The Manchurian President

[knowknow456]

For me, the Russian thing is played out a little. Let the investigation breathe and we can regroup in a week or so. In the meantime, the President's overseas trip seems to be going very well. Today, he met with the Pope. I sense a real bonding between the Trumps and the Pontiff

 

[HALL85]

For me, the Russian thing is played out a little. Let the investigation breathe and we can regroup in a week or so. In the meantime, the President's overseas trip seems to be going very well. Today, he met with the Pope. I sense a real bonding between the Trumps and the Pontiff

That picture looks like it was taken at a wake!

 

[HALL85]

I guess that is my question to you though. Why would that be your guess as of now? Their campaign has made every effort to conceal their contacts with Russians and blatantly lied about them. Sessions, Manafort, Flynn, Kushner, and Pence have all lied about these contacts. Why are they lying about the relationships?

Not sure if you watched any of the Brennan testimony yesterday but you should. The director if the CIA was concerned people within the Trump campaign could be compromised enough to ask the FBI to investigate the contacts. Trump asks Comey to stop the investigation and when he continues with it, Trump then asks the director of the NSA to go out and contradict Comey. He then fires Comey and tells the Russian officials that firing him will take the heat off.

Of course the investigation will settle whoever it settles, but you are ignoring gigantic clouds of smoke in your assessment that there was no collusion.



Of course not, but those are not even similar comparisons.

My point was that no matter what the result, most people will continue to stick to their partisan stance. For instance, if there is no collusion, the Dems (and partisans) on this Board will not accept it, and if there is, the Reps, etc., will either say it was a witch-hunt or rush to get Pence in place. Most of the public won't accept it, including many here.

Comey deserved to be fired; even the Dems agreed. Has it really slowed the investigation? Of course not. Sure, there may be smoke, but there are a lot of establishment folks that are fighting Trump tooth and nail. I saw Brennan's testimony and it didn't sway me one way or another if you parse his words.

 

[Piratz]

I have a hard time believing any American would collude with a foreign entity to win an election.

Do you think if Trump or anyone in his campaign knew the Russians had hacked into the DNC's email server and found the type of emails that would alienate the Bernie voters and drive a deeper wedge into Hillary's already-weakened support, that they would raise it publicly as responsible Americans? I do not. I think they would say, "Sucks for them, now see what you can find out about that so we can use it to win."

I think "collusion" is the wild term. It invokes a lot more than probably what happened and plays right into the agenda argument. I think this is likely more of the-enemy-of-my-enemy-is-my-friend sort of deal. While still wrong and likely a crime, not nearly as creative as the term suggests. Flynn, Manafort, all of these guys had to know something.

While much is lost in the ongoing media slop fest, the investigation is absolutely necessary on merit. Too much smoke, too much resembling cover-up.

The problem is I don't know if Trump is just so thin-skilled and insecure or he's trying to cover-up. The two mindsets generate similar actions.

 

[shu09]

Of course the investigation is necessary, I just don't know what to believe anymore.

As you said, "collusion" is different than stumbling across something and using it to win.

 

[Merge]

Of course the investigation is necessary, I just don't know what to believe anymore.

As you said, "collusion" is different than stumbling across something and using it to win.

Of course, but why lie about the contacts if there is nothing there? Not just contacts by one person, but multiple people in trumps camp.

FBI has also said there is a person of interest in his administration (kushner)... not asking you to say he is 100% guilty, just hard not to think this is more than just a witch hunt.

 

[shu09]

The investigation is not a witch hunt. That's conducted by professionals in the Justice Dept.

The sensationalism and negative headlines in the press is the witch hunt.

 

[Piratz]

Of course the investigation is necessary, I just don't know what to believe anymore.

As you said, "collusion" is different than stumbling across something and using it to win.

The problem for Trump is that stumbling upon it and using it is also a problem.

 

[knowknow456]

Reportedly the Pope was unhappy with his original picture and had this one released.

