Today in Trump

[TitoFan]

Hey let's look at the bright side.

There's only 1,369 days, 1 hour, and 47 minutes left until the next Election Day.

You hope.

Damn, Kirk. You brought up an interesting point, and I don't like it.

That's a long time in which to finish wrecking what's left of free and unencumbered elections.

[Master]

I am more convinced than ever that Trump is in the pocket of Putin. He must have some compromising pictures or information about the US president.

Trump is selling out Ukraine and all its resources to appease the great brutal evil dictator.

[Saddo]

I am more convinced than ever that Trump is in the pocket of Putin. He must have some compromising pictures or information about the US president.

Trump is selling out Ukraine and all its resources to appease the great brutal evil dictator.

stuff that has happened over the past 48 hours always makes me wonder just how much influence the troll factories of Russia had on the US election.... But this is just Trump spitting his dummy out because Ukraine wouldn't sign the mineral deal without security guarantees and I'm sure the Trump advisers will be making him soften his words before he totally destroys all of the USA alliances.

Still its very worrying times for the world atm

[Kirkland Laing]

I am more convinced than ever that Trump is in the pocket of Putin. He must have some compromising pictures or information about the US president. Trump is selling out Ukraine and all its resources to appease the great brutal evil dictator.

stuff that has happened over the past 48 hours always makes me wonder just how much influence the troll factories of Russia had on the US election.... But this is just Trump spitting his dummy out because Ukraine wouldn't sign the mineral deal without security guarantees and I'm sure the Trump advisers will be making him soften his words before he totally destroys all of the USA alliances. Still its very worrying times for the world atm

His advisors are all tenth rate yes men handpicked because they'll do what they're told. Probably the only guy he's listening to at the minute is Musk who some people allege is a straight up Putin supporting Nazi. Trump is more likely to double down than moderate his position and he'll probably end up threatening to send Putin military aid if Zelensky doesn't basically sign a blank sheet of paper. It is definitely worrying. I'm sure the Baltic states and Poland are looking into acquiring nuclear weapons quickly because they're next on the list for Putin.

[Kirkland Laing]

How it's going in America right now. This is from the Wall Street Journal just now. Behind a paywall so here's the relevant bit:




So basically straight up extortion from Musk. Pay me money or your merger gets it.



More Musk. The Trump Department of Justice threatening to prosecute members of congress for criticising the free speech absolutist:

https://x.com/RobertGarcia/status/1892664373463683535



also threatening to prosecute the top Democratic politician in the country on bullshit charges:

https://ca.news.yahoo.com/washington...l?guccounter=2



Draining the swamp:

https://x.com/AASchapiro/status/1891845385494159631



More Wall Street Journal on Trump being paid millions for policy decisions:

https://x.com/IsaacDovere/status/1892036868872540350



More on Trump filling his pockets:

https://dnyuz.com/2025/02/17/with-co...ess-interests/



Then there are all the various DOJ resignations by prosecutors unwilling what they see as corrupt acts by the DOJ. Half a dozen just in New York last week. I could go on and on.

It's not looking good really. This is just them getting their feet under the table. Just wait a month or three until all the cosmetic bluster and bullshit of the first month or two is over and they're dealing with increasing inflation, a worsening economy and the fact that the only legislative thing any of them can agree on is a gigantic tax cut for the wealthy. The flip side of them getting so many working class votes now is that they now have a lot of voters who are going to be hammered by the spending cuts they're going to make so that Don and Elon can have a bigger tax cut.

[Master]

Power, money, back door dealings, egos, stabbing people in the back. Politics and business is ruthless.

[Kirkland Laing]

Power, money, back door dealings, egos, stabbing people in the back. Politics and business is ruthless.

What you're saying is true but this is another thing entirely. Politics and business is corrupt and crooked because it's run by human beings who are corruptible. It's impossible to construct a system with zero corruption because any system you create is going to be run by human beings.

What we can say for certain is that democracy is the least worst system of government we have yet produced. Some versions of democracy are more corrupt than others but history shows us that democracies with all their faults are far and away the least worst option we have available. It's like Winston Churchill said, democracies are the worst system of government that there is, apart from all the others.

What we're seeing now in America is one of the other systems. Basically Trump admires people like Putin and wants to create exactly the same kind of authoritarian oligarchy in America. We're about to see how successful he is with that.

I'm sitting here scared to do my job now and surfing the internet instead and here are the very latest shenanigans. Remember Trump's pick to be FBI chief who took the fifth amendment multiple times at his confirmation hearing? Turns out he's on the payroll of a Chinese company for unknown reasons:

https://x.com/SollenbergerRC/status/...773767033?mx=2



This is what he might do to the FBI. Of course it could be worse than this:

https://www.rollingstone.com/politic...ge-1235273360/

You'd think government efficiency would include efficient tax collection but apparently not:

https://x.com/jbendery/status/1892579398089396421



Sacking all the department watchdogs who monitor spending for waste, fraud and abuse seems like a strange way to cut waste, fraud and abuse:

https://x.com/PeteButtigieg/status/1891486851006972246


More Elon:

https://bsky.app/profile/kimkelly.bs.../3limy2fnonc26

[Master]

Trump has to leave after 4 years.

