On the weekend of Martin Luther King, Jr., Day, President-Elect Donald Trump responds to criticism from King ally and Congressman John Lewis by saying his district, metro Atlanta, is “in horrible shape” and saying Congressman Lewis is “All talk, talk, talk” and “no action.”
Yes, Congressman John Lewis has done a lot of talking in his life. He spoke for the civil rights movement in the Deep South in the 1960s. He spoke for civil rights on the bridge in Selma. Here’s the action the authorities took against Lewis’s talk:
Congressman John Lewis is still talking. An America nowhere near post-racial does well to keep listening.
Congressman Lewis’s Atlanta constituents are also talking with pride about their Congressman and their district’s economic and cultural well-being. One effort to measure “human development” by Congressional Districts ranks the Georgia Fifth 158th out of 435 on an index combining education, health, and income. Atlanta also has a growing tech industry.
Once again, Trump appears more interested in Twitter spikes than in dignity and fact.
John Lewis was right then, and he’s right now.
Just as there are republicans that will go to their graves believing that President Obama was not born in this country, there are millions of Americans that believe because of Putin’s interference in our election trump is not a ‘legitimate president’
Roger, those Republicans believe this in part because they were encouraged and lead on by President-Elect Trump. He had personally paid for an investigation and had “Proof” President Obama was not born in the US. Now Priebus is asking for President Obama to step up and clarify that Trump is the legitimate President of the US.
I cannot believe that memories are that short, so it must be absolute lack of shame that allows Republicans to be so indignant now about the questioning of legitimacy of a (their) president.
And as for the all talk – no action: how is that “Lock her up; Mexico will pay for it; Drain the swamp” coming? (Please read that in a Sara Palin dialect – like when she asked the country how that “Hopey- Changey thingy” was working.)
From Bill Moyers:
See also Moyers colleague Michael Winship on “Yertle, the Commander in Chief.”
And the funny thing, Roger, is that our belief is based on actual evidence, like the conclusions of the entire United States intelligence community, as well as words, like those above, straight from the President-Elect’s mouth.
Silly us, O: back when Trump challenged the legitimacy of Obama’s Presidency, we spent time actually refuting his claim with facts about Obama’s birth and other details. Maybe we should adopted Trump’s tactic and simply thrown personal attacks at him for not checking where his workers were born… oh, wait, but that would have been us appealing to facts again. What is wrong with us?! ;-)
I believe this will be the first time in American history that we have a foreign born first lady or should that be first stripper first lady?
LMAO Roger! good one, Maybe in the Blue Room a pole will now be installed, perfect decor for it as well. I can see it now!
At least we are admitting that all previous first ladies were not foreign born. Or are natives, per se. Is that really true? Wasn’t JQA’s lady born elsewhere?
John Q Adams wife was indeed born outside the USA, however her father was an American merchant married to a English woman.
I couldn’t find out if Catherine Adams was ever a stripper or posed nude.
So not native-born but an American citizen. I bet you she posed nude at some point. I’m just sayin…
Cory, your “facts” argument is based on a world view I share, but today I learned some of the potential weaknesses of this view. I posted this in an older thread, but will report it here because it seems to directly address your theory. Lakoff gives scientific analysis explaining why presenting “facts” to support an argument might not work very well due to the manner in which the human brain actually functions.
Yes, let’s turn this into a forum where everyone degrades the future first lady of the United States. That makes a strong case for all the complaints about how Trump behaves in an immature way. As for the comment about Trump questioning the birth certificate of Obama, the birther conspiracy was started by volunteers on the Hillary team. Country is divided, but it is obvious who is provoking the division, and it’s not Trump or his supporters. Accept the outcome and worry about the future, not the past.
Lines are being drawn, all it is gonna take is NOem and company to release the hounds of repeal. Be ready http://www.dailykos.com/stories/2017/1/15/1620676/–OurFirstStand-Tens-of-Thousands-of-Democrats-Rally-to-Save-HealthCare-around-the-Nation
Ryan D. says “As for the comment about Trump questioning the birth certificate of Obama, the birther conspiracy was started by volunteers on the Hillary team.”
