Monday, May 29, 2017

MAN OF THE YEAR

When the Person of the Year, for 2017, is considered, regrettably, Putin will be a strong contender.  He will have been successful in having, for the first time in almost 70 years, been able to unpin the U.S.-Europe Axis that we call NATO, acting through his personal surrogate, Donald Trump. 

When Trump declined to confirm the willingness of the U.S. to reconfirm commitment to Clause V of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, he fulfilled the dream of the old Soviet Union and Russia, to one day rid themselves of the constraint that NATO represented to their ambitions. 

All the money and time spent to cultivate Trump as an intelligence asset will have been worth it, to Putin, by that single moment.

Saturday, May 27, 2017

THE LAST CHAPTER

With "bombshell"  leaks coming out of the oval office, about the Trump-Russia scandal, so frequently, it is difficult not to conclude that there is a mole in the White House, at this writing.

Without knowing who that might be, it is hard to know whether any particular actor is a villain or a hero.  Personally, I am going to reserve judgment until the last chapter. 

Friday, May 26, 2017

UNDER THE CIRCUMSTANCES

Even as Robert Mueller, the recently appointed Special Counsel, is looking into the Trump ties to Russia, the Trumps are preparing a case for the prejudicial nature of the investigation.  
Just as Trump could never catch a break from a judge having Mexican ancestry, because he was building a wall, he feels that an investigator with a German name, like Mueller, will never be fair to a Trump.  He offers as proof:

  • His grandfather, Friedrich Trump, was forced to leave that part of Germany, called Bavaria, by the authorities, in 1905.
  • There are, today, no hotels or buildings, bearing the name Trump, in all of Germany.
  • He doesn't get along with Angela Merkel, the head of the German government.
  • He is highly critical of the fact that German companies have better sales, of their American made cars, than American companies have their German made cars, in Europe, and he, Trump, wants Germany to do something about it.
Under the circumstances, only the immediate resignation, and replacement, of Robert Mueller, would be proper.  

Wednesday, May 24, 2017

PURSUING GREATNESS

There really should be no doubt as to the fact that the American public has misunderstood Donald Trump.  Although many may feel that he has betrayed them, he has remained steadfast in his desire to make America great again.

The misunderstanding seems to have arisen as to just when it was that America was great.  For Trump, the time of greatness was the last days of the  GeorgeW. Bush administration.  He could discharge all of his debts in bankruptcy and even though it was his creditors who lost their money, Trump could claim the tax deduction.  Real estate prices were plummeting and, with a mountain of Russian cash backing him, Trump could pick up great properties at bargain prices. Ah, those were the great days!  No wonder Trump's personal animus towards Obama for having ruined his particular paradise.  

To Trump, the key to a return to greatness was to revive the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy along with deregulation in hopes of replicating the conditions which could lead to a return to the Great Recession, thus meeting the campaign promise to make America "Great" again.  

Tuesday, May 23, 2017

GUEST POST

New post on The Octogenarians

The Fingerprints on the Glass…

by daedal2207
California congressman Ted Lieu,no supporter of Trump,said in a recent interview that he hoped that Trump would do us proud on his travels to Saudi Arabia,Israel and Rome(the Vatican)and then come back to face the music.At best we can only hope that there is no egregious stumble.Congressman Lieu is probably unfamiliar with Alfred Adler's quote to the effect that personality is all encompassing and doesn't change as context or environment shifts.Thus,the fingerprints on the glass remain the same over time.If he sticks to carefully prepared script he may not grossly embarrass us.The minute his showman instincts prompt him toward spontaneity...watch out!
It would appear that the business of this trek was preset by Jared Kushner acting as crown prince in this Romanoff recapitulation.No humanitarian insistence on limited use of technology against civilian populations (Yemen).Bargain rates for an autocracy which holds sway over a suppressed population that gives rise to Baathist terror export.The resurrection of Shalom in Israel based on Trumps personality while the crown prince may have already torpedoed a two state solution ? Trump's U.N ambassador talks up moving the U.S. embassy to Bethlehem while his secretary of state hedges all bets." Do Us Proud " ? Ya gotta be kiddin!
daedal2207 | 23 May 20

MAKING GOOD ON CAMPAIGN PROMISES

During the election campaign, Donald Trump made clear that, in order to defeat ISIS, he would "bomb the shit out of them".  ISIS is about to find out that Donald means what he says and ISIS elements, in Manchester, are going to get what's coming to them.

