U.S. Politics megathread (merged)

[Unknown user]

7 hours ago, I P Knightley said:

If I were being kind, I would say that that last one was her attempting to stop her coat/dress from blowing up around her head in the wind. I could have handled having that happen and getting a good look at her blart.

 

We live in a world where we've seen the first lady's chebs but not the president's taxes, I wouldn't rule it out.

[JFK-1]

5 hours ago, Joey J J Jr Shabadoo said:

The Evangelicals will love it. And refuse to wear masks.

 

And they will continue spreading the virus, dying at a huge rate while the rest of the world contains the virus. They have manoeuvred themselves into a loop of stupid they can't get out of.

[Cade]

"Sir, what do you think of the QAnon people?"

"I don't know much about it other than they like me, which I always appreciate."

"It's a conspiracy theory that there is a secret coven of world leaders who are cannibals and paedophiles and that you are the only one who can save the world from them, Mr President"

"Well I haven't heard that, but is that supposed to be a bad thing or a good thing? You know, if I can help save the world from some problems I'm willing to do it, I'm willing to put myself out there"

 

JESUS FECKIN CHRIST

 

[JFK-1]

Trump is the answer to all urgent issues including cannibalism. I mean how many people out there are being eaten to death every day?  Not so good on the trivial stuff like a pandemic killing a thousand Americans a day.

[Cade]

Laura Loomer, a far-right conspiracy theorist who describes herself as "a proud Islamophobe" and who has been banned from  Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, PayPal, GoFundMe, Uber, Lyft, Medium and VenMo for breaching hate speech rules, has won a republican primary in Palm Beach.

 

She's been arrested countless times.

[Des Lynam]

Trump is 11/8 to win the 2020 race. That is enticing. 

[Mysterion]

5 minutes ago, Des Lynam said:

Trump is 11/8 to win the 2020 race. That is enticing. 

 

Tempting.... defo a win win scenario here. He wins and i can use the winnings to get drunk, he loses and the world can be happier.

[Des Lynam]

1 minute ago, Mysterion said:

 

Tempting.... defo a win win scenario here. He wins and i can use the winnings to get drunk, he loses and the world can be happier.

I can’t see anything but a Trump win. I’m still shocked the DNC went with Biden. Now we’re all banking on Kamala not to be Kamala. 

[The Real Maroonblood]

1 hour ago, Cade said:

Laura Loomer, a far-right conspiracy theorist who describes herself as "a proud Islamophobe" and who has been banned from  Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, PayPal, GoFundMe, Uber, Lyft, Medium and VenMo for breaching hate speech rules, has won a republican primary in Palm Beach.

 

She's been arrested countless times.

Another nut job in the Trump camp.

[The Internet]

Not strictly Trump related but I've read the wildfires in Cali are out of control (moreso than usual) because the prisoners they need to fight them are too ill or on lockdown from covid. Quite American. 

[Mysterion]

58 minutes ago, Des Lynam said:

I can’t see anything but a Trump win. I’m still shocked the DNC went with Biden. Now we’re all banking on Kamala not to be Kamala. 

 

I guess it depends on whether people can hold their nose and vote for Biden much the same way they did when voting for Trump over Hilary. I expect the popular vote will again go to the Democrat candidate and it will come down to legal challenges like Bush/Gore.

[Maple Leaf]

15 hours ago, Eldar Hadzimehmedovic said:

 

Party of Lincoln. 

 

What a sad state of affairs. Republicans just all in on culture warring. No policies, no ideas, no vision. They literally have nothing left to offer except grievance, bitterness, and hate. 

 

The most astonishing part is that that will be enough for almost half the voting public. 

 

The objectives of the Republicans can be easily summed up:  keep our guns, ban abortion, hate gay people, appoint conservatives judges at every opportunity at every level.

 

You're right.  That agenda will get at least 40% of the votes.

[trotter]

3 hours ago, Maple Leaf said:

 

The objectives of the Republicans can be easily summed up:  keep our guns, ban abortion, hate gay people, appoint conservatives judges at every opportunity at every level.

 

You're right.  That agenda will get at least 40% of the votes.

You forgot about immigration. But other than that yup, its a depressing thought

[I P Knightley]

19 hours ago, fancy a brew said:

 

I think you can get a quick glimpse.

Look to her right, he's trying to grab her arm.

Ba-doom-tish!

 

14 hours ago, Joey J J Jr Shabadoo said:

He'll be hoping the NZ cases go through the roof, to aid his election campaign, Then he can use that as evidence that what he's done right, yada yada yada.

The Evangelicals will love it. And refuse to wear masks.

I think someone must have explained to him how percentages work.

