# 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:** 872
**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, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17425 "2018-03-03T22:09:59Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Something popped up on my feed today. Apparently, last month Paul Ryan blamed ‘entitlements’ for the deficit increase. I’d post a link, but I can’t find text and I hate videos. If you’re OK with videos, search ‘Deficit increase is due to entitlement spending’. > [@AnalogSignal](#): > > He always says that. You know “entitlements” refers to Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. Stuff those terrible poor people need to live. We should probably ship them to Mexico. If there were a sideshow of brain anomalies, Paul Ryan would be the main attraction: _ **See the Amazing Man With No Shame! Not One Particle of Shame! Step Right Up! He Walks, He Talks, He Breathes Like You and Me…But With Brazen, Barefaced Effrontery! Folks, Step Right Up!** _ ---
**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, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17426 "2018-03-03T22:32:36Z")
> [@jsc1953](#): > > 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”.) Such wars only end in disarmament and defeat. ---
**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:** [March 3, 2018, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17427 "2018-03-03T22:39:08Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > Such wars only end in disarmament and defeat. You are _so_ going to fry in Hell! See you there, brother! Remember: Hell’s got all the good bands, anyway. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17428 "2018-03-04T01:04:46Z")
> [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](#): > > If it’s true that trump wants to oust ivanka and jared, why doesn’t he just tell them to scram? Why would someone else have to fire them? He’s weak. Firing some nobody is easy; firing his daughter and son in law requires a strength he doesn’t possess. ---
**Author:** ![jasg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f0a364/32.png) [@jasg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jasg)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17429 "2018-03-04T01:13:52Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > There was a thread on the big windstorm in the DC area Friday, and it got me to wondering. You cannot (well, ought not at least) take off in a 747 when the wind is gusting 30~40, so how did Shitgibbon get to Florida this weekend? > > Which got me to imagining the presidential motorcade tooling down I-95 and over to A-1-A. Perhaps he [vomited](https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/weird/Everyone-on-the-Plane-Threw-Up-Wind-Storm-Makes-Bumpy-Ride-for-Dulles-Flight-475661103.html) all the way to Mar a Lago? > [@](#): > > ‘Everyone on the Plane Threw Up’: #Windmageddon Turbulence Makes Passengers, Pilots Sick on Dulles-Bound Flight > > “Very bumpy on descent. Pretty much everyone on the plane threw up,” the report said. > The pilots themselves were not spared. ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17430 "2018-03-04T01:15:32Z")
Imagine, for just one moment, the apoplexy if Obama had [said this](https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/03/politics/trump-maralago-remarks/index.html): “He’s now president for life. President for life. And he’s great. And look, he was able to do that. I think it’s great. Maybe we’ll give that a shot some day.” ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17431 "2018-03-04T02:51:16Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > Trump vows to tax European cars if the EU fights back with tariff on U.S. goods > [Trump vows to tax European cars if the EU puts a tariff on U.S. goods](https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2018/03/03/canadian-pm-justin-trudeau-rejects-trumps-tariffs-absolutely-unacceptable/391805002/) > > Trade wars are easy. BMW: Greer, South Carolina (red state). 8,300+ employees and millions of $$$ on the state’s economic impact Mercedes: Vance, Alabama (red state). 4,000+ employees and millions of $$$ on the state’s economic impact. Dear thicker than pig shit red state America: get ready, you in-bred cunts…you asked for it. ---
**Author:** ![AI\_Proofreader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@AI\_Proofreader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AI_Proofreader)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17432 "2018-03-04T03:31:42Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > Imagine, for just one moment, the apoplexy if Obama had [said this](https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/03/politics/trump-maralago-remarks/index.html): > > “He’s now president for life. President for life. And he’s great. And look, he was able to do that. I think it’s great. Maybe we’ll give that a shot some day.” “So this is how liberty dies…with thunderous applause.” ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17433 "2018-03-04T03:52:47Z")
I was just waiting for Trump to roll out his inner protectionist. Stupid, stupid. And on the right side of the aisle everyone except the hardcore alt-righters are REALLY pissed at him. And the never-Trumpers are doing an ‘I-told-you-so’ lap, and justifiably so. If Trump doesn’t figure out a way to walk this back, he’s going to do serious damage to the economy. Can no one learn from history? Bush implemented almost the exact same tariffs on steel, and had to back out of them as the data showed that it did far more harm than good. Trump goes on and on about bringing manufacturing back to America. Apparently he doesn’t understand that raising the price of a core industrial input good in America will do more than anything to drive manufacturing away. All I know is, the steel industry must have amazing lobbyists. ---
