Author Topic: Trump Presidency #2  (Read 32616 times)

jaxlongtimer

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Trump Presidency #2
« on: November 14, 2024, 02:08:38 PM »
No doubt, Trump has already given, and will continue to give, us much to pontificate on during the next 4 years so setting this thread up to provide an outlet for posters here to vent.

I will start with the word of the day, a real word mind you! Kakistocracy... that perfectly describes where many of us think we are headed.  It is defined as:
Quote
kak·i·sto·cra·cy
/kakəˈstäkrəsē/
noun
government by the least suitable or competent citizens of a state.
"the danger is that this will reduce us to kakistocracy"
a state or society governed by its least suitable or competent citizens.
plural noun: kakistocracies
"the modern regime is at once a plutocracy and a kakistocracy"

From Wikipedia:
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A kakistocracy (/kækɪˈstɒkrəsi/, /kækɪsˈtɒ-/) is a government run by the worst, least qualified, or most unscrupulous citizens.[1]: 54 [2][3] The word was coined as early as the seventeenth century.[4] Peter Bowler has noted in his book that there is no word for the government run by the best citizens,[a] and that the aristarchy may be the right term, but still, it could conceivably be a kakistocracy disguised as an aristocracy.[a]

Etymology
The word is derived from two Greek words, kakistos (κάκιστος; worst) and kratos (κράτος; rule), with a literal meaning of government by the worst people.[5]

History
The earliest use of the word dates to the 17th century, in Paul Gosnold's A sermon Preached at the Publique Fast the ninth day of Aug. 1644 at St. Maries:[4]....

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kakistocracy
« Last Edit: November 14, 2024, 02:25:36 PM by jaxlongtimer »

WarDamJagFan

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Re: Trump Presidency #2
« Reply #1 on: November 14, 2024, 02:20:36 PM »
You all survived the first 4 years. You'll survive another. Downtown Jax may not survive another 4 years if they continue their preschool level attempts to solve the vagrant crisis.

jaxlongtimer

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Re: Trump Presidency #2
« Reply #2 on: November 14, 2024, 04:55:23 PM »
^ Trump & Co. are determined to dismantle our defense, food & health safety, environmental, intelligence and justice departments for a start.  So, with Russia, China, contaminated foods, epidemics, climate change, terrorists and criminals all allowed to go about unfettered due to agency heads who do not believe in their agency's mission or competency to confront such issues, I am not sure what the odds of survival are this time.

Don't disagree about concerns over downtown's future... maybe Trump should quit DC and come to Jax... after all, his background is promoting real estate development.  Would solve at least 2 problems at once  8).

BridgeTroll

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Re: Trump Presidency #2
« Reply #3 on: November 14, 2024, 05:19:36 PM »
I can go with Rubio as Secretary of State… I actually like his Chief of Staff… Thune as Senate Majority Leader is thoughtful and sane… The rest??? OMG… god help us. I think some of these nominees are simply to identify Republicans who are not COMPLETELY on board with Trxxx. I can’t even say his name. I’m sad as a former lifelong Reagan republican to see what Trxxx has done to the party. The January 6 BS was the last straw for me. Will never be a Trxxxlican.
In a boat at sea one of the men began to bore a hole in the bottom of the boat. On being remonstrating with, he answered, "I am only boring under my own seat." "Yes," said his companions, "but when the sea rushes in we shall all be drowned with you."

thelakelander

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Re: Trump Presidency #2
« Reply #4 on: November 14, 2024, 06:34:25 PM »
^I haven't paid much attention since election day. As an Independent, I don't get too up or down around national election results. My prediction is this group will screw up and there will be another swing in the opposite direction four years down the road. That's the world of the two party dominant system right now. I'm most interested in seeing how Jax fares in getting federal money over the next four years.
"A man who views the world the same at 50 as he did at 20 has wasted 30 years of his life.” - Muhammad Ali

BridgeTroll

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Re: Trump Presidency #2
« Reply #5 on: November 14, 2024, 06:41:02 PM »
^I haven't paid much attention since election day. As an Independent, I don't get too up or down around national election results. My prediction is this group will screw up and there will be another swing in the opposite direction four years down the road. That's the world of the two party dominant system right now. I'm most interested in seeing how Jax fares in getting federal money over the next four years.

