Robert Mueller is closing in on Trump, and Trump knows it. That’s why for something like four straight days he railed on about Mueller, falsely claiming that an investigation which has nailed over two dozen people is false and a waste of time. He’s been changing the amount of money that he claims it costs, and has been shouting “No collusion” with such intensity and frequency that you would have to be blind, deaf and dumb–in other words, a Trump supporter–to believe that he hasn’t been in bed with the Russians. A couple of years ago he claimed he wasn’t; now he’s saying that he wasn’t but, hey, if he was, he had the right to be and it was no big deal. I can assure you, whenever anyone says, Even if I did it, there was nothing wrong with it,” that means he did it and he knows dámņëd well there’s something wrong with it.
So let’s see how his week has been going.
1). Here come the judge. Six states plus New York City provide sanctuary for immigrants, and Trump incredibly declared that he was going to cut them off from receiving public safety grants because, well, he’s a dìçk. Except a New York Federal Judge came back and reminded him that such a decision is completely beyond his power. Trump has still not been able to realize or accept that the powers of his office do not include the ability to come down on people just because they disagree with him. He can’t send the Justice Department after Hillary or James Comey, and he can’t unilaterally decide to withhold Federal funding just because someone isn’t as dementedly harsh against immigrants as he is. This, of course, is why he loved dictators. They can do whatever they want, get rid of whoever annoys them, and people remain loyal out of fear. That’s what he wants in this country, not a position where checks and balances rein in his attempts at spite and revenge.
2). In his defense, he does have a substantial gut. In addition to claiming that his brain is far more majestic than that of pretty much any other mortal, Trump further asserts that his gut is more knowledgeable than the brains of pretty much everyone. He asserts that his gut knows that climate change is a falsehood, despite the fact that pretty much the entire scientific community and his own investigators are telling him otherwise. He also claimed that his gut is more aware of property monetary policy than the Federal Reserve. So he basically put forward his reasons for never listening to anyone who is smarter than he is, which is–let’s face it–pretty much anyone. It seems his instincts are far more reliable than the knowledge of everybody else. I’m sure you remember the old adage about surrounding oneself with smart people who disagree with you. It doesn’t matter who Trump surrounds himself with because he remains convinced that he doesn’t need to listen to them because his gut is far more reliable. I swear, if the words “The Planet is messed up” appeared in burning letters on the Congressional dome, Trump would claim it was David Copperfield.
3). Car, Car, C-A-R. So General Motors has announced that they are firing fifteen percent of its workforce and shutting down five plants. Why? Several reasons, not the least of which is that Trump’s tariffs have driven up the price of steel. So every worker who trusted Trump to protect his or her job is getting a nice kick in the face for the holidays. Trump, meanwhile, not only takes no more responsibility for this than for the farmers who are declaring bankruptcy but instead has responded with threats. He threatened to remove GM’s electric car subsidies, which will naturally be harmful to anyone getting tax credits for buying electric cars. And he went on to announce he wants to tax foreign cars coming into the US, an idea which sucks monumentally. How would he accomplish this? By declaring that all foreign cars are a threat to national security. Yeah. Great notion.
4). A Trump lawyer lied? Inconceivable!. As Michael Cohen pleaded guilty to lying to congress about Trump and his business contacts in Russia, Trump responded by declaring that the “Mueller witch-hunt” should be terminated. Here’s the problem with calling it a witch hunt: no one in a watch hunt ever pleaded guilty. Mueller has enough guilty pleas than an entire season of “Perry Mason.” It’s not a witch hunt; it’s a dedicated investigation that is tightening the noose around Trump’s neck every day. And he’s panicking.
Did he do anything right?. Hard to tell. He declared that he wasn’t going to meet with Putin because of Russia’s activities with the Ukraine. Except I don’t recall Trump especially giving a dámņ about what his beloved strong men do in order to cause trouble. Russia’s take is that it was cancelled because Cohen admitted to lying about his involvement with Russia, and considering that Trump cancelled the meeting mere hours after Cohen’s admission, I have to admit that makes a lot of sense.
PAD
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Apparently, pretty much no one knew he was canceling the meeting until he tweeted it. Given the timing combined with that, yeah, his response was far more likely panic over the day’s news about Mueller than it was any moral stance over Putin’s actions in Ukraine.
Plus, y’know, Trump just doesn’t take moral stances.
Just as Reagan felt comfortable saying “Gorbachev, tear down this wall” because he knew it was already imminent, Trump’s thread to repeal the electric-car credit is hollow, because it was always going to end once GM had sold a certain number of electric vehicles — a number they’ll likely hit in 2019. So I can guarantee THAT isn’t fazing GM.
I guess your idea of “imminent” and mine differ. Reagan made his speech (against the wishes and advice of many of the top advisers of his Administration) in May of 1987,
The Berlin Wall wouldn’t begin falling until November of 1989 and that was technically just a metaphor as East German guards let East German citizens cross through the checkpoints without opposition. There were some people who would physically chip off pieces of the wall but the East German government (note it was NOT the Soviets, much less “Mr Gorbachev”) wouldn’t begin formal demolition until mid-1990.
It’s also worth noting that Reagan’s gal-pal, Margaret Thatcher, PERSONALLY begged Gorbachev to prevent the Wall from being brought down as she (along with many other European leaders on both sides of the political fence) feared a reunified Germany.
