T-rump stupid things

Gave Senator Lindsey Graham’s personal phone number to the entire world.

Lindsay Graham

Possibly because Graham said, “I have never been comfortable with Donald Trump as our Republican nominee.”

Thanks to BGR.com.

Read more here: http://www.thestate.com/news/politics-government/article106928442.html#storylink=cpy

Dump the Electoral Party...NOW

It's happened twice now, during the last three elections, the popular vote winner loses the election. It was made official yesterday by an antiquated system called the Electoral College. Donald Trump with 306 votes, Hillary Clinton with 232--hardly a landslide--Clinton ending up with more than 2.5 million popular votes than Trump. The nation did not elect Donald Trump, the college did. And that is what is wrong. NBC reports on efforts, post-election...

"A handful of Democrats and even a few Republican electors have embarked on an unusual effort to deny Trump the victory — or at the very least, raise the specter of changing the election."

And more...

"Electors in three states have gone to court seeking the chance to vote their mind; another resigned to avoid the vote altogether. One Republican elector in Texas has publicly said he will not vote for Trump, although his state voted overwhelmingly for the GOP candidate."

Here's a quote from The Nation, a leading Progressive publication...

"The Electoral College is an abomination: an antidemocratic relic of the unconscionable compromises made during America’s founding that should never have been allowed to linger into the 21st century." 

As an example of the inadequacy of the Electoral College, Donald Trump took Michigan with less than 11,000 votes out of a total of 4.8 million cast, .0023%. Supporters of the College claim it protects the smaller states from being overrun by the larger ones. When, in fact, five of the 10 smallest states, Vermont, Delaware, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Maine, as well as the District of Columbia had Clinton leading Trump. As I understand it, this is one of the major reasons the Founding Fathers concocted this nuisance. 

And here is something that is almost as frightening as Donald Trump being elected President. The Nation surmises "that GOP strategists will again try to implement schemes that would distribute electoral votes based on the popular vote in congressional districts, which would allow partisans to gerrymander both the US House and the Electoral College." Because of the incompetency of the Democratic Nat'l Committee, led by disgraced Debbie Wasserman Schultz, the GOP already leads in state legislatures and governor's offices.

The bipartisan National Popular Vote initiative is making some headway with a compact that says the state electors must cast their votes with the popular vote. Ten states have signed up totaling 165 votes, but the compact can only take effect when more than 270 is reached. Barbara Boxer introduced a constitutional amendment to abolish the Electoral College, but with a Republican Congress, and the GOP already having won the election, its likelihood of getting anywhere is doubtful. In a final note, The Nation commented...

"...something must be done to address the structural absurdity of elections that allow losers to become presidents."

And that could not be more appropriate. 

What do Republicans have that Democrats don't?

PASSION. It's very simple, you can see it in all factions of the conservatives; when the vote is critical, they turn out. The Democrats, or at least most of them, put their tails between their legs and just stay home when the heat is on. it's pathetic and God knows how many elections we've lost in the last few years. On the bright side, Bernie Sanders brought out the Progressives, and think they did their part in the primaries but Debbie Wasserman Schultz and the Democratic National Committee had the whole thing rigged from the start. Bernie should have won.

On the other hand, President Obama said on Monday that the reason for Democratic voters not showing up was the fault of the Clinton campaign for not hitting the Dems' strongholds. He cited an instance where, in his support of Clinton, he wanted to go to Iowa where he had won handily but the Clinton people felt he was better needed elsewhere. He also added, "...candidates in the future should ignore at their own peril the places Democrats haven't traditionally performed well." Further...

"...some Democrats have accused Clinton of maintaining a relaxed campaign schedule, bypassing states like Wisconsin and Iowa where Obama won in 2012."

The blame game is, of course, easy to play with hindsight, but the real question here is what brought out more Republican voters than Democrats? We know there was a huge wave of demand for change, to get rid of the Washington that has only performed for the politicians and given us the same crap year after year. Donald Trump seemed to fill that bill and was elected, but we still have a Congress that has an approval rating of 13% and can't seem to get rid of them. Much of this can be attributed to the GOP gerrymandering that Wasserman and the DNC saw fit to do nothing about over the years.

Reports are that the Republican turnout surged this year while Democrats were just dormant. With Obama the Dems' stronghold was the college educated, young and non-white. Bernie Sanders had two of these categories, could have possibly gotten the other, and one must wonder, if he had won the primary, would the election outcome have been different. There is one bit of difference in Democrats that is recently becoming obvious; the Progressive faction of the party...Bernie's people. I am a Progressive, passionate about those beliefs and a firm supporter of the Democratic Party.

