Donald Trump's 2016 General Election Campaign

[Robot_Arm]

@elucidator

Anybody have anything like a clue as to why Trump was connecting to Cuba at all? The money seems kinda puny for a Big Shot, $68K is pocket lint for Trump. Even if he made some kind of deal with Castro, he couldn’t openly conduct any business, so what was he after?

From the article:

That fall, as critics pressured Clinton to further loosen the embargo, Trump Hotels saw an opportunity. Like the Communist regime, the company was struggling, having piled up losses for years. In 1998 alone, Trump Hotels lost $39.7 million, according to the company’s financial filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Its stock price had collapsed, falling almost 80 percent from a high that year of $12 a share to a low of just $2.75. (After multiple bankruptcies, Trump severed his ties with the company; it is now called Trump Entertainment Resorts and is a subsidiary of Icahn Enterprises, run by renowned financier Carl Icahn.)

The company was desperate to find partners for new business that offered the chance to increase profits, according to another former Trump executive who spoke on condition of anonymity. The hotel and casino company assigned Seven Arrows, which had been working with Trump for several years, to develop such opportunities, including the one in Cuba.

Sounds like he was just trying to make contacts he could use to build a casino if the embargo was lifted.

[Robot_Arm]

@Steve_MB

It’s his nature. He constantly does petty crap like stiffing contractors over similar (if not even smaller) sums.

With that in mind, I rather liked this quote:

The invoice from Seven Arrows was submitted to John Burke, who was then the corporate treasurer of Trump Hotels. In a lawsuit on a different legal issue, Burke testified that Trump Hotels paid the bill in full, although he denied recognizing the document.

Never saw that bill before, but they paid it!

[elucidator]

…Sounds like he was just trying to make contacts he could use to build a casino if the embargo was lifted.

On the one hand, that seems a little wacky. On the other hand, its Trump. Still, a paltry enough investment that might have had some future benefit.

[DigitalC]

@Quartz

I continue to be amazed - and horrified - that Trump is still doing so well.

I mean, i guess? It’s embarrassing that Trump is getting even 1% of the vote, but even after weeks of being at his best and Hillary’s worst campaign weekend he was still losing. It was close, but his peak was still slightly below her floor.

[JohnT]

Again, I don’t understand arguments of “this doesn’t change a thing” when “the thing” doesn’t matter to the person making the argument.

All this stuff matters to somebody. Maybe millions. This Cuban thing doesn’t really “matter” to me - it’s not changing my vote one iota - but it does matter to those influential Cuban Americans who woke up this morning with the news and images of Donald Trump lying directly to their faces back in 1999. And it will matter to the tens of thousands of their friends, associates, employees, and influencers when they start raising Holy Hell about being lied to. And that will change, or at the very least, motivate votes. In a swing state.

If Donald Trump attacks Hillary Clinton in the next debate, takes a swing at her or something, it will cost him the election (I think it’s over anyway, but whatever), but it won’t cost him most of his support. Worrying that those people still support him is irrelevant in politics - it’s the people on the margins you need to get.

And Hillary is getting them. In spades.

[Tangent]

@oft_wears_hats

Once again, Trump is resorting to elementary school playground tactics: Trump calls out Hillary’s “unserious campaign”.

It’s even more unbelievable than usual, coming as it does right after his incredibly unprepared debate performance.

Yep, Standard Operating Procedure for Trump is to accuse Clinton of whatever Trump himself is accused of by the media and the public. When he was under heavy fire for some of his campaign’s racist dog whistles, he called Hillary a bigot. He’s been constantly described as not having the temperament to be President, and so he’s been claiming that Clinton doesn’t have the right temperament and that she doesn’t look Presidential.

It really is just your basic “I’m rubber, you’re glue” defense.

[Biffster]

@Tangent

Yep, Standard Operating Procedure for Trump is to accuse Clinton of whatever Trump himself is accused of by the media and the public. When he was under heavy fire for some of his campaign’s racist dog whistles, he called Hillary a bigot. He’s been constantly described as not having the temperament to be President, and so he’s been claiming that Clinton doesn’t have the right temperament and that she doesn’t look Presidential.

