He’ll rant through the night about how the ratings and viewership was FAKE NEWS and grossly UNDERreported by the (some newly contrived demeaning label, in all caps.)
How much makeup and medication can they supply to hide his physical and mental decline?
(I can see Fox having to resort to patching together very short clips, if they show any at all. They might just report that the Dear Leader was brilliant again as he always is.)
I am the CET zone and was sleeping through his speech. Will hear about it today. I would not be watching him if I was in his time zone. The one time I watched him was in a debate with Harris, no other time. So be it. I rather read transcripts of what he said. Still aggravating, but less annoying than seeing him say these things in person.
I thought it was for the letter “p” and he was referring to an app. Or if it was an “s” it could be that he bought a donkey. Or it is a secret code known only to those who read Oligarchical Collectivism.
On a scale of 100, and A generally is 93%-96%, and A+ is 97% to 100%. So it seems obvious that when you create a counter factual where there is such a thing as an A++++++, on the scale to 100 it would be 99.5% to 100%.
Anyway, this is Trump's exaggerating again as there is no evidence that the economy is in the A ranges. It seems it is impossible to both press for rights in trade, and have an economy at 100. This not likely to happen given all the policy in other countries designed to help them and hurt us.
They are indicative of inflation and deficit challenges and a potential decline in the appetite for US treasuries. Stagflation and pariah-status at the same time. Trump has always been good at making money for himself while bankrupting anyone who gets too close.
I know what the word means. Now how about you go look up who Arthur Burns. Here is a hint, he was the Fed Chief that stepped on and off the gas so many times that he is closely associated with the Fed’s accommodative policies during the early–mid 1970s, which are often cited in discussions of inflation and political pressure on monetary policy in that period.
Burns is no longer Fed Chief. I hope that Trump appoints Kevin Warsh to the post. However, I doubt that Krugman is going to get on the Kevin Warsh band wagon since he does not want to see success.
You generally don’t get inflation when the economy isn’t red hot. Taxes—which is exactly what tariffs are—raise costs the same way a value-added tax does. A VAT or a tariff hits prices once and then levels off. Neither has a lasting effect on inflation.
They also generally don’t affect the yield curve. If anything, taxes are slightly growth-dampening, which is more consistent with a flatter curve, not increasing one which indicated future growth.
Krugman knows all of this. That’s why he left the yield curve out—since it doesn’t support the story he wants to tell. You can be sure that if the curve were falling, it would have been front and center. This kind of selective omission is exactly what got him into trouble with Daniel Okrent and later with the rest of the New York Times editorial board.
The Susie Wiles interview in VF makes it clear that the trump “administration” is a confederacy of dunces. I wonder why she gave that interview? She’s no dummy - she’s supposed to be one of the savviest political consultants. So why did she do it? The wheels are really falling off the clown car. Totally predictable, as well, that trump would think about using payments to Americans to distract them from how bad things are. What a crook and a con.
She did it because, like so many in this and the previous Trump maladministration, she wants the world to know that she's smart and rational and just following orders when she's enabling the absolute worst impulses of Trump, Miller, Vought et al.
Just because she has some sense of morality and judgment doesn't mean she's isn't totally complicit. She IS Susie Trump.
It does seem to be the case that she nowhere hints at the notion that Tr is deteriorating mentally or physically, so there are more than a few people who may need to find a new hobby.
I'm sure she's been very, very well compensated. She also stays in the shadows most of the time. She'll go back to the dark corners and find another charismatic autocrat to champion.
I actually wrote that piece about the Trump mafia being a confederacy of dunces a few months ago. It continues to astonish me that Trump is destroying the world, and no one can stop him. Our checks and balances have literally failed. I can’t wait for them to be held accountable when this nightmare is over.
For checks and balances to work, there has to be eager participants. The Republicans in congress and the supreme court all seem to be a-ok with what trump is doing, and hence no accountability.
Because they're all singing from the same book, and it ain't a hymnal! Trump may be bellowing the loudest, but they're all onboard and complicit with the long range project of demolishing FDR era New Deal reforms, and removing all constraints on the influence of money in politics. Which leads to widespread deregulation of industries, very notably of media. Which leads to consolidation and concentration of sources of information, allowing the streamlining of pro-corporate propaganda, which ultimately leads to significant numbers of people voting for a con man to lead our nation.
The WSJ editorial board couldn't have described the objective any more clearly. Trump's genius is to be able to stir up cultural chauvinism in just the right way to engage the "common man" to vote against his/her own interests. Goldwater couldn't do it. George Wallace couldn't do it. Pat Buchanan couldn't do it. But Reagan and Trump could.
There is a certain political party which could stop Trump immediately.
It's the very same certain political party from which he derives his power, directly, and which empowered him in the first place as a spectacle to attract attention and support…
When assigning blame for Trump, we should begin there.
Remember that Trump is easily manipulable and everyone around him is busy manipulating him for their own purposes. The Republicans in Congress are either true believers or in the employ of the corporations and billionaires that keep funding Trump. The Supreme Court majority is the same. Corruption benefits the corrupt. When the corruption permeates every branch of government, the checks and balances fail and the rest of us are screwed.
...and the result for these vile idiots won't be anything like what they expected. They have no clue how much the old ways that they are destroying have been responsible for our prosperity and power. No international respect, damaged trade relations, no preparation for the future, no more "full faith and credit in the United States" and undermining confidence in the dollar.
The stock market bubble collapse, of course, will take longer than it should, but unlike the Great Recession, the US won't have the resilience for the same comeback.
Meanwhile, between the rising cost of [re-]construction and the rising weather risk from climate change, property insurance will become unaffordable for more and more people and businesses.
National Republicans (and more than a few Democrats) are looking out for themselves. Who are their major campaign contributors? For whom are they making $10,000 a pop speeches? Who will give them useful stock tips? Who will appoint them to boards of directors when they leave office? A hint: it ain’t you or me.
He'll die of old age before he's held accountable. What we really need to concentrate on is strengthening our institutions to block the impulses of the billionaires who want to rule.