Sunday, May 21, 2017

DESERVED OPPROBRIUM

In a speech, given by Donald Trump, in Saudi Arabia, this date, the President severely castigated Iran,  The severe criticism is surely deserved.  How many Trump hotels are there in Teheran?  When was the last time an Iranian official stayed at the Trump hotel in Washington?

Saturday, May 20, 2017

HAVE PATIENCE, Y'ALL

Democratic congressmen who are talking about impeaching, immediately, basis what they see as a prima facie case of obstruction of justice, are almost Trumpean in their lack of foresight.  Impeachment is a political act.  It is not a court of law with rules of evidence and trial precedents.  An impeachment proceeding brought before a majority Republican House, as it is constituted, today, would almost certainly fail, as would a trial before the Senate, today.  

Democrats should remember that when Bill Clinton's impeachment failed, his popularity soared.

Not only would several Articles of Impeachment, rather than just one, have a better chance, but if Democrats can prosper at the polls in 2018, they might have a chance to actually get the job done in 2019.  Have patience, y'all.

BELIEVE ME

President Trump recently said, "Believe me, there was no collusion".  All well and good, but by this time we have all become conditioned to the fact that "Believe me" signifies that a large variance from the truth is forthcoming, when Trump speaks.

Thursday, May 18, 2017

CLASSY GUY WITH INTEGRITY

Anyone thinking Trump lacks both class and integrity needs only to look how he has handled the firing of Gen. Flynn.  Despite Flynn being fired by his former boss and Trump being warned about the grounds for his termination; despite having been informed by Flynn, himself, that he was under investigation by the F.B.I., Trump nevertheless hired Flynn, and kept him on the job, for almost 3 weeks after being told by the Acting Attorney General that he had been compromised by the Russians.

The foregoing notwithstanding, Trump demonstrated his class and integrity by by blaming it all on Obama.

FREE MASSAGE THERAPY

Trump supporters, in a way similar to Trump, have a model, in their heads, of the  universe as it should be, and then try to fit all the facts of reality, into that model.

To those supporters, the fact that Trump asked Comey to "let Flynn go", means that Comey, to protect his integrity, should have immediately, recused himself  from the investigation, therefore, the real scandal is not that Trump asked, but that Comey did not do what was proper.

To a true supporter, if they saw Trump, inappropriately, groping one of their daughters, they would laud Trump for giving free massage therapy to them.

Wednesday, May 17, 2017

SENSE OF HUMOR NEEDED

Trump says that he asked Comey to go easy on Flynn as a joke. Proof being that he had sent everyone away before talking to Comey, in private, as he was punishing the others, at the time, and they were not allowed any humor, in the White House.

Trump also believes that Nixon only authorized the Watergate break-in,of the DNC headquarters, as a college prank which, unfortunately got out of hand owing to the lack of a sense of humor of Democrats, and it would only be proper to rehabilitate Tricky Dick, at the same time he is absolved of any malicious intent.  


LEARNING ON THE JOB

During the recent Presidential election cycle, Donald Trump's business experience was cited as a reason to vote for him to become President.  Once elected to the office, his business experience is being cited as an excuse for why he is so inept at governance.  We are told that we have to give him time to learn.  Why didn't they at least specify the amount of time he would need before asking us to vote for him?

Tuesday, May 16, 2017

DON'T MESS WITH SPIES

After mulling over today's Trump scandal involving the divulgence of classified information, I have come to the conclusion that Gen. McMaster was telling the truth when he said that Trump did nothing wrong when he released the information to the Russians, but I don't think Trump knows that and thinks that the General fell on his sword for him.  

The fact that Trump had been compromised, by the Russians, was well known, by the intelligence community, long before the inauguration, and a back channel had been developed during the Obama administration, to by-pass Trump, when it came to certain very sensitive information.  

Not only does Trump think he is indebted to Bibi, but now to McMaster as well, for their coming to his aid.

Friday, May 12, 2017

FAKE NEWS

That Lester Holt interview with Donald Trump?  Another example of Fake News!