I’m not sure if this is correct. But even if we assume it is correct, how does this in any way justify Trump’s campaign of trying to delegitimize the first Black president in American history? Trump waged a war against Obama for many years until he was forced to admit Obama was born in the US only last year. Nothing excuses Trump’s behavior.
why do “Trump supporting” arguments ALWAYS go back to Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama, “Ryan Deplorable”? Instead of holding the next leader of the free world accountable for his own actions? it truly is the argument of elementary school kids (and I feel bad for insulting elementary kids that way.)
In other words, what you are saying, Ryan, is that – since Hillary “started it”, Mr Trump, a 70 year old man, doesn’t have to be held responsible for something he said? And how he continued to try to deligitimize President Obama for at least five years? WOW!
By the way, Ryan, get back up to speed on the facts on “Hillary started it” meme (aka,more Trump lies) :
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2016/sep/16/donald-trump/fact-checking-donald-trumps-claim-hillary-clinton-/
You also commented about worrying about the future, not the past – but bring up “Hillary started it”. Sigh
But I guess in your playbook, when Trump degrades and insults a true American hero such as John Lewis, AND, also insults and degrades the district John Lewis represents – It’s Hillary’s fault. When the country and the world implodes under Trump’s leadership, will you still cast blame on Obama and Clinton?
Provoking the division? Let me think on that one a second – oh yes, all you have to do is watch Trump’s twitter feed to see who is helping to divide the country. As a leader, he should be uniting and not dividing. Insulting and bashing Americans, businesses and companies, and other countries on a daily basis, sounds pretty devisive to me. You are correct, Ryan Deplorable —- it IS obvious who is provoking the division.
The birther issue was a product of the racist tea party organization in 2008.
Dr. Orley Taitz first raised the issue and every wingnut, including Donald Trump picked it up and ran with it.
Ryan is correct about one thing, we should be worried about the future, very worried.
Trump’s behavior during the campaign and post-election have been reprehensible and divisive.
Democrats and Hillary didn’t advocate building a wall to keep Mexicans out or restrict Muslims from coming to America nor did she attack a Civil Rights icon.
Trump has been advocating and supporting attacks on our First Amendment rights by restricting the press once he is elected.
I refuse to tolerate Donald Trump and anything he represents.
Ryan, nothing I say in the original post degrades the first lady. However, she did degrade herself by posing nude and promoting the objectification of women. One could argue that she also degraded herself by marrying Donald Trump to serve as his window dressing and bathe in his gold.
The debatable origins of the birther claims have nothing to do with the fact that Trump pushed those obviously false claims.
Trump and his supporters are quite clearly dividing the country. The President-Elect in particular shows his divisiveness with his fact-free, thin-skinned insult to Congressman Lewis and his district. The President-Elect has a unique obligation, greater than that borne by anyone participating in this discussion, not to speak in such an insulting and divisive fashion.
We all know the rules of the game right?
1. Its ok for Lewis to take pop shots at Trump.
2. Its not okay for Trump to fire back, because Rep. Lewis has a race card.
1. Lewis spoke correctly, daddy Don is illegitimate. Look it up
2. Daddy Don cannot help his racist self so he attacked the truth, as usual.
Greg Deplorable, we all know the rules of the game:
1. Trump will be criticized as all presidents have been.
2. Trump’s thin skin and insecurities cause him to lash out in almost uncontrollable fits of rage and insanity.
3. This leads to him saying stupid things like Rep. Lewis is all “talk, talk, talk” and “no action.”
4. Trump’s statements will be ironic and ill-informed, if not false, as in the case of Rep. Lewis who was all about action as one of the leaders of the civil rights movement and who marched in Selma and got his skull fractured by racist police.
