# The argument that Trump will do whatever he wants and no one can stop him is really fucking boring **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Tags:** trump\ **Created:** [December 12, 2024, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-argument-that-trump-will-do-whatever-he-wants-and-no-one-can-stop-him-is-really-fucking-boring/1011527 "2024-12-12T02:36:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 71
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2026, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-argument-that-trump-will-do-whatever-he-wants-and-no-one-can-stop-him-is-really-fucking-boring/1011527/1402 "2026-01-06T20:03:23Z")
Pretending that we will have that option because other people with guns will most assuredly have the same thoughts, so let’s hold back until it gets that bad? That is placating. ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2026, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-argument-that-trump-will-do-whatever-he-wants-and-no-one-can-stop-him-is-really-fucking-boring/1011527/1403 "2026-01-06T20:07:16Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Me saying that we may need to overthrow Trump and the Republicans by an armed uprising is placating? Didn’t you get the memo? No one is allowed to have any hope at all, because Trump is undefeatable. Just quietly accept our doom. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2026, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-argument-that-trump-will-do-whatever-he-wants-and-no-one-can-stop-him-is-really-fucking-boring/1011527/1404 "2026-01-06T20:09:57Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > If only someone here would chime in and say “Trump doesn’t have that ability.” > Then we could rest easy. He factually cannot cancel elections. It’s not a power the president has, because the president is only the head of the federal government and the federal government does not hold elections. STATES hold elections, and if he were to get on Twitter at 4:05 AM and shout “ALL ELECTIONS ARE HEREBY TERMINATED! THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION TO THIS MATTER”, it would have zero effect and the states would hold elections anyway because their laws and constitutions require them to. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2026, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-argument-that-trump-will-do-whatever-he-wants-and-no-one-can-stop-him-is-really-fucking-boring/1011527/1405 "2026-01-06T20:14:38Z")
Right on schedule ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2026, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-argument-that-trump-will-do-whatever-he-wants-and-no-one-can-stop-him-is-really-fucking-boring/1011527/1406 "2026-01-06T20:17:09Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > If only someone here would chime in and say “Trump doesn’t have that ability.” > Then we could rest easy. I’d feel better if someone told me this was nothing and then mentioned Kent State. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2026, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-argument-that-trump-will-do-whatever-he-wants-and-no-one-can-stop-him-is-really-fucking-boring/1011527/1407 "2026-01-06T20:17:45Z")
And more than half those states are run by Republicans, at either the governor level (26 state governors are Republican) or the legislature (28 state governments are controlled by Republicans). What do you do when Trump says, “Cancel the elections,” and more than half the state governments say, “Yes sir!” ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2026, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-argument-that-trump-will-do-whatever-he-wants-and-no-one-can-stop-him-is-really-fucking-boring/1011527/1408 "2026-01-06T20:18:58Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > What do you do when Trump says, “Cancel the elections,” and more than half the state governments say, “Yes sir!” Glory in the fact that the Republican candidate will be getting zero electoral votes and the Democrats will have a 200+ seat majority in the House, I suppose. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2026, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-argument-that-trump-will-do-whatever-he-wants-and-no-one-can-stop-him-is-really-fucking-boring/1011527/1409 "2026-01-06T20:23:45Z")
They can cancel the election, then appoint the candidate. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2026, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-argument-that-trump-will-do-whatever-he-wants-and-no-one-can-stop-him-is-really-fucking-boring/1011527/1410 "2026-01-06T20:25:56Z")
Please cite the legal basis on which a state can choose to not hold elections and “appoint a candidate”. ---
**Author:** ![crowmanyclouds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crowmanyclouds/32/19884_2.png) [@crowmanyclouds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crowmanyclouds)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2026, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-argument-that-trump-will-do-whatever-he-wants-and-no-one-can-stop-him-is-really-fucking-boring/1011527/1411 "2026-01-06T20:30:11Z")
Please cite the legal basis on which DOGE can cancel entire Congressionally mandated programs and agencies? ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2026, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-argument-that-trump-will-do-whatever-he-wants-and-no-one-can-stop-him-is-really-fucking-boring/1011527/1412 "2026-01-06T20:30:35Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > Glory in the fact that the Republican candidate will be getting zero electoral votes and the Democrats will have a 200+ seat majority in the House, I suppose. Why would the Republican candidate get zero electoral votes? Red states don’t need to have public elections to use their electors. And how would Democrats gain that many seats in the House? All the Representatives from Red states will still have their positions, because nobody was elected to replace them, because red states didn’t have elections. > [@Smapti](#): > > Please cite the legal basis on which a state can choose to not hold elections and “appoint a candidate”. Right, because “you can’t do that, it’s illegal” has been such an effective break on Republicans up 'til now. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2026, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-argument-that-trump-will-do-whatever-he-wants-and-no-one-can-stop-him-is-really-fucking-boring/1011527/1413 "2026-01-06T20:34:15Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > the Republican candidate will be getting zero electoral votes and the Democrats will have a 200+ seat majority in the House, What power will make that happen? So far, Trump has been rummaging through all possible excuses for exercising extraordinary executive power, like the Alien Enemies Act to justify illegal deportations, and the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to levy illegal tariffs, which is supposed to be the sole purview of Congress except in a national emergency. To Trump, everything is an emergency if it gives him more power to do whatever the hell he wants. And in case you haven’t noticed, Congress has effectively ceased to exist. The intended system of checks and balances now consists of someone like Chuck Schumer making a “strongly worded” statement critical of Trump, and then slinking back into his hole. Even the Supreme Court so far has been largely aligned with Trump. So if Trump declares yet another “national emergency” that makes elections impossible, and that whatever voting occurs in the states that do hold elections is inadmissible and irrelevant, who exactly is going to stop him? FTR, I don’t think even Trump will go that far, but it’s a serious question. Who would stop him? Would Congress suddenly grow a spine? ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2026, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-argument-that-trump-will-do-whatever-he-wants-and-no-one-can-stop-him-is-really-fucking-boring/1011527/1414 "2026-01-06T20:34:30Z")