It's madness to faithfully follow the rules set down 250 years ago before electricity, cars, airplanes, running water, germ theory... We need the independent agencies, like Congress set up, because the world is too complex for one person to be an expert on everything, which was more or less possible 250 years ago.
Unfortunately, it will have to get a lot worse before it gets better. As soon as children start dying of measles, we get our first diphtheria outbreak and people start dying of tetanus...suddenly immunization will start to look pretty good.
All they’re interested in is holding on to power (and thus purse strings). It seems they’ve made the calculation that being all powerful in a failing s-hole country is preferable to having constrained power in a successful country. God help us.
Unfortunately you'll have to wait for a long, long, long time. Trump and his minions' ability to avoid facing the consequences of their actions is phenomenal. And believe me, I sincerely hope I'm wrong about both.
tRump has always been a Carnival Barker and fabulist. He starts businesses with no clear plan for them to make a profit - just loads of wishful thinking and grift and they depend on his marks. These are people who throw dollars his way because they are caught up in his torrent of salesmanship and claims that 'this' is going to be the greatest thing ever. But here, his promise to run the Government like a business gets in the way. It all boils down to the fact that both tRump and his followers simply don't understand that Government at its heart, is a not-for-profit service we pay for with our tax dollars. He has made a whole hell of a lot of people unemployed and underemployed - government workers and undocumented immigrants. He has thrown his cartloads of sabots into the wheels of the Economy decreasing consumer demand, business investments, destroying new businesses, and creating general havoc for business and consumers alike. My crystal ball - just back from the repair shop- says after the holiday sales blip, the four horsemen are delivering a shiny new recession which will be the biggest and best ever!
He has never planned to have his businesses make a profit. He's always borrowed tons of money to set the businesses up, siphoned off as much of the assets as possible, had the businesses declare bankruptcy, and left the lenders holding the bag. Very similar to leveraged hostile takeovers.
Stephen, you’re probably right, but take no satisfaction from this: as always happens in a recession, it is the poor, the young and immigrants (legal and illegal) who suffer first and worst. It won’t be pretty.
It also appears to be a confederacy of addicts. They seem to have recruited “talent” from AA and and NA meetings. Wile’s declared Trump has “an alcoholic’s personality”, while RFK jr is a (former?) addict and Hegseth has a problem with alcohol. Trump claims he doesn’t drink, but he lies like he breathes. Even the most ardent MAGAs seem to have addiction issues. In 2020, reporting on “militia” members found many had earlier alcohol or drug related brushes with the law. Trump having an “alcoholic’s personality” helps explain his erratic behavior but also his appeal to fellow travelers and to the family members of alcoholics/addicts who haven’t been to Al-Anon.
Unfortunately the masses in red and purple states are 100% completely programmable. Gaslighting in MAGA world works every time and is why we are here in the first place. Nothing will change, interview exposing incompetence or not.
I disagree that she's no dummy. As the principal executive assistant to the most important job in the world, she's no more than a passive enabler, far below the traditional role of honest, careful, serious advisor. So she managed a mendacious election campaign with unlimited money and torrential lies to eke out a tiny plurality victory from a distracted populace that was pissed off about economic challenges that were not unique to the United States and hardly fixable by a demented, narcissistic moron and the absolute worst collection of knaves and fools imaginable? Then gave extensive, revealing interviews to a writer who built his whole storied career on critiquing WH chiefs of staff?
Her pathetic response to the Vanity Fair interview was straight out of North Korea: "the finest president, White House staff, and cabinet in history"?
Also my question. She's one of the few capable people in this administration, whether or not you agree with her politics. Is she test driving her exit strategy, looking for a way out and to save face? The True Believers and grifters will hang on until the end, but the smart folks will likely find a way to exit and salvage a pathway to whatever comes next. It will be telling if she does leave anytime soon.
My two possible guesses: she was drunk or she was hoping to be fired. And now all the cabinet members she derided have to jump to her defense. Is that power?
Well, Axios states that Trump wasn't offended and says "She's doing a great job." I saw another headline that I can't find now that claimed that she's trying to walk all of that back.
She was giving herself a way out? Separating herself? This shows that she is knowingly complicit and has some moral sense? Maybe she's thinking or unconsciously letting it out that she is thinking of leaving the sinking ship? Notice she tried to repair this blaming VF.
She will write a book and looking for a publisher?
I'm sure Trump's speech tonight will reassure the nation that . . .
. . . your kids don't need Christmas presents this year
. . . your school has too many pencils
. . . you all really need to start taking vitamins and exercising like RFK Jr. sez
. . . you people have had it too good and too easy for too long.
. . . beginning January 1, every American will be required to send me a personal text telling me how I am the greatest president this country has ever had!
There was an aristocrat once, about 90 years ago, or so — a less insane and objectively much more able man who was also legitimately respected — who thought austerity was the best route toward balancing the budget of his republic. This aristocrat, who was head of state, conspired with the man who he'd picked as head of government, to bypass that republic's legislature by issuing presidential decrees, which were permitted during times of urgency by… let's see… I believe it was Article 48 of its constitution.
I recall this policy working out so "famously well" 🙁 for that distant, far off land, that Trump would be unwise not to copy it…
I do not agree that Roosevelt and Trump have much of anything in common. For one thing, Tr inherited a healthy and improving economy from his predecessor. For another, Trump might have been born into family wealth, but that hardly makes him an aristocrat. And for another, Roosevelt did operate in a time of real national emergency.
On the other hand, if all you are saying is that Tr seems to be pretending to follow in those footsteps, I can agree with that.
Always interested to learn relevant facts about history. Fortunately, our constitution doesn't have an article 48; however, its notion of emergency powers when invoked by a president in bad faith is a real problem that comes close. Congress needs a veto-proof majority to reverse it and the Supreme Court takes forever. Moreover, the particular composition of Congress and Supreme Court that we have today is less than encouraging.
He's too tired. He's too old. He's too mean. He's too uninterested. And he is so, so, so, so, so rich that he's decided to move into Mar-a-Lago and take a long rest in their Alzheimer's unit where the world can be the way he wishes it to be.