Thursday, May 11, 2017

GUEST POST

Respond to this post by replying above this line

New post on The Octogenarians

The Chalice From the Palace,One More Time

by daedal2207
The wheels are coming off.The firing of James Comey revealed how tight the Trump inside circle is and the near impossibility of getting alternative" facts" quickly enough assembled to distribute them to all those in contact with a waiting public spearheaded by a vigilant press.Potus' physical posture during the Lesley Holt interview was one of fearful hyper vigilance reinforcing the impression that Potus was less than truthful.
How truthful are the assertions that ACA is falling apart? Republican governed states are certainly not helping with the matter of exchanges as a result of which these states have little or no competition for ACA exchange membership which,particularly in rural areas,pares profitability for participating providers.Social Security,Medicare,Medicaid have been worked on and modified over decades.Veterans Affairs have been neglected and are in disarray.Simply put systems have to evolve.There is no omniscience behind plan development.Worse yet there is evidence of deliberate sabotage to help ACA fail.Once again Pinocchio's nose is growing in spite of attacks on imported Canadian lumber.
We must be particularly on guard against military adventurism on the part of Trump and his key supporters to distract from Russian collusion scrutiny.In short,the wheels coming off of the Trump chariot should not be retoolable into tank treads.
daedal2207 | 11 May 2017 at 10:10 pm | Categories: Uncategorized | URL: http://wp.me/p4Gt4f-At
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"THIS BE THE GREATEST TREASON..."

I am an Independent who thought that Comey acted improperly with respect to Hillary Clinton, and deserved to be reprimanded, but I am adamantly and unabashedly against the actions of Donald Trump in firing him.  As the old adage goes "This be the greatest Treason, To do the right Deed for the Wrong Reason"

Anyone, who would try to tell me that he fired Comey because he treated "crooked Hillary" badly, is a man of low degree who does not deserve to be President of this nation.

WHO TO BELIEVE?

Any day now, I expect to have to decide whether to believe Donald Trump or James Comey's version of events leading up to Comey's abrupt firing.  It'll be a tough choice for me to decide between somebody who, even if I thought was mistaken, did not actually lie, and one who has kept fact checkers busy debunking his statements in the hundreds, for many months. 

Wednesday, May 10, 2017

MEASURING THE DRAPES

There is no need to be concerned that high Russian dignitaries visited the White House less than 24 hours after FBI Director Comey was fired.  We have been assured that the visit was innocuous and only so the measurement for the new drapes could be taken, 


HOW MADMEN BECOME EMPERORS

Rarely do scholars of history ever get the chance to experience, first hand, the process in which madmen become emperors. Such a time may be upon us.

Tuesday, May 9, 2017

NOT THE WAY TO DO IT

When will our Republican friends learn that the American public is quite aware that so-called, Obamacare has flaws that require fixing but that a tax cut for the wealthy is not the way to do it?

TREASON HAS NO STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS

Donald Trump disparages the first public hearing, of testimony, about an occurrence less than 6 months ago, by Ms. Yates, as "old news". Perhaps, Trump should be reminded that being old is not necessarily exculpatory and that treason is not subject to a statute of limitations.













Monday, May 8, 2017

OBAMA ADMINISTRATION TO BLAME FOR FLYNN

Since it is inconceivable that Trump could ever be wrong, about anything, let us confirm that the Flynn problems by comparing the actions of both Obama and Trump:

Under the Obama Administration


  • Flynn given security clearance by appropriate agency as White House does not grant security clearances.
  • Flynn fired by White House, in 2014.
  • Flynn's security clearance  automatically revoked on firing.
  • Flynn, somehow, manages to renew his security clearance from an authorizing agency.  Whether White House knew about it has not been established.
  • Trump specifically warned, by Obama,  about Flynn.
Under the Trump Administration:

  • Despite having been warned by Obama, Flynn is hired by the Trump Administration  for the position of National Security Advisor.
  • The Acting Attorney General, under the Trump Administration, Sally Yates, advises Trump of surreptitious contacts with the Russian Ambassador, by Flynn.  President Trump waits almost three (3) weeks before any action taken, by the Trump Administration in the matter thus allowing Flynn to attend meetings and receive sensitive briefings, etc. for that interim.
Since it should be well known that the buck does not stop at President Trump's desk unless it's green, it is obvious that the Trump Administration has no responsibility for actions taken by Flynn but the Obama Administration does.

