Patterico's Pontifications

1/21/2017

Sean Spicer’s Rant About Inauguration Crowds Is Packed With Falsehoods

Filed under: General — Patterico @ 8:00 pm



I’ll grant you: it feels kind of silly to be writing a post about the size of an inaugural crowd. (Remember: I think inaugurations are stupid to begin with.) But it’s even sillier to hold a whole press conference about the size of an inaugural crowd. And the silliest thing of all is to tell easily provable falsehoods about the size of an inaugural crowd from the White House podium.

And writing a post about White House falsehoods . . . why, that doesn’t feel silly at all.

So. As noted by Susan Wright earlier, Sean Spicer came marching out today and loudly and angrily made several claims about the size of the crowds yesterday. He made accurate complaints about tweets such as one about the bust of MLK being gone from the Oval Office.

Then he started complaining about the media’s coverage of the crowd size.

Now, I’m going to stay away from the side-by-side comparison photos of Obama 2013 and Trump 2017 I have seen floating around. They appear to show a lot more people at Obama’s inauguration. But the media could have compared different times of day. So let’s just stick with facts.

Spicer said this was the first time floor coverings were ever used on the Mall:

This was the first time in our nation’s history that floor coverings had been used to protect the grass on the Mall. That had the effect of highlighting any areas where people were not standing, while in years past, the grass eliminated this visual.

This was false.

Spicer also said magnetometers prevented access to the Mall:

This was also the first time that fencing and magnetometers went as far back on the wall, preventing hundreds of thousands of people from being able to access the Mall as quickly as they had in inaugurations past.

This may be false. A Secret Service person denied it to CNN’s Jim Acosta.

I’d like to see more conclusive proof before I declare this one to be a clear falsehood. But I’m leaning that way, since this assertion is sandwiched in between other clearly false ones.

Spicer said Metro numbers showed higher ridership for Trump’s inaugural than Obama’s last inaugural:

We know that 420,000 people used the D.C. Metro public transit yesterday, which actually compares to 317,000 that used it for president Obama’s last inaugural.

That is flatly false. I can’t find any direct numbers for the entire day from the Metro Web site, but the Washington Post reports:

Metro said 570,557 people took trips in the system between its early 4 a .m. Friday opening through midnight closing.

The figures are significantly lower than those from the 2009 and 2013 Inaugurations of President Barack Obama; 1.1 million trips in 2009 and 782,000 in 2013, according to Metro.

CNN reports:

Spicer’s number for ridership on Friday was actually low — the correct number, according to Metro itself, was 570,557. But there were actually 782,000 trips taken for Obama’s second inaugural in 2013.

And tweets from Metro itself from 11 a.m. on Inauguration Day 2013 vs. 2017:

These numbers are consistent with the final figures reported by CNN and the Washington Post, showing higher numbers in 2013 than 2017.

Spicer sure told some whoppers there. I understand the right’s desire for pushback against the media, believe me. But to me, “pushback” that is dishonest is not praiseworthy. At all. I agree with Charles C.W. Cooke:

But whether it’s good politics is, of course, a different matter. Who am I to say that repeating falsehoods in an angry tone doesn’t work?

After all: Donald Trump won the Republican nomination and the presidency doing exactly that.

[Cross-posted at RedState.]

184 Responses to “Sean Spicer’s Rant About Inauguration Crowds Is Packed With Falsehoods”

  1. Ding.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  2. that we have sleazy fat-ass pension piggies at the wmata doing tweets in honor of their dearly departed fascist food stamp pothead is kinda my takeaway here

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  3. I figured it would be.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  4. Jim Costa, right, what was the spokesman?

    narciso (d1f714)

  5. I don’t know, narciso. That’s why my verdict was less than definitive on that one.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  6. Hf, you know wanted to start “piggies” with a different but close in alphabetical order letter, which in regard to a City transit agency is fairly accurate.

    urbanleftbehind (8dd5fd)

  7. “This is called a statement you’re told to make by the President. And you know the President is watching.”

    https://twitter.com/AriFleischer/status/822937963374018561

    Patterico (115b1f)

  8. We get it, Pat. You wanted Hillary to be President.

    But, as Mick once said, you can’t always get what you want.

    Deuce Frehley (8afd8b)

  9. I don’t think he wanted Hillary if I remember right it was Mr. Ted Cruz he was partial to

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  10. Fox News declined to renew contracts of contributors George Will, Cal Thomas, Ed Rollins, Marvin Kalb, and Stacey Dash.

    Cruz Supporter (102c9a)

  11. Spicer is well-versed at lying.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  12. We get it, Pat. You wanted Hillary to be President.

    But, as Mick once said, you can’t always get what you want.

    And there it is. The typical moronic reply. If you point out that the Trump crowd is lying, provably and obviously lying, some yutz slithers out to tell you that you wanted Hillary to be President.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  13. Wrong hill to die on. Trump should have channeled Maggie on this one:

    http://nextcity.org/daily/entry/maybe-margaret-thatcher-didnt-hate-buses-as-much-as-we-thought

    It makes sense, wouldn’t an R crowd be more favorably disposed to driving or at least pooling in cars with familiar people.

    urbanleftbehind (8dd5fd)

  14. So you are affirmative when circumstances are ambiguous and vice Versace.

    narciso (d1f714)

  15. DJT railed about phony baloney numbers to get votes.

    Now he is issuing phony baloney numbers. To what purpose??

    Garry Kasparov has a theory:

    “Obvious lies serve a purpose for an administration. They watch who challenges them, and who loyally repeats them. The people must watch, too.”

    https://twitter.com/Kasparov63/status/823007681350868993

    Ed from SFV (3400a5)

  16. Four years. We’re all in this together. We all have concerns. Washington Post and CNN. Oh boy!

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  17. Its weak o’douls one about the crowley kerfluffle.

    narciso (d1f714)

  18. it’s for sure likely that food stamp would have drawn more locals to the mall and locals would be way more likely to use the subway

    also uber wasn’t even legal there in dc til some time after food stamp’s second inaugural

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  19. So you are affirmative when circumstances are ambiguous and vice Versace.

    I’m taking a cue from people who have complained, and sticking very carefully to the facts. You’d think you’d be happy that I’m listening to you guys.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  20. Creating and repeating falsehoods is CNN’s bread and butter. Wash Po’s too. And it apparently works in some quarters.

    That said, it was not a smart move. Who cares? Obama was Capt. Hopey Changey, beloved ne’er-do-well. Trump is president now. Get ‘er done.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  21. still I like Mr. Spicer he’s feisty and nontraditional and he seems to really love America

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  22. But it’s even sillier to hold a whole press conference about the size of an inaugural crowd. And the silliest thing of all is to tell easily provable falsehoods about the size of an inaugural crowd from the White House podium.

    Not if you want to sidetrack the media into following a shiny object and bigfooting the woman’s marches across the country through the weekend news cycle. So far, it’s working.

    This is getting so easy for President Trump, he’s literally ‘phoning it in’ via tweet.

    Now gee, MSM, where is that MLK bust, anyway?

    “I know you better than you know yourself!” Nurse Diesel [Cloris Leachman] ‘High Anxiety’ 1977

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  23. For the sake of argument:

    (1) Trump tells lies in an angry tone.

    (2) Obama told lies in a calm tone.

    So what? The only difference is in the tone. And telling lies is only moral or immoral insofar as its effects are beneficial or harmful. For example, lying that your children are hiding in the closet to a crazed killer is not immoral.

    Trump’s policies, cabinet appointments, and future Supreme Court appointments are far superior to Obama’s or anyone Hillary would have appointed. And probably even Cruz, who was my first choice. The lies don’t matter, although it’s fun watching the fake news industry lose its mind over them.

    Pro Lifer (7638b8)

  24. OK, Trump is a blowhard, and so are many of his staff, we get it.

    Please tell me when being a conservative blowhard was tried before and whether it worked or not. Please also tell me how well being sweetly, politely, persuasive to the left worked.

    Also, the stuff he’s blowing harder kind of appeals to me. Sort of like : “Fuck off lefties, nasty shit to follow.” Well, nasty to the left, quite pleasant to normal people.

    Except of course he’s mostly wrong on international trade, but I’m guessing I have better power to persuade him of that than a conservative blogger who’s been calling him an arsehole for quite a while.

