# 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:** 96
**Author:** ![Catamount](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/catamount/32/2840_2.png) [@Catamount](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catamount)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2017, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/1901 "2017-03-07T01:34:19Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > Try, [try again](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/ben-carson-slaves-immigrants_us_58bdbf1fe4b033be1467634f?). From the end of the article: > [@](#): > > Carson also spent part of his speech to agency employees Monday talking about the human brain. > > “[E]very human being, regardless of their ethnicities, or their background, they have a brain, the human brain,” he said, later adding, “You can’t overload [the brain]. Have you ever heard people say, ‘Don’t do that or you’ll overload your brain’? You can’t overload the human brain. No, but you can say so much stupid shit that the brain shuts down as mine is doing right this second. ---
**Author:** ![Biffster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biffster/32/339_2.png) [@Biffster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffster)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2017, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/1902 "2017-03-07T01:43:46Z")
> [@TonySinclair](#): > > They would also be more historically accurate. The Nazis used gas in the showers, but coal and coke in the ovens. I stand corrected. You learn something new everyday. ---
**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 7, 2017, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/1903 "2017-03-07T01:44:20Z")
> [@Little\_Pig](#): > > Well, you just level the property and replace it with a cesspool. Then you drain the cesspool by adding more cess to it. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2017, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/1904 "2017-03-07T02:54:09Z")
Good cess to you, sir! ---
**Author:** ![TonySinclair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@TonySinclair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TonySinclair)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2017, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/1905 "2017-03-07T02:56:30Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > Ben Carson, HUD Secretary and one of the dumbest people to ever hold a PhD, [uncorked a doozy](Ben Carson: Slaves Were Immigrants Who Came Here And Worked Really Hard ‘For Less’) today: > > > [@](#): > > > > Slaves were immigrants who came here and worked really hard ‘for less’ > > I’m sure this won’t piss anybody off. What’s the problem? I looked it up, and they actually did work really hard for less. A LOT less. So he’s right. And he doesn’t have a PhD; he’s a medical doctor. And he’s world famous for separating conjoined twins. But what I didn’t know until just now, when I verified his lack of a PhD in his [wikipedia bio](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Carson), was that most of those surgeries had tragic outcomes. In only one case did both twins survive without severe impairment. But “Two sets of twins died, including Iranian twins Ladan and Laleh Bijani; another separation resulted in the death of one twin and the survival of another, who is legally blind and struggles to walk.” And in the most famous case, his first, > [@](#): > > both twins were reportedly “far from normal” two years after the procedure, with one in a vegetative state.[94][95][96][97] “I will never get over this . . . Why did I have them separated?” said their mother, Theresia Binder, in a 1993 interview.[94] Neither twin was ever able to talk or care for himself, and both would eventually become institutionalized wards of the state. Am I the only one unaware of this? Most of it is from the Washington Post, but I swear I never heard a hint of it, even with all the Carson threads I participated in here. To be fair, these kids were screwed at birth, and it probably took exceptional skill to have them survive at all (although it looks like over half of them didn’t). But everything I heard about it before today, and I’m a political news junkie, led me to believe that the operations were a great success. ---
**Author:** ![AngelSoft](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/angelsoft/32/440_2.png) [@AngelSoft](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AngelSoft)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2017, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/1906 "2017-03-07T03:00:05Z")
["DHS is considering separating undocumented children from their parents at the border](http://www.cnn.com/2017/03/06/politics/john-kelly-separating-children-from-parents-immigration-border/index.html)" Wtf…isn’t that illegal…? Even if they’re coming here illegally? ---
**Author:** ![Defensive\_Indifference](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/defensive_indifference/32/6502_2.png) [@Defensive\_Indifference](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Defensive_Indifference)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2017, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/1907 "2017-03-07T03:18:28Z")
> [@TonySinclair](#): > > What’s the problem? I looked it up, and they actually did work really hard for less. A LOT less. So he’s right. > > And he doesn’t have a PhD; he’s a medical doctor. And he’s world famous for separating conjoined twins. But what I didn’t know until just now, when I verified his lack of a PhD in his [wikipedia bio](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Carson), was that most of those surgeries had tragic outcomes. In only one case did both twins survive without severe impairment. But “Two sets of twins died, including Iranian twins Ladan and Laleh Bijani; another separation resulted in the death of one twin and the survival of another, who is legally blind and struggles to walk.” And in the most famous case, his first, > > Am I the only one unaware of this? Most of it is from the Washington Post, but I swear I never heard a hint of it, even with all the Carson threads I participated in here. > > To be fair, these kids were screwed at birth, and it probably took exceptional skill to have them survive at all (although it looks like over half of them didn’t). But everything I heard about it before today, and I’m a political news junkie, led me to believe that the operations were a great success. I had no idea either. I hadn’t bothered to look into the history much (since it wasn’t that relevant to my opinion that he should only be allowed into the White House with a tour guide) but I’d always kind of assumed the kids went on to live more or less normal lives. I don’t recall anyone criticizing his medical record at all during the campaign. ---
