# 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:** 1905
**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:** [October 23, 2019, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/38085 "2019-10-23T19:22:44Z")
Gaudere strikes again! ---
**Author:** ![Skypist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skypist/32/169_2.png) [@Skypist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skypist)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2019, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/38086 "2019-10-23T20:13:12Z")
[Link](http://www.washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2019/10/23/trump-administration-sought-billions-dollars-cuts-programs-aimed-fighting-corruption-ukraine-abroad/) goes to WaPo, but the gist is that trump, who is SO concerned about corruption, sought to cut billions of dollars from foreign aid programs meant to be used to fight corruption. > [@](#): > > The Trump administration has sought repeatedly to cut foreign aid programs tasked with combating corruption in Ukraine and elsewhere overseas, White House budget documents show, despite recent claims from President Trump and his administration that they have been singularly concerned with fighting corruption in Ukraine. Giving more credence to the claim that trump’s actual concern was in fact his political opponent, Biden, and not corruption. Just one example of trump trying to cut anti-corruption funds: > [@](#): > > The program directs specific sums of money to individual countries. In 2019, $30 million was directed to Ukraine, after Congress rejected an administration request to cut the sum to $13 million. In its 2020 budget request, released in March, the administration again sought to cut the program’s spending on Ukraine to $13 million. Congress seems likely to once again reject the proposed cut, although lawmakers have yet to agree on any spending bills for the 2020 budget year that began Oct. 1. What’s the defense for this? That trump thought he and Ghoul-iani could fight corruption better and had no need for anti-corruption programs or professional investigators at institutions such as the FBI? ---
**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:** [October 23, 2019, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/38087 "2019-10-23T20:21:12Z")
Maybe to make Ukraine more willing to do his bidding in order to receive aid? Also, speaking of funding, NBC had an article speculating that Trump could choose to shut the govt. down again to slow the impeachment train and try to make Democrats the bad guy. He hasn’t had success with that in the past, but then again he’s not smart. ---
**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:** [October 23, 2019, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/38088 "2019-10-23T20:29:55Z")
[The president of the United States of America laments the fact that the Republicans in Congress _did not assassinate Barack Obama_](https://www.yahoo.com/huffpost/trump-hannity-impeach-obama.html): > [@](#): > > “They could’ve impeached Obama for the IRS scandal. They could impeach him for the guns for whatever where guns went all over the place and people got killed, Fast and Furious,” Trump told Hannity. “They could’ve killed him ― they could’ve impeached him for many different things.” I didn’t realize reality had an ejection seat. ---
**Author:** ![CurtC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ce73a5/32.png) [@CurtC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CurtC)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2019, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/38089 "2019-10-23T20:55:42Z")
Monty, that sounds to me like figurative language. Trump uses the same words over and over, and I can recall him frequently using “kill” to mean suffer serious setbacks. ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2019, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/38090 "2019-10-23T20:56:30Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > [The president of the United States of America laments the fact that the Republicans in Congress _did not assassinate Barack Obama_](https://www.yahoo.com/huffpost/trump-hannity-impeach-obama.html): > > I didn’t realize reality had an ejection seat. Not to defend the turd in the high seat, but I’m pretty sure he was speaking euphemistically. ---
**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:** [October 23, 2019, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/38091 "2019-10-23T21:01:51Z")
“They could impeach him for the guns for whatever where guns went all over the place and people got killed, Fast and Furious…” He has an equal grasp on this as he does everything else. The scatterbrained speed freak. ---
**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:** [October 23, 2019, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/38092 "2019-10-23T21:05:34Z")
> [@begbert2](#): > > Not to defend the turd in the high seat, but I’m pretty sure he was speaking euphemistically. Not that FPT even knows what a euphemism is, but I always trust fascists when they say what they want to do _to_ you, just not when they say what they want to do _for_ you. ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2019, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/38093 "2019-10-23T21:06:32Z")
Out of curiosity, what’s this “Fast and Furious” I’m seeing around today? That’s not referring to the movie series, is it? ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2019, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/38094 "2019-10-23T21:08:40Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > Not that FPT even knows what a euphemism is, but I always trust fascists when they say what they want to do _to_ you, just not when they say what they want to do _for_ you. Sure, but in this case you’re also assuming that the fascist in chief has the ability to speak and convey thoughts clearly. Which is not an assumption that I’m inclined to make. ---
