How many Republicans have spoken up against the destruction of the East Wing?
They keep pointing to Obama’s changing a tennis court into a basketball court as a “See?! Obama did something!” answer to criticism.
Don’t forget that Trump wants to build an “Arc de Trump” right across from the Lincoln Memorial.
What we know about White House plans for an ‘Arc de Trump’
He really is a perfect “figurehead” king for those who want to take advantage of him and the United States. Trump believes that having many statues and memorials dedicated to him, just like Washington, Jefferson, and Lincoln, will assure that future generations see him as “great”. It’s a sure thing the Kennedy center will be renamed as the Trump center by somebody seeking his approval. I think it is very plausible that we’ll see his face on Mt Rushmore. Just as the White House renovation proceeded with little dialogue and approval, I think we’ll wake up one day to see that work has already started with no real discussion. His supporters will just do it.
Any politician or foreign leader who wants any kind of special treatment knows that Trump is for sale. Make a large donation to his “library”, or the ballroom, or a monument, or directly into his crypto accounts and you get whatever you ask for.
When this thread first started, I really wanted it to be true. But I’ve learned that it’s mistitled. It’s not that no one “can” stop him, it’s that no one “will” stop him. We’re seeing that, shockingly, politicians put their own interests above concepts like democracy and republic. Trump can guarantee influence, money, and status to those who honor him with gifts and stroke his ego. Any Republicans that had ethical qualms with this arrangement have been forced out and our current batch of Republican congressmen gleefully pay that price. I believe most of the current Republicans in congress would sacrifice the constitution for guaranteed personal and permanent positions of power.
This thread first came out not long after the Supreme Court gave Trump broad immunity for Official Acts.
I was horrified at that time, especially with the argument that Elena Kagen made that this ruling would give Trump the ability to arrest his opponent and not face any repercussions. The fact that every Republican justice upheld the idea that the President has that power bodes very poorly for the future of this country. At the time, I could understand that I was possibly being hyperbolic. However, with Trump actively characterizing the left as terrorists I think it’s highly likely he will have his opponent arrested before the next election. And I don’t think the supreme court will do anything about it even though they could. And I don’t think any other politicians who gain from a Trump monarchy will do anything either.
The thing is, Trump could have made a case for building a bigger convocation place suitable for dinners at the east end of the White House. I read somewhere, and I’m so sorry I don’t have the cite at my fingertips because I’m not at home, that the biggest dinner crowd the White House could accommodate indoors was 600. If the White House wanted to host a dinner for say, 2,000 people, they had to erect big white tents on the lawn and serve the dinner there. But the bad part was, they had to use porta potties! Ewww.
Here you are, prime minister of whatever or ambassador to somewhere, and you flew all the way to Washington to attend a dinner at the White House and you have to eat outside in a tent and afterwards go in a porta potty in your formal clothes? I don’t even like going in a porta potty when I’m wearing jeans. I’m sure they were the nicest porta potties, but still…
So Trump could have presented this as a problem needing a solution and probably would have gotten support for building some kind of a larger area. (Well, maybe not these days, but in normal times.) The construction/remodeling could have been done with maximum good taste and minimum destruction. Oh, I guess that would never work because that’s the way the Obamas would have done it. Very woke. 
But Donnie went about this in his typical bull-in-a-china-shop way, not asking anybody, not consulting anybody in authority, but just bringing in the bulldozers and devil take the hindmost.
Everyone should be very concerned about this
But I guess we still have Epstein nonsense to distract us
Re: $130 million donation to pay for troops
Yes, for several reasons. First, and most stupid. The rich fight and lobby as hard as they can to avoid paying extra taxes, but then do shit like this.
More serious reason. It means the rich and powerful are still backing Trump. I mean, we know that, but it is disheartening to see it every time. Protests and fighting are important and necessary, but none of it is going to matter until the regime loses support from the wealthiest few percent.
There is also the possibility this anonymous donation is fake.
Buying the loyalty of the military should always be concerning.
Now when it comes from Uncle Qatar.
To each their own. As far as I am concerned, Trump being corrupt is the distraction and Epstein is the real story.
Having said that, I’m surprised Trump hasn’t just declared that he’s allowed to have sex with anyone he wants and that any rules around consent or age thereof do not apply to him and never have. He’s had pretty good luck so far rewriting the laws of the land to make it so that any given action is not illegal so long as Donald Trump is the one doing it, so why not go for broke? The people who are mad about the Epstein story will stay mad and the people who ride Trump’s nuts to eternity will continue doing so. Go ahead Trump, admit what you did. If the Attorney General and the head of the FBI know the gory details and can’t be bothered to do anything about it, you have gotten away with it so you might as well brag about it now.
Except that with Trump, that power is not guaranteed. He already knows he doesn’t need Congress. Maybe he will realize he is paying them with his money (the Treasury is his bank) and why should he do that if they aren’t necessary. Might as well get rid of them. They are not looking after their own interests by rubber-stamping everything he does. But apparently they are willfully stupid and refuse to see the obvious.
He has all but gotten rid of them now.
Does Congress get paid during the shutdown?
I feel like he’s doing the other stuff specifically to try to distract people away from the Epstein stuff; he’d rather people called him an idiot or a tyrant than a pedophile (as if only one of those labels fits)
Yes. There is a law on the books that says Congressmembers’ pay may not be stopped or lowered for any reason.
As someone not from the US, I find it utterly bizarre that federal workers just stop getting paid because politicians can’t agree on some numbers.
Oh, it gets better than that alone! Currently our fine, upstanding president is attempting to write himself a check for 230 million taxpayer dollars.
No kidding. Here, if Parliament cannot pass a budget, this is deemed a confidence vote. It means the government falls, and an election must be called. Understandably, this gives the politicians a great deal of incentive to pass a budget.
Next words spoken in Congress will be “You have sat here too long for any good you are doing. Depart, I say, and let us have done with you. In the name of God, go!”
Golly, who voted for that??? /s
Apparently it’s real:
- The donor whose $130 million contribution is earmarked to pay the U.S. military during the government shutdown is Timothy Mellon, The New York Times reported.
- Railroad magnate Mellon, whose net worth has been estimated at close to $1 billion, is an heir to the Gilded Age Mellon family.
Rich kid ensure his calls will always be taken by Donald. And of course the main value of this donation to Donald is that OTHER rich people will, you know, get the right idea.
Congress has the power of the purse and it’s one of the checks and balances built into our constitution. The problem isn’t that some politicians can’t agree on numbers, rather it’s the fact that our government is dysfunctional because the party in power seems hellbent on destroying it. Supposedly President Trump just recently put Mike Johnson by making it clear he was both president and Speaker of the House. The Speaker of the House has historically been one of the most powerful political positions in America, with the speaker viewing themselves as a kind of cogovernor working with the president not being a lickspittle.