    Fred Z (05d938)

  25. The same press that did due diligence about tea party rallies, or that bane memo, OT Sanford OT Benghazi or the journalists potted plants and rizzotto tray vartiers.

    narciso (d1f714)

  26. So now you worship the liberal media.

    media sucks (18b5c3)

  27. Nice zinger at the end of the article. ‘Can’t deny that.

    Are we going to have to suffer the death of a thousand self-aggrandizing lies from this administration? Lies ad nauseum: that’s what we have to look forward to? How do you even contend with someone who’s a compulsive liar like that, and whose sycophants embrace it? It’s nothing less than absurd.

    Tillman (a95660)

  28. Reports of a magnetometer ‘system’ ringing the Mall peppered the inaugural coverage on the cablers–usually by street reporters covering those protests they were televising- as we rolled through the dials it came up. Must have gotten lost in all that breaking dress coverage.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  29. Tillman… your God has retired to Palm Springs. It’s okay to cry, Sparky. Let it all out.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  30. Did Madonna burn down the White House today or did the media cover it up?

    AZ Bob (f7a491)

  31. “So now you worship the liberal media.”

    The “liberal media” defined as: contradicts Trump’s blatant, silly lies.

    Tillman (a95660)

  32. Well thefts all the little matter of the today show saying their was a high risknof a drone strike and can’s designated survivor hokum, an asteroid strike would have been too obvious.

    narciso (d1f714)

  33. The lies don’t matter,

    “Obvious lies serve a purpose for an administration. They watch who challenges them and who loyally repeats them. The people must watch, too.”

    https://twitter.com/Kasparov63/status/823007681350868993

    Patterico (115b1f)

  34. “How do you even contend with someone who’s a compulsive liar like that, and whose sycophants embrace it?”

    You refuse to elect his Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton.

    Pro Lifer (7638b8)

  35. Tillman, if you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor. And the murder of four Americans at Benghazi including our Ambassador — that was just because some folks got angry about Rex Reed’s movie review. (LOL)

    Cruz Supporter (102c9a)

  36. So now you worship the liberal media.

    And here I thought I was pretty careful to stick to clear facts in the post.

    According to you, “media sucks,” it appears that if I cite clear evidence provided by the media to contradict clear falsehoods told by Trump’s White House Press Secretary, I am the bad guy and I “worship the media.”

    Patterico (115b1f)

  37. The fact that the lies may serve a helpful loyalty screening function for the administration doesn’t mean they matter in terms of policy. And if the screening is effective, then they may facilitate putting the policies into effect.

    Pro Lifer (7638b8)

  38. AZBob: Not before she asked Melania if she was still into that late 90s stuff.

    urbanleftbehind (8dd5fd)

  39. The fact that the lies may serve a helpful loyalty screening function for the administration doesn’t mean they matter in terms of policy. And if the screening is effective, then they may facilitate putting the policies into effect.

    You and I have a different moral philosophy, so there’s nothing really to be gained from discussing matters of morality with you.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  40. Has the press coveted the arrests of the djt20 protesters, or even o kegfe’s tapes to any substantial degree.?

    narciso (d1f714)

  41. Cruz S, Trump tells stupid lies all the time, almost daily. He’s not even half-intelligent about it. It’s just a glaringly transparent farce. You can’t take anything he says seriously.

    Tillman (a95660)

  42. I don’t know, narciso. Why are you asking that question here, in this thread? Just curious.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  43. I’m afraid Tillman has hit the nail on the head there. When he’s right, he’s right.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  44. Because of their penchant for emitting fake news, and ignoring the real facts

    narciso (d1f714)

  45. Why is this a mystery?

    DC is 90% black. The locals all came out for Obama and not for Trump. End of discussion.

    Kevin M (25bbee)

  46. It’s been a really bad week for journalism.

    Spicer lied. Unfortunately.

    Media lied. Constantly.

    NJRob (43d957)

  47. Tillman, distorting the truth about the size of a crowd really pales in comparison to lying about Iran’s nuclear program.
    By the way, if you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor.

    Cruz Supporter (102c9a)

  48. Cruz S, Trump tells stupid lies all the time, almost daily. He’s not even half-intelligent about it. It’s just a glaringly transparent farce. You can’t take anything he says seriously.
    Tillman (a95660) — 1/21/2017 @ 9:03 pm

    In that way he reminds me of Obama.

    AZ Bob (f7a491)

  49. Trump’s style is out of the Dem playbook and that is why many conservatives are repulsed.

    AZ Bob (f7a491)

  50. Many but not all.

    AZ Bob (f7a491)

  51. The fact that the spokesperson was told to go out this morning and make this case in the first place is pathetic. Is every event going to a measuring contest between the previous and current admins? Considering the apparent maturity level of those involved from both camps I would guess so. It would be nice if the public would actually demand some semblance of presidential respectability for a change instead of blowing off every ridiculous lie each day in order to defend their chosen one.

    Moviemommy (132e5a)

  52. ==”This was the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration — period,” Trump White House press secretary claims==

    Maybe this inauguration numbers Spicer thing is important. Maybe it isn’t important. I don’t know yet. Maybe he was including the audience both live in Washington and streaming and on TV around the world. I don’t know. Maybe this presser matters as much or more than other events that took place today. Or maybe it does not matter as much or more than other events that took place today. It’s too soon to say. I do know Spicer’s premiere performance did not impress me today and his nervousness, defensiveness and shrillness kind of did him in. That was disappointing.

    I also know that what I am going to be watching for on this site is some overarching sense of perspective and balance– because every screw up, every misstatement and every evasion from the presidential press secretary can’t be considered defcon 3 material.

    elissa (194766)

  53. “FUNNY, DID CNN COVER THIS? Trump Offers Father Down on His Luck $10,000 Check at Inaugural Event.”

    https://pjmedia.com/instapundit/255188/

    Colonel Haiku (ec41b2)

  54. It’s like someone crept in and switched all my news feeds to only report Washington Post and New York Times. Then in the head in the middle of snapping off a growler, I discover someone has made off with the Guns and Ammo and left Oprah magazine in their place.
    Then someone changed all the presets in the truck to NPR, and broke the knob.

    Effen Acosta? Effen CNN?

    I’m going to give you two words for whenever these problems start to crop up. Write them down if it makes you more comfortable, but most people can just remember them.

    STOP IT!

    papertiger (c8116c)

  55. So now you worship the liberal media.

    Oh FFS. A grown man lied to the American public. No ifs, ands or buts. Let’s stop rationalizing it and just admit that he did and that it was not a good thing. We just spent 8 years condemning Obama for his lies, and if his White House was wrong to do it, so is Trump’s. This isn’t hard.

    IMO, more problematic is that President Trump fell for MSM trolling. They knew that he would not be able to resist taking the bait about something like who had the biggest whatever. They were right. This is a problem with Trump, he needs to figure out a way to deal with it. Because given that we know the media’s single goal will be to help him fail, if he can’t trust others more savvy to handle these things, this crap will be happening all the time. It’s one thing to lay down a marker to the media, it’s another thing entirely to take the bait over an utterly irrelevant matter and then try to put them on notice by lying. Get smart, choose your battles wisely, and choose the ones where you can make the biggest impact. We all loath Big Media, but let’s be smart about how to counter them. I’d like to see President Trump’s people get savvy about it. I think they will. But will he? Because the fact of the matter is, getting caught in a lie over something so stupid, is just answering the prayers of the MSM.

    (I don’t envy Spicer’s position. If he was indeed told to do it by his boss and he knew that the boss was watching, he still had a choice to make. Either do what he was told, or don’t, and risk losing his job. Again, he’s a grown man and he made his choice.)

    Dana (023079)

  56. On the upside, good stuff re the MLK bust. Take the media to task and use the truth against them.

    Dana (023079)

  57. CNN themselves have already called BS on the NYT photo purportedly showing a much smaller crowd in the mall. That’s probably what got Trump’s people on their heels.

    harkin (afc7a6)

  58. Hahahahahahahahahaha a picture of Hillary’s inauguration crowd.

    Hillary Inauguration Crowd

    Patterico (115b1f)

  59. I also know that what I am going to be watching for on this site is some overarching sense of perspective and balance– because every screw up, every misstatement and every evasion from the presidential press secretary can’t be considered defcon 3 material.

    I just re-read my post and it is not treating it as defcon 3 material.

    I guess no post critical of Trump, no matter how accurate or restrained, can be allowed to pass without some kind of cheap shot. Or several.