I am sure he will try a Putin 25 year type power grab. As you said democracy will prevail and Trump will have to leave no matter what he and his supporters try.

[TitoFan]

Trump has to leave after 4 years.

I am sure he will try a Putin 25 year type power grab. As you said democracy will prevail and Trump will have to leave no matter what he and his supporters try.

I would caution against underestimating Trump and his MAGA machinery.

• Trump began stoking the fires of a (bogus) stolen election even before the 2020 elections, which he LOST.
• Once he LOST, he said "SEE??"... and worked his Minions up into a lather, resulting in the Capitol riots of January 6th.
• Although he finally left, after almost chaining himself to the White House columns... he already had a plan in place to ensure he'd be back.
• You think he and the MAGA machinery sat idle during Joe Biden's tenure? NO. He and the MAGA cult worked tirelessly behind the scenes to rig the system to ENSURE a Trump "victory" in 2024.
• All Trump had to do... was keep his ass out of jail.
• The 2024 elections came, and sure enough... Trump "wins." I'd bet what I don't have that many thousands of votes were either invalidated or tampered with.
• Trump is on record telling people "they'll never have to vote again."
• Now he's President... has control over both sides of Congress, and the Supreme Court.
• You REALLY think Trump is planning on going anywhere??

People still cling to the idea that the U.S. democracy is bullet-proof... and refuse to see the clear signs.

Meanwhile, others are posting comparisons in social media between the U.S. in 2025... and Germany back in the 1930's.

[Kirkland Laing]

Trump has to leave after 4 years. I am sure he will try a Putin 25 year type power grab. As you said democracy will prevail and Trump will have to leave no matter what he and his supporters try.

Exactly who is going to make him?



On 2024 election night he was already making claims of massive cheating in case he lost. When it became clear he was going to win he dropped the cheating claims immediately. Next election will be exactly the same. His opponent will be under criminal investigation from the FBI and various swing states will have already made it basically impossible for the Democrat to win.


https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-v...fraud-quieted/




There is zero chance of a free and fair election next time out just based on what we've seen so far and you add another four years of corruption and criminality on? Even with Trump blanket pardons they're going to be so terrified of a rule of law government returning there's no way they'll allow it and whatever guardrails that currently exist will be guarded by tenth rate yes men. The guardrails of democracy are just people and they're all terrified of disobeying Trump. They'll be a lot more scared four years from now with good reason:

https://www.vanityfair.com/news/stor...tical-violence



When you are already threatening political opponents with investigations, what happens in six months or a year when you're getting hammered in the opinion polls for ruining the economy, setting off inflation again and slashing healthcare and other services so that Trump and Elon can have a huge tax cut? You look for scapegoats don't you. Political opponents you can turn into hate figures with your base and go after. Even just their legal defence costs in a federal investigation will bankrupt most politicians even if the investigation goes nowhere. Once the GOP house and senate and the other various guardrail operators see somebody out on the street with their family how many are going to say a word against Trump in public?

[Spicoli]

Being completely straight...the real time conduct and "dealings" with Zelensky/Ukraine...the singling out and piss poor verbal tear downs of "dictator" and repeatedly stating Ukraine is to blame for starting the war...well, I felt a rage. Accompanied by a complete betrayal, but mainly a literal anger that's hard to put into words. This is not us. This is not who we are. This is not for what literal family, friends and this Countries treasure have spilt blood for. This bloated senile bitch of a weak man who had multiple deferrals during Vietnam has zero interest in a peaceful resolution and now sets sights on an affective land grab of Ukraine's mineral rights. The absurd insane irony is listening to his defenders in the press sent out last night with the talking point of "well Zelensky needs to allow an election" and not a damn word spoken in the direction of the factual invader with blood on his hands, Putin. A delusional man Trump who spent the last 8+ years tearing down disregarding and attacking the US elections as corrupt, crooked and rigged. Now suddenly pretends to care let alone to even know how to define another sovereign Nations election. He's nothing more than a Putin stooge and asset.

[Beanz]

It has gone way beyond parody now. The disdain with which he has treated Europe has shown his hand. We have had Trump supporters, those in his administration and his other staff on News programs here insisting that there are more people in UK prisons for exercising free speech than there are in Russia. Not only is this utter bullshit and just a victim fantasy of the Far Right supporting little boys pretending to be men who hang off Trump and Musk's every word, it ignores the fact that speaking out against Putin gets you killed. Not just in Russia either. He has had dissidents killed here in the UK and in Europe.