Speaking of Cohen, who Trump avers is a liar looking for a reduced sentence, remember back in April, just over seven months ago…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_wr8nA1p9g
Here’s some more (insert Wayne’s World flashback noises), including some choice Rudy Giuliani quotes on both sides of Cohen’s probity:
https://thinkprogress.org/trump-giuliani-flip-flop-michael-cohen-loyal-good-person-pathological-liar-e23d67abbb1f/
“Robert Mueller is closing in on Trump, and Trump knows it.”
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At this point, I’m not sure I buy that. Yeah, Mueller is closing in, and I’m sure people (other than Fox News) are telling Trump as much, but I’m not sure it’s actually going to do anything more than go in one ear and out the other.
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Trump has always gotten away with šhìŧ and expects to continue to get away with šhìŧ. Not for a moment do I believe that he believes he would ever end up in cuffs as a result of actions.
Well… not altogether true. The McCarthy hearings were very much a witch hunt and folks did agree to do what they were told they had to to get out from under it or avoid getting pulled into it in the first place. The plea deals on which our justice system survives would be another example.
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Point being, when faced with pressure folks do give in. Suggesting “They plead guilty, so there must be legitimacy to that charge.” proves something isn’t a witch hunt doesn’t really fly.
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That said, it’s extremely clear that Mueller’s investigation is based on actual facts and has the goal of finding out the truth, and not at all like real witch hunts (Benghazi!) that we’ve seen in recent years where there was no legit basis for an investigation to even begin and the goal was solely to attack someone on a false basis.
Peter David: No one in a watch hunt ever pleaded guilty.
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Luigi Novi: Of course not. They’re too busy looking for the watches. Rolexes, maybe a Bulgari or two, you can turn a pretty penny if you find them hiding next to the Easter eggs.
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😛
. A Trump lawyer lied? Inconceivable”
That where do you keep using… I don’t think it means what do you think it means…
. A Trump lawyer lied? Inconceivable”
That where do you keep using… I don’t think it means what do you think it means…
The era of the Party of Trump.
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Wisconsin Republicans shield their voters from the horrors of democratic elections, because the last thing modern conservatives want is anything remotely like a democratic process.
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“If you’re curious how Republican legislators in Wisconsin rationalize passing last-minute legislation aimed at hobbling the state’s governor-elect, Tony Evers (D), allow them to explain.
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“Listen. I’m concerned,” Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald said at a news conference on Tuesday. “I think that Governor-elect Evers is going to bring a liberal agenda to Wisconsin.”
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“If the legislation isn’t passed, Wisconsin assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R) warned on Tuesday night, “we are going to have a very liberal governor who is going to enact policies that are in direct contrast to what many of us believe in.”
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“The fear, from the top-ranking Republicans in the state legislature, is explicit: They are worried that Evers will advocate for policies and actions that are at odds with a conservative agenda, that he’ll make decisions that Republicans — “many of us” — disagree with.
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“Well, yeah. That’s how elections work. The person who wins more support from the state’s voters gets to run the state. Many of those voters won’t be happy with those decisions, but more of them, presumably, will be. Arguing that the power of the governor must necessarily be curtailed because a candidate won an election and will advocate the positions he ran on fundamentally goes against the spirit of democracy.”
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https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2018/12/05/wisconsin-republicans-shield-their-voters-horrors-democratic-elections/
The pettiness of Republicans as sore losers isn’t surprising…
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From this week-
In States They Lost, Some GOP Lawmakers Rush To Limit New Democrats’ Power
https://www.npr.org/2018/12/04/673020090/in-states-they-lost-some-gop-lawmakers-rush-to-limit-new-democrats-power
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… because they’ve been putting it on display for a while now.
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From 2016-
North Carolina Governor Signs Law Limiting Power Of His Successor
https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/12/16/505872501/north-carolina-governor-signs-law-limiting-power-of-his-successor
…and they are too dumb to think beyond the end of the incoming Democratic administration and see just what these new laws will do to them when they face Democrats who are really pìššëd-off about this šhìŧ.
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Republicans do not appear,these days, to be able to think beyond the next election.
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{If you can call what they’re doing “thought”.}
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Meanwhile, in another example of the forward thinking that characterises the-only-President-we-currently-have and his Maladministration, today i read that, back in early 2017, when his economic advisors and consultants showed him data predicting a “hockey stick” effect with a sudden spike in national debt and general economic chaos/panic, he asked when they expected it.
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When he was told not before someone else was in office, he said “Oh, okay – Ill be gone” and proceeded to ignore the advice.
The age of the short-sighted Republican has really began when they started adopting Ayn Rand/Austrian School economics as their main creed. All their other positions are derived from this one, or designed to lure voters who wouldn’t want to vote for them based on this one.
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And the problem with Free Market extremism is that it’s a nihilistic philosophy at its core. “You keep looking for maximum profit, and everything will be just great.” It’s not a philosophy that encourages slowly building towards something.
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It has led to execs, financers, and entrepreuners unable to look past the next semester and unable to care for anything except lining their own pockets.
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And it has contaminated Republican thinking to the extent that they are unable to think past the next election.
Minor nitpick: GM isn’t “firing” those workers, they are “furloughing” them or “laying them off”.
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Yes, it looks pretty much the same from the sharp end, but they are actually three different things, with different ancillary events/consequences.
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Particularly, being “fired” has a LOT of negative follow-on consequences, including {in most cases} denial of Unemployment Insurance and other such benefits … not to mention that future potential employers tend to look askance if you were fired, as opposed to laid off…