# 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:** 1763
**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 8, 2019, 11:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/35245 "2019-08-08T11:23:35Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > Treated like a Rock Star (sic)? You mean, of an OverDose? > … OD would be fine, yes, and I’ll also settle for a “Buddy Holly/Ronnie Van Zandt” scenario. ---
**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 8, 2019, 12:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/35246 "2019-08-08T12:04:57Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > Unlikely. For Trump to cross a line, there would have to be a line. The lines have all been erased as far as a large proportion of the American population is concerned. I wonder. There **will be** a tipping point somewhere, sometime. The link between the mass shootings and thump’s rhetoric \*before \*the fact and insensitivity \*after \*the fact is very strong at this moment. The outrage is growing and will keep growing. How many more shootings will there be between now and the election? At this rate–?? Maybe dozens. Maybe more. I have been wondering if public demonstrations in the street in the time starting now might be what will change the direction of the country. I don’t mean a wimpy, sincere march or two, but an ongoing, relentless, public outcry-- hundreds of people in the street walking peacefully with signs, linking arms, singing and shouting. Demonstrations like this do have an effect. They give people a way to express themselves, a way to act and feel something besides helpless and impotent. They create solidarity and unity. Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Poland in 1990, [protests against the Vietnam war,](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lists_of_protests_against_the_Vietnam_War) the Civil Rights demonstrations of the 60s–these events give people somewhere to go and something to do with their outrage. They get lots of media coverage, too, which will contrast with and emphasize the president’s disgusting and divisive bullshit. I’m not saying mass demonstrations will change \*him \*because nothing will do that, but increasing, visible, loud, noisy, PEACEFUL public demonstrations of citizen discontent could make inroads into the complacency of the Republican party. Something has got to give. ---
**Author:** ![dasmoocher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/dbc845/32.png) [@dasmoocher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dasmoocher)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2019, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/35247 "2019-08-08T12:37:07Z")
Trump gets trolled again: [George Conway tweets cartoon of Trump whispering ‘it’s an invasion’ in gun-toting man’s ear](https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/456556-george-conway-tweets-cartoon-of-trump-whispering-its-an) > [@](#): > > George Conway, a vocal Trump critic and the husband of White House counselor Kellyanne Conway, tweeted a political cartoon Wednesday with one panel showing President Trump encouraging a gunman in the wake of mass shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, over the weekend. > > One side of the cartoon shows Trump telling a gunman phrases from his campaign and public comments about undocumented immigrants, such as “Build the wall,” “It’s an invasion” and “They’re criminals.” The other side shows the president yelling “You’re mentally ill!” at the gunman with the two surrounded by dead bodies. Or maybe it was the other talking point–video games. Although, while I believe video games are readily available around the world, guns are not, at least not in the same quantity and availability as in the US. ---
**Author:** ![dasmoocher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/dbc845/32.png) [@dasmoocher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dasmoocher)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2019, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/35248 "2019-08-08T12:55:19Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > Could this be “the end of the beginning”\*? > > [ **Was Trump’s El Paso Visit a Turning Point?** > _A day of racist comments left him looking small and isolated, while the city united against him._](https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/08/opinion/el-paso-trump-racism.html?emc=rss&partner=rss) > > - “Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.” _Winston Churchill_ Some of his base may be slowly waking up to the fact that Trump doesn’t really give a shit about them and is actively fucking up their livelihoods. [‘I don’t know how we’re going to survive this.’ Some once-loyal farmers begin to doubt Trump.](https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/i-dont-know-how-were-going-to-survive-this-once-loyal-farmers-begin-to-doubt-trump/2019/06/21/04a32c65-c385-4052-8cd7-5cb4ef2119cc_story.html) > [@](#): > > Some rural residents are growing increasingly frustrated with the ongoing trade feuds and wonder how long Trump will call upon farmers to make sacrifices as the country’s “patriots.” > > “People are starting to say, ‘I don’t know how we’re going to survive this,’ ” said Martinmaas, who voted for Trump in 2016 but said he is open to a Democrat such as Montana Gov. Steve Bullock this time. “You know, we’re the ones taking the brunt of it in all these negotiations, so they need to be kind of helping us out right now.” > > … > > And in tiny Orient — population 63 — farmers are beginning to voice disillusionment and frustration. More than a dozen farmers did not have their operating loans renewed for the coming year, according to a local lender, with at least one farmer losing it all and a land auction planned for the courthouse steps later this month. Agriculture exports from the state to China — a big soybean buyer — fell 40 percent in the state last year, part of a $10 billion loss nationally, according to an American Farm Bureau Federation analysis. > > The bailout package “is like putting a Band-Aid on a bleeding artery,” said Jennifer Poindexter-Runge, a local veterinarian who expects her family farm income to drop by 25 percent this year. “It’s not going to save anybody.” > > … > > First, it was his abusive tweets — “I wasn’t raised that way,” Martinmaas said. Now it seemed that Trump, whom he once embraced as the street-fighting outsider that farmers needed, wasn’t going to deliver on his promises to his rural supporters. > > “He said he’s going to straighten these tariffs out, didn’t he? Well it’s put up or get out, you know?” Martinmaas said in late May. “If he wants to get reelected he’s going to have to take care of farmers, and we still have to end the trade wars, and by ending them I mean in our favor more so than less so.” Of course, the brother of the farmer in the story, who farms with him and is losing money with him, still supports Trump. Still got to stick it to the “coastal elites”. Talk about cutting off your nose to spite your face. ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2019, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/35249 "2019-08-08T13:32:59Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > … > > I have been wondering if public demonstrations in the street in the time starting now might be what will change the direction of the country. I don’t mean a wimpy, sincere march or two, but an ongoing, relentless, public outcry-- hundreds of people in the street walking peacefully with signs, linking arms, singing and shouting. Demonstrations like this do have an effect. They give people a way to express themselves, a way to act and feel something besides helpless and impotent. They create solidarity and unity. Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Poland in 1990, [protests against the Vietnam war,](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lists_of_protests_against_the_Vietnam_War) the Civil Rights demonstrations of the 60s–these events give people somewhere to go and something to do with their outrage. They get lots of media coverage, too, which will contrast with and emphasize the president’s disgusting and divisive bullshit. > > I’m not saying mass demonstrations will change \*him \*because nothing will do that, but increasing, visible, loud, noisy, PEACEFUL public demonstrations of citizen discontent could make inroads into the complacency of the Republican party. > > Something has got to give. I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the history of protest, and wondering when we’ll see people marching in the streets again, as you suggest, and came up with a less-than-comforting theory: Americans are most likely to protest when it’s for something that directly impacts their personal comfort and well-being. Civil rights, women’s rights: the marchers were those who were being short-changed by the system and were demanding those rights. Vietnam: the marchers had their _lives_ at stake, thanks to the draft. (Would opposition to the war have been so strident, if we had an all volunteer army?) Women’s suffrage: same. To get people into the streets for altruistic reasons, for a concept: much less likely. There weren’t mass protests against Nixon and Watergate. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2019, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/35250 "2019-08-08T13:39:51Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > I wonder. There **will be** a tipping point somewhere, sometime. If there’s anything that suggests we’re nearing a tipping point, it’s that Trump bothered to condemn hate-driven mass shootings at all (despite the rather desultory fashion in which he did so). He’s rarely bothered to pretend that these things have anything at all to do with him, so if he’s making any effort to distance himself from them he must be worried that something’s starting to stick. ---
**Author:** ![dasmoocher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/dbc845/32.png) [@dasmoocher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dasmoocher)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2019, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/35251 "2019-08-08T14:10:15Z")
Not the actual admin, but news from their propaganda wing about one of Trump’s biggest fanboys. [Tucker Carlson goes on vacation as criticism mounts over false claim about white supremacy ‘hoax’](https://www.cnn.com/2019/08/08/media/tucker-carlson-vacation-reliable-sources/index.html) > [@](#): > > Facing mounting controversy for declaring the very real problem of white supremacy in America to be a “hoax,” Tucker Carlson announced at the end of his Wednesday night Fox News show that he will be taking a vacation. > > … > > **Fox insists vacation had been in the works** > > I spoke to a Fox News spokesperson shortly after Carlson announced that he was heading out on vacation. The Fox spokesperson said the vacation had been in the works before Carlson had made his controversial remarks. The spokesperson added that Carlson will return back on the air from his vacation on