 

[Pirata]

For me, the Russian thing is played out a little. Let the investigation breathe and we can regroup in a week or so. In the meantime, the President's overseas trip seems to be going very well. Today, he met with the Pope. I sense a real bonding between the Trumps and the Pontiff

Black is the protocol.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/melania-trump-pope-wear-black_us_59258828e4b00c8df2a08d40

 

[knowknow456]

Black is the protocol.

Thanks but you need to tell that to Hall85. He was the one who made the comment about looking like a wake.

 

[Pirata]

Thanks but you need to tell that to Hall85. He was the one who made the comment about looking like a wake.[/QUOTE]

Pete,

You are hereby sentenced to 24 lashes with a wet noodle. Lol

KnowKnow,

Are you suggesting your OP was without inference? Double lol.

All good. No worries.

 

[Merge]

Are you suggesting your OP was without inference? Double lol.

He inferred that the pope was miserable standing next to Trump.

 

[knowknow456]

I was completely inferring the picture was hilarious. The President is smiling like he just heard a great joke and everyone else looks like they just swallowed lemons. Also, what photographer allowed the gap between the two men? It made for terrible optics.

All that being said, I was quite proud of myself for the scoop. After I posted here there were articles written by real writers about how terrible the pictures were. In fact, there was so much attention paid to it that subsequent articles were written releasing better pictures.

 

[HALL85]

Thanks but you need to tell that to Hall85. He was the one who made the comment about looking like a wake.

Pete,

You are hereby sentenced to 24 lashes with a wet noodle. Lol

KnowKnow,

Are you suggesting your OP was without inference? Double lol.

All goo. No worries.[/QUOTE]
John, I am guilty as charged! The Pope is looking pretty dour in that photo. I call em as I see em. Should I give an opinion on that skank Kathy Griffin?? lol

 

[Pirata]

Should I give an opinion on that skank Kathy Griffin?? lol

That is art. We cannot criticize art.

Hey Kathy,"Art this!. Right here....here's your art!"

 

[cernjSHU]

I think joking about killing a President is in poor taste and not funny. Whether its Kathy Griffin or Ted Nugent (Wanting to Hang Obama). It is out of the mind of the ignorant who want to persuade but can only can resort to shocking language.

The best thing to do to her is to ignore her. But I do find it a bit ironic that Trump welcomed Ted Nugent when he essentially did the same thing except it was towards Obama. IMO, its not okay in either instance.

 

[SPK145]

Kathy Griffin didn't seem to have a problem with him then:

 

[HALL85]

Kathy Griffin didn't seem to have a problem with him then:

And she also never complained about cashing those Celebrity Apprentice pay checks. But according to her today, her problems are all a result of old white guys....sheesh

 

[Merge]

Kathy Griffin didn't seem to have a problem with him then:

Not defending what she did, it was disgusting and wrong.... but you know there is a difference between someone who is a blowhard moron and someone who is president and working against everything you stand for politically.... that pic wasn't from 7 years ago. A LOT has changed since then.

 

[HALL85]

Not defending what she did, it was disgusting and wrong.... but you know there is a difference between someone who is a blowhard moron and someone who is president and working against everything you stand for politically.... that pic wasn't from 7 years ago. A LOT has changed since then.

She's a moron that has no grip on reality and her press conference proved it today.

 

[Merge]

She's a moron that has no grip on reality and her press conference proved it today.

And that's fine. I never liked her... just saying it's silly to think she should have stood up to trump 7 years ago.

 

[HALL85]

And that's fine. I never liked her... just saying it's silly to think she should have stood up to trump 7 years ago.

And what is she "standing up to now"??? She did something that was crude and disgusting and now she is playing the victim because her career just went in the shitter...nothing else here to see.

 

[Merge]

And what is she "standing up to now"??? She did something that was crude and disgusting and now she is playing the victim because her career just went in the shitter...nothing else here to see.

Yeah... I know... I agree with that. I didn't post a picture from 7 years ago. Just commenting that of course a celebrity that no one took seriously then, would take a picture with another celebrity that no one took seriously (at least politically)

 

[knowknow456]

Once upon a time Kathy griffin smiled while in a picture with Donald Trump. Therefore she must support him forever. It is spk's first law -an opinion in motion must continue in a straight line.

