# 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:** 211
**Author:** ![Little\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c57346/32.png) [@Little\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Pig)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2017, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/4201 "2017-05-10T23:21:45Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > Only Betsy DeVos because she claims she’s getting death threats. I don’t want to take her life, I just wanna take [her money](https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/2253006/besty-devos-net-worth-trump-education-secretary-interloper/). ---
**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, 2017, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/4202 "2017-05-10T23:25:38Z")
Gizmodo sent emails with attachments to various members of the Trump administration and associates, including James Comey, Rudy Giuliani, Newt Gingrich, FCC chairman Ajit Pai; White House press secretary Sean Spicer; Oval Office operations director Keith Schiller; White House Homeland Security advisor Tom Bossert; John Ratcliffe, the House Chairman of the Homeland Security Subcommittee on Cybersecurity; White House advisor Peter Thiel; Jeanette Manfra, the Department of Homeland Security Acting Undersecretary for Cybersecurity; Stephen Miller, senior advisor to the President; Sebastian Gorka, deputy assistant to the President; Grace Koh, special assistant to the President; John Lynch, chief of the Department of Justice’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section; and Trump lawyer Michael Cohen. Some of them replied, some of them clicked the link. > **[Here's How Easy It Is to Get Trump Officials to Click on a Fake Link in Email](https://gizmodo.com/heres-how-easy-it-is-to-get-trump-officials-to-click-on-1794963635)** > > Even technology experts can be insecure on the internet, as last week’s “Google Docs” phishing attack demonstrated. An array of Gmail users, including BuzzFeed tech reporter Joe Bernstein, readily handed over access to their email to a bogus app.... ---
**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, 2017, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/4203 "2017-05-10T23:28:04Z")
Not me. ---
**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, 2017, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/4204 "2017-05-10T23:37:01Z")
Andrew McCabe, Comey’s temporary replacement as head of the FBI, is apparently a Democrat. His wife ran for the Virginia State Senate, and received campaign funds from former VA Governor Terry McCauliffe, a Clinton ally. He was already considered questionable concerning his ties to the Clintons when he was involved in the email server investigation last year, and now there are questions about his leading the Russia investigation. [James Comey's Temporary Replacement At The FBI Is Under Investigation | HuffPost Latest News](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/who-is-andrew-mccabe_us_59134d3ce4b050bdca61b74e)? ---
**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, 2017, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/4205 "2017-05-11T00:27:20Z")
> [@Typo\_Negative](#): > > This was on at the gym to when I changed clothes for my run. They were talking about how hypocritical the dems are for voicing their disapproval of his firing. When I came back by 35 minutes later, they were still on that. It’s because they can’t understand the concept of _the rule of law_. Many Democrats disliked Comey’s choices of the past few months, but that doesn’t stop us from deploring the blatant disregard for our law-based system represented by a President _firing the people who are investigating him_. To tribal-minded people, it’s all about the person, not about the law: if you disliked Comey’s choices you should cheer his ouster; if you loved Comey’s choices then you may get upset about his ouster. That’s the only way they’re capable of seeing it. ---
**Author:** ![E-DUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/e-dub/32/403_2.png) [@E-DUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-DUB)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2017, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/4206 "2017-05-11T00:39:15Z")
Democrats wanted him fired for the way he handled the Hillary investigation in the final days of the campaign. Unless you believe that that’s why trump fired him, it hardly constitutes hypocrisy to want to know _his_ reasons. ---
**Author:** ![dasmoocher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/dbc845/32.png) [@dasmoocher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dasmoocher)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2017, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/4207 "2017-05-11T01:22:26Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > It’s because they can’t understand the concept of _the rule of law_. > > Many Democrats disliked Comey’s choices of the past few months, but that doesn’t stop us from deploring the blatant disregard for our law-based system represented by a President _firing the people who are investigating him_. > > To tribal-minded people, it’s all about the person, not about the law: if you disliked Comey’s choices you should cheer his ouster; if you loved Comey’s choices then you may get upset about his ouster. That’s the only way they’re capable of seeing it. Trump wants to rule the law, not have the law rule him. ---
**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 11, 2017, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/4208 "2017-05-11T02:26:47Z")
So the orange buffoon meets with Lavrov and Kisliuk, alone, without Rexxon Tillerson. Then drags Kissinger out of the old folks home for a photo op. Is president shit for brains finally having a mental breakdown? ---
