The 45th POTUS - Donald J. Trump

[Simple Torture]

Remember how the right criticized Obama for his lack of international political experience and niavete? That foreign political enemies would see him as gullible and inept?

Community organizer

[bune]

I was thinking this weekend: What happens when Putin dies? As I understand it, his entire power base is that he knows everything about everyone and that's what keeps the oligarchs in line but if he's gone and they are no longer afraid of him...what happens?

Also what kind of power vacuum would that create?

It will be chaos

Yeah, that was my thought as well. Just complete insanity.

this is all boris yeltsin's fault

Well, I can't argue against that.

I was thinking this weekend: What happens when Putin dies? As I understand it, his entire power base is that he knows everything about everyone and that's what keeps the oligarchs in line but if he's gone and they are no longer afraid of him...what happens?

Also what kind of power vacuum would that create?

It will be chaos

Russia pre-Putin was basically a mob state, and while it was fucking bonkers in many ways (the party scene in Moscow when I was there was “end of the world” level orgiastic) it mostly appeared to be defined by extreme poverty and reflexive pride of culture.

McP is Matt Taibbi, I knew it.

Also: "extreme poverty and reflexive pride of culture" sure sounds familiar right now. Did you see the report that the WH is saying that poverty and homelessness are no longer issues?

[Strat]

Do you think they watched the pee pee tape together today?

[tragabigzanda]

guys it's not a pee tape, it's Trump banging an underage prostitute

[bune]

[bune]

Paul Ryan: “The president must appreciate that Russia is not our ally”

It's all well and good how the Republicans are talking about this, but how about walking the walk instead and doing something about it?

[McParadigm]

There’s a Supreme Court seat to be had. Don’t hold your breath.

[bune]

Working fast.

[McParadigm]

Meeting alone with Putin right after this information comes out is, among other things, exactly the type of event that breaks through the firewall and reaches low information voters (similar to, say, an email security scandal). It’s one of those things where you go “if nothing before now was enough to matter, surely this won’t mean a thing,” and then it surprises you.

Even a 1% move in favor of Democrats is incredibly dangerous for Republicans right now. They must know they can’t stop him from having the meeting and joint presser. I wonder how they’ll try to mitigate the damage once leadership gets its act together.

I’m going to stick with this as having the potential to be the most important consequence of this week. Some moments say nothing new about an ongoing issue, but instead present it at top volume with a unique combination of clarity, iconic presentation, and simplicity. It may not even be a crucial moment; if it captures and frames exactly a preexisting storyline in a manner that registers, it tends to have wildly unexpected results.

Now, we’ve never had a president divide us so thoroughly, so there’s going to be a little less traction for movement. But there doesn’t really have to be. Anything that further motivates the anti-Trump movement to turn out to vote, and even a single percentage point shift towards Democrats in general polling, is catastrophic to Republicans from where this thing is starting out.

I think this is exactly the consequence that they fear the most, and that’s why you see so many Republicans experimenting with standing up to him about it today.

[Norris]

Working fast.

thats a great cartoon

[96583UP]

i’d like to think this tweet is a watershed moment, but he has done outrageous stuff to cross pretty much every other line already; and in a week or two we will probably just be on to the next tirade, and nothing tangible will have happened to rein him in

until/unless the Dems take congress

[bune]

Working fast.

thats a great cartoon

Yeah, I like the call back to his campaign comments.

[McParadigm]

On the topic of today’s other news

[E.H. Ruddock]

Red Dawn is gonna happen any day now

[Strat]

This whole fucking thing... Ruddo not watch his buddies die face down in the muck so that this fucking strumpet...

[elliseamos]

This whole fucking thing... Ruddo *did not watch his buddies die face down in the muck so that this fucking strumpet...

I'm finishing my coffee...

[Orpheus]

The Russia shit has been so obvious from day 1 and the fact that it has taken some people this long to cop to it is fucking ridiculous.

[tragabigzanda]

orpheus gets it

[96583UP]

countdown til the 'damage control' tweet (blaming Hillary)...

[tragabigzanda]

countdown til the 'damage control' tweet (blaming Hillary)...

his trolls are already there. anyone i've seen defending him today are echoing his email comments from the "summit"