What does a TRUMP presidency look like?

[alfred russel]

A German colleague of mine said she thinks Trump's economic  policies are great and help American workers. I disagreed but she just dismissed my arguments why it won't work and he will not reinvigorate e.g. Detroit. I then pointed out to her that she works on a temporary contract in the German automotive industry and would be the first to personally feel the effects if Trump really enacts his "national security" tariffs on German cars. Pretty sure she would then not get her contract prolonged. That made her think a bit.

I think that was my first personal encounter with someone in favour of Trumps economic policies and I found it interesting how she parroted "America First" and believed in trickle down tax cuts and so on. Very unusual in Germany.

It is really dumb that would make her think. The whole idea of the tariffs is that trade is a zero sum game and to have imports replaced with domestic production. Her getting replaced by an American worker is the policy working. It actually would be a good American policy if that happened (and that was the end of the story).

[The Minsky Moment]

Didn't Trump just sign a free trade agreement with Mexico just a few months ago?

I'm shocked, shocked to learn that Trump would consider reneging on a deal.

[The Minsky Moment]

A few year's back I read Carl Schmitt's Political Theology.  The essence of the argument is that sovereign power lies with the person who has the authority to declare an emergency. Schmitt criticized liberal constitutionalism as incomplete because (he argued) one cannot specify in advance the rules for the exceptional situation, i.e. the rules for acting without rules.  The survival of the political community requires that someone has the discretion to declare the exception and that person holds the true sovereign power.

Schmitt's thought eventually led him down some very dark places, eventually joining the Nazi Party and acting as an intellectual whore for them for a time, before being purged for insufficient zeal.

Schmitt's thought never seemed to have much application to the US, whose institutions historically proved mostly capable of handling the exceptional situation. Even the Rumsfeld-Cheney era Bush administration sought fig leaves of Congressional consent when invoking emergency powers post-9/11 and the executive accepted judicial checks on their excesses.

Trump's repeated abuse of emergency powers for purposes that are clearly not true emergencies raises the question of how well US institutions will hold. GOP congressman have grumbled about it (they are just clever enough to imagine such powers exercised by a Warren or a Sanders) but not enough to do anything about it.  This is an area where Congress MUST act, e.g. by requiring all purported exercises of emergency powers to receive prompt approval from both houses of Congress (instead of remaining effective unless Congress acts to terminate).  Routine rule by emergency Presidential decree is not an acceptable mode of government.  Trump may not be a Hitler but he is the sort of politician that helps create the conditions under which such a type can arise.

[Tonitrus]

Does that involve milkshake?

Definitely. Would that be a first for a US president?

British milkshakes are pretty bad, though.

[Syt]

Minsky, do you think any steps to reign in the Donald will happen while McConnell is running the Senate?

[The Minsky Moment]

No.
McConnell is the anti-Howard Baker.

[Maladict]

 

Trump was also shown the pewter horse that he'd given the Queen last year in his visit to Windsor. He was asked if he recognised it and he said "no"! Melania came to his rescue and said "I think we gave that to the Queen".

[Syt]

[Admiral Yi]

She made her bed, she has to sleep in it.

[Habbaku]

Looks like one of those "Soon..." memes.

[garbon]

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/live/2019/jun/04/donald-trump-president-visit-uk-press-conference-may-visit-labour-calls-us-president-sexual-predator-and-racist-live-news?page=with:block-5cf6701b8f082f7da1f2da3e#block-5cf6701b8f082f7da1f2da3e

Corbyn has been critical of him, he says. He says he does not like people who are critical.

On the subject of the protests, Trump says there were "thousands of people" on the streets cheering him yesterday. And again today.

He says he did not see protesters yesterday.

He says he saw some today, but it was a very small group.

The reports of the protests have been "fake news".

[The Larch]

Of course he does not like people who are critical.

[Eddie Teach]

Most 3 year olds don't.

[Zoupa]

Dementia. Probably doesnt help that he eats shit and never exercises body or brain. I wonder if he read a book in the last 30 years.

[derspiess]

No time to read.  Gorilla Channel is just too damned entertaining.