# 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:** 1212
**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:** [August 19, 2018, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/24225 "2018-08-19T16:34:17Z")
Rudy Giuliani is no scientist. ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2018, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/24226 "2018-08-19T16:36:22Z")
He’s no magician, either, which is gonna suck for the trumpster fire. ---
**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:** [August 19, 2018, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/24227 "2018-08-19T16:58:37Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > …he doesn’t care who gets caught in the gears, so long as its not him. … This. Thump has no values or principles except saving his own orange skin. ---
**Author:** ![Anny\_Middon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bc79bd/32.png) [@Anny\_Middon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anny_Middon)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2018, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/24228 "2018-08-19T17:12:21Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > This. Thump has no values or principles except saving his own orange skin. You’re forgetting his other value/principle – his money. Given a choice between throwing Jr. under the bus or being penniless, Spanky would have plenty of moolah to pay for a nice funeral for the sprout. (Well, okay, he’d stiff the mortician (pun intended), but you get my drift.) ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2018, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/24229 "2018-08-19T17:35:50Z")
I think that may be the fatal weakness, and our salvation. Start piling up the investigations, the records, what money went from whom to whom, and when. No threats, no indictments, just pile up the money records. Gently remind Il Douche that each of these might result in a fine, a reimbursement, a penalty…a hundred thousand here, a million or so there. Or, Mr President, you could just sign this one piece of paper, give a nice little speech about what a fine President Mr. Pence will make, and hop on to the helicopter and go golfing. Buh-bye! He has been judged to a finality in his fraud case over Trump University. $25 million. Best I can tell, he hasn’t paid a dime of it. I think its because he doesn’t have it. To a certain degree, you can finance debt with more debt. But not this, this you gotta reach into your pocket and cough it up. And he can’t. And he cannot face the prospect of being revealed. So long as he can cover the interest payments, by whatever means, he can dodge the bullet. Unless the bullet is cash. Threaten him with this, and offer an escape clause, and he will fold up his tent and steal away, into the night. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2018, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/24230 "2018-08-19T17:46:34Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > Rudy Giuliani is no scientist. I thought he had a Ph.D. from trump university. ---
**Author:** ![BeepKillBeep](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9e8a1a/32.png) [@BeepKillBeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BeepKillBeep)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2018, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/24231 "2018-08-19T17:49:18Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > I thought he had a Ph.D. from trump university. Yes, but it is only honorary. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2018, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/24232 "2018-08-19T18:07:23Z")
Dishonorary, I think you meant… ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2018, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/24233 "2018-08-19T18:07:42Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > He has been judged to a finality in his fraud case over Trump University. $25 million. Best I can tell, he hasn’t paid a dime of it. I think its because he doesn’t have it. To a certain degree, you can finance debt with more debt. But not this, this you gotta reach into your pocket and cough it up. > > And he can’t. And he cannot face the prospect of being revealed. So long as he can cover the interest payments, by whatever means, he can dodge the bullet. Unless the bullet is cash. > > Threaten him with this, and offer an escape clause, and he will fold up his tent and steal away, into the night. I’ve wondered about this. Does he even know how much debt he’s in at this point? Does he even care? It passed without much chatter last month, but Mueller subpoenaed documents from Allan Weisselberg, an account to Trump. As the investigation gets closer to the Trumps and the Trump Organization’s finances, we’re going to be hearing pig-like squealing at high volumes. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2018, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/24234 "2018-08-19T18:15:58Z")
