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If All You've Got is a One-Line, Ad Hominem, Empty-Rhetoric Response, Don't Embarrass Yourself … Just Walk on Bye!

  

Category:  News & Politics

By:  a-macarthur  •  6 years ago  •  90 comments

If All You've Got is a One-Line, Ad Hominem, Empty-Rhetoric Response, Don't Embarrass Yourself … Just Walk on Bye!

While Hillary Clinton was not the best of POTUS candidates, based upon, if nothing else, experience and intelligence, she was a more sensible choice than was Donald Trump; and, to those who, for any of a number of ill-informed, uninformed “reasons,” put Trump and his self-serving oligarchs and self-indulgent misfeasants in charge ... a pox on all your houses.

• To religionist-hypocrite-white-nationalists hiding behind the guise of “evangelical-Christians,” you managed to elect an Antichrist , your true colors showning vividly when you forgave Mark Sanford for marital infidelity, but punished him for being a Judas to Donald Trump.

HYPOCRISY , thy name is “PRO-LIFE-FAMILY-VALUES-’CHRISTIAN’-WHO-APPLAUDS-THE-IMPRISONING-OF-BABIES-TO-ENABLE-A-PRESIDENT-TO-OVERTURN-ROE-V-WADE!”

To Black Americans of voting age who stayed home on Election Day because, after all, “Hillary was no Obama,” you were instrumental in giving the white nationalists their “Great White Hope!”

And, with Jeff Sessions as Trump’s Attorney General, “law and order” in the form of taking brown babies from parents escaping violent drug gangs, human traffickers, rapists and murderers, and, locking them in cages, you insured the continued shooting deaths of unarmed black men, and/or their arrests at a rate, thirty percent greater than whites who commit the same crimes!

But wait, there’s more ... with a Trump Supreme Court, good luck with getting the Voting Rights Act restored!

Jewish voters who love their “pro-Israel Donald,” are you with him regarding those “fine people” among the Neo-Nazis who marched in Charlottesville reminding you that “Jews will not replace them?”

Hey, but you got that embassy right where you wanted it! And, ever standing by to keep the eternal light of anti-semitism burning 24/7 ... are Stephen Bannon, Steven Miller, Gorka and others ... oh! almost forgot ... the Jewish son-in-law who provides you with that comforting, albeit false sense of “he’s not a Dathan and he won’t let anything happen to us” ... (will he?)!

• And what suburban white-woman-Trump-voter wouldn’t want a tough-talking hulk of a crotch-grabbing philanderer in the Oval Office, this, to make her feel safe in her gated community home Caucasianville?

I must speculate that “these damned Hillaries threaten the prescribed, traditional American place for women” ... which is, after all, to know their place;   Home and hearth ladies ... that’s where your Republican-family-values husbands, friends, houses of worship and Roseann Barr decree, that, for your own good … you should then, now and forever … be!

• And bless the little hearts of the so-called “low information voters” who assimilate without inquiry, all they need to know to cast a vote ... the “knowledge” that fits on a bumper sticker or baseball cap; just a few succinct, emotionally-charged words, catchy, easy to remember, cathartic to parrot repetitiously to a like-minded narrow circle … “lock her up,” “drain the swamp,” “build the wall,” “ban the Muslims,” and, oh, yeah … “Make America Great Again!” Turn on Fox, fuel the white resentments with lies du jour, and, blame a scapegoat! Get your misinformation where complicated thoughts go to die, and, when an inconvenient truth leaks into an otherwise simplistically configured   “mind” ... break out the “Fake News” placard!

• To Bernie devotees who stayed too long at the fair and third party voters who anointed themselves as chic “senders of a message to Washington,” your unawareness of, or, failure to heed the “Ralph Nader” lesson-of-POTUS-election-history, resulted in, not just wasted votes, but votes that Biblically might taunt … “He who troubleth his own house shall inherit the wind … ,” or, in this case, a corrupt, narcissistic, incompetent bully who thinks he’s KING!

• To old, resentful Trump-loving White people who would prefer a return to the Fifties (if not to a resurrected antebellum America), you now face the possibility of a privatized, insufficient Medicare, Social Security, and, to be Trumped out of coverage for your pre-existing medical conditions … could it be that you will be rendered “too poor to live” … to have to choose between life, death or bankruptcy? Are any of you among those who cried, “Keep government hands off of health care … but don’t touch my Medicare!!”?

Working stiff “pie-in-the-sky” believers that a “Tax Reform and JOBS Bill” promise from a con man who stiffed contractors and others of the American labor force … was just an election-fulfillment away … REALLY? And, how the hell did some Trump-endorsing union members fail to consider the historical and perennial Republican bashing of collective bargaining rights and proponents of “Right-to-work” (for less money and unsafe working environments)? What were you thinking?

Were you thinking?

To those who wanted “a change” and yet, still voted based to one extent or another on issues of race, preferences emanating from religious beliefs or sheer religiosity-without-deference-to-rationality, you nevertheless allowed fear-stoked votes to be reinforced by candidates’ incessant lying and stereotyping of “others-who-are-not-like-yourselves,” … apparantly you never heard the quote …” Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”

Well, you can keep the change!

• To t hose who wanted a “Jess Willard” POTUS and either had the unmitigated temerity to openly express it unequivocally, or to just a concurring cohort, or, who were at least wise enough to harbor such ugliness in the privacy of your own, tainted myopia … an especially virulent pox on your houses!

• To those who wanted a “drained swamp” — I give you Tom Price, Scott Pruitt, Ivanka/Jared earnings of $82 million in their first year as Advisors to the POTUS, regular Trump-Constitution-violations of the Emoluments Clause Article I, Section 9, Clause 8 of the United States Constitution that restricts members of the government from receiving  gifts emoluments , offices or titles from foreign  states  without the consent of the  United States Congress … assuming of course, a Congress comprised of right-minded public servant non-spineless lapdogs. ‘Course, you know what is said of those who assume.

From the Tee, to the fairway, to the green, to the holes at Mar a Lago, and other “swampy” places … 1. $26.98 million in flights and weekends to Mar-a-Lago , 2. $13 million for Mar-a-Lago security , 3. $8.48 million for flights to Bedminster , 4. $103,000 to cover golf carts for the Secret Service , 5. $3.4 million for Palm Beach law enforcement during Trump visits , 6. $75 million to protect Melania and Barron in New York , 7. Trump’s golf trips rarely involve White House business., 8. At this rate, Trump will outspend 8 years of Obama in 3-4 years.

• To those aforementioned and to those who did not vote because “all candidates are the same,” who were otherwise too busy watching sit-com reruns … to James Comey, Russian Bots, Wikileaks, Julian Assange, Cambridge Analytica (Stephen Bannon, Donald Trump, Jr., Paul Manafort, Vladimir Putin and Associates, and the Trump Ministry of Propaganda {Fox, Breitbart, Sinclair Broadcasting, et al) …

… if/when Donald J. Trump succeeds in putting to death, the very idea of “AMERICA,” the Constitution of the United States, and, whatever elements of human decency government can foster …

IT WILL BE ON YOUR HEADS!

A Pox on all your houses!


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Bob Nelson
Professor Guide
1  Bob Nelson    6 years ago

Working stiff “pie-in-the-sky” believers that a “Tax Reform and JOBS Bill” promise from a con man who stiffed contractors and others of the American labor force … was just an election-fulfillment away … REALLY? And, how the hell did some Trump-endorsing union members fail to consider the historical and perennial Republican bashing of collective bargaining rights and proponents of “Right-to-work” (for less money and unsafe working environments)?

What were you thinking? 

Were you thinking?

Great screed, Mac! Well done!

But... why didn't you let go, just a bit?

   peace

 
 
 
A. Macarthur
Professor Guide
1.1  author  A. Macarthur  replied to  Bob Nelson @1    6 years ago

I could have handed them their assess but I'm, in a good mood today … almost forgiving and magnanimous.

 
 
 
pat wilson
Professor Participates
1.1.2  pat wilson  replied to  A. Macarthur @1.1    6 years ago

applause

 
 
 
A. Macarthur
Professor Guide
2  author  A. Macarthur    6 years ago

This in NOT A SEEDED ARTICLE … masquerading as "news" or an actual "report."

IT IS AN EDITORIAL and while editorials are necessarily opinionated, they are not necessarily inaccurate … in fact, a strong editorial makes its case by way of SPECIFIC REFERENCES, references that make clear, from who/what/where and when the editorial writer's opinion emanates … and THE VERY REASONS WHY the writer if of the stated opinion(s) expressed.

NOTE: UNLESS A COMMENT IS A DIRECT ATTACK ON MYSELF OR ANOTHER MEMBER, it will stand … a somewhat reliable way to assess "who's who" and "what's-what-with-who" … is to let them bloviate their vitriol.

 
 
 
Trout Giggles
Professor Principal
3  Trout Giggles    6 years ago

I did vote for Hillary but why do I feel like I just got hit with a broom stick?

Great editorial, Amac!

 
 
 
JohnRussell
Professor Principal
4  JohnRussell    6 years ago

Counting down to the first Hillary, Obama and Nancy Pelosi (derogatory) references in the comment section. 

 
 
 
96WS6
Junior Quiet
5  96WS6    6 years ago

Shame on anyone who didn't vote for Hillary.  You are to blame for the lowest unemployment in a generation and lowest unemployment among minorities in the countries history.

not to mention that you allowed Trump to:

• Appoint Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch and more than 75 other constitutionally sound federal judges, 30 of which are serving.

• Reinstate an expanded Mexico City Policy blocking foreign aid from being used for abortions.

• Issue an order killing two federal regulations for every new one. In actuality, 16 were cut for every new one in his first year, saving billions.

• Engineer a historic tax cut that will save money for more than 80 percent of American households.

• Withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Climate Agreement, ending the threat of U.S. governance by international bureaucrats.

• Reverse onerous Obama environmental rules that gave the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ham-handed authority to destroy the coal industry and abrogate landowners’ rights.

• Kick-starte America’s energy sector by curtailing regulations, facilitating the Keystone XL Pipeline and opening up vast federal areas to oil and gas exploration.

• Preside over an economic and stock market boom, lowered unemployment and brought manufacturing jobs back to America from overseas.

• Rebuild the nation’s military, destroyed ISIS (How come he did it so fast while BO couldn't defeat the "JV Team" for 8 years?  Oh that's right, his policy of irresponsibly pulling out from Iraq Created them so it wasn't really 8 years that he had to defeat his own monster.)

• Issue an order enforcing First Amendment protections for religious liberty.

• Crack down on sex trafficking. Trump   signed a law allowing states to move against sex-ad Internet sites, and the Justice Department on April 6 seized and shut down Backpage.com, which carried ads for prostitution, including trafficked children.

• Overhaul the mismanaged Veterans Administration and giving veterans more health care choices.

• Replace Obamacare incrementally, beginning with a repeal of the individual mandate.

• Impose sanctions on Venezuela’s socialist dictatorship and revising Obama’s deals with communist Cuba.

• Recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and repairing damage that Obama did to the U.S.-Israel relationship.

• Work with Central American nations to crack down on MS-13 gangs.

  • Attempt a peaceful solution with North Korea.

 
 
 
A. Macarthur
Professor Guide
5.1  author  A. Macarthur  replied to  96WS6 @5    6 years ago

I could debunk or CORRECTLY REPRESENT A NUMBER OF THESE … I might do it later on.

 
 
 
Paula Bartholomew
Professor Participates
5.1.1  Paula Bartholomew  replied to  A. Macarthur @5.1    6 years ago

I look forward to that.

 
 
 
A. Macarthur
Professor Guide
5.1.2  author  A. Macarthur  replied to  Paula Bartholomew @5.1.1    6 years ago

Let me begin with …

• Work with Central American nations to crack down on MS-13 gangs.

Not only has Trump lied significantly regarding the number of MS-13 gang members in America … HE LOCKS UP THE CHILDREN OF THE PARENTS WHO LEGALLY COME TO AMERICA TO PETITION FOR ASYLUM FROM …

MS-13 GANGS IN THE COUNTRIES FROM WHICH THEY SEEK ASYLUM!!!

Donald Trump exaggerates on number of MS-13 gang members deported

There are an   estimated 10,000 MS-13 gang members   in the United States. Not all are immigrants.   Some are   U.S. citizens   who can’t be deported.

Still, we wondered about Trump’s claim that MS-13 gang members are being deported "by the thousands."

We found that thousands of gang members have been deported under Trump’s administration. However, it’s unclear how many of them were MS-13 gang members, because U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement does not track removals by specific gang affiliation. An expert who researches gangs and criminal justice said there is a lengthy process between a gang member’s arrest and deportation.

Removals data does not single out MS-13

ICE does not track gang removals by specific gang, but the agency does specifically target MS-13 members for arrest and removal on the basis of their immigration violations, said Matthew Bourke, a spokesman for the agency.

Bourke said 5,396 gang members were removed in fiscal year 2017 (which includes about four months of the Obama administration, running from Oct. 1, 2016 through Sept. 30, 2017).

From Oct. 1, 2017 through Dec. 16, 2017 (the latest data available), 1,082 gang members were removed.

It’s impossible to determine how many of them were MS-13 gang members.

There is other data indicating the Trump administration’s efforts to deport MS-13 gang members, but that doesn’t necessarily support Trump’s claim.

ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations division arrested   nearly 800 MS-13 gang members   in fiscal year 2017. 

ICE’s investigations division arrested 405 MS-13 gang members, Bourke said, citing first-quarter data for fiscal year 2018.

"The time it takes to remove a validated gang member can vary depending on whether the alien has started removal proceedings; whether the alien has a final order of removal; or whether the alien has pending criminal charges in a local jurisdiction," Bourke said.

It’s unlikely that all of the MS-13 gang members arrested in 2017 were already deported, because of the time required to remove someone after an arrest, said Jorja Leap, an anthropologist and adjunct professor at UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs who researches gangs and criminal justice.

"Most members of MS-13 that I know that have been arrested are being held in court pending trial," Leap said. "The process is lengthy."

Says of MS-13 gang members, "We are getting them out of our country by the thousands."

It’s difficult to determine how many MS-13 members have been deported under Trump’s administration, because immigration officials don’t break down deportation data by gang affiliation. 

At least 1,200 MS-13 gang members were arrested from Oct. 1, 2016, through the end of Trump’s first calendar year. The time between an arrest and deportation varies per case, but an expert told us the process is lengthy.

Trump’s statement contains an element of truth but ignores critical facts that would give a different impression. We rate it Mostly False.

tom-mostlyfalse.jpg
 
 
 
A. Macarthur
Professor Guide
5.1.3  author  A. Macarthur  replied to  A. Macarthur @5.1.2    6 years ago

Let's continue with …

Attempt a peaceful solution with North Korea

Trump’s big North Korea deal is already turning out to be a sham


A North Korean missile production facility in the city of Hamhung is seen from a satellite image taken on June 29. (Planet Labs Inc./Reuters)

Do they give out Nobel Peace Prizes for praising and appeasing brutal dictators who threaten nuclear war — without getting anything in return?

President Trump claimed he would use his world-class dealmaking skills to convince North Korea’s dictator, Kim Jong Un, to surrender his nuclear weapons. Instead, Trump got played. Kim, who pledged in wishy-washy language to “denuclearize,” is now accelerating his nuclear program. The nuclear threat from North Korea — and the risk of a preemptive war launched by Trump — are both growing. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is heading to North Korea this week hoping to contain the fallout.

Twenty days ago, Trump shook hands with Kim in Singapore. At the summit, Trump played the role of apologist in chief for Kim’s human rights abuses while praising Kim as a “ very talented ” person because he can “run it tough.” In North Korea, “running it tough” means executing dissidents, torturing political prisoners in gulags and threatening to wipe a few U.S. cities off the map with a nuclear blast.

 
 
 
A. Macarthur
Professor Guide
5.1.4  author  A. Macarthur  replied to  A. Macarthur @5.1.3    6 years ago

And …

Let’s take a look at the odd list of Trump accomplishments on ‘Fox and Friends,’ shall we?

Early Sunday morning, at a time when few people would be likely to tune in save, perhaps, for die-hard fans watching as they got ready for a day on the links, Fox News’s “Fox and Friends” presented its viewers with a six-point list of President Trump’s accomplishments.

FOX & friends
@foxandfriends

List of President Trump’s accomplishments keeps growing

They are:

  • Moving U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem
  • Leaving the Iran deal
  • Release of prisoners and summit with Kim Jong Un
  • Rising approval ratings
  • Two judges rebuke Mueller’s investigation
  • Making the economy great again

We’ll note that this is not meant to be an exhaustive list; Fox presents it in the context of Trump’s growing list of accomplishments. These, one might then be forgiven for assuming, are simply the most recent additions to that list. It raises the question, though, of how big a window we’re looking at here. These are Trump’s top accomplishments in the past, what, week? Month? Year?

That’s secondary to the other question, of course, the one that likely struck you as you read that list: Do these all really count as accomplishments?

Let’s evaluate.

Moving the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem.   As is so often the case, when evaluating political claims, we can quickly spiral into a college-sophomore debate over the meaning of words. (See: “What is a lie?”) Here the word at issue is “accomplished.”

Generally speaking, “accomplished” is the more mature older brother of “did.” An accomplishment is something you did, certainly, but the implication is that you did it   despite something. It’s not an accomplishment when you tie your shoes every day, but it was an accomplishment when you did it the first time, having overcome your previous inability to tie your shoes.

That linguistic throat-clearing dispensed with, it’s certainly true that Trump moved the embassy to Jerusalem, a transfer formalized Monday morning. He did that. American political accomplishments are often defined by having reached compromise agreeable to all parties. This wasn’t that; Trump acted unilaterally. What he   accomplished   was doing it despite the objections of many foreign policy experts who warned that such an action would increase tensions and jeopardize the United States’ role as an arbiter of peace between Israel and Palestinians. He overcame, if you will, the objections that past presidents had heeded.

Leaving the Iran deal.   Everything above minus the intro about the meanings of words and swapping “leaving the Iran deal” for “moved the embassy to Jerusalem.”

That’s a little unfair, given that the objections to the Iran deal were more partisan than the objections to moving the embassy. At the time that it was agreed to by the administration of President Barack Obama, Republicans expressed dismay at the deal. Which unfortunately makes the accomplishment a bit more hollow: Doing a thing that you had the full authority to do and which had the blessing of many in your party is certainly something that was   done ; whether it deserves to be described with the added weight of an accomplishment is another question.

To use a loaded analogy, it’s a bit like giving every kid who participates in a soccer tournament a trophy of accomplishment just for getting there. Some would argue that such recognition diminishes the accomplishments of others — or, in this case, other accomplishments.

Release of prisoners and summit with Kim Jong Un.   A negotiated agreement with North Korea that involves an elimination of the threat posed by North Korea’s atomic weapons and which moves toward a normalization of relations between the two Koreas would be historic. It’s also an unalloyed good that three men being held prisoner by the North Korean government are now free.

Experts debate the extent to which Trump’s provocations toward North Korea led to the recent thaw between North Korea and the United States. Many — and many political observers —   give him that credit . Trump will have his chance to eliminate any debate over his role during his meeting with Kim next month.

Rising approval ratings.   Now we get into murkier territory. First of all, his approval ratings have improved, from a low in the mid-30s in December to the low 40s today. In FiveThirtyEight’s   polling average , Trump’s as popular now as he was right before he fired former FBI director James B. Comey.

But now we get into the question about how big a window we’re looking at. Trump and his allies have been trumpeting his improved approval numbers in Rasmussen Reports’s polling since the beginning of April, regularly   touting   that he has crossed the 50-percent mark in that most friendly of polls.

The rise, per FiveThirtyEight, began in mid-December. Since mid-February, his approval ratings have been fairly static (though in the past 10 days he has been at about 42 percent). If the “rising ratings” began in December, that suggests a lot of other things that might meet the bar of “accomplishments” in the interim. His most significant legislative accomplishment happened after that! If the window opened in December, you would think that would make Fox’s list.

Two judges rebuke special counsel Robert S. Mueller III’s investigation . I wrote this article because there is no way in which this is an accomplishment of Trump’s.

These rebukes were not anything done by Trump. They were not anything that had anything to do with his administration. They were not cases that had anything to do with Trump directly, one involving questions during the trial against Paul Manafort for financial crimes and the other against the Russians indicted by Mueller. In the latter case, the term “rebuke” is a bit strong; the judge ruled against Mueller on a procedural question.

It’s this bullet point that snaps the entire thing into focus. In this framework, an accomplishment for Trump is simply a loss for Trump’s opponents. The Iran deal was a loss for Trump’s opponents. The embassy move? Same. Even the North Korea shift can be seen in that light: Trump has repeatedly disparaged those who warned that his aggressive language would lead to nuclear war as having misjudged him.

Mueller loses a hearing? Win for Trump simply because Mueller is an equivalent to “anti-Trump” in this calculus. “Anti-Trump loses” equals “Trump wins.”

Making the economy great again . One of Trump’s most remarkably successful rhetorical frames was to argue before the election that the economy was in shambles and that, after, it surged. In fact, the economy had been doing well consistently after the recession, and Trump inherited that trend.

Last week he bragged that the media would have disparaged him had he predicted during the campaign that the economy would have added 3.3 million jobs by now after the election. In fact, the jobs gains have been   entirely in line   with what projections would have suggested.

He brags about the stock market, which was on a tear since the recession ended. He brags about record-low unemployment for black and Hispanic Americans, which is a bit like the guy who crosses the finish line in a track relay taking credit for winning the whole race. From April 2011 to January 2017, the black unemployment rate fell from 16.5 percent to 7.8 percent. Since then, it has dropped further to 6.6 percent. Had Obama somehow won a third term in office, there’s no reason to think that the black unemployment rate would be much different than it is now.

