So, the word impeachment has been said out loud, and in public by both parties. The Democrats have actually called for an impeachment.
Pelosi had it right though: gross incompetence, petty crime, and hearsay are not, strictly speaking, sufficient grounds to remove a sitting president. We might not like it, but that’s not going to get the job done. Given the vicious mood both across the country and in Washington, any impeachment battle is likely to drag on for a very long time indeed, and be a real drain on the country in general. Our allies are backing away because we’re not credible or trustworthy anymore, the markets are reacting badly because they see this could go very wrong, and our enemies are amused because we’re defeating ourselves. Perhaps we’re focusingn on the wrong details, though… Let’s say we drag the country through the muck, (further) damage our reputation, and get into the odd battle here and there. At some point, given Trump’s history and his inability to realise it really is him and his actions the world is unhappy with, he’s going to be replaced. The person that replaces Trump will look Presidential, Smart, Well-Mannered, Polite, and have a certain gravitas, simply by showing up on Monday with a normal-length tie, and not using Twitter. They’re going to look like a hero. For some period of time, if they can calm the open warfare between parties, and try to unify the government into a semblance of common sense, they’ll look like a Nobel peace-prize winner. Who’s the first in line to become this saviour? Michael Pence, the sitting VP. All along, he’s seen the shambolic, chaotic, unknowing groping Trump administration stumble, falter, and shoot itself in the foot, leg, spleen, heart and both lungs. He’s nodded when Trump tried to cut support for ecology, education, and diplomacy, while ramping up pointless things like support for the wall, increasing the military spend by $54B, or trying to take healthcare away from 24 million Americans. He’s gone along with every stupid, crazy, insane declaration Trump made, without standing up for America, Democracy, Human Rights, Truth or anything resembling morality. He’s smiled knowing that in a little while Trump would damage his presidency so much that it would have to be taken from him and delivered into Pence’s hands. He’s not the hero the US needs.
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Yet again, Trump likes to confess, openly and in public, to illegal activities.
On Friday, Trump threatened Comey saying that Comey had better hope that there were no tapes. For sure, he has threatened Comey via electronic message, which would fall foul of the harassment law. If there were tapes, then Trump is required, by law, to preserve them, and hand them over to congress for investigation when subpoenaed. If he says no, he's guilty of contempt. If he says he doesn't have them, and later does, he's guilty of perjury. Pretty much the only way he can get out of this one is 1) hope Comey doesn't sue for the threat and 2) admit that there aren't tapes (or just be done with it and hand the tapes over to Congress). Bottom line, we've all got better things to be doing than watching Trump Circus. I do think it's been too long in coming...time for an open letter to Trump.
Despite his attempts to pass blame onto his staff, at the end of the day the buck well and truly stops on the President's desk. No more dissembling, no more excuses: Trump, quit playing games and do the job that you were voted in to do. Quit obstructing investigations. Let those teams do /their/ jobs. You're absolutely right: you've got a "lot of things happening". Perhaps you shouldn't be stirring up so many controversies? No? Too simple of a concept? Oh dear, how can we help a harried President out? I have an idea: ----------------------------------------- Dear Trump: We've been watching your actions for the last four months, and have come to the conclusion: You're useless. You can't tell the truth. You make the US a laughing stock around the world, while at the same time putting the fear of nuclear war foremost in everyone's mind. All this to distract from the fact you're fleecing the US taxpayers out of millions (soon to be billions, I'm sure), and advancing the causes of your business cronies so millionaires can be billionaires, and billionaires can be even richer. Time to realize this isn't working out. You're hereby terminated and removed from office, effective immediately. We greatly appreciate you making it painfully obvious you're a blithering idiot focused on the size of your massive ego. We hereby concur with the judgement of pretty much the rest of the world that you're not capable of being President. It is essential that we find new leadership for the US that restores public trust and confidence in us as a country, and repairs the incredible damage you've caused in a short period of time. Oh, and take that bunch of malingerers and hangers-on you brought into the cabinet with you...they're beginning to smell up the place. I'd wish you the best of luck, but, like Herpes, I feel we'll see you again. Signed, Everyone else who is a US citizen (really the rest of the world, but they cannot vote) The various talking heads trying to address the mess Trump made of firing Comey have at times suggested that 'countless' FBI Agents have spoken to the White House to express their concern (which could, in fact, indicate that the White House was attempting to influence on-going investigations).
Yet another example in a long line of the White House lying. The FBI agents, who are people like you and I, with families and responsibilities, are trying to do a job. It's a job of investigating Treason, which carries severe penalties. Penalties that a certain billionaire doesn't want to face. Very much doesn't want to face. Considering that billionaire is your boss, that puts you in a very precarious situation. Continue to investigate, threatening your boss, and bad things could happen. We've seen track records of Trump firing whole groups of people (remember the Justice Department). The FBI agents as a group, both currently on the job and retired pretty much all have the same story to tell: The White House is, once again, lying. What's Trump's strategy to deal with all this going forward? By taking his toys, and going home, refusing to talk with the media directly ever again until he's blue in the face. He's claiming that he wants to do it "for the sake of accuracy". Yes, that'd be nice. A bit of honesty would be good too. So, the truth begins to emerge.