I’m a new Independent… I don’t have the optimism that you do. I’m hoping for the swing but things are kinda crazy right now…
In a boat at sea one of the men began to bore a hole in the bottom of the boat. On being remonstrating with, he answered, "I am only boring under my own seat." "Yes," said his companions, "but when the sea rushes in we shall all be drowned with you."

jaxlongtimer

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Re: Trump Presidency #2
« Reply #6 on: November 14, 2024, 07:44:35 PM »
^I haven't paid much attention since election day. As an Independent, I don't get too up or down around national election results. My prediction is this group will screw up and there will be another swing in the opposite direction four years down the road. That's the world of the two party dominant system right now. I'm most interested in seeing how Jax fares in getting federal money over the next four years.

Assuming this country isn't in tatters at the end of 4 years, I do believe the real possibility of a swing is there.  Not just for historical reasons but Trump-world will have worn out its welcome, starting with the economy.  His stated plans to run off migrant labor, impose tariffs and increase the deficit with more tax cuts are going to lead to both higher inflation and higher interest rates that will make the last 4 years look mild.

Unless Rutherford and Bean step in for Jax, don't count on many Federal dollars coming our way with Deegan as mayor who publicly endorsed Harris.  And, again, assuming Musk is charged with substantially cutting Federal spending, that there will be any grants of note for any locality.

Everyone needs to be paying attention at this time regardless of political position as Trump is doing things no president has ever done before.  This is an unprecedented situation and for any of us to not pay close attention is dangerous to our personal welfare.

His administration has so far refused to sign the ethics standards required by a law a bipartisan Congress passed a few years ago.  He is appointing incompetent, inexperienced, compromised and/or questionably ethical persons to his cabinet and other critical positions that will do whatever he wants without question or consequence to the national interests, only to the benefit of Trump's interests or desire to go after his perceived "enemies." 

This will not be democracy as we know it and Trump is pushing aside the checks and balances we thought we had on a president's powers.  If not a dictatorship, it will be only steps away unless Congress and the Supreme Court push back in a way not yet demonstrated or indicated.

WarDamJagFan

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Re: Trump Presidency #2
« Reply #7 on: November 15, 2024, 11:56:10 AM »
^

Don't disagree about concerns over downtown's future... maybe Trump should quit DC and come to Jax... after all, his background is promoting real estate development.  Would solve at least 2 problems at once  8).

Bring back the Casino talks! A Trump casino in Jax next to Shad's Jaguars is a match made in heaven.  :)

jaxlongtimer

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Re: Trump Presidency #2
« Reply #8 on: November 15, 2024, 12:55:32 PM »
^

Don't disagree about concerns over downtown's future... maybe Trump should quit DC and come to Jax... after all, his background is promoting real estate development.  Would solve at least 2 problems at once  8).

Bring back the Casino talks! A Trump casino in Jax next to Shad's Jaguars is a match made in heaven.  :)

I dunno... Trump's Atlantic City casino projects were a financial disaster.  And, as a convicted felon, I don't think he could get a casino license nowadays but, hey, he can be president of the U.S. >:(.

jaxlongtimer

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Re: Trump Presidency #2
« Reply #9 on: November 15, 2024, 11:17:26 PM »
Aside from disappointing those who didn't vote for him, Trump's picks are giving fits to his own GOP allies.  To date, his team has not signed the ethics agreements required by law and, in an unprecedented move, has refused to let the FBI do background checks on his appointments.  As such, expect more surprises as the media has to do the job of revealing their true backgrounds.