Well, he's right about the pencils here. I live about 1/4 mile from a middle school. I have a hobby of woodworking and use pencils a fair amount. I have a drawer full of #2s dropped by pint-sized Sherpas packing their supplies to school. I haven't bothered to pick them up for a couple years now.
As for the exercising - when is he going to start?
I read Moby Dick this year. One of the best stories ever. Now I can't help seeing Trump as Captain Ahab directing his crew to their destruction. Their ship, laden with enough precious whale oil to leave the entire crew and their families back home comfortable for generations, must follow Ahab's orders which everyone know is just blind vengeance. They all go down in the whirlpool.
It's a story folks. But the Trump whirlpool of stupid is real.
Had to send your comment to my daughter, who has about 40 copies (different editions) of Moby Dick (it was her college senior thesis). It reminded her that she saw a bunch of MD references in columns about Bush fils - leading us to war for no reason. Made me think of the "history doesn't repeat but it rhymes" trope.
I'm reading a biography of Rudolf Hess. As that regime was starting to fail, I see a lot of parallels between then and now as far as (crazy) detrimental decisions by leadership go.
The last time I spoke to the Trumpian part of the extended family (admittedly some time ago), they were struggling to keep their tiny farm going because all their costs kept going up, but "It can't be the tariffs...must be supply chain or something." I didn't even bother to comment.
It all comes down to how loyal the base is: how much are they will to suffer and how unwilling they are to admit they made a mistake. One can only hope they'll wake up.
There are select GOP Congress people who have said the right thing, spoken out about the recent foul response from the president, against the GOP leaving Americans without medical coverage. There ARE GOP initiatives in Congress against tariffs, Venezuela. These are the things DEMS should highlight, reinforce, broadcast.
And it wouldn’t hurt to call this the “J6 administration” … LEST WE FORGET that abomination. LEST we all getting normalized.
Yesterday Rep Mike Lawler, NY spoke out saying there should be a vote on ACA that's a first from him. When listening to this today I felt a fissure. It would be good. Of course false Hope springs eternal- and turns to mud quickly, with this crew
Yeah. He really might do that — following a 45 minute tirade against the "deep state" agencies which produce this data, accusing them of "treason" and such.
Oh no! Think of the Angela Lansbury character & the numbers she’d have, the villain & his songs, & finally the Ingrid Bergman (Paula) 11 o’clock number when she realizes she was gaslit & she takes charge of her life! Oh it would be wonderful! Plus the costumes would be so amazing.
"Trump is going to make a prime-time address to the nation tonight."
Let me be the first to predict his speech will be just like the one he performed in front of the nation's top military officers at Quantico in September.
Drone, whine, bloviate, and lies, lots of lies.
Who needs to hear this dementia-riddled old man complain about his victimhood?
Another reason Trump can't blame this economy on Joe Biden is that some of us still have our Economist Magazine from October of 2024 with its headline " The Envy of the World!" - meaning the US Economy - when Joe Biden was still President!
However, Trump has been very, very clear that he's in charge of the economy and he's going to make everything better Day 1. We had Liberation Day! Manufacturing is going to boom and those great factory jobs with high pay and benefits are going to come roaring back.
People are ignorant, but not that stupid. 30% will believe whatever he says, but that's not enough to win elections.
So we need to watch out for emergencies that will interfere with elections.
When Trump rejoiced in "Drill Baby Drill", his great supporters in the oil industry were (fairly quietly) cringing. They could see this coming. But it was far too late to stop the train.
Trump has succeeded in rolling back environmental initiatives, to no one's benefit. He has succeeded in eliminating thousands of jobs created, or about to be created, from the IRA, mostly in red states.
So, many of his allies, as well as his detractors, are paying a steep price.
The "'lower price of gasoline' party" may well be short lived. The combined effects of "Drill Baby Drill" and the widespread cancellation of IRA projects, plus cancellation of funding for other infrastructure projects, e.g. roads, bridges and tunnels in blue and red states, will be devastating for years.
I remember under Bush they got rid of the environmental regulations and the corporations cried to get them back. Following the regulations gave them cover from lawsuits.
Plus, most people want to do right by the environment but need a level playing field. If Company A can dump toxic wastes in the river for free, they have an advantage. People adapt to best practices. Regulatory red tape is a problem. Regulations should be revisited to see if they are redundant and are still relevant.
The problem is that Trump never realized that oil prices are global and the costs are fixed. Most US oil wells are close to the break-even point. The last figure I saw was years ago, but it was $60/barrel. If oil prices fall below that, US companies start to shut wells down; it costs them more to pump the oil than they can sell it for. That point, of course, varies from well to well; some can still be profitable. The lower the price gets, the more layoffs we'll see in the US companies.
Professor Krugman describes a weakening economy under a ruler divorced from reality. His response to softball questions that are slightly uncomfortable to him suggests that when the economy begins to really sink he will annul his relationship with the real world. Because there is no one in his administration willing (or perhaps able) to confront him with the facts, his response to external bad news may be even more extreme.
I don't mean this as a criticism as much as an observation. Trump couldn't do any of what he's done without his congressional minions. Who proudly put the CON into the word Congress. From Chip Roy to James Comer to Chuck Edwards (Chuck is our guy here in Asheville. I had to get him) to Lauren Boebert. Yep. She's still there. It sometimes feels like they are getting a pass as far as the MSM coverage they should be getting. Mike Johnson and Ron Johnson (Whoa. A Johnson deluge.) aren't the only idiots out there helping Trump do this stuff to us. I wonder if we sometimes for get all these wretched enablers. And I also loved the creative use of A++.
It’s interesting being towards the end of one’s career and wanting to retire but not daring to take the plunge in such uncertain times. I can’t see giving up the one small bit of control in my life and letting the orange menace win.
My #1 concern is the number of people who will be seeking extra work to try to cover rising health care premiums since the subsidies were allowed to expire and that they will not be able to find anything to even make ends meet that way.
