Patterico's Pontifications

4/28/2018

No, Criticizing Trump Is Not the Ticket to Fame and Fortune

Filed under: General — Patterico @ 12:15 pm



Yesterday, several writers were fired from RedState. All of them were fierce Trump critics. While some Trump critics remain at the site, no Trump supporters were fired.

A common reaction to this news goes like this: No problem! Trump haters can get a job anywhere they want! They can just go to ABC, NBC, CBS, NYT, WaPo, LAT, CNN, or any number of other places! The claim is made that opposing Trump is somehow a resume enhancer.

This is wrong, and I thought I’d set aside some time to quote Erick Erickson at length about just how wrong it is:

When I uninvited Donald Trump from the RedState Gathering in 2015, I got death threats, harassment, and also saw the more than 30,000 people unsubscribe from the daily email I was sending at the time. That 30,000 came in only a few weeks.

After saying that I could not support the man for President, I pretty much ensured my days filling in on national talk radio were over for the time being. But not only that, it also played a part in disrupting my career advancement in talk radio to some degree. My bosses were quite worried about my own show, which is significant given its time slot. A few things that seemed just on the horizon have disappeared for now. Thankfully, though, God was watching over me and I’m actually in a stronger position now than before. More on that in a minute.

Over the course of the campaign in 2016, we had people show up at our home to threaten us. We had armed guards at the house for a while. My kids were harassed in the store. More than once they came home in tears because other kids were telling them I was going to get killed or that their parents hated me. I got yelled at in the Atlanta airport while peeing by some angry Trump supporter.

We got harassed in church and stopped going for a while. A woman in a Bible study told my wife she wanted to slap me across the face My seminary got calls from people demanding I be expelled. And on and on it went. When I nearly died in 2016, I got notes from people upset I was still alive. When I announced my wife had an incurable form of lung cancer, some cheered. All were directed from supposedly evangelical Trump supporters convinced God was punishing me for not siding with his chosen one. For a while, given the nature of what we were getting in the mail, my kids had to stop checking it.

When my Fox contract came up, not only did I not want to stay, but Fox made clear they had no use for me. I had jumped from CNN to Fox with a number of promises made, none of which were kept and then wound up hardly ever getting on. After saying I could not support Trump, the purpose of my Fox contract became more about keeping me off anyone’s television screen than putting me on. When I did go on in 2016, I frequently found myself getting called a traitor by some Trump humping celebrity. After the election, that stopped, but most of my appearances did too except from a few kind producers with whom I had become friends.

I have no TV contract now and have literally been on more in the past three three months than in the past year at Fox, though all of it unpaid. Of course, much of the rest of the media prefers Republicans who will only blast the GOP and I don’t do that anymore than mindlessly praise Trump.

Compare that to the soul-searching that Ace of Spades did when he contemplated the future direction of his blog:

Some time ago I faced the choice of doing an anti-Trump-but-pro-conservative blog, or getting on board with Trump. (The latter turned out to be easier than I thought, as the idea of President Hillary Clinton got my partisan dander up.)

But when I was contemplating the idea of a blog that was allegedly pro-conservative while simultaneously being against the key player (flaws and all) of the actual on-the-ground real-world conservative movement, I realized: This makes no sense.

What’s the audience for that? How many readers would that attract?

. . . .

The old expression for this “a feathered fish” — a feathered fish can’t fly, and the feathers weight it down so that it also can’t swim. It’s a blend of two inconsistent things that results in a non-viable hybrid for which there is little audience.

Eh. I think (and long thought) this business model was non-viable but I don’t wish any ill on the fired people and I hope they can find jobs somewhere.

But I still think that, on strictly practical terms, they really have to decide if they’re birds or fish if they want to get anywhere.

I’ve bolded that last part, with the phrase “get anywhere,” because I think it’s central to Ace’s world view.

By “get anywhere” Ace means “get clicks” — which translate to money in the “business model” that he describes. Ace is refreshingly forthright here, which is what I like about Ace at his best: he’ll be brutally honest about some things that other people wouldn’t. He’s not talking about his message primarily in terms of what he believes; his primary focus is economic. And the message is: if you want a lot of readers, you gotta be on the Trump train. Of course, once you make that decision, you can easily rationalize the various ways in which you ignore or minimize the dumb stuff Trump does. After all, you’re just being hard-headed and realistic — much in the same way that settling with a convicted bomber and perjurer like Brett Kimberlin, which Ace also did, can be viewed as a hard-headed and realistic decision when the alternative looks costly or risky.

Like Ace, Erick Erickson also depends on audience for his income. He made a different choice, and it’s not working out well for him financially. But even though he struggles to make ends meet, he seems at peace with his decision — because for him, what it means to “get anywhere” is different from what Ace means.

What Erick is doing is far more admirable than what I’m doing. It’s relatively easy for me to just say what I believe. Sure, my comments section fills up with vitriol from people disappointed that I won’t jump on board. But, unlike Erick, I don’t depend on my political punditry to make my living. The money from RedState in particular was nice, and made things easier, but we’ll eat and pay our mortgage without it.

But don’t pretend that my saying what I think is financially positive, or a “resume enhancer.” Of course it’s not. Many readers have left, because they simply can’t deal with the fact that I regularly criticize Trump.

By the way, I often see people try to justify their abandoning me on grounds more principled than “I don’t like it when you criticize Trump.” That sounds silly, so they come up with various rationalizations. But those rationalizations are all provably false. For instance, people will say things like: You seem to insult everyone who supports Trump! So then I go and dig up posts where I said I respect people who voted for Trump:

I have always said — always — that I fully understood why someone would vote Trump in a general election against Hillary Clinton. (If you voted for him in the primaries, that’s a different discussion entirely.) I’ve never criticized a general election vote for Trump. I’ve never criticized the people who cast that vote. . . . I respect people who cast a vote for Donald Trump to avoid Hillary Clinton becoming President.

Then they say: OK, but you never ever praise Donald Trump for what he does right! So then I go dig up my posts where I praise him for what he did right, like nominating Gorsuch:

Tonight, I am proud of President Trump, without reservation.

Or other issues:

[S]o far, he’s been more conservative than I expected. Much of that is the flag-waving I-love-a-parade brand of conservatism that doesn’t excite me much, but a sizable chunk is real conservatism: almost (almost) uniformly excellent judges, reduction of regulation, etc. Notably, so far — as long as he doesn’t get us into a stupid war — his policies have been a clear improvement on what we would have gotten from a Hillary Clinton.

Again:

[T]here’s plenty to like. The executive order on immigration, while concededly poorly thought through and chaotically rolled out, is a fulfillment of an important campaign promise to keep our country safe. He has made an incredibly solid Supreme Court pick. Many of his cabinet picks have been encouraging. And he seems to be taking steps to rein in regulations, even if his manner in doing so has been ham-handed and ridiculous.

Much of the praise is mixed in with criticism. And that’s the part that the flouncers don’t like. They simply can’t handle reading criticism of Trump.

So why do I keep doing it when a lot of people don’t like it?

The answer is pretty simple. I say what I think. Sure, I criticize Trump far, far more often than I praise him. Why? Because I think he deserves criticism far, far more often than he deserves praise. I still think he is unfit to be president — morally, intellectually, and temperamentally. That’s what I actually think. So, I just say what I think.

Saying what I actually think hasn’t gotten me a “gig” at the New York Times or CNN. It is not a resume enhancer. In the end, it has gotten me fired from RedState. Make no mistake: that’s going to be a hit to my pocketbook, at a time when I am sending my first child to college. But it’s nothing like the financial difficulties that Erick Erickson is going through — or that people like Susan Wright and Caleb Howe, also fired for criticizing Trump, are going through. Those folks depended on that income, and now they have to find something else.

But the one thing I can say about Erick, and that I can also say about everyone else who was fired yesterday, is that their view of what it means to “get anywhere” is not about getting clicks or eyeballs or TV appearances. It’s about saying what they believe and letting the chips fall where they may. That is not a popular position, but it’s the position they chose.

And it’s not a position that makes them rich. So stop claiming that what they did is easy. It isn’t. It just isn’t.

[Cross-posted at The Jury Talks Back.]

711 Responses to “No, Criticizing Trump Is Not the Ticket to Fame and Fortune”

  1. Ding.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  2. KBO.

    Karl (fa2c21)

  3. Meghan McCain’s little star has done nothing but rise and rise and she’s a pretty hateful person

    but my hunch is The View gig was part of the pay-off for daddy’s obamacare vote

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  4. @aceofspadessac: “If they want to go anywhere”. I appreciate Ace of Spade’s honesty here, because for many in RW Infotainment, it’s less about promulgating and defending conservative principles, values, & policies than it is about flinging red meat to their Trump-friendly audience for clicks, conferences, careers, & cash.

    Marshall Locke (8d0eca)

  5. KBO.

    Wonderful to see Karl in the comments!

    Patterico (115b1f)

  6. Then they say: OK, but you never ever praise Donald Trump for what he does right! So then I go dig up my posts where I praise him for what he did right, like nominating Gorsuch:

    Tonight, I am proud of President Trump, without reservation.

    Oh, come on! You have also said that Trump doesn’t care about the courts and outsources his nominations to the Federalist Society. Taken together, that is no praise. You are unable to just give him credit for getting his judicial nominations right. You give the compliment grudgingly, and then take it back with vicious swipes that are not supported by any evidence.

    Of course, you are entitled to your opinion, and have every right to express it on your own blog. But, please, don’t pretend you are someone who is willing to praise the good when you see it. For you, every column is an opportunity to find a place to stick the knife in.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  7. It’s about saying what they believe and letting the chips fall where they may.

    I find this a little dubious Mr. Patterico and I will tell you why.

    The anti-trump never-trump we-hate-trump posture is so drearily uniform from writer to writer to writer. And it’s all pretty easily distilled down to where people just shrug and say haters gonna hate. I know I sure do.

    That’s why i think this posture is much much more about social positioning than it is about any particular set of principles.

    So…

    Are Trump stalwarts like Mr. Ace and your humble pikachu also engaging in a social positioning exercise as well?

    Yes yes, we are indeed!

    But I think you can make some distinctions, and the firstish and foremoster distinction I would make is this:

    President Trump is our president, duly elected, and his victory is universally understood in America and around the whirl as representing a rejection of the corrupt establishment of both parties.

    And it was wholly unexpected, and it’s a profoundly hopeful and positive turn of events.

    Just knowing that it’s possible to pry some portion of our government out of the hands of snotty corrupt harvardtrash elitists – this is a beautiful time for America, and I think much of what animates Trump stalwarts is a celebration of this amazing victory over corruption and credentialism and snobbery.

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  8. hi Karl! i wondered if that was you nice to see you I hope you’re enjoying these lovely spring days

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  9. Anybody threatening EE short of him trying to physically trespass in their home is flat out ridiculous. Having said that…

    Who was it who said if you can’t see the product the product is you? The government has a role in protecting anti-trump vendors like EE, absolutely. He should be able to bring his product to market without being hijacked by thugs. But the free market promises no man a living if demand dries up. Rush Limbaugh claims his show grew in D or R administrations. I guess he’s No True Conservative though.

    There’s a lot of truck driving schools in Atlanta. A guy can make $80,000 a year. That’s not crumbs is it? I keep my CDL UTD in case I want to say something negative about Marcia Blackburn.

    Pinandpuller (f617ec)

  10. Oh, come on! You have also said that Trump doesn’t care about the courts and outsources his nominations to the Federalist Society. Taken together, that is no praise. You are unable to just give him credit for getting his judicial nominations right. You give the compliment grudgingly, and then take it back with vicious swipes that are not supported by any evidence.

    As I said, I mixed the praise with criticism. I believe all of it. It’s the criticism that makes you cry.

    The notion that there is no evidence to support the claim that Trump is uninterested in his judicial nominations is ludicrous. But you are going to believe what you want to believe, regardless of the clear facts right in front of your nose — the defining characteristic of the biggest Trump fans.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  11. You seem to want to have a debate and are hunting for strawmen and punching them. I’m sorry you lost the crosspost outlet but who cares?

    This sort of thing happens in the blogosphere all the time. I didn’t even follow RedState. Total inside baseball. Way better things to talk/worry about.

    Anonymous (d41cee)

  12. But, please, don’t pretend you are someone who is willing to praise the good when you see it. For you, every column is an opportunity to find a place to stick the knife in.

    I provided several examples right there in the post. Praising the good is exactly what I did. I’m not “pretending” to do anything. I actually did it and provided proof. You just can’t take the fact that the good doesn’t suddenly make me a convert who thinks he can do no wrong. It enrages you that, as I cheerfully admitted, the praise is mixed with criticism.

    But don’t PRETEND that I never praise the man. That’s just dishonest. And you’re not dishonest, are you?

    Patterico (115b1f)

  13. The notion that there is no evidence to support the claim that Trump is uninterested in his judicial nominations is ludicrous.

    What evidence? Anything factual, like quotes from Trump himself?

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  14. Vintage Patterico. Well said.

    DRJ (15874d)

  15. You seem to want to have a debate and are hunting for strawmen and punching them. I’m sorry you lost the crosspost outlet but who cares?

    A lot of people. Many articles across several major media outlets yesterday. A single tweet I posted about it as received 1,361,294 impressions.

    This sort of thing happens in the blogosphere all the time. I didn’t even follow RedState. Total inside baseball. Way better things to talk/worry about.

    “Anonymous” has spoken, everyone! Nothing to see here!

    Patterico (115b1f)

  16. What evidence? Anything factual, like quotes from Trump himself?

    Nope, just a bunch of stuff that partisan hacks like you would discount. It’s not worth my time to prove it to you if you haven’t been able to figure it out by now. You probably think he reads books too.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  17. I deeply respect everyone who has chosen to speak out against Trump at a time when it could cost them their job to do so, or leave them in financial difficulty. That is real integrity…in an era when integrity is quite rare. People may mock their principles all they want, but look what happened to America when we as a nation abandoned our principles: progressivism began driving our culture. If we on the Right want to be just like the Left, only 30 years behind them in our level of corruption, we should continue on this path of abandoning principle in order to win. That will only drag America down. Those who want to make America great again need to understand that America is only great because it is good. It will no longer be great once we abandon the principles that made us good in the first place. This is why I have never supported Trump, although I am a conservative, and completely agree with Patterico. It has cost me friends but it hasn’t cost me my livelihood, so I cannot complain.

    LJ (9188cd)

  18. Way better things to talk/worry about.

    Anonymous (d41cee) — 4/28/2018 @ 12:44 pm

    Heh. But it’s a great reason to comment, right? And anonymously, too.

    DRJ (15874d)

  19. The world, except for Anon Y. Mous, knows that Trump outsourced judicial nominations to the Federalist Society. I’m very happy he did. Trump doesn’t read and wouldn’t know how to discern who is a good nominee unless people who cared about it, and do know how to read, told him who is a good nominee.

    But again, Anon Y. Mous will believe what he wants to believe, in the face of evidence that the rest of the world has known for years.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  20. Those who want to make America great again need to understand that America is only great because it is good. It will no longer be great once we abandon the principles that made us good in the first place.

    Hear, hear. Great comment, LJ.

    DRJ (15874d)

  21. I deeply respect everyone who has chosen to speak out against Trump at a time when it could cost them their job to do so, or leave them in financial difficulty. That is real integrity…in an era when integrity is quite rare. People may mock their principles all they want, but look what happened to America when we as a nation abandoned our principles: progressivism began driving our culture. If we on the Right want to be just like the Left, only 30 years behind them in our level of corruption, we should continue on this path of abandoning principle in order to win. That will only drag America down. Those who want to make America great again need to understand that America is only great because it is good. It will no longer be great once we abandon the principles that made us good in the first place. This is why I have never supported Trump, although I am a conservative, and completely agree with Patterico. It has cost me friends but it hasn’t cost me my livelihood, so I cannot complain.

    Thanks, LJ. It is people like you that I seek out. I hope you stick around and comment more. One of you is worth 20 Trumpanzees, and I would happily make that trade any day of the week.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  22. balderdash and popsicle sticks Mr. LJ

    It’s vastly more likely that a Trump supporter might encounter career difficulties in America than a Trump hater would.

    This is obvious to anyone who is willing to do the analysis!

    In fact I think it’s fair to hypothesize that anti-trump social positioning by people who are known to have conservative sympathies is done in part to avoid unpleasant consequences what could arise from being perceived as having an alignment with our president, President Donald Trump.

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  23. What evidence? Anything factual, like quotes from Trump himself?

    Nope, just a bunch of stuff that partisan hacks like you would discount. It’s not worth my time to prove it to you if you haven’t been able to figure it out by now. You probably think he reads books too.

    Partisan pot calls partisan kettle black. You claim evidence, but cite nothing.

    BTW, I am not a member of any political party. If you want to define yourself as non-partisan because you are not a member of a political party, it would seem to me that you need to use the same definition in regard to others.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  24. It’s never been easier for someone with a unique POV to get paid. I don’t think Sherry’s Berry’s is going to care about nevertrump flogging. They did drop Bill Burr for effing around during the reads but you can’t really blame them.

    I listen to a True Crime podcast that’s very anti Trump at times but I would still go to a live show and buy a t shirt. If EE is in demand he can use bark box to cover his podcast production and go rent out Zanies and sell tickets and merch.

    Pinandpuller (f617ec)

  25. It’s never been easier for someone with a unique POV to get paid.

    i miss Mr. narciso

    his silence, it is oppressive to me

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  26. The world, except for Anon Y. Mous, knows that Trump outsourced judicial nominations to the Federalist Society. I’m very happy he did. Trump doesn’t read and wouldn’t know how to discern who is a good nominee unless people who cared about it, and do know how to read, told him who is a good nominee.

    But again, Anon Y. Mous will believe what he wants to believe, in the face of evidence that the rest of the world has known for years.

    Accepting recommendations after consultations with his underlings is not the same thing as outsourcing. As far as not caring, that is a laughable argument on its face. He campaigned on the issue.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  27. If EE was real cunning he would draw liberals to live show with his anti trump then hit them with conservatism like when they arrest people with fake Cockfights.

    Pinandpuller (f617ec)

  28. Here’s a guy who praises Trump’s judicial selections who says what the whole world knows except for Anon Y. Mous:

    What’s going on here isn’t that Trump is somehow reasonable when it comes to judicial picks. He most likely doesn’t know these people from Adam. They’ve never crossed paths.

    Rather, Trump has outsourced judicial selection thus far to elite conservative lawyers like those of the Federalist Society. The society elite likes other elites. They’re known and trustworthy.

    Did you somehow miss the news that Trump turned to the Federalist Society, Anon Y. Mous? Do you somehow have the idea that Donald Trump is some kind of legal genius who does this stuff on his own?

    Most Presidents do, of course, but no other President has been as intellectually incurious as Donald Trump in the modern era. Oh, you wanted a citation for that? OK, here you go.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  29. Accepting recommendations after consultations with his underlings is not the same thing as outsourcing. As far as not caring, that is a laughable argument on its face. He campaigned on the issue.

    The “not caring” refers to the fact that he could not care less what names end up on the list that the Federalist Society hands him, because he knows nothing about the judiciary and because he is an idiot.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  30. I would not believe Erickson’s claims without proof, he has a history especially in his early days of highly questionable claims.. He acts like a martyr while denying a leading candidate to participate after inviting him. Funny how he left redstate later that year. I would want to see receipts for security guards, police investigation reports.

    And sure, 30k disenrolled, he’s lucky it wasn’t more, and being fired from numerous host radio gigs, all this is his own doing and he knew this was going to happen

    He’s been fired from fox and is still complaining about it on CNN, CNN!

    No ones picked him up why? They might have done their due diligence, decided he marketability is a negative rating.

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  31. Found you quite by accident, but am glad that I did. Also glad that you keep writing.

    Oceander (59523c)

  32. At the very least with Onnit as a sponsor he could survive on bison jerky and MCT oil.

    Pinandpuller (f617ec)

  33. Here’s a guy who praises Trump’s judicial selections who says what the whole world knows except for Anon Y. Mous:

    That’s what you call evidence, some other guy expressing his opinion?

    Did you somehow miss the news that Trump turned to the Federalist Society, Anon Y. Mous?

    Nope. I knew that he looked to them for recommendations. But, that’s not the same as outsourcing, or evidence that he doesn’t care about judicial nominations. Most people think his willingness to reach out to the Federalist Society is evidence of the opposite. He does care and he wants to get it right.

    Most Presidents do, of course, but no other President has been as intellectually incurious as Donald Trump in the modern era.

    They used to make the same kind of childish insults against Bush 43. True, it was mostly leftists who would make these baseless insults, but up until Trump, Bush 43 was the biggest dummy ever. I guess you admired the tactic.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  34. EE, if I see you delivering Co-Cola down to the Dollar General ima still say “Good day, sir.”

    Pinandpuller (f617ec)

  35. The “not caring” refers to the fact that he could not care less what names end up on the list that the Federalist Society hands him, because he knows nothing about the judiciary and because he is an idiot.

    You should put that up next to your Gorsuch quote. It really does show how you are willing to compliment Trump when he does something you approve of.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  36. The “not caring” refers to the fact that he could not care less what names end up on the list that the Federalist Society hands him, because he knows nothing about the judiciary and because he is an idiot.

    Do you have any proof to this statement. You know for a fact he doesn’t know anything about the judiciary?

    Remember Ted Cruz first denied then tried to walk back a Supreme Court Justice recommendation Remember he pushed bush to nominate that half wit Roberts, and after the Obama care vote, Cruz forgot he was one of the stronger voices that got the man on the bench.

    You’ve been making comments all over extreme lefty blogs that the anti trump were let go, which is not entirely accurate.

    No the out of control name calling, overly hyperbolic ones highly unprofessional, not befitting Salem media’s professional standards were let go?

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  37. I’m both a fan of yours and a retired attorney. So I’m not going to be one of those who “unfriends” or abandons you based on a relatively few disagreements with some of your positions. But I would like to have you address what I see as a potential difficulty with your views on the President.

    You say that “I respect people who cast a vote for Donald Trump to avoid Hillary Clinton becoming President.” I’m one of those people. But you also say that you “think he is unfit to be president — morally, intellectually, and temperamentally.” Understood.

    The difficulty I have with your position is that our political system, for better or for worse, is binary rather than parliamentary. Is it your view that Hillary Clinton would have been more fit – morally, intellectually, and temperamentally – to be President than is Donald Trump? The choice was not Trump vs. some idealized Democrat, it was Trump vs. Clinton. If, like me, you think that Trump was the lesser of those evils, it would be useful for you to say so. If, on the other hand, you think that Clinton would have been preferable, it would also be useful for you to say that. What is not useful is for you to render a judgment or opinion on the “moral, intellectual and temperamental” fitness of either of them in the abstract and without consideration of the alternative.

    It would be fair to say that neither of them was fit to be President. But that was not the choice that afforded to those of us who wanted our votes to count, rather than just constituting a “virtue signal” by voting for someone outside the two-party umbrella. What say you?

    hmonrdick (5f4fb8)

  38. And anonymously, too.

    Yes, “DRJ” is very revealing.

    the Bas (3bcea0)

  39. But don’t pretend that my saying what I think is financially positive, or a “resume enhancer.”

    I certainly didn’t want to imply, with my “resume enhancer” comment in the other thread, that there was any financial motive to your anti-Trump stance. I believe it’s based on your principles, and I commend anyone who sticks up for those no matter the financial impact.

    My comment was in response to a claim that the views of anti-Trump conservatives are being “shut down.” That is simply false. A vocal pro-Trump stance will give you a much higher probability of being fired and harassed in just about any profession, particularly mine. If you’re employed by a partisan blog, that may be an exception but it sort of comes with the territory.

    I don’t like that Erickson and his family got harassed. He’s a prominent blogger. The solution is to make a living doing something else, and keep your political views anonymous — like the rest of us who have been “shut down.”

    random viking (6a54c2)

  40. I would not believe Erickson’s claims without proof, he has a history especially in his early days of highly questionable claims..

    Bullspit. I reject this statement completely.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  41. By Peggy FikacSeptember 28, 2017 Updated: September 29, 2017 4:05pm

    1

    Texas Supreme Court Justice Don R. Willett is a prolific Twitter user whose wit has earned him more than 96,000 followers. Photo: Eric Gay /Associated Press / Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistribu
    Photo: Eric Gay /Associated Press
    IMAGE 1 OF 3 Texas Supreme Court Justice Don R. Willett is a prolific Twitter user whose wit has earned him more than 96,000 followers.
    AUSTIN — President Donald Trump on Thursday picked two conservatives from Texas with compelling personal stories to serve on the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals — including a state Supreme Court justice who zinged him on Twitter during the campaign for the White House.

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    Texas Supreme Court Justice Don R. Willett — a prolific Twitter user whose wit has earned him more than 96,000 followers and the title of Texas’ “Tweeter Laureate” — gently mocked Trump in some tweets during the presidential campaign.

    Among them was a haiku suggesting that the thought of Trump’s potential picks for the U.S. Supreme Court would make one weep.

    But Willett, raised by a widowed mother who waitressed at a truck stop to support the family, nevertheless was cited by then-candidate Trump as a potential choice for the U.S. Supreme Court.

    And when Trump nominated Neil Gorsuch to the nation’s top court, Willett tweeted that Gorsuch was a “superb jurist.”

    Trump’s other pick, Dallas appellate lawyer James C. Ho, is a naturalized citizen who moved from Taiwan to the U.S. with his family when he was young. A former Texas solicitor general, Ho has argued cases before state and federal courts.

    “Both are very experienced and have the kind of credentials and qualifications you’d want for the appellate bench,” said law professor Carl Tobias of the University of Richmond.

    Willett and Ho, whose selection first was reported by the San Antonio Express-News, were among four people Trump said he was nominating to the appellate court.

    The others, from Louisiana, are lawyer Stuart Kyle Duncan, who served as general counsel of the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, solicitor general and appellate chief of the Louisiana Department of Justice and assistant solicitor general in the Texas attorney general’s office; and Chief Judge Kurt D. Engelhardt of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana.

    Subject to U.S. Senate confirmation, the four are being named to a busy court that has 17 authorized active judicial slots. Three of those are vacant, and a fourth judge has announced his retirement.

    The appellate court handles a slew of high-profile cases, dealing with a range of issues such as challenges to Texas laws regarding the disposal of fetal remains, requirements for voter identification and a ban on sanctuary cities; death penalty matters; and the NFL’s effort to reinstate a six-game suspension for Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott over domestic violence allegations.

    Former President Barack Obama didn’t attempt to fill a couple of long-standing vacancies on the appellate court “because he couldn’t get any kind of agreement with the Texas senators,” said Tobias, the law professor.

    “It means all the other judges have to pick up the slack. It slows things down,” Tobias said of such vacancies.

    Trump’s nominations, however, won’t guarantee quick relief. Tobias said confirmation could take until next spring, given that other nominations already are awaiting consideration.

    Texas’ senators, both Republicans, had high praise for the nominees from their state.

    Sen. Ted Cruz said he is “thrilled” that Trump chose the two, saying both are “close friends who I’ve known for decades” and “judicial stars.” He said he hoped they would be confirmed quickly.

    Trumps latest pics, from the guy you called an idiot:

    https://www.expressnews.com/news/local/article/Trump-picks-Texas-Supreme-Court-justice-former-12238193.php

    “Both are principled, smart and deeply devoted to the Constitution,” Cruz said. “The one commitment I asked from each of them upon informing them of their nomination was a promise that they would always, always, always be faithful to the law and the Constitution.”

    Sen John Cornyn said the two are “exceptional legal minds who will faithfully interpret the law, not rewrite it. … I was proud to join Sen. Cruz in recommending both candidates, and I look forward to building support among my colleagues for their nominations.”

    Gov. Greg Abbott, noting that he had worked with both men when he was attorney general, called them “outstanding choices

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  42. You should put that up next to your Gorsuch quote. It really does show how you are willing to compliment Trump when he does something you approve of.

    If you read the multiple posts I have written about Trump’s judicial selections, I have consistently said that his wholesale abdication of the selection process to the Federalist Society is precisely what would (and did) make the selections good. I have never hidden this view. It’s why I fought with NeverTrumpers who said he would be bad on judges. No, he won’t, I said. He doesn’t care who the judges are. He’ll let the Federalist Society pick them. And that’s good.

    I’m sorry-not-sorry if that compliment is not obsequious enough for you. If praise for Trump unadulterated with criticism is what you demand, I may not be the blogger for you. There are many other blogs out there. Bye now. Run along.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  43. the Bas,

    True, but I’m not telling people what is worth talking about and what isn’t.

    DRJ (15874d)

  44. Are you telling me that I’m not welcome here?

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  45. EE took a hit for being at least somewhat principled about DJT. Was he warned? I know Pat was not. I fail to see, today, why he deserves any particular honors for his character. I’ve been released from media jobs due to differences of opinion. I was not, and am not now, a hero.

    I began to listen to EE some time ago and learned very quickly that he is NOT a principled conservative. Not even close. He was much more a standard populist radio host when I tuned in. I was reminded of Joe Pagliarulo (Pags) who makes no bones about his situational ethics/principles, albeit broadly informed by conservatism. EE protests he is a real or “genuine” conservative.

    Let’s see how he acts going forward. Will he take the tack/course that Pat has (I am no victim) or will he attempt to milk this latest interest and cloak himself as a victim?

    NB: I do not wish him ill and I most certainly denounce any and all of the attacks upon him outside the realm of honest sharing such as in a forum like this one.

    Ed from SFV (291f4c)

  46. Pat,

    You can reject it all you want, Erickson’s a world class self promoter, there would have been plenty of coverage, I mean Michelle Malkin wrote a book about all her harassers which led to a multimillion dollars gig on fox.

    But the king of all self promoters had nothing.

    Look there was a mild guy in New Orleans on the catholic news station who gave a 2 minute commentary every Friday. He had the same name as my dad and my dad was the only one in the phone book…we got at calls all night and weekend. And guess what he never talked about politics.

    I don’t believe Erick Erickson and I’m not going to embarrass his supporters by linking his stuff, including his attempts to get a Democrat senator elected in Texas. He was really over the top in his not to distant radio days, not much separation between him and the guy who lives rent free in your head.

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  47. Conservative commentator Erick Erickson says that it’s time for the Republican party to chose a new Senate majority leader since Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) isn’t pushing President Trump’s agenda enough. He appeared on Fox News Wednesday to reiterate his editorial demanding the change.

    “Well he doesn’t seem to be down with the president’s agenda, I mean where is the wall, where’s tax reform, where’s Obamacare repeal? These are all things that go to the Senate and then they suddenly die.”


    Erick Erickson says GOP should dump McConnell for obstructing Trump agenda

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  48. Accepting recommendations after consultations with his underlings is not the same thing as outsourcing. As far as not caring, that is a laughable argument on its face. He campaigned on the issue.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438) — 4/28/2018 @ 1:01 pm

    Trump thought his sister would be a phenomenal Supreme Court judge. That was the extent of his SCOTUS knowledge during the campaign.

    DRJ (15874d)

  49. I don’t believe Erick Erickson and I’m not going to embarrass his supporters by linking his stuff, including his attempts to get a Democrat senator elected in Texas. He was really over the top in his not to distant radio days, not much separation between him and the guy who lives rent free in your head.

    EPWJ (f4224b) — 4/28/2018 @ 1:41 pm

    I like Erickson but it won’t embarrass me to read about this, so please link. In fact, I urge you to provide lots of links for your claims … if you can.

    DRJ (15874d)

  50. “There’s some great people out there,” he said. “But my sister obviously would not be the right person. It’s a conflict of interest for me.”

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  51. DRJ

    In fact I provided those links I think here at patterico during your time as a commentator

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  52. Trump thought his sister would be a phenomenal Supreme Court judge. That was the extent of his SCOTUS knowledge during the campaign.

    He was asked about his sister. What would you have him do, tell a national audience that his sister would be awful? He also said, “we will have to rule that out now, at least.”

    Notice how your link quotes Trump with only one single word? It’s because it was a dishonest effort to smear him. Do you really not understand why pieces like that don’t provide full quotes?

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  53. It won’t hurt to provide them again.

    DRJ (15874d)

  54. Here are a lot of Trump words on the subject of judges. He still likes Planned Parenthood funding and calling people names and telling people they lie, doesn’t he?

    CRUZ: You know, flexibility is a good thing, but it shouldn’t — you shouldn’t be flexible on core principles. I like Donald, he is an amazing entertainer, but his policies for most of his life…

    TRUMP: Thank you very much, I appreciate it.

    CRUZ: For most of his life, his policies have been very, very liberal. For most of his life, he has described himself as very pro- choice and as a supporter of partial birth abortion. Right now, today, as a candidate, he supports federal taxpayer funding for Planned Parenthood. I disagree with him on that.

    That’s a matter of principle, and I’ll tell you…

    TRUMP: You probably are worse than Jeb Bush. You are single biggest liar. This guy’s lied — let me just tell you, this guy lied about Ben Carson when he took votes away from Ben Carson in Iowa, and he just continues. Today, we had robo-calls saying, “Donald Trump is not going to run in South Carolina,” where I’m leading by a lot.

    I’m not going to vote for Ted Cruz. This is the same thing he did to Ben Carson. This guy will say anything, nasty guy. Now I know why he doesn’t have one endorsement from any of his colleagues.

    CRUZ: Don, I need to go on…

    TRUMP: He’s a nasty guy.

    CRUZ: I will say, it is fairly remarkable to see Donald defending Ben after he called, “pathological,” and compared him to a child molester. Both of which were offensive and wrong.

    But let me say this — you notice Donald didn’t disagree with the substance that he supports taxpayer funding for Planned Parenthood. And Donald has this weird pattern, when you point to his own record, he screams, “Liar, liar, liar.” You want to go…

    TRUMP: Where did I support it? Where did I…

    CRUZ: You want to go…

    [crosstalk]

    TRUMP: Again, where did I support it?

    CRUZ: If you want to watch the video, go to our website at Tedcruz.org.

    TRUMP: Hey Ted, where I support it?

    CRUZ: You can see it out of Donald’s own mouth.

    TRUMP: Where did I support?

    CRUZ: You supported it when we were battling over defunding Planned Parenthood. You went on…

    TRUMP: That’s a lot of lies.

    CRUZ: You said, “Planned Parenthood does wonderful things and we should not defund it.”

    TRUMP: It does do wonderful things, but not as it relates to abortion.

    CRUZ: So I’ll tell you what…

    TRUMP: Excuse me. Excuse me, there are wonderful things having to do with women’s health.

    CRUZ: You see, you and I…

    TRUMP: But not when it comes to abortion.