To add, Arab Americans are among the first to begin to think they got bamboozled by Trump.  If so, they shouldn't be surprised as they were warned and should have been able to know how Trump operates by now... a fast talking salesman only looking to reward himself at the expense of others.  Trump never told anyone how he was going to bring peace to the Middle East or Ukraine/Russia wars that have become intractable to efforts by many others to date.  So why did they think Trump had some magic wand?

Here is what is likely to be the first of many articles regarding constituencies who voted for him finding bait and switch being pulled on them:

Quote
Arab Americans who backed Trump disappointed by pro-Israel picks for cabinet and senior roles

During his campaign, Donald Trump reached out to Arab Americans with promises that he would bring about peace in the Middle East – but to the chagrin of many in the community, recent nominations to top foreign policy posts have included staunchly pro-Israel figures.

The Trump campaign's overtures to the Arab-American community gained him some support in key swing states among voters who wanted to punish the Democrats over their support for Israel in the wars in Gaza and Lebanon. The nominations to top posts so far, however, have caused great concern and disappointment among some Arab Americans who backed him....

https://www.thenationalnews.com/news/us/2024/11/14/trump-cabinet-israel-arab-americans/

Wait until voters for him find out he is likely going to wreck the economy, weaken our military, invite terrorism by ignoring the intelligence community, corrupt the legal system with his incompetent appointments at DoJ and for judges, endanger our health by running off vaccine, food safety and environmental scientists and researchers, diminish our national parks and protected lands, bankrupt Social Security and Medicare, rapidly grow the national debt and mortgage the future of the country for decades to come as we fall behind on cutting edge advancements in technology, medicine, etc. while he destroys the education infrastructure that made us the greatest civilization in the world.

Our only hope is that more rational members of his own party put the brakes on him.  The appointment confirmation process will be our first chance to see if Congress fulfills its roles as a check and balance on him as devised by our Constitution.

BridgeTroll

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Re: Trump Presidency #2
« Reply #10 on: November 16, 2024, 07:06:42 AM »
Quote
Our only hope is that more rational members of his own party put the brakes on him.  The appointment confirmation process will be our first chance to see if Congress fulfills its roles as a check and balance on him as devised by our Constitution.

A very slim hope...lol  ::) :o
In a boat at sea one of the men began to bore a hole in the bottom of the boat. On being remonstrating with, he answered, "I am only boring under my own seat." "Yes," said his companions, "but when the sea rushes in we shall all be drowned with you."

Charles Hunter

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Re: Trump Presidency #2
« Reply #11 on: November 16, 2024, 08:33:20 AM »
Quote
Aside from disappointing those who didn't vote for him, Trump's picks are giving fits to his own GOP allies.  To date, his team has not signed the ethics agreements required by law and, in an unprecedented move, has refused to let the FBI do background checks on his appointments.  As such, expect more surprises as the media has to do the job of revealing their true backgrounds.

I hope the media does their investigative job - but I'm not going to hold my breath, they didn't do a good job of reporting on DT's mental state.

vicupstate

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Re: Trump Presidency #2
« Reply #12 on: November 16, 2024, 10:30:20 AM »
You all survived the first 4 years. You'll survive another. Downtown Jax may not survive another 4 years if they continue their preschool level attempts to solve the vagrant crisis.

Not indicative at all. The first time there were guards rails. His staff was mostly sane and understood what was inside the law and what wasn't. Keep in mind that he wanted police to open fire on unarmed citizens in his first term. It will not be anything like that now. Trump would listen to others before but he will be MUCH, MUCH less likely to do so now. Nevermind the fact that he will be beholden to Elon Musk.

His economic program of tariffs will create an economic earthquake if he actually pursues it. J.P. Morgan, Goldman Sachs and about three dozen Nobel Prize winning economists have already said as much. So has Elon Musk.

