# 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:** 1385
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2018, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/27685 "2018-11-30T23:03:40Z")
[Homeland Security chief issues unusual plea for help against ‘caravans’](https://www.politico.com/story/2018/11/30/kirstjen-nielsen-border-police-1035554) > [@](#): > > Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen has requested the deployment of civilian law enforcement officers from several other Cabinet departments to the U.S.-Mexico border as early as next week, according to an internal memo obtained by POLITICO. > > In what current and former U.S. officials said would be an unprecedented move, the officers — who in most cases have duties entirely unrelated to border security — would help Border Patrol agents repel what the memo calls “migrant caravans originating from Central America.” > > The request suggests that personnel with such assignments as guarding diplomats, patrolling national parks, and protecting nuclear weapons might effectively “become Customs and Border Protection personnel,” as one former Justice Department official put it, with the power to arrest border-crossers. This is just a bit unusual… ---
**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 30, 2018, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/27686 "2018-11-30T23:05:02Z")
> [@Railer13](#): > > [Homeland Security chief issues unusual plea for help against ‘caravans’](https://www.politico.com/story/2018/11/30/kirstjen-nielsen-border-police-1035554) > > This is just a bit unusual… Is that even legal? ---
**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 30, 2018, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/27687 "2018-11-30T23:07:16Z")
> [@Turek](#): > > [Interior Secretary Zinke Attacks Democrat Who Calls For His Resignation](https://www.npr.org/2018/11/30/672279731/interior-secretary-zinke-attacks-democrat-who-calls-for-his-resignation?utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=news) > > To misquote Churchill: ‘My dear, you are an unethical piece of shit, and what’s more, you are disgustingly ugly. But tomorrow I shall be sober and you will still be an unethical piece of shit.’ Um, isn’t that a pretty clearly libelous thing? Assuming that Rep. Grivalja is not an alcoholic, I mean. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2018, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/27688 "2018-11-30T23:08:22Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > Is that even legal? That minor fact hasn’t stopped anybody yet, has it? ---
**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:** [November 30, 2018, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/27689 "2018-11-30T23:15:29Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > Um, isn’t that a pretty clearly libelous thing? Assuming that Rep. Grivalja is not an alcoholic, I mean. Grijalva apparently does have a history of heavy drinking, and has admitted to having a drinking problem in the past. Three years ago, he was accused by a female staffer of being intoxicated and fostering a hostile working environment. > **[Analysis | Raúl Grijalva called on Ryan Zinke to resign. Zinke tweeted back...](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2018/11/30/interior-secretary-zinke-attacks-congressmans-history-alcoholism/?utm_term=.57907d077ae8)** > > Today in low-blow moments in Washington. None of which excuses a fucking Cabinet level official from responding to an opinion piece in those terms. Deal with the arguments on their merits, you jackass! ---
**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:** [November 30, 2018, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/27690 "2018-11-30T23:34:45Z")
> [@Railer13](#): > > [Homeland Security chief issues unusual plea for help against ‘caravans’](https://www.politico.com/story/2018/11/30/kirstjen-nielsen-border-police-1035554) > > This is just a bit unusual… “A bit unusual”. Come on, man, fuck the litotes, this is not normal. Fuck this new normal. Stop the insanity creep. This is just insane. (Disclaimer: I think “Homeland Security” is an evil sounding name, and everything that comes out of that department is toxic shit.) ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2018, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/27691 "2018-11-30T23:46:41Z")
> [@Turek](#): > > To misquote Churchill: ‘My dear, you are an unethical piece of shit, and what’s more, you are disgustingly ugly. But tomorrow I shall be sober and you will still be an unethical piece of shit.’ Come now, Churchill would never speak like that. As well as I can recall, the rumored conversation was" Bessie Braddock (Lady Astor):“Winston, you are drunk, and what’s more you are disgustingly drunk.” Churchill:“Bessie, my dear, you are ugly, and what’s more, you are disgustingly ugly. But tomorrow I shall be sober and you will still be disgustingly ugly.” ---
**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:** [November 30, 2018, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/27692 "2018-11-30T23:48:47Z")
DHS are now literally just [stamping numbers on the arms of refugees.](https://twitter.com/stableford/status/1068618512808194049) ---
**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:** [December 1, 2018, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/27693 "2018-12-01T00:08:49Z")
New Justice Department filing: [When Trump tweets, it doesn’t necessarily mean he knows what he is tweeting about.](https://twitter.com/bradheath/status/1068637546660470784?s=19) Love this line: “DOJ’s argument that the president shouldn’t be presumed to know what he’s talking about is a pretty remarkable one, and it’s not one I’d seen the government make before 2017. Now there’s a fair amount of caselaw on it.” ---
**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:** [December 1, 2018, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/27694 "2018-12-01T00:18:50Z")
> [@Defensive\_Indifference](#): > > Grijalva apparently does have a history of heavy drinking, and has admitted to having a drinking problem in the past. Three years ago, he was accused by a female staffer of being intoxicated and fostering a hostile working environment. > > [https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2018/11/30/interior-secretary-zinke-attacks-congressmans-history-alcoholism/?utm\_term=.57907d077ae8](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2018/11/30/interior-secretary-zinke-attacks-congressmans-history-alcoholism/?utm_term=.57907d077ae8) > > None of which excuses a fucking Cabinet level official from responding to an opinion piece in those terms. Deal with the arguments on their merits, you jackass! Insulting someone who can subpoena you to own the libs… ---
