# 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:** 971
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2018, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/19405 "2018-04-20T19:54:52Z")
That would be double awesome if Trump was force to resign, and pay restitution to the Democrats. He’d have a stroke from over-Tweeting. ---
**Author:** ![Toxgoddess](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f08c70/32.png) [@Toxgoddess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Toxgoddess)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2018, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/19406 "2018-04-20T19:57:06Z")
I don’t remember the Watergate lawsuit either, although I was all of nine at the time. But unprecedented or not, the naming of Jared and Don Jr. is sure to raise the Prez’s blood pressure. One imagines even Putin might be displeased. ---
**Author:** ![SteveG1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@SteveG1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SteveG1)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2018, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/19407 "2018-04-20T20:06:33Z")
> [@Lucas\_Jackson](#): > > All of that. Yes. Yes. Every single word of it. ---
**Author:** ![SteveG1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@SteveG1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SteveG1)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2018, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/19408 "2018-04-20T20:11:11Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > He registered for the 2020 election on Inauguration Day. And he’s had a number of fundraisers/rallies since. I wonder how much of that money will “disappear”. ---
**Author:** ![SteveG1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@SteveG1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SteveG1)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2018, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/19409 "2018-04-20T20:14:20Z")
> [@j666](#): > > What s/he said. > > Yes, revenge is sweet, but if we want progressive policies based on community responsibility, we can’t keep demonizing Republicans for Trump and pushing his supporters into a corner where they feel forced to double down (and yes, I know I am mixing metaphors). > > And stop deluding yourselves that his supporters are all aging Boomers that will die off soon, now that the ACA has been gutted and the country will be too broke for Medicare and Social Security; Trump has plenty of supporters in their 20s and 30s who are all convinced that the Boomers are the reason they can’t afford their student loans. Well, Boomers and transgenders. > > This isn’t about policy anymore, or even about integrity; it’s about divisiveness. As long as you play into the Us Against Them scenario, you are supporting those in power who benefit in the short term. > > Revenge is also a dish best served cold. Perhaps because if passions are allowed to cool, revenge is not always sought. > > Thank you. Carry on. Too fucking late. Where the fuck have you been for the past many years? You are preaching to the wrong fucking side. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2018, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/19410 "2018-04-20T20:19:11Z")
> [@SteveG1](#): > > I wonder how much of that money will “disappear”. I think a lot of it is going for legal fees for himself and his family. [Legal fees made up 20% of Trump campaign spending this year](https://www.cnn.com/2018/04/15/politics/trump-campaign-legal-fees/index.html) ---
**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:** [April 20, 2018, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/19411 "2018-04-20T20:27:24Z")
> [@PatriotX](#): > > Those numbers are “party id”, not Trump approval That is the next big thing on the horizon: the id party. It is inevitable. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2018, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/19412 "2018-04-20T20:50:13Z")
Why not? We already have a President with a Super ego… ---
**Author:** ![GreysonCarlisle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a87d85/32.png) [@GreysonCarlisle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreysonCarlisle)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2018, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/19413 "2018-04-20T20:50:22Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > I think a lot of it is going for legal fees for himself and his family. > > [Legal fees made up 20% of Trump campaign spending this year](https://www.cnn.com/2018/04/15/politics/trump-campaign-legal-fees/index.html) He’ll need it, since he’s [never been especially wealthy](https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-lied-wealth-decades-reporter-155417260.html). Yes, there is a [tape](https://www.thedailybeast.com/uncovered-tape-shows-trump-lying-to-get-onto-forbes-400-list). ---
**Author:** ![SteveG1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@SteveG1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SteveG1)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2018, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/19414 "2018-04-20T21:09:19Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > You libtards think Trump is a bad president, but Obama once wore a _tan suit!_ :mad: The horror. The horror. ---
**Author:** ![SteveG1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@SteveG1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SteveG1)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2018, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/19415 "2018-04-20T21:15:04Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > I think a lot of it is going for legal fees for himself and his family. > > [Legal fees made up 20% of Trump campaign spending this year](https://www.cnn.com/2018/04/15/politics/trump-campaign-legal-fees/index.html) And I’m sure plenty more is going directly into his pocket. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2018, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/19416 "2018-04-20T21:29:55Z")
> [@GreysonCarlisle](#): > > He’ll need it, since he’s [never been especially wealthy](https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-lied-wealth-decades-reporter-155417260.html). Yes, there is a [tape](https://www.thedailybeast.com/uncovered-tape-shows-trump-lying-to-get-onto-forbes-400-list). I asked my boss how his dad stayed off the Forbes 400. “He doesn’t answer the phone when they call.” ---
**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:** [April 20, 2018, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/19417 "2018-04-20T22:19:58Z")
> [@EddyTeddyFreddy](#): > > There is this ray of hope: > > [From Steve Lichtman:](https://twitter.com/stevel3000/status/986835322884386816) > > > [@](#): > > > > Trump’s high approval rating among GOP voters is misleading–because fewer voters identify as Republican. In the first Gallup poll after his inauguration, party id was 31-37-31 (GOP/Ind/Dem). In the most recent poll party id was 23-45-29. It’s a (t)rump party of true believers. > > With some further thoughts in the Twitter thread. This was bothering me, so I went [to the source](http://news.gallup.com/poll/15370/party-affiliation.aspx). Do not use those numbers. They are a slice of a very noisy dataset. From May of 2012 to today, I get SDs of ~2.2/2.9/2.0 for the three terms. They are all the fuck over the place, to the point of being meaningless in raw form. Someone who can should trendline those stats to get a more realistic image of what they mean. ---