August 19. > > **But there is a long history of Fox hosts going on vacation amid controversy** > > There is, of course, a long history of Fox hosts heading out on vacation as they become engulfed in controversy for inflammatory comments. > > – Laura Ingraham announced she was going on vacation in March 2018 after mocking Parkland survivor and gun control activist David Hogg… > > – Sean Hannity went on vacation in May 2017 after losing advertisers for promoting the Seth Rich conspiracy theory… > > – Jesse Watters headed out on vacation in April 2017 after making a comment widely criticized as lewd about Ivanka Trump… > > – Bill O’Reilly went – and never returned from – a vacation in April 2017 after NYT reported he had settled five sexual harassment allegations for millions of dollars… And I’m sure a lot of Fox viewers wondered what all the controversies were all about. One talking head suggested that Carlson ask a non-white person if white supremacy is a hoax. As they say, the fish rots from the head. Too bad Trump doesn’t take a permanent vacation. He could play golf to his heart’s content with O’Reilly and the other hosts. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Wiggler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/red_wiggler/32/13190_2.png) [@Red\_Wiggler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Wiggler)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2019, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/35252 "2019-08-08T14:12:53Z")
I don’t think the Don is self-aware enough to worry about _anything_ but I think the people who are running his campaign are plenty worried. They understand polling and I think they are seeing a groundswell of opposition mounting that will eradicate every card that comprised his 2016 inside straight. Pubbies believing in “shy Trump voters” can kiss my fat ass. ---
**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:** [August 8, 2019, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/35253 "2019-08-08T14:21:29Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > \ > > I have been wondering if public demonstrations in the street in the time starting now might be what will change the direction of the country. **I don’t mean a wimpy, sincere march or two, but an ongoing, relentless, public outcry** – hundreds of people in the street walking peacefully with signs, linking arms, singing and shouting. Demonstrations like this do have an effect. > > \ I agree with all you said, but would only point out that we’ve got to show up for as many of the wimpy, sincere marches as we can – because we never know if/when that will be the one that becomes the ongoing, relentless public outcry. Momentum begets momentum. People do pay attention to attendance at protest marches, and when they perceive they could be part of the “in group,” they will lend their bodies and voices to the effort even at the expense of giving up their precious time and legitimate concerns for their personal safety. ---
**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 8, 2019, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/35254 "2019-08-08T14:53:46Z")
> [@Aspenglow](#): > > I agree with all you said, but would only point out that we’ve got to show up for as many of the wimpy, sincere marches as we can – because we never know if/when that will be the one that becomes the ongoing, relentless public outcry. > > Momentum begets momentum. People do pay attention to attendance at protest marches, and when they perceive they could be part of the “in group,” they will lend their bodies and voices to the effort even at the expense of giving up their precious time and legitimate concerns for their personal safety. You’re right. I only said that about “wimpy” marches to head off the posters here who would likely reply (sarcastically): “Oh yeah, a few people marching in the street are going to make a BIG difference. Yeah, right.” Complete with: :rolleyes: Yes, momentum is everything. Gathering steam. I will venture to say that most of the people who marched and protested the Vietnam war once the anti-war movement really got going were not directly affected by the draft. Would there have been that level of protest if we had had a volunteer army back then? I dunno. ---
**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 8, 2019, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/35255 "2019-08-08T14:58:06Z")
Video of Trump at the hospitals are beginning to be releaked. (coining a new word here. PM me on where to send royalty payments, thanks.) > Thoughts… 1. Melania looks miserable. 2. Comparing his crowd size with Beto’s. Classy. 3. Fans of narcissism can relax - DJT can be just as self-focused in the hospital visiting the wounded as he can anywhere else! ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2019, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/35256 "2019-08-08T15:37:52Z")
> [@dasmoocher](#): > > Of course, the brother of the farmer in the story, who farms with him and is losing money with him, still supports Trump. Still got to stick it to the “coastal elites”. Talk about cutting off your nose to spite your face. Don’t worry - they’ll both vote for trump in 2020. Because he wouldn’t screw them over again. Not an honorable man like trump. This time he’ll make things better. You betcha. ---
