# 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:** 870
**Author:** ![China\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@China\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/China_Guy)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2018, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17385 "2018-03-03T01:00:26Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > Wall Street Journal calls out the steel tariff as the worst mistake of Trump’s administration. > [https://www.wsj.com/articles/trumps-tariff-folly-1519950205?mod=e2two](https://www.wsj.com/articles/trumps-tariff-folly-1519950205?mod=e2two) Holy mother of god. Usually, Murdoch’s WSJ is very **ahem** pro GOP **ahem** , but even they can’t spin a trade war into a positive. ---
**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:** [March 3, 2018, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17386 "2018-03-03T01:39:38Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > Also, why does [this story](https://apnews.com/0fc0013326ef4d2492b9db868992f5ac/APNewsBreak:-Questions-surround-Trump's-1st-wall-contract) feel familiar?The rather lengthy article describes many incidents of shady business dealings by Coastal, going back several years. Oh, and there was this: > > > [@](#): > > > > Coastal’s new Omaha company, SWF, is not registered with either the Nebraska Secretary of State’s office or the Nebraska Department of Labor, which is required for any company doing business within the state. Labor department officials are investigating whether SWF violated state registration requirements. > > … _Legitimate_ construction companies can’t be counted on to slip Trump his cut. This is the way all the “infrastructure projects” will go. Companies who aren’t registered, don’t return calls, have checkered histories featuring civil and criminal misconduct, etc. Trump’s America. More corrupt than Somalia. (2017 rankings of corruption by nation: [https://www.transparency.org/news/feature/corruption\_perceptions\_index\_2017](https://www.transparency.org/news/feature/corruption_perceptions_index_2017) Undoubtedly the 2018 rankings will reflect the infrastructure projects…) ---
**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:** [March 3, 2018, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17387 "2018-03-03T01:54:25Z")
> [@Typo\_Negative](#): > > How does the President have this power. Seems like this should be Congress’s job. Congress enacted laws that gave the President the power to impose tariffs for reasons of national security during times of war or during national emergencies. It’s a very broadly worded law that gives a President the power to impose any tariff because he gets to define the terms. (Nixon imposed a tariff in 1971 on the basis that the Korean War had never officially ended.) However, the key factor is that Congress gave this power to the President. So it can take it back whenever it chooses to do so. ---
**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:** [March 3, 2018, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17388 "2018-03-03T01:56:34Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > Carl Icahn dumped millions of dollars worth of steel stocks last week. > [Trump confidant dumped millions in steel-related stock last week – ThinkProgress](https://thinkprogress.org/trump-ichan-steel-imports-cf7deb8beaf0/) > > Just sayin’. Nitpick: He dumped millions of dollars of stock in a company that was dependent on Steel. It would be stupid to sell stock in steel companies which would have suddenly gain competative advantage. ---
**Author:** ![JBGUSA](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/258eb7/32.png) [@JBGUSA](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JBGUSA)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2018, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17389 "2018-03-03T02:20:31Z")
> [@zoid](#): > > It’s hard to tell if you think you’re funny or you’re just an asshole Huh? I’m espousing a beautiful dream. ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2018, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17390 "2018-03-03T02:23:13Z")
> [@JBGUSA](#): > > Huh? > > I’m espousing a beautiful dream. Thank you for the clarification. Asshole. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2018, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17391 "2018-03-03T02:29:59Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > Wall Street Journal calls out the steel tariff as the worst mistake of Trump’s administration. > [https://www.wsj.com/articles/trumps-tariff-folly-1519950205?mod=e2two](https://www.wsj.com/articles/trumps-tariff-folly-1519950205?mod=e2two) The good news (if any) is that it seems no paperwork of any kind has been filed as yet for this harebrained tariff plan. Or maybe Trump thinks that importers are just going to automatically pay the Department of Commerce or somebody 25% of their sales receipts just 'cause Trump said so. ---
**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:** [March 3, 2018, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17392 "2018-03-03T02:35:17Z")
> [@El\_Kabong](#): > > The good news (if any) is that it seems no paperwork of any kind has been filed as yet for this harebrained tariff plan. Or maybe Trump thinks that importers are just going to automatically pay the Department of Commerce or somebody 25% of their sales receipts just 'cause Trump said so. It’s like when he “banned” transgenders in the military, but never actually ordered it, and the Pentegon ignored him ---
**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:** [March 3, 2018, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17393 "2018-03-03T02:44:52Z")
> [@El\_Kabong](#): > > The good news (if any) is that it seems no paperwork of any kind has been filed as yet for this harebrained tariff plan. Or maybe Trump thinks that importers are just going to automatically pay the Department of Commerce or somebody 25% of their sales receipts just 'cause Trump said so. > [@Procrustus](#): > > It’s like when he “banned” transgenders in the military, but never actually ordered it, and the Pentegon ignored him It doesn’t matter if anything he says ever happens. He’s just playing to his audience. He is creating a fantasy world for them. Smoke and mirrors. And if they expect some of this stuff to come about and it doesn’t, it will just be Dems’, Obama’s, Hillary’s, or someone else’s fault. He tried, but it was “rigged” against him. Boo-fucking-hoo. ---
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2018, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17394 "2018-03-03T03:29:49Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > It doesn’t matter if anything he says ever happens. He’s just playing to his audience. He is creating a fantasy world for them. Smoke and mirrors. And if they expect some of this stuff to come about and it doesn’t, it will just be Dems’, Obama’s, Hillary’s, or someone else’s fault. He tried, but it was “rigged” against him. Boo-fucking-hoo. That’s only part of it; every time he said something particularly loony it distracted the media and the rest of us like a bright shiny toy, and we woke up to something truly awful. He’s pulled that often enough that now he has to ramp up both the catastrophe and the possibility. ---
