What does a TRUMP presidency look like?

[Richard Hakluyt]

Meloni looks particularly happy to see the orange shitbag again :

:https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/b4238a41bfc68040a1006273cf1eace4f6afbc9b/687_0_6829_5464/master/6829.jpg?width=700&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none

[Syt]

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-reflecting-pool-arrest-felony-b3007867.html

Ex-Olympian who touched Reflecting Pool charged with felony destruction of property by Trump's DOJ

A former Olympic athlete has been charged with destruction of property after he was arrested for reaching into the recently renovated Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool and grabbing a flap of broken-off blue liner.

David Hearn, a two-time whitewater racing world champion who competed in the canoe slalom at three Olympic Games, was indicted by a grand jury Thursday in D.C. Superior Court on one felony charge, according to court records.

He is accused of causing $1,000 in damage to the pool. He faces up to 10 years in prison, if convicted.

Hearn has repeatedly denied vandalizing the monument, which has been plagued by algae blooms with the recently applied "American flag blue" sealant peeling from the basin, and said the damage was already done when he visited the landmark.

The felony charge announced by U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro is the first following the Trump administration's pledge to target alleged vandals that the president has accused, without evidence, of stripping the pool's lining and pouring chemicals into the water.

Evidence shows Hearn "woefully destroyed property" in a "deliberate act" to damage the monument, Pirro said at a press conference Thursday.

Hearn "forcefully and violently" pulled the pool's lining, she said.

But asked whether the pool's lining was already damaged when Hearn touched it, Pirro said she was "not going to get into the evidence."

"What I told you is what our witnesses saw and experienced," she said. "Irrespective of whether or not we think there is some situation that preceded it, we can state and prove beyond a reasonable doubt that he caused damage."

She said there are "about half a dozen" other cases involving alleged vandalism at the monument.

"I didn't vandalize anything," Hearn, 67, told The Washington Post after his arrest. "I didn't destroy or break or peel anything. By the time I realized what was going on, I was being put in handcuffs."

Pirro claims a parks employee ordered Hearn "to stop his behavior and stop what he was doing."

"Hearn reacted by shouting at the parks employee, saying that she cared too much about the Reflecting Pool, and why did she even care, since it wasn't her pool," she told reporters Thursday.

She said his behavior was described as "belligerent, rude, and disrespectful."

The shallow pool, which the president repeatedly promotes as "bigger than skyscrapers," was refurbished with a shade of dark blue and outfitted with "advanced nanobubbler technology" to tackle algae blooms that have long plagued the landmark.

Algae returned shortly after the renovations were complete, and the new sealant started to peel off in chunks that bubbled to the surface.

Trump initially said a refurbishing project for the 2,030-foot pool could be done quickly for $1.5 million in time for White House-backed Fourth of July celebrations. The government has now spent nearly $14.7 million, a figure that is likely to grow to cover necessary repairs.

Hearn was in the middle of a 52-mile bike ride on June 19 when he stopped to visit the pool.

"I reached in there, and I was able to grab the end of that flapping piece, the already peeling piece. It was still attached to the bottom. I didn't remove anything," he told The Post.

That weekend, Trump claimed an unnamed "vandal" had "done everything possible to hurt the inside surface that was just installed" in an attempt to "destroy and demean our beautiful work."

According to National Park Service officials, the liner of the bottom of the pool was cut with a sharp knife or razor, damaging foam sealant. That June 9 incident was reported to the U.S. Park Police, according to Frank Lands, deputy director of operations for the park service.

That incident, which park officials filed in court documents as part of a lawsuit that sought to block the administration's work, preceded Hearn's alleged vandalism by 10 days.

"Davey Hearn is innocent. These charges are outrageous and should be alarming to every American," Hearn's counsel said in a statement shared with The Independent.

"This indictment reflects the administration's effort to shift blame for their own failures," the statement said. "On the eve of our nation's Independence Day, Americans should be deeply concerned by the misuse of government power against an ordinary citizen based on a concocted narrative. The justice system exists to determine facts, not to provide political cover."

[Valmy]

$1,000 dollars of damage? Oh no! Did he steal some paperclips as well?

Anyway no way he gets convicted.

Got the feeling that Spain might do a france: stay part of nato but kick out the Americans. Others might follow

Spain should just ignore him. Trump just sort of says things.

Though all the Europeans should remove our bases. They just set up this kind of situation where said country gets to participate in bombing of someplace in the Middle East whether they want to or not and that strikes me as not really in the spirit of what NATO is supposed to be, which is a defensive alliance.

[Sheilbh]

I disagree on Spain. They have the lowest defence spending in NATO which is not going up - and their response to Trump is not to build up but to suggest their should be a European army and European defence. Which I think reveals exactly the challenge of that: some countries want it to shift who is paying for Europe's defence from the US to someone else but not themselves and it's because Spain is not and does not feel itself to be at risk, but is not willing to increase spending in order to better support Poland or the Baltics who do.