But, then, that’s not what “Fox and Friends” claims. It claims, simply, that the economy has been made great again. In this case, the accomplishment was apparently overcoming the need for traditional measures and descriptors for economic progress.

Trump has been eager to present his administration as an unmitigated success because Trump is eager to present everything he does as an unmitigated success. “Fox and Friends” is eager to do so as well for less clear reasons, though they certainly involve the symbiosis the show enjoys with the president and his base.

Particularly for conservative Republicans, Trump has done a lot of things that he both promised to do and which his base will support. This overeager list from “Fox and Friends,” though, doesn’t really help make that case.

 
 
 
MrFrost
Professor Expert
5.1.5  MrFrost  replied to  A. Macarthur @5.1.3    6 years ago
Attempt a peaceful solution with North Korea

You forgot... "While shitting on our allies..."

 
 
 
Bob Nelson
Professor Guide
5.2  Bob Nelson  replied to  96WS6 @5    6 years ago

My goodness!

The world continued to turn. Things happened.

Any connection to the President is... dubious at best.

 
 
 
XXJefferson51
Senior Guide
5.3  XXJefferson51  replied to  96WS6 @5    6 years ago

la de daGreat post.  A very well stated rebuttal to the angryClapping original.  You are 100% correct on every count.  Thumbs Up 2

 
 
 
A. Macarthur
Professor Guide
5.3.1  author  A. Macarthur  replied to  XXJefferson51 @5.3    6 years ago
A very well stated rebuttal to the angry original.  You are 100% correct on every count.

Possibly you missed, or chose to ignore, my highly specific 100 rebuttals to 96's "rebuttal."

Check just below … at this link

6     A. Macarthur    

AND I CHALLENGE YOU TO DO WITH MY 100 REBUTTALS, WHAT I DID with the particulars of 96's rebuttal … NAMELY, SPECIFICALLY REBUT MOST OF THEM, ONE-BY-ONE!

Surely, after I post 100 particulars, you might try to do more than a one-line cheerleader praise of 96's post … and a few cartoons. 

 
 
 
XXJefferson51
Senior Guide
5.3.2  XXJefferson51  replied to  A. Macarthur @5.3.1    6 years ago

No.  I wrote what I wrote to him knowing full well what you wrote.  I agree with his facts, not your opinion.  Believe it or not, you can’t browbeat everyone here into agreeing with your personal opinion.  

 
 
 
A. Macarthur
Professor Guide
6  author  A. Macarthur    6 years ago

You're fucking with an expert on RELITY!

100 Ways, in 100 Days, that Trump Has Hurt Americans

Disregard the "1s" (Formatting issue) … THERE'S 100!

Economy

  1. Raised housing payments for new homebuyers by about $500 in 2017.   On its first day, the Trump administration   reversed   an Obama administration action to lower Federal Housing Administration, or FHA, mortgage insurance premiums for new homebuyers by 25 basis points, which could have lowered mortgage payments for   1 million   households purchasing or refinancing their home this year alone.
  1. Attacked the Department of Labor’s fiduciary rule, which would have required retirement advisers to act in their clients’ best financial interest.  President Trump   delayed   the rule’s implementation by 60 days and has ordered the department to re-evaluate the rule. This will make it much harder to save for retirement, as high fees from conflicted advice result in savers losing   $17 billion  in fees annually.
  1. Delayed court proceedings on the Obama administration’s expansion of overtime, failing to defend the pro-worker rule.  This   rule would have   raised wages for workers by $12 billion over the next 10 years and extended overtime protections to 4.2 million more Americans. In his confirmation hearings, Labor Secretary nominee Alexander   Acosta  suggested he would attempt to weaken the overtime rule.
  1. Delayed enforcement of a rule to reduce workers’ exposure to deadly silica dust for three months . After   more than four decades   of development, this rule would protect construction and manufacturing workers from inhaling silica, which can lead to lung cancer, silicosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and kidney disease. It was   projected   to save more than   600 lives   and prevent more than 900 new cases of silicosis each year.
  1. Repealed the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order, which ensured that federal contractors complied with worker protection laws before receiving government contracts.   The order would have required companies wanting to do business with the government to disclose past labor law violations and come into compliance before receiving new contracts. Because of the repeal, millions of workers will be more vulnerable to wage theft, workplace injuries, and discrimination on the job. The order also   would have protected   women by   banning forced arbitration   in the case of sexual assault, harassment, or discrimination claims.  
  1. Supported efforts in Congress to cut taxes on the wealthy that help fund the Affordable Care Act, or ACA.   As part of Congress’s effort to repeal and replace the ACA, a move that President Trump supported, the 3.8 percent net investment income tax would have been repealed at a cost   of $157 billion over 10 years , according to Congressional Budget Office, or CBO. This is revenue needed to fund important programs that ensure basic human living standards and retirement security for tens of millions of working Americans. Based on Trump’s rental real estate income alone,   The   Wall Street Journal   estimated   the repeal would have saved Trump $3.2 million in taxes in 2016 alone.
  1. Tried to cut his own taxes by millions of dollars while taking health insurance from tens of millions of Americans.   Based on President Trump’s leaked 2005 Tax Return Form 1040, repealing the ACA could give Trump a   personal tax cut   of more than $2 million. At the same time, the House legislation to repeal the ACA would have taken health insurance from 24 million Americans.
  1. Assembled a team of wealthy financial industry elites to advise him on tax reform, which he promised would benefit the middle class.   The tax code is the tool of choice when special favors are doled out to special interests. Despite his campaign promises to drain the swamp, President Trump has assembled a   band of elites   to construct his tax reform plan: three former Goldman Sachs executives, Steve Mnuchin, Gary Cohn, and Steve Bannon; two more former executives from the finance industry, Justin Muzinich and Craig Phillips; and a former tax lobbyist for Fidelity Investments, Shahira Knight.
  1. Made it harder for veterans to find jobs with a federal hiring freeze.   Veterans receive a strong hiring preference for federal jobs, and roughly one-third of all newly hired federal employees in 2015 were veterans. Even if many jobs at the Department of Veterans Affairs, or VA, are exempt from the hiring freeze, other vacant jobs will still be unavailable at other federal agencies.  
  1. Proposed budget cuts that would devastate rural America.   President Trump’s   budget would eliminate programs   that support rural jobs, housing, infrastructure, health care, and economic development. If implemented, these budget cuts would eliminate affordable housing for tens of thousands of struggling rural families; eliminate community service jobs for 18,000 senior citizens living in rural areas; and eliminate critical support for airline connections serving 175 small and rural communities.
  1. Proposed dramatically slashing job training programs and worker wage and safety enforcement.  President Trump’s proposed fiscal year 2018 budget could result in   2.7 million   adults and youths losing access to job training and employment services in 2018.
  1. Proposed budget cuts that would increase roadway congestion and reduce economic productivity .   The budget   calls for eliminating the TIGER grant program at the U.S. Department of Transportation, or USDOT, which funds innovative surface transportation projects. Additionally, the budget calls for the phased elimination of the New Starts program within the Federal Transit Administration, which funds major public transportation projects. Rail and bus rapid transit projects help to reduce roadway congestion and air pollution while spurring economic development.
  1. Proposed budget cuts that would threaten billions in loans and investments to distressed communities.   The proposed budget would eliminate the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund, which supports billions of dollars in financing across low-income communities, including more than   $300 million in rural and Native American   communities, as well as the Economic Development Administration and the Manufacturing Extension Partnership, costing another $300 million or more that is annually   invested in community growth . Without federal support, economic development in these locations will suffer, including small-business development.
  1. Reneged on his promise to disclose his tax returns.   President Trump’s refusal leaves Americans in the dark about whether any tax reform he proposes will benefit him or working Americans. Trump repeatedly   stated   before and after he was elected that he would disclose his tax returns. While initially he said he could not release them because he was being audited—a fact that does not prevent anyone from releasing their returns—his counselor, Kellyanne Conway   has now said , “He’s not going to release his tax returns.”
  1. Proposed   $6.7 billion   cut to housing and community support programs.   President Trump’s budget would eliminate the Community Development Block Grant, which is used by   1,265 local communities  for important initiatives such as Meals on Wheels, neighborhood rehabilitation, the development of affordable housing, job training, and business expansion. The Housing Choice Vouchers program will also experience deep cuts in funding, as will other programs providing supportive services for the elderly and persons with disabilities. According to the   Center on Budget and Policy Priorities , about 200,000 families will no longer receive a housing voucher to pay for their rental costs and could eventually face homelessness in a housing market where there is a severe shortage of affordable housing.
  1. Attacked neutral budget analysts so that lawmakers ignore negative effects from their policies.   The Trump administration attacked the nonpartisan CBO in an attempt to   preemptively discredit   their estimates related to legislation repealing the ACA. These attacks continued   after   the CBO estimated that the House ACA repeal bill would take coverage away from 24 million Americans by 2026. This is part of a   larger attempt   by the Trump administration to discredit independent data and analysis in order to obscure the negative impacts that their agenda will have for working families.  
  1. Undermined investor protection by making it harder for the Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC, to hold Wall Street accountable.   An independent and vigorous Division of Enforcement at the SEC is vital to preserving free and fair financial markets for investors. After the Bernie Madoff scandal, Obama administration SEC Chair Mary Schapiro made it easier for Division of Enforcement staff to open investigations and issue subpoenas to protect investors and get to the bottom of suspected malfeasance. Chair Michael Piwowar inexplicably   rolled back this change , hindering the SEC’s ability to protect the average investor from financial wrongdoing. He has also proposed rolling back key advances in corporate transparency, including regarding   human rights risks in supply chains   and the   pay ratio   between CEOs and the median worker.
  1. Proposed funding cuts for programs that help support and encourage small business development.   President   Trump’s budget   cuts funding for several programs that help groups with historically low business ownership rates overcome barriers to becoming entrepreneurs, including the PRIME technical assistance grants for low-income micro-entrepreneurs; the Minority Business Development Agency, and the Economic Development Administration.
  1. Attempted to make it harder for entrepreneurs to get access to affordable health.   The ACA helps   millions   of entrepreneurs obtain access to health care without relying on a spouse or employer, which allows them to take one of the necessary risks associated with starting a business. The proposed   American Health Care Act , or AHCA, would reduce access to health care and make it more expensive for many people to get comprehensive health care coverage.
  1. Proposes leaving 23,000 calls for help unanswered from disaster-struck Americans.   President Trump’s skinny budget proposed   eliminating the Corporation for National and Community Service , which would also eliminate AmeriCorps, a vital service program that plays a critical role in mobilizing volunteers to aid with disaster preparedness and response.
  1. Proposed slashing the WIC program.   President Trump’s proposal to slash funding for the WIC program puts basic food security at risk for thousands of families. At an annual food cost of about  $513  per person, the  $200 million cut  could help pay for a year’s worth of food and formula for nearly 390,000 participating women, children and infants.
  1. Proposed elimination of the   HOME Investment Partnerships Program . To date, HOME has helped more that  1.2 million families gain  access to safe and affordable housing. But this successful program is also on President Trump’s budget chopping block, thereby threatening housing security for  thousands  of families.
  1. Proposed eliminating NeighborWorks America.   NeighborWorks America provides grants to community development organizations that help build and maintain affordable housing. The program created  53,649 jobs  and assisted  360,009 families with affordable housing   in the last year alone.