It really is just your basic “I’m rubber, you’re glue” defense.

The good old redirect. Good observation.
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[RickJay]

@Tangent

Yep, Standard Operating Procedure for Trump is to accuse Clinton of whatever Trump himself is accused of by the media and the public. When he was under heavy fire for some of his campaign’s racist dog whistles, he called Hillary a bigot. He’s been constantly described as not having the temperament to be President, and so he’s been claiming that Clinton doesn’t have the right temperament and that she doesn’t look Presidential.

I was the first female nominee for president way before Hillary Clinton - The...

[davidm]

@Tangent

Yep, Standard Operating Procedure for Trump is to accuse Clinton of whatever Trump himself is accused of by the media and the public. When he was under heavy fire for some of his campaign’s racist dog whistles, he called Hillary a bigot. He’s been constantly described as not having the temperament to be President, and so he’s been claiming that Clinton doesn’t have the right temperament and that she doesn’t look Presidential.

It really is just your basic “I’m rubber, you’re glue” defense.

It’s nothing really new. It’s Republican SOP. Affirmative action hurts minorities. AFDC weakens families. Taxing the rich hurts the poor. Sex education causes STDs and teen pregnancy. Trees cause pollution. Stop and frisk is good for minorities. Climate change will boost crop growth and create economic opportunities. Deserts are wet. Oceans are dry. Etc. etc.

[garygnu]

@elucidator

Anybody have anything like a clue as to why Trump was connecting to Cuba at all? The money seems kinda puny for a Big Shot, $68K is pocket lint for Trump. …

That’s part of his self-created myth. He’s not nearly as rich as he seems, especially at that time when his company was really tanking. Add unmitigated greed and is no surprise he’d go after that small of a paycheck.

[ThelmaLou]

@davidm

It’s nothing really new. It’s Republican SOP. Affirmative action hurts minorities. AFDC weakens families. Taxing the rich hurts the poor. Sex education causes STDs and teen pregnancy. Trees cause pollution. Stop and frisk is good for minorities. Climate change will boost crop growth and create economic opportunities. Deserts are wet. Oceans are dry. Etc. etc.

Good summary. They should put that on a t-shirt.

[Ukulele_Ike]

@garygnu

…Add unmitigated greed and is no surprise he’d go after that small of a paycheck.

SPY magazine did a prank back in the 1980s where they sent a bunch of celebrities smaller and smaller checks, to find out at what point people just wouldn’t bother depositing them and would throw 'em away.

By the time they’d gotten down to 11 cents and 4 cents, the Trump Organization was the only taker left.

[JohnT]

New York attorney general widens investigation into Trump Foundation following new allegations.

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/muckraker/trump-foundation-new-york-attorney-general-palm-beach

[Elendil_s_Heir]

@Ukulele_Ike

SPY magazine did a prank back in the 1980s where they sent a bunch of celebrities smaller and smaller checks, to find out at what point people just wouldn’t bother depositing them and would throw 'em away.

By the time they’d gotten down to 11 cents and 4 cents, the Trump Organization was the only taker left.

“A penny taken undeservedly is a penny earned.” - Benjamin Trump

[Ukulele_Ike]

Article in today’s Los Angeles Times about lawsuits at Trump’s SoCal golf course, mainly focused on mistreatment of employees, but also including many, many gems about

• Trump telling clubhouse managers to fire unattractive female hostesses and replace them with more pulchritudinous ones

• Trump calling particularly yummy employees over to his table and showing them off to business associates like show poodles

• Managers telling zaftig female employees to get to the gym or get out because “Mr. Trump doesn’t like fat people”

• Older, experienced servers let go in favor of chesty 18 year old babes who are, well, inexperienced

These examples didn’t shock me, but I’m nonplussed by the comments section, which leans heavily toward “Librul newspaper trying to say bad things about Trump! What about EMAILS?” And “I like looking at pretty girls too, hurrrrrr” and “It’s California! You need big boobs to be a player here! Why are these fat old bitches complaining”

Trump wanted to fire women who weren't pretty enough, employees say

[davidm]

@JohnT

New York attorney general widens investigation into Trump Foundation following new allegations.

