Donald Trump Presidency discussion Thread VII (threadbanned users listed in OP)

Nody

I think we can guess who's next up for the chopping block for going against the WH message...

Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar warned Sunday that the "window is closing" for the United States to get the coronavirus pandemic under control, as confirmed cases are surging in a majority of the country and some states are dealing with record numbers of hospitalizations.

At a Friday press briefing by the White House's coronavirus task force, the first in nearly two months, Pence declared that the US had "flattened the curve," painting a rosy picture at odds with reality.
Thirty-six states are reporting a rise in positive coronavirus cases, and only two are reporting a decline in cases compared to last week.

He cautioned that if Americans "act irresponsibly, if we don't socially distance, if we don't use face coverings in settings where we can't social distance, if we don't practice appropriate personal hygiene, we're going to see spread of disease."

When asked whether the Trump administration's claims of rising case numbers was the result of more testing being done, Frieden dismissed it, saying, "As a doctor, a scientist, an epidemiologist, I can tell you with 100% certainty that in most states where you're seeing an increase, it is a real increase.

Pretty much going against all key messages from Trump on the topic.

Carfacemandog

Tea drinker wrote: »

Subservience to Putin? I mean *maybe* US is subservient to a foreign power but it's unlikely to be Russia.

In which case we'll see actual action taken as a result of this. Like we would have seen actual action taken for the interference in the 2016 elections, which is something both parties and the intelligence community agree happened, and which they didn't even bother hiding in the Mueller report.

Instead, we know that Trump decided to push for Russia being readmitted to the G7 group while they were having American troops murdered in Afghanistan.

Instead, the president showed his subservience to Russia by saying he believed Putin and the Kremlin over his own intelligence communities such as the CIA and FBI.

There's very clearly a lot of funny stuff afoot between Trump and Putin, who also like to have private meetings that break US protocol by not having any American officials, even translators, present.

8-10

Carfacemandog wrote: »

There's very clearly a lot of funny stuff afoot between Trump and Putin, who also like to have private meetings that break US protocol by not having any American officials, even translators, present.

I thought there was an American translator present? Otherwise how did they converse?

I'm referring to the meeting in Helsinki where the Democrats were then trying to subpoena the translator to testify

Carfacemandog

8-10 wrote: »

I thought there was an American translator present? Otherwise how did they converse?

I'm referring to the meeting in Helsinki where the Democrats were then trying to subpoena the translator to testify

In Helsinki there was one translator present who was sworn to inform nobody about what occurred. On another occasion in Argentina there wasn't even a translator or note taker, only Trump and his wife. Putin speaks a bit of English, though I would reckon a lot of it was the Kremlin translator doing both sides.

https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/427505-trump-putin-talked-at-g20-without-us-translator-note-taker-report
President Trump reportedly met late last year with Russian President Vladimir Putin without a translator or aide from his administration present.

The Financial Times reported Tuesday that Trump sat with Putin on the sidelines of the Group of 20 (G-20) summit in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in late November after an evening event.

Trump was joined by his wife Melania Trump, but there was no note-taker or translator from the U.S. at the meeting. Putin was reportedly accompanied by a translator, with all four at a table.

A Russian government official told the Financial Times that the talk lasted about 15 minutes and included discussions about the Syrian conflict and a clash days earlier between Russian forces and the Ukrainian navy. Trump and Putin also talked about the potential for a formal meeting, the official said.

Nody

8-10 wrote: »

I thought there was an American translator present? Otherwise how did they converse?

I'm referring to the meeting in Helsinki where the Democrats were then trying to subpoena the translator to testify

You only need one translator who can do English - Russian and the bolded one is a question mark at least. Anyway; here's what I found on a quick check:

The first time they met was in Germany. President Trump took his interpreter’s notes afterward and ordered him not to disclose what he heard to anyone. Later that night, at a dinner, Mr. Trump pulled up a seat next to President Vladimir V. Putin to talk without any American witnesses at all.

Their third encounter was in Vietnam when Mr. Trump seemed to take Mr. Putin’s word that he had not interfered in American elections. A formal summit meeting followed in Helsinki, Finland, where the two leaders kicked out everyone but the interpreters. Most recently, they chatted in Buenos Aires after Mr. Trump said they would not meet because of Russian aggression.

check_six

8-10 wrote: »

I thought there was an American translator present? Otherwise how did they converse?

