Speaking of failure, California has 12% of the population but 33% of the nation's poor welfare recipients. In its defense, though, California is a hideously expensive place to live--I make well over the average in my area but if I moved to California without a pay raise we would only barely be scraping by and I would probably have to get a second part-time job to make up the difference. You would think that poor Deep South States would have the highest rate (and they are fairly high, to be certain) but after calculating the cost of living differences California goes to the top of that list. Clearly, there is no easy fix for this--no one can pull jobs which pay well enough to live in California out of a hat--but continuing to engage in the same policies as they have for the last couple of decades without any noticeable change fits the stereotypical definition of "insanity".
Meanwhile, in other Fail News, Mueller subpoenaed Bannon. Not sure if the investigation will find anything he hadn't already said in his book but I guess we'll find out soon enough.
It's entirely based on cost of living. I am not in poverty, but I sure as hell couldn't afford to live San Francisco or New York City. California has the 6th highest GDP, simply as a State, in the entire world. It's probably the only state that wouldn't miss a beat if it was no longer part of the US. Beyond that, they contribute billions more to the federal coffers than they receive back. So not only do they make up over 13% of the US economy, and get a net negative back from federal programs, they are AlSO managing to fund social programs for the poor on a state level.
States like California are the reason States like Mississippi and Louisiana can enact conservative policies on a state level and expect the federal government to bail them out based on money that comes from mostly blue states. California takes care of their own problems AND everyone else's because of how much money they generate.
Ironically, it's conservative voters from deep red states who complain the most about "wasteful federal spending". And when it all comes out in the wash, their states don't actually contribute a net dime to funding that spending.
I'm pretty sure people from other states come to CA for the homeless scene. If you are homeless in Arizona, you'd die in a fire of the hot sun. If you have to be homeless, at least enjoy some nice outdoor weather. Also, the benefits of being homeless in CA are better than they are in most red states. In red states they spit on you you get like 5 weeks unemployment then it's get lost Sally. In CA people are more compassionate, and some people take advantage of that.
It's not CA, but Hawaii has a problem with some states giving their homeless people a one way ticket air fare. If you are homeless, it must surely be attractive to be homeless in paradise. And the state that bought the ticket does not have to support the guy anymore or see him mulling around possibly causing trouble. Would not be surprised if other states encourage sending their homeless people to California, it definitely happens in Hawaii.
On the precipice of yet ANOTHER potential government shutdown, Republicans continue to work overtime to convince people they aren't actually in control of every lever of power.
Meanwhile, Democrats have been attempting to save Net Neutrality with a bill in the Senate. All 49 Democrats are on board. One Republican is. One.
On the precipice of yet ANOTHER potential government shutdown, Republicans continue to work overtime to convince people they aren't actually in control of every lever of power.
I thought I was the only one wondering why they're talking about a shutdown again. How is this possible with the GOP controlling Congress and the White House? Are the Dems going to filibuster or something? If they did couldn't the Repubs just bypass it like they always do? I don't get it...
On the precipice of yet ANOTHER potential government shutdown, Republicans continue to work overtime to convince people they aren't actually in control of every lever of power.
I thought I was the only one wondering why they're talking about a shutdown again. How is this possible with the GOP controlling Congress and the White House? Are the Dems going to filibuster or something? If they did couldn't the Repubs just bypass it like they always do? I don't get it...
Republicans never have enough votes to pass a long-term spending bill because about 20-40 members of the House who came in during the Tea Party wave are so rabidly anti-government that they won't vote for almost any budget. Thus, ever since 2010, Pelosi has had to provide Democratic votes to Boehner and Ryan to get over the hump.
A deal had been made on DACA that made major concessions to Trump on border security, that was engineered by Dick Durbin and Lindsey Graham. When they got to the meeting with the President, they found him surrounded by immigration hard-liners Perdue and Cotton, which had been engineered by Stephen Miller and John Kelly (according to reporting). Then we got the "shithole" fiasco and the deal fell apart. Democrats are not going to hand the Republicans votes to keep their government running at the expense of these kids. At least, they better not if they hope to hold onto their base. Hope that clears things up. Basically, Republicans don't have their house in order on budget issues. Haven't for years. Thus they expect Democrats to provide them votes with no return. Isn't going to happen this time. Democrats can't force a shutdown at all. Republicans always start with one being a possibility by default because of their far-right flank in the House.
I'm starting to think maybe we should just see what happens if the government does shut down. It can't be worse than listening to this bullshit every year...
The only people hurt are the ones that rely on their government paychecks and the citizens that use services of the government. Oh, that is a lot of people, I guess.
The one group that is not affected is Congress. They continue to get all benefits, including pay, when they shutdown the government.
The only people hurt are the ones that rely on their government paychecks and the citizens that use services of the government. Oh, that is a lot of people, I guess.
The one group that is not affected is Congress. They continue to get all benefits, including pay, when they shutdown the government.
The only people hurt are the ones that rely on their government paychecks and the citizens that use services of the government. Oh, that is a lot of people, I guess.
The one group that is not affected is Congress. They continue to get all benefits, including pay, when they shutdown the government.
Military does also not shut down, though they don't get paid. I could be wrong about the last part though.
The only people hurt are the ones that rely on their government paychecks and the citizens that use services of the government. Oh, that is a lot of people, I guess.
