The (Semi) Official Trump Election/Inauguration thread...

[Alpo]

How old do you think he is?

BTW, I came of age during Iran-Contra and Kut's pretty much right about the facts. He extrapolates somewhat different conclusions from mine, but he's not wrong.

I bit my tongue and decided not to "correct" any new interpretation of Iran-Contra, or mention the genocide in Guatemala, or the regime changes directed by our government in South America. I lived through it too.

 

[Alpo]

There is no shortage of it in this thread. I'll hold off on conversations about policy and goings-on until the man takes office and actually begins his term. If he does stupid **** I'll call him on it, if he does good **** I'll give him credit.

I'm actually a little optimistic that he might accomplish quite a bit besides being an egomaniac and an *******. I don't want to have dinner with him, or sleep with him (wink, wink) or listen to his bull****, but if he gets things done, I'll be very happy.

 

[ArcadiaGP]

but if he gets things done, I'll be very happy.

Damn straight. Cautiously optimistic, but optimistic none-the-less. I'm hoping our biggest adversary for the next 4 years will just be the media... instead of perceived anger we have with each other. I'm hoping he backs away from the Twitter when he takes office, and things stay relatively quiet. The "fake news" narrative that Hillary/Obama introduced wasn't an accident... I think there will be a big leftist push against certain media outlets here for a while.

 

[T.Lex]

Yeah. I just wonder how long he can last.

From what I've seen in my years of seasoning, skills that make one excel in business do not always translate into skills that excel in government. It would be great if they did. But they don't.

 

[phylodog]

Yeah. I just wonder how long he can last.

From what I've seen in my years of seasoning, skills that make one excel in business do not always translate into skills that excel in government. It would be great if they did. But they don't.

Have we not had enough of those who excel in government? My big picture view tells me we could benefit greatly from a new species running the show.

 

[BlackGun]

 

[T.Lex]

Have we not had enough of those who excel in government? My big picture view tells me we could benefit greatly from a new species running the show.

You and about 60M other Americans played casting director for one of the biggest roles on the biggest stage and picked an amateur. (Again.)

All of us get to watch the show.

 

[printcraft]

Have we not had enough of those who excel in government? My big picture view tells me we could benefit greatly from a new species running the show.

Right?! They have been doing a bang up job so far.

 

[phylodog]

You and about 60M other Americans played casting director for one of the biggest roles on the biggest stage and picked an amateur. (Again.)

All of us get to watch the show.

I wonder why that is?

 

[indiucky]

Kudos to both of you......A good, honest, response.....Thank you from the bottom of my deranged, Trump loving heart....

Damn straight. Cautiously optimistic, but optimistic none-the-less. I'm hoping our biggest adversary for the next 4 years will just be the media... instead of perceived anger we have with each other. I'm hoping he backs away from the Twitter when he takes office, and things stay relatively quiet. The "fake news" narrative that Hillary/Obama introduced wasn't an accident... I think there will be a big leftist push against certain media outlets here for a while.

"I'm actually a little optimistic that he might accomplish quite a bit besides being an egomaniac and an *******. I don't want to have dinner with him, or sleep with him (wink, wink) or listen to his bull****, but if he gets things done, I'll be very happy." Alpo

 

[Alpo]

Well, he accomplished "a great deal" already by keeping Hillary and Bill out of the White House. That team always gave me heartburn. It's a sad commentary on the democrats that the next best was Bernie. Even though I like Bernie's honesty, he isn't mainstream with traditional democrats (I define "tradition" as those of us who sit down with our families at dinner, don't talk with our mouth full, understand the meaning of the word "service" and say thank you when we receive it....you know: non-millennials.

 

[T.Lex]

I wonder why that is?

You and me both.

 

[phylodog]

I'm confident it wasn't done for the entertainment value.

 

[indiucky]

Well, he accomplished "a great deal" already by keeping Hillary and Bill out of the White House. That team always gave me heartburn. It's a sad commentary on the democrats that the next best was Bernie. Even though I like Bernie's honesty, he isn't mainstream with traditional democrats (I define "tradition" as those of us who sit down with our families at dinner, don't talk with our mouth full, understand the meaning of the word "service" and say thank you when we receive it....you know: non-millennials.

Alpo...The last of the Blue Dog, God Fearing, working class Democrats...Be careful or I will let Greenpeace know you are still out there...They run Jim Webb out thinking he was the last one left....

 

[jamil]

Ok, I challenge you, jludo, kut and any others who believe there are people who actually believe this to please identify them.

I personally believe there are a few on here who had the foresight to think Trump actually had a chance and are now happy. There are others who adopted a pro Trump stance after the primaries (as did I) and are now hopeful. Some were never Hillary and are glad she is not the President elect.

I only suggest that we adopt a wait and see attitude. We will remain ever vigilant ans see what happens. If you believe that anyone you may have in mind would never make any mistakes you are delusional. Trump will make many decisions some tremendous, some good, some not so good, some bad, and probably horrendous.

I personally like GWB. It took the left nearly 5 years to turn Americans against him. He made some decisions that I believe were really bad, but overall a good President. He trusted democrats.

I believe that GHWB made 1 mistake that ruined his legacy. He trusted democrats.

Ronald Reagan is the greatest President of my lifetime, but he made at least one horrendous decision, He trusted democrats.