**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:** [March 3, 2018, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17395 "2018-03-03T04:17:39Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > … Putin boasts of his new missile technology … Ok, I want to circle back to this, because the concept Vlad is talking about [is horrifying](https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/russias-new-nukes-are-similar-to-a-risky-project-the-u-s-abandoned/). Nuclear **powered** cruise missiles? Meaning, a thing that flies through the air flinging around wads of deadly neutrons in its wake (because a flying thing cannot afford the weight of reactor shielding), heating up the air with a naked core, spewing out reaction product (radioactive isotope dust) in its exhaust stream. I mean, the USAF looked at this kind of idea during the Cold War and decided it was too insane even for them. So either Vlad is a silly fabulist or he has gone wack off the deep end. Perhaps this insanity deserves its own thread? ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2018, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17396 "2018-03-03T04:24:53Z")
At his next press conference, I want somebody to ask Trump if his proposed tariffs on steel and aluminum might affect strategic adamantium production. ---
**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:** [March 3, 2018, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17397 "2018-03-03T05:12:34Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > Ok, I want to circle back to this, because the concept Vlad is talking about [is horrifying](https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/russias-new-nukes-are-similar-to-a-risky-project-the-u-s-abandoned/). Nuclear **powered** cruise missiles? Meaning, a thing that flies through the air flinging around wads of deadly neutrons in its wake (because a flying thing cannot afford the weight of reactor shielding), heating up the air with a naked core, spewing out reaction product (radioactive isotope dust) in its exhaust stream. > > I mean, the USAF looked at this kind of idea during the Cold War and decided it was too insane even for them. So either Vlad is a silly fabulist or he has gone wack off the deep end. > > Perhaps this insanity deserves its own thread? Deep down, I feel like this is all bullshit, meant to goad the stupid, insecure man living in the White House. I don’t think there’s an inch of truth to it, but the idea is that Trump won’t let this go unmatched. And the USA will direct billions into ramping up our already-insane nuclear arsenal. It’s trolling. ---
**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:** [March 3, 2018, 6:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17398 "2018-03-03T06:47:07Z")
Sorry if I missed this in the thread, but I don’t see it. A group of Belorussians and Russians were arrested in the Thai seaside town of Pattaya on Monday for giving sex lessons. [One of the ladies claims to have a lot of dirt on Trump and is willing to spill it in exchange for her freedom](http://time.com/5179973/belarusian-woman-trump-russia/). Sounds like desperation, except she has been photographed in the past with two interesting persons – a Russian billionaire and a Russian deputy prime minister. I like the _Bangkok Post_’s initial headline for the bust: [Russian sex class stopped before climax](https://www.bangkokpost.com/news/general/1418635/russian-sex-class-stopped-before-climax). ---
**Author:** ![smithsb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smithsb/32/12107_2.png) [@smithsb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smithsb)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2018, 6:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17399 "2018-03-03T06:53:44Z")
Putin’s bigger RED button. ---
**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:** [March 3, 2018, 7:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17400 "2018-03-03T07:03:13Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > Sorry if I missed this in the thread, but I don’t see it. A group of Belorussians and Russians were arrested in the Thai seaside town of Pattaya on Monday for giving sex lessons. [One of the ladies claims to have a lot of dirt on Trump and is willing to spill it in exchange for her freedom](http://time.com/5179973/belarusian-woman-trump-russia/). Sounds like desperation, except she has been photographed in the past with two interesting persons – a Russian billionaire and a Russian deputy prime minister. > > I like the _Bangkok Post_’s initial headline for the bust: [Russian sex class stopped before climax](https://www.bangkokpost.com/news/general/1418635/russian-sex-class-stopped-before-climax). A further editorial on this: [‘Russiagate’ guppy caught in Pattaya sex class dragnet](https://www.bangkokpost.com/news/general/1420034/sex-gurus-in-hot-water-with-police#cxrecs_s) ---
**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:** [March 3, 2018, 8:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17401 "2018-03-03T08:00:09Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > A further editorial on this: [‘Russiagate’ guppy caught in Pattaya sex class dragnet](https://www.bangkokpost.com/news/general/1420034/sex-gurus-in-hot-water-with-police#cxrecs_s) Damn, wrong link. Let me try that again: [‘Russiagate’ guppy caught in Pattaya sex class dragnet](https://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opinion/1419914/). There. That’s the right one. ---
**Author:** ![AnalogSignal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/analogsignal/32/1085_2.png) [@AnalogSignal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AnalogSignal)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2018, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17402 "2018-03-03T15:44:31Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > [‘Russiagate’ guppy caught in Pattaya sex class dragnet](https://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opinion/1419914/). > > There. That’s the right one. My campaign did not collude in the nude with nasty Nastya Rybka. Can you believe this fake news? So sad! [https://www.cnn.com/2018/02/28/asia/russia-model-thai-prison-trump-claims-intl/index.html](https://www.cnn.com/2018/02/28/asia/russia-model-thai-prison-trump-claims-intl/index.html) ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2018, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17403 "2018-03-03T16:11:24Z")
On PBS last night pundit Mark Shields described the Trump White House as “a civil war in a leper colony”. I’m not sure what that means, but I love it. (I suspect it’s a polite of way of saying “clusterfuck”.) ---
**Author:** ![Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/try2b_comprehensive/32/65_2.png) [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Try2B_Comprehensive)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2018, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17404 "2018-03-03T17:29:09Z")
With the crazy number of departures from this Administration, couldn’t Section 4 of the 25th Amendment be invoked, not because of mental illness or incompetence, but simply because Trump cannot keep an effective executive branch team in place? When does it fall apart to the point that the president is simply “unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office”? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070.md?page=869) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070.md?page=871)