# The Trump Administration: A Clusterfuck in the Making **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [December 7, 2016, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070 "2016-12-07T00:25:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1011
**Author:** ![Defensive\_Indifference](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/defensive_indifference/32/6502_2.png) [@Defensive\_Indifference](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Defensive_Indifference)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2018, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/20205 "2018-05-10T16:10:27Z")
> [@jsc1953](#): > > The fact that Trump appears poised to actually achieve some good in Korea annoys the hell out of me…but then I recall that Nixon went to China. And was still a crook, and still got thrown out on his ass. Yeah, if Trump can somehow achieve peace and a nuclear-free Korean peninsula, that would be great for the world, and he would deserve a lot of praise for it. And he could use the Nobel Prize money to pay his legal fees. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2018, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/20206 "2018-05-10T16:25:08Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > You misspelled “lectern”. I remember the press pointing at Ford’s lectern, which was a slender curved post supporting a small shelf, compared to Tricky’s lectern that was a massive bulky thing at least 4’ wide that, presumably, he could duck behind when the semi-autos came out. ---
**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:** [May 10, 2018, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/20207 "2018-05-10T18:11:12Z")
Trump said he signed a bill giving the military a pay raise for the first time in ten years. Pants on Fire. > **[PolitiFact - Did Donald Trump sign the first military pay raise in 10 years?](https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2018/may/10/donald-trump/did-donald-trump-sign-first-military-pay-raise-10-/)** > > President Donald Trump opened up the White House for a celebration of military mothers and spouses. At the May 9 gatheri ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2018, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/20208 "2018-05-10T19:31:39Z")
George Will’s column today about Mike Pence and the Republican Party used the words “oleaginous”, “obsequious”, “toadyism”, “lickspittle” and “groveling” to describe them. ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2018, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/20209 "2018-05-10T19:37:58Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > You misspelled “lectern”. The language has moved on. Do you use ‘decimate’ solely as a synonym for 10%? ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2018, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/20210 "2018-05-10T20:02:52Z")
> [@jsc1953](#): > > George Will’s column today about Mike Pence and the Republican Party used the words “oleaginous”, “obsequious”, “toadyism”, “lickspittle” and “groveling” to describe them. Remember when George Will was the oleaginous Republican? Good times… ---
**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:** [May 10, 2018, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/20211 "2018-05-10T21:29:03Z")
> [@Folacin](#): > > The language has moved on. Do you use ‘decimate’ solely as a synonym for 10%? The fuck it has: a podium is still a raised platform and a lectern is still the thing you stand behind. ---
**Author:** ![Greathouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/greathouse/32/2992_2.png) [@Greathouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greathouse)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2018, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/20212 "2018-05-10T21:32:30Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > The fuck it has: a podium is still a raised platform and a lectern is still the thing you stand behind. So the guy who says to go throw shit in quarries when he find something funny is arguing that the meaning of words can’t change and adapt over time? ---
**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:** [May 10, 2018, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/20213 "2018-05-10T21:39:42Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > The fuck it has: a podium is still a raised platform and a lectern is still the thing you stand behind. Tell that to [Webster’s](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/podium): > [@](#): > > Definition of podium > > plural podiums or podia \ˈpō-dē-ə\ > > 1 : a low wall serving as a foundation or terrace wall: such as > a : one around the arena of an ancient amphitheater serving as a base for the tiers of seats > b : the masonry under the stylobate of a temple > > 2 a : a dais especially for an orchestral conductor > b : lectern ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2018, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/20214 "2018-05-10T21:40:46Z")
> [@Greathouse](#): > > So the guy who says to go throw shit in quarries when he find something funny is arguing that the meaning of words can’t change and adapt over time? Ah, good point! You could also make the point “If you’re all for clear communication, why do you keep quarrying an obscure joke that has to be googled by every new poster, over and over?” ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2018, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/20215 "2018-05-10T21:49:06Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > You misspelled “lectern”. Ok, you’ve crossed a line now! I vow to never defend your quarry thing again! ---
