The Trump presidency

[brogdale]

I don't think we will, especially if you pretend i'm supporting finance capital against everyone else.

Apart from profitability- which all fincap entities seek to gain at the expense of rivals- what other unifying objective or direction do they follow? Some finance sectors benefit from war, or from stability, or from inflation or from subsidy or from tax shelters or from globalisation while others are caused to go bust. Can you support the notion that there is something all fincap benefits from?*

* exploitation of labour and resources, yes we know that, that's what profitability is.

I didn't pretend that you were a supporter of capital, merely that the position you're taking wrt to capital's agency/desires shares some underlying assumptions seen commonly in RW/pro-capitalist commentary.

 

[Sirena]

Conway has referenced the fictitious 'Bowling Green attack', more than once.

Kellyanne Conway Referenced ‘Bowling Green Attack’ in TMZ Interview

Here's Sidney Poitier singing about the Bowling Green Massacre (and a little kitten sitting on a sewing machine - a news story obviously concealed by the media...)

 

[newbie]

My point is that we would/could/should have been having this 'conversation' regardless of recent electoral outcomes. I'm not quite sure what you mean by "gods-eye-view", but with respect, if you read what I wrote in
post #2477 I did attempt to predict, albeit in broad brush-strokes, what trajectory advanced neoliberalism may take.

well, you said.

The obscenely rich economic elite who, pre-Trump have been happy to delegate their wealth defence to a professional political elite, appear to have lost faith in globalised institutions, especially any with supra-national aspiration to tax harmonisation or coordination. Both Brexit & Trump could easily be interpreted as an attempt to secure 2 national 'citadels' of wealth defence from which tax dodging can continue to be co-ordinated. Trump's EOs regarding renewed deregulation of financial services and promises of slashed corp taxes would indicate his determination to secure the USA as a bastion of oligarchic wealth defence.

I don't pretend I fully understand your point, but I don't think you're discussing protectionism, tariffs, and end to globalisation at all. A political desire to make the USA a bastion for wealth implies a cross border fincap battle between accumulations sheltering inside and in other competing jurisdictions outside which have increasingly different interests, no? Capital flight and repatriation for state protection will come at a cost, and as tax dodging is minor compared to overall sums involved, giving it up may become a condition of doing business inside the wall.

 

[CrabbedOne]

One of the schemes to make Mexico pay for the wall was to put a yuuuuuuge tariff on Mexicans goods. This idea is the work of geniuses in only one area: spin.

It's not hard to figure that likely would mean that tariff being passed on to US consumers. That's the effect of very high tariffs lobbied for by the US steel industry. And if you look at things like cars most of the parts are actually made in the US they are just exported to Mexico for assembly. So you'd be indirectly eroding the profit margins of US manufacturers. Of course some US jobs are lost but increasingly that's often pretty well educated people watching robots assemble precision components not a unionised labour intensive Fordist production line of human automatons battling with RSI. Remove cars and much whined about the US trade deficit with the much poorer Mexico disappears.

Incidentally this is true of the highly distributed European car industry Just In Time supply chains as well. The economies of local specialisation drive everything. Complicated border arrangement will likely just fuck all that up. The reality is multi-national interdependence or more expensive products and lower profit margins. Lower productivity and without strong unions often downward pressure on wages.

The folk NAFTA really screwed were Mexican peons wiped out by heavily subsidised US agri-industry exports. Who guess what tended to jump the border and seek an occasional subsistence picking crops in the North that Americans simply won't do. That is until the debt led US economy crashed then they stayed home. With living getting soft up North again they're trickling back again and rubbing up against Trump's two SUVs/family American Carnage. I'm sure they find it all most perplexing.

 

[Yuwipi Woman]

i grew up with that show

I think everyone grew up with that show.

 

[Cloo]

selective misreading. he's used it effectively enough to become president of the usa, as did Obama before him. It's hard to think of anything that might demonstrate effective use more clearly.

It's double edged, let's put it that way. He can get good supporters wagging their tails but he can also show his ignorance, incompetence and fragility. I mean, tweeting that people shouldn't believe negative ratings reports of you is the stuff of Robert Mugabe, not the POTUS.

 

[newbie]

It's double edged, let's put it that way. He can get good supporters wagging their tails but he can also show his ignorance, incompetence and fragility. I mean, tweeting that people shouldn't believe negative ratings reports of you is the stuff of Robert Mugabe, not the POTUS.

is it? certainly true of previous incumbents, this one is showing signs that he's a bit different. I'm certainly not disagreeing with all the negative observations about him, just saying his use of twitter has achieved more than anyones elses recently. If his 20m or so followers all thought of him the way you, I and pretty much every other urbanite does, he wouldn't have won the election.

I'd also add, again without offering him any support, that Mugabe has been in power for a very long time, whether he's unpopular here or not. He's not a role model I'd like Trump (or anyone else) to follow.

 

[Yuwipi Woman]

I don't think Spicer is going to last long on the job.

He doesn't have the temperament for the job. He's easily irritated and too slow on his feet. On the other hand, I said the same thing about his boss.