My concern is how many people will be forced into bankruptcy because of the loss of healthcare. I don't think "extra work" or part-time jobs will be able to cover the difference.
Yes people who don't have medical insurance are totally exposed. To cover the increase of premiums which could increase for some families over $1,000 a month. I had a health plan in ACA I paid $X for a plan that was said to be $2,700 a month One over 60 yr old person with a history. I do not believe once you sign up for health insurance and to commit to paying for coverage for a year you can easily back out, unless you can prove, change of job, moved to another state, coverage by another insurance co. You were right on in you statement. People have already signed up for insurance without knowing what their actual costs are going to be if ACA isn’t kept in place.
I had to change a dental plan once. It was NOT easy to get out of my original agreement.
We know the health business has a strong connection with collection agencies
You can back out. I have had plans on there as well. The only issue for dropping coverage other than being uninsured is then if your state has a penalty like CA does for not having coverage.
The people who are getting hit the hardest are those who used to not get a subsidy until Biden expanded it above 400% of poverty and also who are more elderly and do not yet qualify for Medicare.
Young single folks are hot getting such a big hit.
These are many of the same people who saw unaffordable coverage before the ACA was enacted as well due to age since the ACA did not restrict age pricing enough (allowing for something like 3 X) although it would be even worse without it.
This may force some sicker people only work part time so they can get Medicaid which was the issue before the ACA, as well.
I wonder how many extra work hours it takes to net $1800 a month. And that is for 2 people. What of a family? This, on the heels of hypocrite Mike Johnson not letting the ACA extension vote.
And, by the way, are you (readers not the commentators) set to get a paid vacation starting Monday running thru until January? Very few people are, Im sure. And if you are it is well deserved. Not so much our legislature.
When I started for Bellcore, I got ten days of vacation a year; that increased with time. Before I got married, I used to save it up, take the last two weeks of the year off, and head for Florida to fish a little. One of my compatriots would do the same and head to California to visit family.
On the other hand, nobody at that firm ever told all of their employees to go home for a month because they didn't want us to do our jobs (like Johnson did recently).
Before I even begin reading this, I have to applaud the headline. A++++++!
...and I won't be watching the A++hole on TV tonight. Boycotting the broadcast to voice disapproval.
On the state of the economy after the first 11 months:
“If you lie down with dogs, you get up with fleas.”
In this case more like DOG SHIT!
Definitely won't waste my time, the dotard's blathering will be nothing but gaslighting bs.
My doctor says I should ignore him. It is bad for my mood and blood pressure. And I get horse yelling at the TV.
He’ll rant through the night about how the ratings and viewership was FAKE NEWS and grossly UNDERreported by the (some newly contrived demeaning label, in all caps.)
I'm thinking he's going to announce war on Venezuela.
How much makeup and medication can they supply to hide his physical and mental decline?
(I can see Fox having to resort to patching together very short clips, if they show any at all. They might just report that the Dear Leader was brilliant again as he always is.)
I am the CET zone and was sleeping through his speech. Will hear about it today. I would not be watching him if I was in his time zone. The one time I watched him was in a debate with Harris, no other time. So be it. I rather read transcripts of what he said. Still aggravating, but less annoying than seeing him say these things in person.
Almost, more like A++++++hole
It will be entertaining though. I can't stand to hear or see him, but I hope he goes freeform and unbound.
I've had my fill of masochism for the year, thank you very much.
I particularly liked the "...my a++"
I was slow to pick up on the meaning of "my a++." But I get it now. Thanks.
I liked the flying monkeys, too. Another good touch.
It tickled my funny bone. Clever.
How cute. The spam bot is back. Reported.
Best headline award goes to you. Really smart use of ++
Sorry to be dense. I don't understand what ++ is?
He is using the '++' as a substitute for 'ss'. It should be clear at that point.
Got it!! Thank you!
That's funny. :)
Thank you. I didn't understand iteither.
You have an entirely too clean mind. :-)
I thought it was for the letter “p” and he was referring to an app. Or if it was an “s” it could be that he bought a donkey. Or it is a secret code known only to those who read Oligarchical Collectivism.
Smart A++
There's a joke here about how much the Rump Maladministration likes the SS, but I just can't quite get there in a clever enough way.
On a scale of 100, and A generally is 93%-96%, and A+ is 97% to 100%. So it seems obvious that when you create a counter factual where there is such a thing as an A++++++, on the scale to 100 it would be 99.5% to 100%.
Anyway, this is Trump's exaggerating again as there is no evidence that the economy is in the A ranges. It seems it is impossible to both press for rights in trade, and have an economy at 100. This not likely to happen given all the policy in other countries designed to help them and hurt us.
No way, not just 100%, Trumf gets a 6000%! Just like how much drug prices went down, look how much fantastiker our economy is!!!
Do you think Krugman left out treasury yields be cause they don't indicate recession.
They are indicative of inflation and deficit challenges and a potential decline in the appetite for US treasuries. Stagflation and pariah-status at the same time. Trump has always been good at making money for himself while bankrupting anyone who gets too close.
I know what the word means. Now how about you go look up who Arthur Burns. Here is a hint, he was the Fed Chief that stepped on and off the gas so many times that he is closely associated with the Fed’s accommodative policies during the early–mid 1970s, which are often cited in discussions of inflation and political pressure on monetary policy in that period.
Burns is no longer Fed Chief. I hope that Trump appoints Kevin Warsh to the post. However, I doubt that Krugman is going to get on the Kevin Warsh band wagon since he does not want to see success.
You generally don’t get inflation when the economy isn’t red hot. Taxes—which is exactly what tariffs are—raise costs the same way a value-added tax does. A VAT or a tariff hits prices once and then levels off. Neither has a lasting effect on inflation.
They also generally don’t affect the yield curve. If anything, taxes are slightly growth-dampening, which is more consistent with a flatter curve, not increasing one which indicated future growth.
Krugman knows all of this. That’s why he left the yield curve out—since it doesn’t support the story he wants to tell. You can be sure that if the curve were falling, it would have been front and center. This kind of selective omission is exactly what got him into trouble with Daniel Okrent and later with the rest of the New York Times editorial board.