**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:** [August 8, 2019, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/35257 "2019-08-08T15:47:16Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > Video of Trump at the hospitals are beginning to be releaked. (coining a new word here. PM me on where to send royalty payments, thanks.) > > [https://twitter.com/CBS4Local/status/1159306347114110976?s=20](https://twitter.com/CBS4Local/status/1159306347114110976?s=20) > > Thoughts… > > 1. Melania looks miserable. > 2. Comparing his crowd size with Beto’s. Classy. > 3. Fans of narcissism can relax - DJT can be just as self-focused in the hospital visiting the wounded as he can anywhere else! Don’t forget the product placement for the Trump Socks! ---
**Author:** ![Morgyn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morgyn/32/3041_2.png) [@Morgyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgyn)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2019, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/35258 "2019-08-08T15:49:20Z")
Oh, for fuck’s sake. “[Trump says he’s considering commutation for Blagojevich](https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/trump-commutation-blagojevich-64847532)”. Apparently, Blago was treated “unbelievably unfairly”. ---
**Author:** ![dasmoocher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/dbc845/32.png) [@dasmoocher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dasmoocher)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2019, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/35259 "2019-08-08T16:01:19Z")
> [@Morgyn](#): > > Oh, for fuck’s sake. > > “[Trump says he’s considering commutation for Blagojevich](https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/trump-commutation-blagojevich-64847532)”. Apparently, Blago was treated “unbelievably unfairly”. This probably serves the dual purpose of deflection from the smallness of his response to the mass shootings and a dig at Obama whose Senate seat Blagojevich apparently sold. Wikipedia: > [@](#): > > Blagojevich was impeached and removed from office for corruption; he solicited bribes for political appointments, including Barack Obama’s vacant U.S. Senate seat after Obama was elected president in 2008. > > … > > The Justice Department complaint alleged that the governor conspired to commit several **“pay to play” schemes** , including attempting **“to obtain personal gain … through the corrupt use” of his authority** to fill the United States Senate seat vacated by Barack Obama following his election as president, claiming that in wiretapped recordings Blagojevich discussed his desire to get something in exchange for an appointment to the seat. [my bold] “pay to play” schemes “to obtain personal gain … through the corrupt use” Hey, what’s not to love for Trump? ---
**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 8, 2019, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/35260 "2019-08-08T16:05:37Z")
Chuck Todd on a radio interview this morning thinks that Trump is attempting to minimize the significance of others’ corruption to further lay the groundwork that his own corruption is no big deal. I believe Todd said that Trump was trying to equate corruption with a misdemeanor. ---
**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:** [August 8, 2019, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/35261 "2019-08-08T16:27:12Z")
Mea Culpa. It turns out that I was wrong, and there was a very good reason that Trump didn’t allow the press to follow him into the hospital and so only allowed his staff to make a campaign video of his visit. [He wanted it to be about victims and not to turn into a photo op.](https://hillreporter.com/trump-told-press-that-hospital-visit-wasnt-a-photo-op-then-produced-a-promotional-video-about-it-42827):smack: ---
**Author:** ![dasmoocher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/dbc845/32.png) [@dasmoocher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dasmoocher)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2019, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/35262 "2019-08-08T16:27:30Z")
> [@bobot](#): > > Chuck Todd on a radio interview this morning thinks that Trump is attempting to minimize the significance of others’ corruption to further lay the groundwork that his own corruption is no big deal. I believe Todd said that Trump was trying to equate corruption with a misdemeanor. I just saw a montage of clips of Trump the other day. There was one of Trump at a campaign rally where, IIRC, he declared Hilary Clinton the most corrupt politician in the history of our country. More psychological projection. ---
**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:** [August 8, 2019, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/35263 "2019-08-08T16:59:46Z")
> [@bobot](#): > > Chuck Todd on a radio interview this morning thinks that Trump is attempting to minimize the significance of others’ corruption to further lay the groundwork that his own corruption is no big deal. I believe Todd said that Trump was trying to equate corruption with a misdemeanor. Geez, it’s so bad that not even the embarrassing relative Sweeney won’t talk about is willing to put a both-sides spin on it… ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2019, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/35264 "2019-08-08T17:28:50Z")
How many times has Trump referred to the results of due process/judicial proceedings as “incredibly unfair”? I somehow think that he hasn’t totally bought in to this whole western democracy/due process/one-man-one-vote/constitutional republic thing. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070.md?page=1762) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070.md?page=1764)