 

[Yuwipi Woman]

From the Baltimore Sun:

Ordinary Americans carried out inhumane acts for Trump

 

[CrabbedOne]

On War On The Rocks THE WAR AMONG THE GENERALS

...
What does this mean for the two cabinet generals? Mattis and Kelly ultimately serve at the pleasure of the president. To be effective in their jobs and faithfully serve the nation, they must be comfortable supporting Trump’s policies in public after providing their candid inputs — aggressively, if need be — in private. But to maximize their influence, they will have to carefully choose their battles. There will be daily friction between their departments and the White House, but they should avoid intervening in those battles as much as possible, saving their personal capital for only the most important ones. They should avoid having their credibility and presence leveraged to support policies and decisions that conflict deeply with their principles and beliefs. And, they must also build broader relationships across the administration with like-minded leaders to increase the weight and authority of their views.

The poorly-staffed and hastily implemented immigration ban was an early loss for both of the cabinet generals. But it was not a battle that resulted in the loss of life or had existential consequences, and those are sure to come. When that day inevitably arrives, all four of these generals, along with the president’s other advisors, will need to come together and ensure that a still-inexperienced president gets to hear the widest range of voices and advice from his team. Perhaps better than anyone else close to this commander-in-chief, the generals know the consequences of getting those decisions wrong.
...

After having everything smeared in Bannon's alt-right seepage here's a more standup fight The Dads (Mattis & Kelly) V the Mad (Flynn & Kellog). Advantage to the latter; initially. Though Flynn seems to be damaged goods already.

 

[DotCommunist]

is it? certainly true of previous incumbents, this one is showing signs that he's a bit different. I'm certainly not disagreeing with all the negative observations about him, just saying his use of twitter has achieved more than anyones elses recently. If his 20m or so followers all thought of him the way you, I and pretty much every other urbanite does, he wouldn't have won the election.

I'd also add, again without offering him any support, that Mugabe has been in power for a very long time, whether he's unpopular here or not. He's not a role model I'd like Trump (or anyone else) to follow.

Trump would never get away with rocking a little hitler tash for example

 

[newbie]

same as he wouldn't get away with boasting about grabbing women, being caught out in umptytwo lies, being the only candidate in years to not open up his tax returns, being the one to fill the swamp with relatives and the far right, just happening to declare his countryclub the winter White House then double the fees for members, threatening other presidents and judges in public and whatever else he won't get away with.

 

[DotCommunist]

same as he wouldn't get away with boasting about grabbing women, being caught out in umptytwo lies, being the only candidate in years to not open up his tax returns, being the one to fill the swamp with relatives and the far right, just happening to declare his countryclub the winter White House then double the fees for members, threatening other presidents and judges in public and whatever else he won't get away with.

its happening already!

 

[CrabbedOne]

On Lawfare President Trump, Quebec, and the Dismantling of CVE

...
The academic literature on radicalization provides an excellent framework for thinking about cases such as Bissonnette’s—and CVE attempts to put that framework into practice by dissuading those drawn to extremist ideologies or violent actions and helping those moving away from such ideologies reintegrate into society. The irony, of course, is that Trump’s proposed reworking of CVE would symbolically exclude people like Bissonnette in the service of focusing the government’s energy on “radical Islamic extremism.”

Immediately after Trump’s victory in the presidential election, the leap in hate crimes led to widespread calls for the new President-elect to speak out against the violence perpetrated by his supporters. Days later, Trump finally weighed in on “60 Minutes,” telling his followers to “stop it.” The comment was far from even close to sufficient, but it was something.

In contrast, it is impossible not to note the silence now. There is plenty to be unsettled about regarding the administration’s planned changes to CVE, but the absence of even token words of care regarding the Quebec attack raises a serious concern that this administration has no intention of taking seriously violence perpetrated by its most extreme supporters.

The comparison with the anti-establishment reactionary firebrand Ian Paisley occurs to me again. An incendiary paranoid discourse of ruling majority victimhood. A far more agile player with words but also given to the the odd huge porkie:

...
1969: "They breed like rabbits and multiply like vermin." Talking about Catholics.
...
1969: "I have never made an inflammatory statement in my life."

He'd hate the comparison because Trump's essentially amoral and his schtick is just so vulgar. Paisley was a roaring religious bigot like something out of the Old Testament but a great preacher:

At his best at 1:56 in on the merits of being "AGAINST". The power of shouting!

 

[Wilf]

its happening already!

Looks more real than his actual hair.

 

[DotCommunist]

On Lawfare President Trump, Quebec, and the Dismantling of CVE
The comparison with the anti-establishment reactionary firebrand Ian Paisley occurs to me again. An incendiary paranoid discourse of ruling majority victimhood. A far more agile player with words but also given to the the odd huge porkie:
He'd hate the comparison because Trump's essentially amoral and his schtick is just so vulgar. Paisley was a roaring religious bigot like something out of the Old Testament but a great preacher:

At his best at 1:56 in on the merits of being "AGAINST". The power of shouting!

trumps anti lgbt thing stems from his whole anti liberal/left agenda. Paisely though, he hated gay people with a vengeance right out of the bible.