Trump tries to demand loyalty from the head of the FBI, who refuses. The American people need to be able to hold the President to account. The FBI is one of the organisations that we the people will use to do that. It must not be personally loyal to the President, so it was only right for Comey to do so. This is a seriously incriminating action. If we had an honest and open President (none come to mind, though), then it wouldn't matter. In the case of a sitting President that has told documented and easily verifiable lies, and who continues to do so...while at the same time confessing that he disapproved of Comey's investigation into Russia and the sacking was because of that...well... It's interesting that Trump threatened Comey with the release of tapes of some sort. I certainly do hope that Congress forces Trump to either deny their existence under penalty of perjury, or produce them as evidence. Perhaps the most damning of all things, is that, despite all the lies, double dealing, profiteering, nepotism, and sexual assault, the GOP stands behind the President, almost to a man. Instead of the sensible outrage and desire to get to the bottom of these issues, you have the House Investigation whose Republican chairman has thoroughly discredited, the Senate investigation that has stalled and blocked and obstructed itself at every turn, and the FBI investigation which has now been decapitated. Just what are these GOP people thinking? WHY are they continuing to stand by a man who flouts constitution, law, tradition, taste and even simple common sense? They are hurting American "Democracy", stealing money from us taxpayers, and ruining the planet while they're at it. All Congressman, Representatives and Senators alike, should be baying for blood at this point. Even the Russians are openly laughing at the circus of the White House. Congratulations Trump. It's taken you less than 4 months, and the world is publicly laughing at you. There are articles saying that the US is becoming a failed state. C'mon people. You want a Republican in the White House? Impeach Trump and leave Pence in there. You want Democracy, sense, and stability to really help the American people? Bundle all the idiots, saboteurs and wanna-be's onto big busses and ship them out to the countryside with no phones or internet so the can't hurt anyone. Let's get adults back into politics. Trump can't seem to stop telling us he's not under investigation.
He's leaving one very important word out these days: yet. The only way this can end well is when Congress and the Senate agree that the time has come to remove this damanging demagogue from office, and start repairing all the things he's broken, departments that haven't been functioning, etc. We need an outreach program.
Trump's numbers are, unsurprisingly, at an all-time low. Of course, there's a range of surveys, and some will have slightly higher numbers in Trump's favour, some lower. The big take away is that the numbers are the worst numbers ever. Still, shockingly, there are 36% of people who still are will to say they support Trump, despite confessing to sexually assaulting women, trying to trash the ecology in favour of business, trying to take away market protections that were designed to protect us, trying to make hate and prejudice an official governmental plan, and trying to take healthcare away from 24 million people, damaging it for the rest, and incredibly firing the head of the FBI because Trump didn't want to be investigated. Long story short, he's bad for the country, he's bad for the people, he's bad for business, and now he's clearly demonstrated he's bad for Democracy. The time for "giving him time", "letting him work", "giving him a chance"...well...that's all past now. he's proven himself destructive, petulant, arrogant to the point of danger, narcissistic, willfully ignorant and shallow all at the same time. A mental AND moral midget. It's not the FBI in which w've lost faith. It's the White House. It's time to talk regime change for the US. It's time to impeach. Let's get him out of there, and restore the country's faith in the government and the way we live. When hiring a new employee, you cannot simply go on their words alone. You have to pry into their claims on their CV. You have to call their references.
The bottom line: the best way to predict someone's future behaviour is to look at their past behaviour. Looking at Trump's behaviour, anyone who is heading an investigation into his ties with Russia gets fired. Think about that for a minute: the people who are meant to be making sure Trump is doing things legally, the people who are meant to investigate and make sure that a sitting President did not commit Treason and collude with a foreign power, have been fired for doing their jobs. I've heard the saying used often recently: Where there's smoke, there's fire. Despite repeated denials from the Trump campaign things have been smokey for a while now...but nobody believed that Trump would be foolish enough to fire Comey while he was investigating Trump. Trump proved them all wrong. So, we can no longer count on anyone to be able to rein in (or even investigate) Trump's potential treason, his likelihood to steal from the American public, or his unprecedented nepotism. Never has there been such a clear, obvious, and intentional attack on the United States' form of democracy. We owe Trump a thanks, really. He's made things quite simple: Either we impeach Trump and remove him (and his family) from office with prejudice and quickly, or we give in and throw a hell of a coronation for King Trump (Comrade Trump? Supreme Chancellor? High Priest? Chairman? What's his title going to be? Does it really matter? Probably should be unisex though, as his daughter will need to wear it after he passes away.) The United State will no longer be a Republic of States, but rather a dictatorship with trappings of democracy but without the substance. The rich have always tried to manipulate the systems of their countries to ensure the status quo stayed as it was.
They've developed a new tool now: the internet and big data. They have every detail of your life in their computers...and they're starting to wield it. The military-industrial complex has gotten into bed with some very dark people to completely undermine democracy and twist events to their purposes. Is it too late or not? Have you heard about the "investor visa" that the Kushner family is selling in China?
Jared Kushner's sister (Nicole Kushner Meyer) was speaking to a room full of potential Chinese investors to get them to invest in the family Real Estate business. Apparently only $500,000 will get them an investor visa under the current rules (hurry though, as the rules are likely to change). You couldn't ask for a more clear cut case of why allowing money and immigration to conflate is a bad idea, especially when the money is going directly into the Presidential Family pockets. This must end! Fire Jared and Ivanka, and impeach Trump. |
AuthorEngineer, Dad, Concerned Citizen. Watching the America I love fading and eroding before my eyes. Archives
November 2018
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