What does a TRUMP presidency look like?

[Syt]

https://www.rt.com/news/390612-dont-worry-be-happy-putin-on-climate-change/

Putin on Paris climate change agreement: 'Don't worry, be happy'

Russian President Vladimir Putin has called for calm in the wake of Donald Trump's decision to pull the US out of the Paris Agreement, joking that any bad weather encountered around the globe could now be blamed on 'American imperialism'.

Speaking at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), the Russian president said the panic surrounding Trump's decision has been blown way out of proportion, noting that there is still time before the agreement, which was signed in 2015, goes into effect.

"Don't worry, be happy," Putin said in English.

"This agreement [the Paris Agreement on climate change] has not yet even come in effect. It will come into effect in 2021. So we still have time. If we all work constructively, we can agree on something," he said.

"The United States has ratified [this agreement], as I recall, but we [Russia] have not yet," he added. "We haven't done this because we want to wait until when the rules of allocation of resources, and other technical – but important – issues, are ironed out."

The Paris accords were worked out in 2015 to replace the Kyoto Protocol on greenhouse gas emissions. Russia is one of its 195 signatories, but has yet to ratify the document.

"It's about preventing temperature changes of two degrees," he reminded the audience, noting that "we here [at the forum] somehow do not yet feel that the temperature is rising."

"By the way, we should be grateful to President Trump. In Moscow it's raining and cold and even, they say, some snow. Now we could blame this all on American imperialism, that it's all their fault. But we won't."

On Thursday, Donald Trump announced he was taking the US out of the Paris Agreement, which it had entered in 2015 under Barack Obama. Trump, a climate change skeptic, called the deal "unfair" to the United States, which is second only to China as the world's greatest greenhouse gas emitter. The decision was met with criticism from many world leaders, with French President Emmanuel Macron saying in a televised statement that "there is no Plan B" on climate because "there is no Planet B".

While not directly criticizing Trump, Russia has confirmed its commitment to the Paris deal.

"President Vladimir Putin signed this convention when he was in Paris. Russia attaches great significance to it," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the media on Thursday. "At the same time, it goes without saying that the effectiveness of this convention is likely to be reduced without its key participants."

He added that, at the moment, "there is no alternative to" the Paris convention.

[Valmy]

Were we in a Constitutional Crisis? Well glad it is diffused.

I was not aware Elon Musk was hated. Are we even allowed to pursue energy goals with private money without angering the right? Weird. And it seems you have to wear a hair shirt and self-flagellate or you are a hypocrite, I hate that weak-sauce bullshit.

[Zanza]

So, let's celebrate, America! I'm marking the occasion by firing up the grill, smoking a pork butt, cranking up the air-conditioning and driving around the neighborhood in a gas-guzzling SUV. And later tonight, I'll remove an ice tray from my freezer to watch the ice cubes melt.

That person sure knows how to party! Tomorrow will be watching paint dry.

[Admiral Yi]

I know next to nothing about the Paris accord.  Can someone brief me?

Is it one of those non-binding target kind of deals?

[The Minsky Moment]

I know next to nothing about the Paris accord.  Can someone brief me?

Is it one of those non-binding target kind of deals?

Yes.  The legal terms of the agreement itself are not of great significance.  It is significant as a signaling mechanism, both ways.

[Crazy_Ivan80]

Orange Man speak with forked tongue.

corrected that for you.
And never trust a man that looks like a carrot

[Admiral Yi]

Yes.  The legal terms of the agreement itself are not of great significance.  It is significant as a signaling mechanism, both ways.

Then it's perhaps fair to say that Donald's withdrawal and the reaction to the withdrawal are yugely overblown.

[Valmy]

Yes. But likewise there was no reason to withdraw and no way did it hurt our economy and all the accusations he needlessly flung at the other countries of the world was unnecessary. Seems like he attacked everybody publicly for no reason at all.

I don't know why that was necessary. He could have just quietly withdrawn without the big 'fuck you everybody else' blowhard bullshit. The threats to rip up every other agreement? Why? How does that help our bargaining position even if renegotiations are in order?

[Barrister]

Yes.  The legal terms of the agreement itself are not of great significance.  It is significant as a signaling mechanism, both ways.

Then it's perhaps fair to say that Donald's withdrawal and the reaction to the withdrawal are yugely overblown.

Yes and no.

I understand some in the Trump Whitehouse were advising to stay in for precisely that reason - that it isn't that big of a deal, doesn't actually constrain the US.  But it is a huge symbolic step.

[Barrister]

Trump may block Comey from testifying (he hasn't decided yet).

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-russia-idUSKBN18T1WZ?il=0

[DontSayBanana]

Then it's perhaps fair to say that Donald's withdrawal and the reaction to the withdrawal are yugely overblown.

No, quite the opposite. It was a temper tantrum. It was the same kind of temper tantrum that led to the rant at NATO HQ. Since it wasn't legally binding, and he could have literally completely changed the targets without anything happening ("We gave it a shot, but it was too expensive to be fully implemented by our industrial sector"), there was no reason to torpedo the whole thing except to piss off Obama and/or the other participating countries.

[Savonarola]

Yes. But likewise there was no reason to withdraw and no way did it hurt our economy and all the accusations he needlessly flung at the other countries of the world was unnecessary. Seems like he attacked everybody publicly for no reason at all.

I don't know why that was necessary. He could have just quietly withdrawn without the big 'fuck you everybody else' blowhard bullshit. The threats to rip up every other agreement? Why? How does that help our bargaining position even if renegotiations are in order?

Donald Trump and "Quietly" are two concepts that don't often go together.

I think Trump wanted an enormous media reaction.  He set this up just like a plot twist on a reality show, complete with teaser tweets and the promise of a surprise announcement.  The speech had to live up to the hype (which is why the withdrawal was a foregone conclusion.  How could he make staying in so explosive?)

[FunkMonk]

Yes.  The legal terms of the agreement itself are not of great significance.  It is significant as a signaling mechanism, both ways.

Then it's perhaps fair to say that Donald's withdrawal and the reaction to the withdrawal are yugely overblown.

Perhaps.

I'm also not entirely certain Donald even realized this distinction, though.

I'm actually pretty certain he just came to the decision because the last person he talked to before the announcement said "Nope, withdraw!" And that was that.

[FunkMonk]

Then it's perhaps fair to say that Donald's withdrawal and the reaction to the withdrawal are yugely overblown.

No, quite the opposite. It was a temper tantrum. It was the same kind of temper tantrum that led to the rant at NATO HQ. Since it wasn't legally binding, and he could have literally completely changed the targets without anything happening ("We gave it a shot, but it was too expensive to be fully implemented by our industrial sector"), there was no reason to torpedo the whole thing except to piss off Obama and/or the other participating countries.

This has Steve Bannon all over it.

[The Minsky Moment]

Yes.  The legal terms of the agreement itself are not of great significance.  It is significant as a signaling mechanism, both ways.

Then it's perhaps fair to say that Donald's withdrawal and the reaction to the withdrawal are yugely overblown.

If the act of withdrawal is completely divorced from the context in which it happened, yes.
But in real life, no.