    CRUZ: Don, the reasoned principle matters. The reasoned principle matters, sadly was illustrated by the first questions today. The next president is going to appoint one, two, three, four Supreme Court justices.

    If Donald Trump is president, he will appoint liberals. If Donald Trump is president, your Second Amendment will gone…

    [crosstalk]

    TRUMP: Hold on…

    CRUZ: You know how I know that?

    DICKERSON: Hold on, gentleman, I’m going to turn this car around.

    TRUMP: Ted Cruz told your brother that he wanted John Roberts to be on the United States Supreme Court. They both pushed him, he twice approved Obamacare.

    DICKERSON: All right, gentlemen.

    BUSH: My name was mentioned twice.

    DICKERSON: Well, hold on. We’re going to — gentlemen, we’re in danger of driving this into the dirt.

    Senator Rubio, I’d like you to jump in here…

    BUSH: He called me a liar.

    DICKERSON: I understand, you’re on deck, governor.

    BUSH: Also, he talked about one of my heroes, Ronald Reagan.

    Ronald Reagan was a liberal maybe in the 1950s. He was a conservative reformed governor for eight years before he became president, and no one should suggest he made an evolution for political purposes. He was a conservative, and he didn’t tear down people like Donald Trump is. He tore down the Berlin Wall.

    TRUMP: O.K., governor.

    BUSH: He was a great guy. [applause]

    DICKERSON: Senator Cruz, 30 seconds on this one.

    CRUZ: I did not nominate John Roberts. I would not have nominated John Roberts.

    TRUMP: You pushed him. You pushed him.

    CRUZ: I supported…

    TRUMP: You worked with him and you pushed him. Why do you lie?

    CRUZ: You need to learn to not interrupt people.

    TRUMP: Why do you lie?

    CRUZ: Donald, adults learn…

    TRUMP: You pushed him.

    CRUZ: Adults learn not to interrupt people.

    TRUMP: Yeah, yeah, I know, you’re an adult.

    CRUZ: I did not nominate him. I would not have nominated him. I would’ve nominated my former boss Liberman, who was Justice Scalia’s first law clerk. And you know how I know that Donald’s Supreme Court justices will be liberals? Because his entire life, he support liberals from Jimmy Carter, to Hillary Clinton, to John Kerry.

    In 2004, he contributed to John Kerry. Nobody who cares about judges would contribute to John Kerry, Hillary Clinton, Chuck Schumer and Harry Reid.

    DRJ (15874d)

  55. In the campaign, Trump didn’t even know judges’ names except for Roberts and his sister.

    DRJ (15874d)

  56. people give Planned Parenthood a hard time cause they do abortions sometimes but actually all the abortions are on women who don’t even want to have a baby!

    but it would be nice if we didn’t have to pay for them using tax dollars

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  57. Notice how your link quotes Trump with only one single word? It’s because it was a dishonest effort to smear him. Do you really not understand why pieces like that don’t provide full quotes?

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438) — 4/28/2018 @ 1:53 pm

    My link included a link to the original report and a response. It is not dishonest to have an opinion based on things Trump has said.

    DRJ (15874d)

  58. Does Erickson think that everyone who no longer liked his bradn7 also wished ill will on him? He sure explains the series of events with that perspective front and central.

    To me, that is short sighted. Maybe he can send a request for feedback from the 30,000 lost fans. He might be surprised that they just didn’t want to hear a trusted voice speaking angrily to modest supporters of Trump. Or, he already knows it and is having trouble accepting it.

    When a grocery store upsets me, I go to another store and don’t inform them that I am leaving. My bet is that a lot of people have left Erickson without notice giving him the opening to slght them all as rabid Trump supporters. He ran with that and it sent his career backwards.

    People who comment on a blog have to be the smallest percentage of representation of any group. Everyone else prefers to be left alone. Since it has been documented that Trump has the most biased unfavorable press coverage ever I assume that the people who don’t like negativity of any sort tend to shut off the largest complaining group. The NeverTrumpers have hitched themselves to that group whether intentionally or not and blame the people who are tired of the anger filled rhetoric for their lack of market share.

    The market isn’t concerned with a prolific writer trying to convince them that commenter BuDuh is a rabid Trumpalo, they would much rather have factual interpretations of events at hand. At least that is my take.

    Maybe Erikson can explain what percentage of people that don’t want to hear him complain also belong to a group that applauds purported tyranny. My guess is he thinks it is 100%. My guess is that it is less than 1%.

    BuDuh (fc15db)

  59. DRJ: In the campaign, Trump didn’t even know judges’ names except for Roberts and his sister.

    Well, as you point out, Cruz sure did. Yay Cruz!! And yet you commented recently “I won’t vote for Cruz or Trump.” Conclusion? A real head scratcher.

    Not being nailed to a particular candidate is an anti-Trumper bit that never gets old.

    random viking (6a54c2)

  60. bradn7 should be brand, Beldar.

    BuDuh (fc15db)

  61. Trump opens the door to people believing he is ignorant with his typos and misspellings, and some of the things he says. The fact that he knows to delegate judicial decisions to the Federalis is a positive, not a criticism. Good leaders know how to delegate. Trump has done that in this one area. I wish he woukd do it in a lot more areas.

    DRJ (15874d)

  62. I voted for Cruz for President. I won’t vote for the Cruz that supports Trump because I vote for conservatives. Cruz doesn’t seem to be one anymore.

    DRJ (15874d)

  63. Notice how your link quotes Trump with only one single word? It’s because it was a dishonest effort to smear him. Do you really not understand why pieces like that don’t provide full quotes?

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438) — 4/28/2018 @ 1:53 pm

    My link included a link to the original report and a response. It is not dishonest to have an opinion based on things Trump has said.

    I didn’t say you were dishonest, I said the author was dishonest. The dishonest part is not having an opinion. The dishonest part is trying to give a wrong impression of what someone said. The tell is when a quote is clipped down to a single word.

    Here’s the transcript of the interview in question.

    https://factba.se/transcript/donald-trump-interview-bloomberg-august-26-2015

    How about your sister?

    Well my sister is great. I have a sister who is on the court of appeals and she is fantastic.

    Would she be a good Supreme Court Justice?

    I don’t — I think she would be phenomenal. I think she would be one of the best, but frankly I think she is — we’ll have to rule that out now, at least temporarily. But I do have a sister is very smart and a very good person.

    The guy you linked was selling a lie.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  64. I voted for Trump because I hoped he would do conservative things. He has done some but not enough to earn a second vote from me.

    DRJ (15874d)

  65. #55

    You could say that observation only makes it more remarkable to see what a quick study he’s been at appointing judges… (although I’ve always suspected Trump has delegated that task).

    I like to think of Comey indirectly calling Trump a mob boss and also the shitstorm over the shitholes.. Trump negotiates a little like a mob boss… “nice little shithole countries you’ve got there pudgy boy and mullah man… be a shame if something happened to ’em you know. Maybe not, we’ll see, we’ll see”

    Then he backs off and send an occaisional tweet.

    I don’t know why no one calls his bluff unless they really do think he’s nuts

    steveg (a9dcab)

  66. Trump opens the door to people believing he is ignorant with his typos and misspellings

    How ivy league of you. Please ignore my 2:08. I forget a few commas as well.

    BuDuh (fc15db)

  67. You know, DRJ, if you spent as much time and trouble quoting all the stupid and down right dangerous anti American crap that falls from the lips of leftists daily you would actually be doing America a service. Parsing every single word every spoken or recorded by Trump gets you a 9.7 on the leftist scale. Congratulations you finally made the leap. Perhaps there is a position for you next to Joy Reid. Obviously there is no point in counting on you to keep out the radical left when push comes to shove.

    I’m not asking anyone here to suddenly become pro Trump. What I’m asking is that you stop helping the enemy. I mean if you don’t have the ability to help the Republican side at least have the common decency to STFU and stop helping the Pelosi/Schumer/Waters contingent on the left.

    Rev.Hoagie (1b0402)

  68. The difficulty I have with your position is that our political system, for better or for worse, is binary rather than parliamentary. Is it your view that Hillary Clinton would have been more fit – morally, intellectually, and temperamentally – to be President than is Donald Trump? The choice was not Trump vs. some idealized Democrat, it was Trump vs. Clinton. If, like me, you think that Trump was the lesser of those evils, it would be useful for you to say so. If, on the other hand, you think that Clinton would have been preferable, it would also be useful for you to say that. What is not useful is for you to render a judgment or opinion on the “moral, intellectual and temperamental” fitness of either of them in the abstract and without consideration of the alternative.

    It would be fair to say that neither of them was fit to be President. But that was not the choice that afforded to those of us who wanted our votes to count, rather than just constituting a “virtue signal” by voting for someone outside the two-party umbrella. What say you?

    Great comment.

    Speaking for myself, I think there is not necessarily a clear answer to your questions. Clinton and Trump were both unfit, but they presented somewhat different pathologies.

    I expected that both would be extremely ineffective, scandal-plagued and unpopular, as Trump has certainly proven to be. Clinton might have been moderately effective with a congressional majority, as Obama was for his first two years, but she wouldn’t have had that, and without it would have been even less effective than Obama in his last six years.

    So one question I think should be considered is: is it better to have an ineffective, scandal-plagued and unpopular Democrat president, who’s a liability to the Left, or an ineffective, scandal-plagued and unpopular Republican president, who’s a liability to the Right?

    I would close by saying that you seem to suggest it was important to you to “have your vote count”. But if the choice is between two obviously unfit choices, maybe that isn’t the most important consideration.

    When both parties nominate corrupt, morally degenerate candidates, maybe a “virtue signal” is exactly what’s needed. George Washington, writing to Lafayette about America’s new constitution, was correct when he said our government “can never be in danger of degenerating into a monarchy, an Oligarchy, an Aristocracy, or any other despotic or oppressive form, so long as there shall remain any virtue in the body of the People.”

    Dave (445e97)

  69. DRJ, do you give up on your favorite football team if they don’t provide enough touchdowns in the 1st quarter?

    BuDuh (fc15db)

  70. In the campaign, Trump didn’t even know judges’ names except for Roberts and his sister.

    Not true.

    STEPHANOPOULOS: Let’s turn to the Supreme Court right now. You also heard Senator Cruz right there say that you can’t be trusted to make a Supreme Court pick, that you would pick liberals on the court. He cited your praise of your sister, saying she would be a phenomenal Supreme Court justice.

    Your response?

    TRUMP: Well, look, just so you understand, I said it jokingly. My sister’s a brilliant person, known as a brilliant person, but it’s obviously a conflict. And I said, oh, how about my sister? Kiddingly. My sister, also she — she also happens to have a little bit different views than me, but I said in that in a very joking matter, and it was all lots of fun and everything else. I would say total conflict of interest as far as my sister.

    Somebody like a Diane Sikes from Wisconsin I think would be very good. There’s some great people out there. But my sister obviously would not be the right person; it’s a conflict of interest for me.

    http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/week-transcript-ted-cruz-john-kasich-marco-rubio/story?id=36918872

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  71. Yes, I know what Trump said. He thought she would be a good Supreme Court justice. That was his knowledge of SCOTUS — his sister and Roberts. I’m sure he knows more now. Good for him.

    DRJ (15874d)

  72. #42

    If that’s your example of praise, It’s pretty odd. With friends like these…

    And, impugning Ace based on that single quote, taken out of context, is disingenuous. He explained in great detail his thought process. I think you know full well that he was not claiming he supports Trump, because, clickbait. He was referencing the possible logic of why Redstate let you go, but not you personally. Redstate has a business model, they may actually believe that Trump is not the anti-christ. I’m not the man’s agent, he can defend himself going forward.

    If Redstate told anyone let go before they were let go to tone down the anti-Trump rhetoric, and all refused, I have great respect for that. Is this what happened? If so, I applaud your bravery.

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  73. 64.I voted for Trump because I hoped he would do conservative things. He has done some but not enough to earn a second vote from me.
    DRJ (15874d) — 4/28/2018 @ 2:14 pm

    Now that’s funny. After only 18 months Trump hasn’t lived up to your ideal of “enough” conservative things so you joined the left. That makes sense. Name the last time a president did ANY conservative things.

    Rev.Hoagie (1b0402)

  74. That was February 14, 2016, the day after the SC debate where they discussed judges that I linked above.

    DRJ (15874d)

  75. I’m glad you are amused, Hoagie. Laughter is good for us.

    DRJ (15874d)

  76. Are you telling me that I’m not welcome here?

    Nope. I’m asking you: if you hate what I say so much, why are you here?

    Patterico (115b1f)

  77. President Trump’s judges are good cause they do the conservative policies!

    But cameltoe judges would be lawless and sticky.

    Advantage: President Trump

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  78. Yes, I know what Trump said. He thought she would be a good Supreme Court justice. That was his knowledge of SCOTUS — his sister and Roberts. I’m sure he knows more now. Good for him.

    The ABC link I posted, where Trump mentioned Sikes, that interview took place 2/14/16, well before the election.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  79. There’s a lawlessness rampant in the land, but it isn’t emanating from the Trump administration.

    The source is federal judges who are making a mockery of their profession by twisting the law to block the Trump administration’s immigration priorities.

    If the judges get their way, there will, in effect, be two sets of law in America — one for President Trump and one for everyone else.

    this is an issue relevant to consider when deciding whether to vote for President Trump

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  80. If that’s your example of praise, It’s pretty odd. With friends like these…

    I am not Trump’s friend.

    And, impugning Ace based on that single quote, taken out of context, is disingenuous. He explained in great detail his thought process. I think you know full well that he was not claiming he supports Trump, because, clickbait. He was referencing the possible logic of why Redstate let you go, but not you personally. Redstate has a business model, they may actually believe that Trump is not the anti-christ. I’m not the man’s agent, he can defend himself going forward.

    I quoted him. I didn’t say he supports Trump because, clickbait. I quoted what he said in relevant part.

    If Redstate told anyone let go before they were let go to tone down the anti-Trump rhetoric, and all refused, I have great respect for that. Is this what happened? If so, I applaud your bravery.

    They did not warn us. If they had, I would have refused.

    Everyone knows that praising Trump is the safe route for conservatives. This is not a secret.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  81. Nope. I’m asking you: if you hate what I say so much, why are you here?

    Hate is a strong word. I disagree with almost every word you write about Trump. But, on other topics, I find that you often have valuable insights. As to your Trump utterances, I enjoy calling you out when I think you’ve said something unsupportable.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  82. Trump announced as President on June 16, 2015. The SC debate was Feb 13, 2017, and it included a discussion of judges and replacing Scalia. Trump mentioned Sikes the next day, I think because he looked weak on that point in the debate.

    By mid-March, Trump was the presumptive nominee.

    Do you think knowing 3 names instead of 2 for the last month of the primaries signals Trump knew a lot about that topic? I think he always planned to delegate on that topic because he knew how important it was to Republicans. Good for him. It was and it is.

    DRJ (15874d)

  83. “Yesterday, several writers were fired from RedState. All of them were fierce Trump critics. While some Trump critics remain at the site, no Trump supporters were fired.”

    Maybe there was a message in this? Like maybe they didn’t see a need to pay fierce Trump critics to write articles for a Republican/Conservative site? You know, there isn’t really a shortage of sites that write fierce anti-Trump articles every day.

    fred-2 (ce04f3)

  84. Feb 13, 2016, not 2017.

    DRJ (15874d)

  85. Hate is a strong word. I disagree with almost every word you write about Trump. But, on other topics, I find that you often have valuable insights. As to your Trump utterances, I enjoy calling you out when I think you’ve said something unsupportable.

    OK. Your complaints about my tone, choice of subject, and opinions are noted and overruled. I control the horizontal. I control the vertical. You will stay and whine when I criticize the sitting President, and your whining will continue to have zero effect on what I write.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  86. There are plenty of places that criticize Republicans but how many of those places support conservative principles, fred?

    DRJ (15874d)

  87. Maybe there was a message in this? Like maybe they didn’t see a need to pay fierce Trump critics to write articles for a Republican/Conservative site?

    No maybe about it. I thought I was quite clear that a message was sent.

    Your implicit equation of Donald Trump with Republicanism and conservatism is what is so telling.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  88. He is indeed equivalent to Republicanism these days.

    He is hardly equivalent to conservatism.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  89. Do you think knowing 3 names instead of 2 for the last month of the primaries signals Trump knew a lot about that topic? I think he always planned to delegate on that topic because he knew how important it was to Republicans. Good for him. It was and it is.

    I think he didn’t want to name a specific person as his nominee because he knew it would be a loser politically. If he had said this person will be my nominee, then everyone would be digging into that person’s rulings and background and that would turn the subject into something other than Trump. He didn’t want to base his election on a specific nominee, he wanted the election to be about him and his political goals. Putting out a list of acceptable people was just plain smart. If anyone did come up with dirt on one of the names on the list, Trump could just scratch that name off the list and move on.

    It doesn’t mean he didn’t have some people in mind. And actually, there was one name that he bandied about frequently: Scalia. His standard line was he would nominate someone like Scalia.

    And, it looks to me so far, he did.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  90. Nope. I’m asking you: if you hate what I say so much, why are you here?

    I’m hoping someday you’ll stop going easy on Trump…

    Dave (445e97)

  91. I think if you have a principled disagreement with President Trump on policy the first thing you should do is honestly check to see if maybe he’s right and he has the best policies and your thinking is just wrong.

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  92. OK. Your complaints about my tone, choice of subject, and opinions are noted and overruled. I control the horizontal. I control the vertical. You will stay and whine when I criticize the sitting President, and your whining will continue to have zero effect on what I write.

    I don’t whine; I disagree. Here in the comments section, others can decide for themselves who has the better argument in any particular exchange.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  93. The American Conservative was founded primarily to oppose President George W Bush’s policies, especially his foreign policy. It has populist overtones and Trump ran on many of the ideas promoted by that group, even though he did not identify with those ideas during Bush 43’s term. I don’t recall a lot of anger about that then, but the internet was young. It may well have caused a lot of angst in Republican circles.

    DRJ (15874d)

  94. He is hardly equivalent to conservatism.

    Nor was Bush Sr. nor Dubya. But, to have been anti-Bush during their administrations was not going to garner much accolades among conservatives.

    random viking (6a54c2)

  95. There was so much concern about Trump and judges that he named the 11 judges he would consider in May 2016. Why did he do that if it was so smart not to?

    DRJ (15874d)

  96. Integrity is a heartless bitch, but only those who have it, know it.

    Kevin M (752a26)

  97. You act like no one here disagreed with the Bushes, random viking. The internet and this website wasn’t around for Bush 41 but it was for the last year of Bush 43, and Patterico disagreed with him now and then. Woukd that be allowed now?

    DRJ (15874d)

  98. Sorry to see that you got cut loose from RS, I don’t think you deserved that. Some of the writers over there were becoming one-note Johnnys and it made the site less interesting, you were definitely not one of them.

    Here’s the thing about criticizing or praising anything Trump says though, it’s all just so meaningless. The Trumpalos applaud anything he says that they agree with as proof of how great the guy is, anything they don’t agree with they dismiss as Trump “negotiating” and he doesn’t really mean what he says. Aside from the fact that saying things you don’t mean is also referred to as “lying”, how do you know which things he means and which ones he doesn’t? As far as I can tell, he doesn’t really mean any of it, a thought pops into his head and falls out his mouth and none of it is anything he’s thought about for more than about 5 seconds. If Trump doesn’t give any thought to the things he says, why should I?

    The perfect example of this is back during the campaign when an interviewer asked him about his views on abortion and, after some back and forth, Trump said that he was of the opinion that abortion should be illegal and women who get abortions should be punished. (Sound familiar?) 24 hours later after all the pearl-clutching and the fainting spells, Trump explained his “misstatement” by saying he had gotten that from an older GOP platform and hadn’t realized that wasn’t the official GOP position on abortion any more. In other words, Trump admitted the crap he had been saying about his position on abortion was just whatever he thought it was Republicans were supposed to say. So what is his position on abortion? Who knows? But you’d think anybody who had seriously thought about it would actually have an articulable opinion rather than just spouting off whatever it is he thinks he’s supposed to say. And Trump apparently does not have an articulable position, he’s never really seriously thought about it.

    Jerryskids (cfad51)

  99. balderdash and popsicle sticks Mr. LJ. It’s vastly more likely that a Trump supporter might encounter career difficulties in America than a Trump hater would.

    Happy feet, first allow me to congratulate you on your use of “balderdash” – that’s a term you don’t hear much anymore, a term I love, that should really make a comeback! 🙂

    Second, I have to disagree with your conclusion, because it is based on a faulty premise: that there are only two groups of people: Trump supporters and Trump haters. There are actually a number of people who find ourselves quite in the middle, with precious few allies in the world. We aren’t accepted by the Trump haters in media or elsewhere, because we approve of some of his policies and judicial appointments, nor are we welcome among Trump supporters, because we won’t accept him wholesale and insist on criticizing the many things he does wrong.

    It is exceptionally difficult to find a job in the highly partisan political media culture if you find yourself occupying that uncomfortable middle ground, because you are – essentially – a person without a party. Erickson himself is proof of that fact. Very vocal Trump supporters will find difficulty in some quarters, but they will be welcomed by employers who share their partisan views. This is not the case for conservatives who dislike Trump.

    Last, I am actually a “she” – just letting you know :).

    LJ (9188cd)

  100. Sorry to see that you got cut loose from RS, I don’t think you deserved that. Some of the writers over there were becoming one-note Johnnys and it made the site less interesting, you were definitely not one of them.

    Here’s the thing about criticizing or praising anything Trump says though, it’s all just so meaningless. The Trumpalos applaud anything he says that they agree with as proof of how great the guy is, anything they don’t agree with they dismiss as Trump “negotiating” and he doesn’t really mean what he says. Aside from the fact that saying things you don’t mean is also referred to as “lying”, how do you know which things he means and which ones he doesn’t? As far as I can tell, he doesn’t really mean any of it, a thought pops into his head and falls out his mouth and none of it is anything he’s thought about for more than about 5 seconds. If Trump doesn’t give any thought to the things he says, why should I?

    The perfect example of this is back during the campaign when an interviewer asked him about his views on abortion and, after some back and forth, Trump said that he was of the opinion that abortion should be illegal and women who get abortions should be punished. (Sound familiar?) 24 hours later after all the pearl-clutching and the fainting spells, Trump explained his “misstatement” by saying he had gotten that from an older GOP platform and hadn’t realized that wasn’t the official GOP position on abortion any more. In other words, Trump admitted the crap he had been saying about his position on abortion was just whatever he thought it was Republicans were supposed to say. So what is his position on abortion? Who knows? But you’d think anybody who had seriously thought about it would actually have an articulable opinion rather than just spouting off whatever it is he thinks he’s supposed to say. And Trump apparently does not have an articulable position, he’s never really seriously thought about it.

    Thanks. I get more upset at the crazy rationalizations for Trump these days than I get at Trump himself.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  101. There are actually a number of people who find ourselves quite in the middle, with precious few allies in the world. We aren’t accepted by the Trump haters in media or elsewhere, because we approve of some of his policies and judicial appointments, nor are we welcome among Trump supporters, because we won’t accept him wholesale and insist on criticizing the many things he does wrong.

    THIS CANNOT BE ALLOWED! FIND ONE TEAM AND JOIN IT!!!

    Seriously: you have hit the nail on the head here. What people like you and me need to do is band together. You’re helping just by leaving the comments you are leaving.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  102. I wonder where Mr DCSCA is with a timely Fatty Arbuckle quote?

    Pinandpuller (e74138)

  103. Thanks, LJ. It is people like you that I seek out. I hope you stick around and comment more. One of you is worth 20 Trumpanzees, and I would happily make that trade any day of the week.

    Thanks for the welcome, patterico! I have vastly enjoyed your intriguing commentary at Red State for some time, so (after The Fall of Red State, which it was, for them to fire all the greats there) – in a hunt for your content, I landed here and hope to be able to comment often. 🙂

    LJ (9188cd)

  104. DRJ: You act like no one here disagreed with the Bushes, random viking.

    No, you want me to act like that.

    OK, roll call. Who here refused to vote for either Bush? Who here could be accuratey described as anti-Bush?

    Tick, tock, tick, tock….

    random viking (6a54c2)

  105. oh nice to meet you

    i didn’t mean to speak specifically to media employment

    what i think is that a lot of nevertrump people have made a calculation that vocally opposing President Trump is in their best professional interest

    and furthermore i think the reason they made that calculation is less because they think being anti-Trump will open doors for them…

    …but that it may help prevent doors from being closed to them

    I like this hypothesis because it’s a good explanation for how contrived and melodramatic they are.

    There’s something simply odd and over-the-top about their showy stridency.

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  106. I liked Bush 43 and voted for him. I voted for Bush 41 once and then Perot. I could not vote for Bush 41 the second time.

    DRJ (15874d)

  107. Bush 43 was not as conservative as I like but IMO he was a good war-time President, and that was my biggest concern.

    DRJ (15874d)

  108. Eric Erickson’s early Trump bashing was so jarringly harsh that it revealed a previously undisclosed, highly offensive, and deeply malignant personal animosity towards Trump.

    Quickly the very sight of the fat pompous fool made my skin crawl, like the sight of Nancy Pelosi, Loretta Lynch, Susan Rice, or Felonia von Pantsuit.

    Since then I’ve ignored him and his malicious prattle. It doesn’t matter what his topic is, or what he has to say, his opportunity to attract my attention long enough to communicate the time of day no longer exists.

    ropelight (c47fd3)

  109. what i think is that a lot of nevertrump people have made a calculation that vocally opposing President Trump is in their best professional interest

    and furthermore i think the reason they made that calculation is less because they think being anti-Trump will open doors for them…

    …but that it may help prevent doors from being closed to them

    Good to meet you also :).

    Or it could simply be that we say exactly what we mean?

    It hasn’t been pleasant losing friends (since many of my friends are Trump supporters), nor has it helped me professionally. My husband is also a conservative who dislikes Trump, who works among many Trump supporters who would literally slash the tires of a coworker in the parking lot over political differences. So I can’t see how his political position has benefited him professionally, either. He certainly hasn’t seen any professional ‘bump’ out of it.

    Some of us are just candid. Maybe that’s hard to believe, in political circles, but people like us do exist in the world. We say exactly what we think, and we take the risk that people will hate us over it – because we don’t conduct polls to determine what our political stance should be. 🙂 We cherish any ideological ally we can find, because we encounter so few of them.

    LJ (9188cd)

  110. We can use more LJ here.

    DRJ (15874d)

  111. “I’m so used to liberals telling conservatives that they’re anti-science. But liberals who defend this and say it is not a bad thing are very anti-science. When you look at biology — when you look at the natural world — the roles of a male and a female in society and in other animals, the male typically is the dominant role. The female, it’s not antithesis, or it’s not competing, it’s a complementary role. We’re lost the ability to have complementary relationships … and it’s tearing us apart

    Erick Erickson when discussing women gaining prominence in the work place on fox

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  112. Ok, I take it you aren’t a Christian or you think Erick shouldn’t be?

    DRJ (15874d)

  113. Fascinating research article just published:

    Status threat, not economic hardship, explains the 2016 presidential vote

    Support for Donald J. Trump in the 2016 election was widely attributed to citizens who were “left behind” economically. These claims were based on the strong cross-sectional relationship between Trump support and lacking a college education. Using a representative panel from 2012 to 2016, I find that change in financial wellbeing had little impact on candidate preference. Instead, changing preferences were related to changes in the party’s positions on issues related to American global dominance and the rise of a majority–minority America: issues that threaten white Americans’ sense of dominant group status.

    Here’s the money shot:

    Status threat accounts for the impact of education on the 2016 presidential election.

    And the explanation (emphasis added):

    The cross-sectional survey replicates the strong relationship with education shown throughout the election. More importantly, it provides a better understanding of what precisely education represents. In Table S5, model 1, I replicate the strong relationship between lack of college education and Trump support using only demographics as predictors. In model 2, I examine what happens to education’s predictive power when measures of personal economic wellbeing are also included in the model. Finally, in model 3, I drop the economic variables and instead, include indicators corresponding to status threat toward dominant groups. As summarized in Fig. 3, regardless of which outcome measures I examined, including indicators of economic status did not eliminate the impact of education. It reduced education’s impact somewhat for the feeling thermometer measure, but for Trump/Clinton vote, the impact of education remained constant. However, after the relationship between Trump support and perceived status threat is taken into account, even lack of a college education no longer predicts Trump support for any of the measures. These findings strongly suggest that group-based status threat was the main reason that those without college educations were more supportive of Trump.

    Dave (445e97)

  114. There was so much concern about Trump and judges that he named the 11 judges he would consider in May 2016. Why did he do that if it was so smart not to?

    Are you responding to my #89? Because, as I said, naming a person would have made it all about that one person. Instead, he put out a list. That way, even if somebody dug something dirty or juicy about anyone particular on the list, Trump could just scratch that one name off the list. Plus, if I recall correctly, he added to the list. Doubled its size or something. Names of acceptable people.

    Everyone saw what he was doing. The anti-Trumps could claim he was lying, but people who had confidence in Trump believed him when he said he wanted another Scalia.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  115. Or you think that’s not an accurate statement in biology/science?

    DRJ (15874d)

  116. I know I’ve taken Patterico to task for some of his posts, but I fully agree with him about Trump’s character. I just wish he’d look for the pony a bit harder. It must be here someplace.

    Where I part company with people is when 1) the are full-throated Trumpets who would support Trump if he gave Texas to Red China, or 2) the Trump-deniers who have become indistinguishable from partisan Democrats. Of the two, it is probably most annoying to have people opposing Trump for DEMOCRAT policy reasons — or reciting the DNC line — while claiming to be conservatives. Patterico has not done that, but others here have.

    I feel between and betwixt. I want the pendulum to push more towards liberty and while Trump isn’t pushing it that hard, he isn’t pulling it Left with every breath, as are the Democrats.

    Now I will say something that Patterico will agree with utterly: Ted Cruz would have made a first-rank president. He still may.

    Kevin M (752a26)

  117. And what I find interesting in the survey is that three-quarters of the people surveyed recognize that having moms as the primary breadwinner is bad for kids and bad for marriage, and reality shows us that’s the truth. [Fox Business, Lou Dobbs Tonight, 5/29/13]

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  118. Ok, then why mention Diane Sykes, and only Sykes, on February 14?

    DRJ (15874d)

  119. We can use more LJ here.

    Thanks for the welcome! You are so kind. We can use more of you as well 🙂

    LJ (9188cd)

  120. I liked Bush 43 and voted for him. I voted for Bush 41 once and then Perot. I could not vote for Bush 41 the second time.

    Exactly this. And I voted for #neverTrump in 2016. If CA had counted I would have voted for Trump, then lied about it.

    Kevin M (752a26)

  121. It is a fact that children in a two parent, heterosexual household tend to have a more stable upbringing and a better chance of success than those of single parents or gay parents. This is a fact. This is not to insult gay parents. This is not insult single parents. It’s just a fact. And the, of the subset of children who are raised in a two-parent, nuclear, heterosexual household, children where the father is the one who is the leader of the family, or the breadwinner of the family, however you want to say it, tend to out-perform those where the mother is the primary provider of the family outside of the home. Those are the fact. All I have done is pointed them out.

    […]

    And I understand that some women believe they can have it all, and that’s the crux of the problem. I have to tell you, as a man, where women are told that men have so many more advantages in society, we can’t have it all. Women, you can’t have it all either. Life is a series of compromises and choices. [WSB, The Erick Erickson Show, 5/30/13]

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  122. Cause criticizing Trump takes so much courage few people do it!

    Guffaw

    Hi (6fc094)

  123. Many people voted for Trump solely based on SCOTUS. Gorsuch looks like a good choice and I hope he is. If Trump needs help from The Federalist to make good choices, so what? Why would he know anything about good SCOTUS judges as a NY businessman? Being willing to delegate is not a negative. But IMO acting like Trump knew all this already is not believable given the prior things he said do not reflect any judicial knowledge.

    DRJ (15874d)

  124. Many feminist and emo lefties have their panties in a wad over my statements in the past 24 hours about families. I said, in a statement reflecting the view of three quarters of those surveyed in a Pew Research Center poll, that more women being the primary or sole breadwinners in families is harmful to raising children.

    […]

    This does not mean the two-parent, heterosexual nuclear household will always work out for the best. But it does mean children in that environment will more often than not be more successful than children of single parents or gay parents. [RedState.com, 5/30/13]

    Erickson

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  125. Twitter.com, 9/4/12]

    Erickson: “Who Cares That” Woman Wasn’t Given Augusta Membership? “She’s A Woman” And “Women Aren’t Allowed.” In response to controversy over the female IBM CEO being denied admittance to the Augusta National Golf Club, Erickson said on a April 2012 edition of his radio program, “Who cares that she wasn’t invited into the club? She’s a woman. Women aren’t allowed.” [WSB, The Erick Erickson Show, 4/6/12,

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  126. LJ i think it’s brave that you’re candid but the way america is trending i eschew candor and either keep quiet or couch everything in ways that minimize the ideological

    but i been living in deep blue america and working in a deep blue vertical for many many moons now, so i don’t really have to think about this stuff to navigate my day

    but people know i’m generally conservative and if they say anything i just say i grew up in texas and mom and dad were both very active in the republican party and then i say something about how blue chicago and los angeles are

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  127. If CA had counted I would have voted for Trump, then lied about it.

    Kevin M (752a26) — 4/28/2018 @ 3:21 pm

    Hilarious. I like you.

    DRJ (15874d)

  128. nor are we welcome among Trump supporters, because we won’t accept him wholesale and insist on criticizing the many things he does wrong.

    https://www.redstate.com/patterico/2018/02/07/gross-trumps-bald-pate-revealed-nauseating-video/

    BuDuh (fc15db)

  129. Red State can make its decisions and Augusta can make its decisions. Sounds like P and Erickson think alike.

    DRJ (15874d)

  130. One of you is worth 20 Trumpanzees, and I would happily make that trade any day of the week.

    Patterico (115b1f) — 4/28/2018 @ 12:54 pm

    Why would most people want to read themselves getting insulted for no reason other than they don’t hate the same politicians you hate? If republicans wanted that they would read The NY Times. Things like that are why you are out of a job.

    Hi (6fc094)

  131. … the many things he does wrong.

    DRJ (15874d)

  132. I voted for Bush 41 once and then Perot.

    Same here. Since then I voted Republican for all those losers until Trump.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  133. Why would most people want to read themselves getting insulted for no reason other than they don’t hate the same politicians you hate? If republicans wanted that they would read The NY Times. Things like that are why you are out of a job.

    And yet, here you are. I think that, like Anon Y. Mous, you like it.