The Susie Wiles interview in VF makes it clear that the trump “administration” is a confederacy of dunces. I wonder why she gave that interview? She’s no dummy - she’s supposed to be one of the savviest political consultants. So why did she do it? The wheels are really falling off the clown car. Totally predictable, as well, that trump would think about using payments to Americans to distract them from how bad things are. What a crook and a con.
She did it because, like so many in this and the previous Trump maladministration, she wants the world to know that she's smart and rational and just following orders when she's enabling the absolute worst impulses of Trump, Miller, Vought et al.
We all need to make sure that undocumented people and fake wars don’t give an excuse to cancel elections.
I agree with you.
Here are some words for you to put in the correct order. If you succeed, which you will, you'll get an A+++++!!!!
"Wiles-sinking-rat-Susie-ship-jumps"
Is that some sort of cognition test?
And we all know who won't ace this one right!
She’s not jumping. She’s staying.
Just because she has some sense of morality and judgment doesn't mean she's isn't totally complicit. She IS Susie Trump.
It does seem to be the case that she nowhere hints at the notion that Tr is deteriorating mentally or physically, so there are more than a few people who may need to find a new hobby.
Rat Susie Wiles jumps sinking ship
I think it’s more involved than that. But what?
why in hell would she even seek this job....that shows that maybe she is dumb
I'm sure she's been very, very well compensated. She also stays in the shadows most of the time. She'll go back to the dark corners and find another charismatic autocrat to champion.
she always will have a job waiting for her with Putin
That argument didn't really help the Nuremberg defendants, or Louis XVI's courtiers.
How'd that work out back then?
Didn't work for Goering and company, did it?
Reminds me of the Trump Gatsby party as well in the sense that they are really telling us about themselves.
I actually wrote that piece about the Trump mafia being a confederacy of dunces a few months ago. It continues to astonish me that Trump is destroying the world, and no one can stop him. Our checks and balances have literally failed. I can’t wait for them to be held accountable when this nightmare is over.
For checks and balances to work, there has to be eager participants. The Republicans in congress and the supreme court all seem to be a-ok with what trump is doing, and hence no accountability.
True enough. A sad day for this country. Traitors occupying all branches.
Because they're all singing from the same book, and it ain't a hymnal! Trump may be bellowing the loudest, but they're all onboard and complicit with the long range project of demolishing FDR era New Deal reforms, and removing all constraints on the influence of money in politics. Which leads to widespread deregulation of industries, very notably of media. Which leads to consolidation and concentration of sources of information, allowing the streamlining of pro-corporate propaganda, which ultimately leads to significant numbers of people voting for a con man to lead our nation.
The WSJ editorial board couldn't have described the objective any more clearly. Trump's genius is to be able to stir up cultural chauvinism in just the right way to engage the "common man" to vote against his/her own interests. Goldwater couldn't do it. George Wallace couldn't do it. Pat Buchanan couldn't do it. But Reagan and Trump could.
So, in effect, the checks and balances failed.
It is the death of the US Constitution as the basis for rule/governance in the US. (And, no, bringing back the Dems can't undo that.)
There is a certain political party which could stop Trump immediately.
It's the very same certain political party from which he derives his power, directly, and which empowered him in the first place as a spectacle to attract attention and support…
When assigning blame for Trump, we should begin there.
💯%🎯 Trumpkopf is what that party has been aiming for since the McCarthy era.
Murc's Law:
Only Democrats have agency or any causal impact on American politics.
Remember that Trump is easily manipulable and everyone around him is busy manipulating him for their own purposes. The Republicans in Congress are either true believers or in the employ of the corporations and billionaires that keep funding Trump. The Supreme Court majority is the same. Corruption benefits the corrupt. When the corruption permeates every branch of government, the checks and balances fail and the rest of us are screwed.
The GOP has been working on this kind of control for years. They finally got it with Trump. No love of country or democracy. Only themselves.
Themselves and multi-generational hatred of FDR.
I think the more recent motivations are loss of primacy for Whites, men and Christians.
And love of greed.
...and the result for these vile idiots won't be anything like what they expected. They have no clue how much the old ways that they are destroying have been responsible for our prosperity and power. No international respect, damaged trade relations, no preparation for the future, no more "full faith and credit in the United States" and undermining confidence in the dollar.
The stock market bubble collapse, of course, will take longer than it should, but unlike the Great Recession, the US won't have the resilience for the same comeback.
Meanwhile, between the rising cost of [re-]construction and the rising weather risk from climate change, property insurance will become unaffordable for more and more people and businesses.
National Republicans (and more than a few Democrats) are looking out for themselves. Who are their major campaign contributors? For whom are they making $10,000 a pop speeches? Who will give them useful stock tips? Who will appoint them to boards of directors when they leave office? A hint: it ain’t you or me.
He'll die of old age before he's held accountable. What we really need to concentrate on is strengthening our institutions to block the impulses of the billionaires who want to rule.
It's madness to faithfully follow the rules set down 250 years ago before electricity, cars, airplanes, running water, germ theory... We need the independent agencies, like Congress set up, because the world is too complex for one person to be an expert on everything, which was more or less possible 250 years ago.
Unfortunately, it will have to get a lot worse before it gets better. As soon as children start dying of measles, we get our first diphtheria outbreak and people start dying of tetanus...suddenly immunization will start to look pretty good.
When they start contacting polio, the shit might hit the fan. Or maybe not. Anti-vaxxers are off-the-scale on living in fantasy worlds.
All they’re interested in is holding on to power (and thus purse strings). It seems they’ve made the calculation that being all powerful in a failing s-hole country is preferable to having constrained power in a successful country. God help us.
They sold any honor and integrity they ever had to Donald Trump. Pathetic.
Keep waiting. They won't be.
Confederacy of Dunces is one of the funniest books ever written for those of you who haven’t read it
So good! And what a story about how it finally got published.
