What does a TRUMP presidency look like?

[HVC]

His poll numbers are on their way back up. Just nothing sticks to the motherfucker.

because market is back up

[Sheilbh]

FWIW I was looking at the Library of Congress and copyright story - and it is insane to me that the Librarian of Congress is responsible for copyright and the copyright provisions of the DMCA (even on a basic level I feel like there's a conflict there).

Their other responsibilities include appointing the Poet Laureate and you know librarianing - and from what I can see most of them by background are librarians which makes perfect sense - but also seems like a very weird background for the person in charge of the US Copyright Office

[HisMajestyBOB]

Makes sense to me. Reviewing copyright claims probably involves a lot of book reading, so you want someone good at that, like a librarian.

[crazy canuck]

Three scholars who study fascism are saying that history teaches it's better to get out early than to wait.

If you listen closely, you will hear a lot of what Oex has been telling us over the recent past

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/14/opinion/yale-canada-fascism.html?unlocked_article_code=1.HE8.3NNp.CNMbKz71ZsZ1&smid=url-share

[Jacob]

Oex has been articulating the fears I've had for quite a while.

I've tried the tactic of being less alarmist than Oex, in the hopes that it might be more persuasive (I don't think it has been more persuasive), but I share his analysis and have for a long time.

[crazy canuck]

From the NYTimes

A court filing by her defense lawyers, which came a day after Judge Dugan was indicted by a federal grand jury in Milwaukee, asserted that the "government cannot prosecute Judge Dugan because she is entitled to judicial immunity for her official acts."

"Since at least the early 17th century in England, and carried on through common law in the United States, judges of record have been entitled to absolute immunity for official acts with a few exceptions not applicable here," the filing said, adding that the efforts to prosecute the judge were "virtually unprecedented and entirely unconstitutional."

[The Minsky Moment]

I have very mixed feelings about that defense.

[Sheilbh]

Because of a fairly broad interpretation of "official acts"?

[The Minsky Moment]

Right, same issue with Presidential immunity. 

No one is above the law.  Immunity doctrines should be narrow

I think the case vs Dugan is bullshit but if she really did choose to help someone evade ICE and if that qualified as a criminal act, I don't think it should be protected by official act immunity

[Sheilbh]

Yeah, agreed.

[viper37]

I have very mixed feelings about that defense.

On the other hand, in the current political climate, it will be very pleasing to see Republicans argue against judicial immunity...

It's a huge trade off... 

But seriously, I agree with you.

[grumbler]

So, anyway, this Congressman that sits on the aviation subcommittee of the HASC notes that the "free" Qatari "$400 million" jet cannot possibly serve as an Air Force One aircraft without undergoing many hundreds of millions of dollars in updates to its avionics (which must be hardened against EMP), communications, defensive equipment, etc, and will have to be stripped to the studs to ensure no eavesdropping bugs have been built into it. Just the piping for in-air refueling will require a massive displacement of internal volume. There is zero chance that it will ever serve as an Air Force One during Trump's term in office and the donation to the library would be a massive security breach.

[Syt]

So he (or his kids) will use it in his "free time" till (if?) he leaves office, or they'll park it somewhere till he leaves office?

[The Minsky Moment]

grumbler that is all very interesting but just distracts from what really matters: Hunter Biden's laptop

[Syt]

grumbler that is all very interesting but just distracts from what really matters: Hunter Biden's laptop

So when will there finally be a proper investigation into the whole Benghazi thing?

More seriously, I've seen people rationalizing it by "Every politician does it, he's just honest/open about it."