The one group that is not affected is Congress. They continue to get all benefits, including pay, when they shutdown the government.
Military does also not shut down, though they don't get paid.
That makes me feel oh so safe. I don't think that worked very well for George Washington...
So it seems Senators Perdue and Cotton have been outed for lying for Trump. Trump also lied about it, but that's not surprising. Apparently, Cotton and Perdue first claimed they did not hear the specific words "shit hole countries". Then they doubled down and attacked Senator Durbin, who told the truth about what Trump said. Apparently, Cotton and Perdue are claiming to have heard Trump call them "shit house countries" and are hiding behind that mealy mouthed word distinction. Totally different right?
I suppose we should not be shocked that Republican Senators are lying here. After all they've been lying about Healthcare, tax cuts, Obama, Hillary, and every other thing.
And this is why you don't talk to Trump without it being recorded. This is why James Comey felt he had to take meticulous notes after his meeting with Trump because he felt it was very likely that Trump would lie about what was discussed. In January 2017, during the presidental transition Trump was calling or getting called by world leaders and after his call with Mexico, he said that Mexico was totally cool with paying for the border wall which led to the Mexican president having to say uh no that's not what happened. There's no truth with this guy.
Last week both Cotton and Perdue said they didn't recall what was said in the meeting. Over the weekend, they somehow managed to acquire crystal-clear memories of the conversation. What a magical turn of events.
I know it's not PC of me but I'm not sure Trump is wrong with his assessment of those countries. I personally think the description 'shithole country' would apply to virtually all countries that lie exclusively between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn (with the exceptions of Brazil, Costa Rica and Singapore). What can be done to change that is open to debate but I guarantee I wouldn't want to live in any of those countries...
I know it's not PC of me but I'm not sure Trump is wrong with his assessment of those countries. I personally think the description 'shithole country' would apply to virtually all countries that lie exclusively between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn (with the exceptions of Brazil, Costa Rica and Singapore). What can be done to change that is open to debate but I guarantee I wouldn't want to live in any of those countries...
It wasn't just that he called them "shitholes" though. It's that he said "why would we want people from these shithole countries??" And then he said we should want more people from Norway. He was making a value judgement about the character and worth of the people who might conceivably come here based on the wealth of their home country and (let's be frank) their skin-color. I think we all know what the difference (especially in Donald Trump's mind) is between people who live in Haiti and Africa (which he apparently thinks is a country) and Norway.
Beyond that, based on the USA's rankings in regards to live expectancy, infant mortality, and overall happiness, any country in Scandinavia would be just as justified in calling the US a "shithole". Norwegians are not lining up to come to the US so they can start paying insurance companies for their health care. Scandinavian countries (all of them) are constantly in the top 5 rankings the of most happy countries on Earth.
Beyond that, are people with Irish or Italian ancestors going to claim their countries weren't also "shitholes" when their great-grandparents came over?? Almost every wave of immigration into this country was fleeing less than ideal situations, to put it mildly. The Irish were fleeing a famine. Rich Europeans weren't the ones riding crowded boats across the ocean with nothing but the clothes on their backs to get to Ellis Island.
Personally I really wouldn't care if the Norwegians or Swedes called the US a 'shithole' country. It wouldn't affect me in any way whatsoever. I'm not under the illusion that we should be universally loved by all nor do I think what they think of us has any meaning whatsoever. If Botswana really wants to get off MY shithole list maybe they should start spending that diamond money on educating their own population instead of enriching their politicians. Ditto for most of the rest of Central and South America and Africa (minus the diamonds, of course). Skin color has no bearing. I do wish Trump had pointed to India or Sri Lanka instead of Norway but he probably couldn't find them on a map...
I get the feeling that you and I could sit down and come up with solutions to most of the country's (maybe even the world's) problems that would likely piss both of us off but would be infinitely better than what our government can come up with. The reason for that is neither of us is running for public office. Maybe what's needed is some kind of impartial brain trust to get together and work on this (and lots of beer).
Personally I really wouldn't care if the Norwegians or Swedes called the US a 'shithole' country. It wouldn't affect me in any way whatsoever. I'm not under the illusion that we should be universally loved by all nor do I think what they think of us has any meaning whatsoever. If Botswana really wants to get off MY shithole list maybe they should start spending that diamond money on educating their own population instead of enriching their politicians. Ditto for most of the rest of Central and South America and Africa (minus the diamonds, of course). Skin color has no bearing. I do wish Trump had pointed to India or Sri Lanka instead of Norway but he probably couldn't find them on a map...
It's true that he couldn't find them on a map, but he also wouldn't have pointed to those countries for the obvious reason as well. This is an Occam's Razor situation. You take everything Donald Trump has said and done in his life, from the housing discrimination in NY, to his push for the death penalty for the Central Park Five despite them being found innocent by DNA evidence, to Mexicans being rapists, to "very fine people on both sides", to complaints about black athletes taking a knee, to "shithole countries" (and god only knows what else), and there is really only one conclusion we can come to. He has said to aides he thinks he is fighting a culture war on behalf of the white, working class. Sometimes things just are what they are.