Environment and energy

  1. Proposed cuts to energy programs that save people money.   The Trump budget blueprint calls for a   5.6 percent cut   overall to the U.S. Department of Energy. This cut, along with   calls for additional funding   to nuclear security and waste cleanup, mean that there will be steeper cuts for programs designed to develop household appliances that save families money. President Trump’s budget proposal also eliminates programs such as   ARPA-E , which helps entrepreneurs develop clean, affordable energy, and the Weatherization Assistance Program, which upgrades the homes of low-income families with insulation and cost-effective energy efficient improvements to help reduce utility bills.
  1. Allowed a dangerous pesticide to stay on the market, despite it being a threat to children’s health.  Chlorpyrifos a common agricultural pesticide that causes neurological harm in children exposed in utero. In 2016, the EPA’s scientists   concluded that the agency should ban chlorpyrifos after finding unsafe levels of the chemical on apples, peaches, oranges, strawberries, and other fruits. Dow Chemical, one of the largest producers of products using this chemical, gave   $1 million   to President Trump’s inauguration committee and leads a presidential advisory committee on manufacturing. On   March 28 , Trump’s EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt   rejected   the findings of the agency’s scientists, denied a petition to ban the chemical, and delayed further action until 2022.
  1. Eliminated pollution standards for power plants and oil and gas facilities.   In his final term, President Obama established the first-ever carbon pollution standards for power plants and the first-ever methane standards for oil and gas drilling facilities. These standards would have reduced soot- and smog-forming pollutants that trigger asthma attacks and cut emissions of carbon and other gases that cause climate change. On March 28, President Trump   signed an executive order   that started the process of nullifying these pollution standards and making it harder for future presidents to put them back in place.
  1. Proposed cutting EPA programs to clean up water sources.   In February, President Trump proposed a budget for the EPA that   would cut the agency’s funding   by 31 percent and its staff by one-quarter. The president’s proposal targets several popular programs, such as regional efforts to clean up the Great Lakes, Gulf of Mexico, Chesapeake Bay, and other iconic bodies of water.
  1. Proposed   eliminating programs   at the EPA dedicated to preventing children’s exposure to lead-based paint, which can cause neurological delays.   An estimated 38 million U.S. homes contain lead-based paint, and in 2015, the Centers for Disease Control found that   243,000 children   had elevated levels of lead in their blood. Lead is a neurotoxin that causes permanent nerve damage.
  1. Rolled back important protections for drinking water in coal communities.   One of the Trump administration’s first actions was   to nix   the Stream Protection Rule put in place by the Obama administration to prevent coal companies from polluting nearby streams. Scrapping this environmental protection was a   top priority   of the coal industry at the expense of clean drinking water in coal communities.
  1. Repealed anti-bribery rule to the delight of the oil industry.   President Trump eliminated an   anti-corruption rule   that had required oil and gas companies to disclose payments to foreign governments. When he was still the CEO of Exxon Mobil, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson had lobbied to remove the rules established under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.
  1. Ripped off American taxpayers and avoided fixing the broken federal coal-leasing program.   The Trump administration moved to   preserve a loophole   the Obama administration closed that allows coal companies to rip off taxpayers by allowing them to sell coal mined on federal lands to their own subsidiaries at artificially low prices and shirk royalty payment responsibilities.
  1. Halted the first comprehensive review of the federal coal program in more than 30 years while simultaneously opening public lands for new leases to mine coal. Federal coal lease sales only bring in, on average,   $1 per ton in bids , and taxpayers are estimated to be losing   $1 billion annually   in lost royalty payments on undervalued coal sales.
  1. Proposed major cuts to the Department of the Interior’s budget that would impair critical maintenance of our national parks while making a public show of supporting them.   A few weeks after proposing to cut   $1.5 billion, or 12 percent , from the Department of the Interior’s budget, President Trump had Press Secretary Sean Spicer ceremoniously hand a   $78,000 check —Trump’s first-quarter earnings—to Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke to help the National Park Service. Here’s the rub: Trump’s check only covers 0.01 percent of   $1.3 billion   in “critical systems deferred maintenance” that the National Park Service urgently needs.
  1. Pulled the rug from under private investors backing conservation efforts.   As part of a sweeping   executive order   aimed at gutting actions the Obama administration took to address climate change, President Trump rescinded the   presidential memorandum   that encouraged private investment when developers work to mitigate impacts on natural resources. This action undercuts the economic and environmental gains that the fast-growing restoration industry has made recently to the tune of   $1.15 billion   between 2014 and 2015 in private capital invested in habitat conservation and water management. These relatively new environmental marketplaces rely on regulatory consistency that President Obama’s memorandum bolstered.
  1. Declared open season on baby bears and wolves in wildlife refuges.   President Trump   overturned a rule   that had protected black bear mothers and their cubs from being hunted in their dens. The Obama administration’s “Fair Chase” rule, which applied to national wildlife refuges in Alaska, also limited baiting, trapping, and the use of aircrafts to track and shoot bears and wolves.
  1. Moved to weaken air quality standards for ozone.   Ozone pollution is a key contributor to smog, which can cause more frequent asthma attacks and exacerbate lung diseases. President Trump’s EPA is moving toward changing   air quality standards established under the Obama administration to allow greater ozone pollution. Ground level ozone pollution can increase the frequency of asthma attacks, cause shortness of breath, aggravate lung diseases, and cause permanent damage to lungs through long-term exposure. Elevated ozone levels are linked to increases in hospitalizations, emergency room visits, and premature death, and can cause pronounced health   impacts   in children and the elderly.
  1. Signed an executive order nullifying the “social cost of carbon.”   President Trump essentially determined that climate change has no cost by eliminating a critical   metric used to measure the benefit of cutting carbon pollution.  
  1. Stopped rules that would limit dumping toxins from power plants.   Trump’s EPA is stopping   rules   that would limit the dumping of toxins, such as mercury and arsenic, and pollution from power plants into public waterways. These would have been the first protections in more than 30 years to curb toxins and other pollutants in power plants.
  1. Changed standards to protect water and wildlife from lead poisoning.   Hours after riding a horse to his first day on the job, Secretary of the Interior Zinke   reversed a ban on using lead bullets for hunting in wildlife refuses. Lead content in these bullets can poison water and wildlife.
  1. Opened the door to reducing methane pollution standards.   The president signed an executive order directing the EPA and the Bureau of Land Management to   review the methane pollution standards for oil and gas drilling facilities and determine whether to rescind or revise them. Methane pollution supercharges global warming   86 times   as much as carbon pollution.
  1. Took steps to reverse progress to date on U.S. preparations for climate change.   President Trump signed an   executive order   rescinding previous executive orders related to preparing the U.S. for climate change; encouraging private investment in efforts to mitigate pollution; and ensuring our national security plans consider climate change impacts.
  1. Nominated an EPA administrator who denies scientific proof of climate change.   EPA Administrator Pruitt   told   the media that he does not think carbon dioxide is the primary contributor to climate change. His statement is the climate science equivalent of saying the world is flat.
  1. Proposed budget cuts to that will cause   5.7 million   low-income   residents to lose assistance with their heating bills and about 673,000 to lose cooling assistance.   President Trump’s proposal to eliminate the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program, or LIHEAP, will be especially dangerous as more states experience extreme weather.

Democracy and government reform  

  1. Imperiled American voters with untrue claims about illegal voting . President Trump’s empty claims of widespread  fraud  undermine the integrity of our elections and lay the basis for voter suppression efforts that attack our constitutional right to participate in self-government. When government officials spread lies that call into question the legitimacy of our elections, people lose faith in the democratic process. Instead of responding to the clear and present dangers of  foreign interference  and discriminatory efforts to  keep  some American citizens from casting their ballots, Trump chooses to spread baseless slander while calling for a  witch hunt  against American voters.
  1. Brought pay-to-play corruption to the presidency . The Trump family continues to  promote  their private business interests at home and abroad while profiting off of the presidency. Corruption, or even the appearance of corruption, diminishes trust in government and increases cynicism toward democratic institutions. At a time when  75 percent  of Americans already believe that corruption is widespread in government, President Trump’s blatant disregard for  ethics  rules and  constitutional  prohibitions on presidential enrichment further undermine democratic norms and threatens our democracy, economy, and national security.
  1. Undermined transparency and accountability by continuing to hide his tax returns and withholding   White House visitor logs .   Due to his  refusal  to release his tax returns the full extent of President Trump’s indebtedness and foreign entanglements remains unknown. As a result, Americans cannot be sure that Trump is not providing favors and special treatment to his business partners or that foreign states and businesses are not leveraging influence over the Trump administration and its decisions. It is impossible for Trump to lead an effort to   revise  the tax code without Americans knowing how his proposals would line his own pocket. Changing the practice to stop disclosing White House visitor logs prevents the public from knowing who is accessing federal officials on a daily basis and keeps special interest influence shrouded in secrecy.

