2016 elections - because it's never too early

[garbon]

Condi appeared on facebook to attack Trump. Bob Dole was raised from the dead to voice his unwavering support for the Republican nominee.

[Eddie Teach]

"When you're afraid to look directly at any man because you're scared he might assault you," tweeted another. "This is rape culture, know that it's #notokay"

Actually, it's paranoia.

[Jacob]

"When you're afraid to look directly at any man because you're scared he might assault you," tweeted another. "This is rape culture, know that it's #notokay"

Actually, it's paranoia.

Or perhaps trauma resulting from abuse. Hard to diagnose from a tweet.

[CountDeMoney]

Trump telling Stern it's okay to call his daughter a piece of ass.
https://mobile.twitter.com/kyletblaine/status/784839136339488773?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Granted, not everybody is proud of the fact and willing to admit it, but I can't possibly be the only person left that already knew about the sort of shit Trump would say when he was on Howard Stern.  Why is this all a surprise now?  What, was everybody else that was listening killed on 9/11 or something?

[Admiral Yi]

I learned what a scumbag Trump is when he was being interviewed after Princess Diana's death.  He was asked his thoughts about her and he said "I really wish that I had dated her."

[CountDeMoney]

Trump on a Saturday night: all coked up, and nowhere to go.

The Fix
Washington Post
Donald Trump just retweeted Juanita Broaddrick calling Bill Clinton a rapist. All bets are now off.
By Aaron Blake October 8 at 7:47 PM


In the wake of a newly released video showing Donald Trump talking in very lewd terms about women, the Republican presidential nominee strongly suggested he would take this opportunity to compare his indiscretions to Bill Clinton's.

And on Saturday night, he got the ball rolling.

Trump, facing a GOP exodus from his campaign and apparently desperate to change the subject, just retweeted two tweets from an account featuring the name of Juanita Broaddrick, the woman who publicly alleged in 1999 that Clinton had sexually assaulted her two decades prior.

In both tweets, the Broaddrick account reiterates her accusation that Clinton raped her and accuses Hillary Clinton of enabling him.



Trump has yet to make these accusations a big part of his campaign, but he made clear in his statements after Friday's explosive video that he was preparing to go there.

"Bill Clinton has said far worse to me on the golf course — not even close," he said in his initial comment as the story was posted. "I apologize if anyone was offended."

Then, in his fuller apology late Friday night: "I've said some foolish things, but there's a big difference between the words and actions of other people. Bill Clinton has actually abused women, and Hillary has bullied, attacked, shamed and intimidated his victims. We will discuss this more in the coming days. See you at the debate on Sunday."

These, mind you, were prepared statements from his campaign. And given the discord over what has transpired over the past 30 hours, it's not clear from whom Trump is taking direction or if he's even listening to anyone not named Donald Trump.

One Trump adviser who appears to be urging the Bill Clinton attack is Roger Stone, a controversial figure who told The Washington Post on Saturday that he had teamed with the conspiracy theory website InfoWars to sell 10,000 T-shirts with Bill Clinton's face next to the word "rape" — ala Barack Obama's "hope" poster.

Here's what we can say at this juncture:

First, the GOP has basically turned this into Trump, Unplugged. The party largely played nice with Trump after he secured the Republican nomination, hoping that it could at the very least prevail upon him to run a semi-serious campaign that doesn't ruin things for all those other Republicans whose names will appear below Trump's on the ballot.

Republicans might not have actually thought Trump would win, but they needed him to stay competitive. And  to do that, it helped to at least have a seat at the table. It's not that Trump was ever particularly good at taking direction from the GOP establishment, but now that much of the Republican Party is cutting bait and calling for him to drop out, he's liable to do whatever he wants.

Second, Trump isn't going without a fight. Other candidates might have done some real soul-searching after their party disowned them en masse and basically gave up on them having any chance to win. The odds against Trump appear longer than ever — without any polling to back that up, of course — but he's clearly not reevaluating himself or his approach. He's quadrupling down.

Trump clearly doesn't view the rest of this campaign as an attempt to salvage his good name or to quietly fade away; he views it as a war in which he's not going to unilaterally disarm when it comes to Bill Clinton.

And lastly, it shows that we might be embarked upon one of the nastiest, angriest and most passionate moments in presidential campaign history. The prospect of Trump unleashing a torrent of attacks on Bill Clinton — or even labeling him a rapist, as the Broaddrick account does — is hard to compare to anything we've seen in recent political history.

There is much about Trump's campaign that is unprecedented, but the idea that this would come to be a feature of the 2016 campaign is just remarkable.

Retweets may not be endorsements, but Trump clearly just endorsed a race to the bottom.

[11B4V]

Is Bill running for president? 

[Martinus]

Is Bill running for president? 

The Clinton Machine is destroying Trump and Trump is retaliating. This isn't about the elections (anymore).

[Eddie Teach]

Is Bill running for president? 

No, thanks to the 22d amendment.

[11B4V]

Is Bill running for president? 

No, thanks to the 22d amendment.

Just checking.