Unfortunately you'll have to wait for a long, long, long time. Trump and his minions' ability to avoid facing the consequences of their actions is phenomenal. And believe me, I sincerely hope I'm wrong about both.
So, in effect, the checks and balances have failed.
We're witnessing a five-point failure of the system:
- media
- electorate (programmed by their preferred media)
- each of the three branches of government
tRump has always been a Carnival Barker and fabulist. He starts businesses with no clear plan for them to make a profit - just loads of wishful thinking and grift and they depend on his marks. These are people who throw dollars his way because they are caught up in his torrent of salesmanship and claims that 'this' is going to be the greatest thing ever. But here, his promise to run the Government like a business gets in the way. It all boils down to the fact that both tRump and his followers simply don't understand that Government at its heart, is a not-for-profit service we pay for with our tax dollars. He has made a whole hell of a lot of people unemployed and underemployed - government workers and undocumented immigrants. He has thrown his cartloads of sabots into the wheels of the Economy decreasing consumer demand, business investments, destroying new businesses, and creating general havoc for business and consumers alike. My crystal ball - just back from the repair shop- says after the holiday sales blip, the four horsemen are delivering a shiny new recession which will be the biggest and best ever!
He has never planned to have his businesses make a profit. He's always borrowed tons of money to set the businesses up, siphoned off as much of the assets as possible, had the businesses declare bankruptcy, and left the lenders holding the bag. Very similar to leveraged hostile takeovers.
And mobsters.
Ever noticed how vulture capitalists have basically the same MO as mobsters?
"the biggest and best ever!"
Like the world has never seen!
A+++ recession
Stephen, you’re probably right, but take no satisfaction from this: as always happens in a recession, it is the poor, the young and immigrants (legal and illegal) who suffer first and worst. It won’t be pretty.
No satisfaction taken! tRump shot our Country in the foot and doesn't give a damn.
Kayfabe. The 77 million love it.
It also appears to be a confederacy of addicts. They seem to have recruited “talent” from AA and and NA meetings. Wile’s declared Trump has “an alcoholic’s personality”, while RFK jr is a (former?) addict and Hegseth has a problem with alcohol. Trump claims he doesn’t drink, but he lies like he breathes. Even the most ardent MAGAs seem to have addiction issues. In 2020, reporting on “militia” members found many had earlier alcohol or drug related brushes with the law. Trump having an “alcoholic’s personality” helps explain his erratic behavior but also his appeal to fellow travelers and to the family members of alcoholics/addicts who haven’t been to Al-Anon.
He's clearly addicted to Diet Coke. If he's not been drinking the caffeine-free version, he's also a caffeine junkie.
Unfortunately the masses in red and purple states are 100% completely programmable. Gaslighting in MAGA world works every time and is why we are here in the first place. Nothing will change, interview exposing incompetence or not.
"An educated citizenry is a vital requisite for our survival as a free people." - Thomas Jefferson
Which explains why Trumpkopf "loves uneducated people".
And the truth of his statement, "Smart people don't like me."
They watch Fox News constantly. It does not report the news accurately. It picks stories that confirm its worldview.
she wants to leave the clown show so told the truth and knows will get fired
She’s a narcissist, just like Trump.
Psychopath.
They call her the Ice Queen (or something similar). Rump appears to have Mommy issues out the wazoo.
I disagree that she's no dummy. As the principal executive assistant to the most important job in the world, she's no more than a passive enabler, far below the traditional role of honest, careful, serious advisor. So she managed a mendacious election campaign with unlimited money and torrential lies to eke out a tiny plurality victory from a distracted populace that was pissed off about economic challenges that were not unique to the United States and hardly fixable by a demented, narcissistic moron and the absolute worst collection of knaves and fools imaginable? Then gave extensive, revealing interviews to a writer who built his whole storied career on critiquing WH chiefs of staff?
Her pathetic response to the Vanity Fair interview was straight out of North Korea: "the finest president, White House staff, and cabinet in history"?
Nope, sorry. Delusional dummy.
Maybe her rep is overrated. And what is the real play?
I think Vanity Fair released the interview before she was ready to jump ship.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is a lame duck and Susie Wiles' mother might wish to advance her daughter to the Governor's Mansion in Tallahassee.
Also my question. She's one of the few capable people in this administration, whether or not you agree with her politics. Is she test driving her exit strategy, looking for a way out and to save face? The True Believers and grifters will hang on until the end, but the smart folks will likely find a way to exit and salvage a pathway to whatever comes next. It will be telling if she does leave anytime soon.
My two possible guesses: she was drunk or she was hoping to be fired. And now all the cabinet members she derided have to jump to her defense. Is that power?
As if we needed the confirmation.
Well, Axios states that Trump wasn't offended and says "She's doing a great job." I saw another headline that I can't find now that claimed that she's trying to walk all of that back.
She was giving herself a way out? Separating herself? This shows that she is knowingly complicit and has some moral sense? Maybe she's thinking or unconsciously letting it out that she is thinking of leaving the sinking ship? Notice she tried to repair this blaming VF.
She will write a book and looking for a publisher?
I'm sure Trump's speech tonight will reassure the nation that . . .
. . . your kids don't need Christmas presents this year
. . . your school has too many pencils
. . . you all really need to start taking vitamins and exercising like RFK Jr. sez
. . . you people have had it too good and too easy for too long.
. . . beginning January 1, every American will be required to send me a personal text telling me how I am the greatest president this country has ever had!
Thank you for your attention in this matter!
Don't forget to insert random statement about how Joe Biden/Democrats/DEI/wokeism are to blame for all your woes.
There was an aristocrat once, about 90 years ago, or so — a less insane and objectively much more able man who was also legitimately respected — who thought austerity was the best route toward balancing the budget of his republic. This aristocrat, who was head of state, conspired with the man who he'd picked as head of government, to bypass that republic's legislature by issuing presidential decrees, which were permitted during times of urgency by… let's see… I believe it was Article 48 of its constitution.