    What I’m looking for in the comments is some overarching sense of perspective and balance where it is possible to post a good, solid, fact-based post that might be critical of Trump without a stream of negative reaction.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  60. @58. LOLLOLOL That’s the second funniest thing you’ve posted in six months.

    So green for a ‘January’ in Washington, too! Guess a CA resident wouldn’t notice that. 😉

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  61. “Trump deletes misspelled tweet saying he’s ‘honered’ to serve” – The Hill

    Tillman (a95660)

  62. 56.On the upside, good stuff re the MLK bust. Take the media to task and use the truth against them.

    Dana, the ‘truth’ is they seems quite focused on Melania’s bust most of the day— and into the night.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  63. DCSCA, I almost didn’t recognize our new First “Lady” at the inauguration, with her clothes on.

    Tillman (a95660)

  64. “We get it, Pat. You wanted Hillary to be President.”

    “So now you worship the liberal media.”

    “Washington Post and CNN. Oh boy!”

    “every screw up, every misstatement and every evasion from the presidential press secretary can’t be considered defcon 3 material.”

    “The lies don’t matter”

    “that we have sleazy fat-ass pension piggies at the wmata doing tweets in honor of their dearly departed fascist food stamp pothead is kinda my takeaway here”

    “It’s like someone crept in and switched all my news feeds to only report Washington Post and New York Times.”

    Patterico (115b1f)

  65. @63-On the other hand, you’ve certainly recognized monuments to a former First Lady, who ran for president, fully exposed on nearly every street in America. We call them fire hydrants.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  66. That is a series of quotes from less than two hours of commentary.

    The occasion? A post critical of Trump.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  67. hmmm we should do a post praisey of Mr. Trump and compare the quotes

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  68. Tillman, that’s the thing … she’s the first First Lady you actually want to see with her clothes off. After eight years of Moochelle scowling while giving lectures about eating peas and carrots, it’s nice to have a little eye candy in the Rose Garden who actually looks like she eats peas and carrots.

    Cruz Supporter (102c9a)

  69. @68- CS, don’t know if you caught it but CNN’s Erin Burnett wasn’t about to let an opportunity to be a piece of eye candy for viewers to pass by. This evening she was decked out in a powder blue outfit. Just like you-know-who.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  70. ==The occasion? A post critical of Trump.==

    Oh, I thought the post was critical of Spicer and you’ll note I largely agreed with you about his rant today. The headline was Spicer, the vids were Spicer. I also thought you were on point at the beginning when you said it felt kind of silly to be writing about crowd size.

    elissa (194766)

  71. elissa,

    Do you think Spicer went out there, and said what he said of his own accord?

    Dana (023079)

  72. It’s silly to write about crowd size, yes, but maybe the larger point is, it’s even sillier yet to take the bait when the NYT trolls about something so dumb.

    Dana (023079)

  73. Oh, I thought the post was critical of Spicer and you’ll note I largely agreed with you about his rant today.

    Yes, it is, strictly speaking, a post critical of Spicer — but as Ari Fleischer points out, we all know who sent him out there to say this stuff. And the blowback here ain’t because people are so enamored of Sean Spicer. So let’s call a spade a spade. The occasion of this avalanche of negativity is the implicit criticism of Trump — not Spicer — in the post. And we all know it.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  74. DCSCA, no I didn’t catch Erin Burnett tonight. I don’t understand why she didn’t ask NBC to check with their wardrobe department to see if they still have any Little House on the Prairie dresses that she could’ve worn in order to look like you-know-who. (LOL)

    Cruz Supporter (102c9a)

  75. It’s silly to write about crowd size, yes, but maybe the larger point is, it’s even sillier yet to take the bait when the NYT trolls about something so dumb.

    And silliest of all to lie about it.

    For some reason I am reminded of the first paragraph of this post:

    I’ll grant you: it feels kind of silly to be writing a post about the size of an inaugural crowd. (Remember: I think inaugurations are stupid to begin with.) But it’s even sillier to hold a whole press conference about the size of an inaugural crowd. And the silliest thing of all is to tell easily provable falsehoods about the size of an inaugural crowd from the White House podium.

    elissa, did you think I was “on point” when I said “writing a post about White House falsehoods . . . why, that doesn’t feel silly at all.” Because you don’t seem to think that I was. Hence the snide comment about defcon 3.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  76. If you end up washing your hands a lot, that’s okay.

    papertiger (c8116c)

  77. @72. Dana:

    Size matters.

    Ask a man raised by Playboy magazine on how to ‘appreciate’ a woman. You can reach him through the WH press office. Ask for Sean Spicer.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  78. elissa, the point of the post isn’t about crowd size, it’s about lying, and choosing to do so in a very dumb, immediately disprovable way.

    Tillman (a95660)

  79. elissa, the point of the post isn’t about crowd size, it’s about lying, and choosing to do so in a very dumb, immediately disprovable way.

    Once again, Tillman is exactly right.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  80. Size matters.

    I guess that’s why Trump is so upset that his size (of crowds) was so much smaller than Obama’s.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  81. ==Do you think Spicer went out there, and said what he said of his own accord?==

    I have no idea how it went down, Dana. Do you? The Trumps were all at the prayer service this morning and then the President visited the CIA and spoke to the spooks. I would assume that people in the inner circle and Spicer discussed the framework and messaging for his first meeting with the media beforehand and all including the president were in agreement about putting the media on notice that they’d be hitting back at the media as policy from day 1. Do I think the Donald sat down with Spicer and said, “say this, and then say this, and then say this, and be sure to bring X up”? Probably not. Although there is no question that Prez was irate about the MLK bust slur and I don’t blame him. If Spicer was given bad info which caused him to in effect “lie”, who gave it to him is the question I’d be asking.

    elissa (194766)

  82. Hopefully, this will be the stupidest controversy of the Trump era. But I’m guessing not.

    Kevin M (25bbee)

  83. I’m not saying I believe Spicer on the metro numbers (I don’t) but I’m also not inclined to view the Washington Post as reliable, either. My guess; ridership was lower in 2017.

    I did find a better picture of the national mall flooring in 2013;
    http://cdn.theatlantic.com/static/infocus/inaug012113/i03_09334189.jpg
    Took be about 30 seconds on google (and it was up long before the current kerfuffle) which begs the question, why didn’t Spicer, who has a staff, have someone check?

    When it comes to credibility on news, the Trump Administration is doing itself no favors with this sort of thing. I’m all for fighting fire with fire, but on this one issue, it does more harm than good – they’d be better off being more accurate than the MSM, and things like this hurt.

    Arizona CJ (191c8a)

  84. Rather than diving into the tall weeds about the size of the inauguration crowd, Spicer ought to have just said, “Look, CNN has already just lied about the MLK bust. They shreiked that it was sent away when in reality it sits proudly on a wooden desk in the Oval Office. And the American people know how badly the media have lied about the size of tea party rallies and pro-life demonstrations in the past. So we’ll let the American people decide for themselves if they think you guys in the media have been telling the truth about the size of the crowd at the inauguration.”

    Cruz Supporter (102c9a)

  85. I’m not saying I believe Spicer on the metro numbers (I don’t) but I’m also not inclined to view the Washington Post as reliable, either. My guess; ridership was lower in 2017.

    The ridership numbers were identically reported by the Washington Post and CNN. The agency itself put out numbers from earlier in the day that were consistent.

    At a certain point distrust of the media can become irrational.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  86. The obverse is true also. It really stings CNN halfwits that the final newsworthy act of their outgoing messiah was him commuting the sentence of a he/she traitor.

    An angle I hadn’t thought about, when the weather turned on Obama, putting the ding in his high hope of playing a round of golf with the moneied liberal sponsors of his disastrous 8 years, his plane was diverted to March, the denuded former AFB, now reduced to a reserve depot.

    Doubt President PardonMeTrannytraitor found very many fans waiting for him there. No go on the photo op of the returning hero arms raised high in a self congratulating pose.

    papertiger (c8116c)

  87. It sure would be good if the Trump folks were less easily baited. If they don’t learn, this is going to be 4 years of blood sport for the opposititon.

