Trump: Impeach is the new Orange

[Raid]

They aren't suggesting that the photoshopped characters are actually his tattoos.

Listen to Trump in that video; he is. There's not even a hint that he thinks the actual tattoos are some sort of code, he thinks the guy has M S 1 3 tattooed on his hand, and he repeatedly steers the conversation back to that point.

PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Well, wait a minute. Wait a minute. He had MS-13 --
TERRY MORAN: Well --
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: -- on his knuckles tattooed.
TERRY MORAN: -- he -- he -- he -- it didn't say-- oh, he had some tattoos that are inper -- interpreted that way. But let's move on
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Wait a minute.
TERRY MORAN: I want --
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Hey, Terry. Terry. Terry.
TERRY MORAN: He -- he did not have the letter --
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Don't do that -- M-S-1-3 -- It says M-S-one-three.

PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: -- at his hand. He had MS-13 --
TERRY MORAN: Fair enough, he did have tattoos that can be interpreted that way. I'm not an expert on them.
I want to turn to Ukraine, sir --
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: No, no. Terry --
TERRY MORAN: I-- I want to get to Ukraine--
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Terry, no, no. No, no. He had MS as clear as you can be. Not "interpreted." This is why people --
TERRY MORAN: Alright.
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: -- no longer believe --
TERRY MORAN: Well.
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: -- the news, because it's fake news --

I think there's a case to be made that the guy is genuinely falling apart mentally and that he actually believes the labels are tattooed on this chap's hands, or that it's just another example of him lying through his teeth until people believe it, and he's mere days away from signing an executive order making doublethink the official language of the United States.

And on the mental health aspects of all this; I think you do have to be guarded about delving too deeply into this stuff. There are absolutely wild conspiracy theories on both sides, and those can't possibly be healthy to look too deeply into. But I also don't think you should close yourself off from it entirely, as this shit is happening and it is influencing current affairs on both sides of the Atlantic. I think you just need to stick as well as you can to the facts from reputable news sources (social media of any kind isn't one of those). I'm not relishing the downfall of the United States, but I do find all of this fascinating from an anthropological and historical standpoint - this very much feels like the rise of Nazi Germany, but happening in real time where everything seems to be happening out in the open rather than a textbook written 50 years after the fact. It's fascinating if nothing else.

[Mantis]

Fair enough, I had not seen that video and it does seem to be the case that Trump is suggesting that he has MS-13 actually tattooed on his hands. Blimey. His handlers and spokes people will of course say that he didn't mean it literally and that's simply what the tattoos mean when you interpret the imagery.

I'm not entirely shut off from things, it's kind of hard anyway because my friends talk about it a lot so I end up getting roped in that way. But finding reputable news sources is harder and harder nowadays, every outlet has its own agenda in some shape or form. Some of the stuff Trump was saying about removing judges who ruled the wrong way on events is pretty much word for word the kind of thing Hitler came out with during his rise to power. Truly scary stuff.

[eny]

Correct, being the verified moron he is, Twunt believes the letters "MS13" are tattooed on Garcia's knuckles along with the symbols. It must be remembered, even if they were, it is not a crime and not proof that he is a criminal or indeed a member of said group, just like all the nazi and Confederate tatoos many of his voters proudly wear...

In other news, Oklahoma will now allow the teaching that the 2020 election was "stollen" in its public education curricula...

[Wrathbone]

Personally I thought it was more of a Battenberg.

[eny]

Judge Beryl Howell rules forcefully in favor of Perkins Coie against Trump's punitive executive order:

No American President has ever before issued executive orders like the one at issue in this lawsuit targeting a prominent law firm with adverse actions to be executed by all Executive branch agencies but, in purpose and effect, this action draws from a playbook as old as Shakespeare, who penned the phrase: “The first thing we do, let’s kill all the lawyers.” WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE, HENRY VI, PART 2, act 4, sc. 2, l. 75. When Shakespeare’s character, a rebel leader intent on becoming king, see id. l. 74, hears this suggestion, he promptly incorporates this tactic as part of his plan to assume power, leading in the same scene to the rebel leader demanding “[a]way with him,” referring to an educated clerk, who “can make obligations and write court hand,” id. l. 90, 106. Eliminating lawyers as the guardians of the rule of law removes a major impediment to the path to more power.

A much needed and extensive ruling against his despotic attack on the rule of law.


https://ecf.dcd.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/sh ... cv0716-185

[Animalmother]

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cze17n02gego
He exists in a pure fantasy world without a single person on his staff willing to filter his childlike thought process.

[eny]

...and 100% tariffs on foreign films...this regime is demented.

[Wrathbone]

On a happier note:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cd9l3399wvno

"I'll be an eight-year president, I'll be a two-term president. I always thought that was very important," Trump told NBC's Meet the Press with Kristen Welker in an interview that aired on Sunday.

I suppose he forgot that he recently appointed a team to find a loophole in the constitution to allow him to run for a third term (spoiler: there isn’t one). And knowing his ability to U-turn with zero warning or logic, this probably means very little in terms of what he may say in 3 years.

[eny]

He is hiding his extreme health issues, he won't be in any state to steal a third term anyway... JD Thiel is VP for a reason...

[Raid]

Yeah, I'll believe that when he's dead having only served two terms.

He may not need to "seek" a third term if he runs as Vance's VP, and then Vance resigns, which is the way I've seen commentators suggest could happen. That article mentions the wording; "no person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice" - you don't get elected to the the office of the President if you're instead elected to the office of Vice President. I don't think that'll actually happen; Vance presumably wants to be president after Trump - it's not impossible Trump will be his running mate as a way of garnering support though.

[Mantis]

That would explain the post I saw from him the other day with a pic of Vance and the caption "Would you vote for this man?".

Though I'm not sure whether that was even real or just some shitpost on Reddit.

[Wrathbone]

it's not impossible Trump will be his running mate as a way of garnering support though.

Actually, according to the constitution it is impossible, as nobody can run for VP if they're not eligible to run for president. The whole loophole thing was bollocks from the start - the only way he becomes president a third time is by changing the constitution to allow it, which is extremely unlikely to happen. But hey, this is Trump, and like you say I'll believe he won't attempt it when he's dead.

I think the more likely outcome is that Vance will run with the intention of being a puppet president, with Trump calling the shots quite visibly. It's exactly the sort of pathetic, servile theatrics I'd expect them to go for.

[Animalmother]

https://www.bbc.com/news/live/cwyneele13qt
What the fuck is wrong with the world at the moment? Is everyone going crazy?

[Stormbringer]

Yes.

[Wrathbone]

What the fuck is wrong with the world at the moment?

This may be a wild simplification, but the global status quo from the end of WW2 to 2016 was that you don't fuck around unless you want the US up in your face. Trump has changed this to you don't fuck around unless you've something to offer him. India has plenty to offer the US and has been chomping at the bit to hash out their grievances with Pakistan for a very long time.

Modi has arguably played a blinder here too by finalising an historic trade deal with the UK the day before launching the attack, meaning we're far less likely to actually do anything about it.