Immigration

  1. Signed two Muslim and refugee bans, both of which have been enjoined by federal courts.   In   January , and then again in   March , President Trump signed executive orders banning immigrants from seven—and then, subsequently, six—Muslim-majority nations for at least three months and   halting the refugee program for four months. The January executive order sparked   widespread protests   at airports all across the country and was quickly blocked by a   federal court in Washington state and then by the   9th Circuit Court of Appeals . In early March, Trump signed a barely revised version of the original order, which   courts in Hawaii and Maryland   rightly acknowledged still constituted a Muslim and refugee ban. The core parts of the ban were once again put on hold.
  1. Made every unauthorized immigrant a deportation priority, regardless of equities.   As a matter of the smart prioritization of resources, the Obama administration focused its immigration enforcement on   serious threats   to national security and public safety, as well as recent border crossers. Within days of taking office, Trump signed an executive order eliminating the Obama priorities, effectively   making all unauthorized immigrants   a priority for deportation, regardless of how long they have been in the country, their ties to families and communities, or other equities. In practice, this has meant that people like   Guadalupe García de Rayos , a mother of two from Arizona who has been in the U.S. for over two decades, and   Maribel Trujillo Diaz , a mother of four U.S.-born children have been deported.
  1. Made immigrant survivors of domestic abuse and sexual assault afraid to turn to law enforcement for help.   Aggressive immigration enforcement by the Trump administration—including a case in El Paso, where immigration officials   arrested a victim of domestic abuse   at a courthouse after she received a protective order against her abuser—has made immigrants and Latinos, regardless of immigration status, increasingly   reluctant to come forward   to report crimes. Prosecutors in   Denver   have been forced to drop four domestic violence prosecutions because immigrant victims no longer wish to cooperate. Another domestic violence case in   Austin   hangs in limbo under similar circumstances. Since last year, Los Angeles has seen reports by Latinos of sexual assault decline by   25 percent , and Houston has seen reports by Latinos of rapes decline by nearly   43 percent . By making everyone a priority, the administration has made no one a priority to the   detriment of public safety .
  1. Arrested multiple recipients of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA.   Even though Trump has said that he will deal with young unauthorized immigrants with “ great heart ,” and even though Secretary of Homeland Security John F. Kelly has said that he is “ the best thing that happened to DACA ,” the Department of Homeland Security has detained at least five recipients of   DACA —which grants eligible young people a two-year reprieve from deportation and a work permit—since taking office. The detained include   Daniela Vargas ,   Daniel Ramirez ,   Edwin Romero ,   Josue Romero , and   Francisco Rodriguez . It is now also being   reported   that the Department of Homeland Security deported Dreamer Juan Manuel Montes while he was protected from deportation through DACA.
  1. Threatened to take away critical community safety funding from so-called sanctuary jurisdictions.   As part of the January 25   executive order   on interior immigration enforcement, President Trump threatened to take away federal funds from   more than 600   so-called sanctuary jurisdictions that limit cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. On March 27 Attorney General Jeff Sessions   threatened   to revoke Department of Justice grants that, among other purposes, help local law enforcement to   eliminate barriers to processing rape kits ,   combat gang and gun crime , and   stop human trafficking . The attorney general’s comments were swiftly denounced by the   Fraternal Order of Police   and the   International Association of Chiefs of Police .   Research shows   that counties with sanctuary policies have lower crime rates and stronger economies than those without the policies.
  1. Scared authorized immigrants away from accessing benefits and necessary health care for which they and their children are eligible.   Not long after the Trump administration took office, a   draft executive order   leaked, illustrating that the administration was   looking to target even legal immigrants living in the United S tates. Among other provisions, the draft order would make lawful permanent residents, or green card holders, eligible for deportation if they use any type of means-tested benefit. The mere possibility of the order, as well as increased immigration enforcement, has had a chilling effect on communities across the nation. In California, for example, the Alameda County Community Food Bank saw   40 families   cancel their food stamps and another 54 eligible families choose not to apply for food stamps.   Other reports   indicate that some immigrants are taking their names off of the list to receive baby formula or keeping children away from child care centers.

Faith

  1. Trampled on the religious liberty of Muslims with his attempts at unconstitutional travel bans.   President Trump’s January 27   executive action   on refugees and revised March 6   executive action   both aimed to prohibit travel to the United States for nationals of Muslim-majority nations and fundamentally reshape the refugee admissions program to prioritize the claims of   Christians . Trumps actions have alienated the Muslims communities not only within the United States but also around the world, damaging critical relationships with national security allies.
  1. Attempted to redefine religious liberty only for those who share a conservative Christian faith.   From the   anti-Muslim travel bans   to disturbing   Holocaust-denying remarks , the administration is a threat to religious minorities, many of whom are already vulnerable to rising incidents of   anti-Semitism   and   anti-Muslim bigotry .
  1. Promises to   destroy the Johnson Amendment , which prevents nonprofit organizations—including houses of worship—from endorsing political candidates.   A   leaked draft executive order   indicates plans to insert religious exemptions in federal nondiscrimination protections, revealing a pattern of attempts to redefine the foundational value of religious freedom so it will only protect people of faith who share conservative Christian beliefs.

Gun violence prevention

  1. Signed a law that weakens the firearms background check system and undermines enforcement of the current law that   prohibits   certain individuals with a serious mental illness from gun possession.   Using the shortcut process of the Congressional Review Act, President Trump   repealed   a Social Security Administration regulation that formalized the process by which the agency could provide to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, or NICS, the names of beneficiaries who—because of serious mental illness—are prohibited from gun possession under federal law. This action represents a significant step backward from recent efforts at the federal and state level to better enforce current law by ensuring that all records of prohibited purchasers are provided to NICS.
  1. Made it easier for   fugitives   to buy guns.   Under   federal law , anyone who is “a fugitive from justice” is prohibited from buying and possessing guns. Since at least 2006, the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives have   disagreed   over the proper scope of this law, with the FBI adopting a position that it applies to all individuals with an outstanding arrest warrant while the ATF argued for a narrower interpretation that it applies only to individuals who had left the state where the warrant was issued. Because the FBI is the agency that operates the background check system, that agency’s interpretation prevailed. However, in February 2017, the Department of Justice issued new guidance resolving this dispute by adopting ATF’s   interpretation   and dramatically narrowing the category of individuals with active criminal warrants who will be prohibited from buying guns.

Health care

  1. Attempted to repeal the ACA . Repeal of the ACA would cause significant stress and anxiety for millions of families who rely on it for coverage. The AHCA would have resulted in  24 million  more people being uninsured in 10 years—breaking President Trump’s   promise   to cover “everybody.” It would also have broken Trump’s campaign promise not to cut Medicaid.
  1. Undermined the ACA marketplace.   The Trump administration has already undermined the ACA marketplace by refusing to officially abandon its efforts to repeal the law. In addition, its refusal to commit unequivocally to paying the cost-sharing reduction subsidies is generating  massive uncertainty  for insurers. This uncertainty is having a direct impact on the marketplace by encouraging insurers to quit the market in 2018 or raise premiums.
  1. Began to undermine Medicaid . In a  letter to governors  by Secretary of Health and Human Services Tom Price and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Seema Verma, the administration encouraged states to pursue harmful changes to their Medicaid programs, including work requirements and increased cost-sharing.
  1. Made ACA marketplace enrollment more difficult.   In the final days of the most recent open enrollment period, the Trump administration cancelled Healthcare.gov TV ads and email outreach, which are critical in helping people remember the deadline and enroll in time. Although some of this was restored after a backlash, a former Healthcare.gov chief marketing officer  estimated  that the administration’s actions reduced enrollment by 480,000 people.
  1. Stripped Title X funding.   With Vice President Mike Pence’s   tie-breaking vote , the Senate voted to overturn Obama era protections for Title X providers. Trump   signed the bill , which allows states to block Title X funding.   Title X   funding   provides critical reproductive, educational, and counseling services related to family planning and contraception to   4 million clients   each year.
  1. Reinstated the Global Gag Rule.  One of Trump’s first actions as president was to reinstate the  Global Gag Rule , which prevents recipients of U.S. foreign aid from offering any information, referrals, services, or advocacy regarding abortion care—even if they do so with separate funding sources. The Global Gag Rule will lead to more maternal deaths, more unintended pregnancies, and higher rates of unsafe abortion.
  1. Proposed cutting funds for the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program. The Trump budget proposes a  $50 million reduction  in funding for the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program, which works with organizations across the United States to implement evidence based, proven programming.
  1. Proposed defunding Planned Parenthood.   President Trump’s health care bill, the AHCA, would  defund Planned Parenthood , which served   2.5 million patients   in 2014.

Higher education

  1. Proposed deep cuts to programs that help make college more accessible and affordable for low-income students and students of color. President Trump’s budget proposed   more than $5 billion in cuts   to valuable programs, including the Pell Grant program and the work-study program, which provide needed funds to help low-income students afford the rising cost of college. The cuts also target important college-access programs—including TRIO and GEAR UP—that provide supports such as tutoring, mentoring, and research opportunities to low-income and first-generation students.
  1. Rescinded protections for student loan borrowers.   On March 16, the Trump administration   withdrew measures   to protect struggling student loan borrowers and made repayment more difficult by allowing debt collectors to charge a 16 percent fee—even when the borrower agrees to make good on their debt within 60 days. On April 11, the Trump administration stripped away   important measures   that would hold student loan servicers accountable when their actions are not in the best interest of students. It has been   well-documented   that servicers sometimes place borrowers in repayment programs that could ultimately make it more difficult for them to repay their debt.
  1. Failed to help students when a critical resource for financial aid and loan repayment was shut down.   In March 2017, with no advance warning, the IRS and U.S. Department of Education disabled a key web-based tool that helps millions of students apply for aid and repay their loans.   Failure to notify students   put financial aid applicants at risk of losing access to grant aid that helps pay for college and put student loan borrowers at risk of seeing their payments jump by hundreds of dollars.
  1. Endangered students by appointing for-profit college officials to top positions. Robert Eitel, senior counselor to Secretary of Education DeVos,   joined   the administration well before he even left his job at Bridgepoint Education—a for-profit college company facing multiple federal investigations. And Taylor Hansen, a former   lobbyist   for for-profit colleges—whose father’s student loan debt-collection company sued the Obama administration—served on the department’s “beachhead” team.
  1. Undercut students’ civil rights by naming skeptics to top civil rights positions . The nominee to serve as general counsel in the Department of Education, Carlos Muñiz,   defended   Florida State University against allegations that it protected a star quarterback from rape charges. And the new head of the Office for Civil Rights, Candice Jackson, has   claimed   she experienced discrimination for being white and   called   the women who accused President Trump of assault and harassment “fake victims.”

K-12 education

  1. Proposed completely eliminating federal funding for after-school programs . In President Trump’s   budget , the administration   zeroed out   the 21st Century Community Learning Centers program, which provides $1.2 billion to districts across the country for after-school programs that support students and working families. This funding serves more than 1.6 million students participating in these programs.
  1. Proposed completely eliminating federal funding to support teacher quality . In President Trump’s   budget , the administration zeroed out Title II of the Every Student Succeeds Act, which provides $2.4 billion to states and districts for teacher recruitment, training, retention, and support. This cut translates to a loss of 40,000 teacher salaries.
  1. Nominated the   highly unqualified   and anti-public school Betsy DeVos as secretary of education.   DeVos’s only experience with education is as a   lobbyist and megadonor   pushing private school voucher schemes in states across the country. Instead of working to support public schools and the students that attend these schools, she has   called   public education a “dead end.”
  1. Rescinded the Obama administration’s regulations that supported school accountability under the new Every Student Succeeds Act . Through the Congressional Review Act, Congress and President Trump   eliminated   key protections and guidance for states and districts to implement the law, leaving significant confusion at the state and local level. The Trump administration has also   signaled   that it will take a very lax enforcement stance with states, opening the door for states to ignore their responsibilities to protect vulnerable students.
  1. Rescinded the Obama administration’s regulations that supported improving teacher preparation programs.   Through the Congressional Review Act, Congress and Trump   eliminated   requirements for states to make sure that teacher preparation programs are helping prospective teachers gain the skills needed to be successful in the classroom and support student learning. Without these regulations, states will continue to struggle to improve teacher preparation programs and support the most effective programs.
  1. Proposed cutting $9 billion from public education while spending   $1.4 billion   on school choice . This   proposal   includes harmful private school voucher schemes and the creation of a new $250 million federal program that will allow taxpayer dollars to flow to private schools, which are not accountable; can discriminate in admissions and discipline; and are not subject to basic monitoring, oversight, and civil rights laws.
  1. Proposed cutting crucial support for school reform efforts.   By zeroing out support for the AmeriCorps program, President Trump would undercut   many   of the most successful education organizations—from KIPP Public Charter Schools, to Teach For America, to City Year—that have had positive effects on students across the country and rely on that program.