I think it is striking that the countries who are most willing to criticise Trump verbally like Spain or Ireland are also the ones least likely to be increasing their defence spending, while the countries who are increasing their defence spending and perceive a real threat like the Baltics and Poland and Germany are broadly trying to play down Trump.

[Sheilbh]

Meloni looks particularly happy to see the orange shitbag again :

:https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/b4238a41bfc68040a1006273cf1eace4f6afbc9b/687_0_6829_5464/master/6829.jpg?width=700&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none

Her statement on his "begging for a photo" was robust. A reminder of the challenge of a nationalist international: they are still nationalists. So she's not going to accept a humiliation for her or Italy.

[Richard Hakluyt]

Quite right too. He had also insulted the Pope (I forget the details) just a few days earlier. She has to think of her supporters sometimes.

[Valmy]

I disagree on Spain. They have the lowest defence spending in NATO which is not going up - and their response to Trump is not to build up but to suggest their should be a European army and European defence. Which I think reveals exactly the challenge of that: some countries want it to shift who is paying for Europe's defence from the US to someone else but not themselves and it's because Spain is not and does not feel itself to be at risk, but is not willing to increase spending in order to better support Poland or the Baltics who do.

I think it is striking that the countries who are most willing to criticise Trump verbally like Spain or Ireland are also the ones least likely to be increasing their defence spending, while the countries who are increasing their defence spending and perceive a real threat like the Baltics and Poland and Germany are broadly trying to play down Trump.

Well that is a different issue.

[Josquius]

Ireland is on board with increasing spending right now though.
Really starkly stepping away from their traditionally neutral, if you want to play soldier go do it with the Brits who we will just hide behind if things get serious, position.
They've been facing a fair bit of threat from the Russians messing with cables et al.

[Sheilbh]

In fairness the state has increased defence spending by a third - but it is from 0.2% so there's an awful lot of catching up to do.

I think as the new (ceremonial but elected) President's views show there is a fair degree of attachment to the idea of neutrality being constitutionally mandated even within a European context. That was the change the EU made to the Treaty of Lisbon on watering down mutual defence provisions after the Irish "no" in the referendum.

I think there is a degree of Ireland being secure so able to have a perhaps more idealistic stance (for a certain set of ideals).

[Josquius]

Yes. I was always traditionally quite jealous of the Irish position.
It made a lot of sense for them to not bother with military spending - Britain was obviously not going to be invading and if anyone else did.... Well that would be a British problem too.

These days though with Russia stepping up it's dodgy tricks and the Irish economy being so reliant on undersea cables and the Internet.... It does make sense to shift a bit.

[celedhring]

I disagree on Spain. They have the lowest defence spending in NATO which is not going up - and their response to Trump is not to build up but to suggest their should be a European army and European defence. Which I think reveals exactly the challenge of that: some countries want it to shift who is paying for Europe's defence from the US to someone else but not themselves and it's because Spain is not and does not feel itself to be at risk, but is not willing to increase spending in order to better support Poland or the Baltics who do.

I think it is striking that the countries who are most willing to criticise Trump verbally like Spain or Ireland are also the ones least likely to be increasing their defence spending, while the countries who are increasing their defence spending and perceive a real threat like the Baltics and Poland and Germany are broadly trying to play down Trump.

Tbf, a lot of the posturing is due to internal politics. Spain's government is besieged by scandal and lack a real majority to govern, so positioning itself as the anti-Trump is free points. Trump's a widely despised figure, even among many non-leftists.

Even if Spain agreed to raise defence spending, the current government can't even pass a budget, least one with a defence increase in it. They had to use some dubiously constitutional means to get to 2% (it's currently being reviewed by the constitutional court), without having to pass a budget. Even if there was a will to raise it further, it's just impossible.

It's almost certain (they're sinking in the polls) that next year we'll get a rightwing government (in coalition with Vox, sigh), and they've already signaled their commitment to increase defence spending.

[Sheilbh]

Yeah I sympathise and being vocally anti-Trump is basically very, very popular everywhere in Europe

I just slightly think the European angle from Sanchez and his government is exactly why the Baltics and Poland are highly suspicious of "European" defence. Is it just to shift the freeloading? I think Western Europe (after Schroeder and Merkel and Hollande etc) need to do a little bit of rebuilding trust to make clear that they view threats to Eastern Europe seriously, take their views seriously and Europe doesn't just stop at the Oder. I think Macron and Metz have been making those steps, but others, I think in particular Sanchez (also de Wever) are saying and doing things that maybe reinforce the Eastern European fears (which are historically, phenomenally well-grounded).

[crazy canuck]

What's the real reason Trump is reacting to Spain.  It can't just be an issue of spending, that's not new.

[celedhring]

What's the real reason Trump is reacting to Spain.  It can't just be an issue of spending, that's not new.

No idea, but it's a NATO summit so I guess it's to be expected that the issue will come up.

Man, I kinda wish they had beat Belgium so we played them in the WC. Now that would've been morbo

[Sheilbh]

I think also very vocal stances (like Ireland) on Israel and Iran without the soft power of St Paddy's Day.

Not to go all Neil Warnock but by all means enjoy yourself but enjoy it by getting your own house in order.