# The Trump Administration: A Clusterfuck in the Making Part Deux (Part 1) **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [June 22, 2020, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making-part-deux-part-1/911083 "2020-06-22T03:36:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 330
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2020, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making-part-deux-part-1/911083/6600 "2020-11-17T20:23:55Z")
Worth every penny! > **[Giuliani Is Said to Seek $20,000 a Day Payment for Trump Legal Work...](https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/17/us/politics/giuliani-trump-election-pay.html)** > > Last week, the president put the former New York mayor in charge of the court challenges to his loss in the election. Since then they have suffered nothing but setbacks. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2020, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making-part-deux-part-1/911083/6601 "2020-11-17T20:33:22Z")
Good luck getting anything other than “I’ll pay you in two weeks” out of Trump. ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Hedonia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ann_hedonia/32/319_2.png) [@Ann\_Hedonia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Hedonia)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2020, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making-part-deux-part-1/911083/6602 "2020-11-17T20:39:12Z")
Oh, goody! And the papers filed with the court include Rudy’s current phone number, unredacted, just pointing that out in case anyone’s interested! ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2020, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making-part-deux-part-1/911083/6603 "2020-11-17T20:55:12Z")
Serious question. If Trump refuses to pay him this _ **exorbitant** _ fee, will Rudy get to write it off on his taxes? So that we, not Donny, pay him? ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2020, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making-part-deux-part-1/911083/6604 "2020-11-17T21:09:06Z")
Moscow Mitch must be getting desperate. He’s calling for votes that are failing. > **[Trump nominee Shelton's path to Fed narrows as virus spreads](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-fed-shelton-blocked/senate-blocks-confirmation-of-trump-fed-nominee-shelton-idUSKBN27X2UD?il=0)** > > The path to the Federal Reserve for President Donald Trump's controversial nominee Judy Shelton narrowed Tuesday after the Senate blocked a key procedural vote and a Republican senator who was one of her supporters said he came down with the... Thank fuck this one did. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2020, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making-part-deux-part-1/911083/6605 "2020-11-17T21:22:57Z")
Speaking of whom, a recent headline [here](https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/biden-trump-us-election-news-11-17-20/index.html): > McConnell: “We’re going to have an orderly transfer from this administration to the next one” _ **WHEN?** _ ---
**Author:** ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2020, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making-part-deux-part-1/911083/6606 "2020-11-17T21:24:18Z")
So the vote was 47 to 50 with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell voting “no” to preserve the option to reconsider later. Taking this tactical move out the picture means the actual vote was 48 to 49. That is entirely too close for comfort. I’m glad the vote failed, but what the actual fuck is the matter with the Republicans in the Senate? Between Trump and the Republicans in Congress, it seems like half of our leaders are trying to burn the country to the ground. Who in their right mind would vote for someone like this? Even [Reuters](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-fed-shelton-blocked/senate-blocks-confirmation-of-trump-fed-nominee-shelton-idUSKBN27X2UD?il=0), which tries to be as [unbiased](https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/reuters/) as possible, has this to say about her: > [@](#): > > Her views on interest rates have moved in lockstep with Trump’s. She lambasted easy money before Trump’s presidency, but supported it after he took office, and has expressed skepticism over the Fed’s need to set policy independently from the president and Congress. ---
**Author:** ![smithsb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smithsb/32/12107_2.png) [@smithsb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smithsb)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2020, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making-part-deux-part-1/911083/6607 "2020-11-17T21:25:58Z")
So absurd and antediluvian ideas didn’t fly? I’m shocked, shocked I tell you. Re Ghoulani - Rudi, dear boy, if you haven’t gotten the pay in advance; you’re screwed. Find another grift to pay off your exes. ---
**Author:** ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2020, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making-part-deux-part-1/911083/6608 "2020-11-17T21:26:49Z")
> [@Skywatcher](#): > > Speaking of whom, a recent headline [here](https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/biden-trump-us-election-news-11-17-20/index.html): > > > McConnell: “We’re going to have an orderly transfer from this administration to the next one” > > _ **WHEN?** _ Well, that’s the kicker isn’t it? Could be in 2021, or 2025, or anytime between now and the heat death of the universe. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2020, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making-part-deux-part-1/911083/6609 "2020-11-17T21:28:08Z")