Justice

  1. Named Jeff Sessions, a long-time   opponent of civil rights , as attorney general, the top law enforcer in the nation.   Sessions  co-sponsored the First Amendment Defense Act , a draconian measure that prohibits the federal government from taking “discriminatory action” against any business or person that discriminates against LGBTQ people. The act aims to protect the right of all entities to refuse service to LGBTQ people based on two sets of religious   beliefs : “(1) marriage is or should be recognized as the union of one man and one woman, or (2) sexual relations are properly reserved to such a marriage.” As a federal prosecutor in 1983, Sessions   prosecuted a trio of voting rights activists   for voter fraud. As the chief enforcer of the civil rights laws of the United States, it is almost impossible to imagine how he will now protect the very community for which he endorsed discrimination.
  1. Appointed Justice Neil Gorsuch—a judge with a long record of ruling against the rights  of workers women , and  students with disabilities —to the Supreme Court.   Justice Gorsuch will rule on fundamental constitutional issues—including civil rights, the role of money in politics, and reproductive rights. For example, he will soon vote on whether the Court should allow  North Carolina’s 2013 voting bill —which a lower court said targeted black voters with “almost surgical precision”—to remain in effect.
  1. Pressured the Senate   to enact the “nuclear option” to get his Supreme Court nominee confirmed.   Nearly every other justice on the Court had bipartisan support and crossed the 60-vote threshold at some point during  their confirmation process , but many  senators objected  to President Trump’s nominee. The nuclear option means Senate leaders can now confirm Trump’s ideologically driven judges  with a simple majority .
  1. Undermined the legitimacy of the court system.   As a candidate and as president, Trump has  attacked   judges  whose rulings he does not like and undermined the legitimacy of these courts.  He called  a judge who ruled against his discriminatory Muslim ban a “so-called judge.” During the campaign,  he said  that a Mexican-American judge could not be impartial in a lawsuit against Trump due to his ethnicity. These attacks on the third branch of government  undermine the founders’ separation of powers  as well as the very rule of law.
  1. Nominated ideological extremists to federal courts.   The Trump administration is  already vetting conservative ideologues  to appoint to federal courts. President Trump’s nominations, particularly for seats on the  5th Circuit Court of Appeals , signal an aggressive push to  bend the federal judiciary ideologically . Trump has well   over 100 seats to fill —thanks to Senate obstruction during President Obama’s term—and Trump recently announced that the administration would  no longer seek the recommendation  from the nonpartisan American Bar Association.
  1. Proposed eliminating the Legal Services Corporation . Already scarce access to justice will be put even further out of reach for  60.6 million low-income Americans  under President Trump’s proposal to eliminate the Legal Services Corporation—the nation’s main funding stream for civil legal services.
  1. Tried but failed  to stop Baltimore police reform efforts.   Attorney General Sessions asked a court at the last minute not to accept a consent decree that was supported by the Baltimore police commissioner, mayor, community members, and career Department of Justice attorneys. The federal court   rejected Sessions’ motion , allowing needed police reforms that would build trust between the police and the communities they serve to proceed.
  1. Attempted to   bring back the war on drugs .   The outdated strategy was ineffective and caused long-term devastation to thousands of families. Attorney General Sessions is implementing a tough-on-crime approach that would increase federal prosecutions and long prison sentences even for low-level, nonviolent offenders. Even as the Trump administration pushes outdated law-and-order policies, Democratic and Republican governors are  making progress  on sentencing reform, drug treatment, and alternatives to incarceration.
  1. Supported outdated and ineffective criminal justice reforms that have a disproportionate impact on communities of color.   Attorney General Sessions should be focusing on the need for police reform; supporting innovative crime-reduction strategies; and ensuring drug treatment and alternatives to incarceration are available. Yet, instead, he has ordered a   review   of current pattern and practice cases of police misconduct where evidence and a clear record has shown a police department has acted with systemic misconduct. He has   also questioned   decades of research and science rejecting a tough-on-crime approach.
  1. Reversed the Obama era Department of Justice’s order to   stop   contracting with private prison facilities . Private prisons create a perverse incentive to incarcerate more people since these companies are motivated to increase profit, which is generated only if there are more inmates filling their facilities. Private prisons that contracted with the Department of Justice were   found by the department   itself to be less efficient and have more issues with security and management.

Racial justice

  1. Supported   economic policies   that are detrimental to communities of color.   Many of the budget cuts proposed by President Trump would cut key social service programs. For example,   41 percent of the 9 million   Women, Infants, and Children, or WIC, recipients are people of color. The budget also   eliminates   the Minority Business Development Agency, which promotes business development for people of color—the fastest growing segment of the population.
  1. Supported education policies that   do not support   students of color.   The Trump administration supports cuts to Pell Grants and tuition assistance programs as well as cuts to after-school programs that would affect 1 in 4 African American students. The administration also supports voucher programs that do not encourage the success of students of color.
  1. Pushed environmental policies that will negatively affect communities of color.   As noted above, the EPA wants to   eradicate programs   dedicated to reducing exposure to lead paint, which disproportionately   affects communities of color . The EPA is also cutting funding for the   environmental justice office   that had just been set up to specifically deal with lead, pollution, and other issues facing communities of color.

LGBTQ

  1. Turned a blind eye to illegal anti-transgender discrimination in schools.   The Trump administration   revoked Title IX guidance   issued by the   Department of Education   clarifying schools’ long-standing obligations under federal civil rights law to treat transgender students equally and with dignity. Transgender students face pervasive harassment and discrimination in schools, impeding these students’ ability to learn. Nearly   1 in 6   out transgender K-12 students have been forced to leave school because of this harassment.  
  1. Erased LGBTQ people from federal surveys, making it impossible to know if government programs serve them fairly.   The Trump administration   removed questions   about LGBTQ people from key federal surveys about programs that serve seniors and people with disabilities, without which policymakers and advocates cannot ensure LGBTQ people have equal access to key government services such as Meals on Wheels. The administration also appears to have included—but then gone back and omitted—questions about LGBTQ people from the   American Community Survey , an annual survey that gathers information about Americans’ educational attainment, housing, and health coverage.
  1. Appointed longtime opponents of LGBTQ rights—including members of anti-LGBTQ hate groups—to key administration positions.   Many of President Trump’s appointees, including Attorney General   Jeff Sessions   and Secretary of Health and Human Services   Tom Price , made their careers standing in the way of LGBTQ rights—and now, they’re in charge of agencies that enforce those very rights. The appointments get even more disturbing the closer you look: Trump tapped   Ken Blackwell , a former fellow at an anti-LGBTQ hate group, as a domestic policy adviser; selected leaders of the   hate group C-FAM   for the president’s delegation to the United Nations; and appointed   Roger Severino , a longtime opponent of transgender civil rights, to run the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights.
  1. Proposed slashing funding for research to cure HIV/AIDS.   President Trump has proposed devastating cuts to health research, including   $6 billion in cuts   to the National Institutes of Health in the budget and a   $50 million cut   to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s HIV research and prevention programs. The administration has also pushed a   $300 million cut   to the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR—an extraordinarily successful program that provides lifesaving treatment to   11.5 million people   worldwide and has broad bipartisan support.
  1. Barred refugees and asylum seekers fleeing anti-LGBTQ persecution from protection in the United States.   President Trump’s   refugee suspension   blocked LGBTQ Syrian and Iraqi refugees from finding protection in the United States,   leaving them stranded   in countries where they are persecuted. His policy of detaining all immigrants who enter at the southern border and expanding the populations targeted for deportation traps   LGBTQ asylum seekers   in   dangerous immigrant detention   facilities and   increases the risk   that they will be wrongly deported to countries where their lives are at risk. The administration also   decided to close   the only dedicated transgender immigrant detention pod in the country, leaving transgender immigrants in detention at risk.

National security

  1. Made Americans less safe from the Islamic State, or IS.   The anti-Muslim bigotry of the Trump administration makes every American less safe by helping IS and other terrorist groups recruit followers. As one IS commander in Afghanistan   put it , the Trump administration’s “utter hate towards Muslims will make our job much easier because we can recruit thousands.” The original Muslim ban included Iraq, where Iraqi soldier fighting alongside U.S. forces against IS called it a “ betrayal .”
  1. Made Americans more vulnerable to pandemic diseases such as Zika and Ebola . Massive cuts in aid, diplomacy, and health proposed in President Trump’s FY 2017 budget would end the Global Health Security account, which works to   prevent, detect, and respond   to infectious disease outbreaks around the world, including Ebola. In his proposed budget, Trump has also called for the   elimination   of funding for the Fogarty International Center, which supports global health research initiatives, including for infectious diseases research in developing countries.
  1. Undermined American jobs and security by ceding global leadership to Beijing. President Trump has taken no actions to achieve more balanced trade with China. He recklessly toyed with overturning nearly 40 years of official policy recognizing “one China” but   backed down   during his first call with the Chinese president, showing that his threats were hollow. Trump and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson claimed they would stop China from building on disputed islands in the South China Sea, but China proceeds to do what it wants, where it wants. Trump’s summit with President Xi Jinping at his Mar-a-Lago resort resulted in no progress on any difficult issues. Beijing sees Washington as hot air with little substance. Trump’s all talk, no action approach is encouraging repression over freedom and making authoritarian leaders confident that repression will be tolerated.
  1. Oversaw an increase in civilian deaths from U.S. military operations.   After years of decline, civilian deaths from U.S. military operations have surged under Trump, destroying families, undermining strategic aims, and providing a propaganda boon to U.S. enemies. U.S. military spokesperson Col. Joseph Scrocca   said   “[More civilian casualties] is probably detrimental to the strength of our coalition. And that’s exactly what ISIS is trying to target right now.” Civilian deaths in Iraq and Syria have   spiked   in 2017, already far surpassing the total for all of 2016. Trump’s first major raid as president, in Yemen in January, was   decided   over dinner in the White House—far outside the regular process—and resulted in dozens of civilian deaths.
  1. Threatened national security and hurt the integrity of America’s democracy by an ongoing lack of transparency and refusal to disclose details about his finances and ties to Russia.   Americans cannot know who President Trump might owe money or what obligations or commitment he and his team could have to Russia or other foreign powers. Trump’s refusal to   condemn  the Russian government’s interference in the 2016 elections; release his tax returns; step away from his business; and support an independent commission and special counsel to get to the bottom of Russia’s influence over the 2016 election are a green light to Russians and others who want to meddle in U.S. democracy. All Americans from all political parties are vulnerable when foreign influence, money, and hacking can run roughshod though America’s democratic institutions.