This never got any media traction (because it isn't on tape, can't be proven, and was just something I think no one wanted to deal with). But actor Don Cheadle is on the record as saying that Trump once asked his friend's father at a Pro-Am golf event if he'd ever (and I apologize for this even with the censoring) "f****d a n****r". Would anyone bet against that being exactly what took place?? I doubt anyone here would put any money on that story being false.
I get the feeling that you and I could sit down and come up with solutions to most of the country's (maybe even the world's) problems that would likely piss both of us off but would be infinitely better than what our government can come up with. The reason for that is neither of us is running for public office. Maybe what's needed is some kind of impartial brain trust to get together and work on this (and lots of beer).
@Mathsorcerer and @semiticgod would be better at running the country than I would. I don't have the temperament for it. If it was a 4 person panel, I'd also add @BelleSorciere and @ThacoBell. I'd trust that country would come out ok.
Personally I really wouldn't care if the Norwegians or Swedes called the US a 'shithole' country. It wouldn't affect me in any way whatsoever. I'm not under the illusion that we should be universally loved by all nor do I think what they think of us has any meaning whatsoever. If Botswana really wants to get off MY shithole list maybe they should start spending that diamond money on educating their own population instead of enriching their politicians. Ditto for most of the rest of Central and South America and Africa (minus the diamonds, of course). Skin color has no bearing. I do wish Trump had pointed to India or Sri Lanka instead of Norway but he probably couldn't find them on a map...
It's true that he couldn't find them on a map, but he also wouldn't have pointed to those countries for the obvious reason as well. This is an Occam's Razor situation. You take everything Donald Trump has said and done in his life, from the housing discrimination in NY, to his push for the death penalty for the Central Park Five despite them being found innocent by DNA evidence, to Mexicans being rapists, to "very fine people on both sides", to complaints about black athletes taking a knee, to "shithole countries" (and god only knows what else), and there is really only one conclusion we can come to. He has said to aides he thinks he is fighting a culture war on behalf of the white, working class. Sometimes things just are what they are.
I honestly don't disagree but what if instead of calling him an asshole or a racist, the Dems came up with a plan that not only addresses their grievances, but made it so that he looked like the good guy if he signed it. Combat is not the way to deal with somebody like Trump. Outsmarting him doesn't seem to be that difficult a task. At best he has 7 years left and it's leaning more like 3. Why waste an opportunity like this? I work with people like him and they're not hard to sway with the right tactics...
I get the feeling that you and I could sit down and come up with solutions to most of the country's (maybe even the world's) problems that would likely piss both of us off but would be infinitely better than what our government can come up with. The reason for that is neither of us is running for public office. Maybe what's needed is some kind of impartial brain trust to get together and work on this (and lots of beer).
@Mathsorcerer and @semiticgod would be better at running the country than I would. I don't have the temperament for it. If it was a 4 person panel, I'd also add @BelleSorciere and @ThacoBell. I'd trust that country would come out ok.
No, we'd need somebody like you. It wouldn't be the public you're dealing with after all. Don't leave out @smeagolheart either. No need to make it a panel of four.
Personally I really wouldn't care if the Norwegians or Swedes called the US a 'shithole' country. It wouldn't affect me in any way whatsoever. I'm not under the illusion that we should be universally loved by all nor do I think what they think of us has any meaning whatsoever. If Botswana really wants to get off MY shithole list maybe they should start spending that diamond money on educating their own population instead of enriching their politicians. Ditto for most of the rest of Central and South America and Africa (minus the diamonds, of course). Skin color has no bearing. I do wish Trump had pointed to India or Sri Lanka instead of Norway but he probably couldn't find them on a map...
It's true that he couldn't find them on a map, but he also wouldn't have pointed to those countries for the obvious reason as well. This is an Occam's Razor situation. You take everything Donald Trump has said and done in his life, from the housing discrimination in NY, to his push for the death penalty for the Central Park Five despite them being found innocent by DNA evidence, to Mexicans being rapists, to "very fine people on both sides", to complaints about black athletes taking a knee, to "shithole countries" (and god only knows what else), and there is really only one conclusion we can come to. He has said to aides he thinks he is fighting a culture war on behalf of the white, working class. Sometimes things just are what they are.
I honestly don't disagree but what if instead of calling him an asshole or a racist, the Dems came up with a plan that not only addresses their grievances, but made it so that he looked like the good guy if he signed it. Combat is not the way to deal with somebody like Trump. Outsmarting him doesn't seem to be that difficult a task. At best he has 7 years left and it's leaning more like 3. Why waste an opportunity like this? I work with people like him and they're not hard to sway with the right tactics...
Personally I really wouldn't care if the Norwegians or Swedes called the US a 'shithole' country. It wouldn't affect me in any way whatsoever. I'm not under the illusion that we should be universally loved by all nor do I think what they think of us has any meaning whatsoever. If Botswana really wants to get off MY shithole list maybe they should start spending that diamond money on educating their own population instead of enriching their politicians. Ditto for most of the rest of Central and South America and Africa (minus the diamonds, of course). Skin color has no bearing. I do wish Trump had pointed to India or Sri Lanka instead of Norway but he probably couldn't find them on a map...