> [@Skywatcher](#): > > WHEN? Probably the next time they manage to steal an election with gerrymandering, foreign interference and blatant cheating such as what Graham is attempting to engage in. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2020, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making-part-deux-part-1/911083/6610 "2020-11-17T21:28:08Z")
> [@robby](#): > > So the vote was 47 to 50 with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell voting “no” to preserve the option to reconsider later. > > Taking this tactical move out the picture means the actual vote was 48 to 49. I thought I read that three Senators had come out in opposition to her? ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2020, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making-part-deux-part-1/911083/6611 "2020-11-17T21:38:50Z")
Aye; Lamar Alexander (R-TN) was not present; he is in quarantine due to exposure. ---
**Author:** ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2020, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making-part-deux-part-1/911083/6612 "2020-11-17T21:45:00Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > > [@robby](#): > > > > So the vote was 47 to 50 with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell voting “no” to preserve the option to reconsider later. > > > > Taking this tactical move out the picture means the actual vote was 48 to 49. > > I thought I read that three Senators had come out in opposition to her? I take it you mean three Republican senators, because all 47 Democratic and Independent senators opposed the nomination. Anyway, one of the Republican senators opposing the nomination (Lamar Alexander) missed the vote as well. The two remaining Republican senators opposed to the nomination (Collins and Romney), plus the 45 Democrats and two Independents (that caucus with the Democrats), add up to 49 votes against. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2020, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making-part-deux-part-1/911083/6613 "2020-11-17T21:58:20Z")
I thought the going rate was 30 pieces of silver. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2020, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making-part-deux-part-1/911083/6614 "2020-11-17T22:05:32Z")
> [@Aspenglow](#): > > Moscow Mitch must be getting desperate. He’s calling for votes that are failing. > > > The U.S. Senate on Tuesday blocked President Donald Trump’s nomination of Judy Shelton to the board of the Federal Reserve, making her the latest in a string of failed nominees to the central bank. > > Thank fuck this one did. WHOA! That’s interesting! 🤔 I posted about that in the Stupid Pub Ideas thread: > [@NEW Stupid Republican Idea of the Day (Part 1)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/911140/1885): > > Sixteen months ago, in the pre-coronavirus summer of 2019, President Donald Trump announced his candidates to fill two vacancies on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors. The nominations, formalized in January, languished in the Senate for months. Now, suddenly, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell wants to cram one of them—but only one of them—through the Senate. One of the nominees is a conservative with extensive central-bank experience, broadly respected by monetary-policy experts. Th… ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2020, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making-part-deux-part-1/911083/6615 "2020-11-17T22:12:03Z")
> [@robby](#): > > So the vote was 47 to 50 with **Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell voting “no” to preserve the option to reconsider later.** The article passed over the bolded bit quite nonchalantly as if it were obvious that things would work that way - but it seems bizarre to me. What exactly is the mechanism for his ‘no’ vote to have that outcome? ---
**Author:** ![Folly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folly/32/3219_2.png) [@Folly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folly)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2020, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making-part-deux-part-1/911083/6616 "2020-11-17T22:17:37Z")
I think you have to be on the prevailing side to later motion to reconsider. ---
**Author:** ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2020, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making-part-deux-part-1/911083/6617 "2020-11-17T22:17:50Z")
> [@Aspidistra](#): > > > [@robby](#): > > > > So the vote was 47 to 50 with **Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell voting “no” to preserve the option to reconsider later.** > > The article passed over the bolded bit quite nonchalantly as if it were obvious that things would work that way - but it seems bizarre to me. What exactly is the mechanism for his ‘no’ vote to have that outcome? I assume it’s some convoluted and archaic Senate rule. The vote in question wasn’t even a vote on the nominee. It was a so-called “cloture” vote to end debate. ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2020, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making-part-deux-part-1/911083/6618 "2020-11-17T22:18:50Z")
Ah! Yes, that makes a certain kind of sense ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2020, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making-part-deux-part-1/911083/6619 "2020-11-17T22:21:13Z")
> [@robby](#): > > I assume it’s some convoluted and archaic Senate rule. The vote in question wasn’t even a vote on the nominee. It was a so-called “cloture” vote to end debate. It nonetheless had the effect of blocking her confirmation… for now. It probably won’t block her for good. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making-part-deux-part-1/911083.md?page=329) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making-part-deux-part-1/911083.md?page=331)