What does a TRUMP presidency look like?

[Tamas]

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jan/18/north-korea-kim-yong-chol-pompeo-trump-second-summit

Trump and Kim Jong-un to meet again at second nuclear summit

It's incredible just how much Trump's "big deal maker" image is fake. He was totally played by Kim but is happy to play the fool for him the second time because he thinks that makes him look presidential.

[FunkMonk]

ANyone know much about Maryland governor Larry Hogan (R)?  Here's some speculation he might mount a primary challenge to Trump.

https://www.politico.com/story/2019/01/18/larry-hogan-donald-trump-2020-election-1110535

He's our quite popular two-term Governor. Easily defeated Ben Jealous, the former NAACP President, in November by 12 points. Keep in mind that Maryland is a very blue state, where registered Democrats outnumber registered Republicans 2-to-1.

Pretty well-balanced guy. Known for working well with both parties. Moderate, no-nonsense, fairly pragmatic. I voted him last year and I'd probably vote for him in 2020.

Yes, he's a pretty decent guy.  He's the Republican for Republicans who are not brain-dead.  He's got some baggage ginned up from the NRA (who hates him) and from some other corners, but he's his own guy.  There's a reason he sailed to an easy re-election as governor in this very Blue state of Maryland (yes, I voted for him)

Hello Ank, fellow Marylander 

[garbon]

https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/22/politics/scotus-transgender-ban/index.html

The Supreme Court allowed President Donald Trump's transgender military ban to go into effect on Tuesday, dealing a blow to LGBT activists who call the ban cruel and irrational.

The Justices did not rule on the merits of the case, but will allow the ban to go forward while the lower courts work through it.

The four liberal justices on the Court objected to allowing the administration's policy banning most transgender people from serving in the military to go into effect.

The policy, first announced by the President in July 2017 via Twitter, and later officially released by then-Secretary of Defense James Mattis in 2018, blocks individuals who have been diagnosed with a condition known as gender dysphoria from serving with limited exceptions. It also specifies that individuals without the condition can serve, but only if they do so according to the sex they were assigned at birth.

In a statement released after the SCOTUS decision to allow the ban to go forward, the Pentagon sought to clarify that its policy is not a ban on all transgender persons from the military.

"As always, we treat all transgender persons with respect and dignity. DoD's proposed policy is NOT a ban on service by transgender persons. It is critical that DoD be permitted to implement personnel policies that it determines are necessary to ensure the most lethal and combat effective fighting force in the world. DoD's proposed policy is based on professional military judgment and will ensure that the U.S. Armed Forces remain the most lethal and combat effective fighting force in the world," Lt. Col. Carla Gleason, a Pentagon spokesperson, told CNN.

The court's move is a victory for the Trump administration. While government lawyers wanted the Court to take up the case, they also fought to allow the ban to go into effect while the case plays out in the lower courts.

"Today's dual rulings on the transgender ban allow the controversial policy to go into effect for now, but also allow the appeals to go forward in the lower courts," said Steve Vladeck, CNN Supreme Court analysis and professor of law at the University of Texas School of Law.

"The government had asked the Justices to take the issue up even before the appeals courts could rule. Even though the Court denied that request, the fact that the Court is allowing the policy to go into effect suggests not only that it will eventually take the case on the merits, but also that five of the Justices believe the government is likely to prevail if and when that happens," Vladeck said.

In July 2017, Trump surprised military leaders by tweeting, "After consultation with my Generals and military experts, please be advised that the United States Government will not accept or allow Transgender individuals to serve in any capacity in the U.S. Military," Trump said. "Our military must be focused on decisive and overwhelming victory and cannot be burdened with the tremendous medical costs and disruption that transgender in the military would entail."

His tweets came less than a month into the six-month delay set by Mattis to review the US military's policy on transgender service members.

The Pentagon was forced to allow transgender applicants to join the military on January 1, 2018, after a federal judge ruled that the military had to allow transgender recruits to join.
By the government's own numbers in 2016, there were approximately 8,980 Service members that identify as transgender. During the Obama administration, 937 members were diagnosed with gender dysphoria and began or completed their transition.

[Valmy]

As always, we treat all transgender persons with respect and dignity. DoD's proposed policy is NOT a ban on service by transgender persons. It is critical that DoD be permitted to implement personnel policies that it determines are necessary to ensure the most lethal and combat effective fighting force in the world. DoD's proposed policy is based on professional military judgment and will ensure that the U.S. Armed Forces remain the most lethal and combat effective fighting force in the world

Yeah I have no idea what is being said here.

[Grey Fox]

As always, we treat all transgender persons with respect and dignity. DoD's proposed policy is NOT a ban on service by transgender persons. It is critical that DoD be permitted to implement personnel policies that it determines are necessary to ensure the most lethal and combat effective fighting force in the world. DoD's proposed policy is based on professional military judgment and will ensure that the U.S. Armed Forces remain the most lethal and combat effective fighting force in the world

Yeah I have no idea what is being said here.

That the DoD doesn't care about Trump's order about service by transgender persons? I think.

[Admiral Yi]

I read it as DOD reserves the right to restrict roles transgenders serve in.

[garbon]

Yeah, I think they are saying in line with how policy was adjusted by Mattis that this isn't against transgender people but rather people diagnosed with gender dysphoria / people who think they should be able to 'act according to sex they were assigned at birth.' So not against transgender people but against them.

[derspiess]

The latest, breaking news from Buzzfeed of all places makes me eager to see the coked-up tweetstorm in the morning.

How did that work out? 

[Habbaku]

It led to Giuliani basically admitting collusion amongst anyone but Trump. 

[viper37]

Long read about that russian prostitute claiming she had evidence of collusion between Trump's camp and the Russians.

Still not much on Trump, but some damning evidence against that russian oligarch. Who just happenned to cut a sweat deal with the US Treasury and saw his sanctions lifted by Trump.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-sex-worker-who-could-hold-keys-to-mueller-probe-freed-from-moscow-jail

[jimmy olsen]

Good

https://twitter.com/gelliottmorris/status/1088188651492835329

G. Elliott Morris‏ @gelliottmorris · 4h4 hours ago 

Trump approval in high-quality phone polls since the shutdown fallout started:

AP-NORC: 34%
CBS: 36%
Pew: 37%
Gallup: 37%
CNN: 37%
Kaiser Family Fndation: 38%
Quinnipiac: 41%

Average: 37%. The liver-caller average hasn't been lower since December 2017, post-BCRA and tax bill.

[Admiral Yi]

Not much.

[mongers]

Good

https://twitter.com/gelliottmorris/status/1088188651492835329

G. Elliott Morris‏ @gelliottmorris · 4h4 hours ago 

Trump approval in high-quality phone polls since the shutdown fallout started:

AP-NORC: 34%
CBS: 36%
Pew: 37%
Gallup: 37%
CNN: 37%
Kaiser Family Fndation: 38%
Quinnipiac: 41%

Average: 37%. The liver-caller average hasn't been lower since December 2017, post-BCRA and tax bill.

How's he doing in poor quality phone polls?


Also, I bet he's knocking the poll numbers dead amongst people who just rely on tin cans and long string.

[DGuller]

 

[jimmy olsen]

Not much.

On 538's poll aggregator he was

+42.5 and -51.6 for a total of -9.1 on December 13

Currently at +39.5 and -55.9 for a total of -16.4

That's a swing of -7.3%