5. Trump will continue to lack a basic understanding of the 1st Amendment.
Congressman and civil rights icon John Lewis is displaying an unfortunate pattern of behavior in publicly questioning the legitimacy (versus ideology, etc.) of his political opponents as well as fudging the truth when unnecessary, which I believe would have been completely unthinkable during his days spent alongside Dr. MLK, Jr. But, if good people bring out the good in people, then it should be no surprise that bad people bring out the bad in people.
https://atlantadailyworld.com/2016/02/11/john-lewis-called-sellout-for-endorsing-clinton-over-bernie-sanders-video/
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/2/12/1483921/-DID-JOHN-LEWIS-JUST-LIE-ABOUT-MEETING-THE-CLINTONS-DURING-THE-CIVIL-RIGHTS-ERA
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2016/02/20/morning_joe_panel_on_photo_of_bernie_sanders_arrested_protesting_segregation_in_1963.html
Funny, hadn’t noticed, but she got the hell out of Dodge and not a word since. That’s interesting.
The human body can be, and is often, Art. Her body is pleasing in the composition of line and proportion. It is also appealing at an instinctual level for those of us who are hetro.
Have never heard the argument that “David” too, “degraded himself and promoted the objectification of men” by posing.
Steve, we can have a debate about the merits of Rep. Lewis’s claims. I do not advocate the “rules” Greg Dep tries to impute to me. However, the President-Elect is not engaging in that debate or following any rules of honest logical dispute. He’s simply throwing insults and demonstrating (see Darin’s solid critique) that he is the smallest man in the room. I may not use the word “illegitimate,” but I will certainly use the word “ill-suited.”
Dr. Newquist spells it out clearly in his current posting. Mr. Lewis is spot on correct regarding daddy Don as not being legitimate. Words have meanings and legitimate in this case, is correct.
caheidelberger, the degrading took place in the comment section, not in the original post. I will say that many of the celebrities that have the same view points towards Trump, as is seen on this forum, have also posed nude, let’s not cherry pick. Trump supporters seem to always go back to Hillary or Obama because no one has held them accountable for their actions the last eight years.
Trump admitted he was wrong about the birther movement, and got roasted for it. Move on from it. Golden shower rumors have been spread all week.
@Roger C, aside from funding, what is the actual issue with building a wall and keeping illegal immigrants out of our country? There is a process for anyone to come into our country legally, simple. Vetting refugees from Muslim countries seems plausible as well, and is turning into the status quo around the world. Americans have every right to be weary about allowing millions of people with different ideologies into our country.
Hard to bring a country together when opposing leaders are telling their constituents that their President-Elect is illegitimate. Trump has the right to fight back against those claims, it has nothing to do with John Lewis being a civil rights activist.
How is President-Elect illegitimate?
The most eloquent description of your question would be this post by Dr. Newquist. I do not have his permission to post anything from it, so will supply the link to it for you to read yourself. http://northernbeacon.blogspot.com/2017/01/a-semantic-case-for-trumps-illegitimacy.html
Love how Dr. Newquist sprinkles in “Russian hacking” before he gets into the meat of his argument. There is no logic in the “Russian hacking” argument. What exactly did they hack, voter’s minds? The voting machines? Does Dr. Newquist really accuse Trump of defamation and slander? If that’s the case, and he is breaking the law, anyone who portrayed the future First Lady as a stripper in the above thread has broken the law as well, according to Dr. Newquist. Dr. Newquist then talks about the definition of legitimate, and tries to back his claim up with the popular vote scapegoat. Trump won over 2,600 counties, Clinton won a mere 487…That looks like a “legitimate” win to me. Spare me those popular vote percentages in future arguments.
I love it as well. It is love in the first degree comrade.
I cannot really say if the first lady was anything other than naked and getting paid for it, how do you define that?
Ryan Deplorable,
If I broke the law by calling trump’s wife a stripper, come and arrest me.
Barry—On Michelangelo: different time, different place, different intent. More like Anthony Weiner than art.
RyanDep: Trump didn’t so much disown his birther claims as turn them into a new, self-serving lie.
The only weird thing about Melania’s vocational decisions seems to be that progressives typically support and defend the right of women to choose whatever lawful vocation they decide on. Progressives generally don’t denigrate women based on their sexuality. Conservatives, on the other hand, are much more likely to criticize any woman for her sexual activities, including engaging in a vocation involving nudity or sexual activity.
