Trump's Latest Whoppers
Posted on Mon Apr 24, 2017 at 06:25:57 AM EST
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Biggest lie of the weekend by the Trump Administration: Chief of staff, Reince Priebus on Meet the Press (according to the New York Times):
“We expect a massive increase in military spending. We expect money for border security in this bill....And it ought to be. Because the president won overwhelmingly. And everyone understands the border wall was part of it.” (my emphasis)
More than 10 million people voted for Trump's opponents than voted for him. I'd say that's an overall rejection, not an endorsement, for his positions on issues. [More...]
Trump 62,979,636
Clinton 65,844,610
Others 7,804,213
Total Votes: 136,628,459.
Put another way, 53.9% of voters voted for someone other than him to be President.
Another Trump failure and backtrack: He has admitted Mexico won't be paying for the wall, which means, the United States (and its taxpayers)would foot the bill.
He may be the most inarticulate person ever to have a desk in the oval office. Here's his Washington Post interview from Friday. He sounds like a middle-schooler. He says "you know" 52 times. (It was so distracting, I copied the interview into WordPerfect and counted them using the "find" function.)
Added: I wrote this last night and hit publish today. I just saw that "Trump is Unintelligible" is trending on Twitter, based on his WAPO interview. Clearly, there are hundreds of thousands of others who think this.)
Some other pebbles from his speech:
TRUMP: Our military is so proud. They were not proud at all. They had their heads down. Now they have their heads up..
He will terminate NAFTA on his own.
TRUMP: I am going to either renegotiate it or I am going to terminate it....If they don’t treat fairly, I am terminating NAFTA.
AP: What’s a timeline for that decision?
TRUMP: It’s a six-month termination clause, I have the right to do it, it’s a six-month clause.
On the nuclear deal:
AP: At this point, do you believe that you will stay in the nuclear deal?
TRUMP: It’s possible that we won’t.
In the laugh out loud funny category, there's his description of his "Just don't watch" epiphany. (Since that's a big word, in case he or his staff is reading, an ephiphany is an experience that brings a sudden and striking realization -- a flash of insight).
TRUMP: And I don’t watch things that I know are going to be unpleasant. CNN has covered me unfairly and incorrectly and I don’t watch them anymore. A lot of people don’t watch them anymore, they’re now in third place. But I’ve created something where people are watching ... but I don’t watch CNN anymore. I don’t watch MSNBC anymore. I don’t watch things, and I never thought I had that ability. I always thought I’d watch.
AP: Sure.
TRUMP: I just don’t. And that’s taken place over the last year. And you know what that is, that’s a great, it’s a great thing because you leave, you leave for work in the morning you know, you’re, you don’t watch this total negativity. I never thought I’d be able to do that and for me, it’s so easy to do now. Just don’t watch. (bolded words are my emphasis.)
Why that's laughable: He doesn't realize that millions of us have had the same flash of insight since November and stopped watching all news (not just one network), because watching has become such an unpleasant experience, since the news usually is about him.
Two questions: What did he create? He didn't finish the thought. And when does he leave for work? He sleeps and works in the same building, whether it's the White House or his place in Palm Beach.
The only position he took in the interview that anyone could find solace in was his statement about DREAMers.
AP: Dreamers, you’ve talked about them, you’ve talked about heart earlier. This is one area where you have talked —
TRUMP: No, we aren’t looking to do anything right now. Look, the dreamers ... this is an interesting case, they left and they came back and he’s got some problems, it’s a little different than the dreamer case, right? But we are putting MS-13 in jail and getting them the hell out of our country....We are not after the dreamers, we are after the criminals.
...AP: And that’s going to be the policy of your administration to allow the dreamers to stay?
TRUMP: Yes. Yes. That’s our policy.
...AP: A lot of the dreamers have been hoping to hear something from you. I don’t want to give them the wrong message with this.
TRUMP: Here is what they can hear: The dreamers should rest easy. OK? I’ll give you that. The dreamers should rest easy. ...
Jeff Sessions, the same day, said the opposite about DREAMers: "Attorney General Jeff Sessions said “everyone that enters the country unlawfully is subject to being deported.”
Here's the problem. What Donald Trump thinks or says about anything is of no import and should make no one rest easy given his tendency to flip-flop and take an opposite position within days or weeks.He's not giving an announcement, he's ruminating outloud to himself to amuse himself.
Then there's this downright delusional claim:
Have you seen the tremendous success we’ve had in the Middle East with the ISIS....We have had tremendous success, but we don’t talk about it. We don’t talk about it.
What's his ISIS plan that he was supposed to get a report on in 30 days. He's not telling. When pressed, he says:
AP: Can you say generally what the strategy is? Should people —
TRUMP: Generally is we have got to get rid of ISIS. We have no choice. And other terrorist organizations.
Second laugh-out loud funny quote: The generals accepted his ISIS strategy
AP: In terms of the strategy, though, that you have accepted, it sounds like, from the generals —
TRUMP: Well, they’ve also accepted my strategy.
His border wall threats are so misguided they don't even warrant repeating, except for this delusional one:
The wall will stop the drugs.
Anyone want to take odds on that?
And the 100th reason I'm reminding myself never to read another thing Donald Trump says is this comment in the same interview:
I’ve done more than any other president in the first 100 days.
Just Don't Watch, indeed.
As for the budget, he wouldn't say whether he'd sign a bill that didn't include funding for the wall, which he estimates to be only $10 billion. (Does that include the cost of 5,000 more border patrol agents, 10,000 more ICE agents and immigration judges? Does it include the money for 24k gold belt buckles for the Coast Guard? Or 24 hr garage parking for ICE vans within .6 miles of the LA courthouse?)
It sounds like he's all but conceded he'd sign the bill regardless:
AP: If you don’t have a funding stream, your message to your base is what?
TRUMP: My base understands the wall is going to get built, whether I have it funded here or if I get it funded shortly thereafter, that wall’s getting built, OK? One hundred percent. One hundred percent it’s getting built.
Democrats should not fall for his aides implied threats of a shutdown if they don't agree to the wall spending. That's called extortion - vote for my ridiculous wall or we'll shut down funding for the stuff you think is important. First,both sides can negotiate another temporary budget extension while they work at a better solution.
Memo to Trump: Mexico isn't paying for your wall, and neither are we, the taxpayers. Any elected officials who votes for the bill containing money for your wall will not get our votes in 2018. Ask the House Members who don't live in iron-clad Republican districts or swing districts if they are willing to risk their re-election on your fantasy of what a physical border wall would accomplish?
Update: In addition to the tweet meme about him being unintelligible, there are numerous reporters and bloggers today just astounded by his ignorance, his inability to express himself and the delusional nature of some of his comments in his interview. A writer at The Daily Banter titles his article:
Donald Trump's AP Interview Transcript Is Goddamn Terrifying. A con man with dementia is running our country.He ends with this:
So, again, do yourself a favor and read the whole transcript. Because packaging it with commentary robs you of every batsh*t non sequitur and bullsh*t lie from an unhinged narcissist who already has a taste for missile launches. It's the type of document that's going to be required reading if future generations somehow exist. (Asterisks mine.)
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