I'm referring to the meeting in Helsinki where the Democrats were then trying to subpoena the translator to testify

Could you imagine trying to translate yer man into Russian? He struggles to complete sentences most of the time, never mind any semblance of coherency. It would just be a jumble of words, or he would just cower into that craven obsequiousness act he does when he meets a grown-up.

eldamo

check_six wrote: »

Could you imagine trying to translate yer man into Russian? He struggles to complete sentences most of the time, never mind any semblance of coherency. It would just be a jumble of words, or he would just cower into that craven obsequiousness act he does when he meets a grown-up.

i'd say putin has a translator who can cut through the bull

ancapailldorcha

eldamo wrote: »

i'd say putin has a translator who can cut through the bull

Putin himself speaks English.

listermint

Timberrrrrrrr wrote: »

Deleted Post.

I'd highly doubt a lad that got to his level in the KGB doesn't fully know english.

Quin_Dub

listermint wrote: »

I'd highly doubt a lad that got to his level in the KGB doesn't fully know english.

You're probably not wrong , but I honestly can't remember if I've ever heard him speak anything but Russian..

ancapailldorcha

listermint wrote: »

I'd highly doubt a lad that got to his level in the KGB doesn't fully know english.

He learned it while serving his first presidential term if I recall correctly.

listermint

Quin_Dub wrote: »

You're probably not wrong , but I honestly can't remember if I've ever heard him speak anything but Russian..

Come on lads.

He's KGB. Never ever ever let the enemy's know anything. It allows him to listen to any conversation under the guise that he hasn't a clue what they are talking about.

fullstop

In trump’s latest round of deflection and stoking racial tension, he has retweeted a video from St Louis, where a white couple emerge from their monstrosity of a mansion as a crowd of black protestors pass by, and start waving and pointing a machine gun and pistol at them.

Carfacemandog

Quin_Dub wrote: »

You're probably not wrong , but I honestly can't remember if I've ever heard him speak anything but Russian..

I don't know that he could hold a long political conversation in English and reckon that went through his translator, but he has a bit. He's apparently completely fluent in German, talsk in it with German officials prior to official proceedings taking place, and has apparently even acted as an impromptu translator of sorts before (I know its RT, just pointing to the gist of it) - https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=tPOT9ZVW0hg

duploelabs

Carfacemandog wrote: »

I don't know that he could hold a long political conversation in English and reckon that went through his translator, but he has a bit. He's apparently completely fluent in German, talsk in it with German officials prior to official proceedings taking place, and has apparently even acted as an impromptu translator of sorts before (I know its RT, just pointing to the gist of it) - https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=tPOT9ZVW0hg

Given who he's conversing with, I'd say he wouldn't be required to have a full grasp of the English language

Itssoeasy

ancapailldorcha wrote: »

Putin himself speaks English.

Does he speak trump though ? I mean the issue of Russia in Afghanistan putting bounties on us soldiers and the administrations response to it were awful. It should be noted that neither the White House or the DNI denied the report, just that the president wasn't told which I doubt very much.

And Fox News and Sean hannity gave him a lay up of a question on what he plans to do in a second term and he couldn't even make something resembling even a coherent answer never mind a good answer.

Frank Bullitt

https://apnews.com/02975c59e71e65327e2f582cd1a91f43

Intelligence officials told the AP that Trump was briefed on the bounty matter earlier this year; Trump denied that, tweeting Sunday neither he nor Mike Pence had been briefed.

So he was briefed, but then denied it...dear god.

pixelburp

Gintonious wrote: »

https://apnews.com/02975c59e71e65327e2f582cd1a91f43

So he was briefed, but then denied it...dear god.

Is this the snowball slowly toddling down the hill: an election year, with a now famously porous White House and acrimonious President. Seems like from here 'til November we might see a continuous sequence of Insider balls ups...

Harry Palmr

Are minutes taken in the White House?

duploelabs

Harry Palmr wrote: »

Are minutes taken in the White House?

As shown with the Ukraine scandal, a lot of these minutes are placed on a secure server for no 'apparent' reason

Muahahaha

Quin_Dub wrote: »

You're probably not wrong , but I honestly can't remember if I've ever heard him speak anything but Russian..

I think he purposely speaks Russian all the time because if seen speaking english in public it would be seen as weak and deferential by by a nationalistic Russian commentariat.

In any case I think conversing through an interpreter allows Putin to hear what is being said in real time in english and then the intrepreter translating it gives him more time to think of his answer Its a small strategic advantage in a one on one meeting with Trump and given its Putin he would definitely be seeing it that way Id imagine.

ancapailldorcha wrote: »

He learned it while serving his first presidential term if I recall correctly.

I think possibly even before that. He has been friends through Judo with our own Pat Hickey of the Olympic Committee for years, theres a few photos of them chatting at a dinner table with no interpreter present.