In Melania’s case, the two opposing world views seem to have flip flopped. People who normally defend women have someone rationalized that they should attack Melania, and people who attack women for similar behavior are giving Melania a pass.
Attacking any woman, including Melania, by demeaning her agency and her past choices to become a lawful sex worker seems shallow and unbecoming of progressives. I can’t take that path.
Roger Cornelius: I’m not going to come and arrest you for calling the President Elect’s wife a stripper, I don’t care. I was making a point that Dr. Newquists argument that the President Elect’s acts of “defamation” or “slandering” alone is enough to impeach him as soon as he swears into office is laughable, and that many of you partake in the same behavior you are so quickly willing to condemn.
Cberger: like I said, he payed his price for the birther movement hoax. The white house correspondents dinner was a degrading moment for the President Elect.
Ryan Deplorable, you asked how Trump is illegitimate.
I think Trump is illegitimate because, were it not for Russian hacking and disclosure of confidential DNC emails, Clinton would have likely prevailed in the extremely close state contests that decided the election. The stream of DNC emails were used as a sword to attack Clinton for months on end. The email disclosures often dominated the news cycle at times when Trump’s words and conduct would otherwise have been at issue. It gave cover to voters who were led to believe by the constant email disclosures that “Clinton was as deplorable as Trump” so to speak. If they were equally bad choices, then there was no moral imperative to vote for Clinton.
Thus, given the fact that only 1% or less of voters needed to be swayed by the Russian email barrage for Trump to win in states like Florida, Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, there is little doubt that Trump would not have been president without the election interference by Russia. This makes him illegitimate.
Come one, now. Trump is legitimate. Russia hacked the DNC files, but that stuff actually happened, everyone. It’s not fake. It’s an absolutely fair and true point that there was a clear attempt to influence because, shocker, the RNC managed to keep its jacket closed. But it’s not like voting machines were hacked. The public just became privy to information party officials did not want them to know. Unfair? Sure. Illegitimate? Come on.
If the truth would have been hidden from voters just a little longer, Clinton would have won? Really?
The Clinton team failed to fight bad speech and “fake news” and twitter with better speech, which is even more perplexing given the campaign’s advantages in fundraising.
But they were not willing to go there given the e-mail investigation, and it is now clear it was a mistake to underestimate Trump’s chances.
The bigger problem was that a huge number of voters did not think she was addressing their issues. Thus the losses in Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Ohio.
I would argue that 1% of Wisconsin voters were swayed more by Clinton not stepping foot on Wisconsin soil than by Russian influence.
We’re getting away from the original post. Rep. John Lewis has every right to call President Elect illegitimate (clearly wrong), but the President Elect has just as a much a right to respond. He called out Rep. John Lewis not on his civil rights actions, but on his responsibilities as a House Representative. Media headlines would have you think the President Elect said Rep. John Lewis didn’t march on Selma. Kind of like when Rep. John Lewis said Rep. Bernie Sanders didn’t fight for civil rights of African Americans.
I am not sure she had much chance in West Virginia, but when she said that she was going to put a lot of coal miners out of work, that basically sealed the deal. So the Russian influence was moot.
Future Democratic success will depend upon coming up with better alternatives that voters in those states will buy into, not just simply saying no for 4 years.
“Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) is a civil rights hero. He is also one of the most partisan members of the Democratic Party, and frequently accuses his political opponents, falsely, of racism.
Lewis also uses his iconic stature to deflect criticism when he is called out for these false attacks, exploiting — and, arguably, demeaning — the civil rights movement.
Here are five of the worst recent examples of what has become, for Rep. Lewis, a shamefully routine practice.