    Kevin M (25bbee)

  88. @80. Patterico, it’s the Playboy Mystique. 😉

    The image heading this NYT piece of the now new President, our First Lady and a ‘friend’ says it all. “Hail To The Chief”, baby.

    https://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/14/opinion/sunday/a-playboy-for-president.html

    “From the mountains, to the prairies, to the oceans, white with foam…” – lyrics, ‘God Bless America’ Irving Berlin, 1918

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  89. @84- CS, check out the image heading this piece of our new CIC, First Lady and friend.

    https://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/14/opinion/sunday/a-playboy-for-president.html

    Then ask yourself if you’d prefer to see Hillary imaged the same way.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  90. I take it that, since Sean Spicer is press secretary, we have experienced the exhalted transformation of powers?

    Steve57 (0b1dac)

  91. I haven’t been paying attention as I haven’t been looking for all the M16s lying around.

    Steve57 (0b1dac)

  92. Politics has become all about lies.
    And who can get away with lies, and which lies are important and which lies get to remain.
    It’s all incredibly ensaddening to me.
    I just want to watch HGTV and sports and become disengaged.

    MayBee (a7822d)

  93. I also admit I’ve become a total hypocrite, and I embrace it. You know why? Because all the powers-that-be have become total hypocrites and nobody cares. The media outlets that loved Obama, that made fun of Benghazi, that play endless sob stories about people who would die with out Obamacare, who barely reported on Obama paying billions of dollars of ransom to Iran, who dropped the IRS harassment story, who demanded everyone affirm Obama’s Christianity, who wouldn’t cover Fast and Furious, who swooned over the coolness of the first family, who stopped covering the carnage in Syria when they needed to and barely touched Yemen, who still adore Bill Clinton but acti outraged over Trumps p*ssy comment…..none of them have done a mea culpa. They just all turned on a dime to suddenly need to overplay every utterance out of Donald Trump’s mouth.

    In the meantime, I get pretty much zero of what I want out of government. I work, I keep my head down, I watch all these stupid policies get enacted, I watch our culture become way too punitive and disjointed. I watch the political class become entitled and more and more wealthy. I watch people who have been wrong a million times get trotted out to tell us what to think yet again. I watch people who don’t get hired into a campaign or a government position try to smear the people who won’t hire them, and we are supposed to honor their opinions. I watch people who protest and riot be treated as some kind of hero. I have to listen to women I don’t agree with be lauded as standing up for Women. Its just all politics all the time, it’s relentless, and there is so little for me or the average person in it. There’s really almost nothing in it for us, but it’s all for the game players.

    So I admit I am enjoying the war between the White House and the press too much. I believe a free press is vital, but that’s not what they have been doing since at least 2000. I find myself enjoying Trump standing up to them, even if he doesn’t always have a good leg to stand on. I just want them to learn a lesson, and they just refuse to learn it

    Sorry for the rant. It probably doesn’t even make sense, but my dog got me up at 4:30 and I couldn’t believe I was waking up to another day of……this

    MayBee (a7822d)

  94. And my “this” I don’t mean your writing, Patterico.

    MayBee (a7822d)

  95. “You and I have a different moral philosophy, so there’s nothing really to be gained from discussing matters of morality with you.”

    We both believe that lies are sometimes justified to serve a higher purpose. We merely disagree as to when. I think your main objection is that Spicer’s lies were about a trivial matter, and too obvious.

    Pro Lifer (eb009d)

  96. Did I miss something? I was promised plenty of free weapons and ammo should the SHTF. It would all be laying about, for the taking. Yet there I was, walking the dog (no, that’s not a euphemism for something else, you dirty minded scum) and no rifles!

    Did Donald Trump become President, and if so where is my M16?

    Steve57 (0b1dac)

  97. “I believe a free press is vital, but that’s not what they have been doing since at least 2000.”

    MayBee,

    Around 1450 is closer to the mark. Gutenberg had a prototype working in 1440 but propagandists were a little slow in adopting the new technology. Lying demagogues and factional support and/or opposition predate the press by a few millennia. Sorting lies, whether by the Demagogue in Charge or by propagandists supporting a faction, is never going to be a pastime lacking in opportunity.

    Rick Ballard (1c0700)

  98. Makes lots of sense, MayBee

    I still want to see Mark Steyn as press secretary, that would be non-stop interesting.

    MD in Philly (f9371b)

  99. Now if the subject of another recent post bitched about the paint job her dance partner, that punch was earned.

    urbanleftbehind (8dd5fd)

  100. I had to take another pass at this as I was concerned the take away might be I can’t distinguish rank. Yes he’s a Staff Sergeant. I just never knew a Sergeant who didn’t appreciate being called sergeant, no matter how many the stripes.

    Steve57 (0b1dac)

  101. Marine Corps and Air Force, mostly. I didn’t interact much with Army, but for ever couple of years, when I’d go to Korea for an exercise.

    So hows the Army types feel about their stripes, I can’t say.

    Steve57 (0b1dac)

  102. And oh, by the way, take a look at this CNN video and tell me (without lying) that there was a meaningful difference in crowd size between 2013 and 2017:

    https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=gPZ1UmHEEdc

    Same lying media that pretended the 200 OccupyWallStreet criminals in Zuchotti Park were an 7 billion-strong international movement.

    Pro Lifer (3de832)

  103. I’m a bit late to this party, and my first reaction is your first reaction. I don’t care much one way or the other. I think it is bad form for Spicer to get carried away trying to “prove” something that’s not really subject to proof, and I don’t give a lot of credence to any attempt at calculating and objective “number” through metrics like Metro ridership.

    It was a Friday, with much of “official” DC closed down, but private businesses still open. Who can say how many DC workers opted for a 3 day weekend and just stayed home from work. Clearly that would impact Metro ridership. Obama’s 2 inaugurations were on a Monday and Tuesday. 2013 actually fell on a Sunday, so it took place on Monday, 1/21.

    But, beyond that, I agree with DCSCA at 22 — the Trump Admin. is going to use the “Shiny Object” distraction on the media until they figure out how not to fall for it.

    Or, in a different analogy, I see this as a game of “Fetch” with the media being his dog in the park.

    What else happened yesterday that had the potential for fireworks?? Oh yeah, the Senate decided to slow-walk Mike Pompeo’s nomination to the CIA, and Trump visited CIA HQ in Langley after a stunning 4 weeks which had the IC in almost open revolt against the Pres.Elect at the time.

    But, lets argue about Metro ridership and mats on the Capitol Mall.

    shipwreckedcrew (56b591)

  104. They also didn’t want to talk about the j20 protesters

    narciso (d1f714)

  105. We Republicans are employed and can’t just take off work to go to DC for a parade.
    Whereas Democrats tend to either be wealthy millionaires who can afford to go to DC for a parade, or irresponsible unemployed people who opt to spend their rent money on fun & games, such as taking a trip to Mecca for a parade. (LOL)

    So naturally the Democrats are always going to win the “bigger attendance” sweepstakes!

    Spicer should have said that. (LOL)

    Cruz Supporter (102c9a)

  106. Ha, point made Rick Ballard.

    MayBee (a7822d)

  107. “But, lets argue about Metro ridership and mats on the Capitol Mall.”

    Shipwrecked you have been the beacon of reality in anything Patterico/Trump.

    Plz keep em coming.

    harkin (afc7a6)

  108. “AS WITH CNN’S THREAT TO DESTROY TRUMP’S IMAGE IN THE EYES OF THE WORLD, THIS WOULD MAKE IT DIFFERENT FROM HOW THEY TREATED EVERY REPUBLICAN IN MY LIFETIME, HOW? Obama Allies Working to Undermine Trump’s National Security Team.”

    https://pjmedia.com/instapundit/255199/

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  109. I don’t blame the Admin for wanting to pick a fight with the issue of unfair press coverage. Not sure this is the right fight to pick.

    The press sets itself up for this confrontation when it claims to be an honest broker and, in many ways, uses the First Amendment as a basis to claim for itself the extra-constitutional role of being another “check” in the checks and balances of the governmental structure.

    But its not, as the freedom of the press is reserved to the People, its not vested in media organizations. They want to be free of criticism by the government, as they find that to be “chilling”. Well, too bad, The First Amendment isn’t a coat to protect media organizations from a chill.

    The last election cycle, more than any previous election cycle, the press revealed themselves as a rooting partisan in the contest, and now they are clearly a mouthpiece for the opposition.

    They are going to have to live with the seat they have made for themselves.

    The Admin is in the process of establishing legitimacy for its press operation which is going to go around and over the establishment media. I think there are ton of changes to come in the press room, but Trump didn’t want to do it right off the bat.