> [@asahi](#): > > I’ve wondered about this. > > Does he even know how much debt he’s in at this point? Does he even care? > > It passed without much chatter last month, but Mueller subpoenaed documents from Allan Weisselberg, an account to Trump. As the investigation gets closer to the Trumps and the Trump Organization’s finances, we’re going to be hearing pig-like squealing at high volumes. Sounds like he’ll get to find out. Wonder if he’ll just have a heart attack when he finds that he owes foreign banks billions of dollars, and save us the trouble of impeaching him. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2018, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/24235 "2018-08-19T18:18:02Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > I think that may be the fatal weakness, and our salvation. Start piling up the investigations, the records, what money went from whom to whom, and when. No threats, no indictments, just pile up the money records. Gently remind Il Douche that each of these might result in a fine, a reimbursement, a penalty…a hundred thousand here, a million or so there. > > Or, Mr President, you could just sign this one piece of paper, give a nice little speech about what a fine President Mr. Pence will make, and hop on to the helicopter and go golfing. Buh-bye! > > He has been judged to a finality in his fraud case over Trump University. $25 million. Best I can tell, he hasn’t paid a dime of it. I think its because he doesn’t have it. To a certain degree, you can finance debt with more debt. But not this, this you gotta reach into your pocket and cough it up. > > And he can’t. And he cannot face the prospect of being revealed. So long as he can cover the interest payments, by whatever means, he can dodge the bullet. Unless the bullet is cash. > > Threaten him with this, and offer an escape clause, and he will fold up his tent and steal away, into the night. From time to time, I’ve entertained the idea of — well, I guess it’s not a conspiracy theory, since the whole _point_ is that there never would’ve been a second person on board. But just picture Trump, back when, figuring he can gin up tons of interest by running for president; and picture him figuring he can’t _win,_ that’s crazy talk; but figuring that before he actually loses, someone else who’s running will offer him a straight cash bribe to drop out while delivering a big fine endorsement. Because, if so — what? Trump gets a good run of free publicity; and then, while never actually risking an embarrassing loss, he can always claim he would’ve won; and he comes out of it with more money than he started off with? And here’s the bit that’s funny, or tragic, or something: imagine that, week after week, _he just kept waiting for that offer._ He kept not _asking_ for it, of course, and folks kept not _offering_ what he would’ve accepted; and suddenly he’s president while thinking _sonofabitch, nobody reached for a wallet? I wanted to sell out!_ ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2018, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/24236 "2018-08-19T18:26:10Z")
Going back to Rudy G for a moment, I think that his statement, however ridiculous and insane it might be, is rather revealing. Echoes of “alternative facts,” which I felt was an extraordinary statement when it was made, but the fact that we’re hearing this yet again is deeply disturbing. “Truth isn’t truth.” Well, if it’s not, then what the fuck is it? I think it reveals the state of mind of everyone on Team Trump. If you read between the lines, they’re conceding that the facts paint an ugly picture. So their only choice is to convince people either not to believe the facts, or that the facts simply don’t matter, that his crimes don’t matter. Maybe they can convince voters of this. Maybe they can even convince jurors of this as well. The rule of law is clearly their enemy at this point, which is why they’re determined to destroy the rule of law. They want us to accept that the normal rules don’t apply to Trump, and that he’s above the law. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2018, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/24237 "2018-08-19T19:34:09Z")
I watch _Meet the Press_ most weeks, but I record it and usually skip through the interviews with partisan hacks like Giuliani so I missed it until seeing it here. Kudos to Chuck Todd for getting the scoop on “alternative facts” and now “truth isn’t truth”. You can’t make this shit up! ---
**Author:** ![steatopygia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steatopygia/32/3132_2.png) [@steatopygia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steatopygia)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2018, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/24238 "2018-08-19T20:01:42Z")
> [@slumtrimpet](#): > > And to add to all that, there’s really one main culprit in the creation of ‘the base/deplorables/MAGAbots’; Fox ‘news’. > Without Fox this all would not have been possible. Without (in no particular order of importance) Hannity, Limbough, Pirro, Ingraham … I don’t and never have watched so I’m sure there’s plenty more, and without the bullshit lies they spew with impunity you wouldn’t have Trump supporters in their multitudes. > And it’s not just the lies, it’s also the lies of omission. That fucking channel is everywhere in the USA! Yeah, you can blame people for being stupid and uniformed and some of them truly are. Some are even beyond stupid and just malicious and awful, but there’s a large portion that have simple been sucked into the propaganda. Doesn’t excuse them, but it does explain them somewhat. > Fox ‘news’ came into existence in 1996. It’s all been downhill since. This IS what created this situation. Those who watch Fox News are divorced from reality, and they don’t care. > [@elucidator](#): > > I think that may be the fatal weakness, and our