This list is just a sample of the ways in which President Trump and his administration have already broken their promises to Americans and revealed their true priorities. As this list grows, real damage is being done to communities and working families across the nation. Trump should heed their calls to put the needs of ordinary Americans ahead of corporations and the wealthy.

__________________________________________________

WHAT ELSE YA' GOT?

 
 
 
Sister Mary Agnes Ample Bottom
Professor Guide
6.1  Sister Mary Agnes Ample Bottom  replied to  A. Macarthur @6    6 years ago

You.  Rock.

In addition, I spent about an hour reading every one of those 100 points, and I discovered that there isn't one...NOT ONE... that did not benefit Trump, his family, and in many cases, even his friends, personally.  Either his supporters can't see the obvious, or they see it and just don't care.  

 
 
 
The Magic 8 Ball
Masters Quiet
7  The Magic 8 Ball    6 years ago
 for any of a number of ill-informed, uninformed “reasons,” put Trump and his self-serving oligarchs and self-indulgent misfeasants in charge 

sorry, could not get passed the Ad Hominem, Empty-Rhetoric in your premise.

a pox on your hypocrisy

btw.... trying to denigrate those who disagree never garners support for your cause, only opposition.  

however, if you were just trying to vent?  well done.  we understand your pain. we simply do not care about it.

cheers :)

 
 
 
A. Macarthur
Professor Guide
7.1  author  A. Macarthur  replied to  The Magic 8 Ball @7    6 years ago

btw.... trying to denigrate those who disagree never garners support for your cause, only opposition.  

Which is exactly what your comment represents … no rebuttal-counter points … and … while you attempt to denigrate my "a pox, etc." comment, the weakness of such an attempt resides in your failure to even address the logic and specific explanations that logically brought me to that comment.

How Trumpian to attack the messenger without offering a single word of viable rebuttal!

As for my "premise," it's backed up with multiple paragraphs and specifics regarding various voter demographics … unlike your premise, which, is to try defend the indefensible Trump …

… without actually providing any defense.

 
 
 
The Magic 8 Ball
Masters Quiet
7.1.1  The Magic 8 Ball  replied to  A. Macarthur @7.1    6 years ago

all you did was attack everyone who did not vote for hillary or who voted for trump. and you call that proof?   too funny.

at best that was a nice rant but still complete bs from the word go.

you do not deserve anymore rebuttal than that.

cheers :)

 
 
 
A. Macarthur
Professor Guide
7.1.2  author  A. Macarthur  replied to  The Magic 8 Ball @7.1.1    6 years ago
at best that was a nice rant but still complete bs from the word go.

More ad hominem without specifically addressing even one criticism or description of the many demographics I went after.

Again, TRUMPIAN … calling something with which you don't agree, either "Fake News" or, in your case, "bs," is what one does when one has no viable argument but can't contain himself.

 
 
 
The Magic 8 Ball
Masters Quiet
7.1.3  The Magic 8 Ball  replied to  A. Macarthur @7.1.2    6 years ago

no one needs a viable argument against progressive bs.  

but seriously.  we actually hope progressives continue with those kinds of attacks on voters who disagree with progressives.

trump would not have been elected without it.

just keep saying to yourself... "we are winning"

cheers :)

 
 
 
A. Macarthur
Professor Guide
7.1.4  author  A. Macarthur  replied to  The Magic 8 Ball @7.1.3    6 years ago

no one needs a viable argument against progressive bs.  

but seriously.  we actually hope progressives continue with those kinds of attacks on voters who disagree with progressives.

A dismissive comment punctuated by "whistling past the graveyard!"

Can't deal with the challenge … so … more word salad.

Weak.

 
 
 
MrFrost
Professor Expert
7.1.5  MrFrost  replied to  The Magic 8 Ball @7.1.3    6 years ago
no one needs a viable argument against progressive bs.

A regressive con using the internet, a progressive invention, to complain about progressives. Do you know what, "IRONY", is? I suppose hypocrisy is applicable as well. Maybe you should get off the internet and carve messages in stone tablets, to send messages, if you hate progressives so much. 

 
 
 
321steve - realistically thinkin or Duu
Sophomore Guide
7.1.6  321steve - realistically thinkin or Duu   replied to  MrFrost @7.1.5    6 years ago
Maybe you should get off the internet and carve messages in stone tablets, to send messages, if you hate progressives so much.

LOL... I like that passage. I may use it myself sometime. 

 
 
 
XXJefferson51
Senior Guide
7.1.7  XXJefferson51  replied to  A. Macarthur @7.1    6 years ago

TDS lives strong in this one!

 
 
 
XXJefferson51
Senior Guide
7.1.8  XXJefferson51  replied to  The Magic 8 Ball @7.1.1    6 years ago

Clappingthumbs upla de da

 
 
 
nightwalker
Sophomore Silent
7.1.11  nightwalker  replied to  XXJefferson51 @7.1.7    6 years ago

Thank god for buzz-words, eh?

Is that one straight from der leaders at fux "news", or infowars or did it just magically appear on twitter? Fux, I think, the GOP "good brains" flush all their efforts through fux.

 
 
 
A. Macarthur
Professor Guide
7.2  author  A. Macarthur  replied to  The Magic 8 Ball @7    6 years ago
we understand your pain. we simply do not care about it.

When one "does not care," one does not go out of the way to care enough to claim that one "does not care."

In the meanwhile, I challenge you to pick any one of the "voter" examples I described and criticized, and make an actual argument as to why you think it's inaccurate. If you think it's "bs," surely you can express in an adult, intellectual manner, what makes it "bs."

Otherwise, you're just a Jess Willard "fake news" crier.

 
 
 
The Magic 8 Ball
Masters Quiet
7.2.1  The Magic 8 Ball  replied to  A. Macarthur @7.2    6 years ago

I just pointed out your hypocrisy...

no one caring about your problems was a bonus comment.

cheers :)

 
 
 
Atheist יוחנן בן אברהם אבינו
Junior Participates
7.3  Atheist יוחנן בן אברהם אבינו  replied to  The Magic 8 Ball @7    6 years ago

IOW, you can't handle the truth.  

 
 
 
The Magic 8 Ball
Masters Quiet
7.3.1  The Magic 8 Ball  replied to  Atheist יוחנן בן אברהם אבינו @7.3    6 years ago

the truth is trump is president and I seem to be taking the end of the world very well... all things considered.

how are you doing with trumps presidency?  good, I hope :)

 
 
 
Atheist יוחנן בן אברהם אבינו
Junior Participates
7.3.2  Atheist יוחנן בן אברהם אבינו  replied to  The Magic 8 Ball @7.3.1    6 years ago

deleted

 
 
 
The Magic 8 Ball
Masters Quiet
8  The Magic 8 Ball    6 years ago

wrong box... oops :)

 
 
 
Ender
Professor Principal
9  Ender    6 years ago

People blindly follow trump even to their detriment. I have to wonder about people that think America needs to be made great again when he and his administration is making the US isolationist and stripping away established norms.

People call themselves Christian yet cheer when trump denigrates people.

He is now attacking federal unions with EOs. Anything to weaken employee rights.

Any EO by Obama was called him trying to rule without congress (even though he had a congress hostile to him) and they are silent when trump issues any EO (he seems to have a receptive congress that will bow down to him).

I just call trump supporters hypocrites. If Obama had done even 1/10th of what trump has done they would have had a melt down. They follow him without question which is actually scary and defend his policy positions and decisions that any rational person could find flaw in.

 
 
 
The Magic 8 Ball
Masters Quiet
9.1  The Magic 8 Ball  replied to  Ender @9    6 years ago
If Obama had done even 1/10th of what trump has done they would have had a melt

when trump weaponizes the FBI and DOJ to spy on a democrat candidate?  you let us know k?

until then?  better put your seat belt on... this ride is just getting started  :)

 
 
 
Ender
Professor Principal
9.1.2  Ender  replied to  The Magic 8 Ball @9.1    6 years ago

Even Gowdy said that did not happen and yet you still believe it just because trump told you to.

 
 
 
The Magic 8 Ball
Masters Quiet
9.1.3  The Magic 8 Ball  replied to  Ender @9.1.2    6 years ago

when did gowdy become the final word?  LOL

 obviously, other people do not agree with gowdy 

Strzok: And hi. Went well, best we could have expected. Other than [REDACTED] quote: “the White House is running this.”  

so tell me what gowdy says after the investigations are over.

if I am still wrong after that? you can be the first to let me know.

cheers :)

 
 
 
Ender
Professor Principal
9.1.4  Ender  replied to  The Magic 8 Ball @9.1.3    6 years ago

Gowdy seemed to hold a lot of sway with you all after investigating Hillary for years. Now that he says something against your narrative, he is not the final word.

The only one pushing this crap is Nunes, the new conservative hero, who seems only to be in office to run to the Whitehouse and tell trump what is going on. He is nothing more than trumps errand boy trying to find any angle to discredit the investigation against him.

Sickening really. He needs to be voted out.

 
 
 
The Magic 8 Ball
Masters Quiet
9.1.5  The Magic 8 Ball  replied to  Ender @9.1.4    6 years ago
he is not the final word.

he never was the final word.

he was just another word in a long line of words.

I have no "heroes in politics"  

now? here are some new words.

Strzok: And hi. Went well, best we could have expected.

Other than [REDACTED] quote: “the White House is running this.”  

 

 
 
 
Ender
Professor Principal
9.1.6  Ender  replied to  The Magic 8 Ball @9.1.5    6 years ago

That the Whitehouse knew about the investigation is not a big shock.

Obama intentionally did not let the public know about the investigation as not to sway an election.

If he had you would be complaining even more.

 
 
 
Ender
Professor Principal
9.1.7  Ender  replied to  The Magic 8 Ball @9.1.5    6 years ago
Home   » American News

American News - Extreme Right Bias - Propagandahttps://i2.wp.com/mediabiasfactcheck.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/extremeright041.png?w=600&ssl=1 600w, 300w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px"> QUESTIONABLE SOURCE

A questionable source exhibits   one or more   of the following: extreme bias, overt propaganda, poor or no sourcing to credible information and/or is fake news. Fake News is the   deliberate attempt   to publish hoaxes and/or disinformation for the purpose of profit or influence ( Learn More ). Sources listed in the Questionable Category   may   be very untrustworthy and should be fact checked on a per article basis. Please note sources on this list   are not   considered   fake news unless specifically written in the notes section for that source.  See all Questionable sources.

Bias:   Extreme Right, Propaganda

Notes: American News is an extreme right wing biased news and opinion site.  Poorly sourced with   minimal basis in facts . (8/9/2016) Updated (6/19/2017)

 
 
 
MrFrost
Professor Expert
9.1.8  MrFrost  replied to  The Magic 8 Ball @9.1    6 years ago
this ride is just getting started

I know, and it ends with trump being thrown out of office in disgrace. 