    There’s a reason Susan Wright constantly got the highest traffic at RedState.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  134. Cause criticizing Trump takes so much courage few people do it!

    Few Republicans do it. Slightly more conservatives do it but they still get grief, as is evident here.

    DRJ (15874d)

  135. Why would most people want to read themselves getting insulted for no reason other than they don’t hate the same politicians you hate?

    By the way, Hi, you’re typically dishonest here. I don’t insult anyone for not hating Trump. A Trumpanzee is someone who, like you, goes much further than that, and reflexively recoils at any criticism of the man.

    See? I called you dishonest, which is an insult. And you’ll keep coming back for more. I own you.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  136. Ok, then why mention Diane Sykes, and only Sykes, on February 14?

    If I had to guess? OK, I will guess away. He was trying to change the subject from his sister. He had said nice things about her, but said she would not be his nominee. But, people were dishonestly twisting his words to suggest he was really going to nominate her. So, he named a name.

    But, he came to see it as a mistake to lock himself in to a particular person, or thought that others would think that he was signalling her as his next nominee.

    His ultimate solution, putting out the list was the best political move.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  137. DRJ hasn’t even mentioned that Trump referred to judges “signing bills” during a February 2016 debate – clear evidence of his profound and deeply-help constitutionalist philosophy:

    “Excuse me, she’s a brilliant judge. He’s been criticizing — he’s been criticizing my sister for signing a certain bill. You know who else signed that bill? Justice Samuel Alito, a very conservative member of the Supreme Court, with my sister, signed that bill. So I think that maybe we should get a little bit of an apology from Ted. What do you think?”

    He also said this after the debate, when asked how he would choose Supreme Court nominees:

    “I would wanna see scholars, but I think more than my asking, I would go on references of other people that I respect. Because that is not necessarily my world. I’m very much into the world of legal and legality. But, that is not my world, so I would go to people that I have great respect for and say, ‘Who do you recommend?’”

    So denying that he has outsourced his judicial nominees is another flight from reality. It’s one of the few (only?) campaign promises he has actually kept.

    Dave (445e97)

  138. He’s not that smart at seeing consequences, is he?

    DRJ (15874d)

  139. Many people voted for Trump solely based on SCOTUS. Gorsuch looks like a good choice and I hope he is. If Trump needs help from The Federalist to make good choices, so what? Why would he know anything about good SCOTUS judges as a NY businessman? Being willing to delegate is not a negative. But IMO acting like Trump knew all this already is not believable given the prior things he said do not reflect any judicial knowledge.

    Bingo. Go back and look at my pre-election posts about Trump and judges. I consistently said I thought he would be good on that.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  140. Erick Erickson
    Erick Erickson
    @EWErickson
    ·
    Apr 26
    President Trump should be thanking Johnny Isakson for sparking the administration the most disastrous confirmation hearing in decades by holding up Ronnie Jackson’s

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  141. Dave has a better memory than I do. Thanks, Dave.

    DRJ (15874d)

  142. DRJ hasn’t even mentioned that Trump referred to judges “signing bills” during a February 2016 debate – clear evidence of his profound and deeply-help constitutionalist philosophy:

    Yup. Trump also said he was for “Article XII” of the U.S. Constitution.

    I’ll save you looking it up, Anon Y. Mous. There is no Article XII.

    But please! Do go on telling me how he is a genius who didn’t outsource his judicial picks!

    *puts hand on chin and looks at Anon Y. Mous expectantly*

    By the way, Anon Y. Mous, I enjoy insulting Trump cultists like you as much as you enjoy coming here and being insulted. LIke Hi, you can’t stay away. I own you too.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  143. He’s not that smart at seeing consequences, is he?

    Same goes for those who voted for him and now have buyer’s remorse.

    BuDuh (fc15db)

  144. Lively discussion.

    I find it a bit distressing that it’s so binary. I find little about Trump the man to admire, aside from his apparently boundless energy. But I feel that on balance, the things he has done as President have been a net positive for the country. Don’t agree with everything, but I see little evidence in his actions to support the notion that he’s ‘unfit’ to be president, unless his twitter tirades are somehow disqualifying. And, bottom line, he’s not Hillary, someone I consider even less ‘fit’, however you want to define it.

    Perfection being the enemy of good, the focus on Trump the abhorrent individual seems relatively unimportant. Things could be so much worse.

    Daiwa (e7d5d5)

  145. LJ i think it’s brave that you’re candid but the way america is trending i eschew candor and either keep quiet or couch everything in ways that minimize the ideological

    but i been living in deep blue america and working in a deep blue vertical for many many moons now, so i don’t really have to think about this stuff to navigate my day

    but people know i’m generally conservative and if they say anything i just say i grew up in texas and mom and dad were both very active in the republican party and then i say something about how blue chicago and los angeles are

    I’m glad to hear you don’t get grief for your position where you live. 🙂 ‘Live and let live’ would be ideal in politics, even though it would put political comment sections out of business. I wish you could feel safe to speak your mind where you live. Nobody has to agree, but they should at least protect your right to speak.

    LJ (9188cd)

  146. Yup. Trump also said he was for “Article XII” of the U.S. Constitution.

    I’ll save you looking it up, Anon Y. Mous. There is no Article XII.

    But please! Do go on telling me how he is a genius who didn’t outsource his judicial picks!

    Do you have a quote? One that is more than two words long? I don’t know if he said it or not, or it it is clear from the context what he was referring to. But, that is the typical way that the NeverTrumpers mock him for what he said. By paraphrase instead of actual quotes in full context.

    Is Trump a genius? In some ways he is. He’s a political genius and a social media genius. You mock me for engaging you in debate. But, you keep yourself glued to Trump’s twitter feed, ready to jump on every typo.

    No, he did not “outsource” his judicial picks. He didn’t even delegate the decisions. He delegated responsibility for finding and backgrounding the nominees. So what? Name a president who hasn’t, at least in the modern age.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  147. There is no Article XII.

    This is The Central Scrutinizer!
    It is my responsibility to enforce all the laws that haven’t been passed yet …

    – Frank Zappa, Joe’s Garage, Act. I

    But seriously, are you sure it’s not in there somewhere around “Two Corinthians”?

    Dave (445e97)

  148. I find it a bit distressing that it’s so binary. I find little about Trump the man to admire, aside from his apparently boundless energy. But I feel that on balance, the things he has done as President have been a net positive for the country. Don’t agree with everything, but I see little evidence in his actions to support the notion that he’s ‘unfit’ to be president, unless his twitter tirades are somehow disqualifying. And, bottom line, he’s not Hillary, someone I consider even less ‘fit’, however you want to define it

    HI Daiwa. Nice to see your comments again.

    I think your opinion is rational and defensible, even if it doesn’t entirely line up with mine. I don’t have time for a fully comprehensive answer, but here are some thoughts off the top of my head.

    First, the “Twitter tirades” actually do have some importance, given the office of the man issuing them. He frequently announces ill-considered policy changes or threats via Twitter, which he later backs off of, when someone with a better grasp of policy takes him aside. This means that the world tends to discount what the President of the United States says. He has no credibility because what he says today could totally change tomorrow. That has serious consequences for our foreign policy and our place in the world.

    Second, he has no concept of the traditional norms against the President becoming involved in law enforcement matters. His conversations with James Comey and others were highly inappropriate and unthinkable from nearly any other President in recent memory.

    Third, he doesn’t read. He is almost comically uninformed and uninterested in policy. He gets most of his information from television. This has real consequences, including when he got rolled (assuming he really did get rolled) on the omnibus. When people know the President is a dunce and will sign anything, it affects the way they draft bills.

    Those are just a few of the ways in which he is manifestly unfit, and I didn’t even touch on his moral depravity.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  149. Erick Erickson
    @EWErickson
    ·
    Apr 23
    Sorry y’all, but I’m not going to try to restrain Trump by siding with a bunch of Democrats who want the unfettered right to kill kids, put boys in girls’ bathrooms, and force nuns to pay for abortions. Not happening

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  150. I find it a bit distressing that it’s so binary. I find little about Trump the man to admire, aside from his apparently boundless energy. But I feel that on balance, the things he has done as President have been a net positive for the country. Don’t agree with everything, but I see little evidence in his actions to support the notion that he’s ‘unfit’ to be president, unless his twitter tirades are somehow disqualifying. And, bottom line, he’s not Hillary, someone I consider even less ‘fit’, however you want to define it

    [The above is NOT what I meant to be responding to in this comment. Here’s what I DID mean to respond to:]

    Do you have a quote? One that is more than two words long? I don’t know if he said it or not, or it it is clear from the context what he was referring to. But, that is the typical way that the NeverTrumpers mock him for what he said. By paraphrase instead of actual quotes in full context.

    If you’re so uninformed that you didn’t hear about this and are too lazy to Google it, I can find a quote — IF you tell me what difference it would make to YOU if I turn out to be right.

    Since you reflexively discount any information unfavorable to Trump, I don’t want to spend the effort if (when) it turns out it doesn’t matter, because you will hackishly discount it anyway.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  151. Erick Erickson
    @EWErickson
    ·
    Apr 23
    Every time I have to do this, I feel like a bit of a failure, but the reality on the internet is that we depend on reader support. We do not have deep pocketed super secret investors, the Mercers are not bankrolling us, we don’t run semi-porn advertising

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  152. Is Trump a genius?

    No.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  153. did something go off the rails at 150

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  154. Do you have a quote?

    Pay close attention this time

    Dave (445e97)

  155. “I want to protect Article I, Article II, Article XII.”

    That’s Trump quoted by Rep. Mark Sanford (R., S.C.).

    Patterico (115b1f)

  156. I went ahead and looked it up because it was super-easy to do.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  157. Now, discount it, monkey. Dance.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  158. Maybe a third thread is needed to cover this momentous event.

    Anonymous (d41cee)

  159. Pay close attention this time

    When someone expects me to respond to a quote, it’s on that person to provide the quote. I’m happy to provide backup for the assertions I make, but it’s a little much to expect me to figure out and find whatever the other party is going on about.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  160. 102.I wonder where Mr DCSCA is with a timely Fatty Arbuckle quote?

    Take note, PP: ‘Tis better to be Jack Donaghy than Liz Lemon; the suits run the show, not the talent.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  161. Erick Erickson
    @EWErickson
    ·
    Apr 20
    Tonight I’m going to spend an hour on radio giving my candid thoughts on the Georgia gubernatorial primary. I’ll turn my phone back on Monday.

    Erickson admitting his comments draw criticism, calls

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  162. His conversations with James Comey and others were highly inappropriate and unthinkable from nearly any other President in recent memory.

    Yes, unthinkable from any other President since the immediately prior one.

    Third, he doesn’t read.

    How soon we forget how often this was a criticism directed at Dubya. It was elitist then as now.

    random viking (6a54c2)

  163. Perfect. Sourced to Mark Sanford. Tell me, other than his usefulness as a Trump foil, do you have anything good to say about Mark Sanford. Or, should I say, the disgraced Mark Sanford?

    Please.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  164. I voted for Bush 41 once and then Perot.

    Same here. Since then I voted Republican for all those losers until Trump.

    Truth be told, I voted Libertarian instead of Dole.

    Kevin M (752a26)

  165. #80

    Ace: No, your implication was clear. Own it.

    You don’t say, you hate Trump. Color me surprised. But the comment was in your contention that you have praised Trump. I’ll let others read the post on which I commented and decide for themselves. If the agree with my interpretation, you may put it down to #Trumpalo!

    That you would have refused it is commendable.

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  166. Perfect. Sourced to Mark Sanford. Tell me, other than his usefulness as a Trump foil, do you have anything good to say about Mark Sanford. Or, should I say, the disgraced Mark Sanford?

    Please.

    Nope. Nor do I have anything good to say about pajama-wearing pervert Blake Farenthold, who also confirmed the quote but discounted it.

    So what? Trump said it.

    Thanks for dancing like a monkey on command though.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  167. If Trump needs help from The Federalist to make good choices, so what?

    If only either Bush had gone there for advice. Anyone remember Harriet Miers? Or David Souter?

    Kevin M (752a26)

  168. @102. For Pinandpuller:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQ7QqezgDZI

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  169. How soon we forget how often this was a criticism directed at Dubya. It was elitist then as now.

    The difference is that it was utterly false in regard to Dubya, and utterly true in regard to Trump.

    The veracity of a criticism or accusation matters. This may be a difficult concept for Trump’s devoted followers to grapple with.

    Dave (445e97)

  170. Sometimes I watch political conversation and I wonder when the little child is going to show up who shouts out that the Emperor actually has no clothes on.

    So many defenses of Trump – regarding intelligence or morality – are so mired in sophisticated concealment of the shameful that that it would take the candidness of a child to show them up.

    LJ (9188cd)

  171. Erickson said he disputed the data because “it’s been so self-selective.” Erickson said “the reality” is that women who choose to work instead of staying at home are hurting the family unit.

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  172. “I want to protect Article I, Article II, Article XII.”

    Well, Article XII of AMENDMENT is important, and there are those who would get rid of it, too. I wonder why he left out Article III?

    Kevin M (752a26)

  173. #80

    Ace: No, your implication was clear. Own it.

    You don’t say, you hate Trump. Color me surprised. But the comment was in your contention that you have praised Trump. I’ll let others read the post on which I commented and decide for themselves. If the agree with my interpretation, you may put it down to #Trumpalo!

    I said I have praised Trump, and mixed the praise with criticism, and criticized him more often than I have praised him.

    It’s like this: if I say that you are tenacious, but you are also infuriating because you constantly say things that are unclear, and also regularly twist my words, I have praised you. I have also mixed that praise with criticism which probably outweighs the praise. But I still did praise you. And anyone who says I didn’t is a weasel.

    I own everything I say.

    Everything.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  174. Sometimes I watch political conversation and I wonder when the little child is going to show up who shouts out that the Emperor actually has no clothes on.

    So many defenses of Trump – regarding intelligence or morality – are so mired in sophisticated concealment of the shameful that that it would take the candidness of a child to show them up.

    Quite so. It’s refreshing to read sensible views like that while I am drowning in intellectually dishonest rationalizations from other commenters. Again: thank you.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  175. Oops, there was an extra “that” in my last post and I can’t find a tool to edit the post. Sorry.

    LJ (9188cd)

  176. Quite so. It’s refreshing to read sensible views like that while I am drowning in intellectually dishonest rationalizations from other commenters. Again: thank you.

    We seriously need more people who share your perspective on here! I’ll see if I can find some and direct them your way. 🙂

    LJ (9188cd)

  177. All of these newly-faithful Republicans who spent the last decade trashing the GOP and its candidates who now expect all true Republicans to circle the wagons around their wagon-master, Yosemite Sam.

    Kevin M (752a26)

  178. LJ

    Then pay the Obama tax rates, insist your employer follow Obama era business regulations. If you have children, don’t claim that child tax credit.

    Vote Democrat, tell Schumer to not confirm anymore judges.

    Or just stop when th the measured hand wringing

    Please

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  179. #137

    Oh good grief. That’s the criticism? That the man would seek out advice? That might exclude every President, ever. Plenty of things about Trump that are worthy to criticize, but this? Personally, I think anyone not making a bigger deal about the Trump/Cohen/Daniels axis of sleaze doesn’t have their eye on the ball.

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  180. Anyone remember Harriet Miers? Or David Souter?

    sleazy john roberts isn’t exactly a prize either

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  181. The veracity of a criticism or accusation matters. This may be a difficult concept for Trump’s devoted followers to grapple with.

    Oh gawd.

    Well, Trump may have fooled me, but… as they say:

    “There’s an old saying in Tennessee — I know it’s in Texas, probably in Tennessee — that says, fool me once, shame on — shame on you. Fool me — you can’t get fooled again.”

    random viking (6a54c2)

  182. We seriously need more people who share your perspective on here! I’ll see if I can find some and direct them your way. 🙂

    Please do!!!

    Patterico (115b1f)

  183. Oh good grief. That’s the criticism? That the man would seek out advice?

    No.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  184. LJ

    Then pay the Obama tax rates, insist your employer follow Obama era business regulations. If you have children, don’t claim that child tax credit.

    Vote Democrat, tell Schumer to not confirm anymore judges.

    Or just stop when th the measured hand wringing

    Please

    Settle down EPWJ. I like LJ a lot and you’re making no sense. When I find a new commenter that I really like, I want to encourage that person, and nonsensical rants like yours are going to get batted down.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  185. I just find it sooo amazing that two weeks ago Erickson admitted, he’s broke, doesn’t have the money even for the lights to get donations,mthen is having a political event in Austin, on for the small fee oft a hundred dollars a day, you can hear, well no one, no ones accepted yet.

    Yet he promises he will put all the site killing writers fired by his old blog in the same month he’s begging for money to survive

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  186. Yet he promises he will put all the site killing writers fired by his old blog in the same month he’s begging for money to survive

    “Site killing writers” — not only is this rude, it’s wrong. I already explained they fired the top traffic earner. You need to settle down.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  187. “Since you reflexively discount any information unfavorable to Trump, I don’t want to spend the effort if (when) it turns out it doesn’t matter, because you will hackishly discount it anyway.”

    What about my comment makes you think I ‘reflexively’ do anything? You base this on the only comment here in almost a year, at least many months? Talk about ‘reflexive’.

    Your blog, you can insult your readers and be as nasty as you want.

    Daiwa (e7d5d5)

  188. Then pay the Obama tax rates, insist your employer follow Obama era business regulations. If you have children, don’t claim that child tax credit.

    Vote Democrat, tell Schumer to not confirm anymore judges.

    Or just stop when th the measured hand wringing

    Please

    Thanks for calling my handwringing “measured.” At least it wasn’t “wild,” or something like that lol.

    I’ve never voted Democrat, but my company suffered under Obama-era regulations (which specifically targeted them) and I pay Obama tax rates just like everyone else (until the tax cuts go into effect). But maybe you’ve forgotten that even those of us who didn’t vote for Trump still get to enjoy the tax cuts Congress passed and he signed? 🙂 Allegiance is not required.

    LJ (9188cd)

  189. If only either Bush had gone there for advice. Anyone remember Harriet Miers? Or David Souter?

    Miers was an unforced error, to be sure (for all we know, she might have been a rock-ribbed strict constructionalist, but it was a politically inept nomination).

    According to Wikipedia, Souter voted with Scalia 85% of the time, and Kennedy/O’Connor 97% of the time, during 1990 – 1992. That he “grew in office” over the years isn’t Poppy’s fault.

    Dave (445e97)

  190. Pat

    It’s not nonsensical, and LJ no one wants you to leave.

    The choice is and I know you hate this, I don’t blame you but the alternative is what?

    It’s binary.

    We’re stuck with the guy for the next few years and I wouldn’t be surprised if Cruz picks him as his VP.

    He’s doing all the right things, the only reason he couldn’t do more is what goes on with the chorus of the left and those joining him by the absolute purity over substance argument.

    It’s not going to ever advance the conservative agenda

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  191. President Trump is controversial and i think I figured out why. It’s cause he’s unconventional and takes people out of their comfort zones.

    This is a very timely time to have somebody like him in the White House. As more and more regular Americans face pressures to accede to a mindless fascist conformity, President Trump’s iconoclasm is riding to the rescue of America like a very helpful person on a horse!

    I know in my house we’re pretty darn grateful for our president, President Donald Trump.

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  192. LJ

    Thank you for your reply.

    And it would be the height of hypocrisy for you to take advantage of anything trump has done for you.

    So concrete in your criticism, so troubling that you take advantage of it at the same time.

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  193. Thank you for your reply.

    And it would be the height of hypocrisy for you to take advantage of anything trump has done for you.

    So concrete in your criticism, so troubling that you take advantage of it at the same time.

    I don’t suppose I have a choice, now, do I? 🙂 I’m subject to the laws of the land just like everyone else – so the same tax rate will be applied to me as is applied to everyone else, and the same regulations will be applied to any employer of mine. I suffered under the Obama administration’s policies even though I didn’t vote for him, so I personally think I deserve a reprieve :).

    LJ (9188cd)

  194. the focus on Trump the abhorrent individual seems relatively unimportant.

    So you think political principles are more important than moral principles?

    Dave (445e97)

  195. Pat, DRJ, Dustin,Nk, LJ and others

    It’s tough to be on a team when the leader is a wild brawler.

    It’s a daily cringe worthy event, some days hourly.

    But the progress, against immense odds seems to be accelerating.

    Now an election, with the fate of not only himself, but his entire family.

    But he presses on relentlessly, crassly, but he drives forward.

    What do you think the democrats are going to do if they gain power?

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  196. “Since you reflexively discount any information unfavorable to Trump, I don’t want to spend the effort if (when) it turns out it doesn’t matter, because you will hackishly discount it anyway.”

    What about my comment makes you think I ‘reflexively’ do anything? You base this on the only comment here in almost a year, at least many months? Talk about ‘reflexive’.

    Your blog, you can insult your readers and be as nasty as you want.

    Holy crap. I had the wrong quote on my clipboard. I was NOT meaning to respond to you. You can see that the content of my response doesn’t even line up with your quote.

    I’m going to go strike out the quote from you that I DIDN’T mean to include, and include the quote from Anon Y. Mous that I DID. You can actually see that I was being quite polite to you in the comment I meant to direct at you.

    I apologize deeply for the misunderstanding.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  197. LJ

    It’s your right to pay more. The IRS, doesn’t care if you decline tax credits

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  198. So you think political principles are more important than moral principles?

    That’s the crux of the issue. Some of us are values voters who are concerned not solely about policy but also about the morality of the individual representing our party on the national stage. Those who prize policy alone don’t understand us.

    LJ (9188cd)

  199. Daiwa,

    Please look at my 148, which I meant to direct at you. It is polite and welcomes you back after a long time.

    I have edited my 150 to show I was NOT addressing you. I am horrified at the mixup. I obviously thought I had copied part of Anon Y. Mous’s comment onto my clipboard, but still had your quote.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  200. Trump just told his campaign rally in Michigan that he deserves “all the credit” for the Korean peace talks.

    Dave (445e97)

  201. It’s your right to pay more. The IRS, doesn’t care if you decline tax credits

    Now, why exactly would a conservative give more to a government that wastes most of what it already gets? That would be the height of stupidity, methinks 🙂

    LJ (9188cd)

  202. LJ,

    Good discussion, I hope you stay around

    Gotta go

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  203. Dave,

    No he said the Koreans are giving him all the credit or do you want 50k dead us troops in a war we can’t avoid.

    And the Koreans are giving him credit, all the credit.

    Got to go

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  204. Sorry y’all, but I’m not going to try to restrain Trump by siding with a bunch of Democrats who want the unfettered right to kill kids, put boys in girls’ bathrooms, and force nuns to pay for abortions. Not happening

    I am SO sick of this straw man. I can’t even be bothered to spell out what’s wrong with it since the issue is so self-evident. I could simply point to burden of proof, but that could imply that I believe the person I’m quoting knows what that even means — something his comment makes me doubt very much.

    CanofSand (91c8a5)

  205. Pat, DRJ, Dustin,Nk, LJ and others

    It’s tough to be on a team when the leader is a wild brawler.

    It’s a daily cringe worthy event, some days hourly.

    But the progress, against immense odds seems to be accelerating.

    Now an election, with the fate of not only himself, but his entire family.

    But he presses on relentlessly, crassly, but he drives forward.

    What do you think the democrats are going to do if they gain power?

    The Democrats will concentrate power in Washington, as they always do. Power is some kind of drug for them. But I wouldn’t exactly say Republicans are any better – most of them will give up any supposed stance they hold – just for a chance at keeping their power (a.k.a. staying in office).

    As far as Trump goes, I don’t believe the end justifies ANY means and that’s why I don’t support him.

    LJ (9188cd)

  206. LJ, exactly my point, even though I singled you out it’s a msg to everyone who think morals should trump people getting jobs, keeping jobs and keeping their money.

    Now I’m gone

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  207. LJ,

    Good discussion, I hope you stay around

    Gotta go

    Thanks for the welcome! I will 🙂 Have a great rest of the weekend!

    LJ (9188cd)


  208. DRJ hasn’t even mentioned that Trump referred to judges “signing bills” during a February 2016 debate – clear evidence of his profound and deeply-help constitutionalist philosophy:

    So denying that he has outsourced his judicial nominees is another flight from reality. It’s one of the few (only?) campaign promises he has actually kept.

    Dave (445e97) — 4/28/2018 @ 3:35 pm

    Was he thinking about amicus briefs? The way federal judges are acting he isn’t too far off really. BTW “amicus” spellchecks to “Islamic” lol.

    Pinandpuller (e74138)

  209. All of these newly-faithful Republicans who spent the last decade trashing the GOP and its candidates who now expect all true Republicans to circle the wagons around their wagon-master, Yosemite Sam.

    Kevin M (752a26) — 4/28/2018 @ 4:22 pm

    Isn’t it a little late in the season to be driving these teams thru the Sierras?

    Pinandpuller (e74138)

  210. There’s an old saying in Tennessee — I know it’s in Texas, probably in Tennessee — that says, fool me once, shame on — shame on you. Fool me — you can’t get fooled again.”

    random viking (6a54c2) — 4/28/2018 @ 4:24 pm

    They say that only three things come out of Kansas: Sunflowers, sunshine and sons of b*tches.

    Pinandpuller (e74138)

  211. No he said the Koreans are giving him all the credit

    Let’s roll the tape:

    “I had one of the fake news groups this morning. They were saying, ‘What do you think President Trump had to do with it?’ I’ll tell you what. Like, how about everything?”

    It will be refreshing, at least, to have little more variety in the logical fallacies recited ad nauseum by Trump’s faithful.

    Old and busted:

    Tu quoque, ad hominem, …
    Ad hominem, tu quoque, …

    New hawtness:

    post hoc ergo propter hoc

    In the immortal words of our host – dance, monkeys!

    Dave (445e97)

  212. The Democrats will concentrate power in Washington, as they always do. Power is some kind of drug for them. But I wouldn’t exactly say Republicans are any better – most of them will give up any supposed stance they hold – just for a chance at keeping their power (a.k.a. staying in office).

    As far as Trump goes, I don’t believe the end justifies ANY means and that’s why I don’t support him.

    LJ (9188cd) — 4/28/2018 @ 5:01 pm

    Maybe the problem is that government is force and coercion so how can those who side with liberty use that force to coerce others into allowing them more liberty?

    Pinandpuller (e74138)

  213. This is really weird.

    With full disclosure: I’m what would be considered an incredible lefty by most people here, I’m sure. I’m not, but I doubt I’d convince anyone of that.

    The firing of Patterico makes me morally and intellectually unhappy, but it’s a political bonus.

    It’s sad because while I think Patterico and others like him are disastrously wrong on a whole heap of policy issues, I think that he tries to argue positions he actually holds, and more importantly, held last week. This gives him, like Ben Shapiro and a precious few others, credibility to the younger generation who have decided to call bullshit on our entire political system.

    People like Happyfeet, Anon Y. Mous, etc, on the other hand, are completely unconvincing to people not inside the bubble, and that includes, now, basically everyone under age 30. There’s a lot of reasons for this, but again, I don’t think most people here would actually believe them. However, it is entirely the truth that support for but the GOP and right-wing policies on a number (but not all) issues is cratering in the younger generations.

    The power and political systems of America are entrenched; actual revolution, fast change, would be impossible to do without actual violence and loss of life. What will change, in the direction I feel is good, will happen because of the values that the younger generation has already gained–not the cartoonish ones you think, but really ones of reliance and resilience.

    Writers like Patterico might capture a great deal of those people, if they didn’t share so much space with people who clearly and transparently are intellectually dishonest to anyone outside their space, or are capable of convincing themselves they’ve always felt that way. The casual homophobia, sexism, summation of abortion as ‘baby-killing’, etc. show any young outsider that modern ‘conservatism’ is exactly what it’s portrayed as–and it’s proud of it!

    To be more precise: Patterico and others like him represent people who will wrestle with policy and reality in an effort to advance an intellectual agenda, to convince more people of their views.

    The Anonymous or whatever his name is and the others, they want to put up such strong barriers around ‘conservative’ to purposefully exclude people. The value of conservatism for them is higher if fewer people are in it, the point is to hold ones views, not to convince others. They can shift for themselves.

    So yeah, I’ll take the really offputting people as the face of conservatism. Thank you. But too bad, because Patterico is actually readable because he’s talking about reality. What will replace him won’t be.

    NotTheMostHopeful (4cda66)

  214. Yet I keep coming back? I have a life, I was at the pool and walking around downtown Scottsdale most of my day. I phrased everything as “some people” and “others”. Jesus Christ man you’ve gone so far off the deep end you consider just not being a lunatic “trump is not morally fit he’s evil!!!!” Makes someone a “trumpanzee” or whatever the slur. I am not even pro trump ffs.

    I think Trump is a damn buffoon, does that make me cool now? Whatever he is he’s 500 times better than what would have happened with Clinton in office.

    Hi (6fc094)

  215. Once you start slinging the invective around, no telling who will get hit.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  216. Patterico you are a preening jack&)&/. A limp wristed panty waist whose wife would rather bed the local jiffy lube oil change attendant. You basically waste your time now throwing out troll lines at people who read your crap blog with a comment section of under 150 most days, sometbing any half dressed twit on Instagram can manage 5 times as much as. Way to go buddy, your life sounds super swell. Only thing you probably own is a rabbit so you can please your wife, seriously doubt you can manage that on your own.

    See now I’ve insulted you.

    Hi (6fc094)

  217. ‘Saying what I actually think hasn’t gotten me a “gig” at the New York Times or CNN. It is not a resume enhancer. In the end, it has gotten me fired from RedState. Make no mistake: that’s going to be a hit to my pocketbook, at a time when I am sending my first child to college. But it’s nothing like the financial difficulties that Erick Erickson is going through — or that people like Susan Wright and Caleb Howe, also fired for criticizing Trump, are going through. Those folks depended on that income, and now they have to find something else.’

    WADR,P, losing a media gig isn’t going to stain a resume- particularly to another media person. That’s the nature of the media biz. It’s as if this was the first time you’ve ever lost a gig. You and the other scribes were paid for writing opinions— and now, not– just like everyone else commenting here on your blog. Writers come and go all the time for lots of reasons.

    Worked in the media biz nearly 40 years and we all have war stories about ourselves and colleagues landing and losing gigs. That’s the nature of the business. Lost three over four decades myself through merge and purge– once, early on, after getting reassurances from my boss and his boss that rumors of a pending shake-up were unfounded. Sixty days later- after putting a down payment on a home and securing a mortgage no less- the three of us and twelve other colleagues were reorganized out of our jobs. You deal with it; spin and run: you find new gigs with better paychecks– and that was amidst a recession, no less.

    Once joined a media company and within a month they’d fired thirty staffers and in my time at the firm over 250 had come and gone. Unreal. Knew an experienced editor w/a kid at Harvard who was urged not to change jobs to join an entertainment company. He did anyway, stars in his eyes, a title and a bigger paycheck as bait- so he went for it. They fired him literally two weeks into his new gig; his old job was filled and he wasn’t rehired. Will never forget one Thursday afternoon walking past the CBS Engineering group- 50 people, middle-aged w/families, kids, homes. All hard working… and passing the same work area on the following Monday and they’d all been fired on Friday– the whole damned department, whacked to save money. Lose a client at your agency, staff gets cut; it’s Mad Men 101. The stories go on and on… that’s the nature of the media biz.

    Truly empathize w/you and your colleagues losing your spots. Sucks. It’s nice to get paid for writing, too. And writing is hard. But if you seek security in a volatile industry, particularly as you age and your responsibilities grow, for the vast majority it’s better to be a suit than a talent, as the suits run the show. Wright, Howe and the rest will do fine. Good writers w/good reps get picked up. The hardship is real– but it will pass. And you’ve got the bonus of a day job and a supportive family. Work though the stages of grief but don’t beat a dead horse about it too long. Media people know the drill. It’s not a stain– unless, of course, you choose to make it one.

    “This is the business we have chosen.” – Hyman Roth [Lee Strasberg] ‘The Godfather, Part II’ 1974

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  218. I think Trump is a damn buffoon, does that make me cool now? Whatever he is he’s 500 times better than what would have happened with Clinton in office.
    Hi (6fc094) — 4/28/2018 @ 5:31 pm

    That’s precisely what the majority of us who are not anti Trump have been saying. I want to be a cool kid too but I refuse to act like there was anyone else running in that election I’d rather have as president. It was Trump vs. Hillary and a couple also-ran nobodies. I think Trump helped us dodge the biggest bullet in the history od the Republic and I thank God for him every night. And I’m not going to spend two, four or eight years b!tching about every misstep or bad word he ever said or did. It’s petty and it helps the radical left who I thought were the real enemy.

    Rev.Hoagie (1b0402)

  219. I already explained they fired the top traffic earner.

    That really doesn’t matter long term. The decision was corporate: the suits run the show, not the talent. Back in the day Fred Silverman cancelled the top-earning shows at CBS and replaced them with different programming to reach a changing audience. At the time, it initially seemed wrongheaded but in the end, he read it right.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  220. this was puzzling at first

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  221. I am SO sick of this straw man. I can’t even be bothered to spell out what’s wrong with it since the issue is so self-evident. I could simply point to burden of proof, but that could imply that I believe the person I’m quoting knows what that even means — something his comment makes me doubt very much.

    Agree. Nice to see you here, CanOfSand. Stick around.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  222. Then pay the Obama tax rates, insist your employer follow Obama era business regulations. If you have children, don’t claim that child tax credit.

    If I can claim the personal exemption and my entire CA tax burden, they you betcha.

    Kevin M (752a26)

  223. This is really weird.

    With full disclosure: I’m what would be considered an incredible lefty by most people here, I’m sure. I’m not, but I doubt I’d convince anyone of that.

    The firing of Patterico makes me morally and intellectually unhappy, but it’s a political bonus.

    It’s sad because while I think Patterico and others like him are disastrously wrong on a whole heap of policy issues, I think that he tries to argue positions he actually holds, and more importantly, held last week. This gives him, like Ben Shapiro and a precious few others, credibility to the younger generation who have decided to call bullshit on our entire political system.

    People like Happyfeet, Anon Y. Mous, etc, on the other hand, are completely unconvincing to people not inside the bubble, and that includes, now, basically everyone under age 30. There’s a lot of reasons for this, but again, I don’t think most people here would actually believe them. However, it is entirely the truth that support for but the GOP and right-wing policies on a number (but not all) issues is cratering in the younger generations.