salvation. Start piling up the investigations, the records, what money went from whom to whom, and when. No threats, no indictments, just pile up the money records. Gently remind Il Douche that each of these might result in a fine, a reimbursement, a penalty…a hundred thousand here, a million or so there. > > Or, Mr President, you could just sign this one piece of paper, give a nice little speech about what a fine President Mr. Pence will make, and hop on to the helicopter and go golfing. Buh-bye! > > He has been judged to a finality in his fraud case over Trump University. $25 million. Best I can tell, he hasn’t paid a dime of it. I think its because he doesn’t have it. To a certain degree, you can finance debt with more debt. But not this, this you gotta reach into your pocket and cough it up. > > And he can’t. And he cannot face the prospect of being revealed. So long as he can cover the interest payments, by whatever means, he can dodge the bullet. Unless the bullet is cash. > > Threaten him with this, and offer an escape clause, and he will fold up his tent and steal away, into the night. I think Trump is depending on all of the loose cash built into the election process. He can pay his fines with contributions from the faithful, republican campaign money, or rich donors. He has no sense of the legality of that. He sees it as the ultimate money laundering system. He may be right. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2018, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/24239 "2018-08-19T20:50:13Z")
> [@asahi](#): > > Breaking: Truth isn’t truth, scientists say.:rolleyes: Coming next: “Fake truth.” ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2018, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/24240 "2018-08-19T21:26:53Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > I think that may be the fatal weakness, and our salvation. Start piling up the investigations, the records, what money went from whom to whom, and when. No threats, no indictments, just pile up the money records. Gently remind Il Douche that each of these might result in a fine, a reimbursement, a penalty…a hundred thousand here, a million or so there. > > Or, Mr President, you could just sign this one piece of paper, give a nice little speech about what a fine President Mr. Pence will make, and hop on to the helicopter and go golfing. Buh-bye! > > He has been judged to a finality in his fraud case over Trump University. $25 million. Best I can tell, he hasn’t paid a dime of it. I think its because he doesn’t have it. To a certain degree, you can finance debt with more debt. But not this, this you gotta reach into your pocket and cough it up. > > And he can’t. And he cannot face the prospect of being revealed. So long as he can cover the interest payments, by whatever means, he can dodge the bullet. Unless the bullet is cash. > > Threaten him with this, and offer an escape clause, and he will fold up his tent and steal away, into the night. What makes you think he ever plans on paying any fines or reimbursements or penalties? Trump has walked away from debts he’s owed on several occasions in the past and never suffered any consequences for doing so. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2018, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/24241 "2018-08-19T21:32:13Z")
Only little people pay their debts. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2018, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/24242 "2018-08-19T22:21:43Z")
In context, I think it’s pretty clear that he’s saying that there are situations where your looking at a “he said, she said” sort of situation where you’re looking at competing stories with no firm way to choose one or the other, but that Mueller _will_ select one - despite it not being reasonable to do so - and charge Trump for not matching it. In context, it’s a fairly reasonable statement, if completely bogus. ---
**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:** [August 19, 2018, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/24243 "2018-08-19T22:25:35Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > I watch _Meet the Press_ most weeks, but I record it and usually skip through the interviews with partisan hacks like Giuliani so I missed it until seeing it here. Kudos to Chuck Todd for getting the scoop on “alternative facts” and now “truth isn’t truth”. You can’t make this shit up! And he called both of those fuckers out as soon as they said it. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2018, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/24244 "2018-08-20T00:28:26Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > Sounds like he’ll get to find out. > > Wonder if he’ll just have a heart attack when he finds that he owes foreign banks billions of dollars, and save us the trouble of impeaching him. Um… no. He needs to be impeached and tried for his crimes. All of them. Pence will probably pardon him (I don’t know what that weirdo is thinking), but the states, especially NY is in the batters box, and hope they will knock a few out of the park. He needs to be impeached to at least TRY to keep this travesty from happening again. He will never be imprisoned I don’t think. But he certainly should be. He’s been a crook for decades. And now a traitor. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070.md?page=1211) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070.md?page=1213)