I recall this policy working out so "famously well" 🙁 for that distant, far off land, that Trump would be unwise not to copy it…
I do not agree that Roosevelt and Trump have much of anything in common. For one thing, Tr inherited a healthy and improving economy from his predecessor. For another, Trump might have been born into family wealth, but that hardly makes him an aristocrat. And for another, Roosevelt did operate in a time of real national emergency.
On the other hand, if all you are saying is that Tr seems to be pretending to follow in those footsteps, I can agree with that.
😂😂😂
This was satire — I was referring to Paul von Hindenburg, not FDR!
Austerity, and (especially) article 48 were the major clues…
Evidently, too subtle and abstruse for me. I'll have to do some homework.
I'm sorry. This was my fault, really.
Always interested to learn relevant facts about history. Fortunately, our constitution doesn't have an article 48; however, its notion of emergency powers when invoked by a president in bad faith is a real problem that comes close. Congress needs a veto-proof majority to reverse it and the Supreme Court takes forever. Moreover, the particular composition of Congress and Supreme Court that we have today is less than encouraging.
Or! Or!
He's too tired. He's too old. He's too mean. He's too uninterested. And he is so, so, so, so, so rich that he's decided to move into Mar-a-Lago and take a long rest in their Alzheimer's unit where the world can be the way he wishes it to be.
Could it be a war speech? Seems plausible.
Don't forget the 37 dolls ...
I hope it is as simple as your suggestions.
Well, he's right about the pencils here. I live about 1/4 mile from a middle school. I have a hobby of woodworking and use pencils a fair amount. I have a drawer full of #2s dropped by pint-sized Sherpas packing their supplies to school. I haven't bothered to pick them up for a couple years now.
As for the exercising - when is he going to start?
You’re leaving out how he brags about the eight wars he stopped and the marvellous economy, etc etc.
Is it still eight? The number seems to change with every speech.
When they restart and he solves them again, do they get to count as two? If so, he's a lock win next year's FIFA Peace Prize again.
"I was there, 3000 years ago!"
We’ll have to wait for tonight!
I read Moby Dick this year. One of the best stories ever. Now I can't help seeing Trump as Captain Ahab directing his crew to their destruction. Their ship, laden with enough precious whale oil to leave the entire crew and their families back home comfortable for generations, must follow Ahab's orders which everyone know is just blind vengeance. They all go down in the whirlpool.
It's a story folks. But the Trump whirlpool of stupid is real.
Call ME Ishmael
Had to send your comment to my daughter, who has about 40 copies (different editions) of Moby Dick (it was her college senior thesis). It reminded her that she saw a bunch of MD references in columns about Bush fils - leading us to war for no reason. Made me think of the "history doesn't repeat but it rhymes" trope.
I'm reading a biography of Rudolf Hess. As that regime was starting to fail, I see a lot of parallels between then and now as far as (crazy) detrimental decisions by leadership go.
The last time I spoke to the Trumpian part of the extended family (admittedly some time ago), they were struggling to keep their tiny farm going because all their costs kept going up, but "It can't be the tariffs...must be supply chain or something." I didn't even bother to comment.
It all comes down to how loyal the base is: how much are they will to suffer and how unwilling they are to admit they made a mistake. One can only hope they'll wake up.
My guess (also based on direct experience) is that they'll really need to hit rock bottom before this will happen.
And, perhaps, not even then…
There are select GOP Congress people who have said the right thing, spoken out about the recent foul response from the president, against the GOP leaving Americans without medical coverage. There ARE GOP initiatives in Congress against tariffs, Venezuela. These are the things DEMS should highlight, reinforce, broadcast.
And it wouldn’t hurt to call this the “J6 administration” … LEST WE FORGET that abomination. LEST we all getting normalized.
Yesterday Rep Mike Lawler, NY spoke out saying there should be a vote on ACA that's a first from him. When listening to this today I felt a fissure. It would be good. Of course false Hope springs eternal- and turns to mud quickly, with this crew
The core base remains faithful but isn’t enough to win elections.
I SO HOPE you are right!
He’s going to gaslight yes, but then declare war and suspension of data, rights and elections until the war is over.
Yikes. I hope this isn’t the case.
Me too, but I think these are his goal posts.
He needs a big deflections to put off the release of the Epstein Files this week
Start a war, Kill People.... protect his A++
Yeah. He really might do that — following a 45 minute tirade against the "deep state" agencies which produce this data, accusing them of "treason" and such.
It just hit me: why trump wants to grab Venezuelan oil. He needs it to keep the gaslights burning…🤮
Have you ever seen the film "Gaslight"?
It's actually quite good.
It needs to be made into a musical.
Please be joking.
Oh no! Think of the Angela Lansbury character & the numbers she’d have, the villain & his songs, & finally the Ingrid Bergman (Paula) 11 o’clock number when she realizes she was gaslit & she takes charge of her life! Oh it would be wonderful! Plus the costumes would be so amazing.
that's pretty good
"Trump is going to make a prime-time address to the nation tonight."
Let me be the first to predict his speech will be just like the one he performed in front of the nation's top military officers at Quantico in September.
Drone, whine, bloviate, and lies, lots of lies.
Who needs to hear this dementia-riddled old man complain about his victimhood?
I will not be watching.
even if one could stand his whiny sanctimonious voice for more than 3 seconds ... which I can't.
Another reason Trump can't blame this economy on Joe Biden is that some of us still have our Economist Magazine from October of 2024 with its headline " The Envy of the World!" - meaning the US Economy - when Joe Biden was still President!
You are assuming Trump and his base can read...and if they can, they will call it fake news.
His presidential library is being planned. It will have a “fake news wing.”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/12/14/trump-library-miami-fake-news/
If there are any articles of Trump altruism or "positive accomplishments for America," they belong in that wing.
Indeed!
They don't read the Economist.
However, Trump has been very, very clear that he's in charge of the economy and he's going to make everything better Day 1. We had Liberation Day! Manufacturing is going to boom and those great factory jobs with high pay and benefits are going to come roaring back.
People are ignorant, but not that stupid. 30% will believe whatever he says, but that's not enough to win elections.
So we need to watch out for emergencies that will interfere with elections.