    NotTheMostHopeful:

    If you stick around, you’ll find that I don’t even care if you are an incredible lefty, although I take you at your word that you are not. What you are — and this is evident from your comment — is honest and thoughtful. I work very hard to cultivate commenters like that. Unfortunately, due to the nature of political blogs, I am also plagued by unconvincing partisans such as you described. My desire to maintain an open forum means that you’ll get a lot of people like that. However, I want to assure you that I am very pleased to see your comment and I hope we’ll see more of you.

    The power and political systems of America are entrenched; actual revolution, fast change, would be impossible to do without actual violence and loss of life. What will change, in the direction I feel is good, will happen because of the values that the younger generation has already gained–not the cartoonish ones you think, but really ones of reliance and resilience.

    Writers like Patterico might capture a great deal of those people, if they didn’t share so much space with people who clearly and transparently are intellectually dishonest to anyone outside their space, or are capable of convincing themselves they’ve always felt that way. The casual homophobia, sexism, summation of abortion as ‘baby-killing’, etc. show any young outsider that modern ‘conservatism’ is exactly what it’s portrayed as–and it’s proud of it!

    OK, now I am going to respectfully let you know that I agree that abortion is baby-killing. To discuss it at length is beyond the scope of this comment, and I understand that you’re listing that as one in a group of overly partisan characterizations and views that indeed the extreme right holds. But here, I disagree with you, and I want to be honest about it.

    To be more precise: Patterico and others like him represent people who will wrestle with policy and reality in an effort to advance an intellectual agenda, to convince more people of their views.

    The Anonymous or whatever his name is and the others, they want to put up such strong barriers around ‘conservative’ to purposefully exclude people. The value of conservatism for them is higher if fewer people are in it, the point is to hold ones views, not to convince others. They can shift for themselves.

    So yeah, I’ll take the really offputting people as the face of conservatism. Thank you. But too bad, because Patterico is actually readable because he’s talking about reality. What will replace him won’t be.

    Well, this site remains and is open to you and anyone else who might have read me at RedState (I’m making an assumption here). Again, thanks for your comment and please come back.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  224. post hoc ergo propter hoc

    Yes, but sometimes it is. For example, I thing that the actions of the Reagan administration, at minimum, hastened the fall of the Soviet Union by showing the power of credit in a war of capital (Communists having trouble getting loans).

    I also think it unlikely that a country that was testing bombs and rockets and being bellicose about it would turn on a dime towards making nice without an outside stimulus. Now, I suspect that Mattis & Co had more to do with it and Trump’s input was very high-level*, but to assert that it wasn’t at least port of what go Kim out of the bunker is, well, silly.

    ——–
    * very high-level — an engineering term that usually means “those idiots in marketing”

    Kevin M (752a26)

  225. NottheMostHopeful,I agree with you that it takes credibility – such to convince the younger generation, who are not already sold on any political philosophy. Someone who argues for ideas (like Patterico or Shapiro) rather than for blind loyalty to their party’s politicians is more convincing.

    Denying the significance of Trump’s moral problems (if one would criticize a Democrat over the same moral problems) makes many conservatives lose their credibility. The derogatory, exclusive terms some conservatives sling around about anyone who won’t support Trump do nothing to attract new members to their movement…instead they push people away. It seems that their focus is on getting congratulatory back slaps from those who agree with them, and making snide remarks to alienate non-Trump-supporters who are otherwise amenable to their preferred policies, rather than trying to convince others to join their movement. That’s a very effective way of diminishing the size of your movement until it eventually wastes away.

    I am a conservative but not a Trump supporter, and am very disappointed with the attitudes that I see within my side of the political aisle lately. We need more Pattericos and Shapiros who will grow the size of our camp rather than shrink it. That requires being inclusive and welcoming to EVERYONE, ideas-focused, and rationally persuasive.

    LJ (9188cd)

  226. So nobody likes Erik Erickson’s strawman?

    https://mobile.twitter.com/EWErickson/status/988545560515923968

    BuDuh (fc15db)

  227. I just spent some time reading this thread.

    First, thanks to the people who are civil and thoughtful. As for the Usual Suspects:

    Good Lord. Listen to you all. Just listen!

    Talk about a circular firing squad!

    Trump was a very bad choice for President. He is vulgar, incurious, fundamentally “not conservative,” and a serial liar. None of these things are incorrect or up for discussion. You can try, but you will know in your heart you are defending someone you would not want to have in your own home, or buy something from. Saying “X is worse” is a horrible justification for celebrating a person. Holding your nose and voting for the better of two bad choices makes sense. It doesn’t make it a “good” choice. It makes it a sad choice, that must be addressed and fixed so that things become better, not more extreme.

    Good God.

    The fact that, warts and all, Trump is better than Hillary Clinton is not material to HIS faults. And if you don’t push for someone better coming down the pike, what you will get is worse. That’s what is happening to the DNC. They are getting crazier and crazier. So supposed Republicans and “conservatives” want to match that downward path?

    Apparently, since Trump is such a insulting and intemperate buffoon, many folks here feel the need to act like the guy. What was once a fairly civil (other than a few trolls who, like the crabgrass they are, still “persist” to borrow from HRC) has become unpleasant and bizarre. I see people calling DRJ a liberal. Do they mean it? Of course not. They are just being insulting and angry.

    Ooooh. Patterico gets insulting. So what? That makes acting like a jerk okay? It’s his blog. And I am pretty sure that, if more and more people didn’t act like chimpanzees in need of a diaper around here, Patterico would be more civil in his disagreements.

    Fewer and fewer people who don’t act like trolls post. More and more people who do act like trolls post.

    It’s one of the benefits of the Trumpination of our culture. And you know what the result will be, don’t you?

    Worse stuff down the road.

    So go ahead flinging poo around. It really has served you well.

    Patterico’s posts are important, whether or not you agree. And keep in mind that, with very few exceptions, he lets the trolls do their trolling. So for all of the trolls yelling at him, he is more devoted to different ideas than those trolls are.

    I’m happy every time Patterico ejects someone who acts like a jerk. I wish he would do it more. But he is a better man than I am.

    Again, many, many thanks to the people who are civil and thoughtful in their approaches here. It’s hard to hear them with all the noise.

    Simon Jester (fbe543)

  228. this was puzzling at first

    Heh. Make the people who purchase needed medicine legally, with a doctor’s prescription, pay more to fund the drug war.

    Which part puzzled you?

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  229. The power and political systems of America are entrenched; actual revolution, fast change, would be impossible to do without actual violence and loss of life. What will change, in the direction I feel is good, will happen because of the values that the younger generation has already gained–not the cartoonish ones you think, but really ones of reliance and resilience.

    Hannah Arendt famously observed that every generation, Western civilization is invaded by a horde of barbarians. We call them “children”.

    Dave (445e97)

  230. However, it is entirely the truth that support for but the GOP and right-wing policies on a number (but not all) issues is cratering in the younger generations.

    You need to separate out the social myopia (both among the old and the young, btw) from the economic and structural.

    For example, MANY more people under 30 think that “socialism hasn’t really been tried” than people who lived through the Cold War. I effing TOUCHED the Berlin Wall, so I’m not real open to the argument, and I will tell them in short phrases that they are full of stuff I cannot type here.

    More correctly, many Millennials look on alternate sexual preferences as maybe a little weird, but nothing terrible, much the same way the Boomers became accepting of races and cultures. It’s normal for generations to make that kind of break from their parents. Which is why the social conservatives strike out there.

    But tax people out of their socks and they’ll change their minds about their youthful generosity.

    Kevin M (752a26)

  231. And if you don’t push for someone better coming down the pike, what you will get is worse. That’s what is happening to the DNC. They are getting crazier and crazier. So supposed Republicans and “conservatives” want to match that downward path?

    Great point, Simon Jester. I could not agree more.

    We conservatives all need to face the fact that our side is becoming more and more corrupted by its drive for political power at any cost, and fix that problem before we become prime contributors to America’s moral degradation.

    LJ (9188cd)

  232. Trump was a very bad choice for President…

    Nobody told DRJ.

    BuDuh (fc15db)

  233. Which part puzzled you?

    the headline

    maybe they fixed it

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  234. yeah they fixed it they had left the d off of drugmakers

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  235. Trump is like having a Crown Vic and saying that it beats walking. Yeah, sure, but there are lots better cars.

    Kevin M (752a26)

  236. Ha! Everyone else has to pay for the war on drugs, why not the rugmakers?

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  237. Nobody told DRJ.

    Jackass. Leave DRJ alone. You want to make an argument, make an argument. You want to make it personal, you’re gone.

    Patterico (2975ef)

  238. #228

    I respect your opinion, but the fact that Trump was better than Hillary was the whole point. God forbid you might praise Trump, because for that you are considered the lowest of the low. You may criticize him, but the moment you praise him, you’re the rube, the slack jawed yokel in the room of your betters. Forever to be labeled as such. Especially by those who refused to put skin in the game. Because why? #Trumpalo? Yeah, seems so.

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  239. #230

    Really? The realists or others?

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  240. #238

    Wow. Is the Pogram about to begin?

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  241. I disliked Erickson before Trump. He was nasty to Palin and had a habit of making nasty remarks about other women, while posing as Mr. Christian conservative. His dis-inviting Trump to his Red State Summit (or whatever it was called) based on Trump’s anti-women remarks was so hypocritical as to be laughable.

    Now, he’s playing the martyr. So sad. Now Erickson’s the misunderstood man of principle who calls people who disagree with him “Trump-humpers”. Man… As far as I can tell, Erickson and the other never trumpers never could explain on a POLICY BASIS why they supported Romney and McCain (Neither is a conservative) but hated Trump so much they became defacto Hillary supporters.

    Anyway, I don’t need to listen to Erickson trash Trump when i can read 90% of the media doing the same thing – and doing it better. People like Erickson can’t even keep their criticism of Trump on a POLICY basis – half the time he’s just calling Trump names. Who needs that?

    rcocean (1a839e)

  242. Wow. Is the Pogram about to begin?

    If you make personal comments about DRJ, then the “pogrom” (my! The drama!) will begin for you, yes.

    *rolls eyes*

    Patterico (2975ef)

  243. I apologize that I made it personal. I did think that it reflected DRJ’s pre and post opinions of Trump. Simon makes it clear that it was obvious and DRJ expressed that she had a hope for Trump that must not have been swayed by what Simon observed.

    I sincerely hope I didn’t misrepresent what DRJ has said and I sincerely apologize for the way I wrote my comment.

    Again, I am sorry.

    BuDuh (fc15db)

  244. 236.Trump is like having a Crown Vic and saying that it beats walking. Yeah, sure, but there are lots better cars.

    Your mileage may vary.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  245. #184

    Really? Do tell. Because no examples that you have provided prove otherwise. And it wasn’t even a comment directed at you. How noble, sticking up for Dustin. Were you to do the same for those conflicted about Trump, who might praise him in one comment, and do otherwise in another, might establish your intellectual honesty. Heaven forfend. Seems only one viewpoint is seen as admirable here. But you don’t kick people out, which is honorable.

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  246. #243

    I didn’t see a personal insult there. Maybe the man is wise enough to defend his beliefs. Or not. And don’t roll your eyes, they may stick that way.

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  247. As far as I can tell, Erickson and the other never trumpers never could explain on a POLICY BASIS why they supported Romney and McCain (Neither is a conservative) but hated Trump so much they became defacto Hillary supporters.

    See, this is why I find Trump supporters as incredible (meaning lacking credibility) as their idol. Can somebody please, pretty please with sugar on it, tell me where Romney and McCain fall short as conservatives [not owning a copy of Mein Kampf does not count] or, your choice, point to one thing where Trump is more conservative than either of them?

    nk (dbc370)

  248. Your mileage may vary.

    Like with Trump-alternatives, it will generally vary upward.

    Kevin M (752a26)

  249. Maybe the man is wise enough to defend his beliefs

    I am almost more concerned that I may make spelling or grammatical errors.

    BuDuh (fc15db)

  250. #243

    And the drama that you see in others might best be accurately represented when you look in the mirror as you shave your whiskers. Good Lord.

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  251. #250

    Yeah, me too. Being a mouth breather.

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  252. cowardly john mccain’s vote on the obamacare was not good conservative

    also he lied about his commitment to build the border wall

    also he’s a depraved climate change pansy

    plus he likes to do nasty trannies all up in the sleazy military

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  253. Really? Do tell. Because no examples that you have provided prove otherwise. And it wasn’t even a comment directed at you. How noble, sticking up for Dustin. Were you to do the same for those conflicted about Trump, who might praise him in one comment, and do otherwise in another, might establish your intellectual honesty. Heaven forfend. Seems only one viewpoint is seen as admirable here. But you don’t kick people out, which is honorable.

    My “no” was intended to show that you had inaccurately characterized Dustin’s comment.

    I don’t need to establish my intellectual honesty to the likes of you. It was established long ago to the people I care about.

    Patterico (2975ef)

  254. ‘Our Cartoon President’ aired at the WHCA Dinner as a substitute for our cartoon president.

    Brilliant.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  255. #248

    Mein Kamph? Godwin alert. Perhaps our host will chide fairly when and if other commentators are maligned in the vilest of manner?

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  256. I apologize that I made it personal. I did think that it reflected DRJ’s pre and post opinions of Trump. Simon makes it clear that it was obvious and DRJ expressed that she had a hope for Trump that must not have been swayed by what Simon observed.

    I sincerely hope I didn’t misrepresent what DRJ has said and I sincerely apologize for the way I wrote my comment.

    Again, I am sorry.

    Thank you.

    Patterico (2975ef)

  257. Crown Vic, Kevin? I wish. They’re solid cars (although the Chevy Caprice has the edge in comfort). No, Trump is a 1973 Pinto. On the freeway with a semi behind it.

    nk (dbc370)

  258. I didn’t see a personal insult there. Maybe the man is wise enough to defend his beliefs. Or not. And don’t roll your eyes, they may stick that way.

    DRJ is not a man but is a valued long-time commenter. Bu Duh apologized. Why don’t you refrain from sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong?

    Patterico (2975ef)

  259. #248

    Mein Kamph? Godwin alert. Perhaps our host will chide fairly when and if other commentators are maligned in the vilest of manner?

    I certainly shall.

    *stands there, looks up at the sky, whistles*

    Patterico (2975ef)

  260. nk – I can’t stand the man, but DJT has been absolutely stalwart in defense of Israel AND he has let Haley be a veritable pitbull at the UN. He’s displayed, remarkably, an isolationist bent. Yeah, he sent missiles. But, no more boots. At least not yet. He did, however, reinforce the Afghan presence.

    Neither of the gents you mentioned would EVER give the Federalist folks such standing in naming judicial nominees. Neither would have fought to eliminate the individual health mandate tax, either.

    He is no conservative. But, I truly believe we have seen more disruptively conservative direction from the White House under DJT than we would have under Romney/McCain.

    Maybe it’s Pence’s influence?

    LJ – I have loved getting to know you this afternoon and evening. Please, do stay.

    Ed from SFV (291f4c)

  261. Yeah, me too. Being a mouth breather.

    Nobody said you are a mouth breather. You are acting like a jerk today, which is why you are getting pushback.

    Patterico (2975ef)

  262. I thought I was the man that needed to defend my comment?

    Not DRJ.

    Let me know. I am prepared to explain why I said what I said, using a more polite tactic.

    BuDuh (fc15db)

  263. #254

    Oh, I’m quite sure. Seems to me people here comment at the risk of being challenged. And intellectual honesty is proven on a daily basis. I was all for here you when Kimberlaind (so? Who cares, he doesn’t deserve the time of day) was doing the dirty. You give no credit for that. And the likes of me? Oh, #Trumpalo!

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  264. #262

    I may be. I admit it, I may be wrong. You talk about pushback, I understand that. But maybe I’m not the only jerk in this conversation. I’ll just stand here whistling at the sky, too.

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  265. Thank you, Ed from SFV. I also applaud Trump for those same things.

    nk (dbc370)

  266. Ed from SVC, I agree with nk wholeheartedly. Thank you for your comment.

    Simon Jester (f6c741)

  267. I may be. I admit it, I may be wrong. You talk about pushback, I understand that. But maybe I’m not the only jerk in this conversation. I’ll just stand here whistling at the sky, too.

    Your first comment in this thread was to call my commentary “disingenuous” and since then you have been sarcastic and have repeatedly misstated others’ arguments.

    Do better and you’ll be treated better.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  268. Yes, but sometimes it is. For example, I thing that the actions of the Reagan administration, at minimum, hastened the fall of the Soviet Union by showing the power of credit in a war of capital (Communists having trouble getting loans).

    Kevin M (752a26) — 4/28/2018 @ 6:03 pm

    Anyone could have predicted the fall of The Soviet Union. There were so many red flags.

    Yes, I appropriated that from a joke producer.

    Pinandpuller (e74138)

  269. Yes, but sometimes it is. For example, I thing that the actions of the Reagan administration, at minimum, hastened the fall of the Soviet Union by showing the power of credit in a war of capital (Communists having trouble getting loans).

    Sure, in this case there is a clear and identifiable causal link between what Reagan did and the results for which Reagan deserves significant credit.

    There may be such a link between something Donald Trump did and the Korean talks, but if so, we haven’t seen it yet.

    I also think it unlikely that a country that was testing bombs and rockets and being bellicose about it would turn on a dime towards making nice without an outside stimulus. Now, I suspect that Mattis & Co had more to do with it and Trump’s input was very high-level*, but to assert that it wasn’t at least port of what go Kim out of the bunker is, well, silly.

    What are you suggesting Mattis did?

    My read on the situation, and it may be wrong, is that Trump and maybe others were pretty hawkish, but the South Koreans restrained them. For one thing, the looming Olympics would have been a disaster with an escalating military crisis in progress. For another, of course, the Nork ICBMs and nukes do not materially worsen South Korea’s security situation; they were already facing mass casualties in the event of any war. The ICBMs are aimed at us, not them.

    Despite Trump’s unhinged Twitter meltdowns, the US (quite surprisingly, to me) did virtually nothing in the way of military saber-rattling (reinforcing our troops, beefing up air assets, etc).

    That is one reason I find the narrative that Trump brought the Norks to the table lacks credibility. He made repeated empty (and unserious, given the lack of any military build-up) threats, and never followed through on any of them. Until and unless some mechanism is revealed to show exactly how calling Kim nasty names on Twitter broke the resolve of a thug who routinely assassinates his own relatives, I think there are more plausible explanations.

    There are a few scenarios that seem realistic.

    1) Maybe Kim really wants to make peace, and the nuclear/ICBM tests were for internal propaganda to convince people inside NK that he was doing so from a position of strength. This seems pretty unlikely to me. His position inside NK is currently as secure as any leader’s anywhere in the world. Kim does not strike me as a North Korean Gorbachev, and increased contact with the South would be utterly corrosive to his authority. Even if the regime keeps North/South interactions very limited, making peace would eliminate the entire propaganda narrative that the regime has rested on for 60+ years. Building massive weapon programs only to agree to dismantle them doesn’t make sense either.

    2) Maybe the Chinese finally told Kim the game was up. If so, Trump might have had something to do with this, although his most recent statements on the subject have been complaints that China wasn’t doing anything, and US/China relations have been deteriorating during the time Kim was changing course. There was never any indication that business as usual between China and NK had been interrupted. Kim went to Beijing in March, but this was after things had been moving for several months. In short, if Chinese pressure is responsible for Kim’s change of tack, there is zero evidence that anything the US did was the catalyst. If China was doing our bidding, one would expect Trump (or someone) to acknowledge it, but we haven’t seen that at all.

    3) Most likely – the peace talks are a con, and Kim is just playing the same game the Norks have played in the past. Two subvariants, depending on whether he insists up front on keeping his weapons, or does so by violating the agreement later:

    3a) He could be trying to divide the US and South Korea by offering the ROK a peace deal (with lots of cash incentives flowing north, ofc) while intending to hold onto his weapons. It would politically impossible for the South to refuse a peace deal, and politically impossible for the US to agree to let him keep his weapons. So the US either has to be the bad guy who torpedoes the peace deal, or has to let him keep his nukes.

    3b) Same as above, but Kim might initially feign agreement to meet our demands, collect his pay-off from the South Koreans, and then renege on that part of the deal later. In that case, we again get to be the bad guy in a few years by insisting on compliance (and sparking a new crisis) or else acquiesce in letting him get away with it.

    Either way, if he eventually wants to squeeze more money from the South (and/or us), he just repeats the confrontation/escalation/negotiation/extortion process every 5-10 years as necessary.

    Dave (445e97)

  270. BuDuh,

    I wanted and want to be hopeful that Trump will do conservative things but, if you really care about my opinions (and frankly you’ve never acted like you do), this is why I voted for him.

    DRJ (15874d)

  271. If you make personal comments about DRJ, then the “pogrom” (my! The drama!) will begin for you, yes.

    We all knew the Michael Cohen search warrants were only the beginning…

    Dave (445e97)

  272. But tax people out of their socks and they’ll change their minds about their youthful generosity.

    Kevin M (752a26) — 4/28/2018 @ 6:13 pm

    How about we just make people pay full freight for their alternate lifestyles?

    Pinandpuller (e74138)

  273. This is about conservatism to me. Trump isn’t a conservative and has been ardent in his efforts to target conservative leaders and policies (except immigration, which I think he is using to get attention and support, not because he has any intention of doing what he says). Overall, Trump has been nicer to Hillary and the Democrats than to Cruz and Rubio.

    Trump is such a bad nominee that, amazingly, he has put Texas in play for Hillary. Can you imagine how a close election in Texas would energize the Democrats? That’s the only reason I might vote for Trump — to keep Texas from going blue, something that would hurt conservatism in Texas and the nation.

    DRJ (15874d) — 10/22/2016 @ 6:26 pm

    So it wasn’t about a wall, Obamacare, and Planned Parenthood?

    Did I misread your comments since we met?

    BuDuh (fc15db)

  274. #268

    A matter of what I think is a slanted opinion. I don’t expect to be treated better, or have anyone else stand in for me. Your characterization of Ace’s commentary was disingenuous. You want to make that claim, quote it all here. I’ll allow I might be wrong. Absent that, just because it raised your ire does mean it to be untrue.

    I have commented on other’s posts as I believe they might be a wee bit off base. If I have been a “jerk”, I apologize. But it seems rather one sided to judge me. And I assure you, I don’t deal in sarcastic, that’s just lazy. If someone disagrees with my assertions, they can engage on the merits. I will freely admit if I am wrong. But when I see lazy thinking, I think it fair to respond. Whether one be the host or a guest. And a guest I most certainly am.

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  275. LJ – I have loved getting to know you this afternoon and evening. Please, do stay.

    Ed from SFV,
    Thanks for the warm welcome! 🙂 I’ll stay around.

    LJ (9188cd)

  276. Trump is like having a Crown Vic and saying that it beats walking. Yeah, sure, but there are lots better cars.

    Kevin M (752a26) — 4/28/2018 @ 6:20 pm

    Getting loaded in a van like a sack of dog food beats walking too.

    Pinandpuller (e74138)

  277. I hoped he would do all the things he promised and I still do, but I didn’t expect him to because he is unreliable. Also, I don’t like Hillary. These were all factors but, ultimately, I voted for Trump because I could see he was costing GOP votes in Texas and I did not like what that meant.

    DRJ (15874d)

  278. #272

    Of course. Absent collusion, this potential line of attack seems valid, it’s unseemly. And troubling.

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  279. What was the outcome in Texas?

    BuDuh (fc15db)

  280. I have commented on other’s posts as I believe they might be a wee bit off base. If I have been a “jerk”, I apologize.

    You have. I accept your apology. Let’s wipe the slate clean and try discussing things with mutual respect.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  281. BTW, to me, the wall, Obamacare, and Planned Parenthood are conservative issues. Is Trump helping us get conservative results? We still have ObamaCare, he signed a bill funding PP, and there is no wall.

    DRJ (15874d)

  282. meghan’s coward daddy doesn’t even bother to show up for work anymore

    this makes it hard to do legislate

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  283. Trump defeated Hillary in Texas by the narrowest margin for a Republican in 20 years.

    DRJ (15874d)

  284. I guess he had enough people compromise in Texas, because the alternative was Hillary, to secure a win.

    BuDuh (fc15db)

  285. …no other President has been as intellectually incurious as Donald Trump in the modern era.

    He doesn’t read security briefings either, or listen to briefings unless they’re “simplified”, assuming he even listens to the dumbed-down versions (link).

    Paul Montagu (e6130e)

  286. meghan’s coward daddy doesn’t even bother to show up for work anymore

    this makes it hard to do legislate

    He has been fighting brain cancer and an infection after surgery. He needs our prayers.

    LJ (9188cd)

  287. Yes, Texas had a lot of compromisers when it came to Trump, but also a lot of true believers. (For some reason that reminds me of the Godfather scene about buffers.)

    DRJ (15874d)

  288. happyfeet knows, LJ. He says a lot of things like that. Unfortunately.

    DRJ (15874d)

  289. He has been fighting brain cancer and an infection after surgery. He needs our prayers.

    LJ,

    You’ll soon learn that happyfeet is not worth talking to. He’s the most cultist member of the Trump cult I have ever encountered. We keep him around for amusement’s sake and old times’ sake, but my advice is to ignore him.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  290. ‘Our Cartoon President’ aired at the WHCA Dinner as a substitute for our cartoon president.

    Brilliant.

    DCSCA (797bc0) — 4/28/2018 @ 6:50 pm

    In what way? Did Don Lemon yell at the screen?

    Pinandpuller (e74138)

  291. So the “he isn’t Hillary” is truly a valid reason for Texans to have voted for Trump?

    Seems that position is troublesome for others to admit.

    BuDuh (fc15db)

  292. I love President Trump because we had a really scary moment in there where it looked like a vile and stinky criminal woman would become the president and the last darkness would descend on a benighted land.

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  293. He doesn’t read security briefings either, or listen to briefings unless they’re “simplified”, assuming he even listens to the dumbed-down versions (link).

    I read somewhere that they found he pays more attention if you include his name frequently during the briefing. So they started trying to do that.

    I wonder if they’ve tried puppets or cartoons…

    Dave (445e97)

  294. #281

    Agreed. I might disagree with you, but I’ve respected you for a very long time. Politics is awful in that it divides us. Being termed a #Trumpalo is akin to being described as a #NeverTrumper, a term I consider an insult to the intellect to those so addressed. And if I disagree with you, or anyone else who comments here, it’s not because I consider in them some moral flaw: I always attempt to engage on merit. I will always attempt to do just that. I am often wrong, and that’s Ok, just as long as I am willing to admit it.

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  295. My read on the situation, and it may be wrong, is that Trump and maybe others were pretty hawkish, but the South Koreans restrained them.
    […]
    Despite Trump’s unhinged Twitter meltdowns, the US (quite surprisingly, to me) did virtually nothing in the way of military saber-rattling (reinforcing our troops, beefing up air assets, etc).

    Trump is doing Nixon’s Madman gambit. All the people working for him are trying to hold him back, but he just might be crazy enough to do it. Kind of like the Good Cop / Bad Cop thing, except that while he is willing to threaten to do things that other leaders won’t like, he usually doesn’t personally insult them. He says nice things about Putin or Xi, while at the same time imposing policies that are the exact opposite of what they want from us.

    The exception, of course, was Rocket Man. But, now that Kim has stopped making threatening moves with his missiles and is at least posturing towards negotiations, Trump has laid off the personal insults.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  296. It seems to me that a lot of the problem is the “Flight 93” mentality that some Trump supporters have bought into. I suppose that, if I were somehow convinced that 2016 was the unique historical moment when the election of one more liberal president would mean the irrevocable end of everything, and Trump the one savior who could prevent that — then perhaps I, too, would cast aside all thought of honesty and consistency. I, too, might scream “STFU” at anyone who insisted on saying what they thought and applying the same standards to Republicans as they do to Democrats.

    (This tweet by Kurt Schlichter, I think, concisely encapsulates the whole mentality. https://twitter.com/KurtSchlichter/status/990406977816686592)

    After all, when you’re in a struggle for existence, ordinary morality has to take a back seat, right? I suppose the people who are doing this, had they been around during World War II, would have been yelling “Treason!” at anyone who criticized FDR. It’s a binary choice! It’s FDR or Hitler, and we *have* to win the war, and if you won’t help him, then at least STFU about it.

    The difference is: I don’t believe in the Flight 93 thesis. And I assume Patterico, Erickson, etc. don’t either. And you aren’t going to persuade them of it by having hysterics.

    gwjd (032bef)

  297. But happyfeet? Really? He expresses himself in a different manner than most, but if you do engage on the merits, or lack thereof, I find a certain sense of satire. He isn’t stupid.

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  298. It seems to me that a lot of the problem is the “Flight 93″ mentality that some Trump supporters have bought into. I suppose that, if I were somehow convinced that 2016 was the unique historical moment when the election of one more liberal president would mean the irrevocable end of everything, and Trump the one savior who could prevent that — then perhaps I, too, would cast aside all thought of honesty and consistency. I, too, might scream “STFU” at anyone who insisted on saying what they thought and applying the same standards to Republicans as they do to Democrats.

    . . . .

    The difference is: I don’t believe in the Flight 93 thesis. And I assume Patterico, Erickson, etc. don’t either. And you aren’t going to persuade them of it by having hysterics

    Every election is portrayed as the Flight 93 election. Just in different terms. Those who don’t realize that have short memories. The Democrat opponent is always the worst person who has ever existed. Every time. The hysteria never stops.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  299. But happyfeet? Really? He expresses himself in a different manner than most, but if you do engage on the merits, or lack thereof, I find a certain sense of satire. He isn’t stupid.

    A long time ago he showed that he is capable of writing, not just like a normal person, but with vigor and wit. I’m not 100% sure that the persona isn’t a years-long satire on Trump supporters. It would make some sense but also would make me concerned for his mental health. I think Occam’s Razor suggests that he is a cultist, pure and simple.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  300. my favorite part is the freedom agenda (deregulation)

    my second favorite part is the energy agenda

    i also like the court appointments

    these three things are very different but they have one thing in common: they help buy america time

    tick tock

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  301. What was the outcome in Texas?

    BuDuh (fc15db) — 4/28/2018 @ 7:28 pm

    Texas went for Trump and God punished them.

    Pinandpuller (e74138)

  302. #300

    Oh, I think you underestimate him. I’ve often wondered if he was actually anti-trump. If so, it’s brilliant. If not, no reason to disparage him. Read what he writes, really. He’s no cultist. He may actually be satirical on the other side. #trumpalo? No.

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  303. God preferred Hillary.

    BuDuh (fc15db)

  304. 293.I love President Trump because we had a really scary moment in there where it looked like a vile and stinky criminal woman would become the president and the last darkness would descend on a benighted land.

    The Great Pumpkin, eh Mr. Feet.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  305. I don’t believe in the Flight 93 thesis.

    even putting aside the gestapo FBI working to do a coup on America

    the intensity of the corruptions permeating all levels and branches of government is alarming and extreme

    and since the DOJ’s the most corrupt institution of them all there’s not nearly enough being done to rectify this

    so maybe Flight 93 is inapt

    but we have this small window of time (thank you President Trump)

    we need to use it wisely and well

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  306. #305

    Or the God’s honest truth. I think it so. You’re free to argue Hillary over Trump. That would be a refreshing debate. Honesty.

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  307. The difference is: I don’t believe in the Flight 93 thesis.

    Great post gwjd, I agree with every word of it.

    And it is amazing how the Flight 93’ers have to lie to themselves to convince each other of the truth of their narrative.

    For example, the GOP was supposed completely wiped out, in total retreat, etc until Trump came along to save us. In fact, between 2009 and 2015, the GOP gained over 1000 seats in congress, governors mansions, and state houses.

    People regularly say things that are outright false about the budget. Thanks to the GOP congress, between 2009 and 2016, federal spending fell from a record high 24.5% of GDP to a 20.9% (below the 50-year average). In 2016, non-defense discretionary spending was 1.5% of GDP *lower* than in 2000 (the last year with a surplus).

    We hear people claim that the middle class is “struggling for survival” – in fact, we as a nation are wealthier and better off than we’ve ever been.

    Of course, life is not perfect, and government is not perfect. We shouldn’t stop trying to make our lives better. There are plenty of areas where bad policies can be changed or replaced. But the sky is not falling. Today’s Americans are the luckiest people who have ever lived.

    It is an unfortunate feature of times that any semblance of moderation in political discourse seems to have vanished. Anybody you disagree with has to be the devil. Any problem has to be attributed to some malicious element of society who are intent on doing evil. Criticism, even legitimate criticism, of anybody in the “tribe” is viewed by many as betrayal.

    While our problems are all perfectly amenable to solution, our approach to them is becoming increasingly destructive. We’re like people in a rowboat with a few minor leaks who can’t agree on how to fix them, so we start fighting each other with axes or something.

    Jonah Goldberg’s new book talks about all this, and I recommend it (again):

    Suicide of the West: How the Rebirth of Tribalism, Populism, Nationalism, and Identity Politics is Destroying American Democracy

    Dave (445e97)

  308. Oh, I think you underestimate him. I’ve often wondered if he was actually anti-trump. If so, it’s brilliant. If not, no reason to disparage him. Read what he writes, really. He’s no cultist. He may actually be satirical on the other side. #trumpalo? No.

    I read what he writes. He’s either a deranged satirist or a cultist.

    But I’m tired of being told I underestimate people by Trump fans. Go tell Scott Adams. Maybe he can write a post about hf’s persuasion stack.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  309. feelings

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  310. feelings

    don’t care

    Patterico (115b1f)

  311. He could be a Russian sleeper agent sent here 20 years ago in anticipation of this moment. Or not.

    DRJ (15874d)

  312. feelings

    don’t care

    That’s comedy gold.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  313. #307. Heavens, no. America will sleep soundly knowing Mr. Trump told Michigan that NASA is back because it rents out Cape Canaveral.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  314. I’m not 100% sure that the persona isn’t a years-long satire on Trump supporters.

    I’m glad I’m not the only one with such doubts…

    Whether feigned or genuine, the Trump worship is funny as hell.

    But the hateful stuff he says about the military and other people is really disturbing and unfortunately seems very real.

    Dave (445e97)

  315. Mr. Feet can be refined; he knows the difference between a cracking tower, a crack pipe and merely cracking corn.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  316. Well said, Dave. Thanks.

    gwjd (032bef)

  317. #309

    Jiminy, you take offense where none was meant. I was engaging in idle conversation.

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  318. 292.So the “he isn’t Hillary” is truly a valid reason for Texans to have voted for Trump?

    I guess that’s one way of saying it. Another is that there were Texas Republicans willing to say “She isn’t Trump.”

    DRJ (0280d9)

  319. #319

    There may be plenty of people who shared the same sentiment. If they were in the wrong, how so?