2008: Falsely accused Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) and Gov. Sarah Palin of racism. Lewis attacked McCain and Palin, then running against Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) for president: “Sen. McCain and Gov. Palin are sowing the seeds of hatred and division,” he said, going on to suggest that the Republican ticket were creating the climate for racist terrorism. “[Democrat] George Wallace never threw a bomb … but he created the climate and the conditions that encouraged vicious attacks against innocent Americans … four little girls were killed on Sunday morning when a church was bombed in Birmingham, Alabama.” Years later, McCain still had not forgiven him: “I’ll never forgive John Lewis,” he told AL.com in 2013.
2010: Falsely claimed that Tea Party demonstrators said the “N-word” during anti-Obamacare rally. Lewis joined several other members of the Congressional Black Caucus in claiming that a crowd of thousands of Tea Party protesters on the steps of Capitol Hill had shouted the “N-word” at them when they walked through the crowd — apparently in the hope of provoking a reaction. “It surprised me that people are so mean and we can’t engage in a civil dialogue and debate,” Lewis claimed. But he never proved the accusation — and when Andrew Breitbart offered to donate $10,000, then $100,000, to the United Negro College Fund for any video evidence of the “N-word,” none surfaced — despite hundreds of cameras present.
2012: Falsely accused Republicans of wanting to take Americans back to Jim Crow. Lewis gave a speech at the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina in which he recalled being beaten by white racists, along with fellow Freedom Riders, in 1961. He concluded by implying that Republicans wanted to bring back those days of blood and hatred: “Brothers and sisters, do you want to go back? Or do you want to keep America moving forward?”
2016: Falsely compared Donald Trump to George Wallace. Reviving his theme from 2008, Lewis said that Trump reminded him of the governors of the Jim Crow South and the police who let dogs loose on demonstrators: “I’ve been around a while and Trump reminds me so much of a lot of the things that George Wallace said and did … Sometimes I feel like I am reliving part of my past. I heard it so much growing up in the South…I heard it so much during the days of the civil rights movement. As a people, I just think we could do much better,” he told the Los Angeles Times in an interview.
2017: Falsely claimed Trump is “illegitimate” because of a Russian “conspiracy.” Joining the tin foil hat brigade, Lewis claimed that Trump was a kind of “Manchurian Candidate” put in place by Russia: “I don’t see the president-elect as a legitimate president. … I think there was a conspiracy on the part of the Russians, and others, that helped him get elected.”
Update:
2016: Falsely claimed Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) played no role in the civil rights movement. Lewis, a supporter of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s bid for the presidency, tried to trash Sanders’s civil rights credentials. “I never saw him. I never met him,” Lewis said. Proof later emerged of Sanders’s arrest in civil rights protests in Chicago in the 1960s.”
The arguments offered by Dicta, Robert, and Ryan Dep on the legitimacy of Trump’s election are reasonable, fact-based responses to Rep. Lewis’s claim about Trump’s legitimacy. The President-Elect could have offered such responses. However, since the President-Elect’s attention does not span more than 140 characters, the President-Elect responded with a baseless and ill-timed personal attack. That’s the problem here.
Our adversary, if not our enemy, the Russians, had a concerted campaign against HRC that illegally obtained confidential and legally protected information over a period of time when it was designed to distract and dismay voters. The Russians had RNC information and choose not to use it.
But for the Russian hacking and meddling in our US election, HRC would be president. That makes Trump illegitimate.
The lack of outrage at our cold war enemy swaying the election for its preferred candidate is UNREAL!
McTaggart and Dicta are acting like the US press corps found out about information and disclosed it as part of the freedom of the press. No we had a foreign power basically invade our country electronically and change the course of history!
ele, I don’t have time to correct all of your allegations about Rep. Lewis right now, but I’ll just let you review this video from Trump rallies where the N word was used among many other racial, ethnic and religious disparities:
https://newsone.com/3499451/new-york-times-records-hate-speech-at-trump-rallies/
Who are you going to believe Trump or your lying eyes?
President Elect’s response was not baseless. Rep. John Lewis called him out for being illegitimate, that caused a response. What is the issue to responding to a claim that you are illegitimate, the words that he used to do so? He wasn’t racist, he wasn’t sexist. Ill-timed?