It's true that he couldn't find them on a map, but he also wouldn't have pointed to those countries for the obvious reason as well. This is an Occam's Razor situation. You take everything Donald Trump has said and done in his life, from the housing discrimination in NY, to his push for the death penalty for the Central Park Five despite them being found innocent by DNA evidence, to Mexicans being rapists, to "very fine people on both sides", to complaints about black athletes taking a knee, to "shithole countries" (and god only knows what else), and there is really only one conclusion we can come to. He has said to aides he thinks he is fighting a culture war on behalf of the white, working class. Sometimes things just are what they are.
I honestly don't disagree but what if instead of calling him an asshole or a racist, the Dems came up with a plan that not only addresses their grievances, but made it so that he looked like the good guy if he signed it. Combat is not the way to deal with somebody like Trump. Outsmarting him doesn't seem to be that difficult a task. At best he has 7 years left and it's leaning more like 3. Why waste an opportunity like this? I work with people like him and they're not hard to sway with the right tactics...
Personally I really wouldn't care if the Norwegians or Swedes called the US a 'shithole' country. It wouldn't affect me in any way whatsoever. I'm not under the illusion that we should be universally loved by all nor do I think what they think of us has any meaning whatsoever. If Botswana really wants to get off MY shithole list maybe they should start spending that diamond money on educating their own population instead of enriching their politicians. Ditto for most of the rest of Central and South America and Africa (minus the diamonds, of course). Skin color has no bearing. I do wish Trump had pointed to India or Sri Lanka instead of Norway but he probably couldn't find them on a map...
It's true that he couldn't find them on a map, but he also wouldn't have pointed to those countries for the obvious reason as well. This is an Occam's Razor situation. You take everything Donald Trump has said and done in his life, from the housing discrimination in NY, to his push for the death penalty for the Central Park Five despite them being found innocent by DNA evidence, to Mexicans being rapists, to "very fine people on both sides", to complaints about black athletes taking a knee, to "shithole countries" (and god only knows what else), and there is really only one conclusion we can come to. He has said to aides he thinks he is fighting a culture war on behalf of the white, working class. Sometimes things just are what they are.
I honestly don't disagree but what if instead of calling him an asshole or a racist, the Dems came up with a plan that not only addresses their grievances, but made it so that he looked like the good guy if he signed it. Combat is not the way to deal with somebody like Trump. Outsmarting him doesn't seem to be that difficult a task. At best he has 7 years left and it's leaning more like 3. Why waste an opportunity like this? I work with people like him and they're not hard to sway with the right tactics...
They did try. They were even ready to give him money for something he could conceivably call a wall, which would have been a huge PR victory for him, to get the DACA kids protected. This was all set to go. The problem is that (and this is proven by all the events surrounding immigration last week) that he literally agrees with the last person he spoke to. Last week, in the span of 3 days, he went from agreeing with Dianne Feinstein, to agreeing to a deal with Lindsey Graham while golfing, to being pulled aside by his hard-liner aides and Cotton and Perdue and getting whipped into a frenzy and going off about "shitholes" (and again, that topic started in regards to protections for refugees of war and disasters). The problem is there is no way Democrats can get to him last. His staff and the most powerful forces on the right can always get in his ear at the last second. I'm not kidding. Watch the bipartisan meeting. He doesn't have a clue what he is talking about. He takes 3 or 4 different positions in the course of an hour. I don't know how you are supposed to negotiate with the wind. And if the Republicans on the right-flank aren't going to give the Democrats a DACA fix, what possible incentive do they have to just hand the Republicans votes to avoid a shutdown that is going to get blamed on the Republicans no matter what?? They would be surrendering the only (very minor) leverage they have.
Personally I really wouldn't care if the Norwegians or Swedes called the US a 'shithole' country. It wouldn't affect me in any way whatsoever. I'm not under the illusion that we should be universally loved by all nor do I think what they think of us has any meaning whatsoever. If Botswana really wants to get off MY shithole list maybe they should start spending that diamond money on educating their own population instead of enriching their politicians. Ditto for most of the rest of Central and South America and Africa (minus the diamonds, of course). Skin color has no bearing. I do wish Trump had pointed to India or Sri Lanka instead of Norway but he probably couldn't find them on a map...
It's true that he couldn't find them on a map, but he also wouldn't have pointed to those countries for the obvious reason as well. This is an Occam's Razor situation. You take everything Donald Trump has said and done in his life, from the housing discrimination in NY, to his push for the death penalty for the Central Park Five despite them being found innocent by DNA evidence, to Mexicans being rapists, to "very fine people on both sides", to complaints about black athletes taking a knee, to "shithole countries" (and god only knows what else), and there is really only one conclusion we can come to. He has said to aides he thinks he is fighting a culture war on behalf of the white, working class. Sometimes things just are what they are.
I honestly don't disagree but what if instead of calling him an asshole or a racist, the Dems came up with a plan that not only addresses their grievances, but made it so that he looked like the good guy if he signed it. Combat is not the way to deal with somebody like Trump. Outsmarting him doesn't seem to be that difficult a task. At best he has 7 years left and it's leaning more like 3. Why waste an opportunity like this? I work with people like him and they're not hard to sway with the right tactics...
Personally I really wouldn't care if the Norwegians or Swedes called the US a 'shithole' country. It wouldn't affect me in any way whatsoever. I'm not under the illusion that we should be universally loved by all nor do I think what they think of us has any meaning whatsoever. If Botswana really wants to get off MY shithole list maybe they should start spending that diamond money on educating their own population instead of enriching their politicians. Ditto for most of the rest of Central and South America and Africa (minus the diamonds, of course). Skin color has no bearing. I do wish Trump had pointed to India or Sri Lanka instead of Norway but he probably couldn't find them on a map...