**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:** [May 10, 2018, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/20216 "2018-05-10T21:51:40Z")
Trump has the bigliest podiums anyone’s ever seen. Much bigger than sad Obama’s. ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2018, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/20217 "2018-05-10T23:16:09Z")
He’s got big lecterns too. Only the biggest. ---
**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:** [May 10, 2018, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/20218 "2018-05-10T23:18:47Z")
> [@jsc1953](#): > > George Will’s column today about Mike Pence and the Republican Party used the words “oleaginous”, “obsequious”, “toadyism”, “lickspittle” and “groveling” to describe them. I wish he wouldn’t have held back. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2018, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/20219 "2018-05-10T23:40:59Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > The obvious spin is that the military is a volunteer army, rather than a draft army. The ostensible reason that people sign up for military duty is to serve and protect their country, and they are willing to go to battle and even die for that. The actual reason that most people sign up for the military is because it is the only way they will be able to afford college. > > So, making it harder for the families of people who are not in the military to get a job encourages more people to “volunteer”. You wouldn’t happen to have any statistical studies to support that assertion about the actual reason, would you? ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2018, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/20220 "2018-05-11T00:15:27Z")
Wait, were the Red Lecterns the bad guys in _Buckaroo Banzai_? ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2018, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/20221 "2018-05-11T01:29:44Z")
> [@voltaire](#): > > I’m sorry if you’ve been happy to forget them, but does anyone actually have any idea what Javanka are up to these days? They both ostensibly still officially work for the White House, right? Back when Jared still had his security clearance, he racked up a record for requests to see classified documents: > [@](#): > > President Trump’s son-in-law and senior White House adviser Jared Kushner has reportedly requested more intelligence information than almost every other White House official. > > The Washington Post reports that Kushner, whose portfolio encompasses issues ranging from the Middle East peace process to modernizing the federal government’s use of technology, has put in more requests for U.S. intelligence information than any White House staffer not working for the National Security Council. [http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/374356-kushner-requests-more-intel-info-than-almost-all-white-house-staff](http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/374356-kushner-requests-more-intel-info-than-almost-all-white-house-staff) Now that he can’t gather that highly-marketable information any more, there’s not much incentive for him to hang around the White House. > [@Bayard](#): > > He’s also been working on a prison reform bill. I haven’t really been following that story, but there was some news about it in the past couple of days. At a glance, the current version of the bill appears to have some bipartisan support. If he can get a bipartisan prison reform bill passed (and it actually, you know, reforms our prisons for the better), I’ll be among the first to applaud him. Someone can be a crook and still occasionally do some good. I would fall to the floor in astonishment if this bill _doesn’t_ recommend privatization as the solution to all problems concerning prisons. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2018, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/20222 "2018-05-11T01:33:39Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > Wait, were the Red Lecterns the bad guys in _Buckaroo Banzai_? No, John Esh-Ariel, those were Red Lectroids, not Red Lecterns. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2018, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/20223 "2018-05-11T01:47:21Z")
This is just an interesting bit of trivia, and not a part of the normal clusterfuck, but I thought I’d share it anyway. According to the documentary “Bobby Kennedy For President,” (currently available on Netflix): In 1968, Robert Kennedy was shot in the Ambassador Hotel, and died the next day. Fast forward a few years, and there was a courtroom battle between Donald Trump and the school system over what to do with the property. The school system wanted to use the land that the hotel was on to build a new school campus (the hotel, unable to obtain a designation of historical landmark, was condemned). Trump wanted to build another tower, the biggest in history. We can only be ecstatic that the school system won the court case. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Tooth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c67d28/32.png) [@The\_Tooth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tooth)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2018, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/20224 "2018-05-11T02:40:33Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > No, John Esh-Ariel, those were Red Lectroids, not Red Lecterns. Yup. Pure and simple from the Eighth Dimension. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070.md?page=1010) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070.md?page=1012)