**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:** [December 1, 2018, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/27695 "2018-12-01T00:27:54Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > “A bit unusual”. Come on, man, fuck the litotes, this is not normal. Fuck this new normal. Stop the insanity creep. This is just insane. You think this administration is creeping towards crazy? Friend, it’s a full-on mad dash. > [@](#): > > (Disclaimer: I think “Homeland Security” is an evil sounding name, and everything that comes out of that department is toxic shit.) First time I heard that name, I thought, “Hmm. I wonder which parts of the country will be overlooked”. Trump provided the answer: Puerto Rico, along with threats to overlook states that voted Democrat. ---
**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:** [December 1, 2018, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/27696 "2018-12-01T00:40:12Z")
> [@SlackerInc](#): > > Can anyone explain what the purpose is of using terms like “Individual 1” without making any effort to conceal their referents? Giving this a bump. I’m kinda curious, too. ---
**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:** [December 1, 2018, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/27697 "2018-12-01T00:43:22Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > (Disclaimer: I think “Homeland Security” is an evil sounding name, and everything that comes out of that department is toxic shit.) Aye; it’s been bothering me since it was created; sounds too much like something a totalitarian or fascist state would have, not a free democratic republic. > [@Smapti](#): > > DHS are now literally just [stamping numbers on the arms of refugees.](https://twitter.com/stableford/status/1068618512808194049) See? ---
**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:** [December 1, 2018, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/27698 "2018-12-01T01:04:49Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > You’re welcome; I’ve got your back: my google-fu is strong. > > ETA: And please accept my apology for mis-remembering who you were yesterday, sister. I deeply regret my error: you’re one of the really good ones around here, IMO. No apology needed, it’s a common mistake. And thanks for the kind words. 🙂 > [@SlackerInc](#): > > Can anyone explain what the purpose is of using terms like “Individual 1” without making any effort to conceal their referents? > [@ThelmaLou](#): > > Giving this a bump. I’m kinda curious, too. I’ll take a crack at it. Individual 1 is not the person charged in the indictment/information. In order to give a modicum of privacy to persons involved but not yet charged – and who may never be charged – there is a custom and practice among prosecutors to not overtly name those persons. In most cases, we’d never much give a crap who Individual 1 is and that person’s privacy would be protected. It’s different when Individual 1 happens to be a person who occupies the Oval Office. IANAL. ---
**Author:** ![simster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/simster/32/1047_2.png) [@simster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/simster)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/27699 "2018-12-01T01:35:08Z")
> [@SlackerInc](#): > > Can anyone explain what the purpose is of using terms like “Individual 1” without making any effort to conceal their referents? Well, we have Air Force 1, Marine 1, now we have ‘Individual 1’ and eventually ‘Prisoner 1’. ---
**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:** [December 1, 2018, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/27700 "2018-12-01T01:47:59Z")
Who would have guessed that [immediately throwing loyal stooges under the bus could possibly backfire on you?](https://www.rawstory.com/2018/11/michael-cohen-impression-trump-pardon-loyalty-cnn-report/) > [@](#): > > “Michael Cohen was under the impression that if he stayed on message and continued to protect the president, that either a pardon or some kind of protecting would be in the offing for him,” [CNN’s Gloria Borger] said. “We are unclear about who exactly conveyed that message to Michael Cohen, but we know that he came away early on saying, ‘OK, I’m in a good spot, I’m going to be protected. And we then know that everything kind of fell apart.” > > Cohen knew Trump would not protect him after one of the president’s appearances on Fox & Friends, **where he minimized the work that Cohen did for him** , Borger reported. ---
**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:** [December 1, 2018, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/27701 "2018-12-01T01:51:45Z")
Mike Pence poses with law enforcement officers, one of whom is wearing a QAnon patch _ **on his fucking uniform** _! > **[Pence posts photo with law enforcement officer wearing patch associated with...](https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/419208-pence-posts-photo-with-law-enforcement-officer-wearing-qanon-patch/)** > > Vice President Pence posted a photo of himself posing with several law enforcement officers, including one wearing a QAnon patch, in a since-deleted tweet on Friday.Pence was posting about his visi… ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/27702 "2018-12-01T01:56:08Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > You think this administration is creeping towards crazy? Friend, it’s a full-on mad dash. > > First time I heard that name, I thought, “Hmm. I wonder which parts of the country will be overlooked”. Trump provided the answer: Puerto Rico, along with threats to overlook states that voted Democrat. Yep. I’m a programmer. I know all to well about project creep. Trump is trying to get into the server room door to toss in a grenade. Luckily, he forgot that he has duct tapped the grenade to his hand. ---
**Author:** ![Buck\_Godot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/buck_godot/32/6573_2.png) [@Buck\_Godot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buck_Godot)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/27703 "2018-12-01T02:16:01Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > And when he says “Obama”, he means “I”. > > Remember to translate this when Trump makes a remark like _“Obama screwed up the economy”_ or _“Obama will go down in history as the worst President ever”_ or _“Obama could be looking at some serious prison time if Pence doesn’t come through with a pardon like he promised he would”_. Inversely, [often when he says “I” he means Obama.](https://www.npr.org/2018/09/12/646708799/fact-check-who-gets-credit-for-the-booming-u-s-economy) ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2018, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/27704 "2018-12-01T02:21:00Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > DHS are now literally just [stamping numbers on the arms of refugees.](https://twitter.com/stableford/status/1068618512808194049) I can’t believe that. In Rhode Island, my nephew by marriage walked up to a survivor at the swimming pool and asked her, “Who wrote on your arm?” I lost it, and walked away, hoping my wife would deal with it. Please, G-d, let that be “fake news”. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070.md?page=1384) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070.md?page=1386)