 

NZ cases going up by 20 from diddly squat is a HUGE percentage - they're failing, real bad, it's CHINA's fault

 

US deaths in the thousands per day - but we've done so much testing; the more testing we do, the lower the death rate as a percentage of tests we have - winning.

 

Balloon.

[westbow]

5 hours ago, Des Lynam said:

Trump is 11/8 to win the 2020 race. That is enticing. 

Tell you what, oddschecker is predicting he will win. Based only on the amount of money being placed. They were right about him last time, and Brexit.

[The Internet]

Might put £50 on him just to make sure he loses. 

[westbow]

1 minute ago, Mauricio Pinilla said:

Might put £50 on him just to make sure he loses. 

His odds changed when Kamala Harris became Bidens running mate. Bit strange as I would have thought Trump would have had all the racists and misogynists in the bag anyway.

[NANOJAMBO]

Former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon was arrested on Thursday after being charged with defrauding hundreds of thousands of donors through his “We Build the Wall” fundraising campaig

 

Bannon and three of his associates were indicted by investigators for the Southern District of New York. Prosecutors allege that the group of conservatives defrauded donors, by raising “more than $25 million to build a wall along the southern border of the United States,” but some of that money was used for personal gain, according to the press release. 

 

Prosecutors claim that the defendants “collectively received hundreds of thousands of dollars in donor funds from ‘We Build the Wall,’ which they each used in a manner inconsistent with the organization’s public representations,” according to the indictment. 

Edited August 20, 2020 by NANOJAMBO

[Sharpie]

Steve Bannon arrested and locked up for fraud. Was part of a group at the time of the election soliciting from donors funds to build the Wall. Investigators found that the funds were instead kept for personal use. Another of a growing list of Trumpites charged or accused of misdeeds , if Trump is not a crook he certainly is a poor judge of character in his relationships.

 A Federal Judge has also dismissed his suit to not have his financial records released.

[Cade]

US Postal Service agents arrested Bannon

 

[Cade]

Trump fails in another attempt to withhold his financial documents.

This time he was claiming that the subpoena was politically motivated and amounted to harassment.

Federal judge told his legal team to feck off.

Subpoena stands.

[Maple Leaf]

20 minutes ago, Cade said:

Trump fails in another attempt to withhold his financial documents.

This time he was claiming that the subpoena was politically motivated and amounted to harassment.

Federal judge told his legal team to feck off.

Subpoena stands.

 

I wish someone would tell Trump to feck off.

[Maple Leaf]

1 hour ago, Sharpie said:

Steve Bannon arrested and locked up for fraud. Was part of a group at the time of the election soliciting from donors funds to build the Wall. Investigators found that the funds were instead kept for personal use. Another of a growing list of Trumpites charged or accused of misdeeds , if Trump is not a crook he certainly is a poor judge of character in his relationships.

 A Federal Judge has also dismissed his suit to not have his financial records released.

 

A quote from the "The Magnificent Seven" comes to mind ...

 

"If the Lord did not want them to be sheared, he would not have made them sheep."

[JackLadd]

Bannon must have plenty Donnie dirt to barter with. Trump better get in quick with the pardon. 

[JFK-1]

2 minutes ago, Maple Leaf said:

 

A quote from the "The Magnificent Seven" comes to mind ...

 

"If the Lord did not want them to be sheared, he would not have made them sheep."

 

A quote from the Bard Robert Burns comes to mind.

"Such a parcel of rogues in a nation"

[J.T.F.Robertson]

1 hour ago, Sharpie said:

Steve Bannon arrested and locked up for fraud. Was part of a group at the time of the election soliciting from donors funds to build the Wall. Investigators found that the funds were instead kept for personal use. Another of a growing list of Trumpites charged or accused of misdeeds , if Trump is not a crook he certainly is a poor judge of character in his relationships.

 A Federal Judge has also dismissed his suit to not have his financial records released.

 

This swamp draining has turned out to a lot more complicated than it looked.

[Cade]

The Witch Hunt successfully identifies yet another witch.

 

 

[Maple Leaf]

17 minutes ago, JackLadd said:

Bannon must have plenty Donnie dirt to barter with. Trump better get in quick with the pardon. 

 

The charges were laid by the Southern District of New York, which makes it a State charge.  A Federal pardon by Trump would have no effect.  Bannon is in deep trouble.

[Kalamazoo Jambo]

6 minutes ago, Maple Leaf said:

 

The charges were laid by the Southern District of New York, which makes it a State charge.  A Federal pardon by Trump would have no effect.  Bannon is in deep trouble.