    THere are 49 seats in the current press briefing room, and they are assigned by the WH Correspondents Association. Trump Admin: “This isn’t a union. We’ll decided who sits where.” Establishment media is going to lose a lot their spots, and more GOP friendly non-establishment media are going to move in. One pool video feed. Probably no “daily” press briefings — all while tweets fly out of the West Wing from Trump directly or the WH Comm. staff.

    The media established the rules for this game the way they covered Trump. He’s all about breaking norms and conventions in DC. Its a cold morning for the establishment media and they need to get used to it.

    shipwreckedcrew (56b591)

  110. In looking at the reporting a bit more, IMO this is so obviously a “set-up” by the WH that is comical how well the press fell for it.

    Spicer comes out, makes his comments, tosses out the claims about numbers and viewership, then leaves without taking questions.

    And 4 dozen journalists storm out to prove him wrong.

    LMAO.

    shipwreckedcrew (56b591)

  111. elissa, the point of the post isn’t about crowd size, it’s about lying, and choosing to do so in a very dumb, immediately disprovable way.

    Once again, Tillman is exactly right.

    Patterico (115b1f) — 1/21/2017 @ 11:22 pm

    DCSCA, I almost didn’t recognize our new First “Lady” at the inauguration, with her clothes on.

    Tillman (a95660) — 1/21/2017 @ 10:51 pm

    Hey Patterico,

    is Tillman exactly right about this quote? Or did you just choose to ignore him calling our new First Lady a whore?

    NJRob (43d957)

  112. Another lesson the Admin should take away from this — not only be more discerning about the topics you pick, but don’t do it on a Saturday. Now the fight is being amplified on the Sunday press shows, where the media controls the means and the distribution of how the fight gets reported.

    shipwreckedcrew (56b591)

  113. elissa, the point of the post isn’t about crowd size, it’s about lying, and choosing to do so in a very dumb, immediately disprovable way.

    Once again, Tillman is exactly right.

    Patterico (115b1f) — 1/21/2017 @ 11:22 pm

    DCSCA, I almost didn’t recognize our new First “Lady” at the inauguration, with her clothes on.

    Tillman (a95660) — 1/21/2017 @ 10:51 pm

    Hey Patterico,

    is Tillman exactly right about this quote? Or did you just choose to ignore him calling our new First Lady a “lady of the night?”

    NJRob (43d957) — 1/22/2017 @ 8:31 am

    NJRob (43d957)

  114. McCain and Graham both announce they are voting to confirm Tillerson.

    shipwreckedcrew (56b591)

  115. Someone figured it out:

    ABC News Chief white House Correspondent Jonathan Karl criticized Press Secretary Sean Spicer for uttering falsehoods at yesterday’s press briefing, but also cautioned the press in its approach to all this.

    On This Week today, Karl said, “In his very first appearance in the briefing room, Sean Spicer went in and he uttered at least three things that were demonstrably false.”

    But while he said that credibility matters for someone speaking on behalf of the White House, Karl did add this caveat:

    “We need to be careful as reporters and as journalists not to take the bait and not to get into an endless discussion about issues that are trivial. How many people, the crowd size––just not important.”

    Cokie Roberts agreed on not taking the bait, pointing out that this talk has distracted from and “minimized” the big women’s march yesterday.

    shipwreckedcrew (56b591)

  116. 114… good point, NJ Rob. Of course, if you consistently rely on CNN, WashPo and the NYT – which for consistency’s sake ought be thought to be as credible and the same birdcage lining as the LAT – you’ve set your personal standards low.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  117. “The media established the rules for this game the way they covered Trump.”

    They, much like Dr. Frankenstein, did not fully anticipate the final effects of their experiment on elevating the least likely to succeed. One might momentarily think them capable of assessing the actual political results of having done so with Obama but reflection upon their actual intellectual limitations should still the thought.

    I don’t see anything particularly wrong with the administration changing the seating arrangements for propagandists. Members of the Bootlicker and Shill Guild are still as free to bloviate and distort as they ever were.

    Rick Ballard (1c0700)

  118. Amongst my many sins, coronello, are not being unable to bear a grudge.

    http://www.nytimes.com/2003/04/11/opinion/the-news-we-kept-to-ourselves.html

    “The News We Kept To Ourselves

    By EASON JORDANAPRIL 11, 2003 “

    Steve57 (0b1dac)

  119. On another subject — Tulsi Gabbard has been convinced that she’s the next “non-traditional” democrat from Hawaii who should begin laying the groundwork to run for the WH.

    I fully expect her to be the VP candidate for whoever the Dems nominate for Pres in 2020, although she might mount a run herself if she gets the financial backing she’ll need. But she will be only 39 in 2020, so its likely going to be a stumbling block that she’s a bit young at this point. But she’ll be 43 in 2024, with the WH lacking an incumbent if Trump is reelected.

    She endorsed Sanders over Clinton.

    She resigned as vice-Chair of DNC after Wikileaks releases showing DNC favoritism towards Clinton.

    Surface Facts: Military veteran as member of Hawaii Nat. Guard. Originally enlisted, later commissioned as officer, and is now a Major. Did one tour in Iraq as a Lt. leading a MP Platoon.

    Has come out against the Wars in Iraq and Afghan, and is against further intervention by the US in Syria. Is currently on a “secret” “fact-finding” mission to Syria as a member of Congress. Very unusual since foreign fact-finding missions are usually done in groups, are lead by a Comm. Chair or Ranking Member, and normally take place only with the approval of the leadership of their party. Gabbard got none of those, the trip is being funded by an outside party, but it was approved by the House Ethics Comm as not involving any conflict of interest.

    Is half Samoan — Father from American Samoa, and mother from Indiana, where she was born. Raised in Hawaii since age 3. Thus, she can claim herself as a “Woman of Color” — at least to the same extent Elizabeth Warren can claim herself as an American Indian.

    I’ll leave it to other for now to dig out the more controversial aspects of Gabbard’s past.

    But lets just say that if what Jeff Sessions supposedly did or said 30-40 years ago is relevant to whether he’s too racially insensitive to be AG, Gabbard’s political past in Hawaii should cause her some trouble with left-wing democrat activist groups.

    shipwreckedcrew (56b591)

  120. It’s all about perception.

    The side-by-side NPS photos are said to have been taken about 45 min before Obama/Trump rose to the podium to speak at each inauguration. The Gigapixel 360 degree immersive panarama CNN put online that shows the crowd on the mall from the inaugural platform at the time he was looking out at the gathered crowd of his inaugural.

    The view from the stage to the Washington monument of the crowd on the mall appears different enough from the NPS photo that anyone would question the difference. Trump’s Inauguration Chair, Tom Barrack, just said he told Trump his coordinators estimated a crowd of 1 to 1.5 million. While both images show the same event the different perspectives lead to different perceptions. Barrack’s estimate seems reasonable from the stage POV but not from the NPS picture. That’s likely what’s motivating the over-aggressive pushback.

    Spicer’s likely wondering what he got himself into and likely wishing “John Baron” had taken the job but thankful that they managed to put the press into a feeding frenzy.

    crazy (d3b449)

  121. He made accurate complaints about tweets such as one about the bust of MLK being gone from the Oval Office.

    The explanation for that seems to be that somebody took (and released) a picture of Donald Trump in the Oval Office with members of his entourage, and, from the viewpoint of the camera, Jared Kushner was standing in front of the bust of Martin Luther King, thereby hiding it.

    Ari Fleicher:

    “This is called a statement you’re told to make by the President. And you know the President is watching.”

    It looks like that, especially because they say that he didn’t take any questions. I thought Donald trump said he didn’t want Yes men.

    “Obvious lies serve a purpose for an administration. They watch who challenges them, and who loyally repeats them. The people must watch, too.”

    That’s in Russia, or Communist Czechoslavakia (I think it was vaslav Havel who first offered this theory)

    Here the only people repeating the lies are people who work for Donald Trump.

    Saturday Night Live opened up wth Putin (without an undershirt) speaking – and one of the things that “Putin” said was that Donald Trump shouldn’t say suuch obvious lies as about the crowd.

    Sammy Finkelman (8a31dc)

  122. Elizabeth Warren can claim about as much Native American ancestry as I can. I hung out for a couple of Summers and went deer hunting twice with a young Navajo back in the late 60s.

    Clearly, Gabbard has the edge.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  123. …Surface Facts: Military veteran as member of Hawaii Nat. Guard. Originally enlisted, later commissioned as officer, and is now a Major. Did one tour in Iraq as a Lt. leading a MP Platoon.