I wouldn't even consider not voting and frankly don't understand those who stayed home from the polls on November 8, and let what happened come about. Donald Trump. Here's the kicker, Gallup reports that as of October 2014, polling found that 43% of Americans identified as Democrats and 39% as Republicans. There are 4% more of us than them and we still can't win an election. It's a disgrace and something that should make those slackers sit up and take notice. The big question is, can we expect them to turn out in 2018.

T-rump stupid things

“Donald J Trump is calling for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States, until our country’s representatives can figure out what the hell is going on.” (2015)

Thanks to UK Independent

Why did Putin want Donald Trump in the White House?

Donald Trump is supposed to be such a savvy businessman, wouldn't you expect that to translate into at least a crafty politician? Vladimir Putin doesn't think so. Steve Benen of MSNBC says Putin feels with Trump in the White House the United States will look "...ridiculous, having an unprepared and unqualified television personality leading a global superpower." He thinks it will be easier for Russia to exploit America’s "self-inflicted wound." WOW! We knew we had a psychopathic clown going to Washington, but this observation, if true, is really frightening.

NBC News reported recently that "...17 U.S. intelligence agencies agree that Vladimir Putin’s government was responsible for the cyber-attacks." Apparently, this has been widely accepted to mean that Russia did interfere in the U.S. 2016 election, some even saying that Putin, himself, led the effort. In contrast, the Trump administration is blaming it on China or saying it didn't even happen, according to MSNBC. And even more conjecture in what Russia's Putin might be thinking...

“You obviously can’t count on the United States to be a credible global leader anymore; just look at who the Americans chose as their president.”

WOW again, but true in the sense that the deranged American public elected this lunatic.

And then Benen gets to the financial side of the argument. Barack Obama could be depended on to slap sanctions on Russia when they became overly hostile and aggressive. It is possible, maybe even likely, that Donald Trump will lift them for his old Russian buddy. White House chief of staff Reince Priebus refused to confirm one way or the other. Okay, we're talking about Russia, but what can other countries be thinking, especially any that have an ax to grind with the U.S. This country is on the precipice of disaster and Donald Trump is the one that can push it off.

Why do Republicans hate Social Security?

Because the man who launched it was a Democrat, Franklin Delano Roosevelt? Mitch McConnell type thinking. Because they can't stand giving anything away; actually the average couple will pay in about two-thirds of what they take out. So it isn't all welfare. Because most of the Republicans who are against Social Security are wealthy, therefore don't care what happens to the poor slobs like us? I think we've got it. Although I know several conservatives who are not affluent and are still of the Republican persuasion; all I can say is that I pity them.

But this post is about the people in Congress that are trying to gut Social Security by raising the retirement age and reducing benefits as much as a third. Now I cannot speak with authority on what the minimum age for benefits should be, but I can see that reducing benefits could wreak havoc on those households that depend entirely on this monthly check. Rep. Sam Johnson (R-Texas), the chair for the House Ways and Means Social Security subcommittee, is the one responsible for the legislation. Now here's a shocker, his net worth is $48,501.

Fortunately, in his case, as a House representative, and only with one term, he will receive $174,000 a year for the rest of his life when he retires. Now why would he worry about Social Security? But you would think someone with that kind of net worth would sympathize with others in the same category. Unless...there are other assets hidden somewhere like the Caymans. Johnson's Act would keep Social Security going for 75 years, but would "...include a $2 trillion decrease in revenue into the program and a $13.9 trillion decrease in benefits."

Of course, there would be no increase in taxes, like maybe on the wealthy, and some other loopholes for the rich, with a GOP Congress and a Republican in the White House. Raising tax on the top 1% to 40% would yield $157 billion in one year; to 45%, $276 billion. This group is the one most able to afford it but greed on the part of the GOP has stifled any action for years. I honestly believe that with Bernie Sanders in the White House, even with a Republican Congress, he would have gotten this tax passed. He'd do it with you and me in an all-out grass roots effort.

T-rump stupid things

Does this sound like a mentally stable man?

“When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending the best. They’re not sending you, they’re sending people that have lots of problems and they’re bringing those problems with us. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bring crime. They’re rapists… And some, I assume, are good people.”

Donald Trump taking one of his first jabs at racism.

Thanks to Marie Claire.