Donald Trump the Megathread part II - Mod Warning updated in OP 12/2/26

What an embarrassment. As you say, stuff like this happens when those around him can't say no.

However, I would have another take on it. It isn't that Trump is going off on some mad bender; it is a diversion tactic. The Iran war is a disaster. The 'Fund for celebrating cop killing' has been cancelled due to the enormous pushback from the GOP. There is growing evidence, and pushback, on Trump's insider dealing in the market. Gas prices continue to go up, and grocery prices continue to go up.

So he gets to waste a huge amount of time talking complete nonsense, which is a double win. It reduces the time available for anyone to ask about the real issues, and many people will latch onto this issue rather than all the other issues.

The depressing thing is it sort of works and the scumbag and his minions are not and probably wont be held properly accountable for the damage/destruction/stupidity they are responsible for

Hegseth, who rails against personnel being hired on the basis of race and gender, denies promotional candidates based on race and gender:

Pete Hegseth removes all women and some Black service members from navy promotion list | Pete Hegseth | The Guardian

The Americans don't have a Parliamentary system so there would be no point in a Leader of the Opposition. In the UK, the Executive and the Legislature are fused together. In the US, they're completely separate, something an American former acquaintance used to love boasting to me about.

I'm not an expert on the subject but presumably the logic behind the system is that Congress holds the Executive to account and the people hold Congress to account via elections. Of course, this is essentially a Republican flavoured version of the British system. It was built for Thirteen Colonies, not a colonial empire of fifty self-governing states.

In other words, the system wasn't built for the load it now carries. John Adams' famous quote about two parties refers to exactly this I would think. It held because both parties accepted the system in its entirety and thus there was no means to systematically alter its core.

The result is that democracy in America is a closed shop. There are no Socialists, Environmentalists, Communists, Libertarians or UK-style One Nation Conservatives outside of fringe elements of the big two. Ironically, in a country that prides itself on liberty and democracy, there's no innovation in politics. It stays the same while both parties engage in reprehensible nonsense inimical to the interests of the American people. The Republicans are too malevolent while the Democrats are too weak and deferential.

I think there is democracy. There was a choice between a sensible candidate and the sundowning satsuma and they chose the latter. It was a real choice. It's just that power has been thoroughly divorced from the wishes, beliefs and aspirations of all but very few sections of the American public and this is the result.

Is it not a bit simpler than that? i.e. the President simply has too much power. No President should be able to go to war, for example, in the way Trump has, without the active participation of Congress (and yes, I know about the War Powers Act, but as we have seen there are far too many loopholes). Executive orders (which Trump has largely been ruling under) should be strictly time-limited and subject to congressional approval after said time limit, or otherwise automatically lapse.

There are of course other issues e.g. gerrymandering, the makeup of the Senate, the filibuster etc, and furthermore a cult like the current GOP is never going to put guardrails on anyone from their side of the aisle, if they have the majority in either house.

Donald will be in for his cut on this as it is part of Affinity Partners, SA/Qatar/UAE stumped up $5.5bn to Jared to invest on their behalf, nice money for a real estate landlord type, Jared picks up at least $10m monthly on fees alone.

Send In The Drones..

Headline on the RTE Account on threads...

Donald Trump has given his definition of a ceasefire in the Middle East.

When asked by a reporter, the US President said that in that part of the world, a ceasefire is when “you’re shooting in a more moderate manner”.

His definition? Since when did we allow others to change the f**king meaning of a word?

Why can't we call it at a media level for what it is? The reporters in front of him can say it. The news outlets can print it. That's not a ceasefire.

A great BBC2 programme by Lucy Worsley the other night on the 250th anniversary of American independence and how ironic it was that France and Spain which were both Monarchies teamed up against Britain in support of the would be new Republic.

The enemy of my enemy and all that.

Ireland got involved and got an exemption from the taffifs in place against the then Colonies.

There were really serious riots (Gordon ) in London,George 3 drafted an abdication letter,Benjamin Franklin was the toast of France and England defended Jersey from a French attack.

All very new to me .

Apparently voting is meaningless and unpatriotic.

Who knew?

Note the way that he claims that they voted that way to deprive "him" of a victory. It's all about his glory