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  320. #313

    Yeah.

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  321. Ho-lee cow.

    I just read 282 comments and saw a lot of dancing monkeys flinging poo because their idol got slapped around a little bit, as “Slim” (and her daughter didn’t believe she was all that slim) was wont to say.

    Keep fighting the good fight, Patterico.

    John Hitchcock (0e8b11)

  322. #322

    Right. Their idol. Care to back that up with anything other than, what, your inflammatory assertions? If not, I hope our host will jump in with a vigor. That precedent has been set.

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  323. I’ve backed it up previously. I’m a known commodity here. Also… pearls, swine, some assembly required.

    John Hitchcock (0e8b11)

  324. Patterico is a better, more patient man than I.
    DRJ is a better, more patient person than Patterico.

    John Hitchcock (0e8b11)

  325. #324

    Right. Insult the questioner, easiest thing to do. Annnnd, no, you haven’t backed it up. You’ve retired from the field before the battle has been even begun. But…whatever.

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  326. #324

    And you’re a known commodity! That must be worth something. Wait, maybe not.

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  327. Happyfeet is a refugee from Protein Wisdom where he got banned. I have defended him in the past to Patterico and also told Patterico to ban him.

    He is the almost perfect measure of how conservatives should think. Always keep your mind open and tolerate those who disagree.

    Ag80 (eb6ffa)

  328. I’ve been around these parts for years. I don’t need to spell things out for the new guy that I already spelled out before.

    John Hitchcock (0e8b11)

  329. #329

    So…you have what? Time? That wasn’t the question. Appeals to seniority aren’t worth much. But, but, I’ve been here, man. Okay.

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  330. i was never banned at pw i took breaks sometimes and I think people assumed i was banned but Mr. Jeff never banned me that I ever remember

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  331. You said I didn’t spell things out. I have. You weren’t here.

    Trump idolators will not change their minds with what I say. Neither will they change my mind with what they say.

    John Hitchcock (0e8b11)

  332. I apologize for the misinformation happy. For some reason I thought you had been banned.

    Ag80 (eb6ffa)

  333. #332

    Look, you can’t meet the challenge, just say so. And don’t assume anyone who comments now hasn’t read this blog for years. Easy path you take. Lazy, yeah. But easy, right?

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  334. not that i can remember

    it’s getting to me kind of a long time ago though so maybe I’m forgetting something

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  335. to *be* kind of a long time ago i mean

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  336. I think there is no commenter ever that so many people asked me to ban as happyfeet.

    But I never did and probably never will.

    I get no credit from him for that, of course. But I’m used to getting zero credit for anything from Trump cultists.

    If nothing else, I run a pretty open place here. Don’t falsely accuse me of lying, don’t disparage my professional career, and don’t be an incredible a-hole, and you can get away with a lot.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  337. Banning people for disagreeing is a streiff sort of thing.

    I don’t do that. People lie and claim I do. But I really don’t.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  338. #337

    Oh ye Trump cultists, forever the ingrate rabble.

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  339. Sigh. Too much hatred. Be careful what you become.

    NJRob (b00189)

  340. thank you Mr. P I don’t say it enough but I appreciate the forum here

    hopefully Mr. narciso will be back soon and everything will be like it was before

    except for Mr. tiger being gone

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  341. Patterico is a better, more patient man than I.
    DRJ is a better, more patient person than Patterico.

    I am a little confused. DRJ voted for Trump despite all available information and Patterico did not vote for Trump due to all available information. What are you saying?

    Maybe it will help me better understand if you tell me who you voted for. I voted for Trump. Who did you pick in 2016?

    BuDuh (608c17)

  342. I’ll give u credit.I like happyfeet

    pdbuttons (f315a0)

  343. Sigh. Too much hatred. Be careful what you become.

    Who are you talking to and what is your point?

    Patterico (115b1f)

  344. narciso will be back. He keeps leaving comments in moderation. I’m not even sure he realizes he’s in moderation. He’s pretty clueless for a guy who possesses a high degree of intelligence in some ways.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  345. Sorry, Patterico –

    I missed 148. Thanks for your gracious apology.

    I’m laughing a bit about your line that Trump only learns stuff from TV, though. How many times did President Obama claim he’d only heard about the latest scandal from the news/TV? In any event, I consider all the ‘style’ stuff to be just noise (much of it intentional on Trump’s part) and pay attention to the substance of what actually happens. He is having too much success in foreign affairs for me to think ‘world leaders’ pay much more attention to his tweets than I do.

    Daiwa (e7d5d5)

  346. He could be out of moderation in five minutes if he just did the right thing but I’m not sure he even understands what he did.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  347. I’m laughing a bit about your line that Trump only learns stuff from TV, though. How many times did President Obama claim he’d only heard about the latest scandal from the news/TV? In any event, I consider all the ‘style’ stuff to be just noise (much of it intentional on Trump’s part) and pay attention to the substance of what actually happens. He is having too much success in foreign affairs for me to think ‘world leaders’ pay much more attention to his tweets than I do.

    I’m pleased our misunderstanding has been straightened out. That had me tied up in knots.

    It’s a good point about Obama. He’s still way smarter than Trump. Obama reads, I’m sure of it.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  348. Mr. buttons!

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  349. i was never banned at pw i took breaks sometimes and I think people assumed i was banned but Mr. Jeff never banned me that I ever remember

    I think he did. Something about you spamming every thread about Sarah Palin?

    Patterico (115b1f)

  350. guilty as charged but I don’t remember being banned

    that’s just not how he rolled really

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  351. i remember i kinda split my time between here and there towards the end

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  352. geoffb would know i guess

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  353. He’s still way smarter than Trump. Obama reads, I’m sure of it.

    And the Harvard faculty collectively reads much, much more than the first 400 people in the Boston phone book.

    random viking (6a54c2)

  354. Patterico, sorry about what happened at RedState. I submitted my own commentary on the issue at my blog, including your own tweeted explanation of the firings, and my description of you as “one of the most incisive analysts of Washington politics out there.”

    As for your excellent summary of the issues at stake here, and particularly the competing models of “getting somewhere,” I used to write for American Thinker on a very regular basis, was even among the most “clicked” writers on the site for a few years. Those days came to an abrupt halt when AT went full frontal Trump cult. It was a decision from the top, and left most of the better contributors wondering whether we could still post there, even about “acceptable” non-Trump topics, without harming our reputations in the long run.

    Now I post exclusively on my own little blog, which means perhaps a 98 percent drop in reader exposure, but at least a 98 percent cleaner conscience as well. In the end, pleasing the angry mob (“getting anywhere” A) may be easier and more “rewarding” than pleasing the few principled people left on the planet (“getting anywhere” B), but it’s also a lot less satisfying.

    Daren Jonescu (2f5857)

  355. If nothing else, I run a pretty open place here.

    LOL a regular Rick’s Café– and our cash is good at the bar. 😉

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  356. 352.i remember i kinda split my time between here and there towards the end

    Now you’re cracking wise, Mr. Feet.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  357. Who are you talking to and what is your point?

    Patterico (115b1f) — 4/28/2018 @ 9:50 pm

    Look at all the name calling.

    NJRob (b00189)

  358. God preferred Hillary.

    BuDuh (fc15db) — 4/28/2018 @ 8:03 pm

    That’s why He keeps trying to take her from us.

    Pinandpuller (e74138)

  359. Obama reads, I’m sure of it.

    It’s what he read (and believed) that was part of the problem. 😉

    Daiwa (e7d5d5)

  360. #348

    Ooof, that’s a punch in the gut. The book that Obama carried into the White House dealt with how to manage an empire in decline. Curious, how do know what Trump reads, or how much he reads? Yeah, Devil’s advocate. But…answer?

    #355

    Just as long as you’re pleasing principled people on the left. Any princleped people on the right, who given the benefit of the doubt are not blind cultists , that also might deserve…something?

    Estarcatus (d19e9c)

  361. feelings
    don’t care

    That’s comedy gold.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438) — 4/28/2018 @ 8:19 pm

    It’s like The Sunshine Boys, all up in it.

    Pinandpuller (e74138)

  362. Appeals to seniority aren’t worth much. But, but, I’ve been here, man. Okay.

    Estarcatus (d19e9c) — 4/28/2018 @ 9:21 pm

    It is if he asks for a week off that you want.

    I heard a story about a mean, evil old witch of a nurse with maximum PTO and seniority. She waited till a girl asked for a week off for her wedding and honeymoon and she put in for the same time. I think she waited till money was put down.

    Pinandpuller (e74138)

  363. Wiltshire Police

    @wiltshirepolice

    You can’t hide from us if your [sic] spewing abuse from behind a computer screen. Our boys & gals will find you.

    #999WhatsYourEmergency

    Flowers and tributes were left in an alleyway where the body of a mystery dead baby was found – before police realised it was only a chicken foetus.
    A member of the public discovered the remains in a back alley in the Anfield area of Liverpool.

    Police cordoned off the scene but soon realised that it was not a human but a chicken foetus.

    Well-wishers had laid more than a dozen bunches of flowers at the scene, along with cards and teddy bears.

    BBC

    Pinandpuller (e74138)

  364. What are you suggesting Mattis did?

    Massive exercises, and a fairly awesome buildup of material and assets in SK, Japan and Guam, just in case.

    Kevin M (752a26)

  365. Dave,

    What do you see as the main risk with North Korea?

    What I see is existential, and no, not involving any direct threat to the US. NK does not have to fire a single nuclear missile to threaten the peace, if not the survival, of our civilization.

    The idea that a country, having signed a promise to never acquire nuclear arms, as a condition of getting nuclear material for peaceful pursuits, then secretly does exactly what they promised not to do, threatens the agreement that every non-nuclear state has signed.

    If they break out, then Iran breaks out, who’s next? How many countries need to get the bomb before it is certain they get used?

    For the answer: https://youtu.be/oRLON3ddZIw?t=14s

    Kevin M (752a26)

  366. 214

    The Anonymous or whatever his name is and the others, they want to put up such strong barriers around ‘conservative’ to purposefully exclude people. The value of conservatism for them is higher if fewer people are in it, the point is to hold ones views, not to convince others. They can shift for themselves.

    It’s more the other way around, it’s the anti-Trumpers who want exclude Trump and his supporters from the conservative movement.

    James B. Shearer (a9b467)

  367. BTW, I do believe that China has put pressure on Kim. Trump, in his tweets has let it “slip” that some of the trade problems China is having might go away of the NK one does.

    I also believe that Kim thinks he can play both sides against each other, then end up with another toothless agreement that lets him crank the ratchet over another rung.

    I ALSO believe that the US is not going to go for it again. Trump may be an idiot, but there is a solid national security consensus this time. Presidents sometimes find themselves captive to the situation.

    Kevin M (752a26)

  368. How about we just make people pay full freight for their alternate lifestyles?

    Yeah, right. Next you’ll be talking about letting folks live with consequences. Fat fracking chance of that.

    Kevin M (752a26)

  369. I read what he writes. He’s either a deranged satirist or a cultist.

    I think his brain has been hacked by Russian terrorists and he’s locked in behind his eyeballs while a sinister force commands his keyboard.

    Kevin M (752a26)

  370. 292.So the “he isn’t Hillary” is truly a valid reason for Texans to have voted for Trump?

    I guess that’s one way of saying it. Another is that there were Texas Republicans willing to say “She isn’t Trump.”

    Face it, this wasn’t Josiah Bartlet vs Jack Ryan. Not even President Roslin or even Muffley. Those are fantasy presidents. We get Trump vs Hillary, as maculate as they come. On a scale of 1 to 10, neither tops a “2”.

    Kevin M (752a26)

  371. Yeah, right. Next you’ll be talking about letting folks live with consequences. Fat fracking chance of that.

    Kevin M (752a26) — 4/29/2018 @ 12:06 am

    If fat people have to pay for two seats on a sex swing so be it.

    Pinandpuller (e74138)

  372. I write this comment at 2:30 A.M. CST, the dawn of my new existance as a guy who goes to bed at 2:30 A.M. CST.

    Pinandpuller (e74138)

  373. Kevin M (752a26) — 4/28/2018 @ 11:57 pm

    The proliferation problem is certainly real, although the genie may already be out of the bottle.

    India already did exactly what you described almost half a century ago: obtained nuclear material and technology by making a commitment not to build a bomb, and then built a bomb with it anyway. Pakistan subsequently did pretty much the same thing.

    Note that it was Donald Trump’s stated policy during the 2016 election campaign that he wanted more countries armed with nuclear weapons, not less, specifically mentioning Japan, South Korea and Saudi Arabia.

    As long as China and Russia are prepared to tolerate and covertly assist North Korea and Iran, respectively, it looks pretty hard to stop either of them at an acceptable cost.

    Dave (445e97)

  374. Note that it was Donald Trump’s stated policy during the 2016 election campaign that he wanted more of America’s allies armed with nuclear weapons, not less, specifically mentioning Japan, South Korea and Saudi Arabia. The idea possibly being that if more allies of the United States have nuclear arms the less apt a potential adversary or even rogue entity would be likely to start something knowing response could come from several places. Or perhaps he thinks having our allies able to defend themselves will be less costly for us in the long run.

    As long as China and Russia are prepared to tolerate and covertly assist North Korea and Iran, respectively, it makes common sense for us to assist our allies also since it looks pretty hard to stop either of them at an acceptable cost we need to make their cost just as unacceptable. It used to me called Mutually Assured Destruction and it managed to drive the former Soviet Union into financial ruin.

    But I’m sure Trump hasn’t thought of these reasons because of his hair and thinking about Stormy and of course because Trump.

    Rev.Hoagie (1b0402)

  375. Dave,

    India and Pakistan didn’t build bombs, they were given them by the Russians and the Chinese. Korea hired ex Russian nuclear physicists to build their own.

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  376. Dave,

    India and Pakistan didn’t build bombs, they were given them by the Russians and the Chinese.

    And fire cannot melt steel, either; and our reptilian overlords kidnapped Elvis and have him putting on nightly shows for them in their secret base on the dark side of the Moon from where they bombard us with mind control rays that can only be blocked with four layers of Reynolds Heavy Duty Aluminum foil while listening to the Whiffenpoof Song on a Walkman.

    nk (dbc370)

  377. *Joke*
    The last president of South Africa leaves office as CNN and the rest of the US media declare the nation “A shining communist success story”. Film at 11.
    https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cXSVjBRd6qw/WuWKxKxxxRI/AAAAAAABqMo/bIPt3u4NJzwyRgvT0OlJnX-kwK2zvdxeQCLcBGAs/s1600/morning_picdump_2773_36.jpg

    Rev.Hoagie (1b0402)

  378. #61 Drj “Trump opens the door to people believing he is ignorant with his typos and misspellings,”

    People that struggle to spell are ignorant now? Ignorance is thinking spelling in any way is a reflection of intelligence.

    Nate Ogden (223c65)

  379. #61 is a great example of why Never and Anti Trumpers are so disliked. In your endless need to find new ways to insult him over anything and everything you insult so many other people as well.

    I can’t spell and my letters are only readable due to spellcheck and lots of request to spell words I’m so far off even spell check can’t help. I also have an IQ in the 130s and am retired at 43. At least until my maple syrup hobby forces me to get a job. That success in life being said now I hear I’m ignorant? Luckily I learned long ago those that think they are intellectually superior to me based on their ability to memorize spelling and grammar can bask in that as they go off to work, usually for someone else, and usually for a couple more decades blissful in their personal ignorance.

    Nate Ogden (223c65)

  380. Sorry, Mr. Ogden. We take it back. You’re smart.

    Leviticus (cd520c)

  381. #61 was poignantly funny in a sad way with its own misspelling in the last sentence.

    Colonel Haiku (75fedf)

  382. 380… anyone who works with maple syrup is a genius in my book, for it is a food of the Gods…

    Colonel Haiku (75fedf)

  383. Hey, kernel hi coo, can I be poignantly funny, too?

    There is absolutely no point to this here comment right here, so that probably means I failed at the “poignantly” part and the “funny” part of being “poignantly funny”, but it was worth a try.

    John Hitchcock (0173d6)

  384. I’m willing to debate my comment and/or my ignorance, Nate and Haiku. Would Trump do that?

    First, I said Trump “opens the door” to people believing he is ignorant. Mistakes don’t make people ignorant but repeated mistakes, especially simple ones suggest ignorance or carelessness. I think Trump is careless on Twitter but he also looks ignorant. Similarly, when I have typos here, it makes me look ignorant or careless.

    Second, like Patterico, I don’t think Trump is well-read. Having a knowledge that comes from reading gives the appearance of being informed and/or provides actual information. Watching TV provides information, too, but I don’t think it necessarily gives rise to thought. It’s like the difference between composing an essay and writing a tweet. The essay requires more thought.

    I congratulate you on your success, Nate.

    DRJ (15874d)

  385. From last night’s WHC Dinner:

    CNN International
    @cnni
    “An attack on any journalist is an attack on us all,” says Margaret Talev, president of the White House Correspondents’ Association

    — –

    Stephen Miller
    @redsteeze
    *Not applicable 2009-2016

    — –

    Allan
    @AllanRicharz
    Replying to @redsteeze and @AdamShawNY
    Look, forget secretly collecting the AP’s phone records, or pulling James Rosen’s records, or naming him an unindicted criminal co-conspirator..Trump’s mean tweets are worse than Nagasaki and 9/11 combined.

    Have to admit the title to this thread got a little ironic with the MSM celebrating last night’s hate-fest.

    harkin (711b68)

  386. Any post that calls out a person – or persons – for misspelling and finishes with its own misspelling is ComedyGold™

    Always has been. Always will be. Happy truckin’, Hitchcock!

    Colonel Haiku (75fedf)

  387. Here’s some ComedyGold™ from the WHPC dinner. These folks are funny. Thank the gods of socialism they’re running the show.
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/6d629d97e1f7bcc2fdcab6483d3de0b0153a1ce193088155093c2113f0b6f26c.jpg?w=800&h

    Rev.Hoagie (1b0402)

  388. DRJ: Mistakes don’t make people ignorant but repeated mistakes, especially simple ones suggest ignorance or carelessness.

    If there’s one thing the anti-Trumpers can’t stand it’s a politician who comes across as ignorant, not well read and trips over words, unless their last name is Bush.

    random viking (6a54c2)

  389. Bush got his share of grief over the way he talked.

    DRJ (15874d)

  390. Humor is important, Haiku. At least my comments make you laugh. Happy Sunday!

    DRJ (15874d)

  391. But I’m sure Trump hasn’t thought of these reasons because of his hair and thinking about Stormy and of course because Trump.

    He didn’t think of them–at least on his own. He’s incapable of strategic thinking, only tactical. If you go through his life, you’ll see the pattern: a string of short term gains, but few long term gains, and far more long term losses. It’s rather like a number of battles in history: a unit engages with an enemy force, gains its target–and then looks around and realizes it’s now facing more enemies on all sides, and if reinforcements don’t come soon, the only options will be retreat or surrender.

    Trump is like that. He wants to win the short term fight, but neglects the steps needed to win the long term war. He ought to be doing a full court press to try to win over the large number of people who didn’t vote for him, but aren’t Leftists. He could fire Pruitt as a way of showing he’s serious about draining the swamp (on the principle of Ceasar’s wife). He could loftily ignore the Mueller probe and lest others do the job of trying to stop the investigation. He could make a show of doing things to help blacks and immigrants who are here legally. But he doesn’t. He has his base, and that’s all he seems to care about. And in not caring about the rest, he’s giving colour to the idea that he is a racist who’s trying to obstruct the course of justice….

    kishnevi (bb03e6)

  392. Bush got his share of grief over the way he talked.

    And yet you voted for him twice.

    random viking (6a54c2)

  393. And I voted for Trump, too. There are many elections where the main candidates look ignorant. Bush certainly had his weaknesses and Trump has weaknesses, too.

    DRJ (15874d)

  394. The answer isn’t to pretend they are perfect. Remember when Bush named Harriet Miers to SCOTUS? He got a lot of pushback for that, including here. We can criticize the President without being disloyal.

    DRJ (15874d)

  395. It’s more the other way around, it’s the anti-Trumpers who want exclude Trump and his supporters from the conservative movement.

    The purge by Salem clearly speaks otherwise.

    Paul Montagu (e6130e)

  396. Good point.

    DRJ (15874d)

  397. DRJ: And I voted for Trump, too.

    But you’re not going to vote for him again, unlike with Bush.

    random viking (6a54c2)

  398. I miss the good old days when Obama was destroying everything and we could all agree that he was absolutely atrocious. There are too many schisms across the political spectrum now. The Left has them, the far-Left has them, the center has them, the Right has them, the far-Right (probably where I am but I don’t quite agree with that assessment) has them. It’s one great big hot mess.

    John Hitchcock (0173d6)

  399. 393… Bush’s malapropisms were endearing to most. But the Trump-style is to be ridiculed.

    Colonel Haiku (75fedf)

  400. 391… truth be told, they make me think, as well… Happy Sunday!

    Colonel Haiku (75fedf)

  401. Bush ran as a compassionate conservative, but Trump doesn’t want people to think he is compassionate or endearing. Being tough works for him and endears him to his supporters. The voters wanted compassion then and toughness now, and politicians give us what we want.

    DRJ (15874d)

  402. So now that projecting ignorance is irrelevant, you move the goalposts.

    The bit never gets old.

    random viking (6a54c2)

  403. DRJ never moves the goalposts.
    DRJ is never disingenuous.
    DRJ is the most patient person I know online.
    DRJ is a Texan.
    What’s not to like?

    John Hitchcock (0173d6)

  404. Bush43 was able to show earnestness, integrity, and humility. When he said he cared about a person, people could believe him. He was able to make fun of his own mistakes. And some of it was really a pose that usefully contrastged him with, first, Gore, and then Kerry.

    Obama could also do that, even though you could sense that, unlike Bush, it was an assumed pose, and that in private the mask would come off.

    Can Trump do that? Could Trump have given the speech Bush gave standing on the rubble of the WTC? He’d certainly give a speech, but not one that inspired or helped the country pull together.

    kishnevi (bb03e6)

  405. I like DRJ. She voted for Trump despite common knowledge about him including how ignorant he was regarding SCOTUS. NeverHillary Flight 93 Texans did the same.

    Others voted for Gary Johnson.

    BuDuh (f14fee)

  406. viking,

    My last comment was replying to Haiku. I thought we had finished but I’m happy to continue. What am I missing? I concede that Bush appeared ignorant like Trump does sometime. I pointed out that sometimes those are our only choices. What else do you want to discuss?

    DRJ (15874d)

  407. 396

    The purge by Salem clearly speaks otherwise.

    Well to put it another way if you kick out the Trump supporters you are left with a smaller conservative movement than if you kick out the never-Trumpers.

    James B. Shearer (a9b467)

  408. Being tough works for him and endears him to his supporters. The voters wanted compassion then and toughness now, and politicians give us what we want.

    Tes, DRJ and being a bike riding, helmet wearing pussy endeared Hussein to his unhinged commie supporters. Now can we get on with America now that we’ve settled Trump or must this childishness go on for 2-4-6 more years? Isn’t winning in November a tad more important than your dissatisfaction with Trump “being tough” for his supporters? We all realize Trump has done nothing right as president and he can’t do anything right in the future. We get it.

    Rev.Hoagie (1b0402)

  409. Thank you, BuDuh. You have a funny way of showing you like people.

    DRJ (15874d)

  410. Here’s some ComedyGold™ from the WHPC dinner. These folks are funny. Thank the gods of socialism they’re running the show.

    Even the journolists didn’t like that. When was the last time Maggie Haberman praised Sarah Sanders?

    https://www.politico.com/story/2018/04/29/wolf-correspondents-dinner-journalists-559292?cmpid=sf

    kishnevi (bb03e6)

  411. You are welcome, DRJ.

    BuDuh (f14fee)

  412. I like Trump’s toughness. I want a Wall and the repeal of ObamaCare, and we need someone tough to make that happen.

    DRJ (15874d)

  413. I don’t care for his cruelty. It’s unnecessary.

    DRJ (15874d)

  414. Obama learned a lot of stuff for the first time on TV. Or so he told us. Scandal? No, I saw that on the TV for the first time this morning. (great intel in that WH right?)

    Trump is good at being Trump.
    If he tried to be like DRJ or Patrick, he’d be ignorant and a fool.
    DRJ and Patrick are good at being who they are and would be ignorant fools to try and do what Trump does.

    Some people have a narrow genius that effect a broad swath and others have a broad genius that effect no one beyond a small circle. Doesn’t make the genius less, it just determines whether the genius can be effective on an international scale. I think one could argue that broad genius can be like a ripple on all the oceans of the globe, whereas narrow genius can be focused like tsunamis.
    I’d rather have a conversation with a broad genius, but to learn how to get a certain thing or group of things done, I’d rather learn from a narrow genius.
    In my opinion Trumps genius at job execution is a 1/4inch wide and 100 miles deep, but his genius for relating to every day working class Americans who are looking to him for help, his focus seems deep and wide, he seems to genuinely care, which isn’t really genius, it is compassion

    Obama was the smartest President ever, the quickest study, well educated, could give a brilliant talk on subjects he (it turns out) he knew zero about. He was so smart he thought flying bales of cash into Iran was a great idea and could sell that idea to the press. At the WHCD the only thing they could tease him about was that maybe his jump shot was a little clunkier than even his golf swing. Trump has faced headwinds from his own party and lawfare from the opposition and still has accomplished more than Obama did in his first year and a half.

    I liked Bush, but I felt like he cared too much what people thought about him and he also was wrong to refuse to fight lies about himself like those during the Katrina mess. Even toady (Freudian slip) TODAY he seems to want to be liked by the people who hate him, who only like him as long as he never said a bad word about Obama, but will take digs a Trump. Trump does not care about what the people who hate him think about him. Every developer I’ve known has become adept at navigating through a world that hates them and “thin skinned Trump” has some of the thickest skin where it matters, which is heart, mind and ass

    steveg (a9dcab)

  415. If you hire your so called comic from The Daily Show you know what you’re getting.

    “I heard my performance went well” Michelle Wolf

    “Someone lied to you!” Sassy black gay guy

    Pinandpuller (5ee181)

  416. I can’t spell and my letters are only readable due to spellcheck and lots of request to spell words I’m so far off even spell check can’t help. I also have an IQ in the 130s and am retired at 43. At least until my maple syrup hobby forces me to get a job. That success in life being said now I hear I’m ignorant? Luckily I learned long ago those that think they are intellectually superior to me based on their ability to memorize spelling and grammar can bask in that as they go off to work, usually for someone else, and usually for a couple more decades blissful in their personal ignorance.

    I’ll take you at your word that you are not naturally a good speller. But your comment, while reflecting an obviously well-practiced boastfulness, has relatively few spelling or grammatical errors — at least not glaring ones that are distracting. Evidently you have realized at some point in your life that the way you present yourself is important.

    Do you read? Trump doesn’t.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  417. steveg

    Obama waited to read stuff about his administration in books. He’s going to be waiting a long time.

    Pinandpuller (5ee181)

  418. 2019: Patterico is the comedy act at WHCD!

    Colonel Haiku (75fedf)

  419. 414… definitely a personality flaw.

    Colonel Haiku (75fedf)

  420. Patterico (115b1f)

  421. The secret genius of Barak Obama is Bill Ayers.

    Pinandpuller (5ee181)

  422. Go get ‘em, killer!

    Colonel Haiku (75fedf)

  423. michelle did a perfect job representing the white house propaganda sluts to america

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  424. But a few months before Horowitz was sworn into the job in 2012, Eric Holder, Obama’s attorney general and previously deputy attorney general under President Bill Clinton, gutted the IG act provision that mandates their access to all necessary documents. Holder acted at the behest of then-FBI Director Robert Mueller and others at the bureau.

    Holder – who would subsequently be held in contempt by Congress for refusing to turn over subpoenaed documents in the “Fast and Furious” scandal – thus forced Horowitz to request in writing any documents he sought from the bureau.

    There then ensued a 3-yr struggle in Congress and the media that culminated in Obama having no choice but to sign the Inspector General Empowerment Act of 2016, which removed all doubt about the IG’s access.

    good article from Mr. Tapscott today

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  425. Here’s my short, covering a few high points, response:

    https://twitter.com/TruthBeforeDis/status/990636949160517633

    John Hitchcock (0173d6)

  426. 116: “Now I will say something that Patterico will agree with utterly: Ted Cruz would have made a first-rank president.”

    It’s a necessary pre-conddition to be a first-rank president, it to firest get elected.
    Ted Cruz would not not have beat Hillary in 2016.
    Nor would he have been able to withstand all the crap that the Dems and the “deep state” would throw at him if he had managed to win.

    248: “tell me where Romney and McCain fall short as conservatives or point to one thing where Trump is more conservative than either of them?”
    Seriously?? I voted for both of them, but I knew a long time before they ran for President that they were not conservatives.
    And, #2—Trump got elected President and neither Romney nor McCain did. A tiny-bit conservative who gets elected is a more effective conservative than one who didn’t get elected.

    392: “If you go through his [Trump’s] life, you’ll see the pattern: a string of short term gains, but few long term gains, and far more long term losses.”

    So all those luxury hotels all over the world, those golf courses, etc? He started with $100 Billion and kept making long-term losses until he got down to only $10 billion?

    fred-2 (ce04f3)

  427. 337- I am living proof, thanks Patterico.

    mg (9e54f8)

  428. 392: “If you go through his [Trump’s] life, you’ll see the pattern: a string of short term gains, but few long term gains, and far more long term losses.”

    If you can’t be honest with yourself at least try to be honest with us. If you go through Trump’s life you’ll see a guy who was born into wealth and spent his entire career building even more wealth. He’s had setbacks and failures, so have I. What businessman hasn’t? And as far as long term losses go, let’s see: he’s still a billionaire and now he’s President of the United States. Your long term losses should be so bad as Trump’s, kishnevi. So should mine.

    Rev.Hoagie (1b0402)

  429. Well to put it another way if you kick out the Trump supporters you are left with a smaller conservative movement than if you kick out the never-Trumpers.

    This implies that there is a conservative movement after the never-Trumpers have been exiled. That’s not the conservatism I grew up with.

    Paul Montagu (e6130e)

  430. BuDuh,

    In candor, I don’t think you like me. I think you got spanked by Patterico for making a personal comment, and your comment today is insurance to keep that from happening again. I think you have a bee in your bonnet about me for some reason.

    DRJ (15874d)

  431. Doesn't Michelle Wolf know that it's only okay for President to be mean, mock a disabled person, grab women by p, attack Gold Star family, offer to pay supporters to beat up protesters…Trump supporters hold comedians to a higher standard than their own president. #WHCD— Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) April 29, 2018

    Paul Montagu (e6130e)

  432. Many of Trump’s businesses failed. I know restaurants have thin margins and frequent failures. Maybe that is also true in real estate development, espevially in NYC.

    DRJ (15874d)

  433. Trump is like that. He wants to win the short term fight, but neglects the steps needed to win the long term war. He ought to be doing a full court press to try to win over the large number of people who didn’t vote for him, but aren’t Leftists. He could fire Pruitt as a way of showing he’s serious about draining the swamp (on the principle of Ceasar’s wife). He could loftily ignore the Mueller probe and lest others do the job of trying to stop the investigation. He could make a show of doing things to help blacks and immigrants who are here legally. But he doesn’t. He has his base, and that’s all he seems to care about. And in not caring about the rest, he’s giving colour to the idea that he is a racist who’s trying to obstruct the course of justice….

    kishnevi (bb03e6) — 4/29/2018 @ 8:18 am

    You want to fire the guy who has been more successful than any previous administration official at draining the swamp and you call that draining the swamp.

    Hilarious.

    And nice job calling him and his supporters racist again. Very leftist of you.

    NJRob (b00189)

  434. Most people are criticizing Red State’s action because it singled out those highly critical of Trump. But that move is not unreasonable. Any publisher can and should determine the tone of his product. After the NY Times decided to go the route of inclusiveness, it hired conservative columnist William Kristol to write a regular op-ed piece. But after a year of virulent correspondence from its readers complaining about the heretical writings on its sacred pages, the high church of coastal liberalism canned him.

    I happen to like what Trump is doing. He is going after self serving politicians and bureaucrats. He is also a far better negotiator than the past 3 presidents, albeit in a non traditional manner. But I still follow this blog. I simply think you haven’t yet seen the light

    Corky Boyd (8dfada)

  435. BuDuh,

    In candor, I don’t think you like me. I think you got spanked by Patterico for making a personal comment, and your comment today is insurance to keep that from happening again. I think you have a bee in your bonnet about me for some reason.

    I do not feel “spanked” by Patterico. He always asks people to tone certain things down that he feels are out of line. He took issue with how I treated you so I looked at what I said, understood where he was coming from and offered an apology that he accepted.

    Adults don’t “spank” each other, they have dialog and disagreements and resolutions.

    BuDuh (f14fee)

  436. He hasn’t drained the swamp. And by keeping Pruitt he shows he’s only interested in restocking the swamp with his own coterie of swamp creatures.

    If you think my comments called Trump supporters racists, then you misread it. Or perhaps the shoe fits too well.

    : he’s still a billionaire

    If you accept what he says about himself.

    kishnevi (bb03e6)

  437. It used to be called Mutually Assured Destruction and it managed to drive the former Soviet Union into financial ruin.

    Yes, but the odds of a local conflict escalating to a nuclear exchange, which THEN draws in the major powers goes up something like N*logN, where N is the number of nuclear-weapons states. When it gets down to Venezuela vs Colombia, or Libya vs Egypt all bets are off.

    And that’s not even counting revolutions and civil wars.

    Trump’s idea was a terrible one, and I’m sure he’s heard that already. Better to draw the line in the sand in North Korea and Iran will take care of itself.

    Kevin M (752a26)

  438. DRJ

    If most of his businesses failed, wouldn’t he be bankrupt?

    How would that explain his weath, his international empire?

    I have to go, we trumpalos have to report in at 1.30 for our weekly instructions from the mandarin orange.

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  439. : he’s still a billionaire

    If you accept what he says about himself.
    kishnevi (bb03e6) — 4/29/2018 @ 10:48 am

    I guess you don’t and that’s all that matters. Again, not being willing to admit the truth to oneself isn’t healthy.

    If you think my comments called Trump supporters racists, then you misread it. Or perhaps the shoe fits too well.

    Are you actually calling NJRob a racist because you called him a racist and he noticed? Wow! I never realized that when a person gets mad at being called a racist it’s because he must be a racist. I have noticed however, you tend call a lot of people racists. Why is that?