**Author:** ![galen\_ubal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/galen_ubal/32/4440_2.png) [@galen\_ubal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/galen_ubal)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17434 "2018-03-04T04:00:52Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > I was just waiting for Trump to roll out his inner protectionist. Stupid, stupid. And on the right side of the aisle everyone except the hardcore alt-righters are REALLY pissed at him. And the never-Trumpers are doing an ‘I-told-you-so’ lap, and justifiably so. > > If Trump doesn’t figure out a way to walk this back, he’s going to do serious damage to the economy. Can no one learn from history? Bush implemented almost the exact same tariffs on steel, and had to back out of them as the data showed that it did far more harm than good. > > Trump goes on and on about bringing manufacturing back to America. Apparently he doesn’t understand that raising the price of a core industrial input good in America will do more than anything to drive manufacturing away. > > All I know is, the steel industry must have amazing lobbyists. You appear to be assuming that Trump _wants_ to do good for America. At best, he really doesn’t care, so long as he personally benefits. But it seems more likely every day, every stupid decision, every position not filled, every _lack_ of decision, that Trump is actively working to damage the US on Russian orders. I don’t know whether through blackmail, or hope of personal enrichment, or most likely both, Putin has such a hold over him, but it appears he does. Probably over several members of the family and administration. 'Course, that’s the hard part to work out. Is the Trump administration dividing, damaging, and degrading the country out of spite, incompetence, and greed, or is he an active traitor? Or is it a combination? ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17435 "2018-03-04T04:03:01Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > All I know is, the steel industry must have amazing lobbyists. No, they just have to be the last person who talked to him before he gets bored and gets in front of a mic or his twitter account. It’s like a really weird game of hot potato ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17436 "2018-03-04T04:31:02Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > Imagine, for just one moment, the apoplexy if Obama had [said this](https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/03/politics/trump-maralago-remarks/index.html): > > “He’s now president for life. President for life. And he’s great. And look, he was able to do that. I think it’s great. Maybe we’ll give that a shot some day.” The problem is not that he said it. Of course, he said it. The problem is that the GOP is cheering for it. For a bunch of people who claim to be all over original intent - that’s… telling. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17437 "2018-03-04T05:03:31Z")
> [@asahi](#): > > BMW: Greer, South Carolina (red state). 8,300+ employees and millions of $$$ on the state’s economic impact > > Mercedes: Vance, Alabama (red state). 4,000+ employees and millions of $$$ on the state’s economic impact. Tariffs don’t apply to products made in the US, even if the companies are based overseas. If anything, tariffs on import cars should be _good_ for these states, because it provides an incentive for those brands to manufacture more cars models in the US. ---
**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 4, 2018, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17438 "2018-03-04T05:18:10Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > Tariffs don’t apply to products made in the US, even if the companies are based overseas. If anything, tariffs on import cars should be _good_ for these states, because it provides an incentive for those brands to manufacture more cars models in the US. Yeah, but I’m pretty sure cars made at the BMW plant in Greer and the Mercedes plant in Vance use imported steel. What do you think the increased cost of raw materials is going to do to the price of cars in the US? Will that help or hurt sales? Will decreased auto sales help or hurt the factory workers? ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17439 "2018-03-04T05:51:14Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > Tariffs don’t apply to products made in the US, even if the companies are based overseas. If anything, tariffs on import cars should be _good_ for these states, because it provides an incentive for those brands to manufacture more cars models in the US. From what I can tell from a bit of googling, the BMW plant in South Carolina exports a lot of vehicles from the U.S., and one site says it’s the largest such exporter. It’s not as simple as it sounds, though. Not every factory for a particular car company makes every model. BMW builds all of its SUV models (or as BMW calls them Sports Activity Vehicles) in SC except for the smallest. So if European cars do become part of a trade war, BMW SAVs would be taxed when imported to Europe, and Trump could retaliate by taxing their car models when they’re imported to the U.S. I’m not sure who’s the net winner in that. Has anyone analyzed how much revenue these tariffs would generate, what would be the impact on the debt/deficit, and has there been any talk from Trump or other politicians on what they’d spend it on? ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 11:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17440 "2018-03-04T11:01:32Z")
> [@amarinth](#): > > No, they just have to be the last person who talked to him before he gets bored and gets in front of a mic or his twitter account. > > It’s like a really weird game of hot potato Heh. That’s awesome. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2018, 11:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17441 "2018-03-04T11:14:33Z")
> [@jasg](#): > > Perhaps he [vomited](https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/weird/Everyone-on-the-Plane-Threw-Up-Wind-Storm-Makes-Bumpy-Ride-for-Dulles-Flight-475661103.html) all the way to Mar a Lago? > > “Very bumpy on descent. Pretty much everyone on the plane threw up,” the report said. > The pilots themselves were not spared. [Maybe not](https://i.pinimg.com/736x/a7/1d/bc/a71dbc0154b02f7a99f9a26cbed6ed6b--traffic-humor-funny-single.jpg). ---
**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:** [March 4, 2018, 11:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17442 "2018-03-04T11:48:13Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > “He’s now president for life. President for life. And he’s great. And look, he was able to do that. I think it’s great. Maybe we’ll give that a shot some day.” And here’s the thing you’ve got to remember about Loser Donald; whenever he says “we”, what he really means is “I”. ---
**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 4, 2018, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17443 "2018-03-04T14:07:20Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > …Apparently he doesn’t understand that raising the price of a core industrial input good in America will do more than anything to drive manufacturing away… Empahsis added. _\_ Tut-tut-tut! You are disqualified for using the “u-word” in a sentence about thump. Next contestant! ---
**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:** [March 4, 2018, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/17444 "2018-03-04T14:18:00Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > And here’s the thing you’ve got to remember about Loser Donald; whenever he says “we”, what he really means is “I”. It’s the royal “we”. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070.md?page=871) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070.md?page=873)