**Author:** ![Biffster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biffster/32/339_2.png) [@Biffster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffster)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2017, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/1908 "2017-03-07T03:32:52Z")
> [@TonySinclair](#): > > What’s the problem? I looked it up, and they actually did work really hard for less. A LOT less. So he’s right. > > And he doesn’t have a PhD; he’s a medical doctor. And he’s world famous for separating conjoined twins. But what I didn’t know until just now, when I verified his lack of a PhD in his [wikipedia bio](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Carson), was that most of those surgeries had tragic outcomes. In only one case did both twins survive without severe impairment. But “Two sets of twins died, including Iranian twins Ladan and Laleh Bijani; another separation resulted in the death of one twin and the survival of another, who is legally blind and struggles to walk.” And in the most famous case, his first, > > Am I the only one unaware of this? Most of it is from the Washington Post, but I swear I never heard a hint of it, even with all the Carson threads I participated in here. > > To be fair, these kids were screwed at birth, and it probably took exceptional skill to have them survive at all (although it looks like over half of them didn’t). But everything I heard about it before today, and I’m a political news junkie, led me to believe that the operations were a great success. Big difference between immigrants and slaves: immigrants are trying to leave their former country, while slaves are…ah…“recruited.” ---
**Author:** ![Biffster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biffster/32/339_2.png) [@Biffster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffster)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2017, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/1909 "2017-03-07T05:47:23Z")
“At some points words fail, or they are starting to fail me. We have an Administration in freefall. Have we passed through the circle of chaos? Are we at the circle of havoc? The real Donald Trump has stood up, once again. Let no one ever be fooled. Let there be no doubt. The man who sends out a twitter tirade accusing a former President of crimes for which he provides no evidence, the man who doubles down when everyone with any sense pushes back, that man is our Commander in Chief. Everyone who normalizes Mr. Trump now, or has in the past, will have to answer to future generations for their acquiescence, silence or sophistry—if, indeed, not outright cowardice. How hollow do all those pundit plaudits (including from many progressives) sound now for an average and disingenuous speech of someone else’s words read from a teleprompter to Congress and the nation a week ago? A “presidential” Trump is a punchline to a joke no one wants to have told. Conspiracy theories are corrosive in society at large. When they dictate national policy, they can be lethal. This is a man who challenged the citizenship of President Obama, with lies, innuendo, and no evidence. This is a man who claimed widespread voter fraud with lies, innuendo, and no evidence. This is a man who has taken a rhetorical blowtorch to our Constitutional principles with lies, innuendo, and no evidence. Those who rose in Congress to applaud his turns of phrase bear responsibility. Those who cynically use his presidency to push forward unpopular giveaways to the rich and well connected bear responsibility. Those in the press who meet insults with explanations bear responsibility. Even the most grounded of presidents must fight to keep themselves moored to the real world. The Oval Office can be a bubble. Power attracts sycophants and cynics. But I have never seen anything like this. The sheer level of paranoia that is radiating out of the White House is untenable to the workings of a republic. I have a real question if President Trump actually believes what he is saying. Even Richard Nixon, the most paranoid president to date, ruled for years with a relatively calm hand. This Administration has been an off kilter whirlwind since the inauguration, and news reports suggest that seething anger from Mr. Trump is only getting worse. There is a growing consensus that the President may be “unhinged.” It’s a serious allegation, but even if it is not the case, Mr. Trump only has himself to blame. To call a drama Shakespearean or operatic is usually an overreach. But I imagine artists of the future, and even the present, will find ample inspiration in our moment in history. Doesn’t Steve Bannon strike you as an Iago whispering in the ear of an Othello-like Trump, consumed by jealousy and paranoia? As the questions mount around Russia, as the circles of defense begin to falter, the determination to create diversions will escalate. But if the President hoped he could create a distraction, I think he misjudged the will of the American people. We have woken. We are paying attention. And we love our country too much to let it falter without a fight.” – Dan Rather Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk ---