    Rev.Hoagie (1b0402)

  440. Ignorance is thinking spelling in any way is a reflection of intelligence.

    Mark Twain — ‘Anyone who can only think of one way to spell a word obviously lacks imagination.’

    the Bas (3bcea0)

  441. If you think my comments called Trump supporters racists, then you misread it. Or perhaps the shoe fits too well.

    : he’s still a billionaire

    If you accept what he says about himself.

    kishnevi (bb03e6) — 4/29/2018 @ 10:48 am

    Doubling down on your vile words. Unsurprising. You’ve learned from the left well yet you claim it’s Trump that has lowered the public discourse.

    NJRob (fb3f62)

  442. 2019: Patterico is the comedy act at WHCD!

    Colonel Haiku (75fedf) — 4/29/2018 @ 9:38 am

    Pinandpuller (16b0b5)

  443. Yes, but the odds of a local conflict escalating to a nuclear exchange, which THEN draws in the major powers goes up something like N*logN, where N is the number of nuclear-weapons states. When it gets down to Venezuela vs Colombia, or Libya vs Egypt all bets are off.

    And that’s not even counting revolutions and civil wars.

    What are you droning on about, Kevin M? Any “local conflict” in Asia is likely to escalate. Or don’t you think NK will? So why shouldn’t their probable targets be able to retaliate? And as I stated Trump named specific allies not Columbia, Venezuela, Libya, Egypt or any other sh!thole country. Stick with the program. Are you expecting revolutions and civil wars in Japan and South Korea? You anti-Asian racist! (I’m channeling kishnevi).

    Rev.Hoagie (1b0402)

  444. Sorry. I was going to say how about real comedians who believe in liberty and limited government like Owen Benjamin or Dave Smith?

    Dave Smith Libertas

    Pinandpuller (16b0b5)

  445. India already did exactly what you described almost half a century ago: obtained nuclear material and technology by making a commitment not to build a bomb, and then built a bomb with it anyway. Pakistan subsequently did pretty much the same thing.

    Neither India nor Pakistan signed the NNPT. The only other country then in existence that did not was Israel. Since then South Sudan has not signed, but they aren’t a big worry. The annex to the treaty where the nuclear-weapons states declare a policy of non-use against non-nuclear signatories is a major incewntive to sign.

    Kevin M (752a26)

  446. If most of his businesses failed, wouldn’t he be bankrupt?

    How would that explain his weath, his international empire?

    Well, he *claims* to be a billionaire, but how can we really know? Especially as he has never released his complete tax returns.

    Dana (023079)

  447. 447.

    Also worth noting, if you stuck the money that Trump inherited from his father into an index fund and let it simmer from his father’s passing until now, he’d be roughly as wealthy today as he…is today. No kidding. Donald Trump may be a lot of things, but “business genius” is not one of them. He looks like a genius because he is a genius self-promoter and extremely quick to accuse people of defamation, but his business accumen is nothing compared to the likes of Steve Jobs or Bill Gates, who made fortunes out of practically nothing.

    Gryph (08c844)

  448. Well to put it another way if you kick out the Trump supporters you are left with a smaller and less conservative movement than if you kick out the never-Trumpers.

    FIFY

    Kevin M (752a26)

  449. oops. meant more. I should diagram sentences more often.

    Kevin M (752a26)

  450. Well, he *claims* to be a billionaire, but how can we really know? Especially as he has never released his complete tax returns.

    Tax returns show income, not net worth. Anyone in Trumps position with so many people trying to get at him who would be dumb enough to release their tax returns deserves what happens next. You know that too, Dana. You don’t want to see his tax returns to complement his business prowess, you want them to harm him and by extension and revelation other people both large and small who do business with him and who would therefore be revealed. That’s level 1 leftist strategy. What team are you on, anyway?

    Rev.Hoagie (1b0402)

  451. Ted Cruz would not not have beat Hillary in 2016.

    Bozo the clown would have beat Hillary in 2016. Some say he did. For every bote that Trump gained by appealing to the disaffected, he lost 3 through new disaffection. Two former GOP presidents voted against him. Do you think they were alone?

    Cruz, Rubio, Kasich, Jeb!, Fiorina and Christie would all have beat Hillary, and won the popular vote, too.

    Kevin M (752a26)

  452. 451. I think it’s a fair question to ask, given Trump’s history of businesses with his name on them going bankrupt. Is it more likely or less likely that he has something in his business history to hide?

    Gryph (08c844)

  453. No kidding. Donald Trump may be a lot of things, but “business genius” is not one of them.

    You’re right, Gryph. Nothing says “dummy” like a billionaire president. I mean how could anyone believe a guy who owns part or all of hundreds of buildings and businesses and then became president of the United States when everything was stacked against him could be a genius. The real genius is people like Hillary who lose a rigged election and still have you shills wishing she won. That poor dummy Trump.

    Rev.Hoagie (1b0402)

  454. 454. As I said upthread, his “income,” as well as his verified net worth (given what we know in spite of his refusal to release his tax records) has remained more or less steady — adjusted for inflation, of course — since his father passed away. Given what an insufferable braggart Donald J. Trump is, I would think he’d release his tax returns just to prove once and for all his supposed genius.

    But of course, Donald Trump is a genius when it comes to business. Just look at all the buildings that have his name on them. He’ll tell you… Heh.

    Gryph (08c844)

  455. Cruz, Rubio, Kasich, Jeb!, Fiorina and Christie would all have beat Hillary, and won the popular vote, too.
    Kevin M (752a26) — 4/29/2018 @ 11:47 am

    Bullsh!t. CruzRubioKasichJeb!FiorinaandChristie couldn’t even beat Trump with only Republicans voting, they would have been slaughtered with dems and independent’s voting too. Take off that tin foil hat and stop channeling leftist disinformation.

    Rev.Hoagie (1b0402)

  456. What are you droning on about, Kevin M? Any “local conflict” in Asia is likely to escalate.

    I believe in nuclear-weapon-control. It would be best if no one had them. Yeah, war is hell, but nuclear war is mega-hell. North Korea must either give them up or be forced to give them up. Period. Tolerance for additional nuclear-weapons states MUST be zero, and as usual it falls to the USA to be Daddy.

    Every nation on earth, save the three that were building them already or lying about not having them, signed the Treaty. They did so because of a shared belief that more countries with the bomb was a less stable world and that having nuclear weapons REDUCES national security for most countries, directly and indirectly.

    Kevin M (752a26)

  457. Bullsh!t. CruzRubioKasichJeb!FiorinaandChristie couldn’t even beat Trump with only Republicans voting

    Together they beat Trump in every election until the nomination was locked up. And only among Republicans. If you recall, more than “just Republicans” voted in the general election.

    Trump would have lost to Biden.

    Kevin M (752a26)

  458. Cruz, Rubio, Kasich, Jeb!, Fiorina and Christie would all have beat Hillary, and won the popular vote, too.

    That right there is some funny stuff. None of them could beat Trump just among republicans. But could have won general? Riiiight…

    the Bas (3bcea0)

  459. Tax returns show income, not net worth.

    And not even that — you can lose money right and left on a tax form and still increase your real wealth.

    Kevin M (752a26)

  460. But of course, Donald Trump is a genius when it comes to business. Just look at all the buildings that have his name on them. He’ll tell you… Heh.
    Gryph (08c844) — 4/29/2018 @ 11:53 am

    Please tell me how many buildings have “GRYPH” in big gold letters on them. If there are more than Trump then Gryph wins.

    Once again Gryph: tax returns are income not assets. Assets are “the books”. I take it you don’t like the idea of Trump using the bankruptcy laws to protect himself. Would you also be against him having a defense attorney in a legal action?

    Rev.Hoagie (1b0402)

  461. Together they beat Trump

    Yeah, it ain’t a team sport.

    the Bas (3bcea0)

  462. So, Hoagie, bas, you assert that Trump voters — who spent the entire election campaign calling other Republicans traitors and worse for not supporting Trump — would have stayed home and let Hillary win? If so, GFY.

    Otherwise your comments about who Republicans voted for in the primaries are ignorant. Many of those folks who thought (correctly) that Trump was a sack of sh1t, still voted for him ONLY because Hillary was a double sack.

    Kevin M (752a26)

  463. Together they beat Trump in every election until the nomination was locked up. And only among Republicans. If you recall, more than “just Republicans” voted in the general election.

    Trump would have lost to Biden.
    Kevin M (752a26) — 4/29/2018 @ 11:58 am

    “Together they beat Trump”? Really? That’s just silly on its face. The accumulated votes of 8 people beat Trump. Is that all you got? Trump beat each and every one of them and got the nomination. Why are you re-fighting sh!t from 2 years ago like some P-whipped leftist? BTW, Biden couldn’t have beat anybody. He was DOA as a candidate. Hell, even the democrats knew that.

    Rev.Hoagie (1b0402)

  464. Not funny at all but a great rant ie ,”I disagree with liberals; I hate the left.”

    Owen Benjamin Why I Hate the Left

    Pinandpuller (16b0b5)

  465. 461. Trump used the bankruptcy laws to protect *himeself?* Trumpalos are so fond of reminding me those weren’t personal bankruptcies. What in the bloody blue hell did that have to do with protecting himself? Unless the accusations that he gamed the system are true…

    Look, it’s pretty obvious you’re giving Trump a HUGE benefit of the doubt. It’s also pretty obvious that I’m erring on the other side. I can’t say too much beyond that, except that I’ve never noticed “conservatives” line up to defend a politician in my lifetime like they have Trump. I suppose it is what it is: just another sign of the political rot of America.

    Gryph (08c844)

  466. I’m saying none of the other republicans could have got the crossover votes Trump got.

    But arguing alternative fantasy is a waste of time. You go ahead and enjoy it of it makes you feel better.

    the Bas (3bcea0)

  467. A lot of people say that Trump is dumb because he didn’t put his money in index funds and go sailing like all the smart liberals do. Those are the same type of people who said Samuel Joseph Wurzelbacher’s name isn’t Joe.

    Pinandpuller (16b0b5)

  468. 468. I never called Trump dumb, though others here have. I said that he could have done just as well for himself on an index fund as he did as a real estate developer, which belies his reputation as a supposed “business genius.” Gates and Jobs made fortunes out of nothing. Trump played around with investing Daddy’s money, with mixed results. And that’s putting it quite charitably.

    Gryph (08c844)

  469. Thumbs up to you and the other fired Redstaters. I will never click on redstate again.

    Bruce (773ee1)

  470. All the leaks in Washington. All the government officials with access to information that would answer these money and wealth questions and not a single leak. I guess they can keep a secret if they want to.

    crazy (5c5b07)

  471. BuDuh:

    Adults don’t “spank” each other, they have dialog and disagreements and resolutions.

    BuDuh (f14fee) — 4/29/2018 @ 10:44 am

    Are your comments to me on this thread your idea of adult dialog and disagreements and resolutions?

    DRJ (15874d)

  472. 470. I agree with you in essence, but I hardly ever read RedState anyway after Salem bought them out. No big loss for me.

    Gryph (08c844)

  473. But arguing alternative fantasy is a waste of time. You go ahead and enjoy it of it makes you feel better.

    the Bas (3bcea0) — 4/29/2018 @ 12:15 pm

    Are they starting a Fantasy League already?

    Pinandpuller (16b0b5)

  474. There are many reasons some people have more money than others.

    DRJ (15874d)

  475. Bullsh!t. CruzRubioKasichJeb!FiorinaandChristie couldn’t even beat Trump with only Republicans voting, they would have been slaughtered with dems and independent’s voting too. Take off that tin foil hat and stop channeling leftist disinformation.

    Are you really under the impression that voters would NOT have viewed it as The End of America As We Know It if Hillary were to be elected…had the Republican candidate had been anyone other than Trump? 🙂

    Trump owes his presidential win to his opponent. Fear of her potential presidency motivated even reluctant voters to show up and vote for a guy they seriously didn’t like but viewed as “at least better than Hillary.” Do you really believe that factor would not have kicked in, if we had had a different Republican candidate?

    If there had been a single candidate running against Trump in the primary, that candidate would have won easily. How do I know that? Because the combined total votes for all the other candidates outdid Trump. 🙂

    LJ (9188cd)

  476. 475. Inheriting wealth from Daddy is a big one. I’ve seen a few examples of inherited wealth right here in my home town. One example of note is a large supermarket in its 4th generation of family ownership. With each generation removed from its founding, the founding family seems to be farther and farther from its roots ethically, morally, and otherwise.

    I’m pretty well convinced now that if you want to warp your kid’s sense of right-and-wrong into straight-up narcissism, leaving them a fortune in your will is a pretty good way to do it.

    Gryph (08c844)

  477. Kevin is on fy-yah.

    /respect

    Dave (1e7627)

  478. Gates and Jobs made fortunes out of nothing. Trump played around with investing Daddy’s money, with mixed results. And that’s putting it quite charitably.

    Gryph (08c844) — 4/29/2018 @ 12:18 pm

    I don’t know if you said that upthread, it wasn’t specifically addressed to you fwiw.

    Didn’t Gates and Jobs ruthlessly try to put competitors out of business though? Or low ball outside intellectual property?

    Pinandpuller (16b0b5)

  479. There are many reasons some people have more money than others.

    Very true, DRJ, and having money does not make anyone a good or admirable person.

    LJ (9188cd)

  480. 385 “repeated mistakes, especially simple ones suggest ignorance or carelessness.”

    I still can’t spell simple words, does that make me ignorant or careless?

    I don’t understand why people can’t read Financials or do calculations in their head, does that make them all ignorant? I employed 100s of college educated individuals with degrees that could all spell but not one of them grasped insurance and risk half as well as I did as a drop out. I have yet to hear a single Grammer Nazi give a reasonable explanation of how Grammer and spelling reflects anything but a good memory. Would love to hear your theory on how my poor spelling is an indicator of my ignorance.

    By your logic everyone voting for the same do nothing Republicans would be ignorant. After McCain then Romney and the 14 candidates who where no better than them Trump was an easy vote for me. None of the others would have beat Hillary and if one somehow did they wouldn’t have accomplished as much as Trump has.

    Nate Ogden (223c65)

  481. 479. Gates and Jobs were two peas in a pod. I didn’t say they made their money in ways I necessarily believed were ethical. Just that they made fortunes out of nothing. Which they did. And which Trump didn’t.

    Forgive me if I go a bit afield here, but Jobs attempted to profit from Xerox’s work, which Gates then aped in version 1.0 of the “Windows” operating system back in 1985. Xerox paid duly and dearly for their mistake in thinking there was no money in GUI’s or the mouse, and when it came to doing business with Gates, IBM paid dearly for thinking there was no money in software.

    I’m still not entirely sold on anything Trump did that supposedly made anyone’s life better. He sure did employ a lot of contractors, but an appreciable percentage of them went out of business after not getting paid. For that reason alone, I don’t think that Trump is of suitable moral timber to lead the free world. But then again, I don’t think anyone in my lifetime with the exception of Reagan has been, either.

    Gryph (08c844)

  482. DCSCA,

    If you happen by, did you see the Blue Origin New Shepard flight today?

    LJ,

    That’s true. I still think Trump can be a successful President if he will focus on marketing, which he is very goid at, and delegate the policymaking. I hope he will continue to delegate to conservative people/groups. At heart, I think most of his base is more receptive to conservative policies.

    DRJ (15874d)

  483. Unfortunately, like most people who acquire power, they think that makes them brilliant and infallible. Trump’s authoritarian tendencies coupled with his supporters’ receptiveness to those tendencies is a problem.

    DRJ (15874d)

  484. 392 ” He could make a show of doing things to help blacks and immigrants who are here legally. But he doesn’t.”

    Record low unemployment and tax cut isn’t enough? What does he need to do to pander to them. Offer to pay their utilities? More affirmative action? Reparations? Short of being a liberal what should he do?

    Nate Ogden (223c65)

  485. Good, not goid. Sorry.

    DRJ (15874d)

  486. The immigration system is bogged down right now so legal immigrants who need regular interviews, paperwork, etc., are at a disadvantage, Nate. That is part of the executive branch but there may not be enough funding for more immigration workers and judges. Think of it like the DMV only worse.

    DRJ (15874d)

  487. 433 this is what you base arguments on?

    From your link talking about journalist judging business success.

    “The reporters concluded that 24 of those deals failed, 16 had problems, and 21 were successes. They didn’t outline the methodology that led them to these conclusions.”

    How can you claim he had many failures based on this?

    Nate Ogden (223c65)

  488. I’ll take a look, DRJ. I am busy at the moment.

    BuDuh (3e2c4e)

  489. Nate, my original comment said Trump opens the door to being called ignorant with his typos, misspellings, and other things he says and does. That is true of everyone. If a person makes mistakes a lot, perhaps especially someone in the public eye, they run the risk of being thought of as careless or ignorant.

    Would you ignore a surgeon who gives you surgical information with many errors? A pharmacist? An accountant or lawyer? Your employees or fellow workers? If not, why should Trump get a pass in his job?

    DRJ (15874d)

  490. Trump’s authoritarian tendencies coupled with his supporters’ receptiveness to those tendencies is a problem.

    DRJ, this is a concern of mine. Trump admires authoritarian leaders and (it would appear) aspires to emulate them. He also seems to share Obama’s “I have a pen and a phone” views of governance. Even though I agree with some of the policy Trump has enacted via executive order, I still believe executive orders are being abused to accomplish work that Constitutionally belongs to Congress.

    We conservatives need to remain vigilant about threats to our freedom, and be just as zealous for the Constitution now as we were under Obama. We cannot allow Trump to overstep the Constitutional bounds of his authority.

    I’ve noticed a disturbing tendency on our side of the aisle. Many conservatives seem far more attuned to the need to defend our liberties while under a Democrat-led administration, than under a Republican-led one. Therefore it would probably be easier for a Republican administration to get away with trying to restrict our freedoms than for a Democrat one – because a Republican administration would face less knee-jerk resistance from the Right. Based on what currently happens under Trump, it’s likely that many on the Right would be so inclined to believe the best of a Republican president that they’d actually interpret his intentions as good, and defend him/her over the desire or choice to restrict our freedoms.

    Therefore, there could actually be more danger of losing our freedoms now, than there was under Obama. We must be exceedingly vigilant, and not dismiss Trump’s adoring comments about foreign dictators as insignificant.

    LJ (9188cd)

  491. No, Nate, I am not “basing my arguments” on that link. I provided a link. Feel free to ignore it.

    I think Trump’s repeated business-related bankruptcies, his treatment of unsecured creditors, his ultimate business model of licensing his name/brand, and the fact he values his business based on how he feels tells me everything I need to know about Trump and his businesses. I also know others don’t agree and that is their choice.

    DRJ (15874d)

  492. LJ 491,

    There are many people here who agree with you — not as many as I once thought, but easily 20 that I can think of offhand and probably more. I think you will especially like Patterico’s posts here.

    DRJ (15874d)

  493. DRJ,

    Acquiring power has always been a problem, Middle Ages, classical ages philosophers have written about it for eons.

    Now that our dear leader has updated us minions for the weeks twitter wars, I can state my opinion that never trumpers are never going to give the man any credit.

    It’s that, the lifestyle, the insults to the ones on the stage who shouldn’t have been there, the disappointment is still intense and with every success, benefiting the American people, the more concerned the never trumpers grow.

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  494. DRJ

    Unsecured creditors are treated poorly in every bankruptcy

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  495. Doubling down on your vile words. Unsurprising. You’ve learned from the left well yet you claim it’s Trump that has lowered the public discourse.

    NJRob (fb3f62) — 4/29/2018 @ 11:23 am

    I said that Trump acts in ways that make it easier to claim he’s a racist. How does that equate to charging you with being a racist?

    FTR, I don’t think you are a racist.

    Kishnevi (4a5f25)

  496. 448

    Also worth noting, if you stuck the money that Trump inherited from his father into an index fund and let it simmer from his father’s passing until now, he’d be roughly as wealthy today as he…is today. No kidding. …

    I don’t think Trump is some sort of business genius but this comparison doesn’t mean much. It doesn’t account for taxes on the index fund money. And it doesn’t account for the money Trump spent maintaining his life style. Put the money in an index fund but account for taxes and Trump’s expenditures and the final amount is going to be less, maybe a lot less.

    James B. Shearer (a9b467)

  497. 495. But unsecured creditors have little-to-no recourse if they don’t get paid for other reasons as well. All the debtor has to say is, “You did a crappy job,” and voila. Contractor can’t afford to take a deep-pockets debtor to court, and it’s the contractor that ends up declaring bankruptcy while the debtor skates on free work. I’ve seen at least one developer do that very thing right here in my home town and it wasn’t bankruptcy related. It was just a rich guy being a douchebag.

    Gryph (08c844)

  498. 497. Trump’s lawyers and accountants are smart enough to help him dodge taxes. Of that, I have no doubt. And besides, that point is immaterial to my assertion that Trump’s fortune came primarily from his daddy. If his business accumen consists chiefly (entirely?) of knowing how to dodge taxes, or who to hire to help him dodge taxes, that kind of makes my point for me.

    Gryph (08c844)

  499. Jobs also tried to treat his cancer with fruit smoothies or whatever.

    If you want to make a fair comparison between Gates and Trump take Civilization VI and set Gates as a PC developer in the 1970’s and Trump as a Manhattan Real Estate Developer in the 1570’s. That’s all I’m saying.

    Pinandpuller (16b0b5)

  500. Do you think Bill Gates was forced to finance computers for people with bad credit?

    Pinandpuller (16b0b5)

  501. 500. Again, immaterial to the point I’m making. Jobs built a fortune out of nothing. He wouldn’t have been able to do that without Mike Markkula’s cash and Woz’s technical know-how. Apple was most definitely a three-legged stool from the earliest days of its existence. That does not change the fact that Jobs built a fortune out of nothing, and Trump did not.

    Gryph (08c844)

  502. 501. Bill Gates wasn’t in the computer business, genius. He was in the software business. Steve Jobs was in the computer business, if by “computer” you mean the actual hardware.

    Gryph (08c844)

  503. My old nationwide company took an account from a statewide company because BNSF was in the habit of taking about 120 days to pay their bills.

    Pinandpuller (16b0b5)

  504. Record low unemployment and tax cut isn’t enough? What does he need to do to pander to them. Offer to pay their utilities? More affirmative action? Reparations? Short of being a liberal what should he do?

    Nate Ogden (223c65) — 4/29/2018 @ 12:55 pm

    For one thing, Trump raised the idea very briefly of special programs for the inner cities. That seemed to drop out of sight.

    BTW, while you have a point about the arbitrary nature of orthography, grammar is essential to clear communication. I think you understand that, because while you have a few misspelled words in your comments, your grammar seems impeccable.

    Kishnevi (4a5f25)

  505. 501. Bill Gates wasn’t in the computer business, genius. He was in the software business. Steve Jobs was in the computer business, if by “computer” you mean the actual hardware.

    Gryph (08c844) — 4/29/2018 @ 1:45 pm

    Yes, you are correct. I see your big brain was able to follow my simple illustration regardless.

    Pinandpuller (16b0b5)

  506. I think this is a fair/charitable analysis of Trump’s bankruptcies. Trump chose a bad business to be in — casinos — and paid the price for that original poor choice.

    As for unsecured creditors, they had a rough time except in the 2004-2005 case when they were paid in full. That was during the period when the rules were such that attorneys commonly recommended that ongoing Chapter 11 entities (with assets and relatively few unsecured creditors) tendered Plans of Reorganization that paid off the unsecured creditors. The reasoning was that large numbers of unsecured creditors and the relatively small amount of their claims (compared to the secured creditors) made it smart to get rid of them so they could not vote on the Plan. It’s also bad optics to not pay Mom and Pop businesses that rely on big businesses to pay them.

    DRJ (0280d9)

  507. 500. Again, immaterial to the point I’m making. Jobs built a fortune out of nothing. He wouldn’t have been able to do that without Mike Markkula’s cash and Woz’s technical know-how. Apple was most definitely a three-legged stool from the earliest days of its existence. That does not change the fact that Jobs built a fortune out of nothing, and Trump did not.

    Gryph (08c844) — 4/29/2018 @ 1:44 pm

    By your leave, m’lord, isn’t that a contradictory statement?

    Pinandpuller (16b0b5)

  508. It seems to me that Steve Jobs was traditional and aggressive with his medical treatments, Pin.

    DRJ (0280d9)

  509. @483. One way or another, someone’s always trying to get outta Texas, eh DRJ? 😉

    Thanks for the link!! So thoughtful of you. Absolutely magnificent test flight. Actually teared up a little– they never cease to awe, particularly in this case as a newspaper headlining Shepard’s first flight in 1961 hangs framed in the den. These tail-end landings are so 1950’s sci-fi, too. LOL. Today’s 20-somethings have a very exciting future ahead of them– and with these micro cameras, we all can can go along for the ride. As Goddard said, there’s always the ‘thrill of just beginning.’

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  510. 491 LJ – The abrogation of duty by Congress is central to the fall of our republic. The courts have stepped into the voids created. So, too, the Executive. When we allow the Senate, in particular, to cling to sclerotic rules which prevent basic process, there is no remedy. Absolutely anything of importance which might pass is a craptastic omnibus, take it or leave it proposition. Lincoln could be our president today and he would be pretty much powerless before our feckless congress and megalomaniacal judiciary.

    I take some issue with your assertion that “many conservatives” have similarly abandoned principled duty. It’s all, of course, in the definition of “conservative.” The usual suspects like Grahamnesty may self-identify as such, but they simply are not.

    I’ve seen the truly conservative fight some arduous fights at personal cost. Gohmert, Meadows, Jordan, Lee, and yes, Cruz – among a couple of dozen others have made life difficult for Ryan and McConnell. If not for them, the individual mandate would still be the law.

    Unfortunately, there will be no significant turning of the electorate back to common sense and realistic expectations of government absent catastrophe. My guess is it will have to do with messing with our currency.

    Ed from SFV (291f4c)

  511. This is as close as you get from nothing to a fortune if you scale the relative worth of the first to the last:

    MacDonald made his first trade, a red paper clip for a fish-shaped pen, on July 14, 2005. He reached his goal of trading up to a house with the fourteenth transaction, trading a movie role for a house. This is the list of all transactions MacDonald made:

    On July 14, 2005, he went to Vancouver and traded the paperclip for a fish-shaped pen.
    He then traded the pen the same day for a hand-sculpted doorknob from Seattle, Washington.
    On July 25, 2005, he travelled to Amherst, Massachusetts, with a friend to trade the doorknob for a Coleman camp stove (with fuel).
    On September 24, 2005, he went to California, and traded the camp stove for a Honda generator.
    On November 16, 2005, he traveled to Maspeth, Queens and traded the generator for an “instant party”: an empty keg, an IOU for filling the keg with the beer of the bearer’s choice, and a neon Budweiser sign. This was his second attempt to make the trade; his first resulted in the generator being temporarily confiscated by the New York City Fire Department.

    Kyle MacDonald’s house
    On December 8, 2005, he traded the “instant party” to Quebec comedian and radio personality Michel Barrette for a Ski-Doo snowmobile.
    Within a week of that, he traded the snowmobile for a two-person trip to Yahk, British Columbia, scheduled for February 2006.
    On or about January 7, 2006, he traded the second spot on the Yahk trip for a box truck.
    On or about February 22, 2006, he traded the box truck for a recording contract with Metalworks in Mississauga, Ontario.
    On or about April 11, 2006, he traded the contract to Jody Gnant for a year’s rent in Phoenix, Arizona.
    On or about April 26, 2006, he traded the year’s rent in Phoenix for one afternoon with Alice Cooper.
    On or about May 26, 2006, he traded the afternoon with Cooper for a KISS motorized snow globe.
    On or about June 2, 2006, he traded the snow globe to Corbin Bernsen for a role in the film Donna on Demand.
    On or about July 5, 2006, he traded the movie role for a two-story farmhouse in Kipling, Saskatchewan.

    One Red Paperclip

    Pinandpuller (16b0b5)

  512. Fair enough, Miss DRJ. I thought that it was testicular cancer. If you get pancreatic cancer you might as well take up street racing without a seatbelt.

    Pinandpuller (16b0b5)

  513. @483. One way or another, someone’s always trying to get outta Texas, eh DRJ? 😉

    Thanks for the link!!

    DCSCA (797bc0) — 4/29/2018 @ 2:00 pm

    How did the Matt Drudge of NASA get scooped like that?

    Pinandpuller (16b0b5)

  514. If there had been a single candidate running against Trump in the primary, that candidate would have won easily. How do I know that? Because the combined total votes for all the other candidates outdid Trump.

    No, you don’t know that. For example, say there are 3 candidates, Trump, Cruz, and Rubio. You are making the mistake of thinking that if Rubio dropped out, every single one of his voters would go to Cruz. That is not the way things work. As a matter of fact, there were numerous polls during the primary demonstrating just that, where they asked voters who their choice would be if their guy dropped out. They never all went to the same guy, not even close. They went all over the place.

    So, in your scenario of everyone dropping out except Trump and one other, sure, some of them would go to the other. But, some of them would go to Trump. Since he was the most popular guy, probably most of them.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  515. Trump’s authoritarian tendencies coupled with his supporters’ receptiveness to those tendencies is a problem.

    Trump is not an authoritarian. That’s a leftist talking point with no basis in fact.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  516. You got to him first, Anon Y. Mous (6cc438) — 4/29/2018 @ 2:13 pm Sometimes the fallacy in the thinking is astounding. Every vote would go against Trump? That’s amazing.

    Rev.Hoagie (1b0402)

  517. @507.I think this is a fair/charitable analysis of Trump’s bankruptcies. Trump chose a bad business to be in — casinos — and paid the price for that original poor choice.

    Metro NY in the Reagan 80’s was the wild west so it was easy to see how he got caught up in it; the local nightly news would air clips of young Wall Street brokers lighting cigars w/$100 bills two or three times a month. The region had very high hopes for Atlantic City back then, too, but they went bust. It was ripe for development as a ‘Las Vegas East’ w/gambling in Jersey legalized. Unfortunately, aside from other local issues, they sort of forgot about the winter weather travelling down the GSP. AC in December truly sucks. It was a gamble just getting to the boardwalk– the airport wasn’t very big either. Busloads of retirees weren’t going to sustain it.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  518. It was neat to watch, DCSCA. I love flying and space (even suborbital) flight is especially beautiful.

    DRJ (15874d)

  519. 516.Trump’s authoritarian tendencies coupled with his supporters’ receptiveness to those tendencies is a problem.

    So now people who support the President of the United States support “authoritarianism” and are racists too. The list of our bad points keeps growing. Do we have any good points?

    Rev.Hoagie (1b0402)

  520. I think back on when I was promoted to take the helm of my department at work. As my VP and I were walking thru the airport terminal, the VP told me a story that a good friend of his had relayed about the pastor of his church… one Rick Warren of the Saddleback Church. VP said that there would be temptations placed in my path as they were for Warren… said that after Warren got to the point of national prominence, there were people always trying to take him down. He’d be traveling on business and would often encounter call girls or hookers laying in wait in his hotel rooms, he had to be very careful.

    The VP turned to me and said, “so… do you understand what I’m telling you?” I looked at him and nodded yes and said, “so when I travel I use the name ‘Rick Warren’ for all my reservations?”

    Colonel Haiku (75fedf)

  521. @514. Even by rocket, news out of Texas travels slower, PP.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  522. @519. Oh yes, DRJ, ‘rightly’ great stuff, indeed. Bezos is a space geek supreme, too. Found and recovered those Apollo Saturn V F-1 engines some years ago. The next 10 or 20 years should have Bezos, Musk and Branson competing and regularly flying folks up to and back from LEO while NASA presses on back to Luna and on to Mars. That’s as it should be.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  523. 511 Ed from SFV,

    The abrogation of duty by Congress is central to the fall of our republic….

    I couldn’t agree more.

    I take some issue with your assertion that “many conservatives” have similarly abandoned principled duty. It’s all, of course, in the definition of “conservative.” The usual suspects like Grahamnesty may self-identify as such, but they simply are not.

    It makes perfect sense to question this, since I was employing the term “conservative” in its broadest possible sense, to include all those who self-identify with the Right rather than with the Left. Strictly speaking, many on the Right are not actual conservatives by ideology, even though they refer to themselves as such. So, again, we agree.

    I’ve seen the truly conservative fight some arduous fights at personal cost. Gohmert, Meadows, Jordan, Lee, and yes, Cruz – among a couple of dozen others have made life difficult for Ryan and McConnell. If not for them, the individual mandate would still be the law.

    Yes, they have. If only their tribe would increase!

    Unfortunately, there will be no significant turning of the electorate back to common sense and realistic expectations of government absent catastrophe. My guess is it will have to do with messing with our currency.

    I can think of some other conditions that could cause the electorate to squeal “but the Constitution!” and revolt. First, if American wallets were emptied by means of some government overreach. For instance, if the government were to seize all retirement accounts, or all of a specific personal asset…or if the government universally revoked citizens’ rights of ownership. Second, if the federal government denied citizens the right to work. Third, if the federal government suddenly (NOT gradually) seized control of all national media and communication channels as a propaganda network, North Korea style (particularly once partisans on both sides of the aisle were blocked from expressing their views).

    LJ (9188cd)

  524. Is it authoritarian to reverse Obama’s edicts?

    AZ Bob (51fe41)

  525. These NeverTrump Gimpinistas are like Goldilocks and her porridge.

    Colonel Haiku (75fedf)

  526. 515 Anon Y. Mous (by the way, I like your username! Clever! :))

    When you limit the options to two, people are forced to select one of them. Of course not all of the primary voters would have gone to Trump’s opponent, if his opponent had been an experienced politician, because anti-establishment feeling ran high in 2016 (and anyone with a familiar political face was mislabeled ‘establishment’ by some segments of the electorate). But what you may not have considered is what a large contingent of the votes were actually anti-Trump votes. Many anti-establishment voters preferred Cruz or Carson because they viewed the two as morally upstanding individuals, and could not abide Trump over his disreputable lifestyle. (Lots of them didn’t want to let go of Cruz when he dropped out of the race, and were horrified that he endorsed Trump. And lots of the Carson supporters didn’t embrace Trump when Carson did.) Also, many supporters of Rubio, Bush, and Walker were fans of seasoned, knowledgeable politicians with Christian values, not of wild card ‘wing it on stagers’ like Trump. They would have voted for any decent individual who came across as intelligent, over Trump. Trump was outrageously unpopular early in the primary. If there had not been so many contenders for the nomination early in the primary, Trump would not have been the top candidate.