It's true that he couldn't find them on a map, but he also wouldn't have pointed to those countries for the obvious reason as well. This is an Occam's Razor situation. You take everything Donald Trump has said and done in his life, from the housing discrimination in NY, to his push for the death penalty for the Central Park Five despite them being found innocent by DNA evidence, to Mexicans being rapists, to "very fine people on both sides", to complaints about black athletes taking a knee, to "shithole countries" (and god only knows what else), and there is really only one conclusion we can come to. He has said to aides he thinks he is fighting a culture war on behalf of the white, working class. Sometimes things just are what they are.
I honestly don't disagree but what if instead of calling him an asshole or a racist, the Dems came up with a plan that not only addresses their grievances, but made it so that he looked like the good guy if he signed it. Combat is not the way to deal with somebody like Trump. Outsmarting him doesn't seem to be that difficult a task. At best he has 7 years left and it's leaning more like 3. Why waste an opportunity like this? I work with people like him and they're not hard to sway with the right tactics...
Personally I really wouldn't care if the Norwegians or Swedes called the US a 'shithole' country. It wouldn't affect me in any way whatsoever. I'm not under the illusion that we should be universally loved by all nor do I think what they think of us has any meaning whatsoever. If Botswana really wants to get off MY shithole list maybe they should start spending that diamond money on educating their own population instead of enriching their politicians. Ditto for most of the rest of Central and South America and Africa (minus the diamonds, of course). Skin color has no bearing. I do wish Trump had pointed to India or Sri Lanka instead of Norway but he probably couldn't find them on a map...
It's true that he couldn't find them on a map, but he also wouldn't have pointed to those countries for the obvious reason as well. This is an Occam's Razor situation. You take everything Donald Trump has said and done in his life, from the housing discrimination in NY, to his push for the death penalty for the Central Park Five despite them being found innocent by DNA evidence, to Mexicans being rapists, to "very fine people on both sides", to complaints about black athletes taking a knee, to "shithole countries" (and god only knows what else), and there is really only one conclusion we can come to. He has said to aides he thinks he is fighting a culture war on behalf of the white, working class. Sometimes things just are what they are.
I honestly don't disagree but what if instead of calling him an asshole or a racist, the Dems came up with a plan that not only addresses their grievances, but made it so that he looked like the good guy if he signed it. Combat is not the way to deal with somebody like Trump. Outsmarting him doesn't seem to be that difficult a task. At best he has 7 years left and it's leaning more like 3. Why waste an opportunity like this? I work with people like him and they're not hard to sway with the right tactics...
They did try. They were even ready to give him money for something he could conceivably call a wall, which would have been a huge PR victory for him, to get the DACA kids protected. This was all set to go. The problem is that (and this is proven by all the events surrounding immigration last week) that he literally agrees with the last person he spoke to. Last week, in the span of 3 days, he went from agreeing with Dianne Feinstein, to agreeing to a deal with Lindsey Graham while golfing, to being pulled aside by his hard-liner aides and Cotton and Perdue and getting whipped into a frenzy and going off about "shitholes" (and again, that topic started in regards to protections for refugees of war and disasters). The problem is there is no way Democrats can get to him last. His staff and the most powerful forces on the right can always get in his ear at the last second. I'm not kidding. Watch the bipartisan meeting. He doesn't have a clue what he is talking about. He takes 3 or 4 different positions in the course of an hour. I don't know how you are supposed to negotiate with the wind.
Be the last person to whisper in his ear I guess. Maybe he'd listen to a porn star. Worth a try...
Personally I really wouldn't care if the Norwegians or Swedes called the US a 'shithole' country. It wouldn't affect me in any way whatsoever. I'm not under the illusion that we should be universally loved by all nor do I think what they think of us has any meaning whatsoever. If Botswana really wants to get off MY shithole list maybe they should start spending that diamond money on educating their own population instead of enriching their politicians. Ditto for most of the rest of Central and South America and Africa (minus the diamonds, of course). Skin color has no bearing. I do wish Trump had pointed to India or Sri Lanka instead of Norway but he probably couldn't find them on a map...
It's true that he couldn't find them on a map, but he also wouldn't have pointed to those countries for the obvious reason as well. This is an Occam's Razor situation. You take everything Donald Trump has said and done in his life, from the housing discrimination in NY, to his push for the death penalty for the Central Park Five despite them being found innocent by DNA evidence, to Mexicans being rapists, to "very fine people on both sides", to complaints about black athletes taking a knee, to "shithole countries" (and god only knows what else), and there is really only one conclusion we can come to. He has said to aides he thinks he is fighting a culture war on behalf of the white, working class. Sometimes things just are what they are.
I honestly don't disagree but what if instead of calling him an asshole or a racist, the Dems came up with a plan that not only addresses their grievances, but made it so that he looked like the good guy if he signed it. Combat is not the way to deal with somebody like Trump. Outsmarting him doesn't seem to be that difficult a task. At best he has 7 years left and it's leaning more like 3. Why waste an opportunity like this? I work with people like him and they're not hard to sway with the right tactics...