**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 11, 2017, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/4209 "2017-05-11T02:52:41Z")
Guess who thinks Donald Trump is a narcissist? [Donald Trump.](http://www.rawstory.com/2017/05/trump-has-diagnosed-himself-with-narcissism-because-he-believes-its-vital-for-success-wapo/) ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2017, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/4210 "2017-05-11T03:38:13Z")
Hey guys, never mind. Mike Pence says the decision to fire Comey _WASN’T_ [connected to the Russia probe.](http://www.cnbc.com/2017/05/10/pence-says-decision-to-fire-comey-not-connected-to-russia-probe.html) Hope that puts this to rest. ---
**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 11, 2017, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/4211 "2017-05-11T04:14:15Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > Hey guys, never mind. Mike Pence says the decision to fire Comey _WASN’T_ [connected to the Russia probe.](http://www.cnbc.com/2017/05/10/pence-says-decision-to-fire-comey-not-connected-to-russia-probe.html) > > Hope that puts this to rest. Oh, thank dog. I can finally file my nails tonight instead of chewing them. ---
**Author:** ![marshmallow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@marshmallow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marshmallow)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2017, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/4212 "2017-05-11T05:18:40Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > Hey guys, never mind. Mike Pence says the decision to fire Comey _WASN’T_ [connected to the Russia probe.](http://www.cnbc.com/2017/05/10/pence-says-decision-to-fire-comey-not-connected-to-russia-probe.html) Remember during the VP debate when the media said Pence won and was so stately because he lied about Trump not saying things that were both recent and on video? Good times. ---
**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:** [May 11, 2017, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/4213 "2017-05-11T05:28:24Z")
Surely this Comey firing will give pause to even the most ardent Trump supporter. Surely? And some people – not a lot these days, but some – wonder why I liken the Republican Party to the Nazis. Sure, there are Republicans in Washington who are speaking out about this and some other stuff. But there were Nazis who tried to kill Hitler too. They were still Nazis. ---
**Author:** ![Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/budget_player_cadet/32/205_2.png) [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Budget_Player_Cadet)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2017, 7:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/4214 "2017-05-11T07:20:57Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > Surely this Comey firing will give pause to even the most ardent Trump supporter. Surely? And some people – not a lot these days, but some – wonder why I liken the Republican Party to the Nazis. Sure, there are Republicans in Washington who are speaking out about this and some other stuff. But there were Nazis who tried to kill Hitler too. They were still Nazis. See, this is what would happen in a sane world, where the primary news source people reach to are, well, _news sources_, and not republican propaganda outfits. People would hear, from basically everywhere: “President fires FBI director who was investigating him for ties to Russia. This is not normal, this is not okay, this draws extremely close parallels to Watergate.” Unfortunately, [this is not a sane world](http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/2017/05/10/fox_news_is_covering_james_comey_s_firing_from_an_alternate_reality.html). In fact, [the vast majority of “conservative media” is circling the wagons on this](http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/2017/05/10/conservative_media_reacts_to_the_firing_of_james_comey.html). Who cares that the president just fired the guy investigating his campaigns connections to a hostile outside party? The democrats wanted him fired earlier (well, okay, not the politicos, but a few random people in the media), and it’s about time that weakling was fired for how he mishandled Clinton’s emails (regardless of whether the complaint is that he shouldn’t have spoken up or that he should have pressed charges). It’s utterly deranged, but even the _sane_ conservatives on this board, like **astorian** , [seem to think there’s little wrong with this](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=20198413#post20198413) - after all, the dems thought he sucked half a year ago, therefore there’s nothing wrong with firing him now. And by the way, **astorian** , if you’re reading this post: what the fuck? Turn on your brain for five fucking seconds. You’re smarter than this. At least, I damn well hoped you were. ---
**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:** [May 11, 2017, 10:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/4215 "2017-05-11T10:41:33Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > Betsy