I've spent my entire adult life working to put myself in a good place for my retirement, which I am now enjoying. I fear those plans may run off the rails if Trump proceeds with his agenda.  That is to say nothing of the system of checks and balances that he clearly has no respect for and the obvious goal of him to use the government to settle his scores.

People think it can't happen here, but that is foolish thinking.       



I will say I am surprised there has been mention anywhere on here about Susie Wiles being his Chief of Staff.  I will be surprised if she lasts a year though. 
"The problem with quotes on the internet is you can never be certain they're authentic." - Abraham Lincoln

Charles Hunter

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Re: Trump Presidency #2
« Reply #13 on: November 16, 2024, 01:44:46 PM »
Senate? Senate? He don't need no stinkin' Senate!

Quote
Vox
https://www.vox.com/politics/385884/trump-recess-appointments-cabinet-adjourn-senate-ed-whelan

Trump may start his second term with a stunning power grab

Could Trump force the Senate into recess — and then appoint whoever he wanted to the government?

Throughout the transition, Trump has made several references to his intent to use “recess appointments” to get his appointees in place more quickly. This refers to a longstanding presidential power to fill jobs that typically require Senate confirmation if Congress is in recess. The Constitution included that power in an era when reconvening a recessed Congress would take months of travel time; more recently, presidents have used it to get around Senate opposition for certain picks.

Yet Trump’s references to recess appointments were vague, and it was unclear exactly why he sounded so insistent on them. The new Congress would not need to recess for some time. The Senate surely would consider his top nominees quickly. The new Republican majority would likely be deferential to most of his choices, and the Democratic minority has no power to actually block any of them. So why would recess appointments be necessary so soon?

...

The Constitution states that during a congressional session, both chambers of Congress must consent if they want to adjourn Congress for more than three days. But it also says that “in Case of Disagreement between them, with Respect to the Time of Adjournment,” the president “may adjourn them to such Time as he shall think proper.”

In layperson’s terms, that would seem to say that if the House and Senate disagree on when to adjourn, the president can force them to do so. This power has never been used by the president.

But according to Whelan’s sources in the conservative legal movement, this is the plan Trump’s team is putting together. First, Trump would get the House of Representatives under Speaker Mike Johnson to propose adjourning Congress. Then, if the Senate refused to do so, President Trump would step in, saying that because the two chambers disagreed, he’d use his power to force the Senate to adjourn. He would then make recess appointments to his heart’s content.

...

If Trump pulled this off, it would be an utter humiliation for incoming Senate Majority Leader John Thune and Republican senators generally — it basically would be taking a wrecking ball to the power of the Senate.

The scheme would also require, as Whelan points out, the cooperation of Speaker Johnson and his House majority. But it is far from clear whether Republicans in either chamber — or the courts — have the inclination or the spine to stand up to an unprecedented power grab by Trump. And the rumors of it bode ill for other Trumpian abuses of power that will surely lie ahead.

jaxlongtimer

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Re: Trump Presidency #2
« Reply #14 on: November 19, 2024, 05:26:13 PM »
Looks like being a TV personality/celebrity is the main qualification for most any job in Trump's administration starting, of course, with himself. Running the U.S. like a reality TV show.  Ironically, it is likely that many of the people who voted for him may be the biggest losers under his administration... by far.
Quote
President-elect Donald Trump has chosen Mehmet Oz, the celebrity physician and TV personality known as Dr. Oz, to be administrator of CMS.

During the pandemic, Dr. Oz, 64, pushed unproven theories about Covid-19 cures, including hydroxychloroquine, that caught Trump’s eye. In 2022, Oz ran unsuccessfully for U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania, losing to now-Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.)....

....The pick continues a trend of Trump picking television fixtures for key administration roles, including Pete Hegseth for Defense secretary and Doug Collins for VA secretary. A person familiar with the situation granted anonymity to speak candidly said Oz was not among the early candidates on the list for the job....

https://www.politico.com/news/2024/11/19/dr-oz-cms-administrator-trump-00189456