Cognitive dissonance on a massive scale. Just like this bollocks about the Jewish Zelensky being a Nazi while Musk and Bannon are throwing Nazi salutes and shutting down anyone that might get in the way of their funneling money and power back into Donald's shite filled swamp. Trump telling everyone that he is the law and threatening anyone who doesn't blow smoke up his fat arse. People outside of the USA need to accept the fact that things have changed, and that if standing up to Trump and telling him is full of crap means they have to suffer the consequences of bruising his massive ego, then so be it.

[Kirkland Laing]

Being completely straight...the real time conduct and "dealings" with Zelensky/Ukraine...the singling out and piss poor verbal tear downs of "dictator" and repeatedly stating Ukraine is to blame for starting the war...well, I felt a rage. Accompanied by a complete betrayal, but mainly a literal anger that's hard to put into words. This is not us. This is not who we are. This is not for what literal family, friends and this Countries treasure have spilt blood for. This bloated senile bitch of a weak man who had multiple deferrals during Vietnam has zero interest in a peaceful resolution and now sets sights on an affective land grab of Ukraine's mineral rights. The absurd insane irony is listening to his defenders in the press sent out last night with the talking point of "well Zelensky needs to allow an election" and not a damn word spoken in the direction of the factual invader with blood on his hands, Putin. A delusional man Trump who spent the last 8+ years tearing down disregarding and attacking the US elections as corrupt, crooked and rigged. Now suddenly pretends to care let alone to even know how to define another sovereign Nations election. He's nothing more than a Putin stooge and asset.

Kellogg, Rubio and Waltz are pro Ukraine. They also happen to be the only three people remotely qualified for the job they hold in the entire administration apart from the Treasury secretary. But the minute they step out of line with Trump over anything they're history. Just wait till Trump starts cosying up to China. All of the Trump supporters who've been calling various Democrats and Republicans CCP agents or employees or spies or whatever will turn on a dime when Trump wants to get close to China and claim it's the greatest foreign policy move in American history.

[Kirkland Laing]

It has gone way beyond parody now. The disdain with which he has treated Europe has shown his hand. We have had Trump supporters, those in his administration and his other staff on News programs here insisting that there are more people in UK prisons for exercising free speech than there are in Russia. Not only is this utter bullshit and just a victim fantasy of the Far Right supporting little boys pretending to be men who hang off Trump and Musk's every word, it ignores the fact that speaking out against Putin gets you killed. Not just in Russia either. He has had dissidents killed here in the UK and in Europe.

Cognitive dissonance on a massive scale. Just like this bollocks about the Jewish Zelensky being a Nazi while Musk and Bannon are throwing Nazi salutes and shutting down anyone that might get in the way of their funneling money and power back into Donald's shite filled swamp. Trump telling everyone that he is the law and threatening anyone who doesn't blow smoke up his fat arse. People outside of the USA need to accept the fact that things have changed, and that if standing up to Trump and telling him is full of crap means they have to suffer the consequences of bruising his massive ego, then so be it.

This is the worst example of Trump having some unhinged idea of how the world works versus reality. He's itching to leave Europe to its own devices and will cheer Putin on if he invades the Baltics or Poland. He wants to go to war with Europe economically too.

There's a reason why America set up NATO and chose to backstop peace in Europe after WW2. Those guys were not a bunch of blustering blithering idiots and had read a bit of history. They knew ethnic conflicts in Europe had been ongoing for centuries including one war which literally lasted over a hundred years and it would be more of the same if they didn't put their thumb on the NATO scale. And it wasn't done for woolly headed liberal reasons, ultimately it was done to create peace and prosperity in Europe and huge markets for American goods and services.

And that translates to over a trillion dollars a year in trade heading to two which is a decent chunk of a twenty seven trillion dollar economy. America is the biggest investor in Europe with about sixty percent of all US foreign investment. Likewise sixty percent of European investment is in America. Both sides employ about five million workers in the other side.

Lots of US imports from Europe are highly specialised engineered parts that then go into American products that are only manufactured in Europe. There's a whole global trade ecosystem like this that makes us all reliant on other countries and fucking it up would cause huge economic loss, inflation, shortages etc. It's not all scotch, champagne and prosciutto. If there's suddenly a war in Europe and those firms are diverted to the war effort a lot of American companies are going to be fucked. A competent advisor would be telling Trump that but he doesn't have any, he has yes men. It would lead to significant economic damage, inflation and so on. And to save what? American troops have to be based somewhere. The extra cost in basing them in Europe versus America is basically a rounding error in the Pentagon budget, never mind the federal budget.

Again if he had competent advisors and actually took advice he'd know this but he's going to do what he wants like an out of control toddler. It'll all end in tears.

[Beanz]

2202.jpg