    It’s funny how many people who voted for Trup while holding their nose now cheer him on as if they had always been his enthusiastic fans. That’s not the case. Trump was only scarcely more acceptable to most voters than Hillary, when it came time to vote. Remember how, back in 2016, many of those voters stressed that they were voting for the “lesser of the two EVILS” (with the emphasis on the word “evils”)? 🙂 That sort of grimacing, reluctant acceptance doesn’t go by the name “wild popularity” where I come from. Trump was NOT popular. He just happened to be less unpopular than Hillary Clinton.

    And don’t make me remind you that the 2016 polls got many things wrong :).

    LJ (9188cd)

  527. 508. Not at all. Most of Markkula’s cash came in the form of an equity investment that he was paid back, and the rest came in the form of an ownership interest. Markkula retired from Intel in his 30’s, and got even filthier, stinkier rich after Apple went public.

    And as for Woz, his technical know-how would have been no-how good without Jobs’ charisma. So I stand by my assertion that Jobs made something out of nothing. For all intents and purposes, that is true. And it has absolutely no bearing on the fact that Donald Trump’s fortune came from an inheritance. Does that make Trump a bad person? By no means. But I’ll say again and again, it belies Trump’s reputation as a savvy businessperson.

    Gryph (08c844)

  528. The irony or ironies in the 2016 election for me was that a man overwhelmingly lacking in morality was put into office by evangelical and Christian voters. This matters.

    If those voters lose faith in him, he can not possibly win again. He is on that precipice as we speak. It is no coincidence that he asserted last night that he would be willing to shut it all down over a couple of his core campaign promises. Will his self-serving and preserving pragmatism give him the necessary strength to battle? Will Ryan’s departure help him in this?

    Ed from SFV (291f4c)

  529. Don’t be so sensitive, folks. I’m not pointing fingers at or insulting anyone. I’m in my 60’s and like most people of my generation, I was raised by authoritarian parents. They told me what to do and I did it because they were my parents. I felt the same way about other authority figures — police, judges, frankly any adult.

    It occurs to me that I am receptive to Trump’s promises about building a Wall because I am receptive to people who present themselves as authority figures. Trump certainly does that. Maybe some of his supporters feel the same way. We appreciate the value of order and authority.

    DRJ (15874d)

  530. I don’t think they will lose faith in him, Ed. They know all are sinners and so they judge people by their intentions, not results. I think it is enough that Trump talks about supporting families and promises to be pro-life, even if he isn’t.

    IMO evangelicals have given up on values now. I know I have, and I am probably considered evangelical. I don’t approve of Trump but approval seems like such a quaint concept now.

    DRJ (15874d)

  531. I said that Trump acts in ways that make it easier to claim he’s a racist. How does that equate to charging you with being a racist?

    FTR, I don’t think you are a racist.

    Kishnevi (4a5f25) — 4/29/2018 @ 1:30 pm

    Thank you.

    As for your remarks about making it easier to claim he’s a racist, I disagree. Simply not being a leftist is enough to make that claim. They will call you a racist if they think it will shut you up and make you sit down.

    It’s also losing its validity as we see popular culture icons speak out in support of Trump because they like his obnoxious swagger.

    NJRob (fb3f62)

  532. 529 Ed from SFV,

    The irony or ironies in the 2016 election for me was that a man overwhelmingly lacking in morality was put into office by evangelical and Christian voters. This matters.

    I thoroughly agree; and, yes, it does matter.

    Christians are supposed to be salt and light in their culture. Salt was used in ancient times as a preservative. Therefore, being salt means that you act as a preservative, preventing moral deterioration in the culture and keeping its good elements (that is, whatever morality it still has) intact. One cannot possibly be salt while defending Trump’s abusive language, adultery, lies, unkindness, and other corruption as irrelevant or immaterial to one’s cause. One cannot be salt by promoting Trump- since he has had a morally corrupting influence on our national political discourse, infusing it with even more extreme hatred, division, and cruel, bullyish tactics. And one cannot possibly be salt by mimicking the Left’s evil tactics in order to win.

    Contrary to popular view, you can’t make a difference in our culture by how you vote, because politics is downstream of culture. You can only make a difference in our culture by BEING different. That’s what the Bible is saying when it says Christians should be a light in the world. Being dark in order to overpower the darkness around you (that is, adopting the Left’s corrupt methods in order to win) won’t work. Darkness can’t undo darkness. The only thing that can overpower darkness is light. We shouldn’t be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

    Many evangelicals forgot these things on a vain search for a politician who would ‘save’ America…they forgot that God intended for they themselves to ‘save’ America individually, by being SALT. 🙂

    LJ (9188cd)

  533. That is a powerful comment and I appreciate your strong faith, LJ.

    DRJ (15874d)

  534. That is a powerful comment and I appreciate your strong faith, LJ.

    Thank you for your kind words and the gentle, patient, friendly approach you have towards all of us who comment here :). We need more of you around here!

    LJ (9188cd)

  535. “Many evangelicals forgot these things on a vain search for a politician who would ‘save’ America…they forgot that God intended for they themselves to ‘save’ America individually, by being SALT”

    LJ, your moral judgements, may make you feel comfortable, But the insults thinly veiled as Christian doctrine, fall flat on the face of inspection.

    Redemption, forgiveness, to me are pillars of our faith, not from the bleachers moral perfection.

    After all, like I said earlier, now with your judgmental post, is it a sin for you to benefit from what he has achieved?

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  536. I can log in and log out at Red State, and my old diary articles seem to be there, but I cannot access my dashboard, which would mean I could no longer post diaries.

    The disappointed Dana (dcca38)

  537. I’m in my 60’s and like most people of my generation, I was raised by authoritarian parents. They told me what to do and I did it because they were my parents. I felt the same way about other authority figures — police, judges, frankly any adult.

    Fair enough. But, you should know that when others use that word about Trump, they are trying to convey a specific meaning.

    ▸ noun: a person behaves in an tyrannical manner
    ▸ adjective: likened to a dictator in severity
    ▸ adjective: characteristic of an absolute ruler or absolute rule; having absolute sovereignty
    ▸ adjective: expecting unquestioning obedience

    That’s from the quick look at OneLook.

    https://www.onelook.com/?w=authoritarian&ls=a&loc=2osdf

    When Allahpundit or Patterico (I think he uses the term about Trump) say Trump is an authoritarian, they are using it in the sense of someone who wants to rule absolutely, or at least that’s the impression they are trying to convey. When challenged on it, they will point to some weak sauce like Trump wanting to have stricter libel laws. Not that Trump is going to impose stricter libel laws by ordering it done and sending the army out to impose his will on newspapers, but merely that he would like to use the political process to have stricter libel laws.

    I disagree with Trump on that point. I understand he gets frustrated when he thinks he is being lied about in print and has little recourse as he’s a public figure. But still, I like the more open debate we can have in this country without worrying about getting sued like can occur in England for example.

    But regardless of his political position on libel laws, he is no authoritarian in the sense of someone who is a dictator or who desires dictatorial powers.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  538. LJ, your moral judgements, may make you feel comfortable, But the insults thinly veiled as Christian doctrine, fall flat on the face of inspection.

    Redemption, forgiveness, to me are pillars of our faith, not from the bleachers moral perfection.

    After all, like I said earlier, now with your judgmental post, is it a sin for you to benefit from what he has achieved?

    Actually, love is the pillar of our faith. Jesus said all of God’s law could be summed up in two commandments – love God, and love your neighbor as yourself.

    My statement did not deny redemption or forgiveness, but simply urged evangelicals to follow Jesus’ command to be salt and light in the world. Jesus would be judgmental, by your definition, because He imposed lifestyle standards on people who believe in Him. The Bible tells us to exhort each other and encourage each other to live right, and to rebuke those who stray.

    There is no sin involved in benefiting from what Trump has achieved, even if you do not support him.

    LJ (9188cd)

  539. I know there are different views, Anon Y Mous. I hope we can ask questions when something strikes us wrong, instead of going on the attack.

    DRJ (15874d)

  540. Adjective Dana,

    I am so sorry. I often look for and read your articles there because they are well done and because you are a friend. I don’t know whether they pay you but if not, what are they thinking?

    DRJ (15874d)

  541. Don’t be so sensitive, folks

    I’m with you, DRJ. I am still looking for the portion of the thread that you linked that you took issue with. Should I not look at the thread as a whole and isolate certain interactions as if the rest of the thread didn’t exist? Because, otherwise, it seemed like an inspired back and forth.

    BuDuh (7df5b0)

  542. Ask away.

    I thought this was a relatively open forum. When some describes the president in a way that I believe is inaccurate, I think it is fair to challenge them on that point. I hope we can disagree or debate without it being perceived as an attack.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  543. In addition to what LJ said, my view is that we are called to judge actions, but only God can judge our souls.

    DRJ (15874d)

  544. I welcome debate, Anon, so agreed.

    DRJ (15874d)

  545. In addition to what LJ said, my view is that we are called to judge actions, but only God can judge our souls.

    Yes, very true and aptly stated. 🙂

    LJ (9188cd)

  546. If you thought that was a good adult discussion, BuDuh, then I know where we stand. Thanks for your reply. I will pass on future discussions with you.

    DRJ (15874d)

  547. Oh.. I was hoping you would point to what offended you, that was beyond someone being “so sensitive,” so I could build from it.

    What, in that thread, was the teachable moment, DRJ?

    I welcome the debate.

    BuDuh (7df5b0)

  548. DRJ

    Do you think it’s sinful to enjoy what a sinner has brought?

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  549. I get very uncomfortable mixing God with country. Mostly because of all the thing I really love: God, America, my family, my friends…the top things important to me, only America doesn’t love me back. I know God loves me as well as my family and friends but no matter what I do for America, how hard I fought and bled in war, how much I pay in taxes, how I try and obey all the rules and be a good and patriotic citizen, America is unable to love me. One could say America grants me Freedom but we all know mans Freedom flows from God and America just promises to obey what God grants us. Oddly, America no longer seems to want to grant those rights and Freedoms and seems to concentrate a great deal of law trying to find ways to stifle it. Hence the idea of a Post-Constitutional America.

    Rev.Hoagie (1b0402)

  550. BTW, God sometimes picks really lousy people to move His will forward. Just sayin’.

    Rev.Hoagie (1b0402)

  551. The irony or ironies in the 2016 election for me was that a man overwhelmingly lacking in morality was put into office by evangelical and Christian voters. This matters.

    It matters tremendously. Evangelicals were looking for a politician to save the nation from 8 years of Obama and what they saw as godlessness run rampant. Unfortunately they seem to have forgotten that no matter the politician, they have feet of clay and are nothing but a mere mortal, fallible and fallen from grace. To believe the self-promotion of one man and his empty promises while he evidenced an utter lack of character was, and is foolishness. To deify him is dangerous. Further, to pretend otherwise is to evidence how weak the church has become and how willing Christians have been to look the other way. At this point in time, one really wonders if there is anything Trump can do that would make them denounce him.

    I do believe that at some level God has put Trump in office, but not for the usual given reasons (to save America and for us to be able to say merry Christmas again…) but rather as a mirror to reflect how weak the church is and how willing evangelicals are to compromise the values and principles upon which they once stood. They even felt called to draw in others and stand upon the same solid rock with them. For the glory of God . Remember?

    Dana (023079)

  552. 533-the light of Christians is truth.

    Your comment reminds me of a certain Christian, beloved of God, who called the leaders of his time whitewashed cripts of moldering bones and every corruption, hung out with prostitutes and lowlifes down at the pubs, started wild brawls in the temple, broke laws like making clay on Sunday, obstructed justice by stopping the proscribed punishment for adultery, made spirits without a licence, destroyed other people’s farm animals, advised people to give up all their wealth, and generally made a huge nuisance of himself to established custom and order.

    The pious, self righteous holier than thou types of the day framed him and had him killed.

    Some time I’ll tell you about another man beloved of God that deliberately had a dude killed so he could have his wife. And maybe another that swindled his elder brother out of his inheritance.

    But still, it’s nice of you to let us know we can’t support Trump and be Christian. Course you might want to check out 1 Timothy 2:12.

    the Bas (3bcea0)

  553. I wrote to Streiff at Red State:

    After the hullabaloo over the fired writers at Red State, I finally got a chance to check my account there. My old diaries are still available, and I can log in and out, but even logging in does not allow me to get to my dashboard.

    I wasn’t being paid by Red State for my diaries — though I’d certainly accept cash! — and my articles tended to focus on economics as much as politics. I understand economics isn’t as much ‘click bait’ as other stories, and had noticed that while I was fairly regularly ‘promoted’ to the front page, that hadn’t been happening recently.

    What is my status with Red State?

    And he responded, promptly:

    Diaries will be operational tomorrow. Your status is unchanged. Be sure to ping me when you’ve got a diary ready to go so I can see if it should be on the front page

    Of course, he didn’t mention anything about paying me . . . .

    The not-so-disappointed Dana (dcca38)

  554. 499

    Trump’s lawyers and accountants are smart enough to help him dodge taxes. Of that, I have no doubt. And besides, that point is immaterial to my assertion that Trump’s fortune came primarily from his daddy. If his business accumen consists chiefly (entirely?) of knowing how to dodge taxes, or who to hire to help him dodge taxes, that kind of makes my point for me.

    Your assertion was he would have done just as well sticking his inherited money in an index fund which is likely false if you account for the taxes he would have paid and the money he would have been taking out to fund his life style.

    James B. Shearer (a9b467)

  555. While we are called to judge actions, and certainly only God knows what dwells in the heart of a man, it’s good to bear in mind that our actions tend to reflect that which dwells within. We, who are in Christ, can bear good fruit by His grace, and foul rot when grace is pushed aside by our own willfulness and flesh. The specific details of the heart may not be known, but a general knowledge of the condition is reflected in ones actions.

    Dana (023079)

  556. Nice blasphemy there, bas.

    John Hitchcock (0173d6)

  557. “Some time I’ll tell you about another man beloved of God that deliberately had a dude killed so he could have his wife. And maybe another that swindled his elder brother out of his inheritance.”

    – the Bas

    I think one of the big points of the stories of David and Isaac was to learn from their mistakes. And you remember how things unfolded for David, after the death of Uriah and his marriage to Bathsheba? Death of his child? Rebellion of Absalom?

    Your Trump apologetics are weak.

    Leviticus (c114df)

  558. 509

    It seems to me that Steve Jobs was traditional and aggressive with his medical treatments, Pin.

    From the wikipedia article on Jobs:

    Despite his diagnosis, Jobs resisted his doctors’ recommendations for medical intervention for nine months,[117] instead relying on alternative medicine to thwart the disease. According to Harvard researcher Ramzi Amri, his choice of alternative treatment “led to an unnecessarily early death”. Other doctors agree that Jobs’s diet was insufficient to address his disease. Cancer researcher and alternative medicine critic David Gorski, for instance, said, “My best guess was that Jobs probably only modestly decreased his chances of survival, if that.”[118] Barrie R. Cassileth, the chief of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center’s integrative medicine department,[119] said, “Jobs’s faith in alternative medicine likely cost him his life…. He had the only kind of pancreatic cancer that is treatable and curable…. He essentially committed suicide.”[120] According to Jobs’s biographer, Walter Isaacson, “for nine months he refused to undergo surgery for his pancreatic cancer – a decision he later regretted as his health declined”.[121] “Instead, he tried a vegan diet, acupuncture, herbal remedies, and other treatments he found online, and even consulted a psychic. He was also influenced by a doctor who ran a clinic that advised juice fasts, bowel cleansings and other unproven approaches, before finally having surgery in July 2004.”[122] He eventually underwent a pancreaticoduodenectomy (or “Whipple procedure”) in July 2004, that appeared to remove the tumor successfully.[123][124] Jobs did not receive chemotherapy or radiation therapy.[115][125] During Jobs’s absence, Tim Cook, head of worldwide sales and operations at Apple, ran the company.[115]

    James B. Shearer (a9b467)

  559. Where’s the blasphemy? It’s all right there in the book.

    the Bas (3bcea0)

  560. Way to go, the Bas now look what you’ve done. Now we’re authoritarian, racist and blasphemous. There’s just no gettin’ around it, supporting the President of the United States is obviously akin to backing Hitler. Authoritarian, check. Racist, check. Blasphemous, Check. Yep, no doubt about it we support the second coming of uncle Adolph.

    Rev.Hoagie (1b0402)

  561. why does the President’s doctor have to be some sketchy military sleazebag anyway

    everybody knows the best doctors are in the private sector

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  562. The important part of the story of David and Bathsheba, is that David, who was a man of immense power and wealth and loved God, grossly sinned, was found out for his horrible sins, he repented, repented and asked Gods forgiveness, and in spite of his egregious behavior , God forgavehim and even referred to him as a man after His own heart. It’s a powerful story about sin, repentance, restoration and the forgiving love and mercy of God.

    Dana (023079)

  563. And one which came at a terrible, terrible cost to David.

    Dana (023079)

  564. I don’t believe Bas was being blasphemous, just ignorant. And trying score political points. It’s all so tiring.

    Dana (023079)

  565. 430

    This implies that there is a conservative movement after the never-Trumpers have been exiled. That’s not the conservatism I grew up with.

    Trump won despite his many and obvious flaws because the conservatism of the never-Trumpers has little popular appeal. Conservatives who care about winning elections have to deal with this somehow. Constant whining about Trump and his supporters isn’t productive.

    James B. Shearer (a9b467)

  566. Dana

    God loves us all.

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  567. BEATEN WITH THE UGLY STICK

    oh my goodness who thought this was a good branding exercise

    The two leaders of cellphone providers — Sprint’s Marcelo Claure (L) and T-Mobile John Legere — announce a merger valued at $146 billion. Photo courtesy of T-Mobile

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  568. Where’s the blasphemy? It’s all right there in the book.

    Jesus is not a “Christian” (as stated initially in your post), but Christ Himself.

    Jesus uncovered the hypocrisy of the Pharisees in order to expose them as false teachers who were leading His people astray, in Matthew 23, by calling them whitewashed tombs and all, as you stated. He also stated at the end of that chapter (vs. 37-39) how often He longed to bring them to Himself and shield them from the coming judgment, but that they had rejected Him (so clearly He was calling them to repent).

    Jesus hung out with prostitutes and people at the pubs out of a desire to redeem and save them from their sins, not just to hang out for fun. Many of them believed in Him and turned from their sinful lifestyles.

    Jesus overturned the tables of the moneychangers and drove them and their live merchandise out of the temple because they were defiling HIS house of worship and taking advantage of God’s people…and that event could not accurately be described as “starting wild brawls.”

    As the Lord of the Sabbath, Jesus violated the Pharisaic misinterpretation of the Sabbath law, in order to heal people of their physical ailments on a Sabbath, and appealed to Old Testament Scripture (regarding David and regarding pulling an ox out of a ditch) as his Scriptural justification to do so.

    As the Redeemer of Mankind, Jesus pardoned a woman of her sin of adultery in which she had been caught, and prevented hypocrites from condemning a fellow sinner to death over sin (when they themselves were not innocent). That was not obstruction of justice, since Roman law had no such legal punishment for adultery; rather, it was redemption and revelation of hypocrisy.

    There was no license required to make wine, therefore Jesus required no license to turn water into wine at the wedding of Cana. In that day it was common to drink wine heavily diluted with water, rather than plain water, since water was likely to be contaminated and the alcohol content of the wine could help purify it…so it is likely that the “wine” in this context was just that.

    Jesus He cast out the evil spirits from a man possessed by a legion of evil spirits, and the evil spirits left the man and entered a herd of swine, who then ran down a hill and committed suicide. He violated Pharisaical tradition (misinterpretations which had been superimposed upon Old Testament law by various teachers over the centuries) in order to keep the commandments of God.

    And all the things Christ did, He did out of sacrificial love, a desire to redeem and help others, jealousy for God’s reputation, and untainted holiness. There is no comparison between behaviors borne of love, redemption, and a desire for God’s glory, and Trump’s behaviors, which are borne of hatred, vindictiveness, and self-exaltation. Please do not demean my Savior by presenting Him and Donald Trump as lookalikes.

    LJ (9188cd)

  569. Please do not demean my Savior by presenting Him and Donald Trump as lookalikes

    I missed where someone did this

    Please elaborate

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  570. Jesus is already way too politicized poor man

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  571. Thank you, LJ. You said it much better than I ever could.

    John Hitchcock (0173d6)

  572. Trump won despite his many and obvious flaws because the conservatism of the never-Trumpers has little popular appeal.

    This kind of over-learning of lessons from elections is always irritating. Ted Cruz came close to beating Trump, and between Ted Cruz and Rubio, they had more support. And either one would have easily beaten Hillary. And then I guess people like you would say that populist sentiment was dead in the country.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  573. When Allahpundit or Patterico (I think he uses the term about Trump) say Trump is an authoritarian, they are using it in the sense of someone who wants to rule absolutely, or at least that’s the impression they are trying to convey. When challenged on it, they will point to some weak sauce like Trump wanting to have stricter libel laws.

    I typically cite his praise for the Chinese massacre at Tiananmen Square, or for Duterte’s extrajudicial killings, or his denial that Putin murders journalists. As usual, you water down my actual arguments.

    But I am going to try to spend less time talking to people like you, Anon Y. Mous. By constantly distorting my positions, you bring out the worst in me, and waste my very precious time.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  574. things have a way of turning out for the best

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  575. I typically cite his praise for the Chinese massacre at Tiananmen Square, or for Duterte’s extrajudicial killings, or his denial that Putin murders journalists. As usual, you water down my actual arguments.

    A denial that Putin murders journalists makes Trump himself an authoritarian? I disagree.

    Trump also said nice things about Xi, stuff like Xi is a gentleman. Harmless diplomacy. Trump knows he has to negotiate with these people. Calling them journalist murderers and so on does not help in those negotiations. It gains the people of the USA nothing.

    None of that make Trump an authoritarian. The measure of an authoritarian is how he leads, or rules, as the case may be.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  576. 558. Your assertion that his business accument serves him well in spite of the taxes he’s paid is unprovable given that a) Trump, like all wealthy individuals makes use of legal tax shelters, and b) We’ll never know for sure just how much taxes impact his businesses because HE DOESN’T RELEASE HIS TAX RETURNS.

    Gryph (08c844)

  577. Good point, James Shearer. If Wiki is correct, then Pin was right about Jobs. Good memory, Pin.

    Also, good point, Patterico. I was using the term authoritarian in a different way but your point is convincing.

    DRJ (15874d)

  578. it’s the bizarrest of miracles the sleazy IRS hasn’t leaked them

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  579. @541.
    ▸ noun: a person behaves in an tyrannical manner
    ▸ adjective: likened to a dictator in severity
    ▸ adjective: characteristic of an absolute ruler or absolute rule; having absolute sovereignty
    ▸ adjective: expecting unquestioning obedience

    Pfft. That’s George Steinbrenner.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  580. EPWJ – Your Pillars are false. There is but one anchor – God. Do it HIS way or hit the highway.

    The accountability and responsibility of His commands have been largely muted and perverted, notably by Progressive arguments within, and without, the Church.

    The reason forgiveness is a crucial is not for any benefit of some other. It is about freeing OURSELVES from unnecessary entanglements which serve to distance ourselves from Him.

    I was sitting in an Hispanic Mass just a couple of hours ago and was struck with the slickness of the Evil One and his effective silencing of the Church in political matters – specifically abortion. The Devil has managed to pretty much have priests all over the USA stand mute in the pulpit with a refusal to condemn those in power, politicians and judges, who refuse to acknowledge the supremacy and primacy of the right to life itself. It is a staggering and stunning thing. What good is the right to free speech if it does not include speaking core religious truth, including JUDGEMENTS as to behavior?

    Yet, incredibly and perversely, this is where we are. Our Bishops have failed God, and their lambs (us) utterly. They exalt civility and “understanding” of others while refusing to call out those engaged in pure evil. Millions and millions of Catholics have taken their cue and similarly have decided in some corrupt ethic of consistency to keep voting in abortion without restriction.

    Dana and DRJ and LJ have warmed my heart with their sharing. Thank you to them.

    Ed from SFV (291f4c)

  581. I can log in and log out at Red State, and my old diary articles seem to be there, but I cannot access my dashboard, which would mean I could no longer post diaries.

    Erick and some other old alums were also just locked out.

    Streiff is king there now. He may go down in Internet history as the guy who killed the site.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  582. When the students poured into Tiananmen Square, the Chinese government almost blew it. Then they were vicious, they were horrible, but they put it down with strength. That shows you the power of strength. Our country is right now perceived as weak … as being spit on by the rest of the world –”

    Seems like a matter of fact statement, he didn’t praise the massacre, he described it

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  583. Is it authoritarian to reverse Obama’s edicts?

    Absolutely not, unless you ask out-of-touch federal judges.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  584. When the students poured into Tiananmen Square, the Chinese government almost blew it. Then they were vicious, they were horrible, but they put it down with strength. That shows you the power of strength. Our country is right now perceived as weak … as being spit on by the rest of the world –”

    Seems like a matter of fact statement, he didn’t praise the massacre, he described it

    Totally! Strength is not a compliment! Weakness is! Great analysis!

    Patterico (115b1f)

  585. yes yes Mr. Trump is guilty of not bowing to the conformity expected of him like a coward-ass

    he looked at tiananmen from his perspective and described it for the purposes of this discussion

    but that’s what we expect our politician-trash to do

    bow down and conform and regurgitate pablum

    but he wasn’t even a politician then

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  586. Trump wants to do a Nixon in reverse when it comes to China. Nixon wanted to open up to China to offset the Soviets. Trump wants to rein China in. Making nice with all of China’s neighbors is part of that. It would be advantageous if we could get the Philippians to view us as better allies than they do China. It would also be better for us if China and Russia are not so close.

    I also think it is safe to say that whatever Trump’s motivations were in that 1990 interview about Tienanmen Square, it wasn’t part of his current strategy with China.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  587. Pat,

    So it was weakness that put down the rebellion? It was indecision?

    He just was describing it. He also said it was horrible, vicious, those are not praise worthy phrases.

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  588. It would be advantageous if we could get the Philippians to view us as better allies than they do China.

    You are rationalizing praise for extrajudicial killings.

    Don’t EVER whine about the criminal justice system in the United States to me again.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  589. Pat,

    So it was weakness that put down the rebellion? It was indecision?

    He just was describing it. He also said it was horrible, vicious, those are not praise worthy phrases

    By describing it as strong, and contrasting it with perceived weakness in the United States, he was praising it.

    Honest people not blinded by partisan hackery can easily see this. It’s not even a close call.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  590. LONDON — President
    ADVERTISEMENT

    Reagan said on Friday that he came away from Moscow convinced that Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev is “a serious man seeking serious reform“

    Of a brutal mass murder that trained Putin

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  591. i went to a Philippians restaurant today it’s a qsr concept called jollibee that’s for reals actually from the land of the philippians

    i *wanted* the spaghettio cause i love the spaghetti of the philippian people but it’s more carby than i need (tends to be very sweet – you can use honey or, more authentically, banana catsup for to achieve this sweetness)

    so i tried a “hamburger steak” with mushroom gravy and a bunch of rice – this is hamburger patties with gravy and rice on the side

    it was oddly satisfying and of course very very cheap

    my friend F had an egg salad sammich that’s not on the menu – it’s just a temporary promo item

    he was pleased with it

    so need to go back sometime and give the fired chicken a whirl and maybe try that spaghetti too

    bottom line on this place is it’s good food for no money so if you have a family it should be on your radar

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  592. Pat,

    I strongly disagree, he said it was vicious, it was horrible first. Those are powerful words of tone.

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  593. ugh *fried* chicken i mean

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  594. Philippines
    Filipinos
    Jollibee is okay, and yes the Filipinos love it.
    And I will be in the Philippines later this week.

    John Hitchcock (0173d6)

  595. Answering questions after his speech, Reagan praised Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev’s efforts at economic and political changes and said “it would be a great setback” if he were replaced

    Reagan not wanting the horrible vicious animal who gave us putin, who killed thousands of his enemies, replaced

    EPWJ (f4224b)

  596. it’s good value but i wonder how authentic the american interpretation is though

    have fun on your trip and be careful

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  597. You are rationalizing praise for extrajudicial killings.

    Don’t EVER whine about the criminal justice system in the United States to me again.

    Well, first off, let’s go to Trump actual words.

    “I just wanted to congratulate you because I am hearing of the unbelievable job on the drug problem,” he said. “Many countries have the problem, we have a problem, but what a great job you are doing and I just wanted to call and tell you that.”

    He did not say, hey, great job on those extra-judicial killings. The drug trade is Duterte’s main priority, so Trump says great job. He doesn’t get into the specifics of all the different things being done. Which, of course, there are lots of things being done beside any extra-judicial killings.

    During that same phone call, they also talked about the Nork’s nukes. Duterte and Trump agreed that Kim was unstable.

    https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/23/us/politics/trump-duterte-phone-transcript-philippine-drug-crackdown.html

    I suppose you think it better that we snub Duterte over the killings. Or maybe that Trump should have made the call but used the opportunity to give him a lecture like Obama did.

    Obama screwed up our relationship with the Philippines with that approach. I prefer a president that can keep track of what’s best for America when dealing with foreign nations.

    When it comes to criminal justice systems, I am concerned about the one in my own country. I don’t whine, but I do call out those who put on a DoJ/FBI hat and then think they are above the law. As to the criminal justice system in the Philippines, I’ll let them worry about their own.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  598. I strongly disagree, he said it was vicious, it was horrible first. Those are powerful words of tone.

    “Hitler was vicious and horrible but he was strong. We are weak.” — statement from a guy who constantly praises strength. Your view would be there is zero praise for Hitler there.

    That view is bullshit.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  599. When it comes to criminal justice systems, I am concerned about the one in my own country. I don’t whine, but I do call out those who put on a DoJ/FBI hat and then think they are above the law. As to the criminal justice system in the Philippines, I’ll let them worry about their own.

    You’ll also defend a guy who praises their extrajudicial killings.

    I, for one, will never take anything seriously you say about criminal justice again. And when you try to complain about it? I will remind you that you defended praise for extrajudicial killings.

    Imagine if Obama did that. LOLOLOL.

    Hack.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  600. isn’t failmerica the country what invented the concept of the “drug war”

    and isn’t it cause of our draconian drug laws why so many extra people get slaughtered extra-judicially in places like Mexico Brazil and Afghanistan

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  601. See, Anon Y. Mous? Your utterly hackish disingenuous hypocrisy brings out the worst in me. I don’t like what I become when I confront the fact that morally low people like you populate my site.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  602. You’ll also defend a guy who praises their extrajudicial killings.

    No, Trump never did that. Prove me wrong.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  603. I guess it’s my notorious “Washington Consensus” views that cause me to oppose extrajudicial killing.

    I find people who rationalize it to be repulsive.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  604. No, Trump never did that. Prove me wrong.

    Why? Will you renounce him if I do?

    Patterico (115b1f)

  605. Mr. Trump placed the call and began it by congratulating Mr. Duterte for the government-sanctioned attacks on drug suspects. The program has been widely condemned by human rights groups around the world because extrajudicial killings have taken thousands of lives without arrest or trial. In March, the program was criticized in the State Department’s annual human rights report, which referred to “apparent governmental disregard for human rights and due process.”

    Mr. Trump had no such reservations. “I just wanted to congratulate you because I am hearing of the unbelievable job on the drug problem,” he said. “Many countries have the problem, we have a problem, but what a great job you are doing and I just wanted to call and tell you that.”

    https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/23/us/politics/trump-duterte-phone-transcript-philippine-drug-crackdown.html

    Repulsive and ignorant, both.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  606. Now commence your disingenuous bullshit.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  607. Mr. Mous isn’t morally low there’s no basis for to make these sweeping value judgments all up on somebody’s head just cause of they have a different point of view on the internet doing comments on Sunday evening in America

    President Trump’s done a lot of good in the whirl and guess what also

    he’s never ever held himself up as america’s quintessential moral arbiter

    he just sees things in a rather normal way and talks about them like normal people talk

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  608. Why? Will you renounce him if I do?

    I would make my judgement if I were to see that quote and the circumstances in which it was allegedly uttered. Of course, I don’t have to worry about it, because Trump never said it, and you know it.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  609. I just gave you the quote.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  610. I think the Biblical passage that best applies to Trump is Proverbs 16:4:

    The LORD hath made all things for himself: yea, even the wicked for the day of evil.

    Maybe Judges 15:16, too:

    And Samson said, With the jawbone of an ass, heaps upon heaps, with the jaw of an ass have I slain a thousand men.

    😉

    nk (dbc370)

  611. Patterico (115b1f) — 4/29/2018 @ 7:12 pm

    Look at what’s in quotation marks and what isn’t.

    Mr. Trump placed the call and began it by congratulating Mr. Duterte for the government-sanctioned attacks on drug suspects.

    No quotation marks. That’s the NYT’s paid liar, lying. If they had a quote of Trump saying those words, you can bet they would have printed it. The closest they could come up with is what they did put in quotes, which is basically, hey, great job on your drug war.

    Trump did not praise extra-judicial killings, not in that phone call nor anywhere else.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  612. Every country has actual criminals. In addition to locking up and killing millions of people for political reasons, Josef Stalin assuredly also jailed some actual criminals.

    If Trump called up Stalin and praised him for the job he was doing on the crime problem, and I said Trump was praising Stalin for locking up political prisoners, Anon Y. Mous would say I was wrong.

    If Obama did it, Anon Y. Mous would shriek like a stuck pig.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  613. which is basically, hey, great job on your drug war

    Do you realize how you sound?

    Have you no sense of decency?

    I’m going back to the blocking script, and if you’re not already on it, I’m adding you. I am done talking to soulless hacks like you.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  614. https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/3729123-POTUS-RD-Doc.html#document/p1

    That’s the full transcript of the call, no MSM liars adding their interpretations. Please, point me to the part where he praises the killings.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  615. The Illinois House of Representatives on Friday approved a plan to replace armed police officers in schools with unarmed mental health professionals.

    The Democratic-led Illinois House voted 64-25 in favor of setting up a grant program that would reward schools for hiring social workers, according to the Associated Press.

    Though the language of the measure originally withheld funding from schools who hired armed security officers, lawmakers nixed that provision after opposition from police, the AP reported.

    we have a ton of extra money so we can afford to hire gobs of social workers like this

    not every state is this lucky

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  616. That’s the full transcript of the call, no MSM liars adding their interpretations. Please, point me to the part where he praises the killings.

    Thank you for confirming the accurate quote from the NYT, which any sentient being whose head is not up Trump’s rectum can see is praise for extrajudicial killings.