Personally I really wouldn't care if the Norwegians or Swedes called the US a 'shithole' country. It wouldn't affect me in any way whatsoever. I'm not under the illusion that we should be universally loved by all nor do I think what they think of us has any meaning whatsoever. If Botswana really wants to get off MY shithole list maybe they should start spending that diamond money on educating their own population instead of enriching their politicians. Ditto for most of the rest of Central and South America and Africa (minus the diamonds, of course). Skin color has no bearing. I do wish Trump had pointed to India or Sri Lanka instead of Norway but he probably couldn't find them on a map...
It's true that he couldn't find them on a map, but he also wouldn't have pointed to those countries for the obvious reason as well. This is an Occam's Razor situation. You take everything Donald Trump has said and done in his life, from the housing discrimination in NY, to his push for the death penalty for the Central Park Five despite them being found innocent by DNA evidence, to Mexicans being rapists, to "very fine people on both sides", to complaints about black athletes taking a knee, to "shithole countries" (and god only knows what else), and there is really only one conclusion we can come to. He has said to aides he thinks he is fighting a culture war on behalf of the white, working class. Sometimes things just are what they are.
I honestly don't disagree but what if instead of calling him an asshole or a racist, the Dems came up with a plan that not only addresses their grievances, but made it so that he looked like the good guy if he signed it. Combat is not the way to deal with somebody like Trump. Outsmarting him doesn't seem to be that difficult a task. At best he has 7 years left and it's leaning more like 3. Why waste an opportunity like this? I work with people like him and they're not hard to sway with the right tactics...
Personally I really wouldn't care if the Norwegians or Swedes called the US a 'shithole' country. It wouldn't affect me in any way whatsoever. I'm not under the illusion that we should be universally loved by all nor do I think what they think of us has any meaning whatsoever. If Botswana really wants to get off MY shithole list maybe they should start spending that diamond money on educating their own population instead of enriching their politicians. Ditto for most of the rest of Central and South America and Africa (minus the diamonds, of course). Skin color has no bearing. I do wish Trump had pointed to India or Sri Lanka instead of Norway but he probably couldn't find them on a map...
It's true that he couldn't find them on a map, but he also wouldn't have pointed to those countries for the obvious reason as well. This is an Occam's Razor situation. You take everything Donald Trump has said and done in his life, from the housing discrimination in NY, to his push for the death penalty for the Central Park Five despite them being found innocent by DNA evidence, to Mexicans being rapists, to "very fine people on both sides", to complaints about black athletes taking a knee, to "shithole countries" (and god only knows what else), and there is really only one conclusion we can come to. He has said to aides he thinks he is fighting a culture war on behalf of the white, working class. Sometimes things just are what they are.
I honestly don't disagree but what if instead of calling him an asshole or a racist, the Dems came up with a plan that not only addresses their grievances, but made it so that he looked like the good guy if he signed it. Combat is not the way to deal with somebody like Trump. Outsmarting him doesn't seem to be that difficult a task. At best he has 7 years left and it's leaning more like 3. Why waste an opportunity like this? I work with people like him and they're not hard to sway with the right tactics...
They did try. They were even ready to give him money for something he could conceivably call a wall, which would have been a huge PR victory for him, to get the DACA kids protected. This was all set to go. The problem is that (and this is proven by all the events surrounding immigration last week) that he literally agrees with the last person he spoke to. Last week, in the span of 3 days, he went from agreeing with Dianne Feinstein, to agreeing to a deal with Lindsey Graham while golfing, to being pulled aside by his hard-liner aides and Cotton and Perdue and getting whipped into a frenzy and going off about "shitholes" (and again, that topic started in regards to protections for refugees of war and disasters). The problem is there is no way Democrats can get to him last. His staff and the most powerful forces on the right can always get in his ear at the last second. I'm not kidding. Watch the bipartisan meeting. He doesn't have a clue what he is talking about. He takes 3 or 4 different positions in the course of an hour. I don't know how you are supposed to negotiate with the wind.
Be the last person to whisper in his ear I guess. Maybe he'd listen to a porn star. Worth a try...
I mean, there are now THREE porn stars. I would venture to guess the actual number of women who have signed NDAs with this guy numbers in the dozens or possibly triple digits. The reason no one (including me for the most part) don't even bother making it an issue is because it's already patently obvious that it wouldn't matter if he slept with 1000 porn stars or abused hundreds of women. Clearly that ship has sailed. He is immune to charges of infidelity and sexual misconduct. That's a hell of a shield for a politician to be in possession of, but he has it.
Personally I really wouldn't care if the Norwegians or Swedes called the US a 'shithole' country. It wouldn't affect me in any way whatsoever. I'm not under the illusion that we should be universally loved by all nor do I think what they think of us has any meaning whatsoever. If Botswana really wants to get off MY shithole list maybe they should start spending that diamond money on educating their own population instead of enriching their politicians. Ditto for most of the rest of Central and South America and Africa (minus the diamonds, of course). Skin color has no bearing. I do wish Trump had pointed to India or Sri Lanka instead of Norway but he probably couldn't find them on a map...