@Darin, since when did the left become so worried about the Russian’s? It must have been in recent months. From what I remember Mitt Romney during the 2012 election warned Americans of Russian threat, and Obama responded, “The 1980’s called, it wants it’s foreign policy back.” Here’s a 30 sec YouTube clip to refresh your memory:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QS2a44F5TgM
So which is it? The hypocrisy of the left baffles me sometimes.
All credible reports (WSJ) state that Russia tried hacking into the RNC, and failed to do so because of the strong security implemented by the Republican party.
Mr. Larson, ele is a Brietbart sponge. You are never gonna be able to explain anything there.
Daddy Don is not a legitimate president. Never will be for this fraud of an election.
Since we’ve debunked the alleged “Russian Hacking” and “Popular Vote” theories, what else makes the ELECTION illegitimate?
Nice try comrade, not legitimate is the word here. Representative Lewis clearly stated that daddy Don was not legitimate and that is true. Popular votes were won by Clinton. Electoral College (not really a school) had daddy Don as the most votes received. I am going to go with the intelligence community on the Russian hacking, with full agreement. They seemed to have protected us from outside attack by a foreign power up until daddy Don got involved.
But hey, Mike Boswell may not need us independent journalists as much, since the combative, deceptive President-Elect may drive mainstream journalists to get back to doing real journalism instead of waiting for reliable White House sources to hand them information.
@Ryan Deplorable: “All credible reports (WSJ) state that Russia tried hacking into the RNC, and failed to do so because of the strong security implemented by the Republican party.”
The Russian “hack” was about as unsophisticated as you can get, using an old school phishing gambit to gain access to John Podesta’s email account. This is akin to falling for the Nigerian prince ploy used to scam money out of granny. Jeebus, he should be issued an Amazon Fire Kid’s Edition tablet with parental controls.
bcb, curious, where in the United States, beside Nevada, are you considered a lawful sex worker? What capacity would that fall under exactly? I read your post and see what you mean. I disagree though as I have listened to 8 friggin years of the right wing beating hell out of Michelle Obama for just being a mom. Mrs. Obama tried to get kids to eat properly in school, the right wing declared pizza as a vegetable and bashed her for being so naive. She did not do any nude pictures for the crowd that has now declared war on porn. I wonder how will that play out with the pictures that are available of a nude posing first lady with another nude lady in an interesting embrace?
I really do not feel the need to be a nice guy anymore regarding the politics of politics. In the last 8 years of Obama, that nice guy deal was shown not to deliver. What he got done was really done with hard work all by his lonesome. The only time the right wing ever stepped in was to butter their own bread. They say a picture says a thousand words, so a thousand pictures are priceless in words, guess we will see them sooner than we think.
When it is said that the Russian military is not very sophisticated at hacking, I say bull puckey. We depend on the Russian military to help keep that space station up there in the sky doing its thing. Yep, the Russian military does not know how to boot up a 186 floppy, so they could not possibly do any hacking. They do seem to know how to run one of these things though http://www.space.com/16748-international-space-station.html
We got scammed, so we should just admit it and own it. Daddy Don really does not want the job they gave him, so we have that going for us. Now lets work on 2018 just in case he decides he is making to much money to leave. The loss of Obamacare due to Russian interference is a double whammy, no wonder the deny crew continues.
Voter information hacked https://phys.org/news/2016-08-russian-hackers-voter-databases.html This is not about the DNC, this was systemic of the election fraud hacking by the Russian military.
My question of why Obama didn’t take Romney’s warning seriously still hasn’t been addressed. Four years ago you probably agreed with Obama, I assume, that new relations with Russia were needed…Now you’ve lost the election, tables have turned and it’s President Elect’s fault?
Obama is leaving the building. Intelligence reported it to Obama, daddy Don, Ryan and Turtle man, they all knew. In case you may have missed it, there is this dust up in Syria that has the United States and Russia at odds for some time now. Also, there is this http://www.newsweek.com/donald-trump-michael-flynn-russian-hacking-russia-542674
Your boy and his sidekick Pence are up to their eyeballs in all things Russia. I really do not think either of them will last the year without both stepping down.