    Now we’re done. Lie on, MacDuff. I won’t see it.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  617. I’m adding EPWJ. Anyone who tries to say that quote from Trump about Tiananmen Square is not praise (mixed with criticism) is not worth my time and the elevated blood pressure.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  618. Jesus never used blocking scripts

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  619. 580

    558. Your assertion that his business accument serves him well in spite of the taxes he’s paid is unprovable given that a) Trump, like all wealthy individuals makes use of legal tax shelters, and b) We’ll never know for sure just how much taxes impact his businesses because HE DOESN’T RELEASE HIS TAX RETURNS.

    You are missing the point, I am not talking about the taxes he paid (or didn’t pay) in reality, I am talking about the taxes he would have paid if he had invested in an index fund as you suggested. In order to figure out how that strategy would have done you need to subtract off the taxes he would have paid which you have not done.

    James B. Shearer (a9b467)

  620. happy, why not Guns AND Butter. If certain other things were done, we could go back to those times.

    urbanleftbehind (24e2ff)

  621. maybe so but i like Mr. Trump’s priorities Mr. urban, and I like how clear he’s been about what they are

    that was kinda my takeaway from his speech last night where he said

    the stock market could probably be up a lot more but right now we’re working on stuff like trade issues that creates uncertainty for the market

    what this tells me

    is that he sees his impact as measurable, and rightly so

    food stamp never ever embraced that idea

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  622. Pat,

    I did not intend nor mean to cause you aggravation. It, i thought, was a conversation, for which i am sorry, i was insensitive.

    EPWJ (b8df0f)

  623. 623. What the **** ever. Trump got his money from Daddy and invested it with at-best-mediocre results. What part of that statement is untrue?

    Gryph (08c844)

  624. President Trump did a great job he did better than most (astounding achievement)

    remember the vast majority of failmericans achieve at-best-mediocre financial results

    especially the ones depending on piggy pensions lol

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  625. Donald J. Trump did more, and more effectively, to kill the conservative movement as a Republican presidential candidate than did any Democrat since Woodrow Wilson.

    Change my mind, Trump lickers.

    Gryph (08c844)

  626. 628. At-best-mediocre results are defined a little differently when you inherit millions of dollars from Daddy before you’ve started your first earnest business venture.

    Gryph (08c844)

  627. i think Paul Ryan and his slutty slutty omnibus has done way more than anyone else to kill conservatism

    and weirdo pedophile Mitt Romney urging everyone to vote for the fetus-flensing Democrat in Alabama comes in a strong second

    coward-pig John McCain and his vote for Obamacare for show

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  628. also

    sleazy lowlife George W. introduced failmerica to the idea that oil was an addiction

    which partly explains why his low-wattage special needs brother isn’t president today

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  629. This video fits very well here.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lgcd6jvsCFs

    John Hitchcock (0173d6)

  630. Gryph, it’s like Bob Uecker said. It’s one thing to become rich and famous and be elected President if you have talent, education, class, looks and brains. For a shaved baboon like Trump to do it … IT’S AMAZING!

    Which makes me rethink some things. Maybe the Presidents we’ve been electing lately haven’t so much degraded the institution of the Presidency as they have exemplified the mythical ideal: Anybody can grow up to be President.

    nk (dbc370)

  631. 629 Gryph,

    Donald J. Trump did more, and more effectively, to kill the conservative movement as a Republican presidential candidate than did any Democrat since Woodrow Wilson.

    Recently my husband made a very similar observation when we were discussing politics. I agree. Conservatism couldn’t be destroyed by an outsider, because we would fiercely oppose anyone we perceived as an enemy to our cause; it could only be destroyed from within, by a supposed advocate. And, sadly, that is happening…under Trump. I hate to see it.

    LJ (9188cd)

  632. Trump alone couldn’t do it. He needed help from Rush Limbaugh, Fox News, blogs like Instapundit, and the GOP establishment.

    DRJ (0280d9)

  633. And “conservatives” and evangelicals have happily helped him out as well.

    Dana (023079)

  634. i love Mr. Instapundit cause of he’s too cool for school

    and yet the dude abides

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  635. @635. Welcome to 1964.

    “You’re not the first dame to wind up on the bottom of the deck. It happens every day… what matters is how a person lives with it.” – Jiggs Casey [Kirk Douglas] ‘Seven Days In May’ – 1964

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  636. Trump alone couldn’t do it. He needed help from Rush Limbaugh, Fox News, blogs like Instapundit, and the GOP establishment.

    I see you’ve made an enemies list.
    🙂

    I wonder why you’ve included the GOPe, though. They fought Trump tooth and nail. Some still fight him even today. Unless you mean they were just so awful that the primary voters were desperate to get anybody except one of them.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  637. @614 mr nk

    The owner of an old-fashioned corner grocery store in a small country town was fond of quoting a scripture after each sale. He had three old friends that would sit around a pot-bellied stove, playing checkers on a faded board. His ability to produce a scripture for all occasions never ceased to amuse the old timers, and they would listen to see what verse he would come up with relevant to the sale made.

    A lady purchased some material and he said, “She seeketh wool, and flax, and worketh willingly with her hands.” A man bought a sack of flour; he said “Man does not live by bread alone, but every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” A little boy bought some candy and as he rung it up he quoted, “Suffer the little children to come unto Me.”

    It was nearly closing time when the chimes over the door jangled loudly. A well dressed young man, obviously a stranger from one of the larger towns down the road, entered.

    “Help you?” offered the proprietor. “I need a blanket for my horse,” said the man. “He’s out inhis trailer and it’s too cold for just one. Bring me the nicest one you’ve got!”

    The store owner went in the back store room and came back with a brown blanket. “That’ll be five dollars.”

    “Five dollars? You’ve got to be kidding!’ said the man. “This horse is a thoroughbred. He gets only the best! He wouldn’t stand still for an old five dollar blanket.” Without comment, the store owner took back the blanket, then merely selected a different color and brought it out. “This one’s $25 dollars.”

    “Now, look,” said the young man. “Perhaps I didn’t make myself plain. This isn’t just any old horse! He’s worth thousands! Now I want the best, most expensive blanket you’ve got! Comprende?” The owner once more went into the store room, pulled out another color of the same material and brought it back. “This is the only one left, and it’s $100.”

    “Now that’s more like it!” enthused the fellow as he paid. Throwing the five dollar blanket over his shoulder, he left. The old timers stared silently at the shopkeeper as they waited to see what possible scripture he could come up with for that sale! Going behind the register, he rang up the hundred dollars and said, “He was a stranger, and I took him in.”

    Pinandpuller (16b0b5)

  638. You guys are the bestist at missing the point. I wasn’t comparing Trump to anyone, I was responding to the messed up notion that you can’t be a Christian and support Trump. I was defending Trump supporters from such pious, virtue signaling horse hockey by pointing out that sort found reason to judge Christ himself as morally wanting.

    So take your self righteous sanctimony to church and pat each other on the back at your supreme virtue, it ain’t flying as a political tactic.

    the Bas (3bcea0)

  639. 641 Mr. Pinandpuler. lol

    nk (dbc370)

  640. So take your self righteous sanctimony to church and pat each other on the back at your supreme virtue, it ain’t flying as a political tactic.

    I’m sorry if it seemed like self-righteous sanctimony to you, but I was just saying what being salt and light actually means. That does apply in the politosphere. I’m accustomed to the Left wanting us to confine the exercise of our faith to church and leave it out of the public sphere, but it is a bit jarring to hear that same perspective being uttered by members of the Right.

    LJ (9188cd)

  641. and, the Bas,

    maybe you could explain to me your perspective – how you view it as being salt and light to support Donald Trump?

    LJ (9188cd)

  642. Good point, James Shearer. If Wiki is correct, then Pin was right about Jobs. Good memory, Pin.

    Also, good point, Patterico. I was using the term authoritarian in a different way but your point is convincing.

    DRJ (15874d) — 4/29/2018 @ 6:16 pm

    Well I had to step away and I’m Memento-ing my way thru here. I will hew to you if you don’t mind, and stay away from The Philippines. Regardless of scare quote genius status, I have a mind for the trivial. I won’t go up against Gryph Jennings on Tech Billionaires for $500 Alex, but I think I could do pretty well on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.

    Pinandpuller (16b0b5)

  643. Fasting has been a part of the treatment of illness since Hippocrates and Plutarch was quoted as asserting, ‘Instead of using medicine, rather fast a day’. Between 2008 and 2013 there have been a number of research studies suggesting fasting can have significant beneficial effects with people trying to beat cancer, halting cancer progression and improving survival. It is also becoming clear that when fasting, your healthy cells respond to hormones that shut them down. So a fast 2 days before, the day of chemotherapy and the day after, for example, means less uptake of the drug by healthy cells, leaving more free to be taken up by the cancer cells. The net result is less side-effects, but more cancer cell death from the chemo drug. It´s a win-win situation.

    One final benefit is that fasting and juice fasting can help detoxify and de-fat the liver, regenerating its power. By de-fatting the liver, two British Professors (Taylor and Lean) have shown you can clean up the pancreas too.

    Canceractive

    Pinandpuller (16b0b5)

  644. The March 1990 Playboy interview with Donald Trump, in case it comes up again.

    DRJ (15874d)

  645. 508. Not at all. Most of Markkula’s cash came in the form of an equity investment that he was paid back, and the rest came in the form of an ownership interest. Markkula retired from Intel in his 30’s, and got even filthier, stinkier rich after Apple went public.

    And as for Woz, his technical know-how would have been no-how good without Jobs’ charisma. So I stand by my assertion that Jobs made something out of nothing. For all intents and purposes, that is true. And it has absolutely no bearing on the fact that Donald Trump’s fortune came from an inheritance. Does that make Trump a bad person? By no means. But I’ll say again and again, it belies Trump’s reputation as a savvy businessperson.

    Gryph (08c844) — 4/29/2018 @ 2:56 pm

    Maybe mr nk has made me more woke to the Greek concept of ex nihilo wedded to my innate literalism.

    Pinandpuller (16b0b5)

  646. It was pretty funny when Rush said he did the Playboy Interview because you’re supposed to go where the sinners are.

    And my grandma said that he got so coarse after his mom died.

    Pinandpuller (16b0b5)

  647. Mommy, mommy! Where do Rush Babies come from?

    Pinandpuller (16b0b5)

  648. The March 1990 Playboy interview with Donald Trump, in case it comes up again.

    Hmmm…

    When I click the link, I get a little intro and then this.

    For Members’ Eyes Only

    DRJ, are you a member?

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  649. It was pretty funny when Rush said he did the Playboy Interview because you’re supposed to go where the sinners are.

    That argument does not succeed with parole officers.

    nk (dbc370)

  650. Would that be Rush “Sex Tourist” Limbaugh?

    Davethulhu (7e7722)

  651. Here’s an alternative link for the interview. I think it’s complete.

    https://filthy.media/donald-trump-playboy-interview

    That domain name sounds suspect, but there’s nothing untoward on the linked page itself. I haven’t explored the rest of the site, so that’s on you if you go rummaging around.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  652. 627

    What the **** ever. Trump got his money from Daddy and invested it with at-best-mediocre results. What part of that statement is untrue?

    The information needed to compute Trump’s investment performance is not publicly known. Among other things it is not known exactly how much help Trump received from his family and when. And the comparison to investing in an index fund is flawed as I explained above.

    James B. Shearer (a9b467)

  653. there’s a good handful plus of articles in the last few hours saying John McCain is back in the hospital like this one

    but they all link to this Arizona Republic piece what doesn’t say that

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  654. 576

    … Ted Cruz came close to beating Trump, …

    He doesn’t seem very eager for a rematch.

    James B. Shearer (a9b467)

  655. but “brad thor” is feelin scrappy like a well-rested mormon trashy-assed cia agent

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  656. “John hugged me tonight. He asked me to take care of Meghan. I said I would,” Domenech wrote. “F–k you soulless crazies. F–k you all the way to hell.”

    That guy is the best spokesman John McCain has ever had. It’s like we are hearing from McCain himself.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  657. Sen. John McCain has been hospitalized since Sunday dealing with diverticulitis, an intestinal issue. Republic reporter Craig Harris reports from Mayo Clinic Hospital in Phoenix. Michael Chow/azcentral.com

    That’s the caption from the top pic, Mr. Feet. So they did sneak that reporting in there.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  658. Tomorrow will be my day for backing Trump, yesterday was bout how terrible he is. Today I’m on the fence. Why? Because the only reason I support him is I have no viable choice. Give me one, as I might begin to get next year, and things will be easy again.

    Hillary was a terrible candidate, and sick on top of that. The GOP was overjoyed that she was the heir apparent. Of course, after the convention, the Dems were saying much the same thing about Trump.

    Yeah, they lost. But barely. Some of those states went by far less than a percent. A credible Democrat candidate, such as Biden would have won. A LOT more independents and moderate Republicans would have abandoned Trump.

    But Trump won, and deal with that we must. The judge thing is good. The foreign policy is better than Obama, but how could it be not? Domestic policy is still a muddle and the immigration thing is an incomplete. Better than Hillary, better than Obama.

    But better than Cruz or other Republicans? Wake me when H1-B visas end.

    Kevin M (752a26)

  659. good catch Mr. Mous

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  660. how you view it as being salt and light to support Donald Trump?

    Maybe go ahead and read all of One Timothy chapter 2.

    the Bas (3bcea0)

  661. Oops, I think I made the same mistake the other publications did in referring to that piece. They reused the picture and kept the same caption from a piece they published on 4/17.

    https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/politics/arizona/2018/04/16/john-mccain-surgery-mayo-clinic-condition-called-stable/975441001/

    That caption was true then, but out of date now.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  662. ok then yeah this is kooky

    what’s also really odd is the degree everyone is deferring to AZ republic

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  663. Maybe go ahead and read all of One Timothy chapter 2.

    I will! 🙂

    LJ (9188cd)

  664. Can Donald Trump or Ted Cruz Beat Hillary Clinton? A New National Poll May Surprise You

    Posted March 24, 2016 by Dan McLaughlin – RedState

    “There’s a new Bloomberg national poll out, and if you ever had any illusions about the well-documented evidence that Donald Trump would be a Hindenburg-sized disaster as a general election candidate against Hillary Clinton, this should lay those doubts to rest. Trump trails Hillary by 18 points, 54-36, and the news gets worse from there.

    Start with the topline. Trump trails Hillary 54-36, and even if that’s a bit of an outlier, it is consistent with a long track record of Trump trailing Hillary badly, including by double digits in 5 of the last 7 national polls; the RCP polling average now has Trump down 50.4 to 39.0, a result that would lose him more than 40 states and have catastrophic down-ticket results for Republicans in the Senate and House. We forget what a wipeout that big looks like: in the past 40 years, nobody but Walter Mondale in 1984 has lost a presidential election by as much as 10 points (we’re so far removed from that, we tend to think of John McCain’s 7-point loss to Barack Obama in 2008 as a landslide). And before you object that Reagan trailed by more than that in 1980, read this. Even at his low ebb, in a deep-blue-state poll taken in New Jersey just before his New Hampshire primary revival, Reagan was viewed unfavorably by only 44% of voters.

    Diving into the questions, we see the problem. Voters are not happy with Hillary Clinton, whose favorable/unfavorable rating is 44/53, a full 9 points underwater and steadily sagging since late 2014, and 35% have a “very unfavorable” view of Hillary – more than a third of the electorate basically hates her and will not be talked out of that view. Ted Cruz is in a similar boat in this poll: 32-55 (-23), with 32% viewing him very unfavorably. But Trump is in a completely different universe: his favorable rating is 29/68, meaning that he’s almost 40 points underwater. And his “very unfavorable” rating is 53% – a majority of the voters have essentially cast-in-stone disliking of Trump. Is it early? Sure, in some ways – but we’re less than 7 months from Election Day, closer than we are to when Trump first seized the national primary poll lead last summer, and by now everyone has a strong opinion about Trump. The cake is baked.”

    Oops– make that a strawberry shortcake.

    “There’s always the unexpected.” – Maj. Warden [Jack Hawkins] ‘Bridge On The River Kwai” 1957

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  665. I think that’s the thing that grinds the NeverTrumper’s gears more than anything. They were so prepared to tell the Trumpers, “We told you so. This is all your fault. Hillary is president because you wouldn’t listen to us. Will you finally admit you were wrong and start paying attention to those of us who know better?”

    But, then Trump proved them wrong and they just can’t get over it.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438)

  666. Huh-huh! Comey “proved them wrong” with the Hillary/Huma/Weiner email investigation eleven days before the election. Hillary had it in the bag for a fistful of pussy until then.

    And I think that’s when he went nuts. Poor Comey.

    nk (dbc370)

  667. Are you pitching bad Clint Eastwood porn-parody mr nk?

    Pinandpuller (c758b4)

  668. That domain name sounds suspect, but there’s nothing untoward on the linked page itself. I haven’t explored the rest of the site, so that’s on you if you go rummaging around.

    Anon Y. Mous (6cc438) — 4/29/2018 @ 9:41 pm

    It’s going to take a while to get through all the articles I bet. Did you find that URL in the woods?

    Pinandpuller (c758b4)

  669. Eugene McCarthy challenged LBJ, nearly beat him in New Hampshire, LBJ dropped out. Party spurned McCarthy and chose Humphrey. Humphrey lost.
    Reagan challenged Ford, came close to taking the nomination, Ford lost.
    Teddy Kennedy challenged Carter, came close to taking the nomination, Carter lost.
    Pat Buchanan challenged Poppy Bush, made a dent, but Bush sailed to renomination. Bush lost.

    I expect a challenger for Trump.

    Kevin M (752a26)

  670. 673. LBJ was a crook. Crooked as a dog’s hind leg.

    Gryph (08c844)

  671. Are you pitching bad Clint Eastwood porn-parody mr nk?

    I dunno if “pitching” is the best word but yes. Trump was going to lose the election For A Fistful Of Pussy and, after Stormy and Company, he stands to lose the reelection (if he even survives a full term) For A Few Vaginas More.

    nk (dbc370)

  672. 669 Puts all those Tea Party loses in perspective. Did they lose because they are extreme and can’t win in general elections like the GOPe tells us or did they lose because the GOPe turned on them? Trump proves conservative campaigns can win general elections. Here in Ohio we have Kasich saying the Republican Party left him, forcing him to run in 2020 as an independent? Ohio Republicans in the comment section had a slightly different take on that and where they wish John would go as well.

    I was in Vegas when Sharon Angle lost to Reid, she had flaws but Reid is a downright horrible human being. Corrupt as can be and terrible for the State and Country. Yet still GOPe rather have had Reid.

    “Some prominent Republicans[26] opposed her candidacy. Immediately after the primary, the Republican mayor of Reno, Bob Cashell, who backed Lowden in the Republican primary, endorsed Reid for the general election, calling Angle an “ultra-right winger”.[27][28] Other notable Republicans supporting Harry Reid included Sig Rogich, a former campaign staffer for Ronald Reagan and assistant to President George H. W. Bush;[27] Geno Martini, the Republican mayor of Sparks;[29] Republican State Senator and Minority Leader William Raggio;[30][31] Dema Guinn, the widow of Kenny Guinn, Republican Governor of Nevada;[32] and former Lieutenant Governor Sue Wagner.[33]”

    Nate Ogden (223c65)

  673. 647 If this is the cost of an extra couple years of life I think I’ll pass.

    Top 10 juice fast recipes for alcohol abuse and liver detox

    Carrot, beet juice. 4-5 carrots. …
    Carrot, beet juice+ 1 carrot. …
    Citrus blend. 1 small lemon. …
    Cabbage juice + 2 pears or 2 carrots. …
    Wheatgrass juice. You must purchase a special wheatgrass extractor (looks like a meat grinder) in order to correctly juice wheatgrass. …
    Super Green. …
    Fruit liver cleanse. …
    Carrot apple cleanser.

    Nate Ogden (223c65)

  674. Harry Reid was a “pragmatic conservative”. Pro-life, pro-RKBA, pro-law and order, who compromised on all those things to remain a Democrat and keep that casino money flowing into his pockets.

    nk (dbc370)

  675. LJ and Gryph, and anyone else new:

    Reading some of the comments here can wear on you after a while. Every so often, like now, I feel the need to resort to a script that allows me to read comments from sane people like yourselves without having to read absurd rationalizations for Donald Trump. If you get to the point where you think you might benefit from something like that, the instructions are on the right sidebar.

    I’m using it these days because I don’t like what I become when I read, for example, people seeing a quote from Donald Trump where he says x, where x is really bad, and people claim he said not x, or y. I feel the need to engage, and I get upset because the level of rationalization I encounter is often completely irrational.

    I can also give you my own personal blocklist. These people are allowed to comment here (well, actually, one of them has since been banned), but I don’t see what they write.

    You may not need it, but keep it in your back pocket.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  676. A clarification to a story we published online earlier:

    An Arizona publication was reporting Senator John McCain had been re-admitted to the hospital following an operation earlier this month for an intestinal infection.

    We have since heard from representatives from Senator McCain’s office.

    They tell us McCain has not been readmitted to the hospital, and that he continues to recover from the operation earlier in the month.

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  677. I encourage anyone new to read all the posts and comments, and get to know everyone. Using the blocklist is fine and can be helpful if time/stress is an issue — and who doesn’t have time/stress issues these days? However, I think the frustration with comments is something that impacts the oldtimers more, because we know each other and know how things have changed.

    DRJ (15874d)

  678. The difficult part, for me, is the consistent spamming of hateful commentary. So even if it is blocked, it is the first thing new commenters see. Thus, is it any wonder that there is more nastiness here than before? Personally, I would have no trouble filtering particular phrases that are used ad nauseum in practically every thread (regardless of topic). That’s not banning. And it might encourage more on-topic and less hypocritical posting.

    But Patterico does NOT ban indiscriminately. Even when trolls cover his site with vulgar and unkind graffiti.

    I have no solutions. But this used to be a place where I learned a great deal from other commenters, instead of shake my head.

    Fortunately, the posts by Patterico, Dana, and JVW are always worthwhile.

    Simon Jester (c8876d)

  679. First, let me express my sympathy for your “defenestration” at Redstates. Yes, I am a liberal drive-by troll who read your article in the LA Times editorial section. A conservative like you who is capable of finding fault with our Groper-in-Chief (and who hasn’t announced his retirement from the Senate) is a rare find indeed and deserves some notice. I just can’t let you get away with two comments you made in that article, however. To assert your conservative bonafides, you extolled our Liar-in-Chief’s judicial appointments and complained about his failure to destroy Obamacare and his increasing the deficit. You can’t possibly have been talking about Matthew Petersen, our Pussy-Grabber’s nomination for District of Columbia Circuit Court? You weren’t even slightly perturbed about his qualifications? Let’s move on. How can you as a thinking person possibly still get worked up about Obamacare??? It is a program which expanded Medicaid to the working poor and gave subsidies to assist the rest of the uninsured to afford health insurance coverage. It created convenient insurance exchanges where consumers could easily compare policies and eliminated certain insurance practices like barring coverage for pre-existing conditions. Obamacare benefited a relatively small number of Americans, those with no company insurance and unable to afford individual policies. It certainly wasn’t perfect but the fact that over 20 million Americans signed up for it shows that it is filling a need. Rabid opposition to Obamacare requires the same kind of “crazy” mindset that unequivocal support for for Mr. T requires. You and I at east agree on the increasing the deficit criticism. I was once a Republican. The first Democrat I ever voted for was Obama in 2008. Yes, I too once mouthed the cut taxes and reduce the national debt mantra. But the 2008 economic collapse, watching my retirement funds drop 45%, and seeing the Republicans in Congress dither over the need to bail out the economy opened up my eyes to the fact that no man, no matter how Republican, is immune to the slings and arrows of the “free market.” I grew a soul. Perhaps the shock of your summary booting from Redstates can serve a similar function for you. You would be so welcome… come on over to our side…

    Stuart M. (0f3054)

  680. 679. It’s hard to hold a conversation of any length in this commenting system. If you feel a need or even a desire to contact me outside of this blog, you have my Email address, right? I don’t really want to publish it openly here if I don’t have to, but there are other ways to contact me outside of Email as well.

    Gryph (08c844)

  681. 683. I’ve been reading Patterico for years, libwit. Don’t hold your breath.

    Gryph (08c844)

  682. You would be so welcome… come on over to our side…

    But do you have pie?

    random viking (6a54c2)

  683. Obamacare benefited a relatively small number of Americans, those with no company insurance and unable to afford individual policies. It certainly wasn’t perfect but the fact that over 20 million Americans signed up for it shows that it is filling a need.

    You conveniently leave out the impact on those “busting it”, to quote your own p-grabber in chief:

    “So you’ve got this crazy system where all of a sudden 25 million more people have health care and then the people who are out there busting it, sometimes 60 hours a week, wind up with their premiums doubled and their coverage cut in half. It’s the craziest thing in the world.”

    But you “grew a soul” and the rest of us didn’t.

    random viking (6a54c2)

  684. Start M,

    Patterico blogged about Matthew Petersen.

    DRJ (15874d)

  685. It is a program which expanded Medicaid to the working poor

    It should have stopped there. Period. Full stop. And every taxpayer would have stored treasure in Heaven for their charity.

    But it was never about people having health insurance. It was about the government being in charge of people’s health insurance.

    nk (dbc370)

  686. 683… I would absolutely love having my housing, food, clothing, healthcare , etc., funded by someone else. Gosh, how wunnerful that would be. No… wait… I don’t think I could live with myself knowing that was the case.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  687. Our esteemed host wrote:

    Ted Cruz came close to beating Trump, and between Ted Cruz and Rubio, they had more support.

    Close? Really?

    In Pennsylvania, which hadn’t been carried by a Republican since the elder George Bush in 1988, Mr Trump beat Mr Cruz 57% to 29%, with the odious John Kasich getting the remainder of the votes. Then the Keystone State turned around and surprised everyone — including me — by being carried by Mr Trump.

    If Mr Cruz ever had a chance to stop Mr Trump, he needed to win Pennsylvania . . . and he got stomped instead.

    Perhaps we simply disagree on the definition of ‘close.’

    The Dana no longer in Pennsylvania (044268)

  688. Our Windy City Barrister wrote:

    Which makes me rethink some things. Maybe the Presidents we’ve been electing lately haven’t so much degraded the institution of the Presidency as they have exemplified the mythical ideal: Anybody can grow up to be President.

    That’s what Hillary Clinton thought.

    Oh, wait, she thought she could not only grow up to be President, but that she was owed the damned office!

    Donald Trump was certainly different from previous presidential candidates, but it appears that those differences were what the public wanted. They were tired of politicians who routinely said one thing and did another — perhaps the criticism on this site of John McCain’s saving of Obaminablecare would constitute evidence of that? — and they believed that Mr Trump would do just what he said he would do.

    On immigration, he has. On judicial appointments, he has. In foreign affairs, he has, withdrawing from the Paris climate agreement, pulling out from TPP, demanding renegotiation of NAFTA, and the signs seem good — though failure is still possible — that North Korea will be brought to heel.

    He failed to get Obysmalcare repealed, and that was on him: he never presented the ‘tremendous’ replacement program he said he would. He campaigned on tax cuts, which he got passed, though he has been terrible on spending. Still, he pretty much told us that, too, with his unspecified one trillion infrastructure nonsense.

    Yes, he’s an [insert slang term for the rectum here], but I’d rather see an [insert slang term for the rectum here] as President if he can actually get good things done, than an oh-so-polite milquetoast.

    The realistic Dana (044268)

  689. Mair used the actual photos, hf. They weren’t photoshopped or manipulated. That is who Melania and Trump are, and you called it porn.

    DRJ (15874d)

  690. Yes, he’s an [insert slang term for the rectum here], but I’d rather see an [insert slang term for the rectum here] as President if he can actually get good things done, than an oh-so-polite milquetoast.

    The realistic Dana (044268) — 4/30/2018 @ 9:19 am

    True, if the world ends in 4 years and the choice is Hillary vs Anyone. But I hope the world continues on and I see More Trump Deals and More Trump Clones in our future. How is that good if, like me, you believe conservative values matter?

    DRJ (15874d)

  691. DRJ trashbag Liz Mair decided wives were fair game

    and all these years later people are only whining about the Ugly Heidi tweet but not about what Liz did

    This is because these people are deeply hippopotamus.

    happyfeet (28a91b)

  692. Stuart M, we’re not mad at Trump for being insufficiently Leftist, Statist, and power-grabby. So no, we won’t be voting for Leftist, Statist, power-grabby dirtbags like you vote for.

    John Hitchcock (e8a763)

  693. “It certainly wasn’t perfect but the fact that over 20 million Americans signed up for it shows that it is filling a need.”

    20 million people didn’t sign up because they needed it, they signed up because they were required to by law. Many signed up because they coverage they previously CHOSE to purchase was stripped from them. Many signed up because their employer stopped offering it.

    “It is a program which expanded Medicaid to the working poor and gave subsidies to assist the rest of the uninsured to afford health insurance coverage.”

    And dictated coverage to the 100+ million covered by employer policies
    And added burdensome reporting requirements
    And added taxes on top of existing expensive coverage
    And added the CLASS Act that Democrats had to repeal because it was so poorly conceived
    And cost millions their existing coverage
    And increased deductibles and out of pocket on tens of millions
    And wiped out choice in Carriers and drove dozens of carriers out of the market

    “eliminated certain insurance practices like barring coverage for pre-existing conditions.”

    So now instead of having to answer a couple questions and being able to buy an insurance policy, under the new law you can’t buy insurance at all, you have to wait till the first of the next year.

    Nate Ogden (223c65)

  694. For the record, I haven’t had health insurance for years. And that’s by choice. I choose not to spend 10k a year on a product that would force me to spend another 6k before benefiting me, when I spend less than 100 a year on it out of pocket.

    John Hitchcock (e8a763)

  695. DRJ wrote:

    Yes, he’s an [insert slang term for the rectum here], but I’d rather see an [insert slang term for the rectum here] as President if he can actually get good things done, than an oh-so-polite milquetoast. — The realistic Dana (044268) — 4/30/2018 @ 9:19 am

    True, if the world ends in 4 years and the choice is Hillary vs Anyone. But I hope the world continues on and I see More Trump Deals and More Trump Clones in our future. How is that good if, like me, you believe conservative values matter?

    Oh, I’d absolutely love to see a real conservative who can still win and get things done than an occasional conservative, who sometimes veers off into the leftist weeds, but either is better than a far-left liberal, semi-soft-socialist, or even a moderate-left squish.

    The one part of Mr Trump that does need to be cloned is the part where he fights, fights everybody, and still wins.

    The pugilist Dana (044268)

  696. 699. He fights, yes, but for what? I’m not interested in someone that fights for personal glory or ego. I want someone who will fight to restore the constitution and my God-given natural rights along with it. I’ve given up depending on politicians for that.

    Gryph (08c844)

  697. Dana, as long as Trump wins it will lead to Bigger Badder Trump or Bigger Badder Trump Clone. Both parties veer to the extremes until they lose or until pressure from supporters (e.g. meaningful criticism) pulls them back. I choose criticism over extremism or losing. What about you?

    DRJ (15874d)

  698. 679 Patterico,

    You may not need it, but keep it in your back pocket.

    Thanks for looking out for us! That’s kind of you 🙂

    LJ (9188cd)

  699. 701- yes, Trump is extremist. He’s extremist on taxes, extremist on immigration, extremist on foreign policy, extremist on the economy, extremist on regulations, extremist on everything. If you don’t believe me, just ask CNN.

    the Bas (3bcea0)

  700. I choose criticism over extremism or losing. What about you?

    You’ve spent the last 18 months criticizing Trump about almost everything you can think of. When is enough, enough? All you do is berate the guy personally and his supporters personally. That contributes nothing to political discourse unless you’re a leftist looking to unseat the president. I see nothing wrong with disagreeing with his policy on this or that. I do get tired of reading the same stale crap every day about how bad a person Trump is. One again, forget about the man concentrate on the mission or soon you’ll be wondering how we got a president Oprah or Biden. How nice will that be? Stop giving the enemy ammunition and support. We need you, not them.

    Rev.Hoagie (1b0402)

  701. Are you pitching bad Clint Eastwood porn-parody mr nk?

    I dunno if “pitching” is the best word but yes. Trump was going to lose the election For A Fistful Of Pussy and, after Stormy and Company, he stands to lose the reelection (if he even survives a full term) For A Few Vaginas More.

    nk (dbc370) — 4/30/2018 @ 5:25 am

    I think this might rehash hung/hanged but a guy who comes back from an ugly rug burn to do revenge porn: Hung High.

    Pinandpuller (903298)

  702. Bad Clint Eastwood porn: “The Dead Tool”

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  703. DRJ trashbag Liz Mair decided wives were fair game

    happyfeet (28a91b) — 4/30/2018 @ 10:13 am

    She wasn’t Whip Smart And He Slayed Her

    Pinandpuller (903298)

  704. DRJ wrote:

    Dana, as long as Trump wins it will lead to Bigger Badder Trump or Bigger Badder Trump Clone. Both parties veer to the extremes until they lose or until pressure from supporters (e.g. meaningful criticism) pulls them back. I choose criticism over extremism or losing. What about you?

    Politics, Professor Malcolm Jewell, at the time — the early 1970s — defined as the process of seeking governing power. Henry Clay once said, “I’d rather be right than President,” which was, of course, a lie, because he desperately wanted to be president.

    Your statement, that you “choose criticism over extremism or losing,” ignores the fact that the ‘extremist’ (not really, not in his politics, anyway) Donald Trump did not lose. The first thing that must be done to put your agenda into governing practice is to win elections, and it isn’t ideological purity that does that; elections are won by the more charismatic, the more forceful personality. That’s what Hillary Clinton found out, that, despite all her preparedness, regardless of all of her position papers, she was first defeated by a charismatic man whose entire program was the simplistic “hope and change,” and then by the most bombastic man ever in politics, who made promises that he really didn’t have much of a program on how to keep them.

    There has been no candidate, ever, with whom I have been in 100% agreement. Hell, there are times I even disagree with myself! But when it comes to politics, I understand that I am going to have to vote for someone who will be closer to my philosophy, and not ideologically pure.

    Winning isn’t everything; winning is the only thing.

    The Dana channeling Vince Lombardi. (044268)

  705. That’s a lot of one-liners but I’m having a problem seeing your point, unless it is that we shouldn’t question success. Come to think of it, that could be Trump’s motto.

    DRJ (15874d)

  706. Well, I can handle it

    the Bas (3bcea0)

  707. 704. As Patterico has so aptly pointed out time-and-again, if I dug up instances where I’ve praised good things Trump have done, you’d ignore them anyway. It’s what Trump supporters do. So enough of the “all you can do is criticize” bullhocky. Victimhood isn’t just for liberals anymore.

    Gryph (08c844)


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