It's true that he couldn't find them on a map, but he also wouldn't have pointed to those countries for the obvious reason as well. This is an Occam's Razor situation. You take everything Donald Trump has said and done in his life, from the housing discrimination in NY, to his push for the death penalty for the Central Park Five despite them being found innocent by DNA evidence, to Mexicans being rapists, to "very fine people on both sides", to complaints about black athletes taking a knee, to "shithole countries" (and god only knows what else), and there is really only one conclusion we can come to. He has said to aides he thinks he is fighting a culture war on behalf of the white, working class. Sometimes things just are what they are.
I honestly don't disagree but what if instead of calling him an asshole or a racist, the Dems came up with a plan that not only addresses their grievances, but made it so that he looked like the good guy if he signed it. Combat is not the way to deal with somebody like Trump. Outsmarting him doesn't seem to be that difficult a task. At best he has 7 years left and it's leaning more like 3. Why waste an opportunity like this? I work with people like him and they're not hard to sway with the right tactics...
Personally I really wouldn't care if the Norwegians or Swedes called the US a 'shithole' country. It wouldn't affect me in any way whatsoever. I'm not under the illusion that we should be universally loved by all nor do I think what they think of us has any meaning whatsoever. If Botswana really wants to get off MY shithole list maybe they should start spending that diamond money on educating their own population instead of enriching their politicians. Ditto for most of the rest of Central and South America and Africa (minus the diamonds, of course). Skin color has no bearing. I do wish Trump had pointed to India or Sri Lanka instead of Norway but he probably couldn't find them on a map...
It's true that he couldn't find them on a map, but he also wouldn't have pointed to those countries for the obvious reason as well. This is an Occam's Razor situation. You take everything Donald Trump has said and done in his life, from the housing discrimination in NY, to his push for the death penalty for the Central Park Five despite them being found innocent by DNA evidence, to Mexicans being rapists, to "very fine people on both sides", to complaints about black athletes taking a knee, to "shithole countries" (and god only knows what else), and there is really only one conclusion we can come to. He has said to aides he thinks he is fighting a culture war on behalf of the white, working class. Sometimes things just are what they are.
I honestly don't disagree but what if instead of calling him an asshole or a racist, the Dems came up with a plan that not only addresses their grievances, but made it so that he looked like the good guy if he signed it. Combat is not the way to deal with somebody like Trump. Outsmarting him doesn't seem to be that difficult a task. At best he has 7 years left and it's leaning more like 3. Why waste an opportunity like this? I work with people like him and they're not hard to sway with the right tactics...
Personally I really wouldn't care if the Norwegians or Swedes called the US a 'shithole' country. It wouldn't affect me in any way whatsoever. I'm not under the illusion that we should be universally loved by all nor do I think what they think of us has any meaning whatsoever. If Botswana really wants to get off MY shithole list maybe they should start spending that diamond money on educating their own population instead of enriching their politicians. Ditto for most of the rest of Central and South America and Africa (minus the diamonds, of course). Skin color has no bearing. I do wish Trump had pointed to India or Sri Lanka instead of Norway but he probably couldn't find them on a map...
It's true that he couldn't find them on a map, but he also wouldn't have pointed to those countries for the obvious reason as well. This is an Occam's Razor situation. You take everything Donald Trump has said and done in his life, from the housing discrimination in NY, to his push for the death penalty for the Central Park Five despite them being found innocent by DNA evidence, to Mexicans being rapists, to "very fine people on both sides", to complaints about black athletes taking a knee, to "shithole countries" (and god only knows what else), and there is really only one conclusion we can come to. He has said to aides he thinks he is fighting a culture war on behalf of the white, working class. Sometimes things just are what they are.
I honestly don't disagree but what if instead of calling him an asshole or a racist, the Dems came up with a plan that not only addresses their grievances, but made it so that he looked like the good guy if he signed it. Combat is not the way to deal with somebody like Trump. Outsmarting him doesn't seem to be that difficult a task. At best he has 7 years left and it's leaning more like 3. Why waste an opportunity like this? I work with people like him and they're not hard to sway with the right tactics...
They did try. They were even ready to give him money for something he could conceivably call a wall, which would have been a huge PR victory for him, to get the DACA kids protected. This was all set to go. The problem is that (and this is proven by all the events surrounding immigration last week) that he literally agrees with the last person he spoke to. Last week, in the span of 3 days, he went from agreeing with Dianne Feinstein, to agreeing to a deal with Lindsey Graham while golfing, to being pulled aside by his hard-liner aides and Cotton and Perdue and getting whipped into a frenzy and going off about "shitholes" (and again, that topic started in regards to protections for refugees of war and disasters). The problem is there is no way Democrats can get to him last. His staff and the most powerful forces on the right can always get in his ear at the last second. I'm not kidding. Watch the bipartisan meeting. He doesn't have a clue what he is talking about. He takes 3 or 4 different positions in the course of an hour. I don't know how you are supposed to negotiate with the wind.
Be the last person to whisper in his ear I guess. Maybe he'd listen to a porn star. Worth a try...
I mean, there are now THREE porn stars. I would venture to guess the actual number of women who have signed NDAs with this guy numbers in the dozens or possibly triple digits. The reason no one (including me for the most part) don't even bother making it an issue is because it's already patently obvious that it wouldn't matter if he slept with 1000 porn stars or abused hundreds of women. Clearly that ship has sailed. He is immune to charges of infidelity and sexual misconduct. That's a hell of a shield for a politician to be in possession of, but he has it.