Not sure if true but theres also this American who claims that he befriended Putin in 1982 when he was working for the KGB in Paris. His account says Vlad was very familiar with Western culture
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2017/9/10/1697580/-Back-in-1982-I-was-selling-acid-at-Jim-Morrison-s-grave-that-s-when-I-first-met-Vladimir-Putin

banie01

Gintonious wrote: »

https://apnews.com/02975c59e71e65327e2f582cd1a91f43



So he was briefed but then denied it...dear god.

If he was briefed, there will be records of the briefing book.
Even if it was just presented as part of his daily security briefing and he ignored it!
The fact would remain that he was presented the info and chose to actively ignore it.

Considering every awful action/inaction and slur he has demeaned the office with to date.
Accepting American and NATO troops being killed as a Russian murder for hire racket without objecting, is another facet of the Trump presidency that the GOP should never be allowed to live down or forget.

gormdubhgorm

sid waddell wrote: »

Trump has retweeted a video in which one of his supporters shouts "white power".

In his comment over the video he types "Corrupt Joe is shot."

I don't feel I should have to expand any further about how dangerous and appalling this sort of racist, far right rhetoric is.

This is a simple "you're either against evil or you're with it" situation.

Carfacemandog wrote: »

I'll just leave this here. Desperate ploy to get people to talk about anything but his subservience to Putin?

https://twitter.com/KatyVotingBlue/status/1277225441657577475

Well Trump did delete the tweet. The question is did he look and listen to the video? He is likely to have just read the heading and not turned the sound on.
It is not the first time Trump has retweeted stuff, without any due diligence.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/donald-trump-retweets-picture-of-serial-killers-fred-and-rosemary-west-thinking-they-are-the-parents-9762610.html

Penn

gormdubhgorm wrote: »

Well Trump did delete the tweet. The question is did he look at the video? He is likely to have just read the heading.
It is not the first time Trump has retweeted stuff, without any due diligence.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/donald-trump-retweets-picture-of-serial-killers-fred-and-rosemary-west-thinking-they-are-the-parents-9762610.html

Do you think that given his position and especially when it's already been established that what appears on his Twitter account qualifies as Presidential statements, that he should undertake such due diligence before retweeting?

Quin_Dub

Gintonious wrote: »

https://apnews.com/02975c59e71e65327e2f582cd1a91f43



So he was briefed, but then denied it...dear god.

The current defence is that he was never told about it but since everyone got interested in it , he asked in the last day or two and they told him it was nothing.

Which of course is complete crap as there is now evidence that the military on the ground took action to increase security levels etc. on the basis of the reports.

If it was "nothing" they would not have done that.

The truth is far more likely to be that it was included in his daily briefing pack and possibly even verbally brought up in one of those reviews but he definitely didn't read the briefing and if it was verbalized he just forgot about it.

It's also clear that the intelligence/military knew/decided that there was no point in looking to him for action so they just went ahead and did stuff on the ground.

Midlife

pixelburp wrote: »

Is this the snowball slowly toddling down the hill: an election year, with a now famously porous White House and acrimonious President. Seems like from here 'til November we might see a continuous sequence of Insider balls ups...

Most of his team are just ambitious, as are the republican party.

As it becomes clearer and clearer that distancing yourself from Trump is the smart thing to do, he' ll become more and more isolated.

duploelabs

"Washington, D.C. – Speaker Nancy Pelosi sent the following letter today to the Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe and the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency Gina Haspel requesting an interagency briefing for all House Members regarding disturbing press reports that Russia placed bounties on U.S. Troops in Afghanistan and President Trump’s inexplicable behavior towards Russia in light of these reports.

In the letter, the Speaker wrote “The questions that arise are: was the President briefed, and if not, why not, and why was Congress not briefed.”

https://www.speaker.gov/newsroom/62920-0

Penn

Reddit has fully banned The_Donald subreddit. Seems a lot of social media sites starting to see the writing on the wall in terms of how the upcoming election could affect their ad sales if advertisers pull away from them.

Frank Bullitt

Penn wrote: »

Reddit has fully banned The_Donald subreddit. Seems a lot of social media sites starting to see the writing on the wall in terms of how the upcoming election could affect their ad sales if advertisers pull away from them.

While I think most social media platforms are doing the right thing and picking the right course of action when it comes to political content, I can't help but see this as ammo for Trump to use come November.

Currently, he is already trying to set the tone of fraud, fake news, "they are out to get me" type of speech that will get his die-hard supporters doubt the validity of the election. This is a coy play on setting up the narrative and also him realizing that he might not just lose, but get hammered in November.

This could well charge up whatever is left of his base to cause some serious unrest and violence if that happens.

Muahahaha

Read that there is a pretty big boycott for advertising on Facebook for the month of July in protest at how they ignore hate speech and refuse to remove it. Unilever and Coca Cola are part of the boycott, Facebooks shares dropped 7% on their announcment that they would spend no ad money with them for all of July.