CNN reported today that they have a 2014 taped interview of trump on NBC stating that he thought Russia was the greatest threat we had.
That was 2014, two years ago, what happened to trump to change his mind on such a major policy shift.
I have my own suspicions of why President Elect wants a decent relationship with Russia, but that is for another thread. I read the CNN article and nothing really stuck out to me as to Trump’s stance on Russia. He agreed with Romney and stated that Russia was eating Obama’s lunch, pretty fair assessment at the time.
I have wondered where the hawk wing of the republican party went. You are correct in that Mitt stated clearly that Russia was our biggest threat and many republican lawmakers agreed full throttle to include Ryan and McConnell as the two leaders of their chambers. What happened to that? What do the Russians have on all of these guys? Why did they not pursue it? There are ongoing investigations both here and abroad involving British as well as American intelligence networks. One other element is that the Israeli intelligence has been working on this as well.
In a matter of a few more months, there will be a changing of the guard in Washington. The new president will be weakened for sure just like Gerald Ford was. BTW, it will not be Pence either.
Ryan Deplorable, it is a well known fact that Putin had it out for Clinton because of her tough stance on Russia:
http://www.politico.com/story/2016/07/clinton-putin-226153
Lol “British Intelligence” you mean the guy Trump opponents hired to TRY and find dirt on him, and gave the biased media a dossier on his findings? Time and again Jerry brings up talking points that are easy to refute.
This is an honest question, and I just want to hear opinions because I’ve been at battle with this thought. What are the negatives of having a good relationship with Russia? They have a lot of oil, they do not allow refugees from terrorist hotbeds into their country, and they do not like ISIS.
Refute as you will sir, that is what blogs allow. Of course we should have relationships with all countries, that is what the United Nations is for, to unite us into a common thread. To answer your question, I will give you one first. If Russia wanted to be our newest buddy, why would they hack in the first place? Why would daddy Don specifically request them to do so?
Russia is not a problem, the Russian military/mafia is. In particular, the Russian leader. Now if I have to explain that to a republican, then you are clearly out of sorts. BTW, that former British agent was hired by Republicans for their research, something that all political parties do to vet the candidates of the same party as well as the opposition. The reason for this man was because of daddy Don’s long financial history with Russia and its leaders. When you go to bed with the Russian mafia, you get fleas. Clinton hit the hornet’s nest when she exposed the Panama Papers. Those clearly identified the Russian mob and its leader for the grand theft of the Russian people’s assets.
So there you have it, Ryan D. An answer to your question without even having to answer mine, lucky you.
If the rather deplorable institution called the “United Nations” voted by population, would not India and China rule us all? But golly, the little countries get an equal vote too.
Yes, Republicans aka Trump opposition, as I stated.
Any financial ties to Russia reported to have been made by the President Elect seem to be legal. On the other hand Clinton received millions, also legally, from countries that blatantly violate human rights. It is a long list. So I guess what I’m asking is: what’s the difference between Trump wanting a good relationship with Russia and the candidate you wanted having obvious financial relations with human rights violators?
First off, Bernie Sanders was my candidate of choice, I want to make that clear. I have never wavered from that point. I did vote for Clinton, for that I have stated.
We must have relationships with all countries. In particular both China and Russia. Russia is growing its military with what little funds it has left since the oil and gas market went down, that is dangerous. Germany did that as well for the same reasons in the 1930’s and it did not end well for the world. In order to have relationships with anyone, they must be from a point of strength, not weakness. You will find that in business as well in foreign relations. Russia does not want that, they want to be in the power position to gain back the former Soviet Union. You can link why the sanctions were put in place in the first place, Crimea. You can see what was the reason for Crimean annexation by Russia, the Ukraine and Clinton. You can then see why NATO has been discussed as being unnecessary. NATO does not want the bear on the prowl. They actually know history as their graveyards are full of what happens when Russia and the like are unchecked. As you do not tend to read links, you will have to find out on your own. Study up on this as it is important. America has always led from a point of strength, which is the only way in which to deal with the Russian military/mafia. Without that, these boys will steamroll you. A porcupine has that kind of strength that when the bear comes after him, he will amble along and then wack them with a snoot full of problems.