**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 7, 2017, 6:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/1910 "2017-03-07T06:01:25Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > Good cess to you, sir! Good cess had nothing to do with it, dearie. ---
**Author:** ![TonySinclair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@TonySinclair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TonySinclair)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2017, 7:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/1911 "2017-03-07T07:44:03Z")
> [@Biffster](#): > > – Dan Rather The left is so full of pussies. How in the world did we allow a man like that to have his career ended over one honest mistake, and yet a man like Trump is an endless fountain of shit, and will probably stay in office no matter what he does. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2017, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/1912 "2017-03-07T15:27:36Z")
[The White House Copied Exxon’s Press Release in a Statement Praising Exxon](https://www.yahoo.com/news/white-house-copied-exxon-press-002649501.html) > [@](#): > > The White House copied a portion of its statement praising ExxonMobil’s announcement on Monday that it would invest in manufacturing projects in the U.S. from Exxon. > > The White House statement, released about 34 minutes after Exxon put out its announcement, copied a full paragraph from Exxon’s statement that explained the company’s investment plans. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2017, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/1913 "2017-03-07T15:32:05Z")
The United States of Russia, Sponsored By Exxon ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2017, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/1914 "2017-03-07T21:10:37Z")
[Trump vows to [del]get on the payroll of pharmaceutical lobbyists[/del] bring drug prices ‘way down’](http://money.cnn.com/2017/03/07/investing/president-trump-drug-prices-healthcare/), [sends pharmaceutical stocks nosediving](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-03-07/trump-sends-pharma-stocks-down-with-new-tweet-on-drug-prices). ---
**Author:** ![SteveG1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@SteveG1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SteveG1)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2017, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/1915 "2017-03-07T23:34:09Z")
> [@Steve\_MB](#): > > Trumpski’s Russian friends [try to salvage](http://www.radio24syv.dk/udvalgte-nyhedshistorier/russian-tv-crew-offered-money-to-youths-in-sweden-to-cause-trouble-in-front-of-camera/) the “see what’s going on in Sweden” gaffe: They stole a move from James O’Keefe’s playbook. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2017, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/1916 "2017-03-08T00:55:17Z")
> [@Skywatcher](#): > > [Trump vows to [del]get on the payroll of pharmaceutical lobbyists[/del] bring drug prices ‘way down’](http://money.cnn.com/2017/03/07/investing/president-trump-drug-prices-healthcare/), [sends pharmaceutical stocks nosediving](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-03-07/trump-sends-pharma-stocks-down-with-new-tweet-on-drug-prices). Well, he already established that he [doesn’t really mean it](http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2017/01/trump-seems-to-flip-flop-on-drug-prices-after-pharma-meeting.html): > [@](#): > > […] the recent moment when Donald Trump showed the most independence of (or possible ignorance of) conservative economic orthodoxy was during his big pre-inaugural press conference on January 11, when in a ramble about industries leaving America he suddenly said something that freaked out many listeners and tanked pharmaceutical stocks: > > > [@](#): > > > > […] We’re the largest buyer of drugs in the world, and yet we don’t bid properly. And we’re going to start bidding and were going to save billions of dollars over a period of time. > > So today [January 31] the president met with some of those very lobbyists and their bosses, and came out singing a very different song, which had a very different impact on pharma stocks […] it is hard to interpret some of these comments as anything less than an abandonment of what he said on January 11: > > > [@](#): > > > > I’ll oppose anything that makes it harder for smaller, younger companies to take the risk of bringing their product to a vibrantly competitive market. That includes price-fixing by the biggest dog in the market, Medicare, which is what’s happening. > > “Price-fixing” is precisely how pharma and its conservative allies describe Medicare negotiations for better drug prices. It sure sounds like Trump heard pharma’s talking points and adopted them. No, the Trump administration is not going to do anything that seriously puts governmental pressure on drug prices. They’re going to enact tax cuts and deregulation for pharmaceutical companies while **pretending** it will massively reduce drug prices, but that’s not the same thing. ---
**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 8, 2017, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/1917 "2017-03-08T01:22:58Z")
Trump is not going to do anything or promote any action that causes any large corporations to lose any money. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2017, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/1918 "2017-03-08T01:58:43Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > Trump is not going to do anything or promote any action that causes any large corporations to lose any money. Of course he will (he already has), but not intentionally. ---
**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 8, 2017, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/1919 "2017-03-08T03:37:25Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > Trump is not going to do anything or promote any action that causes any large corporations to lose any money. Costing large corporations a lot of money is what he does best, though. ---
**Author:** ![Biffster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biffster/32/339_2.png) [@Biffster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffster)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2017, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/1920 "2017-03-08T03:49:05Z")
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