    Has come out against the Wars in Iraq and Afghan, and is against further intervention by the US in Syria. Is currently on a “secret” “fact-finding” mission to Syria as a member of Congress. Very unusual since foreign fact-finding missions are usually done in groups, are lead by a Comm. Chair or Ranking Member, and normally take place only with the approval of the leadership of their party. Gabbard got none of those, the trip is being funded by an outside party, but it was approved by the House Ethics Comm as not involving any conflict of interest.

    Is half Samoan — Father from American Samoa, and mother from Indiana, where she was born. Raised in Hawaii since age 3. Thus, she can claim herself as a “Woman of Color” — at least to the same extent Elizabeth Warren can claim herself as an American Indian.

    I’ll leave it to other for now to dig out the more controversial aspects of Gabbard’s past…

    I’ve got nothing to compete with that pedigree.

    Steve57 (0b1dac)

  124. 18. happyfeet (28a91b) — 1/21/2017 @ 8:33 pm

    it’s for sure likely that food stamp would have drawn more locals to the mall and locals would be way more likely to use the subway

    This is obvious. Why is this a problem for Donald Trump? You would hope that somebody could point out the fallacy to Donald Trump.

    Sammy Finkelman (8a31dc)

  125. Those women with the funny hats should all call their Mother and thank her profusely for opting not to murder them with a vacuum cleaner while they were sleeping in the womb.

    Beyond that I don’t CAIR* what any of them have to say.

    They can all go fark themselves, and they probably have to.

    * Women’s March Organizer Recently Met Ex-Hamas Operative, Has Family Ties To Terror Group

    Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2017/01/21/womens-march-organizer-recently-met-ex-hamas-operative-has-family-ties-to-terror-group/#ixzz4WVmyH9Z5

    Here Are 17 Pictures From Inside The ‘Peaceful’ Protest On Inauguration Day

    Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2017/01/22/here-are-17-pictures-from-inside-the-peaceful-protest-on-inauguration-day/#ixzz4WVnZYXO4

    papertiger (c8116c)

  126. I’d like to see the before and after picture of the Mall after the crooks and liars mob had finished their riot, with the mall pictures from the Tea Party protests.

    Get on it.

    papertiger (c8116c)

  127. Saturday Night Live opened up wth Putin (without an undershirt) speaking – and one of the things that “Putin” said was that Donald Trump shouldn’t say suuch obvious lies as about the crowd.

    Sammy Finkelman (8a31dc) — 1/22/2017 @ 9:12 am

    ===================================

    That sounds about their level. They’re the modern equivalent of a washed up Catskills comedian. Judy Tenuta would be the star of this bunch.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  128. You would hope that somebody could point out the fallacy to Donald Trump.

    I’ll talk to him

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  129. Now they are talking about alt-facts. God help us.

    Kevin M (25bbee)

  130. Bet you there were more people at the Taxpayer’s March of 2009 (which filled the Mall and surrounding park areas) than at the Women’s March. For some reason though MSM estimates of the two marches infer the opposite.

    Kevin M (25bbee)

  131. Taxpayer’s March crowd: go to 3:20 for a pan of the crowd.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1UULBKgxRGk

    Kevin M (25bbee)

  132. In looking at the reporting a bit more, IMO this is so obviously a “set-up” by the WH that is comical how well the press fell for it.

    Spicer comes out, makes his comments, tosses out the claims about numbers and viewership, then leaves without taking questions.

    And 4 dozen journalists storm out to prove him wrong.

    LMAO.

    shipwreckedcrew (56b591) — 1/22/2017 @ 8:23 am

    I’ll need some clarification: Are you referring to the presser, President Trump bringing it up at the CIA, what? I ask because what I saw (in order of occurrence) was this, and the White House didn’t appear to set the course of action:

    *NYT posted front-page article and side-by-side photos comparing the size of Trump’s and Obama’s Inauguration Days.

    *CNN reported on it as well.

    *Department of the Interior tweeted about it (and then the account was suspended by the White House afterward because of that tweet and one about Climate Change being removed from WH website.)

    *Trump discussed crowd size in front of the CIA Memorial Wall.

    *Spicer held presser and talked about it.

    From that, it would appear that Trump was baited by Big Media, and, as expected, he responded in Pavlovean manner, and denied it was true. Just like they knew he would.

    Here is a link to a timeline.

    Trump is definitely right when he says he is at war with the media. And I am glad he is. With that, I certainly hope he can work as equally hard to ensure the existence of a free media as much as will at holding their feet to the fire. However, I don’t believe lying right out of the get is a good way to approach it. And it sets a bad precedent. He has to get smart about this.

    Dana (023079)

  133. why do we assume the obviously-biased fat-ass pension piggies at the DC Mass Transit headquarters are remotely capable of telling the truth

    they’re trashy lying filth-pigs what can’t even repair an escalator

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  134. shipwreckedcrew (56b591) — 1/22/2017 @ 7:14 am

    Obama’s 2 inaugurations were on a Monday and Tuesday. 2013 actually fell on a Sunday, so it took place on Monday, 1/21.

    January 20, 2009 was the day after Martin Luther King Day (which always falls on a Monday) and was a legal holiday, and I think Inauguration Day is a legal holiday also (in the District of Columbia)

    What else happened yesterday that had the potential for fireworks?? Oh yeah, the Senate decided to slow-walk Mike Pompeo’s nomination to the CIA, and Trump visited CIA HQ in Langley after a stunning 4 weeks which had the IC in almost open revolt against the Pres.Elect at the time.

    Trump denied there was a fued, and said the whole idea of a fued was an invention of the lying media, and said that was the reason this was his first stop.

    The New York Times in its second most important headline, said that was one of his two falsehoods yesterday (the other being about the size of the crowd at the mall)

    Trump said they caught the media in a beauty because they used pictures of an empty field. He told the crowd he felt no older than 39 (like Jack Benny you could say except that maybe you have to be as old as Donald Trump to remember that Jack Benny joke firsthand and live) said that probably everybody in that room voted for him but he wasn’t going to ask for a show of hands, and said he was a smart person.

    Sammy Finkelman (03c829)

  135. what did one lying incompetent DC transit pig say to the other?

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  136. hey you gonna finish that twinkie?

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  137. On this, we can all agree:

    Why does everyone hate media? Compare “conservative obstruction” narrative to “progressive resistance” narrative and there’s your answer.

    Dana (023079)

  138. Dana: “If he was indeed told to do it by his boss and he knew that the boss was watching”

    …he found out even his boss didn’t like what he did.

    According to the New York Times, he thought Spicer went too far.

    https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/21/us/politics/trump-white-house-briefing-inauguration-crowd-size.html

    But most of his remarks were devoted to attacking the news media. And Mr. Spicer picked up the theme later in the day in the White House briefing room. But his appearance, according to the people familiar with Mr. Trump’s thinking, went too far, in the president’s opinion.

    Donald Trump was not impressed.

    Sammy Finkelman (03c829)

  139. That’s an interesting link, Sammy. Thanks. I’d like to know who the people familiar with Mr. Trump’s thinking are. Also, what an odd way to describe them? Not staff members, sources close to the President, old colleagues, etc., but people familiar with his thinking…

    Dana (023079)

  140. #137 mr happyfeet, an alternative answer might be, “as public employees, we can have our twinkie and eat it, too

    Cruz Supporter (102c9a)

  141. At the end of the day, these two observations are simultaneously valid:

    1. Spicer’s false claims were just that.

    and,

    2. Big Media again demonstrated their hypocrisy by jumping on him about the false claims while at the same time, having spent 8 years ignoring the falsehoods of President Obama (IRS targeting of private citizens, Iran ransom deal, You can keep your doctor, etc., etc.). Those falsehoods which involved the targeting of private citizens, putting American lives at risk, and the complete corruption of government.

    Dana (023079)

  142. 1. Spicer’s false claims were just that.

    his point that the cnn anderson cooper propaganda slut media was frantically obsessed with diminishing Mr. Trump’s inaugural was 100% valid

    and good for him

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  143. 140 — I think “people familiar with his thinking” is going to come to be code-words for Ivanka, Jared, Don Jr., and Eric.

    shipwreckedcrew (56b591)

  144. does anyone really belief the lazy incompetent DC Transit trash would’ve done those tweeters if the diseased criminal stinkypig had won

    i’ve searched my heart and no

    i do not belief they would have

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  145. Dana (023079) — 1/22/2017 @ 10:01 am

    people familiar with his thinking…

    That could mean Sean Spicer.