 

Not had much time to look into this today so don't have all the facts available, but the Southern District of New York is part of the Federal system, not State. However, it's possible that the State of New York could separately press charges.

 

Edit: yep, they're Federal charges.

[JackLadd]

Just now, Maple Leaf said:

 

The charges were laid by the Southern District of New York, which makes it a State charge.  A Federal pardon by Trump would have no effect.  Bannon is in deep trouble.

 

40 years in the can for Donnie's maga chief strategist then. Remember Trump also had Bannon on the National Security Council. Only hires best people...  

[Maple Leaf]

2 minutes ago, Kalamazoo Jambo said:

 

Not had much time to look into this today so don't have all the facts available, but the Southern District of New York is part of the Federal system, not State. However, it's possible that the State of New York could separately press charges.

 

 

 

Thanks for that.  Every day's a school day!

[Maple Leaf]

5 minutes ago, JackLadd said:

 

40 years in the can for Donnie's maga chief strategist then. Remember Trump also had Bannon on the National Security Council. Only hires best people...  

 

I was wrong, apparently.  It is a Federal charge, not a state charge.

 

However, Bannon is still in deep trouble if he's hoping for a Trump pardon.  They're not exactly best of pals these days.

[JackLadd]

7 minutes ago, Maple Leaf said:

 

I was wrong, apparently.  It is a Federal charge, not a state charge.

 

However, Bannon is still in deep trouble if he's hoping for a Trump pardon.  They're not exactly best of pals these days.

 

 

He needs to get a pardon or I sing message to Donnie. 

[Justin Z]

18 hours ago, Eldar Hadzimehmedovic said:

 

Party of Lincoln. 

 

What a sad state of affairs. Republicans just all in on culture warring. No policies, no ideas, no vision. They literally have nothing left to offer except grievance, bitterness, and hate. 

 

The most astonishing part is that that will be enough for almost half the voting public. 

 

Spot on, and these post-factual grievance politics have been building for nearly four decades. As I saw somewhere on the internet as I was waking up this morning, "QAnon is the Tea Party's final form."

[Justin Z]

Eric Holder weighing in on the intentional destruction of US Post Office capabilities

 

 

https://twitter.com/EricHolder/status/1296176192614289409

 

 

 

[Kalamazoo Jambo]

1 hour ago, Maple Leaf said:

 

Thanks for that.  Every day's a school day!

 

Yeah, it's pretty confusing but basically there are U.S. Attorneys around the country as part of the Federal system (and the Southern District of New York falls under that).

 

If you see something from the New York State Attorney General's office, that would be at State level.

 

[hueyview]

On 19/08/2020 at 18:39, Justin Z said:

This is not satire

 

James Wood's never been the same since appearing on family guy.....😲

[JFK-1]

On 19/08/2020 at 12:39, Justin Z said:

This is not satire

 

 

I think it is satire, they just don't know it or intend it to be. Wonder what the demon sperm doctor will talk about. I hope it's demons and alien DNA. Might even watch that.

[Kiwidoug]

Tell who won't be there.  Steve Bannon.  4 years ago he was on top of the world with his extreme right wing  racist cronies.  Today, he's looking like doing a fair stretch of porridge.

 

Tough break Stevie.

[NANOJAMBO]

On 19/08/2020 at 10:42, fancy a brew said:

 

Not for the first time either. For the first few months of his presidency Melania refused to move into the White House, allegedly they were hammering out more favourable terms to her post-nup agreement before she would deign to play the happy wife. It obviously doesn't contain a touching in public clause.

 

 

Fire & Fury (Michael Wolff) - she hates his family and never wanted him to run for president. Trump assured her he would never win (repeatedly) but it all went titzup when Steve Bannon swung it for him very late in the campaign. 

[Craig Gordons Gloves]

That RNC list of speakers is amazing.  TBF though, they could put up a bunch of muppets and as long as they said the words "radical left, destroy, hate america" then they'll all vote for Trump anyway. 

 

I've really begun to notice the 'me me me' attitude here over the past 6 months, it's all about the individual and **** everyone else.  Hence why, even with all the shite he's pulled over the past 3 1/2 years, a whole load of voters still admire him because it's exactly what they would do - focus on themselves and **** everyone else. 

[JFK-1]

I'm puzzled by the apparent democratic silence on the senate report once again confirming, as if we didn't already know, that there was collusion with Russians during the 2016 campaign.

Now the Republicans who were on that panel are trying to claim it doesn't prove collusion by redefining the meaning of collusion. But for the first time to my knowledge it's a Republican admission, on some level, that there was indeed at a bare minimum election interference carried out by Russia.

Trump has repeatedly denied it. Most strongly so after ex KGB director Putin told him it wasn't true. Hey, why would Putin lie?
 