When Trump rejoiced in "Drill Baby Drill", his great supporters in the oil industry were (fairly quietly) cringing. They could see this coming. But it was far too late to stop the train.
Now the chickens are coming home to roost.:
https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Foilprice.com%2FLatest-Energy-News%2FWorld-News%2FOil-and-Gas-Industry-Layoffs-Accelerate-with-Lower-Prices.html&data=05%7C02%7C%7Ce48db01461964cde469408de3d64914e%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C639015699304103421%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=h7ACGyfsS5ZPYBL1kM%2FLyhB7qtBU%2F693Wsx9TIX%2Bq8U%3D&reserved=0
Trump will hail the lowest oil price in years, while the oil industry lays off thousands.
The irony is that US oil production was already spiking. https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fshare.google%2FM1O2s0MEQ8V32sCEK&data=05%7C02%7C%7C34f488945376493afba108de3d6ad1e8%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C639015726143861582%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=YwTvM11cBVbFpC4U7WipbrjW0t7iswvC4QuJEqk5kbE%3D&reserved=0
Trump has succeeded in rolling back environmental initiatives, to no one's benefit. He has succeeded in eliminating thousands of jobs created, or about to be created, from the IRA, mostly in red states.
So, many of his allies, as well as his detractors, are paying a steep price.
The "'lower price of gasoline' party" may well be short lived. The combined effects of "Drill Baby Drill" and the widespread cancellation of IRA projects, plus cancellation of funding for other infrastructure projects, e.g. roads, bridges and tunnels in blue and red states, will be devastating for years.
Very, very stupid!
"Very, very stupid" should be on Chump's tombstone.
I remember under Bush they got rid of the environmental regulations and the corporations cried to get them back. Following the regulations gave them cover from lawsuits.
Plus, most people want to do right by the environment but need a level playing field. If Company A can dump toxic wastes in the river for free, they have an advantage. People adapt to best practices. Regulatory red tape is a problem. Regulations should be revisited to see if they are redundant and are still relevant.
The problem is that Trump never realized that oil prices are global and the costs are fixed. Most US oil wells are close to the break-even point. The last figure I saw was years ago, but it was $60/barrel. If oil prices fall below that, US companies start to shut wells down; it costs them more to pump the oil than they can sell it for. That point, of course, varies from well to well; some can still be profitable. The lower the price gets, the more layoffs we'll see in the US companies.
Professor Krugman describes a weakening economy under a ruler divorced from reality. His response to softball questions that are slightly uncomfortable to him suggests that when the economy begins to really sink he will annul his relationship with the real world. Because there is no one in his administration willing (or perhaps able) to confront him with the facts, his response to external bad news may be even more extreme.
He's already on his way. This link is to a doctor who evaluates the various problems Trump is showing. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5wb04tH4ws
I don't mean this as a criticism as much as an observation. Trump couldn't do any of what he's done without his congressional minions. Who proudly put the CON into the word Congress. From Chip Roy to James Comer to Chuck Edwards (Chuck is our guy here in Asheville. I had to get him) to Lauren Boebert. Yep. She's still there. It sometimes feels like they are getting a pass as far as the MSM coverage they should be getting. Mike Johnson and Ron Johnson (Whoa. A Johnson deluge.) aren't the only idiots out there helping Trump do this stuff to us. I wonder if we sometimes for get all these wretched enablers. And I also loved the creative use of A++.
It’s interesting being towards the end of one’s career and wanting to retire but not daring to take the plunge in such uncertain times. I can’t see giving up the one small bit of control in my life and letting the orange menace win.
My #1 concern is the number of people who will be seeking extra work to try to cover rising health care premiums since the subsidies were allowed to expire and that they will not be able to find anything to even make ends meet that way.
My concern is how many people will be forced into bankruptcy because of the loss of healthcare. I don't think "extra work" or part-time jobs will be able to cover the difference.
I meant to cover the premiums. Yes, those who have to drop coverage could face pending bankruptcy if the encounter or have medical issues.
Yes people who don't have medical insurance are totally exposed. To cover the increase of premiums which could increase for some families over $1,000 a month. I had a health plan in ACA I paid $X for a plan that was said to be $2,700 a month One over 60 yr old person with a history. I do not believe once you sign up for health insurance and to commit to paying for coverage for a year you can easily back out, unless you can prove, change of job, moved to another state, coverage by another insurance co. You were right on in you statement. People have already signed up for insurance without knowing what their actual costs are going to be if ACA isn’t kept in place.
I had to change a dental plan once. It was NOT easy to get out of my original agreement.
We know the health business has a strong connection with collection agencies
The subsidies won’t be renewed. Too much opposition to them.
Sadly
You can back out. I have had plans on there as well. The only issue for dropping coverage other than being uninsured is then if your state has a penalty like CA does for not having coverage.
The people who are getting hit the hardest are those who used to not get a subsidy until Biden expanded it above 400% of poverty and also who are more elderly and do not yet qualify for Medicare.
Young single folks are hot getting such a big hit.
These are many of the same people who saw unaffordable coverage before the ACA was enacted as well due to age since the ACA did not restrict age pricing enough (allowing for something like 3 X) although it would be even worse without it.
This may force some sicker people only work part time so they can get Medicaid which was the issue before the ACA, as well.
Good to know thank you
I wonder how many extra work hours it takes to net $1800 a month. And that is for 2 people. What of a family? This, on the heels of hypocrite Mike Johnson not letting the ACA extension vote.
And, by the way, are you (readers not the commentators) set to get a paid vacation starting Monday running thru until January? Very few people are, Im sure. And if you are it is well deserved. Not so much our legislature.
When I started for Bellcore, I got ten days of vacation a year; that increased with time. Before I got married, I used to save it up, take the last two weeks of the year off, and head for Florida to fish a little. One of my compatriots would do the same and head to California to visit family.
On the other hand, nobody at that firm ever told all of their employees to go home for a month because they didn't want us to do our jobs (like Johnson did recently).
Good point.
Everything Trump touches dies.