    Or somebody else who works in the White House.

    Even Donald Trump himself, but that’s not likely. Vice President Pence, if they saw him?

    People sounds like there was more than one source, unless that source was either Sean Spicer or Donald Trump.

    Sammy Finkelman (03c829)

  146. if you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor. period.

    Cruz Supporter (102c9a)

  147. Remember, Spicer is Priebus’ guy from the RNC.

    shipwreckedcrew (56b591)

  148. And Donald Trump’s reaction, even if it was disapproval, cod be being mischaracterized, because it is probably at least second hand. Maybe the problem was that Sean Spicer was not convincing. Or that he stuck on a point, like maybe subway fares, that he shouldn’t ahve insisted on.

    Sammy Finkelman (03c829)

  149. Priebus also acts scared and hesitant, maybe not as bad as before.

    Sammy Finkelman (03c829)

  150. fast and furious began during the bush administration

    Cruz Supporter (102c9a)

  151. my father left us when i was two years old

    Cruz Supporter (102c9a)

  152. Priebus ate Chris Wallace’s lunch today, Sammeh. He even told him to take it back to the kitchen for more seasoning and a better presentation.

    Colonel Haiku (ec41b2)

  153. “There’s no 3-D chess behind the crowd size kerfuffle. DJT hates anyone saying his is smaller than someone else’s.”

    https://twitter.com/justkarl/status/823053481154121729

    Never attribute to 3-D chess that which is adequately explained by Trump’s ego.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  154. The White House press corps has spent eight years accepting any and everything that Barack’s press secretaries have fed them, but now they’re turning over a new leaf and they’re going to go to the mat fighting about the size of a crowd. (LOL)

    Cruz Supporter (102c9a)

  155. The inauguration suffered a similar fate as the release of Patriots Day a week earlier. Neither side wants to make themself a target for the other sude, so both stay home.

    urbanleftbehind (847a06)

  156. But most of his remarks were devoted to attacking the news media. And Mr. Spicer picked up the theme later in the day in the White House briefing room. But his appearance, according to the people familiar with Mr. Trump’s thinking, went too far, in the president’s opinion.

    They’ve already picked someone too throw under the bus. Guess they didn’t like being called out on their lies.

    I am a good conservative who does not believe that because it is the New York Times and the sources are anonymous. I have been taught to be skeptical in such cases.

    Am I about to be told the opposite now?

    Patterico (115b1f)

  157. Mr. Spicer’s a good pickle I don’t think he lied

    it’s possible he had bad data but lying no way

    it’s just not his style

    I love so much though how he’s demonstrated how creepy enthusiastic and vile the NPR propaganda slut media have been about pissing all over President Trump’s noggerate

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  158. 154 — agree with the host here. Trump’s ego is a big part of his over-reaction to press, and his view of negative spin. He isn’t served by sychophants that reinforce that view, he needs some clear headed advisers who tell him to ignore these kinds of things and move on. Like I said, not the right fight to pick.

    shipwreckedcrew (56b591)

  159. I’m reminded of the scene from Animal House where Pinto has a Devil on one shoulder and an Angel on the other, giving him conflicting advice on what to do with the half-naked mayor’s daughter passed out in his bed.

    Bannon is the devil on one of Trump’s shoulders, and Preibus is the Angel on the other, giving him advice on how to respond to press negativity.

    shipwreckedcrew (56b591)

  160. if the NPR propaganda slut media decides to obsess on crowd size they’re doing it for a reason

    not pushing back is what low energy dynastic filthboy Jeb Bush would’ve done

    and the American people emphatically decided not to elect low energy dynastic filthboy Jeb Bush

    ergo sum totum x-acto knife hello

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  161. while y’all discussing this you missed another important story:

    Former Secretary Of State John Kerry And His Dog Attend Women’s March…

    Heh, I know what you’re thinking, but it really was his yellow lab they were talking about.

    http://www.weaselzippers.us/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Kerry-and-dog-204×300.jpg

    elissa (95326c)

  162. He came across as shaky and nervous, and was obviously reading off a prepared script.

    He would have been better served by pointing out that this was the first inauguration that had a determined, organized mob dedicated to keeping people from attending, and in the name of that rioted, beat people, set fires, and smashed storefronts.

    I hope Spicer gets better with practice. And I trust he’ll have plenty of practice.

    Jenos The Deplorable (e7ffd8)

  163. I was promised an M16. It was supposed to be just laying around here, somewhere. Shortly after da h3ll breaking loose.

    Steve57 (0b1dac)

  164. while y’all discussing this you missed another important story…

    Heh, I know what you’re thinking, but it really was his yellow lab they were talking about.

    elissa (95326c) — 1/22/2017 @ 11:15 am

    Some Sailors embarrass their Navy, some owners embarrass their dogs, if there’s a triple crown for embarrassment John Kerry has cornered the market.

    Steve57 (0b1dac)

  165. former president barack tweeted that he and moochelle are taking a “quick” vacation, but then after that they’ll get back to work fighting against the american people.

    it’s a two week vacation — that’s not very quick.
    especially considering they just returned from a two week vacation three weeks ago.

    Cruz Supporter (102c9a)

  166. How to recognize John Kerry in retirement.

    He’ll be the guy walking the dog wearing the “I’m with stupid” T-shirt.

    Steve57 (0b1dac)

  167. Steve57 and elissa, I just wish John F Kerry would finally spill the beans about the CIA guy with the magic hat on Christmas.

    Cruz Supporter (102c9a)

  168. Good lord, Troy Aiken needs to see a doctor, he’s looking like a candidate for a stroke or a massive heart attack. He was a shade of purple as he sat next to Joe Buck on my Sony… and I checked the Visio in the master bedroom, same story.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  169. “Halp us Jon Carry I az iz in Irak?”

    A sign, held by a brazilian people smarter than John Kerry.

    Steve57 (0b1dac)

  170. Steve57 and elissa, I just wish John F Kerry would finally spill the beans about the CIA guy with the magic hat on Christmas.

    Cruz Supporter (102c9a) — 1/22/2017 @ 11:56 am

    I know the Mekong Delta like the back of my hand. Spent Christmas there once, doncha know.

    Steve57 (0b1dac)

  171. No CD, wide receiver, which had trackers that failed in some instances. Whereas fast and furious does not.

    narciso (d1f714)

  172. Whatever you do, don’t let Jon Carry in on the secret.

    Brazilian isn’t a number.

    Steve57 (0b1dac)

  173. Theresa Heinz Kerry is a number, but Brazilian isn’t.

    Steve57 (0b1dac)

  174. I would say Theresa Heinz Kerry’s bank account is a number, but she isn’t. (LOL)

    Cruz Supporter (102c9a)

  175. It was martin sheen in apocalypse now.

    narciso (d1f714)

  176. Ride of the Valkries.

    Steve57 (0b1dac)

  177. The indrndent journal review shows the thrushery being expounded.

    narciso (d1f714)

  178. if you like your wagner, you can keep your wagner

    Cruz Supporter (102c9a)

  179. In another step down into the rabbit hole: Conway explains lies away, citing “alternative facts.”

    Tillman (a95660)

  180. Here’s a second source of the crowd size as captured by the Trump Inaugural Live Stream from Matt Viser (Boston Globe) on Twitter that shows a much different picture of the crowd than the NPS side-by-side comparison the media’s pushing. The Gigapixel interactive lets you pan and zoom from the media platform and also shows a much larger crowd. It also shows the cameras set up on the “mezzanine” and “crows nest” levels of the capital dome above the stage, one of which is probably the Inaugural Live Stream.

    Trump always complains about the press not swinging the camera around to show the size of the crowd. In this case he may be wrong about the number but right that the NPS side-by-side picture being used by the media is not what the crowd looked like when he was sworn in. Look for yourself.

    crazy (d3b449)

  181. I wanted to mention it earlier. The original Sammy B. was launched on, was sponsored by Mrs. Roberts, on 20 January 1944.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Samuel_B._Roberts_(FFG-58)#/media/File:US_Navy_070409-N-5459S-109_Oliver_Hazard_Perry-class_frigate_USS_Samuel_B._Roberts_(FFG_58)_navigates_in_the_Caribbean_Sea_during_an_exercise.jpg

    “No Higher Honor”
    As a veteran of the last the Sammy B. later said:

    I’m pleased and deeply honored to be invited to speak to you today about Leadership and Survival. Like most professional surface warriors, they’re two topics very close to my heart. I want to thank Bill Erickson and the Surface Navy Association for inviting me. I know that Paul Rinn, my CO in the SAMMY B, regrets being unable to attend, but I’ll do my best to talk about my experiences on that great ship and some of the enduring lessons that I think you’ll be able to apply to your jobs on the waterfront and hopefully, beyond.