**Author:** ![Skypist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skypist/32/169_2.png) [@Skypist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skypist)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2019, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/38095 "2019-10-23T21:15:07Z")
> [@begbert2](#): > > Out of curiosity, what’s this “Fast and Furious” I’m seeing around today? That’s not referring to the movie series, is it? The ATF allowed some illegal gun sales to try to catch people involved in Mexican cartels. In 2011, two such guns were involved in the killing of a border patrol agent. ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2019, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/38096 "2019-10-23T21:17:08Z")
> [@Skypist](#): > > The ATF allowed some illegal gun sales to try to catch people involved in Mexican cartels. In 2011, two such guns were involved in the killing of a border patrol agent. It was literally the worst scandal of the Obama Administration, which seems so quaint by today’s standards. ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2019, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/38097 "2019-10-23T21:18:09Z")
> [@Skypist](#): > > The ATF allowed some illegal gun sales to try to catch people involved in Mexican cartels. In 2011, two such guns were involved in the killing of a border patrol agent. Okay, thanks. Is Obama supposed to have personally ordered the ATF to allow the sales? I mean, the alternative is that iDJiT is saying he thinks that presidents should be able to be impeached (“killed”) for actions that their underlings took without their knowledge… ---
**Author:** ![Banquet\_Bear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/banquet_bear/32/373_2.png) [@Banquet\_Bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banquet_Bear)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2019, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/38098 "2019-10-23T21:18:58Z")
> [@begbert2](#): > > Out of curiosity, what’s this “Fast and Furious” I’m seeing around today? That’s not referring to the movie series, is it? …I haven’t seen what you are specifically referencing, but probably its about this: > **[ATF gunwalking scandal | 2009–2011: Operation Fast and Furious](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ATF_gunwalking_scandal#2009%E2%80%932011:_Operation_Fast_and_Furious)** > > On October 26, 2009, a teleconference was held at the Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. to discuss U.S. strategy for combating Mexican drug cartels. Participating in the meeting were Deputy Attorney General David W. Ogden, Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer, acting ATF Director Kenneth E. Melson, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Administrator Michele Leonhart, Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation Robert Mueller and the top federal prosecutors in the Southwestern bo... ---
**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:** [October 23, 2019, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/38099 "2019-10-23T21:19:12Z")
nm ---
**Author:** ![Skypist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skypist/32/169_2.png) [@Skypist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skypist)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2019, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/38100 "2019-10-23T21:27:01Z")
I don’t see any indication that Obama knew about it or personally ordered it. It sounds like it was ordered by higher-ups in the ATF itself, but I could be wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2019, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/38101 "2019-10-23T21:29:17Z")
> [@Skypist](#): > > I don’t see any indication that Obama knew about it or personally ordered it. It sounds like it was ordered by higher-ups in the ATF itself, but I could be wrong. In the old days, Republicans thought the President could be tainted by screw ups of anyone in the executive branch. Now it doesn’t even apply to cabinet level appointees of the President or the National Security Advisor (or national campaign chairman) ---
**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:** [October 23, 2019, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/38102 "2019-10-23T21:33:32Z")
… or the President. ---
**Author:** ![jasg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f0a364/32.png) [@jasg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jasg)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2019, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/38103 "2019-10-23T22:34:28Z")
> [@Skypist](#): > > I don’t see any indication that Obama knew about it or personally ordered it. It sounds like it was ordered by higher-ups in the ATF itself, but I could be wrong. But according to current rules, anything that happened during the Obama Administration is all his fault. Now, in the Trump Administration, anything that happens is because of the Deep State, Democrats or a Never Trumper. ---
**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:** [October 23, 2019, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/38104 "2019-10-23T22:49:13Z")
I know it’s hard to keep up, but let’s not slide past this one too quickly. > [@Monty](#): > > [The president of the United States of America laments the fact that the Republicans in Congress _did not assassinate Barack Obama_](https://www.yahoo.com/huffpost/trump-hannity-impeach-obama.html): > > > [@](#): > > > > “They could’ve impeached Obama for the IRS scandal. They could impeach him for the guns for whatever where guns went all over the place and people got killed, Fast and Furious,” Trump told Hannity. “They could’ve killed him ― they could’ve impeached him for many different things.” > > I didn’t realize reality had an ejection seat. > [@CurtC](#): > > Monty, that sounds to me like figurative language. Trump uses the same words over and over, and I can recall him frequently using “kill” to mean suffer serious setbacks. WHAT?? _Figurative language_?? I suppose if you were standing in line to board an airplane and said \*\*figuratively \*\*that _someone could kill one of the pilots_, TSA would have a little chuckle right along with you? Or maybe if you made such a comment while on a public tour of the White House? Do not make excuses for FPT\*! Or if you must make excuses, don’t make such \*lame \*ones! :rolleyes: [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070.md?page=1904) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070.md?page=1906)