 

[CrabbedOne]

On TDS Trump reveals America's 'real face': Iran's Khamenei

TEHRAN: Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Tuesday he was grateful to U.S. President Donald Trump for revealing "the real face of America".

"We are thankful to this gentleman... he showed the real face of America," Khamenei said in a speech to military officers in Tehran.

"What we have said for more than 30 years -- that there is political, economic, moral and social corruption in the ruling system of the U.S. -- this gentleman came and brought it out into the open in the election and after the election."

He referred to the case of a young Iranian boy who was pictured in handcuffs at a U.S. airport following Trump's ban on visas for seven Muslim-majority countries, including Iran.

"By what he does -- handcuffing a five-year-old child -- he shows the true meaning of American human rights," Khamenei said.
...

Old bugger appears genuinely delighted about the new management of the Great Satan.

 

[Johnny Canuck3]

He doesn't have the temperament for the job. He's easily irritated and too slow on his feet. On the other hand, I said the same thing about his boss.

Apparently Trump doesn't like the fact that Spicer was effectively mocked by a female doing an impression of Spicer.

 

[bimble]

Apparently Trump doesn't like the fact that Spicer was effectively mocked by a female doing an impression of Spicer.

They really didn't like that sketch.
White House rattled by McCarthy's spoof of Spicer

 

[Pickman's model]

They really didn't like that sketch.
White House rattled by McCarthy's spoof of Spicer

they don't like it up 'em captain mainwaring

 

[Yuwipi Woman]

Apparently Trump doesn't like the fact that Spicer was effectively mocked by a female doing an impression of Spicer.

They were mocked by millions of women the day after the inauguration. They're going to have to get used to it.

 

[DotCommunist]

well I suppose one silver lining to having a narcissist with skin like tracing paper in charge of your country is that when you rip the piss he's incapable of hiding how much it pisses him off

 

[Johnny Canuck3]

well I suppose one silver lining to having a narcissist with skin like tracing paper in charge of your country is that when you rip the piss he's incapable of hiding how much it pisses him off

Partisans have been warning about Trump's craziness for months, but rhetoric from political opponents is easily dismissed; it's the water of the very swamp the President says he wants to drain.


But frightened by the President's hubris, narcissism, defensiveness, belief in untrue things, conspiratorial reflexiveness and attacks on opponents, mental health professionals are finally speaking out. The goal is not merely to define the Madness of King Donald, but to warn the public where it will inevitably lead.

President Trump exhibits classic signs of mental illness: shrinks

 

[CrabbedOne]

In Al Monitor Netanyahu trapped between right-wing settlement law, US president

...
As of today, the signs reaching Jerusalem from Washington are mixed and not always encouraging. First, the Americans insist on holding the meeting at a very inconvenient date for the prime minister. Second, Netanyahu finds himself the fourth foreign leader to meet with the new president after the latter’s inauguration, and not the first as he had hoped. He even comes after Jordanian King Abdullah II. Then there was the strange announcement disseminated by the White House in commemoration of International Holocaust Remembrance Day on Jan. 27, which did not mention the Jews at all. All in all, what we see is a strange mixture of good and bad signs from the new president that arouse much confusion in Netanyahu’s environs.

Former US Ambassador Dan Shapiro sent a series of 22 tweets last week, in which he brilliantly and exhaustively analyzed the chances and risks of the first Trump-Netanyahu encounter. According to Shapiro, there is a good chance that the Trump-Netanyahu relationship will be a good one, as is expected. However, there is no doubt that Trump will have demands from Netanyahu as well. According to Shapiro, Trump may even ask Israel to accept and agree to US-Russian cooperation in Syria. This would be a bitter pill that the Israeli defense system would have a hard time swallowing. In any event, Shapiro asserted, Netanyahu may very well find out that the current US administration requests its own hefty demands of Israel regarding the Palestinian issue. The prime minister may come to realize that the virtuosic diplomatic skills that he will need in relating to Trump will be no less than those he honed over eight long, hard years working with US President Barack Obama.

Bibi isn't known for his tact with the Americans. He's often treated US Presidents and diplomats wth contempt like irritating street vendors hawking something slightly nauseating. The hypersensitive Trump may be a challenge to Bibi's own limited restraint.

 

[Old Spark]

Russia today,America tomorrow ?

Any apologists out there

Putin approves change to law decriminalising domestic violence

 

[Raheem]

President Trump exhibits classic signs of mental illness: shrinks

Think he may be a bit of a challenge to the philosophical underpinnings of psychiatry, like Breivik.

 

[1%er]

Bercow has banned Trump from addressing the mother of all parliaments, fwiw. (not much).

On 28 March 2011, the Speaker had representatives from the North Korean regime round for tea in the Speaker’s House.

 

[Casually Red]

Casually Red will be so disappointed

No I won't . I hate the fucking prick already too .

 

[chandlerp]

 

[Fingers]

Is this real?