    Needless to say, the experience of the mining did much to shape my career and my life in ways that were sometimes quite obvious, and other times quite subtle. At the time of the action, and in its immediate aftermath, I felt many different emotions. It was a life altering experience, and I tried hard to approach it rationally and to keep it in perspective. It was obvious that we, as a crew, had performed very, very well. We had done more than just survive; we saved our ship to fight another day. In the end, as American fighting men and women, that’s what it’s really all about when you take a hit. But why did we do more than survive? What made us able to pull it together at the right time in the right place? Well, as I thought about it in the aftermath, it was clear there were actually many factors. There were the basics of doctrine, organization, training, professional education, manning, and equipment. As a Navy, then and now, we are second to none in this basic “blocking and tackling” of putting a modern navy to sea. But along with the basics of being properly trained and equipped, there was definitely something different about the “SAMMY B”… there was a spirit in that crew: a deep down sense that we were special, that nothing could beat us, that we really were the best at what we did. Where did that spirit come from? Were we some unique combination of brains, talent and skill that just happened to aggregate at that point in space and time by luck or intelligent design? As professionals, you all know the real answer. It was all about leadership.

    I’m not going to tell you all the entire detailed story of the SAMMY B and the mining and its aftermath. You have Brad Peniston here today, and I want to publicly thank and commend Brad on the outstanding job he has done in telling the third SAMMY B’s story in his great book “No Higher Honor”. It is exceptionally accurate and does a great job in capturing many of the elements that gave the ship its spirit. If you have not read it, I highly recommend it to you. It’s a wonderful story of a great ship that through superb leadership, survives a devastating blow without the loss of a single life. I’ll leave the details to the book, and I will try to do my best to offer my perspectives on that key ingredient of leadership, and the role it played in that particular ship.

    As I said, there were many factors that went into making the third SAMMY B a successful ship. We were blessed with a true DC zealot in our commissioning DCA, Lt. Eric Sorensen. But where did this DC zealot come from? Was he born from a Perijet eductor, or a P-250 pump? No, as Brad accurately portrays in the book, Eric had no initial interest in damage control. His strength came from his ability to focus, and I mean focus, bore sight his energy and enthusiasm to do the very best at whatever job he was given. Those of you leading at sea know very well how valuable a quality that is on a warship. However, you also know well how such a quality can have a down side. Eric was not universally loved on the ship. He was not a charismatic leader. When he bore-sighted on something like damage control training, it could be to the exclusion of all else. He was a downright pain in the ass! He was a pain in the ass to everyone, especially me as the chief engineer and damage control officer! So how did Eric end up as DCA on the SAMMY B? Well, go figure – Eric’s first commanding officer recognized his qualities, despite his drawbacks, and recommended him to Paul Rinn. Paul Rinn took stock of these qualities and gave him the toughest Divo job aboard ship: DCA. Again, as Brad so accurately depicts, Paul Rinn was no damage control guru. He had no particular interest in it other than he knew that it would be a crucial and essential building block for the ship’s initial success and its ultimate ability to fight and survive in combat. I didn’t recognize it implicitly at the time in Paul Rinn, but I later realized he was demonstrating one of the essential fundamentals of leadership: taking stock of each individual’s strengths and weaknesses and making the most of those strengths while using the team to minimize the weakness. The ability to clearly recognize those strengths, take stock of them and put them to use for the team is an essential leadership quality and certainly a key to survival. By the way, it won’t surprise some of you elders in the audience, that that first CO to recognize those strengths in Eric on his first ship was none other than VADM Hank Giffen, a great surface warfare leader in his own right.

    The captain had a great ability to get the most out of each and every member of the crew. That’s certainly a crucial element of leadership, but obviously there was more to building that spirit that made the ship. In its simple way, Webster’s tells us that to lead is to go ahead so as to show the way. Well, Paul Rinn recognized early that to show the way ahead, history would prove an invaluable ally. As the old saying goes, you can’t get where you’re going if you don’t know where you’ve been. In this case, SAMMY B was fortunate to have a name so rich in history for spirit and heroism. For those of you that have read the work of our other author with us today, Jim Hornfischer’s “Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors”, you know well of the remarkable story of raw guts and fighting spirit that the original SAMMY B showed as she fought Japanese cruisers and battleships off Samar Island at the Battle of Leyte Gulf, ultimately sinking and leaving her survivors to sharks and exposure for days before their rescue. Paul Rinn knew the story well and he did his best to immerse the crew in it before and after commissioning. He had many of the original survivors as a part of the commissioning ceremony and more importantly, he would bring them to sea with us at every opportunity. I can remember them sitting on the mess decks and telling their stories for hours to the crew. This had an immense impact on our crew. They not only sucked up every bit of wisdom they could from these old guys, but more importantly they took the flame of a spirit that was passed to them, a sense that they were a part of something much bigger, more important than themselves. They were a part of a fighting legacy, an indomitable history of courage and success. I only wish we’d had Jim’s great book to really illustrate it, but those old guys on the mess decks did a pretty good job on their own. I would enjoin each of you to look back as much as forward and attempt to draw on the lessons of history that can guide you and inspire your crew.

    As I’ve reflected on the success of the third SAMMY B, I’ve often thought that we also had a lot of luck on our side. As Bath Iron Works was finishing the ship’s construction prior to commissioning, the yard went on strike. However, despite the virtual halt to all work on the ship, the commissioning crew continued to arrive. Usually, an FFG under construction received her crew in increments that arrived all the way up until commissioning. This could be nerve-wracking as the earlier arrivals and core leadership had very little time to train and integrate the new arrivals, many of whom were very green, fresh out of boot camp or A School. In this case, the delay of the strike was a boon to the leadership. New crew members continued to arrive on the original time schedule and we made the most of it. Contractually, we were unable to work on the ship, but we sure could train. Not only did we roam our entire ship, we roamed throughout the others in various states of construction, conducting DC scavenger hunts and rallies and competitions to test each other’s knowledge of not just damage control, but the entire layout of the ship. This created a remarkable sense of competition and enthusiasm in the crew. Everyone wanted to show their expertise and try to stump their buddies on facts and layouts that seemed trivial to some, but proved invaluable when we really needed it. This competition and enthusiasm continued after commissioning and work-ups with more scavenger hunts and blind-folded egress drills, as well as the normal GQ’s and fire drills. The crew genuinely seemed to enjoy these, no matter how onerous they got, and I’ve already told you that the DCA did not have a lovable personality. You see, each sailor really loved knowing his ship and knowing his job. We just had to supply the data, and they ate it up! Every crewmember carried two small books, one in each back pocket. The “little red book”, the Main Space Fire Doctrine was in his left pocket, and the “little blue book,” containing general DC info and ship’s plans, was in his right pocket. Armed with the reference material close at hand, they continued to amaze all inspectors and trainers. I’m not saying they were perfect angels, but I will say that they taught me that we rarely tap the true potential of our people, and when we do come close it’s more than we could ever expect. By the time they got to GITMO, they couldn’t wait to take on ATG and show them what they knew. Their favorite was the Mass Conflagration Drill when all the canned drills no longer mattered and you had to rely on your innate knowledge of the ship to improvise. This is when the training really showed.

    So what really happened with the strike? Was it just the luck of opportune timing and some much needed breathing room to train? Or was it something bigger than that? Somehow, with some well applied skill and enthusiasm in the leaders themselves, we had tapped into a gold mine, that vein of unlimited potential that lies within the heart of the American Bluejacket. Upon further reflection, I realized that while luck helps, it takes much more to achieve success with a crew or any team. If as a leader, you can find a way to unleash the enthusiasm and natural desire to excel that lies within each and every sailor, than you’ll achieve success no matter how your luck turns out.

    As you can probably see by now, the Captain, the wardroom and CPO Mess laid the groundwork early for reacting to the events of 14 April 1988

    Steve57 (0b1dac)

  182. How many foreigners watched the livestream on the internet?

    noway (2640f4)


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