Quote

In a press conference with Putin, Trump said despite the intelligence community's findings, Putin was convincing in his denial of meddling.
 

“They said they think it’s Russia. I have President Putin; he just said it’s not Russia,” Trump said at a press conference with Putin.
 

“I will say this: I don't see any reason why it would be,” Trump added.

“So, I have great confidence in my intelligence people, but I will tell you that President Putin was extremely strong and powerful in his denial today.”

 

The Democrats appear to be not even commenting on it. Could this be because they know charges are pending and it's wiser to say nothing at this point? Or alternatively say nothing and wait till he's out of office to be all over him with charges?

Or, just wait till the election result comes in and if Trump wins it then go for another impeachment with the evidence?

Another thing i'm wondering about is can Trump pardon himself for charges that were not even pressed before he got booted out of office? Some sort of pre pardon despite not yet having been charged.

[JFK-1]

I found one statement from Nancy Pelosi.
 

Quote

“The Senate’s bipartisan report further exposes the alarming lengths to which Donald Trump and his campaign welcomed and relied on a hostile foreign power’s interference in the 2016 election.
 

“America’s intelligence and law enforcement communities have made clear that the Russian Government is continuing to wage a massive intervention campaign to benefit the President, warning of a ‘365-days-a-year threat’ to compromise the 2020 elections and undermine our democracy.

Yet, instead of strengthening our nation’s defenses, the President is publicly giving foreign powers the green light to attack our elections.  Again and again, Trump sells out our American democracy and values to pursue his own political interests.
 

“As our first act in the Majority, House Democrats advanced H.R. 1, the For The People Act, to secure our elections, and we have since passed multiple bills to strengthen our election systems and combat foreign election interference.

This report is a chilling reminder that Leader McConnell’s obstruction of meaningful election security legislation is leaving our democracy exposed to foreign attack.”

https://www.speaker.gov/newsroom/81820

 

[Maple Leaf]

54 minutes ago, JFK-1 said:

Another thing i'm wondering about is can Trump pardon himself for charges that were not even pressed before he got booted out of office? Some sort of pre pardon despite not yet having been charged.

 

It's not clear if Trump can self pardon, although Trump believes that he can.  The wording of the US constitution doesn't say he can't pardon himself, so many scholars interpret that to mean that he can.

 

the president "shall have power to grant reprieves and pardons for offenses against the United States."

[JFK-1]

13 minutes ago, Maple Leaf said:

 

It's not clear if Trump can self pardon, although Trump believes that he can.  The wording of the US constitution doesn't say he can't pardon himself, so many scholars interpret that to mean that he can.

 

the president "shall have power to grant reprieves and pardons for offenses against the United States."

 

But for arguments sake let's say he can pardon himself of criminal charges. What if no charges have been levelled at him before he gets booted out? Can he pardon himself from a crime they haven't even charged him with before leaving office?

[JackLadd]

11 minutes ago, JFK-1 said:

 

But for arguments sake let's say he can pardon himself of criminal charges. What if no charges have been levelled at him before he gets booted out? Can he pardon himself from a crime they haven't even charged him with before leaving office?

 

We're going to find that one out because Trump will 100% try to pardon himself. 

 

Btw Biden killed it with his speech.

[JFK-1]

3 minutes ago, JackLadd said:

 

We're going to find that one out because Trump will 100% try to pardon himself. 

 

Btw Biden killed it with his speech.

 

I don't doubt for a moment Trump will try to pardon himself. But when he does he's going to have a lot of paperwork. His son in law and at least one of his sons were in on it too. Haven't seen Biden speech.

[JFK-1]

Speech was delivered well enough and hit all the points.
 

Quote

Trump took to Twitter to attack the speech not for its content or delivery, but that it was "just words".

 

That's supposed to negate it? LOL

[Unknown user]

3 hours ago, JFK-1 said:

 

But for arguments sake let's say he can pardon himself of criminal charges. What if no charges have been levelled at him before he gets booted out? Can he pardon himself from a crime they haven't even charged him with before leaving office?

Yes. Others who have received pardons have also received immunity for any other charges yet to be levelled, so it's possible if he can indeed pardon himself

 

However, as I understand it, that's at federal level. I dont think he can do shit about state charges.

Edited August 21, 2020 by Smithee

[JFK-1]

In my view Trump is a national security risk for years to come and they need to do something about him. He has been in Russia on multiple occasions. Now is anybody naive to think that they didn't have any room he was in anywhere he went bugged in every manner possible?

They know things about him he would sell his entire family far less the nation to keep concealed.  If I can deduce that the security services most certainly can.