That's exactly why words whispered in his ear during the post coital glow might just do the trick.
Also, not that it matters, but if Donald Trump is 6'3 and 239 lbs, then I'm Louis the XIV.
Your majesty! What does the Sun King desire today?
I'd settle for what Stefon Diggs was able to do for me on Sunday, which was put me in such a state of shock for 5 or 6 hours that I couldn't think straight.
Also, not that it matters, but if Donald Trump is 6'3 and 239 lbs, then I'm Louis the XIV.
Your majesty! What does the Sun King desire today?
I'd settle for what Stefon Diggs was able to do for me on Sunday, which was put me in such a state of shock for 5 or 6 hours that I couldn't think straight.
I'm still hoarse from all the shouting I did. The Vikes played the best first half I've ever seen and (almost) the worst second half.
I think you should definitely knight 'Sir Stefon Diggs'.
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Meanwhile, in other Fail News, Mueller subpoenaed Bannon. Not sure if the investigation will find anything he hadn't already said in his book but I guess we'll find out soon enough.
States like California are the reason States like Mississippi and Louisiana can enact conservative policies on a state level and expect the federal government to bail them out based on money that comes from mostly blue states. California takes care of their own problems AND everyone else's because of how much money they generate.
Ironically, it's conservative voters from deep red states who complain the most about "wasteful federal spending". And when it all comes out in the wash, their states don't actually contribute a net dime to funding that spending.
It's not CA, but Hawaii has a problem with some states giving their homeless people a one way ticket air fare. If you are homeless, it must surely be attractive to be homeless in paradise. And the state that bought the ticket does not have to support the guy anymore or see him mulling around possibly causing trouble. Would not be surprised if other states encourage sending their homeless people to California, it definitely happens in Hawaii.
Meanwhile, Democrats have been attempting to save Net Neutrality with a bill in the Senate. All 49 Democrats are on board. One Republican is. One.
A deal had been made on DACA that made major concessions to Trump on border security, that was engineered by Dick Durbin and Lindsey Graham. When they got to the meeting with the President, they found him surrounded by immigration hard-liners Perdue and Cotton, which had been engineered by Stephen Miller and John Kelly (according to reporting). Then we got the "shithole" fiasco and the deal fell apart. Democrats are not going to hand the Republicans votes to keep their government running at the expense of these kids. At least, they better not if they hope to hold onto their base. Hope that clears things up. Basically, Republicans don't have their house in order on budget issues. Haven't for years. Thus they expect Democrats to provide them votes with no return. Isn't going to happen this time. Democrats can't force a shutdown at all. Republicans always start with one being a possibility by default because of their far-right flank in the House.
I'm starting to think maybe we should just see what happens if the government does shut down. It can't be worse than listening to this bullshit every year...
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Government_shutdowns_in_the_United_States
The only people hurt are the ones that rely on their government paychecks and the citizens that use services of the government. Oh, that is a lot of people, I guess.
The one group that is not affected is Congress. They continue to get all benefits, including pay, when they shutdown the government.
I suppose we should not be shocked that Republican Senators are lying here. After all they've been lying about Healthcare, tax cuts, Obama, Hillary, and every other thing.
And this is why you don't talk to Trump without it being recorded. This is why James Comey felt he had to take meticulous notes after his meeting with Trump because he felt it was very likely that Trump would lie about what was discussed. In January 2017, during the presidental transition Trump was calling or getting called by world leaders and after his call with Mexico, he said that Mexico was totally cool with paying for the border wall which led to the Mexican president having to say uh no that's not what happened. There's no truth with this guy.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/right-turn/wp/2018/01/16/sens-cotton-and-perdue-are-outed-for-lying-on-trumps-behalf/
Beyond that, based on the USA's rankings in regards to live expectancy, infant mortality, and overall happiness, any country in Scandinavia would be just as justified in calling the US a "shithole". Norwegians are not lining up to come to the US so they can start paying insurance companies for their health care. Scandinavian countries (all of them) are constantly in the top 5 rankings the of most happy countries on Earth.
Beyond that, are people with Irish or Italian ancestors going to claim their countries weren't also "shitholes" when their great-grandparents came over?? Almost every wave of immigration into this country was fleeing less than ideal situations, to put it mildly. The Irish were fleeing a famine. Rich Europeans weren't the ones riding crowded boats across the ocean with nothing but the clothes on their backs to get to Ellis Island.
I get the feeling that you and I could sit down and come up with solutions to most of the country's (maybe even the world's) problems that would likely piss both of us off but would be infinitely better than what our government can come up with. The reason for that is neither of us is running for public office. Maybe what's needed is some kind of impartial brain trust to get together and work on this (and lots of beer).
This never got any media traction (because it isn't on tape, can't be proven, and was just something I think no one wanted to deal with). But actor Don Cheadle is on the record as saying that Trump once asked his friend's father at a Pro-Am golf event if he'd ever (and I apologize for this even with the censoring) "f****d a n****r". Would anyone bet against that being exactly what took place?? I doubt anyone here would put any money on that story being false.
People from all countries are good or bad, evaluate people based on their merits not the merits of the country they happened to be born in.
Hell, might as well include @WarChiefZeke, and @Stormvessel to round out the panel!
I think you should definitely knight 'Sir Stefon Diggs'.