**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:** [April 21, 2018, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/19418 "2018-04-21T19:21:36Z")
Scott Pruitt says the lobbyist in whose house he lived and occasionally paid less than market rent never lobbied the government while Pruitt lived there. Turns out he did. When exposed, the lobbyist has resigned. Pruitt has not. > **[Lobbyist whose wife rented to Pruitt lobbied EPA despite denials](https://www.politico.com/story/2018/04/20/pruitt-condo-lobbyist-leaving-firm-543508)** > > An agency official acknowledges the meeting happened but denies it met the definition of lobbying. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2018, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/19419 "2018-04-21T20:20:43Z")
[Nobody wants to be Trump’s lawyer](https://www.bostonglobe.com/news/politics/2018/04/21/why-most-powerful-man-world-has-struggled-assemble-legal-team/hnXwFeot3YmytSVt9bNAyH/story.html?event=event25). ---
**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:** [April 21, 2018, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/19420 "2018-04-21T22:15:45Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > Scott Pruitt says the lobbyist in whose house he lived and occasionally paid less than market rent never lobbied the government while Pruitt lived there. Turns out he did. When exposed, the lobbyist has resigned. Pruitt has not. > [https://www.politico.com/story/2018/04/20/pruitt-condo-lobbyist-leaving-firm-543508](https://www.politico.com/story/2018/04/20/pruitt-condo-lobbyist-leaving-firm-543508) Pruitt may not have stayed at the top of the news, but he’s not forgotten: > [@](#): > > _ **Record Number of Lawmakers Sign Resolution Calling for Pruitt’s Resignation** _ > A group of 39 senators and 131 representatives signed a resolution calling for the “immediate resignation” of Scott Pruitt, the scandal-plagued U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator. > > The document represents a record number of senators to formally demand a cabinet official to step down. … [Record Number of Lawmakers Sign Resolution Calling for Pruitt's Resignation - EcoWatch](https://www.ecowatch.com/scott-pruitt-resignation-congress-2561438310.html) Sadly, > [@](#): > > No Republicans added their name to the document, even though Republican Reps. Elise Stefanik (NY), Carlos Curbelo (FL) and Illeana Ros-Lehtinen (FL.) have previously called for Pruitt’s resignation or firing. [ibid] Republicans from states that are suffering particular harm from Pruitt’s efforts to wreck the environment may eventually feel enough pressure to hold him to account, that they’ll sign on. ---
**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:** [April 21, 2018, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/19421 "2018-04-21T22:28:40Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > [Nobody wants to be Trump’s lawyer](https://www.bostonglobe.com/news/politics/2018/04/21/why-most-powerful-man-world-has-struggled-assemble-legal-team/hnXwFeot3YmytSVt9bNAyH/story.html?event=event25). Hey Rudy, you’ve been on quite a losing streak since 9/11 to here’s a few tips for you when signing up with the Trumpster: 1. Get your retainer up front. Bill on a regular basis. No payment extensions. No rubles. 2. Always have a second lawyer present during any conversation or communication with Agent Orange. Take copious notes, record, film as required. 3. Do not present any independent ideas or opinions without getting them in writing from the Shitgibbon (should this be capitalized?). Always refer to #2 above Thoughts and prayers, Rudy, thoughts and prayers. ---
**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:** [April 21, 2018, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/19422 "2018-04-21T22:51:43Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > Pruitt may not have stayed at the top of the news, but he’s not forgotten: > > > [@](#): > > > > _ **Record Number of Lawmakers Sign Resolution Calling for Pruitt’s Resignation** _ > > A group of 39 senators and 131 representatives signed a resolution calling for the “immediate resignation” of Scott Pruitt, the scandal-plagued U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator. > > > > The document represents a record number of senators to formally demand a cabinet official to step down. … > > [Record Number of Lawmakers Sign Resolution Calling for Pruitt's Resignation - EcoWatch](https://www.ecowatch.com/scott-pruitt-resignation-congress-2561438310.html) We had a kind of similar situation about 37 years ago with James Watt in Interior. But Ronnie did not get elected by being a shit-caked oozing asshole, so Watt’s replacement was a tad less dickish. By contrast, if Pruitt is pushed out like the turd that he is, the SCOA will double down and try to replace him with some nastier ooze-frosted shit that he got Kelly Conway to dig out of there with a bony finger. ---
**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:** [April 21, 2018, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/19423 "2018-04-21T23:00:56Z")
Current and former Presidents and spouses arrive for Barbara Bush’s service: [![](http://cnnwire.images.worldnow.com/images/16591720_G.jpg) ](http://cnnwire.images.worldnow.com/images/16591720_G.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![jasg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f0a364/32.png) [@jasg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jasg)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2018, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070/19424 "2018-04-22T00:52:47Z")
Regarding Pruitt, it keeps getting better and better… In 2003 as a state senator, he used a shell company to [purchase](https://www.cnn.com/2018/04/21/politics/scott-pruitt-nyt-oklahoma-home-shell-company/index.html) a home being sold by a retiring lobbyist. > [@](#): > > A review of real estate and other public records shows that Mr. Pruitt was not the sole owner: The property was held by a shell company registered to a business partner and law school friend, Kenneth Wagner. Mr. Wagner now holds a top political job at the Environmental Protection Agency, where Mr. Pruitt, 49, is the administrator. > > The mortgage on the Oklahoma City home, the records show, was issued by a local bank that was led by another business associate of Mr. Pruitt’s, Albert Kelly. Recently barred from working in the finance industry because of a banking violation, Mr. Kelly is now one of Mr. Pruitt’s top aides at the E.P.A. and runs the agency’s Superfund program. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070.md?page=970) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-trump-administration-a-clusterfuck-in-the-making/774070.md?page=972)