The Politics Thread

[cassadine1991]

Trump is considering bringing back waterboarding 

http://www.cnn.com/2017/01/25/politics/donald-trump-waterboarding-torture/index.html?adkey=bn

[ReddFoxx]

Voter fraud is almost impossible to commit because of how county clerks monitor the voter rolls. Most people do not even attempt to do it and the few prosecuted cases are indeed mostly Republicans.

[Juliajms]

So many bad things happening today. Not sure what's worse, the "global gag order" on abortion or the immigration orders. Oh, and the Dakota Access Pipeline is in their somewhere too.  I'm probably a bit right of most people on this board when it comes to immigration and I'm still horrified.

[marceline]

 

The funny thing is Trump is alleging voter fraud in CA and NY, two states that have been solid blue in presidential elections for decades. Only in TrumpCultLand would anyone be surprised that Hillary won them.

[DramatistDreamer]

This reporter who was part of the WH pool during the 1990s presents an interesting perspective on how he thinks members of the press should deal with the "contempt" with which the Trump administration holds the press.

 

The Press Should Skip the White House Briefings

 

 

**How interesting that the deficit that conservatives are always squawking about is project to go up under Trump's plans for tax cuts, etc after 7 years of modest declines.

This, according to a report put out by the bipartisan Congressional Budget Office.

 

Trump's plan to ramp up spending will add about $10 Trillion over 10 years.

Edited January 25, 2017 by DramatistDreamer

[Juliajms]

^ All the money for a stupid wall, while Americans struggle with healthcare costs. So frustrating.

Edited January 25, 2017 by Juliajms

[Wales2004]

Trump seems to be pathological.  He probably believes whatever lie he is telling at the time he is telling it. 

 

California is an easy target for him because of the border and the favorite Republican myth that all the illegals are coming in and stealing jobs.  He's upped the myth by making them criminals.  People can fixate on Mexico all day long but that is not the only country from which illegal immigrants come.  And there aren't a bunch of illegal immigrants fraudulently voting in California either.  There were some system glitches that affected absentee ballots for people who registered during a certain period in which duplicate ballots were sent out with the address of the recently registered voter but different addressees.

 

I believe they would have caught large irregularities before the results were certified and no one in the time since has come forward to report any scams.  The easiest way to commit voter fraud would be through the absentee ballots and based on the numbers I've seen there are not enough to cover the range he quoted.  And I don't buy that a whole lot of dead people voted either because even though the state is not so swift in catching when a resident has died, the counties are better at purging. 

 

I do think it's time that instead of just relying on the courts, something should be done to try to get identification for those voters who need it. 

[Khan]

 

Steve Bannon looks more and more like the guy you see on the street corner, carrying all his possessions in a Jansport backpack someone else threw away, and holding a handmade, cardboard sign that reads "HOMLESS VETERAN NEED MONEY GOD BLESS".

 

You know, Carl's scenario, which he posted upthread, could happen, but so could investigating Trump's claims and learning that, thanks to voter fraud, he didn't even have the needed electoral votes to win the damn thing.

 

I'm not saying it will happen, but I wouldn't be surprised if it did.

 

If he really wants to torture suspected terrorists, he should make them watch his performance on the Emmy Awards with Megan Mullally.

Edited January 25, 2017 by Khan

[marceline]

 

Definitely. Not just because of Trump either. Voter suppression laws are here to stay so organizing means finding a way to get around them.

[DramatistDreamer]

Just when you think this man could not be more insidious.

 

Trump seeks retribution against city-dwellers who didn’t vote for him

 

"Two major plans announced Wednesday target cities and populous states."

Edited January 26, 2017 by DramatistDreamer

[JaneAusten]

Trump sends two aides to run Voice of America

 

Imported even if it may not seem to be.

 

OT

So apparently Paul Ryan had to talk Reince Preibus out of resigning this week.

Edited January 26, 2017 by JaneAusten

[Roman]

really? well, that's what Preibus deserves for kissing Trump's ring. now he realizes what shitshow he's gotten himself in and he's trying to save his career. 

[Vee]

Edited January 26, 2017 by Vee

[Juliajms]

Yeah, this is messed up, but I was reading that he doesn't really have the power to do it, so we'll see.  In other news, I had no idea that Omaha and Lincoln were sanctuary districts. I'm pretty surprised.

[Vee]

There is no one capable of not leaking inside the Trump administration. Every single one of them gets off on pretending they are on The Apprentice or an Aaron Spelling soap, jockeying for power and position. This is never going to change.

 

Full spread of tweets.