. I also don't see how I am trying to spin anything. Guy lipped off to his boss on the record, got fired.

Lipped off? He said he thought he did the right thing. And that "right thing" ended up with Trump as President.

What was his response supposed to be? It seemed a very neutral, and very political savvy response to me.

[GORDON]

dly, given that nobody seems willing to even stand-up to him, Trump going to run wild until 2018, and enough Dems get into Congress for the checks and balances system to function again.

If the other theory is true, and part of the reason trump won is because regular people got tired of being called Deplorables, I think 2018 is going to be more of the same since the craziness and division and name calling has just gotten worse. No lessons have been learned.

[GORDON]

Why fire him now, when he said it a few days ago? It seems pretty immediate to me. I also don't see how I am trying to spin anything. Guy lipped off to his boss on the record, got fired.

Lipped off? He said he thought he did the right thing. And that "right thing" ended up with Trump as President.

What was his response supposed to be? It seemed a very neutral, and very political savvy response to me.

We must be interpreting differently because to me it sounded like he said he was mildly nauseous at the idea that he may have helped Trump get elected. That sounds like an open criticism. I may be spinning it I guess, my silly brain.

[Troy]

Now the ACTUAL FOREIGN CORRUPTION thing is supposed to be a "nothing" event?

As for this, I recently learned about all the fake news articles. What do you propose to do about it? Shut down the first amendment? Ban The Onion?

??? - I have no idea what going on here.

But, for the second point: I propose that we fully investigate and convict the President's former National Security advisor, and anyone who: was connected to the money he was paid by foreign powers, tried to cover it up, or help facilitate it.

[GORDON]

The only actual evidence, 6 months after the election, is that there were fake news articles created by russia. You are saying you think there was actual... vote buying, or influence, or something, but there isn't any evidence there yet so I haven't heard of it.

So yes, cool, investigate. If anything is found, FROG MARCH all of them to prison.

I think every government employee currently working in DC should be spanish inquisitioned and put in jail at a single instance of illegal activity. Every one. Fuck those people.

[Troy]

We must be interpreting differently because to me it sounded like he said he was mildly nauseous at the idea that he may have helped Trump get elected. That sounds like an open criticism. I may be spinning it I guess, my silly brain.

Most things I've read suggest that the firing was a last-minute, seat of the pants deal. Spicer was caught off guard. Republican leadership, Comey too.

Sounds like it was done by Trump in the heat of " a moment". Sure sounds like his character. But you're telling me he stewed on his debatable (comment) for a week and decided to do it yesterday? Doesn't sound very Trump-like.

More likely, he found out about the Grand Jury summons this week, the request for more men and materials to investigate Russia. That's his moment.

[GORDON]

And btw, if we want to talk about foreign money buying influence, while we're working on Trump's team I'd also propose we look into Hillary's charity, and Obama's website accepting donations without verifying the donors weren't overseas.

*points finger* Hippo-crates!

Not pointing at you. Pointing at *them*

[GORDON]

We must be interpreting differently because to me it sounded like he said he was mildly nauseous at the idea that he may have helped Trump get elected. That sounds like an open criticism. I may be spinning it I guess, my silly brain.

Most things I've read suggest that the firing was a last-minute, seat of the pants deal. Spicer was caught off guard. Republican leadership, Comey too.

Sounds like it was done by Trump in the heat of " a moment". Sure sounds like his character. But you're telling me he stewed on this for a week and decided to do it yesterday. Doesn't sound very Trump-like.

More likely, he found out about the Grand Jury summons this week, the request for more men and materials to investigate Russia. That's his moment.

I have no knowledge to argue or support what you just said. All I know is Comey talked trash, mentally I thought, "Damn, trashing the boss," and then a few days later he was fired. To me it was a perfectly logical chain of events.

All I would suggest to you is that the rumors you hear... keep in mind they are 5th hand and I would bet a dollar are from heavily biased sources. The fact that by the time it filters down to you or me it is so removed from the Primary Source that it might as well have come out of a fortune cookie.

[Troy]

The only actual evidence, 6 months after the election, is that there were fake news articles created by russia. You are saying you think there was actual... vote buying, or influence, or something, but there isn't any evidence there yet so I haven't heard of it.

So yes, cool, investigate. If anything is found, FROG MARCH all of them to prison.

I think every government employee currently working in DC should be spanish inquisitioned and put in jail at a single instance of illegal activity. Every one. Fuck those people.

Flynn known to be dirty for a while now

Investigate indeed. What I said ages ago in this thread. And I was ok with that.

But when you fire the guy in charge of the investigation... that's where I'm off the rails. It all stinks bad and nobody has the spine to stand up for it.

[Vince]

Trump wants to run a banana republic style family focused oligarchy. The checks and balances systems only works when other members of his party grow spines and stand up to him.

Other members of his party didn't even stand up to the last President from the other party. Is anyone really shocked they wouldn't stand up to the President of their own party?

Don't get me wrong in what I was saying about the middle class joe schmoe's reasons for voting for Trump (or at least not supporting Hillary). None of that was offered as evidence that Trump is at all competent. Just as evidence that Russian influence really didn't have a lot to do Hillary losing. Hillary was mostly responsible for that.