EXCLUSIVE: NY Attorney General’s Probe Of Trump Foundation Appears To Widen - TPM – Talking Points Memo

And if he ends up being fined for this, he’ll probably try to pay it with Trump Foundation money.

[dasmoocher]

@Tangent

Yep, Standard Operating Procedure for Trump is to accuse Clinton of whatever Trump himself is accused of by the media and the public. When he was under heavy fire for some of his campaign’s racist dog whistles, he called Hillary a bigot. He’s been constantly described as not having the temperament to be President, and so he’s been claiming that Clinton doesn’t have the right temperament and that she doesn’t look Presidential.

It really is just your basic “I’m rubber, you’re glue” defense.

It’s called this:

Psychological projection is a theory in psychology in which humans defend themselves against their own unconscious impulses or qualities (both positive and negative) by denying their existence in themselves while attributing them to others.[1] For example, a person who is habitually rude may constantly accuse other people of being rude. It incorporates blame shifting.

Does this seem familiar?

Practical examples

** Victim blaming**: The victim of someone else’s accident or bad luck may be offered criticism, the theory being that the victim may be at fault for having attracted the other person’s hostility.[23]

**Projection of marital guilt**: Thoughts of infidelity to a partner may be unconsciously projected in self-defence on to the partner in question, so that the guilt attached to the thoughts can be repudiated or turned to blame instead, in a process linked to denial.[24]

** Bullying**: A bully may project his/her own feelings of vulnerability onto the target(s) of the bullying activity. Despite the fact that a bully’s typically denigrating activities are aimed at the bully’s targets, the true source of such negativity is ultimately almost always found in the bully’s own sense of personal insecurity and/or vulnerability.[25] Such aggressive projections of displaced negative emotions can occur anywhere from the micro-level of interpersonal relationships, all the way up through to the macro-level of international politics, or even international armed conflict.[20]

**Projection of general guilt**: Projection of a severe conscience[26] is another form of defense, one which may be linked to the making of false accusations, personal or political.[20]

[Ravenman]

I’ve been puzzling over this for days now: just what the hell does Trump, or Guiliani, think there is to gain by attacking Hillary Clinton about Monica Lewinsky?

I’m just baffled by this. Forget the obvious point that Trump is a cheater himself. In what way does anyone think that Bill’s cheating will cause people to think twice about voting for Hillary? I just don’t see how this matters at all within the minds of any waivering or undecided voter.

There are people who hate the Clintons, check. There are some people who may think Clinton is an untrustworthy failure because of Benghazi or emails, I get that. But I just don’t see what the logic is of, “Remember this 20 year old affair? Well, we’re going to remind you of it, and you’re going to change your opinion of the person who was most harmed by the whole thing!”

The only possible explanation I can think of is that there literally is no vote-winning logic to bringing up Lewinsky, it’s just something that causes the press to pay attention to a dumb issue.

[Steve_MB]

@Ravenman

I’ve been puzzling over this for days now: just what the hell does Trump, or Guiliani, think there is to gain by attacking Hillary Clinton about Monica Lewinsky?

The only thing I can think of is that the Orange Oaf and Noun-Verb-NineEleven have the notion stuck in their heads that Hillary’s failure to leave him or bean him with a frying pan or cut off his schlong or something makes her look weak.

[Happy_Lendervedder]

Two possibilities I can think of:

1. They think it will take a popular Hillary surrogate down in the final weeks. Thinking, if Bill’s popular and out stumping for her, let’s remind people he’s actually a pig. This won’t work, and I doubt their lizard brains have given it this much thought. Which leads to:
2. It’s the desperate act of a desperate man who is clearly outmatched, so he’s flinging as much shit as possible and hope something sticks. Marital infidelity is something he’s familiar with, so it’s easy pickin for him. Foreign affairs? Race relations? Too complicated. Tabloid bullshit? Mud rasslin’? Right up his alley.