But it is comical watching Trump flail around. 2morrow might be truly epic.

[jimmy olsen]

The LDS paper calls on Trump to end his candidacy. He will not win Utah.

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865664336/In-our-opinion-Donald-Trump-should-resign-his-candidacy.html?pg=all

In our opinion: Donald Trump should resign his candidacy
Deseret News editorial
Published: Oct. 8, 2016 12:15 p.m.Updated: 45 minutes ago

For 80 years, the Deseret News has not entered into the troubled waters of presidential endorsement. We are neutral on matters of partisan politics. We do, however, feel a duty to speak clearly on issues that affect the well-being and morals of the nation.

Accordingly, today we call on Donald Trump to step down from his pursuit of the American presidency.

In democratic elections, ideas have consequences, leadership matters and character counts.

The idea that women secretly welcome the unbridled and aggressive sexual advances of powerful men has led to the mistreatment, sorrow and subjugation of countless women for far too much of human history.

The notion that strength emanates from harsh, divisive and unbending rhetorical flourish mistakenly equates leadership with craven intimidation.

The belief that the party and the platform matter more than the character of the candidate ignores the wisdom of the ages that, "when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn." (Proverbs 29:2)

We understand that politicians and presidential candidates are human and that everyone makes mistakes. We do not believe that what is expressed in an unguarded moment of conversation should be the full measure of an individual. And we unquestionably support the principle that people deserve forgiveness, compassion and a second chance.

But history affirms that leaders' examples either elevate or demean the lives of those being led. When choosing the ostensible leader of the free world, the American electorate requires the clear assurance that their chosen candidate will consistently put the well-being of others ahead of his or her own personal gratification. The most recent revelations of Trump's lewdness disturb us not only because of his vulgar objectification of women, but also because they poignantly confirm Trump's inability to self-govern.

What oozes from this audio is evil. We hear a married man give smooth, smug and self-congratulatory permission to his intense impulses, allowing them to outweigh the most modest sense of decency, fidelity and commitment. And although it speaks volumes about sexual morality, it goes to the heart of all ethical behavior. Trump's banter belies a willingness to use and discard other human beings at will. That characteristic is the essence of a despot.

Nor is this an isolated incident. His reprehensible sexual speech confirms troubling reports and outrageous outbursts that have dogged his campaign from the beginning. Another example appeared earlier this week detailing Trump's language and behavior on his reality television show, "The Apprentice."

The Associated Press "interviewed more than 20 people — former crew members, editors and contestants — who described crass behavior by Trump behind the scenes of the long-running hit show."

In the face of these revelations, it is disheartening to see otherwise decent individuals now attempting to defend Trump's talk, dismissing it as mere "locker room" bravado. At the time of the audio recording, Trump was not a hormonal teenage athlete, but rather a 60-year-old husband of an expectant mother and the father of four children.

America's locker rooms deserve better.

When Donald Trump's running mate Indiana Gov. Mike Pence visited Utah and met with members of the Deseret News Editorial Board, he assured us that Mr. Trump was a "good man" who held "the ideals and values" of Utahns. Likewise, while visiting the Beehive State, Donald Trump Jr. told us that his father was running because of the "values held dear in this community."

Considering his conduct and comportment, we do not believe Trump holds the ideals and values of this community or this paper.

We are grateful for the courageous decision by many of Utah's leading Republican politicians to renounce the top of their ticket.

Some will see our denunciation of Trump as tantamount to an endorsement of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. That is not the case. Although she comes with extraordinary experience, Clinton promotes social and economic policies we cannot support and she too has a history of self-dealing that gives us significant pause.

Should Clinton prevail in this presidential contest, we trust she — and those in the Congress that hold the presidency in check — will recognize that her likely victory against a self-wounded candidate is not a mandate for her specific platform, but rather a repudiation of Trump's flaws.

We prefer to stand for something rather than against someone. But this is one of those rare moments where it is necessary to take a clear stand against the hucksterism, misogyny, narcissism and latent despotism that infect the Trump campaign even as we hope for a more auspicious future of liberty, prosperity and peace for the nation.

As the next few consequential weeks unfold, we trust the American people, as they vote their conscience, will provide a clarion call for sound ideas, true leadership and proven character from our next administration and Congress.

Trump cannot answer that call. We ask him to step aside

[Martinus]

I wonder what's funnier - all the right wing hypocrites abandoning ship or all the left wing ones suddenly being interested in what Mormons have to say. It's a perfect shitstorm. 

[Martinus]

[jimmy olsen]

Waiting with anticipation

https://mobile.twitter.com/billpruitt/status/784872190587998209?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Bill Pruitt‏ @billpruitt

As a producer on seasons 1 & 2 of #theapprentice I assure you: when it comes to the #trumptapes there are far worse. #justthebegininng

Oct 9, 2016, 6:44 AM from McAllen, TX

[Eddie Teach]

The LDS paper calls on Trump to end his candidacy. He will not win Utah.

Ok, Jaron.
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2016/president/ut/utah_trump_vs_clinton-5834.html