It has already been said, and demonstrated over and over and fucking over again: “If a federal law is unenforced by those supposedly in power, it has all the power of a suggestion.” Ask this again, and the only possible answer left is “_Fuck You_”. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2026, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-argument-that-trump-will-do-whatever-he-wants-and-no-one-can-stop-him-is-really-fucking-boring/1011527/1415 "2026-01-06T20:42:10Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > So if Trump declares yet another “national emergency” that makes elections impossible, and that whatever voting occurs in the states that do hold elections is inadmissible and irrelevant, who exactly is going to stop him? > > FTR, I don’t think even Trump will go that far, but it’s a serious question. Who would stop him? Would Congress suddenly grow a spine? I agree on both points. I don’t think he’ll do it. But if he did, I wonder who would/could block it. Fuck, he could dissolve congress and the Supreme Court for “reasons” and just rule unchecked completely. Say he did that tomorrow, what would each of us do (or anyone) to prevent it? ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2026, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-argument-that-trump-will-do-whatever-he-wants-and-no-one-can-stop-him-is-really-fucking-boring/1011527/1416 "2026-01-06T20:44:48Z")
> [@crowmanyclouds](#): > > Please cite the legal basis on which DOGE can cancel entire Congressionally mandated programs and agencies? So you got nothing, then. > [@Miller](#): > > Red states don’t need to have public elections to use their electors. Only by act of the legislature and only in the case of extraordinary or catastrophic events. > **[Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transition Improvement Act of 2022 | State procedures](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electoral_Count_Reform_and_Presidential_Transition_Improvement_Act_of_2022#State_procedures)** > > The law identifies the governor – or, in the case of Washington, D.C., the district's mayor – as responsible for submitting certificates of ascertainment, unless otherwise specified by state laws or constitutions. In addition, a certificate that was revised as ordered by a state or federal court judgment before the meeting of electors supersedes all previous certificates.\[citation needed\] > Under the law, states that select electors by popular vote can modify the period of voting only in the case ... > [@Miller](#): > > All the Representatives from Red states will still have their positions, because nobody was elected to replace them, because red states didn’t have elections. A representative’s term ends with the conclusion of the current Congress, not when their successor is elected. And unlike senators, governors can’t issue appointments to fill House vacancies - they can ONLY be filled by election. If only blue states hold elections, then only blue states will have House representation. I swear some of you are so dedicated to the inevitability of Trump’s thousand-year reich that you’re going to be DISAPPOINTED when his term ends. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2026, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-argument-that-trump-will-do-whatever-he-wants-and-no-one-can-stop-him-is-really-fucking-boring/1011527/1417 "2026-01-06T20:46:46Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > I swear some of you are so dedicated to the inevitability of Trump’s thousand-year reich that you’re going to be DISAPPOINTED when his term ends. Again with this unmitigated bullshit? Nobody wants it to happen. We are _terrified_ that it might happen. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2026, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-argument-that-trump-will-do-whatever-he-wants-and-no-one-can-stop-him-is-really-fucking-boring/1011527/1418 "2026-01-06T20:49:36Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > So if Trump declares yet another “national emergency” that makes elections impossible There is no such state of emergency that exists in federal law. ---
**Author:** ![crowmanyclouds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crowmanyclouds/32/19884_2.png) [@crowmanyclouds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crowmanyclouds)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2026, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-argument-that-trump-will-do-whatever-he-wants-and-no-one-can-stop-him-is-really-fucking-boring/1011527/1419 "2026-01-06T20:49:41Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > So you got nothing, then. I got what I expected. ---
**Author:** ![steronz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steronz/32/11765_2.png) [@steronz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steronz)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2026, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-argument-that-trump-will-do-whatever-he-wants-and-no-one-can-stop-him-is-really-fucking-boring/1011527/1420 "2026-01-06T20:52:04Z")
God you’re dumb ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2026, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-argument-that-trump-will-do-whatever-he-wants-and-no-one-can-stop-him-is-really-fucking-boring/1011527/1421 "2026-01-06T20:52:59Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > > [@wolfpup](#): > > > > So if Trump declares yet another “national emergency” that makes elections impossible > > There is no such state of emergency that exists in federal law.   > **[Martial Law in Times of Civil Disorder | Office of Justice Programs](https://www.ojp.gov/ncjrs/virtual-library/abstracts/martial-law-times-civil-disorder)** > In the United States, martial law may be declared by proclamation of the President [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-argument-that-trump-will-do-whatever-he-wants-and-no-one-can-stop-him-is-really-fucking-boring/1011527.md?page=70) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-argument-that-trump-will-do-whatever-he-wants-and-no-one-can-stop-him-is-really-fucking-boring/1011527.md?page=72)