Edit: In with the first relevant comment.

Regarding the "orange god-king" comment, I know it sounds like harsh words. It refers to what really looks a lot like hero worship. Some of you have displayed an unreasoning devotion to Trump, as if he is infallible. Honestly, I've never seen anything like it. I've never witnessed such a fierce loyalty to any American politician on our side of the isle. Conservatives just don't do that. That's something for Democrats. It's almost like the collective leftist fawning Obamagasm we saw after Obama was elected. I think that is very dangerous.

And, c'mon. It's about more than just wait and see. What Trump says today IS relevant today. I'm not expecting Trump to be perfect. I'll praise him when I think he's right, but I'll damn sure criticize him when I think he's wrong. It's my duty as a citizen to do that. I don't owe any politician any loyalty, and neither do you.

A lot of people especially on the left are irrationally afraid of Trump. I think that's silly. But it is just as silly to go to the opposite extreme and be irrationally devoted to Trump as well. This devotion is where Trump really gets his power. He can say and do just about anything and still maintain political his political capital with his ardent supporters. And that's a double edged sword. It makes him powerful enough to work through his agenda despite fierce opposition from the left and from the press. But that fiercely loyal base also makes him powerful enough to do just about anything.

So if I fear anything, it is the inability of his ardent supporters to criticize him and weaken his support for doing things they wouldn't support if they weren't fiercely, irrationally, loyal. If you find yourself capable of criticizing Trump, then this doesn't apply to you.

 

[OakRiver]

So....a potentially strange thought occurred to me following the anniversary of Pearl Harbor. Is anyone else seeing a similarity between now the Japanese acted as US forces came closer to their homelands (mass hysteria, propaganda that they would all be rounded up, raped, tortured and killed) and how some on the Left are viewing the incoming Administration?

 

[jamil]

Damn straight. Cautiously optimistic, but optimistic none-the-less. I'm hoping our biggest adversary for the next 4 years will just be the media... instead of perceived anger we have with each other. I'm hoping he backs away from the Twitter when he takes office, and things stay relatively quiet. The "fake news" narrative that Hillary/Obama introduced wasn't an accident... I think there will be a big leftist push against certain media outlets here for a while.

I guess I've stopped caring about his twitter feed. I don't mind it when he says the right things. I only mind it when he says the wrong things. It's just another datapoint with which we can decide if he's right or wrong for saying it.

About the "fake news" narrative. It's one of those bad things/good things. Kinda like the Russians/wikileaks things. It's bad if another nation is trying to affect our elections, but we can't ignore the importance of the information it contained. It told us what people in our government was doing behind our backs.

With the "fake news", I'm also annoyed that they're acting as if it's only the right that does it. There are plenty of examples on the left. The fake news on the right comes from sites most of us already know are dubious. Alex Jones said that Hillary Clinton personally murdered and chopped up many children. Most of us know Alex Jones is full of ****. But on their side, major network news anchors have fabricated **** about sitting presidents from thin air. They're supposed to be the trusted networks and they make **** up. "Hands up don't shoot" was fake news orders of magnitude beyond the scale of what news sources like Alex Jones could ever dream of.

On the other hand, they have a point about fake news. Hillary didn't win because of it. She lost because of the damaging truths revealed in the stolen emails. But we have plenty of fake news on our side, and while I want to shove their "fake news" narrative up their hypocritical asses, I also want our side to stop peddling in it, and stop sucking it in. Not every titillating story that is so damning that it has to be true, is true. Like the idiots who were pushing the story that Hillary only won 57 counties, and then of course the gullible Trumpers are all over social media throwing fake facts at the whining Hillary supporters. We can avoid the embarrassment by holding our own media sources accountable for the accuracy of their stories.

 

[jamil]

So....a potentially strange thought occurred to me following the anniversary of Pearl Harbor. Is anyone else seeing a similarity between now the Japanese acted as US forces came closer to their homelands (mass hysteria, propaganda that they would all be rounded up, raped, tortured and killed) and how some on the Left are viewing the incoming Administration?

Yeah, that's a pretty good insight. Seems the people who are most susceptible to that fear are younger people who've not experienced not-obama in their adult lives. Some older lefties also have melted down, but they're mostly nuts anyway. The mainstream liberals who've lived through many different administrations understand that power shifts and that someday they'll get it back.

 

[ArcadiaGP]

Ivanka Trump plans to make women's issues her primary focus in likely DC move, with pay equity chief among them

Ivanka Trump is an unelected progressive that buys into the wage gap myth, apparently? She really shouldn't be anywhere near this administration in any manner that could influence policy.

 

[jamil]

I bit my tongue and decided not to "correct" any new interpretation of Iran-Contra, or mention the genocide in Guatemala, or the regime changes directed by our government in South America. I lived through it too.

I admired a lot about Reagan. And given what seems like human nature for brand loyalty, it took me awhile to come to terms with and admit the things I didn't like about Reagan. No one's perfect and it's okay to admit the faults of even your heroes. I think the progressive left has not learned that lesson. Jefferson, for example, as one of the founding fathers, was a great man. He had faults though. Still, I'm not going to call for tearing his statues down just because he was morally inconsistent by today's standards.

I think Trump is going to do some good things that I like. I think he's going to do some bad things I don't like. We can admire what is admirable and admonish what is detestable at the same time.