 
 
 
The Magic 8 Ball
Masters Quiet
9.1.9  The Magic 8 Ball  replied to  MrFrost @9.1.8    6 years ago

not a chance, but you have fun with that :)

 
 
 
Colour Me Free
Senior Quiet
9.2  Colour Me Free  replied to  Ender @9    6 years ago
People blindly follow trump even to their detriment. I have to wonder about people that think America needs to be made great again when he and his administration is making the US isolationist and stripping away established norms.

People blindly follow [insert Presidents name] even to their detriment. I have to wonder about people that think America needs to be made great again [fundamentally changed?] when he and his administration is making the US [insert complaint]

Have no interest in arguing at all Ender, but at the age of 52 - I have now heard this message since Jimmy Carter [was not overly politically aware in grade school] - 

President Obama was the first time I remember seeing such anger from "We the People" and now the Trump presidency is taking that anger to a whole new level … only to most likely become worse...  President Obama skirting the Constitution was a battle cry for 8 years - now Trump is destroying the Constitution by nominating originalist justices …. no matter what one side or the other is not going to be happy .. my word, Trump has like a 41% approval rating, but is master of the Universe?

I had my [almost 18 year old] son read this seed (not comments) - his only responses were "holier than thou much" and that "we probably would be reading similar crap about Hillary had she been elected" …………………   He will be voting in November, which is huge, but with the way people are behaving - it may not be quite the thrill that is should be when casting ones first ballet .. …………. 

Think "We the People" need to get 'our' shit together .. it is the only way to find common ground and reach compromises for the future of 'our' nation -- or the next President could be far worse!!!  The extreme sides of (D) and (R) are taking over the parties .. scary times, blame has taken over what was once reasonable thought...

Peace Ender...

 
 
 
Ender
Professor Principal
9.2.1  Ender  replied to  Colour Me Free @9.2    6 years ago

Did some people have devotion to Obama? Sure. I didn't. I did not like a lot of his decisions.

Obama could have a little snark in his speech, he could have a little humor. He still didn't run around acting like a mad man. I could criticize Obama when needed yet now we have people that even applaud trumps obvious bad choices.

The difference between the two is clear to me. Obama ran on unity and taking America in a new direction that benefited us all. People gathered at the beginning of Obama's first term determined to make him fail. They out right started campaigns against him to diminish anything he said or did. They wanted people to hate him and spread lies and mistruths just to stoke hatred and fear. 

Trump just started off calling people names and belittling others. He has a bombastic attitude that says basically my way or the highway. He purposefully stokes division. He tells his followers it is an us against them fight. He has earned the ire against him as he has been this way his whole public life.

In my opinion, the two do not even compare.

As far as what I remember politically, I don't remember any president that has acted as vulgar as trump does. I don't remember any president that constantly put other people down. I don't remember any president that has constantly told as many lies, then ignore or brush people off when those lies are shown for what they are.

We can blame the extremes in both parties all day long. I will agree with you. But what has that actually accomplished? Why do both seem to get even more extreme? There are more independents than people in either party and when people do start to speak out it gets shut down as partisanship. I have even seen some conservative people that have said something against trump and people jump down their throat and call them liberal. The parties fight tooth and nail to be the only choices and (unfortunately) for now they are.

Speaking of early memories, one of my first memories of politicians was Ford falling out of a plane.

 
 
 
Colour Me Free
Senior Quiet
9.2.2  Colour Me Free  replied to  Ender @9.2.1    6 years ago
The difference between the two is clear to me. Obama ran on unity and taking America in a new direction that benefited us all. People gathered at the beginning of Obama's first term determined to make him fail. They out right started campaigns against him to diminish anything he said or did. They wanted people to hate him and spread lies and mistruths just to stoke hatred and fear.

Okay Ender .. I cannot argue the point you are making in your response … except to say but but but but… read what you wrote, and tell me with a straight face, or whatever face you want to make that Trump did not face similar when coming into office...….. Women's March ring a bell : )  may not have spread lies technically .. yet hate, fear ………… anger …… off the charts...

Justify it any way there is to do so … but...…………..

I sincerely get who Trump is .. I understand the outrage .. yet this line of argument does not pass muster .. Obama was singled out, just as Trump has been singled out - certainly for different reasons - yet the end result is relatively close to the same...

Trump just started off calling people names and belittling others. He has a bombastic attitude that says basically my way or the highway. He purposefully stokes division. He tells his followers it is an us against them fight. He has earned the ire against him as he has been this way his whole public life.

When everyone else went to bed, I stayed up and watched the end results of an election I still shake my head over .. I am thankful H. is not president, but I sincerely wish that neither H. or Trump were the choices .. what the Fuck was up with that anyways?  

I was so wanting Biden to run .. this mess would be none existent.  Yet he could not be mentally in it .. and he knew it!

 Speaking of early memories, one of my first memories of politicians was Ford falling out of a plane.

Nice .. I was going to start with Ford, but those memories I have of Gerald Ford are not political in nature .. more like humorous .. like hitting a dude with a golf ball : )

 
 
 
Ender
Professor Principal
9.2.3  Ender  replied to  Colour Me Free @9.2.2    6 years ago
wanting Biden to run

Me too. And yes he would have had the same ire against him. We have become very polarized. 

hitting a dude with a golf ball

Hahaa. Poor ford. Was not the most graceful person around.

When I was in elementary school we had a mock election. I was on the side of Ford. We made posters and campaigned around the classes. He won our mock election but lost the real one.

 
 
 
Mark in Wyoming
Professor Silent
9.2.4  Mark in Wyoming   replied to  Ender @9.2.3    6 years ago

have to remember , Ford was the only person to ever have served as VP and president and not to have been elected to either office. I think that went against him in 76.

 
 
 
Trout Giggles
Professor Principal
9.2.5  Trout Giggles  replied to  Mark in Wyoming @9.2.4    6 years ago

Pardoning Nixon couldn't have helped, either

 
 
 
devangelical
Professor Principal
9.2.6  devangelical  replied to  Trout Giggles @9.2.5    6 years ago

If Nixon had died in a federal pen, we wouldn't be seeing most of this rwnj BS now.

 
 
 
Trout Giggles
Professor Principal
9.2.7  Trout Giggles  replied to  devangelical @9.2.6    6 years ago

I think you're right

 
 
 
nightwalker
Sophomore Silent
9.2.8  nightwalker  replied to  Trout Giggles @9.2.5    6 years ago

That was a forehead slapper. If the situation was reversed, I really really doubt that the conservatives would be as lenient. Besides, they seem to like the word "jail", a nice small 4-letter word they can spell (amazingly enough) so it jail her, jail him, jail them, jail that, those and them.

Actually, if you use it instead of the most famous 4-letter word, it's kinda fun.

JAIL trump, sideways, with a push broom!!! (just be careful, Putin is the jealous type and so is lil' Un.)

JAIL McConnell! Cuff him and bag him so you don't see his FACE, he really is the turtle man.

Jail Palin! Those of you who could stand to, and some of you could if you pretend she was a snake and someone was holding her head down.

Jail Sessions! Because no one in reality has ever jailed a evil elf except in cos-play.

(Sorry. it all just jumped into my head all of a sudden and demanded to be typed.) (And then forced to send. I am possessed, but it's only temporary.)

Tsk. No smiley with a shameful grin and a shrug.

 
 
 
bbl-1
Professor Quiet
11  bbl-1    6 years ago

Commenting on the Hillary Clinton never ending saga of her qualifications centering on the lack of them.

Don't buy any of that.  Thirty years of right wing smear, accusation and outright lies take their toll on integrity and ability.  And more recently, the full weight of Russian Intel throwing bricks at Clinton and throwing cash at Trump.

Besides, Hillary testified under oath in front of congress for hours upon hours. 

And Trump will speak to nobody that isn't from FOX , aka Trump TV.  What is Trump afraid of?

 
 
 
Paula Bartholomew
Professor Participates
11.1  Paula Bartholomew  replied to  bbl-1 @11    6 years ago
What is Trump afraid of?

Big bux alimony payments when Melania finally kicks him to the curb and takes Barron with her.

 
 
 
bbl-1
Professor Quiet
11.1.1  bbl-1  replied to  Paula Bartholomew @11.1    6 years ago

I am waiting for Melania to stand up for herself, her new adopted country and the integrity she portends to have. 

I suspect she will not.  Either a 'gold digger' plain and simple, or totally gutless, or maybe even--exactly just like 'him.'  ( Wasn't Melania a Birther too? )

 
 
 
Ender
Professor Principal
11.1.2  Ender  replied to  bbl-1 @11.1.1    6 years ago

Knowing donald, there is probably a contract somewhere that says if she leaves him, she gets noting.

 
 
 
bbl-1
Professor Quiet
11.1.3  bbl-1  replied to  Ender @11.1.2    6 years ago

Doesn't matter.  Coming 'clean' on Trump/World would have lasting benefit for her.   And America.

As far as the money, she'd be fine.  Books, movies and all the rest.

 
 
 
Ender
Professor Principal
11.1.4  Ender  replied to  bbl-1 @11.1.3    6 years ago

True. I will say though, the woman never looks happy. The only time I remember seeing her smile was seated next to Obama.

 
 
 
bbl-1
Professor Quiet
11.1.5  bbl-1  replied to  Ender @11.1.4    6 years ago

But she stays.  And recently it appears she holds his hand as they walk. 

 
 
 
Paula Bartholomew
Professor Participates
11.1.6  Paula Bartholomew  replied to  Ender @11.1.2    6 years ago

Her net worth is currently 50 million.  Money is not a problem for her at this time.

 
 
 
freepress
Freshman Silent
14  freepress    6 years ago

The last gasps of the men who gridlocked power into a dangerous game that has gone completely amok. 

Greed and power corrupt absolutely.

Democrats don't have that level of power, so the bashing coming from the right when they hold all the cards is totally insane.

America NEEDS to balance, we should allow more than one point of view, not just a Republican point of view, not just a right wing ideology, but multiple points of view. 

Unless we vote in astronomical numbers to prove that America is not a 1 party country and a dictatorship then people have to come to their senses and make a serious pragmatic choice. Country over party. End of.

Republicans will do nothing for the American people, we see every single solitary day how they chip away at democracy enacting their own power mad zealotry in every policy and act they commit to benefit themselves, their own families, or their cronies in the lobbyist swamp that still pervades Washington like a moldy pond.

The majority of America still did not vote for Trump, by 3 million, we need to get back those 3 million voters, add millions more and get everyone on board because the alternative is to learn one of the most difficult languages in the world and that is Russian.

 
 
 
Spikegary
Junior Quiet
14.1  Spikegary  replied to  freepress @14    6 years ago

And yet, did you feel this wat when Democrats held the house, senate and presidency?  I agree we need a 2 party (or more as the 2 parties seem to have run to the extremes) governmet for some realistic checks and balances, but when you have the leaders of a party that declare they will fight the nomination of) _______________ to the death, without a nominee being named,a re a huge part of the problem in government right now.

 
 

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