 

[SPK145]

Once upon a time Kathy griffin smiled while in a picture with Donald Trump. Therefore she must support him forever. It is spk's first law -an opinion in motion must continue in a straight line.

Maybe.

Or maybe it shows hypocrisy and a real lack of character. When he could help her career, she loved him. Now to get 15 minutes of fame, her assholeness comes out.

 

[HALL85]

And now Bill Maher does her a big favor with his "N" bomb....lol. He must be one of those old, white, angry white men she referred.

 

[cernjSHU]

And now Bill Maher does her a big favor with his "N" bomb....lol. He must be one of those old, white, angry white men she referred.

I don't see the big deal about Bill Maher comment. So, we can hear the N word in every other sentence in music today but God forbid a white guy say it in a joke. The Black Lives Movement coming out wanting him to be removed makes me really laugh.

 

[HALL85]

I don't see the big deal about Bill Maher comment. So, we can hear the N word in every other sentence in music today but God forbid a white guy say it in a joke. The Black Lives Movement coming out wanting him to be removed makes me really laugh.

I don't think you or I are qualified to determine if it's a big deal or not (assuming you are not African-American). I do agree with you though about the pedestrian overuse of the word today in music today. It's a head-scratcher.

 

[cernjSHU]

I don't think you or I are qualified to determine if it's a big deal or not (assuming you are not African-American). I do agree with you though about the pedestrian overuse of the word today in music today. It's a head-scratcher.

I was in NYC the other days and heard the N word being used at least 10 times in a five minute period of time. If you condone the use of the word with each other then you can't be outraged when a comedian uses it as a joke. And it was clearly a joke as Maher used it. Maher was making fun of the Congressman of requesting Maher to come to Nebraska and work in the fields. Should he have known he should not have used the word, yes. But, this was a joke. And I don't think you need to be African American to be qualified.

 

[shu09]

I don't think you or I are qualified to determine if it's a big deal or not (assuming you are not African-American). I do agree with you though about the pedestrian overuse of the word today in music today. It's a head-scratcher.

Agree with both you and Cern on this one.

However, I will add that I think the general greater acceptance of profanity these days contributes to the nastiness we see in society and politics. It's really a shame. Everyone can let something loose when they're angry in the heat of the moment (which is understandable), but I'm dismayed by how often I hear and see those words in general conversation. I even see four letter words in news articles these days. Social media is a big part of the problem, but not the only one.

 

[shu09]

Here's a great example of what I'm talking about. This kind of stuff has to stop.

This is not "telling it like it is." This is bloviating in an attempt to appear "cool." It is anything but.

http://www.cnn.com/2017/06/09/politics/kirsten-gillibrand-fbomb/index.html

 

[cernjSHU]

Here's a great example of what I'm talking about. This kind of stuff has to stop.

This is not "telling it like it is." This is bloviating in an attempt to appear "cool." It is anything but.

http://www.cnn.com/2017/06/09/politics/kirsten-gillibrand-fbomb/index.html

I agree. I think for the most part politicians should not be dropping profanity. I guess it would be a rare exceptional angry outburst that would be ok. But, let's be consistent, if its not good for Hillabrand, its not good for Trump either.

 

[shu09]

I agree. I think for the most part politicians should not be dropping profanity. I guess it would be a rare exceptional angry outburst that would be ok. But, let's be consistent, if its not good for Hillabrand, its not good for Trump either.

I agree, although I haven't heard Trump using profanity in public. I am 100% sure he does in private, and I don't think that's right either.

It was probably a typo but "Hillabrand" is funny, given where she's from and the person she replaced.

 

[cernjSHU]

I agree, although I haven't heard Trump using profanity in public. I am 100% sure he does in private, and I don't think that's right either.

For your listening pleasure in case you missed TRump's numerous profane statements.

 

[shu09]

For your listening pleasure in case you missed TRump's numerous profane statements.

View embedded media

Now I have heard them in public. Thanks. Just as unacceptable as what Gillibrand did today.