"IN ORDER TO SAVE THE TOWN, WE HAD TO DESTROY IT"

G.O.P. officials, this past weekend, blithely insist that cutting the funding of the Medicaid program by almost $1 Trillion, will save the program.  In a similar way, during the Vietnam war, we had to destroy Ben Tre, a small town, in order to save it from the Viet Cong, and we need only look at the outcome of that war, to see the wisdom in their position.

Sunday, May 7, 2017

PASSING OVER THE DESERVING.

The lack of appreciation, for all of his accomplishments, has made this a most trying weekend for Donald Trump.  He had to ask the Government of Argentina not to award their equivalent, to our Medal of Freedom, to  Jimmy Carter for his Humanitarian work, because, after all, Trump edged out Carter, in the number of electors each had garnered in their first runs, therefore it would have been more fitting to have had the award bestowed on him.  

This weekend, Barack Obama is to receive the John F. Kennedy Profiles in Courage award, which, likewise,  should, rightfully, be given to Trump, because had not Obama trucked in illegal voters, he, Trump, would have had not only more Electors, but by having created more private sector jobs, he has demonstrated his courage.


FOUR HUNDRED POUND FRENCH KID

Contributing to Donald J. Trump's joy, at Macron winning the French elections, is the fact that the hacking took place without Putin's intervention.  Trump indicates that the failure of  the hack is proof that it was done by a 400 pound French kid lying on a couch, in Paris, because had it been by Putin, it would have succeeded.

INVALUABLE ASSISTANCE

Trump hopes that the world will recognize the invaluable assistance that he has given M. Macron in winning the French election, by backing his opponent.  He thinks that Macron could not have done it without him, further enhancing his influence in foreign affairs.

Additionally, Trump is particularly proud to have shown Macron how to win by a landslide.

 A victory lap, by the Donald, in the coming days, could be expected. 

Saturday, May 6, 2017

SNOWBIRD- IN- CHIEF

By mid-May, all the snowbirds, that reside in the county where I live, year round, are gone to Northern climes.  In recent times, our poor taxpayers enjoy a respite from having to cope with the additional expenses incurred by having to host the, so-called, Winter White House.  

Of course, our gain, in the Summer, is some other county's loss as now a Summer White House has been established.  Federal taxpayers, however, remind us that there is a year round White House, in Washington, D.C. and they have to foot the bill all of the time, and this new White House may set the all time spending record   

Thursday, May 4, 2017

ANOTHER FUTILE ACA REPEAL ATTEMPT

At this writing, there appears to be, underway, another one of those futile attempts to repeal Obamacare, by the House of Representatives, from which folly they expect to be rescued, by the Senate.

Faced with pressure from an apparently unstable President concerned only with his popularity rating, and who has threatened them with being "primaried", the Republicans, in the House have probably opted to face an angry electorate a year and a half from now, than an earlier primary.  They expect that if the repeal fails, again, when the Senate stops the bill, the issue may have been largely forgotten, by then, and give them a fighting chance against the Dems.  

Tuesday, May 2, 2017

TRUMP IDENTIFIES WITH JACKSON

What people may not realize is the similarity, with Andrew Jackson, that leads Trump to the conclusion that he would have averted the civil war  had he lived long enough.  After all, just as Jackson was a slave owner who better to address slavery?  Trump is a billionaire who, because he knows everything from the inside, can address the inequity in income between rich and poor.    

Trump, identifying with Jackson, is certain that Andrew would have known how to placate the abolitionists without sacrificing anything of his class just as he, Donald, can placate the poor while, at the same time, giving up not a whit of privilege from his class.   

Monday, May 1, 2017

RICH MINES AND DEEP POCKETS

Republicans seem to be anxious to loosen libel laws so as to be able to bring lawsuits, more easily, against what they claim to be the lying press.  They envision being able to sue for large sums of money.  They really should be careful of what they wish for.  

If libel and slander rules make it easier to sue, it would be reciprocal and make it easier for private citizens to bring suit, as well, against lying politicians.  Think of the rich mine, and deep pockets, offered by our present President.   All those names he called other candidates such as "crooked Hillary" and allegations such as  "Obama wiretapped me", which he would now have to prove or pay up.