Trump has claimed repeatedly that he has had no financial ties to Russia.
Just another trump lie.
Jerry,
trump has already started off on the wrong foot with China, they are still smarting over trump’s call to Taiwan.
Corey: wonderful note. Great picture of John Lewis from 1965. Here’s the juxtapositioned photo of what draft-dodger student deferment child was doing in 1965 – playing squash at Fordham wearing the same smirk he wears now.
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C2JMgRfXcAQkPJC.jpg
The child this weekend criticized the Bayerische Motoren Werke company for daring to import its manufactured cars from Mexico – oblivious to the fact that the automobile company is America’s largest car exporter.
http://www.nbcnews.com/business/autos/trump-now-threatening-automakers-canada-germany-n707531
We cannot impeach the child and the DNC fast enough.
Daddy Don owes them a pile of money, north of a billion American. They will get their money back and then some with some deals that will hurt this country. I thought that when Bill Clinton came into the White House there were many problems but those happened after he was sworn in. I have never seen such complete chaos before inauguration by anyone. You know, it you cannot even get that right, how ya gonna run the country. Don’t think that our adversaries are not seeing this as well. I am not even sure there will be an inauguration as it will look much like it was taking place in Polo.
Ryan Dep, you miss the point. I didn’t say Trump had no justification for responding to Lewis; I said exactly the opposite, that we all can respond to the merits of Lewis’s claim.
But my main complaint, going back to the original theme of the post, is that the response Trump chose is absolutely false, personally insulting, and thus beneath the dignity of a man who pretends to the highest office in the land.
It’s the same with my response here: I have every right to respond vigorously to your statements to demonstrate your errors. However, if I respond by saying, “Ryan’s house is a disaster, and he’s all talk and no action—sad!” it should be clear to all participants that I’m resorting to cheap and baseless insults that reflect poorly on my intelligence and character.
Jerry, although it is off the original topic to answer your question, I believe you are correct that Nevada is the only state in which prostitution is lawful, but I don’t think Melania was accused of that crime. As for other lawful sexual activity and nudity, the 1st Amendment as interpreted by the SCOTUS appears to permit the making of sexually explicit films and photos, unless found to be “obscene” as defined by the Court. So sex work in that sense is lawful throughout our nation. And although I have not seen Melania’s nude posing, from what I have read it sounds pretty soft core in this day and age.
There are so many things wrong with Trump and so many reasons to challenge his legitimacy, it strikes me as unbecoming for anyone to go after his spouse because she choose an apparently lawful profession. I also think it was unbecoming to go after Hillary because of Bill’s infidelity. Ever single woman deserves the agency, right and the freedom to engage in whatever lawful profession she sees fit without the danger of being attacked by others.
If nothing happened, then release ALL information available. We see elected officials come from briefings saying uncommon things in uncommon ways. What have they learned? Tell us while it is still cold and the protest crowds are small. Give the American people time to deal with it so they leave the pitchforks at home when they protest.
The proof will surface ( if it hasn’t already, but is hopelessly buried on the Internet or countered by unlimited Fake News by the World’s two biggest Governments) that Republicans and Russians, together, or each on their own, hacked voter rolls and machines in North Carolina as well as other places.
The Russians have built entire towns that recruit, train, and order State hackers to commit all kinds of mayhem, and they are able to do it without leaving much, if any, of a footprint. We know the US does it, as with the malware we put on the Iran nuke program, setting them back years.
Republicans, along with the rest of us, knew of Russian hacking in the summer of 2016, so they figured that was their “out”. If caught purging voter rolls and reprogramming voting machines, the Russians could be blamed after denials and chastising failed to hide the truth.
I’m sure the Democrats were hacking also, keyboards on both sides were smoking on election day, but that does not excuse the Republicans or legitimize their victory.