DeVos, for some reason, was chosen to give the commencement address at historically black Bethune-Cookman University. A large percentage of the graduating seniors stood up and turned their backs on her, while people present booed her loudly. > [http://www.cnn.com/2017/05/10/politics/betsy-devos-bethune-cookman-commencement-protest/](http://www.cnn.com/2017/05/10/politics/betsy-devos-bethune-cookman-commencement-protest/) Clearly they were saying “Boo-etsy!” Seriously: I saw the video for that, and watching the students turn their backs on both DeVos and the university administration threatening them with having their diplomas mailed to them was deeply moving, particularly as the administration allegedly had been trying to suppress any open protest or dissent of DeVos. > [@](#): > > The head of the Florida NAACP has called for the university’s president and board chairman to resign. > [Florida NAACP president calls on B-CU president, board chairman to resign – WFTV](http://www.wftv.com/news/local/florida-naacp-president-calls-on-b-cu-president-board-chairman-to-resign/520509060) I can’t imagine why they were so upset… > [@](#): > > The decision to invite DeVos to speak at the school last Tuesday caused public outcry because of comments that she previously made calling historically black colleges and universities “real pioneers” of school choice. She later rescinded this bit of idiocy but Jeebus, the cluelessness is palpable. > [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > Gizmodo sent emails with attachments to various members of the Trump administration and associates, including James Comey, Rudy Giuliani, Newt Gingrich, FCC chairman Ajit Pai; White House press secretary Sean Spicer; Oval Office operations director Keith Schiller; White House Homeland Security advisor Tom Bossert; John Ratcliffe, the House Chairman of the Homeland Security Subcommittee on Cybersecurity; White House advisor Peter Thiel; Jeanette Manfra, the Department of Homeland Security Acting Undersecretary for Cybersecurity; Stephen Miller, senior advisor to the President; Sebastian Gorka, deputy assistant to the President; Grace Koh, special assistant to the President; John Lynch, chief of the Department of Justice’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section; and Trump lawyer Michael Cohen. > > Some of them replied, some of them clicked the link. > [Here's How Easy It Is to Get Trump Officials to Click on a Fake Link in Email](http://gizmodo.com/heres-how-easy-it-is-to-get-trump-officials-to-click-on-1794963635) I want to click on that link to read the story but now I’m afraid to. ---
**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:** [May 11, 2017, 12:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/4216 "2017-05-11T12:17:51Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > So the orange buffoon meets with Lavrov and Kisliuk, alone, without Rexxon Tillerson. Then drags Kissinger out of the old folks home for a photo op. > > Is president shit for brains finally having a mental breakdown? Then allows a Russian state photographer to bring a bag full of electronic equipment into the Oval Office… then, even later, expressing surprise that the photographer was working for Russian media. ---
**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 11, 2017, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/4217 "2017-05-11T12:25:10Z")
Am I misremembering, or didn’t Occupy White House hizzelf condemn an Obama administration official for meeting with a Russian official? ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2017, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/4218 "2017-05-11T13:23:28Z")
[This](http://www.politico.com/story/2017/05/10/comey-firing-trump-russia-238192#pq=NbtPZu) combined with the recent Radiolab episode which confirms that there is basically no check on the president’s power to use nukes is terrifying. \* “He had grown enraged by the Russia investigation, two advisers said, frustrated by his inability to control the mushrooming narrative around Russia. He repeatedly asked aides why the Russia investigation wouldn’t disappear and demanded they speak out for him. He would sometimes scream at television clips about the probe, one adviser said.”\* ---
**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:** [May 11, 2017, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/4219 "2017-05-11T13:35:22Z")
Over the last week, Quinnipiac University asked Americans for the first word that comes to mind when they think of President Trump. [Top three choices](http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2017/05/voters-call-trump-idiot-and-liar-in-disastrous-new-poll.html): “idiot”, “incompetent”, and “liar”. ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2017, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/4220 "2017-05-11T13:45:58Z")
> [@Little\_Pig](#): > > So how are the disillusion youth over a F_X News spinning the Comey thingy? (Here’s hoping someone else is watching F_X so I don’t have to). I never watch cable news; but Tues night I flipped between CNN, MSNBC, and (briefly) Fox. When I landed on Fox I heard the word “unmasking” within 30 seconds, so I was out of there. I’m guessing that they’re following the party line: the real story is leaks and Susan Rice and unmasking names. :rolleyes: [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070.md?page=210) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070.md?page=212)